PEACE.
Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace.—Psalm xxxvii. 37.
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.—Proverbs, iii. 13, 17.
Lord, thou wilt ordain peace for us.—Isaiah, xxvi. 12.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.—Matthew, v. 9.
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.—Luke, ii. 14.
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.—John, xiv. 27.
The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace.—Galatians, v. 22.
The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.—Philippians, iv. 7.
No war or battle’s sound
Was heard the world around:
The idle spear and shield were high up hung,
The hooked chariot stood
Unstained with hostile blood,
The trumpet spake not to the armed throng;
And kings sat still, with awe-full eye
As if they surely knew their sovereign Lord was by.
But peaceful was the night
Wherein the Prince of Light,
His reign of peace upon the earth began:
The winds, with wonder whist,
Smoothly the waters kissed,
Whispering new joys to the mild ocean,
Who now hath quite forgot to rave,
While birds of calm sat brooding on the charmed wave.
Milton.
No more shall nation against nation rise,
Nor ardent warriors meet with hateful eyes,
Nor fields with gleaming steel be covered o’er,
The brazen trumpets kindle rage no more;
But useless lances into scythes shall bend,
And the broad falchion in a ploughshare end.
Pope.
My soul, there is a country
Far beyond the stars,
Where stands a winged sentry
All skilful in the wars;
There above noise and danger
Sweet peace sits crown’d with smiles;
And One born in a manger
Commands the beauteous files.
He is thy gracious friend,
And oh! my soul, awake;
Did in pure love descend
To die here for my sake.
If thou canst get but thither,
There grows the flower of peace;
The rose that cannot wither,
Thy fortress and thy ease
Leave then thy foolish ranges;
For none can thee secure,
But one who never changes,
Thy God, thy life, thy cure.
Henry Vaughan.
Sure the last end
Of the good man is peace. How calm his exit!
Night dews fall not more calmly on the ground,
Nor weary worn-out winds expire so soft.
Blair.
Hear the last words the believer saith.
He has bidden adieu to his earthly friends;
There is peace in his eye that upward bends;
There is peace in his calm confiding air;
For his last thoughts are God’s, his last words, prayer.
Henry Ware, Jun.
“Peace” was the word our Saviour breathed,
When from our world His steps withdrew;
The gift He to His friends bequeathed,
With Calvary and the Cross in view:—
Redeemer! With adoring love
Our spirits take Thy rich bequest,
The watchword of the host above,
The passport to their realm of rest.
Mrs. Sigourney.
Oh, peace; thou source and soul of social life,
Beneath whose calm inspiriting influence,
Science his views enlarges; art refines,
And swelling Commerce opens all her ports;
Blest be the man divine who gives us thee;
Who bids the trumpet hush its horrid clang,
Nor blow the giddy nations into rage.
Who sheathes the murderous blade, the deadly gun
Into the well-piled armoury returns;
And every vigour from the work of death
To grateful industry converting, makes
The country flourish and the city smile.
Thomson.
When groves by moonlight silence keep,
And winds the vexed waves release,
And fields are hushed, and cities sleep,—
Lord! is not this the hour of Peace?
When Infancy at Evening tries
By turns to climb each Parent’s knees,
And gazing meets their raptured eyes,—
Lord! is not this the hour of Peace?
In golden pomp when autumn smiles;
And every vale its rich increase
In man’s full barns exulting piles;—
Lord! is not this the hour of Peace?
When Mercy points where Jesus bleeds,
And Faith beholds thine anger cease;
And Hope to black despair succeeds;—
This, Father! this alone is Peace!
Gisborne.
Wherefore from His throne exalted,
Came He on this earth to dwell;
All His pomp an humble manger—
All His court a narrow cell?
“From that world to bring to this,
Peace, which of all earthly blisses
Is the brightest, purest bliss.”
Violante Di Ceo.
Down the dark future, through long generations,
The echoing sounds grow fainter, and then cease!
And like a bell with solemn sweet vibrations,
I hear once more the voice of Christ say “Peace!”
Peace! and no longer from its brazen portals
The blast of war’s great organ shakes the skies;
But, beautiful as songs of the immortals,
The holiest melodies of love arise.
Longfellow.
“Peace,” shall the world outwearied ever see
Its universal reign? Will states, will kings,
Put down these murderous and unholy things,
Which fill the earth with blood and misery?
Will nations learn that love—not enmity—
Is heaven’s first lesson—which beneath the wings
Of mercy, brooding over land and sea,
Fills earth with joy by its soft ministerings?
’Twere a sad prospect—’twere a vista dark
As midnight—could this wearied mortal eye,
Through the dim mists that veil futurity,
Discern not that heaven-bright though distant spark,
Lighted by prophecy, whose ray sublime
Sheds a soft gleam of hope o’er the dull path of time.
I hate that noisy drum, it is a sound
That tells of war, of bondage, and I blush
That liberty had ever cause to rush
Into a warrior’s arms; that right e’er found
Asylum in the furious field. Not so
The holy crowns of genuine glory grow;
Not there should they who bear the badge serene
Of Him who was the Prince of Peace, be seen;
Can such His faithful followers be?—Oh no!
His laurels are not drenched in blood,—but green
And beautiful as spring:—His arms are love
And mercy and forgiveness; and with them
He rules the nations’ mighty destinies
And gently leads us to our homes above.
Dr. Bowring.
If there be sore strife and care,
In the world below,
Restless spirits never there
Could chase away their woe,
Let the storm that raves about us,
By our faith be kept without us;
Let us from our troubles cease,
Power and conquest dwell in peace.
J. Gostick.