1. Text

Perhaps the earliest version was written by Joseph Addison in an essay appearing in The Spectator on 8 March 1711. It says: ^[1]

When I lay me down to Sleep,
I recommend my self to his Care;
when I awake, I give my self up to his Direction.

A later version printed in The New England Primer goes:

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my Soul to keep[;]
If I should die before I 'wake,
I pray the Lord my Soul to take.^[2]

2. Other Versions

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray thee, Lord, my soul to keep;
If I should die before I wake,
I pray thee, Lord, my soul to take.
If I should live for other days,
I pray thee, Lord, to guide my ways.
Amen.

Now
I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
His Love to guard me through the night,
And wake me in the morning's light amen.^[3]

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
May the angels watch me through the night,
and keep me in their blessed sight.
Amen.

This can be edited:

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
Please angels watch me through the night,
And keep me safe till morning light.^[3]

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
Angels watch me through the night,
And wake me with the morning light.
Amen^[4]

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
If I shall die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take,
All the angels watching over me.
Amen.

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
Guide me safely through the night,
And wake me with the morning light.
Amen.

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep:
Watch and guard me through the night,
Until You bring the morning light.
Amen.

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
When in the morning light I wake,
Show me the path of love to take.
Amen.

(Additional third verse)
If I should live another day,
I pray the Lord to guide my way.
Amen.

Now I lay me down to sleep,
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
For if I die before I wake,
That's one less test I have to take. [Parodic]

It is sometimes combined with the "Black Paternoster", one version of which goes:

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John,
Bless the bed that I lie on.
Four corners to my bed,
Four angels round my head;
One to watch and one to pray
And two to bear my soul away.^[5]

3. In Popular Culture

• The Doors performed a part of this prayer live in New York in 1970 as an added verse to their song "Soul Kitchen".
• In James O'Barr's most famous comic "The Crow", the main character Eric Draven recites the prayer during the fight against Tom Tom.
• The prayer is used in the bridge of Metallica's hit "Enter Sandman" from their 1991 eponymous album, with James switching to a deep ghost voice and saying the lines.
• Circle of Dust used an edited version of this prayer in the song "Prayers of a Dad Man" from their 1994 album of Brainchild.
• It was used in the opening lines of Megadeth's 1991 song "Go to Hell" from the soundtrack to the 1991 film Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey.
• In "Murder Was the Case", a song from his debut album Doggystyle, Snoop Dogg included a verse with this prayer.
• In Notorious B.I.G. song called "Ready to Die" this prayer can be heard.
• American singer-songwriter, Halsey, used this prayer in the opening lines of the song "Nightmare".^[6]
• Rapper and songwriter 21 Savage used the later version of the poem in the opening track, "Lord Forgive", of his album Slaughter King.
• Rapper and songwriter XXXTentacion used the poem in his song "before I close my eyes", from his album ?.
• The musical, Carrie had the poem featured in the middle of the song “Evening Prayers”.
• In A Nightmare on Elm Street, the poem is recited by the main character before confronting Freddy.
• In A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: Dream Master, a rhyme based on this prayer was used to defeat Freddy
• American metalcore band Ice Nine Kills use another version of this rhyme in the bridge of their song "Communion of the Cursed", on the album Every Trick In The Book.
• Rapper Calboy also used this rhyme in the beginning of his song "Envy Me".
• American rapper Kid Cudi features the latter two lines of the rhyme repeatedly in the hook to his song "The Prayer," on his debut mixtape A Kid Named Cudi.
• The prayer is also mentioned in Margaret Atwood’s novel The Testaments.
• The WWE used some lines of the prayer for the entrance theme of The Undertaker in 2000.
• The phrase "I pray the Lord my soul to keep" appears in Bob Dylan's song "Roll on John" from the album Tempest.
• "If I die before I wake" is followed by the line "at least in heaven I can skate" in the 2000 top 40 song "Heaven Is a Halfpipe" by OPM
• In the "Fathers and Sons" episode of the TV series Blue Bloods the prayer is used.
• "Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep" was inscribed on the headstone of Amber Rene Hagerman in 1996 after her death.
• Keith & Kristyn Getty used the first two lines of the poem in the first verse of "Evensong".
• In an episode of the TV series M*A*S*H, Father Mulcahey recites a common children's parody of the prayer: "Now I lay me down to sleep / A bag of peanuts at my feet / If I should die before I wake / Give them to my Uncle Jake".