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This hymn is one of the oldest hymns still sung. Traditionally in the Greek church, the celebration of Christ's resurrection began at the stroke of midnight on Easter Sunday, with the lighting of candles, jubilant greetings, and the singing of this hymn. It was as if the Church could not contain her joy any longer than she had to after the sorrowful contemplation of sin and its consequent suffering through Lent and Holy Week. The text bubbles over with “joy that hath no end” in the victory that Jesus Christ won over sin and death through His resurrection.

In “The Story Told,” which is part two of the poem “The Old, Old Story” from which this hymn is taken, Katherine Hankey briefly summarizes the whole story of the Bible, from the Fall in Genesis 3 to Christ's birth, death, and resurrection to the “scenes of glory” in Revelation. This hymn is a good reminder that the story of God and His people throughout the ages should be a focus of Christians. When we speak to others of the gospel, we must tell them “the old, old story of Jesus and His love.”

This is one of the best-known African American spirituals in Christian history. Its source is the oral tradition of African Americans, but the concerts of the Fisk Jubilee Singers (PHH 476) and the Hampton Singers brought "Swing Low" to the attention of white audiences. J. B. T. Marsh includes an early version of text and tune in his The Story of the Jubilee Singers, with their Songs (1876 ed.).

According to an edition of the British Weekly, in the late summer of 1847, after preaching his final sermon, knowing his time on earth was drawing to a close, Henry Francis Lyte “walked in the valley garden in front of the home, then down to the rocks, where he sat and composed. It was a lovely sunny day and the sun was setting over distant Dartmoor in a blaze of glory. On the left lay Brixham harbor like a pool of molten gold, with its picturesque trawling vessels lying peacefully at anchor. After the sun had set, Lyte returned to his study.