![[The Temple Court of Herod, Jerusalem, Model]](Temcrt.jpg)
from
The Temple (1633), by George Herbert:
from
The Temple (1633), by George Herbert:
¶ Sinne. (II)
O That I could a sinne once see!
We paint the devil foul, yet he
Hath some good in him, all agree.
Sinne is flat opposite to th’ Almighty, seeing
It wants the good of vertue, and of being.
But God more care of us hath had:
If apparitions make us sad,
By sight of sinne we should grow mad.
Yet as in sleep we see foul death, and live:
So devils are our sinnes in perspective.
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"he hath some good in him all agree" (lines 2f.) - As ugly and frightening as we portray the devil in paintings, stories, television and movies, there must be something that mortals find desireable and "good" about him because we run to him and keep doing what he wants. |
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