Sonnet · Life
On His Blindness
by John Milton · 1673
3When I consider how my light is spent
4Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide.
5And that one talent which is death to hide,
6Lodg'd with me useless, though my soul more bent
7To serve therewith my Maker, and present
8My true account, lest He, returning, chide;
9Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?
10I fondly ask: but Patience, to prevent
11That murmur, soon replies, God doth not need
12Either man's work, or His own gifts; who best
13Bear His mild yoke, they serve Him best; His state
14Is kingly; thousands at His bidding speed,
15And post o'er land and ocean without rest;
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“On His Blindness” by John Milton — quilloak.com/poems/on-his-blindness
Quick facts
- Poem
- On His Blindness
- Poet
- John Milton
- Published
- 1673
- Length
- 15 lines
- Form
- Sonnet
- Themes
- Life, Strength, Hope
Craft notes
How this poem works
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
- 15 lines · 2 stanzas of 2–13 lines
- Line length
- Mostly 10-syllable lines (pentameter length).
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Text, source & rights
A traceable edition
Full-text display is based on the cited edition and a United States term-expiry review.
- Author record
- John Milton1608–1674
- Source record
- WikisourceOn His Blindness by john-milton, Wikisource transcription
- Display decision
- Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
- Publication record
- 1673
- Text fingerprint
- SHA-256 7d305c59e36dfdde…
- Editorial handling
- Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.