Traditional: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

Evening Prayer

Traditional

“Evening Prayer” as printed in The Army and Navy Hymnal (1920).

Traditional: Collected Lyrics Text 377 1920 · historical text
Public domainHymnSacred song
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Army and Navy Hymnal, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

O GOD, thou art my God ; earnestly will I seek thee:

My soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee, in a dry and weary land, where no water is.

So have I looked upon thee in the sanctuary, to see thy power and thy glory.

Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.

So will I bless thee while I live :

I will lift up my hands in thy name.

My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness ;

And my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips; when I remember thee upon my bed,

And meditate on thee in the night-watches.

For thou hast been my help, and in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.

My soul followeth hard after thee ;

Thy right hand upholdeth me.

Verse 2

I WILL lift up mine eyes unto the mountains ;

From whence shall my help come ?

My help cometh from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

He will not suffer thy foot to be moved:

He that keepeth thee will not slumber.

Behold, he that keepeth Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is thy keeper : the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.

The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep thee from all evil ; he will keep thy soul

Credits

Written by Traditional

Traditional words. Historical text published in The Army and Navy Hymnal (1920); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Army and Navy Hymnal (1920), “Evening Prayer”

The 1920 published edition is in the public domain in the United States (pre-1931 publication). Entries whose credited author died more than 70 years ago are also in the public domain in life-plus-70 jurisdictions; traditional and anonymous entries are public domain. Pages whose scan quality is below the proofread threshold are held for review.

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

View copyright evidence · Transcription terms (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Retrieved 2026-10-26. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
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