The Valley of the Shadow of Death

My soul is sad, and much dismayed;
See, Lord, what legions of my foes

My soul is sad, and much dismayed;
See, Lord, what legions of my foes
With fierce Apollyon at their head,
My heavenly pilgrimage oppose!

See, from the ever-burning lake,
How like a smoky cloud they rise!
With horrid blasts my soul they shake,
With storms of blasphemies and lies.

Their fiery arrows reach the mark,
My throbbing heart with anguish tear;
Each lights upon a kindred spark,
And finds abundant fuel there.

I hate the thought that wrongs the Lord;
Oh! I would drive it from my breast,
With thy own sharp two-edged sword,
Far as the east is from the west.

Come, then, and chase the cruel host,
Heal the deep wounds I have received!
Nor let the powers of darkness boast
That I am foiled, and thou art grieved!

William Cowper