Analysis of Psalm 139 part 2
Isaac Watts 1674 (Southampton, Hampshire) – 1748 (Stoke Newington, Middlesex)
The wonderful formation of man.
'Twas from thy hand, my God, I came,
A work of such a curious frame
In me thy fearful wonders shine,
And each proclaims thy skill divine.
Thine eyes did all my limbs survey,
Which yet in dark confusion lay;
Thou saw'st the daily growth they took,
Formed by the model of thy book.
By thee my growing parts were named,
And what thy sovereign counsels framed-
The breathing lungs, the beating heart-
Was copied with unerring art.
At last, to show my Maker's name,
God stamped his image on my frame,
And in some unknown moment joined
The finished members to the mind.
There the young seeds of thought began,
And all the passions of the man:
Great God, our infant nature pays
Immortal tribute to thy praise.
Lord, since in my advancing age
I've acted on life's busy stage,
Thy thoughts of love to me surmount
The power of numbers to recount.
I could survey the ocean o'er,
And count each sand that makes the shore,
Before my swiftest thoughts could trace
The num'rous wonders of thy grace.
These on my heart are still impressed,
With these I give my eyes to rest;
And at my waking hour I find
God and his love possess my mind.
Scheme | A BBCC DDEE FFGG BBXH AAII JJKK XXLL MMHH |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 010001011 11111111 011101001 01110101 01011101 11111101 11010101 111010111 11010111 11110101 01110101 01010101 110111 11111101 11110111 00101101 01010101 10111101 01010101 111010101 01010111 11010101 11011101 11111101 010110101 110101010 01111101 01110111 0110111 11111101 11111111 011101011 10110111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,135 |
Words | 217 |
Sentences | 11 |
Stanzas | 9 |
Stanza Lengths | 1, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 33 |
Letters per line (avg) | 27 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 100 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 24 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:06 min read
- 85 Views
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"Psalm 139 part 2" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/19686/psalm-139-part-2>.
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