Paradise

Paradise

I Bless thee, Lord, because I GROW
Among thy trees, which in a ROW
To thee both fruit and order OW.

What open force, or hidden CHARM
Can blast my fruit, or bring me HARM,
While the inclosure is thine ARM.

Inclose me still for fear I START.
Be to me rather sharp and TART,
Then let me want thy hand and ART.

When thou dost greater judgments SPARE,
And with thy knife but prune and PARE,
Ev’n fruitfull trees more fruitful ARE.

Such sharpness shows the sweetest FREND:
Such cuttings rather heal then REND:
And such beginnings touch their END.

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To start breaking down this poem the reader needs to recognize the pattern that Herbert uses for this poem. He creatively and successfully dose an a-a-a rhyming pattern to end each sentence in each stanza. However, the unique way of doing this he drops a letter from the previous line. For example, the first stanza: GROW, ROW, OW.....he starts with Grow, then drops the G to get Row and then drops the R to get Ow (in the 17th cent. this would be the spelling for "owe"). Not only does this make the people sound better and more interesting, but he successfully does this by emphasizing the meaning in each stanza.

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I bless thee, Lord, because I GROW

among thy trees in a ROW

To thee both fruit and order OW.

In the first stanza, I feel that Herbert is mostly referring to a christian in line with other Christians. He almost seems optimistic about his belief and place in this setting. Especially in the 17th century--The society he was raised in was mostly filled with Christian believers. With the mention of trees and fruit it seems as the setting is meant to be Paradise or The Garden of Eve. A place of perfection.

What open force, or hidden CHARM

Can blast my fruit, or bring me HARM,

while the enclosure is thine ARM?

In the second stanza its hard to know exactly what the "charm" mentioned is really talking about. It could mean several different things, but if referring this poem to the Garden of Eden it seems fitting to see that it might be the charm of temptation. When Eve gave into temptation she gave up on the safety and perfection of being in the "arm" of God and all that he has blessed them with in the garden.

Enclose me still for fear I START

to me rather sharp and TART,

Than let me want thy hand and ART.

"For fear I start" could be the biblical reference to Adam and Eve being fearless to fearful after the forbidden fruit. God gave them nothing to fear from or about in the garden, but once the bite was taken, they began to have self-awareness. And the final line of the stanza refers back to the "Arm" of God. Once Adam and Eve gave in to temptation they gave up from being in God's hands.

When thou dost greater judgments SPARE,

And with thy knife, but prune and PARE,

E'vn fruitful trees more fruitful ARE.

Here in the fourth stanza Herbert has given in to the physical Paradise and discusses the spiritual Paradise of the soul. He is asking God to not spare him from His judgments or pruning for " even fruitful trees more friutful are"

Such sharpness shows the sweetest FRIEND:

Such cuttings rather heal than REND

and such beginnings touch their END.