by William Fuller, Dr., Lord-Bishop of Lincoln (1608 - 1675)
How have I stray'd, my God?
Language: English
How have I strayed, my God, where have I been Since first I wandered in the maze of sin? Lord, I have been I know not where, So intricate youth's follies are; And age hath its lab'rinths too, Yet neither hath a wise returning clue. Thy look, thy call, to me Shall my far better Ariadne be, O most sweet dear Jesu. Hark, I hear my shepherd call away And in a doleful accent say: Why does my Lamb thus stray? O blessed voice, That prompts me to new choice! And fain, dear shepherd, fain would I come But I can find no track To lead me back, And if I still go on I am undone. Chorus 'Tis thou, O Lord, must bring me home, Or show the way, For poor souls have thousand ways to stray, Yet to return but only one.
Authorship:
- by William Fuller, Dr., Lord-Bishop of Lincoln (1608 - 1675) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Henry Purcell (1658/9 - 1695), "How have I stray'd, my God?", Z. 188, published 1688. [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Athony Burton
This text was added to the website: 2011-03-30
Line count: 23
Word count: 144