Holy Sonnets VII

i know we haven't read this or discussed it as a class yet but this is my stab at what i think it says.


At the round earth's imagined corners blow
Your trumpets, angels, and arise, arise
From death, you numberless infinities
Of souls, and to your scattered bodies go ;
-hey, angles from all around everywhere is the world, get up and go to all your dead bodies.


All whom the flood did, and fire shall o'erthrow,
All whom war, dea[r]th, age, agues, tyrannies,
- all who died from flood, fire, war, death, age, ect.


Despair, law, chance hath slain, and you, whose eyes
Shall behold God, and never taste death's woe.
-everyone that believes will have the grace of god and have eternal life and not go to hell.

But let them sleep, Lord, and me mourn a space ;
-(TURN!! remember it's a sonnet)lord, please accept them with open arms

For, if above all these my sins abound,
'Tis late to ask abundance of Thy grace,
When we are there. Here on this lowly ground,
-since it is too late for me to ask grace and forgiveness after i die,


Teach me how to repent, for that's as good
As if Thou hadst seal'd my pardon with Thy blood.
- please teach me to repent now while I'm still alive before it is too late

The beginning has a more melancholy tone with talking about past deaths, but after the turn it switches to what can be done before death to ensure eternal life. and the end is more introspective than the beginning which is more general.
This poem tells you just how religious Donne was. (Duh, he was a preacher). i also think this is a big reflection on the time in which it was written, people knew that they could suffer and perhaps die at any moment because of the iron fist rule of the British monarchy with king James.

-Marisa Toniatti