1 Gracious Lord, incline thy ear;
My requests vouchsafe to hear;
Hear my never-ceasing cry;
Give me Christ, or else I die.
2 Wealth and honour I disdain,
Earthly comforts, Lord, are vain;
These can never satisfy;
Give me Christ, or else I die.
3 Lord, deny me what thou wilt,
Only ease me of my guilt.
Suppliant at thy feet I lie;
Give me Christ, or else I die.
4 All unholy and unclean,
I am nothing else but sin;
On thy mercy I rely;
Give me Christ, or else I die.
5 Thou dost freely save the lost;
In thy grace alone I trust.
With my earnest suit comply;
Give me Christ, or else I die.
6 Thou dost promise to forgive
All who in thy Son believe;
Lord, I know thou canst not lie;
Give me Christ, or else I die.
Source: A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship. In four parts (10th ed.) (Gadsby's Hymns) #737
First Line: | Gracious Lord, incline thine ear |
Title: | He Gave His Only Begotten Son |
Author: | William Hammond |
Meter: | 7.7.7.7 |
Language: | English |
Copyright: | Public Domain |
Gracious Lord, incline Thine ear. W. Hammond. [Christ desired.] First published in his Psalms & Hymns, 1745, p. 258, in 10 stanzas of 4 lines, and headed "I am sick of love. Cant. ii. 5," the opening stanza reading: —
“Gracious Lord, incline Thine Ear,
My Complaint vouchsafe to hear;
Faint and Sick of Love am I,
Give me Christ, or else I die."
In 1787 Dr. Rippon, on including the hymn in his Baptist Selection, No. 296, omitted stanzas ii., vii. and ix., and re-wrote stanza i., thus:—
"Gracious Lord, incline Thine ear,
My request vouchsafe to hear;
Hear my never-ceasing cry;—
Give me Christ, or else I die."
This form of the hymn is in use amongst the Baptists, both in England and America. Another form in 6 stanzas (omitting stanzas ii., vi., vii., ix. was given in Bickersteth's Christian Psalmody,1833, No. 644, with stanza i. as:—
“Gracious Lord, incline Thine ear,
My request vouchsafe to hear;
Burden'd with my sins I cry,
Give me Christ, or else I die."
This form of the hymn is in limited use in the Church of England.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)