 | Poems on Several Occasions |  |
ETERNITY.
No more of murm'ring Streams, or shady Groves,
Of fleecy Flocks, or of their Shepherds Loves;
No more fair Myra, on thy Name I'll dwell,
Nor in soft Notes to you my Passion tell:
These trifling Themes, no more shall tempt my Tongue,
A nobler Subject asks th' advent'rous Song;
Scenes of eternal Wonders court my Eyes,
And bid the Muse on soaring Pinions rise.
Of fleecy Flocks, or of their Shepherds Loves;
No more fair Myra, on thy Name I'll dwell,
Nor in soft Notes to you my Passion tell:
These trifling Themes, no more shall tempt my Tongue,
A nobler Subject asks th' advent'rous Song;
Scenes of eternal Wonders court my Eyes,
And bid the Muse on soaring Pinions rise.
As in the Stars their lanquid Lights decay,
When the full Sun bursts forth and pours the Day,
So from my Mind the meaner Topicks run,
When vast Eternity comes rolling on.
When the full Sun bursts forth and pours the Day,
So from my Mind the meaner Topicks run,
When vast Eternity comes rolling on.
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Eternity, O thou unfathom'd Deep,
In thy dark Womb, what hidden Wonders sleep?
How am I lost in thee! who can explain
The past Revolvings of thy mazy Reign?
Or who his Mind is able to dilate
To the long Periods of thy future Date?
Strange Labyrinths my puz'led Soul confound,
And winde mysterious in an endless Round.
In thy dark Womb, what hidden Wonders sleep?
How am I lost in thee! who can explain
The past Revolvings of thy mazy Reign?
Or who his Mind is able to dilate
To the long Periods of thy future Date?
Strange Labyrinths my puz'led Soul confound,
And winde mysterious in an endless Round.
Before this System own'd the central Sun;
Or Earth its Race about its Orbit run,
When Light ne'er dawn'd, nor Form display'd its Face,
But shapeless Matter fill'd th' unmeasur'd Space;
E'er Chaos self with jarring Discords rung
Or the rude Elements were together flung;
Then, then, Eternity, thy Pow'r was known,
Then did'st thou sit on thy unshaken Throne,
Thy Scepter flourish'd, never to decay;
Immensity the Kingdom of thy Sway.
Or Earth its Race about its Orbit run,
When Light ne'er dawn'd, nor Form display'd its Face,
But shapeless Matter fill'd th' unmeasur'd Space;
E'er Chaos self with jarring Discords rung
Or the rude Elements were together flung;
Then, then, Eternity, thy Pow'r was known,
Then did'st thou sit on thy unshaken Throne,
Thy Scepter flourish'd, never to decay;
Immensity the Kingdom of thy Sway.
Anon, Creation rose in infant Bloom,
And smiling Light dispel'd the horrid Gloom.
Heav'ns mighty Vault was like a Curtain thrown,
Where the Stars twinkled, and the Ether shone.
Time leap'd to Life, and sped his March from far,
Seated on Motion, his triumphal Car;
Through all the Worlds of Light his Axil rung,
And rolling Wheels resistless smok'd along—
Yet, O Eternity, all Time to Thee,
Is a small Bark that floats in an unbounded Sea.
And smiling Light dispel'd the horrid Gloom.
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Where the Stars twinkled, and the Ether shone.
Time leap'd to Life, and sped his March from far,
Seated on Motion, his triumphal Car;
Through all the Worlds of Light his Axil rung,
And rolling Wheels resistless smok'd along—
Yet, O Eternity, all Time to Thee,
Is a small Bark that floats in an unbounded Sea.
But, O my Muse, with wondring Eyes, behold
Scenes that remain, and Ages yet untold.
Look! where Duration yet unborn appears,
In the long Train of still succeeding Years!
The vast Extension stretches unconfin'd,
My Thoughts perplexes, and o'erpow'rs my Mind.
Scenes that remain, and Ages yet untold.
Look! where Duration yet unborn appears,
In the long Train of still succeeding Years!
The vast Extension stretches unconfin'd,
My Thoughts perplexes, and o'erpow'rs my Mind.
The Day shall come when this stupendous Ball
Shall haste to Ruins, and to nothing fall.
When Thou, Great GOD, shalt in the Clouds descend,
Lift up thy Hand, and swear that Time shall end.
Hark! the dread Trumpet breathes the mighty Sound,
The swelling Accents through the Air rebound;
See! the Graves teem; the waking Saints arise;
And the new Bodies glitter up the Skies;
Then the last Flames, commission'd, downward pour,
Melt the rough Rocks, consume the burning Shore,
While the Sea bubbles in its final Roar.
All Nature sinks, and every World destroy'd,
Leaves a waste Darkness, and a tractless Void.
Now fainting Time, in one vast Wreck o'erthrown,
Sinks dying down, and gives its latest Groan;
Eternity who first its Being gave,
Its fruitful Mother once, becomes its Grave:
So Streams which from the Sea their Birth obtain,
Flow swift along, there to be lost again.
Shall haste to Ruins, and to nothing fall.
When Thou, Great GOD, shalt in the Clouds descend,
Lift up thy Hand, and swear that Time shall end.
109
The swelling Accents through the Air rebound;
See! the Graves teem; the waking Saints arise;
And the new Bodies glitter up the Skies;
Then the last Flames, commission'd, downward pour,
Melt the rough Rocks, consume the burning Shore,
While the Sea bubbles in its final Roar.
All Nature sinks, and every World destroy'd,
Leaves a waste Darkness, and a tractless Void.
Now fainting Time, in one vast Wreck o'erthrown,
Sinks dying down, and gives its latest Groan;
Eternity who first its Being gave,
Its fruitful Mother once, becomes its Grave:
So Streams which from the Sea their Birth obtain,
Flow swift along, there to be lost again.
But, Oh! what Prospects open to my View!
What distant Scenes, my wond'ring Eyes pursue!
I see the gloomy, ever burning Caves,
Where, in eternal Storms, the melted Brimstone raves;
Loud roar the Flames, while rising Cries resound,
And endless Shreeks, and Blasphemies go round:
There Sinners waken from their idle Dreams,
And raging Devils curse the glowing Flames.
There coyls th' Old Serpent, strugling with his Chain,
Still hisses dire, and bites the Brass in vain.
Eternity, thy Breath the Flame inspires,
And adds new Torment to th' incessant Fires.
What distant Scenes, my wond'ring Eyes pursue!
I see the gloomy, ever burning Caves,
Where, in eternal Storms, the melted Brimstone raves;
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And endless Shreeks, and Blasphemies go round:
There Sinners waken from their idle Dreams,
And raging Devils curse the glowing Flames.
There coyls th' Old Serpent, strugling with his Chain,
Still hisses dire, and bites the Brass in vain.
Eternity, thy Breath the Flame inspires,
And adds new Torment to th' incessant Fires.
Far other Scenes my joyful Lays invite,
And heav'nly Visions swim before my Sight,
I hear soft Musick glide along the Air,
And Songs of Seraphs echo in my Ear.
I see the pious Souls with Pleasure crown'd,
And o'er the holy Hills Delights abound.
But Oh! the Raptures which my Pow'rs confess
When Jesus shines in his refulgent Dress!
From his wide Wounds perpetual Streams of Light,
For ever rush, and strike the dazled Sight:
Eternity, here thy high Joys are known,
The top most Gem in the Redeemer's Crown,
Ten thousand Raptures by thy Hands are giv'n;
Eternity, Thou art the Heav'n of Heav'n!
And heav'nly Visions swim before my Sight,
I hear soft Musick glide along the Air,
And Songs of Seraphs echo in my Ear.
I see the pious Souls with Pleasure crown'd,
And o'er the holy Hills Delights abound.
But Oh! the Raptures which my Pow'rs confess
When Jesus shines in his refulgent Dress!
From his wide Wounds perpetual Streams of Light,
For ever rush, and strike the dazled Sight:
Eternity, here thy high Joys are known,
The top most Gem in the Redeemer's Crown,
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Eternity, Thou art the Heav'n of Heav'n!
| Poems on Several Occasions | |