Read The Complete Poetry of John Milton Online
Authors: John Milton
Tags: #English; Irish; Scottish; Welsh, #Poetry, #European
(
Apr. 1648
)
1
Thy Land to favour graciously
Thou hast not Lord been slack,
Thou hast from
hard
Captivity
Returned Jacob back.
5
2
Th’ iniquity thou didst forgive
That wrought
thy people woe,
And all their Sin
that did thee grieve
Hast hid
where none shall know.
3
Thine anger all thou hadst remov’d,
10
And
calmly
didst return
From thy
a
fierce wrath which we had prov’d
Far worse then fire to burn.
4
God of our saving health and peace,
Turn us, and us restore,
15
Thine indignation cause to cease
Toward us,
and chide no more.
5
Wilt thou be angry without end,
For ever angry thus?
Wilt thou thy frowning ire extend
20
From age to age on us?
6
Wilt thou not
b
turn, and
hear our voice
And us again
b
revive,
That so thy people may rejoyce
By thee preserv’d alive.
25
2
Cause us to see thy goodness Lord,
To us thy mercy shew,
Thy saving health to us afford
And life in us renew.
8
And now what God the Lord will speak
30
I will
go strait and
hear,
For to his people he speaks peace
And to his Saints
full dear
,
To his dear Saints he will speak peace,
But let them never more
35
Return to folly,
but surcease
To trespass as before.
9
Surely to such as do him fear
Salvation is at hand
And glory shall
ere long appear
40
To
dwell within our Land.
10
Mercy and Truth
that long were miss’d
Now
joyfully
are met;
Sweet
Peace and Righteousness have kiss’d
And hand in hand are set.
45
11
Truth from the earth
like to a flowr
Shall bud and blossom
then
,
And Justice from her heav’nly bowr
Look down
on mortal men.
12
The Lord will also then bestow
50
Whatever thing is good;
Our Land shall forth in plenty throw
Her fruits
to be our food.
13
Before him Righteousness shall go
His Royal Harbinger
,
55
Then
c
will he come, and not be slow,
His footsteps cannot err.
(
Apr. 1648
)
a
Heb.
The burning heat of thy wrath.
b
Heb.
Turn to quicken us.
c
Heb.
He will set his steps to the way.
1
Thy
gracious
ear, O Lord, encline,
O hear me 7
thee pray
,
For I am poor, and almost pine
With need,
and sad decay.
5
2
Preserve my soul, for
a
I have trod
Thy waies, and love the just;
Save thou thy servant O my God
Who
still
in thee doth trust.
3
Pitty me Lord for daily thee
10
I call;
4
O make rejoyce
Thy Servants Soul; for Lord to thee
I lift my soul
and voice
,
5
For thou art good, thou Lord art prone
To pardon, thou to all
15
Art full of mercy, thou
alone
To them that on thee call.
6
Unto my supplication Lord
Give ear, and to the crie
Of my
incessant
praiers afford
20
Thy hearing graciously.
7
I in the day of my distress
Will call on thee
for aid;
For thou wilt
grant
me
free access
And
answer,
what I pray’d.
25
8
Like thee among the gods is none
O Lord, nor any works
Of all that other gods have done
Like to thy
glorious
works.
9
The Nations all whom thou hast made
30
Shall come,
and all shall frame
To bow them low before thee Lord,
And glorifie thy name.
10
For great thou art, and wonders great
By thy strong hand are done,
35
Thou
in thy everlasting Seat
Remainest God alone.
11
Teach me O Lord thy way
most right
,
I in thy truth will bide,
To fear thy name my heart unite
40
So shall it never slide.
12
Thee will I praise O Lord my God
Thee honour, and adore
With my whole heart, and blaze abroad
Thy name for ever more.
45
13
For great thy mercy
is
toward me,
And thou hast free’d my Soul,
Eev’n from the lowest Hell set free
From deepest darkness foul.
14
O God the proud against me rise
50
And violent men are met
To seek my life, and in their eyes
No fear of thee have set.
15
But thou Lord art the God most mild
Readiest thy grace to shew,
55
Slow to be angry, and
art stil’d
Most mercifull, most true.
16
O turn to me
thy face at length
,
And me have mercy on,
Unto thy servant give thy strength,
60
And save thy hand-maids Son.
17
Some sign of good to me afford,
And let my foes
then
see
And be asham’d, because thou Lord
Dost help and comfort me.
(
Apr. 1648
)
a
Heb.
I am good, loving, a doer of good and holy things.
1
Among the holy Mountains
high
Is his foundation fast,
There seated in his Sanctuary
,
His Temple there is plac’t.
5
2
Sions
fair
Gates the Lord loves more
Then all the dwellings
fair
Of Jacobs
Land, though there be store
,
And all within his care.
3
City of God, most glorious things
10
Of thee
abroad
are spoke;
4
I mention Egypt,
where proud Kings
Did our forefathers yoke
,
I mention Babel to my friends,
Philistia
full of scorn
,
15
And Tyre with Ethiops
utmost ends
,
Lo this man there was born:
5
But
twise that praise shall in our ear
Be said of Sion
last
This and this man was born in her,