 | Three Hundred Sonnets |  |
29
CALUMNY.
‘Lo! ye shall take up serpents without fear,And walk on scorpions, scathless of their sting,
And, if ye drink of any deadly thing
It shall not hurt you:’—what a power is here!
A sevenfold buckler to our calm strong hearts
Against the feeble, blunted, broken darts
Of Hate's fierce frown, or Envy's subtle sneer:
O Christian! go straight on; though slander rear,
To freeze thy warmth, her cold Medusa head;
Go on, in faith and love, at duty's call:
With naked feet on adders thou shalt tread,
Meet perils, only to surmount them all,
And so, by bad men's blame, as good men's praise,
Build up God's blessing on thy words and ways.
| Three Hundred Sonnets | |