All earthly hopes have passed away,
Stay with me, O my Saviour, stay:
Thy blessed smile is all the light
That breaks upon my dismal night.
I cling to thee—thou must not go;
Oh, let me tell thee every woe
And whisper in thy ready ear
What other friends would frown to hear.
Distressed in body and in mind,
Diseased and wretched, poor and blind,
I only care to see thy face,—
I only sigh for thy embrace.
I droop, I faint beneath the rod,
It is so heavy, O my God!
Spare me, I cry, in mercy spare—
But thou refusest still the prayer!
Sometimes I murmur and repine,
Prefer my stubborn will to thine,
And doubt if love or anger deal
The dreadful anguish that I feel.
Then suddenly before me stands,—
With bleeding side, and feet, and hands,—
The Lamb that groaned and died for me,
That I might live eternally.
Such love o'erwhelms me, and with shame
I call upon thy holy name;
Forgive me, O thou blessed One,
And let thy will, not mine, be done.
O my Redeemer, Friend and Guide,
Take health, take what thou wilt beside,
But let me see the lovely face
That makes a heaven of every place.
Nay, turn not from my earnest prayer!
Thy smile can save me from despair;
The shadows deepen round my way,
Stay with me, O my Saviour, stay.