The Sea of Galilee
NATHANIEL, in the ship.All is now ended.
JOHN.Nay, He is arisen,I ran unto the tomb, and stooping downLooked in, and saw the linen grave-clothes lying,Yet dared not enter.
PETER.I went in, and sawThe napkin that had been about his head,Not lying with the other linen clothes,But wrapped together in a separate place.
THOMAS.And I have seen Him. I have seen the printOf nails upon his hands, and thrust my handsInto his side. I know He is arisen;But where are now the kingdom and the gloryHe promised unto us? We have all dreamedThat we were princes, and we wake to findWe are but fishermen.
PETER.Who should have beenFishers of men!
JOHN.We have come back againTo the old life, the peaceful life, amongThe white towns of the Galilean lake.
PETER.They seem to me like silent sepulchresIn the gray light of morning! The old life,Yea, the old life! for we have toiled all nightAnd have caught nothing.
JOHN.Do ye see a manStanding upon the beach and beckoning?'T is like an apparition. He hath kindledA fire of coals, and seems to wait for us.He calleth.
CHRISTUS, from the shore.Children, have ye any meat?
PETER.Alas! We have caught nothing.
CHRISTUS.Cast the netOn the right side of the ship, and ye shall find.
PETER.How that reminds me of the days gone by,And one who said: Launch out into the deep,And cast your nets!
NATHANAEL.We have but let them downAnd they are filled, so that we cannot draw them!
JOHN.It is the Lord!
PETER, girding his fisher's coat about him.He said: When I am risenI will go before you into Galilee!
JOHN.There is no fear in love; for perfect loveCasteth out fear. Now then, if ye are men,Put forth your strength; we are not far from shore;The net is heavy, but breaks not. All is safe.
PETER, on the shore.Dear Lord! I heard thy voice and could not wait.Let me behold thy face, and kiss thy feet!Thou art not dead, thou livest! Again I see thee.Pardon, dear Lord! I am a sinful man;I have denied thee thrice. Have mercy on me!
THE OTHERS, coming to land.Dear Lord! stay with us! cheer us! comfort us!Lo! we again have found thee! Leave us not!
CHRISTUS.Bring hither of the fish that ye have caught,And come and eat!
JOHN.Behold! He breaketh breadAs He was wont. From his own blessed handsAgain we take it.
CHRISTUS.Simon, son of Jonas,Lovest thou me, more than these others?
PETER.Yea,Thou knowest that I love thee.
CHRISTUS.Feed my lambs.
THOMAS, aside.How more than we do? He remaineth everSelf-confident and boastful as before.Nothing will cure him.
CHRISTUS.Simon, son of Jonas,Lovest thou me?
PETER.Yea, dearest Lord, I love thee.Thou knowest that I love thee.
CHRISTUS.Feed my sheep.
THOMAS, aside.Again, the selfsame question, and the answerRepeated with more vehemence. Can the MasterDoubt if we love Him?
CHRISTUS.Simon, son of Jonas,Lovest thou me?
PETER, grieved.Dear Lord, thou knowest all things.Thou knowest that I love thee.
CHRISTUS.Feed my sheep.When thou wast young thou girdedst thyself, and walkedstWhither thou wouldst; but when thou shalt be old,Thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and other menShall gird and carry thee whither thou wouldst not.Follow thou me!
JOHN, aside.It is a prophecyOf what death he shall die.
PETER, pointing to JOHN.Tell me, O Lord,And what shall this man do?
CHRISTUS.And if I willHe tarry till I come, what is it to thee?Follow thou me!
PETER.Yea, I will follow thee, dear Lord and Master!Will follow thee through fasting and temptation,Through all thine agony and bloody sweat,Thy cross and passion, even unto death!
Words in this poem
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- napkin n.
- A little towel, or small cloth, esp. one for wiping the fingers and mouth at table. [Dim. of OF. nape a tablecloth, cloth, F. nappe, L. mappa. See Napery.]
- galilean a.
- Of or pertaining to Galileo; as, the Galilean telescope. See Telescope.
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
- girding n.
- That with which one is girded; a girdle.
- selfsame a.
- Precisely the same; the very same; identical. [Self, a. + same.]
- wast
- The second person singular of the verb be, in the indicative mood, imperfect tense; -- now used only in solemn or poetical style.
- whither adv.
- To what place; -- used interrogatively; as, whither goest thou [OE. whider. AS. hwider; akin to E. where, who; cf. Goth. hvadre whither. See Who, and cf. Hither, Thither.]
- shalt
- 2d per. sing. of Shall.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Sea of Galilee is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Complete Poetical Works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Project Gutenberg ebook #1365; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Sea of Galilee, in Christus: A Mystery (1872), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #1365, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/longfellow-christus/the-sea-of-galilee-2.html, id L19188.
Form and metre
The Sea of Galilee is 130 lines in 35 stanzas.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 2 AAA-- johnA · arisenA · downA · lying · enter
- 17 ---A-A shore · wait · feet · theeA · man · meA
- 26 -AA peter · theeA · theeA
- 34 --AA christus · will · theeA · meA
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| NATHANIEL, in the ship. | 6 | ˘/˘··· |
| All is now ended. | 5 | ···/˘ |
| JOHN. | 1 | · |
| Nay, He is arisen, | 6 | ···˘/˘ |
| I ran unto the tomb, and stooping down | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Looked in, and saw the linen grave-clothes lying, | 11 | ·····/˘··/˘ |
| Yet dared not enter. | 5 | ···/˘ |
| PETER. | 2 | /˘ |
| I went in, and saw | 5 | ····· |
| The napkin that had been about his head, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Not lying with the other linen clothes, | 10 | ·/˘··/˘/˘· |
| But wrapped together in a separate place. | 11 | ··˘/˘··/˘·· |
| THOMAS. | 2 | /˘ |
| And I have seen Him. I have seen the print | 10 | ·········· |
| Of nails upon his hands, and thrust my hands | 10 | ·········· |
| Into his side. I know He is arisen; | 11 | ········˘/˘ |
| But where are now the kingdom and the glory | 11 | ·····/˘··/˘ |
| He promised unto us? We have all dreamed | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| That we were princes, and we wake to find | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| We are but fishermen. | 6 | ···/˘˘ |
| PETER. | 2 | /˘ |
| Who should have been | 4 | ···· |
| Fishers of men! | 4 | /˘·· |
| JOHN. | 1 | · |
| We have come back again | 6 | ····˘/ |
| To the old life, the peaceful life, among | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| The white towns of the Galilean lake. | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| PETER. | 2 | /˘ |
| They seem to me like silent sepulchres | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| In the gray light of morning! The old life, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Yea, the old life! for we have toiled all night | 10 | ·········· |
| And have caught nothing. | 5 | ···/˘ |
| JOHN. | 1 | · |
| Do ye see a man | 5 | ····· |
| Standing upon the beach and beckoning? | 10 | /˘·····/˘˘ |
| 'T is like an apparition. He hath kindled | 12 | ·····˘/˘··/˘ |
| A fire of coals, and seems to wait for us. | 10 | ·/········ |
| He calleth. | 3 | ·/˘ |
| CHRISTUS, from the shore. | 5 | ····· |
| Children, have ye any meat? | 7 | /˘··/˘· |
| PETER. | 2 | /˘ |
| Alas! We have caught nothing. | 7 | ˘/···/˘ |
| CHRISTUS. | 2 | ·· |
| Cast the net | 3 | ··· |
| On the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. | 11 | ··········· |
| PETER. | 2 | /˘ |
| How that reminds me of the days gone by, | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| And one who said: Launch out into the deep, | 10 | ·········· |
| And cast your nets! | 4 | ···· |
| NATHANAEL. | 3 | /˘· |
| We have but let them down | 6 | ······ |
| And they are filled, so that we cannot draw them! | 11 | ·······/˘·· |
| JOHN. | 1 | · |
| It is the Lord! | 4 | ···· |
| PETER, girding his fisher's coat about him. | 11 | /˘/˘·/˘···· |
| He said: When I am risen | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| I will go before you into Galilee! | 11 | ········/˘· |
| JOHN. | 1 | · |
| There is no fear in love; for perfect love | 10 | ·······˘/· |
| Casteth out fear. Now then, if ye are men, | 10 | /˘········ |
| Put forth your strength; we are not far from shore; | 10 | ·········· |
| The net is heavy, but breaks not. All is safe. | 11 | ···/˘······ |
| PETER, on the shore. | 5 | /˘··· |
| Dear Lord! I heard thy voice and could not wait. | 10 | ·········· |
| Let me behold thy face, and kiss thy feet! | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| Thou art not dead, thou livest! Again I see thee. | 12 | ·······˘/··· |
| Pardon, dear Lord! I am a sinful man; | 10 | /˘·····/˘· |
| I have denied thee thrice. Have mercy on me! | 11 | ··˘/···/˘·· |
| THE OTHERS, coming to land. | 7 | ·/˘/˘·· |
| Dear Lord! stay with us! cheer us! comfort us! | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Lo! we again have found thee! Leave us not! | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| CHRISTUS. | 2 | ·· |
| Bring hither of the fish that ye have caught, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| And come and eat! | 4 | ···· |
| JOHN. | 1 | · |
| Behold! He breaketh bread | 6 | ˘/·/˘· |
| As He was wont. From his own blessed hands | 10 | ········˘· |
| Again we take it. | 5 | ˘/··· |
| CHRISTUS. | 2 | ·· |
| Simon, son of Jonas, | 6 | /˘··/˘ |
| Lovest thou me, more than these others? | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| PETER. | 2 | /˘ |
| Yea, | 1 | · |
| Thou knowest that I love thee. | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| CHRISTUS. | 2 | ·· |
| Feed my lambs. | 3 | ··· |
| THOMAS, aside. | 4 | /˘˘/ |
| How more than we do? He remaineth ever | 11 | ······˘/˘/˘ |
| Self-confident and boastful as before. | 10 | ·/˘˘·/˘··· |
| Nothing will cure him. | 5 | /˘··· |
| CHRISTUS. | 2 | ·· |
| Simon, son of Jonas, | 6 | /˘··/˘ |
| Lovest thou me? | 4 | ···· |
| PETER. | 2 | /˘ |
| Yea, dearest Lord, I love thee. | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| Thou knowest that I love thee. | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| CHRISTUS. | 2 | ·· |
| Feed my sheep. | 3 | ··· |
| THOMAS, aside. | 4 | /˘˘/ |
| Again, the selfsame question, and the answer | 11 | ˘/·/˘/˘··/˘ |
| Repeated with more vehemence. Can the Master | 11 | ˘/˘··/˘··/˘ |
| Doubt if we love Him? | 5 | ····· |
| CHRISTUS. | 2 | ·· |
| Simon, son of Jonas, | 6 | /˘··/˘ |
| Lovest thou me? | 4 | ···· |
| PETER, grieved. | 3 | /˘· |
| Dear Lord, thou knowest all things. | 7 | ···/˘·· |
| Thou knowest that I love thee. | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| CHRISTUS. | 2 | ·· |
| Feed my sheep. | 3 | ··· |
| When thou wast young thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst | 12 | ·······˘/··· |
| Whither thou wouldst; but when thou shalt be old, | 10 | /˘········ |
| Thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and other men | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Shall gird and carry thee whither thou wouldst not. | 11 | ···/˘·/˘··· |
| Follow thou me! | 4 | /˘·· |
| JOHN, aside. | 3 | ·˘/ |
| It is a prophecy | 6 | ···/˘˘ |
| Of what death he shall die. | 6 | ······ |
| PETER, pointing to JOHN. | 6 | /˘/˘·· |
| Tell me, O Lord, | 4 | ···· |
| And what shall this man do? | 6 | ······ |
| CHRISTUS. | 2 | ·· |
| And if I will | 4 | ···· |
| He tarry till I come, what is it to thee? | 11 | ·/˘········ |
| Follow thou me! | 4 | /˘·· |
| PETER. | 2 | /˘ |
| Yea, I will follow thee, dear Lord and Master! | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| Will follow thee through fasting and temptation, | 11 | ·/˘··/˘·˘/˘ |
| Through all thine agony and bloody sweat, | 10 | ···/˘˘·/˘· |
| Thy cross and passion, even unto death! | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
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