Analysis of Zaccheus

John Newton 1725 (Wapping, London) – 1807 (London)



Zaccheus climbed the tree,
And thought himself unknown;
But how surprised was he
When Jesus called him down!
The Lord beheld him, though concealed,
And by a word his pow'r revealed.

Wonder and joy at once
Were painted in his face;
Does he my name pronounce?
And does he know my case?
Will Jesus deign with me to dine?
Lord, I, with all I have, am thine!

Thus where the gospel's preached,
And sinners come to hear;
The hearts of some are reached
Before they are aware:
The word directly speaks to them,
And seems to point them out by name.

'Tis curiosity
Oft brings them in the way,
Only the man to see,
And hear what he can say;
But how the sinner starts to find
The preacher knows his inmost mind.

His long forgotten faults
Are brought again in view,
And all his secret thoughts
Revealed in public too:
Though compassed with a crowd about,
The searching word has found him out.

While thus distressing pain
And sorrow fills his heart,
He hears a voice again,
That bids his fears depart:
Then like Zaccheus he is blest,
And Jesus deigns to be his guest.


Scheme AXAXBB XCXCDD EXEXXX AFAFGG XHXHII XJXJKK
Poetic Form
Metre 10101 010101 110111 110111 0111101 010111101 100111 010011 111101 011111 11011111 11111111 11011 010111 011111 011101 01010111 01111111 10100 111001 100111 011111 11010111 0101111 110101 110101 011101 010101 1110101 01011111 110101 010111 110101 111101 1110111 01011111
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 1,030
Words 198
Sentences 11
Stanzas 6
Stanza Lengths 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6
Lines Amount 36
Letters per line (avg) 23
Words per line (avg) 5
Letters per stanza (avg) 137
Words per stanza (avg) 33
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 26, 2023

1:00 min read
240

John Newton

Rev Dr John A Newton CBE is a prominent Methodist minister, author, historian and former President of the Methodist Conference. more…

All John Newton poems | John Newton Books

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