Luther's Hymn
WE wait beneath the furnace-blastThe pangs of transformation;Not painlessly doth God recastAnd mould anew the nation.Hot burns the fireWhere wrongs expire;Nor spares the handThat from the landUproots the ancient evil.
The hand-breadth cloud the sages fearedIts bloody rain is dropping;The poison plant the fathers sparedAll else is overtopping.East, West, South, North,It curses the earth;All justice dies,And fraud and liesLive only in its shadow.
What gives the wheat-field blades of steel?What points the rebel cannon?What sets the roaring rabble's heelOn the old star-spangled pennon?What breaks the oathOf the men o' the South?What whets the knifeFor the Union's life?--Hark to the answer: Slavery!
Then waste no blows on lesser foesIn strife unworthy freemen.God lifts to-day the veil, and showsThe features of the demonO North and South,Its victims both,Can ye not cry,"Let slavery die!"And union find in freedom?
What though the cast-out spirit tearThe nation in his going?We who have shared the guilt must shareThe pang of his o'erthrowing!Whate'er the loss,Whate'er the cross,Shall they complainOf present painWho trust in God's hereafter?
For who that leans on His right armWas ever yet forsaken?What righteous cause can suffer harmIf He its part has taken?Though wild and loud,And dark the cloud,Behind its foldsHis hand upholdsThe calm sky of to-morrow!
Above the maddening cry for blood,Above the wild war-drumming,Let Freedom's voice be heard, with goodThe evil overcoming.Give prayer and purseTo stay the CurseWhose wrong we share,Whose shame we bear,Whose end shall gladden Heaven!
In vain the bells of war shall ringOf triumphs and revenges,While still is spared the evil thingThat severs and estranges.But blest the earThat yet shall hearThe jubilant bellThat rings the knellOf Slavery forever!
Then let the selfish lip be dumb,And hushed the breath of sighing;Before the joy of peace must comeThe pains of purifying.God give us graceEach in his placeTo bear his lot,And, murmuring not,Endure and wait and labor!
Words in this poem
- recast v. t.
- To throw again. Florio.
- mould n.
- Crumbling, soft, friable earth; esp., earth containing the remains or constituents of organic matter, and suited to the growth of plants; soil. [OE. molde, AS. molde; akin to D. mul, G. mull, mulm, OHG. molt, molta, Icel. mold, Dan. muld, Sw. mull, Goth. mulda, and E. meal flour. See Meal, and cf. Mole a]
- rebel a.
- Pertaining to rebels or rebellion; acting in revolt; rebellious; as, rebel troops. [F. rebelle, fr. L. rebellis. See Rebel, v. t.]
- pennon n.
- A wing; a pinion. [Cf. Pinion.]
- strife n.
- The act of striving; earnest endeavor. [OF. estrif. See Strive.]
- 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,]
- hereafter adv.
- In time to come; in some future time or state. [AS. hræfter.]
- overcoming a.
- Conquering; subduing.
- gladden v. t.
- To make glad; to cheer; to please; to gratify; to rejoice; to exhilarate. [See Glad, v. t.]
- jubilant a.
- Uttering songs of triumph; shouting with joy; triumphant; exulting. [L. jubilans, -antis, p. pr. of jubilare to shout for joy: cf. F. jubila. See Jubilate.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Luther's Hymn is in the public domain. This text is taken from Anti-Slavery Poems and Songs of Labor and Reform, Complete Volume III of The Works of John Greenleaf Whittier, Project Gutenberg ebook #9580; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: John Greenleaf Whittier, Luther's Hymn, in Anti-Slavery Poems and Songs of Labor and Reform (1865), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #9580, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/whittier-anti-slavery/luther-s-hymn.html, id L24910.
Form and metre
Luther's Hymn is 81 lines in 9 stanzas of 9 lines each. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 93%).
See other poems in iambic tetrameter.
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.
- 1 ABABCCDD- blastA · transformationB · recastA · nationB · fireC · expireC · handD · landD · evil
- 2 -A-A--BB- feared · droppingA · spared · overtoppingA · north · earth · diesB · liesB · shadow
- 3 A-A---BB- steelA · cannon · heelA · pennon · oath · south · knifeB · lifeB · slavery
- 4 A-A---BB- foesA · freemen · showsA · demon · south · both · cryB · dieB · freedom
- 5 ABABCCDD- tearA · goingB · shareA · o'erthrowingB · lossC · crossC · complainD · painD · hereafter
- 6 ABABCCDD- armA · forsakenB · harmA · takenB · loudC · cloudC · foldsD · upholdsD · morrow
- 7 ABABCCDD- bloodA · drummingB · goodA · overcomingB · purseC · curseC · shareD · bearD · heaven
- 8 A-A-BBCC- ringA · revenges · thingA · estranges · earB · hearB · bellC · knellC · forever
- 9 ABABCCDD- dumbA · sighingB · comeA · purifyingB · graceC · placeC · lotD · notD · labor
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. Read against iambic tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| WE wait beneath the furnace-blast | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The pangs of transformation; | 7 | ····˘/˘ |
| Not painlessly doth God recast | 8 | ·/˘˘··˘/ |
| And mould anew the nation. | 7 | ··˘/·/˘ |
| Hot burns the fire | 5 | ···/˘ |
| Where wrongs expire; | 4 | ··˘/ |
| Nor spares the hand | 4 | ···· |
| That from the land | 4 | ···· |
| Uproots the ancient evil. | 7 | ˘/·/˘/˘ |
| The hand-breadth cloud the sages feared | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Its bloody rain is dropping; | 7 | ·/˘··/˘ |
| The poison plant the fathers spared | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| All else is overtopping. | 7 | ······· |
| East, West, South, North, | 4 | ···· |
| It curses the earth; | 5 | ·/˘·· |
| All justice dies, | 4 | ·/˘· |
| And fraud and lies | 4 | ···· |
| Live only in its shadow. | 7 | ·/˘··/· |
| What gives the wheat-field blades of steel? | 8 | ········ |
| What points the rebel cannon? | 7 | ···/˘/˘ |
| What sets the roaring rabble's heel | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| On the old star-spangled pennon? | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| What breaks the oath | 4 | ···· |
| Of the men o' the South? | 6 | ······ |
| What whets the knife | 4 | ···· |
| For the Union's life?-- | 5 | ··/˘· |
| Hark to the answer: Slavery! | 8 | ···/˘/˘˘ |
| Then waste no blows on lesser foes | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| In strife unworthy freemen. | 7 | ··˘/˘/˘ |
| God lifts to-day the veil, and shows | 8 | ········ |
| The features of the demon | 7 | ·/˘··/˘ |
| O North and South, | 4 | ···· |
| Its victims both, | 4 | ·/˘· |
| Can ye not cry, | 4 | ···· |
| "Let slavery die!" | 5 | ·/˘˘· |
| And union find in freedom? | 7 | ·/˘··/˘ |
| What though the cast-out spirit tear | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The nation in his going? | 7 | ·/˘··/˘ |
| We who have shared the guilt must share | 8 | ········ |
| The pang of his o'erthrowing! | 7 | ······· |
| Whate'er the loss, | 5 | ˘˘/·· |
| Whate'er the cross, | 5 | ˘˘/·· |
| Shall they complain | 4 | ··˘/ |
| Of present pain | 4 | ·/˘· |
| Who trust in God's hereafter? | 7 | ····˘/˘ |
| For who that leans on His right arm | 8 | ········ |
| Was ever yet forsaken? | 7 | ·/˘·˘/˘ |
| What righteous cause can suffer harm | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| If He its part has taken? | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| Though wild and loud, | 4 | ···· |
| And dark the cloud, | 4 | ···· |
| Behind its folds | 4 | ···· |
| His hand upholds | 4 | ··˘/ |
| The calm sky of to-morrow! | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| Above the maddening cry for blood, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Above the wild war-drumming, | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| Let Freedom's voice be heard, with good | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| The evil overcoming. | 7 | ·/˘/˘·˘ |
| Give prayer and purse | 4 | ···· |
| To stay the Curse | 4 | ···· |
| Whose wrong we share, | 4 | ···· |
| Whose shame we bear, | 4 | ···· |
| Whose end shall gladden Heaven! | 7 | ···/˘/˘ |
| In vain the bells of war shall ring | 8 | ········ |
| Of triumphs and revenges, | 7 | ·/˘·˘/˘ |
| While still is spared the evil thing | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| That severs and estranges. | 7 | ·/˘·˘/˘ |
| But blest the ear | 4 | ···· |
| That yet shall hear | 4 | ···· |
| The jubilant bell | 5 | ·/˘˘· |
| That rings the knell | 4 | ···· |
| Of Slavery forever! | 7 | ·/˘˘˘/˘ |
| Then let the selfish lip be dumb, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| And hushed the breath of sighing; | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| Before the joy of peace must come | 8 | ········ |
| The pains of purifying. | 7 | ···/˘·˘ |
| God give us grace | 4 | ···· |
| Each in his place | 4 | ···· |
| To bear his lot, | 4 | ···· |
| And, murmuring not, | 5 | ·/˘˘· |
| Endure and wait and labor! | 7 | ˘/···/˘ |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.