O That I Were an Angel - words and music by Betsy Lee Bailey
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart;
That I might go forth to speak with the trump of God,
With a voice to shake the whole earth;
With a voice to cry repentance to every people, every people.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
But behold this cannot be, I do sin in my wish (or "But behold I am a man, and do sin in my wish")
For I ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me.
For I know that our God is a just God
That He granteth unto men according to their desires.
Yea, I know that good and evil hath come before all men
And he that knoweth not the good from the evil is blameless.
But he that knoweth good from evil to him is granted his desires
Whether they be good or evil, life or death, joy or sorrow.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart;
That I might go forth to speak with the trump of God,
With a voice to shake the whole earth;
With a voice to cry repentance to every people.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, I glory in it
That perhaps I might be an instrument, an instrument in the hands of God
To bring some soul unto Him.
This is my joy.
This is my joy: to bring some soul unto Him.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart;
That I might go forth to speak with the trump of God,
With a voice to shake the whole earth;
With a voice to cry repentance to every people, every people.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
O, that I were an angel!
O, that I were an angel!
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart!
Text based on the words of the prophet Alma (Alma 29: 1-9)
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart;
That I might go forth to speak with the trump of God,
With a voice to shake the whole earth;
With a voice to cry repentance to every people, every people.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
But behold this cannot be, I do sin in my wish (or "But behold I am a man, and do sin in my wish")
For I ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me.
For I know that our God is a just God
That He granteth unto men according to their desires.
Yea, I know that good and evil hath come before all men
And he that knoweth not the good from the evil is blameless.
But he that knoweth good from evil to him is granted his desires
Whether they be good or evil, life or death, joy or sorrow.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart;
That I might go forth to speak with the trump of God,
With a voice to shake the whole earth;
With a voice to cry repentance to every people.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, I glory in it
That perhaps I might be an instrument, an instrument in the hands of God
To bring some soul unto Him.
This is my joy.
This is my joy: to bring some soul unto Him.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart;
That I might go forth to speak with the trump of God,
With a voice to shake the whole earth;
With a voice to cry repentance to every people, every people.
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart.
O, that I were an angel!
O, that I were an angel!
O, that I were an angel
That I might have the wish of mine heart!
Text based on the words of the prophet Alma (Alma 29: 1-9)
About the Song - Over the years, I have taught many vocal students. One of these was a young tenor who got a mission call to Thailand while he was taking lessons from me. I decided to write this piece for him to sing for his Mission Farewell. He really did the song justice with his heroic tenor voice.