LiederNet logo

CONTENTS

×
  • Home | Introduction
  • Composers (20,111)
  • Text Authors (19,486)
  • Go to a Random Text
  • What’s New
  • A Small Tour
  • FAQ & Links
  • Donors
  • DONATE

UTILITIES

  • Search Everything
  • Search by Surname
  • Search by Title or First Line
  • Search by Year
  • Search by Collection

CREDITS

  • Emily Ezust
  • Contributors (1,114)
  • Contact Information
  • Bibliography

  • Copyright Statement
  • Privacy Policy

Follow us on Facebook

by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861)

Of all the thoughts of God that are
Language: English 
Of all the thoughts of God that are
Borne inward unto souls afar,
Along the Psalmist's music deep,
Now tell me if that any is,
For gift or grace, surpassing this --
'He giveth His beloved, sleep'!

What would we give to our beloved?
The hero's heart to be unmoved,
The poet's star-tuned harp, to sweep,
The patriot's voice, to teach and rouse,
The monarch's crown, to light the brows?
'He giveth His beloved sleep.'

What do we give to our beloved?
A little faith all undisproved,
A little dust to overweep,
And bitter memories to make
The whole earth blasted for our sake.
He giveth His beloved sleep.

"Sleep soft, beloved!" we sometimes say,
But have no tune to charm away
Sad dreams that through the eyelids creep.
But never doleful dream again
Shall break the happy slumber when
He giveth His beloved sleep.

O earth, so full of dreary noises!
O men, with wailing in your voices!
O delvèd gold, the wailers heap!
O strife, O curse, that o'er it fall!
God strikes a silence through you all,
He giveth His beloved sleep.

His dews drop mutely on the hill;
His cloud above it saileth still,
Though on its slope men sow and reap.
More softly than the dew is shed,
Or cloud is floated overhead,
He giveth His beloved sleep.

Ay, men may wonder while they scan
A living, thinking, feeling man,
Confirmed in such a rest to keep;
But angels say, and through the word
I think their happy smile is heard, --
'He giveth His beloved sleep.'

For me, my heart that erst did go
Most like a tired child at a show,
That sees through tears the mummers leap,
Would now its wearied vision close,
Would childlike on His love repose,
Who giveth His beloved sleep.

And, friends, dear friends, -- when it shall be
That this low breath is gone from me,
And round my bier ye come to weep,
Let one, most loving of you all,
Say, "Not a tear must o'er her fall --
'He giveth His beloved sleep.'"

T. Austin sets stanza 4
J. Blumenthal sets stanzas 1, 37

About the headline (FAQ)

Quote at top of the poem:
"He Giveth his Beloved Sleep"
  --Psalm cxxvii. 2.

Text Authorship:

  • by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861), "The sleep", appears in The Seraphim, and Other Poems, first published 1838 [author's text checked 1 time 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 Torrington Austin , "Sleep soft, beloved", stanza 4 [high voice and piano], London: Novello [
     text not verified 
    ]
  • by Jacques (Jacob) Blumenthal (1829 - 1908), "Sleep", <<1908, stanzas 1,37 [high voice and piano], London: Boosey & Hawkes [
     text not verified 
    ]
  • by John Frederick Bridge (1844 - 1924), "He giveth his beloved sleep", published 1889 [soprano, SATB chorus, and organ (or a cappella)], London: Novello [
     text not verified 
    ]
  • by Frederic Hymen Cowen, Sir (1852 - 1935), "He giveth his beloved sleep", published 1907 [alto, SATB chorus, and orchestra], London: Novello [
     text not verified 
    ]
  • by B. J. Land , "He giveth his beloved sleep", <<1890. [
     text not verified 
    ]
  • possibly by Emily M. Lawrence (1854 - ?), "The sleep", alternate title: "The sleep song", published [1890] [voice and piano], London: Novello [
     text not verified 
    ]
  • by Leslie Walters (1902 - 1998), "The sleep", 1961, first performed 1962 [SATB chorus a cappella], from Intimations of Mortality [
     text not verified 
    ]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2010-04-21
Line count: 54
Word count: 344

Gentle Reminder

This website began in 1995 as a personal project by Emily Ezust, who has been working on it full-time without a salary since 2008. Our research has never had any government or institutional funding, so if you found the information here useful, please consider making a donation. Your help is greatly appreciated!
–Emily Ezust, Founder

Donate

We use cookies for internal analytics and to earn much-needed advertising revenue. (Did you know you can help support us by turning off ad-blockers?) To learn more, see our Privacy Policy. To learn how to opt out of cookies, please visit this site.

I acknowledge the use of cookies

Contact
Copyright
Privacy

Copyright © 2025 The LiederNet Archive

Site redesign by Shawn Thuris