It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes:
’Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown;
185 His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty,
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
But mercy is above this sceptred sway;
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings,
190 It is an attribute to God himself;
[191] And earthly power doth then show likest God’s