A Portrait of Robert Burns Robert Burns

1781 · Poem

Prayer, Under the Pressure of Violent Anguish


O Thou Great Being! what Thou art,Surpasses me to know;Yet sure I am, that known to TheeAre all Thy works below.
Thy creature here before Thee stands,All wretched and distrest;Yet sure those ills that wring my soulObey Thy high behest.
Sure, Thou, Almighty, canst not actFrom cruelty or wrath!O, free my weary eyes from tears,Or close them fast in death!
But, if I must afflicted be,To suit some wise design,Then man my soul with firm resolves,To bear and not repine!
Year
1781
Form
Poem
Location
Lochlea
Source
Project Gutenberg #1279 — Poems and Songs of Robert Burns