Along the strand. This was the shield-warriors’ 135
Fourth camp, a resting place by the Red Sea.
Then terrifying news came to the camp
Of Egyptian pursuit, the peril of an inland evil.
Slaughter-fear stalked them, death-dread
Shivered their bones. The exiles awaited 140
Their cruel trackers and the clash of swords
From that enemy who had left them homeless,
Offered them boundless pain and punishment,
Endless oppression in a world of woe.
The fierce Egyptians who followed Moses 145
Forgot the pledge of an earlier pharaoh
[Who had given their leader and all the Israelites
The right to settle in the land of Goshen.
* * *
Then Joseph] became treasure-keeper of the Egyptians
And greatly prospered, but the people soon forgot 150
Their precious promise and carried out crimes
Against the Israelites. Hatred made a home
In the Egyptian hearts—hostility ruled their heads.
They wanted to repay the generosity of Joseph
With a vicious reward, offering evil for good, 155
Treachery for truth. After their own survival
From plague and famine, generations plotted
To exterminate the Israelites. So the people of Moses
Might have paid in blood for that ancient enmity
And that day’s dark work, if almighty God 160
Had allowed the Egyptians their savage slaughter.
Then the mood of the Israelites grew desperate;
Their hearts lost hope as they saw Pharaoh’s army
Surging from the south, sweeping over the land
With shields gleaming, battle-swords swinging, 165
Boar-spears thrusting, trumpets ringing,
Banners waving, the cavalry-storm coming.
Dark death-birds circled the strand,
Carrion crows hungry for corpses,
Screeching like hellions for a bloody meal. 170
Wild wolves sang a hideous evening-song,
Frantic for a feast of flesh and bone.
The beasts of battle held no pity
For any people, Egyptians or Israelites.
They howled for carnage, sang for slaughter. 175
Those bloodlust guardians of the border lands,
Wilderness-wanderers, bayed through the night,
Spooking the souls of the men of Moses,
Who hunkered down in despair and doom.
Sometimes the proud Egyptian soldiers 180
Urged their horses on the warrior’s road,
Marking the miles behind the banner
Of their fierce war-lord. Saddled in arrogance,
The Egyptian king, commander of the company,
Brooded on battle, ensconced in his helmet, 185
Rattling his mail-coat, shaking his sword,
Ordering his soldiers to secure the battle-line.
Silent on the strand, the exiled Israelites
Watched the advance of that land-army
With hateful eyes and troubled hearts. 190
Surrounding the king were vicious sword-wolves,
Fierce and fearless, loyal to their lord—
They hungered for battle, thirsted for blood.
The king had hand-picked a privileged host,
Two thousand warriors from noble families, 195
Each of them leading a pack of men,
Every soldier who could possibly be summoned.
All the kings of that country, the people’s princes,
Were gathered together in that grim force.
The war-trumpet sang, signaling the host 200
Where heroes and horses should march and maintain
The king’s command, carrying their war-gear.
So the dark force, marching by thousands,
Savage death-dealers, stalked the Israelites,
Eager to greet them with grim-bladed hands. 205
They meant to attack the exiles at dawn,
Bearing a gift of rage and revenge
For their lost brothers, the first-born sons.
The people of Moses began to mourn
For the fate they feared. A cry was raised, 210
A lament that haunted every heart,
A hymn of terror, a dirge of woe.
Courage fled, words withered, panic prevailed.
Men were stymied in their clanking mail-coats.
Soldiers swam in a sea of their own fear 215
Like frantic fish in an encroaching net.
The Egyptian army was wrathful and resolute,
An unrelenting enemy—until the mighty angel
Who guarded the Israelites stepped forward,
Separating the soldiers so that neither side 220
Could see the other to carry out the attack.
Then fate was unfixed, destruction undone.
The exiles enjoyed a night-long respite,
Though they were hemmed in on both sides
By powerful forces, the army on one side, 225
The sea on the other, with no way out.
They had given up hope of their rightful homeland,
A lost inheritance. They sat on the strand,
Clothed in sorrow, weighted in woe,
Grimly projecting their last day’s doom. 230
They waited for the superior Egyptian soldiers
To swoop down in a killing company—
Until Moses commanded his troops readied
With a sharp blast of his brass trumpets,
Summoning his soldiers to lift their spirits, 235
Their spears and swords, change into chain-mail,
Keep courage, and muster a mighty host.
Then the people heard the battle-horn’s cry
And hurried from their tents to take up arms.
The twelve tribes made up twelve battalions 240
Of brave-hearted men, fierce foot-soldiers
To fight in the battle. Their strength was stirred.
Each battalion had fifty bold companies
Of shield-bearing, sword-wielding men,
The noblest known. Each company consisted 245
Of a thousand thanes. It was no small threat.
The leaders did not welcome the young or weak
Into the ranks. The young who could not lift a fist
Behind the shield-wall against the enemy,
Or keep the heart’s courage in a corselet, 250
Or who had never received an unwelcome wound
Over the shield-rim, the spear’s savage play
In the grim game of war, did not fight;
Nor could the old, gray-haired comrades
Enter the fray though they displayed courage— 255
There was no youth left in their years.
They mustered only men of strength
In muscle and mind, spirit and sinew,
Who could readily grasp both spear-shaft
And battle-plan, and endure an attack, 260
So the army consisted of courageous men
Keen for battle. The standard was raised,
The brightest of beams, the pillar of clouds,
Close to the sea where the Israelites waited.
The light broke over the shield-wall, 265
Ascending in air to the roof of heaven.
Then the war-herald, a bold battle-crier,
Leapt up before the host, hefting his shield,
Summoning the soldiers, charging the commanders
To quiet the crowd so the multitude might hear 270
A brave lord’s speech. The shepherd of the people,
Leader of the twelve tribes, wanted to address
The assembled army, the chosen people,
With a holy voice, saying these wise words:
“Fear not, though Pharaoh sho
uld marshal an army 275
Of fierce sword-warriors to fight on this shore.
Almighty God will grant you the victory
Through my holy hand, offering the Egyptians
An astonishing reward for their wicked works—
They will no longer live to scourge us 280
With torment and terror, making our lives
A mesh of misery, a web of woe.
There’s no need to fear dead warriors,
Doomed bodies—their day is done.
God’s counsel has been lifted from your hearts. 285
Remember the covenant and keep it always.
Worship your God, pray for his grace,
His promise and protection, shield and salvation,
His gift of victory in a time of triumph.
He is the God of Abraham, the Lord of creation, 290
Our eternal Maker of unmeasured might.
He holds our army in his guardian hands.”
Again the lord and leader of the living host
Lifted his voice, speaking boldly to his people:
“Behold, my beloved and faithful followers, 295
This miracle of God’s making before your eyes—
I have struck the waters and separated the sea
With this vital rod, this green branch,
This vibrant token of times to come.
The wave walls are rising into ramparts 300
On either side of a deep, dry road,
A silvery street for a saved people
To pass through, protected by the Lord.
No one has ever walked this way before,
Crossing these impassable seabed streets 305
Down under water since the dawn of the world.
God’s south wind has swept back the waves,
Splitting the sea, revealing the road,
A pathway of sand to save our people.
You can see the truth—in our time of need 310
God has granted us mercy in this miracle,
As in days of old. Speed is our best battle-plan.
Let’s hurry across, escape the enemy’s embrace,
Now that our Lord and Ruler has raised up
These walls of water, red sea-shields, 315
From seabed to sky-roof, to protect and preserve us,
Shaping a wondrous road through the waves.”
After hearing these words, the host arose.
The soldiers and the chosen ones of God
Raised up their shields and standards on the shore. 320
The sea-walls held firm, steady and secure,
For the space of a day, as the Israelites passed by.
That company held God’s covenant in their hearts,
His promise of protection, never scorning the counsel
Of their lord and leader, the holy man Moses. 325
As the talking ended and the time approached,
The bold blending of song grew stronger,
Swelling against the weighty wave-walls.
The fourth tribe went first, leading the people
Between walls of water. The seabed road 330
Was a vibrant green, a holy hue,
The promise of paradise. A soldier of Judah
Took the lead on that untraveled road
Ahead of his kinsmen. God granted him glory,
A great reward for that day’s work, 335
A righteous victory and assured sovereignty
Over many kingdoms and a host of kin.
As the noblest of people walked through water,
They raised a banner high over their shields
With a sacred sign, the gold lion of Judah, 340
The bravest of beasts. The loyal warriors
Would never suffer insult or injury
As long as their lord and leader lived
And they could lift swords, thrust spears
Bravely in conflict with any bold nation. 345
The soldiers of Judah would always respond
To the call of battle with hard hand-play,
Sword-swipe, spear-stab, shield-thrust,
Blood-wound, body-woe, the cruel crush
Of hard helmets, carnage and corpses. 350
Behind that army were the sons of Reuben,
A horde of sea-raiders hungry for victory,
Bearing their shields over salty marshlands.
Reuben, son of Jacob, had committed a sin—
He unwisely slept with his father’s concubine— 355
So he lost his sovereignty and marched behind
His better brother who had taken his place
As the first-born son with natural rights
To rule the nation. Reuben’s inheritance
Was rescinded—still he was no coward. 360
Next in line came the sons of Simeon,
The third tribe, boldly waving banners,
Flashing spears bent on blood,
Wet with dew. The dawn-light came
As the sun lifted over bright water, 365
Announcing the morning like a beacon of God.
The host moved on, one mail-clad tribe
After another, led by their mighty leader,
Following behind the pillar of clouds.
Each knew its lineage as Moses had traced it 370
Back in time to the great father Abraham,
The ancient leader, prince of his people,
Wisest of rulers, rewarded by God
With the land-right and richness of kin
In tribes to come. That proud patriarch 375
Begat many fine men—a nation of Israelites,
The chosen race, righteous in God’s eyes,
According to scripture and the ancient sages
Who know the origin of the twelve tribes
And study the lineage and stories of the people. 380
Noah, for example, sailed over the flood
With his three sons, the deepest drowning
Ever on earth. He kept God’s covenant
In his head and heart, steering the world’s
Greatest treasure-house over the tumult of waves 385
Into that seafaring sanctuary; he had counted
And collected, two by two, a tally of creatures,
All earthly kinds from the endless stock,
Saving a mother and father for each species,
A blessed beginning for the new world. 390
Noah also carried every kind of seed
For the plants that people enjoyed on earth.
Wise men who know the lineage say
That Abraham, whose name was given by God,
Was the ninth in the line of fatherly succession 395
Of descendants after Noah. He was granted
Wide sovereignty over tribes and nations,
Yet he lived in exile. Later he led his beloved
People into the highlands of Mount Zion
Where they witnessed a wonder, a mighty miracle, 400
And established a covenant with the Lord of creation.
That was the place where the son of David,
Wise King Solomon, constructed the Temple,
The holiest house of worship ever built
For the children of men. That was also the place 405
Where Abraham led his innocent son Isaac
To be sacrificed, as we read in the scripture.
The life-slayer lit the funeral pyre—
It was not a happy moment for the man.
He meant to yield his young son to the flames 410
As a price for victory and a test of his trust
In God’s judgment. He set down his son,
His long-awaited heir, as a holy sacrifice.
The beloved Isaac was his comfort and consolation,
The hope of his heart, the end of his lineage, 415
The legacy to his people. The distressed father
Felt like a death-dealer, savaging hi
s own son—
But the blessed boy was not doomed to die.
Abraham bore witness as he lifted his sword,
An ancient blade rasping from its sheath, 420
To sever the life of his innocent son.
He did not hold the precious life of the boy
Dearer than his loyalty to his heavenly Lord.
Then the man who meant to slay his son,
Bloody his boy with the blade’s edge, 425
If God were willing, rose up with reddened eyes—
But God in his glory did not desire or demand
This holy sacrifice of a human life.
He caught Abraham’s arm with his hands
Before he could deliver the deadly blow. 430
Then a glorious voice, restraining Abraham
And restoring his spirit, spoke these words:
“Abraham, do not slay your innocent son
With a merciless sword. The truth is clear—
Your faith is firm, you’ve kept the covenant, 435
Passed the test, fulfilled your promise.
Know that you shall be shielded and protected
All the days of your life. This is my pledge.
How could a son of man need more?
The word of God cannot be confined 440
By heaven and earth in all its glory—
It is wider than the world, deeper than the sea,
Higher than the sky, vaster than air,
Subtler than any unseen breath,
More substantial than mountains of stone. 445
It is before beginning, beyond the end.
The Lord of angels, Ruler of fate,
King of all creatures, Prince of providence,
Offers you this oath on his own life:
No man will ever be able to know the number 450
Of your children’s children, no matter how wise.
Your tribe will bear untold numbers,
An unending lineage of shield-bearing warriors,
The boldest of kin. What clever man
Could count such numbers? Only one 455
Wise enough to tally the stones on earth,
The stars in the sky, the sand on the shore
Or under the waves. Your sacred tribe
Of freeborn sons shall thrive in Canaan,
Even to the ends of Egypt, between the waters. 460
You will sire the noblest of all nations,
The chosen and cherished children of God.”
* * *
[When the Israelites had crossed the Red Sea,
The Egyptians remained in hot pursuit,
But the hand of God which held back the waves, 465
Let loose the flood on that fierce army,
Sparing no one as the wave-walls came down.]
The people panicked, the savage sea
Swept the enemy away; the Egyptians found
A deep meaning in that meeting. Walls of water 470
The Complete Old English Poems Page 21
