Newman Reader - Verses on Various Occasions

29. Bondage

{70}
O PROPHET, tell me not of peace,

Or Christ's all-loving deeds;

Death only can from sin release,

And death to judgment leads.

Thou from thy birth hast set thy face

Towards thy Redeemer Lord;

To tend and deck His holy place,

And note his secret word.

I ne'er shall reach Heaven's glorious path;

Yet haply tears may stay

The purpose of His instant wrath,

And slake the fiery day. {71}

Then plead for one who cannot pray,

Whose faith is but despair,

Who hates his heart, nor puts away

The sin that rankles there. [Note ]

Iffley.
November 28, 1832.

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Note

The last stanza is not as it stood originally.
In this and other alterations in these
compositions, care has been taken not to
introduce ideas foreign to the Author's
sentiments at the time of writing.
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