In You, O Lord, I Put My Trust

In you, O Lord, I put my trust, You are my rock and my defense

Versifier: Clarence Walhout (1985)
CCLI Number: 5655500
Published in 2 hymnals

Audio files: MIDI
Representative text cannot be shown for this hymn due to copyright.

Versifier: Clarence Walhout

Clarence P. Walhout (b. Muskegon, Michigan, 1934) studied at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI, the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois; he taught many years at his alma mater, Calvin College, and was a member of the Poet’s Workshop, a group of several writers who prepared psalm versifications for the 1987 Psalter Hymnal; he was also editor of the journal Christianity and Literature and co-author of The Responsibility of Hermeneutics (1985). Bert Polman Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: In you, O Lord, I put my trust, You are my rock and my defense
Title: In You, O Lord, I Put My Trust
Versifier: Clarence Walhout (1985)
Meter: 8.8.8.8
Language: English
Copyright: © 1987, CRC Publications

Notes

A prayer for God's protection from treacherous enemies in old age "when strength has fled.”

Scripture References:
st. 1 = vv. 1-4
st. 2 = vv. 5-8
st. 3 = vv. 9-11
st. 4 = vv. 12-14
st. 5 = vv. 15-16
st. 6 = vv. 17-18
st. 7 = vv. 19-21
st. 8 = vv. 22-24

The content of this prayer suggests that it was composed by a king, the LORD's anointed, in his old age. Seeing the king's vigor wane, his enemies suppose that "God has forsaken him" (v. 11), and they openly conspire against him. The king appeals for God's defense, recalling his lifelong trust in God (st. 1) and confessing that God has never failed to protect him (st. 2). Do not forsake me now, he prays, when my strength is gone and I am old and gray (st. 3). At the psalm's center the old king confesses with unfaltering faith, "But as for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more" (v. 14; st. 4). Thereafter the psalm is a song of praise and thanks–for God's gracious display of power (st. 5); support of the king in his old age (st. 6); deliverance from troubles (st. 7); rescue from harm, and provision of lasting hope (st. 8). Clarence P. Walhout (PHH 6) versified this psalm in 1985 for the Psalter Hymnal.

Liturgical Use:
When Christians reflect on the frailty of life and sense the need for God's lifelong help.

--Psalter Hymnal Handbook, 1988

Tune

WAREHAM (Knapp)

William Knapp (b. Wareham, Dorsetshire, England, 1698; d. Poole, Dorsetshire, 1768) composed WAREHAM, so named for his birthplace. A glover by trade, Knapp served as the parish clerk at St. James's Church in Poole (1729-1768) and was organist in both Wareham and Poole. Known in his time as the "coun…

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JUDSON (Wischmeier)

Roger Wayne Wischmeier (b. Sioux City, IA, 1935) composed JUDSON in 1974. It was first sung on October 31, 1975, with James D. Cramer's text "I Sing the Goodness of the Lord" at Judson College, Elgin, Illinois, in a drama about Adoniram Judson, the first American missionary to Burma. Wischmeier comm…

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Timeline

Instances

Instances (1 - 2 of 2)

Psalms for All Seasons #71A

Text InfoTune InfoAudio

Psalter Hymnal (Gray) #71

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