Amazing Grace Poem by John Newton

Amazing Grace

Rating: 3.7


Amazing grace! (how sweet the sound!)
That sav'd a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.

'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears reliev'd;
How precious did that grace appear,
The hour I first believ'd!

Thro' many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
'Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promis'd good to me,
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.

Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease;
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

This earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who call'd me here below,
Will be for ever mine.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Kevin Straw 11 November 2009

A masculine well-wrought lyric, but the subject is mythic nevertheless. The notion that we shall be saved for heaven by the grace of God is no more or less believable than the belief that after death we will be reincarnated. This hymn is only half of the Jesus’ message – it is wonderful how some Christians relish the “love God” half of the parable of the Good Samaritan because they expect to be rewarded in eternity, and yet forget the other half: “love thy neighbour” which demands of them time and money spent in the relief of the needy. As for the world ending in 2011, I have now bet my house, all my goods, and half my future salary that it will not! What nonsense these people can believe!

12 24 Reply
Meggie Gultiano 11 November 2009

This is my favorite poem and song from the day that I have a special relationship with the Lord.His grace for me is truly amazing.I love it more when I got to learned the real story behind it.Praise God..

17 1 Reply
Kaila George 19 June 2012

This is a poem not only touched my soul but my heart as well, its timeless, its for ever in peoples minds, it speaks of over coming the wrongs one had done in their lives, its of the grace that god gives use when we are in doubt, and we are forgiven of sins or secrets we tend to hide. SIGH...best poem ever written.

14 2 Reply
Paul Brookes 11 November 2012

A poem of repentance from a former slave trader. Who then tried to stop the evil practice. A true born again. A very human poem from a humble pennitent.

13 2 Reply
Alice Smith 20 April 2013

Oh my goodness! I learned a different version of Amazing Grace. The last verse I learned is When we've been here ten thousand years, Bright shining as the sun. We've no less days to sing God's praise, Then when we first begun. Please explain. I was told that Newton sailed on a boat named, Grace. The captain of the ship converted Newton and Amazing Grace was written. Is this true?

12 3 Reply
Chinedu Dike 19 January 2023

Wonderful poetry exquisitely crafted with deep spiritual insight. A very powerful hymn

1 0 Reply
Terry Craddock 11 November 2014

'Amazing Grace' by John Newton is a hymn and an incredible poem, but for me the miraculous element about the theme of this poem is the amazing grace of God; to whom John Newton prayed during an exceptionally violent life threatening storm, when Newton was afraid he was about to drown in 1749, when the ship he was upon started to fill with water and sink off the coast of Donegal, Ireland. Was Newton's prayer answered as he called out to God to save his life and soul? History records the fact that the cargo of the ship shifted and stopped up the hole, the ship drifted to safety and Newton eventually converted to evangelical Christianity. Truth is stranger than fiction, Newton a blackbirder, involved in the brutal inhumane slave trade, had sunk into the depths of violent alcoholism; working on slave ships from 1748 until a severe stroke in 1754, yet even in ill health Newton continued to invest in slavery. It is strange how a man who had been involved in inflicting so much vile misery upon others, would eventually strive to redeem himself, and devote the rest of his life to achieving the abolition of slavery in England in 1807 just before his death. To quote Wikipedia and the reference from Hochschild 2005, pp.130-132. In 1788,34 years after he had retired from the slave trade, Newton broke a long silence on the subject with the publication of a forceful pamphlet Thoughts Upon the Slave Trade, in which he described the horrific conditions of the slave ships during the Middle Passage. He apologized for a confession, which... comes too late... It will always be a subject of humiliating reflection to me, that I was once an active instrument in a business at which my heart now shudders. He had copies sent to every MP, and the pamphlet sold so well that it swiftly required reprinting. Without knowing these facts about John Newton, it is impossible to understand the strength of belief and conviction in the words of 'Amazing Grace'. The story of Newton's conversion reminds me of the life of Saul of Tarsus, who actively persecuted Christians, until his conversion and amazing life of redemption, as Paul the Apostle; a man who had a profound and pervasive effect upon the course of Christianity. Thus the theme of Newton's poem, is the amazing grace of God, can and will transform the lives of those who convert and believe. The poem is beautiful, choice and free will is ours, as is our responsibility for our actions.

17 1 Reply
Gangadharan Nair Pulingat 11 November 2014

John Newton's great poem and it is great always.The grace of almighty and grace of god he sings....

13 1 Reply
Elizabeth Padillo Olesen 11 November 2014

Knowing the history of the song in the life of the author adds to the good reception of the song. This is one of the songs I do love.

9 2 Reply
Aftab Alam Khursheed 11 November 2014

Amazing grace is really is grace by God and poet put evocation on it yet thelat line is so positive and full of hope can't be expressed- This earth shall soon dissolve like snow, The sun forbear to shine; But God, who call'd me here below, Will be for ever mine.

8 2 Reply
John Newton

John Newton

London, England
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