Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, ALL THY WORKS PRAISE THEE, O LORD; A PROCESSIONAL OF CREATION, by CHRISTINA GEORGINA ROSSETTI



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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

ALL THY WORKS PRAISE THEE, O LORD; A PROCESSIONAL OF CREATION, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: I all-creation sing my song of praise
Last Line: Praise god, praise god, praise god, his creature saith.
Alternate Author Name(s): Alleyne, Ellen; Rossetti, Christina
Subject(s): Animals; Creation


ALL
I ALL-CREATION sing my song of praise
To God Who made me and vouchsafes my days,
And sends me forth by multitudinous ways.

SERAPH

I, like my Brethren, burn eternally
With love of Him Who is Love, and loveth me;
The Holy, Holy, Holy Unity.

CHERUB

I, with my Brethren, gaze eternally
On Him Who is Wisdom, and Who knoweth me;
The Holy, Holy, Holy Trinity.

ALL ANGELS

We rule, we serve, we work, we store His treasure,
Whose vessels are we brimmed with strength and pleasure;
Our joys fulfil, yea, overfill our measure.

HEAVENS

We float before the Presence Infinite,
We cluster round the Throne in our delight,
Revolving and rejoicing in God's sight.

FIRMAMENT

I, blue and beautiful, and framed of air,
At sunrise and at sunset grow most fair;
His glory by my glories I declare.

POWERS

We Powers are powers because He makes us strong;
Wherefore we roll all rolling orbs along,
We move all moving things, and sing our song.

SUN

I blaze to Him in mine engarlanding
Of rays, I flame His whole burnt-offering,
While as a bridegroom I rejoice and sing.

MOON

I follow, and am fair, and do His Will;
Through all my changes I am faithful still,
Full-orbed or strait His mandate to fulfil.

STARS

We Star-hosts numerous, innumerous,
Throng space with energy untumultuous,
And work His Will Whose eye beholdeth us.

GALAXIES AND NEBULAE

No thing is far or near; and therefore we
Float neither far nor near; but where we be
Weave dances round the Throne perpetually.

COMETS AND METEORS

Our lights dart here and there, whirl to and fro,
We flash and vanish, we die down and glow;
All doing His Will Who bids us do it so.

SHOWERS

We give ourselves; and be we great or small,
Thus are we made like Him Who giveth all,
Like Him Whose gracious pleasure bids us fall.

DEWS

We give ourselves in silent secret ways,
Spending and spent in silence full of grace;
And thus are made like God, and show His praise.

WINDS

We sift the air and winnow all the earth;
And God Who poised our weights and weights our worth
Accepts the worship of our solemn mirth.

FIRE

My power and strength are His Who fashioned me,
Ordained me image of His Jealousy,
Forged me His weapon fierce exceedingly.

HEAT

I glow unto His glory, and do good:
I glow, and bring to life both bud and brood;
I glow, and ripen harvest-crops for food.

WINTER AND SUMMER

Our wealth and joys and beauties celebrate
His wealth of beauty Who sustains our state,
Before Whose changelessness we alternate.

SPRING AND AUTUMN

I hope, --
And I remember, --
We give place
Either to other with contented grace,
Acceptable and lovely all our days.

FROST

I make the unstable stable, binding fast
The world of waters prone to ripple past:
Thus praise I God, Whose mercies I forecast.

COLD

I rouse and goad the slothful apt to nod,
I stir and urge the laggards with my rod:
My praise is not of men, yet I praise God.

SNOW

My whiteness shadoweth Him Who is most fair,
All spotless: yea, my whiteness which I wear
Exalts His Purity beyond compare.

VAPOURS

We darken sun and moon, and blot the day,
The good Will of our Maker to obey:
Till to the glory of God we pass away.

NIGHT

Moon and all stars I don for diadem
To make me fair: I cast myself and them
Before His feet Who knows us gem from gem.

DAY

I shout before Him in my plenitude
Of light and warmth, of hope and wealth and food;
Ascribing all good to the Only Good.

LIGHT AND DARKNESS

I am God's dwelling-place, --
And also I
Make His pavilion, --
Lo, we bide and fly
Exulting in the Will of God Most High.

LIGHTNING AND THUNDER

We indivisible flash forth His Fame,
We thunder forth the glory of His Name,
In harmony of resonance and flame.

CLOUDS

Sweet is our store, exhaled from sea or river:
We wear a rainbow, praising God the Giver
Because His mercy is for ever and ever.

EARTH

I rest in Him rejoicing: resting so
And so rejoicing, in that I am low;
Yet known of Him, and following on to know.

MOUNTAINS

Our heights which laud Him sink abased before
Him higher than the highest evermore:
God higher than the highest we adore.

HILIS

We green-tops praise Him, and we fruitful heads,
Whereon the sunshine and the dew He sheds:
We green-tops praise Him, rising from our beds.

GREEN THINGS

We all green things, we blossoms bright or dim,
Trees, bushes, brushwood, corn and grasses slim,
We lift our many-favoured lauds to Him.

ROSE -- LILY -- VIOLET

I praise Him on my thorn which I adorn, --
And I, amid my world of thistle and thorn, --
And I, within my veil where I am born.

APPLE -- CITRON -- POMEGRANATE

We Apple-blossom, Citron, Pomegranate,
We clothed of God without our toil and fret,
We offer fatness where His Throne is set.

VINE -- CEDAR -- PALM

I proffer Him my sweetness, who am sweet, --
I bow my strength in fragrance at His feet, --
I wave myself before His Judgment seat.

MEDICINAL HERBS

I bring refreshment, --
I bring ease and calm, --
I lavish strength and healing, --
I am balm, --
We work His pitiful Will and chant our psalm.

A SPRING

Clear my pure fountain, clear and pure my rill,
My fountain and mine outflow deep and still;
I set His semblance forth and do His Will.

SEA

To-day I praise God with a sparkling face,
My thousand thousand waves all uttering praise:
To-morrow I commit me to His Grace.

FLOODS

We spring and swell meandering to and fro,
From height to depth, from depth to depth we flow,
We fertilize the world, and praise Him so.

WHALES AND SEA MAMMALS

We Whales and Monsters gambol in His sight,
Rejoicing every day and every night,
Safe in the tender keeping of His Might.

FISHES

Our fashions and our colours and our speeds
Set forth His praise Who framed us and Who feeds,
Who knows our number and regards our needs.

BIRDS

Winged Angels of this visible world, we fly
To sing God's praises in the lofty sky;
We scale the height to praise our Lord most High.

EAGLE AND DOVE

I the sun-gazing Eagle, --
I the Dove
With plumes of softness and a note of love, --
We praise by divers gifts One God above.

BEASTS AND CATTLE

We forest Beasts, --
We Beasts of hill or cave, --
We border-loving Creatures of the wave, --
We praise our King with voices deep and grave.

SMALL ANIMALS

God forms us weak and small, but pours out all
We need, and notes us while we stand or fall:
Wherefore we praise Him, weak and safe and small.

LAMB

I praise my loving Lord, Who maketh me
His type by harmless sweet simplicity:
Yet He the Lamb of lambs incomparably.

LION

I praise the Lion of the Royal Race,
Strongest in fight and swiftest in the chase:
With all my might I leap and lavish praise.

ALL MEN

All creatures sing around us, and we sing:
We bring our own selves as our offering,
Our very selves we render to our King.

ISRAEL

Flock of our Shepherd's pasture and His fold,
Purchased and well-beloved from days of old,
We tell His praise which still remains untold.

PRIESTS

We free-will Shepherds tend His sheep and feed;
We follow Him while caring for their need;
We follow praising Him, and them we lead.

SERVANTS OF GOD

We love God, for He loves us; we are free
In serving Him, who serve Him willingly:
As kings we reign, and praise His Majesty.

HOLY AND HUMBLE PERSONS

All humble souls He calls and sanctifies;
All holy souls He calls to make them wise;
Accepting all, His free-will sacrifice.

BABES

He maketh me, --
And me, --
And me, --
To be
His blessed little ones around His knee,
Who praise Him by mere love confidingly.

WOMEN

God makes our service love, and makes our wage
Love: so we wend on patient pilgrimage,
Extolling Him by love from age to age.

MEN

God gives us power to rule: He gives us power
To rule ourselves, and prune the exuberant flower
Of youth, and worship Him hour after hour.

SPIRITS AND SOULS --

Lo in the hidden world we chant our chant
To Him Who fills us that we nothing want,
To Him Whose bounty leaves our craving scant.

OF BABES --

With milky mouths we praise God, from the breast
Called home betimes to rest the perfect rest,
By love and joy fulfilling His behest.

OF WOMEN --

We praise His Will which made us what He would,
His Will which fashioned us and called us good,
His Will our plenary beatitude.

OF MEN

We praise His Will Who bore with us so long,
Who out of weakness wrought us swift and strong,
Champions of right and putters-down of wrong.

ALL

Let everything that hath or hath not breath,
Let days and endless days, let life and death,
Praise God, praise God, praise God, His creature saith.





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