Christmas
The Weary Traveler Finds His Lord
The poet, exhausted from worldly pleasures, arrives at an inn and discovers Christ waiting there to relieve every weary traveler.
One day, as I rode wholly after pleasures—my horse and I both tired, body and mind, with my affections in full cry and completely off course—I put up at the next inn I could find.1 When I got there, who did I find but my dear one—my dearest Lord, waiting until the grief of pleasures brought me to him, ready there to be the sweetest relief for every traveler?
A Prayer for the Soul's Adornment
The poet addresses Christ, who entered the world in humble poverty, and asks Him to prepare the soul as a worthy dwelling place.
You whose light is glorious, yet made so small, wrapped in night's cloak, slipped into a manger: since my dark and brutish soul is Yours by right, of all the beasts, don't be a stranger to humankind.✦✦2 Furnish and adorn my soul, so that you may have a better lodging than a rack or a grave.3
The Shepherd's Song of Praise
The poet resolves to join the shepherds in singing, turning his own soul into a shepherd that feeds on God's word and grace, and pledges to outshine the sun in ceaseless praise.
The shepherds sing; and shall I stay silent? My God, no hymn for you? My soul is a shepherd too; it feeds a flock of thoughts and words and deeds. The pasture is your word; the streams are your grace, enriching the whole place. Shepherd and flock will sing, and all my powers will outsing the daylight hours.4 Then we will chide the sun for letting night take over his place and right: we sing one common Lord; so he himself should hold the candle.5 I will go searching until I find a sun that will stay until we are done—a willing shiner that will shine as gladly as frost-nipped suns look sadly.6 Then we will sing and shine all our own day, and repay one another: his beams will cheer my breast, and both will so entwine until even his beams sing and my music shines.7
Read the original English
All after pleasures as I rid one day, My horse and I, both tir'd, bodie and minde, With full crie of affections, quite astray; I took up in the next inne I could finde.
There when I came, whom found I but my deare, My dearest Lord, expecting till the grief Of pleasures brought me to him, readie there To be all passengers most sweet relief?
O Thou, whose glorious, yet contracted light, Wrapt in nights mantle, stole into a manger; Since my dark soul and brutish is thy right, To Man of all beasts be not thou a stranger.
Furnish & deck my soul, that thou mayst have A better lodging then a rack or grave.
THe shepherds sing; and shall I silent be? My God, no hymne for thee? My soul's a shepherd too; a flock it feeds Of thoughts, and words, and deeds. The pasture is thy word; the streams, thy grace Enriching all the place. Shepherd and flock shall sing, and all my powers Out-sing the day-light houres. Then we will chide the sunne for letting night Take up his place and right: We sing one common Lord; wherefore he should Himself the candle hold. I will go searching, till I finde a sunne Shall stay, till we have done; A willing shiner, that shall shine as gladly, As frost-nipt sunnes look sadly. Then we will sing, and shine all our own day, And one another pay: His beams shall cheer my breast, and both so twine, Till ev'n his beams sing, and my musick shine.
Scripture echoes
- ↩Luke.2.7 — And she gave birth to her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
- ↩John.1.4-John.1.9;Isa.9.2 — In him was life, and the life was the light of men. John.1.5 — And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. John.1.6 — There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. John.1.7 — He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. John.1.8 — He himself was not the light, but came to bear witness to the light. John.1.9 — The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. Isa.9.2 — The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in a land of deep shadow, light has shone.
Notes
- 1 ↩Herbert’s hunting metaphor: hounds ‘in full cry’ are in loud, full pursuit. ‘Affections’ here are the passions/attachments driving that chase, not tender feeling.
- 2 ↩Source 'contracted light' means divine glory drawn small in the Incarnation, not a legal contract; rendered 'made so small' for that sense.
- 3 ↩Source 'then' is the early-modern spelling of comparative 'than'; rendered as 'than'.
- 4 ↩Out-sing means surpass in length and force of song: keep singing beyond the span of daylight.
- 5 ↩Hold the candle: keep shining as attendant light rather than yield place to night; playful personification of the sun as a fellow worshiper of the same Lord.
- 6 ↩Frost-nipped suns: pale winter suns, weak and sad-looking; the contrast is glad willingness versus cold reluctance.
- 7 ↩Pay one another: mutual exchange—sunlight and the speaker's song answering and repaying each other until light and music cross identities.
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