Ballade Of The Paid Puritan
Richard Le Gallienne 1866 (Liverpool) – 1947
In vain with whip and knotted cord
The hirelings of hypocrisy
Would make us comely for the Lord:
Think ye God works through such as ye--
Paid Puritan, plump Pharisee,
And lobbyist fingering his fat bill,
Reeking of rum and bribery:
God needs not you to work His will.
We know you whom you serve, abhorred
Traducers of true piety,
What tarnished gold is your reward
In Washington and Albany;
'Tis not from God you take your fee,
Another's purpose to fulfil,
You that are God's worst enemy:
God needs not you to work His will.
Not by the money-changing horde,
Base traders in the sanctuary,
Nor by fanatic fire and sword,
Shall man grow as God wills him be;
In his own heart a voice hath he
That whispers to him small and still;
God gives him eyes His good to see:
God needs not you to work His will.
ENVOI
Dear Prince, a sinner's honesty
Is more to God, much nearer still,
Than the bribed hypocritic knee:
God needs not you to work His will.
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 54 sec read
- 42 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ababbcbC ababbcbC ababbcbC bcbC |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 920 |
Words | 179 |
Stanzas | 4 |
Stanza Lengths | 8, 8, 8, 4 |
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