A Poem for Those in Despair

The Bag

Away despair! my gracious Lord doth hear.
Though winds and waves assault my keel,
He doth preserve it: he doth steer,
Ev’n when the boat seems most to reel.
Storms are the triumph of his art:
Well may he close his eyes, but not his heart.

Hast thou not heard, that my Lord Jesus di’d?
Then let me tell thee a strange story.
The God of power, as he did ride In his majestic robes of glory,
Resolv’d to light; and so one day
He did descend, undressing all the way.

The stars his tire of light and rings obtain’d,
The cloud his bow, the fire his spear,
The sky his azure mantle gain’d.
And when they ask’d, what he would wear;
He smil’d and said as he did go,
He had new clothes a making here below.

This devotional guide invites readers to enjoy one of the greatest spiritual poets of all time. With brief analysis and reflections, this beautiful volume beckons readers to experience not just George Herbert’s poetry but also Herbert’s God.

When he was come, as travellers are wont,
He did repair unto an inn.
Both then, and after, many a brunt
He did endure to cancel sin:
And having giv’n the rest before,
Here he gave up his life to pay our score.

But as he was returning, there came one
That ran upon him with a spear.
He, who came hither all alone,
Bringing nor man, nor arms, nor fear,
Receiv’d the blow upon his side,
And straight he turn’d, and to his brethren cry’d,

If ye have any thing to send or write,
I have no bag, but here is room:
Unto my Father’s hands and sight,
Believe me, it shall safely come.
That I shall mind, what you impart;
Look, you may put it very near my heart.

Or if hereafter any of my friends
Will use me in this kind, the door
Shall still be open; what he sends I will present, and somewhat more,
Not to his hurt. Sighs will convey
Any thing to me. Hark, Despair, away.

Savoring the Poem

Why are babies born with severe defects? Why are innocents murdered in brutal wars? Why do seniors die alone? Most of the suffering in this world is unexplained. Life doesn’t come with an answer key. If a poet wants us to feel that (not just know it), how might he help us? Like the author of Psalm 88, he might end his poem dangling in despair, no facile answers offered. That’s what Herbert does in “Longing” (the poem just before this one in The Temple), the final lines of which are: “And heal my troubled breast which cries, / Which dies.” Herbert gives us a mini-experience of unresolved desolation. That’s life.

We are not forgotten. We are heard, known, and loved by a storm-stilling Savior.

But what if a poet also wants us to feel (not just know) that even sin-induced despair is part of a God-ordered world—that there’s reality, but not finality, to our confusion? He might help us by embedding his despairing poem within a larger body of work. In the Psalter, Psalm 89 comes after Psalm 88. And in The Temple, “The Bag” comes after “Longing.” Like a naughty dog told to go home, the despair expressed in “Longing” is rebuked and dismissed in the first and final lines of “The Bag.” Go away! The dispeller of despair is Jesus, his eyes closed in the storm but his heart open toward us. That storm, it turns out, is the triumph of his art. And we know his heart is for us, because of what he’s given up. In a bold, imaginative play on Philippians 2:5–11, Herbert envisions him descending from heaven, shedding wealth, weapons, garments, and glory. Surrendering his life. Speared in the side, the resulting hole forming a macabre mail bag with which he now delivers our messages to the Father. We are not forgotten. We are heard, known, and loved by a storm-stilling Savior. Despair, away!

Shepherded by the Poem

Some followers of Christ tend to underplay the reality of sadness and confusion in a fallen world, rushing immediately to the relief Christ offers. Other Christians wallow in despair, not applying gospel truth. What are the dangers of each approach? Are you tempted toward one or the other? How does Herbert acknowledge both hardship and hope? How can this poem help you follow Christ in a Christless world? Next time you pray to the Father, it’s worth pausing to consider what it cost Christ to convey your message, and how eager he is to receive and deliver even your inarticulate sighs. This is our Savior.

This article is adapted from In All Things Thee to See: A Devotional Guide to Selected Poems of George Herbert by George Herbert and with contributions by Stephen Witmer.

George Herbert (1593–1633) was an English poet, orator, and priest. Best known for his vivid language and devotional verse, Herbert’s work has inspired generations of believers to encounter and delight in Christ, including some of Christianity’s most beloved writers such as Richard Baxter, Charles Spurgeon, T. S. Eliot, and C. S. Lewis.

Stephen Witmer (PhD, University of Cambridge) is the lead pastor of Pepperell Christian Fellowship in Pepperell, Massachusetts, a council member of the Gospel Coalition, and the cofounder of Small Town Summits. He writes for Desiring God and is the author of Eternity Changes Everything; A Big Gospel in Small Places; and The Preacher’s Greek Companion to Hebrews. He and his wife, Emma, have three children.

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