Poem: O God, With Goodness All Thy Own

Former president of the U.S. John Quincy Adams (1767-1848) was a noted poet as well as leader; here he praises God for his bountiful Creation.


O God, With Goodness All Thy Own


FOR thee in Zion waiteth praise,
  O God, O thou that hearest prayer;
To thee the suppliant voice we raise;
  To thee shall all mankind repair.
On thee the ends of earth rely;
  In thee the distant seas confide;
By thee the mountains brave the sky,
  And girded by thy strength abide.

Thou speakest to the tempest peace;
  The roaring wave obeys thy nod;
The tumults of the people cease;
  Earth trembles at the voice of God;
The morning's dawn, the evening's shade,
  Alike thy power with gladness see;
The fields from thee the rains receive,
  And swell with fruitfulness by thee.

Thy river, gracious God, o'erflows;
  Its streams for human wants provide;
At thy command the harvest grows,
  By thy refreshing showers supplied;
Thy bounty clothes the plains with grass;
  Thy path drops fairness as it goes;
And wheresoe'er thy footsteps pass,
  The desert blossoms like a rose.

Thy goodness crowns the circling year;
  The wilderness repeats thy voice;
The mountains clad with flocks appear;
  The hills on every side rejoice;
And harvest from the valleys spring;
  The reaper's sickle they employ;
And, hark! How hill and valley ring
  With universal shouts of joy!