"2.Cor.5.19. God was in Christ Reconciling the World to Himself"
author: Katherine Philips
source date: 1667
language: en
availability: Published by Literature in Context under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

2.Cor.5.19. [2 Corinthians 5:19, from the King James Bible: "To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation."] God was in Christ Reconciling the World to himself.

When God, contracted to Humanity,
Could sigh and suffer, could be sick and die;
When all the heap of Miracles combin'd
To form the greatest, which was, save Mankind:
Then God took stand in Christ, studying a way
How to repair the Ruin'd World's decay.
His Love, Pow'r, Wisdom, must some mean procure
His Mercy to advance, Justice secure:
And since Man in Misery was hurl'd [Possibly a reference to Adam and Eve ("Man") being hurled from the Garden of Eden into the the world.],
It cost him more to save then [Read as "than."] make the World.
Oh! what a desp'rate load of sins had we,
When God must plot for our Felicity?
When God must beg us that he may forgive,
And dye himself before Mankind could live?
And what still are we, when our King in vain
Begs his lost Rebels to be Friends again?
What floods of Love proceed from Heaven's smile,
At once to pardon and to reconcile?
What God himself hath made he cannot hate,
For 'tis one act to Love and to Create:
And he's too perfect full of Majesty,
To need additions from our Misery.
He hath a Father's, not a Tyrant's, joy;
Shews more his Pow'r to save, than to destroy.
Did there ten thousand Worlds to ruine fall,
One God could save, one Christ redeem them all.
Be silent then, ye narrow Souls, take heed
Lest you restrain the Mercy you will need.
But, O my Soul, from these be different,
Imitate thou a nobler Precedent:
As God with open Arms the World does woo,
Learn thou like God to be enlarged too;
As he begs thy consent to pardon thee,
Learn to submit unto thy Enemy;
As he stands ready thee to entertain,
Be thou as forward to return again;
As he was Crucify'd for and by thee
Crucifie thou what caus'd his Agony;
And like to him be mortify'd to sin,
Die to the World as he dy'd for it then.