Divine poems :: :: University of Virginia Library

They question Ionah whence he came,
His Country, and his peoples Name.
He makes reply: They mone their woe,
And aske his counsell what to doe.

As when a Thiefe's appr'hended on suspect,
And charg'd for some supposed malefact,
A rude concourse of people, straight accrewes,
Whose itching eares even smart to know the newes;
The guilty pris'ner (to himselfe betraid)
He stands dejected, trembling and afraid:
So Ionah stood the Sailers all among,
Inclosed round amid the ruder throng.
As in a Summers evening you shall heare
In Hives of Bees (if you lay close your eare)
Confused buzzing, and seditious noise,
Such was the murmure of the Saylers voice.

“What was thy sinfull act, that causes this,
“(Sayes one) wherein hast thou so done amisse?
“Tell us, What is thine Art (another sayes)
“That thou professest? Speake man, Whences awayes,
“From what Confines cam'st thou? (A third replyes)
“What is thy Country? And of what allies?
“What, art thou borne a Iew? or Gentile? whether?
“(Ere he could lend an answer unto either)

“A fourth demands; Where hath thy breeding beene?
All what they askt, they all askt o're agen:
In fine, their eares (impatient of delay)
Becalm'd their tongues to hear what he could say.

So Ionas (humbly rearing up his eyes)
Breaking his long-kept silence, thus replyes:
“I am an Hebrew, sonne of Abraham,
“From whom my Land did first derive her name,
“Within the Land of Iury was I borne,
“My name is Ionah, retchelesse and forlorne:
“I am a Prophet: ah! but woe is me,
“For from before the face of God I flee;
“From whence (through disobedience) I am driven:
“I feare Iehovah, the great God of Heaven:
“J feare the Lord of Hosts, whose glorious hand
“Did make this stormy Sea, and massie Land.

So said, their eares with double ravishment,
Still hung upon his melting lips, attent,
Whose dreadful words their harts so neer impierc't,
That from themselves, themselves were quite divers't:
As in a sowltry Summers eveningtide,
(When lustfull Phœbus re-salutes his Bride,
And Philomela 'gins her caroling)
A Herd of Deere are browzing in a Spring,
With eger appetite, misdeeming nought,
Nor in so deepe a silence fearing ought:
A sudden cracke, or some unthought-of sound,
Or bounce of Fowlers Peece, or yelpe of Hound,
Disturbs their quiet peace wth strange amaze
Where (senslesse halfe) through feare, they stand at gaze
So stand the Sea-men, (as with Ghosts affrighted,)
Entraunc'd with what this man of God recited:
Their tyred limbes doe now waxe faint, and lither,
Their harts did yern, their knees did smite together:

Congealed blood usurpt their trembling hearts,
And left a faintnesse in their feeble parts:
Who (trembling out distracting language,) thus:

“Why hast thou brought this mischiefe upon us?
“What humour led thee to a place unknowne,
“To seeke forraigne Land, and leave thine owne?

“What faith hadst thou, by leaving thine abode,
“To thinke to flye the presence of thy God?
“Why hast thou not obey'd (but thus transgrest)
“The voyce of God, whom thou acknowledgest?
“Art thou a Prophet, and dost thou amisse?
“What is the cause? and why hast thou done this?

“What shall we do? The tempest lends no eare
“To fruitlesse chat, nor doe the billowes heare,
“Or marke our language: Waves are not attent:
“Our goods they float, our needlesse paines are spent,
“Our Barke's not weather proofe: no Fort's so stout,
“To keepe continuall siege and battry out.
“The Lot accuses thee, thy words condemne thee,
“The waves (thy deaths men) strive to overwhelme thee:
“What she we doe? Thou Prophet, speake, we pray thee:
“Thou fear'dst the Lord; Alas! we may not slay thee:
“Or shall we save thee? No, for thou dost flye
“The face of God, and so deserv'st to dye:
“Thou Prophet, speake, what shall be done to thee,
“That angry Seas may calme, and quiet be?

Medita. 4.

Give leave a little to adjoyne your text,
And ease my soule, my soule with doubts perplext.
Can he be said to feare the Lord, that flyes him?
Can word confesse him, when as deed denies him?

My sacred Muse hath rounded in mine eare,
And read the mystery of a twofold feare:
The first, a servile feare, for judgements sake;
And thus hells Fire-brands doe feare and quake:
Thus Adam fear'd, and fled behinde a tree:
And thus did bloody Cain feare and flee.

Vnlike to this there is a second kinde
Of feare, extracted from a zealous minde,
Full fraught with love, and with a conscience clear
From base respects: It is a filiall feare;
A feare whose ground would just remaine, & level;
Were neither Heaven, nor Hel, nor God, nor devil.
Such was the feare that Princely David had;
And thus our wretched Ionah fear'd, and fled:
He fled asham'd, because his sinnes were such;
He fled asham'd, because his feare was much.
He fear'd Iehovah, other fear'd he none:
Him he acknowledg'd; him hee fear'd alone:
Vnlike to those who (being blinde with errour)
Frame many gods, and multiply their terrour.
Th'Egyptians, god Apis did implore.
God Assas the Chaldeans did adore:
Babel to the Devouring Dragon seekes;
Th'Arabian, Astaroth; Iuno, the Greekes;
The name of Belus, the Assyrians hallow,
The Troians, Vesta; Corinth, wise Apollo;
Th'Arginians sacrifice unto the Sunne;
To light-foot Mercury bowes Macedon;
To god Volunus, Lovers bend their knee:
To Pavor, they that faint and fearefull bee:
Who pray for health, and strength, to Murcia those,
And to Victoria, those that feare to lose:
To Muta, they that feare a womans tongue:
To great Lucina, women great with young:

To Esculapius, they that live opprest:
And such to Quies, that defier rest.

O blinded ignorance of antique times,
How blent with errour, and how stuft with crimes
Your Temples were! And how adulterate!
How clogg'd with needlesse gods! How obstinate!
How void of reason, order, how confuse!
How full of dangerous and foule abuse!
How sandy were the grounds, and how unstable!
How many Deities! yet how unable!

Implore these gods, that list to howle and barke,
They bow to Dagon, Dagon to the Arke:
But hee to whom the seale of mercy's given,
Adores Iehovah, the Great God of Heaven:
Vpon the mention of whose sacred Name,
Meeke Lambs grow fierce, & the fierce Lions tame:
Bright Sol shall stop, & heaven shal turn his course:
Mountains shall dance, and Neptune slake his force:
The Seas shall part, the fire want his flame,
Vpon the mention of Iehovah's Name:
A Name that makes the roofe of Heaven to shake,
The frame of Earth to quiver, Hell to quake:
A Name, to which all Angels blow their Trumps:
A Name, puts frolicke man into his dumps,
(Though ne're so blythe) A Name of high renown:
It mounts the meeke, and beats the loftie downe;
A Name, divides the marrow in the bone;
A Name, which out of hard, and flintie stone
Extracteth hearts of flesh, and makes relent.
Those hearts that never knew what mercy ment,

O Lord! how great's thy Name in all the Land:
How mighty are the wonders of thy hand?
How is thy glory plac't above the heaven?
To tender mouthes of Sucklings thou hast given

Coercive pow'r, and boldnesse to reproove,
When elder men doe what them not behoove.
O Lord,! how great's the power of thine hand?
O God! how great's thy Name in all the Land!