38
PASTORALS.
Rapt into future times, the Bard begun,
A Virgin shall conceive, a Virgin bear a Son!
From [1]Jesse's root behold a branch arise,
Whose sacred flow'r with fragrance fills the skies;
Th'Æthereal spirit o'er its leaves shall move,
And on its top descends the mystic Dove.
Ye [2]heav'ns! from high the dewy nectar pour,
And in soft silence shed the kindly showr!
The [3]sick and weak the healing plant shall aid,
From storms a shelter, and from heat a shade.
All crimes shall cease, and ancient fraud shall fail;
Returning [4]Justice lift aloft her scale;
Peace o'er the world her olive wand extend,
And white-rob'd Innocence from heav'n descend.
A Virgin shall conceive, a Virgin bear a Son!
From [1]Jesse's root behold a branch arise,
Whose sacred flow'r with fragrance fills the skies;
Th'Æthereal spirit o'er its leaves shall move,
And on its top descends the mystic Dove.
Ye [2]heav'ns! from high the dewy nectar pour,
And in soft silence shed the kindly showr!
The [3]sick and weak the healing plant shall aid,
From storms a shelter, and from heat a shade.
All crimes shall cease, and ancient fraud shall fail;
Returning [4]Justice lift aloft her scale;
Peace o'er the world her olive wand extend,
And white-rob'd Innocence from heav'n descend.
Swift
