Analysis of Pleading For Mercy

John Newton 1725 (Wapping, London) – 1807 (London)



In mercy, not in wrath, rebuke
Thy feeble worm, my God!
My spirit dreads thine angry look,
And trembles at thy rod.

Have mercy, Lord, for I am weak,
Regard my heavy groans;
O let thy voice of comfort speak,
And heal my broken bones!

By day my busy beating head
Is filled with anxious fears;
By night, upon my restless bed,
I weep a flood of tears.

Thus I sit desolate and mourn,
Mine eyes grow dull with grief;
How long, my Lord, ere thou return,
And bring my soul relief?

O come and show thy pow'r to save,
And spare my fainting breath;
For who can praise thee in the grave,
Or sing thy name in death?

Satan, my cruel envious foe,
Insults me in my pain;
He smiles to see me brought so low,
And tells me hope is vain,

But hence, thou enemy, depart!
Nor tempt me to despair;
My Saviour comes to cheer my heart,
The Lord has heard my prayer.


Scheme XAXA BCBC DXDX XEXE FGFG HIHI JKJK
Poetic Form Quatrain  (86%)
Metre 01010101 110111 11011101 01111 11011111 011101 11111101 011101 11110101 111101 11011101 110111 11110001 111111 11111101 011101 110111111 011101 11111001 111101 101101001 011011 11111111 011111 11110001 111101 1111111 011111
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 826
Words 168
Sentences 9
Stanzas 7
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 28
Letters per line (avg) 23
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 91
Words per stanza (avg) 24
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

50 sec read
71

John Newton

Rev Dr John A Newton CBE is a prominent Methodist minister, author, historian and former President of the Methodist Conference. more…

All John Newton poems | John Newton Books

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