115

Will Ye Also Go Away?

I

When any turn from Zion’s way⁠—
Alas! what numbers do!⁠—
Methinks I hear my Saviour say,
“Wilt thou forsake me too?”

II

Ah, Lord! with such a heart as mine,
Unless thou hold me fast,
I feel I must, I shall decline,
And prove like them at last.

III

Yet thou alone hast power, I know,
To save a wretch like me;
To whom, or whither, could I go,
If I should turn from thee?

IV

Beyond a doubt I rest assured
Thou art the Christ of God,
Who hast eternal life secured
By promise and by blood.

V

The help of men and angels join’d
Could never reach my case;
Nor can I hope relief to find
But in thy boundless grace.

VI

No voice but thine can give me rest,
And bid my fears depart;
No love but thine can make me bless’d.
And satisfy my heart.

VII

What anguish has that question stirr’d,
If I will also go?
Yet, Lord, relying on thy word,
I humbly answer⁠—No.

Where this text comes from

First published in Olney Hymns (1779). First located printing is this volume; an earlier periodical printing has not been established. [1] [2] [3]

Structure read from the source's markup; the words have not been compared against a page scan. Last checked 2026-08-15.

Taken from Standard Ebooks, standardebooks/john-newton_william-cowper_olney-hymns, book-1.xhtml. Rights: public domain (SE dedication; underlying text pre-1931).

Earlier sources (2)

This poem as JSON or plain text. Line anchors #L1–#L28.

Cite this poem

John Newton (1725–1807). “Will Ye Also Go Away?.” First published in Olney Hymns (1779). Text: Poem Index, https://poemindex.org/john-newton/will-ye-also-go-away/. Append #L14 to cite line 14, or #L4-L9 for lines 4–9.

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