Love that Faltered

LOVE that faltered for an hourHad not felt the awful powerOf the god whom gods adore;Of the god before whose portalKneel the deathless and the mortal,—Suppliant forever more.

Love that faltered had not heardLove's divine, compelling word,Or it instant had obeyed;Giving with the glad devotionOf the river for the ocean,—Doubting not, and unafraid.

For with Love alone is joyFree from shadow of alloy;And before his sacred shrine,Sorrow in her deepest sadnessGuards a hope more blest than gladness,And through worship grows divine!