Once I Said, I Must Keep Quiet

Once I said, "I must keep quiet
lest I sin in harsh dispute.
Just to see the wicked near me
angers me, but I stay mute."
Yet I could not hold my fury,
burned to vent my sharp critique;
then at last, I had to speak:

"Lord, are You revealing limits,
how my days look in Your sight?
Just a breath and fleeting shadow
slipping by in useless flight?
Yes, I know our lives are fragile,
that we seem to work in vain—
all we have is others' gain."

"Why, O Lord, must I keep waiting
when my hope is still in You?
Keep me, Lord, from sin and trouble,
from the wrong I would pursue.
Save me from the fool's loud laughter—
I was silent; I forgot:
You control my troubled lot."

"But, my Lord, Your heavy burden
wears me out and weighs me down.
All Your discipline for sinning
hurts and bows me to the ground.
Must You eat away my treasures
like a moth? I'm but a breath.
Are You facing me with death?"

"Can You see, Lord, I am crying?
Do not spurn my sore unrest.
I pass by like those before me,
yet I claim to be Your guest!
No more sadness—give me gladness,
be my hope before I cease.
Lord, dear Lord, I beg for peace."

Words: © 1983 Calvin Seerveld, published 2005 Eerdmans Publishing Co. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Music: Public domain

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