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Home  »  Lyra Sacra: A Book of Religious Verse  »  Discipline

Henry Charles Beeching, ed. (1859–1919). Lyra Sacra: A Book of Religious Verse. 1903.

By George Herbert (1593–1633)

Discipline

 
THROW away Thy rod,
Throw away Thy wrath:
        O my God,
Take the gentle path.
 
For my heart’s desire        5
Unto Thine is bent:
        I aspire
To a full consent.
 
Not a word or look
I affect to own,        10
        But by book,
And Thy book alone.
 
Though I fail, I weep:
Though I halt in pace,
        Yet I creep        15
To the throne of grace.
 
Then let wrath remove;
Love will do the deed:
        For with love
Stony hearts will bleed.        20
 
Love is swift of foot;
Love’s a man of war
        And can shoot,
And can hit from far.
 
Who can ’scape his bow?        25
That which wrought on Thee,
        Brought Thee low,
Needs must work on me.
 
Throw away Thy rod;
Though man frailties hath,        30
        Thou art God:
Throw away Thy wrath.