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Chapter 3HerbTemple.2.3

The Thanksgiving

O King of Grief

The speaker addresses Christ as the King of grief and wounds, acknowledging the depth of His suffering and the speaker's inability to adequately mourn.

O King of grief! (a strange title, yet true, due to you alone among all kings) O King of wounds! How can I grieve for you, who go before me in every grief?1 Shall I weep blood? Why, you have already wept so much that your whole body was one door.2 Shall I be scourged, mocked, struck, sold?3 It would only be telling a tale already told. My God, my God, why do you part from me?4

The Grief Beyond Measure

Reflecting on Christ's cry of abandonment, the speaker questions how to respond without trivializing the Passion, and resolves to imitate Christ's love through a competitive devotion.

That was a grief beyond all measure.✦5 Shall I then skip through singing your mournful story, and take the side of your triumphant glory?6 Shall your strokes be my stroking?7 Your thorns, my flower?✦ Your rod, my posy?✦8 Your cross, my bower?9 But how then shall I imitate you, and copy your fair, though bloody, hand? Surely I will avenge myself on your love, and try who will prove victorious.10

Vows of Consecration

The speaker offers specific vows: dedicating wealth, honor, relationships, and future plans to God, postponing the consideration of the Passion.

If you give me wealth, I'll give it all back to you through the poor.✦ If you give me honor, people will see that the honor belongs to you. I won't marry; or if she is mine, she and her children will be yours. My closest friend—if he blasphemes your name, I'll tear his love and renown out of my heart.✦11 Once half of me is gone, I give the rest to some chapel, whether I die or live.12 As for your Passion—but of that later, when I've finished with the rest. For your predestination I'll arrange that three years from now, if I survive, I'll build a hospital or repair the public roads—but I'll mend my own ways without delay.✦13 Then I'll use the works of your creation as if I used them only for show.14

The Unfinished Offering

Withdrawing from the world, the speaker seeks God in music and Scripture, but ultimately confesses ignorance of how to respond to the Passion, leaving the offering unfinished.

The world and I will quarrel, and the year won't even notice that I'm here. My music will find you, and every string will have its own theme to sing, so that all together may harmonize in you and prove one God, one harmony.15 If you give me wit, it will show; if you've already given it to me, it's here.16 No—I'll read your book and never move until I've found your love in it: your art of love, which I'll turn back toward you, O my dear Savior—Victory!17 Then as for your Passion—I'll do something for that—alas, my God, I don't know what.18

Read the original English

OH King of grief! (a title strange, yet true, To thee of all kings onely due) Oh King of wounds! how shall I grieve for thee, Who in all grief preventest me? Shall I weep bloud? why, thou hast wept such store That all thy bodie was one doore. Shall I be scourged, flouted, boxed, sold? 'Tis but to tell the tale is told. My God, my God, why dost thou part from me?

Was such a grief as cannot be. Shall I then sing, skipping, thy dolefull storie, And side with thy triumphant glorie? Shall thy strokes be my stroking? thorns, my flower? Thy rod, my posie? crosse, my bower? But how then shall I imitate thee, and Copie thy fair, though bloudie hand? Surely I will revenge me on thy love, And trie who shall victorious prove.

If thou dost give me wealth; I will restore All back unto thee by the poore. If thou dost give me honour; men shall see The honour doth belong to thee. I will not marry; or, if she be mine, She and her children shall be thine. My bosome friend, if he blaspheme thy name, I will tear thence his love and fame. One half of me being gone, the rest I give Unto some Chappell, die or live. As for thy passion—But of that anon, When with the other I have done. For thy predestination, I'le contrive, That three yeares hence, if I survive, I'le build a spittle, or mend common wayes, But mend mine own without delayes. Then I will use the works of thy creation, As if I us'd them but for fashion.

The world and I will quarrell; and the yeare Shall not perceive, that I am here. My musick shall finde thee, and ev'ry string Shall have his attribute to sing; That all together may accord in thee, And prove one God, one harmonie. If thou shalt give me wit, it shall appeare, If thou hast giv'n it me, 'tis here. Nay, I will reade thy book, and never move Till I have found therein thy love; Thy art of love, which I'le turn back on thee, O my deare Saviour, Victorie! Then for thy passion—I will do for that— Alas, my God, I know not what.

Scripture echoes

  1. ↩Ps.22.1;Matt.27.46;Mark.15.34 — For the Director. Upon the Doe of the Dawn. A Psalm of David. Matt.27.46 — And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?' that is, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?' Mark.15.34 — And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" which is translated, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
  2. ↩Matt.27.29;Mark.15.17;John.19.2 — And they twisted together a crown of thorns and placed it on his head, and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, 'Hail, King of the Jews!' Mark.15.17 — And they clothed him in purple, and after twisting together a crown of thorns, they placed it on him. John.19.2 — And the soldiers, having woven a crown of thorns, placed it on his head, and they clothed him in a purple robe.
  3. ↩Ps.23.4 — Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff — they comfort me.
  4. ↩Matt.25.40;Prov.19.17 — And the King will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.' Prov.19.17 — Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD, and He will repay them for their deed.
  5. ↩Exod.20.7;Lev.24.16 — You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold guiltless anyone who takes His name in vain. Lev.24.16 — Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him. The sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the name, shall be put to death.
  6. ↩Rom.8.29-Rom.8.30;Eph.1.5 — For those whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. Rom.8.30 — And those he predestined, he also called; and those he called, he also justified; and those he justified, he also glorified. Eph.1.5 — He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,

Notes

  1. 1 ↩Early modern prevent = go before / anticipate (Latin praevenire), not hinder or stop. Christ has already gone ahead of the speaker in every grief.
  2. 2 ↩Herbert's image: Christ's body became entirely an opening for tears and blood—every wound a door. Kept the door metaphor rather than paraphrasing it away.
  3. 3 ↩flouted rendered as mocked; boxed as struck (beaten with the fist). sold keeps the Judas-sale force.
  4. 4 ↩Herbert varies the familiar cry with part from rather than forsaken; preserved his wording rather than collapsing it into the standard Gospel form.
  5. 5 ↩Source is elliptical: 'such a grief as cannot be' (untellable / impossible to match). Rendered as 'beyond all measure' to keep the absolute force without archaic incompleteness.
  6. 6 ↩'skipping' is both light-footed and slighting: singing the sorrowful Passion too lightly while aligning with the glory.
  7. 7 ↩Keeps Herbert's pun: 'strokes' as blows/wounds of the Passion versus 'stroking' as caress or comfort.
  8. 8 ↩'posie' = posy, a small bunch of flowers; kept as 'posy' rather than flattened to 'bouquet' to preserve the compressed emblem-series.
  9. 9 ↩'bower' retained as a still-current literary word for a shaded resting place or arbor of delight; the paradox is that the cross would become the speaker's pleasant retreat.
  10. 10 ↩'revenge me on thy love' is not hostile vengeance but competitive repayment: the speaker will answer Christ's love with love and contest who proves the greater lover.
  11. 11 ↩"bosome friend" rendered as closest/intimate friend; "thence" = from my bosom/heart.
  12. 12 ↩"One half of me being gone" is elliptical vow-language: half already spent/given away, with the remainder dedicated to a chapel.
  13. 13 ↩"spittle" = hospital/almshouse (spital); "common wayes" = public roads; "mend mine own" puns on roads and moral conduct.
  14. 14 ↩"but for fashion" taken as only for appearance/show (or mere custom), not for their true end.
  15. 15 ↩Early modern attribute means each string's distinctive quality, office, or theme of praise, not a modern personal trait.
  16. 16 ↩Wit here means intelligence, inventive faculty, and poetic skill offered back to God, not mere cleverness or humor.
  17. 17 ↩Turn back on thee means return or reflect that love back to Christ, not reject him. Thy book may mean Scripture, creation, or both as the place where divine love is read.
  18. 18 ↩Passion is Christ's suffering and death; the broken vow of recompense, postponed earlier in the poem, collapses into confessed inability.

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