Shall man exalt himself, or boast

Verse 1
Shall man exalt himself, or boast
His goodness, forfeited and lost
When his first parent fell?
A dark abyss of sin unknown
Is all he now can call his own,
And all his right is hell.

Verse 2
The good he doth thro’ grace regain
He may by lowliness retain,
Or forfeit it by pride:
Full of the serpent’s treacherous art,
He cannot trust his own weak heart,
Or in his gifts confide.

Verse 3
Yet bold his neighbour to explore,
He dares prefer himself before
The meaner sons of grace;
No evil in himself can see,
And passing all in purity
He takes the highest place.

Verse 4
But taught of God we wait the end,
A moment patiently attend,
Our true estate to find;
Eternity will soon disclose
What none but the Omniscient knows,
The hearts of all mankind.

Hymnal/Album: Originally titled: “‘He that humbleth himself shall be exalted.’—Luke 14, v. 11.” This hymn appears in the 1766 manuscript “MS Luke.” This manuscript is part of the collection of the Methodist Archive and Research Centre in The John Rylands Library, The University of Manchester (accession number MA 1977/575, Charles Wesley Notebooks Box 3). Accessed through the website of The Center for Studies in the Wesleyan Tradition, Duke Divinity School. Published in The Poetical Works of John and Charles Wesley, Collected and Arranged by G. Osborn, Vol. 11 (London: Wesleyan-Methodist Conference Office, 1871), page 226.
Publishing: Public Domain