Olney Hymns · Chapter
The Importunate Widow explained
This chapter uses the parable of the importunate widow to teach the importance of persistent prayer.
What happens
This chapter uses the parable of the importunate widow to teach the importance of persistent prayer. It contrasts the unjust judge, who grants justice only for his own quiet, with Jesus, who lovingly hears His chosen ones and will surely help them. The poem encourages believers to be earnest and never faint in prayer, trusting in Christ's nature, truth, and love.
Themes in this chapter
Prayer and Dependence on God
The chapter emphasizes the necessity of persistent prayer and the assurance that God hears his chosen ones, even when he seems to delay.
Faith and Trust in Christ
The poem encourages trust in Christ's nature, truth, and love, which engage him on the side of those who cry out to him.
Characters to notice
- Jesus Christ
The Lord who knows the heart of every saint and invites us to pray and never faint. He bows his gracious ear and will help his chosen from on high.
- The Narrator
The speaker who reflects on the parable and applies its lesson, urging believers to be earnest and importunate in prayer.
- The Judge
The unjust judge who neither feared God nor regarded man, yet granted the widow's request for his own quiet's sake.
- The Waiting Soul
The widow, a poor and friendless figure, who persistently beset the unjust judge's door and gained her end.
Key passages
“Our Lord, who knows full well The heart of every saint, Invites us, by a parable. To pray and never faint.”
Jesus, who understands the hearts of all believers, teaches us through a story that we should pray continually and not give up.
The opening stanza sets the theme of persistent prayer.
“He bows his gracious ear, We never plead in vain; Yet we must wait till he appear, And pray, and pray again.”
God listens to our prayers, and they are never wasted, but we must be patient and keep praying until he answers.
Highlights the need for patience and repeated prayer.
“’Twas thus a widow poor, Without support or friend, Beset the unjust judge’s door, And gain’d, at last, her end.”
A poor widow, with no one to help her, kept bothering the unjust judge until he finally granted her request.
Introduces the parable's example of persistence.
“And shall not Jesus hear His chosen when they cry? Yes, though he may a while forbear, He’ll help them from on high.”
If an unjust judge can be moved, surely Jesus will hear his chosen people when they cry out, even if he delays, he will help them.
Contrasts the unjust judge with Jesus' faithfulness.
“His nature, truth, and love, Engage him on their side; When they are grieved, his bowels move, And can they be denied?”
Because of who he is, his truthfulness and love, he is committed to helping them; when they suffer, he feels compassion, so he cannot refuse them.
Emphasizes the character of Christ as the basis for answered prayer.