Name: Regita Tisar Vallen Ayuapsari

Student Number: 392017051

Introduction to Literature – Poem
Thursday, October 11th, 2018

A Hymn to God the Father (To Christ)

John Donne (1573-1631)

Wilt thou forgive that sin where I begun,

Which was my sin, though it were done before?
Wilt thou forgive that sin, through which I run,
And do run still, though still I do deplore?
When thou hast done, thou hast not done,
For I have more.

Wilt thou forgive that sin which I have won

Others to sin, and made my sin their door?
Wilt thou forgive that sin which I did shun
A year or two, but wallow’d in, a score?
When thou hast done, thou hast not done,
For I have more.

I have a sin of fear, that when I have spun

My last thread, I shall perish on the shore;
But swear by thyself, that at my death thy Son
Shall shine as he shines now, and heretofore;
And, having done that, thou hast done;
I fear no more.
Paraphrase:

‘Will you forgive my sins, which I was responsible for, though many have committed them before
me? If you will forgive me for those sins, then your work will not be done – for I have more sins
to confess when we’ve done those. Will you forgive me when I have led others to sin, and even
introduced them to the world of sin, acting like a door to welcome them in? Will you forgive me
for the sin which, barring a couple of years of abstinence, I practised for twenty whole years?
Again, if you will forgive me for those sins, then you should know: there are more. I also have
another sin – that of fear, or specifically, fear of death. But if you, God, can swear that when I
die, I will see your son, Jesus Christ, shining and there to save me, then all is all right: I fear no
more.’

Source: https://interestingliterature.com/2017/06/13/a-short-analysis-of-john-donnes-a-hymn-
to-god-the-father/

Explanation:

This Donne’s divine poem, is not a poem about praising God. Instead of praising Him,
this poem expresses the poet’s wish of God’s forgiveness. He constantly asks for His
forgiveness, shows his insecurities in His prayers. He know that he will always do sins more and
more, even the sin that has been committed by others in the first place.

In the third stanza, the poet looks cheeky for wanting God to swear to save him.
However, in the end, the poet is sure that by the death of the Son, he is saved. He does not need
to fear the sin anymore.