Thank you for visiting SNEWPapers!
Sign up free
Poem
June 8, 1787
The New York Packet
New York, New York County, New York
What is this article about?
A lyrical passage praising mercy as a gentle, divine quality that blesses both giver and receiver, surpassing earthly power and resembling God's justice when it tempers law.
Clipping
OCR Quality
98%
Excellent
Full Text
POET's CORNER.
MERCY.
The quality of mercy is not strained:
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed,
It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes.
'Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown.
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 the sceptred sway
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings;
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God's,
When mercy seasons justice.
MERCY.
The quality of mercy is not strained:
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed,
It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes.
'Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown.
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 the sceptred sway
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings;
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God's,
When mercy seasons justice.
What sub-type of article is it?
Ode
What themes does it cover?
Moral Virtue
Religious Faith
What keywords are associated?
Mercy
Justice
Kings
God
Monarch
Temporal Power
Poem Details
Title
Mercy.
Form / Style
Blank Verse, Iambic Pentameter
Key Lines
The Quality Of Mercy Is Not Strained:
It Droppeth As The Gentle Rain From Heaven
It Is Twice Blessed,
It Blesseth Him That Gives, And Him That Takes.
And Earthly Power Doth Then Show Likest God's,
When Mercy Seasons Justice.