1 O God, my strength and fortitude,
of force I must love thee;
thou art my castle and defense
in my necessity.
2 When I sing praise unto the Lord,
most worthy to be served,
then from my foes I am right sure
that I shall be preserved.
3 The Lord shall light my candle so
that it shall shine full bright:
the Lord my God will make also
my darkness to be light.
4 Unspotted are the ways of God;
his Word is purely tried;
he is a sure defense to such
as in his faith abide.
5 Now blessed be the living God,
most worthy of all praise;
he is my rock and saving health:
so praised be he always.
Source: Rejoice in the Lord #86
First Line: | O God, my strength and fortitude |
Title: | O God, My Strength and Fortitude |
Author: | Thomas Sternhold (1549) |
Meter: | 8.6.8.6 |
Language: | English |
Copyright: | Public Domain |
O God, my strength and fortitude. T. Sternhold. [Ps. xviii.] This version of the xviiith Psalm appeared in the Old Version, 1561, and was repeated in all the subsequent editions of the Old Version. In the older hymn-books a cento therefrom was in somewhat extensive use in Great Britain and America. It began,
“The Lord descended from above
And bow'd the heavens high:
And underneath His feet he cast
The darkness of the sky,"
and consisted of stanzas ix., x. and i., in the order named. In some collections the second line reads "And bow'd the heavens most high," and an additional stanza is placed between sts. ii. and iii., as "He sat serene upon the floods," an altered form of Sternhold's version of Ps. xxix. 10.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)