was VVho had no minde but on his Maisters loue VVhose Muses did the world in Musique passe That onely soong but of the soules behoue In giuing glorie to the God aboue Would all worldes fictions wholly laye aside And onely long but with the Lord to bide The Cosmographer that by rules of grace Surueys the Citie of the heauenly Saintes Will neuer long for any earthly place That either penne prescribes or Painter paints But in the faith that neuer failes nor faints Will long to see in heauens Ierusalem The gratious God of glories Diadem The true Astronomer that sees the Sunne And knowes that God from whome it takes his light And in the course the Moone and starres doe runne Findes the true guider of the day and night Longes but to see his onely blessed sight Who Sunne and Moone and stars their brightnes giues And in whose face all brightnesse glorie liues The Mariner that oft hath past the Seas And in his perils seene the power of God Whose onely mercie doth the stormes appease And bringes the Shippe vnto his wished Road Will neuer longe on earth to make abode But in the heauens to see that blessed hande That at his becke so rules both Sea and Land The Marchant that hath cast within his minde How much the spirits gaine the flesh surmounts And by his faith in mercies loue doth finde The ioyfull summe of such a soules accounts As to saluation of the whole amounts Will leaue the world but on Christes face to looke VVhich all the faithfull make their liuing Booke The Farmer that hath felt his neighbours neede And found how God and charitie are one And knowes there is a better kinde of feede Then grasse or Corne or flesh or bloud or bone VVill wish himselfe from his worlds treasure gone Vpon those ioyes to feede in mercies blisse VVhere Christ his presence is heauens Paradise The true Phisitian that doth knowe the natures And dispositions of each Element And knowes that God created hath all Creatures Beneath and eke aboue the Firmament And ouer all hath onely Gouernment VVill onely long that glorious God to know That giues the sicknesse and doth cure it so The soules Musitian that doth finde the ground Of truest Musique but in God his grace VVill thinke all singing but an idle sound VVhere God his praise hath not the highest place And onely longes to see that blessed face VVhich makes the Virgins Saints and Angels sing An Halleluiah to their heauenly King The Preacher that doth in his soule beleeue The word of God which to the world he teacheth And in his spirit inwardly doth greeue He cannot liue so heauenly as he preacheth VVhile faith no further then to mercie reacheth VVould wish in soule to leaue his Benefice To make himselfe to Christ a Sacrifice The Politician that hath plotted much In worldly matters greatly to his gaine Will finde if God doe once his spirit tuch Zacheus heart will haue another vaine To clime aloft and to come downe againe And leaue all plots to come but to that place Where he might see sweete Iesus in the face Th' Artificer that hath a worke in hand And feeles the grace of God within his heart And by the same doth surely vnderstand How God alone perfecteth euerie part And onely is the giuer of all Art Will gladly leaue his worke and longe to be Where he might Christ his soules worke-maister see The Painter that doth paint a daintie Image So neere the life as may be to the same And makes an Asse vnto an Owle doe homage While shadowes bringe the senses out of frame If God his heart once with his loue enflame His Pictures all will vnder foote be trod And he will longe but for the liuing God The Trauailer that walkes the world about And sees the glorious workes of God on high If God his grace once kindly finde him out And vnto heauen doe lift his humble eye His soule in faith will such perfections spie That leauing all that he on earth can see His loue will long but with the Lord to be The Churle that neuer chaunc't vpon a thought Of charitie nor what belonges thereto If God his grace haue once his spirit brought To feele what good the faithfull almers doe The loue of Christ will so his spirit wooe That he will leaue Barnes corne and bagges of Coine And land and life with Iesus loue to ioyne Thus from the Prince vnto the poorest state Who seemes to liue as voide of reasons sense If God once come who neuer comes too late And touch the soule with his sweet Quintessence Of mercies gratious glorious patience His soule will leaue what euer it doth loue And long to liue but with the Lord aboue Now to the tenure of that longing time That louing spirits thinke too long will last The maide new maried in her pregnant prime Longes till the time of fortie weekes be past And blameth time he makes no greater hast Till in her armes she sweetly haue receiu'd Her Comfortes fruite within her wombe conceiu'd Thus fortie weekes she labours all in loue And at the last doth trauaile all in paine But shortly after doth such comfort prooue As glads her heart and makes all whole againe So in her Infants pretty smiling vaine Pleasing her selfe that all her greefe is gone VVhen she may haue her babe to looke vpon Penelope at her deere loues departing In sober kindnesse did conceale her care Though in her heart she had that inward smarting That times continuance after did declare VVhere constant loue did shew without compare A perfect passion of true vertues vaine Longing but for Vlisses home againe How many yeeres the Storie doth set downe In which she felt the gall of absence greefe When constant faith on foule effects did frowne Which sought to be to charitie a theefe Of natures beautie the true honour cheefe Long languishing in absence cruell hell But when she saw his presence all is well But if I may in holy lines beginne To speake of Ioseph and his longing loue Vnto his brethren but to Beniamin To note the passion nature did approoue Which did such teares in his affection mooue That well from thence the Prouetbe sweet might spring The loue of Brethren is a blessed thing Well may I see the notes of natures griefe In absence of the obiect of affection And longing for the substance of reliefe In presence finde the life of loues perfection While eie and heart are led by one direction Yet all this while I doe not truely prooue The blessed longing of the spirits loue When Mary Magdalene so full of sinne As made her heart a harbour of ill thought Felt once the grace of God to enter in And driue them out that her destruction sought Her soule was then to Iesus loue so wrought As that with teares in true affect did proue The pleasing longing of the Spirits loue In griefe she went all weeping to his graue Longing to see him or
aliue or dead And would not cease vntill her loue might haue Her longed fruite on which her spirit fed One blessed crumme of that sweet heauenly bread Of Angels food but of her Lord a sight Whose heauenly presence prou'd her soules delight Midas did long for nothing els bur Gold And he was kindely choaked for his choyce Such longing loue doeth with too many hold Which onely doe in worldly drosse reioyce But did they hearken to the heauenly voyce Their Diamondes should not so for drosse be sold And they would long for God and not for gold Zacheus too long longed for such drosse Till Iesus came his spirits further ioye And then he found his gaine did yeeld but losse While sinne in conscience bred the soules annoye And vnto heauen the world was but a toye He left it all and climed vp a tree To shew his longing how but Christ to see And well he longd that so his loue receiued Who sweetly saw and kindly call'd him downe His stature low but his loue high conceiued Who so was grac't by mercies glories crowne As hauing cause vpon his sinnes to frowne Forgaue the workes that did deserue damnation And fill'd his house with glory of saluation A blessed longing of a blessed Loue. Would so all soules did loue and so did long And in their longing might so sweetly prooue The gratious ground of such a glorious songe As kils all sinne that doth the spirit wrong And sing with Simeon at his Sauiours sight Oh now my soule depart in peace delight Oh blessed Simeon blessed was thy loue And thy Loues longing for thy Sauiour so Who wrought so sweetly for thy soules behoue As from thy prayers would not let thee goe Till to thy loue he did his presence showe Which made thee sing when sorrowes all did cease Lord let thy Seruant now depart in peace For I according to thy word haue seene The glorious substance of my soules saluation Thy word in whome my trust hath euer beene And now hath found my comforts confirmation Thus did he make a ioyfull declaration Of that sweete sight of his sweet Sauiours face That was the glorie of his spirits grace How many yeeres he all in prayer spent For the beholding of his blessed loue What was the yssue of his hopes euent And how his prayers did preuaile aboue That so his God did vnto mercie moue As to his armes to send his onely Sonne The Storie doth all th'Apostles runne He was well call'd good Simeon for that grace That God had giuen the spirite of his loue That loue that long'd but in his Sauiours face To see the blessing of his soules behoue And blessed prayer that did truely proue A blessed soule that could not prayer cease Till Christ his presence came to giue it peace So should all soules their Loues chiefe longing haue All soules I meane of euerie Christian hart That seeke or hope both heart and soule to saue From Hell damnation and supernall smart This is the loue that in the liuing part Of mercies power shall finde that blessednesse That is the spirits onely happinesse Nor can loue looke to limit out a time But now and then and euermore attende For he shall neuer to that comfort clime That will not all his life in prayer spend Vntill he see his Sauiour in the end In whose sweet face doeth all and onely rest The heauenly ioy that makes the spirit blest Blest be the spirit that so longs and loues As did Zacheus and good Simeon And from his faithfull prayer neuer mooues Vntill he find his life to looke vpon And in such loue is all so ouer gon That in such ioy his heart and spirit dwels As hauing Christ it cares for nothing els Oh blessed Christ the essence of all blisse All blessed soules loues longings chiefe delight What heart can thinke how that soule blessed is That euer hath his Sauiouâ—r in his sight The sunny day that neuer hath a night Oh that my spirit might so euer pray That I might liue to see that blessed day The day that onely springeth from on high That high day light wherein the heauens doe liue The life that loues but to behold that eye Which doeth the glory of all brightnesse giue And from th'enlightned doth all darkenesse driue Where Saints doe see and Angels know to be A brighter light then Saints or Angels see In this lights loue Oh let me euer liue And let my soule haue neuer other loue But all the pleasures of the world to giue The smallest sparke of such a ioy to proue And euer pray vnto my God aboue To grant my humble soule good Simeons grace In loue to see my Sauiour in the face O face more faire then fairenesse can containe O eye more bright then brightnesse can declare O light more pure then passion can explaine O life more blest then may with blisse compare O heauen of heauens where such perfections are Let my soule liue to loue to long to bee Euer in prayer but to looke on thee But oh vnworthy eye of such a sight And all vnworthy heart of such a loue Vnworthy loue to long for such a light Vnworthy longing such a life to prooue Vnworthy life so high a suit to mooue Thus all vnworthy of so high a grace How shall I see my Sauiour in the face All by the prayer of true penitence Where faith in teares attendeth graces time My Soule doth hope in mercies patience My heart all cleansed from my sinfull crime To see the springing of Auroras prime In those bright beames of that sweete blessed Sunne Of my deere God in whome all blisse begunne And that my soule may such a blessing see Let my heart pray and praying neuer cease Till heart and soule may both together be Blest in thy sight all sorrowes doth release And with good Simeon then depart in peace Oh then but then and onely euer then Blest be my soule sweete Iesus say Amen Gloria in excelsis Deo VVhat is Loue. MEn talke of loue that know not what it is For could we know what loue may be indeede We would not haue our mindes so led amisse With idle toyes that wanton humours feede But in the rules of higher reason read What loue may be so from the world conceal'd Yet all too plainely to the world reueal'd Some one doth faine Loue is a blinded God His blindnesse him more halfe a Diuell showes For Loue with blindnesse neuer made abode Which all the power of wit and reason knowes And from whose grace the ground of knowledge growes But such blinde eyes that can no better see Shall neuer liue to come where loue may be Some onely thinke it onely is a thought Bred in the eye and buzzeth in the braine And breakes the heart vntill the minde be brought To feede the senses with a sortie vaine Till wits once gone come neuer home againe And then too late in mad conceit doe prooue Fantasticke wits are euer
voide of loue Some thinke it is a babe of beauties getting Nurst vp by Nature and times onely breeding A pretty worke to set the wits a whetting Vpon a fancy of an humours feeding Where reason findes but little sense in reeding No no I see children must goe to Schoole Philosophie is not for euery foole And some againe thinke there is no such thing But in conceit a kinde of coyned Iest Which onely doth of idle humors spring Like to a Bird within a Phoenix nest Where neuer yet did any yong one rest But let such fooles take heed of blasphemie For loue is high in his Diuinitie But to be short to learne to finde him out T is not in beauties eyes nor babyes harts He must goe beat another world about And seeke for loue but in those liuing parts Of reasons light that is the life of Arts That will perceiue though he can neuer see The perfect essence whereof loue may be It is too cleare a brightnesse for mans eye Too high a wisedom for his wits to finde Too deepe a secret for his sense to trie And all too heauenly for his earthly minde It is a grace of such a glorious kinde As giues the soule a secret power to know it But giues no heart nor spirit power to show it It is of heauen and earth the highest beautie The powerfull hand of heauens and earths creation The due commander of all spirits duety The Deitie of Angels Adoration The glorious substance of the soules saluation The light of Truthe that all perfection trieth And life that giues the life that neuer dieth It is the height of God and hate of ill Tryumph of Trueth and falshoods ouerthrow The onely worker of the highest will And onely knowledge that doeth knowledge know And onely ground where it doeth onely growe It is in summe the substance of all blisse Without whose blessing all thing nothing is But in it selfe it selfe it all containeth And from it selfe but of it selfe it giueth It nothing loseth and it nothing gaineth But in the glorie of it selfe it liueth A ioy which soone away all sorrow driueth The prooued truth of all perfections storie Our God incomprehensible in glorie Thus is it not a Riddle to be read And yet a secret to be found in reading But when the heart ioynes yssue with the head In settled faith to seeke the spirits feeding While in the woundes that euer fresh are bleeding In Christ his side the faithfull soule may see In perfect life what perfect loue may be No further seeke then for to finde out loue Then in the liues of euerliuing blisse Where carefull conscience may in comfort prooue In sacred loue that heauenly substance is That neuer guides the gracious minde amisse But makes the soule to finde in lifes behoue What thing indeed end nothing else is loue Then make no doubt of either good or bad If this or that in substance or in thought And by what meanes it may be sought or had Whereof it is and how it may be wrought Let it suffice the word of truth hath taught It is the grace but of the liuing God Before beginning that with him abode It brought forth power to worke wisedome to will Iustice to iudge Mercie to execute Vertue to plant Charitie to fill Time to direct Truth falshood to confute Pitie to pleade in pemtences suite Patience to bide and peace to giue the rest To prooue how loue doth make the spirit blest And this is God and this same God is loue For God and loue in charitie are one And charitie is that same God aboue In whome doth liue that onely loue alone VVithout whose grace true loue is neuer none Then seeke no further what is loue to finde But onely carie God within thy minde Leaue in the world to looke for any loue For on the earth is little faith to finde And faithlesse hearts in too much trueth doe proue Loue doth not liue where care is so vnkinde Men in their natures differ from their kinde Sinne fils the world so full of secret euils Men should be Gods to men but they are deuils Christ lou'd to death yet loue did neuer die For loue by death did worke the death of death Oh liuing loue oh heauenly Mystery To great a glory for this world beneath The blessed breathing of the highest breathe Blest are they borne that onely finde in thee Oh blessed God what blessed loue nay be Let then the Poets leaue their idle humours That write of loue where there is no such thing And let the world not hearken to those rumours That speake of loue or whence that life doeth spring Except it be in this our blessed king And Lord of life in whom our foules may proue The onely life of euerliuing loue Let wantons weepe that laughing sought for loue VVithin the Gems of their mistaken ioyes And turne with teares that perfect path to proue That leades the spirit from the worlds annoyes Vnto that treasure that admits no toyes But in the riches of the soule doeth proue The heauenly life of blessed spirits loue And let the wise if any such there be As God forbid but there were many such That in their soules by secret wisedome see In the true triall of true vertues touch The worth that faith can not affect too much Confesse they finde in trueths effects alone That God is loue without whom there is none Amidde the skie there is one onely sunne Amidde the ayre one onely Phoenix flies One only Time by which all houres doe runne One onely life that liues and neuer dies One onely eye that euerie thought descries One onely light that shewes one onely loue One onely loue and that is God aboue To say yet further what this loue may be It is a holy heauenly excellence Aboue the power of any eye to see Or wit to finde by worlds experience It is the spirit of lifes Quintessence VVhose rare effects may partly be perceiued But to the full can neuer be conceiued It is repentance sweete restoratiue The Rosa solis the ficke soule reuiueth It is the faithfull hearts preseruatiue It is the hauen where happie grace arriueth It is the life that death of power depriueth It is in summe the euerlasting blisse VVhere God alone in all his glorie is It is a ioy that neuer comes in iest A comfort that doth cut off euerie care A rule wherein the life of life doth rest VVhere all the faithfull finde their happie fare A good that doth but onely God declare A line that his right hand doth drawe so euen As leads the soule the high waye vnto heauen If then henceforth you aske what thing is loue In light in life in grace in God goe looke it And if in these you doe not truely prooue How in your hearts you may for euer booke it Vnhappy thinke yourselues you haue mistooke it For why the life that death hath ouer-trod Is but the loue of Grace and