from "The Voice that breathed o'er Eden" by John Keble (1857)

The voice that breathed o'er Eden,
that earliest wedding day,
the primal wedding blessing,
it hath not passed away.

Still in the pure espousal
of Christian man and maid
the Triune God is with us,
the threefold grace is said.

For dower of blessèd children,
for love and faith's sweet sake,
for high mysterious union
which naught on earth may break.

To cast their crowns before thee
in humble sacrifice,
till to the home of gladness
with Christ's own Bride they rise.














Garden of Eden by Jacob de Backer in Groeninge Museum, Bruges