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My righteous Judge, my gracious God Complaint of heavy afflictions in mind and body

Isaac Watts's setting of Psalm 143, 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. 143

METRE

Long Metre 8.8.8.8 · 12 stanzas

WRITTEN ON

Psalm 143 the verse printed above it

The hymn, and the Scripture in it

All 12 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

My righteous Judge, my gracious God

My righteous Judge, my gracious God,

Hear when I spread my hands abroad

And cry for succour from thy throne,

O make thy truth and mercy known.

The psalm it sets

Watts made this hymn from Psalm 143, "in the language of the New Testament": a paraphrase, not a translation. The line that comes closest to it is marked.

1O LORD, hear my prayer. In Your faithfulness, give ear to my plea; in Your righteousness, answer me. 2Do not bring Your servant into judgment, for no one alive is righteous before You. 3For the enemy has pursued my soul, crushing my life to the ground, making me dwell in darkness like those long since dead. 4My spirit grows faint within me; my heart is dismayed inside me. … 8 more verses PSALM 143 · ITS FIRST VERSES · BEREAN STANDARD BIBLE READ PSALM 143

I dwell in darkness and unseen, My heart is desolate within; My thoughts in musing silence trace The ancient wonders of thy grace. STANZA IV

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 143. Point at a tick to see the hymn; click it to open that hymn.

NO. 143 · ISAAC WATTS · THIS HYMN My righteous Judge, my gracious God

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