Cover Us (Hymns & Songs)

(Over the years I've written - and continue to write - songs and retuned older hymns for church worship. I'm occasionally posting those songs here. If you're using them in a church worship setting, go for it, just please give credit and let me know.)


One of my struggles with the texts of many modern worship songs is that they name true things but fail to explore them. It is one thing to say that God is love or grace or holy or whatever but another thing entirely to explore that love or holiness in a sustained way. This is my attempt to do that on the theme of Jesus Christ as our covering and substitute.



Cover Us 
Words and Music: Eric Tonjes

Our sins, they are like scarlet
Our throats are open graves
We are proud and we are heartless
We have often gone astray
But the anger of the heavens
At the cross is satisfied
And when the accuser threatens
In Your righteousness we hide

Chorus:
And we sing
Cover us with your love
Cover us, gracious God

The kings of men are howling
For violence and for power
The evil one is prowling
Seeking whom he may devour
But you say, “All who shelter in me
Forever I'll protect
Though hell rides forth in fury
It can't touch the Lord's elect

Bridge:
(Cover us) Worthy is the lamb
(Cover us) The lamb who has been slain
(Cover us) For He has borne our sin
(Cover us) And given us His name
(Cover us) Worthy is the lamb
(Cover us) The lamb who has been slain
(Cover us) For in His crimson tide
(Cover us) He's washed away our stains

When death wings like an angel
To bid us life depart
Put your blood upon our mantle
Set your seal upon our hearts
The Lamb our absolution
And the Spirit as our sign
Leave the grave but transformation
Of the mortal into life

Download Chord Chart