Classic Poem

Though wisdom oft, we are assur'd,
In hoary heads appears,
And understanding is matur'd
By time and num'rous years:

Yet knowledge pure no where we see
But in th' eternal mind,
In God, and him alone, can we
Consummate knowledge find.

The wise on earth derive from him,
The wisdom which we praise:
Their tapers only shine with dim
And delegated rays.