Holy Sonnet 14

This poem’s core lies in the commands of the narrator to God, with the rest of the poem sculpted around them. Through the poem he demands, “batter my heart,” “o’erthrow me,” “bend Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new,” “divorce me,” “untie or break that knot again,” “take me to You,” and “imprison me.” The first thing to notice is that he is commanding God to do these things, not asking God, and this of course cannot be done as God cannot be commanded to do anything. In this way the poem is unique, as most poems about religion have someone praying to God or asking him for something. The second thing to notice is the tone and language of these commands. The language is full of violence, lust and a need to be controlled. He demands that God free him of the enemy he is “betrothed” to, sin, and therefore human nature, by” imprisoning” him in His love. He tried to rid himself of the enemy and remain faithful to god before (as is indicated by “again” in line 11) but he failed because his reasoning is “weak or untrue.” However his commands cannot be met because only he can “o’erthrow” himself; it is up to him to get rid of his sins.