Such is your grace that even the offering of my life is not accepted, and such is your benevolence that you turn it away saying the times are bad.

There is a wonderfully sharp yet gentle irony in this couplet. The beloved politely refuses the ultimate offering—the lover's life—cloaking this rejection in sweet concern by blaming the cruel times. What looks on the surface like protective affection is actually a graceful excuse to keep the lover at a distance.