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About Numbered Notation

All steps
  1. The numbers are the notes of a scale
  2. “1=C” tells you where to start
  3. Dots make a note higher or lower
  4. How long each note lasts
  5. 0 means rest
  6. Bar lines and the time signature
  7. Curves: ties and slurs
  8. The words sit under the numbers
  9. Repeat signs and 1. 2. endings
  10. Minor keys: “6=A”
  11. Put it together: a line of a hymn
  12. Check yourself
  13. Try it on a hymn

The numbers are the notes of a scale

Numbered notation (jianpu, 简谱) writes a melody as numbers instead of notes on a staff. You do not need to read music: take one small step at a time and press Play on any example to hear it while each number lights up. Sound only starts when you press Play.

Instead of notes on a staff, each note is a number from 1 to 7. They are the seven steps of the scale you already know: do re mi fa sol la ti. After 7 the scale starts again at 1.

The seven numbers with their names. Press Play and say each name as its number lights up.
Sing along: do re mi fa sol, and back down to do.

If you can sing do re mi, you can already sing every number from 1 to 7. Tap or click any number to hear just that note.

“1=C” tells you where to start

At the top left of the sheet you will see something like 1=C. It means the number 1 (do) is the note C, and every other number counts up from there. 1=G means do is G, so the whole tune sits a little higher. Nothing else changes: the same numbers make the same shape, only higher or lower.

1=C: do is C.
1=G: the same numbers, starting higher.

Not sure where C is? On a piano it is the white key just left of the two black keys. Or ignore the letter and start on any note that is comfortable for your voice: the tune only has to keep its shape. The − and + key buttons on a hymn page shift the key for you.

Dots make a note higher or lower

A dot above a number means one octave higher. A dot below means one octave lower. Two dots mean two octaves. No dot is the middle range, where most of a tune lives. The name stays the same; only the height changes.

The same number at three heights: dot below, no dot, dot above.
A tune that climbs: it starts on a low sol and ends on a high do.

How long each note lasts

Tap your foot at a steady pace: each tap is a beat. A plain number lasts one beat, so you sing a new number on every tap. Dashes, lines and dots change that.

A plain number is one beat

Four numbers, four beats: one number for each tap.

A dash holds the note longer

Each dash adds one beat. The 5 lasts two beats and the 3 lasts four.

A line underneath makes it shorter

One line is half a beat, so two underlined numbers share one beat. (Two lines are a quarter of a beat.)

A dot after makes it half as long again

A dot after a number adds half its length. The first 5 lasts a beat and a half, and the short 3 fills the rest of the second beat.

0 means rest

A 0 is silence for one beat. Keep counting and keep tapping, but do not sing. Dashes after a 0 make the silence longer, just as they hold a note longer.

Sing 1 3 5, stay quiet for one beat, then come back down. Rests light up too, so you can feel the pause.

Bar lines and the time signature

Tall lines cut the music into bars, each holding the same number of beats. The two small numbers at the start, like 4/4 or 3/4, say how many: 4/4 is four beats in every bar, 3/4 is three. The first beat of each bar is the strongest, so lean on it a little. A double line with a thick edge marks the end.

4/4: count 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4. The first beat of each bar sounds a little louder.
3/4: count 1 2 3, 1 2 3, the lilt of a waltz.

Curves: ties and slurs

A curve over numbers joins them. If it joins two of the same number, it is a tie: sing the note once and hold it for both. If it joins different numbers, it is a slur: sing them all on one syllable, gliding from one to the next.

A tie: the 5 is sung once and held across the bar line, six beats in all.
A slur: “Him” is sung on two notes, 3 then 2.

The words sit under the numbers

Each number gets one syllable, written right underneath it. A short dash after part of a word means the word carries on under the next number. If a number has nothing under it, it belongs to a curve or a dash: keep singing the syllable you are on.

Read left to right, one syllable for each number: Twin-kle, twin-kle, lit-tle star.

Repeat signs and 1. 2. endings

A bar line with two dots, :|, means go back and sing that part again, from the matching |: sign (or from the start if there is none). Sometimes the repeat has two endings. Sing ending 1. the first time; on the repeat, skip it and sing ending 2. instead.

Play it: you hear the 1. ending, the repeat, then the 2. ending. Watch the highlight jump back.

Minor keys: “6=A”

A song in a minor key, which usually sounds more serious or tender, is labeled like 6=A instead of 1=C. It means the number 6 (la) is the home note, here A. The numbers keep their usual names; the tune simply feels at home on 6 and often ends there. 6=A uses the same notes as 1=C.

It starts and ends on 6 (la), the home note. Listen to the darker colour.

Put it together: a line of a hymn

This is the first line of hymn 8, “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow”, written in numbered notation. Try the slow tempo first, and sing the words as each number lights up.

1=G in 4/4. Three silent beats, then “Praise” on beat 4. The dots under 7, 6 and 5 mean those notes dip one octave lower.

Check yourself

Four quick questions, with no score and no pressure. Tap an answer to see right away why it is right or wrong. You can always try another answer.

Tap the number that is held the longest.

Tap the 5 that is one octave higher than the first 5.

What does a 0 mean?

Under 1=G, which note is the number 1?

Try it on a hymn

You opened this from a hymn that has a Numbered view, so you can try it right now.

  1. Look at the top left of the sheet: the key, such as 1=D, and the time signature, such as 3/4.
  2. Find the first number and sing it. Then follow the numbers from left to right with the words underneath, one syllable for each number. Press Play in the player to hear the recording while you follow.
  3. Letters above the numbers (C, G7) are chords for a guitarist or pianist. Ignore them while you learn the tune.
  4. To be guided, open the Learn tab and press Play. Under Display, set Learn notation to Numbered (or choose Numbered on the Lead Sheet tab first). For hymns that have numbered lines, each line of numbers scrolls into view in time with the recording while a bouncing ball follows the words; other hymns show the piano notation there. The Speed menu slows it down.

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We have found the Christ who’s all in all

Experience of Christ Enjoying Him

English1153
1
We have found the Christ who’s all in all;
He is everything to us;
O how blest upon His name to call,
How divine, how glorious!
 
It is joy unspeakable and full of glory,
Full of glory, full of glory;
It is joy unspeakable and full of glory,
And the half has never yet been told!
2
We have found that Christ the Spirit is
Who within our spirit dwells;
How available, how near He is,
And His sweetness all excels.
3
We have found the way to live by Christ—
Pray His Word and call His name!
This—the eating, drinking—has sufficed
And its worth we now proclaim.
4
We have found the local church, our home;
We are home and home indeed!
Nevermore in Babylon we roam;
In the church is all we need.
5
We have found that meeting with the saints
Is the greatest joy on earth;
’Tis by this our spirit never faints
And our lives are filled with worth.

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Eric Zhang

San Diego, CA, United States

Oct 11, 2026

Oh Lord how full of glory and joy you are!

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Un Hermano

Feb 13, 2026

a. The Spirit

---------------

Second Corinthians 3:17 says, “The Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. ” This verse tells us first that the Lord is the Spirit; this proves that the Lord and the Spirit are one. Yet the verse goes on to speak of the Spirit of the Lord; this seems to show that the Spirit and the Lord are two. The expression the Spirit of the Lord, however, indicates that the Spirit and the Lord are in apposition to each other. This shows that the Spirit is the Lord and the Lord is the Spirit and that the Spirit and the Lord are one. The Spirit of the Lord is actually one with the Lord.

(1) The Lord
Being the Spirit
-----------------

According to the context of 2 Corinthians 3:17 , the Lord here must refer to Christ the Lord (2:12 , 14-15 , 17 ; 3:3-4 , 14 , 16 ; 4:5). This then is a strong word in the Bible telling us emphatically that Christ is the Spirit. “The Lord Christ of v. 16 is the Spirit who pervades and animates the new covenant of which we are ministers (v. 6), and the ministration of which is with glory (v. 8). Compare Rom. 8:9-11 ; John 14:16 , 18 ” (Vincent). “The Lord of verse 16 , is the Spirit…which giveth life, v. 6 : meaning, ‘the Lord, ’ as here spoken of, ‘Christ, ’ ‘is the Spirit, ’ is identical with the Holy Spirit…Christ, here, is the Spirit of Christ” (Alford). “All that transforming and indwelling Spirit is Christ Himself. ‘The Lord is the Spirit’” (Williston Walker).

The Conclusion of the
New Testament:
Experiencing, Enjoying,
and Expressing Christ,
Message 316 (LSM)

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Maria L

Fremont, California, United States

Aug 18, 2025

Praise the Lord! We have found the Christ who’s all in all; He is everything to us. He is always available and sweet. Our Intimacy with Christ is Not a distant Savior, but One who lives within. His nearness is more satisfying than anything else.

Psalm 133:1 
Behold,  how good and how pleasant it is
For brothers to dwell in unity!

Hallelujah! Meeting with the saints is greatest joy on earth. It is Unspeakable Joy and full of Glory. We can truly enjoy the abundant life of Christ through the saints that caused us to encourage and strengthen one another. Praise the Lord 😀

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Catherine C

London, United Kingdom

Jun 16, 2024

We have found the Christ who’s all in all;
He is everything to us;
O how blest upon His name to call,
How divine, how glorious!

Read more
Holly Williams

Mebane, NC, United States

Jun 10, 2024

It has always impressed me that the half has never yet been told. How can this be? When we're abiding in the Lord and taking Him as our food and drink, even as our breath, together with the members of His body, there is a joy so full that it consumes us, saturates us and overflows from us. It transcends all understanding and is unspeakable. No words can sufficiently describe it. And this joy unspeakable is less than half? There's more? The half has never yet been told? Oh hallelujah! Praise the Lord for joy unspeakable! Praise Him for such a hope! How glorious this hope for us. Lord, we yearn for the day we experience the full revelation of unspeakable joy and glory and all the riches of You! Praise you Lord Jesus.

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Maria Levi

Los Angeles, United States

Mar 4, 2024

Oh what a joy & full of glory, that I have found Christ as my all in all & everything to me! How divine & glorious to call on His name continually!

I have found that Christ as the Spirit who dwells in my spirit, is so available, near & sweet constantly!

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William Ong

Manila, NCR, Philippines

Feb 24, 2024

Praise the Lord! It's so joyful to sing this hymn, especially when we sing it together with all the saints in the meeting.

Our Lord is the Lord of joy, He wants His joy to be in us, and that our joy may be made full.

It is joy unspeakable and full of glory, and the half has never yet been told!

Saints, let us all together run the race with unspeakable joy and full of glory until we reach the goal (the half that has never yet been told), which is our growth in life unto maturity, to be His bride, to consummate the New Jerusalem.

Here our joy will not only be full, but we with God will have joy to the fullest. Amen!

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Jim Smith

Mansfield, Ohio, United States

Dec 4, 2023

We have found the Christ who is all in all! I sang this song in the 70’s and I can testify that the half can not be fancied. No matter what Christ we gain in this life, it is only a foretaste of His glory divine. The totality of Christ is unspeakable!!

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Ayanda Ndlovu

Bulawayo, Zimbabwe

Jun 21, 2023

Oh the unsearchable riches of Christ! In them we find joy that is unspeakable and full of glory! And that's not the end, the half has never yet been told! Amen

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Linda Maria

Blantyre, Manja, Malawi

Apr 21, 2023

We have found the way to live by chirist

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