It was a villainous spirit, snub-nosed, foul <br />Of breath, thick-taloned and malevolent, <br />That squatted within him wheresoever he went <br />.......And possessed the soul of Saul. <br /> <br />There was no peace on pillow or on throne. <br />In dreams the toothless, dwarfed, and squinny-eyed <br />Started a joyful rumor that he had died <br />.......Unfriended and alone. <br /> <br />The doctors were confounded. In his distress, he <br />Put aside arrogant ways and condescended <br />To seek among the flocks where they were tended <br />.......By the youngest son of Jesse, <br /> <br />A shepherd boy, but goodly to look upon, <br />Unnoticed but God-favored, sturdy of limb <br />As Michelangelo later imagined him, <br />.......Comely even in his frown. <br /> <br />Shall a mere shepherd provide the cure of kings? <br />Heaven itself delights in ironies such <br />As this, in which a boy's fingers would touch <br />.......Pythagorean strings <br /> <br />And by a modal artistry assemble <br />The very Sons of Morning, the ranked and choired <br />Heavens in sweet laudation of the Lord, <br />.......And make Saul cease to tremble.<br /><br />Anthony Evan Hecht<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/saul-and-david/
