Watch, and be firm! for, soul-subduing vice,
Heart-killing luxury, on your steps await.
Fair houses, baths, and banquets delicate,
And temples flashing, bright as polar ice,
Their radiance through the woods, may yet suffice
To sap your hardy virtue, and abate
Your love of Him upon whose forehead sate
The crown of thorns; whose life-blood flowed, the price
Of your redemption. Shun the insidious arts
That Rome provides, less dreading from her frown
Than from her wily praise, her peaceful gown,
Language, and letters; these, though fondly viewed
As humanising graces, are but parts
And instruments of deadliest servitude!
Read all of William Wordsworth's poems · About William Wordsworth
More by William Wordsworth
- Ecclesiastical Sonnets - Part I. - X - Struggle Of The Britons Against The Barbarians
- Ecclesiastical Sonnets - Part I. - XI - Saxon Conquest
- Ecclesiastical Sonnets - Part I. - XII - Monastery Of Old Bangor
- Ecclesiastical Sonnets - Part I. - XIII - Casual Incitement
- Ecclesiastical Sonnets - Part I. - XIV - Glad Tidings
Write poetry? Submit your poem to Poetry Catalog