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…teaching…one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs….
(Colossians 3:16)
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ Name.
—From the hymn My Hope Is Built
If we’re teaching each other when we sing, we ought to know what the words mean, right? I’ve decided to continue on with the examination of the words to the hymn
My Hope Is Built by Edward Mote. You’ll find a post on the first two lines of this hymn
here.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
The first line of this hymn tells us what it is we can trust. We can build our assurance of our eternal inheritance on the work of Christ—his obedient life and sacrificial death on the cross. This second line starts by warning us about what it is we shouldn’t trust.
We we shouldn’t trust is “the sweetest frame.” We don’t talk about “sweet frames” anymore, although we do use the word frame in a similar way when we talk about a “frame of mind.” A sweet frame is a pleasant mood or disposition, and in this case, I’d think Edward Mote is referring to feelings of closeness in a relationship with God. We can’t build our hope on feelings of satisfying communion with God because feelings come and go, and the sweet frames of today can turn into despondency tomorrow. Anything built on our emotional highs will left swinging in the wind when, inevitably, our emotional state changes.
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