body because that if he had not hindered that his body had not ben passible at all It was for no other cause but Propter nostram salutë that our great Redeemer suffered the death vpon the crosse as if he had been a sinner Candolfus sayth Christ sometimes gaue place that the glory of his soule should redound and fall vpon the members of his body as it happened in the hill Thabor by reason vvhereof his precious flesh vvas so tender in suffering and so passing desirous to returne to the fruition of the same glory that the absence and delay of that diuine and heauenly comfort did bring Christ most grieuous torment Vpon those vvords of the Psalme Abyssus abyssum inuocat Saint Basil sayth for as much as the soule of the sonne of God vvas full of glory and his precious body loaden with grieuous paine and anguish O how oftentimes the depth of his trauailes and griefes did feruently desire and sigh after the depth of his comfort and consolation the vvhich his eternall Father vvould not impart vnto him vntill hee had ended the redemption of the vvorld O great goodnesse O infinite charity who but thou O my good Iesus vvas hungry vvith bread in his hand thirsty vvith vvater in his mouth naked vvith garments in his chests sad and afflicted with glory in his soule Vpon those vvords Tristis est anima mea S. Barnard sayth It is no maruell if my soule bee sorrowfull and full of anguish because the houre of my glory and felicity is not yet come but in thee O good Iesus why should thy flesh bee so wearied And why should thy soule be comfortlesse seeing that thou carriest with thee all the glory which is in heauen or in earth Vbertinus vpon this place sayth The Redeemer of the world being in the agony of death and very neere the end of his life remembring himselfe of that heauenly comfort and diuine influence vvhich from the glory of his soule was woont to bee imparted to his precious body spake this word Sitio as if he would say O how great the thirst is vvhich I suffer in this last houre and terrible agony to vvit of that influence and heauenly comfort which was woont to bee imparted from my owne soule vnto my owne flesh because this death and passion which my owne Father doth lay vpon this my weake flesh is not onely grieuous but doth also exceed all other humane punishment The great thirst that Christ suffered vpon the crosse and the cooling vvater which hee desired was not the water of the fountain of the hill Lybanus nor yet that which ran in the riuer Silo but that heauenly consolation which the glory of his soule vvas vvont to cause in him for that other humane thirst could not so much grieue him considering how neere hee vvas to the end of his life Wee haue vsed all this discourse to extoll the word of the figure which sayth Et traxit piscem in siccum It is to bee vnderstood that young Tobias did kill the fish vpon the sand vvhich would haue killed him in the water When thinkest thou did Tobias draw the fish vpon drie land but vvhen the eternall Father did leaue his blessed sonne vpon the crosse without any humane consolation O how drie was that drie tree vpon which the heauenly fish hanged vvho hauing been brought vp in the deepe sea of the diuine essence had not there so much as one drop of water to drinke What can be pitied more in this life than for a fish hauing been brought vp in the water yet afterward to die for vvant of vvater Tobias fish was hard by the vvater side and yet died vvith thirst and Christs flesh vvas coupeled with his holy soule and died also vvith thirst because the eternall Father to giue vs drinke of his water of heauen killed his owne onely sonne with thirst and brought him to die vpon the sands of this world If Tobias should not haue drawne the fish to the land hee could not haue mastered him if Christ had not become man neither could he haue died for howsoeuer it be naturall for vs to die yet it is much more naturall for God alwaies to liue What meaneth it that the selfe same fish of whome Tobias thought he should haue been deuoured lay dead afterward at his feet but that that God which all the powers of heauen did feare and tremble at we see now meek gentle hanged vpon the tree When God was nothing but God in his own diuine essence being all the world did feare him and tremble but after that hee came vpon our sandie humanity set foot vpon the drinesse of this world hee who before made others afeard was himselfe afraid and he who before did throw downe others fell himselfe and he who before enriched others became poore and he who gaue all comfort wept himselfe and hee who killed before died Desertum faciam mare eius siccabo venum eius said God by the Prophet Ieremy chap. 51. as if he would say I will make all his sea as drie and without vvater as desart and solitary mountains are woont to bee and I will cut off all the vaines and streames of his depth because there shal flow no water at any end These words must curiously be expounded for God to say that the sea shall bee as drie as a solitary mountaine and that hee will cut off all the vaines of his course throughout all the world seemeth to bee a new speech and a thing that was neuer seene to be beleeued Leauing the letter speaking according vnto the sence of these words the eternal Father doth forewarne his precious sonne that he wil not onely deale with him like one which will not he are him nor giue him any comfort but also that he will cut off all occasions whereby hec may any way receiue comfort in so much that to make the sea become a desart is to make of God a true man and to cut off the vaines of the sea is to cut off all heauenly consolation What other thing was that deepe sea but onely the diuine essence And what else was it to make a drie desart of the raging sea but to make him who was the eternal God a true mā God said by the mouth of his Prophet Desertum faciammare eius speaking of his son and as he did prophecie so he did accomplish it for when he hanged vpon the altar of the crosse he neuer made answere to any petition which hee made him nor yet to quench his thirst gaue him so much as one cup of water What a strange thing is this O eternall Father what a strange thing is this For thy bastard abortiue childrē thou didst drawwater out of the liuely rock for thy lawful son hast thou not so much as one drop Whē Agar her son Ismael were ready to perish with thirst in the mountaines of Bersabee neere vnto the Mount Lybanus
which he doth deceiue the world for thou wilt one day thinke that the Lord is carelesse and hee will send some grieuous punishment vpon thee And thou art now to vnderstand that there are so many in thy house which will awake him as thou hast faults and sinnes in thy soule In the house of our Lord who is the waker of his clemency but only our amendment and who is the waker of his iustice but only our offence Vpon those words of the Psalme Ecce non dormitabit S. Barnard sayth As the enemy which dooth impugn Israel Non aormitabit neque dormiet so the Lord who defendeth Israel Neque dormitabit neque dormiet and if it seeme that his clemency is asleepe when he doth fauour vs it is because we should liue better and if it seemeth that hee dooth defer his iustice it is because we should amend What should Isay more vnto thee but look what workes thou doest such wakers of God thou hast If thou be good thou doest awake him to doe thee good if thou bee naught thou doest awake him to doe thee hurt because that in the sight of our Lord the fault crieth for punishment and goodnesse asketh reward Ioining then mystery vnto mystery and Sacrament vnto Sacrament now that wee haue declared how God slept in the old Testament it is reason that wee declare also how his son did sleepe and awake vpon the crosse seeing that there is no lesse to be wondered at in the sleeping of the sonne thā there was to be spoken of in the sleeping of the Father For to think that the sonne of God did sleepe vpon the crosse as one that is weary and in health is woont to doe were a vanity and also an heresie for giuing him as they did gaule to eat and vineger to drinke there were more reason that his stomacke should be ready to ouerturne rather than his head haue any inclination to sleepe When Esay sayth Expergefactus lassus hee speaketh nor of materiall sleepe but of spirituall and if hee say that Christ did awake his powers within him without doubt did not awake because they were broken with tormēts but those powers did awake which lie hidden within him And although the Apostle doe say Quòd ex ipso in ipso per ipsum sunt omnia to wit of him in him and by him all things are yet there are sixe principall things aboue the rest in him These sixe are his essence his power his wisedome his humane flesh his patience and his clemency and of these sixe excellences and graces three of them slept when the sonne of God suffered and the other three alwaies watched His pure and diuine essence slept vpon the crosse seeing hee did not shew himselfe by it to be an absolute God for if hee had shewed himselfe to haue been onely God and not man he could neuer haue died vpon the crosse His high and eternall wisedome slept vpon the crosse in his passion seeing that hee neuer answered vnto any iniurious word were it neuer so grieuous against him Esichius sayth Christ did suffer that to be done by him on the crosse that a sheepe doth by himselfe in the butchery for if the sonne of God should haue showne before Pilate and Herod any sparke of his wisdome the Iews had neuer been able to haue put him to death His inspeakable and incomparable power did also sleep in his passion vpon the crosse not reuenging at all on his enemies for if it would haue pleased him to haue vsed it in lesse than a moment hell would haue swallowed thē all aliue Now that wee haue told what three powers slept with Christ on the crosse it is also conuenient for vs to shew what three they were which watched with him the same time His tender flesh did not sleep at the time of his passion vpon the crosse which was not one moment at ease nor an instant without torment How was it possible that Christ should not bee but awake on the crosse seeing that there was no vaine in his holybody which did not bleed nor no part of his flesh which was not brused and beaten blacke and blew His incomparable patience did watch and not sleepe vpon the crosse the which our blessed Iesus did neuer lose seeing that he neuer spake iniurious word vnto his enemies nor neuer shewed them an angry countenance Augustine sayth All deuout persons ought to follow Christ in the vertue of suffering for besides that the vertue of patience is meritotious before God shee is also an occasion of great quietnesse in mans life Christs diuine and louing clemency did also watch and not sleep in his passion the vvhich he did shew vvhen hee pardoned his enemies and praied for his malefactors O infinite goodnesse O inspeakable pitie O my good Iesus for if vve should grant that all the other vertues should haue slept on the crosse yet thy clemency vvould neuer haue giuen ouer vvatching for it is farre easier for the sonne to lose his light than for thee not to forgiue and pardon Plutarch in his Apothegms sayth That the Emperor Titus on a time gaue a great sigh and said Diem amisimus amici as if he vvould say It is not reason that this day should be reckoned among the daies of my life seeing that I haue done no good nor vsed any liberality in it This speech was spread throughout all the world much commended of the Philosophers and worthy of so high a Prince That which the Emperour Titus spake of his francknesse Christ might farre better haue spoken of his infinite clemency for if the Emperour did let no day passe in the which he did not some good neither did Christ let slip any houre or moment wherein hee did not pardon some offence And because the Prophet saith that the sonne of God did not onely sleepe but also that he did awake let vs now see how these three powers did awake in Christ and when and for what cause His incomparable diuine essence did rise and awake when he spake that terrible word at the time that his soule was drawne out of him and therevpon as it were in a traunce and a maze the great Centurion said of Christ That this was the son of the true God Christ did also awake his high wisdome vpon the crosse whē he spake those seuen wordes in the last houre of his death in the which there is contained more profound and deepe science and knowledge than is in all humane Philosophy or knowledge Christ did also awake his incomparable power when hee made the sunne to be darkened the earth to tremble and quake the graues to open and the dead to rise again Who dooth doubt but that the sonne of God doth shew in these wonderfull meruels the highnesse of his power the depth of his essence and the greatnesse of his wisedome and the valour of his person O my good Iesus O the light of my soule how vnlike thou
art vnto the children of vanity and lightnesse who doe shew their essence and yet are nothing shew their power and yet can doe nothing shew their wisedome and yet doe know nothing CHAP. XIII Where he goeth forward with the figure mentioned before ADhue sitit expergifactus sayth Esay in the place before named as if hee would say When the redeemer of the world did awake vpō the crosse hee did awake very drie and thirsty which was so great a thirst that it continueth vntill this day it is most certaine that when a man doth suffer many griefes at one time that he speaketh of that which grieueth him most and pointeth with his hand where his greatest paine lieth The anguishes which Christ suffered in his mind were innumerable and the griefes which hee endured in his body were intollerable and that which is most of all to be meruelled at is that his torments being so many and so sharpe as they were yet he complained of none of them on the crosse but only of the thirst which he endured Saint Barnard sayth O good Iesus O redeemer of my soule hauing so many things to complaine on doest thou onely complaine of thirst Thy shoulders are naked and whipped thy hands broken thy head bleeding thy flesh brused and yet doest thou complaine on nothing but of the thirst which troubleth thee and of want of water Doest thou complain that thou art thirsty and not that thou art bloudy hast thou not greater want of thy bloud than of water Seeing the bloud which runneth from thy head doth bath thy face wet thy tongue why doest thou aske againe for water For a quarter of an houre that thou hast to liue doest thou complaine that thou wantest water O that the thirst which I suffer saith Christ is not to drinke wine or water but to see your amendment and carry you with mee to my glory for seeing that I am now taking my iourney to heauen I haue a great thirst to take my elect with mee The thirst which I haue the drinesse which I endure is not so much to drink any liquor as to redeem you and saue you and reconcile you with my Father and therefore if thou haue no pitty on mee yet at the least take some on thy selfe O that I had rather that thou haddest some pitty on thy selfe than on mee because it is a greater griefe to see thee lost than to see my self suffer S. Augustine sayth Thou diddest adde vnto all thy anguishes this word Sitio shewing thereby such a great thirst and representing outwardly the exceeding loue that thou diddest beare me inwardly and vnspeakable charity which caused thee to make but small account of all that thou diddest suffer in respect of that desire which thou haddest to suffer And he sayth further O my good Iesus I know well that thy thirst is not for thy selfe but for me and this thy anguish is for no other cause but for the saluation of my soule and when thou saiest that thou hast a desire to drinke that is as much to say as to suffer more for mee in so much that the care that thou hast ouer me is so great that by meanes thereof thou doest wholly forget thy selfe What meaneth this O redeemer of my soule what meaneth this Thy ioints being loosed one from another thy eies broken thy mother hauing her farewell and hauing complained on thy Father doest thou say anew I am a thirst What pitty may be compared vnto this or what goodnesse equall vnto this Oredeemer of my soule Wee see by this word Sitio that death was sufficient to take all thy dolors and griefes from thee and yet that it was not inough to cut off the loue which thou haddest to redeeme vs. Who is able to say truly that thy loue did end vpon the crosse considering that for the loue of thy elect thou diddest yet thirst after more griefes and anguishes All this Saint Augustine spake Chrisostome sayth When the eternall word said vpon the crosse I am a thirst I doe not beleeue that hee did so much aske for water to drinke as hee did aske for time of his Father to suffer more griefe and torment For as the candle when it is going out doth cast the greatest light so Christ the more his death drew neere the more his loue and charity doth kindle towards vs. Remigius vpon Saint Matthew sayth Although the diuine prouidence did reduce all the trauailes of his life vnto three yeares and that also hee brought all the torments of the crosse vnto three houres yet it is not to bee beleeued that Christ his infinite charity was contented with this short time and therefore I thinke for my owne part that the thirst which hee shewed vpon the tree vvas not so much to drinke of any water of the riuer as to declare and make manifest his loue vnto the world Fulgentius in a Sermon sayth The sonne of God did thinke that seeing his Father had not giuen him charity by waight so hee should not giue him torment by measure by reason whereof hee cried aloud on the crosse Sitio to let vs vnderstand by this thirst that seeing the gifts which hee receiued had no end that the torments likewise which he receiued should not be limitted CHAP. XIIII Of the crueltie and ingratitude that the Iewes vsed in giuing Christ gaule and vineger and how he satisfied for euery sinne in particular DEderunt in escam meam fel in siti mea potauerunt me aceto sayth Christ by the Prophet as if hee would say Being vpon the altar of the crosse full of torments loaden vvith griefes compassed with enemies I had scarsely spoken the word Sitio but they gaue mee gaule to eat and vineger to drinke There is much matter to bee spoken vpon this that is what drinke they gaue him when they gaue it him where they gaue it him why they gaue it him in what they gaue it him and how quickly they gaue it him The drinke which they gaue him was gaule and vineger the place where was vpon the crosse the time was when hee was yeelding vp the ghost the cause why was to helpe him to die they gaue it him in a reed and a spunge and that presently when he had thirst so that all these circumstances doe aggrauate the fault in them Wee find that the diuell made two banquets in this world the one in the terrestriall paradise vnto our Father where he gaue him the fruit of the tree to eat the other to Christ in the desert where he inuited him to stones of the field the which might haue ben ground sifted and so mingled that they might haue been eaten The Iewes gaue Christ worser meat than the diuell offered him in the desart for they gaue him gaule to eat and vineger to drinke which are bitter and soure horrible in tast and mortal in eating For as the Philosopher sayth The truest loue is the loue of children the smell
turned your gall into honny and your poison into triacle Feare not nor yet haue no suspition that I will reuenge for that iniurie or that I will take satisfaction for that reproch and shame but I haue rather a will to looke vnto your wants giue nurriture vnto your children It is not necessary to expound this glorious figure vnto those which are curious in the scriptures seeing al this was fulfilled literally in our good Iesus Yet notwithstanding we will say something touching this figure because all mē may perceiue how well the truth answereth vnto the figure the sence vnto the letter the proofe vnto the prophecie and that which was prophecied vnto that which after happened What did it mean that Ioseph was enuied of his owne proper brothers but that the son of God was hated of al the Iews Who was sold vnto the Ismalites like Ioseph but the blessed Iesus who was also bought with money Who like vnto Ioseph was cast into prison because hee would not commit adultery with his mistris but only the sonne of God which was condemned vnto death because he would not consent to sinne with the Synagogue who like vnto Ioseph did pardon the manslaughter cōmitted by his brothers but only the son of God who was not cōtent only to pardō his enemies but also praied vnto his father for thē The pardon which Christ gaue his enemies was of greater value thē that which Ioseph gaue vnto his brothers because without comparison it is a greater mischiefe to take ones life frō one thē to sell his person O how rightly may the son of God say vnto the Iews which killed him Vos cogitastis de me malum sed deus vertit illad in bonum You thought todo me hurt but God doth turne it to my good considering that they thought at one time to put him to death vpō the crosse and take all power from him vpon earth but hee maugre theirmalice rose the third day and like vnto another Ioseph had al power giuen vnto him vpon earth and in heauen You O yee Iews Cogitastis de me malum When you bereaued me of my life but my blessed father did turne it to my good when at the same time my life ended the Synagogue was buried and the Church tooke her beginning With iust occasion and with no lesse reason good men may say vnto the euill the iust vnto the vniust those that are persecuted vnto the persecutors Vos cogitastis de me malum You thinke to hurt mee but God turneth it vnto my good for when they thinke to suppresse tread them down they exalt and life them vp and thinking to diffame and discredite them they giue them credite and honour for the Tyrant Herod did much more good to the innocent children when hee caused their throats to bee cut then if hee had caused them to haue ben kept and brought vp There was neuer done in the world saith S. Augustine in his Confessions nor neuer shal be done a wickeder part then the killing of Christ and yet there was neuer so great good done nor neuer shal bee as hath been gathered by the death of Christ that is the redemption of all the vniuersall world in so much that God neuer permitteth any euill to be done whereof he doth not draw some profite Cyprian in his booke of Martyrs sayth If the diuell do tempt thee if the flesh disquiet thee if the world hate thee Iacta cogitatum tutum in dominum Cast thy thought vpon God for although Tyrants and naughty men thinke to doe thee hurt yet haue a sure confidence and hope Quòd deus vertet illud in bonum That God will turne it to good seeing that the euill Christian goeth out of tribulation moued and stirred vp but not amended and the good and vertuous man chastised bettered and amended The excommunicated Iewes Cogitabant de Christo malum whē at the foot of the crosse they said Vah qui destruis templum dei Thou which doest destroy the Temple of God but the son of God turned that into good when hee said Pater ignosce illis Father forgiue them in so much that the hast which they vsed in speaking ill and cursing of him and reuiling him our good Iesus vsed in blessing and praying for them It is here now to bee weighed how it can be true that the sonne of God was heard of his father as S. Paule sayth Pro sua reuerentia Seeing that God answered him no one word at all For the better vnderstanding of this point it is to bee presupposed that in some requests which were made vnto the sonne of God if he would not yeeld vnto that which was demanded he answered them presently by word but when it pleased him to condiscend vnto their petition he performed it with deed without any word speaking we haue example of both these in the Zebedeans his cousins vnto whom he answered Nescitis quid petatis You know not what you aske when the great Iohn Baptist sent to know of Christ Es tu qui venturus est He answered no one word vnto the Embassie more then that he began immeadiately before the Embassadors to work such great miracles that they knew by them that he was the Messias promised vnto the Iewes When the collectors of the tributes of Capernaum said vnto Iesus that hee was to pay his Didrachma which was the tribute due vnto the king he answered them no word at all but sent S. Peter vnto the sea and of that which the disciple fished the maister pared his tribute To applie this vnto our purpose wee say that what magnificency Christ vsed vnto Iohus desciples and vnto the rent-gatherers of Capernaum the selfesame vsed the father towards his proper son on the crosse not answering him by word vnto Pater ignosce illis Father forgine them but by deed forgiuing the wicked their offences if they would at any time be sorry and repent them of their sinnes and by confirming the good in grace Beda vpon Luke sayth That the praier which the sonne of God made was not mad in vaine considering that by the merit of that praier and by him who praied it all our praiers both are and haue been heard and for this cause the Apostle sayth Quòd offerebat oblationes preces Because hee praied for all men and in the name of all men and so he wept for all and in the name of all O good Iesus O glory of my soule what doe I want if I doe not want thee and what haue I not saith Barnard if I haue thee I haue and possesse thee O my good Iesus seeing that I am partaker of thy praiers I haue part in thy teares I haue thy gifts in pledge I am the successor of thy sorrowes and heire apparant vnto thy sweatings Damascen sayth as the Apostle doth Exauditus est prosua reuerentia Christ was heard vpon the crosse seeing that by the merites of Father forgiue
Christ and how he beleeued and of that which the Prophet Ieremy speaketh to this purpose TOnde capillum tuum proijce sume indirectum planctum quiae perijt fides ablata est de ore eorum said God vnto the Prophet Ieremy in the 7. chap as if hee would say O Ieremy my friend and Prophet poule the haire of thy head and then cast it vnder thy feet and weepe and bewaile the Synagogue because now there is no truth in her mouth and the faith of her Commonwealth is vtterly lost Men did neuer poule their heads in holy scripture nor rent their garments nor shed many tears but for very great disasters or pitifull accidents as for the death of Iobs childreÌ„ with all the losse of all his goods for what cause holy Iob shaued his hair rent his garmeÌ„ts cried out with loud cries It is much here to be noted and also necessary to bee known that seeing the scripture saith that the soule which committeth the sin that the selfesame shal endure the punishment why God coÌ„manded Ieremy to weepe with his eies and poule his hair for the sins which others haue committed If Israel do offend fall into the sin of idolatry how is the good Prophet Ieremy to be blamed why is he commanded to poule his hair for it cast it vnder feet Hath not euery man think you inoughto do to weep for his own sins without weeping for other mens sorrows Hugo de sancto victore answereth vnto this doubt vpon those words Defecerunt prae lachrimis oculi mei Thren 1. and saith that there is nothing more natural vnto good meÌ„ theÌ„ to weep for the sins of the wicked The charity of the good is so great the carelesnes ossinners so idle that the iust meÌ„ dofirst weepe for the sins of the wicked then they do weep for theÌ„selues O how many sinners do we see in these daies sporting laughing in the world for whose sins the iust do weep and giue themselues discipline O that it would please the God of heaueÌ„ that the heart of him who sinneth would receiue such griefe as the iust in seeing him sinne I sweare by the law of a good man that none would go to rest at night with sinne nor rise in the morning without grace Is there any day saith Cyrillus vpoÌ„ Leuit. in which a good maÌ„ doth not better himself or any moment wherin he doth not merit considering that he doth imitate the good in that which they do weep for the wicked in that they commit King Dauid did weepe for the death of his deare sonne Absolon and not only because hee was his son but because he saw him die in that euil estate The son of God wept ouer the city of Ierusalem not only because they would there kil him but because they wold neuer ameÌ„d theÌ„ of their wickednes The Prophet Ieremy did weepe very much for the captiuity of his people not so much because they were in captiuity in BabiloÌ„ as because they would not neither for that punishmeÌ„t or any thing else leaue their idolatry the great captain Iosua with all the nobles of Israel wept not because of his own life which was not long but because they saw how ingrateful the synagogue was to god The Prophet Samuel wept when king Saule came froÌ„ the conquest of Amelech not so much because God had depriued him of a kingdome but because hee had falne into such a great sinne Saint Augustine in his Confessions saith thus We do not see good men so much occupied in any thing as in drawing euill men to good life and when they can neither by entreaty nor threatning conuert them then they betake themselues to weep bitterly for them When Ieremy said Defecerunt prae lachrimis oculi mei and when Dauid said Exitus aquarum c. what else would they say but that the eies of the one of them were failed for weeping for the paines which the people endured and that the eies of the other were made a sea of teares for the great wickednesse which he saw in Israel Anselmus in his meditations saith thus O sweet Iesus O my good Lord if good men should not aid me with their holy praiers if holy men should not helpe me to weepe for my grieuous offences what would become of mee wicked and wretched creature O what infinit charity O what vnspeakable mercy saith Ierome vpon Ieremy had our Lord vpon the wicked Synagogue and alwaies hath vpon euery sinfull soule considering that he commanded the Prophet Ieremy to weep for the sins committed by her as though they were his own Wherfore thinkest thou doth our Lord command holy iust men to weepe for our sinnes but because he knoweth better then we our selues that if we haue power to fall into sins yet that we cannot lift ourselues out of them without his grace license Who then is able to obtaine vs this grace but he who is in state of grace It is to be noted that in Ieremies weeping our Lord commanded him first to poule his he are then cast it and tread it vnder his feet and that then hee should weepe ouer them of all which things there is none which wanteth a secrete and a mystery What other things are the superfluou heares in the head but the vaine and light cogitations which are in the mind When he saith That the oftner our heare is pouled and shaued the more they encrease grow what meaneth hee else but that filthy and vnclean thoughts the more they are suppressed and kept vnder the faster they grow vpon vs What doth he else mean when he commandeth Ieremy not to pul vp his hear by the root but only poule it but only that if we be able to resist vncleane thoughts yet wee are not able wholly to subdue them and pull them vp The roots of the heare remaine alwaies in the head and the rootes of vaine desires continue alwaies in the soule if our Lord dooth permit this it is because wee should haue matter wherevpon to exercise our selfe in and occasion to merit the more Then we do pâ—â—â— vp our euill cogitations wheÌ„ we throw them out of our hearts then we spurn theÌ„ with our feet when we return no more to thinke vpon them and then we weepe with all our heart when we repent that euer wee consented vnto them O how happy should I be if I could shaue the superfluous thoughts of my heart could kick at the disordinate desires of my mind could weepe the times which I haue euilly spent for in the latter day wee shall giue as strait an account of the times which we haue euilly spent as of the offences which we haue committed Speaking more particularly seeing that God coÌ„manded the Prophet Ieremy to poul his head as if he had ben a simple man kicke at that which he had pouled weep many tears it is conuenient now that
my hart should dispose my penne write my inke marke and my paper suffer mee to write how happy they are who escape the drinking of this cup and how vnhappy they are which drinke of it With this cup of ire God did threaten Ierusalem of this the Synagogue dranke with this wicked Babilon was drunk yea and this was the cause why all Iudea was lost S. Augustine in an Homilie saith He drinketh of the cursed cup of ire who through his sin falleth from the estate of grace which is an euill aboue all the euils of this life because a soule without grace is farre more deader than a body without a soule When doest thou thinke that God doth suffer vs to drinke of the cup of his ire but when hee forgetteth to hold vs vp with his hand through our demerite When shall wee see whether we haue dronke of the cup of his wrath but vvhen God is carelesse in keeping vs from falling and vvee slothfull in amending our selues S. Ambrose vpon the Psalmes sayth O vvhat a difference there is betwixt the vvrath of God the vvrath of man for they punish vvhen they are angry but God forbeareth to punish vvhen hee is angry in so much that God is more displeased vvhen hee dissembleth a fault than vvhen he doth presently punish S. Barnard sayth That there is no greater temptation than not to bee tempted nor greater tribulation thaÌ„ not to be afflicted nor greater punishment than not to be punished nor yet a sharper scourge than not to be scourged For as there is small hope of the sick mans life vvhome the Phisition doth distrust and despaire of euen so in like manner there is great occasion to suspect the saluation of that man vvhom our Lord doth not punish in this life It is also to be noted that Esay doth not only threaten Ierusalem because she dronk of the cup of the ire of God but because she drunke also the dregs and lees vntill shee left none in so much that if there had ben more more she would haue drunk We call that properly the dregs of the wine that part of the wine which corrupteth and marreth and that which goeth to the bottome and that which rotteth and stinketh and that whereof we receiue no profite What are the dregs which sinke vnto the bottome but onely wicked sinne which beareth vs into hell The dregs of sinne cause vs to rot and with dregs of sinne we sinke and by the dregs of sinne we are damned and by the dregs of sin we are hated of God I will visite Ierusalem and those men which are fastened in their dregs saith God by the Prophet Sophonias in the first chapter as if hee would say I will visite all the dwellers of Ierusalem and I will make no reckoning of other sinnes and offences but of such as I shall find entangled and tumbling in the dregs and lees Who are those which sticke in the mire are bedurted with the dregs but those which stand obstinately in their sinnes and wickednesse God complaineth not of those which are defiled in the dregs but on those which are fastened and fixed in them for our Lord is not so much scandalized to see vs fall into sinnes as to see vs wallow and delight in their dregs and grounds O that wicked is the heart which is fastened and standeth firme in the dregs of sinne because promises cannot allure and entise him nor threatnings feare him nor entreatie conuert him nor punishment amend him nor counsell profite him How badly our Lord liketh of them which are firme in the lees and dregs he sheweth plainly seeing he threatneth such as stand fast in them and those which drink of the cup vnto the dregs wherof we may inferre that wee doe not so much condemne our selues for sinning as because we will not goe out of sinne To drinke of the cup vnto the dregs is as if as there are but seuen capitall sins they were feuen thousand to haue a will to offend in them all before we died To drinke vnto the dregs is that if by deed we commit ten sinnes euery day in thought we commit an hundred euery houre To drinke the cup vnto the dregs is that if wee omit to commit any sinne it is not because wee would not but because we could not or durst not To drinke of the cup vnto the dregs is that not being content to sinne we commend and praise our selues for doing it as if we had done our Lord some notable seruice To drinke the cup vnto the dregs is that when wee haue committed all kind of sinnes yet wee cannot endure to be called sinners To drinke the cup vnto the dregs is to be so gracelesse and shamelesse in sinning that we entise and importunately vrge others to do the like To drinke the cup vnto the dregs is to hate our neighbour with our heart iuiurie him with words and hurt him in deeds Loe thus then haue I told you what is the cup of bitternes which the elect and chosen drinke of and which is the cup of wrath and ire which the wicked drinke of in so much that if wee would know who shall bee saued or who damned wee are onely to mark what cup he dranke of To come then vnto our purpose we must suppose that these two theeues drank of both these cups which are so dreadfull and wonderfull and such as the cup was of which ech of them dranke such was the reward or punishment which on the crosse ech of theÌ„ receiued and carried away WheÌ„ the naughty theefe said vnto Christ saue thy selfe and vs he dranke of the cup of wrath and when the good theefe said vnto Christ Lord remember me he dranke of the cup of bitternesse insomuch that the one drank of the pure wine seeing he went into heauen and the other dranke of the stinking dregs seeing he went into hel What meaneth this O good Iesus what meaneth this Seeing they were both coÌ„panions both the eues both hanged both saw Christ and both were neere vnto Christ why doe they giue to the one to drinke of the cup of glory and vnto the other the cup of ire S. Augustine answereth vnto this sayth Why God doth giue light vnto one and not vnto another why he draweth this man and not that man I pray thee good brother goe not about to seeke out the reason if thou wilt not bee deceiued for all this dependeth of Gods high iudgements the which although they be secret yet notwithstanding they be not vniust Origen vpon Mark saith As there are many things in the heart which are not of the heart and as there are many in warâ—â— which take no pay in the warre so the naughty theefe was vpon the crosse not hauing the fruit of the crosse for in stead of asking Christ that he would pardon him be asked that he would deliuer him and vnbind him If thou bee Christ saith the naughty theefe saue thy selfe
must deliuer the father of all fault and allow the sonnes complaint to bee good To vnfold our selues of this businesse it is to bee noted that Christ said by the Prophet Abinfantia creuit mecum miseratio Because he began to suffer from his childhood and yet hee neuer complained vntill the time came that hee should die Leo vpon the Passion of our Lord sayth That the noble mens children of this world crie our presently when they see any trouble come vpon them and aske for succour but neuer any man saw our Lord open his mouth to complaine vntill a quarter of an houre before they would pull his heart out of his body S. Chrisostome vpon Luke crieth out sayth What newes is this O redeemer of the vvorld vvhat news is this When they lay hands on thee thou takest it quietly vvhen they blaspheme thee thou makest as though thou vvere deaffe vvhen they vvhip thee thou doest hold thy tongue whon they doe crucifie thee thou doest suffer vvhen they kil thee thou doest dissemble and yet doest thou open thy mind euen as thou art yeelding vp thy ghost Why doest thou complaine vpon thy father alone hauing as thou hast so many enemies which haue offended thee that is Iudas who sold thee Peter which did denie thee Pilate which gâ—ue sentence on thee Herod vvho scorned thee and all the people vvhich put thee to death Demosthenes the Philosopher sayth That a man ought neuer begin that vvhich hee cannot bring to an end nor say that vvhich he cannot proue nor aske that which cannot be giuen him nor loue that vvhich cannot be gotten noâ— contend with him vvhome hee cannot reuenge nor yet complaine of that which cannot bee remedied Seneca in an Epistle sayth That no man should say that hee complaineth vnlesse he thinke that he shall haue remedy against his complaint for otherwise he doth himselfe hurt in complaining stirreth him vnto anger of vvhom he complaineth Tell mee then O good Iesus what remedy hâ—st thou for thy coÌ„plaint seeing that thou hast not halfe an houre to liue Doest thou make thy request vnto thy Father when thy soule is euen now departing from thy body Who euer heard of or euer saw the like that the end of thy vexitions to bee the beginning of thy complaint in thirty and three yeares that thou diddest conuerse with vs thou diddest neuer braule with any thou diddest neuer iniury any man nor neuer complaine of any man and now being at the very point of death doest thou complaine only vpon thy Father O what great mystery and deep secret this thy complaint doth couer seeing that in such a time and such a narrow strait thou doest complaine when all other are woont to pardon their iniuries and reconcile their enmities and aske pardon for their offences Pauper in laboribus a iuuentute mea exaltatus autem humiliatus conturbatus these wordes the Prophet Dauid sayth in the person of Christ Psalme 88 as if hee would say I haue been brought vp in trauails and pouerty from my childhood and then I was lifted vp and then made low and afterward troubled and persecuted Thy fears haue made me afraid and thy angers haue broken vpon me and thy trauails haue compassed me about and they haue compassed me about altogether as it were a vie and ouer and aboue all this thou hast set my friend farre from me and hast seperated him who was my neighbour farre from me If wee doe deepely looke into the complaints which the sonne maketh in this place against his eternall Father wee shall find that they are many in number great in quality and in respect incomparable cruell in their kind and vnworthy of him vnto whom they are sent Basil vpon the Psalme sayth That speaking like a man it seemeth in humane reason that the innocency of good Iesus did not deserue neither could it be in the clemency of his good Father that the diuine pittie should load vpon weake humanity so many torments together and heape so many troubles vexations The first complaint which the sonne made against his Father is Quod pauper in laboribus sum a iuuentute mea to wit That he brought him vp poorely from his childhood he made him liue with hunger and go like a banished man from place to place Cicero sayth in an Epistle When a young man doth suffer trauails and endure pouerty if he bee not a foole and an idiot he beareth it with a great courage by remembring that his Father was poore in the same manner but if his Father had been rich and now hee himselfe poore this is such a misfortune that there is no patience able to endure it nor heart which can dissemble it What should the sonne of God thinke when hee remembreth what a rich Father hee had and that hee did spend all his treasure vpon other mens children and suffer him to goe poorely naked and a hungred and scorned by all men The Apostle speaking of Gods riches sayth Deus qui dines es in omnibus as if hee would say Thou art the God only which doth possesse great riches and art the Lord which hath many lordships because thou shouldest want nothing thy selfe and to impart much of the ouerplus vnto others Gloria diuitiae in domo eius saith the Prophet his house is full of glory and there is infinite wealth in his chamber If God then haue glory for those which are in heauen with him and bee also a father who hath wealth for such as are with him in this world what was the cause why he did not impart some of this vnto his sonne Ambrose vpon this word Pauper in laboribus sayth That most sacred humanity came in pouerty of glory seeing that his Father did not suffer his soule to impart somewhat of his glory vnto his body and his person also liued in pouerty seeing hee had nothing proper vnto himselfe in this life in so much that as the father was rich in all things so the sonne was poore of all things Plato in his Timaeo sayth That although pouerty bee no euill thing in a good man yet notwithstanding mans nature doth much abhorre it because there can none but he be called very fortunate who is able to giue vnto others neither is there any other very vnfortunate but hee who must of necessity aske of others It is to bee thought that Christs humanity did feele his pouerty and necessity which hee endured aswel because his father had very much to bestow vpon him as for that hee must oftentimes aske for that which hee had need of S. Bonauenture sayth in the life of Christ Christ had much a doe to maintaine himselfe and those of his Colledge for sometimes he asked that which he had need of and they gaue it him not and at other times he asked not and yet they sent him in so much that there did striue in his tender heart at one time the hunger
deepe wounds S. Barnard vpon the Canticles saith Note well that Christ doth not say thou hast brokē my head but thou hast pierced my heart to let vs thereby vnderstand that all the offences which we commit against him and also all the seruices which wee doe for him doe reach vntill his heart as hee doth loue vs with the heart Anselmus to this purpose sayth Our Lord doth iest with no man nor will not bee iested at by any man and therevpon he loueth vs with all his heart if we be in state of grace and hateth vs with his heart if we bee in his disgrace By reason whereof there is no offence which we doe commit against his Maiesty vvhich goeth not to his heart nor there is no seruice which we do to him but he doth keepe it in his heart Origen sayth The cause why the bridegroome doth complaine vpon the bride and not the bride against the bridegroome is because the soule hath no cause to complaine vpon God and God hath scarse no cause to bee pleased with the soule The bridegroome complaineth that the bride woundeth him in the heart because that one heart cannot be hurt but of another heart because that that cannot be called a fault but that which doth determinatly proceed from the will Then thy heart doth pierce and wound Christs heart when reason doth teach thee that thou shouldest not sinne and yet notwithstanding thy will dooth determine to sinne whereof God dooth not so much hold himselfe iniuried of that which thou doest as of the heart and will with the which thou doest it Thou doest so many times wound Christ as thou doest consent vnto sinne and therefore hee sayth that thou hast wounded his heart because his iniuries and offences proceeded from thy heart It is much to bee noted that hee sayth not thou hast killed my heart but thou hast wounded my heart for seeing that we see some die only because his heart is moued stirred it should be greater reason that they should die hauing their heart wounded If a griefe of the heart be hardly cured how shall that heart bee healed which is wounded If it be so that all the wounds in the heart are mortall and not to bee cured why doth Christ say that his louer had wounded his heart not confesse that he had killed him By this is knowne the difference betwixt offending God and offending man for a man dieth with euery wound because he will neuer forgiue and pardon but holy Iesus doth not complaine that they kill him but onely that they wound him Giuing vs therby to vnderstand that at the same instant when a soule doth repent her of her offences he doth hold himselfe satisfied for that fault What should become of vs if Christ should say that wee doe kill him as hee sayth that we doe wound him What other thing were it to take Christs life away but to sinne without hope of mercy God speaking with the Angell sayth Interfecisti cor meum and speaking with man sayth onely Vulnerasti cor meum because the sinne of the Angell had no remission but the sinne of man obtaineth euery day pardon O good Iesus O creator of my soule how much are wee bound vnto thee in saying that we doe wound thee and not that wee doe kill thee because that by this high speech thou doest let vs vnderstand that the wounds which we giue thee in the heart and the offences which wee commit against thee are as easily cured as they are easily amended Let no man despaire let no man be discomforted in thinking that he shall not bee pardoned and that there is no remedy for his offences seeing that the son of God doth confesse that wee haue not wholly slaine him but only wounded him of which wounds hee then beginneth to be cured when wee begin to amend O infinite goodnesse O great charity of thine O my good Iesus tell mee I pray thee what diddest thou see in my sinfull soule that thou shouldest trust the weapons in her hands which shee may wound thee with and also the medicines with the which shee may cure thee what are the weapons with the which she doth wound thee but the faults which shee dooth commit against thee And what is the medicine with the which shee dooth cure thee but only the amendment of her owne life Christ saith further that the weapō with the which the bride did wound him was one of her eies which she had in her head and with one of her haires which hanged at her throat so that her eies serued her for arrowes and her hair for bindings Origen vpon this place sayth O how tender the heart is which is wounded with the only sight of an eie and what small force and strength he hath who is bound with a hair The heart which is touched of our Lord although he be stronger then Sampson and lighter then Asael yet in louing of God and tasting of Gods holy loue it is easily taken and suffereth himselfe to be bound without resistance We haue two eies in our head to see with and wee haue two eies in our soules to loue with whereof the one is the eie of loue and the other is the eie of feare and when our Lord sayth that wee looke vpon him with one eie hee sayth that sometimes wee serue him with feare and sometimes with loue Men of high perfection doe looke vpon him with the eie of loue and men of lesser perfection with the eie of feare and the difference is that with the sight of the one there is no alteration at all and with the sight of the other she is presently delighted What can there be in the world more sweeter to the tast or wherin our soule may receiue greater recreation thā to fix all our intention to behold and look vpon God and serue him with all our heart When do we look vpon him with one eie only but whē for loue we serue him and not for fear What can Christ speake more tenderly vnto our soule or what more sweeter words can his holy mouth vtter vnto the soule than to say that she had wounded him with one eie and tied him fast with one haire O infinite loue of thine my Creator and Redeemer tell me I pray thee if thou be so easily satisfied with a soule that doth but once behold thee what wilt thou doe by her which doth behold thee euery day and serue thee all her life time S. Barnard sayth He doth bind God with one haire who thinketh on God and nothing else and hee doth wound him with the sight of one eie who loueth him and no other so that it lieth in our owne hands to serue Christ and attaine vnto his blisse and felicitie Trino vni laus FINIS