 | Lyra Pastoralis |  |
38
“The Shadow of Death”
SUGGESTED BY MR. HOLMAN HUNT'S FAMOUS PICTURE
The “twelve hours” of Thy “day” of toil are fled,O glorious Workman; and the gorgeous West
And level shadows bid to evening rest:
Thy weary arms to right and left are spread,
As heavenwards Thou dost lift Thy holy head
In praise. But lo! a sword has pierced the breast
Of Mary. Orient gems no more arrest
Her eyes now fixed upon that Omen dread.
She sees the shadow, but He fronts the sun;
Sufficient is the evil to the day;
Not yet His silent years of work are done,
Nor yields the toilsome to the “dolorous way.”
O sunlit Life, teach me Thy lesson high:
Then, trusting in no shadow, let me die!
| Lyra Pastoralis | |