Named source · 1774

Light Shining out of Darkness Quotes by William Cowper: Context & Meanings

1 quotation linked to Light Shining out of Darkness by or associated with William Cowper, with source notes, explanations and related topics.

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God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform;

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“God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform;”

William Cowper

Meaning & context

Cowper opens the hymn with a Christian claim that divine purposes may operate through events people cannot immediately understand or interpret correctly.

Source details

“Light Shining out of Darkness,” first published in 1774 and later included in Olney Hymns; represented by the Cowper & Newton Museum. The line is explicitly Christian devotional poetry about providence, not evidence that every hardship has a knowable beneficial purpose.

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