Thomas Humphry Ward, ed. The English Poets. 1880–1918.rnVol. II. The Seventeenth Century: Ben Jonson to Dryden
George Sandys (15781644)From the Paraphrase upon Luke I
O
Whose mercy shines in Israel,
At length redeem’d from sin and hell.
Deriv’d from David’s royal throne,
He now hath to His people shown.
By all successively foretold,
Until the infant world grew old.
Save from our foes’ inveterate hate,
And raise our long depress’d estate.
His promis’d grace, by oath decreed,
To Abraham and his faithful seed.
Walk purely in His perfect ways,
And fearless serve Him all our days.
And run before the Undefil’d,
And Prophet of th’ Almighty styl’d.
Salvation springs: from penitence,
And pardon of each foul offence.
Of our Great God, Who clears our sight,
And from the Orient sheds His light.
Whom night and shades of death inclose,
Which that high track to glory shows.