quote · Legacy record
Not seldom, clad in radiant vest, Deceitfully goes forth the morn; Not seldom, evening in the west, Sinks smilingly forsworn. The smoothest seas will sometimes prove To the confiding bark untrue; And if she trust the stars above, They can be treacherous too. The umbrageous oak, in pomp outspread, Full oft when storms the welkin rend, Draws lightening down upon the head It promised to defend. But Thou art true, incarnate Lord! Who didst vouchsafe for man to die; Thy smile is sure, thy plighted word No change can falsify. I bent before Thy gracious throne, And asked for peace with suppliant knee; And peace was given,—nor peace alone, But faith, and hope, and ecstacy!
Not seldom, clad in radiant vest, Deceitfully goes forth the morn; Not seldom, evening in the west, Sinks smilingly forsworn. The smoothest seas will sometimes prove To the confiding bark untrue; And if she trust the stars above, They can be treacherous too. The umbrageous oak, in pomp outspread, Full oft when storms the welkin rend, Draws lightening down upon the head It promised to defend. But Thou art true, incarnate Lord! Who didst vouchsafe for man to die; Thy smile is sure, thy plighted word No change can falsify. I bent before Thy gracious throne, And asked for peace with suppliant knee; And peace was given,—nor peace alone, But faith, and hope, and ecstacy!
Approximate author period: c. 1810 AD · industrial
Meaning not yet available
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Begin with source-checked readings and explanations ↗Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- William Wordsworth
Attribution: attributed - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Approximate author period: c. 1810 AD · industrial
author lifetime midpoint (1770–1850)
An author lifetime, approximate period or collection date is not necessarily the date when these words were first written or spoken. - Recorded source
- A Cyclopædia of Sacred Poetical Quotations (catalogued1888) (1888 AD)
Page 105 · printed citation: Wordsworth · subject: CHANGE
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.