The Shepherd of the Gods
By Dave
The gods of marble gaze with hollowed eyes,
As banners fall beneath the ashen skies.
Jove's thunder quiets, stilled upon his throne,
While shepherd’s hymns resound in streets of stone.
Where once Mars' legions marched to conquer all,
A Fisherman now answers Caesar’s call.
The cross ascends, triumphant in its reign,
Yet bears the weight of Rome’s imperial chain.
Venus sighs as her altars crumble low,
Her torches quenched by heaven’s steady glow.
Yet robes of purple clothe the shepherd’s priests,
And gilded chalice replace the simple feasts.
O Shepherd King, who vanquished Rome’s proud might,
Your flock now gathers in its marble light.
In conquering, You wore the laurel’s hue,
And Rome’s old gods now breathe their life in You.
For what is Rome, if not its endless need
To shape the world, to plant a mighty seed?
The meek inherit, yet inherit thrones,
And faith, once humble, rules in regal tones.
See Peter’s dome where Jove’s great temple stood,
The god of war replaced by brotherhood.
Yet Pax Romana whispers from the cross,
A fragile peace born of both gain and loss.
So here they meet: the shepherd and the crown,
The humble faith, the empire’s renown.
For all who rise to cast the old away
Must wear its shape, and in its shadow stay.
Thus David’s stone has felled the giant’s form,
Yet wears its armor in the coming storm.
The gods of Rome have bowed before the Lamb,
Yet Rome endures, reborn in who I AM.