STUDY / LIVING THE CHRISTIAN LIFE / HYMNS

Ye sons of men, a feeble race Second Part Protection from death, guard of angels, victory and deliverance

Isaac Watts's setting of Psalm 91:9–16, 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

Common Metre 8.6.8.6 · 8 stanzas

WRITTEN ON

Psalm 91:9–16 the verse printed above it

The hymn, and the Scripture in it

All 8 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

Ye sons of men, a feeble race

Ye sons of men, a feeble race,

Expos'd to every snare,

Come make the Lord your dwelling-place,

And try and trust his care.

The psalm it sets

Watts made this hymn from Psalm 91:9–16, "in the language of the New Testament": a paraphrase, not a translation. The line that comes closest to it is marked.

9Because you have made the LORD your dwelling— my refuge, the Most High— 10no evil will befall you, no plague will approach your tent. 11For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. 12They will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. 13You will tread on the lion and cobra; you will trample the young lion and serpent. 14“Because he loves Me, I will deliver him; because he knows My name, I will protect him. 15When he calls out to Me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him and honor him. 16With long life I will satisfy him and show him My salvation.” PSALM 91:9–16 · BEREAN STANDARD BIBLE READ PSALM 91

Ye sons of men, a feeble race, Expos'd to every snare, Come make the Lord your dwelling-place, And try and trust his care. STANZA I

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 Ye sons of men, a feeble race

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