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To God I made my sorrows known God is the hope of the helpless

Isaac Watts's setting of Psalm 142, printed in 1719 in The Psalms of David Imitated, where he set the psalms "in the language of the New Testament".

WRITTEN BY

Isaac Watts 1674–1748

PRINTED

1719 The Psalms of David Imitated · no. 142

METRE

Common Metre 8.6.8.6 · 6 stanzas

WRITTEN ON

Psalm 142 the verse printed above it

The hymn, and the Scripture in it

All 6 stanzas as Watts 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

To God I made my sorrows known

To God I made my sorrows known,

From God I sought relief;

In long complaints before his throne

I pour'd out all my grief.

The psalm it sets

Watts made this hymn from Psalm 142, "in the language of the New Testament": a paraphrase, not a translation. The line that comes closest to it is marked.

1I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift my voice to the LORD for mercy. 2I pour out my complaint before Him; I reveal my trouble to Him. 3Although my spirit grows faint within me, You know my way. Along the path I travel they have hidden a snare for me. 4Look to my right and see; no one attends to me. There is no refuge for me; no one cares for my soul. … 3 more verses PSALM 142 · ITS FIRST VERSES · BEREAN STANDARD BIBLE READ PSALM 142

From my sad prison set me free, Then shall I praise thy Name, And holy men shall join with me Thy kindness to proclaim. STANZA VI

Its place in the book

Watts's psalms run from Psalm 1 to Psalm 150, several settings to many psalms: 367 hymns. This is number 142. Point at a tick to see the hymn; click it to open that hymn.

NO. 142 · ISAAC WATTS · THIS HYMN To God I made my sorrows known

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