Verses upon the Burning of our House, July 18th, 1666



In silent night when rest I took,
     For sorrow near I did not look,
     I waken'd was with thund'ring noise
     And piteous shrieks of dreadful voice.
     That fearful sound of 'fire' and 'fire,'
     Let no man know is my Desire.
   I starting up, the light did spy,
    And to my God my heart did cry
    To straighten me in my Distress
   And not to leave me succourless.
   Then coming out, behold a space
   The flame consume my dwelling place.
   And when I could no longer look,
   I blest his grace that gave and took,
   That laid my goods now in the dust.
   Yea, so it was, and so 'twas just.
   It was his own; it was not mine.
   Far be it that I should repine,
   He might of all justly bereft
   But yet sufficient for us left.
   When by the Ruins oft I past
   My sorrowing eyes aside did cast
   And here and there the places spy
   Where oft I sate and long did lie.
   Here stood that Trunk, and there that chest,
   There lay that store I counted best,
   My pleasant things in ashes lie
   And them behold no more shall I.
   Under the roof no guest shall sit,
   Nor at thy Table eat a bit.
   No pleasant talk shall 'ere be told
   Nor things recounted done of old.
   No Candle 'ere shall shine in Thee,
   Nor bridegroom's voice ere heard shall bee.
   In silence ever shalt thou lie.
   Adieu, Adieu, All's Vanity.
   Then straight I 'gin my heart to chide:
   And did thy wealth on earth abide,
   Didst fix thy hope on mouldring dust,
   The arm of flesh didst make thy trust?
   Raise up thy thoughts above the sky
   That dunghill mists away may fly.
   Thou hast a house on high erect
   Fram'd by that mighty Architect,
   With glory richly furnished
   Stands permanent, though this be fled.
   It's purchased and paid for too
   By him who hath enough to do.
   A price so vast as is unknown,
   Yet by his gift is made thine own.
   There's wealth enough; I need no more.
   Farewell, my pelf; farewell, my store.
   The world no longer let me love;
   My hope and Treasure lies above.

Font size:
Collection  PDF     
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:51 min read
129

Quick analysis:

Scheme AABCDDEEFBGGAAHHIIJJKKEELLEEMMNNOOEOPPHHEEQQRSTTUUVVWW
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,982
Words 366
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 54

Anne Bradstreet

Anne Bradstreet was the first poet and first female writer in the British North American colonies to be published. more…

All Anne Bradstreet poems | Anne Bradstreet Books

1 fan

Discuss the poem Verses upon the Burning of our House, July 18th, 1666 with the community...

0 Comments

    Translation

    Find a translation for this poem in other languages:

    Select another language:

    • - Select -
    • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
    • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
    • Español (Spanish)
    • Esperanto (Esperanto)
    • 日本語 (Japanese)
    • Português (Portuguese)
    • Deutsch (German)
    • العربية (Arabic)
    • Français (French)
    • Русский (Russian)
    • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
    • 한국어 (Korean)
    • עברית (Hebrew)
    • Gaeilge (Irish)
    • Українська (Ukrainian)
    • اردو (Urdu)
    • Magyar (Hungarian)
    • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
    • Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Italiano (Italian)
    • தமிழ் (Tamil)
    • Türkçe (Turkish)
    • తెలుగు (Telugu)
    • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
    • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
    • Čeština (Czech)
    • Polski (Polish)
    • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Românește (Romanian)
    • Nederlands (Dutch)
    • Ελληνικά (Greek)
    • Latinum (Latin)
    • Svenska (Swedish)
    • Dansk (Danish)
    • Suomi (Finnish)
    • فارسی (Persian)
    • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
    • հայերեն (Armenian)
    • Norsk (Norwegian)
    • English (English)

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Verses upon the Burning of our House, July 18th, 1666" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/3123/verses-upon-the-burning-of-our-house,-july-18th,-1666>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    March 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    3
    days
    11
    hours
    14
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    Published in 1954, "Fighting Terms" was the first collection of poems by which poet?
    A Sylvia Plath
    B Thom Gunn
    C Philip Larkin
    D Ted Hughes