STUDY / LIVING THE CHRISTIAN LIFE / HYMNS

My soul is sad and much dismayed The valley of the shadow of death

William Cowper printed it in 1779 in Olney Hymns, Book III, no. 20, under Ephesians 6:16.

WRITTEN BY

William Cowper 1731–1800

PRINTED

1779 Olney Hymns · no. 20

METRE

Long Metre 8.8.8.8 · 5 stanzas

WRITTEN ON

Ephesians 6:16 the verse printed above it

The hymn, and the Scripture in it

All 5 stanzas as Cowper printed them, with the verses their lines echo beside them. Point at a line to join it to its verse; click to read the passage.

SHARED WORDSthe verse shares the line's wording ECHOproposed by an AI model, confirmed by a separate check Not the author's own notes

AMONG THE SCRIPTURES

The stanzas at the centre; around them, every book its heading and its echoes come from, Old Testament on the left and New on the right. Choose a stanza or a book.

a line echoes this verse its heading or an echo comes from here

STANZA I

My soul is sad and much dismayed

My soul is sad and much dismayed;

See, LORD, what legions of my foes,

With fierce Apollyon at their head,

My heav’nly pilgrimage oppose!

No line of this stanza quotes a verse closely; it is the hymn's own confession.

Where Cowper found it

Cowper printed the hymn under Ephesians 6:16. The line that comes closest to it is marked.

In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. EPHESIANS 6:16 · BEREAN STANDARD BIBLE READ EPHESIANS 6

Their fiery arrows reach the mark, My throbbing heart with anguish tear; Each lights upon a kindred spark, And finds abundant fuel there. STANZA III

Its place in the book

Book III of the hymn book, “On the progress and changes of the spiritual life”, holds these hymns in this order: 106 hymns. This is number 20. Point at a tick to see the hymn; click it to open that hymn.

NO. 20 · WILLIAM COWPER · THIS HYMN My soul is sad and much dismayed

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