Analysis of Olney Hymn 17: The House of Prayer
William Cowper 1731 (Berkhamsted) – 1800 (Dereham)
Thy mansion is the Christian's heart,
O Lord, Thy dwelling place secure!
Bid the unruly throng depart,
And leave the consecrated door.
Devoted as it is to Thee,
A thievish swarm frequents the place,
They steal away my hopes from me,
And rob my Saviour of His praise.
There, too, a sharp designing trade
Sin, Satan, and the World maintain;
Nor cease to press me, and persuade
To part with ease, and purchase pain.
I know them, and I hate their din;
And weary of the bustling crowd;
But while their voice is heard within,
I cannot serve Thee as I would.
Oh! for the joy thy presence gives,
What peace shall reign when Thou art there;
Thy presence makes this den of thieves
A calm delightful house of prayer.
And if Thou make Thy temple shine,
Yet self-abased, will I adore;
The gold and silver are not mine;
I give Thee what was Thine before.
Scheme | AXAB CXCX DEDE FXFX XGXG HBHB |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Quatrain (50%) |
Metre | 1101011 11110101 10010101 0101001 01011111 0111001 11011111 0111111 11010101 11000101 11111001 11110101 11101111 010101001 11111101 11011111 11011101 11111111 11011111 01010111 01111101 1111101 01010111 11111101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 848 |
Words | 158 |
Sentences | 9 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 24 |
Letters per line (avg) | 27 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 109 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 26 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 47 sec read
- 80 Views
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"Olney Hymn 17: The House of Prayer" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 13 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/39945/olney-hymn-17%3A-the-house-of-prayer>.
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