Song Meaning
The lyrics paint a stark picture of a world plunged into perpetual darkness, where the natural order has been inverted. The repeated "Mourn, mourn" immediately sets a tone of profound grief and loss, suggesting that the departure of day signifies more than just the end of sunlight. It implies a fundamental shift in the governing forces of existence, with hell seemingly taking the place of heaven.
The central tension lies in this inversion of cosmic order. The narrator questions what power now rules the earth, concluding "O none, but hell in heaven's stead." This isn't just a metaphorical statement about bad times; it suggests a literal takeover, where hell's influence actively "chokes with his mists our mirth." The world is no longer governed by divine light but by infernal shadow, forcing inhabitants to adapt to a new, grim reality.
The most striking craft element is the stark contrast between day and night, light and darkness, heaven and hell, which are presented as irrevocably merged or replaced. The line "Nor night, but that from hell" erases any distinction, implying that the darkness itself is now a manifestation of hell. The final couplet, "But yet this change, must needs change our delight / That thus the sun should harbour with the night," offers a bleak acceptance, forcing a redefinition of joy in this new, sunless, hell-governed world.
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