by John Donne (1572 - 1631)
Wilt thou forgive that sin where I begun
Language: English
Wilt thou forgive that sin where I begun, Which is my sin though it were done before? Wilt thou forgive [those sins]1, through which I run, And do run still, though still I do deplore? When thou hast done, thou hast not done, For I have more. Wilt thou forgive that sin by which [I've]2 won Others to sin? And made my sin their door? Wilt thou forgive that sin which I did [shun]3 A year or two: but wallow'd in, a score? When thou hast done, thou hast not done, For I have more. I have a sin of fear, that when [I've]4 spun My last thread, I shall perish on the shore; [But swear]5 by thy self, that at my death thy [Son]6 shall shine as he shines now, and heretofore; And having done that, thou hast done, I fear no more.
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Bachlund: "that sin"
2 Bachlund: "I have"; Emery: "I"
3 Emery: "not shun"
4 Bachlund: "I have"
5 Maconchy: "Swear"
6 Maconchy: "Sun"
Text Authorship:
- by John Donne (1572 - 1631), "A Hymn to God the Father", written 1623 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Gary Bachlund (b. 1947), "A Hymn to God the Father", 1987 [ tenor and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Edgar Leslie Bainton (1880 - 1956), "A Hymn to God the Father", published 1926, first performed 1926 [ chorus and orchestra ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Guy Henry Eldridge , "A Hymn to God the Father", published 1974 [ four-part mixed chorus a cappella ], anthem [sung text not yet checked]
- by Matthew Emery (b. 1991), "A Hymn to God the Father ", 2013 [ SATB chorus with piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by John Hilton (1599? - 1657), "A Hymn to God the Father", published 1961 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Pelham Humfrey (1647 - 1674), "A Hymn to God the Father", 1688, published 1947, in Harmonia Sacra, arranged by Michael Tippett and Walter Bergmann [sung text checked 1 time]
- by John Pierre Herman Joubert (1927 - 2019), "A Hymn to God the Father", op. 114, published 1989, first performed 1987 [ mixed chorus a cappella ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Dorian Le Gallienne (1915 - 1963), "A Hymn to God the Father", published 1967, from Four Divine Poems of John Donne [sung text not yet checked]
- by Elizabeth Maconchy (1907 - 1994), "A Hymn to God the Father", 1965, first performed 1966 [ tenor and piano ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Denis Mason , "Wilt thou forgive" [ ATB chorus a cappella ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by John McCabe (1939 - 2015), "A Hymn to God the Father", 1966 [ SATB chorus ], anthem [sung text not yet checked]
- by Elizabeth Raum (b. 1945), "A Hymn to God the Father", 1984 [ soprano and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Edmund Duncan Rubbra (1901 - 1986), "A Hymn to God the Father", 1964 [ chorus a cappella ], motet [sung text not yet checked]
- by Alec Wyton , "A Hymn to God the Father", published 1978 [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 18
Word count: 144