Lyric Poem · Peace

Holy Sonnet XIX: Oh, To Vex Me, Contraries Meet In One

by John Donne

Reading room

1Oh, to vex me, contraries meet in one:

2Inconstancy unnaturally hath begot

3A constant habit; that when I would not

4I change in vows, and in devotion.

5As humorous is my contrition

6As my profane love, and as soon forgot:

7As riddlingly distempered, cold and hot,

8As praying, as mute; as infinite, as none.

9I durst not view heaven yesterday; and today

10In prayers and flattering speeches I court God:

11Tomorrow I quake with true fear of his rod.

12So my devout fits come and go away

13Like a fantastic ague; save that here

14Those are my best days, when I shake with feare.

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“Holy Sonnet XIX: Oh, To Vex Me, Contraries Meet In One” by John Donne — quilloak.com/poems/holy-sonnet-xix-oh-to-vex-me-contraries-meet-in-one

Quick facts

Poem: Holy Sonnet XIX: Oh, To Vex Me, Contraries Meet In One
Poet: John Donne
Length: 14 lines
Form: Lyric Poem
Themes: Peace, Love

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Shape: 14 lines · one 14-line stanza
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Author record: John Donne1572–1631
Source record: PoetryDBHoly Sonnet XIX: Oh, To Vex Me, Contraries Meet In One by john-donne, PoetryDB transcription
Display decision: Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
Publication record: Not recorded in the imported source
Text fingerprint: SHA-256 408f58136e12f14f…
Editorial handling: Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.

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Lyric Poem Peace Love

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