Christus - 1879 Author:Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: III. THE MARRIAGE IN CANA. THE MUSICIANS. RISE up, my love, my fair one, Rise up, and come away, For lo ! the winter is past, The rain is over and gone, The ... more »flowers appear on the earth, The time of the singing of birds is come, And the voice of the turtle is heard in our land. THE BRIDEGROOM. Sweetly the minstrels sing the Song of Songs t My heart runs forward with it, and I say : O set me as a seal upon thine heart, And set me as a seal upon thine arm; For love is strong as life, and strong as death, And cruel as the grave is jealousy ! THE MUSICIANS. I sleep, but my heart awaketh ; 'T is the voice of my beloved Who knocketh, saying : Open to me, My sister, my love, my dove, For my head is filled with dew, My locks with the drops of the night ! THE BRIDE. Ah yes, I sleep, and yet my heart awaketh, It is the voice of my beloved who knocks. THE BRIDEGROOM. O beautiful as Rebecca at the fountain, O beautiful as Ruth among the sheaves! O fairest among Women ! O undefiled ! Thou art all fair, my love, there 's no spot in thee! THE MUSICIANS. My beloved is white and ruddy, The chiefest among ten thousand ; His locks are black as a raven, His eyes are the eyes of doves, Of doves by the rivers of water, His lips are like unto lilies, Dropping sweet-smelling myrrh. ARCHITRICLINUS. Who is that youth, with the dark azure eyes, And hair, in color like unto the wine, Parted upon his forehead, and behind Falling in flowing locks ? PARANYMPHUS. The Nazarene Who preacheth to the poor in field and village The coming of God's Kingdom. ARCHITRICLINUS. How serene His aspect is ! manly yet womanly. PARANYMPHUS. Most beautiful among the sons of men ! Oft known to weep, but never known to laugh. ...« less