Sweet Crift hath turn'd for us, all blacks to white
All woes to joys, all fadnefs to delight:
He paft the lifts with foes, and gave the foil,
And made all foes to friendfhip back recoil.
With thee, O death, he grappled hand to hand,
And led thee captive from thy native land :
Now thou art tam'd, and loft thy fatal fting;
Foes without harm can no difafter bring.
Enter this heart, friend death, and thou shalt hear
Thy praises fung, with a melodious cheer:
O fweet beginner of all joys and pleasure,
Of all content, and fulness paffing measure!
O joyful ev'ning-period, without morrow,
Of wants, and pains, and tears, and griefs, and for
And, which is moft, O bleffed utmoft border (row!
Ot ail corruption, finning and diforder!
Once paft this march, I may with boldness cry,
All fin is gone, adieu all mifery.
O fafe refuge! O fweet eternal port
To which all weary'd pilgrims do refort.
O filver ftream! O pleasant paffing strand
From clownish earth, to fair Immanuel's land!
O gladfome boatman! giving fafe convoy.
From weeping earth, unto the land of joy.
O quiet fleep! which weary'd fenfe affails,
And fp'rits and pow'rs with fweet immortal gales.
O juft umpire, which doth the march defcry
Of flying time, and vaft eternity.
O fkilful fower of earth's mortal grain!
That it in heav'nly glore may rife again.
O noble usher, who by th' hand dost bring
Us to the hall of the immortal King.
Would I thy praifes in one word exprefs?
I'll only fay, O fource of happiness !
From thee did never-fading glory grow;.
From thee did ever-blooming joy o'erflow:
By thee eternal death was vanquished,
By thee eternal life did it fucceed.
Oftrange! the Source of life did purchase more,
By dying, than all creatures loft before:
Yea, more by infinite tranfcendent stages,
Than can be told through endless store of ages.
By thee the faints their heritage poffefs:
By thee earth's too too num'rous folks decrease.
Thou art more mild, of a more pleasant nature,
In thefe laft ages of the lower creature,
Than in the firft, when thou did fuffer men
To run a longsome race of fin and pain.
O! without thee our strongest hope would fail,
Our joys would die, defpair would us affail.
The thoughts of thee brought to my heart relief,
In all my wand'rings through the vale of grief:
Indeed my longing foul was fore opprefs'd
With fad delays, when thou feem'd not to hafte
Thy wished course, and to forget thy call:
Now, now thy coming hath redreffed all.
O now my heart's rejoic'd! fweet death and I
Are in each other's arms; thrice happily,
I bravely fly out o'er the march of time,
Unto that happy, happy, glorious clime:
Where ftored are enduring boundlefs treasure
Of loves, and joys, and heart contenting pleasures.
All joy, death's fhady vale, in drawing near
Thy dark'ned borders, frange! thou doft appear
Another thing than what I did conceive;
Miftakes caufe needlefs fears, and joys bereave:
Thee did my thoughts prefent an ugly den,
O'erfpread with horror, fadnefs, fear, and pain.
Sight tells the truth. O thrice delightfome place!!
Stor'd with refreshing fhades of fweet folace,
Caft by thefe ftately trees of fragrant fume,
Which do o'erfpread this true Ely fium,
And do adorn this trance, which pilgrims brings
Into the paradife, which ever fprings.
Now do i fet my feet within this vale,
What gales of joys are thefe, which me affail
In this firft entry O this grave might be
A ravishing repofe through all eternity!
All here do laugh and fmile, and fpring and fing;
Were sadness here, it could not fadnefs bring:
Were placed here all griefs and woes of creatures,
Would they not change unto melodious natures?
And can, O.faireft One, thy word command
Death's faddeft vale unto a joyful land?
How doth the place, where thou doft ever dwell,
In glory, beauty, and all things excel?
But what if this be it? O heavenly frame!
My mind's enlarg'd, my heart is in a flame!
Ofweet afpects! with what a pleasant grace
Do heav'nly hofts furround me, in this place?
I'm ravifh'd with the raiment of that One,
Whofe fragrancy tranfcendeth Lebanon:
His voice, his foul tranfporting emanation
Strikes me in an eternal admiration!
No, this is glory's port, I fee the hall,
Where lovely Chrift, with crown in hand, doth call;
Come, come, my fair, thy princely head I'll crowB
With thefe great bays of glory and renown;
I'll thee adorn, in fuch a brave attire,
That all, who thee behold, fhall thee admire..
O love, thou ever haft been in my fight,
A mafs of beauty. fweetnefs and delight:
But now, my fair, I'll thee fo beautify
With the refplendent rays of majesty,
And paffing glory's beauty; I'll so fill,
With ftore of heav'nly grace, thy mind and will,
And all thy pow'rs; thy glore fo flourifh fhall,
And bloom, and shine and ray, through ages all,
That most envying feers fhall confefs,
Thou art a mirrour of all happiness.
O haft thou fought thy foes, and vanquished,
By offering vi'lence unto all, who did
Thy courfe to heav'n oppofe? And fhall not I
Put in thine hands thefe palms of victory?
O! didst thou gladly fuffer, and defpife
All loffes, pains, and woes, that did arise
For my name's fake, O love? And fshall not I
Caufe thee to reign in glorious majesty?
Waft thou to all created things deny'd,
Efteeming them but drofs and dung, and ey'd
Me as the only One? And fhall not I
Thee with my matchlefs beauty fatisfy?
O! haft thou bid farewell, for evermore,
To earthly things, which thou enjoy'd before,
That thou might'ft come to me? And fhall not I
Give full enjoyment through eternity?
O then, arife, my fair, and come away;
Behold, the caftern beams of this fair day
Of vaft eternity dart in thy face;
Caufing all fhades retreat and flee apace.
O come, and enter this thrice happy place,
Thou now behold'fl. What ravishing folace
Dwells here! what paffing joys! what boundless
pleasures
Flow in this land, like fountains, floods and rivers!
Nay, nothing here but sweetness! ev'ry part
Is fill'd with all delights of mind and heart:
Here ev'ry ray's a white and joyful day;
Here ev'ry bloom's a fragrant smelling May:
If once thou enter here, thy rain is
gone,
Thy winter's paft, and all thy woes are done.
This is the holy place, within the vail,
Wherein once entred, fhalt for ever dwell:
This is the place of old I did prepare
To be the flage, whereon I might declare
My beauty, glory, and excellency,
Before this glorious, fately company
Of men and angels, who fhall fee my face,
And fhall for ever in my fight find grace:
Lo, here, below thefe rofy, fragrant groves,
We'll fatiate ourfelves with mutual loves.
O! here our bleffed nefs fhall bloom for ay!
Arife, my love, my fair, and come away.
Thus fpeaks my Lord, this is his invitation,
Thus founds his voice; O endlefs admiration!
Tranfporting all: O fires dart from above,
Transforming all into a flame of love!
His foul alluring voice, his heav'nly grace,
That shines in ev'ry look, his faireft face,
His lovely eyes, his countenance divine*
Hath ravish'd quite away this heart of mine:
At first afpe&t his fhade, a draught might prove,
Would quite eclipfe ten thousand worlds of love.
Thrice bleffed faints, thrice bleffed angels, you
Who ftand within the near immediate view
Of fuch an One, all in your proper places,
Encircled with effential love's embraces!
'Tis like two heavens of joy, to think upon,
That I fhall be within these arms anon!
More fond joy the hope of glory brings,
Than all enjoyments of created things,
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