thée eueryday to repeate the promises which thou hast made to God in thy Baptisme which follow thus in effect O most high most excellent and most holye Trinitie Father Sonne and holy Ghost I protest that I will liue and dye in the true Catholike and Apostolike Faith and will keepe thy Holy commaundements which heretofore I haue transgressed Wherefore I am sorye and doe heartelye repent mee for the breach of them and in token whereof I make my confession saieng I Beleeue in God the Father almightie maker of heuen earth And in Iesus Christ his only sonne our Lord. Which was conceaued by the holy Ghost Borne of the virgin Marie Suffred vnder Ponce Pilate Was crucified dead buried He descended into hell the third day he rose againe frō the dead He ascended into heauen and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father almightie From thēce he shal come to iudge the quick the dead I beleeue in the holy Ghost The holy Catholike Church The communion of Saints The forgiuenesse of sinnes The resurrection of the body And the life euerlasting Amen Then say Lord God giue me grace most heartely I beseech thee without doubting to confesse and beleeue all the Articles of this my Christian Faith and in the fame to perseuer to the ende And so rehearse the tenne Commaundements of almightie God which are these THe same which God spake in the xx chap. of Exodus saieng I am the Lord thy God which haue brought thee out of the land of Aegipt out of the house of bondage 1 Thou shalt haue none other Gods but me 2 Thou shalt not make to thy selfe any grauē Image nor the liknesse of any thing that is in heauen aboue nor in the earth beneath nor in the water vnder the earth Thou shalt not bow downe to them nor worship them For I the Lord thy God am a ielous God visit the sins of the fathers vpon the children vnto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me and shew mercie vnto thousands in thē that loue me and keepe my commaundements 3 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vaine for the Lord will not hold him guiltlesse that taketh his name in vaine 4 Remember that thou keepe holy the Saboth day Sixe daies shalt thou labour do all that thou hast to do But the seauenth day is the saboth of the Lord thy God In it thou shalt doe no manner of worke thou thy sonne thy daughter thy man-seruāt thy maid-seruant thy cattell thy stranger that is within thy gates For in sixe daies the Lord made heauen earth the sea all that in them is rested the seuenth day wherfore the Lord blessed the seauenth day and hallowed it 5 Honour thy father and thy mother that thy daies may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giueth thee 6 Thou shalt doe no murther 7 Thou shalt not commit adultrie 8 Thou shalt not steale 9 Thou shalt not beare false witnes against thy neighbour 10 Thou shalt not couet thy neighbours house Thou shalt not couet thy neighbours wife nor his seruant nor his maid nor his Oxe nor his Asse nor any thing that is his Then considering the tenour of that which thou hast said craue grace at Gods handes to walke after his will vsing the same praier which Christ taught thee and saieng OVr Father which art in heauen hallowed be thy name Thy kingdome come Thy will be done in earth as it is in heauen Giue vs this daie our dayly bread And forgiue vs our trespasses as we forgiue thē that trespasse against vs. And lead vs not into temptation But deliuer vs from euil Besides all this thou must also most heartely humble thy selfe before God acknowledging thy selfe a sinner and that thou canst do nothing y t is righteous but if ther be any goodnesse in thée either of nature or of Gods grace thou must freely confesse that all comes from aboue Repute not thy selfe better then another but rather the least of all If anie despise thee mocke thee or iniure thée suffer it not onely paciently but also willingly gladly euen for the loue of God For the scaling ladder of heauen is humilitie a full denieng of thy selfe in al worldly causes Thinke not wel of thy selfe for anie thing that thou doest hast done or maist do but if thou hast anie goodnes in thy body or in thy soule be not ashamed to confesse that it is not thine because it comes not from thée but of God from him whom indéede it procéeds If thou humble not thy selfe there is no hope of thy soules helth For to this effect our Lord said If you be not cōuerted made as little children you shal not enter into the kingdome of heauen And S. Barnard saith Who so wil be hūble must be content to be despised of the world he desireth not to be renowmed for this is no point of humilitie Commit thy selfe therefore to God and put thy will to his taking at his hands all aduersities paciently all tribulations all afflictions all diseases all persecutions yea death it selfe not onely contentedly but also willingly acknowledging that God sendes nothing to the faithfull but goodnesse and all for their soules health Wherefore thou must often pray to God say Lorde God giue mee whatsoeuer thou wilt do with me alwaies what thou wilt And when at any time thou findest thy selfe as it were left of God voide of deuotion or destitute of consolation whether it be inwardlye or outwardlye bee not discouraged for it neither thinke that God hath forgotten thée but heartelye humble thy selfe before God accounting thée vnworthy of consolation and putting all thy confidence in God as in one that knowes how to saue his elect If thou receiue any blessing inwardly as wisdome or anie other gift exalt not thy selfe in pride neither discommend others y t haue not receiued of God such grace but vse that which thou hast to Gods glorie Againe if thou see thy neighbours fall take héed thou hate him not iudge him not condemne him not but think that God permits thée to sée his offence for thy profit Imagine thou wast neuer touched with y e crime wel it is much but yet thou hast bene culpable in some other as bad or els worse vpon this examinatin reforme thy selfe suppose thou art in no fault thou must not therfore estéeme thy self better thē he y t is in fault knowing thou art of such a nature as he is made of y e same stuffe y t he is therfore notwithstāding thy supposition a sinner offender as well as he so y t both néed amending Be thou sure that if God had prouided no better for thée then thy selfe deserued thou hadst committed the like offence or els greater thanke God that he hath kept thée so pray for him y t doth amisse is not yet
handled our Cookes were cleanelye our Butlers bountifull our seruitours verie singular our musicke was excellent our Singers were swéete and euerie Officer excéeded in delicatenesse There was fine féeding pleasaunt parling continuall quaffing insomuch that halfe dronke and whole dronke was a goodly game ribauldrie was our recreation and as for knauerie it was canuast to the proofe When supper was ended Lady Wantonnesse came vnto me and asked me if I would daunce and Lady Lust likewise asking me whether I would lye alone or haue a bedfellowe I made aunswere that I was wearie by reason of my iourney and so desired to go to bed Then Lasciuiousnesse brought me to my chamber where she lodged me in swéete shéetes a soft bed Curtens of Tissue and all things costly and excellent In conclusion Laly Voluptuousnesse tooke her leaue promising in the morning to shew me the rest of the pallace of worldly felicitie whereof I dreamed all night my head was so full of toyes ¶ VOLVPTVOVSNESSE SHEVVETH THE VVANdring knight some part of the pallaice after brought him to dinner The ninth Chapter IN the morning when y e Sun beames brightly adorned y e chāber wher I lay perced y e gallāt glasse windows of costly christal Lasciuiousnes came vnto me bad me good morow asking me if I wold rise Wherto I answered yea did so w t speed now whiles I was trimming my selfe in came Licorousnes her sister Dronkennes who had prepared my breakfast anon after came in lady Voluptuousnesse accompanied with Lust Lecherie all y e rest shée was apparailed more lyke a goddesse then a quéene Al these kissed me swéetly sate down with me to breakfast which being ended Ambitiō put vpō my back y e cape of curiositie wherw t presently I became so curious as could be in al things sauing goodnes Thē I desired Voluptuousnes to shew me y e rest of y e pallaice according to her promise so we walked together into a goodly great chamber hanged about with cloth of gold beset with pearles This chamber was paued with Marble black white y e pillers wer Iasper y e roofe was Iuory laid on with gold y e staiers wer Alabaster In this chāber also was a sumptuous chaire of estate wherin most magnificently sate a Prince hauing on his head an imperial crown of gold beset w t precious pearls in his hād a scepter roial He was besides y t very richly araied accōpanied w t many nobles pompeously apparelled This prince I reuerenced he likewise saluted me giuing cōmandement y t I shuld be most singularly excellētly vsed So we went frō thence being abroad I asked lady Voluptuousnesse what prince y e same was who said y t he was y e Prince of this Pallaice euen my father y e only giuer bestower of felicitie the which I beleeued to be true til I found in déed y t it was Lucifer y e father of filthinesse the graund-father of gluttonie y e prince of pride y e Emperour of iniquitie the Lord of lewdnes a ruler of y e world one y t had nothing to do in heauen but in earth among a sort of wicked worldlings diuelish people This Lucifer arrogātly chalengeth vnto himself y t he hath power to giue glory honour riches to whō he listeth as y e scripture witnesseth wherfore worldlings do serue him as his subiects Frō thence wēt we to y e tresurie house wher we saw cofers ful of coine iewels which was kept by lady Fortune as Voluptuousnesse said she bestowed al y e treasure vpon such as y e king commanded From thence we wēt vp into a great gallerie where we saw thrée cabinits y e first full of fine wollen the second of pure silks y e third of faire white linnen this place Pompe had in keeping Frō thēce we went to y e perfuming house which differed nothing frō an Apothecaries shop For ther I found all things y t might moue a mans appetite or stir vp his delight There were colours to paint prowd women perfumes ointmēts to make their bodies soft swéet this place was kept by Lasciuiousnes Thē we went vnto y e goodly large vaughts wher wine of no kinde wanted there was dame Dronkennes her kingdōe From thence I was lead to the kitchins where all thinges wer kept in order by Licorousnes whose rule lay in y e place From thence to an other great roome where we saw a sort of young sweet faced boies Voluptuousnesse tolde me they were Ganimedes Endimio From thence she had me vp to a place y t was builded very round in compasse which place was meruailous bright lightsome by reason of the great glasse windows of christall This serued them in stéed of a tēple for they had none other Here we saw a great nūber of fine delicate dames excéeding amiable beautiful amongest all one excelled whose name I asked and Voluptuousnesse shewed me y t it was lady Venus whō al liscentious louers do like notably wel honor hir as a goddesse By her sate a blind-boy who with his bow arrows shot at aduētures hot my hart by by came down dame Venus she pluckt it out reuiuing me w t cōfortable words wōderful perswasions And although y e arrow was quickly takē out might séeme to doe no harme yet I thinke the head thereof was poisoned for it hath made so déep a wound as is very infectious scarce curable vnlesse with some speciall plaisters This same Cupid gouerneth al lecherus louers of what age soeuer they be or degrée witnesseth daily experience he is naked and past shame not caring who looketh vpon him his blindnesse representeth the folly of such as run headlong after lewde loue setting their feathers in the winde without respect of any after clap His bowe and arrowes doe signifie the folly of fooles which offer themselues to be his Butte and standeth still while he doth shoote and hit them His wings signifie the wauering minde of such as he hits who are quiet in no place or time For who is more mutable vaine light inconstant and variable then the fleshly louer Some saies y t this Cupid hath a torch burning in his hand meaning héereby that he burnes to the heart all them that he toucheth Al this dispatched Voluptuousnesse and I went to dinner and she promised me when we had dined to shew me the rest of the pallaice ¶ DINNER BEING DONE VOLVPTVOVNESSE sheweth the wandring knght the rest of the Pallaice of worldly felicitie with the description of the Towres thereof And by the Author is declared the euill fruite of certeine notorious sinnes The tenth Chapter THis chaunced in the pleasaunt month of May when loue and lust is most in force so it was determined that we should sup in goodly gardens not in banketting houses although they were wonderfull fine but in arbours ouergrowne with swéete Eglentine
the bog amongst serpents and toads So I was very glad of my Gouernour and gaue thankes to Gods grace who from the table gaue me drugs to eate and repeating vnto me a place written in the .80 Psalme of Dauid Open thy mouth wide and I will fill it Then hauing swallowed y t which she gaue me I forgat the world made no reckoning of any thing therin For all my desire was in hast to see y e pallaice of true Felicitie I desired death to be with Christ in Heauen Dinner being done the gates of Repentaunce were opened which were narrowe contrariwise as it appeareth in the first Booke that the entraunce into the Pallaice of Voluptuousnesse was wide large and great but the ende thereof was desperation and destruction as on the other side the entring into the Pallaice of Repentaunce is straight and narrow but the ende thereof is eternall lyfe For Repentaunce as Saint Paule saith leadeth the repepentant to euerlasting saluation When the gates were open I mounted vp into a Chariot of Iuorie hauing golden whéeles and two white horses with wings drawing the same Gods grace gate vp first and with hir hande helped me vp then followed the good Hermit Vnderstanding then Memory Conscience and Repentaunce but Gods grace gouerned all who touching the horses with hir rod they mounted vp ouer the Mountaines which are aboue the earth So we passed through the region of the aire where inhabiteth all the wicked spirites which watcheth to annoye such as would mount vp into Heauen And though I was greatly agast heereat yet my trust was in Gods grace vnder whose wings I hid my selfe I trusted not in my Conscience for all it was at peace nor to Repentaunce nor to Vnderstanding but to Gods grace onely who safelye shrowded mée vnder hir winges as the Henne doeth hir Chickens against the comming of the Kite Then she commaunded the wicked enimies to get them hence and they foorthwith fled awaye cryeng alowde Now haue we lost our knight Loe he is mounted vp to the pallaice of vertue in despite of vs all How is he escaped quod one vnder the wings of Gods grace quoth an other from whence all we cannot fetch him Béeing past this brunt I heartely thanked Gods grace of her goodnesse and on the sodeine I sawe vpon the toppe of a mountaine a goodly pallaice Nowe for that loue engendreth familyaritie and familyaritie bréedes boldnesse I asked Gods grace what place it was and shée tolde mee it was the pallaice of Vertue It was so high that it reached euen to heauen and about it were seauen faire Towres of Alabaster In the first dwelt Faith in the second Hope in the thirde Charitie in the fourth Wisdome in the fift Iustice in the sixt Fortitude and in the seauenth Temperaunce In the first Towre Gods grace shewed mée Faith which waited for our comming néere adioyning vnto whome I might perceiue the Pallaice of true Felicitie With that I desired Ladie Memorie to put mée in minde in the morning of going to sée that gallaunt citie Whiles we were thus deuising our Chariot arriued at the Court where Ladie Vertue with her daughters Faith Hope Charitie Wisedome Iustice Fortitude and Temperaunce dwelt At the first sight I knewe it was the same Ladye Vertue which afore time had so well admonished me and I gaue no eare vnto her Then reuerently vpon my kéenes lamenting I cried her mercie for contemning her counsel following Voluptuousnes Wherwith she made me arise and in token that she tooke in good part my recantation shee sweetly kissed me and bad me welcome So with great ioy accompanied with Gods grace true Vnderstanding quiet Conscience vnfained Repentance I entered into the pallaice of Lady Vertue And thus endeth the second part of my voiage Thus farre the second part of the wandring Knights voyage ¶ THE THIRD PART OF the voyage of the wandring Knight THE KNIGHT DECLARETH THE GREAT good the solace and the pleasures which he found in the Pallaice of Lady Vertue The first Chapter IF I HAD A THOVSANDE tongues to tell the truth of all the goods and pleasures which I found in the pallaice of Vertue and if I should liue a thousande yeares to report this matter al were too little in euery point to decipher it For it consisteth not in Angelical knowledge much lesse in mans wit wholy to comprehend so notable a mysterie none knows it but he who hath proued it You may be sure that there are not as in the pallaice of worldly pleasure Chambers hanged about with silke Tapestry and euerie corner sumptuously and superfluously adorned no no but there were histories of the olde new Testament to view marke I found not there cofers full of gold siluer cuberds of plate presses of silke all manner of mercery ware neither daintie dishes delicate drinkes bawdie songs wanton musike y e ladie of loue her son Cupid nor anie thing y t worldlings embrace but I found a thing farre surpassing all that is in the world This good this ioyfull this comfortable this vnspeakable this incomprehensible thing cannot be named worthely inough but of good bad he is called God euen he who is y e only souereigne good aboue al things reasonable vnreasonable Peraduenture you wil say This is strange newes y t you sir knight should sée God in the pallaice of Vertue How How is it straunge séeing he is euerie where not onelye in heauen but also in earth in hell Truly I confesse y t God is euerie where but I denie him to dwel euerie where yet I know that by his power inuisible presence he is euerye where though not euerie where by the fulnesse of his greatnes his gifts it follows then that he dwelleth not euerye where I pray you what profiteth it the dampned that he is in hell by his power iustice vengeaunce Surely by such presence of God they haue no ioye no consolation no benefit nor felicitie for that all are curssed in whome GOD dwelleth not by his grace whatsoeuer they be be they kings Princes or Popes who haue all other riches and delights in the world But all they y t haue the grace of God are happie at leastwise in hope though they liue euen in a loathsome prison are poorer then Lazarus which desired to be refreshed with the crums that fell from the euill rich mans table Nowe when we praye to God we saye not Our Father which art euerie where but Our Father which art in heauen and that is the place where God giues the enioyeng and possessing of himselfe to his elect and that is their dwelling prepared by the grace of God That is it that God spake of by the Prophet Esaie sayeng Heauen is my seat and earth is my foote-stoole Forasmuch sayth God as I dwell in mine elect by grace I will tumble at my féet those that loue Voluptuousnesse rather then their maker In the booke of Wisedome
is a work of Satans who wholly possesses them and can transfigure and chaunge himselfe into an Angell of light to deceiue the simple and innocent whom God permits to be tempted for the triall of their constancie Not that he is ignoraunt of the issue but because he would haue it appeare to others that he crowns vs with his glorie for our constancie and perseueraunce This is clearely set downe by Moses in the xiij of Deuteronomie and by Saint Peter in his second Epistle and second Chapter and by our Lord and Sauiour Iesus Christ in the 24. of Mathew And though we liue in the latter times when manie sects and errours doe abound and vertue and truth in many places doth faile Yet let vs listen what our Lord and Sauiour saith Whosoeuer beleueth to the ende shâ—ll be saued Fourthly and lastly thy Faith must be quicke and liuely that is to saye it must be linked with Loue and Charitie which is the life of Faith as the soule is the life of the body And therefore abuse not thy selfe as some doe saieng I haue Faith and I shall be saued whatsoeuer chaunce No no assure thy selfe that if thy Faith be not quickned with Loue and Charitie it is nothing woorth and therefore vnable to atchieue true blessedndsse as S. Paule wel noteth in the first Epistle the xiij chapter to the Corinths Euen so when our Lord in the Gospel attributeth saluation vnto Faith S Paule iustification this is to be vnderstood of an holy liuely and Euangelicall Faith working with Loue and Charitie Likewise our Lord and Sauiour saith in the Gospell that Hee which beleeueth and will be baptised shall bee saued this is meant of such a Faith as Loue quickeneth and Charitie reuiueth The holy Scripture in many places expresseth that None shall be saued vnlesse he obserue and kéepe the Commaundements of God Now none can kéepe the Commaundements without Loue and Charitie Ergo none can be saued without Loue and Charitie The summe and effect of all is this that whosoeuer renounceth sinne and wickednesse imbraceth a quicke and liuely Faith and liueth in Loue and Charitie he cannot perish but shall finde in the end true perfect and euerlasting Felicitie in the kingdome of Heauen ¶ THE DESCRIPTION OF HOPE and how we ought to hope in almightie God The fourth Chapter NOw sir Knight know this that Hope is a vertue whereby both goods spirituall eternal are hoped for And as Faith is of things not séene so is Hope also For Saint Paule saith Hope that is seene is no Hope because we haue possession of it already It is common to Faith and Hope to be of things vnséene and yet Hope is distinguished from Faith not onely by name but also by reason For by Faith we beleeue as well euill things as good that is to say Heauen and Hell We beléeue that Adulterie is a verie wicked sinne we beléeue also Charitie is a very good thing all these things good and bad we beléeue but we hope onely for good things and not for bad Againe Faith is of things past present and to come For we beleeue the death of Iesus Christ which is past we beleeue also that at this present he sits at the right hand of God the Father in Heauen and we beléeue that Christ shall come to iudge the quicke and the dead But vnder correction I thinke that Hope is of things present as when I hope that I am in GODS fauour and of things past as when I hope my sinnes be forgiuen me and of things to come as when I hope to haue eternall life This is true that Faith hath an eye generallye vnto that which is spoken in holy Scripture beléeuing that all the promises without exception which God made shall bee accomplished without descending to particular or speciall persons but Hope applieth vnto hir selfe those same promises waiting and hoping for the accomplishment of that which God hath promised And therefore it is requisite for assured saluation that thou beleeue thou shalt be saued and but to hope so is sufficient For Faith of and in it selfe importeth an infallible assuraunce and certaintie of things as when we firmely beléeue all the Articles of our true and Christian Faith and all things conteined in the holy Scriptures to be more certaine than man is man but the hoping of it is not so requisite For if we haue a firme affiaunce in the goodnesse of God touching our saluation and doubt not a whitte of the remission of our sinnes it is enough Ther be two degrées in Hope which are two contrary extremities The one being the most highest is most perfect infailable assuraunce of eternall blessednesse The other being the basest and lowest is to despaire of saluation Betwéene these two extremities consisteth Hope But the more y t a man approcheth to the highest extremitie which is an infaileable assuraunce of eternall life and the more he recoileth from the basest and lowest extremitie which is desperation the more perfect is he in Hope It sufficeth the hoping man that beléeues loues God that he haue a firme affiaunce confidence that God of his good grace will giue him whatsoeuer he hath promised vnto his elect hoping that he is of their number So it is necessarily requisite that we haue a perfect and an infaileable certaintie of our saluation Now for that in the definition of Hope it is said that by hir we looke and hope for the spirituall and eternall goodnesse it is to be noted that Hope hath two obiects the first and the principall is God himselfe and the perfect inioying of his presence The other is all the necessarie meanes to come vnto the cleare séeing and inioying of God and these meanes are the remission of our sinnes iustification the help of Gods grace Faith vnfained and charitable deedes agréeablenes vnto God Now all that we hope for we ought with praier deuoutly to craue of God as his Kingdome the remission of our sinnes iustification increase of grace and vertue déedes of Faith and Charitie But concerning goodes temporall forasmuch as we may vse them well and ill they may be saide to hinder the saluation of man rather then to further it And therfore the good Christian ought not to aske them nor to couet theÌ„ excessiuely indéed so much as wil necessarily serue him for sustenaunce in this life he may lawfully aske And héere by the waye it is a lesson worthy the learning namely that it is necessarie for vs to do good workes because it hath plesed God to inrich vs with goods which goodes ought well to be employed Now vnto him properly belongeth the merits of the workes which he worketh in vs. For all our good workes are the gifts of God howbeit he doth not denie vs his grace whereby we consent to doe the good works which he onely moueth in vs. And therefore euery one ought to the vttermost that he is able to do good works
by dooing other good déedes and yet giue God his due and single loue Nowe these things are not Charitie it selfe but the works of Charitie We say then that God ought to bée loued in doing good deedes and in kéeping his commaundements but this loue ought to be entyre without respect of profite or reward To loue GOD orderlye aboue all thinges is to referre thy selfe and all thy goods to GOD so that all which thou louest wishest doest and leauest vndone thou oughtest to loue to wishe to doe and leaue vndone for the loue of GOD and his glorie Thus referringe all to the honour and glorye of GOD thou louest GOD aboue all things orderly and accomplishest as much as in thée lyeth What is written in Deutronomie and in Saint Mathewe where it is sayde Thou shalt loue the Lord thy GOD with all thy heart with all thy soule and with all thy strength For what other thinge is it to loue GOD with all thine hearte with all thy soule and with all thy strength but to referre all things to GOD and to his glorye all our thoughts all our wordes all our works all our wayes all our purposes and all our intents To loue God therfore aboue all things orderly is to referre to God and his glorie our selues and all that is within without vs which we cannot well doe if our thoughts if our wordes if our workes and our wayes be not good and acceptable vnto God To loue God preciously is to loue him so déerely and so much to esteeme of him y t for no cause thou wouldest loose him nor his loue but wish rather to loose thy goods thy lands thy lims thy life and the loue of all the world This indéede is to loue God louingly when without respect of profit we referre to God and his glorie all that we haue our hearts our hands our lips to praise and magnifie him and to set foorth the greatnesse of his diuine maiestie omnipotencie To loue God then for the loue of himselfe is to loue God because he is good And he that loueth God in this sort shall be sure neuer to miscarrie or perish Do loue thy neighbour it is required that thou doe it in God or for the loue of God Now thou must vnderstand that euerie man is thy neighbour when either thou to them or they to thée can shew mercie or relieue by succour helpe So that euerie reasonable creature is thy neighbour whersoeuer he dwell in the world Thus are the Saints in heauen thy neighbours by whose example thou art helped and taught to liue godly wherefore thou oughtest to loue them and all mankinde for the loue of God or in God Thou oughtest to loue thy neighbour because he is good or because he should be good then thou louest him indéede for the loue of God euerie man which is a sinner thou oughtest to loue not because he is a sinner but because he is a man for the loue of God Thou oughtest to loue in the sinfull man that which he hateth and to hate that which he loueth The sinfull man loues sinne filthynesse and iniquitie which thou oughtest to hate The sinfull man hateth his soule and the puritie of nature which thou oughtest to loue For sinne is against nature it defileth nature it oppresseth nature yea it quencheth nature and he that committeth sinne killeth his owne soule and corrupteth nature Thou oughtest then to loue the soule and the nature of the sinner but not his sinne And when thou giuest almes to a sinner being in néede thou oughtest not to do it because he is a sinner but because he is a man of the same nature which thou art some be thy friends and some thine enimies Thy friends thou oughtest loue in God least louing them otherwise thou shouldest offend God Thy enimies thou oughtest to loue for the loue of God as if he offend thée by word or déede and doth repent him and asketh thée forgiuenesse thou oughtest for the loue of God to forgiue him with all thy heart to receiue him into true friendshippe and familiaritie Againe if thy enimie be obstinate and wil not cease to persecute and trouble thée although thou canst not presentlye forgiue him yet thou oughtest not to hate him but rather to doe him good to be readie alwaies to pardon him and then chiefly when he shall require it Yea thou oughtest to do him what good thou canst in his néede By that which we haue spoken already it appeareth that thou oughtest to loue all men liuing both good and badde friendes and foes no worse then thy selfe Our Lorde and Sauiour had an eye to the loue of our neighbour when he said in the 7. of Mathew All things that thou wouldest thy neighbour shoulde doe vnto thee doe thou the lyke to him Whosoeuer then doth to his neighbour as he wold his neighbour shuld do to him loueth his neighbour as himself But this is to bée vnderstood according to God and reason For if one offering to pleasure thée bring thée a Wench to lye with thée or lende thée a sworde to fight and kill an other as reason shoulde instruct thée to refuse such offers so the loue according to GOD shoulde teach thée obedience and they both ought to be rule of thy lyfe and the lights to guide thée in darke places Thus farre haue wée declared in as much breuitye as we coulde howe a man ought to loue GOD and his neighbour Now intend we to shew the effects and due praises of Loue or Charitie THE EFFECTS AND PRAISES of Loue or Charitie The sixt Chapter NO tongue in the worlde canne tell for truth all the excellencye of the effectes and praises of Charitie For first of all shee makes men the children of GOD and heires of heauen accordinge to that sayeng of Saint Iohn Beholde what Loue or Charitie the Father hath shewed vnto vs to make vs the children of GOD. Saint Paule also sayth That all those which bee led by the spirite of GOD are the children of GOD. For you haue not receiued the spirite of bondage to feare anye more But you haue receiued the spirite of adoption by which wee crye Abba Father and that same spirite which is the spirite of Loue or Charitie beareth witnesse with our spirite That we be the children and heyres of God and coaheires with Christ. Canne wée desire a thing more excellent then to be the children of GOD and heyres of heauen What dignitie is that to boast off Such as haue a féelinge of the loue of GOD in their heartes haue bolde-nesse and courage inough though the worlde contemne them For this is certeine that they whome the worlde hateth are not the children of the worlde but the children of GOD as contrarywise such as the worlde loueth they indéede are the children of the worlde and consequently the children of the Diuell Secondlye Charitie worketh the cause in vs that GOD dwelleth in vs.