1 Though sorrows rise and dangers roll,
In waves of darkness o’er my soul;
Though friends are false, and love decays,
And few and evil are my days;
Though conscience, fiercest of my foes,
Swells with remembered guilt my woes;
Yet ev’n in nature’s utmost ill,
I love thee, Lord, I love thee still!
2 Though Sinai’s curse, in thunder dread,
Peals o’er mine unprotected head,
And memory points, with busy pain,
To grace and mercy given in vain;
Till nature, shrinking in the strife,
Would fly to hell to ‘scape from life;
Though every thought has power to kill,
I love thee, Lord, I love thee still!
3 Oh, by the pangs thyself hast borne,
The ruffian’s blow, the tyrant’s scorn,
By Sinai’s curse, whose dreadful doom
Was buried in thy guiltless tomb;
By these my pangs, whose healing smart,
Thy grace hath planted in my heart—
I know, I feel thy bounteous will,
Thou lov’st me, Lord, thou lov’st me still!
Source: Laudes Domini: a selection of spiritual songs ancient & modern (Abr. ed.) #407
Reginald Heber was born in 1783 into a wealthy, educated family. He was a bright youth, translating a Latin classic into English verse by the time he was seven, entering Oxford at 17, and winning two awards for his poetry during his time there. After his graduation he became rector of his father's church in the village of Hodnet near Shrewsbury in the west of England where he remained for 16 years. He was appointed Bishop of Calcutta in 1823 and worked tirelessly for three years until the weather and travel took its toll on his health and he died of a stroke. Most of his 57 hymns, which include "Holy, Holy, Holy," are still in use today.
-- Greg Scheer, 1995… Go to person page >
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