Analysis of Paraphrase of Isaiah, Chap. 64
John Henry Newman 1801 (London) – 1890 (Edgbaston)
O that Thou wouldest rend the breadth of sky,
That veils Thy presence from the sons of men!
O that, as erst Thou camest from on high
Sudden in strength, Thou so would'st come again!
Track'd out by judgments was Thy fiery path,
Ocean and mountain withering in Thy wrath!
Then would Thy name—the Just, the Merciful—
Strange dubious attributes to human mind,
Appal Thy foes; and, kings, who spurn Thy rule,
Then, then would quake to hopeless doom
consign'd.
See, the stout bows, and totters the secure,
While pleasure's bondsman hides his head impure!
Come down! for then shall from its seven bright
springs
To him who thirsts the draught of life be given;
Eye hath not seen, ear hath not heard the things
Which He hath purposed for the heirs of heaven,—
A God of love, guiding with gracious ray
Each meek rejoicing pilgrim on his way.
Yea, though we err, and Thine averted face
Rebukes the folly in Thine Israel done,
Will not that hour of chastisement give place
To beams, the pledge of an eternal sun?
Yes for His counsels to the end endure;
We shall be saved, our rest abideth sure.
Lord, Lord! our sins… our sins… unclean are we,
Gross and corrupt; our seeming-virtuous deeds
Are but abominate; all, dead to Thee,
Shrivel, like leaves when summer's green recedes;
While, like the autumn blast, our lusts arise,
And sweep their prey where the fell serpent lies.
None, there is none to plead with God in prayer
Bracing his laggart spirit to the work
Of intercession; conscience-sprung despair,
Sin-loving still, doth in each bosom lurk.
Guilt calls Thee to avenge;—Thy risen ire
Sears like a brand, we gaze and we expire.
But now, O Lord, our Father! we are Thine,
Design and fashion; senseless while we lay,
Thou, as the potter, with a Hand Divine,
Didst mould Thy vessels of the sluggish clay.
Mark not our guilt, Thy word of wrath recall,
we are Thine by price, Thy people all!
Alas for Zion! 'tis a waste;—the fair,
The holy place in flames;—where once our sires
Kindled the sacrifice of praise and prayer,
Far other brightness gleams from Gentile fires.
Low lies our pride;—and wilt Thou self-deny
Thy rescuing arm unvex'd amid thine Israel's cry?
Scheme | ABABCC XDXXDEE XFGFGHH IGIGEE JKJKLL MNMNOO PHPHQQ MXMXAA |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (20%) |
Metre | 111110111 1111010111 111111111 10011111101 11110111001 10010100011 1111010100 1100101101 111011111 11111101 01 101101001 11111101 1111111101 1 11110111110 1111111101 1111101110 0111101101 1101010111 1111010101 01010011001 111101111 1101110101 1111010101 111110111 111011010111 100110101001 1111111 1011110101 11010110101 0111101101 1111111101 101110101 101010101 1101101101 1111011101 1101110101 11111010111 0101010111 1101010101 1111010101 1110111111 111111101 0111010101 01010111101 100101101 1101011110 11101011101 110011011101 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 2,178 |
Words | 386 |
Sentences | 20 |
Stanzas | 8 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 7, 7, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6 |
Lines Amount | 50 |
Letters per line (avg) | 34 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 210 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 47 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:58 min read
- 89 Views
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"Paraphrase of Isaiah, Chap. 64" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 25 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/23309/paraphrase-of-isaiah%2C-chap.-64>.
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