As if their day were only to be spent (For such are clothes and beauty, which, though gay, To open life, to give kingdoms to more Than kings give dignities; to keep Heav'n's door? How brave are those, who with their engine can In whom must meet God's graces, men's offences; And so the Heav'ns, which beget all things here, And th' Earth, our mother, which these things doth Both these in thee are in thy calling knit, [bear, And make thee now a bless'd hermaphrodite. A HYMN TO CHRIST, AT THE AUTHOR'S LAST GOING INTO GERMANY. In what torn ship soever I embark, I sacrifice this island unto thee, And all, whom I love here, and who love me; Where none but thee, th' eternal root Nor thou, nor thy religion, dost control But thou would'st have that love thyself: as thou Seal then this bill of my divorce to all, ON THE SACRAMENT. He was the word that spake it, He took the bread and brake it; And what that word did make it, I do believe and take it'. THE LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMY, FOR THE MOST PART ACCORDING TO TREMELLIUS. CHAPTER I. 1. How sits this city, late most populous, Thus solitary, and like a widow thus? Amplest of nations, queen of provinces She was, who now thus tributary is. 2. Still in the night she weeps, and her tears fall Down by her cheeks along, and none of all Her lovers comfort her; perfidiously Her friends have dealt, and now are enemy. 3. Unto great bondage and afflictions 4. Empty are th' gates of Sion, and her ways Mourn, because none come to her solemn days; Her priests do groan, her maids are comfortless; And she 's unto herself a bitterness. 5. Her foes are grown her head, and live at peace; 6. From Sion's daughter is all beauty gone; 7. Now in their days of tears, Jerusalem 8. Jerusalem hath sinn'd, therefore is she 9. Her foulness in her skirts was seen, yet she 10. Upon all things, where her delight hath been, 1 These lines are in all the editions of Donne's works, but have been usually attributed to queen Elizabeth. C. 17. There's none, though Sion do stretch out her 8. The Lord hath cast a line, so to confound hand, To comfort her; it is the Lord's command, That Jacob's foes girt him: Jerusalem Is as an unclean woman amongst them. 18. But yet the Lord is just, and righteous still, I have rebell'd against his holy will; O hear, all people, and my sorrow see, 19. I called for my lovers then, but they 20. Because I am in straits, Jehovah, see 21, Of all, which here I mourn, none comforts me; 22. Let all their wickedness appear to thee, CHAPTER II. 1. How over Sion's daughter hath God hung And level Sion's walls unto the ground; He draws not back his hand, which doth o'erturn The wall and rampart, which together mourn. 9. The gates are sunk into the ground, and he Hath broke the bar; their kings and princes be Amongst the heathen, without law, nor there Unto the prophets doth the Lord appear. 10. There Sion's elders on the ground are plac'd, · 11. My bowels are grown muddy, and mine eyes 12. When they had cry'd unto their mothers, "Where Shall we have bread and drink?" they fainted there; 13. Daughter Jerusalem, oh! what may be A witness, or comparison for thee? 14. For thee vain foolish things thy prophets sought, 15. The passengers do clap their hands, and hiss, 18. My strength, my hope, (unto myself I said) Which from the Lord should come, is perished, 19. But when my mournings I do think upon, My wormwood, hemloc, and affliction; 20. My soul is humbled in rememb'ring this; 23. For every morning they renewed be; 25. The Lord is good to them, who on him rely, And to the soul, that seeks him earnestly. 26. It is both good to trust, and to attend The Lord's salvation unto the end. 27. 'T is good for one his yoke in youth to bear. 28. He sits alone, and doth all speech forbear, Because he hath borne it: 29. and his mouth he lays Deep in the dust, yet then in hope he stays. 30. He gives his cheeks to whosoever will Strike him, and so he is reproached still. 31. For not for ever doth the Lord forsake; 32. But when he hath struck with sadness, he doth take Compassion, as his mercy 's infinite. 33. Nor is it with his heart, that he doth smite, 34. That under foot the prisoners stamped be; 35. That a man's right the judge himself doth see To be wrung from him. 36. That he subverted is 38. Both good and evil from his mouth proceeds; 39. Why then grieves any man for his misdeeds? 40. Turn we to God, by trying out our ways; 41. To him in Heav'n our hands with hearts upraise. 42. We have rebell'd, and fall'n away from thee; No pow'r to pass: 45. and thou hast made us fall, 48. With watry rivers doth mine eye o'erflow, 51. And for my city, daughter's sake, mine eye 54. Waters flow'd o'er my head; then thought I, I'm 57. Then when I call'd upon thee, thou drew'st near Unto me, and saidst unto me, Do not fear. [thou 58. Thou, Lord, my soul's cause handled hast, and Rescu'st my life. 59. O Lord, do thou judge now. Thou heard'st my wrong. 60. Their vengeance all they 've wrought; [they thought; 61. How they reproach'd, thou 'st heard, and what 62. What their lips utter'd, which against me rose, And what was ever whisper'd by my foes. 4. And when the sucking child doth strive to draw, 5. They, which before were delicately fed, 6. The daughters of my people have sinn'd more, 7. But heretofore purer her Nazarite 8. They're darker now than blackness; none can know Them by the face, as through the street they go: For now their skin doth cleave unto their bone, And wither'd is like to dry wood grown. 9. Better by sword than famine 't is to die; 11. Jehovah here fully accomplish'd hath 12. Nor would the kings of the Earth, nor all, which In the inhabitable world, believe, [live That any adversary, any foe, Into Jerusalem should enter so. 13. For the priests' sins, and prophets', which have Blood in the streets, and the just murthered: [shed 14. Which, when those men, whom they made blind, Thorough the streets, defiled by the way [did stray With blood, the which impossible it was They fled, and stray'd, and with the Gentiles were, Yet told their friends, they should not long dwell there. 16. For this they 're scatter'd by Jehovah's face, Who never will regard them more; no grace Unto the old men shall their foe afford; Nor, that they're priests, redeem them from the sword; 17. And we as yet, for all these miseries And such a nation, as cannot save, 18. They hunt our steps, that in the streets we fear To go; our end is now approached near. Our days accomplish'd are, this the last day; 20. The Lord's anointed, breath of our nostrils, he, 21. Rejoice, O Eden's daughter; joyful be, 22. And then thy sins, O Sion, shall be spent; CHAPTER V. 1. REMEMBER, O Lord, what is fall'n on us; 3. Our mothers are become as widows, we 5. Our persecutors on our necks do sit, 7. Our fathers did these sins, and are no more; But we do bear the sins they did before. 8. They are but servants, which do rule us thus ; Yet from their hands none would deliver us. 9. With danger of our life our bread we gat; For in the wilderness the sword did wait. 10. The tempests of this famine we liv'd in Black as an oven colour'd had our skin. 11. In Juda's cities they the maids abus'd By force, and so women in Sion us'd. 12. The princes with their hands they hung; no grace Nor honour gave they to the elder's face. 15. Unto the mill our young men carry'd are, And children fell under the wood they bear: 14. Elders the gates, youth did their songs forbear; Gone was our joy; our dancings mournings were. 15. Now is the crown fall'n from our head; and wo Be unto us, because we 've sinned so. 16. For this our hearts do languish, and for this Over our eyes a cloudy dimness is: 17. Because Mount Sion desolate doth le, And foxes there do go at liberty. 18. But thou, O Lord, art ever; and thy throne From generation to generation. 19. Why should'st thou forget us eternally; 21. For oughtest thou, O Lord, despise us thus, 22. And to be utterly enrag'd at us? HYMN TO GOD, MY GOD, IN MY SICKNESS. SINCE I am coming to that holy room, I tune the instrument here at the door; Whilst my physicians by their love are grown VOL V. |