Send forth as sheep amid the wolfish throng,
Where danger prowls and treachery is strong:
Be wise as serpents, subtle, ever keen,
And harmless yet as doves, in heart serene.

Let wisdom coil within the watchful mind,
To trace the snare before the trap is signed;
Discern the mask, the honeyed word that lies,
The flattering tongue that veils the serpent’s eyes.

Yet let no venom stain the gentle tongue,
No malice rise where mercy should be sung;
Though knowledge pierce the veil of false disguise,
Let kindness hold the hand that might despise.

The serpent sees the path the wolf has trod,
The dove still bears the olive branch to God;
In one pure breast these contraries abide—
The cunning guard, the innocence inside.

Too soft, we fall beneath the predator’s claw;
Too sharp, we wound the souls that God foresaw.
The narrow way demands the double grace:
To know the world, yet meet it face to face

With eyes that read the dark and hearts that shine,
With shrewdness tempered by the will divine.
So walk we thus, till evening’s shadows close,
Wise as the serpent, harmless as the dove’s repose.