Oh, not unwept, unsung thy wrongs have been,
Full many a swelling heart hath bled unseen;
Full many a tearful prayer and mournful groan-
Have to the ear of Heaven been breathed alone!
Long have the iron hoofs of power and pride
Trod on thee; long thy panting, bleeding side,
Pierced by the barbëd steel of Russian power-
A fearful reckoning waits the avenging hour!
How long, O Lord, how long! stretch out thy hand,
Cast out the oppressor from the struggling land,
The fetters rend, proclaim to Europe broad-
Among the nations, who is judge but God!
Thy time must come; it will, for God is just:
Arise and sing, thou dweller in the dust;
Thy soiled and bleeding brow shall yet be crowned
By Freedom's hand, and healed each ghastly wound.
No power I wield, no influence can I bring,
To bear upon the heart of Czar or King,
But I can plead thy cause His throne before
Who reigns, and rules, and lives for evermore!