They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters, these see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep. <br /> <br />~ Psalm cvii. 23, 24. <br /> <br /> <br />HE that in venturous barks hath been <br />A wanderer on the deep, <br />Can tell of many an awful scene, <br />Where storms for ever sweep. <br /> <br />For many a fair, majestic sight <br />Hath met his wandering eye, <br />Beneath the streaming northern light, <br />Or blaze of Indian sky. <br /> <br />Go! ask him of the whirlpool's roar, <br />Whose echoing thunder peals <br />Loud, as if rushed along the shore <br />An army's chariot wheels; <br /> <br />Of icebergs, floating o'er the main, <br />Or fixed upon the coast, <br />Like glittering citadel or fane, <br />'Mid the bright realms of frost; <br /> <br />Of coral rocks, from waves below <br />In steep ascent that tower, <br />And fraught with peril, daily grow, <br />Formed by an insect's power; <br /> <br />Of sea-fires, which at dead of night <br />Shine o'er the tides afar, <br />And make th' expanse of ocean bright <br />As heaven, with many a star. <br /> <br />Oh God! thy name they well may praise, <br />Who to the deep go down, <br />And trace the wonders of thy ways, <br />Where rocks and billows frown. <br /> <br />If glorious be that awful deep, <br />No human power can bind, <br />What then art Thou, who bidst it keep <br />Within its bounds confined! <br /> <br />Let heaven and earth in praise unite, <br />Eternal praise to Thee, <br />Whose word can rouse the tempest's might, <br />Or still the raging sea!<br /><br />Felicia Dorothea Hemans<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-ocean-38/
