Oh, thus be it ever when free men shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation
Blessed with vict'ry and peace, may the heaven rescued land
Praise the Power that has made and preserved a fair nation
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just
And this be our motto, "In God Is Our Trust"
And the Star Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave
I hope I got all the words right; I'm writing from memory. I heard this for the first time back in 1976. We were living in Tallahassee while SSQ was in grad school. At that time, TV stations went off the air late at night, and always closed with the Star Spangled Banner. This rendition was ONLY the third verse, and it was sung by a woman playing an acoustic guitar, with another woman singing harmony on the last verse. Very affecting.
They are marvelous texts, IMO, and should be learned by every American child.