The writings of John Greenleaf Whittier, Volume 1.
John Greenleaf Whittier, Ed.

Shall we grow weary in our watch,
     And murmur at the long delay?
Impatient of our Father's time
     And His appointed way?

Or shall the stir of outward things
     Allure and claim the Christian's eye,
When on the heathen watcher's ear
     Their powerless murmurs die?

Alas! a deeper test of faith
     Than prison cell or martyr's stake,
The self-abasing watchfulness
     Of silent prayer may make.

We gird us bravely to rebuke
     Our erring brother in the wrong,—
And in the ear of Pride and Power
     Our warning voice is strong.

Easier to smite with Peter's sword
     Than ‘watch one hour’ in humbling prayer.
Life's ‘great things,’ like the Syrian lord,
     Our hearts can do and dare.

But oh! we shrink from Jordan's side,
     From waters which alone can save;