O Thou, by long experience tried

Representative Text

O thou, by long experience tried,
Near whom no grief can long abide;
My love! how full of sweet content
I pass my years of banishment!

All scenes alike engaging prove
To souls impressed with sacred love!
Where'er they dwell, they dwell in thee;
In heaven, in earth, or on the sea.

To me remains nor place nor time;
My country is in every clime;
I can be calm and free from care
On any shore, since God is there.

While place we seek, or place we shun,
The soul finds happiness in none;
But, with a God to guide our way,
'Tis equal joy to go or stay.

Could I be cast where thou art not,
That were indeed a dreadful lot;
But regions none remote I call,
Secure of finding God in all.

My country, Lord, art thou alone;
Nor other can I claim or own;
The point where all my wishes meet;
My law, my love, life's only sweet!

I hold by nothing here below;
Appoint my journey and I go;
Though pierced by scorn, oppressed by pride,
I feel thee good—feel nought beside.

No frowns of men can hurtful prove
To souls on fire with heavenly love;
Though men and devils both condemn,
No gloomy days arise from them.

Ah, then! to his embrace repair;
My soul, thou art no stranger there;
There love divine shall be thy guard,
And peace and safety thy reward.



Source: Translations from the French of Madame de la Mothe Guion #13

Translator: William Cowper

William Cowper (pronounced "Cooper"; b. Berkampstead, Hertfordshire, England, 1731; d. East Dereham, Norfolk, England, 1800) is regarded as one of the best early Romantic poets. To biographers he is also known as "mad Cowper." His literary talents produced some of the finest English hymn texts, but his chronic depression accounts for the somber tone of many of those texts. Educated to become an attorney, Cowper was called to the bar in 1754 but never practiced law. In 1763 he had the opportunity to become a clerk for the House of Lords, but the dread of the required public examination triggered his tendency to depression, and he attempted suicide. His subsequent hospitalization and friendship with Morley and Mary Unwin provided emotional st… Go to person page >

Author: Madame Guyon

Guyon, Madame. (1648-1717.) Jeanne Marie Bouyieres de la Mothe was the leader of the Quietist movement in France. The foundation of her Quietism was laid in her study of St. Francis de Sales, Madame de Chantal, and Thomas ä Kempis, in the conventual establishments of her native place, Montargis (Dep. Loiret), where she was educated as a child. There also she first learned the sentiment of espousal with Christ, to which later years gave a very marked development. She was married at sixteen to M. Guyon, a wealthy man of weak health, twenty-two years her senior, and her life, until his death, in 1676, was, partly from disparity of years, partly from the tyranny of her mother-in-law, partly from her own quick temper, an unhappy one. Her public… Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: O Thou, by long experience tried
French Title: Amour que mon âme est contente
Translator: William Cowper
Author: Madame Guyon
Meter: 8.8.8.8
Language: English
Copyright: Public Domain

Notes

0 Thou, by long experience tried, p. 476, i. 2. Another cento is "All scenes alike engaging prove."

--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, Appendix, Part II (1907)

Timeline

Instances

Instances (1 - 53 of 53)
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A Collection of Hymns #310

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A Collection of Hymns and a Liturgy #526

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A Collection of Psalms and Hymns for the Sanctuary #656

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A New Selection of Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs #1011

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Choral Echoes from the Church of God in All Ages #240

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Christian Melodies #295

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Christian Melodies #295

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Church Harmonies #644

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Hymnal of the Presbyterian Church in Canada #189

Hymnal of the Presbyterian Church in Canada with Accompanying Tunes #d226

Hymns for Children and Young Persons #d324

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Hymns for Christian Devotion #131

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Hymns for Christian Melody #386

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Hymns for Church and Home #299

Hymns for the Vestry and the Fireside #d212

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Hymns of the Ages #226

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Hymns of the Spirit #271

Hymns, Selected from Various Authors, for the Use of Young Persons 3rd Am. from 9th London ed. #d178

Hymns, Selected from Various Authors, for the Use of Young Persons #d169

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Plymouth Collection #a119

Prayers and Hymns for the Church and the Home #d492

Songs of Zion #d134

Songs of Zion. 8th ed. #d82

The Baptist Hymn and Praise Book #d372

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The Baptist Hymn and Tune Book #119

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The Baptist Praise Book #159

The Bible Hymn Book #d182

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The Christian Hymnal #187

The Halifax Selection of Hymns #d309

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The Lecture-Room Hymn-Book #H386

The Plymouth Hymnal #d397

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The Presbyterian Book of Praise #290

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The Psalmody #622

The Sacred Songster. 5th ed. #d124

The Service of Song for Baptist Churches #d686

The Social Harp #184

The Southern Psalmist #d628

The Southern Psalmist. New ed. #d658

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The Springfield Collection of Hymns for Sacred Worship #467

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The Zion Songster #284

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The Zion Songster #284

Text

Translations from the French of Madame de la Mothe Guion #13

Unitarian Service Book, and Hymns for Church and Home. Abridged ed. #d323

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Worship Song #242

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Zion's Songster #128

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Hymns for Christian Devotion #131

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Hymns of the Protestant Episcopal Church of the United States, as authorized by the General Convention #321

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The Presbyterian Book of Praise #290

The Book of Praise #524

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