Scripture Verse

Since my youth, O God, You have taught me, and to this day I declare Your marvelous deeds. Psalm 71:17

Introduction

portrait
Isaac Watts (1674–1748)

Words: Is­aac Watts, The Psalms of Da­vid 1719. The aged Chris­tian’s pray­er and song; or, old age, death and the res­ur­rec­tion.

Music: Ar­men­ia Syl­van­us B. Pond, in The Mu­sic­al Mis­cel­la­ny, ed­it­ed by Tho­mas Hast­ings & Ez­ra Col­lier (New York: 1836) (🔊 pdf nwc).

If you know where to get a good pho­to of Pond (head & shoul­ders, at least 200×300 pix­els),

Lyrics

God of my child­hood and my youth,
The guide of all my days,
I have de­clared Thy hea­ven­ly truth,
And told Thy won­drous ways.

Wilt Thou for­sake my hoa­ry hairs,
And leave my faint­ing heart?
Who shall sus­tain my sink­ing years,
If God my strength de­part?

Let me Thy pow­er and truth pro­claim
To the sur­viv­ing age;
And leave a sa­vor of Thy name
When I shall quit the stage.

The land of si­lence and of death
Attends my next re­move;
O may these poor re­mains of breath
Teach the wide world Thy love!

Thy right­eous­ness is deep and high,
Unsearchable Thy deeds;
Thy glo­ry spreads be­yond the sky,
And all my praise ex­ceeds.

Oft have I heard Thy threat­en­ings roar,
And oft en­dured the grief;
But when Thy hand has pressed me sore,
Thy grace was my re­lief.

By long ex­pe­ri­ence I have known
Thy so­ver­eign pow­er to save;
At Thy com­mand I ven­ture down
Securely to the grave.

When I lie bu­ried deep in dust,
My flesh shall be Thy care;
These wi­ther­ing limbs with Thee I trust,
To raise them strong and fair.