Song chords
House of the Lord chords
Phil Wickham
A fast four-chord celebration song recorded in Bb, which is why practically every guitar chart puts a capo at the third fret and plays it out of G. The verse holds the tonic for a full two bars before the other three chords answer it.
Before you start
The chords you need.
4 shapes covers the whole song, fretted with the capo at fret 3. Tap any diagram’s play button to hear it, or open its page for every voicing on six instruments.
The chart
Section by section.
Capo 3 with G shapes: the G sounds as Bb, C as Eb, D as F and Em as Gm. Between sections the band parks on two bars of the tonic — that turnaround is the only place the song stops moving. Hit play on any section to hear it walk through at 86 bpm.
Verse
6 barsTwo bars of tonic, then Em–D–C answers it.
Shapes as fretted with the capo on — the names above are what you grab, not what you hear.
Chorus
4 barsA I–V–IV rock that pushes back to the tonic every two bars.
Shapes as fretted with the capo on — the names above are what you grab, not what you hear.
Need it in a different key, or without the capo? Run it through the transposer — move every chord by the same interval and the song is unchanged.
Playing it
What actually trips people up.
At 86 bpm the Em–D–C run that closes each verse line comes up fast. Drill those three changes as a single motion before you add the strumming.
The chart above is the commonly played arrangement — the version a competent player would hand you, not a bar-for-bar transcription of a specific master. Section labels are there to orient you; live and studio versions repeat, extend and drop sections freely, and none of that changes which chords you need.
About this page
Chord names and song structure are facts; for lyrics and official notation, support the artist. This page carries no lyrics on purpose — House of the Lord was written and recorded by Phil Wickham, and the words belong to them. What you get here is the harmony: the key, the capo, the tempo, and which chord goes where.
Next
Songs that sit near this one.
FAQ
Questions people actually ask.
What key is House of the Lord in?
House of the Lord sounds in Bb Major. The common arrangement gets there with a capo at fret 3 and G Major shapes, which is why the chords written here are G Major chords rather than Bb Major ones.
Do I need a capo for House of the Lord?
Yes for the standard arrangement: capo 3. Without it you would be playing Bb Major shapes, which needs barre chords. With the capo on, the shapes are G Major — much friendlier under the hand.
What chords are in House of the Lord?
G, Em, D and C — 4 chords across 2 sections. Capo 3 with G shapes: the G sounds as Bb, C as Eb, D as F and Em as Gm. Between sections the band parks on two bars of the tonic — that turnaround is the only place the song stops moving.
What is the easiest way to play House of the Lord?
Beginner overall. At 86 bpm the Em–D–C run that closes each verse line comes up fast. Drill those three changes as a single motion before you add the strumming.
How fast is House of the Lord?
About 86 bpm. Every section on this page plays back at that tempo, so you can hear how long each chord is meant to be held before you try it yourself.
Can I play House of the Lord in a different key?
Yes — the progression is the song, not the letters. Move every chord by the same number of semitones and it still works. The transposer will do the arithmetic, or you can move the capo and keep these shapes.