Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, CHRIST THE CARPENTER, by LESLIE L. HASKIN


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

CHRIST THE CARPENTER, by                    
First Line: A crowd was thronging my doorstep
Last Line: From the workshop down the street.
Subject(s): Jesus Christ


A crowd was thronging my doorstep-
I fastened the bar and lock;
I slammed the door in impatience--
The door was marred by the shock.
Then I sought me out a workman
To fashion another door,
And I found near my home a craftsman
I had never seen before.
I told Him just what I wanted;
He smiled in a pleasant way,
And said in a wistful whisper,
"A door for a home, you say?
For a home--" His soft voice faltered
And I knew that He was sad;
"For a home--a home--" He murmured,
"That's something I never had."
He shaped the wood with His chisel,
He planned it with tenderest care,
But His work was slow and plodding;
I scolded Him, standing there:
"Make haste, oh, make haste, thou sluggard!
I weary of this delay!
Oh, make me a door, and quickly!
I want it at once--today!
And make it stronger, more sturdy,
And fit it with locks and bars,
To keep from my house that rabble--
That litter of unwashed boors!"
Quickly He did as I bid Him;
He built it both stern and strong;
He studded it well with iron--
With chains, both heavy and long.
He fitted it in the portal,
Then, sighing, He turned away,
And He dropped a tear, in sorrow
For the work He'd done that day.
Then I slammed the door in anger;
The sound was a sound of doom;
The light in my dwelling faded
To a cold and chilling gloom.
And I gazed on my door with horror,
For across its paneled space
I saw the form of a cross-tree
With spikes on the arms and base;
And the face that gazed down from it,
That my shrinking eyes must meet,
Was the face of the plodding workman,
From the workshop down the street.






Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!


Other Poems of Interest...
Home: PoetryExplorer.net