STUDY / LIVING THE CHRISTIAN LIFE / HYMNS

Lord, I am thine; but thou wilt prove The sinner's portion, and saint's hope; or, The heaven of separate souls, and the resurrection

Isaac Watts's setting of Psalm 17, 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. 2

METRE

Long Metre 8.8.8.8 · 6 stanzas

WRITTEN ON

Psalm 17 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

Lord, I am thine; but thou wilt prove

My faith, my patience, and my love;

When men of spite against me join,

They are the sword, the hand is thine.

The psalm it sets

Watts made this hymn from Psalm 17, "in the language of the New Testament": a paraphrase, not a translation. The line that comes closest to it is marked.

1Hear, O LORD, my righteous plea; listen to my cry. Give ear to my prayer— it comes from lips free of deceit. 2May my vindication come from Your presence; may Your eyes see what is right. 3You have tried my heart; You have visited me in the night. You have tested me and found no evil; I have resolved not to sin with my mouth. 4As for the deeds of men— by the word of Your lips I have avoided the ways of the violent. … 11 more verses PSALM 17 · ITS FIRST VERSES · BEREAN STANDARD BIBLE READ PSALM 17

What sinners value, I resign; Lord, 'tis enough that thou art mine; I shall behold thy blissful face, And stand complete in righteousness. STANZA III

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

NO. 2 · ISAAC WATTS · THIS HYMN Lord, I am thine; but thou wilt prove

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