The Everlasting Gospel William Blake

The vision of Christ that thou dost see
Is my vision’s greatest enemy
Thine has a great hook nose like thine
Mine has a snub nose like to mine
Thine is the Friend of all Mankind
Mine speaks in parables to the blind
Thine loves the same world that mine hates
Thy heaven doors are my hell gates
Socrates taught what Meletus
Loath’d as a nation’s bitterest curse
And Caiaphas was in his own mind
A benefactor to mankind
Both read the Bible day and night
But thou read’st black where I read white

Was Jesus gentle, or did He
Give any marks of gentility?
When twelve years old He ran away
And left His parents in dismay
When after three days’ sorrow found
Loud as Sinai’s trumpet-sound
‘No earthly parents I confess
My Heavenly Father’s business!
Ye understand not what I say
And, angry, force Me to obey
Obedience is a duty then
And favour gains with God and men.’
John from the wilderness loud cried
Satan gloried in his pride
‘Come,’ said Satan, ‘come away
I’ll soon see if you’ll obey!
John for disobedience bled
But you can turn the stones to bread
God’s high king and God’s high priest
Shall plant their glories in your breast
If Caiaphas you will obey
If Herod you with bloody prey
Feed with the sacrifice, and be
Obedient, fall down, worship me.’
Thunders and lightnings broke around
And Jesus’ voice in thunders’ sound
‘Thus I seize the spiritual prey
Ye smiters with disease, make way
I come your King and God to seize
Is God a smiter with disease?’
The God of this world rag’d in vain
He bound old Satan in His chain
And, bursting forth, His furious ire
Became a chariot of fire
Throughout the land He took His course
And trac’d diseases to their source
He curs’d the Scribe and Pharisee
Trampling down hypocrisy
Where’er His chariot took its way
There Gates of Death let in the Day
Broke down from every chain and bar
And Satan in His spiritual war
Dragg’d at His chariot-wheels: loud howl’d
The God of this world: louder roll’d
The chariot-wheels, and louder still
His voice was heard from Zion’s Hill
And in His hand the scourge shone bright
He scourg’d the merchant Canaanite
From out the Temple of His Mind
And in his body tight does bind
Satan and all his hellish crew
And thus with wrath He did subdue
The serpent bulk of Nature’s dross
Till He had nail’d it to the Cross
He took on sin in the Virgin’s womb
And put it off on the Cross and tomb
To be worshipp’d by the Church of Rome