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All Thy Works Praise Thee, O Lord. - A Processional Of Creation.

by Christina Georgina Rossetti

All.

I, All-Creation, sing my song of praise

To God Who made me and vouchsafes my days,

And sends me forth by multitudinous ways.

Seraph.

I, like my Brethren, burn eternally

With love of Him Who is Love, and loveth me;

The Holy, Holy, Holy Unity.

Cherub.

I, with my Brethren, gaze eternally

On Him Who is Wisdom, and Who knoweth me;

The Holy, Holy, Holy Trinity.

All Angels.

We rule, we serve, we work, we store His treasure,

Whose vessels are we, brimmed with strength and pleasure;

Our joys fulfil, yea, overfill our measure.

Heavens.

We float before the Presence Infinite,

We cluster round the Throne in our delight,

Revolving and rejoicing in God's sight.

Firmament.

I, blue and beautiful, and framed of air,

At sunrise and at sunset grow most fair;

His glory by my glories I declare.

Powers.

We Powers are powers because He makes us strong;

Wherefore we roll all rolling orbs along,

We move all moving things, and sing our song.

Sun.

I blaze to Him in mine engarlanding

Of rays, I flame His whole burnt-offering,

While as a bridegroom I rejoice and sing.

Moon.

I follow, and am fair, and do His Will;

Through all my changes I am faithful still,

Full-orbed or strait, His mandate to fulfil.

Stars.

We Star-hosts numerous, innumerous,

Throng space with energy untumultuous,

And work His Will Whose eye beholdeth us.

Galaxies and Nebul'.

No thing is far or near; and therefore we

Float neither far nor near; but where we be

Weave dances round the Throne perpetually.

Comets and Meteors.

Our lights dart here and there, whirl to and fro,

We flash and vanish, we die down and glow;

All doing His Will Who bids us do it so.

Showers.

We give ourselves; and be we great or small,

Thus are we made like Him Who giveth all,

Like Him Whose gracious pleasure bids us fall.

Dews.

We give ourselves in silent secret ways,

Spending and spent in silence full of grace;

And thus are made like God, and show His praise.

Winds.

We sift the air and winnow all the earth;

And God Who poised our weights and weighs our worth

Accepts the worship of our solemn mirth.

Fire.

My power and strength are His Who fashioned me,

Ordained me image of His Jealousy,

Forged me His weapon fierce exceedingly.

Heat.

I glow unto His glory, and do good:

I glow, and bring to life both bud and brood;

I glow, and ripen harvest-crops for food.

Winter and Summer.

Our wealth and joys and beauties celebrate

His wealth of beauty Who sustains our state,

Before Whose changelessness we alternate.

Spring and Autumn.

I hope, -

And I remember, -

We give place

Either to other with contented grace,

Acceptable and lovely all our days.

Frost.

I make the unstable stable, binding fast

The world of waters prone to ripple past:

Thus praise I God, Whose mercies I forecast.

Cold.

I rouse and goad the slothful, apt to nod,

I stir and urge the laggards with my rod:

My praise is not of men, yet I praise God.

Snow.

My whiteness shadoweth Him Who is most fair,

All spotless: yea, my whiteness which I wear

Exalts His Purity beyond compare.

Vapors.

We darken sun and moon, and blot the day,

The good Will of our Maker to obey:

Till to the glory of God we pass away.

Night.

Moon and all stars I don for diadem

To make me fair: I cast myself and them

Before His feet, Who knows us gem from gem.

Day.

I shout before Him in my plenitude

Of light and warmth, of hope and wealth and food;

Ascribing all good to the Only Good.

Light and Darkness.

I am God's dwelling-place, -

And also I

Make His pavilion, -

Lo, we bide and fly

Exulting in the Will of God Most High.

Lightning and Thunder.

We indivisible flash forth His Fame,

We thunder forth the glory of His Name,

In harmony of resonance and flame.

Clouds.

Sweet is our store, exhaled from sea or river:

We wear a rainbow, praising God the Giver

Because His mercy is for ever and ever.

Earth.

I rest in Him rejoicing: resting so

And so rejoicing, in that I am low;

Yet known of Him, and following on to know.

Mountains.

Our heights which laud Him, sink abased before

Him higher than the highest evermore:

God higher than the highest we adore.

Hills.

We green-tops praise Him, and we fruitful heads,

Whereon the sunshine and the dew He sheds:

We green-tops praise Him, rising from out beds.

Green Things.

We all green things, we blossoms bright or dim,

Trees, bushes, brushwood, corn and grasses slim,

We lift our many-favored lauds to Him.

Rose, - Lily, - Violet.

I praise Him on my thorn which I adorn, -

And I, amid my world of thistle and thorn, -

And I, within my veil where I am born.

Apple, - Citron, - Pomegranate.

We, Apple-blossom, Citron, Pomegranate,

We, clothed of God without our toil and fret,

We offer fatness where His Throne is set.

Vine, - Cedar, - Palm.

I proffer Him my sweetness, who am sweet, -

I bow my strength in fragrance at His feet, -

I wave myself before His Judgment Seat.

Medicinal Herbs.

I bring refreshment, -

I bring ease and calm, -

I lavish strength and healing, -

I am balm, -

We work His pitiful Will and chant our psalm.

A Spring.

Clear my pure fountain, clear and pure my rill,

My fountain and mine outflow deep and still,

I set His semblance forth and do His Will.

Sea.

To-day I praise God with a sparkling face,

My thousand thousand waves all uttering praise:

To-morrow I commit me to His Grace.

Floods.

We spring and swell meandering to and fro,

From height to depth, from depth to depth we flow,

We fertilize the world, and praise Him so.

Whales and Sea Mammals.

We Whales and Monsters gambol in His sight

Rejoicing every day and every night,

Safe in the tender keeping of His Might.

Fishes.

Our fashions and our colors and our speeds

Set forth His praise Who framed us and Who feeds,

Who knows our number and regards our needs.

Birds.

Winged Angels of this visible world, we fly

To sing God's praises in the lofty sky;

We scale the height to praise our Lord most High.

Eagle and Dove.

I the sun-gazing Eagle, -

I the Dove,

With plumes of softness and a note of love, -

We praise by divers gifts One God above.

Beasts and Cattle.

We forest Beasts, -

We Beasts of hill or cave, -

We border-loving Creatures of the wave, -

We praise our King with voices deep and grave.

Small Animals.

God forms us weak and small, but pours out all

We need, and notes us while we stand or fall:

Wherefore we praise Him, weak and safe and small.

Lamb.

I praise my loving Lord, Who maketh me

His type by harmless sweet simplicity:

Yet He the Lamb of lambs incomparably.

Lion.

I praise the Lion of the Royal Race,

Strongest in fight and swiftest in the chase:

With all my might I leap and lavish praise.

All Men.

All creatures sing around us, and we sing:

We bring our own selves as our offering,

Our very selves we render to our King.

Israel.

Flock of our Shepherd's pasture and His fold,

Purchased and well-beloved from days of old,

We tell His praise which still remains untold.

Priests.

We free-will Shepherds tend His sheep, and feed;

We follow Him while caring for their need;

We follow praising Him, and them we lead.

Servants of God.

We love God, for He loves us; we are free

In serving Him, who serve Him willingly:

As kings we reign, and praise His Majesty.

Holy and Humble Persons.

All humble souls he calls and sanctifies;

All holy souls He calls to make them wise;

Accepting all, His free-will sacrifice.

Babes.

He maketh me, -

And me, -

To be

His blessed little ones around His knee,

Who praise Him by mere love confidingly.

Women.

God makes our service love, and makes our wage

Love: so we wend on patient pilgrimage,

Extolling Him by love from age to age.

Men.

God gives us power to rule: He gives us power

To rule ourselves, and prune the exuberant flower

Of youth, and worship Him hour after hour.

Spirits and Souls -

Lo, in the hidden world we chant our chant

To Him Who fills us that we nothing want,

To Him Whose bounty leaves our craving scant.

of Babes -

With milky mouths we praise God, from the breast

Called home betimes to rest the perfect rest,

By love and joy fufilling His behest.

of Women -

We praise His Will which made us what He would,

His Will which fashioned us and called us good,

His Will our plenary beatitude.

of Men.

We praise His Will Who bore with us so long,

Who out of weakness wrought us swift and strong,

Champions of right and putters-down of wrong.

All.

Let everything that hath or hath not breath,

Let days and endless days, let life and death,

Praise God, praise God, praise God, His creature saith.