Nigeria My Jerusalem 

And did God’s lips pronounce a curse

on Nigeria’s errant people?

Did not his blood our bills disburse,

having considered us feeble?

Did his presence elude us all

when terror and death took their toll?

And was hell to befall us all

when thieves and villains took control?

Give us men of Godly repute!

Bring women of chaste and virtue!

Take possession of every brute!

Let your spirit our land imbue!

I will not cease to intercede

nor shall my passion ever wane

till Nigeria ceases to bleed, 

and Christ begins his sovereign reign.

Author’s Biography:

The poem ‘Nigeria my Jerusalem,’ was inspired by William Blake’s ‘Jerusalem’ poem and hymn, which is very widely sung in the church of England, or the Anglican church. From the Nigerian perspective, the poem bemoans the deplorable state of my country, with the hope of a Divine intervention in the foreseeable future.

Jerusalem is one of my favorite hymns as an Anglican adherent and evangelical.

Joseph C. Ogbonna is a widely published poet. Some of his works have been published in Synchronized Chaos online magazine, Spillwords Press, Micromance, North of Oxford, Written Tales magazine, Borderless online journal, Waxpoetry Magazine, Ihram and in over two dozen anthologies and magazines.

He is a graduate of Nigeria’s famous Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. He has four post graduate qualifications from other Nigerian universities. He lives in Enugu, Nigeria.