1 Had God not come, may Israel say,
Had God not come to aid us,
Our enemies on that sad day
Would surely have dismayed us;
A remnant now, and handful small,
Held in contempt and scorn by all,
Who cruelly would oppress us.

2 Their furious wrath, did God permit,
Would quickly have consumed us,
And in the deep and yawning pit
With life and limb entombed us;
Like men o'er whom dark waters roll,
The streams had gone e'en o'er our soul,
And mightily o'erwhelmed us.

3 Thanks be to God, who from the pit
Snatched us, when it was gaping:
Our souls, like birds that break the net,
To the blue sky escaping;
The snare is broken--we are free!
The Lord our Helper praiséd be,
The God of earth and heaven.