| Samuel Waddington, comp. The Sonnets of Europe. 1888. | | | | “Ye are the Branches” | | By Vittoria Colonna (1490–1547) |
| | Translated by James Glassford, of Dougalston
THANKS to thy sovereign grace, O God, if I | |
| Am graffed in that true vine a living shoot, | |
| Whose arms embrace the world, and in whose root, | |
| Planted by faith, our life must hidden lie. | |
| But thou beholdest how I fade and dry, | 5 |
| Choked with a waste of leaf, and void of fruit, | |
| Unless thy spring perennial shall recruit | |
| My sapless branch, still wanting fresh supply. | |
| O cleanse me, then, and make me to abide | |
| Wholly in thee, to drink thy heavenly dew | 10 |
| And watered daily with my tears to grow. | |
| Thou art the truth, thy promise is my guide; | |
| Prepare me when Thou comest, Lord, to show | |
| Fruits answering to the stock on which I grew. | | | | |
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