 | The Poems of John Byrom |  |
A FAREWELL TO THE WORLD,
From the French.
78
I
World, adieu, thou real Cheat!Oft have Thy deceitful Charms
Fill'd my Heart with fond Conceit,
Foolish Hopes and false Alarms.
Now I feel as clear as Day,
How thy Follies pass away.
II
Vain thy entertaining Sights,False thy Promises renew'd!
All the Pomp of thy Delights
Does but flatter and delude.
Thee I quit for Heav'n Above,
Object of the noblest Love.
III
Farewell, Honour's empty Pride!Thy own nice, uncertain Gust,
If the least Mischance betide,
Lays thee lower than the Dust;
Worldly Honours end in Gall,
Rise to Day, To-morrow fall.
IV
Foolish Vanity, farewell!More inconstant than the Wave;
Where thy soothing Fancies dwell,
Purest Tempers they deprave:
He to Whom I fly from thee,
Jesus Christ, shall set me free.
79
V
Never shall my wandering MindFollow after fleeting Toys;
Since in God alone I find
Solid and substantial Joys,—
Joys that, never overpast,
Thro' Eternity shall last.
VI
Lord, how happy is a Heart,After Thee while it aspires!
True and Faithful as Thou art,
Thou shalt answer its Desires;
It shall see the glorious Scene
Of Thy Everlasting Reign.
| The Poems of John Byrom | |