Hymns and Tunes 1886 10
WHEN returns this solemn day
715, 227, 76
1WHEN returns this solemn day,
Man comes to meet his God.
What flesh, what honors shall we pay?
How spread his praise abroad?
2From marble domes and gilded spires
Shall clouds of incense rise?
And gems, and gold, and garlands deck
The costly sacrifice?
3Vain, sinful man! creation's Lord
Thy offerings will not spare;
But give thy heart, and thou shalt find
Thy God will hear thy prayer.
- Meter
- 715, 227, 76
Public Domain
The verse
- Meter
- 7.6.8.6 · the hymnal prints 715, 227, 76
- Foot
- iambic (da-DUM) · 64% of beats fit
- Rhyme
- ABAC
Scan every line
/ stressed · ˘ unstressed · ? not in the dictionary
Verse 1
WHEN returns this solemn day,/˘/˘/˘/7A
Man comes to meet his God.//˘/˘/6B
What flesh, what honors shall we pay?˘/˘/˘˘˘/8A
How spread his praise abroad?//˘/˘/6C
Verse 2
From marble domes and gilded spires˘/˘/˘/˘/8A
Shall clouds of incense rise?˘/˘///6B
And gems, and gold, and garlands deck˘/˘/˘/˘/8C
The costly sacrifice?˘/˘/˘/6D
Verse 3
Vain, sinful man! creation's Lord//˘/˘/˘/8A
Thy offerings will not spare;//˘˘˘˘/7B
But give thy heart, and thou shalt find˘///˘///8C
Thy God will hear thy prayer.//˘///6B
Counted by machine from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. It cannot hear emphasis or a poet’s licence, so treat it as a place to start reading, not the last word.