Abimelech :: :: University of Virginia Library

Welcome Abraham and his train,
To Abimelech's domain;
Welcome, O ye great distrest!
To our peaceful bed of rest;
Welcome ye congenial souls
To our board and to our bowls;
Welcome Abraham and his train
To Abimelech's domain.

Abimelech and Sarah.

Recitative.

Abim.
O fair perfection, sister to the man,
Whom conscience bids me honour, lend an ear
To that soft language thou alone hast taught me,
And feed my hopes a little—At thy feet
The royal crown of Gerar I deposit,
And pray thy sweet acceptance—All I have
Of rich possessions, honour, pleasure, pow'r,
Is thine by grant immediate; and myself,
With all that rank beneath me, court thy service.

AIR.

To my passion condescending,
And my am'rous suit attending,
Take a mighty monarch's part,
Hear love's language thus inviting,
And delighted in delighting,
O restore me heart for heart.
ABRAHAM.

Recitative accompanied.

O great and glorious! at whose footstool falls
The seraph adoration, and renews
His hymns and praise for ever—hear thy servant:
For all the num'rous realms that know thee not,
And for this king Abimelech, with whom
I sojourn for a season—O prepare
His heart to learn thy judgments, curb his passions,
Lest beauty tempt his ruin—Ah, deceit!
How much art thou beneath me—'twas a fault
To counterfeit at all—yet on this rock
I build my hope eternal—my sincerity,
Which is to God my Saviour.

AIR.

O great to conquer and to spare,
Which couldst all obstacle subdue;
Do thou, my Saviour, form my pray'r;
Be thou my word and music too.
Bless all thy host, that on thee wait,
Whate'er their title or degree;
Transcendant Good, sublimely great,
Are less than nothing without thee.

Bless all mankind beneath the sun,
Who know thee, and who know thee not;
Bless all that creep, that fly, that run,
Or in vast ocean have their lot.
And, Oh, thy special blessing send,
On all that Abraham calls his own,
But chief, my fair domestic friend,
Still to be mine, and mine alone.

CHORUS.

Attend, to Abraham's prayer attend,
And aid his vows as they ascend,
Ye cherub hosts who keep your posts,
Where love and rapture have no end.

Recitative.

Sarah.
All things are irksome to me in this place,
And every object fills me with disgust.
Wou'd I had never left my house and kindred
For such a vagrant life—Can ought compensate
For our dear peaceful home and native country?

AIR.

Ah, memory, my cruel foe,
How much you daily work for woe!
The past upon the present hour,
How I was miss'd, you bring to view,
And all my former scenes renew.
My ev'ning walks, my fav'rite bow'r;

The friendships I was wont to share,
The flow'rs I nursed with so much care;
My garden, grotto, and my bees,
And, all these little griefs above,
My mother's and my sisters love,
And father's blessing on my knees.

Yet, taunter of the past delight,
That urgest grief in such despight,
Some soothing pow'rs to thee belong;
Do not those soothing pow'rs refuse,
But, as the mother of the Muse,
Shape all my sorrows into song.

Recitative.

Hagar.
She has conceal'd her soul's supreme distaste,
And dreads to tell thee farther—Lo, her ears
Have suffer'd profanation from the lips
Of an enamour'd Gentile—Couldst think,
That men remoter from the truth of God,
And more of brutal nature, should controul
Their appetites from such a form as Sarah's?

AIR.

Of all mankind the least and last,
Ev'n servile souls of meanest cast,
Can see when beauty's in excess,
And what they see they would possess.
When the full moon's resplendant face,
Besilvers all the vaulted space;
No sight so short but can descry,
What shines so bright and soars so high.

Recitative.

Abrah.
I have been much to blame, nor is there remedy,
But from yon infinitely good and gracious.
This monarch is not quite so much an alien
As sundry are; and has not yet, I trust,
Broke thro' the laws of hospitality,
Which have been bounteous to us—God is love.
To lust and filth his hatred is so mighty,
That every check is given to stop their rage.

AIR.

The main is controul'd by the shores,
The wind makes the deluge give way;
The lion that hungers and roars,
The flames will affright from his prey.

The brute that in lust would rebel,
Has conscience coercive within,
At once to restrain and to quell,
And terrify passion from sin.

CHORUS.

When love controuls the human heart,
Or mad'ning passion fires the brain,
Nature then shines exempt from art,
And prince and peasant are the same.

Recitative.

Sarah.
Let me be with thee;—stir not for a moment,
And shield my very ears from violation—
The handmaid too is fair, and needs protection,
Amongst such eyes as here are—'tis expedient
We meditate our flight, and shift the scene
For some sequester'd wilderness or cave.

AIR.

Hence thy flight with Sarah shape,
Let my terrors be obey'd;
Night's the season for escape,
Let us seek her friendly shade.
From the view of courts and kings,
Change the region, change the clime.
O that Fear, that Fear had wings,
As they tell of Love and Time!

Recitative.

Hagar.
If Sarah has found favour in thy sight,
And gave her heart's whole preference to thee,
From such a throng of suitors take her council;
The terror of a flight is not so grievous,
As dread suspence and dangerous delay.

AIR.

Hear thy handmaids thus imploring,
Trust not yet another day;
But the God of truth adoring,
Ask for guidance in the way.

Bitter grief should claim attention,
If her sorrows reason right;
There's no wisdom like prevention,
And the triumph's in the flight.

Recitative.

Abrah.
Canst thou deprive the tygress of her cubs
Before her glaring eye-balls?—Hagar, No;
There is suspicion too of such a step—
And this same Phichol, captain of the host,
Is watchful as Orion o'er the night,
Harrangues his troops with ceaseless exhortation,
And by his diligence defies illusion.
Had flight been possible, I had not tarried
For all these pangs of jealousy and grief.

Phicol, with Officers, Soldiers, &c.

Recitative.

Phicol.
There is a stranger sojourns in our court,
A man of wond'rous eminence, and call'd
The friend of God—he, likewise is right valiant,
And glorious is the tale of his renown—
His sister too of beauty most attractive,
Has smote our Master, and he doats and fawns,
Till Abraham sighs and weeps—whence I foresee
A rupture—stand ye, therefore, all prepar'd;
For, ere the great Abimelech should feel
One stroke of hostile insolence—I fall.

CHORUS

for Warlike Music.
Rouse, ye sons of warlike sires,
Rouse ye to the grand alarm;
Rouse, as loyalty inspires—
See the thund'ring coursers bound,
To the trumpet's lofty sound;
Arm—Resolution—Arm.

End of the First Part.

II. PART THE SECOND.

Recitative.

Sarah.
Is this a garden, that a silver fountain?
Are these sweet flowers, and those embow'ring shades?
No—nature in distress denies it all.

AIR.

There is no rose to minds in grief;
There is no lilly for despair;
Tears and distraction are relief,
And yews and willows we must wear.

All nature's blandishments are vain
From flow'ry turf, or azure sky,
And grottoes, where the groans of pain
In sadly sounding echoes die.

Recitative.

Hagar.
Alas! dear lady, sure you over-rate
Th'occasion of your sorrows; far too much
I have indulged them also—'tis high time
To shift the scene in thought, and cherish hope.

AIR.

Tho' yon tall almond blooms no more,
'Tis not because its sweets are o'er
On each aspiring shoot—
Attend to what the starlings sing,
Another year, another spring,
The buds to gayer pride shall bring.
It now prepares for fruit.
Abraham and Abimelech.

Recitative.

Abrah.
Nay—nay—there is no treaty in our house
Of such concern as this, but with our kindred.

Abim.
It is a custom far too blameable
For such a man to follow—such affinity
In Gerar, here deters us from each other—
Thou wou'dst not marry her thyself?

Abrah.
Forbear vain altercation—hast not thou a wife?

Abim.
I hold it lawful to espouse another,
Ev'n thy fair sister.

Abrah.
She will not consent.

Abim.
In troth, she wavers—at thy word she yields.

DUETTO.

Abim.
To a monarch's just petition,
Yield, and let my suit be heard.

Abrah.
'Tis distraction, 'tis perdition,
But to note a single word.

Abim.
Change thy blunt and fierce denial,
To a mild and gentle speech:

Abrah.
Sooner at the hour of trial
Shall the Oaf, the Ethiop bleach.

CHORUS of Phicol and his Guards.
Obey, ye brave, the king's command,
And on your needful duty stand;
With might defend the gates you bar,
—Here we are—here we are.

Recitative.

Abim.
Go call thy charming mistress to our presence;
Let Phicol too attend—'Tis female folly,
E'en in extremity, to fancy danger
Where kindness and affection have been shown.

AIR.

Not with more joy in Mamre's field,
Didst thou God's angels e'er receive,
Or greater signs of homage yield,
To them that came with Lot's reprieve—
All but the bending of the knee,
As thou to them, am I to thee.

My servants are the slaves of thine,
Each vying who should wait thee first;
'Tis well with all thy flocks and kine,
Thy goodly camels know no thirst,
For hospitality we hold
As royal as our crown of gold.

Recitative.

Abrah.
I pray thee, King Abimilech, excuse her—
Women are weak and tim'rous, full of frailties;
They're made but for indulgence and forgiveness.

CHORUS.

Shall mighty monarchs sue in vain;
Shall they, unheeded, plead their cause?
Oh, Abraham, sooth our prince's pain,
And yield to Love's persuasive laws.

Sarah and Phichol.

Recitative.

Sarah.
We're treated here like prisoners, not like guests,
And guarded by a keeper—I but offer'd
To pass beyond the garden, and was question'd
As touching my presumptiom—If this Phicol
Must needs be ask'd permission for an airing,
Our royal host has robb'd us of our freedom—
This is full wretched—Confidence deceiv'd,
Is more impatient of unwonted thrall,
Than he who, sick of liberty, wou'd change
His own caprices for a guiding monarch.

AIR.

Lo! the redbreast when encaged,
Breaks his head against the wire;
But, the bullfinch, unenraged,
Sings, and bids despair retire:

Grows familiar, once so wild,
Pipes the tune the master sets;
Trusts the finger of a child,
Nor his captive state regrets.

Recitative.

Abim.
If thou hast done this fair one such displeasure,
And dared against her liberty, thou varlet,
Low on thy knees intreat her gentle pardon,
And make protest against offence to come.

Phicol.
If my officious zeal to serve my master,
Has given disgust to thee, thou pearl of beauty,
Thus prostrate I renounce th'audacious deed,
And crave forgiveness in this suppliant guise.

AIR.

Ah, spare, triumphant beauty, spare,
And my too rash officious zeal excuse;
Sooner the lion shall the virgin tear,
Than I again on thee my pow'r abuse;
Unto my fault the arms of grace extend;
On thee my honour and my life depend.

Recitative.

Abrah.
Better dismiss us, if I may be heard,
Than let us stay to doubt thee—I wou'd bless thee,
If thou would'st chuse a blessing—but, beware
Of treach'rous practice—for I serve a God
With whom I do converse, and he will hear me.

AIR.

Hear Abraham, O thou God of pow'r,
Hear Abraham in his urgent hour,
Exalt his pray'r until it tow'r
To reach thine awful throne.

If here, at thy behest, I came,
Assert, assert thine hallow'd name,
Thy glorious majesty proclaim,
And be in thunder known.

CHORUS.

Hear Abraham, &c.

End of the Second Part.

III. PART THE THIRD.

Recitative.

Abim.
I am resolv'd they shall depart this day,
For such a night as last I never knew
From Infancy till now—Beware, he cry'd,
The angel of the Lord, all robed in terror,
Beware, Abimelech, of certain death,
Unless thou render Sarah to her lord—
I pleaded my integrity of heart,
And innocence of hands, and found some grace.

AIR.

Soon as the sun forsakes the hours,
And yields to Nights prevailing gloom,
Dread Darkness, with his horrid pow'rs,
In triumph wears his sable plume—
The sinner knows
No heart's repose,
But trembles for the day of doom.

Abraham in wrath.

Recitative.

Hast thou then took possession of my wife,
And dar'd the horrid foulness?—Is it thus
Thou call'st thyself a king, and sit'st a judge
Of truth and tenure?—Know, thou haughty tyrant,
That God is all around us, and th'adulterer
Pollutes the holy presence of th'Almighty.

DUETTO.

Abrah.
When thy threshold first I trod,
Didst not thou profess a a God,
And by his name we swore?—

Abim.
Meanly to advance a lie,
Didst not thou that God defy
You boasted to adore?—

BOTH.

I renounce all sin but error:
Thine the guilt, be thine the terror,
Hold thy peace, and urge no more.

CHORUS of Attendants.

Ye that the scenes of life dispose,
Arise; ye guardian pow'rs, arise;
O stave th'advance of threat'ning woes,
And let not God's allies be foes,
While truth supports the skies.

Recitative.

Abim.
Thy sister, or thy wife, or what thou wilt
Is innocent for me, deceitful stranger!
If God be purity, he's also truth;
And he that leases must offend his nature.
Phichol come forth with Sarah and Hagar.

Phichol, with Sarah, Hagar, and Guards.
Abim.
Behold thy wife again—and thou, fair matron,
Return thee to thy husband—he shall be
A covering to thine eyes, which shall not wander
Hereafter from thy lord to charm an alien.
Thou friend of God, which is the truth Almighty,
Beware of fraud for fear of retribution.

Queen of Gerar.

AIR.

He to whom God indulges light,
Shou'd in proportion make it shine.
Can heathen minds, involv'd in night,
Like thee discern, like thee divine?

But, as superior gifts are thine,
Thou shouldst superior fruit disclose.
Can you get olives from the vine,
Or from the thistle pluck the rose?

Then own thy fault with grief sincere,
And do thy bounden homage here.

Recitative.

Abrah.
Still I am clear of falshood and dissembling;
She is, indeed, my sister, tho' my wife—
By gracious dispensation hallow'd mine,
Because in ignorance and unbelief
At first I took her; when I came to thee,
I thought the fear of God was not at Gerar,
I therefore did conceal my plighted faith
For life and safety— (To Sarah.)
Wherefore cou'dst thou waver,
And half consent to everlasting ruin?

AIR.

Sarah.
With these cheeks in crimson glowing,
And my eyes with joy o'erflowing,
All my soul to thee bestowing,
I return in truth and peace.
Innocent and undesigning,
Never in my heart declining;
All the pow'rs of man combining,
Ne'er shall make my love decrease.

CHORUS.

Hence, depart! all joy possessing!
Yours be ev'ry earthly blessing!
May you still live in endless peace,
And fond endearments never cease;
May ev'ry pow'r your faith approve,
And bliss unenvy'd crown your love.

Recitative.

Hagar.
What cou'd a helpless woman do, beset
With fraud and force together, and denied
In part by thee, her guardian?—Heav'n be prais'd,
Which, free from violation, has restor'd her.

AIR.

In peace we hither came,
And hence in peace we go;
Where'er our course we aim,
Our blessing we bestow;
And may they years unnumber'd tell,
Who give us welcome and farewell.

Recitative.

Abim.
Not only take thy wife in safety back,
But store of sheep, of kidlings, and of beeves;
And in the portion that to Heav'n thou givest,
Pray my acceptance also, and the God
Of contrite and returning hearts receive thee.

AIR.

When to thy God thou mak'st appeal,
Then with thy servant kindly deal,
Yea, then remember me;
No spirit can like thine ascend,
To make th'angelic host attend,
To thy persuasive plea.

Recitative.

Abrah.
I will ascribe the glory with the gifts
To great Melchizedeck, the prince of peace,
Whose glorious face I saw, and unto whom
I give the tithe for ever—in his name
I make a league with thee and thine most faithful,
And Phichol too shall ratify the deed.

DUETTO.

Abrah.
Ah, what tender soft emotions,
Lovers reconcil'd receive!

Sarah.
Heav'nly bliss, exalted notions,
Their fond minds from grief reprieve.

Both.
O ye sever'd hearts rejoin.

Abrah.
I restore you mine. (Sarah)
And mine
To its own again shall cleave.

GRAND CHORUS

with Phichol and Soldiers.
Sound, ye instruments of fight,
Sound to war and blood no more:
Tune your trumpets to delight,
Flourish on th'increasing store.
This is triumph, this is fame.
Bless the music and the measure,
That administer to pleasure,
While they love and peace proclaim.

FINIS.