This page is provided so that you can hear the tunes of items which we use in church. Mostly they are written by the vicar. Please note that they are copyright - we are very happy to give permission to you to use them, but we would like to hear about it. Please include any use on your Christian Copyright Licence returns.
Down this page:
- the words,
- the story,
- the sheet music,
- media player.
Wretched Sinner
Wretched Sinner
Lord, behold a wretched sinner,
from the outer to the inner;
at repentance, rank beginner:
day and night my conscience cries.
Where begin? My faults keep mounting;
when I start I can’t stop counting;
huge the sum, but Christ’s accounting
crosses out and nullifies.
Good I would but can’t achieve it,
bad I hate but can’t relieve it.
God for us? I can’t believe it:
me the apple of his eye!
God forgives before petition;
grace alone shows our condition;
truth demands our self-suspicion:
like a snake the heart is sly.
While accusing scribes are hissing,
Christ portrays the Father kissing
cheek of child that he’s been missing:
Love forgives and sanctifies!
Words copyright © Kim Fabricius 2006 (reproduced here with his permission).
Music copyright © John Hartley 2007.
Story behind the song
I wrote this tune after reading the words of Kim Fabricius's hymn "Lord behold a wretched sinner" as printed on page 6 of Worship Live issue 37. An internet search has revealed that the words are posted here, together with some comments including some from the author.
Kim had written the words to the tune "Quem Pastores", and the magazine editor invited subscribers to submit new tunes. It seemed to me that "Quem Pastores" was a very gentle and sweet tune for a rather serious and unsettling lyric, and if anything the tune needed to be in the minor and have some rather more angular rhythms in it, as well as keeping the basic shape of having three similarly-shaped lines followed by a different one. So here is my submission.
I am very grateful to Kim for his permission to include the words on this page - but copyright is his, so please consult him before using them.
John Hartley.
Windows Media Player. When you click the left-hand "play" button your computer should have started to play the tune. If it didn't, you might be able to get the tune by clicking here, or by right-clicking the link, choosing "save target as", saving it onto your computer, and then opening it with a music-playing program.
Please remember that a midi file of a tune isn't supposed to be a state-of-the-art musical arrangement - it is only supposed to give a basic idea of how the tune goes. Any reasonable organist / keyboard player / music group could make it sound far better.