¶Of the vnspeakeable swéetnesse of God.
O Lorde which art the searcher of the hart, and tryer of the raynes, indue me with y e knowledge of thée: O my comforter, and mirth of my mynde, shewe the lyght of thy countenaunce vpō me, and be mercifull to me: Appeare vnto me O my soueraigne delight, my swéete solace, my Lord God, my lyfe, and the whole glory of my soule. Let me imbrace thée thou heauenly brydegrome: Let me possesse thée O endlesse blisse, let me lodge thée in the bottome of my hart: thou art the blessed lyfe, and the soueraigne swéetenesse of my [Page] soule. Graft in me the true loue of thée, O my God, my helper, the tower of my strength, my castle & deliuerer in all my troubles. Open the entries of myne eares, thou worde which enterest swifter than any two edged sworde, that I may heare thy voyce. Thunder downe from aboue (O Lord) with a lowde and mightie voyce. Let the Sea rore and the fulnesse thereof, let the earth be moued and all that is in it. Lighten myne eye (O incomprehensible light) that I sléepe not in death: flashe out thy lyghteninges, and turne them aside, that they may not looke vaynely. O sauour of lyfe, make my taste sound, that it may sauour, trye, and discerne how great the aboundance [Page] of thy swéetnesse is, which thou hast layd vp for them that put their trust in thée. Geue mée a mynde that may euer thinke vppon thée, a hart that may loue thée, a soule that may honour thée, an vnderstandyng that may féele thée, and a reason that may alwayes sticke fast to thée my soueraigne delight. O lyfe to whom all thinges lyue, O lyfe which art my lyfe, and without whom I am dead. O lyfe wherby I am raysed to lyfe, and without which I am forlorne. O lyfe wh [...]by I reioyce, and wherwithout I am sorrowfull. O lyuely, sweete, and louely life, alwayes worthy to be had in mynde, where art thou I pray thée, where shall I finde [Page] thée, that I may geue ouer in my selfe and stay vppon thée? Be thou neare me in my minde, be neare in my hart, be neare me in my mouth, be neare me in mine eares, be neare me to my helpe: for I pine away for loue of thée, I die for want of thée: As the hart desireth the water brookes, so longeth my soule after the O God. The sent of thée refresheth me, the remembrance of thée healeth me: but yet shall I neuer be suffised, till thy glorye appeare which is the lyfe of my soule. My soule fainteth with longing after thée, and with thinking vppon thée: when shall I come and shew my selfe in thy presence O my ioy. I had rather be a doorekeeper in the house of [Page] my God, then to dwell in the tentes of vngodlynesse? for one day in thy courtes is better then a thousand els where. O Lord hide not away thy face from me, in the néedefull time of trouble, but bow downe thine eare to me and heare me, make hast to deliuer me, make no long tarying O my God. But wherefore hidest thou thy face away? perchaunce thou wilt say, mā cannot sée me, and liue. Behold O Lord, I can finde in my hart to dye, that I may sée thée: let me sée thée, that I may dye here. I desire not to liue, I had leuer dye: I would fayne be let loose, that I might be with Christ: I couet to dye, that I might sée Christ: I refuse to liue heare, so I may liue with [Page] Christ. O Lord Iesus, receiue my spirite. My life, receiue my soule. My ioy draw my hart vnto thée. My swéete foode, let me féede vpon thée. My head, direct thou me. Thou light of myne eyes, inlighten me. My melodie, delight thou me. My swéete sent, refresh thou me. Thou word of God, quickē thou me. My prayse glad thou the soule of thy seruaunt. Thou euerlastyng light, shine thou vpon it, that it may perceiue thée, know thée, and loue thée. For the cause O Lord why it loueth thée not, is for that it knoweth thée not: & the cause why it knoweth thée not, is for that it perceiueth thée not: & the cause why it perceiueth thée not, is for that it comprehendeth not [Page] thy light, for thy light shineth in darknesse, and the darknesse cō prehendeth it not. O light of the minde, O lightsome truth, O true brightnesse, which inlightenest euery mā that commeth into the world: I say, which commeth into the worlde, but not which is in loue with the world: for he that loueth the world & the thinges of the world, the loue of God is not in him. Driue away the darknesse from the vpperside of the déepe of my mynde, that it may sée thée by vnderstandyng, know thée by perceiuyng, & loue thée by knowyng thée. For who soeuer knoweth thée must néedes loue thée. Yea he forgetteth him selfe and loueth thée more then him selfe: he forsaketh him selfe, [Page] and cōmeth to thée, that he may ioy in thée. The cause then wherfore I am not so farre in loue with thée as I ought to be, is by reason that I do not throughly know thée: and bycause I haue but small knowledge of thée, I haue also but small loue to thée: and bycause I beare but small loue to thée, therfore haue I but little ioy in thée. By meanes of outward ioyes I raunge frō thée the true inward ioy, and séeke counterfet comfortes in these outward thinges. And so like a wretch as I am, looke what loue I ought to haue yelded vnto thée alone with my whole hart, that haue I set vpon vanities: & therfore am become vayne by louing vanitie. Hereupon also O Lord [Page] it is come to passe, that I delight not in thée, nor sticke not to thee: for my mynde is busied about outward thinges, thine about inward thinges: my thought is occupied in carnall thinges, thine in spirituall thinges: my talke is intāgled about trāsitorie things, but thou dwellest in euerlastingnesse, & art the euerlastingnesse it selfe, thou in heauen, and I in earth: thou louest high thinges, I low thinges: thou heauenly thinges, I earthly thinges. And how then can these contraries agrée together?
¶Of the wretchednesse and frailtie of man.
WRetch that I am, when shall my crookednesse be [Page] made euen to thy straightnes? Lord, thou louest solitarinesse, and I delight in company: thou stilnesse, and I noyse: thou truth, I leasing: thou louest clennesse, & I filthines. And what more O Lord? Thou art throughly good, and I wholly euill: thou holie, I prophane: thou happie, I miserable: thou righteous, I vniust: thou lightfull, I blind: thou liuing, I dead: thou the salue, I the sore: thou the ioy, I the sorow: thou the souerein truth, I nothing but vanitie, as all men liuing be. Alas therfore my maker, what shall I say? Heare me O my Creator: I am thy Creature, and without thee am already forlorne: I am thy creature, and am alreadie dead: I am thy [Page] workemanship, thy handes O Lord haue made me and fashioned me: Lorde, despise not the worke of thy handes.
I am by nature the child of wrath, a wild oliue trée, a vessell of dishonour, the vessell of Sathan, an enemie to thée O God, a louer of my selfe, a cage of vncleane birdes, all that euer nought is: Lord be mercyfull to my sinnes, for they are many, graft me into y e true oliue, make me a vessell to honor, take from me selfeloue, pride and cōtempt of others, renue a right spirite within me, that I may perfectly loue thée, and worthely magnifie thy holy name for euer and euer.
Behold O Lord, thou hast set me downe vpon thy hands: Lord [Page] God read the writyng, and saue me. I that am the creature, do grone vnto thée that art my creator: O refresh me. Behold, I thy workemanship do cry vnto thée: thou that art my life quickē me. Behold I thy handiworke looke vp to thée: thou that art my maker recomfort me. Spare me O Lord, for my dayes are nothing. What is man, which is but dust and ashes, that he should talke vnto God his maker? Beare with me for my talking to thée. Pardon thy seruaunt for presuming to speake to so great a Lord. Necessitie hath no law. Paine compelleth me to speake, and the grief that I indure inforceth me to cry out. I am sicke, & I call to y e Phisician: I am blind, [Page] and I hye me to y e light: I haue gone astray, and thirst to returne into the way: I am dead, and I labour for life. Thou art y e Phisiciā, thou art the light, the way, and the life. Iesus of Nazareth haue mercy vppon me: O thou sonne of Dauid haue mercy vpō me: O welspring of mercy harken to the diseased which crieth vnto thée. Thou light which passest by, tarie for the blind, reach him thy hand that he may come to thée, and let him sée light in thy light. Thou liuing life, raise vp the dead againe.
What am I that speaketh with thée? woe is me Lord: O Lord spare me. I am but a rotten carcasse, wormes meate, a stinking coffin, and foode for fire. [Page] What am I that talketh with thée? Wo is me Lord: O Lord spare me. I am an vnhappie mā, euen a sory man borne of womā, shortliued, full fraught with many miseries: euen a man that is like vnto vanitie, matched with witlesse beastes, and already become like vnto them.
Againe, what am I? a darke dungeon, wretched earth, a child of wrath, a vessell méete for dishonor, begottē with vnclennesse, liuing in miserie, and dying in distresse. Out vpon me wretch, what am I? Alas what shall become of me? I am a sacke of dūg, a coffin of rottēnesse, full of lothsomnesse and stinch: blind, poore, naked, subiect to exceding many necessities: woting neither when [Page] I came into the world nor when I shall goe out: mortall, and miserable: whose dayes passe away as a shadowe, whose life glaunceth away as a shadow by Moonelight, growing as a floure vpon a trée, and fading out of hād againe, now florishing and by and by withering againe. My life (I say) is a fraile life, a fléeting life, such a life as the more it lengtheneth the shorter it is: the further it goeth, the néerer it draweth vnto death. A deceitfull and shadowish life, full of snares of death. Now I am merie, & anone I am sorie. Now I am lustie, & anone I am weake. Now I am aliue, and by and by I am dead. I séeme happie for a while, & I am alwayes wretched. One [Page] while I laugh, & another while I wéepe. And all thinges are so subiect to vnstablenesse, that nothing continueth at a stay one houres space. Here withall commeth feare, trembling, hunger, thirst, heate, cold, faintnesse, and grief. In the necke of these foloweth importunat death, which snatcheth vp wretched men vnwares a thousand wayes euery day. He killeth one with diseases, and dispatches another with sorrowes. He starueth this man for hunger, and pyneth that man with thirst. He choketh some mē with water, and strangleth other some with a halter. He makes a hand of some men by fire, and deuoureth othersome with y e téeth of wild beastes. He fleas this mā [Page] with the sword, destroyes that man with poyson, and causeth some other man to finish his miserable life with nothyng, but some sodein feare. And yet there is one great miserie aboue all these: namely that whereas nothing is more certeine thē death, yet doth not a man know when he shall dye. Yea euen when he thinkes him selfe to haue best footing, then is he shaken down, & his hope perisheth. For a man knoweth not whē, where or how he shall dye, & yet is he sure that he must néedes dye. Sée Lord how great mans wretchednesse is, wherein I am, & yet mistrust it not: how howge the miserie is which I indure, & yet am not greued, nor make any moue to [Page] thée. Lord I will cry out vnto thée before I passe away, if peraduenture I may abyde in thée, and not passe away. I will tell thée then, I will tell thée my miserie: I will not be ashamed to acknowledge my vylenesse before thée. Helpe me my strength by whom I am vnderpropped, succour me my power by whom I am vpheld, come my light by whom I sée, appeare my glorie through whom I reioyce, shewe thy selfe O life wherein I may liue, O my Lord God.
¶Of Gods Wonderfull light.
O Light which Tobias saw, when with his eyes shet, he taught his sonne the way of [Page] life. O light which Isaac saw inwardly, when his outward eyes were dim, & yet he told his sonne what was to come. O light inuisible, which beholdest all the dū geons of mans hart. O light which Iob saw when he openly foreshewed his sonnes things to come, accordyng as thou haddest taught him inwardly. Behold how darknesse ouerwhelmeth, y e dungeon of my minde: for y u art light. Behold how mistie dimnesse lyeth vpō the waters of my hart, for thou art truth. O word by which all things were made, & without whiche nothing was made. O word which art before all things, & before which was nothing. O word which createst all thinges, & without which all [Page] thinges are nothyng. O worde which rulest all thinges, & without which all things are nought worth. O word which in the begynnyng didst say, let light be made, & light was made: say also vnto me, let light be made, that light may be in déede, and I may sée y e light, & know what soeuer is not light. For without thée I take darknes for light, & light for darknesse: & so without thy light there is no truth. Al is errour, al is vanity, there is no discretiō. Al is cōfusiō, all is ignoraūce, there is no knowledge. All is blindnesse, and there is no sight: all is straying, & there is no way: All is death, and there is no life.
¶Of the mortalitie of mans nature.
[Page]O Lord the word, O God the word whereby all thinges are made & without whom there is not any thing made. Wo is me wretch so often blinded, for that thou art the light and I am without thée. Wo is me wretch so often wounded, for that thou art the salue and I am without thée. Wo is me wretch so often ouerséene, for that thou art the truth & I am without thée. Wo is me wretch so often straying, for that thou art the way & I am without thée. Wo is me wretch so often dead, for that thou art the life and I am without thée. Wo is me wretch so oftē brought to nought, for that thou art the word by which all thinges were made, & I am without thée, with [Page] out whom nothing was made. O Lord the worde, O God the word, who art the light by whō light was made, who art y e way, truth, and life in whom there is no darknesse, ouersight, vanitie, nor death. O light w tout whiche all is but darknes: O truth with out which all is but leasing: O life without whiche all is but death. Lord say the word, that light may be made, so as I may sée the light, & eschew darknesse: sée the way, & eschew straying: sée the truth, and eschew leasing: sée life, and eschew death. Shyne forth O Lord my light, my inlightening, & my welfare, whom I will reuerēce: my Lord whom I will prayse, my God whom I will honor, my father whom I [Page] wil loue, my bridegrome to whō I will kéepe my selfe. Shyne forth O light, shine forth (I say) to this blind soule of mine which sisteth in darknesse & in the shadow of death, and guide my féete into the way of peace, that I may passe thereby into the place of thy wonderfull Tabernacle, euē to the house of God with the voyce of gladnesse and confessiō. For true confession is the way whereby I may enter vnto thée which art the way, whereby I may returne from bywayes, and whereby I come agayne to thée which art the way, for thou art the very way of life.
¶Of the fall of the Soule into sinne.
[Page]AS long as I was without thée, I was as nothyng. And therfore I was blind, deafe, and senselesse. For I did neither discerne the good, nor shunne the euill, nor féele the grief of my woundes, nor sée myne owne darknesse, bycause I was without thée the true light which inlightenest euery man that commeth into this world. Wo is me, they haue wounded me and I was not sorie, they haue haled me and I felt it not. For I was as nothing, bycause I was without life which is the word, wherby all things are made. And therfore O Lord my light, mine enemies haue done what they lifted to me: they haue strikē me, they haue berayed me, they haue marred [Page] me, they haue wounded me, and they haue killed me, bycause I shrunke backe from thee, and am become as a thing of nothing without thée▪ Alas Lord my life which madest me, my light which hast guided me, then defender of my life, haue mercie vppon me. Rayse me vp againe O Lord my God. My hope, my power, my strength, my comfort, haue an eye to mine enemies in the day of my trouble, and rescue me. Let them that hate me flée away from my face, and let me liue in thée by thée. For they haue lyen in wayt for me O Lord and whē they saw me without thée, they despised me. They parted amōg them the garmentes of the vertues wherewith thou haddest apparelled [Page] me. They made their way through me, they trampled me vnder their féete, they defiled thy holy temple with the filth of their sinnes, and they left me desolate & forpyned with sorrowe. I went after them blind, and naked, and shackled with the fetters of sinnes. They dragged me after them roūd about from vyce to vyce, and from myre to myre: and I went without strength before the face of him that pursued me. I was a bondslaue, and yet I loued slauerie: I was blind, & still I longed for blindnesse: I was manacled, & yet I misliked not my manacles: I thought bitter to be swéete & swéete to be bitter. I was a wretch & wist it not. And all this came to passe, bycause [Page] I was without the word, wherby al things are preserued, & without which all thinges are worse then nothing. For like as al things were made by y e word, and nothing was made without it: euen so by it are all thinges preserued and mainteyned what soeuer they be, either in heauen, or in earth, or in the Sea, or in any déepes. One péece should not cleaue to another: in a stone or in any of the thinges that be created, vnlesse they were mainteyned by the worde, whereby all thinges were made. Therfore will I sticke vnto thée O word, that thou mayst preserue me, for assoone as I step aside from thée, I am vndone in my selfe, sauyng that thou which madest me hast [Page] also renued me agayne. For whē I had sinned, thou didst visit me: when I was falue, thou didst lift me vp agayne: when I was ignoraūt, thou didst teach me: and when I could not sée, thou didst inlighten me.
¶ Of Gods manifold benefites.
WRetch that I am, my God, shew me how much I am bound to loue thée. Make it appeare to me how much I ought to prayse thée. Make me to know how much I ought to please thée. Lord thunder thou downe into the inwarde care of my hart. Teach me, and saue me, and I will prayse thée. For thou hast created me when I had no being: [Page] thou hast inlightened me when I was in darknesse: thou hast raysed me whē I was dead: thou hast fed me with thy benefites euen from my youth vp. This vnprofitable worme which stinketh with sinne, thou nourishest with all thy singular good giftes. Open vnto me O thou key of Dauid, which openest and no man shutteth agaynst him to whom thou openest, and shettest and no man openeth vnto him whom thou shettest out. Open me the doore of thy light, that I may enter in, and both know, & acknowledge vnto thée with my whole hart, that thy mercy is great towardes me, & that thou hast deliuered my soule from the bottom of hel. O Lord our God, [Page] how wonderful and prayse worthy is thy name through all the earth. And what is mā that thou art mindfull of him, or the sonne of man that thou visitest him? O Lord whiche art the hope of the Saintes, and the tower of their strength. O God the life of my soule, wherby I liue, and where without I dye. O light of myne eyes, by which I see, and without which I am sightlesse. O ioy of my hart and chearer of my spirites, let me loue thée with all my hart, with all my mind, with all my strength, and with all intiernesse: for thou hast loued me first. And why hast thou done so to me O maker of heauen, and of earth, and of the bottomlesse déepe, who hast no néede of me? [Page] Wherupō commeth it that thou hast loued me? O wisedome which openest the mouth of the dumme, whereby all thynges were made, open my mouth, and giue me the voyce of prayse, that I may tel forth all thy benefites, which thou hast bestowed vppon me from the beginning O Lord. For loe, I am, bycause thou hast created me: and the cause that thou didst create me and account me in the nomber of thy creatures, was thy foreordinaunce frō euerlasting, before thou madest any thing, euen from the begynning, before thou didst spread out the heauens, when as yet there were no déepes, neither hadst thou yet made the earth, nor foū ded the moūtaines, neither were [Page] any waterspringes yet broken out. Before thou madest all these thinges, whiche thou madest by thy word, thou foresawest be the most assured prouidence of thy truth, that I should be thy creature, & also thou willeddest that I should be thy creature. And whence commeth this to me O most gētle Lord, most high God, most mercyfull father, and alwayes most méeke? What had I deserued? what kindnesse had I shewed, that it should like thy royall maiestie to create me? I was not, and thou diddest create me. I was nothing, and of nothing thou madest me somwhat. And what maner of somewhat? not a drop of water, not fire, not a bird or fishe, not a Serpent or [Page] some of the brute beastes, not a stone or a blocke, not of those sort of thinges whiche haue but being onely, or of those thinges that haue but onely being and growing, nor yet of those kynde of things that haue but onely being, growing, and féeling. But aboue all these thinges, it was thy will to haue me both of that sort which haue but being onely: for I am: and of those that haue no more but being and growing: for I am, and grow: and also of those kind of thinges which haue both being, growing, and féeling: for I am, and also do both grow and féele. Yea and thou hast made small oddes betwene me and the aungels. For I haue receaued reason to know thee, at thy hand [Page] as well as they. But I did well to say there was some oddes betwene vs. For they haue the happie knowledge of thée already in possession, and I haue it but by hope. They sée face to face, I sée thée i [...] a riddle through a glasse. They sée thée fully, and I but partly.
¶Of mans dignitie in time to come.
1▪ BVt whē the thing commeth whiche is perfect, then shall the vnperfect be done away, at such time as we shall behold thee vncouered face to face. And what should let vs to be counted litle inferior to aungels, seing that thou O Lorde hast crowned vs with the garland of hope, which [Page] is decked with glorie and honor, and seing thou hast inhonored vs excedingly as thy frendes, or rather as felowes and coequals in all thinges with thine aungels? Verely euen so sayth thy truth, they are equall with the angels, and they be the sonnes of God. And what be they els then the sonnes of God, if they be made felowes with the angels? They shalbe the sonnes of God in very deede: for the sonne of man is become the sonne of God. Truly when I bethinke me of this, I am bold to say, that man is not onely litle inferiour to the aungels, yea or haylefelow with the angels, but also superiour to thē, bycause a man is God, and God is a man, and not an angell. And [Page] in this respect I may say that man is the worthyest creature, bycause the word whiche in the beginning was God with God, the word wherby God sayd: let light be made & light was made, (that is to say, the angelicall nature was made) the word wherby God created all thinges in the beginning, euen the selfe same word became flesh and dwelt among vs, and we haue sene the glorie of it. Lo here the glorie, wherin I glory, whē I glory discretly. Lo here the ioy wherin I ioy, whē I ioy discretly, O Lord my God, the whole life and glorie of my soule. Therfore I acknowledge vnto thée my Lord God, that when thou createdst me indued with reason, thou [Page] didst create me after a sort equall with the aungels. For by thy word I may be perfect to atteine vnto equalitie with the aungels, so as I may haue the adoptiō of thy childrē by thine onely begotten word, O Lord, by thy deare beloued sonne in whom thou art well pleased, by our onely coheyre, which is of the same substaunce & euerlastyngnesse that thou thy selfe art, I euen by Iesus Christ our onely Lord and redemer, our inlightener & comforter, our spokesman with thée and the light of our eyes, who is our life, our sauiour, our onely hope, who hath loued vs more thē him selfe, by whom we haue assured trust layd vp in store, & stedfast faith to theeward, and [Page] entraunce to come vnto thée, bycause he hath giuen them power to become the childrē of God, as many as beleue in his name. I will giue prayse vnto thy name O Lord, who by creating me after thine owne image, hast made me capable of so great glorie, as to become y e sonne of God. This truly can not trées do, this cā not stones do, this (to speake generally) can not any of the thinges do that moue or growe in the ayre, or in the Sea, or on the earth, in asmuch as he hath not giuen them power by thy worde to become the sonnes of God, bycause they haue not reason. For the power whereby we know, consisteth in reason. But he hath giuē this power vnto men, whō [Page] he created reasonable after his owne image and likenesse. Certesse Lord it is by thy grace that I am a man, and by grace I may be thy child, which thing, the other can not be. Whence haue I this O Lord the souerein truth, and true souerein, and the beginning of all creatures? Whence haue I this O Lord, that I may become the child of God, whiche the other thinges can not? Thou art he that indurest for euer, and thou hast made all thinges at once. Thou hast made man and beast, stones and gréene thinges of the earth all at once. For there went no desert of theirs afore, there wēt no good turne of theirs afore. Thou hast created all thinges onely of thine own goodnesse: [Page] no creature had deserued more thē other, for none of them had deserued ought at all. And why thē did thy goodnesse shew it self more in this creature which y u hast made reasonable, then in all other that be without reasō? Why was not I as all they be, or why are not all they as I am, or I alone as they be? What had I merited? What had I deserued, that thou shouldest make me able to become the child of God, and deny the same abilitie to all the rest? God forbid that I should thinke so. It was thy onely grace, it was thy onely goodnesse whiche brought it to passe, that I might be partaker of that sweetnesse. Of that grace therfore whereby thou hast created [Page] me of nothing, I besech thee O Lord to giue me the grace to be thankefull vnto thée.
¶Of Gods almightinesse.
THy almighty hand kéeping alwayes at one stay, created the aungels in heauen & the silie wormes vpon earth, and yet was neither higher in the one, nor lower in the other. For like as none other hand could haue created an aungell, so could none other hād haue created a worme. Like as none other could haue created heauen: so could none other haue created a leaf of a trée. Like as none other could haue made a body: so could none other [Page] make a heare white or blacke, but onely thine almyghty hand, whereunto all thinges are possible alike. For it is not more possible with him to create a worme then an aungell, nor more impossible to spread out the heauē, than a leafe: nor easier to fashion a heare, then to fashion a body: nor vneasier to stablish the earth vpon the water, then the waters vppon the earth: but all that he listed to do, that hath he done. According as he listed he hath made all thinges in heauen, & in earth, and in the Sea, and in all déepe places: & among all other things he hath also made me accordyng as hee listed, could, and knew how to do it. Certesse Lord thy hand could haue made me some [Page] stone, or some bird, or some Serpent, or some beast: and it knew how to haue done it: but it would not bycause of thy goodnes. Why then am not I some stone, some trée, or some beast? Bycause thy goodnesse hath so ordeined it, and that thou shouldest so ordeine it, there were no merites of myne goyng afore.
¶Of the incomprehensible prayse of God.
HOw shall I doe Lorde, whence shal I haue prayse to prayse thée withall? for like as thou madest me without myne aduise, as it liked thy selfe best: so hast thou prayse without me, as it liketh thée. Thou thy selfe [Page] Lord art thine own prayse. Thy workes prayse thée accordyng to thy manisolde greatnesse, thy prayse O Lord is incomprehensible. No hart can comprehend it, no toung can measure it, no eare can receiue it: for these thinges passe awaye, but thy prayse O Lord continueth for euer. Thoughtes haue a begynning, & thoughtes haue an end: voyces make a sound and forthwith passe away: the eare heareth, and the hearing ceaseth: but thy prayse standeth fast for euer. Who is he then that can prayse thée? What man is able to vtter forth thy prayse? Thy prayse is euerlasting, and not transitorie. That man prayseth thée, whiche beleueth thée to be thyne owne [Page] prayse. The man prayseth thée, whiche acknowledgeth him selfe vnable to atteine to thy prayse. O prayse perpetuall whiche neuer fadest: in thée is our prayse, in thée shall my soule be praysed. It is not we that prayse thée: but it is thou thy selfe that doest it, both thy selfe, and in thy selfe: & we also haue prayse in thée. Thē haue we true prayse, when we haue prayse of thée, when light alloweth light, for thou beyng the true prayse yeldest vs true prayse. And looke how often we séeke for prayse at any other badies hand then thine: so often do we forgo thy prayse, bycause the other is shadowish, but thine is euerlasting. If we hunt after the transitorie prayse, we lose the eternall [Page] prayse. O prayse eternal, O my Lord God of whom is all prayse, without whō there is no prayse. I am not able to prayse thée without thée. Let me haue thée, and I will prayse thee. For what am I of my self Lord, that I should prayse thée? I am but dust and ashes, I am but a dead and stinkyng dogge, I am but wormes and rottēnesse I. What am I to praise thée O most mightie Lord God? Howe can the breath of no better then fleshe, prayse thee which dwellest in euerlastingnesse? Can darknesse prayse light, or death, life? Thou art light, I darknesse: thou life, I death. Can lying prayse truth? Thou art truth, and I am a mā no better thē vanitie it self. How [Page] shall I then prayse thée O Lord? Shall my wretchednesse prayse thée? Shall stinch prayse swéete sentes? Shall mans mortalitie which is here to day and gone to morow, prayse thée? Shall man, whiche is but rottennesse, or the sonne of man whiche is but wormes, prayse thée? O Lord, Can hee prayse thée whiche is breed, borne, and brought vp in sinfulnesse? Prayse is not séemely in the mouth of a sinner? O Lord my God, let thine own incomprehēsible power, let thy vnbounded wisedome, let thine vnspeakable goodnesse, let thine ouer passing mercy, let thy superabundant pitie, and let thine euerlasting vertue and Godhead prayse thée. Praysed be thou by [Page] thine owne almightie puissance, and also by thy singular gracious goodnesse and louingnesse, wherby thou hast created vs O Lord God the life of my soule.
¶Of liftyng a mās hope vp vnto God.
ANd I thy creature wil put my trust vnder the shadow of thy winges, and in thy goodnesse where thorough thou hast created me. Helpe thy creature whō thy gracious goodnesse hath created. Let not that perishe through my naughtinesse, which thy goodnesse hath wrought. Let not that perish through my wretchednesse, whiche thy singular mercy hath made. For what auayleth [Page] it me that y u hast created me, if I shall sinke downe into myne owne corruption? O God hast thou made all the sonnes of men in vayne? Thou hast created me O Lorde: rule thou the thing that thou hast created. Despise not the worke of thine own handes O God. Thou hast made me of nought O Lord, & if thou gouerne me not, I shall returne to nought agayne. For lyke as whē I was not, thou madest me of nothing: so if thou gouerne me not, I shal yet againe be brought to nothing in my selfe. Helpe me O Lord my life, least I perish in mine owne naughtynesse. Lord, if thou haddest not created me▪ I should not haue bene at all, but bycause thou hast created me, I [Page] am. Now if thou gouerne me not, I am vndone. For it was not mine owne merites, or mine owne deseruings that made thée to create me, but thine own most gracious goodnesse and mercifulnesse. That louingnesse of thine O Lord my God, whiche made thée to create me, I besech thée let y e same make thée to gouerne me. For what booteth it that thy louingnesse caused thée to create me, if I must perish in mine own wretchednesse, and that thy right hand gouerne me not? O Lord my God, let this mercyfulnesse whiche caused thée to create the thing that was not created, cause thée also to saue that whiche is created. Let y e louingnesse which wonne thée to create, winne thée [Page] also to saue, sith it is no lesse now than it was then: for thou art the very loue it selfe and thou continuest alwayes one. Lorde, thy hand is not shortened y t it should not be able to saue, nor thyne eare deafed that it should not be able to heare: but my sinnes haue put a partition betwene me and thée, betwene the darkenesse and the light, betwene the image of death, and life, betwene vanitie and truth, betwene this wauing life of myne, and that endlesse life of thine.
¶Of the snares of concupiscence.
SVch are the shadowes of the darknesse, wherewith I am [Page] couered in the dungeon of this darke prisō, wherin I lye grouelyng till the day may dawne and the shadowes vanishe, and light appeare in the firmament of thy power. Let y e voyce of y e Lord in his strength, let the voyce of the Lord in his mightfull power, say: let there be light & let darkenesse be chased away, and let the dry ground appeare, and let the earth bring forth gréene herbes & such as beare the séede and good frute of the righteousnesse of thy kingdome. O Lord my father & God, the life wherby all thinges liue, & where without all things are as good as dead, leaue me not in my naughtie thoughtes, and giue me not vp to the loftinesse of myne owne eyes. Take away [Page] my lustes from me, and giue me not ouer to an froward and fātasticall minde, but hold thou my hart to thée that it may alwayes thinke vpō thée. Inlighten myne eyes y t they may looke at thée, & not be lifted vp before thée which art the euerlastyng glorie: but that they may haue a lowly meaning not medlyng with maruels that are aboue them, and which are at thy right hand. Let thyne eyliddes goe before my steppes, for thyne eyliddes peruse the sonnes of men. Asswage my lust with thy swéetnesse whiche thou hast layd vp for them that feare thée, that I may lust after thée with endlesse lōgyng, so as mine inward fast may not be allured and deceiued by vayne things, to [Page] take bitter for swéete, and swéete for bitter: darknesse for light, and light for darknesse: but that I may be deliuered frō the middes of so many trappes as are set by the enemie in the way of mens hauntes, to catch the soules of sinners where the whole world is full: whiche thing the Apostle saw, and passed it not ouer with silence, but sayd: what soeuer is in the world, is either the lust of the flesh, or the lust of the eyes, or the pride of life. Lo my Lord God, the whole world is full of the snares of lust, whiche they haue layd for my féete, and who can escape these snares? Doutlesse euen he from whom thou takest away his loftie lookes, so as the lust of his eyes catch not [Page] hold of him: and from whō thou takest away the lust of the flesh, that the lust of his flesh attache him not: and from whom thou takest away his froward & fantasticall minde, that the pryde of life do not craftely beguile hym. O how happie is he to whom thou doest so, for he shall scape vnpunished. Now my redemer, I beséech thée by thy selfe, helpe me, that I fall not in the sight of mine aduersaries, nor be caught in the snares whiche they haue layd for my féete to bryng my soule to the ground. But plucke me out thou strength of my welfare, least thine enemyes which hate thée may laugh at me. Vp Lord my God my strong champion, breake the aray of myne [Page] enemies, and let them that hate thée flée away before thée. Like as waxe melteth awaye at the heate of the fire, so let the sinners perish at thy presence: but let me be hidden in the couert of thy face, and reioyce with thy children as inioying my fill of all thy benefites. And thou O Lord God the father of the fatherlesse, and thou mother of the motherlesse, heare the shréekyng of thy children, and stretch out thy wynges, that we may flée vnder them from the sight of our enemie. For thou art the tower of Israels strength, which neither sléepest nor slumberest in keping Israell, bycause the enemie that assaulteth Israell doth neither sléepe nor slumber.
¶ Of mans miserie and Gods benefites.
O Light which no other light cā sée: O brightnesse which no other brightnesse beholdeth: O light whiche darkneth all other lightes: O brightnes which blindeth all outward sight. O light of whom cōmeth all light: O sight of whom commeth all sight: O brightnesse in comparison wherof all other brightnesse is but dimnesse, & all other light is but darknesse. O light vnto whom all darknesse is light, and all dimnesse, bright. O souerein light which no blindnesse can ouer shadow, whiche no mist can dim, which no let can forclose, & whiche no shadow can kéepe of. [Page] O light whiche inlightenest all things, whole, together, at once, and euer, swalow me vp into the depth of thy brightnes, y t I may sée thée throughly in thy selfe, & my selfe in thée, & all thinges vnder thée. Forsake me not, least y e shadowes of mine ignoraūce increase, and my misdéedes growe out of nomber. For without thée all thynges are darkenesse vnto me, and all thinges are euill, bycause nothyng is good without thée the true, onely, and souerein goodnesse. This I know, and this I confesse O Lord my God, that wheresoeuer I am without thée, it is ill with me for want of thée, not onely without me, but also within me: for all aboundaunce besides thée my God, is nothyng [Page] els but starke beggerie. But I shall thē haue my fill, when thou appearest in thy glorie. And thou O Lord my blissed life, make me to confesse my wretchednes vnto thée, whiche I am falne into by slippyng from the vnitie of thy goodnesse the souerein and onely good thing: since which tyme, the manifoldnesse of tēporall things hath caried me awaye through my fleshly senses, and scattered me from one into many thinges: by reason whereof plentie is become painfull to me, and pouertie plentifull, while I raughted after this and that, and was satisfied with nothing, bycause that in my selfe I found not thée the vnchaungeable, singular, and vndeuided good: whiche had I once [Page] atteyned, I should no more wāt: which had I once gottē, I should no more be gréeued: which had I once possessed, my whole lōgyng were satisfied. Alas how miserie commeth vpō miserie, when my miserable soule is fled from thée with whom it hath aboūdaunce and ioy: and foloweth the world, with whō it hath euermore scarcitie and sorow. The world calls me to vndo me, thou O Lord callest me to reuiue me, and such is my wicked wretchednesse, that I rather folow hym that vndoeth me, then hym that reuiueth me. This is vtterly mine infirmitie. O Ghostly Phisician, heale it, that I may giue prayse vnto thée the health of my soule, with all my whole hart, for all thy benefites [Page] wherewith thou féedest me from my youth vnto myne olde age, and euen till my last gasp. I beseech thée by thy selfe, forsake me not. Thou madest me when I was not: thou redéemest me when I was forlorne: yea when I was both forlorne & dead, thou camest downe to me, and tookest mortalitie vpō thée. Thou beyng my kyng, camest downe to thy seruaunt: To redéeme thy seruaunt, thou gauest thy selfe: To the intēt that I might liue, thou tookest vpō thée to dye, and ouercamest death: Thou diddest set me vp agayne, by abasing thy selfe low. I was vndone, I was gone away in my sinnes, I was sold to sinne: thē camest thou for me to buy me out agayne, and [Page] thou didst loue me so well, that thou gauest thine own bloud for my raunsome. Lord thou hast loued me more then thy selfe: for thou didst finde in thy hart to dye for me. Vpon this condition hast y u with so deare a price brought me backe from banishment, raū somed me out of bōdage, rescued me from punishment, called me by thyne owne name, and sealed me with thy bloud: that the remembraunce of thée should be euermore with me, and that he should neuer departe from my hart, who for my sake shunned not the crosse. Thou hast anoynted me with the oyle wherewith thou thy selfe wart annoynted, that I might be called a Christiā after thy name Christ. Behold [Page] thou hast registred me vpō thine handes, to the end that the remē braunce of me might be alwayes present with thée: yet notwithstandyng, so as if the remembraunce of thée be alwayes presēt with me. Thus thē haue thy grace & mercy alwayes preuented me. For thou hast oftētymes deliuered me from many & great perils, O my deliuerer. When I went astray, thou broughtest me backe agayne: whē I was ignoraunt, thou taughtest me: whē I sinned thou didst chastise me: when I haue bene in heauinesse, y u hast cheared me: when I haue bene in dispayre, y u hast recōforted me: whē I haue [...]ene falne, y u hast lifted me vp: when I haue stode thou hast vphild me: whē I [Page] haue gone, thou hast guided me: when I haue come, y u hast receiued me: whē I haue slept, y u hast watched me: and when I haue cryed vnto thée, y u hast heard me.
¶ That God doth continually behold and marke mens doynges & intentes.
THese and many other good turnes hast thou done vnto me O Lord my God the lyfe of my soule: and it were a pleasure to me to be alwayes talkyng of them, alwayes thinkyng vppon them, and alwayes giuyng thée thankes for them, so as I might euer prayse thée for all thy good giftes, and loue thée with all my hart, and with all my soule, and with all my minde, and with all [Page] my strēgth, yea and with the very bowelles and intrayles of my hart and of all my sinewes, O Lord my God the blessed swéetenesse of all that delight in thée. But thine eyes haue sene myne imperfection. Thine eyes I say are much clearer then the sunne, vewyng throughly all the wayes of men, and the bottome of the déepe, and in all places alwayes beholdyng both the good and bad. For in asmuch as thou ouerrulest all thynges, fillyng euery thing, and art wholly present at all times & in all places, hauyng regard of all thinges which thou hast created: (for thou hatest not any of the thinges that thou hast made) thou takest such heede to my steppes and my pathes, and [Page] kéepest such watch and ward ouer me day and night, diligently markyng all my walkes lyke a continuall ouerséer: as though thou hadst forgotten heauen and earth & all the creatures in them, and haddest regard of me alone, without caryng for any of the rest. For the vnchaūgeable light of thine eye sight increaseth not to thy selfeward though y u looke but vpon one thing: neither is it diminished though thou looke vppon sundry and innumerable thinges. For like as thou cōsiderest the whole perfectly at once: so thy whole sight beholdeth euery seuerall thynge perfectly at once, and whole together, be they neuer so diuers. Neuerthelesse thou viewest all thinges as one, [Page] and ech one thing as all: thy selfe beyng whole together without diuision, or chaunge, or abatemēt. Thou therfore being whole at all times, beholdest me whole, at once, and alwayes, without tyme, as if thou haddest nothyng els to thinke vppon. Yea and thou standest in such wyse my gard, as if thou haddest forgotten all other thynges, and wouldest taske thy selfe to me alone. For thou euer shewest thy selfe present: thou euer offerest thy selfe ready if thou finde me ready. Whether soeuer I go, y u forsakest me not, except I forsake thée first. Where soeuer I be, thou departest not from me. For thou art euery where, so as whiche way soeuer I go, I [Page] may finde thée by whom I may be, that I perish not without thee, sith I cannot be without thée. I cōfesse in déede, that what soeuer I do, and where soeuer I do it, I do it before thée, & what soeuer I do, thou séest it better then I that do it. For what soeuer I am workyng, thou art euer standyng at myne elbow, a continuall beholder of all my thoughtes, intentes, delightes & doinges. Lord, all my desire is euer before thée, & al my thoughts are before thée. Lord, y u knowest frō whence my spirite commeth, where it resteth, and whether it departeth: for thou art the weyer of all spirites. Thou knowest right well whether the roote that sēdeth forth faire leaues abroad, [Page] be swéete or bitter: yea thou searchest narrowly euē the very pith of the rootes within, as a iudge: and by the discussing light of thy truth thou considerest, numbrest, vewest, and perusest not onely the intent, but also the very innermost pith of y e roote of it, that thou mayst render vnto euery man, not onely accordyng to hys worke or intent, but also euen accordyng to the very inward & hidden pith of the roote of them, out of which the intent of y e worker procéedeth. What soeuer I purpose when I worke, what soeuer I thinke, and wherein soeuer I delight, thou séest it, thyne eares heare it, thyne eyes behold it, and cōsider it, thou markest it, thou takest heede of it, thou notest [Page] it, and thou writest it in thy booke, be it good or euill: that afterward thou mayst render, for the good, reward, & for the euill, punishment, at such tyme as thy bookes shalbe opened, and men shalbe iudged accordyng to the thinges that be written in thy bookes. And peraduenture this is it that thou mentest, when thou saydest vnto vs: I will consider the last of them: & which is ment when it is sayd of thée O Lord: hee considereth the ende of all thinges. For in all thinges that we do, thou vndoutedly regardest more the end of the intent, then the act of the deede. Now when I consider this O Lord my God, which art terrible and mightie, I am abashed with feare of thine [Page] excéeding strength, bycause it stā deth vs greatly on hand to lyue iustly and vprightly, for asmuch as we do all thinges in the presence of the iudge that séeth all thynges.
¶That man can do nothing of him selfe without Gods grace.
MOst puissant and mighty-workyng God, y e creator of the spirites of all flesh, whose eyes are vppon all the wayes of Adams children, from the day of their birth, to the day of their departure, to giue vnto euery of thē accordyng to his workes either good or euil: shew me how I may confesse myne owne pouertie. [Page] For I sayd I was rich and wanted nothyng, and I wist not that I was poore, blind, naked, wretched, and miserable. For I beleued I had bene somewhat, when as I was nothyng. I sayd I will become wise, and I became a foole. I thought my selfe skilfull, but I was deceiued, for now I sée it is thy gift, without whom we can do nothyng, bycause that except thou kéepe the Citie, in vayne doth he watch which kéepeth it. So hast thou taught me to know my selfe, for thou hast forsaken me to trye me: not for thy selfe that y u mightest know me, but for me y t I might know my selfe. For as I sayd Lord, I beleued I should haue bene somwhat of my selfe, I thought I [Page] had bene a man able inough of my selfe, & I perceiued not how thou diddest gouerne me, vntill thou haddest withdrawen thée a while from me: and then by and by I fell to myne owne byas: wherby I saw and knew, how it was thou that haddest ruled me, and that my fallyng was of my selfe, and my rising agayne was of thée. O light, thou hast opened myne eyes, and waked me, and inlightened me. I sée that mans life vpon earth is but a temptation, and that no flesh can glorie before thée, nor any liuing wight be iustified, bycause that if there be any good in them, be it much or litle, it is thy gift, and we haue nothyng of our owne but euill. Whereof then shall any fleshe [Page] make his boast? Of euill? That is no glorie, but miserie. But what? shall he boast of goodnesse? Then shal he boast of that which is none of his own. For goodnesse is thyne O Lord, and thyne is the glorie. For he that séeketh his owne glorie by thy goodes, and séekes not thy glory, he is a théefe and a robber, and he is like the deuill who would haue stolne away thy glory. For he that wilbe praysed for thy gift, & séeketh not to glorifie thée in the same, but to glorifie himselfe: although men prayse him for thy gift, yet doest thou dispraise him, bycause y t by thy gift he hath not sought thy glory, but his owne. As for him that is praysed of men when thou mislikest him, men shal not [Page] defend hym when thou iudgest hym, neither shall they deliuer him when thou cōdemnest him. Wherfore O Lord which didst shape me in my mothers wōbe, suffer me not to fall into that reproch, that it might be cast in my teeth how I would haue stolne away thy glorie. For all glorie be vnto thée, who art the owner of all goodnesse: but shame and miserie be vnto vs, who are owners of all euill, except it please thée to shew mercy. For thou O Lord hast pitie, yea thou hast pitie on all thinges, for thou hatest not any thyng whiche thou hast made, but giuest vs of thy goodes, and inrichest vs beggers with thy singular good giftes O Lord God. Yea thou louest the poore, [Page] and inrichest them with thyne owne riches. Behold now O Lord, we thy childrē and thy litle flocke are poore: opē vs thy gates that the poore may eate and be satisfied, & they that séeke thee shall prayse thée. Also Lord, I know by thy teachyng, and I confesse that none shalbe inriched by thée, but such as féele thē selues poore, and acknowledge their poorenes vnto thée. For they that take thē selues to be rich whereas they be poore, shall finde them selues shet out from thy richesse. I therfore confesse my poorenesse vnto thée my Lord God, and thyne be the whole glorie, bycause the good that hath bene done by me is thyne. Lord, I acknowledge accordyng as thou hast taught me, [Page] that I am nothing els but all together vanitie, a shadow of death a dungeon of darknesse, & a barrein and wast ground, whiche without thy blessing beareth not any thyng, ne yeldeth any frute but confusion, sinne, and death. If euer I haue had any good in me, I haue had it of thée: what soeuer I haue, it is thyne, or I haue it of thée. If euer I haue stode, I stode by thée: but when I haue falne, I haue falne of my selfe: and I should haue lyen in the myre for euer, haddest not thou drawen me out. I had bene euer blind, haddest not thou inlightened me. Whē I was falne I had neuer risen agayn, haddest not thou reached me thy hand. Yea I had continually falne after [Page] thou haddest lifted me vp, haddest not thou hild me vp still: finally I had oftētimes perished, but that thou didst gouerne me. Thus alwayes Lord, thus alwayes haue thy grace and mercy preuented me, deliuering me frō all euils, sauyng me from that was past, lifting me vp frō that was present, and garding me frō that which was to come: and also rippyng a sunder the snares afore me, and takyng away all causes of annoyance. For vnlesse thou haddest done so for me, I should haue committed all the sinnes of the world. Doutlesse Lord, I know there is no sinne which euer any man hath committed, but that an other man may do the same, if he want his [Page] creator by whom he was made man. But looke what I my selfe could not do, that hast thou done. That I forbare it was thy commaundement: & that I beleued thée, it was of thy grace whiche thou didst shed into me. For it was thou Lorde that didst rule me, both to thée and to my selfe: and it was thou that gauest me grace and light, that I should not commit aduoutrie or any other kinde of sinne.
¶Of the deuill and of his manifold temptations.
THere wanted a tempter, & thou wart the cause that he was wantyng: there wanted tyme and place, and thou wart [Page] the cause that they wanted. The tempter was present, and there wanted neither place nor tyme: but thou hildest me backe that I should not consent. The tempter came full of darknesse as he is: & thou diddest harten me that I might despise him. The tempter came armed and strongly: but to y e intent he should not ouercome me, thou didst restreine him, and strengthen me. The tēpter came transformed into an aungell of light: and to the intent he should not deceiue me, thou didst rebuke him: and to the intent I should know him, thou didst inlighten me. For he is that great red dragon, and that old serpent, called the deuill and Sathan, which hath seuen heades and ten [Page] hornes, whō thou hast created to take his pleasure in this howge & broad sea, wherin there créepe liuyng wightes innumerable, & beastes greate and small, that is to say diuers sortes of féendes, whiche practise nothing els day nor night, but to go about séekyng whom they may deuour, except thou rescue him. For it is that old dragon which was bréed in the paradise of pleasure, which draweth downe the third part of the Starres of heauen with his tayle & castes them to the groūd, which with his venim poysoneth the waters of the earth that as many men as drinke of thē may dye, which trampleth vpon gold as if it were myre and is of opinion that Iordan shall runne into [Page] to his mouth, and which is made of such a moold as he feareth no man. And who shal saue vs from his chappes? Who shall plucke vs out of his mouth sauing thou O Lorde, who hast broken the heades of the great dragō? Helpe vs Lord. Spread out thy winges ouer vs O Lord, that we may flée vnder them from the face of this dragon that pursueth vs: & fence thou vs from his hornes, with thy shield. For his continuall indeuour and onely desire is to deuour the soules which thou hast created. And therfore we cry vnto thée my God, deliuer vs frō our dayly aduersarie, who whether we sléepe or wake, whether we eate or drinke, or whether we be doyng of any thyng els, [Page] preaseth vpon vs by all kynde of meanes, assaulting vs day and night with traynes and policies, and shootyng hys venemous arrowes at vs, sometyme openly and sometime priuily, to flea our soules. And yet are we most lewdly ouerséene O Lord, in y t whereas we sée the dragon continually in a readynes to deuour vs with open mouth: we neuerthelesse do sléepe and ryot in our own slothfulnesse, as though we were out of his daunger, who desireth nothyng els but to destroy vs. Our enemy to the intent to kill vs, watcheth continually & neuer sléepeth: and yet will not we wake from sléepe to saue our selues. Behold he hath pitched infinite snares before our féete, [Page] and filled all our wayes with sū dry trappes, to catch our soules. And who can escape them? He hath layd snares for vs in our riches, he hath layd snares in our pouertie, he hath layd snares in our meate, in our drinke, in our pleasures, in our sléepe, and in our wakyng: he hath set snares for vs in our wordes, and in our workes, and in all our lyfe. But Lord, deliuer vs thou from the net of the foulers, and from hard wordes, that we may giue prayse to thée, saying: Blessed bee the Lord, who hath not giuen vs vp to be torne with their téeth, our soule is deliuered as a sparow out of the net of a fouler, the net is broken and we be escaped.
¶That God is the light of the righteous.
ANd thou O Lord my light, inlighten mine eyes that I may sée the light & walke in thy light, and not stumble into hys snares. For who can escape these so many snares, except he may sée them? And who can sée them, except he be inlightened with thy light? For the father of darknesse hath hidden hys snares in hys owne darknesse, to catch all such in them as be in his darknesse, whiche are the children of this darknesse, and sée not thy light, wherin who so walketh, shal not be afrayd. For he that walketh in the day, stumbleth not: but he that walketh in the night, stumbleth: [Page] bycause there is no light in him. Thou art light O Lorde, thou art the light of the children of light, thou art the day whiche hath none euentyde, wherin thy children walke without stumblyng, and where out of who so walketh is in darknesse, bycause he hath not thée the light of the world. Lo, we sée dayly, that the further of that any man wandreth frō thée, so much the more is he wrapped in the darknesse of sinne: and the more he is in darknesse, so much the lesse doth he sée the snares in his way, and therfore so much the lesse knoweth them, by reason wherof he is oftentymes caught and falleth into them, and (which more horrible is) hee knoweth not that he is [Page] falne into them. Now, he that knoweth not his owne fall, careth so much the lesse to ryse agayne, in as much as he wéeneth that he is stil vpon his féete. But thou O Lord my God the light of the mynde inlighten nowe myne eyes, that I may both sée and know, so as I fall not in the sight of myne aduersaries. For our enemy laboreth to roote vs vp, but we besech thée make him to be melted before our face as waxe melteth agaynst the fire. For truly Lorde, he is the first théefe and the last, and he tooke counsell to robbe thée of thy glorie. But when he was puft vp & aduaunced, he did burst a sunder, and fell vppon his face, and thou threwest him down from thy holy [Page] hill, and frō the middest of the firie stones in the middest wherof he walked. And now O Lord God my lyfe, he ceaseth not to pursue thy children: and for hate of thée O mighty king, he couets to destroye this thy creature, which thyne almightie goodnesse hath created after thyne owne image to inherite thy glory which hee hath lost through his owne pride. But beate thou him down O our strength before he deuour vs thy lambes: and inlightē thou vs that we may espye the snares which he hath layd for vs, and escape vnto thée O ioy of Israell. All these things doest thou right well know O Lord, who art acquainted with his stubburnnesse and exceding stiffe necke, neither [Page] say I this to informe thée of it, for thou séest all thinges, & there is not a thought hid frō thée. But I make complaint of myne enemy at the feete of thy maiestie O eternall kyng, to y e end that thou shouldest both damne hym, and also saue vs thy children, whose strēgth thou art. For why Lord, this is a turnecoate and a writhyng enemy, and hardly shall a man finde out the crinkes of hys wayes, or discerne the lookes of his countenaunce, except thou inlighten hym. For he is now here, now there: now a lambe, now a Wolfe: and séemes sometyme darknes & sometyme light, offeryng sundry tēptations vpon euery maner of qualitie, place & tyme, accordyng to the sundry [Page] chaunges of thynges for to deceiue the sad, he makes him selfe sad: and to beguile them that be merie, he him selfe also pretēdeth mirth: to disappoint the spiritual sort, he turneth himselfe into an angell of light: to pull down the strong, he appeareth as a lambe: and to deuour the méeke ones, he sheweth him selfe a Wolfe. And accordyng to the likenesse of hys sundry temptations, he hath all these thinges to worke with all: that is to wit, to scare some with feare of the night, some with the arrow that flyeth by day, some with the pestilence that walketh in the darke, some with breaking in, and other some with the noone spright. And who is of abilitie to know all these thinges? or who [Page] hath discerned his wyles? who shall discouer the shape of hys rayment, or who will take accoūt of the téeth in his head? Behold hee hideth his arrowes in his quiuer, and shrowdeth hys snares vnder the couert of lyght. And this is the harder to espye, if we get not light at thée O Lord our hope, that we may sée all thinges. For he hideth daungerous snares, not onely in the workes of the flesh whiche are easly knowen, nor onely in vices: but also euen in the spirituall exercises: eggyng men to vyce vnder the colour of vertue, and transformyng hym selfe into an aungell of light. These and many other thynges doth the sonne of Beliall, euen Sathā him selfe [Page] practise agaynst vs O Lord our God. He lyeth in wayt to ketch our soules, one while as a Lyon, and an other while as a draggō, openly and priuely, within and without, day and night. But deliuer vs thou O Lord which sauest them that trust in thée: that he may be gréeued at vs, & thou mayst be praysed in vs O Lord our God.
Of Gods benefites.
I The sonne of thy handmayd who haue cōmended my selfe into thy hand by these my poore complaintes, will prayse thée my deliuerer with all my hart, and cal to my minde all the good that thou hast done me frō my youth [Page] vp. For I know that vnthankfulnesse doth greatly displease thée, which is the roote of all spirituall euill, and a wynde that blasteth and burneth vp all good, damming vp the foūtaine of thy godly mercy for euer. Through it, the workes that be dead already, reuiue not: and the workes that be alyue do dye out of hand and recouer not agayne. But I will giue thākes to thée O Lord, least I be vnthankfull to thée my deliuerer for thy deliueryng of me. How often had that dragon swalowed me vp long ago, but that thou O Lord hast plucked me out of his mouth? How often haue I sinned and he stode ready to snatch me vp, but that thou didst defēd me O Lord my God? [Page] When I delt wickedly, & when I brake thy commaundements, he stode wayting to cary me away to hell, but thou withstodest him. I offended thée, and thou didst defēd me. I feared thée not, & yet thou didst kéepe me. I started away frō thée and yelded my selfe to myne enemy, and yet thou didst fray him away that he should not take me. These good turnes hast thou done for me O Lord my God, & I wretch wist it not. For so hast thou oftentymes deliuered me out of the deuils chappes, plucked me out of the Lyons mouth, and many and sundry wayes brought me backe agayne from hell though I wist it not. For I haue gone downe to the very gates of hell: [Page] but thou hast held me frō goyng in. I drew neare to deathes doore, but thou hast not suffered it to take me in. Also thou hast oftentymes preserued me from bodily death, O my Sauiour, when I haue bene attached with sore sicknesses: And when I haue bene in many daungers by Sea, and by land, thou hast alwayes stode by me, deliueryng me from fire and from sword, and from all perill, and mercyfully preseruyng me. Truly Lord thou knowest, that if death had dispatched me at that time, hell had receiued my soule, and I had bene dāned for euer. But thy mercy & thy grace preuented me, rescuyng me from bodily death, and also from the death of my soule O my Lord [Page] God. These and many other good turnes hast thou done for me, & I was blind and wist it not, vntill thou inlightenedst me. Now therfore O light of my soule, my Lord God, my life whereby I liue, the sight of mine eyes wherby I sée, behold thou hast inlightned me, and I perceiue how I liue through thée. And I yeld thée thankes, though litle worth and slender and farre vnder thy benefites, howbeit yet such as my frayltie hath to giue. For thou onely art my God, and my gracious maker, whiche louest our soules and hatest none of the thyngs that thou hast made. Behold I am the chief among the sinners whom thou hast saued, that I may be an example vnto [Page] others of thy most mercyfull louyng kyndnesse. I will acknowledge thy great benefites vnto thée: for thou hast plucked me out of the bottom of hell, once, & twyse, and thrice, and a hundred tymes, & a thousand tymes. Yea I alwayes made towardes hell, and thou didst alwayes bring me backe againe, whē thou mightest iustly haue damned me if thou hadst would. But thou wouldest not O Lord my God, bycause y u louest mens soules, and bearest with mens sinnes, y t they might repent: all thy wayes be full of mercy. Now therfore O Lord my God I sée these thynges and discerne them by thy light, & my hart is astonished at thy great mercy towardes me, in that thou [Page] hast deliuered my soule from the bottome of hell, and brought me backe agayne to lyfe. For I was starke dead, and thou hast made me throughly aliue again. Therfore am I altogether beholden to thee for my life, and whole as I am I yeld my selfe wholly vnto thée. Let my whole spirite, my whole hart, my whole body, and my whole life liue vnto thée my swéete lyfe: for thou hast deliuered me whole, that thou mightest possesse me whole: y u hast made me whole new agayne, that thou mightest haue me whole againe. And therfore let me loue thee O Lord my strength, let me loue thée O my vnspeakable ioy, and let me liue hence forth, not to my selfe, but vnto thée. All my whole [Page] life which was perished in myne owne wretchednesse, is reuiued agayne in thy mercy: for thou art a pitifull and mercyfull God▪ and many are thy compassions toward thousandes, in them that loue thy name. And therfore O Lord my God, thou my sanctifier hast commaūded me in thy law, that I should loue thée with all my hart, with all my might, yea euē frō the bottom of my hart, at all houres & tymes wherin I inioy y e benefites of thy mercy. For I should perish for euer, but that thou rulest me euer. I should euer dye, but y t thou euer quickenest me: yea euery moment thou byndest me vnto thée, in as much as euery momēt thou bestowest thy great benefites vppon me. [Page] Therefore lyke as there is no houre or instāt of time in all my life, that I haue not the vse of thy benefites: so ought there to be no moment wherin I should not haue thée in remembraunce before myne eyes, and loue thée to thée vttermost of my power. But this am I not able to do, except thou make me able, of whō cōmeth euery good gift & euery excellent gift: for y u art the father of light, in whō there is no chaūge nor intercourse of darknes: for to loue thée cōmeth not of our own will, or of our own running, but of thy mercy. Lord it is thy gift, whose all good things are. Thou commaūdest vs to loue thée, giue vs that which thou cōmaundest, & commaunde what thou wilt.
Of the feruentnesse of loue or Charitie.
I Am in loue with thée my God, & I couet to be alwayes in loue with thée more & more. For in déede thou art swéeter thē all honye, more nourishyng then all milke, and brighter then all light. And therfore I set more by thée, then by all the gold, siluer, and precious stones in y e world. For I mislyke all that euer I haue to do within this world: in respect of thy swéetnesse, and in respect of y e beawtie of thy house which I haue loued. O fire which euer burnest & neuer goest out: O loue which euer glowest & neuer coolest, inflame me: I say inflame me wholly that I may be [Page] wholly in loue with thée. For he loueth thee the lesse, which loueth any thyng besides thée, except he loue it for thy sake. Let me loue thée O Lord, bycause thou hast first loued me. Where shall I haue wordes to vtter y e signes of thy singular great loue towardes me, considering thine innumerable benefites wherein thou hast brought me vp from the begynning? namely euē from the benefite of the creation, when at the first beginnyng thou madest me of nothyng after thine owne Image, in honoring and aduauncing me among the creatures whiche thou madest, and innoblyng me with the light of thy countenaunce, whiche thou imprintedst vpon the lampe of my [Page] hart, thereby disseueryng me as well from sensible as from senselesse creatures, and abasing me but litle beneath the aungelles. And yet was all this but a small matter in the sight of thy Godhead. For without ceassing thou hast dayly nourished me with the singular and excéeding great store of thy benefites: and thou hast as it were suckled & strēgthned me thy litle tēder babe with the teates of thy comfort. For to the intent that I should wholly serue thée, thou hast appointed all thy creatures to serue me.
That God hath put all thinges vnder the seruice of man.
[Page]THou hast put all thynges vnder mās féete, to the end that man alone should wholly be subiect vnto thée. And to the end that mā should be wholly thine, thou hast made man Lord of all thy workes. For thou hast created all outward thynges for his body: his body, for his soule: and his soule for thée: that he might serue thée onely, & loue thée onely, possessing thee to his comfort, and all inferiour thynges for his seruauntes. For what soeuer is conteined vnder the cope of heauen, is inferiour vnto mās soule, which was made to inherite the souerein goodnesse aboue, and to become happy by possessyng it. Whereunto if he sticke fast, he shall surmount the néede of all [Page] the inferiour thynges which are chaungeable, and in euerlastyng immortalitie quietly behold the souerein maiestie, wherof he representeth y e image. Thē shall he enioy those excellent good thinges in the Lordes house, in comparison wherof, all the thynges that we sée, are accounted as nothing. Those be the thinges whiche no eye hath sene, nor eare heard, nor hart of man conceiued, whiche God hath prepared for them that loue him. And truly Lord, these thinges wilt thou giue vnto my soule. With these doost thou (which louest mens soules,) dayly glad the harts of thy seruants. But why wonder I at these things my Lord God? Thou inhonorest thine owne image and [Page] thyne owne likenesse wherunto they were created. For to the end our body (though it be yet corruptible & bace) might sée: thou hast giuē vs the light of the skye by the hand of thine vnwéeriable seruauntes the noone, who accordyng to thy commaundement do continuall seruice day and night to thy children. To the intent it might breath, thou hast graunted vs the pure ayre. To the intent it might heare, thou hast giuen vs the diuersitie of soundes. To the end it might smell, thou hast giuen vs the swéetnesse of sentes. To the end it might tast, thou hast giuen vs the qualities of sauours. To the end it might féele, thou hast giuen vs the substaunces of all bodily things. To [Page] helpe him in his necessities, thou hast giuen him bearyng beastes. To refresh him with all, thou hast bestowed vpon him the foules of the ayre, and the fishes of the sea, & the frutes of the earth. For euery sore or disease of hys, thou hast created medicine and salue out of the earth. And for euery seuerall euill, thou hast prepared a seuerall remedy to incounter it, bycause thou art mercyfull and full of compassion, and thou our potter knowest of what metal we be made, and how that all of vs are as clay in thy hand.
That the greatnesse of the heauenly wisedome is coniectured by the consideration of the temporall benefites.
[Page]O Let thy great mercy be opened vnto me: shine vpon me yet more with thy light I beseech thée, that it may be the more opened vnto me. For by these least thyngs, we comprehend thy great thynges: and by these visible thynges, we cōprehend thyne inuisible thynges O holy Lord God, our good maker. For if thou send so great and so innumerable benefites vnto me for this base & corruptible body of myne, from the skye and the ayre, from the land and the Sea, from light and darknesse, from heate and shadow, from dew and rayne, from winde and showres, from foules and fishes, frō beastes and trées, by diuersitie of herbes & thinges that grow vpon the earth, and by [Page] the seruice of all thy creatures seruyng our turnes by course in their seasons, to ease vs of our weerinesse: Howe excellent I pray thée, and how great and innumerable shal these good things be, which thou hast prepared for them that loue thée, in that heauenly realme, where we shall sée thée face to face? If thou do so much for vs in prison, what wilt thou do in thy palace? Great and innumerable are thy workes O Lord thou kyng of heauen. For sith that all these thynges be excéedyng good and pleasant, which thou hast deliuered to good men and bad men together in cōmon: what maner of things shal those be, which y u hast layd vp in store for good men onely? If the giftes [Page] be so sundry and so innumerable, which thou dealest now as well to thy foes as thy frendes: How great and innumerable, how swéete and delightfull shall those be, which thou wilt deale onely to thy frendes? If thou giue so great solace in this time of mournyng: how great ioyes wilt thou giue in the day of weddyng. If our prison conteyne so many delectable thinges: how much more delectable thyngs conteineth our fathers house? O God, no eye without thée hath séene y e thinges that thou hast prepared for them that loue thée. For accordyng to the manifoldnesse of thy mighty workes, so also is the great aboū daunce of thy swéetnesse, whiche thou kéepest in store for thē that [Page] loue thée. For great art thou O Lord my God, yea vnmeasurable art thou, and there is no end of thy greatnesse, nor number of thy wisedome, nor measure of thy mercy: neither is there end, number, or measure of thy bounteousnesse. But lyke as thou thy selfe art greate, so are thy rewardes great. For thou thy selfe art both the price and the reward of all thy lawfull combaters.
That the sweetnesse of God taketh away all the present bitternesse of the world.
LOrd God which art the sanctifier of thy Saintes, these are thy great benefites wherewith thou wilt reléeue the want [Page] of thy hungry children. For thou art the hope of the hopelesse, the comfort of the comfortlesse, and the crown of hope bedecked with glory, whiche is prepared for thē that get the vpper hand. Thou art the euerlastyng suffisance, whiche shalbe giuen to the hungry. Thou art the endlesse solace whiche giuest thy selfe to them onely that despise the solace of this world for thy eternall solace sake. For they that haue their comfort here, are vnworthy of thy comfort. But such as are turmoyled here, are cōforted at thy hand, and such as be partakers of thy sufferaunces, shall also be partakers of thy comfortes. For no man can haue solace in both the worldes, neither can a man [Page] ioy both here and in the world to come: but he must be fayne to for go the one, who soeuer will be owner of the other. When I consider these thynges O Lorde my comforter, my hart refuseth to haue solace in this world, to the intēt it may be thought worthy of thy euerlasting solace. For of good right ought he to forgo thée, who soeuer hath chosen to solace hym selfe in any other thyng more then in thée. And I beséech thée O souerein truth, by thy selfe I beséech thée, suffer me not to solace my selfe in any vayne solace. But I aske of thée, y t all things may be bitter to me, and that thou alone mayst séeme sweete to my soule: for thou art the inestimable swéetnes, wherby [Page] all bitter thynges are made sweete. For thy swéetnesse made euen the stones of the brooke swéete vnto Stephē. Thy swéetnesse made the gréedyron sweete to saint Laurence. By reason of thy swéetnes, the Apostles went away reioysing from the counsell of the Iewes, for that they had bene counted worthy to suffer reproche for thy names sake. Saint Andrew went quietly and ioyfully to the crosse, bycause he hasted to thy swéetnes. This thy swéetnes did so replenish the very chief of thyne Apostles, that to come vnto it, the one chose the galowes of the crosse, and the other was not afrayd to lay down his head to haue it striken of. To buy this withall, Bartlemewe [Page] gaue his owne skinne. Also that he might tast this, Iohn drunke vp a cup of poyson vnfearefully. Assoone as Peter had tasted hereof, by and by forgettyng all inferiour thinges, he cryed out like a drunkenman, saying: Lord, it is good beyng here, let vs make vs thrée tentes here, and let vs dwel here and behold thée still: for we want nothing els. It suffiseth vs to looke vpon thée Lord, I say it suffiseth vs if we may haue our fill of so great swéetnes. For Peter had tasted but one drop of that swéetnes, & yet he lothed all other swéetnesse. What thinkest thou he would haue sayd, if he had tasted the great aboundance of that swéetnesse of thy Godhead, which thou hast layd vp for [Page] them that feare thée? This vnspeakeable swéetnesse, was also tasted by that virgine of whom we read, that she went to prison as ioyfull and triumphyng, as if she had bene bidden to a feast. Hereof also (as I trow) had he tasted whiche sayd: Lord, how great is the aboundance of thy swéetnesse whiche thou hast horded vp for them that feare thée? And so had he which incouraged men, saying: Tast ye and sée ye how that the Lord is swéete. For this is that blessednesse O Lord our God, whiche we looke to receiue of thy gift, for whiche we serue thée in continuall warfare, and for which we be killed vnto thée all the day lōg, that we may liue vnto thée in thy life.
That all our trust, and all the longing of our hart ought to be to Godward.
LOrd which art the wayting of Israell, & the desire where after our hart doth dayly long, make hast and forflow thou not. Vp, hye thée apace, & come, that thou mayst lead vs out of this prison, to giue prayse vnto thy name, and to glory in thy light. Open thine eares to the shréekes and teares of thy fatherlesse children which cry vnto thée, saying: Our father, giue vs this day our dayly bread, that we may walke in the strength thereof day and night, vntill we come to thy holy hill of Oreb. And I silie soule among the litle ones of thy household [Page] O God my father and my strength, when shall I come and stand in thy presence, that as I now do prayse thée for a tyme, so I may from thence forth prayse thée for euer? Happy shall I be, if I be once admitted to the beholdyng of thy brightnesse. Who will do so much for me, as to get me leaue at thy hand to come to this point? I knowe Lorde, I know and cōfesse, that I am vnworthy to enter vnder thy roofe: but yet giue me leaue for thyne owne honours sake, and confoūd not thy seruaunt which trusteth in thée. For who shall enter into thy Sanctuarie to consider thy mightie power, except thou open it vnto him? And who shall open it, if thou shet it? For if thou pull [Page] downe, there is none that can build vp: and if thou shet vp a man, there is none that can let him out. If thou hold the waters at a stay, all shalbe dryed vp: & if thou let them go, they shall ouerturne the earth. If thou bring all thinges which y u hast made, vnto nothyng, who shall gaynesaye thée? But euerlastyng is the goodnes of thy mercy, wherby y u hast made all thyngs that thou liftest. Thou O maker of the world hast created vs, therfore rule vs: thou hast created vs, & therfore despise vs not, for we be thy worke. And truly O Lord our God, we silie wormes and clay, are not able to enter into thine euerlastyngnes, vnlesse thou which hast made all of nothyng, do lead vs in.
That our welfare commeth of God.
ANd I the worke of thy handes protest vnto thée in thy feare, that my trust is not in myne owne bow, nor that myne owne sword shall saue me: but thy right hand, and thyne arme, and the light of thy countenance. Otherwise I should despayre, but that thou which hast created me art my hope, bicause thou forsakest not thē that trust in thée. For y u our Lord God art swéete and long sufferyng, and orderest all things in mercy. If we sinne, we be none of thyne, bycause we be out of thy bookes. But we be all of vs as a leafe, and all men liuyng are but vanitie, and our [Page] life vpon earth is but a blast. Be not angrie with vs if we thy fōdlynges fall, for thou O Lord our God doost know what metall we be made of. O God which art of inestimable power, wilt thou shewe thy force agaynst a leafe that is tossed with the wynde? or wilt thou folow vpō dry stubble? Wilt thou O euerlastyng kyng of Israell, wilt thou condemne a dogge? wilt thou cōdemne a flea? Lord we haue heard of thy mercyfulnesse, how that thou makest not death, nor delightest in the losse of them that dye. For this cause Lord we pray thée suffer not the thing which thou madest not, to haue dominion ouer the creature that thou madest. For if thou be sorie for our damnation, [Page] what letteth thée O Lord which art almighty, that thou shouldest not alwayes reioyce in our saluation? Thou canst saue me if thou list: but I cannot saue my selfe, would I neuer so fayne. Great is y e multitude of my miseries within me. For why? to will, is present with me: but I finde not how to bring to passe. To will the thyng that is good, I am not able, except thou will it: neither cā I do that I would do, except thy power do strengthen me. Agayne, that which I cā do, of tymes I haue no will to do, vnlesse thy will be done in earth as it is in heauen. And though I both wil and can: yet wote I not how to do, vnlesse thy wisedome inlighten me. Yea and although [Page] sometymes I haue knowledge ioyned both with will and with abilitie: yet doth my wisedome passe away imperfect & emptie, vnlesse I be helped by thy true wisedome. All thinges are in thy will, and there is none that can resiste thy will O Lorde of all thinges, which hast the souereintie ouer all flesh, and doost what thou listest in heauen, in earth, in the Sea, and in all déepe places. Therfore let thy wil be done in vs, vpon whē thy name is called, so as this noble handiworke of thine perish not, whiche thou hast created to shine own honor. And what man is he (if he were borne of a womā) that liueth and shall not sée death, or can deliuer his owne soule from the hand of [Page] hell, except thou onely which art the liuely way of all life, wherby all things liue, do rescue him?
¶That mās will is vnable to doe good workes, without the grace of God.
I Haue euen now confessed vnto thée that thou art the stay of my lyfe O Lord my God the strēgth of my welfare. The time hath bene that I haue trusted in myne owne strength, which notwithstandyng was no strength. And so whē I wold haue runne, where I thought my selfe to stād fastest, there did I most fall, and was rather cast behynde then set foreward: and the thyng that I thought to catch, was further and [Page] further of frō me. So tryest thou my strēgth by many like things. Now know I that thou hast inlightened me. For looke what I thought my selfe best able to do, that was I euer least able to do of my selfe. For I sayd, I will do this, and I will go through with that: but whē it came to y e point, I could doe none of them both. When I had a will to doe it, I wanted ablenesse: and when I was able, I wanted will, bycause I trusted to myne own strength. But now I acknowledge vnto thee O Lord my God the father of heauen and earth, that it is not in mans power to strengthē him selfe, least the foolish presumptuousnesse of any flesh should boast it selfe before thée. For man is [Page] not able to be willing to do that he can, nor to can the thyng that he is willing to do, or to know the thing that he both would and could do: but rather thou art he that guidest mens steppes, I say the steppes of them whiche acknowledge thē selues to be guided, not by them selues, but by thée. We beséech thée therfore O Lord by the bowels of thy mercy, that thou wilt saue that which thou hast created, for if thou wilt thou cāst saue vs, and in thy will resteth y e power of our saluation.
¶Of Gods olde benefites.
LOrd remember thyne olde mercyfulnesse, wherby thou [Page] hast preuented vs with thy swéet blessinges euen from the begynning. For before that I y e sonne of thy hādmayd was borne, thou O Lord my hope while I hāged yet vppon my mothers brestes, didst preuent me, making my way for me wherein to walke, that I might come to the glory of thy house. Before thou didst shape me in my mothers wōbe, thou knewest me, and before I was borne thou didst foreordeine of me what soeuer pleased thée. How and what things are written of me in the secret booke of thy Consistorie, truly I know not: and therefore I am sore afrayde. But thou knowest it: for what soeuer I looke for by succession of dayes and tymes a thousand [Page] yeare hence in this mortall world: that is already done in the sight of thy euerlastingnesse, and the thing that is to come is already in doyng. Now then for asmuch as I stand in this night of darknesse, and know not these thinges: feare and trembling are come vpon me, bycause I sée that many daungers preace vpon me on all sides, and many enemyes hunt after me, and I am beset round about with an innumerable multitude of miseries in this life. And if thy helpe were not presēt with me in these so great miseries, I should despaire. But I haue a great hope of thée O most méeke prince my God: and the considering of the multitude of thy compassions chéereth my [Page] hart. The former signes of thy mercy whiche preuented me before I was borne, and haue now specially shyned out vpon me, do assure my hope of the better and perfecter rewardes of thy goodnesse, whiche thou reseruest for thy frendes, that I may reioyse in thée O Lorde my God, with the holy and liuely ioye wherewith thou alwayes chéerest vp my youth.
Of Gods predestination and foreknowledge.
TEache me O bottomlesse déepe, O wisedome the creator, whiche hast counterpeysed the moūtaines & hils by weight, and hāged the masse of the earth [Page] by thrée fingers in the balance: hale vp the lumpe of this grossenesse whiche I beare about me, vnto thée by thy thrée vnsene fingers, that I may sée and know how wonderful thou art ouer all the earth. O most auncient light which shonest before all light in the hill of thy tymelesse eternitie, vnto whom all thinges lay bare and open before they were made. O light whiche hatest all spottinesse, in asmuch as thou art most cleane and spottelesse, what delight canst thou haue in man? What agréemēt is there betwen light and darknesse? For what is there in man, that may delight thée? Where canst thou make thée a méete sanctuarie for thy maiestie, that thou mayst enter [Page] into it, and take thy delight and pleasure in the same? A cleane parlour becommeth thée O clensing vertue, whiche canst not be sene, and much lesse possessed, but of cleane hartes. But where is there in man so cleane a temple, as may receiue thée the ruler of the world? Who can make that cleane, which is conceiued of vncleane séede? Truly none but y u, who onely art cleane. For who cā be made cleane by that which is vncleane? For accordyng to the law which thou gauest to our fathers vpō the mountaine burning with fire, and in the cloud that couered the darksome water, what soeuer an vncleane persō toucheth, becōmeth vncleane. But all of vs are as a defileth [Page] cloth, comming of a corrupt and vncleane masse, and we beare in our foreheades the spottes of our vncleannesse, which we be not able to hide, specially from thée who séest all thinges. Wherfore we cannot be cleane, except thou make vs cleane, who onely art cleane. And of vs sonnes of men thou makest those cleane, whom it pleaseth thée to dwell in, whō by the vnapprochable and secret depth of y e incōprehensible iudgemētes of thy wisedome, alwayes rightful though vnespiable, thou hast (w tout any desert of theirs) predestinated before the world, called out of the world, iustified in the world, and wilt glorifie thē after the world. But thou doest not this vnto all men, wherat all [Page] the wise mē of the earth [...] maruell and are abashed. Yea and euen I O Lord, when I bethinke me of it, am afrayde and amazed at the depth of the riches of thy wisedome and knowledge wherunto I cannot reach, and at the incomprehensible iudgements of thy Iustice, for that of one selfe same péece of clay thou makest some vessels vnto euerlasting honor, and othersome vnto euerlastyng shame. Therfore whō thou hast chosen to thy selfe out of the multitude to be thy holy temple, thē doost thou make cleane, pouryng out cleane water vpon thē: the names and number of whom thou knowest, who onely tellest the nūber of the starres, and callest thē all by their names. Who [Page] also are written in the booke of lyfe, who cannot in any wise perish, and vnto whom all thinges worke to the best, yea euen their sinnes. For when they fall, they be not broosed, bycause thou puttest thy hād vnder them, and kéepest all the bones of them, so as not one of them is broken. But most miserable is y e death of sinners, I meane of those sinners whom thou hast foreknowē vnto eternall death before y u madest heauen and earth accordyng to y e great depth of thy secret (howbeit alwayes rightfull) iudgementes: the number of whose names and of their lewd deseruinges is with thée, which reckenest the nūber of the sand of the Sea, and hast measured the bottom [Page] of the bottomles pit: whom thou hast left vp to their owne vncleanesse and vnto whom all thinges worke to the worst, and euen their prayer is turned into sinne: so y t if they should clymbe vp into the ayre, and aduaunce their head aboue the cloudes, yea and build their nest among the starres of the skye: yet shall they bee destroyed in the ende as a dunghill.
Of such as first are righteous, and afterward become wicked, and contrariwyse.
GReat are these thy iudgementes O Lord God, thou righteous & mighty iudge, which [Page] iudgest vprightly, & doost things y t are déepe & vnsearchable. Which when I consider, all my bones quake: for of all men liuing vpō y e earth, there is none of vs sure to serue thee deuoutly & purely in feare all the dayes of our lyfe, nor to ioy in the w t reuerence, so as our seruice may bee without dread, & our ioy w tout trembling. He y t putteth on armour may not glory as he y t putteth it of: for before thee may no flesh glory, but must quake & tremble at thy presēce. For we haue séene O Lord, & we haue heard of our fathers, (which thing I cānot thinke vpō without great dread, nor speake of without great shudderyng) y t many haue heretofore clymbed after a sort vp to y e skyes, & built [Page] their nest among y e starres, & yet haue afterward falne downe euē into hell, and their soules haue bene forehardened with euilles. We haue sene starres fall from heauen by force of the stroke of y e dragons tayle: and them that lay in the dust of the earth, wonderfully mounted vp at the present helpe of thy hand O Lord. We haue sene the liuyng dye, and the dead rise from death, & them that walked among Gods children in the middes of firie stones, wash away to nothyng like a péece of clay. We haue séene darknesse quēch light, & light procede out of darknesse. For publicanes & harlots go before y e natiue people into the kyngdome of heauen, & the childrē of the kingdome are cast [Page] out into vtter darknes. And why commeth all this to passe, but bycause they be mounted vp into that hill, whereinto the first of their race went vp an Aungell and came downe a deuill? Now thē looke whom thou hast predestinated, them hast thou also called, & sanctified and clensed, that they may bee a méete dwellyng place for thy maiestie, with whō and in whō is thy holy & cleane delight, in whom thou hast pleasure & makest their youth chéerefull, dwelling with them in their remembraunce, so as they be thy holy tēple, which is a great dignitie and commendation of our manhode.
That the faythfull mās soule is Gods sanctuarie.
[Page]THe soule whiche thou hast created, not of thyne owne substaunce but by thy word, nor of the substaunce of any of the foure elementes, but of nothing: which truly is reasonable, vnderstandyng, spirituall, euerlyuing, and euer mouyng: & whiche thou hast sealed, marked with y e light of thy countenaūce, and halowed by the power of thy washyng, is so made capable of thy maiestie, as it may be filled by thée onely and by none other. And when it hath thée, thē hath it the full lust, & there remaineth not any thyng els that it can desire outwardly. But as long as it desireth any thyng outwardly, it is manifest that it hath not thée inwardly: for be thou once had, there is not [Page] any thing more to be wished for. For sith thou art the souereine good, yea and all y e good that may be: there is no more for it to desire, bycause he possesseth thée which art all the good. Now if he desire not the whole good, it resteth that he desireth somewhat which is not the whole good, and therfore also not y e souerein good: & so consequently not God, but rather a creature. But if he long after a creature, he must néedes be euer hungry still, bycause that although he atteine his desire of the creatures, yet it abydeth vnsatisfied still, in asmuch as there is nothyng that cā fill it, but thou vnto whose image it is created. And thou fillest them that desire nothyng but thée, & thou makest [Page] them worthy of thee, holy, blessed, vndefiled, and Gods frendes, who count all thinges as dung, that they may winne thée onely. For this is the blessednes which thou hast bestowed vppon man, this is the honor wherwith thou hast innobled him among all thy creatures and aboue them, that thy name might be wonderfull ouer all the earth. Beholde O most high souereine good, and almighty Lorde my God, I haue foūd the place where thou dwellest, euen in the soule which thou hast created after thyne owne image and likenesse, whiche séeketh and desireth none but thée alone: and not in the soule that séeketh and desireth thée not.
That God cānot be founde neither by the outward senses nor by the inward wittes.
I Haue straied like a lost shepe séekyng thée outward whiche art inward. And I haue taken much paine to séeke thée without me, & thou dwellest within me, at leastwise if I haue a desire to thée. I haue gone about y e lanes and stréetes of the Citie of this world séekyng thée and haue not foūd thée, bycause I did amisse to séeke that thing without, whiche is as within. I sent abroad all myne outward senses as messengers to séeke thée, and I foūd thée not, bycause I sought thee amisse. For I sée O my light, my God [Page] which hast inlightened me I sée, I did amisse to séeke thee by thē, for thou art within me & yet they wist not where thou camest in. For myne eyes say, if he haue not some colour, he came not in by vs. Mine eares say, if he made no noyse, he came not in by vs. My nose sayth, if he had no sent, he came not in by me. My tast sayth, if he had no sauour, he came not in by me. And my feelyng sayth, if he be not bodily, aske not me of any such matter. But none of these thinges are in thée my God. For it is neither shape of body, nor tēporall beawtie, nor shéernesse of light, nor colour, nor the melodie of sweete songes and pleasaunt soundyng tunes, nor the sentes of floures, [Page] perfumes, oyntmētes, or spyces, nor honny or manna delightfull to the tast, nor any of the thinges that men loue to touch and imbrace, nor any maner of thyng subiect [...] [...] senses, whiche I séeke when I séeke my God. Fye of it, that I should take for my God any of these thynges whiche are comprehended euen of the senses of brute beastes. Truly when I séeke my God, I séeke a certeine light aboue all lightes, whiche no eye can comprehend: a certeine voyce aboue all voyces, which no eare cā conceiue: a certeine sent aboue all sentes, which no nose can atteine to: a certeine swéetnesse aboue all swéetnesse, whiche no mouth can tast of: and a certein imbracing [Page] aboue all imbracing, which no bodily féelyng cā take hold of. This lyght shyneth where no place is to hold it: this voyce soū deth where no ayre is to carie it: this sent yeldeth [...] where no blast is to shed it: this sauour yeldeth sauourines where as is no féedyng: & this imbracing is felt where no armes are pluckt a sū der. It is euē my God, and there shall none other be made account of in comparison of him. This is it that I séeke, when I séeke my God. This is it that I loue whē I loue my God. To late haue I loued thée O beawtie so old and so fresh, to late haue I loued thée. Thou wart within and I without, and there I sought thée, & I ilfauoredly rushed agaynst these [Page] goodly thinges whiche thou hast made. Thou wart with me, and yet I was not with thee. These thynges held me farre from thée, which could not be without thee. For I went all aboutes séekyng thee, and forsakyng my selfe for all thinges. I asked the earth if it were my God, and it told me, no: and all thinges in it did verifie the same. I asked the Sea and the great deepes and all the créepyng thinges in them: and they aunswered, we be not thy God, séeke him aboue vs. I asked the wyndie aire, and the whole ayre with all the dwellers therin sayd vnto me, Anaximenes is deceiued, for I am not thy God. I asked the skye, the Sunne, the Moone, and the Starres, neither [Page] are we thy God, sayd they. Then sayd I to all the thinges that stād about me at y e doores of my flesh, Tell me what you knowe of my God, tell me somewhat of him: and they cryed all with a loude voyce, it is he that hath made vs. Agayne I spake to the masse of the whole world, saying: Tell me if thou bee my God or no? And it aunswered with a mightie voyce, I am not he, but I am by him: he whom thou séekest in me, euen he made me: aboue me must thou séeke for him y t made me and ruleth me. The askyng of the creatures is the déepe consideryng of them, and their aunsweryng is theyr auouchement concerning God: for all thynges cry out, it is God that hath made [Page] vs. And (as the Apostle sayd) Gods inuisible things are vnderstode by his visible thinges which are beheld from the creatiō of the world. Then came I agayne to my selfe, & entered into my selfe, and sayd to my selfe. What art thou? and I aunswered, a man reasonable & mortall. And I begā to boult out what that should be, and I sayd: from whence is this maner of wight O Lord my God? from whence is it, but of thée? Thou madest me, and not I my selfe. Who art thou? Thou art he by whom I liue, thou art he by whō all thinges liue. Who art thou? Thou art the Lord my true and onely God, almightie, euerlasting, incomprehensible, & infinite, who liuest euermore & [Page] nothyng dyeth in thée. For thou art immortall, dwelling in euer lastingnesse, wonderfull to the eyes of the aungels, vnutterable, vnsearchable, and vnable to be named. The liuyng & true God, terrible, strong, beginnynglesse and endlesse, the beginnyng and end of all thinges, which art before the foūdations of the world, and before the originals of all ages. Thou art my God and the Lord of all thy creatures with thée stand the causes of all stable thinges, with thée do the originals of all chaungeable thynges abyde vnchaungeable, and with thée do the groundes of all reasonable, vnreasonable and temporall things continue euerlastingly. My God, tell me thy humble [Page] seruaunt, mercifull Lord tell me wretch, tell me for thy mercyes sake I beseech thée, from whence is this maner of wight but from thée? Is any man such a workemaister as to make him selfe? Is beyng and life fetched from any where els then from thée? Art not thou the souerein beyng, from whence commeth all being? for what soeuer is, it is of thee, and without thée is nothyng. Art not thou the fountaine of lyfe from whence all life floweth? for what soeuer liueth, it liueth by thee, & without thée doth nothyng lyue. Then is it thou O Lord whiche hast made all thinges. Shall I demaunde who hath made me? Thou Lorde hast made me, for without thee is nothyng made. [Page] Thou art my maker, and I thy worke. I thanke thee my Lord God by whom I liue & by whom all thynges lyue, for thou hast made me. I thanke thée my creator, for thy hādes haue made me and fashioned me. I thanke thée my light, bycause thou hast inlightened me and I haue found both thée and my selfe. Assoone as I found my selfe, straightwayes I knewe my selfe: Assoone as I foūd thée, straightwayes I knew thée: and assoone as I knew thée, forthwith thou didst inlightē me. I thanke thée my light, for that thou hast inlightened me. What sayd I? that I knewe thée? Art not thou God incomprehensible and infinite, the kyng of kynges and Lord of Lordes, who onely [Page] hast immortalitie, and dwellest in vnapprochable light, whiche neuer man saw, no nor can sée? Art not thou the hidden God, of vnsearchable maiestie, the alonly peruser and wonderful vewer of thy selfe? Who then can know that whiche he neuer saw? For thou hast sayd in thy truth, man shall not sée me & liue. Thy prophet also hath sayd by thy truth, neuer any man saw God. Who then hath knowen that which he neuer saw? Also thy truth hath sayd, no mā knoweth the sonne, but the father, neither knoweth any mā the father but the sonne. Thyne onely Trinitie, whiche surmounteth all knowledge, is knowen fully to none but to thy selfe alone. What is it then that [Page] I vayne man haue sayd, that I know thée? for who knowes thée els sauyng thy selfe? For thou onely O God, in thy most holy and heauenly worde art termed almightie, passing prayse worthy, passing glorious, passing exalted, passing high, and passing substantiall, bycause thou art discerned to be aboue all thynges that can be imagined to be, whether they be to be conceiued in vnderstandyng or to be perceiued by the senses: & aboue all names that are named, not onely in this world, but also in the world to come, beyond all that is, or can be deuised to be. For truly, aboue the reach of all reason, vnderstā dyng and being, doost thou by thy substantiall and secret Godhead [Page] dwel vnapprochably and vnsearchably in thy selfe, whereas is light vnapprochable, & brightnes vnsearchable, incomprehēsible, & vnspeakable, wherūto no brightnesse may come neare, bycause it is certeinly vnable to be beheld, vnable to be seene, aboue reason, aboue vnderstandyng, aboue acces, aboue all chaūge, & aboue all partnershyp, whiche neuer any wight neither man nor aungell hath throughly sene, nor can sée. This is thy heauen O Lord, this is thy heauen so faire ingrauen, the light so passing priuie, so passing vnderstāding, so passing reason, & so passing all that is: wherof it is sayd, the heauen of heauens is the Lordes. The heauen of heauens, in comparison wherof [Page] all other heauēs are but earth, bycause it is passing wonderfully heaued vp aboue all heauens. In comparison wherof euen the very firie heauen it selfe is but earth: for this is the heauen of heauens that is reserued to the Lorde, bycause it is knowen to none but to the Lord. Vnto this heauen came neuer none but he that came downe from heauen: for no mā knowes the father sauing the sonne, and the spirite of them both. Neither doth any mā know the sonne, sauyng the father & the spirite that procéedeth from them both. The Trinitie is fully knowē to none, but onely to thy selfe O holy Trinitie, O passyng wonderfull Trinitie, surmountyng all vtterance, beyond [Page] all searchyng, aboue all approchyng, ouer incōprehensible, ouer vnconceiuable, farre aboue all thinges that be, far passing all vnderstāding, all reasō, all reach and all beyng of the mindes that are aboue heauen: which it is not possible either to vtter, or to conceiue, or to vnderstand or to discerne, no not euen to the aungels that behold it. How then come I by the knowledge of thee which art highest aboue all the earth & aboue all heauens? whō neither the Cherubins nor y e Seraphins do know perfectly, but are fayne to shadow their faces with their wynges, when they looke vppon him that sittes vpon the high and stately throne, crying & saying. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of [Page] hostes, the whole earth is full of thy glorie. The prophet was abashed & sayd: Alas I am toungtyde, for I am a man of vncleane lippes. My hart was afrayd and sayd, wo is me that I held not my toung, bycause I am a man of vncleane lippes. But I sayd I knew thée. Neuerthelesse Lord, wo be to them that are toūgtyde when they should speake of thée, for there be many that be to full of toung without thée. And therfore O Lord my God I will not hold my peace, for y u hast made me, and inlightened me, wherby I haue found my selfe & knowen thée, bycause thou shynest vppon me. But in what wise haue I knowen thée? I knew thée in thy selfe. I haue knowen thée, not as [Page] thou art to thy selfe ward, but as thou art to me ward: and yet not without thy selfe, but in thy self: for thou art the light that hath inlightened me. For no man knowes thee as thou art in thy selfe: but as thou art to me ward by thy grace, thou art knowen euē vnto me. But what art thou to me ward? mercyfull Lord, tell me thy silie seruaunt, for thy mercyes sake tell me what thou art to me warde? Say vnto my soule, I am thy welfare: hyde not thy face from me, least I dye. Giue me leaue to speake before thy mercy, suffer me that am but earth and dust, to speake before thy mercy, for great is thy mercy towardes me. For I that am but dust and ashes will speake to my [Page] God. Tell me thy sillie seruaūt, tell me thy rufull creature, tell me for thy mercyes sake what y u art to me ward. Thou hast thundered from aboue with a great noyse into the inward eare of my hart, and hast broken my deafnes, and I haue heard thy voyce, and thou hast inlightened my blindnesse, and I haue sene thy light, and haue knowē that thou art my God. And therfore haue I sayd, I knew thée, bycause I knew that y u art my God. Yea I know thée to be the onely true God, and thy sonne Iesus Christ whom thou hast sent. The tyme hath bene that I haue not knowē thée. Wo worth that tyme that I knew thée not: wo worth that blindnesse when I saw thée not: [Page] wo worth that deafnesse when I heard thée not. Blind & deafe as I was, I rā ilfauoredly through the goodly thinges that y u madest. And thou wart with me: and yet was not I with thée. For the thinges held me farre from thée, whiche should not haue bene at all if they were not in thée. Thou hast inlightened me O light of y e world, and I haue sene thée and loued thée. For no man knoweth thée but he that sées thée: and no man sées thée but he y t loues thée. It was late ere I loued thée thou beawtie so old & so fresh, it was late ere I loued thée: wo worth the tyme that I loued thée not.
Of the acknowledging of a mās owne vylenes.
[Page]LOrd who is like vnto thée, yea euen among the Gods? who is like vnto thée, which art of excéeding great holines, dreadfull, prayse worthy, and a worker of wonders? Long it was ere I knew thée the true light, long it was ere I knew thée. There was a great darke cloud before my fond eyes, so as I could not sée the sonne of righteousnesse, & the light of truth. I like a child of darknesse was wrapped in darknesse: and bycause I knew not y e light, I was in loue with myne owne darknesse. For asmuch as I was blind, I was in loue with my blindnesse, and by darknesse walked into further darknesse still. But who brought me out of it, when I like a blind wretch [Page] sate in darknesse and the shadow of death? who tooke me by y e hand to leade me out of it? Who is he y t inlightened me? For I sought not him, but he sought me: I called not him, but he called me. And who is he? It is euen thou my Lord God, mercyfull, and pitifull, the father of compassion and God of all cōfort. It is euen thou my holy Lord God, whom I acknowledge with my whole hart, yeldyng thankes vnto thy name. I sought not thée, and yet thou soughtest me. I called not vpon thée, & yet thou calledst me. Yea thou hast called me by thine own name: with a loude voyce hast thou thundred down from aboue into the innermore eare of my hart, saying: Let there be light: [Page] and there was light, so as y e great cloud went away, and the darke mist that couered mine eyes melted away, and I saw thy light & knew thy voyce, and said. Truth Lord, y u art my Lord God that brought me out of darknesse and out of the shadow of death, & called me into thy wonderful light, and so now I sée, I thanke thée myne inlightener. Then turned I backe and looked vpō the darknesse wherin I had bene, and the déepe gulfe wherin I had lyen, & I trembled and was afrayde and sayd: wo, wo worth the darknesse that I had lien in. Wo wo worth the blindnesse that letted me to sée the light of heauen. Wo wo worth my former ignoraunce, which letted me to know thée O [Page] Lorde. I thanke thée myne inlightener and deliuerer, for that thou hast inlightened me and I haue knowen thée. It was late ere I knew thée O aūciēt truth: it was late ere I knew thée O euerlastyng truth. Thou wart in light & I in darknesse, & therfore I knew thee not. For I could not be inlightened w tout thée, neither is there any light without thée.
¶A consideryng of Gods maiestie.
O Holiest of all holyes, O God of inestimable maiestie, O God of Gods and Lord of Lordes, wonderous, vnspeakable, vnconceiuable, whō the aungels in heauen are adrad of, whō [Page] all the dominations and thrones do worship, at the sight of whom all powers do tremble, of whose mightinesse and wisedome there is no comprehending, which hast founded the world vpō nothyng, and shet vp the sea in the ayre as in a bottle, O most almightie, most holy, most strong, O God of the breath of all flesh, at whose presence the heauen and earth shrinke away, at whose becke all the elementes submit them selues. Let all creatures worshyp and glorifie thée. And I the sonne of thy handmayd do bow downe the necke of my hart by faith vnder the féete of thy maiestie, yeldyng thée thankes for that thou hast of thy mercy vouchsaued to inlighten me. O true light, O [Page] holy light, O pleasaunt light, O excéedyng commendable light, O wonderfull light which inlightenest all men that come into this world yea and euen the eyes of the aungels. Beholde, I sée, I thanke thée for it. Behold, I sée the light of heauē, the lightsome beames of thy coūtenaūce shyne down vpō the eyes of my minde, and cheere vp my bones. O that thy light were perfected in me. Augment if I beséech thée O author of light. I beséech thee augment that whiche shyneth into me. Let it be inlarged I beseech thee, let it be inlarged by thée. What is this that I féele? What fire is it that warmeth my hart? What light is it that spreaddeth his beames into my hart? O fire [Page] which euermore burnest and neuer art quenched, kindle me. O light whiche euermore shynest & neuer art dimmed inlighten me. O would to God I were set on fire by thée. O holy fire, how swéetly thou burnest, how secretly thou shynest, how amiably thou warmest. Wo be to them y t burne not through thee, wo be to thē y t are not inlightened by thée. O soothfast light which inlightenest the whole world, and whose brightnes filleth y e whole world. Wo be to the blynd eyes that see not thee, the sunne that inlighteneth heauen and earth. Wo be to the dazelyng eyes that cannot away with the sight of thee. Wo be to them that turne not away their eyes from looking vpon vanitie. [Page] For the eyes that are accustomed to darknesse, are not able to abyde the beames of the souerein truth: neither can they that dwell in darknesse skill how to make account of the light. They see nothyng but darknesse, they loue nothyng but darknesse, they like of nothyng but darknes, and bycause they plod on from darknesse to darknesse, they wote not where they fall. Wretched are they that forgoe they wote not what, & more wretched certesse are they that know what they forgo, so as they fall with open eyes & go downe alyue into hell. O most blessed light which canst not be sene but of exceeding well cleared eyes. Blessed are y e cleane in hart, for they shall see God. O [Page] clensing power clense thou me & heale myne eyesight, that I may beholde thee with sounde eyes, whom none but sound eyes may behold. O vnapprochable brightnesse, take away the scales of my forgrowen dimsightednesse, with the beames of thy inlightenyng, that I may looke vpon thee without dazeling, and see thee the better by thy brightnesse. I thanke thée my light. Lo I sée. Lord I beseech thée let myne eyesight be inlarged by thee. Shore open myne eyes that I may consider the wonderfull misteries of thy law who art wonderfull among thy saintes. I thanke thee O my light. For loe I sée, howbeit but through a glasse & as in a riddle. But when shall I sée thee face to [Page] face? When shall the day of ioy and mirth come, that I may enter into the place of thy wonderfull Tabernacle, euen the house of God, there to behold hym that sees me, face to face, that I may haue my longing to the full.
¶ Of the longyng and thirsting of the soule after God.
LIke as the Hert longeth for the sprynges of waters: so longeth my hart for thée O God. My soule thirsteth after thée O God whiche art the liuyng welspryng, when shall I come and prease into thy presence? O foū taine of life, O veyne of liuely waters, when shall I come out [Page] of this desert, waylesse, and waterlesse land, vnto the waters of thy sweetnes? that I may sée thy power and thy glory and staūche my thirst with the waters of thy mercy? O Lord the fountaine of life, I am a thirst, satisfie me. I thirst Lord, I thirst after thée the liuyng God, O whē shall I come Lorde and shew my selfe before thy face? Thinke ye that I shall sée that day, I say y t day of mirth and gladnesse, that day which the Lord hath made for vs to be merie and ioyfull therein? O excellēt and faire day, which knowest none euentyde, nor hast any Sunne goyng downe, wherin I shall heare the voyce of prayse, wherin I shall heare the voyce of gladnes & thankesgiuyng, wherin [Page] I shall heare it sayd vnto me, Enter thou into endlesse ioy in y e house of y e Lord thy God, where be thinges great, vnsearchable, & wōderfull, that cānot be nōbered. Enter thou into ioy voyde of heauines, which conteineth endlesse mirth: whereas shalbe all goodnes & no euil: whereas shalbe all that thou wouldest, & nothyng y t thou wouldest not. There shalbe y e liuely life, y e sweete life, thee amiable life, & the life that would do a mā good to be alwayes thinking of it. There shalbe none enemy to assault: There shall not be rest at some tymes & vnrest at other tymes: but there shalbe souerein rest, assured safety, vnimpeached quietnes, quiet mirth, ioyfull happinesse, happy euerlastingnes, [Page] euerlasting blessednes, and blessed Trinitie, and vnitie of Trinitie and Godhead of vnitie, and blessed beholding of the same Godhead, which is the ioy of thy Lord God. O ioy ouer ioyful, O ioy surmoūting all ioyes, without whiche there is no ioy, when shall I enter into thée, that I may sée my God whiche dwelleth in thée? I shal go thether and behold this great sight. What is it that holdes me backe? Wo is me that my soiornyng is prolonged. Wo is me, how long shall it be sayd vnto me, wayt and wayt agayne. And now, to what purpose is my wayting? My Lord God, do we not wayt for the Sauiour our Lord Iesus Christ, to repaire our base bodies vnto the [Page] likenes of his glorious body. We wayt for the Lord whē he should come from the bridhouse to fetch vs into his wedding. Come Lord and tary not. Come Lord Iesus Christ, come visite vs in peace. Come leade vs prisoners out of prison, that we may reioyse before thée with a perfect hart. Come our Sauiour. Come thou that art longed for of all natiōs, shew thy countenaunce vnto vs and we shalbe safe. Come my light and my redéemer: take my soule out of prison, that it may giue prayse vnto thy holy name. How long shall I be tossed in the waues of my mortalitie, crying vnto thee Lord, and thou hearest me not? Lord heare me how I cry vnto thée out of this howge [Page] sea, and bring me to the hauen of endlesse blesse. Happy are they O God which are conueyed out of this Sea, and haue obteined to arriue at thée the safest harborough of all hauons. O happie are they in déede, whiche are escaped already from sea to shore, from banishmēt home into their owne countrey, and from prison into a palace, enioying their wished rest. Blessed are they that already haue gayned y e garlād of endlesse glory which they sought for here by many tribulations, and ioy in happy mirth for euer: O blessed are they in déede, O trebble and foure tymes blessed are they, whiche being already quite rid of all miseries, haue obteined to come to the kingdome [Page] of beawtifulnesse, and are assured of their vnapparable glorie. O euerlastyng kyngdome, O kingdome of all worldes, wherin is the light that neuer faileth, and the peace of God which passeth all vnderstanding: wherein the soules of holy folke doe rest, where euerlastyng ioye is vpon their heades, where they obteine mirth and gladnesse, and from whence all sorrow and sighing is fled. O Lorde how glorious a kingdome is it, wherein all holy folkes reigne with thée, clothed with light as with a garmēt, hauing crownes of precious stones vpon their heades. O kingdome of euerlasting blisfulnesse, where thou O Lorde the hope of the Saintes and the garland of their [Page] glory art séene of thē face to face, gladding them on all sides with thy peace, whiche passeth all vnderstanding. There is ioy endlesse, mirth sorrowlesse, health grieflesse, way without labour, light without darknes, life without death, all good without any euill: where youth neuer waxeth old, where life neuer weareth out, where beawtie neuer decayeth, where loue neuer cooleth, where health neuer appayreth, where mirth neuer abateth, where is neuer felt any payne, where is neuer heard any groning, where is neuer séene any sadnes, where ioy is euer, where is no euill to be feared bycause y e souerein goodnesse is had there in possession, which is to behold alwayes [Page] the face of the Lord God of hostes. Happie therefore are those that already haue escaped the shypwracke of this present life, & obteined the grace to come to so great ioyes. We are yet still in the waues of the Sea, longing for thée the hauen of our Sea. O countrey of ours, O quyet countrey, we ken thée a farre of, we hayle thée from this Sea, we sigh vnto thée out of this vale of miserie, and labour with teares if we may by any meanes atteine vnto thee O Christ God of God, the hope of mankind, our refuge and strength, whose brightnesse inlighteneth our eyes a farre of, as the beames of the Sea starre doth in the mistie darknes of the stormie sea, to guide vs vnto thée [Page] our hauen. Lord, gouerne our shyp with thy right hand by the helme of thy crosse, that we perishe not in the waues, that the tempest of the water drowne vs not, and that the déepe swalow vs not vp: but with the hooke of thy crosse plucke vs backe out of this vast Sea, vnto thée our onely cōfort, whom we sée wayting for vs a farre of as the morning starre and as the day sunne of rightuousnesse, in maner with wéeping eyes vpon the shore of the heauenly countrey. Behold we whom thou hast raunsomed do cry vnto thee: yea euen we as yet thy banished mē whom thou hast redemed with thy precious bloud do cry vnto thée. Here vs O God our sauiour, y e hope of all [Page] the endes of the earth & of all thē that be in the sea a far of. We be cōuersant in a troublesome Sea, & thou standing vpon y e shore lookest at our perils: saue vs for thy names sake. Lord graūt vs so to kéepe our course betwene Scilla & Charibdis, and to hold so with thée, that we may escape y e daunger of both, & come safe to land without lesse of ship or fraught.
Of the glorie of the heauenly countrey.
THerefore when we shalbe come vnto thée y e foūtaine of wisedome, vnto thée the vnfaylable light, vnto thée the vnappallable brightnes, so as we shal behold thée, not any more in a riddle or through a glasse, but face to face: Then shall we haue our fill [Page] of all good things. For there shalbe nothing without vs to be desired but onely y u O Lord the souerein goodnes, who shalt be the reward of the blessed, & the crowne of their glorie, & euerlasting ioy vpō their heades, quietyng them both inwardly & outwardly with thy peace which passeth al vnderstāding. There we shall see thee, loue thée, & prayse thee. By thy light we shall sée thy brightnesse, for in thée is y e welspring of life, & thy brightnes shall giue vs light. And what maner of light? A light vnmeasurable, a light bodilesse, a light vncorruptible, a light incō prehensible, a light vnfaylable, a light vnquenchable, a soothfast light, a diuine light, whiche inlightneth the eyes of the aūgels, [Page] which cheareth vp the youth of y e saints, which is y e light of lightes & welspring of life, which is euē y u O Lord my God. For y u art the light in whose light we shall sée light, y t is to wit thy selfe, in thy selfe in y e brightnes of thine own coūtenaūce, whē we shall sée thée face to face. And what is it els to see thée face to face, thē (as the Apostle sayth) to know thée as I am knowē, to know thy truth & thy glory? And to know thy face, is to know y e power of y e father, the wisedome of y e sonne, y e mercifulnes of y e holy ghost, & the one vndeuidable being of y e thrée persons in one souereine Godhead. For y e beholding of the face of the liuing God is the souerein good, y e ioy of y e aūgels, & of all holy mē, [Page] the reward of endlesse life, y e glory of all soules, the euerlastyng gladnes, y e crown of honor, y e obteinemēt of happines, y e wealthfull rest, the beawtiful peace, the inward & outward ioyfulnesse, & the paradise of God. Here is the heauēly Ierusalē, the happy life, the fulnesse of blessednes, the ioy of euerlastingnesse, & the peace of God which passeth all vnderstā dyng. This is the ful blessednes, & the whole glorification of mā: namely to sée God face to face, to sée him that made heauen and earth, to sée him that made him, that saued him, & that glorified him. He shal sée him by knowing him, be in loue with hym by liking him, & prayse him by possessing hym. For he shalbe the heritage [Page] of his people, of his people the Saints, of his people whō he hath raunsomed. He shalbe their possession of happinesse, he shalbe the reward & recompēce of their lōgyng. I wilbe thine excéedyng great reward sayth he. For great thinges beséeme great personages. Verely my Lord God, y u art excéedyng great aboue all Gods & excéedyng great also is thy reward. But thou thy self art ouer great, thou thy selfe art an ouer great reward, thou thy selfe art both he that crowneth, & also the crowne: thou thy selfe art both y e promiser, and the promise: thou art the recompēcer, & the recompēce: thou art the rewarder, and the reward of euerlastyng happines. Thou thē art both the crowner [Page] & the crowne O my God, & the diademe of my hope which is garnished w t glorie, a gladdyng light, a renewyng light, a glorious ornamēt, my chief hope, the desire of the hartes of all saintes, & their deare beloued. The seing of thée thē, is the whole hyre, the whole reward and the whole ioy that we looke for. For it is life euerlastyng, yea I say, it is thy wisedome. Life euerlasting is to know thée the onely true God, & Iesus Christ whom y u hast sent. Therfore when we shall sée thée the onely God, the true God, the liuyng God almightie, single, inuisible, vnboundable, vncōprehē sible & thine onely begottē sonne, God of thine own substaūce, & euerlastyng as well as thou, euē [Page] our Lord Iesus Christ, whō for our welfare thou hast sent into the world in y e power of the holy Ghost, thrée in persons & one in beyng, the onely holy God, besides whom there is no God: thē shal we hold that which we now séeke, namely euerlasting life, & endlesse glorie, which thou hast prepared for them that loue thée, whiche thou hast layd vp in store for thē that feare thée, and which thou wilt giue to them that séeke thée, euen to them that séeke thy face for euer. And thou O Lord my God which diddest shape me in my mothers wōbe, who hath giuen me vp into thy hād, suffer me not any more to be plucked out of one into many: but gather me out of these outward thinges [Page] into my selfe, & frō my selfe vnto thée, that my hart may alwayes say vnto thée, my face hath sought thée out, Lord I will séeke after thy face, euē after the face of the Lord of all power, wherein standeth the whole glorie of the blessed sorte for euer, whiche to behold, is the endlesse life & euerlastyng glorie of the Saintes. Let my hart reioyse therfore, that it may reuerēce thy name: Let the harts of them that séeke God reioyse, but much more y e hartes of them that finde God. For if there be ioy in séekyng, what maner of ioy shall there be in findyng? Therefore I will alwayes séeke thy face earnestly, & incessantly, if at any tyme the doore and gate of rightuousnesse may be opened [Page] vnto me, that I may enter into the ioy of my Lord. This is the Lordes gate, the rightuous shall enter in thereat.
¶A prayer to the holie Trinitie.
THou thrée coequall and coeternal persons & one God y e very father Sonne & holy ghost, who dwellest alone in euerlastingnesse, and in vnapproachable light, which hast foūded the earth by thy mighty power, & rulest y e whole world by thy wisedome, Holie, holie, holie Lord God of hostes, dreadfull, strong, rightuous, mercyfull, maruelous, prayse worthie, to be beloued, One God, thrée persons, one being, power, wisedome, goodnes, & [Page] one vnseperable Trinitie. I crye vnto thée, open me the gates of rightuousnes, & whē I am come in, I will prayse thée O Lord. Behold I poore begger knocke at thy doore O souerein housholder. Commaund the gates to be opened at my knockyng, accordyng as thou hast sayd, knocke ye & it shalbe opened. For truly O most mercyfull father, the desires of my groning hart, and the cryes of my wéepyng eyes, doe knocke at thy doore. All my desire is before thée, and my gronyng is not hyd frō thée. Lord turne not thy face any more away frō me, neither flyng thou away frō thy seruaunt in a sume. O father of mercies, heare the houling out of thy ward, & reach hym thy singular [Page] good helpyng hād, that it may drawe me out of the déepe waters, & out of the lake of miserie, and out of the myre of filthynes, that I perishe not, thy pitifull eyes seyng it, & the bowels of thy mercy beholdyng it: but that I may wade out vnto thée my Lord God, so as I may see the riches of thy kyngdome, & alwayes behold thy face, & sing prayse to thy holy name. O Lord which workest wonders, whiche chearest my hart with remembryng thée, & which inlightenest my youth: despise not myne olde age, but make my bones to reioyse, & my hore heares to waxe fresh againe as the Eagle.
SAINT AVstens Manuell, or litle Booke of the Contemplation of Christe, or of Gods worde, whereby the remembraunce of the heauenly desires which is falne a sleepe may be quickned vp agayne.
AT LONDON Printed by Iohn Daye dwellyng ouer Aldersgate. 1574.
¶Cum gratia & Priuilegio Regiae Maiestatis.
The Preface.
FOr asmuch as we be set in the middes of snares, we easly become cold in desire of heauenly thynges. And therfore we haue neede of continuall defence, that when we be shronke awaye, we may be wakened to runne backe agayne to our true God the souereine goodnesse. In consideration wherof, not through rash presumption, but for the great loue that I beare to my God, I haue vndertaken this worke to his glorie, to the intent I might alwayes haue with me a short and handsome abridgement of the chosen sayinges of the holie fathers concernyng my God, by the fire of the readyng whereof, the loue of him might be kindled in me as oft as it is waxed cold in me. Assiste me now I beseech thee my Lord God, whom I seeke, whom I loue, whom I prayse and worship both with mynde and mouth, and with all the power that I am able. My mynde beyng vowed vnto thee, and inflamed with loue of thée, sighyng for want of thee, gapyng after thee, and longyng onely to see thee, hath no pleasure in any thyng but to speake of thee, to heare of thee, to write of thee, to conferre of thee, and to bethinke it selfe oftentymes of thy glorie, so as the remembraunce of thee may be some refreshyng to me among the stormes of this worlde. [Page] Thee therefore do I call vpon most earnestly, vnto theee do I crye with a loude noyse euen from the bottome of my hart. And when I call vpon thee, verely I call vpon thee in my selfe: for I should not be at all except thou wart in me, and except I were in thee thou wouldest not be in me. Thou art in me, bycause thou abydest in my mynde: thereby doe I know thee, and therin doe I finde thee. When I remember thee, I am also delighted in thee and by thee, of whom, by whom, and in whom, all thynges be.
¶Of Gods Wonderfull being.
THou Lord fillest heauen & earth, bearyng vp all thinges without being burthened, filling all thyngs without being inclosed, alwayes doing and yet alwayes at rest: alwayes gathering, but not for any néede: alwayes séeking, and yet thou missest nothing: louing, & yet not doting, being ielous and yet still in quyet. It repenteth thée and yet thou art not gréeued: thou art angrie, and yet not out of patience. Thou chaungest thy workes, but thou chaungest not thy purpose. Thou receiuest that which thou hast sought out, [Page] and yet y u haddest neuer lost it. Thou art neuer néedy, & yet thou delightest to gaine. Thou art neuer couetous, & yet y u demaūdest vsurie. Thou lashest out where thou owest not, or rather there is alwayes cōming into thée that y u mayst owe. But who hath aught y t is not thine? Thou payest dets, & yet art in no mans dets. Thou forgiuest dets, & yet forgoest nothing. Thou art euery where, & euery where y u art whole: perceiued thou mayst be, séene thou cāst not be. Thou art no where absēt, and yet art thou far of from the thoughtes of y e wicked, nay looke where thou art far of, there art y u not away: for where y u art absent by grace, there art thou presēt by vēgeance. So art y u present in all [Page] places, and yet canst scarsly be found. Thou standest still when we folow thée, and yet we cannot ouertake thée. Thou holdest all thinges, fillest all thinges, inuironest all things, surmoūtest all things, and susteinest all things. Thou teachest the hartes of the faithfull w tout noyse of wordes: thou art not disseuered by places, nor altered by times, nor subiect vnto to and fro. Thou dwellest in vnapprochable light, whiche neuer man saw, nor can sée. Abyding quietly in thy selfe, thou goest euerywhere about the whole: for thou canst not be cut or deuided, bycause thou art but one in very déede, & art not made out into partes or péeces: but being whole thou mainteinest the [Page] whole, thou fillest y e whole, thou inlightenest the whole, and thou possessest the whole.
¶Of the vnspeakable knowledge of God.
ALthough the whole world were full of bookes, yet could not thyne vnspeakable knowledge be vttered. For in asmuch as y u art vnspeakable, y u cāst in no wise be put in writing or comprehended. Thou art the fountaine of godly light, and the sunne of euerlasting brightnesse. Thou art great without quantifie, and therfore vnmeasurable. Thou art good without qualitie, & therfore very good & souereinly good, and no man is good but thou [Page] alone. Whose will is a worke, for thou cāst do what thou listest. Thou hast created all thinges of nothing, and by thine onely will hast thou made them. Thou possessest all thy creatures without any want of them, thou gouernest them without payne, thou rulest them without wéerines, & there is nothing that may trouble the order of thy gouernemēt, from the highest thinges to the lowest. Thou art in all places without place, confeynyng all thinges without inclosure, and being present euery where without setting or remouing. Thou art not the author of any euill, for y u canst do none euill. Wheras thou canst do all thinges, thou hast not done any thing wherof [Page] it can forthinke thée. It is of thy goodnesse that we be made, of thy iustice that we be punished, and of thy mercy that we be deliuered. Whose almightinesse gouerneth, ruleth, & filleth all thinges which it hath made. Yet meane I not by thy filling of all things, that they conteine thée, but rather that thou conteinest them. Neither fillest thou all things by parcel meale, neither is it in any wise to be thought that ech thing receiueth thée accordyng to the proportion of it owne bignesse, that is to wit the greatest things more, and the smallest thinges lesse: but rather that thou thy selfe art whole in all things, and all things in thée: whose almightinesse incloseth all thinges, and [Page] no man cā finde any shift to scape frō thy power. For he that hath not thy fauour, shal neuer escape thy displeasure.
¶Of the longing of the soule that féeleth God.
THerfore O most mercyfull God, I call vpō thée for my soule, whiche thou preparest to receiue thée through the desire which thou breathest into it. Enter into it I beséech thée, & make it fit for thée, that thou mayst possesse that whiche thou hast both made and renewed, that I may haue thée as a seale vpō my hart. O most pitifull Lord, I beséech thée forsake not him that calleth vpon thee: for ere I could call vppon [Page] thée thou diddest both cal me and séeke me, to the intent that I thy seruaunt should séeke thée, & by séeking thée finde thée, & when I had found thée loue thée. Lord I haue sought thée & found thée, and I desire also to loue thée. Increase my desirousnesse & graunt the thyng I craue: for if thou shouldest giue me all that euer thou madest, it would not suffice thy seruaūt, except thou giue him thy selfe to. Giue me thy selfe therfore O my God, restore thy selfe vnto me. Behold, I am in loue with thée: and if that be to litle, let me be yet more in loue. I am bound with the loue of thée, I burne in desire of thée, I am delighted with the swéete remembraunce of thée. Behold, [Page] when my mynde styeth vpward vnto thée, & busieth it selfe with thinking vpon thyne vnspeakable louing kindnesse: the fardell of my fleshe is the lesse burdensome vnto me, the turmoyling of my thoughtes ceasseth, y e weight of my mortalitie & miseries maketh me not dull as they are wōt to do, all thinges are still, and all things are calme. My hart gloweth, my minde reioyceth, my memorie is fresh, mine vnderstanding is cleare, and my whole spirite being kindled with desire to sée thee, findeth it selfe rauished with the loue of things inuisible. Let my spirite take the winges of an Eagle & flye without ceassing: Let it flye euen till it come to the beawtie of thy house, and [Page] to the throne of thy glory, & there let it be fed at the dyning table of thy heauenly Citizens, in the place of fulféedyng by the plentifull runnyng streames. Thou that art our hope, our welfare, & our redemption, be also our ioy. Thou y t shalt be our reward, be also our reioycing. Let my soule séeke thée alwayes, & graunt y t in séeking thée it may neuer faint.
¶Of the wretchednesse of that soule whiche loueth not, ne séeketh not our Lord Iesus Christ.
WO is that wretched soule whiche loueth not Christ, nor séeketh him: it abydeth dry & miserable. He loseth his life time [Page] whiche loueth not thée O God. He that cares not to liue for thée Lorde, is nothing and goeth for nought. He that refuseth to liue vnto thée, is already dead. He that is not wise to thée ward, is but a foole. Most mercifull Lord, I yeld, graunt, & betake my selfe vnto thée by whō I haue being, life, and wit. In thée do I put my whole confidēce, trust, and hope, by whō I shal rise againe, liue agayne, & inioy rest. Thée do I couet, loue, & worship, with whom I shall dwel, reigne, & be blessed. The soule that séeketh not ne loueth not thée, séeketh & loueth y e world, serueth sinne, is subiect to vyce, neuer at rest, neuer at ease. Let my mind serue thee alwayes O most mercifull. Let my way [Page] faring be alwayes to trauell vnto théeward, let my hart burne in loue of thée. My God, let my soule rest in thée, let it runne out of it selfe to behold thée, let it sing thy prayses with ioyfulnes, and let this be the cōfort of me in my banishment. Let my minde flee vnder the shadow of thy winges, from the ragyng heates of the thoughtes of this world. Let my hart calme it selfe in thée, I say let the great sea of my hart that swelleth with waues, calme it selfe in thée. O God whiche art riche of all good deinties, thou most bountifull bestower of heauenly repast giue meate to me that am faint, gather me vp that am scattered, deliuer me that am in prison, make me new agayne [Page] that am heawē in péeces. Behold I stand at thy doore and knocke. I beséeche thée by the bowels of thy mercy, where through thou hast visited vs in rising from aloft, bid the doore to be opened for me wretch which do knocke, that my soule may haue frée passage to come in vnto thée, and to rest in thée, and to be refreshed by thée with thy heauenly bread. For thou art the bread and fountaine of life, thou art the light of euerlasting brightnesse, thou art all thinges whereby the righteous liue which loue thée.
¶Of the longing of the soule.
O God the light of the hartes that sée thee, and the life of [Page] the soules that loue thée, and the strenghthener of the thoughtes that séeke thée, graūt that I may sticke to the holie loue of thee. Come I pray thée into my hart, and make it drunken with the aboundance of thy pleasantnesse, so as I may forget these temporall thinges. It shameth and irketh me to abyde such thinges as this world doth. All that I sée of these transitorie thinges is but a sorrow to me: all that I heare of them, is but a grief to me. Helpe me O Lord my God, & put gladnesse into my hart, come vnto me that I may sée thée. But to narrow is the house of my soule for thée, vntill thou come vnto me & make more rowme in it. Repaire it for it is decayed. It hath many [Page] thinges that will mislike thyne eyes. I know it and confesse it: but who shall clense it, or to whō shall I crye elles but vnto thée? Lord clense me from my priuie sinnes, & beare with thy seruaūt for other folkes faultes. Swéete Christ make me I beséech thee good Iesu make me to laye away the burden of fleshly desires and earthly lustes, for loue and liking of thée. Let my soule ouerrule my flesh, let reason ouerrule my soule, let thy grace ouerrule my reason, and subdue thou me both inwardly and outwardly to thy will. Giue me the grace that my hart, my toūg and my bones may prayse thée. Inlarge my minde, and lift vp the eyesight of my hart: that euē with the swift [Page] conceyt of my spirite, I may atteine to thée y e euerlasting wisedome whiche abydest vppon all thinges. I beséeche thée loose me from the fetters wherwith I am shackled, that I may leaue all these thinges and hye me vnto thee, sticke to thee onely, and attend vpon thee onely.
¶Of the happines of the soule that is let loose from the prison of the body.
HAppy is the soule whiche being let loose frō the earthly prisō, flyeth vp fréely into heauen, and there beholdeth thée her most sweete Lord face to face, & is no more disquieted with any feare of death: but reioyseth in [Page] the euerlastingnesse of incorruptible glory. For it is safe and out of perill, and hence forth feareth neither enemy nor death. It possesseth thée her mercifull Lorde whom she hath long sought and euer loued. And accōpanying her selfe with the quyres of Psalme singers, it singeth continually the sugred songes of euerlasting mirth, to y e glorie of thee O king Christ, O gracious Iesu. For she is made dronken with the boūtifulnesse of thy house, & thou makest her to drinke of the streame of thy pleasures. Happy is the felowship of the heauēly Citizens, and glorious is the solemnitie of all them that returne frō the sorowful trauell of this our pilgrimage, to the pleasauntnesse of [Page] beawtie, to the beawtie of all brightnes, and to the floure of all excellencie, where thy Citizens behold thée continually O Lord. Nothyng that may trouble the minde is offered there to y e eare. What songes, what instrumēts, what Carolles, what melodie soundeth there w tout end? There sounde alwayes most pleasaunt tunes of Hymnes, most swéete melodie of aungels, & most wonderfull dities of songes, whiche are song to thy glorie by the heauenly inhabitantes. No harshnesse, no gallye bitternesse hath any rowme with in thy realme. For there is neither a naughtie persō, nor naughtines. There is none aduersarie nor impugner, neither is there any intycement [Page] of sinne. There is no nedinesse, no shame, no brawling, no misusage, no excusing, no feare, no vnquietnesse, no penaltie, no doubtfulnes, no violēce, no discord: but there is perfect peace ful of loue, continuall reioysing & praysing of God, carelesse rest w tout end, and euerlasting gladnesse in the holy Ghost. O how lucky should I be if I might heare the most pleasaunt Carols of thy Citizēs, and their sugred songes aduauncing the prayses of the souereine Trinitie with due honor. But ouer happie should I be, might I once atteine to sing a song my selfe, I say to sing one of y e swéete songes of Sion to our Lord Iesu Christ.
¶Of the ioyes of Paradise.
O Liuely life, O euerlasting and aye blessed life, where as is ioye without sorrow, rest without trauel, dignitie without feare, riches without losse, health fulnesse without impayring, aboundance without want, lyfe without death, continuance with out corruption, blessednesse with out abatement, all good things in perfect loue, beawtie and beholding face to face, full knowledge of all thinges and in all thinges: where Gods souereine goodnesse is séene, & his inlightening light is glorified of the Saints: where the present maiesty of God is beheld, and the mindes of the beholders [Page] satisfied therew tall as with the foode of life. The more they sée it, the more they desire to sée it: yet desire they it without disquietnesse, and haue their fill of it without wéerinesse. There the daysunne of righteousnesse cheareth all mē with the wonderous sight of his beawtie, and so in lighteneth all the Citizens of the heauenly soyle, that they them selues yeld light, euen the light that God hath behighted them, light more lightsome then all the brightnes of our daysunne, & thē the clearenesse of all the starres. For they cleaue to the immortal Godhead, and thereby are made immortall and incorruptible thē selues, according to this promise of our Lord and Sauiour: Father, [Page] as for those whō thou hast giuen me, I wil haue them to be where I am, that they may sée my glory, and that they may be all one, as thou father art in me, and I in thée, and that they also may be one in vs.
¶Of the kingdome of heauen.
O Realme of heauē, O most happy Realme, O Realme w tout death, O kingdome without end, where is no succession of time by ages, where the day lasting continually without night woteth not what time meaneth, where the souldier that getteth the vpper hād is rewarded with vnspeakable gifts for his labour, [Page] and hath an euerlasting garland set vpon his noble head. Would God that Christ of his heauenly pitie hauing released the burthen of my sinnes would commaunde me the basest of his seruaunts to lay aside the fardell of this flesh, that I might passe into the endlesse ioyes of his Citie, to repose my selfe, so as I might keepe cō panie with the holy sort aboue, stand before the glorious maiestie of my creator with the blessed spirites, behold the present countenaunce of God, be touched with no feare of death, reioyse in suretie of the incorruptiblenesse of the euerlastyng immortalitie, and being linked to him that knoweth all thinges, forgoe all blindnes of ignoraunce, nothing [Page] esteeming all earthly things, and not vouchsauyng to looke vppon this vale of teares or to remēber it any more, whereas our lyfe is a painfull life, a corruptible life, a lyfe full of all bitternesse, a lyfe that is mistresse of mischief and hādmayd of hell: whom humors make to swell, whom paynes abate, whom heate parcheth, whō ayres make diseased, whom meates puffe vp, whom fastings forepyne, whom mirth maketh nyce, whō heauines consumeth, whom thought pincheth, whom ease dwelleth, whō riches pranke vp, whō pouertie pulleth down, whō youth setteth aloft, whō age makes to stoope, whom sicknesse defaceth, whom sorow thrusteth downe, whom the deuill layeth [Page] wayt for, whom the world flattereth, whom the flesh delighteth, where y e soule is blinded, where the whole man is put out of order. After all which so many and so great mischieues succeedeth cruel death, and in such wise maketh an end of all vayne ioyes, y t whē they be once past, they may be thought to haue neuer bene.
In what wise God cōforteth the sorrowfull soule after the lōg mornyng therof.
BVt what prayses or what thankesgiuinges are we able to render vnto thée O Lorde our God, who ceassest not to cō fort vs with the wonderfull visitation of thy grace, among the [Page] great miseries of our mortalitie? Behold, while I feare the end of my lyfe, whyle I consider my sinnes, while I stand in feare of thy Iustice, while I thinke vpon the horror of death, while I shudder at the punishement of hell, whyle I knowe not with what straitnes thou doost boult out and wey my workes, while I am vtterly ignoraunt with what end I shall close them vp, and while I bethinke me of these and many other thynges to my selfe in my hart: thou O Lord God of thine accustomed pitie art ready at hād to comfort me wretch replenished with many griefes: and in the middes of these monynges, sore complaints, and déepe sighes of my hart, thou takest vp my [Page] sad and sorrowfull minde to the toppes of the high mountaines, euē to y e beddes of sweete spyces, putting me in a place of pasture by the riuers of swéete waters, where thou preparest a table diuersly furnished against I come, to refresh my appalled sprights, and to cheare vp my heauy hart: through which deinties I beyng at length refreshed, do forget my manifold miseries, & beyng lifted vp aboue the heigth of the earth, do take my rest in thée which art the true peace.
¶Of the sweetnesse of the loue of God.
I Loue thee my God, I loue thee, and more & more would [Page] I fayne loue thée. My Lord God, thou rest of all the childrē of mē, graunt me to long for thee, & to loue thée as much as I would, and as much as I should. Thou art vnmeasurable, and must be loued without measure, specially of vs whom thou hast so loued, whom thou hast so saued, and for whom thou hast made so great & so goodly thinges. O loue whiche burnest euer and art neuer quenched, O swéete Christ, O gracious Iesu, O my God which art loue it selfe, set me wholly on fire w t thy fire, with the loue of thée, with thy swéetnesse, with desirousnesse of thée, with likyng of thée, with ioying and reioysing in thée, with thy pitifulnesse & pleasantnesse, and with the pleasure [Page] and delight of thée, which is holy and good, chaste and cleane: that being throughly full of the swéetnesse of thy loue, wholly besmoked with y e flame of affection towardes thée, I may loue thée my Lord God most swéete and most beawtifull, with all my hart, w t all my soule, w t all my strēgth, w t all my power, with much sorrow of hart & sheading of teares, with much reuerence and trembling, hauing thée in my hart & in my mouth & before mine eyes alwayes & in all places, so as there may be no rowme in me for any counterfet or vncleane loue.
¶Of ioy.
O Swéete loue, O louyng swéetnes, let my belly eate [Page] thée, and let my bowels be filled with the pleasaunt wyne of thy loue, & let my minde vtter forth good wordes. O charity my God, swéete honny, snowye milke, the foode of Aungelles, make me to growe in thée that I may eate thée with a sauorie tast. Thou art my life whereby I liue, the hope that I sticke vnto, the glory that I desire. Hold thou my hart, rule my mynde, guide myne vnderstandyng, cheare vp my loue, lift thou vp my Soule, & drawe the mouth of my spirite whiche thirsteth after thée, vp to the water streames that are aboue. I beséech thée let the troubleo [...]nesse of the flesh cease. Let the fancies of landes, waters, aire, and skye hold their peace. Let dreames & [Page] fantasticall Reuelations, let all tounges, all signes, and what soeuer is able to passe, be whist. Yea let mine owne soule be still, and let it ouerpasse it selfe, not by thinking vpon it selfe, but by thinking vpon thée my God, bycause thou art in very deede my whole hope and trust. For in thée O most swéete, gracious, and mercyfull God O Lorde Iesu Christ, is both the portion & the bloud and the flesh of euery one of vs. Then looke where the portiō or peece of me reigneth, there beléeue I my selfe to reigne also. Looke where my bloud beareth rule, there trust I to beare rule to. Looke where my flesh is glorified, there know I y t I also am glorious, and although I be a sinner, [Page] yet distrust I not this communion of grace. For although my sinnes forfend it, yet doth my substaunce require it. And although myne owne transgressiōs shet me out, yet doth the communion of nature take me in.
¶That the word is become fleshe for our hopes sake.
FOr the Lorde is not so vnkynde, as not to loue hys owne flesh, his owne members, his own bowels. Truly I should despayre for my sinnes, vyces, faultes, and negligences without number, which I haue committed and dayly do cōmit without ceassing, in hart, word, and [Page] déede, & by all meanes that mans frayltie cā offend in: were it not that thy word O my God is become flesh & dwelleth in vs. But now I dare not despayre, bicause that he beyng obedient vnto thée to the death, euen to the death of the crosse, hath taken away the handwriting of our sinnes, and nayling y e same to his crosse, hath crucified both sinne & death. Now then, I looke backe with a carelesse eye by meanes of him, who sitteth at thy right hand & seweth for vs, & I thinke lōg to come vnto thée vpon trust of him, in whō we are already risen againe & reuiued, alredy moūted vp into heauen, & there do sit among the aū gels. To thée be prayse, to thée be glorie, to thee be honor, to thee [Page] be thankes. Amen.
¶That the more a man museth vpon God, the swéeter it is vnto him.
MOst merciful Lord which hast so loued & saued vs, so quickened & exalted vs. Most merciful Lord, how swéete is the remembraūce of thée? The more I thinke vppon thée, the more swéete and amiable art thou vnto me, and therfore am I greatly delighted with thy goodes. With cleare eyesight of mynd, & with a most pure affectiō of godly loue, accordyng to my small abilitie, do I incessantly couet to sue for thy loue, and to behold thy wonderfull beawtie, in this place of [Page] my pilgrimage, as long as I abyde in these brittle mēbers. For I am woūded with y e dart of thy loue, I am sore inflamed with desire of thée, I would fayne come vnto thée, I long to sée thée. I will therefore stand vpon my gard, and with waking eyes will I sing in my hart: yea I wil sing with my minde, and with all my strength. I will prayse thée my maker & renewer: I will pearce the skye with my mynde, and be with thée in desire: so as my body onely shalbe held here in this present miserie: but in thought, in desirousnesse, and in longyng, I will alwayes be with thée, for looke where thou myne incomparable desired and deare beloued treasure art, there also is my [Page] hart. But loe my most gracious and mercyfull Lord, whereas I would consider the glory of thine vnmeasurable goodnesse & louing kindnesse, my hart is not sufficiēt to do it. For thyne honor, thy beawtie, thy power, thy glory, thy royaltie, thy maiesty, and thy loue excéede all vnderstanding of mans mynde. Like as the brightnesse of thy glorie is inestimable: so also is the graciousnesse of thyne euerlastyng loue vnspeakable, where through thou adoptest those to be thy sonnes & knittest them vnto thée, whom thou hast created of nothing.
¶ That tribulatiōs for Christes sake are to be desired in this life.
O My soule if we should be fayne to suffer tormentes [Page] euery day, if we should be fayne to indure euen hell fire for a long tyme, that we might sée Christ in his glory, and be in cōpany with his Saintes: were it not méete we should abyde all the sorrow that could be, that we might be made partakers of so great a benefite, and of so great glory? Let the deuils thē do their spight, let them tempt while they tempt may, let fastings forpyne the body, let course apparell greue the flesh, let labour pinch it, let watching dry it vp, let this man call vpon me, let that man or that mā disquiet me, let cold make me curle together, let my conscience barke at me, let heate scorche me, let my head ake, let my hart burne, let my stomacke be wyndie, [Page] let my face looke pale, let me be wholly diseased, let my life cō sume in sorrow, let my yeares wast away in sighing & sobbyng, let rottennesse lodge within my bones, & let wormes crawle vnder me: so I may rest in the day of trouble, & that we may go vp together to our people that wayt for vs. For, Lorde what glory shall the righteous haue? How great shall the ioy of the Saintes be, when euery face shall shyne as the sunne? Whē the Lord hauyng sorted his people into degrées, shall begin to muster them in the kingdome of his father, & render the promised rewardes to eche of them accordyng to hys workes and desertes: giuyng to them, for earthly things heauenly [Page] thinges, for temporall thinges euerlasting thynges, for small thinges great thynges? Verely then shall happinesse be heaped vp full to the top, when the Lord shall bryng hys Saintes to the sight of eternall glory, & make thē sit down together in heauen, that God may be all in all.
How the kyngdome of heauen may be gotten.
O Happy pleasauntnesse, O pleasaunt happynesse, to sée the Saintes, to be with the Saintes, and to be a Saint: to sée God, and to haue God for euer & euer. Let vs thinke vpon this with diligent mynde, let vs long after this with our whole hart, [Page] that we may soone come vnto them. If thou demaunde howe that may be brought to passe, or by what deseruynges, or by what helpes it may be compassed: harken, O man: The kyngdome of heauen requireth none other price but thy selfe: the full valew of it is thy selfe: giue thy selfe for it, & thou shalt haue it. Why troublest thou thy selfe about the price of it? Christ hath giuen him selfe to purchase thée a kingdome to God the father. So then giue thou thy selfe that thou mayst be his kingdome, & that sinne may not reigne in thy mortall body, but that the spirite may reigne to the atteinement of life.
¶What Paradise is, and what it hath.
[Page]O My soule, let vs returne to the heauēly Citie wherin we be registred and made frée Citizens. For like as we be felow Citizens of the Saintes and the household meynie of God: & like as we be the heyres of God and coheires of Christ: so let vs consider the happy royalty of our Citie so farre forth as it is possile for vs to consider it. Let vs say with the Prophet, O how glorious thinges are spoken of thée thou Citie of God: for thou art the dwellyng place of all them that reioyse, the ioy of the whole earth is founded vpō thée. There is not in thée any age, nor miserie of age. There is not in thée any maymed person, any lame man, any crooke backe, nor any [Page] mishapen body. For all be growē vp to perfect men, after the full measure of the age of Christ. What blesseder thyng can there be thē such a life, where there is no feare of pouertie, nor weakenesse of disease? No man is harmed there, no man is displeased there, no man enuyeth there. There is no burnyng of couetousnesse, no desire of meate, no ambitious sewing for honor and authoritie, there is no dread of deuill, no snares of féendes, no feare of hell fire. There is no death, neither of body nor of soule, but pleasaunt life assured of immortalitie. Thē shall there be no miseries, then shall there be no debates, but all things shal be at agréement, bycause all the [Page] Saints shall agrée in one. Peace and mirth hold all thinges together, all thinges are calme and quiet. There is continuall light, not such as is now here, but so much the brighter as it is much happyer. For (as we read) that Citie shall néede no S [...]ne, nor Moone, bycause the Lord almightie shal shine in it, and the lambe shalbe the light of it. Where the Saintes shal shine as the starres for euer without end, and such as haue taught many in the way of righteousnesse, shalbe as the brightnesse of the skye. Wherfore, there shalbe no night, no darknesse, no méeting of cloudes, no painefulnesse of heate or cold: but there shalbe such a temperatnesse, as neuer eye hath séene, [Page] eare heard, nor hart of any man conceiued, sauing onely of them that are counted worthy to enioy the same, whose names are written in the booke of life. But yet it is farre aboue all these thinges to be in felowship with the companies of Aungels, Archaungels, and all the heauenly powers, to behold the patriarkes and Prophetes, to sée the Apostles, and all the Saints, yea and also to sée our owne parentes. Glorious are these thinges, but much more glorious is it, to behold the present countenaunce of God, & to sée his infinite brightnesse. A passing excellent glorie shal it be, when we shall sée God in him selfe, and when we shall both sée and haue him in our selues, [Page] of whō we shall neuer haue seene inough.
What thing God requireth like vnto him self in vs.
GOd the father is Charitie, God the sonne is louyngnesse, and God the holy ghost is the loue of the father & the sonne. This loue, this charitie and this louingnesse requireth some like thing in vs, that is to wit charitie, whereby we be associated, & knitte vnto God as it were by some alyance of kinred. Loue passing not for dignity looketh for no reuerence. He that loueth, cōmeth boldly of him selfe vnto God, & speaketh familiarly vnto him, without any feare or without [Page] any stickyng. His life is but losse, which loueth not. But he y t loueth hath his eyes euermore to Godward, whō he loueth, whō he longeth for, whō he thinketh of, in whō he delighteth, vpon whō he féedeth, in whom he battleth. Such a one as is thus disposed, doth so sing, so read, & is so forecasting and circumspect in all his workes, as though God were present before his eyes, & so is he present in déede. He prayeth in such wise as if he were taken vp and presented before the face of Gods maiesty in his high throne, where thousandes of thousandes do him seruice, and ten hundred thousand are stādyng about him. Looke what soule loue visiteth, y e same doth it awake out of sléepe. [Page] It monisheth, softeneth, & woū deth his hart. It inlighteneth the darke places, vnlocketh the shet places, warmeth the cold places, méekeneth the sturdie, fumish & impacient mynde, chaceth away vyce, bridleth fleshly affections, amendeth maners, reformeth & reneweth the spirite, and restreineth the light motions and actions of slipperie youth. All these thinges doth loue when it is present. And assoone as loue is gone away, by and by the soule beginneth to droope, like as a boylyng cawldron cooleth if a man drawe away the fire from vnder it.
¶ Of the boldnesse of the soule that loueth God.
[Page]LOue is a great thing, where through the Soule preaceth boldly of it selfe vnto God, and sticketh stedfastly vnto God. The Soule that loueth God asketh questions of him familiarly, and taketh coūsell of him in all cases. It can thinke vpon nothing els, it can speake of nothing els, it despiseth all other thinges, and it lotheth all other thinges, sauyng God. What soeuer it myndeth, what soeuer it speaketh, it sauoureth of loue, and it smelleth of loue, so wholly hath the loue of God wonne it vnto him. He that will haue knowledge of God, let him loue him. In vayne commeth he to reading, studying preaching, or praying, which loueth not. The loue of God bréedeth [Page] the loue of the soule, & maketh it intentife thereunto. God loueth to the intent to be loued againe. When he loueth he meaneth nothing els but to be loued: for he knoweth that they whiche loue hym are blessed by theyr loue. The soule that loueth God, renounceth all her owne affections, and giueth her selfe wholly to nothyng els but loue, to the ende she may aunswere loue for loue. And when she hath vtterly spent her selfe in loue, how small a thyng is it in respect of that euerlastyng streame of the heauenly loue? There is great oddes in the matche betwéene the loue and the louer, betwéene the soule and God, betwéene the maker and the creature. And yet if the [Page] soule loue thée whole, where the whole is there is no want. Let not the soule be afrayde whiche loueth, but let the soule be afrayde whiche loueth not. The soule that loueth is caried with desirousnesse, drawen with longing, disclaymeth desertes, shetteth the eyes of maiestie, openeth the eyes of pleasure, setteth her selfe in safetie, and dealeth boldly with GOD. Through loue, the soule withdraweth and departeth aside from the bodily senses, so as it féeleth not it selfe, to the ende it may féele God. And this is done, at such tyme as the mynde beyng allured with the vnspeakable swéetenesse of God, doth after a sorte steale awaye from it selfe, or rather is rauished [Page] and slippeth away from it selfe, to the intent to enioy God to her delight. Nothing could be so pleasaunt, if it were not so gezon. Loue procureth familiaritie with God, familiaritie procureth boldnesse, boldnesse tast, and tast continuall hungering. The soule that is surprised with the loue of God, can thinke of nothing els, nor wish nothing els: but with often sighes sayth: Like as the Hert thirsteth after the water springes, so thirsteth my soule after thée my God.
¶ What God hath done for man.
FOr loue to manward, God came to man, God came into [...]
¶The remembring of the woundes of our Lorde Iesu Christ.
WHen any foule thought assaulteth me, I runne to the woundes of Christ. When my fleshe presseth me downe, I rise vp agayne by remembryng the woundes of my Lord. When the deuill layeth wayt for me, I flée to the bowels of the mercy of my Lorde, and he departeth away from me. If the heate of lecherie prouoke my members, it is quē ched with callyng to mynde the woundes of our Lord the sonne of God. In all aduersities I finde no remedie so effectuall as the woundes of Christ. In them I sléepe without care, and rest with [Page] out feare. Christ hath died for vs: Now is there nothing so bitter to the death, which is not salued by the death of Christ. All my whole hope is in the death of my Lord. His death is my desert, & my refuge, my welfare, lyfe, and resurrection, and the mercyfulnesse of the Lord is my merite, I am not poore of merite, so long as he the Lord of compassiōs faileth not. As long as he is manifold in mercy, so long am I also manifold of desertes. The mightier that he is to saue, the more am I without care.
¶That the remembraunce of Christes woundes is an effectual remedy against all aduersities.
[Page]EXcéedyng greatly haue I sinned, and myne owne conscience findeth me giltie of many offences, and yet doe I not dispayre, bycause that whereas sinne hath abounded, there hath grace ouerabounded. He that despayreth of the forgiuenesse of his sinnes, denyeth God to be mercyfull. Great wrong doth he to God, whiche distrusteth his mercy. For (as much as in him lieth) he denyeth God to be louyng, true, and mightie, which are the thinges wherein my whole hope consisteth, that is to witte in the loue of his adoption in the truth of his promise, and in the power of his redéemyng. Now let my vnwise imagination murmur as much as it listeth and say, Who [Page] art thou? how great is the glory? and by what desertes hopest thou to obteine it? and I will aunswere boldly, I know whom I haue credited, that he of his excéedyng great loue hath adopted me to be his sonne, that he is soothfast of promise, that he is mighty in performance, and that he may do what he listeth. I can not be feared with the multitude of my sinnes, if I bethinke me of the death of my Lorde, bycause my sinnes are not able to ouermatch him. His nayles and his speare crye vnto me that I am throughly reconcyled to Christ, if I loue him. Longiuus hath opened me Christes side with his speare, and I am gone into it, and there do I rest in safetie. He [Page] that is afrayd, let him loue: for loue driueth feare out of doores. There is no remedie so mightie and effectuall agaynst the heate of lecherie, as the death of my redemer. He stretcheth out his armes vpon the Crosse, and he holdeth out his handes in a readinesse to imbrace sinners. Betwéene the armes of my Sauiour mynde I to lyue and dye. There shall I sing safely, there will I exalte thée O Lorde, bycause thou hast taken me vp, and hast not giuen myne enemyes their pleasure ouer me. Our Sauiour hath bowed down his head at his death, to receiue the kisses of his beloued. And so oftē do we kisse God, as we be throughly touched with the loue of him.
The musing of the Soule vpon the loue of God.
O My soule whiche art innobled with the Image of God, redéemed with Christes bloud, betrothed to him by fayth, indued with the holy Ghost, garnished with vertues, and registred among the aungels: Loue thou him that hath loued thée so much: Serue him that hath serued thée: Séeke him that séekes thée: Loue him that loues thée, which loued thée first, and which is the cause of thy loue. He is the desert, he is the reward, he is the frute, he is the vse of it, he is the ende of it. Be carefull for hym that is carefull of thée: he at leysure for him, that is at leysure [Page] for thée: be cleane with him that is cleane: be holy with him that is holy. Looke after what sorte thou shewest thy selfe towardes God, after the same sort shall he shew him selfe towardes thée. He is swéete, méeke, and mercyfull: and therfore he requireth to haue them that be swéete, méeke, pleasaunt, and mercyfull. Loue thou him that hath plucked thée out of the puddle of miserie, and out of the myre of filthines. Chose him for thy frend aboue all frendes, whiche alone will kéepe touche with thée when all thinges fayle thée. In the day of thy buryall when all thy frendes shrinke frō thée, he will not forsake thée, but will defend thée from the roring Lyons that wayt for their pray, [Page] and will leade thée through an vnknowen countrey, and bryng thée to the stréetes of the heauenly Sion, and there set thée amōg the Aungels before the face of his owne maiestie, where thou shalt heare this Aungelicall ditie: holie, holie, holie, Lorde God of hostes. There is y e song of mirth, the voyce of ioy and welfare, the voyce of thankesgiuing & prayse, & the voyce of magnifying God for euer. There is the full measure of happinesse, passing excellent glory, superabundant ioy, & all good thynges. O my soule, sigh hartely, desire earnestly, that thou mayst come to that Citie aboue, whereof so glorious thinges are spoken, and wherein is the habitation of all that reioyse. [Page] By loue thou mayst get vp thether. Nothing is hard, nothyng is impossible to him that loueth. The soule that loueth goeth vp often to the heauenly Ierusalem, and runneth familiarly from stréete to stréete, visityng the Patriarkes and Prophetes, salutyng the Apostles, wondring at the hostes of Martyrs and Confessors, and gazing at the companies of the Virgins. Heauen and earth and all things that are in them call vppon me without ceassyng, to loue my Lord God.
¶What the knowledge of the truth is.
WHat is the knowledge of truth? first to knowe thy [Page] selfe, and to indeuor to be that which thou oughtest to be, and to amende that whiche ought to be amended. And secondly to know and to loue thy maker, for that is the whole happines of man. Sée then how vnspeakeable the graciousnes of Gods loue towardes vs is. He hath created vs of nothing, and giuen vs all that we haue. But forasmuch as we haue loued the gift more then the giuer, and the creature more then the creator: we are falne into the deuilles snare and become hys bondslaues. Neuerthelesse God beyng moued with compassion, sent his sonne to redéeme vs slaues, and his holy spirite to make vs his sonnes agayne. He hath giuen his sonne to be the pryce [Page] of our raunsome, the holie Ghost as an assuraunce of his loue, and to be short he reserueth him selfe whole for vs to be the heritage of our adoption. And so God accordyng to hys excéedyng gracious goodnesse and mercie, hath for verie loue and good will to manward, bestowed not onely hys benefites but also him selfe vpon him, to recouer him agayne, not so much to him selfe, as to him. To the intent that men might be borne of God, God was first borne of them. Who is so hard harted that he will not be softened by the loue of God preuenting man with so hartie good wil, that he vouchsaued to become man for mans sake? who can finde in his hart to hate a man, [Page] whose nature and lykenesse he séeth in the manhode of GOD? Doubtlesse he that hateth a man hateth God, and so loseth all his labour. For God became man for mans sake, that he might be a redeemer as well as a creator, and that man might be raunsomed with his owne goodes, and that one man might loue an other the more hartely. God appeared in the shape of man, to the end that both body and soule might be made blessed, by renewyng the eye of the mynde in his Godhead, and the eye of the bodie in hys manhoode, so that whether man went in or out, he might finde foode in him layde vp in store by hym in hys humane nature.
¶What the sending of the holie Ghost worketh in vs.
FOr our Sauiour was borne for vs, and crucified and put to death for vs, to destroye our death by hys owne death. And bycause the grape of hys fleshe was caryed to the wynepresse of the Crosse, and there beyng pressed yelded forth the swéete wyne of his Godhead: The holy ghost was sent to make ready the vessels of mens harts, that the new wyne might be put into newe vessels: first to season their harts for marryng of the wyne that should be put into them, and afterward to hoope them well for leakyng when the wyne was [Page] poured into them: that is to wit, to clense them from delightyng in sinne, and to bynde them from delightyng in vanitie. For that which is good could not come in, till that whiche is ill was first rid out. The delighting in wickednesse defileth: and the delighting in vanitie sheadeth out. The delighting in wickednesse maketh the vessell foule, and the delighting in vanitie maketh it full of cranies. To delight in wickednesse, is to loue sinne, and to delight in vanitie, is to be in loue with transitorie thinges. Therfore cast out the thyng that is euill, that thou mayest receiue the thyng that is good. Poure out sowrenesse that thou mayest be filled with swéetenesse. Cast out [Page] the spirite of the deuill and the spirite of this worlde, that thou mayst take in the spirite of God. The spirite of the deuil worketh delight in wickednesse, and the spirite of the world worketh delight in vanitie. And these delightes are euill: for the one is a fault of it selfe, and the other is the occasion of faultes. When the euill spirites be cast out, then will the spirite of God come and enter into the tabernacle of thy hart, and worke good delightes, and good loue, wherby the loue of the worlde and the loue of sinne is driuen away. The loue of the worlde intyceth men to deceyue them, and the loue of sinne defileth and leadeth to death. But the loue of God inlighteneth the [Page] mynde, clenseth the conscience, gladdeth the hart, and sheweth a man God.
¶ Of the workyng of him that loueth God.
HE in whō the loue of God dwelleth, is alwayes deuising when he shall come vnto God, when he shall leaue the world, and when he shall scape the corruption of his fleshe. And to the intent he may finde true peace, he hath his hart and desire alwayes lifted vp aboue. When he sitteth, when he goeth, when he resteth, or what soeuer he do, his hart is euermore with God. He exhorteth all men to the loue of God, he commendeth the loue [Page] of God vnto all mē, and in hart, word, and worke he sheweth vnto all men both how swéete the loue of God is, and also how euil and bitter the loue of this world is. He laugheth at the glorie of this world, & findeth fault with the care of it, shewyng how fond a folye it is to put a mans trust in thinges that be transitorie. He marueleth at the blindnes of the men that loue such thinges. And he wondereth that all men forsake not all these transitorie and flightfull thinges. He thinketh that all men shoulde déeme the thinges swéete, wherein he him selfe findeth so good tast: that all men should loue, that whiche he loueth: and that all men should be priuie to y t which he knoweth. [Page] Oftētimes doth he behold God, and is swéetely refreshed at the contemplation of him: so much the more happely, as he doth it more oftēly. For swéete alwayes is that thing to be thought vpon, whiche is alwayes swéete to be loued and praysed.
¶Of the true rest of the hart.
IN déede the true rest of the hart, is whē the hart is wholly settled in desire, vpon the loue of God, & coueteth nothing els, but hath a certeine happy delight in the thing that he holdes him to, & ioyeth in the same delight. And if it be neuer so little withdrawen from him by any vayne [Page] thought, or businesse of other matters: he hyeth him as fast as he cā to returne to him agayne w t all spéede: accountyng it but a banishment to abyde any where els then there. For like as there is no moment wherin man doth not inioye or vse the gracious goodnesse of God: so ought there to be no moment wherein he should not haue him present in remembraunce. And therfore no small fault doth that man commit, who when he talketh with God in prayer, is sodenly pluckt awaye from his presence, as it were from the eyes of one that neither saw him nor heard him. And that is done when he foloweth his owne naughtie and vnruly thoughtes, and preferreth [Page] before God, some creature that is for his own profite or pleasure whereunto the contemplation of his mynd is easly drawen away, by bethinkyng, reuoluyng, or mynding the same oftener th [...]n God, whom he must continually remember as his creator, honor as his redéemer, attend vppon as his Sauiour, and feare as hys iudge.
¶What soeuer withdraweth the sight of the mind from God, must in any wise be eschewed and abhorred.
WHo soeuer thou art that louest the world, looke before thée whither thou goest. The way that thou walkest is an euil [Page] way and full of sorrow. Therefore O man leaue of thyne owne businesses for a while, and with draw thy selfe from thy trouble some thoughtes. Cast away thy burdensome cares, lay aside thy paynefull turmoyles, bestowe some tyme vpon God, and rest thy selfe a while in him. Get thée into the chamber of thy mynde, shet out all thinges sauyng God and such thinges as further the findyng of hym, and séeke hym with thy doore fast shet to thée. Let thy whole hart saye vnto God, I séeke thy countenaunce, it is thy countenaunce that I séeke O Lorde. Now then my Lord God, go to, teache thou my hart where and how it may séeke thée, and where and how it may [Page] finde thée. Lorde if thou be not here, where shall I séeke thée when thou art gone? Or if thou be euery where, why sée I not thée here? Certesse thou dwellest in vnapprochable light. And how shall I come at thée then? or who shall leade me and bryng me in thether? that I may sée thée there? Agayne, what markes or what shape shall I séeke thée by? I neuer saw thée my Lord God, I neuer knew thy face. What shall this farre banished creature of thyne doe most hygh Lorde, what shall he doe? what shall thy seruaunt doe whiche is carefull for loue of thée, and is reiected far from thy presence? Beholde, he panteth to sée thée, and thy countenaunce is farre from him. He [Page] longeth to come neare thée, and thy dwellyng place is vnapprochable. He would fayne finde thée, & he knoweth not thy place. He is desirous to séeke thée, and knoweth not thy countenaunce.
¶That the seyng of God is lost through sinne, & miserie founde in stede of it.
LOrd, thou art my God and my souereine, and yet I neuer sawe thée. Thou hast made me and made me newe agayne, and bestowed all thy goodes vpon me, and yet hetherto I haue neither knowen thée nor séene thée. To be short, I was made to sée thée, and I haue not yet done the thyng that I was made for. O [Page] wretched state of man, that he must forgo the thyng for whiche he was made. O hard and cursed case as it was. Alas what hath he lost, and what hath he founde? what is forgone, and what remaineth? He hath lost blessednesse, to whiche he was made, and founde miserie, to whiche he was not made. The thyng is gone without whiche nothyng is luckie, and the thyng remayneth whiche of it selfe is all together vnluckie. Man did then eate aungels bread, whiche thyng he now hungreth for: and now he eateth the bread of sorrow, whiche he was not then acquaynted with. O Lord, how long wilt thou forget vs? for euer? how long wilt thou turne awaye thy face from [Page] vs? when wilt thou looke backe and heare vs? when wilt thou inlighten our eyes and shew vs thy face? when wilt thou restore thy selfe vnto vs? Looke backe Lord and heare vs, and inlighten vs, and shewe thy selfe vnto vs, and restore thy selfe vnto vs, that it may go well with vs whiche are so ill bestad without thée. I haue a bitternesse at my hart bycause thou hast forsaken it: Lorde I beséeche thée swéeten it agayne with thy comfort. I haue begon to séeke thée with a hungrie appetite, let me not be sent away from thée without repast. I am come with a sharpe stomacke, let me not go away fastyng. I come poore to thee that art rich, I come wretched to thée that art pitifull, [Page] let me not goe away emptie and despised. Lorde I am bowed downe, and I can not looke but downeward. Rayse me that I may looke vpward. Myne iniquities are gone ouer my head, they haue ouerwhelmed me, and they ouerlode me as a heauie burthen. Wynde me out, and vnlode me, that the pit shut not his mouth vpon me. Teache me to séeke thée, and shewe thy selfe to me at my séekyng. For I cannot séeke thee except thou teache me, nor finde thée except thou shewe thy selfe vnto me. Let me séeke thée by longyng after thée, and let me long after thée by séekyng thée. Let me finde thée by louyng thée, and let me loue thée by findyng thée.
Of Gods goodnes.
I Confesse Lord (I thanke thée for it) that thou hast created me after thyne owne image, to the end I should be myndefull of thee, thinke vpon thée, and loue thée. But that image is so defaced by the corruption of sinne, that it cannot do the thing for whiche it was created, except thou renew and reforme it agayne. I beséech thée O Lorde whiche geuest the vnderstandyng of fayth, graunt that I may redily vnderstād how great thou art. For thou art as we beleue, and this is it that we beleue: namely we beleue that thou art some one thyng, then the whiche there can nothyng be thought to be either greater or [Page] better? What art thou then O Lord God? Euen that one thing, then the whiche nothyng can be imagined to be greater or better, that is to say the souereine goodnesse, whiche hath his beyng of it selfe alone, and hath made all other thynges of nothyng. Thou therfore art righteous, soothfast, blessed and whatsoeuer thing els it is better to be then not to be. But howe doest thou spare the wicked, seyng thou art wholly and without comparison rightuous? Is it bycause thy goodnesse is incomprehensible? This thing lyeth hid in the vnapprochable light which thou dwellest in. Verely, the headspryng from whēce the streame of thy mercy floweth, lyeth hid in the most déepe [Page] and secret gulfe of thy goodnesse. For although thou be wholly & excéedyngly rightuous: yet art thou also gentle to the euill, bycause thou art wholly and excéedyng good: for thou shouldest be the lesse good if thou shouldest beare with no euill. For better is he that is good both to good and bad, then he that is good but to the good onely. And better is he that is good to the euill both by sparyng them and also by punishyng them, thē he that is good to them but in punishing them onely. The cause therfore why thou art mercifull, is for that thou art wholly and excéedyng good.
¶Of the delectable fruition of God.
[Page]O Vnmeasurable goodnesse whiche passest all vnderstādyng of hart, let that mercy of thine come vpō me, whiche procéedeth frō so passing aboūdance. Let that flowe into me whiche floweth out of thée. Spare me of thy mercyfulnesse, and punishe me not by thy Iustice. Awake now my soule, and lift vp thy whole vnderstandyng, and consider to the vttermost of thy power how great and of what sorte that goodnesse is whiche is God. For if euery seuerall good thyng be delectable: cast in thy mynde aduisedly, howe delectable that good thyng is, whiche conteyneth the pleasauntnesse of all good thynges: not in such sorte as we finde it in thynges created, but [Page] as farre differyng, as there is oddes betwéene the creature and the maker. For if the life that is created be good: how good is the lyfe that created it? If the welfare that is created be pleasaunt: how pleasant is the welfare that made all welfare? If the wisedome that consisteth in conceiuyng or knowynge of thynges knowen, be amiable: how amiable is the wisedome that made all thynges of nothyng? finally, if there be many and great pleasures in thinges that be delectable: what and how great pleasure is there in him which made those delectable thinges? O what shall he haue, or what is it that he shall not haue, which inioyeth this good thyng? Certesse he shall [Page] haue what soeuer he will, and he shall not haue any thyng that he would not haue. For there shall he haue all good thynges, both of body and soule, such as neuer eye of mā hath séene, nor eare heard, nor hart imagined.
The souereine good is to be sought.
WHy raungest thou then through so many thynges O silie mā, séekyng the goodes of thy soule and of thy body? Loue y e one good thyng wherein are all good things, and it is inough. Be desirous of the single good thyng which is all goodnesse, & it sufficeth. For what is it y t thou louest O my fleshe? what desirest thou [Page] O my soule? whatsoeuer thou louest, it is there: whatsoeuer thou desirest, it is there. If thou haue a mynde to beawtie, there the rightuous shine as the sunne. If thou like of swiftnes, strēgth, or libertie of body, where against nothyng may resiste: there they shalbe lyke the aungels of God. For the body is sowen a naturall body, but it shall rise a spirituall body, that is to witte spirituall in power but not in substaunce. If thou desire a long or healthy life: there shalbe healthfull euerlastyngnesse, and euerlastyng healthfulnesse. For the rightuous shall liue for euer, and the welfare of the rightuous cō meth of the Lord. If suffisance: They shalbe suffised when the [Page] glorie of the Lord appeares. If dronkennesse: They shalbe made drūken with the foyzon of Gods house. If melodie: There the angels shall sing vnto God without end. If any maner of pleasure, so it be not vncleane: The Lorde will let them drinke their fill of the streame of his pleasures. If wisedome: The very wisedome of God shall shewe him selfe to them. If frendshyp: They shall loue God more thē them selues, and one an other as themselues: and God shall loue them more then they loue them selues. For they loue him, them selues, and one an other by him: and he loueth him selfe and them by him selfe. If concord: They shall all of them delight but in one thyng, [Page] for there shalbe but one will among them, and that shalbe the will of God their souereine. If power: They shalbe maisters of their wils like as God is of his. For like as God can do what he listeth by him selfe: so shall they be able to doe what they list by him. For like as they wil not list any other thing then he listeth: so will he list whatsoeuer they list, and so consequently whatsoeuer he listeth must néedes come to passe. If honor & riches: God will make his good and faithfull [...]eruaūtes rulers of much goodes, yea they shalbe the children of God and Gods, and they shalbe the heyres of God and coheyres with Christ. Or if thou desire assured safetie: they shalbe as sure [Page] that that good state shall neuer fayle them, as they are sure that they would neuer forgoe it by their owne willes, and that God their louer will not take it away from hys louers agaynst theyr willes, and that there is not any thing mightier then God to separate God and thē a sunder. Now then what and how great ioy is there, whereas is such & so great goodnesse?
¶ Of the mutuall loue betwéene the Saintes in heauens.
O Hart of man, O poore hart, O hart vnacquainted with miserie and wretchednesse, or rather ouerwhelmed with miseries: [Page] how glad wouldest thou be if thou haddest aboundance of all these thinges? Aske thy furthest cōpasse of thyne inward conceyt, if it were able to receiue the ioy of this so great happinesse? Certeinely if any other man whom thou louedst as thy selfe should haue the same happie state, thy ioye would be double, bycause thou wouldest be as glad for him as for thy selfe. But if two or thrée or a nōber mo should haue the same thyng, thou wouldst be as glad for euery one of them as for thy selfe, if thou didst loue thē as thy selfe. What ioy then shall there be in that perfect loue of the innumerable blessed aungels and men, when none shall loue any other lesse then him selfe? for [Page] euery of them shalbe as glad for others as for him selfe. Now if the hart of man be scarce able to conceiue the ioye of any one so great a benefite, how shall it be capable of so many and so great ioyes? And doubtlesse, seyng that accordyng as euery man loueth another, so much doth he reioyse of his welldoing: therfore like as in that blessed happinesse euery man shal without cōparison loue God more then him selfe & all others set all together: so also shal he without estimation reioyse more of Gods happie state, then of his owne & of all other folkes with him. Moreouer if they loue God with all their hart, with all their mynde, and with all their soule, and yet all their hart, all [Page] their mynde, and all their soule suffice not to loue hym as he is worthy: Out of all doubt, they shall also reioyse with all theyr hart, with all their mynde, and with all their soule: and yet their whole hart, their whole mynde, and their whole soule shall not suffice to reioyse to the full.
¶Of the full ioy of the eternall lyfe.
MY God and my Lord, my hope and hartes ioy, tell my soule whether this be the ioy whereof thou sayest vnto vs by thy sonne: Aske, and ye shall receiue, y t your ioy may be full, for I haue founde a certeine ioy that is full and more then full. For [Page] when the hart is full, the mynde full, the soule full, and the whole mā full of that ioy, yet shall there remaine an ouerplus of ioy with out measure. All that ioy then, shall not enter whole into the inioyers of it, but the inioyers shal enter whole into the ioy of their Lord. Lord tell thy seruaunt, tell me inwardly in my hart, whether this be the ioye whereinto those seruaūtes of thyne shall enter, whiche must enter into the ioy of their maister. Truly the ioye that thyne elect shall inioy, was neuer séene of mans eye, nor heard of mans eare, nor conceiued of mās hart. Therefore Lord I haue not yet sayd or imagined howe much thy chosen shall reioyce. Vndoubtedly they shall so [Page] much reioyce, as they dee loue thée: and they shall so much loue thée, as they know thee. And how much shall they loue thée? Verely, no eye hath séene, eare heard, nor hart cōceiued in his life, how much they shall know thée and loue thée in that life. I beséeche thée my God let me know thée & loue thee, that I may haue ioy of thée. And although I cannot do it to the full in this life: yet let me profite from day to day vntill it may come to the full. Let the knowledge of thee grow in me here, that it may become full there. Let the loue of thée increase in me here, that it may be full there: so as my ioy may be great in hope here, and full in deede there. O soothfast God, [Page] I pray thée let me receiue the thyng that thou promisest, that my ioye may be full. In the meane tyme let my mynde be thinkyng vpon it, let my toung be talkyng of it, let my hart long for it, let my mouth be speakyng of it, let my soule hunger after it, let my flesh thirst after it, let my whole selfe be desirous of it, vntill such tyme as I may enter into the ioy of my Lorde, there to continue for euer worlde without ende. Amen.
All glorie, honor, prayse, and thankes be giuen to God alone.
¶A TABLE OF the Prayers contained in S. Austens bookes intitled his selfe talke with God, and his Manuell.
- OF the vnspeakable sweetnes of God.
- Of the wretchednes & frailtie of man.
- Of Gods wonderfull light.
- Of the mortalitie of mans nature.
- Of the fall of the soule into sinne.
- Of Gods manifold benefites.
- Of mans dignitie in tyme to come.
- Of Gods omnipotencie.
- Of the incomprehensible prayse of God.
- Of lifting a mans hope vnto God.
- Of the snares of concupiscence.
- Of mans miserie and Gods benefites.
- How God doth continually behold & marke mens doynges and intentes.
- Of mans imbecillitie without the grace of God.
- Of the deuill and his manifold temptatiōs.
- That God is the light of the righteous.
- Of Gods benefites.
- Of the feruentnes of loue or charitie.
- That God hath put all thynges vnder the seruice of man.
- By consideration of earthly benefites we [Page] coniecture the greatnes of the heauenly wisedome.
- That the sweetnes of God taketh away all the present bitternes of this world.
- That all our trust, and longing of our hart ought to be to Godward.
- That our welfare commeth of God.
- That mans will is vnable to doe good workes without the grace of God.
- Of Gods old benefites.
- Of Gods deepe predestination and foreknowledge.
- Of such as be righteous and afterward become wicked, and contrariwise.
- That the faithfull mans soule is the Sanctuary of God.
- That God cannot be found neither by the outward senses, nor by the inward wits.
- Of the acknowledgyng of a mans owne vilenesse.
- A consideration of Gods maiestie.
- Of the longing and thirsting of the soule after God.
- Of the glorie of the heauenly countrey.
- A Prayer to the holy Trinitie.
The table of prayers in his Manuell.
- [Page]OF Gods wonderfull beyng.
- Of y e vnspeakable knowledge of God.
- Of the longing of the soule that feeleth God.
- Of the wretchednesse of that soule whiche loueth not, neither seeketh our Lord Iesus Christ.
- Of the longing of the soule.
- Of the happines of the soule that is let loose from the prison of the body.
- Of the ioyes of paradise.
- Of the kyngdome of heauen.
- Of the comfort of the sorrowfull soule after the long mournyng therof.
- Of ioye.
- That the word is become flesh for our sake.
- That the more a man museth vpon God, the sweeter it is to him.
- That tribulations for Christes sake, are to be desired in this life.
- Howe the kyngdome of heauen may be gotten.
- What paradise, is and what it hath.
- What thyng God requireth lyke vnto him selfe in vs.
- Of the boldnesse of the soule that loueth God.
- What God hath done for man.
- The remembryng of the woundes of our Lord Iesus Christ.
- That the remēbraūce of Christes woūdes [Page] is an effectuall remedy agaynst all aduersities.
- The musing of the soule vpon the loue of God.
- What the knowledge of the truth is.
- What the sendyng of the holy Ghost worketh in vs.
- Of the workyng of him that loueth God.
- Of the true rest of the hart.
- Whatsoeuer withdraweth the mynde from God, must in any wise be eschewed and abhorred.
- That the seyng of God is lost through sinne, and miserie found in stede of it.
- Of Gods goodnes.
- Of the delectable fruition of God.
- That the souerein good is to be sought.
- Of the mutuall loue betweene the Saintes in heauen.
- Of the full ioy of the eternall life.
AT LONDON Printed by Iohn Daye, dwellyng ouer Aldersgate.
¶ Cum gratia & Priuilegio Regiae Maiestatis.