THE ALTAR OF THE RIGHTEOUSNESS
47
And sweet as the moon's word spoken in smiles that the
blown clouds mar
The psalmist's witness in token arose as the speech of a
star.
Starlight supreme, and the tender desire of the moon,
were as one
To rebuke with compassion the splendour and strength of
the godlike sun.
God softened and changed: and the word of his chosen,
a fire at the first,
Bade man, as a beast or a bird, now slake at the springs
his thirst.
The souls that were sealed unto death as the bones of
the dead lie sealed
Rose thrilled and redeemed by the breath of the dawn
on the flame-lit field.
The glories of darkness, cloven with music of thunder,
shrank
As the web of the word was unwoven that spake, and
the soul's tide sank.
