by John Donne (1572 - 1631)
Deign at my hands (introduction)
Language: English
Deign at my hands this crown of prayer and praise, Weaved in my low devout melancholy, Thou which of good hast, yea, art treasury, All changing unchanged Ancient of days. But do not with a vile crown of frail bays Reward my Muse's white sincerity ; But what Thy thorny crown gain'd, that give me, A crown of glory, which doth flower always. The ends crown our works, but Thou crown'st our ends, For at our end begins our endless rest. The first last end, now zealously possess'd, With a strong sober thirst my soul attends. 'Tis time that heart and voice be lifted high ; Salvation to all that will is nigh.
Authorship:
- by John Donne (1572 - 1631) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by John Mitchell (b. 1941), "Deign at my hands (introduction)", op. 89 no. 1 (1993), from La Corona, no. 1. [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Victoria Brago
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 14
Word count: 113