As the author of both words and music, N. B. Herrell said, “At the time the song was written, we lived at Olivet, Illinois. I was pastoring a church at Georgetown, a nearby village. It was in the year 1916. Those were difficult and heartbreaking days. We had just suffered the loss of our 5-year-old son. While we were traversing this valley of sorrow, the song was born.”

The hymn is based on Mark 15:37, 38, and a similar passage in Matthew 27:50, 51. When an unseen hand tore in two the veil separating the Most Holy Place from the holy in the Jewish Temple, it signified that the way was forever opened to all who would enter into the presence of God through the merits of the shed blood of Christ. First published by the Nazarenes, the hymn became a favorite of many denominations.

N. B. Herrell (1879–1954) was born in Miami, Indiana, and served as pastor, evangelist, and district superintendent for many years. Among the churches he pastored was the Nazarene church at Arlington, Virginia.