O Thou that hear'st when sinners cry. I. Watts. [Psalms li.] This is the third part of his L.M. version of Psalm li. It appeared in his Psalms of David, &c, 1719, p. 143, in 8 stanzas of 4 lines, headed "The Backslider restored; or, Repentance and Faith in the Blood of Christ." In its full form its use is limited, but the cento therefrom beginning with stanza v., "A broken heart, my God, my King," is found in a large number of hymn-books. A second cento beginning with stanza iv. is in the… Read More
O Thou that hear'st when sinners cry. I. Watts. [Psalms li.] This is the third part of his L.M. version of Psalm li. It appeared in his Psalms of David, &c, 1719, p. 143, in 8 stanzas of 4 lines, headed "The Backslider restored; or, Repentance and Faith in the Blood of Christ." In its full form its use is limited, but the cento therefrom beginning with stanza v., "A broken heart, my God, my King," is found in a large number of hymn-books. A second cento beginning with stanza iv. is in the American Methodist Episcopal Hymns 1849, as "Though I have grieved Thy Spirit, Lord."
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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