Analysis of Psalm XIX: The Heavens Declare Thy Glory, Lord

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



The heavens declare thy glory, Lord,
In every star thy wisdom shines;
But when our eyes behold thy word,
We read thy name in fairer lines.

The rolling sun, the changing light,
And night and day, thy power confess;
But the blest volume thou hast writ
Reveals thy justice and thy grace.

Sun, moon, and stars convey thy praise
Round the whole earth, and never stand;
So when thy truth began its race,
It touched and glanced on every land.

Nor shall thy spreading gospel rest
Till through the world thy truth has run
Till Christ has all the nations blest,
That see the light or feel the sun.

Great Sun of righteousness, arise,
Bless the dark world with heavenly light:
Thy gospel makes the simple wise;
Thy laws are pure, thy judgments right.


Scheme XAXA BXXC XDCD EFEF GBGB
Poetic Form Quatrain  (80%)
Etheree  (35%)
Tetractys  (20%)
Metre 010011101 010011101 111010111 11110101 01010101 010111001 10110111 01110011 11010111 10110101 11110111 110111001 11110101 11011111 11110101 11011101 11110001 101111001 11010101 11111101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 727
Words 136
Sentences 6
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 20
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 7
Letters per stanza (avg) 116
Words per stanza (avg) 27
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

40 sec read
91

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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