good In 's Person Brooks so fill by Floud Of Grace the Covenant call'd Derivative From whence Beleevers Title do derive His Mediatorship did erst atchieve Parties Conditions and their Seals She does Behold Prerogatives by Faith She seeth manifold Such as Saint Iohn Saint Paul have so divinely told 21. Most humbly She Looks up to see Trines Mysterie Father the Creator is New Creatour Son O Blisse Holy Spirit 's Seal to This. In Earnest of Redemption so Regeneration does new flow In such a manner few do know The Church Regenerate the first-born may Those Spirits of Just men so made perfect say Nature divine partake those with allay O' th' Righteousnesse o' th' Kingdom For 't is seal'd To those and those to It with Reverence anneal'd So One with Jesus Christ Mediatour thus reveal'd 26. As Wondrous was Gods free giv'n grace To bring to passe Redemption in Designe The TRINITIE did joyn In Counsell most Divine Interpellation Covenant past For all to be perform'd and last For all were Providences cast Administrations Author FATHER is SON Grand Administrator unto These The Principle of speciall Ordinances The HOLY GHOST Subministrators from Sublime Take Government so ordination claim from Prime Words Sacraments Administration passe through Time 27. Means to save All The Church then call HIERARCHICALL And MINISTERIAL whence Church congregate in Sense Kingdome of God from thence By calling Saints and with Christ One As Hee Apostle was alone Without Whom Government is none As Rivers may divide from out a Lake That 's ever full of which their Streams partake Whose various Courses that vast Floud does make So Government from One to Twelve came whence again Those subdivided into lesser Brooks did vein So from Apostles Bishops influence obtain 28. Her down-cast Eye Sees Man must die Sin 's Wages trie The Bubble of his Breath Must needs be broke by Death His Bodie grav'd beneath Yet 's Soul does flie to place of Rest To Paradise that keepes the Best But wicked Ones with Sin are prest Until the Resurrections Trump does blow When all the teeming Graves their Dead shall show And every One Reward to Deeds shall know The glorious Judge Just Jesus comes to Sentence All. The Righteous then to th'Right shall hear his Blessed Call When Go ye cursed shall be Then the wicked's Fall 29. And now behold Her Locks like gold For us Shee 's told By Angell from Above Whom Seraph wings do move Encircling round with Love Chuse Mortals either here aloft to dwell By Faith by Love by doing well Or desperate leap with Horrour into Hell Chuse Chuse Eternitie of Blisse or Pain E'relasting Losse Or everlasting Gaine Bath i' th' Lambs Blood O wash away your Stain Could ye conceive the Joyes that here are Infinite And glory such as Tongues nor Pens could ere indite To gain this Place All earthly Torments Smiles wu'd slight 30. Hear'st this Away Let 's make no Stay But use our Day Down through the Wildernesse Amidst the Worlds Distresse Let Joyfull Courage Presse When w' are return'd unto our Place Let 's Minde these Things in any Case Life's short Good Life a narrow Space Let 's listen still to hear the silent Feet Of Death who 'l bring home Bliss wrapt in a sheet The blessed Angels then with Joy will greet Then tune we Tongues to Steps with never-failing Praise Let pious Works our Hearts our Souls to Heav'nward raise Let Hands Let Thoughts Let All God magnifie alwayes PERSPECTIVE XII DOwns are an open Place of intermixed Hills and Dals commonly upon the Coast and many times in the Inland Where somtimes they are a rising Ridg of Hills and Valleys whose free and pleasant scope overtop and overlook the neighbouring inferiour Countrey And from the declining and ascending position of the Earth as the high and more swelling Waves in the deeper Seas are not unlikely to have derived their name from their seeming to carry their Passengers over them up and down These for their healthful Ayr by their Loftinesse pleasant prospect by their opennesse and smooth Turf for their Evenesse do often invite in the delightfull seasons of the Year Persons of quality and leisure to take the Ayr upon them and to spend some time in recreation Horsmen choose such places thereupon to make and run races with their swiftest Coursers to try their courage wind and swiftnesse of their Heels Such are Newmarket Heath or Bainstead Downs They are called the Downs of Cogitation Because Thoughts are full of motion and uncertainty that have their erection and dejection upon the Mind as the first Stanza mentions 1. From hill to hill we goe c. Here is a Comparison between the Downs and the Waves of the Sea Both much agreeing in their resemblances with one another And both expressing the manner of Cogitation 2 All ore this flowry place c. The pleasure of Thoughts is compared in this Stanza to Flowers their subtility and quicknesse to the nimble flight of Swallowes And here Swallowes seeme to be matched as Coursers to expresse in a poeticall manner both the pleasure and swiftnesse of Cogitation together 3. Out from Thelema's Cave c. Here is first described the origination and purification of Cogitation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is Voluntas the Will and Affection from whence Thoughts as Waters out of the head of a Spring do take their rise and have their flux As the Heart is such are the Thoughts And that is Thelema's Cave in the side of the Downs the Man This being taken from that vulgar though not true opinion according to Anatomists that the Heart is placed in the left side of the Body A Generous Heart dresseth or setteth forth the Thoughts in Gallantry and Noblenesse So appears Dianoia Cogitation fair and beautifull when Devotion is in the Heart and Charity in the Hand which is an unbound Book the obedience unto Holy Writ ready to be dispensed according to active piety Thoughts seem awaked when drawn out of the sleep of Sin and darknesse of pollution Sitting is a Posture of steadinesse and Recollection Thoughts dwell in a Waggon as the old Scythians that never used Houses but such Receptacles as might more properly be call'd their Moveables than their Habitations Silent wheels is the imperceptibility of Thought Drawn with Dromedaries is their velocity as also the tenacity by Cogitation of things first apprehended For though a Dromedary be a kind of Cammell it differs in dorso The Cammel has a Bunch on his Back the Dromedary two Fins as I may call them the one near his Wallis the other more backward to the Chine both upon the Ridg of his back which fall down loose upon his sides without weight and rise and claspe in an imposed Burden With an unperceived Pace Dromedaries move with great strength and swiftnesse Whereupon Livie reciteth them as very usefull in Warlike expeditions His utebantur praecipuè in bellicis expeditionibus And Curtius in his 7. booke mentions that Polydamus was sent
this groaning the crying out and roaring of thine afflictions Be patient thou art a Christian. Chear up Thou hast heaven before thee Thy journey is not long Blessed are they which mourn for they shall be comforted Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsly for my sake So preached Christ in the Mount Rejoyce and be exceeding glad For great is your reward in Heaven For so persecuted they the Prophets that were before you In patience therefore possesse your souls saith this Apostle S. Paul Be patient Many are the troubles of the righteous but the Lord delivers them out of all CANTO X. The Ruins of Mortification 1. BEtween two Hills as those of Faith and Hope Thou goest into a gloomy Glade Where Groves of Yew do cast their shade Thou findest there a Pallace that had scope Balconies Rooms of pleasure large and long With Arras and with Pictures hung With Aviarie's sweets where wanton voices sung 2. All now dropt down within on Ruin's Tomb Lay buri'd in a rubbish Graff As Corn within a heap of Chaff The Persons and the lustie of each Room Where numbers dwelt before now 's desolate And whispers tell the walls their state The ruin'd place of flesh is sad Necrosis Gate 3. The Gate-house onely stands The other Walls Do seem to shoulder friendless Ayre There melancholy Bats repair Each screetching Owl to one another calls Aside this Gate-house down some steps do turn Into a Vault where 's many an Um Which she with Ashes fills of Flesh that late did burn 4. About this hollow room lye gasping sins That usually before they dye Do give a groan or make a cry Which nought from her of soft compassion wins She upward looketh with a pleased eye That dead their wickedness there lye While on a Tomb with Arm across she sitteth by 5. Her Right hand underneath her breast is plac't Her Left upon a Yoke doth lean Her right foot Fear-wash't very clean Upon an Earthly Globe treads that 's defac't Her bare Left 's set upon the gelid Ground That sheweth here and there a Wound Whose bleeding drops preserve her body ever sound 6. Upon her shoulders she doth bear a Cross Which makes her bend a little down Shee 's very lovely but shee 's brown And listens not to oft-brought News of losse From off a stone a Lamp doth glimmer light As day were mixt with some of night And near the Wall Sculs Letters form words Life does write 7. Such even composure of each mortal Head Seems lively Truth in death to speak Whose Language doth not silence break Your life is hid with Christ in God Y' are dead When Christ that dy'd to make us living here Who is Our Life brings glory near In Glory then shall also ye with him appear 8. Without the Gate an aged Porter stands Most gravely casting up his eye Neglecting who so passeth by On Crosier leaning both his clasped hands And to the curious does deny his Name He has a reason for the same He he expecteth Glory for his scorned fame 9. Behold pursu'd by many furious Hounds From ore the hills a deadly Chase In that spoyl'd Grove's his heavy Case The Stagge doth fall and weepeth to his wounds While th'Huntsmen winde the death of this their prize A live Hart from dead Stagge doth rise Starts up they all pursue for Prey Past reach he flies 10. A wanton woman see in this fair Grove Drest all with fashions and with toys Discarding powdred Singing-boys Does change her Vest as she does change her Love She bids them all Be gone And leave her there That shade admits no fierce heat near They gone On firie breast oft drops a cooling tear 11. But see a Hagge that 's filthy and obscene Descends into a purging Spring How 'bout her water she does fling Throw by her putrid clothes And make her clean Sweet Youth and Beauty then to her return Her scorn does former Garments spurn She hideth 'mong the trees Desires to Death doth mourn 12. There lyes by wrath fell Anger 's Garment torn From whom wild Fury rends his cloaths Away throws Blasphemy his Oaths Her wrought long Gown layes Malice by forlorn Concupiscence does naked run and cry All follow her to th' Vault that 's nigh And falling there before Necrosis howl and dye PERSPECTIVE X. THe Sense and meaning of the Title of this Canto is Obvious enough to learned Understandings But Feminine mindes are of a weaker Apprehension for whom since there hath been already so much pains taken as to translate all the Latine Sentences and Verses related out of several Authors upon necessary occasion by the writer hereof He thinketh it very convenient to set down his intention likewise herein Ruins are the Monuments of a former building the carkass of some goodly body the Yesterday of strength and beauty The Reliques and deformity of Rage and sad spectacle of sins disorder Ruins nest is made by War in ashes Ruins Bed is made by peace in Dust. Wrath throws down and demolishes Age brings to decay and discomposes what former Art with many a laborious hand had made for use and fashion'd comely Ruins are the fall of a late standing building Mortification is a making dead a Consumption of life Ruin is a destruction to a building Mortification the Ruine to a Body But this is not the sense of Mortification here Here it is derived à morte from death too but applyed to a greater purpose Totam hominis miseriam Deus complectitur mortis vocabulo The breach of one word of Command introduc't it Disobedience against one Not undid was the Ruine of All. For so we find it in the 17. of the Second of Genesis But of the tree of knowledge of Good and Evil thou shalt not eat of it For in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt dye the death To know Mortification the better let us enquire into the divers sorts or degrees of death and those are four The first is Mors spiritualis a Spiritual death which is the privation of the Spiritual life whereby the whole man is Ruin'd and destroy'd Vivit tantùm peccato He lives to sinne onely And that kinde of Life is the worst of Death Then there is Mors affectionum a death of Affections Quae est privatio primaevae foelicitatis The privation of former Happinesse And that is immissio omnis generis calamitatum The sad inlet of that raging Tide of all sorts of Calamities and all kindes of evil The third is Mors spiritualis vel corporalis a death of the soul and body mistake me not I pray this we call a Natural death which is a privation of this Animal life The last is Mors Aeterna Everlasting death which in holy Scriptures is called a Second death Mortification here claims the nearest kindred to the
Such are the phantasms of worldly delights that take their turns in our Brains not being worthy of comparison with pious and noble thoughts Ob hoc tenebrarum commercium et si alioquin tetricae et luridae non defuit tamen sua cui placeret Dea Proserpina Scil. Inferni regis uxor From their commerce with the darke though they be very unpleasant in shape or colour yet they have not wanted a Patronesse among the heathen Goddesses even Proserpina the wife of Pluto The faigned Powers of Hell Proserpina is Beauty Worldly Fame and the like Pluto is Riches and worldly wealth Ye may know what manner of Things those are by the Beast and Bird that they patronize Each screeching Owl to one another calls One sin gives the alarum to another in the Conscience till all be quieted by repentance The Owl is Avis luctisona funebris A mournful a Funeral bird So here it signifies the Lamentation of a sinner The punishing himself with sorrow and mortifying himself with grief for his sin committed Bubonem cum apparuit mâ—li ominâ—s esse aut bellum aut famem aut mortem portendere vetus persuasio fuit ad nostrum usque saeculum derivatur It was an old Augurie and remains as a continued vulgar opinion a popular Ethnick tradition even in latter times that the appearance of an Owl was either a sign of ill luck or War or Famin or Death All pertinent to this sense For here under the Owls is mentioned that sin must leave his place the flesh is overthrown as in the field by the Spirit sin is like to have no more sustenance For Mortification is at hand A side this Gatehouse down some steps do turn Alluding to turning from former ways aside from the world the Discourse of the Tongue is changed into a pious and sober language the Actions of the Hands are altered into Religious and Virtuous Deeds the Steps are downward to denote Humility and they turn to shew Repentance Into a Vault where 's many an Urn Mortification dwels very low and out of sight A Vault for Urns is a repository for the Dead used by the Romans and other Nations heretofore Such is man the burial place of disorderly affections when he is quickened in Christ. Which she with Ashes fills of flesh that late did burn The overcoming of the Temptations of the flesh by the power of the spirit 4. About this hollow Room lye gasping sins This shews the loathness of sin to leave us and our close League with it that we must dye at parting This Room is the Conscience That usually before they dye c. Before sin leaves us our natures being possess 't therewith shew much reluctancie and before it goes it will represent it self in the ugliest shape and make a horrid noise in the Conscience to Tempt to Despair or seek to move compassion in the Affections Which nought from her of soft compassion winnes The Mortified Soul is resolved of a New life and regards not any temptations She upward looketh with a pleased eye Heaven is her Comfort and delight She is pleased in the destruction of Gods enemies That dead their wickedness there lye She triumpheth in her conquest under Christs Banner While on a Tomb with arms acrosse she sitteth by The proper emblem of Mortification The soul sits in a sad Posture upon a Funeral seat a place for Tears a place of Mortality 5. Her right hand underneath her breast is plac't Signifying her Reverence Her Left upon a Yoke c. Her Patience A yoke is the Emblem of Patience Her Right foot tear-wash't very clean Her repentance and amendment of Life Upon an earthly Globe treads that 's defac't Her contempt of the World which is a deformed object in her Eye Her bare lefts set upon the Gelid Ground Her Humilitie That sheweth here and there a wound Her Charity and compassion Whose bleeding drops preserve her c. She is ever dying to the world and killing the flesh 6. Upon her shoulders she doth bear a Crosse Her Obedience Which makes Her bend a little down Her Patience She 's very lovely but she 's brown Shee is accepted in the Eye of her Saviour though nothing beautifull in the worlds opinion And listens not to oft brought news of loss Her Prudence and Resolution From off a stone a Lamp doth glimmer light Her Life is not specious but austere It is a despised labouring through many tribulations a strugling through temptations Or thus Our Lamps our Natures are subject to many imperfections our corruptions like Oyl will fire therein but mortification permits them not to flame forth and shine out they have but their Glimmerings The Lamp is plac't upon stone to shew it is mortal A stone is a thing without life and used to cover the dead As day were mix't with some of night This alludeth to the Painters artificial mixing of colours with his nimble pencil touching those brighter with some of the sadder hue which makes them shew much darker for the better draught of his piece to the Life often causing shadows to set off the livelier colours So the Traveller here makes one composure of day and night to set forth that the life of mortification is a continual death So is life resembled unto day and night mentioned as the privation of the same And near the walls Skul 's Letters form words Life does write Here the Traveller straineth his fancy to the resemblance of wise sentences heretofore accustomed to be written upon the walls within the rooms of wel disposed persons houses which offered to the ey of those that came near them the Memory of something that was worthy the observation For such a silent kind of instruction does he here build or set skulls one upon another against the wall to fashion words and of such words so formed to compose sentences The Skulls are Men men dead to the World the Letters are numbers of men the Words are Nations of men â—he Sentences are the worlds of men or the successive generations of the distinct Ages in the world Life writes mortality upon all these both by precept and example and publisheth it as by a writing upon the Table of the Universal world as the Skulls thus supposed in their order here are imagined to signifie upon this wall But this is not all For here it is meant concerning Regenerated men who are dead to sin Mortifying the Lusts thereof in their earthly bodies Christ is their life who is the Word charactereth in their soules the Comfort and Assurance of happiness as it is expressed from the words of S. Paul Col. 3. 4. in the next Stanza in those lines Your life is hid with Christ in God c. Stanza 7. 7. Such even composure of each Mortal head c. This Stanza was unlocked in the former The Door stands open 8. Without the Gate an aged Porter stands Contempt of the world he is said aged for his experience which conduceth
as to the Method and the matter though not in the Verse and composure He thinketh fit to set now down onely such Animaduersions as may render his Apprehensions as the mater is agreeable to the doctrine of Holy Scriptures and the interpretation of such divine things has been formerly rendred by the late unparalelled Church of England Not but that he does highly honour the noble industry of so worthy a man for his indefatigable pains towards the investigation of any latent Truth as in a Scheam he hath demonstrated 13. Subsistences c. There is much criticisme betwixt the words Emanation and Procession the difference of their sense is left to the Learned The Gospell saith that the Son came forth from the Father which is nearest to Procession as our distressed Mother the Church of England holdeth In this Stanza and the former are set down Speculations concerning the Trinity 14. Her lofty Bower c. This Stanza is a poeticall description of the Soul's rapture by divine Contemplation the Travailer bringing a comparative discourse of the Eagle in his station posture and flight to illustrate the same 15. There thus alone c. Here the Travailer proceeds in shewing to the Pilgrim that divine Contemplation is accompanied with Divine Love resembling it to the spicy Neast of the Phenix as vulgarly related that enfireth with the heat of the Beams of the Sun 16. Her too weak Bow c. Here he sets forth the modesty and humility in the Contemplation of divine Mysteries as also discovering the Soul's imperfection while it is in an earthly Body that God can not be understood but as he hath reveal'd himself in Sacred Scripture 17. With humble bent c. The Travailer makes an humble progression in his discovery of divine Contemplation concerning the All-Sufficiency and All-Efficiency of the Deity 18. Him Absolute c. Here is a Looke before the Creation of the Visible World upon the created Angels and the Fall of Those with Lucifer which the Doctor stiles the first Race of Intellectualls 19. Then Tophet told c. The Place ordained as a Prison for the Damned which the Doctor stateth to be here decreed In this Stanza is mentioned the Creation of the Visible World and Man whom he stileth the Second Race of Intellectualls 20. By Satan's Spell c. In this Stanza is described the Manner of the Fall of Man and his Losse thereby As also the primary meanes of his Restauration 21. T' was co-decreed c. Here is described the manner of man's Restauration in Designe and that the Second Person in the Trinity should take upon Him the Apostleship and Mediatorship for the performance of so great a Work 22. And Those were given c. Here are set down how and to whom the Ordinances and Administrations were delivered and conveyed in former Ages 23. Time did at Full c. Here is related the Revelation of the Gospell and the manifestation of Jesus Christ in the Flesh which also is further related in the 24. Stanza 25. Most humblie Shee c. Here is the Eternall Trinity manifested so far as necessary to Salvation The Creator of the World in the Old Bible is here The Father in the New Testament The Word in that Old is the Son in the New The Spirit in the Old is the Holy Ghost in the New In which is revealed and clearly manifested the mystery of the Trinity so far as in necessary for Salvation 26. As wondrous was c. In this Stanza is deciphered the conveyance down to future times of the Ordinances and Subadministrations 27. Means to save All c. Here is shewn the right Title and true Claim of Episcopacy from the Apostleship Primariely in Christ Derivatively in the Apostles Successively in Episcopacy or Bishops 28. Her downcast Eye c. This Stanza speaks the State of Death and the Resurection 29. And now behold c. This Stanza is a representation of all the former Discourse as an arguing with all Christian Souls after the manner that the Lord by his Prophets put the Case to His peculiar People the Jewes therby the more to convince or to leave the obstinate to punishment inexcusably So Our Christ in the Flesh did manifest the Light and declare what was darkness as in the Gospell and afterwards by his Apostles 30. Hear'st This Away c. Here is the Travailers Application to the Pilgrim his Advise and Invitation to doe thereafter that they may attaine unto Salvation Here is Exhortation and incouragement to betake themselves to their Callings with Cheerfulness to be in the World not of the World to labour dayly for a better Being and to despise all the Miseries of this Life in respect of the Reward the Joy the Happiness that is laid up for All those that love The Lord and expect His Appearing And then concludeth as with the Magnificat My Soul doth Magnifie The Lord My Spirit rejoyceth in God my Saviour Gloria Patri Filio et Spiritui Sancto c. In secula seculorum MORAL XII COGITATION is fuller of Care then it is of Businesse and if not reined in by Sanctification is as unruly as a wilde Beast Meditation does no businesse out of her studie and there she must have a Fire her Piety will cool else In meditatione mea exardescit ignis That Fire is the Love of God which must be kindled in our Hearts in our Wills in our Affections Without Grace Cogitation would make us mad Without true Religion Meditation would lead us into a despairing Melancholie And without modest bounds Contemplation may carry us if not into dangerous Errours into much Folly All are excellent in their kindes but not without their qualifications Meditation and Contemplation are much at one yet herein there is some distinction between them Meditatio convenit iis qui cum difficultate labore de rebus divinis cogitant Meditation belongs to those that bestow their Thoughts with no small Pains and no lesse difficultie about divine matters Contemplatio convenit iis qui sunt exercitati in rebus divinis Contemplation is proper to those that are exercised in holy Things In Meditation and Contemplation consist not Perfection sed in amando Deum but in loving God Contemplation is a work of the understanding The way and the means to Perfection not It. In elevando voluntatem nostram in Deum per Divinam Unionem et amorem supremum consistit Perfectio Perfection consists in the Resignation of our Wills in the Elevation of our affections by divine Union and transcendent Love to God The Understanding findes not the Soul Meat but makes it ready S. Gregory in his Morals delivers himself excellently and in part to our Purpose Si à domo mentis ad monumentum ratio discedat quasi absente dominâ cogitationum clamare velut garrula ancillarum turba multiplicat Ut autem ratio ad mentem redierit mox se confusio tumultuosa compescit et quasi ancillae se