With radiant feet the tiffued clouds down ftearing,

And Heav'n as at some Festivall,

Will open wide the Gates of her high Palace Hall.

16.

But wifest Fate fayes no,

This must not yet be so,

The Babe lies yet in smiling Infancy, That on the bitter cross

Muft redeem our lofs;

So both himself and us to glorifie :

Yet first to those ychain'd in fleep,

150

[the deep. The wakeful trump of doom must thunder through

17.

With fuch a horrid clang

As on mount Sinai rang

[brake:

While the red fire, and smouldring clouds out

The aged Earth agast

With terrour of that blaft,

Shall from the furface to the center shake;

When at the worlds last feffion,

160

[throne.

The dreadful Judge in middle Air shall spread his

18.

And then at last our bliss

Full and perfet is,

But now begins; for from this happy Day Th'old Dragon under ground

In ftraiter limits bound,

Not half fo far cafts his ufurped fway,

And wroth to see his Kingdom fail,

Swindges the scaly Horrour of his foulded tail.

170

The Oracles are dum,

19.

No voice or hideous humm

Runs through the arched roof in words deceiving. Apollo from his shrine

Can no more divine,

With hollow fhreik the steep of Delphos leaving. No nightly trance, or breathed fpell,

179

Inspires the pale-ey'd Priest from the prophetic cell.

20.

The lonely mountains o're,

And the refounding fhore,

A voice of weeping heard, and loud lament; From haunted spring, and dale

Edg'd with poplar pale,

The parting Genius is with fighing fent,

With flowre-inwov'n treffes torn

[mourn.

The Nimphs in twilight shade of tangled thickets

In confecrated Earth,

21.

And on the holy Hearth,

190

The Lars, and Lemures moan with midnight

In Urns, and Altars round,

A drear and dying found

[plaint,

Affrights the Flamins at their fervice quaint; And the chill Marble feems to sweat,

While each peculiar power forgoes his wonted feat.

Peor, and Baalim,

22.

Forfake their Temples dim,

With that twice batter'd god of Palestine, And mooned Afhtaroth,

Heav'ns Queen and Mother both,

Now fits not girt with Tapers holy shine, The Libyc Hammon fhrinks his horn,

200

[mourn. In vain the Tyrian Maids their wounded Thamuz

And fullen Moloch fled,

23.

Hath left in fhadows dred,

His burning Idol all of blackest hue; In vain with Cymbals ring,

They call the grisly King,

In difmal dance about the furnace blue;

The brutish gods of Nile as fast,

Ifis and Orus, and the Dog Anubis haft.

210

Nor is Ofiris seen

24.

In Memphian Grove, or Green,

Trampling the unfhowr'd Grafs with lowings

Nor can he be at rest

Within his facred cheft,

[loud :

Naught but profoundest Hell can be his shroud,

In vain with Timbrel'd Anthems dark

The fable-stoled Sorcerers bear his worshipt Ark.

25.

He feels from Juda's Land

The dredded Infants hand,

The of Bethlehem blind his dusky eyn;

rayes

Nor all the Gods befide,

Longer dare abide,

221

Not Typhon huge ending in fnaky twine: Our Babe to fhew his Godhead true,

[crew. Can in his fwadling bands controul the damned

26.

So when the Sun in bed,

Curtain'd with cloudy red,

Pillows his chin upon an Orient wave, The flocking fhadows pale,

Troop to th'infernal Jail,

Each fetter'd Ghost flips to his several grave, And the yellow-skirted Fayes,

230

[maze.

Fly after the Night-fteeds, leaving their Moon-lov'd

But see the Virgin blest,

27.

Hath laid her Babe to rest.

[ing,

Time is our tedious Song fhould here have endHeav'ns youngest teemed Star,

Hath fixt her polisht Car,

240

[ing:

Her fleeping Lord with Handmaid Lamp attend

And all about the Courtly Stable,

Bright-harnest Angels fit in order serviceable.

The Paffion.

I.

RE-WHILE of Mufick, and Ethereal

mirth,

[ring,

Wherewith the stage of Ayr and Earth did

And joyous news of heav'nly Infants birth,

My mufe with Angels did divide to fing;
But headlong joy is ever on the wing,

In Wintry folftice like the shortn❜d light Soon swallow'd up in dark and long out-living night.

2.

For now to forrow must I tune my fong,
And fet my Harp to notes of faddeft wo,

Which on our dearest Lord did fease er'e long, 10
Dangers, and fnares, and wrongs, and worse then so,
Which he for us did freely undergo.

Most perfect Heroe, try'd in heaviest plight Of labours huge and hard, too hard for human wight.

3.

He fov'ran Prieft ftooping his regal head
That dropt with odorous oil down his fair eyes,
Foor fleshly Tabernacle entered,

19

His starry front low-rooft beneath the skies;
O what a mask was there, what a disguise!
Yet more; the stroke of death he must abide,
Then lies him meekly down fast by his Brethrens
fide.

4.

These latest scenes confine my roving vers,
To this Horizon is my Phabus bound;
His Godlike acts; and his temptations fierce,
And former sufferings other where are found;
Loud o're the reft Cremona's Trump doth found;
Me fofter airs befit, and fofter ftrings

Of Lute, or Viol ftill, more apt for mournful things.