Faith and Religion

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I think one theme that must be discussed is the theme of faith and/or religion. The poem is a prayer of petition, and it clearly shows the speaker has a deep devotion to God. The poem also shows an understanding of things like Christian Reformed doctrine. The poem ends by saying that the speaker would like to be clothed in these amazing garments to glorify God. That is very reminiscent of question and answer number one from the Westerminster Confession of Faith. The idea of being clothed in an amazing robe of sorts is also quite biblical in that it should remind readers of Joseph's coat of many colors.

Mankind's Intelligence and Ingenuity

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Despite being such a faith-based and God-glorifying poem, I do see a theme that highlights mankind's intelligence and ingenuity. The poem was written before the Industrial Revolution, so readers should not picture the big industrial-sized and mechanized looms that would have covered entire factory floors; however, the poem clearly points out how spinning wheels and looms have made the process of making thread and cloth much quicker. What is great about this poem is how it asks God to use these man-made inventions to create something that will eventually glorify God.

Gender Roles

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A third theme that I think is worth discussing is a theme about gender roles. I do not believe that Taylor was making any kind of political statement about what women's work should be; however, based on the poem's title, I do think it is accurate that Taylor's poem shows readers what work women did consistently do back then. Making cloth and clothes was something that women did. I feel that this poem actually honors that work. Taylor is using work done by a housewife to create something to ultimately honor God. He could have written a poem that focused on men and farming in the same way, but he didn't. The poem does a great job of both honoring God and the work that women do.

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