O Wretched Man!

O wretched man with darkened heart,
Doubled minded and unstable!
Seeking what God would impart,
Willing, yet unable

To walk the walk of holiness.
Maintain desires for God alone
In sweet marital bliss
Forsaking all others, they can’t atone,

For sins that I’ve committed.
My desire is toward my Saviour,
Yet, in my soul, within my spirit,
I turn away His favor.

Desiring things I should not,
Entertaining thoughts impure,
My conscious is apt to rot,
Lest Jesus draw me near.

In me, (that is, in my flesh),
Dwelleth no good thing,
With earnestness I do wish,
For goodness only to bring.

Alas, the good that I would I do not,
But evil I would not, that I do.
The sin dwelling in me is what
These evil works are brought unto.

I find a law, that when I would do good,
Evil is present with me.
Convincing me against what I should,
And from my God I flee!

For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
My mind committed to His Word.
Within my members dwells the law of sin,
To bring me into captivity with its evil sword.

Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
God’s law giv’n to us through His very breath,
Brings life to me through His written Word.

With my mind, I serve the law of God,
But with the flesh, the law of sin,
And so it goes in this path I trod,
Over and over again.