Edited by Azizi Powell
This is Part I of a two part pancocojams series about the early 20th century United States Southern Gospel song "Keep On The Firing Line".
This post presents information about and lyrics for That early 20th century religious song is credited to Bessie F. Hatcher (sometimes listed as Thatcher) or to Otis Leon McCoy. Both of these composers of religious music were White Americans.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/02/early-20th-century-gospel-song-keep-on_19.html for Part II of this series. That post showcases eight YouTube videos of "Keep On The Firing Line" from choirs, choral groups, and/or congregations in Canada, the United States (two videos), Jamaica, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, the Bahamas, and the Philippines. These videos are presented in chronological order with the oldest published video given first.
Notice the differences in the tune and tempo for these renditions of this song.
The content of this post is presented for religious and socio-cultural purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
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INFORMATION ABOUT AND LYRICS FOR THE SOUTHERN GOSPEL SONG "KEEP ON THE FIRING LINE"
These online sources are given in no particular order.
Online Source #1
[The writer of this online article credits Bessie F. Hatcher as the composer of this song. She is usually credited as the composer.]
September 26, 2021,
KEEP ON THE FIRING LINE
"It seems to me that today the Church generally does not like to talk about anything involving war. Our sermons, our music and our actions generally fail to portray the truth that we are engaged in a serious spiritual battle with Satan. Often they don't seem to recognize the enemy, nor the need to fight him. Yet he has been attacking our beliefs, our way of life. our religious liberties and especially our families like never before. 1 Peter 5:8 warns us, "Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour."
In Ephesians 6:11-12 we are told to "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." This is a battle which we must take seriously.
In 1915 Bessie F. Hatcher penned a song which is a powerful reminder to believers that we must take our place in this battle. We must stay on the firing line and be brave and fight against all evil that would come against us. And we don't need to look too hard to see these attacks today. They are more evident than ever. We must be consistent in our walk with God and we must "never run, nor even lag behind" in this battle.
And we need not fear, the victory is the Lord's. He gives us the whole armor of God which we need to claim daily to fight this spiritual battle. In Romans .8:37-39 we are told "In all these things, we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the Love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord".
Now I admit that at times today as we view what is happening in our country and in our culture it does become easy to get discouraged. It is easy to think that maybe Satan is winning. But He isn't. Remember the scriptures quoted above. God is in control. The victory is His. We are to keep our trust in Him and just "keep on the firing line."
1. If you're in the battle for the Lord and right,
Keep on the firing line;
If you win, my brother, surely you must fight,
Keep on the firing line;
There are many dangers that we all must face,
If we die still fighting it is no disgrace;
Cowards in the service will not find a place,
So keep on the firing line.
Refrain:
Oh, you must fight, be brave against all evil,
Never run, nor even lag behind;
If you would win for God and the right,
Just keep on the firing line.
2. God will only use the soldier He can trust,
Keep on the firing line;
If you'll wear a crown then bear the cross you must,
Keep on the firing line.
Life is but to labor for the Master dear,
Help to banish evil and to spread good cheer;
Great you'll be rewarded for your service here,
So keep on the firing line.
Refrain:
Oh, you must fight, be brave against all evil,
Never run, nor even lag behind;
If you would win for God and the right,
Just keep on the firing line.
3. When we get to heaven, brother, we'll be glad,
Keep on the firing line;
How we'll praise the Savior for the call we had,
Keep on the firing line;
When we see the souls that we have helped to win,
Leading them to Jesus, from the paths of sin,
With a shout of welcome, we will all march in,
So keep on the firing line.
Refrain:
Oh, you must fight, be brave against all evil,
Never run, nor even lag behind;
If you would win for God and the right,
Just keep on the firing line."
-snip-
[This article ends with a link to a song file for this song.]
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Online Information #2
https://hymnary.org/person/Hatcher_Bessie
"Bessie F. Hatcher
Short Name: Bessie F. Hatcher
Full Name: Hatcher, Bessie F.
Birth Year (est.): 1860
Death Year: 1960
Bessie Frances Simmons Hatcher was apparently an actress who got converted and called to preach. She was a minister in the Pilgrim Holiness Church in the Pennsylvania/New Jersey district, although she did pastor Free Methodist and Wesleyan Methodist congregations at some point.
Her most famous songs were "Keep on the Firing Line", "I Would Not Want to Miss It", and "Let Me Burn Out for Thee", in addition to "He Will Not Fail Me Now". She married William Hatcher. She was born March 29 1880 and passed in June 1960 in Ocean County New Jersey. Old newspaper accounts allude to her conversion story, but so far have found no accounts of it. The district journal of 1961 called her "an old warrior of the Cross"."
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Online Information #3
AI Overview
"Based on the available, though limited, biographical information, Bessie F. Hatcher (sometimes listed as Thatcher in, or in connection to, religious hymnals) is associated with the Southern Gospel and Christian hymn tradition in the United States.
Nationality: American (associated with the Southern Gospel style and specific, often rural, American Christian music collections).
Context: She is sometimes credited with the lyrics to the popular Southern Gospel song "Keep on the Firing Line".
Details: Some sources note that the copyright status of her version of the song is uncertain, and it is sometimes confused or contrasted with the version by Otis L. McCoy, who is also widely credited with the song.
Note: Searches indicate that Bessie F. Hatcher (or Thatcher) is distinct from the British lyricist Betty Thatcher (1944–2011) or other historical figures named Bessie Gray."
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Online information #4
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otis_Leon_McCoy
"Otis Leon McCoy (February 17, 1897 – March 27, 1995) was an American gospel singer-songwriter and music teacher. He was the president of Tennessee Music and Printing, the publishing company of the Church of God, and he wrote hundreds of Southern gospel hymns.
[….]
Career
McCoy was a singer-songwriter of Southern gospel. From 1923 to the 1930s, McCoy was a member of the Vaughan Radio Quartet, a band whose members included Adger M. Pace, William Burton Walbert and Hilman Barnard.[5] In 1942, McCoy joined the Homeland Harmony Quartet, whose members included James McCoy, B. C. Robinson, and Connor Brandon Hall.[2] Over the course of his career, McCoy wrote hundreds of Southern gospel hymns, including Keep On The Firing Line and Heaven Bound Train.[3]
McCoy worked for the James D. Vaughan Publishing Company in Lawrenceburg.[6] In 1931, he became the founding president of Tennessee Music and Printing, the publishing company of the Church of God in Cleveland, Tennessee.[6] He served again as its president from 1934 to 1945, 1947 to 1952, and 1958 to 1961.[3]
Death and legacy
McCoy died in 1995.[3] He was inducted into the Southern Gospel Museum and Hall of Fame in 2003.[7]"...
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This concludes Part I of this two part pancocojams series.
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