O might those sighes and teares returne againe (Holy Sonnet III)

Song Meaning

The speaker opens with a desperate plea, wishing his past "sighes and teares" could return. He wants to redirect that wasted emotional energy into a "holy discontent," transforming his previous "mourn'd in vaine" into a sorrow that yields spiritual "fruit." This isn't about reliving pain, but repurposing it for genuine repentance. The central tension arises from the speaker's past "Idolatry," which led to a wasteful outpouring of tears, described as "showres of raine." He paradoxically declares that his past "sufferance was my sinne," implying that his very endurance of worldly sorrow was a transgression. This creates a self-perpetuating cycle, where his past suffering necessitates his current pain: "Cause I did sufffer I must suffer paine." A particularly sharp contrast emerges as the speaker compares his plight to that of various sinners: the "hydroptique drunkard," the "night-scouting thiefe," the "itchy Lecher," and the "selfe-tickling proud." These figures, despite their vices, can find some "reliefe" in the "remembrance of past joyes." Yet, the speaker laments that to "(poore) me is allow'd No ease," highlighting his unique and unremitting spiritual torment. Ultimately, the sonnet's power lies in its unflinching depiction of a soul trapped in a recursive loop of spiritual anguish. The speaker's "long, yet vehement griefe" is not merely a consequence but also a cause, simultaneously "Th'effect and cause, the punishment and sinne." This intricate, almost circular logic of suffering makes his yearning for a meaningful, productive sorrow profoundly impactful, revealing the complex psychology of guilt and the arduous path to redemption.