Watching Unto God in the Night Season

Sleep at last has fled these eyes,
Nor do I regret his flight;
More alert my spirits rise,
And my heart is free and light.

Nature silent all around,
Not a single witness near;
God as soon as sought is found,
And the flame of love burns clear.

Interruption, all the day long,
Checks the current of my joys;
Creatures press me with a throng,
And perplex me with their noise.

Undisturbed I muse all night
On the first Eternal Fair;
Nothing there obstructs delight,
Love renovated there.

Life, with its perpetual stir,
Proves a foe to Love and me;
Fresh entanglements occur, –
Comes the night, and sets me free.

Never more, sweet sleep, suspend
My enjoyments, always new:
Leave me to possess my friend;
Other eyes and hearts subdue.

Hush the world, that I may wake
To the taste of pure delights;
Oh the pleasures I partake, –
God the partner of my nights!

David, for the selfsame cause,
Night preferred to busy day:
Hearts whom heavenly beauty draws
Wish the glaring the sun away.

Sleep, self-lovers, is for you; –
Souls, that love celestial know,
Fairer scenes by night can view
Than the sun can ever show.

– William Cowper