“I’ve been to the mountaintop” (MLK)

We’ve got some difficult days ahead.   But it doesn’t really matter with me now.   Because I’ve been to the mountaintop.

I don’t mind. Like anybody, I would like to live – a long life; longevity has its place.   But I’m not concerned about that now.    I just want to do God’s will.   And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain.

And I’ve looked over.   And I’ve seen the Promised Land.    I may not get there with you.   But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land.    So I’m happy, tonight. I’m not worried about anything.    I’m not fearing any man.    Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord   [Emphasis added].

• Dr.  Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929 – 1968)
• From his April 3. 1968 speech, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop”.    The last words of his speech (above) ended with a line from a timeless hymn, “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”.
• Spoken in a prophetic speech King gave . . . just 1 day before his assassination.
• The speech was delivered in a Memphis church –  just 2 miles from the motel where he was fatally shot on April 4th.     Want more information?     Check out an NPR Program: “Remembering MLK’s Prophetic ‘Mountaintop’ Speech”.

Photo Credit:  Digital Collections, UIC Library/Flickr – CC