1 Long did I toil, and knew no earthly rest,
Far did I rove, and found no certain home;
At last I sought them in His sheltering breast,
Who opes His arms, and bids the weary come:
With Him I found a home, a rest divine,
And since then I am His, and He is mine.
2 The good I have is from His stores supplied,
The ill is only what He deems the best;
He for my Friend, I’m rich with naught beside,
And poor without Him, though of all possessed:
Changes may come, I take, or I resign,
Content, while I am His, while He is mine.
3 Whate’er may change, in Him no change is seen,
A glorious sun that wanes not nor declines,
Above the clouds and storms He walks serene,
And on His people’s inward darkness shines:
All may depart, I fret not, nor repine,
While I my Savior’s am, while He is mine.
4 While here, alas! I know but half His love,
But half discern Him, and but half adore;
But when I meet Him in the realms above,
I hope to love Him better, praise Him more,
And feel, and tell, amid the choir divine,
How fully I am His, and He is mine.
Source: The Lutheran Hymnary #396
First Line: | Long did I toil and knew no earthly rest |
Author: | Henry Francis Lyte |
Language: | English |
Copyright: | Public Domain |
Long did I toil and know no earthly rest. H. F. Lyte. [Peace in Jesus.] Appeared in his Poems chiefly Religious, 1833, p. 76, in 6 stanzas of 6 lines. It combines unwavering confidence with plaintive sweetness, and is one of his most touching efforts. Its use is extensive; but usually two or more stanzas are omitted. Original text in Lyra Britannica, 1867, p. 377.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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