MESSIAH.

A

SACRED ECLOGUE,

In Imitation of VIRGIL'S POLLIO.

Y

E nymphs of Solyma! begin the fong:
To heav'nly themes fublimer strains be-
long.

The mossy fountains and the sylvan shades,
The dreams of Pindus and th' Aonian maids,
Delight no more-O thou my voice inspire,
Who touch'd Ifaiah's hallow'd lips with fire!
Rapt into future times, the Bard begun,
A Virgin shall conceive, a Virgin bear a Son!

B2

From

From Jeffe's root behold a branch arife,
Whose sacred flow'r with fragrance fills the skies.
Th' ætherial spirit o'er its leaves shall move,
And on its top descends the mystick dove.
Yeb heav'ns! from high the dewy nectar pour,
And in soft filence shed the kindly show'r!
The fick and weak the healing plant shall aid,
From storms a shelter, and from heat a shade.
All crimes shall cease, and ancient fraud shall fail,
Returning & Justice lift aloft her scale;
Peace o'er the world her olive wand extend,
And white-rob'd innocence from heav'n defcend.
Swift fly the years, and rise th' expected morn !
Oh spring to light, aufpicious Babe, be born!
See nature hastes her earliest wreaths to bring,
With all the incense of the breathing spring:
See lofty e Lebanon his head advance,
See nodding forests on the mountains dance,
See spicy clouds from lowly Saron rise,
And Carmel's flow'ry top perfumes the skies!
Hark! a glad voice the lonely desart chears;
Prepare the f way! a God, a God appears;te

Cap.xxxv. 7.2. Cap. xl, 354

* Ifaiah, cap. xi...
Cap.ix. 7.

Cap. xlv. 4.8.

Cap. xxv. *. 4.

A God,

A God, a God! the vocal hills reply,
The rocks proclaim th' approaching Deity.
Lo earth receives him from the bending skies!
Sink down ye mountains, and ye valliès rife:
With heads declin'd, ye cedars, homage pay;
Be smooth, ye rocks, ye rapid floods give way!
The Saviour comes! by ancient bards foretold;
Hear & him ye deaf, and all ye blind behold!
He from thick films shall purge the visual ray,
And on the fightless eye-ball pour the day:
'Tis he th' obstructed paths of sound shall clear,
And bid new musick charm th' unfolding ear.
The dumb shall fing, the lame his crutch forego,
And leap exulting like the bounding roe.
No figh, no murmur the wide world shall hear,
From ev'ry face he wipes off ev'ry tear.
In adamantine chains shall death be bound,
And hell's grim tyrant feel th' eternal wound.
As the good i shepherd tends his fleecy care,
Seeks fresheft pafture and the pureft air,
Explores the loft, the wandring sheep directs,
By day o'ersees them, and by night protects;

* Cap. xlii. . 18. Cap. xxxv..5, 6. * Cap. xxv. . 8. Cap. xl...

The tender lambs he raises in his arms, Feeds from his hand, and in his bosom warms; Thus shall mankind his guardian care engage, The promis'd father of the future age. No more shall nation against nation rife, Nor ardent warriors meet with hateful eyes, Nor fields with gleaming steel be cover'd o'er, The brazen trumpets kindle rage no more; But useless lances into scythes shall bend, And the broad faulchion in a plow-share end. Then palaces shall rife; the joyful m fon Shall finish what his short-liv'd fire begun; Their vines a shadow to their race shall yield, And the fame hand that fow'd shall reap the field. The swain in barrenn desarts with furprize See lillies spring, and sudden verdure rise, And starts, amidst the thirsty wilds to hear New falls of water murm'ring in his ear: On rifted rocks, the dragon's late abodes, The green reed trembles, and the bulrush nods. Waste sandy vallies, once perplex'd with thorn, The fptry firr and shapely box adorn;

To leafless shrubs the flow'ring palms fucceed,

And od'rous myrtle to the noifome weed.

The Plambs with wolves shall graze the verdant mead,

And boys in flow'ry bands the tyger lead;

The steer and lion at one crib shall meet,

And harmless a ferpents lick the pilgrim's feet.

The smiling infant in his hand shall take

The crested bafilisk and speckled snake;

Pleas'd the green lustre of the scales survey,

[play.

And with their forky tongue and pointless sting shall Rise, crown'd with light, imperial Salem rise!

Exalt thy tow'ry head, and lift thy eyes!

See, a long race thy spacious courts adorn;
See future fons, and daughters yet unborn,
In crouding ranks on ev'ry fide arife,
Demanding life, impatient for the skies!
See barb'rous nations at thy gates attend,
Walk in thy light, and in thy temple bend;
See thy bright altars throng'd with prostrate Kings,
And heap'd with products of u Sabaan springs!
For thee Idume's spicy forests blow,

And feeds of gold in Ophyr's mountains glow.

P Cap. xi. . 6, 7, 8. 1 Cap.1xv. .25.
Cap.18. 4.

Cap. Ix. &. 3. • Cap. lx. 4. 6.

B 4

Cap. Ix...

See