Newton’s mo­ther died when he was sev­en years old. At age 11, with but two years school­ing and on­ly a rud­i­men­ta­ry know­ledge of La­tin, he went to sea with his fa­ther. Life at sea was filled with won­der­ful es­capes, viv­id dreams, and a sail­or’s reck­less­ness. He grew in­to a god­less and aban­doned man. He was once flogged as a de­sert­er from the na­vy, and for 15 months lived, half starved and ill treat­ed, as a slave in Af­ri­ca.

A chance read­ing of Tho­mas à Kemp­is sowed the seed of his con­ver­sion. It was ac­cel­er­at­ed by a night spent steer­ing a wa­ter­logged ship in the face of ap­par­ent death. He was then 23 years old. Over the next six years, dur­ing which he com­mand­ed a slave ship, his faith ma­tured. He spent the next nine years most­ly in Li­ver­pool, stu­dy­ing He­brew and Greek and ming­ling with White­field, Wes­ley, and the Non­con­form­ists. He was even­tu­al­ly or­dained, and be­came cur­ate at Ol­ney, Buck­ing­ham­shire, in 1764. His works in­clude:

• Omicron, 1762
• A vol­ume of ser­mons preached at Ol­ney, 1767
• Review of Ec­cle­si­as­ti­cal His­to­ry, 1769
• Olney Hymns, with Wil­liam Cow­per (Lon­don: W. Ol­i­ver, 1779)
• Cardiphonia, 1781

A mar­ble plaque at St. Mary Wool­noth car­ried the epi­taph which New­ton him­self wrote:

• Julian, p. 803-04, 1581
• McCutchan, pp. 51-52
• Robinson, p. 14

1. Afflictions Do Not Come Alone
2. Afflictions, Though They Seem Se­vere
3. Ah, What Can I Do?
4. Alas! By Na­ture How De­praved
5. Alas! Eli­sha’s Ser­vant Cried
6. Although on Mas­sy Pil­lars Built
7. Amazing Grace
8. And Dost Thou Say
9. Approach, My Soul, the Mer­cy Seat
   • Lord, I Ap­proach Thy Mer­cy Seat
10. As Once for Jo­nah, So the Lord
11. As Parched in the Bar­ren Sands
12. As Some Tall Rock Amidst the Waves
13. As the Ser­pent Raised by Mos­es
14. As the Sun’s En­liv­en­ing Eye
15. As When the Wea­ry Tra­vel­er Gains
16. Be Still, My Heart! These Anx­ious Cares
17. Before Eli­sha’s Gate
18. Begone Un­be­lief
19. Behold the Throne of Grace
20. Believer, Free from Care, A
21. Beneath the Ty­rant Sa­tan’s Yoke
22. Beside the Gos­pel Pool
23. Bitter, In­deed, the Wa­ters Are
24. Bleak Win­ter Is Sub­dued at Length
25. Blinded in Youth by Sa­tan’s Arts
26. Book of Na­ture Open Lies, The
27. By Faith in Christ I Walk with God
28. By the Poor Wi­dow’s Oil and Meal
29. By Various Max­ims, Forms and Rules
30. Castle of the Hu­man Heart, The
31. Cheer Up, My Soul, There Is a Mer­cy-Seat
32. Chief Shep­herd of Thy Cho­sen Sheep
33. Come, My Soul, Thy Suit Pre­pare
34. Confirm the Hope Thy Word Al­lows
35. Constrained by Their Lord to Em­bark
36. Could the Crea­tures Help or Ease Us
37. Courage, My Soul! Be­hold the Prize
38. Church a Gar­den Is, The
39. Darkness Over­spreads Us Here
40. Day of Judg­ment! Day of Won­ders!
41. Destruction’s Dan­ger­ous Road
42. Does It Not Grief, and Won­der Move
43. Does the Gos­pel Word Pro­claim
44. Elijah’s Ex­am­ple De­clares
45. Elisha, Struck with Grief and Awe
46. Encouraged by Thy Word
47. Ensnared, Too Long, My Heart Has Been
48. Evils That Be­set Our Path, The
49. Father, For­give, the Sav­ior Said
50. Father of An­gels and of Men
51. Father We Adore, The
52. Fervent, Per­se­ver­ing Pray­ers
53. Fix My Heart and Eyes on Thine!
54. For a Sea­son Called to Part
55. For Mer­cies, Count­less as the Sands
56. Forest Beasts, That Live by Prey
57. From Egypt Late­ly Freed
58. From Pole to Pole Let Others Roam
59. From She­ba a Dis­tant Re­port
60. Garden Con­tem­pla­tion Suits, A
61. Gathering Clouds, with As­pect Dark, The
62. Gladness Was Spread Through Is­ra­el’s Host
63. Glance from Heav’n, with Sweet Ef­fect, A
64. Glorious Things of Thee Are Spo­ken
65. Glory to God, the Fa­ther’s Name
66. God Who Once to Is­ra­el Spoke, The
67. God, with One Pierc­ing Glance, Looks Through
68. Grass and Flow­ers Which Clothe the Field, The
69. Great Shep­herd of Thy Cho­sen Flock
70. Happy Are They, to Whom the Lord
71. Happy the Birth Where Grace Pre­sides
72. Hark! How Time’s Wide Sound­ing Bell
73. He Who on Earth as Man Was Known
74. Hear What the Lord, the Great Amen
75. Here at Be­thes­da’s Pool
76. Honey Though the Bee Pre­pares
77. How Blest the Right­eous Are
78. How Da­vid, When by Sin De­ceived
79. How Hurt­ful Was the Choice of Lot
80. How Kind the Good Sa­mar­i­tan
81. How Lost Was My Con­di­tion
82. How Soon the Sav­ior’s Gra­cious Call
83. How Sweet the Name of Je­sus Sounds
84. How Te­di­ous and Taste­less
85. How Wel­come to the Saints, When Pressed
86. Hungry, and Faint, and Poor
87. I Am, Sa­ith Christ, Our Glor­i­ous Head
88. I Asked the Lord That I Might Grow
89. I Thirst, but Not as Once I Did
90. I Would, but Can­not Sing
91. Ice and Snow We Late­ly Saw, The
92. If for a Time the Air Be Calm
93. If Paul in Cae­sar’s Court Must Stand
94. If Sol­o­mon for Wis­dom Prayed
95. If the Lord Our Lead­er Be
96. If to Je­sus for Re­lief
97. In Evil Long I Took De­light
    • I Saw One Hang­ing on a Tree
98. In Mer­cy, Not in Wrath, Re­buke
99. In Them­selves, as Weak as Worms
100. In Vain My Fan­cy Strives to Paint
101. Incarnate God! The Soul That Knows
102. Jesus Christ, the Lord’s Anoint­ed
103. Jesus Is Mine! I’m Now Pre­pared
104. Jesus, to What Didst Thou Sub­mit
105. Jesus, Who Bought Us with His Blood
106. John in Vi­sion Saw the Day
107. Joy Is a Fruit That Will Not Grow
108. Kindle, Sav­ior, in My Heart
109. Kindred in Christ, for His Dear Sake
110. Kine Un­guid­ed Went, The
111. Legion Was My Name by Na­ture
112. Let Hearts and Tongues Unite
113. Let Me Dwell on Gol­go­tha
114. Let Us Adore the Grace That Seeks
115. Let Us Love and Sing and Won­der
116. Let World­ly Minds the World Pur­sue
117. Lion, Though by Na­ture Wild, A
118. Lion That on Samp­son Roared, The
119. Lodestone, The
120. Lord, Our Sal­va­tion and Light, The
121. Lord, Thou Hast Won
122. Lord, What Is Man! Ex­tremes How Wide
123. Manna Fa­vored Is­rael’s Meat, The
124. Manna to Is­ra­el Well Sup­plied
125. Martha Her Love and Joy Ex­pressed
126. Mary to Her Sav­ior’s Tomb
127. May the Grace of Christ Our Sav­ior
128. Mercy, Oh Thou Son of Da­vid!
129. Message First to Smyr­na Sent, The
130. Moon Has but a Bor­rowed Light, The
131. Moon in Sil­ver Glo­ry Shone, The
132. My Barns Are Full, My Stores In­crease
133. My For­mer Hopes Are Dead
134. My God! How Per­fect Are Thy Ways
135. My Harp Un­tuned, and Laid Aside
136. My Soul Is Be­set
137. My Soul Once Had Its Plen­te­ous Years
138. My Soul, This Cur­i­ous House of Clay
139. Nay, I Can­not Let Thee Go
     • Lord, I Can­not Let Thee Go
140. No Words Can De­clare
141. Not to Si­nai’s Dread­ful Blaze
142. Now, Gra­cious Lord, Thine Arm Re­veal
143. Now Let Us Join with Hearts and Tongues
144. Now, Lord, In­spire the Preach­er’s Heart
145. Now May Fer­vent Pray­er Arise
146. Now May He Who from the Dead
147. Now May the Lord Re­veal His Face
148. O Da­vid’s Son, and Da­vid’s Lord
149. O Hap­py They Who Know the Lord
150. O How I Love Thy Ho­ly Word
151. O Lord, How Vile Am I
152. O Lord, Our Lan­guid Souls In­spire
     • Dear Shep­herd of Thy Peo­ple, Hear
153. O, May the Pow­er Which Melts the Rock
154. O, Speak That Gra­cious Word Again
155. O Thou, at Whose Al­migh­ty Word
156. Oft as the Bell, with Sol­emn Toll
157. Oft as the Le­per’s Case I Read
158. Oft in Vain the Voice of Truth
159. Often Thy Pub­lic Means of Grace
160. On Man, in His Own Im­age Made
161. On the Same Flow­er We Oft­en See
162. On What Has Now Been Sown
163. Once a Wo­man Si­lent Stood
164. Once I Thought My Moun­tain Strong
165. Once Per­ish­ing in Blood I Lay
166. Once, While We Aimed at Zi­on’s Songs
167. One Aw­ful Word Which Je­sus Spoke
168. One Glance of Thine, Eter­nal Lord
169. One There Is, Above All Others
170. Oppressed with Un­be­lief and Sin
171. Our Lord, Who Knows Full Well
172. Peace Which God Alone Re­veals, The
173. Pensive, Doubt­ing, Fear­ful Heart
174. Physician of My Sin Sick Soul
175. Pleasing Spring Again Is Here
     • Kindly Spring Again Is Here
176. Poor Esau Re­pent­ed Too Late
177. Poor Sin­ners! Lit­tle Do They Think
178. Poor, Weak and Worth­less Though I Am
     • Christ a Re­deem­er and Friend
179. Prayer an An­swer Will Ob­tain
180. Preachers May, from Eze­ki­el’s Case
181. Precious Bi­ble! What a Trea­sure
182. Prepare a Thank­ful Song
183. Prophets’ Sons, in Time of Old, The
184. Quiet, Lord, My Fro­ward Heart
185. Refreshed by the Bread and Wine
186. Rejoice, Be­liev­er, in the Lord
187. Remember Us, We Pray Thee, Lord
188. Return to Bless My Wait­ing Eyes
189. Safely Through An­o­ther Week
190. Saints Em­man­u­el’s Por­tion Are, The
191. Salvation! What a Glor­i­ous Plan
192. Saved by Blood I Live to Tell
193. Savior Calls His Peo­ple Sheep, The
194. Savior, Shine and Cheer My Soul
195. Savior, Visit Thy Plan­ta­tion
196. See Aar­on, God’s Anoint­ed Priest
197. See! An­o­ther Year Is Gone!
198. See, How Rude Win­ter’s Icy Hand
199. See! The Corn Again in Ear!
200. See the Gloo­my Ga­ther­ing Cloud
201. See, the World for Youth Pre­pares
202. Shall Men Pre­tend to Plea­sure
203. Shelter from the Rain or Wind, A
204. Shunemite, Op­pressed with Grief, The
205. Sight, Hear­ing, Feel­ing, Taste and Smell
206. Signs Which God to Gi­de­on Gave, The
207. Simon, Be­ware! the Sav­ior Said
208. Sin, When Viewed by Scrip­ture Light
209. Sinner, Art Thou Still Se­cure?
210. Sinner, Hear the Sav­ior’s Call
211. Son of God! Thy Peo­ple’s Shield
212. Sovereign Grace Has Pow­er Alone
213. Stop, Poor Sin­ner! Stop and Think
214. Strange and Mys­ter­i­ous Is My Life
     • Conflicting Feel­ings
215. Subtle Spi­der Oft­en Weaves, The
216. Supported by the Word
217. Sweet Was the Time When First I Felt
218. Sweeter Sounds Than Mu­sic Knows
219. Ten Thou­sand Tal­ents Once I Owed
220. That Man No Guard or Wea­pons Needs
221. That Was a Won­der Work­ing Word
222. Then the Apos­tle Won­ders Wrought
223. Though Clou­dy Skies and North­ern Blasts
224. Though in the Out­ward Church Be­low
225. Though the Morn May Be Se­rene
226. Though Jer­i­cho Plea­sant­ly Stood
227. Though Small the Drops of Fall­ing Rain
228. Though Sore Be­set with Guilt and Fear
229. Though Trou­bles As­sail Us
230. Thus Sa­ith the Ho­ly One, and True
231. Thus Sa­ith the Lord to Eph­e­sus
232. Thy Man­sion Is the Chris­tian’s Heart
233. Thy Mess­age, by the Preach­er, Seal
234. Thy Prom­ise, Lord, and Thy Com­mand
235. Time, by Mo­ments, Steals Away
236. Time, with an Un­wear­ied Hand
237. ’Tis a Point I Long to Know
238. ’Tis Past—The Dread­ful Stor­my Night
239. To Thee Our Wants Are Known
240. Unbelief the Soul Dis­mays
241. Uncertain How the Way to Find
242. Unless the Lord Had Been My Stay
243. Water Stood Like Walls of Brass, The
244. We Seek a Rest Be­yond the Skies
245. Wearied by Day with Toils and Cares
246. What a Mourn­ful Life Is Mine
247. What Con­tra­dic­tions Meet
248. What Think You of Christ?
249. When a Black Over­spread­ing Cloud
250. When Adam Fell
251. When Any Turn from Zi­on’s Way
252. When Des­cend­ing from the Sky
253. When First My Soul En­list­ed
254. When First to Make My Heart His Own
255. When Han­nah, Pressed with Grief
256. When Is­ra­el by Di­vine Com­mand
257. When Is­ra­el Heard the Fie­ry Law
258. When Is­ra­el Was from Egypt Freed
259. When Is­ra­el’s Tribes Were Parched with Thirst
260. When Je­sus Claims the Sin­ner’s Heart
261. When Jo­seph His Breth­ren Be­held
262. When Jo­shua, by God’s Com­mand
263. When Mo­ses Waved His Mys­tic Rod
264. When My Pray­ers Are a Burd­en and Task
265. When My Sav­ior, My Shep­herd Is Near
266. When on the Cross, My Lord I See
267. When Paul Was Part­ed from His Friends
268. When Pe­ter Boast­ed, Soon He Fell
269. When Pe­ter Through the Te­di­ous Night
270. When Sin­ners Ut­ter Boast­ing Words
271. When Slum­ber Seals Our Wea­ry Eyes
272. When the Be­lov­ed Dis­ci­ple Took
273. When the Dis­ci­ples Crossed the Lake
274. When the Poor Pris­on­er Through a Grate
275. When the Sun, with Cheer­ful Beams
276. When the Wound­ed Spir­it Hears
277. While I Lived With­out the Lord
278. While Jo­shua Led the Armed Bands
279. While with Cease­less Course the Sun
280. Why Should I Fear the Dark­est Hour?
281. Wishes That the Slug­gard Frames, The
282. With Is­ra­el’s God Who Can Com­pare?
283. With Sa­tan, My Ac­cus­er, Near
284. Word from Je­sus Calms the Sea, A
285. Word of Christ, Our Lord, The
286. Worldling Spent Each Day, A
287. Ye Saints on Earth As­cribe with Heav’n’s High Host
288. Yes! Since God Him­self Has Said It
289. Zaccheus Climbed the Tree
290. Zeal Is That Pure and Heav’n­ly Flame
291. Zion! The Ci­ty of Our God