1
It passeth knowledge, that dear love of Thine,
My Savior, Jesus; yet this soul of mine
Would of Thy love in all its breadth and length,
Its height and depth, its everlasting strength,
Know more and more.
My Savior, Jesus; yet this soul of mine
Would of Thy love in all its breadth and length,
Its height and depth, its everlasting strength,
Know more and more.
2
It passeth telling, that dear love of Thine,
My Savior, Jesus; yet these lips of mine
Would fain proclaim to sinners, far and near,
A love which can remove all guilty fear,
And love beget.
My Savior, Jesus; yet these lips of mine
Would fain proclaim to sinners, far and near,
A love which can remove all guilty fear,
And love beget.
3
It passeth praises, that dear love of Thine,
My Savior, Jesus; yet this heart of mine
Would sing that love, so full, so rich, so free,
Which brings a rebel sinner, such as me,
Nigh unto God.
My Savior, Jesus; yet this heart of mine
Would sing that love, so full, so rich, so free,
Which brings a rebel sinner, such as me,
Nigh unto God.
4
But though I cannot sing, or tell, or know
The fulness of Thy love, while here below,
My empty vessel I may freely bring;
O Thou, who art of love the living spring,
My vessel fill.
The fulness of Thy love, while here below,
My empty vessel I may freely bring;
O Thou, who art of love the living spring,
My vessel fill.
5
I am an empty vessel—not one thought
Or look of love to Thee I’ve ever brought;
Yet I may come, and come again to Thee,
With this the empty sinner’s only plea,
Thou lovest me.
Or look of love to Thee I’ve ever brought;
Yet I may come, and come again to Thee,
With this the empty sinner’s only plea,
Thou lovest me.
6
Oh, fill me, Jesus, Savior, with Thy love!
Lead, lead me to the living fount above;
Thither may I, in simple faith draw nigh,
And never to another fountain fly,
But unto Thee.
Lead, lead me to the living fount above;
Thither may I, in simple faith draw nigh,
And never to another fountain fly,
But unto Thee.
7
Lord Jesus, when Thee face to face I see,
When on Thy lofty throne I sit with Thee,
Then of Thy love, in all its breadth and length,
Its height and depth, its everlasting strength,
My soul shall sing.
When on Thy lofty throne I sit with Thee,
Then of Thy love, in all its breadth and length,
Its height and depth, its everlasting strength,
My soul shall sing.
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Detroit, MI, United States
Mary Shekleton of Dublin, Ireland, was for many years an invalid, during which time she wrote several hymns. Several of these are given in "Chosen, Chastened, Crowned. Memorials of Mary Shekleton, late Secretary of the Invalid's Prayer Union, by her Sister", 1884, and are in common use. -John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology
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Stanza 3, last 2 lines originally said:
Which brought an undone sinner, such as me,
Right home to God.
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The last stanza, 1st 3 lines is humbler in the original:
7. And when my Jesus face to face I see,
When at His lofty throne I bow the knee,
Then of His love, in all its breadth and length,
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I think stanza 5, 1st 2 lines is not true. It is an exaggeration to say that Christians brought not even 1 thought of love to the Lord. The whole song contains many thoughts of love that she brought to the Lord. She probably meant before we were saved and didn't have room to fit that thought in the stanza.
Marilao ,bulacan, Philippines
Oh ~ When I'm listening and singing this song, I feel that my heart is full of God's love. <3
I love You, God!
United States
Precious hymn, sweet, tender, poetic. This was one of the favorites of a dear sister who has not been meeting. One day we where singing it and as she found the hymn in her old hymn book she saw she had all sorts of hearts and stars around it, she realized she had enjoyed it much when she was a teenager. O Lord, "Yet I may come, and come again to Thee, with this the empty sinner's only plea, Thou lovest me." Lord, bring this sister and her husband back.
Irvine, California, United States
Very Enjoyable!