Songs of Zion, Poem 6 – Dedication 10
The first depth.
FRō dumps, & doomes of vvoe
From depth of vvrath, & …reAleph.
we call, vve crie, vve roare o lord
With zeale as hot as fire.
The state vvhere once thy name
Was great in light of grace
Is led a slaue by force of vvarreBet….
A curse is in the place.
Our streeats that flockt vvith folke
Most rich, in cloths most gay.
Are novve made void, & laid full vvastGimel.
By night, and eke, by day.
We that did rule, and raigne▪Daleth.
And brusd the vvorld vvi… might
Doe novve pay taxe, & tole, & disme
By force of armes in spight.
We vveepe full sore all night,….
By day our teares doe fall
Our eies are sore, our cheekes are wett
Yet on the lord vve call.
They that did louelove vsus once,Vau.
& vvere our frends in shevve
Are turnd to gall▪ and doe vsus kill
As ferce as doth our foe.
The second depth
OUr prince is made a slaue
To sitt vvith folke most base,
We find noe rest but vvoe and moane,Zain.
& shame doth fill our face.
our sinne, our sinne hath greeud
The lord of hosts full sore.
Our shame, our shame for that doth come.Heth.
On vsus novve more, and more.
Our things of vvorth the foe
Hath seizd all to his hand
They staine the church of thy great nameTeth.
We cā them not vvith stand.
The facts that vve hauehave done
Are all filths in his sight.
He pluckes vsus dovvne, & none doth build,Jod.
Not one vvill doe vsus right.
We sighe for bread in vvant
We giuegive our vvealth for yt.
O helpe svveete lord for vve are vileCaph.
O dravve vsus from this pitt.
O let all those that passe
Looke on my vvoe, & seeLamed
If ere they savve the like of this
That novve is done to me.
The third depth.
IN all my bones is fire
A net my feete hath caught
God turnes his face, & makes me fayntMem.
His vvrath it hath me taught.
His hand is on my necke,
His yoke hath bound me soreNun.
He beares his hād so hard on me
That I can rise noe more.
My men of force are gone,
My young men crusht vvith might
My maids, & babes are trod to dustsamech
And all this in my sight.
For these things vveeps myne eie…
My soule is farre from glee
The foe doth force me to this woe▪Ai….
And none doth care for me.
We stretch our hands for helpe▪
And none doth take a care
We are as is the filth of allPe.
They looke not hovve vve fare
Yet thou art iust o lord
For vve hauehave gone from thee
Thou vvilt vsus helpe for this at last.Zade.
O shevve thy face to me.
The fourth dept.
MY Preests gaue vp the ghost
While they did seeke for meate
The old men eke gaue vp their breathKoph.
O lord our vvoe is great.
I am in greefe o lord
Mine hart is fild vvith vvoe
The svvord doth kill, & Death doth rage.Resch.
For that thou art my foe.
When I doe sigh, & grone
Noe eie doth care for me.
My foes doe ioy, & glad themseluesShin.
My vvoe, & moane to see.
O let my sighes o lord,
Loud crie make in thine …
I hauehave done ill, cleāse me of thatThan.
And rid mine eies frō tear….
O lord vvhy vvith a cloud,
So black of vvrath, & ire
Hast thou vsus clad, and cast vsus dovvneAleph.
Why are vve burnt vvith fire?
The lord doth raze our race,
Our stocke, our flocke, our all;
Dovvne to the ground he dings vsus fastBeth.
Our prince, our peeres doe fall.
The fift depth.
THe strength of all our houseGimel.
Is spent, yea all is gone
…he lords ferce vvrath hath cut vsus of
To helpe vsus there is none.
…e bends his bovve at vsusDaleth.
He shootes vsus through full sore
He kills the choice of all our flocke
O lord vvhat vvilt thou more?
Our forts of fence, & strengthHe.
Our fields so fresh, so full
…re all laid vvast, our goods, our babes
Our foes from vsus doe pull.
The king, & Preest at onceV….
The church, & state doe vvai…
The daies of feasts are turnd to fa…
The lord he doth vsus quaile.
The lord hath cast dovvne allZain.
They roare, & make a noice
With in thy house o'god ou… king
Where once vvas hard our voice
Our, vvall, our vvealth, our state,Heth.
Our god vvill lay full lovve.
His hand is bent to stricke vsus all
Thy vvill o lord is so.
The sixt depth.
The lavve, and all is goneTeth.
Noe preest, noe peere of light
…he lord hath rid vsus of them all
Not one doth come in sight.
The graue men of our stateIod.
The sage, & such as giude
…oe sitt on groūd in dust, & clay
With sacke they cloth their side
…ine eies to see this faile,Caph.
vvith teares they drope, & melt
…he babes doe sovvne in midst of street
Such vvoe, & vvant they felt.
…hey crie for bread, for drinkeLamed.
To all that stand them nighe,
And in their lapps that gaue thē sucke
They faint, & faile, & die.
What vvoe is like to ours?Me….
Our breach as seas doe roa…
Theres none can helpe, or heale our vvo…
O lord our greefe is sore.
They that should see, & say,Nun.
And tell vsus of our sinne
HaueHave taught vsus things both vil… & vain…
Noe good vve find there …
All such as pass vsus bysamech
Do scoffe at vsus, & mocke
Is this the place say they … strengt…
Is this the vvhole earths rock…
The seauenth depth.
Our foes doe hi…se, & gnashAin.
Their teeth, & thus doe saye
…his is the day vve hauehave sought for
To bring thee dovvne for aye
…ut lord this is thine actePe.
To throvve vsus dovvne each one
…dayes of old it vvas thy vvill
To bruise vsus bone by done.
Our teares doe shovvre on vsusZade.
To thee our harts doe cry
…y day, & night vve take noe rest
Our soules doe faint, & dye.
We crye out in the nightKoph.
Like babes vve hold vp hands
We faint for want of bread o lord
O rid vsus of these bands
O see svveet lord the babesResh
That are but a span long
We eate for foode, our Pree… are slay…
And cast out as the donge.
The young, & old on groundShin.
Are cast, & …aint, & die
Our maids so fresh, so faire in hevv…
Are kild, & cast them by▪
Naught else but feares o lordTh…u.
Doe vvake vsus day, & night
It is the day of thy ferce vvrat…
Of foes, of vvarre, of spight.
A METAPHRASE.
…F THE THIRD Chap…r of Ieremies Lamentations for …e sacking, & burning of Ierusalem, and … temple, by Nebuchadnezer king of …abell, and by Nebuzaradan the captaine of his gard, put into monosyllables of great Brittains language.
And is set to the tune of I lift mine hart to thee. PSAL. XXV.
To his much esteemed good frend Mr. IOHN GREENWELL on of the Assistants of the most vvorthy companie of marchants-Adventurers residing at Hamb:
All ioy, & happines in Christ.
WElbeloued in the lord. We are all strangers here in the earth, our home is aboue in heauen. It vvas a great greefe to gods Israel to tune the songs of Sion in a strange country. Hovve then is it vvith vsus, that vve like so vvell of the things here, & thinke not of the blessings aboue. Hierusalem vvas once the mistrisse of the vvorld, th… Metropolis of the earth, & ye… vvhen the vvorlds darling fo… gatt god she vvas layd in the dus… That is the cause of the Prophe… lamentation. Indeed vvho vvould not shovver dovvne teares to … the holy place de…iled, & Ierusa… made an heape of stones? But vve see noe place be it neuer so glorio… in our eies, noe persons be they neuer so gratious in the sight of men that can escape gods … vvhē he vvill scourge The Turkes hauehave encroched into Christendome, & made that …itty of Constantinople vvhichwhich vvas once the glory of the east, a veary cage of vncleane Mahumetans. What Christians hart doth not bleed to see yt? to heare of yt? We hauehave cause to lament this. The prophe… …ad reason to condole that. O that our harts vvere touched vvith remorse for the poore distressed Christians that liue tributaries to the misbeleeuing. Turke. Consider in these hymnes the condition of gods people so subjecte to moane & misery. God directe all our …arts tovvard him in vvealth, in vvoe, in all. And so I cōmending you to god vvith the rest▪ in the sauing mercies of Iesus Christ, Am.
Yours because of Christ. W. LOE.