74

Dependence

I

To keep the lamp alive,
With oil we fill the bowl;
’Tis water makes the willow thrive,
And grace that feeds the soul.

II

The Lord’s unsparing hand
Supplies the living stream;
It is not at our own command,
But still derived from him.

III

Beware of Peter’s word,
Nor confidently say,
“I never will deny thee, Lord,”
But grant I never may.

IV

Man’s wisdom is to seek
His strength in God alone;
And even an angel would be weak
Who trusted in his own.

V

Retreat beneath his wings,
And in his grace confide;
This more exalts the King of kings
Than all your works beside.

VI

In Jesus is our store,
Grace issues from his throne;
Whoever says, “I want no more,”
Confesses he has none.

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-3.xhtml. Rights: public domain (SE dedication; underlying text pre-1931).

Earlier sources (2)

This poem as JSON or plain text. Line anchors #L1–#L24.

Cite this poem

William Cowper (1731–1800). “Dependence.” First published in Olney Hymns (1779). Text: Poem Index, https://poemindex.org/william-cowper/dependence/. Append #L14 to cite line 14, or #L4-L9 for lines 4–9.

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