Done is a Battell on the Dragon Blak

William Dunbar's original poem, written in the 16th century, is one that deserves to be shared over and over. Unfortunately, it uses a lot of archaic words, and the all-important repeating final line of each stanza is written in Latin. This makes it hard to read for most modern people; but even with those obstacles the sense and force of the poem are still compelling after five centuries. In order to make this poem easier to share, I used an English translation of the Latin and updated the unfamiliar words wherever possible. This means that the only way to keep the rhyme and meter was to change some of the lines and compress several images and references into less space. Therefore this version is shorter than the original, but anyone who looks at the two side-by-side will realize it’s obviously the same poem. So, if this updated version works at all, it’s because the original rocks. If this version doesn’t work, it’s my fault for messing with a masterpiece. Two other things I want to mention: I intentionally omitted a reference to “The Jowis” (Jews) for purely theological reasons; I hope this decision will also be acceptable for many additional reasons as well. Lastly, I left the opening line completely untouched, except for the spelling; it’s one of the most justly famous opening lines in English poetry, and without that strong beam to hang upon, the rest of this poem would fall to the earth under its own tremendous weight.

Done Is a Battle
By William Dunbar [1460-1520]
Updated by Josh McFarland
 
Done is a battle on the Dragon black,
Our champion Christ decimated his force;
The gates of hell hang broken and cracked,
The sign of his victory, the upright Cross.
The devils now tremble with a hideous voice,
Blissfully outward go the souls of the saved
Their ransom by Christ’s precious blood is endorsed.
Our Lord has risen from the grave!
 
Beaten is the deadly dragon Lucifer,
That oily serpent with a deadly strike;
The wily old tiger with brittle teeth ajar,
Claws outstretched, grasping, filled with spite.
But the one who loved us more than his life,
The Lamb who himself as a sacrifice gave,
Awakens the dawn like a giant, like a lion;
Our Lord has risen from the grave!
 
Our foe has been routed, the battle has ceased,
The prison bars broken, its guardians banished,
The war has been won and our Prince declares Peace,
The chains are abolished, the hostages vanished.
Our broken foe squirms on the field of strife,
Deprived of the hoarded treasure in his cave;
Over him stands the victorious Christ,
Our Lord has risen from the grave!

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