Lyric Poem · Peace

Holy Sonnet XVIII: Show me, dear Christ, thy Spouse, so bright and clear

by John Donne

Reading room

1Show me, dear Christ, thy Spouse, so bright and clear.

2What! is it She, which on the other shore

3Goes richly painted? or which, robbed and tore,

4Laments and mourns in Germany and here?

5Sleeps she a thousand, then peeps up one year?

6Is she self-truth and errs? now new, now outwore?

7Doth she, and did she, and shall she evermore

8On one, on seven, or on no hill appear?

9Dwells she with us, or like adventuring knights

10First travail we to seek and then make love?

11Betray, kind husband, thy spouse to our sights,

12And let mine amorous soul court thy mild dove,

13Who is most true and pleasing to thee then

14When she's embraced and open to most men.

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“Holy Sonnet XVIII: Show me, dear Christ, thy Spouse, so bright and clear” by John Donne — quilloak.com/poems/holy-sonnet-xviii-show-me-dear-christ-thy-spouse-so-bright-and-clear

Quick facts

Poem: Holy Sonnet XVIII: Show me, dear Christ, thy Spouse, so bright and clear
Poet: John Donne
Length: 14 lines
Form: Lyric Poem
Themes: Peace, Love, Death & Loss

Craft notes

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Measured from the text on this page, not copied from a summary. Counts are approximate: syllables and rhymes come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, which models General American English, so dialect, older pronunciation, and performance can all change what you hear.

Shape: 14 lines · one 14-line stanza
Line length: Lines run 10-11 syllables (median 10), consistent with pentameter. No single length dominates, which is normal once elision and contraction are in play.

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Author record: John Donne1572–1631
Source record: PoetryDBHoly Sonnet XVIII: Show me, dear Christ, thy Spouse, so bright and clear 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 19a2211086b0dbab…
Editorial handling: Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.

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Lyric Poem Peace Love Death & Loss

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