CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 
 
 ENGLISH COLLECTION 
 
 THE GIFT OF 
 
 JAMES MORGAN HART 
 
 PKOFKSSOR OF KNGIJSH 
 
 ft,M4-5n 
 

 FEB 2 ^ 1943 
 
 WovJO '4,7 
 HOV 2 5 1950 
 JAN 3 1 1955 H S 
 
 Corned University Library 
 PR 1645.A4W61 
 
 The Christ of Cynewulf; a poem in three p 
 
 3 1924 013 340 421 
 
THE 
 
 CHRIST OF CYNEWULF 
 
 a Ipocm in Zbxee iparte 
 
 thjE advent, the ascension, and 
 the last judgment 
 
 TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH PROSE 
 BY 
 
 CHARLES HUNTINGTON WHITMAN 
 
 Fellow in English of Yale University 
 
 BOSTON, U.S.A. 
 
 GINN & COMPANY, PUBLISHERS 
 C!)e attljenaettin IJresB 
 
 1900 
 
Copyright, 1900, bv 
 CHARLES HUNTINGTON WHITMAN 
 
 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 
 
TO 
 PROFESSOR ALBERT S. COOK 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of tliis book is in 
 tine Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924013340421 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 My purpose in the present translation is so to combine 
 faithfulness with literary quality as to afford reasonable 
 satisfaction to both the specialist and the general student 
 of literature. In my diction I have endeavored to avoid 
 unintelligible archaisms, and have sought after simple 
 idioms, with a preference for words of Germanic origin. 
 
 All things considered, prose has been adopted as the 
 most satisfactory medium of translation. Verse may be 
 the ideal form, but it requires an ideal translator; and with 
 the exception of Tennyson's version of The Battle of Bru- 
 nanburh, and perhaps one or two others, I can think of 
 none that are at all adequate. Nor is prose without its 
 peculiar advantages ; in at least one important respect it 
 is superior to verse, since its flexibility offers a more facile 
 medium for reproducing that metrical variety which is one 
 of the principal charms of Old English poetry. 
 
 Up to the present time there have appeared three 
 complete translations of this poem — Thorpe's in his 
 edition of the Codex Exoniensis, Gollancz's in his two 
 editions of the Christ, and Grein's in his Dichtungen der 
 Angelsachsen. I have made free use of these translations, 
 and am indebted to them for an occasional word or phrase. 
 
 The line-numbering follows the original, which neces- 
 sarily causes irregular intervals between the marginal 
 numbers. Square brackets indicate words inserted by 
 the translator for the sake of clearness. 
 
vi PREFACE. 
 
 This translation was undertaken at the suggestion of 
 Professor Albert S. Cook, and closely conforms in read- 
 ings and punctuation to his recent edition of the Christ. 
 Through his kindness I have been furnished with the 
 proof-sheets as needed, and have thereby found my labor 
 materially lessened. Specific acknowledgments to this 
 edition are usually made in the foot-notes, but many of the 
 Biblical parallels come from the same source. Through- 
 out my work I have had the benefit of Professor Cook's 
 ripe scholarship and sound judgment ; for his unfailing 
 kindness and helpfulness I wish to express my deep sense 
 of gratitude. It also gives me pleasure to acknowledge 
 my indebtedness to Mr. Robert K. Root, who has care- 
 fully read the whole of my manuscript ; and to Dr. 
 Charles G. Osgood and Dr. Frank H. Chase for various 
 helpful suggestions. 
 
 The introduction to Professor Cook's volume relieves 
 me from attempting a literary appreciation. Suffice it to 
 say that, as the beauties of the Christ have gradually 
 unfolded before me, I have come to feel that it is the 
 most spiritual expression of an age in which poetry, vital 
 and genuine, if somewhat unformed, welled directly from 
 the deeps of man's nature. 
 
 If this translation should serve to win even a few 
 readers to an ardent and appreciative love of Old English 
 verse, the author would feel amply rewarded ; yet the 
 fitting and adequate recompense of such labor as it has 
 cost lies in the disclosure to the soul of the worker of a 
 beauty and truth hitherto unapprehended. 
 
 Yale University, 
 
 April 12, I goo. 
 
THE CHRIST. 
 
 Part I. — The Advent. - 
 
 to the King, qjj;; 
 
 Thou art the corner-stone which the builders once '' 
 rejected in their work ; fitting indeed is it for Thee, 
 O King of glory, to become the head of this noble 
 temple, and to join in bond secure the broad walls of 5 
 adamantine rock, so that throughout the cities of 
 earth all things endowed with sight may wonder^ 
 evermore. Reveal then, righteous and triumphant 
 One, through Thy wisdom, Thine own handiwork, 
 and leave wall firm against wall. The work hath 10 
 need that the Master Builder, the King Him- 
 self, should come and forthwith restore the house 
 that beneath its roof hath .fallen into ruin. He 
 formed the body, the limbs of clay ; and now is it 
 time for Him, the Prince of life, to deliver this mis- 15 
 erable host from their enemies, the wretched from 
 their fears, as He full oft hath done. 
 
 1 The construction in lines 7 and 8 is largely conjectural. Cf. 
 Cook's Christ, p. 74. 
 
 I 
 
2 THE ADVENT. 
 
 O Ruler and righteous King, Thou who holdest 
 
 20 the key and openest life, bless us with victory, with 
 that glorious success denied unto him whose work 
 availeth naught ! Verily in our need do we speak 
 these words : We beseech ^ Him who created man 
 that He choose not to pronounce judgment upon us 
 
 25 who, sad at heart, sit yearning in prison for the 
 sun's joyous course until such time as the Prince of 
 life reveal light unto us, become our soul's defense, 
 and compass the feeble mind with splfendor ; of all 
 
 30 this may He make us worthy, •mt whom He admitted 
 to glory, when, deprived of our heritage, we were 
 doomed to turn in wretchedness unto this narrow 
 land. Therefore he who speaks truth may say that 
 when the race of men was turned away [from God], 
 
 35 He saved it. Young was the virgin, a sinless 
 maiden, whom He chose for His mother ; it was 
 brought to pass without the embraces of man that 
 the bride became great with child.^ Never before 
 
 40 or after in this world was there conception of woman 
 like unto that ; it was secret, a mystery of the Lord. 
 All spiritual grace overspread the regions of earth ; 
 then was many a wise saying illumined by the Lord 
 of life, such ancient teaching, prophetic song, as of old 
 
 1 Manuscript defective at lines 23 and 24. Cf. Cook's Christ, p. 77. 
 
 2 Tile plirase &urh bearnes gebyrd omitted in translation. 
 
THE ADVENT. 3 
 
 lay wrapped in darkness, when the Ruler came who 45 
 magnifieth the course ^ of their words who wisely de- 
 sire to praise without stint the name of the Creator. 
 
 vision of peace, holy ^erusal enij best of royal 50 
 thrones, city of Christ, native abode of angels, in 
 thee alone the so\ils of the righteous rest ever, 
 rejoicing in their glory ! Never shall trace of sin 
 be brought to light in that dwelling-place, but all 55 
 iniquity, all curse and strife, shall flee far from thee. 
 Thou art gloriously full of holy joy, as thy name 
 bears witness. Behold now thyself how the wide 
 creation round about and the vault of heaven regard 60 
 thee far and near on every side ;^ the King of 
 heaven seeketh thee in His course, yea, cometh Him- 
 self and taketh up His abode in thee, as long ago 
 wise prophets spake in words, when they proclaimed 
 the birth of Christ, told it for thy joy, thou chief est 65 
 of cities. Now is the Child come, born to interpret 
 and fulfill^ the works of the Jews. He bringeth 
 thee joy ; He looseneth thy bonds ; He draweth 
 nigh * to men, for He knoweth their wants — how 
 the wretched must needs await succor. ^o 
 
 1 With evident reference to 2 Thess. 3. i. 
 
 '^ This interpretation does not conform to the Antiphon. Cf. 
 Cook's Christ, p. 83. 
 
 3 To wyrpe, the noun suggesting the pregnant sense of ' trans- 
 form.' ^ Reading genehwa& with Cook. 
 
4 THE ADVENT. 
 
 O thou joy of women in heavenly glory, fairest of 
 all maidens throughout the regions of earth, so far 
 as ocean-dwellers have ever learned, reveal to us 
 the mystery thait^Spame to thee from the skies, 
 
 75 how thou didst ever conceive so that a child might 
 be born, and yet hadst ^ not at all carnal intercours e 
 aft er the manner of men ! Of a truth we have never 
 heard that in days of old there came to pass such a 
 
 So thing as thou didst receive by special grace, nor may 
 we look for such an event in time to come. Truly a 
 noble faith dwelt in thee, for thou didst bear within 
 thy womb the Lord of glory, and yet thy splendid 
 
 85 virginity was not defiled. All the children of men, as 
 they sow in tears, even thus they reap — they bring 
 forth unto death. Then spake the blessed maiden, 
 the holy Mary, ever full of triumph : ' Why marvel 
 
 <3o ye thus, why grieve ye and sorrowfully lament, ye 
 sons and daughters of Salem .' Ye ask in curiosity 
 how I preserved my virginity, my chastity, and yet 
 became the mother of God's illustrious Son .' Verily 
 
 95 the secret is not known unto men, but Christ declared 
 that in David's beloved daughter all the guilt of Eve 
 is blotted out, the curse removed, and the weaker 
 
 ,00 sex exalted. Hope hath arisen that a blessing amid 
 the joy of heavenly angels, with the Father of right- 
 
 ^ Lit. 'knewest.' 
 
THE ADVENT. 5 
 
 eousness, may now abide for both men and women 
 evermore through all eternity.' 
 
 Xi 
 
 Lo ! Thou Splendor of the dayspring, fairest of 
 angels sent to men upon earth, Thou Radiance of 105 
 the Sun of righteousness, bright beyond the stars. 
 Thou of Thy very self dost illumine all the tides of 
 time ! Even as Thou, God begotten of God, Son 
 of the true Father, didst ever dwell without begin- no 
 ning in the glory of heaven, so Thine own handi- 
 work in its present need imploreth Thee with con- 
 fidence that Thou send us the bright sun, and come 
 in Thy very person to enlighten those who have long 115 
 been covered with murky cloud, and sitting here in 
 darkness and eternal night, shrouded in sins, have 
 been forced to endure the shadow of death^Now in 
 the fulness of hope we believe in the salvation brought 
 to men through the Word of God, who was in the be- 12° 
 ginning co-eternal with God the Father almighty, and 
 afterward became flesh without blemish, being born 
 of the virgin as a help for the afflicted. God appeared . 
 among us without sin ; the mighty Son of God and 125 
 the Son of Man dwelt together in harmony among 
 mankind. Wherefore it is right that we should 
 ever give thanks by our deeds ^ unto the Lord of 
 I 1 The rendering of bi gewyrhtum is here somewhat doubtful. 
 
6 THE ADVENT. 
 
 victory, for that He was willing to send Himself 
 unto us. 
 
 130 O God of spirits, how wisely and how rightly wast 
 Thou named Emmanuel, as the angel first called it 
 in Hebrew, which, fully interpreted in its hidden 
 meaning, is : ' Now is God Himself with us, the 
 
 135 Guardian of the skies ! ' Even so of yore ancient 
 men foretold the coming of the King of kings, the 
 spotless Priest. Thus long ago the great Melchise- 
 dec, wise of spirit, revealed the divine majesty of 
 
 140 the eternal Ruler. He was the bringer of laws and 
 precepts to those who had long looked for His 
 advent ; for it was promised them that by- the power 
 of the Spirit the Son of the Creator would Him- 
 
 145 self pass through the regions of earth, and visit the 
 lowest depths. Now were they waiting patiently in 
 captivity until the Son of God should come unto them 
 in their sorrow. And thus they spake, prostrated 
 
 150 by suffering : ' Come now Thyself, high King of 
 heaven. Bring salvation unto us wretched prisoners, 
 worn out with weeping, with bitter burning tears. 
 In Thee alone is relief for those in dire need. Seek^ 
 
 155 us here, captives sad of heart ; leave not^ behind 
 Thee, when Thou goest hence, a multitude so great ; 
 
 1 Reading ^^j-^« with Gollancz. ^ Reading ne IM with GoUancz. 
 
THE ADVENT. 7 
 
 but do Thou royally manifest Thy compassion upon 
 us, O Christ our Savior, Prince of glory ; let not the 
 accursed have dominion over us. Leave unto us the 
 eternal joy of Thy glory, that those whom Thou didst 160 
 first create with Thine hands may worship Thee, the 
 radiant King of hosts, who dwellest eternally on high 
 with God the Father.' 
 
 [Mary]. 'Alas my Joseph, son of Jacob, descend- 
 ant of the great king David, art thou bound to break 165 
 off thy firm troth and forsake my love .' ' 
 
 [_/os£pk]. ' I am full deeply troubled, bereft of my 
 good name ; on thy account I have heard many 
 words, boundless causes of grief,^ taunts and con- 170 
 tumely ; they utter insults and many reproaches 
 against me. Sad in spirit I must needs pour out 
 my tears. God alone ^ can easily heal the sorrow 
 of my heart and comfort me in my misery. Alas 
 young damsel, maiden Mary ! ' 175 
 
 [Mary]. 'Why grievest thou and criest out in 
 sorrow .■• Never have I found in thee any fault, or 
 cause for suspicion that thou hast wrought evil ; 
 and yet thou speakest these words as if thou thyself 
 wert filled with every sin and iniquity.' 180 
 
 1 Lit. ' griefs.' 
 
 2 So the sense seems to require, though the word is lacking in 
 the text. 
 
8 THE ADVENT. 
 
 [Josep/t]. ' I have endured too much misery because 
 of this child-bearing. How can I refute their hateful 
 words, or find any answer to my enemies ? It is known 
 
 iss far and wide that from the glorious temple of the Lord 
 I willingly received a pure maiden free from sin, and 
 now all is changed by I know not what. Neither 
 speech nor silence avails me aught. If I declare the 
 
 190 truth, then must the daughter of David perish, slain 
 with stones. Yet is it harder for me to conceal crime ; 
 as a perjurer I should be forced to live thenceforth, 
 hated of all peoples, despised among the tribes of men.' 
 
 195 Then the maid. unraveled the mystery, and thus she 
 spake : ' I swear truly by the Son of God, the Savior 
 of souls, that I have never yet had intercourse with 
 
 200 any man on earth ; , but it was granted unto me, 
 while yet young in my home, that Gabriel, heaven's 
 archangel, bade me hail, and said in truth that the 
 heavenly Spirit would shine upon me with His 
 splendor, and that I should bear the Glory of life, an 
 
 20s illustrious Child, the great Son of God, the bright 
 King of glory. Now without guilt have I been 
 made His temple ; the Spirit of comfort hath dwelt 
 within me. Do thou henceforth forego all grievous 
 care. Give eternal thanks unto God's great Son 
 
 210 that I have become His mother, though still a 
 maiden, and that thou art reputed His earthly father 
 
THE ADVENT. 9 
 
 in the thoughts of men ; thus was prophecy to be 
 truly fulfilled in Himself.' ^„^ 
 
 O Thou King of kings, righteous and peaceful, 
 Christ almighty, how didst Thou spring into being 215 
 with Thy glorious Father before all the hosts of the 
 world, a child begotten by His power and might ! 
 There is now no man under heaven, no hero so 
 exceeding wise and prudent that he can relate or 220 
 truly explain to the ocean-dwellers how the Guardian 
 of the skies took Thee in "the beginning for His 
 noble Son. Of all the things created under the 
 welkin, so far as the race of men^ hath heard among 
 the peoples, first did the wise God, Author of life, 225 
 divide in majesty the light from the darkness. His 
 was the power of decision, and the Lord of hosts 
 gave this command : ' Let there be a bright light 
 henceforth for ever and ever, a joy to all living men 230 
 who in their generations shall be born.' 
 
 And straightway it came to pass when it was so to 
 be ; a light, bright amidst the stars, shone forth for 
 the nations of men after the lapse of time ; Himself 235 
 ordained that Thou, His Son, shouldst be co-dwelling 
 with Thine only Lord before aught of this should 
 ever come to pass. Thou art that Wisdom who 
 1 Lit. ' nations.' 
 
lO THE ADVENT. 
 
 240 with the Lord didst frame all this broad creation. 
 Wherefore there is no one so wise and prudent that 
 he can clearly set forth Thy parentage unto the sons 
 of men. Come now, O Prince of victory, Lord of 
 
 245 mankind, and graciously show Thy favor here ; we 
 all desire to understand the mystery of Thy mater- 
 nal descent, since we can no further unfold Thy 
 
 250 paternal lineage. O Savior Christ, by Thine advent 
 graciously bless this world, and the golden gate,i 
 which full long stood locked in ages past, do Thou, 
 high Lord of heaven, give command to open ; do 
 Thou visit us, coming in Thy very person humbly to 
 
 255 earth. We have need of Thy help. The accursed 
 wolf,^ that dark shadow of death, hath scattered Thy 
 flock, O Lord, driven it far and wide ; those whom ^ 
 Thou, O sovereign Prince, didst redeem with Thy 
 
 260 blood, those* the evil one cruelly oppresseth and 
 taketh captive against our will.^ Wherefore, O 
 Savior, we earnestly pray Thee in the thoughts -of 
 our hearts that straightway Thou grant help unto us 
 unhappy exiles ; that the baleful destroyer^ may 
 
 1 Lit. ' gates,' and so 321. 
 
 ^ Professor Cook calls attention to Bugge's theory that the Fen- 
 ris wolf of Old Norse poetry is an imaginative reflex of the Christian 
 conception. Cf. The Home of the Eddie Poems, Grimm Library, 
 pp. Ivii, Ixxiii ff. ^ Lit. ' what.' * Lit. ' that.' 
 
 " Lit. ' contrary to the longing of our desires.' 
 
 '' Lit. 'slayer of torment'; perhaps = ' slayer dwelling in torment.' 
 
THE ADVENT. II 
 
 fall headlong into the abyss of hell ; and that Thy 265 
 handiwork, O Creator of men, may arise and come, 
 as is fitting, to that fair heavenly kingdom whence 
 the dark spirit, through our love of sin, erstwhile 
 enticed and beguiled us, so that, stripped of glory, 270 
 we must evermore endure misery, unless Thou, Lord 
 eternal, living God, Protector of all creatures, wilt 
 speedily free us from the universal foe. 
 
 O renowned throughout the world, purest of 275 
 women upon earth of those who ever were born, 
 how with joyful heart do all men endowed with 
 speech, all heroes throughout the world, rightly de- 
 clare and say that thou art the bride of heaven's most 280 
 excellent King ! Even so in the skies the highest 
 retainers of Christ proclaim and sing that in thy holy 
 virtues ^ thou art queen of the heavenly host, of the 285 
 ranks of men under heaven, and of the dwellers in 
 hell ; for thou alone of all mankind with splendid 
 courage didst resolve to bring thy virginity unto the 
 Lord, and offer it up without sin. No ring-adorned 290 
 bride like unto thee hath since come among men, 
 bringing in due time with pure heart that fair offering 
 to the heavenly home. Wherefore the Lord trium- 
 phant bade His archangel fly hither from the majesty 29s 
 
 ^ Or, ' powers.' 
 
12 THE ADVENT. 
 
 of His glory, and straightway reveal to thee the ful- 
 ness of His power, that thou, Mary, in compassion for 
 mankind, shouldst bear in pure nativity the Son of 
 
 300 God, and shouldst keep thyself unspotted for ever. 
 We have heard also that long ago in days of old a 
 righteous prophet, Isaiah,^ spake concerning thee, 
 [saying] that he was led where he fully beheld the 
 
 305 mansions of life in the eternal abode. Then the 
 wise prophet looked out over that region, till he saw 
 where there was set a noble portal. The towering 
 gate was bound all about with precious metal, begirt 
 
 310 with wondrous bands. He fully believed that no 
 man unto all eternity could ever lift bars so firmly 
 fixed, or open the fastening of that city-gate, until 
 
 315 the angel of God, with benign purpose, made known 
 the manner of it, and spake these words : ' I can 
 declare to thee the truth ^ that in course of time God 
 
 320 Himself, the Father almighty, will pass by the power 
 of the Spirit through this golden gate, and through 
 these firm barriers will visit earth ; and after 
 Him it shall for evermore remain so tightly locked 
 
 325 that, save God the Redeemer, none shall ever again 
 open it.' 
 
 Now is that fulfilled which the wise one there 
 
 ' Properly, ' Ezekiel.' 
 
 ^ Lit. ' that it has truly come to pass.' 
 
THE ADVENT. 13 
 
 looked upon with his very eyes. Thou art that door ; 
 through thee the sovereign Lord once issued forth 
 upon this earth, and even thus did Christ almighty 
 find thee adorned with virtues, pure and elect ; so 330 
 also did the Prince of angels, Giver of life, close thee 
 after Him with a key, [still] free from all blemish. 
 Show now unto us the grace which God's messenger, 335 
 the angel Gabriel, brought to thee. Lo ! the dwell- 
 ers in cities beseech thee that thou grant to the 
 peoples this comfort, even thine own Son. Hence- 
 forth we may all rejoice with one accord, now that 340 
 we behold the child [lying] on thy breast. Plead 
 for us now with bold words, that He suffer us no 
 longer to hearken unto error in this valley of death, 
 but that He bring us to the Father's kingdom, where, 345 
 free from sorrow, we may thenceforth dwell in glory 
 with the Lord of hosts. 
 
 O holy Lord of heaven, Thou wast in ages past 
 co-existent with Thy Father in that noble abode ! 35° 
 There was as yet no angel created, nor any of the 
 mighty host who, in the heavens on high, watch over 
 the kingdom, the palace of the Prince, and His ser- 
 vice, when Thou, , together with God eternal, wast 355 
 first establishing the wide creation, all these spacious 
 realms. The Holy Ghost, Spirit of comfort, pro- 
 
14 THE ADVENT. 
 
 ceedeth equally from^ you both. O Christ Jesus, 
 God the Savior, humbly do we all beseech Thee to 
 
 360 hearken unto the voice of these captives, Thy bond- 
 slaves, how we are tormented by our own desires. 
 Evil spirits, those hateful hell-fiends, have cruelly 
 confined us wretched exiles, and bound us with 
 
 365 grievous cords. Relief rests in Thee alone, O Lord 
 eternal. Help Thou the sorrowful, that Thine 
 advent may comfort the miserable, though we, 
 through our lust for sin, have waged war upon 
 
 370 Thee. Have mercy now upon Thy servants, and 
 consider our woes — how, feeble in spirit, we stum- 
 ble here, and wander miserably about. Come now, 
 O King of men, tarry not too long. We have need 
 of Thy mercy — that Thou deliver us, O righteous 
 
 375 One, and grant us Thy saving grace, that henceforth 
 we may ever do the better things and work Thy 
 will among the people. 
 
 O Tbou glorious heavenly Trinity, full of honor, 
 380 high and holy, blessed far and wide over the spacious 
 plains, rightly should those endowed with speech, 
 wretched dwellers on earth, praise Thee highly with 
 all their might, now that God, the faithful Savior, 
 hath revealed unto us that we may know Him ! 
 1 Lit. ' is common to.' 
 
THE ADVENT. 15 
 
 Wherefore the righteous band of seraphim, with 385 
 glory crowned, ever chanting fervently with angels 
 on high, in unwearied hosts sing adoringly with 
 voices clear and sweet, afar and near. Theirs is 390 
 the noblest of ministries before the King. Christ 
 granted them that with their eyes they might enjoy 
 His presence,^ and, clothed with ethereal radiance, 
 ever worship the King far and wide ; with their 
 wings they guard the presence of the Lord almighty 395 
 and eternal, and press forward toward the throne, 
 eager who shall hover closest to our Savior within 
 the courts of peace. They praise the Beloved, and 400 
 in splendor speak these words to Him, magnifying 
 the noble Author of all creatures : ' Holy art Thou, 
 holy. Lord of archangels, righteous King of victory ; 
 O Lord of lords, ever art Thou holy ; ever doth Thy 405 
 glory dwell with men on earth, magnified far and 
 near throughout all time. Thou art God of hosts, 
 for Thou, O Shield of warriors, Protector of all 
 beings, hast filled the heavens and the earth with 
 the majesty of Thy glory. Hosanna^ unto Thee in 410 
 the highest, and on earth praise, renowned among 
 men. Blessed mayst Thou live, Thou who in the 
 
 1 Cf. Job 19. 26; Ps. 17.15; Isa.33.17; iJohn3.2; Rev. 22. 4. 
 
 2 Lit. 'Eternal praise'; used as equivalent to ' Hosanna.' Cf. 
 Cook's Biblical Quotations in Old English Prose Writers, p. 164. 
 
1 6 THE ADVENT. 
 
 name of the Lord didst come unto the multitudes, a 
 comfort to the wretched. To Thee be laud eternal 
 41S ever in the highest, world without end.' 
 
 Lo ! how wondrous is the change in the life of 
 men, that the gentle Creator of mankind took from 
 a virgin flesh undefiled ; she knew not at all the 
 embraces of man ; the Lord of triumph came not to 
 
 420 earth through the seed of man ; but it was a marvel 
 greater than all the dwellers on earth could under- 
 stand in its hidden meaning, how the Glory of the 
 skies, heaven's high Lord, brought help to mankind 
 
 425 through His mother's womb. So continually the 
 Savior of mankind, the Lord of hosts, doth each day 
 bestow His forgiveness as a help to men. Wherefore 
 we, eager for renown, should loyally praise Him both 
 
 430 in word and deed. That is surpassing wisdorn for 
 every man who hath an understanding heart, that he 
 ever worship God most sincerely and earnestly. 
 
 435 Him shall the hallowed Savior reward for his love 
 in the country where as yet he hath not come, in the 
 joy of the land of the living, where he shall dwell 
 blessed for evermore, there henceforth abiding world 
 without end. Amen. 
 
Part II. — The Ascension. 
 
 Seek thou earnestly, O illustrious man, that thou 44° 
 mayst truly understand by the wisdom of thy soul, 
 deep searchings of spirit, how it came to pass that 
 the angels did not appear in robes of white when the 
 Almighty was born in pure nativity, what time the 
 Hero, the Prince, came to Bethlehem, having chosen 
 the sanctuary of Mary, flower of maidens, the virgin 44s 
 renowned. Heralds were at hand who spake unto 
 the shepherds and proclaimed in words the true joy — 450 
 that the Son of God was born into the world in 
 Bethlehem. Yet it saith not in Scripture that at 
 that great tide they appeared in robes of white, 
 as they afterwards did when the glorious Prince, 455 
 the Lord triumphant, summoned to Bethany His 
 band of disciples, that company beloved. On that 
 joyful day they despised not the words of their 
 Master, the Bestower of goodly gifts. Soon were 460 
 they ready, the heroes with their Lord, [to go] unto 
 the holy city, where the Dispenser of glory, the 
 King of heaven, revealed many signs unto them in 
 parables, before the only-begotten Son, co-eternal 465 
 
 17 
 
1 8 THE ASCENSION. 
 
 with His own Father, ascended on high, forty days 
 after He arose from the dust of death. Thus through 
 His passion had He fulfilled the words of the prophets 
 
 470 as of old they had sung throughout the world. The 
 disciples magnified Him, and gratefully adored the 
 Lord of life, the Father of all created things. Where- 
 fore to His beloved comrades gave He a noble 
 reward, and these words spake the Prince of angels, 
 
 475 the mighty Ruler, as He was about to depart to His 
 Father's kingdom : ' Rejoice in spirit ; never will 
 I forsake you, but will for aye continue my love 
 toward you, granting you strength, and abiding with 
 you for ever and ever, so that through my grace 
 
 480 ye shall know the lack of no good thing. Go forth 
 now over all the spacious earth, far-reaching ways ; 
 declare unto the multitudes, preach and proclaim 
 the bright faith ; baptize the peoples beneath the 
 
 48s welkin, turning them to the skies ; destroy the 
 shrines of idols, overthrow them, abhor them ; blot 
 out enmity, and in the fulness of power sow peace 
 within men's souls. Henceforth I will abide with 
 you for your comfort, and will everywhere keep you 
 
 490 in peace, in strength unfailing.' 
 
 Then on a sudden loud music was heard in the 
 sky ; a throng of heavenly angels, a radiant host, 
 messengers from glory, in legion came. Our King 
 
THE ASCENSION. 1 9 
 
 departed through the temple's roof while they 49s 
 looked on — those chosen retainers who were still 
 watching in that place of conference the footprints 
 of their beloved Lord. They saw their Master, the 
 Son of God, ascend from earth to heaven. Sad 
 were their souls, hot their sorrowing hearts within 5°° 
 their breasts, since now no longer might they behold-- 
 beneath heaven the One so dear. The heavenly 
 messengers raised a song; they praised the Lord, 
 magnified the Author of life, rejoicing in the 
 light that shone from the Savior's head. Then saw 505 
 they two glistening angels, fair shining in their 
 splendor round that first-born Son, the Glory of 
 kings. From on high they called with wondrous 
 words, with ringing speech, over the multitude of 
 men : ' Ye men of Galilee, why wait ^e thus about ? sio 
 Ye plainly see the righteous King, the Lord of 
 victory, ascending unto heaven ; the First of princes, 
 the Creator of all peoples, will go up hence with 5>5 
 this angel-band to His dwelling-place, the Father's 
 royal seat. With such a throng, with this joyful host, 
 shall we bear the Lord — the noblest and best of all 52° 
 the sons of glory — far up through heaven's vault 
 unto that beautiful city, Him ^ whom ye now gaze 
 
 1 Possibly &e may go back to gedryht for its antecedent. Cf. the 
 parallel expression in line 570, 
 
20 THE ASCENSION. 
 
 upon and with joy behold shining in splendor ; 
 yet shall He once again visit the nations of earth 
 
 525 with a host innumerable, and then shall He judge 
 
 every deed performed by mortals beneath the skies.' 
 
 Then was the Lord of glory, King of archangels. 
 
 Protector of saints, encompassed with clouds far 
 
 above the dwellings [of men]. Joy and gladness 
 
 530 were renewed throughout the [celestial] habitations 
 at the coming of the Prince. The eternal Source of 
 joy sat down at the right hand of the Father, rejoic- 
 ing in His victory. 
 — To Jerusalem, the holy city, went the valiant 
 
 535 heroes sad of heart from the place where with their 
 eyes they had but now beheld their God ascending, 
 the Giver of joy. A fountain of tears ^ gushed 
 forth ; their constant love was overwhelmed with 
 sorrow, hot within their breasts; their hearts 
 
 540 were stirred, their souls burned within them. For 
 full ten days the illustrious disciples awaited in that 
 bright city the promises of the Lord, as Himself 
 commanded, the King of heaven, the Ruler of all, ere 
 
 545 He ascended into the far recesses of the skies. 
 
 1 Wopcs hring — a difScult phrase to translate. It occurs also An. 
 1280; El.\\T,2\ Gu. 1313. Professor Cook, referring to Shelley, .^(^(7- 
 nais XI. 4-5 ; Browning, By the Fireside 149-1 50, suggests as a possible 
 interpretation 'a circling fountain of tears,' tear-drops being likened 
 to pearls upon a string, or beads in a necklace or rosary. 
 
THE ASCENSION. 21 
 
 Shining angels came to meet the Giver of bliss to 
 men. True it is, as the Scripture relates, that at that 
 holy tide angels resplendent descending from the sky 
 came unto Him in legions. Then arose great rejoic- 55° 
 ing in heaven. It was indeed fitting that liegemen, 
 a radiant host, brightly clad, should come unto that 
 feast in the city of the Lord ; welcome was He 
 whom they saw [sitting] on His throne, the King 555 
 of heaven, Giver of life to men, ruling in splendor 
 the whole earth and the angelic host. 
 
 ' Now^ hath the Holy One despoiled hell of all the 
 tribute which of old it wrongfully swallowed up into 560 
 that place of strife. Vanquished now are the devils' 
 warriors, brought low and bound in living torments, 
 bereft of glory in the abyss of hell. His adversaries^ 
 could not prevail in battle, in the hurling of weapons, 565 
 what time the King of glory. Guardian of heaven's 
 realm, waged war against His ancient foes by His 
 sole might, when He led forth from bondage, from 
 the city of fiends, the greatest of spoils, a countless 
 multitude of people, even the host which ye here 570 
 gaze upon. And now after the conflict the Savior 
 
 1 Professor Cook interprets this speech as a continuation of that 
 which ends at line 526. At first it is the disciples who are addressed; 
 at line 575 it is the ascending host. 
 
 2 Reading wi&erbreocan with Cosijn. 
 
22 THE ASCENSION. 
 
 of souls, God's own Son, is minded to seek the throne 
 of spiritual grace. Thus ye may understand who is 
 
 575 the Lord that leadeth this host. — Now go ye forth 
 boldly to meet your friends, joyful in spirit. Open, 
 ye gates ;^ through you the King, the Ruler of all, the 
 Author of creation, will lead into the city, unto the 
 
 580 joy of joys, the mighty host which He hath wrested 
 from the demons by His victory. There shall be 
 fellowship between angels and men from this time 
 forth and for evermore. There is now a covenant 
 between God and man, a sacred pledge — love, hope 
 
 585 of life, and joy in perfect light.' 
 
 Lo ! we have heard how the Christ-child by 
 His advent brought again salvation ; how He, the 
 Creator's noble Son, freed and kept men beneath 
 the clouds, so that now each mortal, while he dwell- 
 
 59° eth here in life, may choose either the shame of 
 hell or the fame of heaven, the shining day or the 
 loathsome night, the power of glory or the pain of 
 darkness, joy with the Lord or wailing with demons, 
 
 595 bliss ^ with angels or torment with fiends, either 
 life or death, whichsoever he preferreth to achieve 
 while body and soul abide in the world. Where- 
 
 1 From Ps. 24. 7. 
 ^ Lit. ' glory.' 
 
THE ASCENSION. 23 
 
 fore let blessing and eternal thanks be unto the 
 glory of the Trinity ! 
 
 It is meet and right that all nations should give 600 
 thanks unto the Lord for every blessing which now 
 and aforetime He hath ever bestowed upon us 
 through the mystery of wonders manifold. He 
 giveth us food and abundance of riches, wealth 
 throughout the broad earth, and fair weather 605 
 beneath the shelter of the sky. The sun and 
 moon, brightest of stars, heaven's candles, shine 
 for all men on the earth. Dew and rjin descend ; 
 they call forth plenty for the nourishment of man, 610 
 and increase the riches of earth. For all this, 
 therefore, we ought to give thanks and praise 
 unto our Lord, but especially for the salvation 
 granted for our joy, when by His ascension He 615 
 brought to end the misery we had so long endured, 
 when the only-begotten King settled for mankind that 
 greatest of feuds with His beloved^ Father. For 
 our soul's peace He abolished the sentence which had 
 been pronounced in anger to the woe of man : ' 1 620 
 created thee of earth ; ^ upon it shalt thou dwell in 
 misery, living in strife and suffering torment, chant- 
 ing the death-song to thy foe's delight; and to 
 
 1 Or, ' own.' 
 
 2 From Gen. 3. 19. 
 
24 THE ASCENSION. 
 
 the same shalt thou turn again, teeming with 
 
 625 worms ; thence from the earth shalt thou afterwards 
 seek the fire of punishment.' Lo ! this [curse] 
 did the Lord abate for us when He took on Him 
 the seed of man, body and limbs. When the Son 
 of the Creator, the God of hosts, was about to 
 
 630 ascend to the home of angels, at that holy tide 
 there arose [in Him] the desire to help us wretched 
 ones. 1 
 
 Concerning this Job fashioned a song, as he well 
 knew how ; he praised the Protector of men, lauded 
 
 635 the Savior, and out of his love devised a surname 
 for the Son of God ; He gave him the name of Bird, 
 which, by the power of the divine Spirit, the Jews 
 could not- understand ; the flight of that Bird was 
 
 640 secret and hidden from His enemies on earth, from 
 those who had a darkened mind and a stony heart 
 within their breasts ; they would not recognize the 
 glorious miracles, many and various, which the noble 
 Son of God performed before them on the earth. 
 
 645 And thus the beloved Bird essayed flight : now 
 bold and strong in virtue He aspired the home 
 of angels, that fair abode ; now through the Spirit's 
 grace He sought the precincts of earth and wended 
 
 650 His way to the world. Of Him the prophet sang -.^ 
 
 >■ Cf. Ps. 8. i; 18. 10 ; 47. 5. 
 
THE ASCENSION. 25 
 
 ' He was lifted up, high and holy, in the arms 
 of angels, in the fulness of His power, above the 
 majesty of heaven.' They who made denial of the 
 ascension could not perceive the flight of the Bird, tss 
 and believed not that the Author of life, the Holy 
 One, in the likeness of man was lifted up from earth 
 above the heavenly host. 
 
 Then He who created the earth, God's Spirit-son, 
 honored us and granted us gifts, eternal seats amid 660 
 the angels on high ; moreover He sowed manifold wis- 
 dom, and planted it within the souls of men. Unto 
 the mind ^ of one, through the Spirit of His mouth, 665 
 He sendeth wise eloquence and noble understanding; 
 such an one can sing and speak many things ; unto 
 his soul is committed the power of wisdom. One 
 can awaken the harp before warriors, touching it 
 full loudly with his fingers. One can set forth 670 
 aright the law divine. One can tell the course of 
 the stars, the expanse of^ creation. One can skil- 
 fully write the spoken word. To one He giveth 
 victory in war, when bowmen send the storm of 
 darts, the winged arrows, over their shields. One can 675 
 boldly urge forward his bark over the salt sea, and 
 stir the raging deep. One can climb the steep and 
 
 1 Lit. ' memory of his mind.' 
 
 2 Lit. ' wide.' 
 
26 THE ASCENSION. 
 
 lofty tree. One can fashion the sword, the well- 
 
 680 tempered weapon. pOne knoweth the compass of 
 the plains, the far-reaching ways. So to us the 
 Ruler, the Son of God, doth dispense His gifts on 
 earth. But to no man will He give all wisdom of 
 soul, lest, exalted above others by his own power, 
 
 sss'his pride work him evil. 
 
 Thus doth God almighty. King of creation, enrich 
 the progeny of earth with gifts and endowments 
 manifold ; so also He bestoweth glory upon the 
 blessed of heaven ; He establisheth peace for men 
 
 690 and angels unto all eternity. 
 
 So He honoreth His handiwork. Concerning this 
 the prophet said^ that holy gems were lifted up on 
 high, the sun and moon, those radiant stars of 
 
 695 heaven. What indeed are those gems so bright 
 but God Himself .' He is the Sun of righteous- 
 ness, a glorious Light to angels and dwellers on 
 earth. The moon shineth over all the world, a 
 spiritual star; even so the Church of God shineth 
 
 700 brightly through the union of truth and right- 
 eousness — as the Scripture 'saith — since the Son 
 of God, King of all who are pure, arose from the 
 earth. Before that the church of the law-abiding 
 
 705 suffered persecution under the rule of heathen shep- 
 
 ^ Hab. 3. II, according to the Septuagint. 
 
THE ASCENSION. 2^ 
 
 herds. Then evil-doers recked not of the truth nor 
 of their soul's need ; but they rent and burned the 
 temple of God, they overthrew and destroyed, they 
 wrought deeds of blood. But after the ascension 
 of the Lord eternal, triumph came to God's servants 71° 
 through grace of the Spirit. 
 
 Of this sang Solomon, the son of David, ruler of 
 nations, versed in the hidden things of song, and ii 
 
 these words he spake •} 'This shall be made known, 715 
 that the Savior, the King of angels, strong in might, 
 shall ascend the mountains, leaping the lofty downs ; 
 He shall encompass the mountains and hills with His 
 glory, and by that noble leap He shall redeem the 
 world and all the inhabitants of earth.' 
 
 The first leap was when He descended unto the 720 
 virgin, that spotless maid, and took on Him the like- 
 ness of man, yet without sin ; that was for the com- 
 fort of all the dwellers on earth. The second leap 
 was the birth of the infant, when the Glory of all 
 glories, in the likeness of a child, lay in the manger 7^5 
 wrapped in [swaddling] clothes. The third leap, 
 the bound of the King of heaven, was when He 
 ascended the cross, the Father, the Spirit of comfort. 
 The fourth leap was into the grave, when He 
 came down from the tree, [and was held] fast in the 
 
 1 Cant. 2. 8. 
 
28 THE ASCENSION. 
 
 730 sepulchre. The fifth leap was when He cast the 
 host of hell into living torment, and with fiery 
 fetters bound their king within, that fierce spokes- 
 
 735 man of fiends, where he lieth- yet in prison, fastened 
 with chains, bound by his sins. The sixth leap was 
 the joyous revel of the Holy One, when He ascended 
 to heaven, unto His former dwelling. At that holy 
 time the angel-band grew merry with joy and glad- 
 
 740 ness. They saw the King of glory, the Chief of 
 
 princes, come unto His fatherland, unto the bright 
 
 mansions. That exploit of the Prince was an eternal 
 
 happiness to the blessed, the dwellers in the City. 
 
 Thus, while here on earth, the eternal Son of God 
 
 745 leaped boldly over the hills and lofty mountains. 
 So must we mortals, in the thoughts of our hearts, 
 leap from strength to strength and strive after glory, 
 so that we may rise by our holy works to the high- 
 
 750 est summit, where are hope and joy, a glorious 
 band of liegemen. We have great need to follow 
 after salvation with our hearts, to that place 
 where we earnestly, believe in our souls that the 
 Saviour-son, the living God, hath ascended with 
 
 755 our human body. 
 
 Wherefore we should scorn all idle lusts, the 
 wounds of sin, and rejoice in better things. We 
 have for our comfort the Almighty, the Father in 
 
THE ASCENSION. 29 
 
 heaven. The Holy One on high will send His 760 
 angels hither to shield us against the deadly arrow- 
 flights of evil-doers, lest the fiends inflict wounds 
 upon us, when the author of evil sendeth forth the 
 bitter arrow from his bended ^ bow among the people 765 
 of God. Wherefore we must ever be warily on our 
 guard against the quick shot, lest the venomous 
 point, the bitter dart, the sudden wile of fiends, 
 penetrate beneath our flesh. Its hurt is grievous, 770 
 most livid of wounds. Let us then keep watch and 
 ward while we abide here on earth ! Let us beseech 
 the Father for protection ; let us pray the Son of 
 God and the merciful Spirit that He who gave us 
 life, body, limbs, and soul, will shield us against the 775 
 weapons of the foe, against the wiles of our enemies ! 
 Praise be to Him for ever, glory in the heaven^y^ 
 world without end ! 
 
 None of the race of men on earth need fear the 
 shafts of devils, the spear-flights of the fierce ones, 780 
 if God, the Lord of hosts, protecteth him. The 
 judgment is at hand when we shall obtain our 
 reward, according as we have ever laid up for 
 ourselves by our deeds on the broad earth. The 785 
 Scripture saith how in the beginning the Treasury 
 of glory, God's noble Son, descended from on high, 
 
 1 Perhaps this is the ' deceitful bow ' of Ps. 78. 57 ; IIos. 7. 16. 
 
30 THE ASCENSION. 
 
 and humbly came to earth into the virgin's womb. 
 
 790 Alas ! I expect, yea, and fear a sterner doom when 
 the Prince of angels cometh again, since I have ill 
 kept those things which the Savior bade me in the 
 Scriptures. For this, as I account truth, I shall 
 behold terror, the punishment of sin, when many 
 
 795 shall be led into the assembly before the presence 
 of the eternal Judge. 
 
 Then shall the Courageous ^ tremble ; he shall 
 hear the King, the Ruler of heaven, speak stern 
 words unto those who in time past ill obeyed Him 
 on earth, while as yet they could easily find comfort 
 
 800 for their Yearning and their Need. There in that 
 place shall many a one, weary and sore afraid, 
 await what dire punishment He will mete out to 
 them for their deeds. Gone is the Winsomeness 
 
 805 of earth's adornments. Long ago the portion of life's 
 joys granted Us was compassed about by Lake- 
 floods, our Fortune on the earth. Then shall our 
 treasures burn in fire ; bright and swift shall the 
 
 1 The large type denotes the runes of the original which in succes- 
 sion spell the name of Cynewulf (in this poem, Cynwulf). These 
 renderings (following GoUancz in the main) are partly conjectural ; 
 exactness, where that was possible, has been sacrificed in favor of 
 the proper initials. It would be more correct to substitute bold for 
 courageous, misery for yearning, joy for winsomeness, sea for lake- 
 floods, wealth ior fortune. Cosijn regards the letters, C, Y., and N. 
 as forming cyn = 'mankind.' 
 
THE ASCENSION. 31 • 
 
 red flame rage ; fiercely shall it rush through the 
 wide world. Plains shall perish, citadels fall. The 810 
 fire shall be all astir; pitilessly shall that greediest of 
 spirits waste the ancient treasure which men held 
 of old, whilst pride abode with them upon the earth. 
 
 Wherefore I would exhort each beloved one that 815 
 he neglect not his soul's need, nor be dissolved in 
 vainglory, while God wills that he dwell here in 
 the world, and that the soul journey in the taber- 
 nacle of the body. Every man should bethink 820 
 him well in the days of his life that, according to 
 the angel's word, the Lord of might first came to us 
 benignly. He will be austere when He cometh again, 
 stern and just. At that day the heavens shall 825 
 shake and the mighty ends of the earth shall 
 tremble ; the bright King shall requite them for 
 living on earth in evil deeds, guilty of sin. Where- 
 fore weary in soul they shall long suffer fierce 830 
 retribution in that bath of fire, hemmed in by 
 surging [flames]. ' „^ 
 
 When the King of hosts shall come to the assem- 
 bly with an innumerable throng, a widespread terror, 
 the outcry of the lamenting, shall be loudly heard 
 amid the sounds from heaven ; the sorrowful, trust- 835 
 ing but little in their works, shall wail before 
 the face of the everlasting Judge. Then shall 
 
32 THE ASCENSION. 
 
 arise a terror greater than was ever heard of on 
 
 840 earth from the beginning. In that sudden hour 
 it shall be far dearer than all this fleeting world 
 unto every worker of iniquity to hide himself among 
 the victorious band, when the Lord of hosts, Chief 
 
 845 of princes, shall adjudge to all peoples, both friends 
 and foes, their just reward. O great our need that 
 in this barren time, ere that horror, we earnestly 
 bethink us of the beauty of our souls ! 
 
 850 Now is it as though we fared in ships out upon 
 the ocean, over the waters cold, and urged ^ our 
 barks, our sea-steeds, across the broad flood. A 
 perilous stream it is, endless waves and wind-swept 
 
 85s seas, on which we toss throughout this fleeting world, 
 over the fathomless reaches. Hard was our life 
 ere we sailed to land over the stormy main. Then 
 
 860 came our help : God's Spirit-son guided us to the 
 haven of safety, and gave us grace to see, over 
 the vessel's side, where with firm-set anchor^ we 
 should moor our sea-steeds, those ocean-stallions old. 
 O let us fix our hope in that holy haven above, 
 
 865 which the Lord celestial prepared for us when He 
 ascended into the heavens ! 
 
 1 Lit. 'journeyed on.' 
 
 2 Lit. ' fast at their anchors.' 
 
Part III. — Doomsday. 
 
 Lo ! at midnight, unawares, the great day of the 
 Lord omnipotent shall mightily overtake the dwellers 
 on earth, the bright creation ; as oft a daring robber, 870 
 a crafty thief, prowling about in darkness, in the 
 murky night, suddenly comes upon careless men 
 bound in sleep, and sorely assails them unprepared. 
 
 Then together unto Mount Zion shall ascend a 875 
 great multitude, radiant and joyful, the faithful of 
 the Lord ; glory shall be theirs. Thereupon from 
 the four corners of the world, from the uttermost 
 regions of earth, angels all-shining shall with one sso 
 accord blow their crashing trumpets ; the earth 
 shall tremble under men. Glorious and steadfast 
 they shall sound together over against the course 
 of the stars, chanting in harmony and making 
 melody from south and from north, from east and 
 from west, throughout the whole creation ; all man- 885 
 kind shall they wake from the dead unto the last 
 judgment ; they shall rouse the sons of men all 
 aghast from the ancient earth, bidding them straight- 
 way arise from their deep sleep. 
 
 33 
 
34 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 There one may hear a sorrowing people, sad of 
 
 890 heart and greatly disquieted, sorely afraid and piti- 
 fully bewailing the deeds done in the body. This 
 shall be the greatest forewarning ever shown unto 
 men before or since. There all the hosts of angels 
 
 895 and of devils shall mingle, the fair and the swart ; 
 there shall be a coming of both the white and the 
 black, according as an abode is prepared all unlike 
 for saints and sinners. 
 
 Then suddenly upon Mount Zion a blaze of the 
 
 9<xj sun, shining clear from the southeast, shall come 
 forth from the Creator, gleaming more brightly than 
 the mind of man can conceive, when the Son of God 
 shall appear hither through the vault of heaven. 
 All glorious from the eastern skies shall come the 
 
 905 presence of Christ, the aspect of the noble King, 
 gentle in spirit toward His own, bitter toward the 
 wicked, wondrously varied, diverse to the blessed 
 
 910 and the forlorn. Unto the good, the host of the 
 holy. He shall be joyful of countenance, radiant, 
 winsome, loving, gracious, and fair.^ Sweet and 
 pleasant shall it be for His loved ones, for those 
 who in days of old pleased Him well by their words 
 and deeds, to gaze upon that shining face, winningly 
 
 91S benign, upon the advent of the King, the Lord of 
 
 1 Lit. ' fair in joys.' 
 
DOOMSDAY. 35 
 
 might. But unto the evil and wicked, unto those 
 who shall come to Him undone by sin, He shall be 
 terrible and awful to behold. 920 
 
 That 1 may be a prophetic ^ intimation to him who ^ 
 • is wise of thought, that he shall have no cause what- V tL/ - 
 ever to be afraid ; he shall not be dismayed in soul f 
 at the terror of the Presence, when he beholdeth the 
 Lord of all creation approaching with mighty won- 925 
 ders to the doom of many, while on all sides press 
 round Him a band of angels, a shining host, legions 
 of the saints in great multitudes. 
 
 The vast creation shall resound, and the fiercest 930 
 of raging fires shall sweep over the whole earth 
 before the Lord ; the fiery flame shall hurtle ; the 
 heavens shall burst asunder ; all the firm-set flash- 
 ing stars shall fall. The sun itself, which shone 
 so brightly above the former world for the sons of 
 men, shall be turned dark, even to the hue of 
 blood ; the moon, also, which of old gave light for 935 
 mortals in the night season, shall fall headlong; 
 and the stars shall be hurled from heaven by the 
 fury of the storm-vexed air. 940 
 
 1 The meaning of this passage is somewhat doubtful. 
 
 2 The usual sense of wit£s is here inappropriate. I have accepted 
 Professor Cook's suggestion (cf. his note on line 182) that in wites 
 we may possibly have a form of the root wit-, as seen in wltga, 
 ' prophet.' 
 
36 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 Now shall the Almighty, the glorious Prince, 
 Creator of great kings, come into the assembly with 
 His angel band. An exultant host of His retainers 
 shall be there also. The souls of the blest shall 
 
 945 journey with their Lord, when the Protector of men 
 shall visit the nations of earth with dread punish- 
 ment. Then throughout the broad earth shall be 
 heard the piercing bla^t of the heavenly trump ; 
 from seven quarters the winds shall rush, blowing 
 
 950 and roaring with awful crash, rousing and blighting 
 the world with .storm, filling with terror^ the whole 
 creation. There shall be heard ^ a deafening uproar, 
 loud and violent, heavy and appalling, terrible unto 
 
 955 mortals, of all tumults the mightiest. 
 
 Then the cursed hosts of men shall turn in 
 throngs unto the all-embracing flame, and living 
 meet the deadly blaze, some above and some 
 beneath, filled with fire. Certain is it that there 
 
 960 the race of Adam shall lament, a joyless people, 
 full of sorrows, afflicted by no trifling woes but by 
 the greatest of miseries, what time the livid surging 
 
 965 of fire, the dusky flame, shall seize far and wide on 
 all three at once — ocean with its fish, earth with its 
 mountains, and highest heaven bright with its stars. 
 
 1 Reading y^/-i? with Cook. Cf. his note on line 952. 
 
 2 Lit. 'made manifest.' 
 
DOOMSDA Y. 37 
 
 Fiercely and cruelly shall the destroying flame burn 
 all three together. At that dread time the whole 970 
 earth shall mourn, and be sorely troubled. 
 
 Thus shall the all-devouring spirit, the ravaging 
 fire, overrun the earth and its lofty structures ; the ^ 
 hot and greedy blast, famed afar, shall, over the earth's 
 plain, fill the whole world with the terror of fire. 975 
 The city-walls shall fall in ruins. Mountains shall 
 melt away, along with the headlands which erstwhile 
 firm and steadfast stoutly shielded the earth from 98° 
 ocean-floods, bulwarks against the waves and heaving 
 waters. Then shall the death-fire seize on every 
 creature, both bird and beast ; the murky flame, a 
 raging warrior, shall stride over the earth. Where- 
 soever the waters once flowed, the hurrying floods, 985 
 there the fishes of the deep, cut off from ocean, shall 
 be consumed in a bath of fire ; every sea-monster 
 exhausted shall die ; water shall burn like wax. 
 There shall be more wonders than mind of man can 
 conceive — how whirlwind, and tempest, and raging 990 
 blast shall rend the broad creation. Men shall wail ; 
 they shall weep and lament with mournful voices, 
 downcast and wretched, overwhelmed with sorrow. 
 The swart flame shall blaze on those fordone by 
 sin ; the fire shall consume the golden ornaments, 995 
 1 The rendering of lines 973-4 is somewhat doubtful. 
 
38 DOOMSDA V. 
 
 all the ancient treasure of the kings of the nations. 
 There amid the sounds from heaveh an outcry shall 
 be [heard], wailing and lamentation, the strife of 
 the living, loud weeping, and the sad plaint of men. 
 
 looo Herefrom no man guilty of crime can win refuge, 
 or anywhere escape from the flame, but that fire shall 
 seize on all things throughout the earth ; it shall 
 fiercely delve and eagerly explore the regions of the 
 
 1005 world within and without, until the glowing flame 
 hath wholly purged away by its billowing the stain 
 of earthly sin. 
 
 Then in great majesty shall God almighty come 
 to that dread mount ; the holy King of heavenly 
 angels, the Lord omnipotent, shall shine resplendent 
 
 loioupon the multitudes ; round about Him shall brightly 
 gleam a most goodly throng, holy bands, the blessed 
 company of angels ; with terror of the Father shall 
 they tremble, dismayed in their inmost thoughts. 
 
 1015 Wherefore it is no marvel that the unclean race of 
 men should greatly fear and pitifully lament, since 
 even the holy race, the white host of archangels, 
 heaven-bright, are sore affrighted before that Pres- 
 
 1020 ence, what time the radiant beings await with trem- 
 bling the judgment of the Lord. Most terrible of all 
 days shall that be in the world when the King of 
 glory shall chasten all peoples by His might, and bid 
 
DOOMSDA Y. 39 
 
 "speech-uttering men, tribe after tribe, arise from 1025 
 their graves and come every one unto the assembly. 
 
 Then shall the race of Adam assume flesh; there 
 shall be an end to their rest and sojourn in the earth. 
 At ^ Christ's coming every one of them shall arise in 1030 
 newness of life, shall take on body and limbs, and 
 again be made young ; he shall have within him all 
 the good or evil which in former days on the earth, 
 in the circuit of years, he hath treasured within his 
 heart. He shall have together both body and soul. 1035 
 The aspect of his works, the memory of his words, 
 and the counsel of his heart, shall come to light 
 before the King of heaven. .^^ 
 
 Then shall the race of men be increased and re- 
 newed by the Creator ; a great multitude shall ascend 1040 
 unto the judgment when the Author of life shall loose 
 the bonds of death. The air shall be enkindled ; 
 the stars of heaven shall fall ; the greedy flame shall 
 ravage far and wide. Spirits shall depart unto their 
 eternal abode. The deeds of mortals shall be 1045 
 brought to light throughout the world; in no wise 
 can men conceal their treasures, the thoughts of their 
 hearts, before that Prince ; deeds shall not be hidden 
 from Him, but on that great day the Lord shall 1050 
 know in what sort every man hath merited eternal 
 
 ^ Lit. 'before.' 
 
40 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 life, and all shall be revealed that they have 
 wrought in the world early or late. Naught of 
 man's thoughts shall be concealed, but that dread 
 
 1055 day shall bring to light all the secrets of his breast, 
 all the meditations of his heart. He must bethink 
 him aforetime of his spirit's need, who would bring 
 to God a radiant countenance when the hot con- 
 suming fire maketh trial before the victorious Judge 
 
 1060 how souls have been kept from sin. 
 
 Now the trumpet's blast, the bright ensign, and the 
 hot fire, the exalted host, the company of angels, the 
 pang of terror, the stern day, and the high rood 
 
 1065 raised aloft as a sign of sovereignty, shall summon 
 forward the multitude of men, the souls of all who 
 early or late have taken upon them body and limbs. 
 Then that mighty host, immortal and restored to 
 
 1070 youth, shall, eager or compelled, as they are called 
 by their names, pass into the presence of the Lord, 
 and bear before God's Son the secrets of their 
 hearts, the treasures of their souls. The Father 
 will perceive whether His sons bring untainted souls 
 
 1075 from the land in which they dwelt. They shall be of 
 good courage who bring unto the Creator a radiant 
 countenance ; their might and joy, the glorious 
 reward of their works, shall be exceeding plenteous 
 as a recompense to their souls. Well is it for 
 
DOOMSDAY. 41 
 
 them who at that dread time shall be acceptable loSo 
 unto God. 
 
 There shall sinful men, sad at heart, behold the 
 greatest affliction. Not for their behoof shall the 
 cross of our Lord, brightest of beacons, stand loSs 
 before all nations, wet with the pure blood of 
 heaven's King, stained with His gore, shining 
 brightly over the vast creation. Shadows shall be 
 put to flight when the resplendent cross shall blaze 
 upon all peoples. But this shall be ■* for an affliction 1090 
 and a punishment to men, to those malefactors who 
 knew no gratitude to God, that He, the King, was 
 crucified on the holy rood for the sins of mankind, 
 on that day when He whose body knew no sin 1095 
 nor base iniquity lovingly purchased life for men 
 with the price with which He ransomed us.^ For 
 all this will He rigorously exact ^ recompense when uoo 
 the red rood shall shine brightly over all in the sun's 
 stead. 
 
 Fearfully and sorrowfully shall they look thereon, 
 those black workers of iniquity, fordone by sin ; 
 they shall behold to their bale that which would 1105 
 
 1 I have not translated i\ie g-eteod of line 1090; it is inserted by 
 Grein and later editors solely for metrical reasons. 
 
 2 This passage may be corrupt. Cf. Cook's Christ, note on line 
 1097. 
 
 ^ 'Rea.Amg gemonian with Grein. 
 
42 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 have been their greatest weal, had they been willing 
 to apprehend it as their good. With sad hearts 
 shall they behold the ancient gashes and open wounds 
 upon their Lord, where His foes pierced with nails 
 
 mo the white hands and the holy feet, and let forth gore 
 from His side ; blood and water gushed forth together 
 before the eyes of all the people, when He was on 
 
 iiisthe cross. All this they themselves shall then be 
 able to see, open and manifest, how He suffered 
 many things for the love of sinners. The sons of 
 men shall clearly behold how the false-hearted 
 
 II20 denied Him, mocked Him with blasphemies, spat 
 their spittle in His face, and spake insults against 
 Him ; how hell-doomed men, blind of thought, fool- 
 ish and erring, struck that blessed countenance with 
 their hands, with their outstretched palms, with 
 
 1125 their very fists, and round His head entwined a 
 cruel crown of thorns. 
 
 They saw that the dumb creation — verdant earth 
 and high heaven — shudderingly felt the sufferings 
 
 ,130 of their Lord'; and though they had not life, yet 
 moaned in sorrow when wicked men seized on 
 their Savior with impious hands. The sun became 
 darkened, obscured by misery. In Jerusalem the 
 people saw how 1 that choicest of tapestries, which 
 
 ^ Reading hu with Grein. 
 
DOOMSDA Y. 43 
 
 the throng had been wont to look upon as the 
 glory of the holy house, was torn asunder from uss 
 the top, so that it lay on the ground in two pieces ; 
 the veil of the temple, wrought of wondrous colors 
 for the adornment of that house, was rent of itself in 
 twain, as if a sharp-edged sword had passed through 114° 
 it. Divers walls and stones throughout the world 
 burst wide asunder ; the earth, stirred by terror, 
 quaked with a great noise ; the broad sea showed 
 forth the power of its might, and fiercely broke ims 
 from its confines over earth's bosom ; and the stars 
 in their beauteous station forsook their aspect 
 sweet. At that same time heaven clearly recog- 
 nized who had nobly made it bright with starry 1150 
 gems on high ; of a truth it sent its herald 
 when first was born the radiant King of crea- 
 tion. Lo ! on that same day on which He suf- 
 fered, even sinful men saw in sooth a wondrous 
 miracle — that the earth gave up those who lay uss 
 within her ; they rose up living, those, the dead 
 and buried, whom she had firmly confined, even 
 they who had kept in their hearts the Lord's com- 
 mand. Hell, the sin-avenging, also perceived that 
 the Creator, the sovereign Lord, was come, when it 1160 
 gave forth that host from its hot bosom ; the 
 hearts of many were comforted, and sorrows van- 
 
 /^ 
 
44 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 ished from their souls. Lo ! even the sea declared 
 who had set it on its broad bed, the almighty King, 
 
 iiss for it made itself passable unto Him when God 
 willed to go over its waves ; the water-flood durst 
 not flow with its billows over its Master's feet. 
 
 1170 Trees likewise many, and by no means few, declared 
 who had shaped them with their branches,^ when 
 almighty God ascended one of them and suffered 
 pain for men's weal, loathsome death for the help 
 of mankind. Then was many a tree suffused with 
 
 ■175 bloody tears beneath its bark, red and frequerit ; the 
 sap turned to gore. The inhabitants of earth cannot 
 tell, with all their wisdom, how many things that 
 have no feeling, lifeless things, felt then the Lord's 
 
 1180 sufferings. The noblest of the races of earth and 
 heaven's high creation — all became sad and dis- 
 mayed for that^ alone. Although by their nature 
 they had no understanding, yet miraculously did 
 
 1185 they apprehend when their Lord departed the body. 
 Blind-hearted men, harder than flint, could not rec- 
 ognize the Savior, nor that the Lord, God almighty, 
 had saved them from hell-torment by His holy 
 
 1190 might. From the beginning of the world far-seeing 
 men, prophets of God, holy and wise of heart, 
 
 1 Perhaps 'fruits,' or 'blossoms.' * 
 
 2 Or 'them,' or 'Him.' 
 
DOOMSDA Y. 45 
 
 not once but oft through their wise understanding 
 declared unto men this very thing concerning the 
 glorious Son — that, through the noble maid, He, 
 the Lord of glory, the Author of bliss, the Precious 
 Stone, should become a refuge and comfort to all 1195 
 men in the world. 
 
 What can he expect who refuseth to keep in 
 mind the Savior's gentle precepts, and all the afflic- 1200 
 tions that He endured for men because of His 
 desire that we should possess the home of glory 
 unto all eternity ? On the dread day of that great 
 judgment, sad shall it be for him who, defiled by 1205 
 deadly sins, must look upon the scars, the wounds, 
 the sufferings of the Lord. .With aching hearts 
 shall they see the greatest of sorrows ; them did the 
 King Himself, through His merciful spirit, redeem 1210 
 from sin with His own body, that they might live 
 without iniquity, and enjoy the eternal blessedness 
 of glory ; but they gave no thanks unto their Lord 
 for this heritage, wherefore the unhappy ones shall 
 see to their sorrow signs manifest in such as are 1215 
 good. 
 
 When Christ shall sit on His royal throne, on 
 the high seat, then shall the Father almighty, the 
 radiant Creator, God of the heavenly hosts. Ruler 
 of the skies, adjudge righteously to each band 1220 
 
46 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 according to their deeds. Then shall be gathered 
 on His right hand the folk undefiled, chosen by the 
 election of Christ Himself, those who in the days 
 of their life have faithfully and joyfully obeyed His 
 
 J225 commandments ; but to the Creator's left side shall 
 be assigned the workers of iniquity : the righteous 
 King of victory shall bid the sinful host depart - 
 unto His left hand. There, detected, they shall wail 
 
 1230 and tremble in terror before the Lord ; an impure 
 people, foul as goats, they can expect no mercy. 
 Then in the presence of God shall be determined 
 for the generations of men the doom of their souls, 
 according as they have wrought erewhile. 
 
 Three signs shall there be visible together unto 
 
 1235 the blessed, inasmuch as they have well kept their 
 Lord's will in word and deed. 
 
 First shall appear this — that they shall shine with 
 light before the nations, with glory and splendor over 
 the habitations of cities; their former deeds shall 
 
 1240 shine upon each one of them brighter than the sun. 
 The second shall likewise be manifest — that they 
 shall know their Sovereign's grace in the bestowal 
 of ^ glory, and shall see, to their eyes' delight, that 
 
 1245 they may possess bright joys in the heavenly 
 kingdom, blessed amid the angels. 
 
 1 Cf. Cook's Christ, note on line 1243. 
 
DOOMSDA Y. 47 
 
 The third shall be that the happy band shall 
 behold the lost, that host of burning creatures, suf- 
 fering pain in the misery of darkness, as a punish- 
 ment for their sins — raging fire and the bite of .250 
 serpents with bitter jaws ; from this shall spring 
 up a winsome joy for them. When they shall see 
 others suffer the evil that they escaped through 
 the Savior's mercy, they shall the more earnestly .255 
 thank God for the bliss and happiness which they 
 behold — that He hath both saved them from per- 
 dition and granted them eternal joys ; hell shall 
 be locked against them, the kingdom of heaven 
 shall be granted unto them. This shall be given as 
 reward to those that ever faithfully kept the Crea- 1260 
 tor's will in love. 
 
 Far different shall be the joy of the others ; they 
 can see in themselves too many woes — countless 
 ■ sins, iniquities aforetime committed. Tribulation 1265 
 and dire evil shall cleave unto the sorrowing ones 
 in three ways. 
 
 One is that they shall see before them too many 
 miseries, dread hell-fire, prepared for their punish- 
 ment, in which, suffering torment, they shall for 127° 
 aye endure damnation. 
 
 There shall also be a second misery for the 
 shame of the sinful — that the lost shall suf- 
 
48 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 fer there the greatest disgrace ; the Lord sh'all see 
 
 ■275 in them loathsome sins by no means few ; so, too, 
 the shining band of heavenly angels, the sons of 
 men, all the dwellers on earth, and the fell fiend, 
 shall behold the power of darkness, all the iniqui- 
 
 1280 ties. Through the body they may see the grievous 
 sins in their souls ; their sinful flesh shall be shame- 
 fully transpierced, as if it were clear glass, through 
 which one may most easily look. 
 
 The third shall be a sorrow and sore grief for 
 
 1285 the wretched — that they behold how the joyful, the 
 righteous, rejoice in the good deeds which they, the 
 unhappy ones, scorned to do while days were still 
 theirs ; and concerning their own works it shall be 
 
 1290 a grievous tribulation that they had freely wrought 
 unrighteousness. They shall see the better ones 
 shine in glory ; their own misery shall not be their 
 sole punishment, but the happiness of others shall be 
 to them a grief, because in former days they forsook 
 
 1295 joys so fair and sweet for the delusive pleasure of 
 the body, the vain lust of the sinful flesh. There, 
 ashamed and distressed by their ignominy, they 
 shall wander dizzily about ; they shall bear their 
 evil works, the burden of their sin ; on that shall 
 
 1300 the people gaze. 
 
 Wherefore it had been better for them had they 
 
DOOMSDA Y. 49 
 
 felt shame before one man for- every evil deed and 
 transgression, had they told God's messenger that 
 they knew to their sorrow the sins within them. 
 The confessor cannot look through the flesh into 1305 
 the soul [to discover] whether a man speaketh 
 truth or falsehood concerning himself, when he 
 confesseth^ his sins. One can, however, heal every 
 transgression, every unclean sin, if he but tell it 
 to one man ; but none on that dread day can con- is'o 
 ceal the crime unatoned ; multitudes shall there 
 behold it. 
 
 that we might now see with the eyes of our 
 body the deadly iniquities in our souls, the wounds 
 
 of sin, the wicked thoughts, the impure imaginings ! 1315 
 
 No^ one can tell another with what eagerness 
 each should ^ strive in every way to sustain his life 
 and anxiously prolong his existence, wash away the 
 rust of sin and chasten himself, and remove the 1320 
 defilement of a former wound during the brief span 
 of life here below ; so that before the eyes of the 
 dwellers on earth he may enjoy an abode among 
 men, blameless and unashamed, while body and 1325 
 soul may yet dwell together. 
 
 1 The usual translation of bigdn is ' to commit.' 
 
 2 This paragraph seems out of keeping with the context ; of. 
 Cook's Christ, note on line 1316. 
 
 3 Lit. ' will.' 
 
50 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 Now must we look sharply and earnestly with the 
 eyes of the heart through the soul's covering upon 
 the sin beneath. With our other eyes, the jewels 
 
 1330 of the head, we can in no way look through the 
 seat 1 of thought [to see] whether good or evil 
 dwelleth within each one, so that at that dread 
 time he may be acceptable unto God. 
 
 When from His lofty throne the high King of 
 
 ■335 heaven shall shine in glory, with a dazzling light, 
 over every nation, then shall He first speak unto the 
 blessed, before the angels and before all nations, 
 and graciously promise them love ; He shall gently 
 
 1340 comfort them with His holy speech, and shall pro- 
 claim peace to them ; He shall bid them depart safe 
 and sanctified to the land of angels' bliss, and joy- 
 fully possess it world without end : 
 
 ' Receive ye now with friends my Father's king- 
 dom, the bliss and the glory and the fair beauty 
 
 1345 of that home which was joyfully prepared for you 
 before all ages, against the time when with the best 
 beloved ye might behold the riches of life eternal, 
 the precious joys of heaven. This indeed ye mer- 
 
 1350 ited when with compassionate hearts ye willingly 
 received the poor and needy. When in my name 
 they humbly besought mercy of you, then did ye help 
 
 1 Lit. ' soul.' 
 
DOOMSDA Y. 5 1 
 
 them and give them shelter, bread to the hungry and 
 clothing to the naked ; those that lay sick in pain, 1355 
 grievously suffering, bound by disease, ye gently 
 strengthened in spirit with the affection of your 
 hearts. For me ye did all this when ye sought 
 them in love, and with consolation stayed their 
 spirits. For this shall ye long enjoy a fair reward 1360 
 with my loved ones.' 
 
 Then with far different words, with fearful 
 menace, shall God almighty begin to address the 
 evil ones on His left hand. They need not then 1365 
 expect mercy from the Lord, neither life nor 
 grace, but recompense for their words and deeds 
 shall fall to men, to those endowed with speech, 
 according to their works ; they shall suffer the one 
 righteous doom, full of terror. On that day the -370 
 great compassion of the Almighty shall be with- 
 drawn from the dwellers on earth, when with bitter 
 words He fiercely chargeth their sins upon the 
 stubborn-hearted, and commandeth them to render 
 account of the lives which He had given the sinful 1375 
 for their weal. Then shall the Lord almighty begin 
 to speak as if to one alone, and yet shall He mean 
 the whole band of the sinful : 
 
 ' Lo ! I wrought thee, O man, of old with my 
 hands, and gave thee understanding ; I formed for 1380 
 
52 DOOMSDAY. 
 
 thee limbs of clay and gave thee a living spirit ; 
 I honored thee above all creatures, and caused 
 thee to have form and aspect like unto myself; 
 I. gave thee fulness of power and wealth over 
 all spacious lands ; thou knewest naught of the 
 
 13S5 woe and darkness that thou wast to suffer. Yet 
 for this thou wast not grateful. When I had 
 shaped thee so beautiful and winsome, and had 
 given thee power that thou mightst rule over the 
 creatures of earth, I set thee in the fair region 
 
 1390 to enjoy the rich luxuriance and bright hues of 
 Paradise ; ^ thou wouldst not obey the word of life, 
 but at, the bidding of thy destroyer didst break 
 my commandment ; thou didst rather hearken to 
 
 1395 the wily foe, the perfidious fiend, than to thy 
 Creator. Now will I pass over that ancient tale, 
 how thou didst first devise evil and didst lose by 
 thy wicked deeds what I had granted thee for thy 
 weal. When I had bestowed upon thee so many 
 
 ■400 blessings, and when to thy mind it seemed too little 
 happiness unless thou mightst have fulness of 
 power equal to God's, then to thy foes' delight didst 
 thou become estranged from that joy, cast out afar; 
 sad of heart, cheerless and sinful, deprived of all 
 
 140S blessings and joys, thou wast forced to give up 
 1 Somewhat freely rendered. 
 
DOOMSDA V. 53 
 
 the glory of Paradise, the abode of spirits ; thou 
 wast driven into the dark world, where long there- 
 after thou didst suffer great hardships, sorrow and mio 
 grievous toil, and swart death, and after thy depar- 
 ture, bereft of helpers, wast doomed to fall headlong 
 down to hell. 
 
 'Then it began to repent me that my handiwork 
 should fall into the power of iiends, that the off- 1415 
 spring of man should see destruction, should learn 
 to know an inhospitable abode and sore vicissitudes. 
 Thereupon I myself descended as a child into my 
 mother, yet her virginity was wholly inviolate. I 1420 
 was the Only-begotten for the help of men. With 
 their hands they swathed me, wrapped me in the gar- 
 ments of the poor, and laid me in darkness, wound 
 about with sable raiment. Lo ! this I endured for 
 the world ! Little did I seem unto the sons of men ; 
 on the hard stone I lay, a young child in the .425 
 manger, in order that I might put away from thee the 
 torment and hot misery of hell ; that thou mightst 
 shine holy and blessed in life eternal, for that I 
 suffered the pain. /' 
 
 ' It was not out of pride, but in my youth I 
 endured suffering and shameful pain of body that 
 through it I might become like unto thee, and that 1430 
 thou, freed from sin, mightst become like me in 
 
54 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 aspect ; because of my love for man, my head bore 
 the grievous blow. Nor was my face spared : ^ often 
 
 1435 my countenance received spittle from the mouths 
 of the impious, the workers of iniquity. They 
 cruelly mixed for me a sour drink of vinegar and 
 gall. For mankind's sake I endured the hatred 
 
 1440 of foes ; they pursued me with outrages — they 
 shrank not from deadly hostility — and smote me 
 with sco^rges. All that pain, scorn, and abuse, I 
 humbly bore for thee. About my head they wound 
 
 1445 a sharp and cruel crown, and pitilessly pressed it 
 on ; of thorns was it wrought. Then was I hanged 
 upon a lofty tree, fastened to a cross. And straight- 
 way with a spear they let forth from my side blood 
 and gore upon the earth, that through it thou 
 
 ■450 mightst be saved from the devil's tyranny. Sinless, 
 I suffered punishment and sore torment, until I gave 
 up from my body the living ghost. Behold now 
 the deadly wounds which they made in my hands 
 
 ■455 and feet, by which I hung there, cruelly fastened ; 
 here canst thou also see, still visible, -the bloody 
 wound in my side. 
 
 ' How unequal was the reckoning betwixt us 
 
 1460 two ! I bore thy pain that thou, happy and blessed, 
 mightst possess my kingdom ; and by my death I 
 1 Lit. ' My face suffered.' 
 
DOOMSDA y. 55 
 
 dearly bought long life for thee, that thenceforth 
 thou mightst dwell in light, radiant and free from 
 sin. My body, which had harmed no man, lay 1465 
 buried in the earth, hidden beneath in the tomb, 
 that thou mightst dwell in splendor in the skies 
 above, mighty amid the angels. 
 
 ' Why didst thou forsake that glorious life which 
 out of love I graciously bought for thee with my 1470 
 body, as a help to the wretched ? Thou wast so 
 witless that thou didst not render thanks unto the 
 Lord for thy redemption. Naught demand I now 
 for that bitter death which I suffered for thee ; but ,475 
 do thou give unto me thy life, for which, in martyr- 
 dom, I once gave up mine own as ransom ; I claim 
 that life which thou to thine own disgrace hast sin- 
 fully destroyed by thy transgressions. Why didst 
 thou, through evil lusts and foul sin, wilfully defile 
 that tabernacle which I consecrated in thee as my 1480 
 sweet ^ home of joy? Yea, working iniquity, thou 
 didst shamefully pollute the body which I redeemed 
 for myself from the power of fiends, and then for- 1485 
 bade it sin. Why hast thou crucified me on the 
 cross of thy hands more painfully than when I hung 
 of old ? O, this one, methinks, is more grievous ! 
 Now is the cross of thy sins, on which I am bound 1490 
 
 ' Or, ' own.' 
 
56 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 unwillingly, more bitter to me than was that other 
 which I ascended of my own free will, what time thy 
 misery grieved my heart most sorely, when I drew 
 thee forth from hell — if only thou hadst been will- 
 ing to hold to it henceforth ! 
 
 ■4« ' I in this world was poor, that thou mightst be 
 rich in heaven ; I was wretched in thy homeland, 
 that thou in mine mightst be blessed. Yet for all 
 this thou wast in no wise grateful in soul unto thy 
 Savior. 
 
 ' I commanded you that ye should cherish well 
 
 ijoo my brethren in this earthly kingdom, and help the 
 needy with those possessions which I gave to you on 
 earth. Ill have ye performed it ; ye have forbidden 
 the poor to enter beneath your roof, and with hard 
 
 1505 hearts have denied them everything — raiment to 
 the naked, food to the hungry. Though, weary and 
 feeble, distressed for drink, void of all sustenance 
 and parched with thirst, they prayed for water in my 
 name, ye did insolently deny them. Ye sought not 
 
 1510 out the sorrowful, nor spake to them a kindly word 
 of comfort, that they might pluck up a more buoy- 
 ant spirit within their breasts. All this ye did in 
 scorn of me, the King of heaven. Wherefore ye 
 shall endure sore punishment for ever, suffering 
 torment with demons.' 
 
DOOMSDA Y. 57 
 
 Then over them all, over the doomed folk, the 1515 
 Lord of victories shall Himself send forth a dread 
 decree, full of tribulation — He shall say to the 
 host of sinful souls : 
 
 ' Depart ^ now, accursed, by your own wills dis- 
 possessed of the angels' joy, into everlasting fire, 's^o 
 hot and fierce, which was prepared for Satan and 
 his followers, for the devil and his black crew ; into 
 that shall ye fall headlong.' Nor can they, bereft 
 of resource, disregard the command of heaven's 1525 
 King ; those who erstwhile strove against God shall 
 straightway fall into that horrid abyss. Then shall 
 the Lord of sovereign sway be stern and mighty, 
 terrible and full of wrath. No foe upon this earth 
 can then abide His presence. 
 
 With His right hand shall He swing the victor- 153° 
 sword so that the devils shall fall down into the 
 deep pit, the sinful band into the dusky flame, the 
 fated spirits beneath earth's surface, the corrupt 
 and damned crew to perdition in the abode of 
 fiends, the house of torment, the death-hall of the 1535 
 devil. Thereafter they shall in no wise come to the 
 remembrance of . the Lord ; they shall not escape 
 from sin, but, guilty of crimes, wrapped in flame, 
 they shall there suffer death. The punishment for 
 
 1 With evident reference to Matt. 25. 41. 
 
58 DOOMSDAY. 
 
 1540 transgression shall stand revealed before them ; it is 
 torment everlasting. Never can the burning abyss 
 in that eternal night purge away the sin of the 
 dwellers in hell, the stain of their souls ; but the 
 deep, bottomless pit shall feed the disconsolate, and 
 
 '545 hold the spirits in darkness ; it shall burn them with 
 its ancient flame and with its terrible frost ; it shall 
 afflict the multitudes with hateful serpents, with count- 
 ^ less torments, with jaws deadly and terrible. 
 
 Of this may we be certain, with one voice may we 
 
 1550 speak and truly declare, that he hath lost his soul's 
 keeper, the wisdom of life, who heedeth not now 
 whether his spirit is to be sad or joyous in that 
 place where after death it shall abide for ever. He 
 
 1555 feareth not, rash man, to commit sin, nor hath he 
 aught of regret within his soul lest because of his 
 misdeeds the Holy Spirit should depart from him in 
 this fleeting time. 
 
 Then the sinner, black and guilty of death, cursed 
 
 1560 for his crimes, shall stand trembling before the Lord 
 at the judgment ; the transgressor, unworthy of eter- 
 nal life, shall be filled with fire, and overwhelmed 
 with terror in the presence of God ; ghastly and 
 hideous, he shall have the hue of the damned, the 
 
 1565 sign of a life of guilt. Then shall the sons of 
 iniquity pour out their tears and bewail their sins. 
 
DOOMSDA Y. 59 
 
 when the time is past ; but too late shall they seek 
 help for their souls, for^ the Lord of hosts will not 
 heed how the doers of evil sorely bewail their 
 ancient treasures at that all-revealing time. Thai 1570 
 sorrowful season will not be granted to the peoples, 
 in order that he who obtaineth not his life's redemp- 
 tion while dwelling here may there find salvation. 
 There no grief shall be shown to the good, nor weal 1575 
 to the wicked ; but each one shall bring before 
 [God] his own work. 
 
 Therefore he who desireth to have life^ with the " 
 Creator should bestir himself while body and spirit 
 are joined together. Let him zealously foster the 1580 
 beauty of his soul according to God's will, and be 
 careful in word and deed, in thought and conduct, 
 while this world, speeding with its shadows, may 
 still shine for him ; so that he lose not in this 1585 
 fleeting time the blessedness of his joy and the 
 fulness of his days, the beauty of his work and the 
 reward of glory, which the righteous King of heaven 
 shall give at that holy tide as a meed of victory to 
 those who in spirit obey Him with gladness. 'S9° 
 
 Then shall heaven and hell be fulfilled with the 
 sons of men, with the souls of mortals. The deeps 
 shall swallow God's adversaries ; tossing flame shall 
 ^ Lit. 'when,' 2 Reading lie with Grein. 
 
6o DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 1595 harass wicked men, those arch-malefactors, and shall 
 not let them depart thence in joy to a place of 
 safety ; but the fire shall hold the multitude fast, 
 and vex the sons of iniquity. Foolhardy methink- 
 eth it that beings endowed with souls should take 
 
 i6oo no heed, when they commit ^ sin, what the Lord 
 hath prescribed as penalty for them, the people of 
 his foes. When life and death shall devour souls, 
 the house of torment shall stand open and revealed 
 
 i6<=s before the perjurers, and sinful men shall fill it with 
 
 • their black souls. Then as a punishment for iniquity 
 
 the guilty host shall be cut off, the base from the 
 
 holy, unto terrible destruction. There thieves and 
 
 1610 robbers, the lying and adulterous, need not hope for 
 life, and the forsworn shall see retribution for sin, 
 severe and awful. Then shall hell receive the host 
 of the faithless, and the Lord shall give them over 
 to the fiends unto perdition ; the damned shall 
 
 1615 suffer mortal agony most grievous. Wretched shall 
 he be who chooseth to deserve by his transgressions 
 that at the judgment day he shall be separated as a 
 guilty man from his Savior unto death below, among 
 
 1620 the hosts of hell, in the hot fire, beneath barriers of 
 flame ; there shall they stretch forth their limbs to 
 be bound, and burned, and scourged, as a punishment 
 
 ' Reading fremmad" with Grein. 
 
DOOMSDAY. 6 1 
 
 for sin. Then the Holy Ghost, through the power 
 of God, shall at the King's command lock up hell, 
 chiefest of all the houses of torment, filled with fire 1625 
 and the host of fiends. That is the greatest of 
 agonies for both devils and men. It is a joyless 
 abode. There none can ever escape froni the cold 
 fetters. They broke the King's command, the sub- 
 lime precept of the Scriptures ; wherefore those 1630 
 who here scorned the glory ^ of the heavenly realm 
 must dwell in eternal night, and, guilty of sin, 
 thenceforth endure their everlasting pain. 
 
 But the elect shall bring before Christ bright 
 treasures ; their glory shall live at the judgment 1635 
 day ; they shall possess the joy of a tranquil life with 
 God, such as is granted unto every saint in the king- 
 dom of heaven. That is the home which shall have 
 no end, and there for evermore the sinless shall 1640 
 possess their joy, and, clothed with light, enfolded 
 in peace, shielded from sorrows, honored by joys, 
 endeared to the Savior, shall praise the Lord, the 
 beloved Protector of life ; radiant with grace they 
 shall enjoy in bliss the fellowship of angels, and 164s 
 worship the Guardian of men for ever and ever. 
 The Father of all shall have and hold dominion over 
 the hosts of the sanctified. /^ 
 
 '■ Or, perhaps, ' Lord.' 
 
62 DOOMSDA Y. 
 
 There is song of ^angels, joy of the blest ; there 
 i6po is the dear presence of the Lord, brighter than 
 the sun unto the blessed ; there is the love of 
 dear ones ; life without death ; a joyous multitude 
 of men ; youth without age ; the glory of the 
 heavenly hosts ; health without pain ; rest with- 
 ■655 out toil for the workers of righteousness ; bliss of 
 the happy; day without darkness, bright and glad- 
 some ; happiness without sorrow ; harmony without 
 strife 'twixt friends rejoicing in heaven ; peace 
 without enmity in the congregation of the saints. 
 1660 No hunger shall be there, nor thirst, nor sleep, nor 
 sore disease, nor scorching of the sun, nor cold, 
 nor. care ; but there the company of the blest, most 
 radiant of hosts, shall for aye enjoy the grace of 
 their King and glory with their Lord. 
 
11 
 
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