The Hymnbook ‎#109

109. I Bow My Forehead to the Dust

1 I bow my forehead to the dust,
I veil mine eyes for shame,
And urge, in trembling self-distrust,
A prayer without a claim.
No offering of mine own I have,
No works my faith to prove;
I can but give the gifts He gave,
And plead His love for love.

2 I know not what the future hath
Of marvel or surprise,
Assured alone that life and death
His mercy underlies.
And so beside the silent sea
I wait the muffled oar:
No harm from Him can come to me
On ocean or on shore.

3 I know not where His islands lift
Their fronded palms in air;
I only know I cannot drift
Beyond His love and care.
And Thou, O Lord, by whom are seen
Thy creatures as they be,
Forgive me if too close I lean
My human heart on Thee.

Amen.

Text Information

• First Line: I bow my forehead to the dust
• Title: I Bow My Forehead to the Dust
• Author: John Greenleaf Whittier (1867)
• Meter: C. M. D.
• Publication Date: 1955
• Scripture:
  Job 42:5-6
  ;
  Psalm 139:9-10
  ;
  Isaiah 30:15
• Topic: Faith; God: Love and Fatherhood; Humility; Penitence; Trust; God the Father: His Love and Fatherhood
• Copyright: Words used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Company, authorized publishers.

Tune Information

• Name: PENTATONE
• Composer: Henry Walford Davies (1923)
• Meter: C. M. D.
• Key: E♭ Major
• Copyright: Music from A Students' Hymnal. Used by permission of Oxford University Press.