Prometheus Bound (Browning, 1833)/Hymn

by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

HYMN.

 

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"Lord, I cry unto thee: make haste unto me."

Psalm cxli.

"The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him."

Psalm cxlv.

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Since without Thee we do no good,
And with Thee do no ill,
Abide with us in weal and woe,—
In action and in will.

In weal,—that while our lips confess
The Lord who 'gives,' we may
Remember, with an humble thought,
The Lord who 'takes away.'

In woe,—that, while to drowning tears
Our hearts their joys resign,
We may remember who can turn
Such water into wine.

By hours of day,—that when our feet
O'er hill and valley run,
We still may think the light of truth
More welcome than the sun.

By hours of night,—that when the air
Its dew and shadow yields,
We still may hear the voice of God
In silence of the fields.

Oh! then sleep comes on us like death,
All soundless, deaf and deep:
Lord! teach us so to watch and pray,
That death may come like sleep.

Abide with us, abide with us,
While flesh and soul agree;
And when our flesh is only dust,
Abide our souls with Thee.