 | Divine Fancies |  |
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30. On the two Children.
My Flesh and Spirit, Lord, are like those payreOf Infants, whose sad Mothers did repayre
To Iustice: T'one is quick; the other dead:
The two promiscuous Parents that doe plead
For the live Childe, is Thee and Sathan, Lord:
Both claime alike; Iustice cals forth the Sword,
And seeing both, with equall teares, complaine,
Proffers to cleave the Children both in twaine;
And make them equall sharers in the same
That both doe challenge, and what both disclaime:
Sathan applaudes the motion, and replyde;
Nor thine, nor mine, but let them both divide;
And give alike to both: But thou, deare Lord,
Dislik'st the Iustice of th'unequall Sword:
Rather then share it dead, thou leav'st to strive,
And wilt not own't at all, if not alive:
The Sword's put vp, and straight condemnes the other
To be the false; calls Thee, the nat'rall Mother:
Lord of my Soule; It is but Sathans wilde,
To cheate thy bosome of thy living Childe;
Hee'd have the Question by the Sword decided,
Knowing the Soule's but dead, if once divided:
My better part is thine, and thine alone;
Take thou the Flesh, and let him gnaw the Bone.
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