Classic Poem

Pilate and the Galileans

And some in company relate
Th' unhappy Galileans fate,
Whose mingled off'rings Pilate burn'd
With their own blood.—The Lord return'd,
‘Think ye, they sinn'd in a degree
‘Beyond all men of Galilee,
‘That they were doom'd to undergo
‘Such cruelties? I tell you, No.
‘But if you do not soon repent,
‘Ye all shall share a like event.
‘Or those eighteen on whom there rush'd
‘Siloam's falling tow'r and crush'd,
‘Think ye, they did the crimes outweigh
‘Of all the Jews? I tell you, nay.
‘But if ye do not soon repent,
‘Ye all shall share a like event.’
?Men never God's resentment feel.
More fierce, than when they dare to deal
In judgments. 'Tis the Lord alone,
By whom all circumstance is known.
How force impells, how treach'ry lurks,
How wrath, and how temptation works;
How fiends approach, when grace withdraws,
What boldness, or abashment cause;
How wealth puffs up, how hardships drive,
How worldlings punish, or connive
Then inward turn thy conscious eyes,
And self-condemn'd, be meek and wise.