Hymn
Conviction of Sin by the Law
Lord, how secure my conscience was,
And felt no inward dread!
I was alive without thy law,
And thought my sins were dead.
My hopes of heaven were firm and bright,
But since the precept came
With a convincing power and light,
I find how vile I am.
[My guilt appeared but small before,
Till terribly I saw
How perfect, holy, just, and pure
Was thy eternal law!
Then felt my soul the heavy load;
My sins revived again;
I had provoked a dreadful God,
And all my hopes were slain.]
Thy gracious throne I bow beneath;
Lord, thou alone canst save;
O break the yoke of sin and death,
And thus redeem the slave.
Conviction of Sin by the Law — Text from A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, 1844. Public domain. https://yeshuanow.com/hymns/conviction-of-sin-by-the-law
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Questions about this hymn
Who wrote Conviction of Sin by the Law?
The words of Conviction of Sin by the Law were written by Isaac Watts; the version here was published in 1844. The library holds 248 more hymns by Isaac Watts, including Whom Having Not Seen, Ye Love and My God, the Spring of All My Joys.
Is Conviction of Sin by the Law public domain?
Yes. The words here are taken from A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, published in 1844. Works published before 1931 are out of copyright in the United States, so you can print, project, perform and record this hymn freely. How we source and check every hymn.
What is the metre of Conviction of Sin by the Law?
Conviction of Sin by the Law is in Common Metre (8.6.8.6). Hymns in the same metre can usually be sung to the same tunes — for example, O God of Bethel, by Whose hand, The Savior's Invitation and Come, Let Us Use the Grace Divine.