Nature
The Heart Tamed
The poet confesses his rebellion and asks God to tame his heart by taking strongholds captive.
Full of rebellion, I would die, or fight, or travel, or deny that you have anything to do with me.1 O tame my heart: it is your highest art to take strongholds captive for yourself.2
From Venom to New Heart
The poet warns that unchecked venom would destroy his soul, then prays for a renewed heart engraved with God's law or a new one made.
If you let this venom lurk, seething and working through suggestions, my soul will instantly turn to bubbles and naturally vanish into wind, making your workmanship a fraud.34 O smooth my rugged heart, and there engrave your sacred Law and the fear of you—or make a new one, since the old has grown sapless, and is a much fitter stone to hide my dust than to hold you.56
Read the original English
FUll of rebellion, I would die, Or fight, or travell, or denie That thou hast ought to do with me. O tame my heart: It is thy highest art To captivate strong holds to thee.
If thou shalt let this venome lurk, And in suggestions fume and work, My soul will turn to bubbles straight, And thence by kinde Vanish into a winde, Making thy workmanship deceit.
O smooth my rugged heart, and there Engrave thy rev'rend Law and fear: Or make a new one, since the old Is saplesse grown, And a much fitter stone To hide my dust, then thee to hold.
Notes
- 1 ↩Source 'ought' is archaic aught, 'anything'; 'travell' is early-modern travel (escape/journey), not travail.
- 2 ↩'Captivate strong holds to thee' is military-spiritual: conquering fortified places and claiming them as yours, not mere charm.
- 3 ↩Early modern spiritual sense: whispered promptings of sin or the tempter, not mere ideas.
- 4 ↩Rendered 'by nature' (kind = nature/species): the soul's natural tendency if the poison is left alone.
- 5 ↩Early modern 'rev'rend' means worthy of reverence, not clerical rank; rendered as 'sacred Law and the fear of you' to keep both the Law and holy fear as what must be engraved on the heart.
- 6 ↩Source 'then' is the early modern comparative (= 'than'); translated as 'than to hold you'.
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