In George Herbert’s poem “The Pulley,” the speaker claims
that God once bestowed various “blessings” on man:
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“Let us,” said he, “pour on him all we
can:
Let the world’s riches, which dispersed
lie,
Contract into a
span.”
The first of the
various blessings that God bestows on man is “strength” (6) – presumably physical
strength, but perhaps spiritual and mental strength as well. Next comes “beauty” (7),
again probably referring first and foremost to physical beauty but perhaps also to
spiritual beauty as well. Next in the list are “wisdom, honor, [and] pleasure” (7). If
“strength” and “beauty” seemed to suggest primarily physical attributes, then surely
“wisdom” and “honor” suggest gifts of mind and character. The word “pleasure,” like
“strength” and “beauty,” can seem double-edged and may refer both to physical pleasure
and to pleasures of the soul and mind.
All these gifts
should be considered “blessings” in several senses of that
word:
- They involve (in the words of the
Oxford English Dictionary) bestowal of divine favour and prospering
influence." In other words, they imply God's special regard for
man. - They are gifts that result in
happiness. - They imply God’s literal
providence. - They are gifts that can be revoked if God so
chooses and thus should never be taken for
granted.
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