Psalm LI

Lord, let thy mercy, full and free

Author: Anne Steele (1760)
Published in 2 hymnals

Representative Text

I. Lord, let thy mercy, full and free,
Vile as I am, extend to me;
And bid my num'rous crimes remove,
All cancell'd by thy sov'reign love.

II. O wash this guilty heart of mine,
For cleansing grace is only thine;
I own my sins, and still they rise
With recent horror to my eyes.

III. Against the God I love and fear,
My aggravated crimes appear;
'Tis this alone awakes my smart,
And fills with grief my fainting heart.

IV. While humbly prostrate in the dust,
I owe thy awful sentence just;
My soul adores thy sacred word,
Forever righteous is the Lord.

V. Soon as my infant life began,
And nature fram'd the future man,
So soon did sin its taint impart,
The dire contagion seiz'd my heart.

VI. Since inward truth thy laws require,
That inward truth, O Lord, inspire;
Thro' all my soul let wisdom shine,
And give me purity divine.

VII. O let the sacred hysop prove,
Blest emblem of thy cleansing love;
Thy sov'reign mercy can bestow,
A heart more pure than falling snow.

VIII. Let thy reviving word impart
Peace, joy and pardon, to my heart;
Then shall this broken frame rejoice,
And bless thy kind, thy healing voice.

IX. Let all my sins, (tho' deep their dye,)
For ever in oblivion lie;
For ever blot the dreadful score,
And view the long account no more.

X. Create my inmost pow'rs anew,
Make all my heart sincere and true;
O cast me not in wrath away,
Nor hide thy soul-enliv'ning ray.

XI. Restore thy favour, bliss divine!
Those heav'nly joys that once were mine;
Let thy own spirit, kind and free,
Uphold and guide my steps to thee.

XII. Then will I teach my sacred ways,
With holy zeal proclaim thy praise;
'Till sinners leave the dang'rous road,
Forsake their sins and turn to God.

XIII. O cleanse my guilt, and heal my pain,
Remove the blood-polluted stain;
Then shall my heart adoring trace,
My Saviour God, thy boundless grace.

XIV. Then shall my joyful tongue proclaim
In grateful strains, thy glorious name;
Inspir'd by thee, my song shall flow,
And all thy wond'rous mercy show.

XV. If sacrifice would please my God,
My off'rings should thy altars load;
But vain were all my offer'd store,
For blazing altars please no more.

XVI. This is the gift I would impart,
A humble, broken, contrite heart;
A broken heart, repentant sighs,
O God, thou never wilt despise.

XVII. O let thy goodness, Lord, appear,
To Zion, once thy chosen care;
Sustain'd and built by pow'r divine,
Let Salem's walls distinguish'd shine.

XVIII. To thee, the pious sacrifice
Accepted then shall daily rise;
Again the grateful off'rings flame,
And glad devotion bless thy name.


Source: Poems on Subjects Chiefly Devotional, Vol. 2 #177

Author: Anne Steele

Anne Steele was the daughter of Particular Baptist preacher and timber merchant William Steele. She spent her entire life in Broughton, Hampshire, near the southern coast of England, and devoted much of her time to writing. Some accounts of her life portray her as a lonely, melancholy invalid, but a revival of research in the last decade indicates that she had been more active and social than what was previously thought. She was theologically conversant with Dissenting ministers and "found herself at the centre of a literary circle that included family members from various generations, as well as local literati." She chose a life of singleness to focus on her craft. Before Christmas in 1742, she declined a marriage proposal from contemporar… Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: Lord, let thy mercy, full and free
Title: Psalm LI
Author: Anne Steele (1760)
Publication Date: 1760
Copyright: Public Domain

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A Collection of Hymns from Various Authors. New ed. #d200

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Poems on Subjects Chiefly Devotional, Vol. 2 #177

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