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A13907
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The treasure of the soule Wherin we are taught how in dying to sin, we may attayne to the perfect loue of God, & our neighbour, and consequently vnto true blessednes and saluation. Many yeares since written in the Spanish tonge, & and [sic] now newly translated into English: by A.P.; Spill de la vida religiosa. English.
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Poyntz, Adrian.
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1604
(1604)
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STC 24208; ESTC S121766
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64,180
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314
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THE TREASVRE OF the Soule Wherin we are taught how in dying to Sin we may attayne to the perfect loue of God our neighbour and consequently vnto true blessednes and Saluation Many yeares since written in the Spanish tonge and now newly translated into English By A. P. 1. Tim 1. The end of the commandementes is loue springing from a clean hart a good conscience an vnfained faith Gal. 5. Those that appertaine to Christ haue crucified their flesh with all the euill desires concupiscences thereof LONDON Printed by Iohn Wolfe 1596. To the worshipfull his good Vncle Maister Richard Saltonstall Alderman of the Citty of London and his wife Mistres Susan Saltonstall his louing Aunt Adrian Poyntz wisheth health prosperity in the Lord. WHen I had finished the translation of this Booke louing Vncle Aunt I remembred the common order custome euer vsed in so much that few commit their labours to the view of the world vnlesse they first procure some Patrone for their defence I therefore vnwilling to send my translation to the presse before I had committed it to the patronage of some And standing in doubt to whome I might offer my labour in this kind trusting vpon your curtesies did embolden my selfe to commende this Treatise to your protections The booke was written aboue an hundreth and threescore yeares since in the Spanish tongue the Authour thereof being vnknowne As for his stile and methode of writing I meane not to commend it leauing the iudgment thereof to those vnto whom such censures are belonging I for my parte as I haue faithfully englished his words deliuered his meaning in such maÌ„ner that EnglishmeÌ„ may both read his treatise and vnderstand it so I doo not doubt but that it wil be as profitable vnto them that reade it for their instruction as it hath beene to other nations who haue greedily desired the traÌ„slation hereof And thus beseeching you to take my good will and meaning in good part I commit you to the tuition of the Almightie Your worships to commaunde Adrian Pointz THE PREFACE of the Authour to the Reader THE more graces a man hath receyued of God and the more he is indued with knowledge of vnderstanding the greater punishment he deserueth if therefore he be vnthankefull And againe whosoeuer acknowledgeth the benefites of God he also by all naturall reason is bound the more to loue him Nowe all bookes are replenished with knowledge and learning nowe is the holy Gospell sealed and confirmed with the precious bloude of the immaculate Lambe of God to the end we may haue a greater assurance of the vnspeakeable loue towards vs. All bookes I say are full the earth doth abounde with Preachers sounding forth as Trumpettes the great power and excellency of the Almighty for to draw stirre vs vp to lande praise giue thankes to our Creatour and most louing Father But we are all so prone to vnthankefulnes and so ready to forget his benefites so largely bestowed vpon mankind that there is none almost to bee found who vnfaynedly doo seeke him But all runne and flie headlong into darke and obscure places of sin and wickednesse Moued therefore by the premises I haue finished this booke to the glory of God and as I hope to the furtherance of the godly And because that nowe a dayes our slothfulnesse is so great our desire and stomacke to the glory of God so faint weake and slender I haue vsed here in this my booke sundry similitudes and parables by these meanes to intice the minds of men the more to the deep consideration of the contentes of this volume THE TREASVRE of the Soule IN times past there dwelte in a huge and great forrest a wise and godly man dayly watching fasting and praying deuoutly seruing the Lorde Who being desirous to attaine asmuch as lay in man to the true and perfect knowledge of vnderstanding and the loue of God leauing his cottage determined with himselfe to trauaile through all the world for to see if he could find any that wold vouchsafe to teach him the same And after greate and wearisome iournyes met in the ende with a shepheard feeding his flocke in a green pasture He being very glad of this hauing as yet in none of all his iourneyes found or scene any man came to him said Brother I thanke God that I doe see thee wherevpon the shepheard bidding him welcome asked him what hee lookt for in this desart I looke saide he for a knight who but nowe is gone by this way The seconde Chapter doth instruct the Pastors and Teachers of the people DEsire for it was that holy mans name meruaylinge greatly at the prouision diligence and care which the shephearde tooke in his trade for that he had a crook in his hand a bagge hanging at his right side woodeen cloge at his feet and a long coat vpon his backe besides at his lefte side two hornes hanging at his girdle thâ— one somwhat bigger thâ—â— the other and two great dogges lying before at his feet and not farre from thence his cottage enuironed with a hedge of thornes rounde about it The shepherd perceuing Desire to beholde and to view him so diligent and narrowly asked him the cause of his wondering that if neuer before he had seen any shepheard Whervppon Desire aunswered him how he had seene diuers of them but none so well prouided and furnished of all necessaries as he was desyring him most frendly that it woulde please him to shewe and declare vnto him those thinges which hee should in curtesie demand aske him The shephearde hauing graunted to satisfy him in all his questions so farre as he was able or his knowledge shoulde reach vnto Desire began and saide tell mee I pray thee wherefore carryest thou this crooke Why demandest thou mee this question quoth the shephearde and thou a countrey swaine and a heard-man and doest thou not know this I do carry it said he that I might leane vpon it and keep me from falling when I leade my sheep about the pastures To rule likewise my sheep with it to driue theÌ„ into the right way to keep theÌ„ together that they runne not astray and sâ—eke sundry wayes according to their owne pleasure For when one runneth before and the other behind then doe I driue the hindmost forwarde And what hast thou in this bagge quoth Desire Diuers and sundry things aunswered the shephearde First of all I haue a tinder boxt for to strike make fyre in colde weather and to dresse my meat for me and my housholde Besides I haue in it breade ointmentes a smal bottel with oyle and salt giuing these to my sheep ofteÌ„times but chiefly the salt Wherefore dost thou weare these wooddeÌ„ clogges demanded Desire for to keep my feete warm when it is â—râ—gâ—â— or the drie in raying weather answered the shepheard for if I should wear fine and proper shoes they would be quickly
of the Treasure of the Soule The first Chapter intreateth of Patience DEsire parted merely froÌ„ the pallace of Humility hauing filled his belly with the sruâ—tes of the Garden thereof and was well prouided with good companie namely with his Dogge Good-wil And 〈◊〉 his one side with the Feare of God and at the other with sincetitie and his pockets full besides with the fruites of To trust in God And although they had tolde him that it was shorter and a great deale neerer then any other waye yet notwithstanding did find it to be very harde and tedious ful of stones hedges and thornes Where vpon hee said to sincerity O good God how coms this way so harde vneasie and todious I neuer would haue thought it that it coulde haue beene so Maruaâ—le not qd sinceritie for therefore it is called the way of Patience and if it were not so ful of stones prickles and thornes and not so troublesome to walke in it it should not beare the name which it doeth and the house where it bringeth a man vnto not of such a great estimation if the way were euen and pleasant and euery one could walk in it according to his owne will and liking But nowe none come thether before they be first well exercised in vertue For dost thou not remember the common prouerbe There is no gaine without paine No ioy without annoy And seeing thou art now entred into it bee of good cheere for it will not last long for thou knowest that be who desireth to fish must not feare the water and doest thou thinke then to finde so costly and precious a treasure as is the Loue of God without paine Remember I pray thee what Seneca saith A rare and precious thing is not to bee bought with smal money Besided the ende of toyle and labour is rest quiet Therefore it were a foolish thing but once to imagine that such a costly iewell could bee gotten so easily at euery mans pleasure For if one could find the Loue of God so lightly he wold be nothing esteemed of because lightly gotten lightly forgotten Therefore do thy best and let a small paine not annoy thee then afterward thou shalt rest with the Loue of God reioyce and dayly banket with him and the greater pain thou takest now to finde him the more wilt thou esteem of him and with greater diligence wilt thou endeuour thy selfe to keepe his fauour And likewise how thy paine trauell which thou hast taken for him hath beene more tedious so much the greater shall bee thy ioy comforte and pleasure Againe if thou feelest thy selfe weake and almost ready to sounde take a little of the fruit To trust in God which thou hast about thee and it wil reniue thee againe And if thou wilt not feele the tediousnes of the way do as commonly all trauellers do who with a song doe lighten the tediousnes of their iourney Sincerities wordes did please Desire and saide howe is it possible that one shoulde sing in this olde mans company for commonly age is alwaies repugnant to youthful actions It is his custome quoth shee to beare such graue and seuere a countenance but otherwise hee is very pleasaunt frendly and merry for he is the Loue of Gods onely brother and delighteth in mirth but chiefly when we sing no vayne light or worldly songes How shall I beginne to sing quoth Desire seeing I haue no voice at all It cannot be answered Sinceritie that thou shouldest not haue any voice seeing that thou thy selfe art a voyce Desire did maruel because she saide that hee was a voice himselfe and askt howe it was possible that it should be so Thou and all creatures quoth shee art created by the word of God it is most manifest that soone after the worde vttered the voice followed And seeing that as soone as the Lorde had spoken the word all creatures were made and created it followeth therefore that all creatures are voyces I pray you quoth Desire to tel me this somthing more plainer that I might conceiue it Willingly answered Sincerity The speech and the word is all one thing for the speech is not that which is vttered by the mouth but it is the conceite of the mind that which man speaketh with the mouth is the voyce which vttereth and giueth to vnderstand the speech the word and the inwarde conceite of the mind As for example When I doe thinke with my selfe that thou art a man this is a word or speech although it lyeth hidden wtin me Now let vs heare quoth Desire seeing that I am a voice what kind of voice am I Thou art answered Sincerity a voice of the Lord who hath created thee to honour laude and praise him But what doe I say of my selfe as I am a voice qd Desire through the good which thou hast receiued from God saâ—de she thou criest that God is good and bountifull by the comelines wherewith he hath endued thee thou sayest that God is beautifull and so consequently all the wherewith God hath endued thee is but a voice of him declaring his bounty goodnesse What reason haue you qd Desire to say that all wherewith God hath adorned me is but a voice of him sayest not generally that all which I haue in mee is his voyce Because answered she the sin and wickednes which do remain in thee are not created of God therfore they cannot hee voyces of the Lorde but well thine owne declaring that thou art vile wicked defiled vncleane for as man may come by the creatures to the knowledge of God so likewise may hee attaine through the workes proceeding from himself to his own knowledge The second Chapter declareth the knowledge of God through his câ—â—atures DEsire maruailed as the Ladies graue couÌ„tenaunce I althogh the seemed to bee but plaine was notwithstanding very skilfull and learned in all heauenly knowledge and said vnto her wherefore woulde you haue vs to sing Therefore quoth shee because wee might hereby somewhat forget the tediousnes and paine of this vale of miserye wherevnto the remembrance and contemplatioÌ„ of Gods creatures is likewise a great aide and furtherance and therefore haue I placed them in the way of Patience for the sooner shalt thou come to the Loue of God if thou doest exercise thy hart oftentimes in the booke of the creation for through Patience and the holy scriptures whereof all the world is but a booke we attaine to the knowledge of God and are greatly comforted in a distressed hope And if thou wilt learne to tune thy voyce learne it of the creatures for some of them declare his goodnes some shewe his might some his wisedome some his excellency some his beauty some his mercy some his bountie and generally all more or lesse sounde forth his omnipotency that all in consideration hereof shoulde spread abroade his prayse and glorie Therefore endeuour thy self to learn to sing here by the way for where thou