"[W]hat has all that we have said / Of our good wishes, no impression made / In thy poor Soul?"
— Clark, William (fl. 1663-1685)
Place of Publication
Edinburgh
Publisher
Printed by the Heir of Andrew Anderson
Date
1685
Metaphor
"[W]hat has all that we have said / Of our good wishes, no impression made / In thy poor Soul?"
Metaphor in Context
[1]Why is it so? says he, that thou must still
Hold such opinions, argue what we will
To th'contrair? what has all that we have said
Of our good wishes, no impression made
In thy poor Soul? are all our labours vain?
And shall we still have reason to complain,
That after all what we can do, or speak,
VVe are as yet not able to correct
The fury of thy hot impatience,
But still thou tel'st us of thy innocence?
Ah! wilt thou never be convinc'd? wilt thou
Still wildly rave, what ever we can do
To bring thee to thy wits? art'not asham'd.
To speak thus of thy Maker, who has fram'd
Both thee, and us of very simple Dust,
That yet for all this thou wilt still be just,
What ere he say to th'contrair, why my friend,
Is't fit thou with thy Maker shouldst contend?
With him, who all perfection doth transcend?
With him is fear, dominion, power, and state,
Honour, and glory: pray who can debate
With our Almighty God: with God on high,
Under whose feet we Mortals grovelling ly?
Wilt thou contend with him whom all obey
Whom no command or power dare gain-say?
A God unlimited, and absolute
In all his actings, and wilt thou dispute
With such a one?
Hold such opinions, argue what we will
To th'contrair? what has all that we have said
Of our good wishes, no impression made
In thy poor Soul? are all our labours vain?
And shall we still have reason to complain,
That after all what we can do, or speak,
VVe are as yet not able to correct
The fury of thy hot impatience,
But still thou tel'st us of thy innocence?
Ah! wilt thou never be convinc'd? wilt thou
Still wildly rave, what ever we can do
To bring thee to thy wits? art'not asham'd.
To speak thus of thy Maker, who has fram'd
Both thee, and us of very simple Dust,
That yet for all this thou wilt still be just,
What ere he say to th'contrair, why my friend,
Is't fit thou with thy Maker shouldst contend?
With him, who all perfection doth transcend?
With him is fear, dominion, power, and state,
Honour, and glory: pray who can debate
With our Almighty God: with God on high,
Under whose feet we Mortals grovelling ly?
Wilt thou contend with him whom all obey
Whom no command or power dare gain-say?
A God unlimited, and absolute
In all his actings, and wilt thou dispute
With such a one?
Categories
Provenance
Searching "soul" and "impression" in HDIS (Poetry)
Citation
William Clark, The Grand Tryal: or, Poetical Exercitations upon the Book of Job. Wherein, Suitable to Each Text of that Sacred Book, a Modest Explanation, and Continuation of the Several Discourses contained in it, is Attempted by William Clark (Edinburgh: Andrew Anderson, 1685). <Link to EEBO-TCP>
Date of Entry
05/17/2005
Date of Review
03/23/2009
