Was Johnny Cash the perfect representation of a Christian? Nope. But are any of us?
The country music legend was raised in a Christian family, and stories and anecdotes from his youth reveal that his mother, Carrie, had a big impact on his relationship with God. However, it’s believed that as fame and fortune crept into his life, Cash cast aside his faith.
It was only when he hit rock bottom (his heavy drug use is well documented) that the Man in Black started to align himself with religion once more. There’s a point in his career where you can see that Johnny Cash started prioritizing his faith, and became much more open about his Christian beliefs. One could even argue that he began dedicating his life to spreading the Word through music and whatever other platform he could find later in life. His faith was also especially prevalent in his Gospel records, as well as the American Recordings, including Kris Kristofferson’s “Why Me Lord,” and many more songs about his spiritual struggle.
Thus, Christianity is a part of Johnny Cash’s story, and because it’s always cool to get some insight into how artists operate, these images of handwritten Bible notes from the “Ring of Fire” singer that are now getting some attention online. It appears that Johnny preferred to work through the Good Book by jotting down certain verses and labeling them.
As you can see in this handwritten note titled “What Jesus Said About” that was shared by Johnny Cash’s official Facebook page:
There’s plenty of scripture to dive into there if you wanted to embark on a “Johnny Cash Bible Study.” I went ahead and transcribed some of the lessons that the country legend took away from reading through the book of Matthew:
-Charity (Matthew 5:42): “Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.”
-Prayer (Matthew 6:7): “And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.”
-Forgiveness (Matthew 6:14): “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.”
And in a more recent social media post, another one of those handwritten pages was revealed. This time around, it appears that Johnny Cash was working through the books of Mark, Luke and John:
Johnny Cash’s handwritten notes regarding the Lord Jesus. pic.twitter.com/k1MJ6mEnvd
— VintageCountryMusic (@realcountry1953) March 11, 2025
Again, I went ahead and wrote out some of the teachings that stood out as noteworthy to Cash:
-Wealth (Mark 8:36): “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?”
-Pride (Luke 14:11): “For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
-Miracles (Luke 18:27): “Jesus replied, ‘What is impossible with man is possible with God.'”
All in all, it’s cool to get a peak into the redemptive part of Johnny Cash’s life. He always saw himself as a believer. That’s evident through his gospel albums like Hymns by Johnny Cash and The Holy Land. But it appears that he really turned a corner at one point and dove into the word, and now we all get to see what stood out to him.
And if all the religion talk has got you in the hymnal mood, here’s some of Johnny’s best gospel recordings:
“The Old Rugged Cross”
“I Talk To Jesus Everyday”
“The Ten Commandments”
