Analysis of Hymn 169

Isaac Watts 1674 (Southampton, Hampshire) – 1748 (Stoke Newington, Middlesex)



The Divine Perfections.

The Lord Jehovah reigns,
His throne is built on high;
The garments he assumes
Are light and majesty:
His glories shine
With beams so bright,
No mortal eye
Can bear the sight.

The thunders of his hand
Keep the wide world in awe;
His wrath and justice stand
To guard his holy law:
And where his love
Resolves to bless,
His truth confirms
And seals the grace.

Through all his ancient works
Surprising wisdom shines,
Confounds the powers of hell,
And breaks their cursed designs:
Strong is his arm,
And shall fulfil
His great decrees,
His sovereign will.

And can this mighty King
Of glory condescend?
And will he write his name,
"My Father and my Friend?"
I love his name,
I love his word;
Join all my powers
And praise the Lord.


Scheme A ABAXXCBC DXDEXAAA AAXAXEAX XFGFGXAX
Poetic Form
Metre 0011 010101 111111 010101 110100 1101 1111 1101 1101 010111 101101 110101 111101 0111 0111 1101 0101 111101 010101 0101011 011101 1111 011 1101 1101 011101 11001 011111 110011 1111 1111 11110 0101
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 725
Words 139
Sentences 8
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 1, 8, 8, 8, 8
Lines Amount 33
Letters per line (avg) 18
Words per line (avg) 4
Letters per stanza (avg) 118
Words per stanza (avg) 27
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

41 sec read
115

Isaac Watts

Isaac Watts was an English Christian minister (Congregational), hymn writer, theologian, and logician. He was a prolific and popular hymn writer and is credited with some 750 hymns. He is recognized as the "Godfather of English Hymnody"; many of his hymns remain in use today and have been translated into numerous languages. more…

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