Sonnet XLVII: Nebuchadnezzar's Image

The golden head was Babylon; she passed:
Persia came next, the silvern breast: whereto
Joined brazen flank and belly--these are you,
Ye men of Macedon! Now Rome's the last.
Rome on two iron legs towered tall and vast;
But at her feet were toes of clay, that drew
Downfall: those scattered tribes erewhile she knew
For lords; now 'neath her fatal sway they're cast.
Ah thirsty soil! From your parched fallow fumes
A smoke of pride, vain-glory, cruelty,
That blinds, infects, and blackens, and consumes!
To Daniel, to the Bible you refuse
Your rebel sense; for it is still your use
To screen yourself with lies and sophistry.