Non Nobis, Domine
Non Nobis, Domine
Original Text
Occasional Poems, ed. N. C. and R. S. (Jerusalem, 1918): 19.
1Not unto us, O Lord,
2Not unto us the rapture of the day,
3The peace of night, or love's divine surprise,
4High heart, high speech, high deeds, 'mid honouring eyes
5For at Thy word
6All these are taken away.
7Not unto us, O Lord:
8To us Thou givest the scorn, the scourge, the scar,
9The ache of life, the loneliness of Death,
10The insufferable sufficiency of breath.
11And with thy sword
12Thou piercest very far.
13Not unto us, O Lord;
14Nay, Lord, but unto her be all things given.
15My light, and life, and earth, and sky be blasted,
17Let Hell afford
18The pavement of her Heaven.
Notes
16] loss: emended from printed "love" in UCLA copy (no, 276) by manuscript hand. The book opens with the caution: "THESE Poems were printed in Jerusalem in time of War, and it was not possible to correct the proofs fully." Back to Line
RPO poem Editors
Ian Lancashire
RPO Edition
2010
Rhyme
Form