 | Miscellaneous Poems |  |
28
The Watch by Night.
“And Uriah said unto David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah,
abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are
encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to
eat and to drink? . . . . As thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I
will not do this thing.”—2 Sam. xi. 11.
The Ark of God is in the field,
Like clouds around the alien armies sweep;
Each by his spear, beneath his shield,
In cold and dew the anointed warriors sleep.
Like clouds around the alien armies sweep;
Each by his spear, beneath his shield,
In cold and dew the anointed warriors sleep.
And can it be thou liest awake,
Sworn watchman, tossing on thy couch of down?
And doth thy recreant heart not ache
To hear the sentries round the leaguer'd town?
Sworn watchman, tossing on thy couch of down?
And doth thy recreant heart not ache
To hear the sentries round the leaguer'd town?
Oh dream no more of quiet life;
Care finds the careless out: more wise to vow
Thine heart entire to Faith's pure strife;
So peace will come, thou know'st not when or how.
Care finds the careless out: more wise to vow
Thine heart entire to Faith's pure strife;
So peace will come, thou know'st not when or how.
| Miscellaneous Poems | |