I f I love thee my soul shall seek thee,

      but can I seek thee unless my love to thee

      is kept alive to this end?

Do I love thee because thou art good,

   and canst alone do me good?

It is fitting thou shouldest not regard me,

   for I am vile and selfish;

   yet I seek thee,

   and when I find thee there is no wrath

     to devour me,

   but only sweet love.

Thou dost stand as a rock between the scorching sun

   and my soul,

   and I live under the cool lee-side as one elect.

When my mind acts without thee

   it spins nothing but deceit and delusion;

When my affections act without thee

   nothing is seen but dead works.

O how I need thee to abide in me,

   for I have no natural eyes to see thee,

   but I live by faith in one whose face to me

   is brighter than a thousand suns!

When I see that all sin is in me, all shame

   belongs to me;

   let me know that all good is in thee,

     all glory is thine.

Keep me from the error of thinking thou dost

     appear gloriously

   when some strange light fills my heart,

   as if that were the glorious activity of grace,

   but let me see that the truest revelation of thyself

   is when thou dost eclipse all my personal glory

   and all the honour, pleasure and good

     of this world.

The Son breaks out in glory

   when he shows himself as one who outshines

     all creation,

   makes men poor in spirit,

   and helps them to find their good in him.

Grant that I may distrust myself, to see

     my all in thee.