XCIV. Bartholomew Chappell. A Warning Voice. Edward Farr, ed. 1845. Select Poetry, Chiefly Devotional, of the Reign of Queen Elizabeth

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Edward Farr, ed. Select Poetry of the Reign of Queen Elizabeth. 1845.

A Warning Voice

XCIV. Bartholomew Chappell


THE ROARING 1 sea doth fret and fume,
Her waues she flings aboue the land;
She shewes all things are out of tune;
She cries, ‘God’s day is nigh at hand.’

The earth of late hath shakt herself,	5
As wearie of her sinfull burne;
Which is ourselues with worldly pelfe;
But oh! thereby we are forlorne.

Of late she swallowed in her gulfe
Twelue thousand out of London towne	10
By sudden plague, like rauening wolfe;
Yet are our hearts not once pluckt downe.

O man! to thee now must I call,
The end where first I did begin,
That joyes, that blisse, that paine and thrall	15
May keep thy soule and mind from sin.

Thy heart will melt on them to thinke,
If any grace in thee remaine;
And from all filthy sinfull sinke
Thy heart and hand thou wilt refraine.	20

When grisly death doth thee assault,
It is too late for to amend:
Wherefore in time confesse thy fault,
And God to please see thou intend.

For when this life is gone and past,	25
There is no cure for any sinne:
Then as we are, so shall we last,
In joy, or paine, as we begin.

Note 1. XCIV. Bartholomew Chappell.—This author wrote, “The Garden of Prudence; wherein is contained a patheticall Discourse and godly Meditation, most brieflie touching the vanities of the world, the calamities of hell, and the felicities of heauen.” The title-page continues, “You shall also find planted in the same diuers sweet and pleasant flowers, both necessarie and comfortable both for body and soule.” This work, which is in prose and verse, was inscribed to Ann Countess of Warwick. It was published in 1595. [back]

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