Love

(untitled)

by John Donne 1572–1631

Love

If poysonous mineralls, and if that tree,
Whose fruit threw death on else immortall us,
If lecherous goats, if serpents envious
Cannot be damn'd; Alas; why should I bee?
Why should intent or reason, borne in mee,
Make sinnes, else equall, in mee, more heinous?
And mercy being easie, and glorious
To God, in his sterne wrath, why threatens hee?
But who am I, that dare dispute with thee?
O God, Oh! of thine onely worthy blood,
And my teares, make a heavenly Lethean flood,
And drowne in it my sinnes blacke memorie,
That thou remember them, some claime as debt,
I thinke it mercy, if thou wilt forget,

MLA

Donne, John. “(untitled).” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/donne/10/.

Chicago

Donne, John. “(untitled).” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/donne/10/.

Read this poem with the Codex →

More by John Donne