"'Gird Thou upon Thy thigh Thy sword, O Thou Most Mighty,'--so once more the psalmist, rapt Prophetical as to a martial rage, Breaks forth, Jehovah to Messiah speaking-- 'Gird on Thy glory and Thy majesty; And in Thy majesty ride prosperously, And Thy right hand shall teach Thee terrible things. Sharp in the heart of the king's enemies Thine arrows are, whereby the peoples fall Beneath Thee.' Such Messiah is, a man Of war and captain of the host of God. Nay, now it mounts to a deific strain, The prophet exultation of the psalm: 'Thy throne, O God' it sings--advancing Him, Messiah, to the unequalled dignity And lonely glory of the ONE I AM, Audacious figure--close on blasphemy, Were it not God who speaks--to represent The dazzling splendors of Messiahship. "Let us erect our spirits from the dust, My brethren, and, as sons of God, nay, gods Pronounced--unless we grovel and below Our birthright due, unfilial and unfit, Sink self-depressed--let us, I pray you, rise, Buoyed upward from within by sense of worth Incapable to be extinguished, rise, Found equal to the will of God for us, And know the true Messiah when He comes. Be sure that when He comes, His high degree Will shine illustrious, like the sun in heaven, Not feebly flicker for your fishermen From Galilee to point it out to you With their illiterate 'Lo, here!' 'Lo, there!'" At this increasing burst of scorn from Saul, Exultant like the pæan and the cry That rises through the palpitating air When storming warriors take the citadel, Once more from Rachel's fixéd eyes the tears Of sympathetic exultation flowed-- The sister with the brother, as in strife Before the battle striving equally, Now equally in triumph triumphing. But Saul, his triumph, felt to be secure, Securer still will make with new appeal: "If so, as we have seen, the Scriptures trend, Not less the current of tradition too-- No counter-current, eddy none--one stress, Steady and full, from Adam down to you, Runs strong the self-same way. Out of the past What voice is heard in contradiction? None. "Turn round and ask the present; you shall hear One answer still the same from every mouth Of scribe or master versed in Holy Writ. Tradition and authority in this Agree with Scripture, teaching to await For our deliverer an anointed king. What ruler of our people has believed In Jesus, him of Nazareth, Joseph's son, As Christ of God? If any, then some soul Self-judged unworthy of his rulership, Secret disciple, shunning to avow His faith, and justly therefore counted naught-- Ruler in name, in nature rather slave.