The prophets sons, in time of old

The words

1. 1

   Stanza 1. The prophets sons, in time of old,Though to appearance poor;Were rich without possessing gold,And honored, though obscure.

2. 2

   Stanza 2. In peace their daily bread they eat,By honest labor earned;While daily at Elisha’s feet,They grace and wisdom learned.

3. 3

   Stanza 3. The prophet’s presence cheered their toil,They watched the words he spoke;Whether they turned the furrowed soil,Or felled the spreading oak.

4. 4

   Stanza 4. Once as they listened to his theme,Their conference was stopped;For one beneath the yielding stream,A borrowed axe had dropped.

5. 5

   Stanza 5. “Alas! it was not mine, he said,How shall I make it good?”Elisha heard, and when he prayed,The iron swam like wood.

6. 6

   Stanza 6. If God, in such a small affair,A miracle performs;It shows his condescending careOf poor unworthy worms.

7. 7

   Stanza 7. Though kings and nations in his viewAre but as motes and dust;His eye and ear are fixed on you,Who in his mercy trust.

8. 8

   Stanza 8. Not one concern of ours is small,If we belong to him;To teach us this, the LORD of all,Once made the iron swim.

Olney Hymns (1779), Book 1, Hymn 39. John Newton. Public domain. CCEL transcription with modernized spelling. www.praylock.com/olney-hymns/1-39