Ye clouds of darkness, hosts of night

Ye clouds of darkness, hosts of night. Aurelius Clemens Prudentius (ca. 348-ca. 413), translated by R. Martin Pope (1865-1924). This morning hymn is a translation of Prudentius’ ‘Nox et tenebrae et nubila’*, from his Liber Cathemerinon II. It is taken from R.F. Davis and R. Martin Pope, The Hymns of Prudentius (London: Dent, 1895, Temple Classics 1905). It is found in EH, in SofP, and in SofPE. In Songs of Praise Discussed (1933), p. 22, Percy Dearmer* commented as follows: It may be noticed, in this and other translations, that the apparent terseness of Latin is due to its inflective construction… English translations generally contain epithets and phrases which do not exist in the Latin...