Enjoy this short video as one man, from the comfort of his couch, applies his unique perspective to the singing of the classic hymn “Jesus Shall Reign.”
The message of the hymn is eternal and unchanging; however, the rendering of the song may be as individual as the person sharing it!
Here are the first four lines of “Jesus Shall Reign.”
Jesus shall reign where'er the sun
does its successive journeys run,
his kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
till moons shall wax and wane no more.
The song dates all the way back to the early 1700’s, and it has likely been sung in countless ways. Here, “Workman Song” is the artist, and his version is unpretentious, folksy, and simply beautiful!
Workman Song, (a.k.a. Sean McMahon) plays an acoustic guitar as he sings. He looks directly at the camera briefly at the start of the video, and he then begins without introduction or production.
Sean may be reading the lyrics, but he seems to understand and embrace the message that he’s delivering! We catch a smile on certain lyrics as it peeks out from under his mustache, seemingly reflecting the joy the words convey!
Viewers might notice the home’s decor and momentarily speculate about the artist—whether he’s an outdoorsman or a collector, but it is the song, delivered with serenity and sincerity that is impossible to ignore!
Sean ends with a lovely 15-second guitar solo, and you might notice the cross tattoo on his left pinky finger. When his song is finished, he looks up and gives the audience an unassuming silent farewell.
While the video doesn’t seem like a performance at all, Sean and his wife, Siren Mayhew, are both musicians. They did regular facebook concerts when the COVID-19 pandemic kept so many people at home, during which viewers got a taste of the incredible range and diversity of Sean’s talent.
It’s wonderful that today’s artists of faith reimagine special hymns from long, long ago. Thank you, Sean McMahon, for doing that with “Jesus Shall Reign.” If you’d like to hear a more traditional performance of the hymn, take a listen to this one posted by TheHymnClub.
“The Lord reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the Lord.” Psalm 146:10