Holy Sonnet VIII: If Faithful Souls Be Alike Glorified

John Donne 1572 (London) – 1631 (London)



If faithful souls be alike glorified
As angels, then my fathers soul doth see,
And adds this even to full felicity,
That valiantly I hells wide mouth o'erstride:
But if our minds to these souls be descried
By circumstances, and by signs that be
Apparent in us, not immediately,
How shall my mind's white truth by them be tried?
They see idolatrous lovers weep and mourn,
And vile blasphemous conjurers to call
On Jesus name, and Pharisaical
Dissemblers feign devotion. Then turn,
O pensive soul, to God, for he knows best
Thy true grief, for he put it in my breast.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 17, 2023

31 sec read
102

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABBAABBACDDEFF
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 560
Words 103
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14

John Donne

John Donne was an English poet, satirist, lawyer and a cleric in the Church of England. more…

All John Donne poems | John Donne Books

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