Then came they to a village, where there stood
A lowly hut; the garden fence thereof
Toppled to fall; the Angel thrust it down,
A ruin of grey stones, and lime, and tiles,
Crushing the lentils, melons, saffron, beans,
The little harvest of the cottage folk.
"What hire." asked Moses, "hadst thou for this
"This is the parting betwixt thee and me;
Yet will I first make manifest the things
Thou couldst not bear, not knowing; but my Lord'Exalted above all reproach'-be praised.
The ship I broke serveth poor fisher-folk
Whose livelihood was lost, because there came
A king that way, seizing all boats found whole;
Now they have peace. Touching the Arab boy:
In two moons he had slain his mother's son,
Being perverse; but now his brother lives,
Whose life unto his tribe was more, and he
Dieth blood-guiltless. For the garden-wall:
Two goodly youths dwell there, offspring of one
That loved his Lord, and underneath the stones
The father hid a treasure which is theirs.
This they shall find, building their ruin up,
And joy will come upon their house! But thou,
Journey no more with me, because I do
Naught of myself, but all by Allah's will."
Al-Mutâhâl! Maker of men,
Exalted art Thou past our ken.
SIR EDWIN ARNOLD
WHY THE FACE OF MOSES SHONE
Exodus xxxiv. 29-35
For forty days and forty nights
The prophet fasted on the heights,
On Sinai's peaks he spake with God,
His being strangely overawed.
"Write down these words, 'tis My command
That they be written by thy hand;
Fore'er a witness they shall be
Of Israel's gift of Prophecy."
And Moses wrote the Ten Words down,
O'er every one he placed a crown,
An olden legend tells us why:
"They were to rule the world for aye."
He dipped his pen in starry light—
His sight grew dim, it shone so bright—
The Letters were of golden hue,
They shimmer still for me and you.
On tablets twain the Prophet wrote
This testament of wondrous note,
This heritage of ages past,
Bequeathed to all the world, to last.
The task was done, and Moses seemed
To wonder why the light yet beamed;
He wished to write one other word,
But, murm'ring "Nay," looked heavenward.
'Tis not for man to know Thy ways;
To probe the stars, to pluck the rays
From planets high, his spirit dares-
For man, O Lord, Thy Image bears.
"He soars upon the wings of thought
To find how all things Thou hast wrought;
He sets no bounds to his keen quest;
Not knowing all, he doubts the rest.
"Shall I reveal to human mind
What it, unaided, ne'er can find?
Shall I command the heart to hope,
That it may not in darkness grope?
"Shall I unveil to mortal man
The mysteries which make Thy plan
A blessing for the universe-
And change the boon into a curse?
"Nay, Lord of Hosts, he shall not see
With mortal eyes Eternity;
But every heart shall feel its glow-
The wistful stream of life must flow;
"And every eye shall steadfast gaze
Above the mist, o'er all the maze
Of many doubts and many ills,
Beyond the Everlasting Hills.
""Tis better far the human soul
Shall strive and struggle toward the goal,
Lest, learning all, man cease to care
How Spirit, freed from flesh, may fare.”
And, saying this, with solemn mien,
His face was wreathed in starry sheen;
He wiped his pen upon his brow,
And Light streamed forth, he knew not how.
The Mountain flamed, as in a cloud
Th'Eternal passed-and Moses bowed;
Then, holding high the Tablets twain,
Transfigured, he came down again.
He wist not that his face did shine,
By grace of God, in every line;
The people saw, and, moved to fear,
Not even Aaron ventured near.
Then Moses knew that Hand Divine
Had traced o'er him that lustrous Sign;
He called to them and veiled the light
Which dazzled on their sense and sight.
They all came nigh, while Moses spake
The Ten Commands which made them quake.
The Law of Right a world obeys,
When men behold its blinding rays.
And lo! unwritten glory glows
From each pure heart that heaven knows;
From every pen that's dipped in light
Effulgence gleams to cheer the night.
And every man who mounts the hill,
Where God reveals to all His Will,
Shall wear upon his forehead clear
The wondrous Sign which blessed the Seer.
The Light of Hope which glistened then,
Unwritten on the Prophet's pen,
And shone o'er him, he knew not how,
Streams out from every God-kissed brow.
GEORGE ALEXANDER KOHUT
THE SHEPHERD LEADER OF THE NILE
Before the throne of Egypt's Lord,
The shepherd leader, Moses, stands;
A herder's staff he firmly grips,
But with his undimmed eyes commands.
And Pharaoh with a fretful mien
Turns deaf ears to his pulsing word,
Which, coming in the name of God,
Is as the voice of thunder heard.
"Oh, sov'reign of the hardened heart,
My people serve you night and day.
The stubble of the field they hoard
To make bricks from your River's clay.
And monster cities do they lift
From sand dunes cast up by the sea-
They have been slaves a hundred years,
But now my people must go free.
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