Analysis of The Creatures In The Lord's Hands
John Newton 1725 (Wapping, London) – 1807 (London)
The water stood like walls of brass,
To let the sons of Israel pass;
And from the rock in rivers burst
At Moses' prayer to quench their thirst.
The fire restrained by God's commands,
Could only burn his people's bands;
Too faint, when he was with them there,
To singe their garments or their hair.
At Daniel's feet the lions lay
Like harmless lambs, nor touched their prey;
And ravens, which on carrion fed,
Procured Elijah flesh and bread.
Thus creatures only can fulfill
Their great Creator's holy will;
And when his servants need their aid,
His purposes must be obeyed.
So if his blessing he refuse,
Their pow'r to help they quickly lose,
Sure as on creatures we depend,
Our hopes in disappointment end.
Then let us trust the Lord alone,
And creature-confidence disown;
Nor if they threaten need we fear,
They cannot hurt if he be near.
If instruments of pain they prove,
Still they are guided by his love;
As lancets by the surgeon's skill,
Which wound to cure, and not to kill.
Scheme | AABB CCDD EEFF GGHH IIJJ KKLL XXGG |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain (86%) |
Metre | 01011111 110111001 01010101 11011111 010011101 11011101 11111111 11110111 11010101 11011111 010111001 01010101 11010101 111101 01110111 11001101 11110101 111111101 11110101 10100101 11110101 01010001 11110111 11011111 11001111 11110111 11010101 11110111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 969 |
Words | 178 |
Sentences | 8 |
Stanzas | 7 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 28 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 110 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 25 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 55 sec read
- 37 Views
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