“Easter Wings” by George Herbert

Hey everyone! I. Love. Our. Community. Here. You all are so encouraging and faithful in prayer—you just inspire me right back with your comments. And upcoming praise update = I’m thrilled to announce that your prayers have completely healed me of my pesky sinus infection! Whoo! I’m happy dancing over here to be done with that! And just in time, because this week is none other than Holy Week! Each day recalls God’s mighty acts–from Palm Sunday, to the Last Supper, to the crucifixion–leading up to Jesus’s resurrection on Sunday!

In honor of these events long ago and the hope they give us today, I would like to walk you through an exegesis (explanation) of the beautiful poem written below by George Herbert, “Easter Wings.” Let’s just read it out loud first, then we can admire it piece by piece! : )

 

Lord, who createdst man in wealth and store,

      Though foolishly he lost the same,

            Decaying more and more,

                  Till he became

                        Most poore:

                        With thee

                  O let me rise

            As larks, harmoniously,

      And sing this day thy victories:

Then shall the fall further the flight in me.

 

My tender age in sorrow did beginne

      And still with sicknesses and shame.

            Thou didst so punish sinne,

                  That I became

                        Most thinne.

                        With thee

                  Let me combine,

            And feel thy victorie:

         For, if I imp my wing on thine,

Affliction shall advance the flight in me.

 

George Herbert was a poet during the early 1600’s (as the foreign language above gives away ; )) from Wales. The poem explores the journey of man’s sin and God’s redemption, not only through its language but also its shape. The first stanza reflects on the idea that when God created man, He provided him with everything necessary to survive. However, man takes God’s gifts for granted, and foolishly loses them all—slowly decaying from a state of wealth to poverty.

The second stanza, turns from discussing man’s destruction to available redemption through God. In these lines, the man surrenders himself to God and expresses through his devotion how he hopes God will help him thrive again. In the last line, man realizes he needed to fall in order to appreciate God and all that He had given him. The fall has only strengthened his resolve to serve God.

The third stanza returns to the sin of man, and how he thinks God has punished him with sickness and shame. Now he has lost both wealth and health, and clearly sees the destitute situation his sin has left him in—becoming “most thinne.”

Like stanza two, stanza four discusses man’s longing for redemption. He wants God to become a part of him, to attach himself to the wing of God as a means of flying back towards redemption. By doing this, man acknowledges that all his suffering as a result of his sins has only served to strengthen his resolve and commitment to God. He reaffirms his devoutness, hoping God will redeem him.

Incredibly relatable and soothing, isn’t it!? But wait, there’s more! *gets super excited for you to experience this in the background* Turn the poem sideways!!!!!!! These are not angel wings, they are resurrection wings. The stanzas visually descend and ascend to represent man’s fall and eventual redemption. Ah. Can. It. Get. Any. Better? It does! The wings also symbolize the rising of the resurrecting Christ as well as believers who participate in the church’s celebration of the resurrection on Easter. Come! On! *claps* Man, that’s a good word! There must be two sets of wings for man to reach salvation. There must be his own wings, but also the wings of Christ. Man must attach his wings to Christ’s in order to truly be able to fly up to redemption, metaphorically of course, hence, the two sets of wings formed by the poem.

Are you enchanted, or is it just me? The last two lines are my favorite: “For, if I imp my wing on thine, Affliction shall advance the flight in me.” What more encouragement do I need? God’s will is good! He’s been good to us every single time in the past, and we can be confident we’ll see His goodness again in the land of the living in our days to come! So let’s imp our wing on His, so that whatever affliction we face today, WILL advance the flight in us. Gonna be celebrating in my house (okay, my parent’s house) and heart this Sunday because Jesus is our redeemer… and HE LIVES!

It’s just like God, to take a simple story, and turn it sideways for us to see the masterpiece He’s created while we were unaware. : ) As always, I really enjoy hearing from anyone who gets to the bottom of my blog posts! Haha. How do you and your family celebrate Easter? Have a favorite Easter memory? Let me know in the comments below! Love you all and praying for you!