Prison-Pietie or, Meditations Divine and Moral. Digested into Poetical Heads, On Mixt and Various Subjects. Whereunto is added A Panegyrick to The Right Reverend, and most Nobly descended, Henry, Lord Bishop of London. By Samuel Speed, Prisoner in Ludgate, London |
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Judeth's Song of Thanksgiving. |
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Judeth's Song of Thanksgiving.
With Timbrels and with Cymbals raiseA tune, wherewith our God to praise.
Divinity, afford me Balm
For sins, and skill to sing a Psalm
Of praise to God did Heaven frame.
Exalt him, call upon his Name:
He breaks the Battels of the strong,
And I that was the Camps among
Of proud King Assur, even then
When Israel seem'd a Prey to men,
Then did the Lord direct my ways;
I came from thence to sing his praise.
Out of the Mountains from the North
The Enemy came thundring forth.
Their strength did threaten dismal ills,
Their numbers covered the hills;
He brag'd he would my Borders burn,
And make Jerusalem an Urn;
And kill my young men with the Sword,
Dash Infants brains against the board,
And make my Virgins prove their spoil;
But God prevented hath their toyl:
A Female hand
By his command
Hath conquer'd the Assyrian Land.
Our mighty foe, he did not fight,
Nor did the Sons of Titans smite:
Neither did Giants force his care,
But Beauty was his only snare.
The daughter of Merari went
With resolution to the tent
Of Holofernes, drank him dead,
And safely brought away his head.
Thus, Lord, I ventur'd to commit
Two sins, and sacrifice my Wit.
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I shun'd ways of Carnality.
My people, Lord, I knew should live,
And thou art ready to forgive.
I boldly went, was not afraid,
Because assured of thine aid;
And to allure, I thought it good
The Garments of my Widowhood
To lay aside, and did attire
My head, to raise my beauty higher.
My Sandals ravished his eyes,
And he became my beauties prize:
For then to give his pride a check,
I strook his Fautchin through his neck;
Which act did make
The Persians quake;
The Medes stout hearts did likewise ake.
Thus my exterminating arm,
By inspiration, did alarm
A mighty Host, and did destroy
Their chief Commander, once their Joy.
A new Song to the Lord I'll sing:
Thou art a great and glorious King,
Wonderful in strength and might,
Invincible, the God of Fight:
To praise thy Name all things accord,
For thou mad'st all things with a word:
In thee all Creatures shall rejoyce,
Not any can resist thy voice.
Mountains and Waters shall remove,
Rocks melt as wax, if they not love.
Shall man be subject to obey,
And his Inferiours go astray?
Do we not see, year after year,
God's merciful to them that fear?
All Sacrifice too little is
For him that is the God of Bliss.
The saviour of the heart is sweet,
And he that fears the Lord is great.
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Against my Kindred: they a prize
Shall be to Worms; their flesh, as meat,
The Ravens of the field shall eat,
Whilst in Bethulia all my days
I'll spend to celebrate his praise.
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