The Poems of Edward Taylor

Edward Taylor, Donald E. Stanford

• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
• Year: 2014
• Print ISBN: 9780807842485
• eBook ISBN: 9781469623870
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: American Poetry
• Index: Literature

Now considered America's foremost colonial poet, Edward Taylor was virtually unknown until some of his poems were discovered in the Yale library and published in 1937. The intellectual brilliance and the emotional intensity of his poetical meditations have led critics to compare him to John Donne and George Herbert. These poems are now recognized as one of the great achievements in American devotional literature.

Preparatory Meditations

SECOND SERIES

1. Meditation. Col. 2.17. Which are Shaddows of things to come and the body is Christs.

[16]93.

Oh Leaden heeld. Lord, give, forgive I pray.

Infire my Heart: it bedded is in Snow.

I Chide myselfe seing myselfe decay.

In heate and Zeale to thee, I frozen grow.

File my dull Spirits: make them sharp and bright: 5

Them firbush for thyselfe, and thy delight.

My Stains are such, and sinke so deep, that all

The Excellency in Created Shells

Too low, and little is to make it fall

Out of my leather Coate wherein it dwells. 10

This Excellence is but a Shade to that

Which is enough to make my Stains go back.

The glory of the world slickt up in types

In all Choise things chosen to typify,

His glory upon whom the worke doth light, 15

To thine’s a Shaddow, or a butterfly.

How glorious then, my Lord, art thou to mee

Seing to cleanse me, ’s worke alone for thee.

The glory of all Types doth meet in thee.

Thy glory doth their glory quite excell: 20

More than the Sun excells in its bright glee

A nat, an Earewig, Weevill, Snaile, or Shell.

Wonders in Crowds start up; your eyes may strut

Viewing his Excellence, and’s bleeding cut.

Oh! that I had but halfe an eye to view 25

This excellence of thine, undazled: so

Therewith to give my heart a touch anew

Untill I quickned am, and made to glow.

All is too little for thee: but alass

Most of my little all hath other pass. 30

Then Pardon, Lord, my fault: and let thy beams

Of Holiness pierce through this Heart of mine.

Ope to thy Blood a passage through my veans.

Let thy pure blood my impure blood refine.

Then with new blood and spirits I will dub 35

My tunes upon thy Excellency good.

2. Meditation. Coll. 1.15. The First Born of Every Creature.

Undated.

Oh! Golden Rose! Oh. Glittering Lilly White

Spic’d o’re With heavens File divine, till Rayes

Fly forth whose Shine doth Wrack the strongest Sight

That Wonders Eye is tent of, while’t doth gaze

On thee. Whose Swaddle Bonde’s Eternity. 5

And Sparkling Cradle is Rich Deity.

First Born of e’ry Being: hence a Son

Begot o’th’First: Gods onely Son begot.

Hence Deity all ore. Gods nature run

Into a Filiall Mould: Eternall knot. 10

A Father then, and Son: persons distinct.

Though them Sabellians contrar’ly inckt.

This mall of Steell falls hard upon those foes

Of truth, who make the Holy Trinity

Into One Person: Arrians too and those 15

Socinians calld, who do Christs Deity

Bark out against. But Will they, nill they, they

Shall finde this Mall to split their brains away.

Come shine, Deare Lord, out in my heart indeed

First Born; in truth before thee there was none 20

First Born, as man, born of a Virgin’s seed:

Before or after thee such up ne’er sprung.

Hence Heir of all things lockt in natures Chest:

And in thy Fathers too: extreamly best.

Thou Object of Gods boundless brightest Love, 25

Invested with all sparkling rayes of Light

Distill thou down, what hony falls above

Bedew the Angells Copses, fill our Sight

And hearts therewith within thy Father’s joy.

These are but Shreads under thy bench that ly. 30

Oh! that my Soul was all enamored

With this First Born enough: a Lump of Love

Son of Eternall Father, Chambered

Once in a Virgins Womb, dropt from above.

All Humane royalty hereby Divin’de. 35

The First Born’s Antitype: in whom they’re shrin’de.

Make mee thy Babe, and him my Elder Brother.

A Right, Lord grant me in his Birth Right high.

His Grace, my Treasure make above all other:

His Life my Sampler: My Life his joy. 40

I’le hang my love then on his heart, and sing

New Psalms on Davids Harpe to thee and him.

3. Meditation. Rom. 5.14. Who is the Figure of Him that was to come.

15.8m [Oct.] 1695. Pub. ETP, W.

Like to the Marigold, I blushing close

My golden blossoms when thy sun goes down:

Moist’ning my leaves with Dewy Sighs, half frose

By the nocturnall Cold, that hoares my Crown.

Mine Apples ashes are in apple shells 5

And dirty too: strange and bewitching spells!

When Lord, mine Eye doth spie thy Grace to beame

Thy Mediatoriall glory in the shine

Out Spouted so from Adams typick streame 10

And Emblemiz’d in Noahs pollisht shrine

Thine theirs outshines so far it makes their glory

In brightest Colours, seem a smoaky story.

But when mine Eye full of these beams, doth cast

Its rayes upon my dusty essence thin

Impregnate with a Sparke Divine, defacde, 15

All Candid o’re with Leprosie of Sin,

Such Influences on my Spirits light,

Which them as bitter gall, or Cold ice smite.

My brissled sins hence do so horrid peare,

None...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• The Poems of Edward Taylor
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• Preface
• Other Writings of Edward Taylor
• Abbreviations
• Introduction
• Prologue
• Preparatory Meditations before my Approach to the Lords Supper. Chiefly upon the Doctrin preached upon the Day of administration
• Preparatory Meditations
• Gods Determinations touching his Elect: and The Elects Combat in their Conversion, and Coming up to God in Christ together with the Comfortable Effects thereof
• Miscellaneous Poems
• Glossary