⟨The Cordial, or a booke de Quatuor Novissimus, translated out of French by Antony E. Rivers. S. Scales. & [...]⟩
⟨An̄o Domnini 1478. Edward 4 an. 19. Liber adscriptus Bibliothecae Bodleianae Oxōn.⟩
Prologus
ALle Ingratitude vtterly settynge a parte / we owe to call to our myndes the manyfolde gyftes of grace with the benefayttys. that our lo [...] of his moost plenteuous bonte hathe gyuen vs wretches in this present transytorye lyfe / whiche remembraunce of right dyrectly shold Induce vs to gyue his godhede therfore contynuall and Immortall louynges and thankes. & in noo wyse to falle to thygnoraūce or forgetfulnesse therof. Among whiche benefaytes and gyftes is graūted vs f [...]e arbytremente. And therby with oure good desertes supported and holpen by his moost dygne mercy and grace we be enabled to be the children of euer lastyng saluacyon / & to possesse the Ioyes of heuen / whiche are Incomprehensyble & Inestymably blysfull & good. And by cause we be so frayle & inconstante. prone to fall feble & insuffyryent of oure selfe to resyste the fraudelente malyce & temptacyon of our auncyent ennemy the fend Therfore he hath yeuen vs his mercy to be our releef Reason to be our lanterne / and Remembraunce to order our guydyng Then̄e fyrste of this precyous gyfte of mercy we may to our gret comfort veryly trust to haue it at alle tymes in this worlde when̄e we deuly sue & call therfore. But we muste know for certeyn. yt we can haue no capacyte▪ nor power to receyue [Page] hit after the season of our bodely lyfe here. Secondly by Reason we owe in the moost extreme loue & drede to knowe and take hym as our creatour & redemptour. & alle our wylles to be subgette vnto his pleasure. Thryddely we owe to remēbre how we may guyde vs for to stande in his grace. Cōsyderyng what we where / what we be / & what we shalbe. And for asmoche / as very prudence admonesteth & techeth vs how ye cōclusion of euery thyng sholde be moost soueraynely taken hede vnto. Therfore I aduyse that this treatys here after ensuynge / whiche to of our four laste thynges be well ouer red and seen And not oonly seen and red / but also well conceyued / noted / and often remembred. And yf perauenture we fynde therin ony cause of grouge / or elles ony mocyon to blotte or ruste the clerenesse of oure ghostely vnderstandynge styryng vs to vnmesurable fere / or ony other presumptuous synystre / or vayne concept. Yet late vs take hit alle wayes to the best entent hauyng no dispeyr in oure lordes mercy / for it is infynyte. And knowe for trouthe / that none suche euyll moeuyng cometh / but of thynstygacyon of oure goostly aduersayre / whome we must vertuosly resyste / & catholyquely allewayes reste vpon the moost ferme pyller of oure fayth. whiche is the very assured shelde & meane of our goostly helthe. And to haue ye grace in our necessyte calie we for [Page] helpe vnto the holy goost that Illumyneth and techeth euery soule for to kepe the wayes of saluacyon to the enherytynge of the eternall Ioye and glorye Amen.
THis present treatyse is deuyded in four pryncypall partes. Of the whiche euery parte conteyneth thre other synguler partes as in the maner folowyng is shewed.
- ¶ The fyrst pryncypall parte is of the bodely dethe. And therunto belongeth thre other synguler partes.
- ¶ The fyrst of the thre is how remembraūce of dethe causeth a man to meke and humble hym selfe folio .ii.
- ¶ The soconde is how Remembraunce of deth maketh hym to dyspyse all vayne worldly thynges folio .xii.
- ¶ The thyrde is howe Remembraunce of deth causeth a man vncōstrayned to take vpon hym to do penaūce and to accepte it with a glad herte folio .xv.
- ¶ The seconde pryncypall parte is of the laste day of Iugement & conteyneth in hym selfe thre other synguler partes.
- ¶ The first of these .iii. is how accusacōn yt shall be atte the day of Iugement is thyng to be dred folio .xxiii.
- ¶ The seconde is how the last day of Iugement is terryble & not without cause. for ther must be gy [Page] uen a due rekenyng and acompt of euery thynge folio .xxvii.
- ¶ The thyrde is how ye terryble abydyng of the extreme sentence causeth doubtes to be had of the Iugement folio xxxiiii
- ¶ The .iii. pryncypall parte is of helle or of the Infernall gehenne & conteyneth in it selfe thre other synguler partes.
- ¶ The first of those .iii. is how helle after holy scripture is named dyuer se & many wyses fo. .l.
- ¶ The seconde is how they yt descende in to helleben punysshed with many grete and sondry paynes folio .liiii.
- ¶ The thirde is howe ther be many dyuerse cō dicōns of greuances in ye paynes of helle fo .lix.
- ¶ The .iiii. pryncypall parte is the blysful Ioyes of heuen / & therunto apperteyne .iii. other synguler partes.
- ¶ The fyrste of thoos thre is how the Royalme of heuen is loued praysed and recōmended for his beaute clerenes and lyghte folio .lxx.
- ¶ The seconde is how the Royalme of heuen is praysed for the manyfolde goodnesses yt be habundaūt therin folio lxxii.
- ¶ The thyrde is howe the celestyall Royalme is to be lauded for the perpetuell & Infynyte Ioye and gladnes therin folio .lxxv.
¶ Here after foloweth the prologue of the foure last thynges.
MEmorare nouissima et meternū non peccabis Ecclesiastici septimo capitulo. Ecclesiasticus sayth in his seuenth Capitre these wordes folowynge Bere well in thy mynde the last thynges / & thou shalt neuer falle in synne. Also Saynte Austyn sayth in his book of me dytacyons. That man ought rather haue in fere and eschewe the abhomynacōn & fylthe of synne / than ony other crueltees of the Infernall tormentes. Loo thenne how ye knowlege of these four last thynges and frequentyng the memorye & remembraūce of them called vs from synne / and draweth vs to vertue / & conformeth vs to all gode werkes. Wherfore by the helpe of the dyuyne Inspyracyon I haue purposed to reherse and saye a lytyll of these four tynges. As whiche they be / and what they be / and also to declare somwhat of euery of them syngulerly by them selfe / precyously & dygnely by saynges & auctorytees of sayntes / and generally by examples and saynges of auctorysed clerkes. It is to be noted that after the sayeng of saynces men sayt comynly. ther be foure the last thynges. And whiche they be it appereth clerely by the wordes of Saynt Bernard in a sermon where he sayth [Page] in all thy werkes haue remembraunce of thy laste thynges / whiche be four. That is to wyte fyrste. Bodely dethe. Seconde. The daye of Iugement▪ Thyrde. The paynes of helle. Fourth. The glorie of heuen. O what thyng is more horrible than dethe. What thyng is more dredefull & terryble than ye day of Iugement. what thyng is more Importable to be suffred than the gehēne & paynes of helle And what is a more Ioyefull blysse than celestyall glorye. Saynt Bernard sayd in the same sermon These ben the four wheles of the chare / wherof the Remembraunce bryngeth mānes soule to the euerlastyng glorye of paradyse. These ben also iiii. moeuynges yt awake the spiryte of man to ye ende that he disprayse alle worldly thynges & retorne vnto his creatour & maker. Lo it is then both cōuenyent & proufytable yt they be had contynuelly in remembraūce. & therfore sayth ye wyse man in ye xxviii. chapitre of Ecclesiasticꝰ. Bere in thy mynde ye last & fynall thyng is & loke alway perfyghtly vpon them to thentent yt they may be surely fixed & printed in thy memorie Now syn all this processe princypally & soueraynly enforseth hymselfe tenduce euery crature to haue an assured mynde & an hole remembraūce of these iiii. last thynges / & yt they may cordyally be enprynted with in your hertes. Therfor it is consonant & accordyng yf it so may please. yt this present treatyse may be entytled and [Page ii] bere the name of the Cordyall.
¶ Thus endeth the prologue of this booke named Cordyall. Whiche treateth of the four last and fynall thynges that ben to come. And here begynneth the fyrste parte of the sayd four last thynges.
THe fyrst parte of the four last thȳ ges. wherof the remembraunce withdraweth a man fro synne is deth present or temporell And therfore seyth saynt Bernard in a bok called the Myrour of monkes. The most souerayn phylosophye is to thynke all way on deth. And he that beryth it in his mynde in what place so euer he go shall neuer synne. Saynt Austyn sayth in his boke of exortacyons. There is noo thyng that soo well reuoketh and calleth a man from synne as often Remembraūce of dethe. Certayn it is yt thynge whiche causeth a man to be humble to dysprayse hymselfe and to do penaunce.
¶ How Remembraūce of dethe maketh a man to be humble & meke.
¶ The fyrst chapitre of the fyrst parte pryncypal
I Say that recordyng the Remē braūce of deth maketh a man to be meke & humble hym selfe. And therfor sayth Saynt Austyn in the book that he [Page] made of our lord. A man knowyng himselfe to be mortall. it shal put from hym all maner of pryde In very trouthe all our other thynges as well good as badde be incerteyne. But of deth oonly we maye be well ensured And how be it that the hour therof to vs is hydde and incerteyn. Yet alway she is approchyng & shal surely come without longe taryeng. And to this purpose sayth Ecclesiastics in his .xiiii. chapitre. Bere well in remembrance that deth shal not tarye. It is also wryten in Thoby yt deth hasteth & yt there may no fleeng [...]uayle. Also by the comune lawe of nature euery man must paye his mortall trybute. Saynt Bernarde sayth in a sermon O wretched man why doost thou not dyspose thy selfe to be redy at all houres / thynke that thou arte now dede / lyns thou knowest well that necessaryly it behoueth the to dye. Remembre wel how thyn eyen shall tourne in thy hede & the veynes breke in thy body. & thyn herte shal deuyde in two partes by the righte sharpe anguysshe and payne of deth. Who is he thenne yt ought not to drede & make hȳselfe humble. whan he knoweth certaynely yt he must retourne and become erthe. Now truly there shall be none excepcyon of persones. But al shall passe that waye For as it is wryten in the seconde booke of kynges. Whe shall all dye / and the erthe shall swolowe vs as it dooth water cast therupon / whiche neuer [Page iii] retourneth. We rede also that this worde (Mors) in latyn maye well so be called. For it is a bytter morsell vnto all men in soo moche yt no creature maye escape it. And therfore it is sayd in the boke of dyspraysyng of the worlde. Dethe cutteth doun and dystroyeth all thynges create and made in fleshe. She bothe beteth doun the hye men & lowe / for the hath domynacion vpon worldly lyuyng thynges She regneth Imperyally ouer the nobles and dredeth no lyuyng creature / for her power is comyn ouer prynces and dukes. She taketh aswell the yonge as the olde. And whan she smyteth / she hath mercy of no creature. Alle thynges create in flesshe peryssheth vnder her honde Nor ther be none so stronge / but that the beteth them doun without rescuse. And ther is no thynge beryng lyfe / but that she destroyeth and wasteth it without ony escape. And the neyther taketh mede allyaunce ne frendshyp. What shall I shore saye / euydently dethe spareth no body. For neyther poore ne ryche shall mowe escape out of her cheyne. Certaynly I vnderstande now that dethe is thende of all worldely lyuynge thynges. And therfore it is wryten in Ietha the Poete. That deth taketh away and dooth anyntyse all quycke thynges. Lo it is not sayde that the wyse Cathon and the good Socrates ben dede. Whiche gyueth example that there is neyther scyence [Page] ne doctryne that may preserue one fro the ruynouse darte of deth. It is writen in Ecclesiastes in the seconde chapitre. Aswell dyeth the wyse man as the fole. It is wryten in Isaye in the .xxxiii. chapitre. Were are now become the lettred men. where ben the prechers of the worde of god. Where be they that were wont to teche the childern. These questions implyed as moche as to saye they lyue not / & be goon & paste in the comyn course with other & dede of this worlde. Now by cause Ietha named but only the two afore specyfyed. I praye the telle me / Where is now Hector of Troye / where is become Iulius Cesar / where is Alexander the grete / where is Iudas Machabeꝰ / where is the myghty Sampson. where is Crassus the riche / where to the fayre Absolon / where is Galyen the physycyen / & Auycenne his felowe / where is the wyse Salomon / where is Arystocle the phylosopher / & where is Virgyle the right experte poete / be not all these dede and passed out of this worlde as pylgryms and gestes. & departed hens in a right short space. yes certaynly ther is not one lefte a lyue of them. al their Ioyes were but vanytees and are fayled / & theyr dayes be consumed & passed. & as the Psalter seyth man passed his dayes resemblyng a shadowe & one tyme he is hole & strō ge of all his membres / & on the morow seke & leyde in the erthe. And as Cathon sayth. Our lyfe [Page iiii] is gyuen vnto vs to be full of doubte and of fragylyte. This appereth also clerely by a phylosophre named (Secundus) whom thēperour (Adryane) questyoned with of yt beyng & thestate of man whiche answered as foloweth. Man is subget vnto deth dost of the place where he is a voyager passyng / semblably vnto a pece of snowe. Also lyke a reed bery and lyke a newe apple by whiche thynge is euydencly shewed / how frayle / how sleder / & also how lytyll endurȳ ge is the lyfe of a man. And not oonly the lyf of poure people. But also the lyfe of alle humane creatures / be they neuer so ryche or puyssaūt. For deth is a comyne thynge & spared noo body. And alle be it she is cruwell and peruerse / yet she kepeth egally one lawe in takyng as wel kynges & prynces as poure folkes. Thus geueth she grete cause to wepe yf it be welred & taken that is wryten of her. And therfore seyth (Iob) in the xx chapytre of his book of the riche fyers and orgulous man. All though his pryde be inhaūsed vnto the skye yt his hede shold touche ye clowdes / yet in then de he shal torne to nough te & be lyke a dong hyll. And they that haue seen hym shall axe / where is he now / and noo thynge shalbe foūde of hym / nomoie thā of a fleyng dreme passed in the nyghte. Baruch) in his .iii. chapytre demaūdeth / where be nowe the prynces of ye people ye where woute to haue domynacion ouer ye [Page] bestes / and take recreacyon with houndes & with hawkes of the ayer. And assembled grete tresours of golde & syluer / where in men yeue theyr affiaū ce and truste. what is the ende of theym that were besy and dylygence here to forge golde and syluer to gadre and kepe it Certaynly theyr tyme is extermyned and they be descended in to hell / & now ben there other enhaunsed and lyue in theyr places. And therfore saythe Prosper) in his sentence. where be ye oratours not surmountable / where be they yt haue couenably disposed theyr fes [...]. where bē also ye palfreymen yt kept the shynynge palfreys in theyr stables / where ben the captayns of men of armes. And where ben the lordes and tyrauntes Ben not they all consumed & brought to powdre yes of theyr dayes. And so shall be of oures. Is not theffecte of lyfe altered in to wormes. Beholde and loke in to theyr graues / whether yu canste knowe there / whiche is the lorde / whiche is the seruaūt / whiche was the poure / whiche was the riche. Dysceuere yf thou can by knowleche the prysoner from the kyng / the stronge from the weke / the fayre from the fowle Crysostome) seyth. what hathe hit auayled them that haue lyued in lechery. and in the voluptuousnesse of this presente lyfe / tyll theyr laste dayes. Auyse you now and beholde in theyr sepulcres / and see yf thou canste aspye therin ony sygne of pryde / yf thou canste haue [Page v] ony knowleche of theyr rychesse or of theyr lecherye. Axe where is become theyr ryche araye / and theyr straunge dysguysed garmentes with theyr voluptuous / and theyr nyce lookes. And where be also now theyr grette companyes and grete nombre of seruauntes / that folowen them. where be now theyr laughynges theyr playnges And theyr outrageous gladnesses out of mesurable temperaūce / where is all this become▪ and whether is it passed Beholde dylygently fyrste the ende of one thynge & then of that other and drawe the nere theyr sepultures And thou shalt fynde nothynge therin but oonly asshes / and the remanaū te stynkyng and fulle of wormes. A remembre thy selfe what is thende of all mortall men / be it so yt they haue passed the cours of theyr lyues in dē lectable pleasures. or elles in labour or in contynence of theyr flesshe / yet all must dye (Saynt Bernarde) seyth in his meditacyons. Tell me nowe where be the Amerouse people of this worlde yt late were among vs. In trouthe there is nothyng lefte of them but asshes & wormes. Thynke thenne and remembre often tymes / what thyng they be / and what they haue ben here tofore. Parde they haue be men as thou arte / they haue eten and dronken / lawhed & made grete chere in theyr tymes. And after in a momente they descended in to helle. And theyr flesshe delyuered for wormes [Page] mete / and theyr soule geuen in to helle. There to be tormented by fyre vnto that the body shall come & Ioyne ageyn there vnto. And to be plonged togyder in thebrachementes or paynfull Iehennes sempyternall with them yt haue ben there felawes in doyng synnes & commyttyng vyces withoute repentaunce penaunce & satysfaccyon. O what hath it prouffyted theyr vayne glorye / theyr short Ioye and the puyssaūce of this worlde / the voluptuousnes of ye flesshe / the dysceyuable rychesse / the grete nombre of theyr seruaūtes / ye vnhappy cōcupyscens / where be theyr playes & dysportes / where is theyr bostynge and theyr worldly pryde The more they had theyr delectacyon and Ioyed ther in here / the more shall be theyr payne and sorowe there. And so after a grete voluptuous pleasyre they shall haue a myserable and a perpetuell paynfull sorowe. And theyr beyng shall tourne them to ruyne and harde tourmentes. Loo all that is comyn vnto them may happen vnto you. Thou arte but a man / and (homo de humo) That is to saye a man made of erthe / th [...] arte of therthe / & thou lyuest of the erthe / and to erthe shalte tourne agayne. Of these forsayd amerouse people of this worlde lyuynge flesshely and not d [...]dy [...] ge deth / whiche is theyr neyghbour / speketh (Saynte Bernard) vnto the bretheren of the mounte of our lorde. O ye myserable synners that suffyre [Page vi] the wretchednesse of this presente lyfe to retorne & lede you from the ryghte waye. And the meane tyme ye passe your dayes in makynge good chere / ye are descendyng to hell beyng on lyue. And thenne eueryche of you maye saye the anguysshes of sorowfull dethe haue enuyronned me. And I haue founde my selfe in the peryll of hell. These ben the myserable [...]tures that this presente lyf dysceyueth. Of whome is wryten in (Iob) the .xxi. chapytre. These felowes whoos lyfe is inhaunsed in pompe and pryde & be cōforted by theyr rychesse They thynke that theyr seed shall abyde alwaye by the multytue of theyr frendes & of theyr neyghbours / theyr houses to be alwaye assured and in peas. The rodde of god not to come vpon them / theyr kyen to conceyue & not to be bareyn / then [...]ece of them to grow & not to be take from them / they reioyce themselfe in Iapes & dysportes. they leue the harpe / the tamboryn / the organs / & all vanytees / they contynue a whyle in ye myrthe / & sodenly they descende in to hell. O how gretly is he defrauded & begyled. O how folysshely is he mocked / yt for the flourynge vayn beaute of this worlde shall descende downe in to helle / & lose ye dyade me of theternall glorye. Sothly ye riche man yt by syn̄e hath deserued ye paynes of helle / had ben better to haue lyued v (er)tuously in grete nede & pouerte all his lyfe / than to haue gret habōdaūce of riches [Page] and atte laste for his synfull lyfe to be dampned. Alas what proufyteth it thenne the grete tresours and hepes of golde & syluer / whan synners shall be sente in to lowe tenebres of helle / there to be payned & tormented euer lastyngly without seasynge. My ryght dere broder & frende what sayst yt of the riche & myghty people of this worlde. Dye they not as well as other In good fayth me semeth they be noe thynge (pri)uyleged for as it is wryten in the book of sapience the .vii. chapytre / the entre of this lyfe is one and comune to all & semblably soo is the Issue. Iob sayth in his xx chapytre. This man dyeth stronge lusty and riche / his bowelles be full of greece and his bones full of mery. And this other dyeth lene and feble full of sorowe and withoute ony riches / that notwithstondyng they shall slepe both in powdre and wormes shall ete them. Loo how the riche and puyssaunt men of this world haue theyr deth comune and egall with the poore people. And therfore it is wryten in (Ecclesiaste) in the x chapytre The lyfe of al puyssant lordship is righte breyf. For this day this man is a kyng / & tomorow he is dede. of suche a kyng is red in the seconde chapytre of the fyrst boke of Machabees how his glory is a foule doūghyll and as vyle as a worme / he is to day enhaunsed / and to morowe ther is nothyng to be foū de of hym / we haue an exāple accordyng of one [Page vii] of the hyghest and moost excellence prynce of this worlde. That is to wete Alexandre the grete kynge of Macedone / that subdewed vnto his obeysance the vnyuersal worlde in suche maner / that he was demed to be only lord of the erthe. And it is redde that this Alexandre the grete somtyme kynge of Grece obteyned many vyctoryes in many straunge londes. And in his goynge by diuerse regyons subdewed vnto his Iurisdiccyon all the worlde. And in a nother place is red of hym that he was kynge of kynges / and that he saw all Realmes subget vnto hym. wherby the voys of his renomme and fortune made an hole monarche That is to say an hole Empyre of al the worlde. For it was ones alle bonde & subget vnto him without dysobeyssaunce. And soo he was grettest of alle the large worlde. But what thyng therof ensued. After he hadde tryumphantly goten the only Empyre of the vnyuersall worlde / was not that ye stablenesse of regne. the ꝑpetuyte of myghte / the helthe of his body and the longe enduryng of his lyf naturall. Certeynly noo. But he was subdewed by ye same thynge that is comune vnto all / that is to wete. Dethe / whiche is the last recourse after alle fortune and destenyes. Than myghte Alexander well say atte houre of his dethe as Iob sayde in the xvi. chapytre of his boke. I am he that somtyme was riche and mygh [Page] ty / & sodeynly am beten downe / for he obteyned onnly his Empyre. But oonly by the space of .xii yeres. And therfore it is wryten of hym in a nother place. That he regned and was obeyed xii. yeres. And after that he was subget vnto dethe / of whome lyueth yet the renomme & can not dye. Semblably compleynynge hym selfe of the deth. he myght saye as is wrytey in (Iob) the xix chapytre. My glory hath dyspoyled me / and hath taken away the crowne fro my hede. she hath also vtterly destroyed me. where thrugh I am lost. Lo how it appereth manyfestely herby. ye deth is thende of all men. And also yt how be it (Iulius cesar) had all the worlde vnder his Empyre / yet his glorye fayled hym & rested lorde but of a tombe of viii fote longe. Wherby it semeth that the mageste Royall all worldly puyssance all prosperous thynges / & the ordynaunce of dayes / passe brefly from man withoute taryenge when the hour of deth is comen / & therfore seyth an other poete. yf yt be wyse. thy wysdom departeth with thy deth / yf yt be habondaūt in rychesse / it leueth the atte thy deth / yf thou be a prudent man / thy prudence fynyssheth with thy deth / yf yt be honest / by dethe is it taken from the / yf yt be stronge thy myght fayleth the by deth. Certeynly thenne I now knowe that the yeres yt passe / taketh from vs all thynges / wherfore then yf yt be ryche stronge or fayre. what vayleth [Page viii] it / yf thou be a bysshop / a priour or an abbot what vayleth it / yf thou be a grete excellente myghty lord / yf thou be a kynge or a pope / what vayleth it. all passeth right hastly without longe taryeng. And here resteth but oonly the merytes / wherof ye good shall cause vs to be gloryfyed. And therfore sayd Isydore in an omely. My right welbeloued bretheren / we oughte to thynke how breef & short is the worldely felycyte / how lytyll is the glorye of this worlde / and how frayle & faylynge is the temporall myght therof And therfore euery man maye saye / where be the kynges. where be the prȳ ces / where be the emperours / where be the riche and myghty men of this worlde. they be all past lyke a shadow & vanysshed lyke a dreme of ye nyght. for though one wolde seke them they wyll not be foūde here / what shall I more say / the kynges be passed & ye prynces be dede neuerthelesse there be many yt wenen to lyue long & neuer to dye. But alwayes to rest in this present lyfe. Certeynly they be foles. For it shall not be so. But they shall dye as other prynces & men haue done. For as Seneca seyth in his epistles to Lucyll. The yssue of this present lyfe is deth. It is writen by a poete named Ieta. The deth vndothe all lyuyng thyng / and euery lyfe fynysseth by dethe. Certayn the worldly deth cōcludeth all ye vayn felycytees of men. For yf thou dyde preche ye fayth of Abraham / the pyte of [Page] Ioseph. The charyte of Moyses. The strengthe of Samson. The swetnesse of Dauyd The myracles of Elyzeus. The richesse and prudence of kyng Salomon the beaute of Absolon. And in we pynf occupyed the extremytees of all these in declaryng theyr endes / the hystoryes wolde shewe yt there is but one conclusyon. That is to say deth. Here it appereth righte manyfestly by the thyng a fore sayd / that heaute lynage condycions wytte richesse nor worshyp can not kepe a man / but that he must stumble & fall & rotourne to asshes. for all thyng that is engendred renneth alway towarde his deth. Ouyde sayth yt all thyng that is engendied asketh & requyreh to come agayne to theyr vnyuersall modre. That is to saye the erthe. For all that hath ben and paste-afore / maye be resembled to a rennyng ryuer. Semblably I fele it by myselfe wretche. that am brought all moost to nothynge / and haue not knowen hit. for my dayes be paste fro me lytyll / and lytyll as a shadowe. and I am dryed as the wydered hey. Certeynly we be no thyng but powder. Mennes dayes be lyke the floures in a medowe. And them selfe may be lykeneth to the heye. Now auyse the thenne / for man is a thyng that endureth but short space and is of resemblaūce to the floure / that groweth in the medowe. It is wryten in Isaye the .xl. chapitre All humane flesshe is hey / and his glory [Page ix] lyke the flours of the felde. Verely all people be heye / and all heye dryeth and wydereth / as the floure that is fallen But the worde of oure Lorde remayneth and is perdurable / wherfore then dothe a man set hym selfe in pompe and pryde beynge lyke the wydred hey of the felde. It is wryten by Innocente in the boke of our myserable condycyons. That humayn flesshe is the vessell of fylthe / and a vessell of teeres / a drye thought / a stynkyng sacke. The lyfe of the flesshe is laboure. The concepcyon of the flesshe is but fylthe. The ende therof is rotennesse. And the byrthe is but vyle. It was fyrst a sparme. That is to saye. The seed of man / and now it is a stynkynge sacke. and after fynally shall be wormes mete in the erthe. Now wherfore sholde a man then be proude. Saynt Bernard seyth in his book of Meditacyons / wherfore sholde a man waxe proude sythen ye concepcōn of man is in syn̄e. And of all the byrthe in payne / the lyfe in labour / & necessaryly all muste dye. And after deth tourne to wormes / and after wormes to fylthe & stenche. Loo thus fynally euery man is clerely conuerted & torned out of all humanyte. Consyder than the begynnyng of thy lyfe / the myddle / & also the last ende. And thou shalte fynde therin a ryghte grete occasyon and cause to meke and humble thy selfe. Nowe what sayst yt / what thynkest yt / what rekenynge [Page] makest thou of thy selfe. arte thou ought but powder of the erth. It is wryten in the .xii. chapytre / but more playnly in the iii. chapytre of the same Ecclesiastes. The powdre recometh to the erthe that it come fro That is to wete to right a fowle roten erth full of wormes And therfore wryteth. Iob in his .xvii. chapytre. I haue sayd to rotennesse / thou art my fader and my moder / and I haue sayd to the wormes ye be my brethern & my sustres. It is redde in Ecclesiasticus in the xvii chapytre that euery man is erth and asshes / and therof haue take theyr beyng. And also it was sayd to a man. Thou arte but powdre / & to powdre shalt retorne. And as Aleyn amonysseth & warneth the / when yu shalte lye in the colde erth. thou shalt torne to powdre & wormes mete / and from thensforth there shall no creature be in wyll to loke vpon the. For thy flesshe shall be more ranke in stynche than the flesshe of a roten hounde. To this purpose sayth ye holy man Saynt Bernarde / what is a more vyle and slynkyng thynge than the careyne of man. And what is a more odeous thynge to beholde thā a dede man The more delectable he hath been in his lyffe to the contrarye his loke shalbe horryble after his dethe / what shall it proufyte vs richesses / delectacyons and worldely worshyppes. The richesse defende vs not from dethe. nor delectacōns from the [Page x] wormes. nor the worshippes from foule stynkynges. O myghty god eternall / in how myserable chaunce is man inclosed Certeyne my righte dere frende / yf thou though▪ test dylygently of ye thynges afore sayd. thou sholdest therby fynde a right grete occasyon to meke and humble thyselfe. For the Remembraūce of dethe causeth humylyte in man. It appereth well by the thrydde booke of Lrynges in the .xxi. chapytre of kynge Achab / whiche when he herde by Hely the manassynge of dethe / and that it approched hym. He meked hȳ selfe in suche wyse that oure Lorde sayde to the forsayd Hely. Seest thou not how Achab humbled hymselfe for me. It is sayde also that some tyme / whenne men made and created a pope. there was brought before hym a pece of flax and therin set fyre / sayeng this wordes folowynge. Righte thus passeth the vayne glorye of this worlde. Lyke to saye. That as the fyre brenneth lyghtly the flaxe / and conuerteth hit in to asshes. Semblably the glorye of this worlde fayleth and passeth. Isydory reporteth also. That auncyently it was accustomed atte the coronacyon of the Emperour of Constantynoble Whenne he was sette in his moost glorye. A masson sholde come before hym & shewe hym thre or foure maner of marbell stones / sayeng that he sholde chese. of whiche of those he wolde haue his tombe made. It is redde [Page] of Saynte Iohan the aumener that was some tyme patryarke of Alexander that hadde commaunded to make his Tombe / and wolde in noo wyse hit sholde be fully fynysshed. And ordeyned that in grete and solempne festes / whenne he was in his hyghest honoure / one sholde come vnto hym and saye that thy Tombe is not fully accomplysshed nor perfourmed / gyue commaundementes that hit be fynysshed. For thou knoweste not howe thou shalte dye / nor whanne that theff wyll come / whiche is to vnderstonde the fende. That enforceth hym selfe alway to destroye soules. And whye dyde the Pope the Emperour and the patryarke these thynges / whiche where the men moost excellente in estate of all the worlde / but onely to confesse and knowelege to themselfe that they were mortall / and that they oughte not to enhaunse them selfe in pryde nor fortefye them in hope of longe lyfe / wherby they sholde haue the more power in this vayne worldly glory / but that they myght haue before hem thenne the Remembraunce of dethe to cause them to be the more humble in alle theyr werkes. And therfore sayth the prophete. Lino we alle people that men be comen and made of erthe. And therfore they muste necessaryly dye. It is also wryten in Ecclesyastes in the .xli. chapytre. All thynges that be come of the erthe / shall [Page xi] be conuerted agayne to the erthe / wherof man is comen as it is well knowen. And therfore seyth Iheremias the prophete in the .xxii. chapytre. Erthe. erthe. erthe. Now herken my wordes. He called man thryes erthe / by cause he maye soo be named in thie maners. Fyrste he is erthe / for he is made of the erthe. Secondly his conuersacyon is in the erthe. And fynally he retourneth in to the erthe. Soo is he erthe in his creacyon / in his conuersacyon / and in his dethe. He is erthe by his nature in his lyfe. And in his sepulture he hath sanoured the erthe. he hath lyked the erthe / he hath desyred and coueyted the erthe. The body of man is taken and doluen in the erthe. And yet he forgeteth the celestyall thynges / and pleteth for the terrestyall. And geueth batayll for the erthe. He goothe. He cometh. And tourneth abowte the erthe to haue the erthe. And oftentymes in anguysshes / payne / and laboure / now here / now there. And alle for the erthe / and neuer seasynge tyll he hym selfe / whiche is come from the erthe / be retourned agayne to his fyrste moder. That is to saye / the erthe. It maye be sayde / as it is wryten in the iii. book of the Liynges in the seconde Chapytre. Loo howe I departe and passe the comune waye of the vnyuersall erthe. And for as moche as we be bounden with slyme of the erth / doūge of the erthe / and be right vyle [Page] thynge / wherfore sholde we thenne be proude of oure selfe / knowynge we be come from the erthe / lyuyng in the erthe / conuersyng in the erthe / and fynally shall recourne in to the erth / as euery day it appereth euydently vn to all people
¶ How Remembran̄ce of dethe maketh a man to dyspyse all thynges.
¶ The seconde chapytre of this fyrste pryncypall parte.
REmēbraunce of dethe causeth a man to myslyke alle erthely vayne thynges. and to repute them as no thynge. Therfore sayth Saynte Iherome in his prologue of the Bible. That easely he dyspyseth all bad thynge / that alwaye remembreth / howe he muste dye. The concupyscence of eyen is dyspysed whenne one remembreth that he shall shortly parte and leue alle erthely thynges. The concupyscence of the flesshe is dispysed / whenne one remembreth / that his body shal become wormes mete. In a momente the pompe and pryde of this lyfe is sette atte nought / whenne a man counterpeyseth in his herte / how he that wolde be aboue all other / shall be hastely caste in to erthe vnder the fete of other. For this cause saythe Saynt Iherome in a pystle that he sente vnto Lypryane. Remembre the well of thy dethe / and [Page xii] thou shalt not synne. He thenne that alwaye bererth in remembraunce / how he must dye. disprayseth easely alle thynges presente / dysposyng hymselfe to alle good thynges that be to come. Certaynly (Esau) consyderynge howe dethe was nyghe vnto hym / dyspraysed lyghtely all worldely thynges. It is also wryten in (Genesis) in the fyue and twenty chapytre. Loo beholde I dye and what shall proufyte me all thoos thynges that I am borne vnto. Isydore) Also aduertysynge hym selfe of the shortnesse of this present lyfe / whiche is soo soone passed / and that all that men seme to haue in possessyon here shall be lefte sodeynly by deth / exorted euery man to dysprayse suche thynges. Saynge yf thou wylte be in reste and peas / desyre no thynge of this worlde / and so thou shall be quyete in thy corage / yf thou put from the alle the desyres and curyous besynesses of this presente lyfe. Set a parte alle thynge that may dystourbe and lette thy good purpose. be thou dede to the worlde / and the worlde to the / and as though thou were dede / beholde the vayn glorye of this worlde. And as a man passed / dysseuer▪ and depart the from the voluptuousnesse of this worlde. And as a man fynysshed / haue this world in no cheerte. And as a man passed oute of this worlde / purge the of all maner of fylthes. And also whyle thou art a lyue disprayse [Page] all that thou mayste not haue when thou art dede Seneca sayth. that there may noo thyng proufyte the so moche in that temperaūce and dispraysyng of all worldely thynges as shall do to thenke often of the short endurynge / and the Incerteynte of this present lyfe. Thene my right dere frende / Remembre often in thy corage / howe thou muste dye. It is redde in a booke made of the gyfte of dirde. Howe longe a go [...] / there was a righte wyse phylosophie that hooly abandoned hym to the vanytees of this wretched worlde / whiche in a tyme herde redde of the longe lyfe of Auncyente faders / and of eueryche of them was sayd in the ende he is dede. As is wryten in Genesis. in the fyfthe chapytre. Thenne he thoughte in hym selfe / that semblably deth sholde happen vnto hym as it dyde vnto those / for he was righte olde. And hastely he entred in to relygyon / and toke the ordre of the frere prechoures / and was after made mayster of Theologye in Parys. And from that daye forthe lyued a full holy lyfe. O how well hadde this man before his eyen the wordes of Ecclesiastes. in the enleuenthe chapytre. Sayeng. That man / whiche hadde lyued many yeres alwaye gladde and Ioyfull / he oughte to remembre well his laste dayes / and the comynge of the horryble tenebrouse tyme. For thenne it shall be but vanytee / [Page xiii] to argue of thynges paste for his remedye. Certeynly atte the daye of dethe appereth vanyte of vanytees / and howe alle thynges shall be thenne vayne and noughte. For this cause it is wryten in Ecclesiastes in the thrydde chapytre. Alle thynges here be restynge vnder vanytee / and trewe it is all thynges of this worlde / and eueryche of them be vayne. For our lyfe / and euery worldely creature is but vanytee. And therfore sayth the Prophete. That vnyuersally euery lyuynge man is vanytee. Thou wenest to lyue longe / and many a yeres to possesse delycyously thy temporall goodes▪ Certayne my righte dere frende. It shall be alle other wyse For man is made semblable vnto vanyte and his dayes passe as a shadowe. Beholde nowe and see howe thy dayes shall be but shorte / and thenne an other shall come and take thy possessyons. Vnto this purpose sayth Cathon Promytte neuer to thy selfe that thou shalte haue longe space of lyfe. For in what place soo euer thou entre / dethe foloweth alwaye the shadowe of thy body. And therefore yf thou loke vpon the wordes that be sayde. And also conceyue dilygentely in thy herte that shall be shewed the here after / thou sholdest rather say these wordes than otherwyse. I goo nowe to my dethe / and truste to lyue after by a longe space. Alle [Page] be it perauenture this is the last daye of my lyfe. The holy & blessed man Saynte Luke) sayth in his xii. chapytre. O thou foule / this nyghte thy soule shall be axed of the and be certayne that the dysposycyon of thy tabernacules is but lyghte. As is wryten in the secō de epistle of saynt (Petre in ye fyrst chapytre Thynke thenne that thou arte dede / when thou knoweste necessaryly that after a nombre of yeres thou art certeyn to dye Therfore dysprayse all transytory thynges that muste be hastly left. as is to sey withoute ony taryenge though it be lothe vnto the. The poete telleth ye wysdom. [...]entis of londes possessyon of rychesse. the makynge of walled townes / the byldyng of houses / the gloryous maner of lyuyng atte the table as well in pleasant drynkes / as in delycyous metes. the feyre softe beddes well hanged and dressed the whyte table clothes / the bryght burnyssed cuppes / the ryche garmentes contrary to good maner the grete flokkes or herdys of beestes. The grete countreyes of arable londes / the vyneyerdes plenteuously sette with vynes / and the Ioye and the loue of his propre childern / yet shall alle this be relynquysshed passe and be loste / and nothynge be founde therof here after. By these thynges maye be seen that in this presente lyfe is noo thyng stable nor permanente / whiche oughte to cause diede. Therfore wryteth (Ecclesiastes) in [Page xiiii] the seconde chapytre. I haue gretely exalted my werkes. I haue edyfyed me fayre houses. I haue planted vynes. I haue made gardeyns / wherin I haue graffed of alle maner of trees. I haue also caste poondes / and stagnes / and haue sette trees in the forest I haue hadde seruauntes and chamberers. and grete companye in my housholde more thanne euer hadde ony afore me in Iherusalem. I haue had grete flockes of shepe / and droues of bestes. I haue assembled for me golde and syluer. and gadered the tresoure of kynges / and of the prouynces / my neyghbours. And also haue herde afore me syngers / bothe men and wymmen / and many delectacōns of the childern of men. And haue done soo moche / that I haue surmounted in richesse alle that haue ben before me in Iherusalem Wysdome also hath alle wayes perseuered in me and alle that euer myne eyen haue desyred. I haue not denyed them not defended / but that they haue vsed all voluptuousnesse / and they haue had noo delectacyon / but in suche thynges that I had ordeyned them / & when that I tourned me & behelde well all these thynges / and the werkes that my handes had wrought & loked vpon the labour that I had many tymes swette in. & all for noughte. I perceyued then and knewe well / that all my werkes were but vanyte and affeccyon of spyryte. And yt vnder the sonne [Page] in this worlde was noo thyng permanent nor sure. Now in trouth all thȳ ges passe here lyke a shadowe. Therfore seyth Iohan de garlandia. That al thyng of this world. yt was is & shalbe. perysseth in the moment of an houre. what proufyteth than to haue ben / to be nowe / or to be herafter. Certeyne thyse be thre thynges blowyng without flours For all thyngis yt were be or shalbe haue a finyssynge The worlde passeth & the concupyscens therof also. And therfore it is sayd / wherfore taketh a wyseman thought for to gete tresoure whiche is sone loste. And saynt Bernarde sayth in his book of medytacōns. wherfore maketh ony man tresour here of ryches / sythen wt out delay bothe that yt is assembled & he that gadereth hit passen & be loste togyder. O thou man what anayll entendes yt to haue in this worlde / whenne the fruyte is but ruynouse & the ende deth My cordyall & good frende / now wolde god that thou woldest vnderstonde well these thynges / & suerly ordeyne for thy laste thȳges. Petre de bloys sayth in a pystle. that the dysceyuable vayn glorye of this worlde begyleth all thoos that loueth hit For all that euer it promytteth in tyme to come or pretendeth in tyme present fayleth and cometh to nought / as water cast vpon the erthe. Beholde then how frayle / how disceyuable / and how vayn is the worlde & the Ioye therof / that we desyre so mekell. O ye fole wherfore [Page xv] dispysest thou not lightely thoo [...] [...]nges that thou seest [...] shortly fayle & passe. Lrnowest thou not howe the worlde is right noughte and furyous And that in languyssyng / it perysseth by the gleyue of the right cruell deth / hit is a trouth that none argument can serue to the contrarye wherfore / and by thise thynges afore rehersed / it appereth manyfestely how Remembraunce of deth sholde cause dispisyng of all worldly thynges and withdrawynge a man from fallyng to synne.
¶ How Remēbraūce of deth maketh a man to take vpon hym penaūce.
¶ The thryd chapytre of the fyrste pryncypall parte.
FOlowyng thorder before let. It is now to enquere diligētly. how remēbraunce of deth causeth a man to do penaū ce & gladly to accepte it. This appereth clerely by Ionas the ꝓphete in the ii [...]. chapitre / spekyng of them of Nynyue / whiche dyde penaūce for fere of deth / wherfore saynt Iohan Baptyste enduceth men also to do penaūce. As Saynt Luke wryteth in his .iii. chapitre sayenge. Do ye the dygne fruytes of penaunce. And he sayth afterwarde. The axe is sette to the rote of the tree. Whiche sygnyfyeth the thretenynges of deth. And therfore sayth Saynte Ambrose vpon Luke. Alas lorde yf I haue not bewayled my synnes. Alas lorde yf I haue not rysen atte myd [Page] nyght to confesse me to the. Alas yf I haue begyled my neyghbour. Alas yf I haue alwaye sayde trouthe. The axe is redy sette to the rote. Euery man therfore thenne do penaunce / & deserue the fruyte of grace. For here cometh ye lord to aske the fruyte of our lyf For this cause Iob consyderynge the shortnesse of this presente lyfe / had leuer and chase to haue repentaūce presently / than afterwarde wherby sholde growe no fruyte The same Iob sayde in his .x. chapytre. shall not my short dayes breefly fynysshe / yes in trouthe The lyfe present is right shorte. Alas then a lytyll whyle lete me cō playne and bewayle my sorowe a fore my departyng in to the tenebrous derkenesse of dethe with out retornyng. And it is also sayd in Iob the xiiii. chapytre. That mannes dayes be breef. It is wryten in the fyrst pystle ad Corintheos in ye evii. chapytre / the tyme is breef / were it not better then now breefly to susteyne a lytyll payne / then afterward when it cannot profyt to repent without profyt & bewayle it infynytely. Saynt Austyn seyth ye better is a lityl bytternesse in ye mouthe / then eternally to suffre payn in al ye hole body of man. Also he seyth in a sermon / yt ye lyfe of euery man frō his youthe to his age is but short / though Adā lyued yet. & sholde this day dye what sholde it auātaged him to haue lyued so longe. sothly lytyll or noughte / but he myght sey ye tyme of my lyf is past And [Page xvi] also sayth a wyse man / what sholde it profyte a man to lyue. CC. yeres when at his deth. he shal thynke all his lyfe is passed as wynde. And saynt Austyn sayth vpon the Psalter. If thou haddest lyued sens Aoam was chased oute of paradyse terrestre tyll nowe / and that thou sholdeste dye this daye / thou sholdest thynke thy lyfe not longe / whiche so soone sholde passe. Now how longe soo euer a mannes lyfe be / take that it maye be lengthed asmoche more to cause many yeres / yet it shall fayle and vanysshe / as the shynynge of the morowe sonne. And the same. Saynte Austyn seyth in an Omely. that we be more frayle & brotyll / then though we were made of glasse. For al be it that glasse is brotyll / yet yf it be well kept it may endure right longe. But mannes lyfe be it neuer so well and dilygently kept it may not longe endure. Therfore it is wryten to the Hebrues in the .ix. chapitre. It is establysshed and ordeyned euery creature ones to dye. And Senek sayth in his book of remedyes ayenst fortune That our lyfe is but a pylgremage & when one hath longe walked / he must fynally retorne This necessite to dye / & shortnesse of ye lyfe of man was wel consydered by ye paynym Xerses. Of whom saynt Iherom wrote in a pystle to Elyodorꝰ sayng yt this puyssāt kyng xerses / whiche subuerted ye monteyns & couored the sees / beynge ones in right hye place loked [Page] vpon the Infynyte multytude of his hoost & tendrely wepte / by cause he knew yt none of thoos whom he behelde sholde lyue ouer an. C. yeres It is a thyng right necessary in the worlde / yt mannes lyfe be not longe lastynge. And as Balam sayth. It is lykened to a tree hauyng .ii. wormes fretynge in the rote / the one blak & the other white in ye symylytude of the day & the nyght / whiche Incessantely gnawe the rote of the tree of lyfe. Saynt Austyn vpon the sayng of Saynte Iohan in his .iii. chapitre treatyng vpon this questyon Quid est vita nostra &c) This lyfe is a doubtfull lyfe / a blynde lyfe & a nedy lyfe / humours make hit to bolne. sorowes make hit feble / hete dryeth hit / eyer dysposeth hit to sekenesse / mete maketh hit to swelle / fastyng maketh hit lene / playes maketh hit to erre / waylynge destroyed hit / besynesse constreyneth hit / sewer [...]e maketh hit rude / rekles riches enhaunseth hit pouerte abateth hit / wepyng abassheth hit / youthe maketh hit wanten / age maketh hit to yelde. sekenesse maketh hit to breke. And after all this cometh deth / whiche destroyeth & maketh an ende therof wt all his Ioyes in suche wyse. as whenne the Ioyes be past / all semeth as they had neuer ben. Also it is redde in the book of Sapyence in the .ii. chapitre. That the dayes of our lyfe nys but shorte / & yet are they full of greuaunce / we be made & wote not wherof [Page xvii] And after we shall be. as we hadde neuer ben. For oure dayes passen as dothe a shadowe. It is red in the same book of Sapyence in the same chapitre. That our lyf passeth like the trace of a clowde & shal fayle as the lytyll clowde. that is broken by the myghte of the sonne beames. It is wryten in Iob the .vii. chapitre. Beholde how my dayes be all passed / and I shall goo forthe in the pathe / & shall neuer retourne ageyn. Also the same Iob sayth in the .ix. chapitre My dayes are passed more lyghtly than a curroure or a messanger. They are gone lyghtly awaye as shyppes done that be charged with apples. Or as an egell dooth flee for his mete. Iob sayth also My dayes be passed more lyghtly than clothe is cutte from the lome. and they be all wasted withoute ony hope of recouerey. O lord god Remembre then. is my lyfe oughte but wynde / & shall not my eyen retorne ageyn to see ye good thynges to come To ye purpose speketh Petre de bloys in his boke called Aurora. My lyf shalbe sooner out of this worlde / than a webbe of clothe cut from the lome Remēbre yu then how thy lyfe may be resembled to the wynde. Loo now my righte dere frende howe shorte / howe lytyll / howe mutable / how disceyuȳg is this our lyfe presente / for as it is sayd in Ecclesiastes in the .xviii. chapitre. It is grete age in a man to be .C. yere olde▪ but by succession of tyme it is gretely amynysshed [Page] It is wryten in the Psalter. The dayes of our yeres be .lxx. & yf we may come to foure score yere / the superplus is no thynge but labour & sorowe. But what is it of .lx. yere or yet of Cought this to be taken of a longe tyme & a grete space of yeres. Certeynly nay in regarde towarde the sempiternyte. It ought rather be named a moment thā a space of tyme. for to oure lord a .M. yere is but as yesterday. whiche lightly is past. Derely this lyfe in short & transytory / paynfull & wretched / hit is not onely to be thoughte nor poysed for the shortenesse. But moche more for the incerteynte therof whiche is doubtfull / and ful of casuel peryll / & we be not sure therof day nor hour. And whenne it sheweth vs sewerte & peas thenne sodeynly cometh deth / & with hit perauenture ye false theif Sathan Therfore sayth to vs a poete. who is he knowynge hymselfe to lyue many yeres / sens we knowe not whether we shall dye to morowe or sooner. It is wryten in Isaye the xxxviii. chapitre saynge. Dyspose thy hous / for yu shalt dye sone / & not longe lyue. Isaye seyth also in the same Chapitre / yt my lyfe is hyt from me as a pece of clothe from the lome. And whenne I began fyrst the lyffe. then began dethe to approche toward me. For this cause it is sayde in the book of Sapience in the .v. chapitre / we be soone born. & sone leue our beyng. To this purpose seyth Senek in his pystles. Eueryday [Page xviii] we dye. & euery day is taken away from vs parte of our lyfe. Than thus what is oure lyfe ought ellys but a passage / or a rennyng toward deth / & therfor it is not vnresonable yt she be lykened to an Orylage / whiche gooth alway from degre to degre cōtynually mouynge tyll it come to a certayne poynt / & then it stryketh sodenly vpon ye belle / whiche cōstreyneth the sowne Semblably our lyfe passeth alway & renneth tyll it come to a certeyn poynte. That is to wyte The hour of our deth whiche oure lorde hath prefixed / and no man may it passe / and than our lyf falleth and fayleth without remedye. Awake thenne & entende wysely to the ende of thy lyfe For thyn Orylage hath but fewe degrees to renne. and euery houre she ouerpasseth many. And whenne it cometh to the laste / thou shalt stomble sodeynly in to the cauerne or caue of dethe. Now herken what a Poete sayth. The presente lyfe is short alway fleynge / and fadeth as a shadowe / & departeth & falleth sodeynly / when one wenes that she be moost permanente and abydyng / & in the myddes of our lyfe / we be often at our deth. And therfore haue we in Ecclesiastes in the .ix. chapytre. That man knoweth not his ende / but as a fysshe taken with a nette / & the bryddes with a trappe. Semblably men be takē at inconuenyent tymes / thꝰ cometh our ende & dethe is ye last thyng to all thȳges beryng lyfe. It is [Page] wryten in a book of the lyfe & of the dedes of grete Alexand (er). O how happy sholde a man be yf he had alwaye in Remembraunce of the eternall Ioyes / & drad deth yt is ordeyned as well to the nobles as to the poore peple whiche cometh to the grete peryll & daūger of the soule whenne it is unpurueyed. Loo here then my right dere frende / yu seest well yt the lyfe of man is but a thyng dyked aboute. & enuyroūde with ruynous deth / oure flesshe is but asshes. And suche as was the begynnyng / suche shalbe the ende / saynte Bernarde sayth. whē ne I Remembre that I am but asshes / and that myn ende approched my drede and fere is withoute ende / and I wexe colde as asshes. And therfore as▪ Saynt Gregory saythe. That man sollycyteth well his good werkes / that thenketh allewaye vpon his last ende And we shold drede that euery day sholde be oure laste daye. And alwaye haue in mynde / that necessaryly we muste dye / who maye haue thenne a bolde corage consyderynge the shortnesse the grete Incerteynte of oure lyfe / the approchyng of oure dethe whiche is comyng / who is he also yu ought not thynke dilygē tely that our dayes & our yeres fayle and waste as the smoke. And ye man naturelly born lyueth but a short space / and fadeth as a floure / and fleeth a waye lyke a shadowe / who is he also that calleth thyese thynges to mynde / and peyses them [Page xix] well in his herte / and so subdeweth the deuyll the flesshe and the worlde & repenteth hym in this shorte space. To say you trouth there be none that deferre and be neclygent soo to doo / but oonly those that be all blynded in malyce and lacke of grace. O how grete a payne shall ensewe of neclygence. Thappostle sayth to the Hebrues in the seconde-chapitre. Howe shall we flee that dyspyse soo gret an helthe. As to say we myght haue heuen yf we wolde. And Saynte Effran sayth. My right dere brotheren and frendes. yf we be neclygent in the lytyll space of tyme that we haue nowe / we shall haue noo maner of excusacion to allegge for remedye of our synnes. Therfore dysprayse not the shortnesse of this tyme. But doo penaunce whyle ye haue space here For after it wyll be to late & without fruyte. And better is to doo penaunce here / than Infynytely and worlde without ende to repente hit. Nowe haste ye therfore and tary not. Lest that ye fynally be shet out with the fyne fatuat and fonned virgyns. Saynt Mathewe seyth in his .xxv. chapitre Loo here is the spouse come / and thoos that were redy / ben entred with hȳ to the weddyng / wherup on Saynt Gregory saythe. That the palays of the herte myghte well asauoured howe wonderfull was that worde. Here is the spouse whiche is come. How swete was that worde to them. that entred with hym to the [Page] weddyng. And how bytter was ye other worde. the yates be shytte & closed. My dere frende yf yu dyde sauour & vnd (er)stonde well all this thynges & beheldest them well in thyne hert. Certeynly yu woldest renne with all dilygence for to do penaūce. & wolde not lese so vnproufytably. & without fruyte ye acceptable tyme & dayes of thy helthe / for no maner of voluptuoꝰ playsers or other ydlenesse And as it is wryten in ye Apocalips in the .ii. chapitre. Remē bre the fro whens thou arte falle or departed / and do penaunce. It is red howe in dayes passed it happened in the Abbey of Cleruaulx yt an holy man beyng in his prayers herde a voys makyng a pyteous lamentacyon. And as he asked who it was. a soule answered sayeng I am the soule of a dāpned man / complaynyng myne vnhappy cause of condemnacōn. And then he demaūded hym of his payn. whiche answered yt of all thynges yt causeth moost payn to a dāpned soule was losse of tyme / that god hadde ordeyned man by his grace that he in a lytyll tyme myghte haue done penaūce. whiche sholde delyuere hym from the euerlastyng peynes of the gehenne of helle. To this purpose sayd Hugo of saynt Dyctour. The lackyng of the sighte of our lorde / and faylyng of all the goodes of grace / that we myght haue hadde sholde surmoū te and be more greuous vnto the / thanne all the Infernall tourmentes. Lete vs do good werkes [Page xx] whyle we haue tyme / lest we saye in repentaunce. As is sayd in Iheremyas in the .viii. chapitre. That is to wete. Heruest is past. Somer is fynysshed / & we be not saued / wherfore my frendes I requyre & humbly praye you / that ye wyll amende your selfe in shorte tyme & make you redy in this .x. hour / for the euenyng hasteth hym. And the rewarder shall come to yelde euery man after his werkes. Hit may appere by these examples / how Remēbraunce of dethe sholde induce a man to do penaūce. It is red of a felonous & a cruell knyght. whiche wolde neuer accept nor do ony penaūce enioyned hym by pope Alexander. And at last the pope gaue hȳ his rynge / yt he sholde here it on his fynger / by way of penaūce. And as often as he behelde him to thynke on his dethe. And whan he had boren hit a space of tyme with ye Remembraūce on a day he come ageyn to the pope sayng he was redy to shryue hȳ & to fulfyll euery other maner of penaunce. that he wolde enioyne hym. It is red of an other synner yt in lyke wyse wolde do noo penaūce / & at last his confessoure enioyned hym / that he sholde commaunde his seruaunt to presente hym euery daye atte his table with the fyrste messe / a staffe the rynde scorched of / sayenge. Syr Remembre that necessaryly ye must dye / not knowynge where / whenne / in what maner nor howe. And as this was a good whyle contynued [Page] / because of that Remembraūce / all that he ete torned hym to grefe and trouble. And thenne he called agayne for his confessour / sayeng he was redy to do and obey ony penaūce that he wolde ordeyne. For his herte was merueylously broughte in grete trouble by the fere of dethe / whiche he was in. Loo by these thynges a fore rehersed / appereth thenne clerely Inough how Remembraū ce of deth causeth a man to humble hym selfe / to dyspyse all worldly thynges / and acceptably take vpon hym to doo penaū ce and consequently to eschewe synnes And therfore my righte dere brethern & frendes. Remembre you often / ye & right often that ye shall dye. And ye here in your myndes the dethe / ye shalte well come by that remē bryng to moost happy resorte of lyfe. That is to wyte. the herytage of our lorde Ihesu Cryste.
¶ Here begynneth the ꝓlogue of the seconde partye of the four last thynges.
THe seconde parte of the foure laste thynges wherof frequentynge ye Remembraūce reuoketh & calleth vs from syn̄e. Is the last and fynall day of Iugement / of whiche ye Remē braūce draweth vs not onely from the dedely gret synnes. but also from the smale venyall. And therfore it is redde in Vitis [Page xxi] Patrū in the lyfe of fad (er)s That an auncyent man seeng a yong man laugh dyssolutely / layd sone we must gyue accōpte of all our lyfe / before heuen & erthe / why laughest thou so fast. As who sayth / yf yu knewest how strayte a Rekenyng shalbe at the day of dome of all syn̄es aswel gret as smale. Certeynly yu woldest not laughe / but rather sorowe & complayne. Now is here the place to wepe and to put awaye synnes. And thoos that now wepe for theyr synnes shall laugh herafter. Saynt Gregory sayth in his Omelye. That the gladnesse of this tyme present ought to be but suche. as therby the bytternesse of the day of Iugemente be not put out of Remembraunce. Therfore it is wryten in Ecclesiastes the .xxxviii. chapitre. Here my Iugement in Remembraūce. And also our lord by his ꝓphete in ye psalter seyth when I shall see or take the tyme. I wyll deme & do Iustyce to euery one. & Iohell sayth in his last chapitre. Alle men aryse & come togydres in to the vale of Iosephat. For there I shall sytte & Iuge all maner of peple aboute me. Iheremyas in his seconde chapitre sayth yt our Lorde sayth. I shall amownte with you in Iugement. Of this Iugement is wryten in Ozee the fourthe chapitre. Ye childern of Israhell / here ye the worde of our lord of the fynall Iugemente that perteyneth to oure Lorde vpon thenhabytantes of ye erth. Sothely this Iugement is gretely [Page] to be doubted. Therfore sayth the prophete. I dred for thy Iugementes. It is wryten in the book of Sapyence in the .v. chapytre. They that see the grete Iuge / shall be horrybly troubled / playnynge and waylyng the drede of theyr soules. Certeynly in this daye shall all people be troubled / & they that dwell in the vtterest partye of the worlde shall fere those tokens and sygnes / & they shall doubte them / & not with oute cause. For they shall be merueylously horryble Saynt Luke seyth in his xxi chapitre / whenne the sone of man shall shewe hymselfe. That is to sey The childe of the virgyne marye comynge in a clowde in mageste with a gret puyssaūce / thenne shall the sygnes shewe in the sonne / in the mone / and in the s [...]erres. And on the erthe shall be pressure of people dredynge to be cunfused with the sounde of the wawes of the see. Men vnyuersally of all ye world shall fall downe for the drede and fere that they shall haue thenne. O thou wretched man. Remembre of the terryble comynge of this Iuge / that is bothe god and man / whiche a fore hym hath a brennyng fyre. And a stronge tempeste. I saye there shall a fyre go afore hym. whiche shall flamme holy aboute his enemyes. It is wryten to the Hebrues in the tenthe chapytre. Ryght terryble is the abydynge of this Iugement. And the fere therof / whiche shall destroye hys aduersaryes. And [Page xxii] Malachyas sayth in his iii. chapitre. See here the day yt shall come flāmynge lyke a chemenye. And thenne it shall brenne all proude men / and thoos yt haue commytted felonye It is redde in Isaye in the .xlvi. chapitre. Here is our lorde yt shall come & Iuge by fyre. And Iohell in his .ii. chapitre sayth He shall haue a fyre before his face deuourynge and behynde hym a brennyng flamme. For this cause sayth Malachyas in his thrydde chapitre / who shall he be thenne that shall nowe see oure Lorde. For he shall be as a fyre glowynge / sette to make clene / and purge syluer / who is thenne he of deuoute corage that shall not drede with alle his herte this Iuge and his comyng. And therfor sayth saynt Gregory vpon Ezechyell / who may haue ye corage / but that shal fere and dred the presence of the eternall Iuge / when all thȳges shal come thenne to the syght of euery man / & all thynges done afore by delectacyon shall be with righte grete drede called to Remembraūce. Certayn as it is wryten in ye Prouerbys in the .xxxviii. chapitre. The euyll men thynken not of the Iugement But they yt desyren & dreden god / haue in theyr hertis all good thynges. saynt Bernard sayth in a prose. truly I drede sore the vysage of the Iuge yt shall come to whom noo thyng can be hyd / & shal noo thyng rest vnpunysshed. & who shall he be of vs yt shall not dred when yt Iuge shall come whiche [Page] shall haue fyre brennyng before hym to the destruccyon of all synners. Certeynly this last Iugemente ought gretly to be dred and for .iii. causes. The fyrste the accusementes shalbe in many maners. whiche all synneis ought greuously to wayle. The seconde is the right strayte sentence vpon our gouernaunce that syngulerly shall be made to euery thyng. The thyrde is the horryble feerfull abydynge of the Iugement / whiche thenne by the Iust Iuge shalbe terrybly gyuen These thynges all synners ought tymerously drede / whiche by consequens the Remembraunce therof sholde withdrawe man from doynge synne.
¶ How the Accusacyon that shall be at the daye of dome is to be drad.
¶ The fyrst chapitre of the seconde parte.
THe fyrste thing thē ne. where by the fynal Iugement oughte specyally to be drad is the many and dyuerse accusacyons / whiche shall be there agaynst all synners / wherfore it is to be knowen that we fynde in holy scryptures seuen thynges that accuse synners atte the grete daye of Iugement. The fyrste is oure propre conscyence / whiche shall argue ageynst the synner / [Page xxiii] not secretely / but manyfestely thenne afore all. It is wryten in Danyele in the seuenthe chapitre. Thy Iugemente is sette / and thy bookes be open. That is to wete / the conscyences / whiche thenne be openly vttered In those bokes be conteyned the sciences of lyf or of deth / of glory and of confusyon / of saluacyon perpetuell / or dāpnacyon eternall. It is red also in the .xx. chapitre of the Apocalyps. That dede men shall be Iuged of the thynges wryten in theyr owne bokes. That is to saye / in theyr consciences Therfore it is wryten in the Pystle to the Romayns in the seconde chapitre That theyr conscyences shall bere them wyttenesse. For as wyttenesse of the euyll conscyence is thaccusacyon / the payne. and the tourment of synners. Right so shal the good cōscyence be helpe and saluacyon to the good creatures. The seconde thyng that shal accuse the synners / shall be the fendes and the euyll spyrytes / whiche falsly & trayterously haue procured & sturred men to synne. And of alle that the synner hathe done they wyll accuse hym / as one thef accuseth an other of one felony done by them both. It is wryten in the Apocalyps the .xii. chapitre. The fende is called the accuser of bretheren. And Saynt Austyn say the. They be all before the Iudycyall sete of Ihesu Cryste. And there the deuellys shall be redy▪ whiche shall reherse the wordes of our professyon [Page] and shall appose to oure face that we haue done / and wherin we haue synned / and in what place / and what we oughte to haue done / and lefte it vndone. Truly our aduersary that same fende shall say thenne. O righte wyse and Iuste Iuge. Deme this man to be myn for his synnes. For he wyll not be thyne by grace. He is thyne by nature. He is myne by his mysery. He is thyn by thy passion. He is myn by persuasyons. He hathe bendysobeysaunte vnto the. He hath ben concentyng vnto me. He hath receyued of the / yt stole of Immortalyte / & of me this blacke garmente that he wereth of perpetuell deth he that lefte thy lyuere & hath taken myn. he hath lefte thy Ioye and blysse. & hath taken my sorowe and payne. O thou Iuste Iuge. Iuge hym therfore to be myn / and that he be condampned with me perpetually. Thyse wordes sayd our lorde vnto. Saynte Austyne. The thyrde thynge that accuseth synners. shall be angeles / & the happy goode spyrytes. Certayne it is to be beleued / that he that hath gyuen them oure soules to kepe / shall requyre to haue Reason of that kepyng. And as those that neuer lye nor wyll take vpon them the synne or faute of other / muste nedys saye / they be not to blame. But the gylte is in vs synners / whiche wolde not obey nor byleue them. Semblably it is not the defa [...] te of the physycyen / whiche doth his cure as it ap [Page xxiiii] perteyneth yf he hele not his pacyent whiche is disobeysaūt vnto hym. And therfore hit is wryten in Iheremye the one and fyfty chapitre / we haue hadde Babylon in cure / and yet she is not heled. These be the wordes of the Angeles as they wyll saye / we haue doone all that was necessary to be done to Babylon to the ende that sholde be cured & heled. But it is in her defaut yt she is not he led. This Babylon is to be lykened to mānes soule The .iiii. thyng yt shall accuse synners / shall be creatures. And yf thou axed me / whiche creatures they be. I answere the / all and eueryche oon of them by them selfe. For and the creatoure of alle thynges be offended. all the good creatures shall haue hym in hate / thath hath dyspleased hym. For as Iob saythe in his twentyest Chapytre. The heuens shall shew and lyfte vppe the euyll werkes of the synners / and the erthe shall adresse hym agaynst them. For oure lord shall call vnto hym the heuen aboue / and the erthe be nethe to dyscerne his people. And therfore sayth Crysostome vppon the Gospell. of Saynte Mathewe. There is noo thynge that we shall mowe remedye by answere that daye / whenne the heuen and the erthe / the sonne and the mone / the nyghte and the daye / and all the worlde shall bere wytenesse agaynste vs for oure synnes. The refore saythe Saynte [Page] Gregory. If thou axe me / who shall accuse the I say to the / all the worlde. And that the creatures shall not oonly accuse the synners. But also shal requyre the creatour of alle thynges to take vengeance on them for theyr syn̄es. To this purpose it is wryten in the book of Sapyence in the fyfthe chapitre. He shall arme all creatures to take vengeance on his ennemyes. And with hym shall fyght all the worlde agaynste those / that haue ben Insensate. that is to wyte / ayenst synners. All creatures seeng him that is maker of all thynges shall chase them to cause tourmentes to be gyuen vppon thoos that haue not be Iuste. The fyfthe thynge that shall accuse the synners / they shall be myserable persones / that haue suffred soo many wronges. For thenne they shall accuse thoos that haue done them wrong peyn and tourment. At that tyme shall the worde of the ꝓphete be verifyed whiche sayth. I haue knowen well that our lorde wyll gyue Iugemente / for the poore folkes yt haue suffered wrong. & shal auenge the quarell of thoos yt be Impotent for he yt beholdeth the depe botoms of the sees / & sytteth aboue all the Cherubyns & Seraphyns / & gooth aboue all the wyndes. He is more terryble to be drad in his counselles and wylles than is the sones of men He shall Iuge then̄e poore mennys cause that haue ben cōstant. And shall holde ayenst those that [Page xxv] haue done them many anguysshes Then̄e shall the fader of Orphans / & the Iuge of wydewes venge all wronges / the pacyence of poore folkes shal not thenne perysshe The subgettes shall also accuse the felones & neclygente prelates & curates And therfore sayth saynt Bernarde vpon the Cantycles. O how cruell oure lord shall be vpon the sones of men. Certeyn the wretched synner shal say thenne all for nought to the monteyns. Fall ye vpon vs and to the Rockes couer ye vs. They shall come then̄e before the trybunall sete of Ihesu Cryste / where shall be herde full greuous accusacions by thoos that haue payd theyr wages / and boren theyr dispenses wrongfully / & theyr synnes shall not be defaced nor hydde of those yt fraudelently haue blynded their doctours and confessours. The vithyng yt shall accuse synners / shal be malyce and synne / we rede in Iheremye the seconde chapitre Thy malyce shall accuse the / & thy refusyng shall blame the For the synnes shall thenne be bonden vnto the necke of synners. To this purpose seyth Ozee in his xiii chapitre / the iniquyte of Effraym is bounde togydre & his synnes be not hyd / we rede myn iniquytees be trussed & leyde in myne necke / and as the stolen good taken on ye necke of a thef accuseth him semblably syn̄e shal then accuse the wretched synner It is wryten also in the Prouerbys the fyfthe Chapytre. Iniquytees [Page] shall take the felone synners / & there eueryche of them shall be taked and strayned with coordys of theyr syn̄es. And the Prophete seyth. The coordys of my synnes haue enuyroūde / & goon rounde about me. By the whiche coordys I saye also the wycked folkes by deuellys shall be drawen in to helle. Certeynly they fall in to theyr nettes. & be taken by theyr baytes / we red of the properte of an Archyn whiche / yt when he entreth in to a gardey ne / he lodeth hym with apples stykynge on his pryckes. And when ye gardener comes. he wold flee but he is thenne so laden that he can not away / & so he is there taken with all his apples. Semblably falleth hit to the synner / yt is all laden with synnes / and at the grete daye of Iugemente he is with them taken and accused / wherfore sayth the Psalter. Our lorde shall be knowen in makynge his Iugementes & handwerkes / and the synner shall be taken. Vpon the whiche sayth Crysostom Our owne thoughtes / & specially our werkes shal be afore our eyen / & shall accuse vs afore god. And therfore sayth saynt Bernarde. Our werkes and we shall speke togyder & saye. O myserable synner thou haste made vs / we ben thy werkes / we wyll not leue the / but go with the to thy Iugemente. It is red in Ezechiell the .xviii. chapitre. Lyke as the Iustice of the right wys man shalbe on and for hym. Righte soo the felony of the felon shall [Page xxvi] rest vpon hym The Psalter sayth. Here ye all people here / and reteyne wel in your eres alle ye that dwellen in this worlde / wherfore shall I not be dredefull in that euyll day. That is to wyce. the day of dome. whiche shal not oonly be euyll to me But it shall be right euyll to euery synner. where vnto he answereth hȳ selfe sayeng. I shall drede thenne For the Iniquyte of my fete shall enuyron me. The seuenth & the last thyng that shall accuse synners / shall be the tourmentes and Instrumentes of the passyon of Ihesu Cryste. And also Ihesu Cryst hymself wherfore sayth saynt Iherom. The crosse of Ihesu shall fyght ageynst the. Ihesu Cryst shall shew & allegge his woūdes ageyne the. And ye trace of the sayd woūdes shall speke ayenst the. The nayles shall complayne on the. As Saynt Austyn sayth in his treate of symboll▪ ꝑauenture our lord hath kept in his body the trace of tokenes of his woūdes to thentent that atte the day of dome / he wyll she we them ageynst synners to theyr reproche. And in vaynquyssyng them saye Lo here beholde the man that ye haue crucyfyed. See here god and man / in whom ye wolde haue noo byleue. Loke vppon the woūdes that ye haue made him. knowlege the syde that ye haue wounded & hurt / whiche hath ben opened for you. But ye haue not well entred therin. Ihesu Cryste also then accusyng the synners / shall say as Naum [Page] sayd in his thyrde chapitre. I shall shewe thy de fautes afore thy face / & shall shewe to the people thy nakednesse & to the reames thy shame. Ozee in his seconde Chapitre sayth. I shall manyfeste & shew thy foly afore the eyen of thy louers. & that is / noo man may drawe the out of my hondes. O how desolute & howe sorrowfull that the myserable synners shalbe in the daye of the grete Iugement. For thenne as it is wryten in the fyrst chapitre of the Apocalyps. Euery eye shall see hym / & all the lynages of the erthe shall complayne on hym. Thenne synners seeyng alle this shall be full of anguysshes & fere
¶ How the laste Iugemente shall be terryble. For then̄e shall be gyuen rekenyng of all thyng.
¶ The seconde Chapitre of the seconde parte.
THe seconde thynge that shall cause the extreme & last Iugement to be dredefull / shall be the strayte Rekenynge and accomptes of oure vyle dedys in all thyng. Saynt Luke sayth in his .xvi. Chapitre. yelde Reason of thy dedys / for after this lyf thou shalt mowe no more werke. My righte dere frēde. yf thou sholdest gyue a Rekenyng & accomptes of a thousande ponde / before a temporall lord prudent & wyse thou woldest be full well ware and take good hede how thou sholdest make hym a Iust and a due [Page xxvii] Rekenynge. Haue thou thenne moche more thoughte and be more dredefull to yelde good Rekenynge and accomptes of all thynge that thou haste commytted and done / and of thy dute lefte vndone / whenne thou shalte come before god / his angelles / and all his sayntes. In whoos presens necessaryly thou muste accompte. And not onely of the grete thynges but also of the smale. ye vnto ye lest part of them And as it is wryten in the thirde chapitre of Isaye Our lorde shall come to Iuge with all his moost Auncyent people. zacharyas in his .xiiii. chapitre sayth. Oure lorde my god shall come / and his sayntis with hym. That is to wyte. To the generall Iugemente / whiche shall be done before alle openly and not in hydeles. And therfore it is gretely to be doubted. For it is wryten in zophonyas in the thyrde chapitre. He shall holde his Iugement in the mornyng by daye lyght. and shall not hyde hym. There shalbe then̄e many dyuerse Reasons to gyue Rekenyng of all thynges. Fyrste of oure soule / whiche hath ben commytted and gyuen vs by God. Nowe truly yf a kynge hadde delyuered his doughter to one of his subgettes yt he entyerly loued / entendyng to make her a quene in his Reame. And yf the sayde subgette hadde not kepte her well / who wolde doubte / but that the Lrynge wolde haue a Rekenynge / and knowe the cause / how [Page] and why / his doughter hadde be soo euyll and soo neclygentely kepte / what shall the kyng of heuen do thenne to hym that hath taken his doughter to kepe That is to wyte. The soule / whiche he loueth specyally / and entendeth to enhaunse to Royall dignyte in heuen yf he haue kept her euyll shal not god therfore axe to haue therof rekenyng and reason / yes hardely It is wryten in Deutronom [...]i the fourth chapytre. [...]repe thoughtfully thy selfe and thy soule also. And Saynte Austyn sayth. It is a greter losse of one soule / thenne of a thousande bodyes. Saynte Bernarde sayth in the book of his Medytacōns That alle this presente worlde maye not be estemed nor valued to soo hyghe a pryce as one soule. Also he sayth / wherfore makest thou thy selfe facte and enournest thy flesshe with precyous stones / whiche after a fewe dayes wormes shall ete within thy sepulture. And wherfore makeste thou not thy soule fayre with good maners and vertues / whiche atte the daye of dome ought to be presented to God and his Angelles / wherfore takest thou none hede to make her fayre and clene ageynst that tyme. And why applyest thou rather to thy flesshe. then ne to her / why puttest thou the chamberer before the lady as to be gouerned rather by thy flesshe / thanne by thy soule. It is a grete abusyon. saynt Bernard seyth hȳ selfe in the book of dyspraysyng [Page xxviii] of the worlde. Now a dayes the cure & the charge of the soule is despyseth and lefte / and thaccomplysshemente of all theyr desyre is after ye wyll of the flesshe / they drede not to do synne nor remembre not how they shall be rigorously punyssed My right dere frende wylt yu thenne loue better thynges of lytyll valewe than thoos that ben more dygne & of here pryce Enhaunse not thy body & suffre neuer the lady to be come Chamberer. To this purpose sayth Crysostome. Yf we dysprayse our soule / we may not saue our body. Truly the soule is not made for the body / but the body is made for the soule. Thenne he that dysprayseth the hyghest and fyrst thynge and enhaunsed the seconde and the lowest / hurteth bothe the one and the other. But he that kepeth therin good ordre / exalteth and kepeth that that is chyef / & dysprayseth that / that is seconde for he heleth that / that is moost dygne and fyrste. That is for to saye the soule. If thou wylte than saue thy soule / and yelde god a good rekenyng there of. Instructe her with scyence and dyuyne vertues. Plato sayth in his book of Thymeo. The soule is Ioyned with the body to thentent that she may lerne scyence & vertue. If she come wt wynnynges she soo to be resceyued of her maker / & yf not she then to be sent in to helle there to remayne in tourment and paynes perpetuell. Secondly we must yelde Reason & [Page] rekenyng of our body. It is our castell commytted and delyuered vs by god wherfore sayth Saynte Bernard He kepeth well a good castell / that kepeth well his body. There shall be axed rekenynge of the kepyng of this castell. As wether the enmyes of our Lorde / whiche be vyces and voluptuousnesse of the flesshe / haue be resceyued therin atte ony tyme. And yf his frendes and his seruauntes / whiche be vertues and good werkes / haue ben shamefully chased oute. If we haue done soo / it is a grete sygne and suspeccyon of oure perdycyon. And we shall nedely yelde Reason and Rekenynge. Thefore our body is as a Mare that oure Lorde hath gyuen vs to vse for the prouffyte of our soule / of the whiche we shall yelde Rekenyng. As in thre thynges. It is wryten in Ecclesyastyco the thre and therty chapitre. The mete / the Rodde and the burdon is gyuen to the asse. The brede the oyscyplyne and the werke is gyuen to the seruaū te. Certeynly our body sygnyfyeth as well a mare and an asse / as a seruaunt / vnto whom is gyuen the brede for sustentacōn of nature The rodde of dyscyplyne. for to refrayn vanytees. And the burdon of good werkes / for the peefeccyon of penaunce. Oure Lorde thenne shall axe of this his Mare / his Asse / or his Seruaunt / yf we haue mynystred to hym his mete dyscretely not to largely nourysshynge. [Page xxix] For he that nouryssheth ouer delycyously his seruaunt / shall fynde hym after the more fyers and proude. It is wryten in the Prouerbys the nyne and twenty Chapitre. And also not to yeue the body ouer lytyll of that / that is necessary to hit. For soo we myght be homycydes of oure owne flesshe. Ayenst this speketh Saynte Bernarde in a Pystle to the Bretheren of the mounte of God sayeng. There be many other excercyses of the body / in the whiche it is necessary to labour as in wakynges / fastynges / whiche impecheth not / nor letteth spyrytuall thynges. For yf they were lette other by defaute of spyryte / or by sekenesse of the body / he that soo sholde take awaye from his body theffect of good werke. The true desyre of his spyryte. The good example to be shewed to his neyghbour / & the honour to God his maker. He sholde doo sacrylege / and be culpable of all this thynges ayenste God. Yet sayth saynte Gregory in his Moralys in the one and therty chapitre. By abstynence sholde the vyces of the flesshe be quenched. Certaynely yet whenne we putte awaye our enemye we gryue our owne flesshe. Secondely oure lorde shall aske vs / yf we haue corrected oure body with the Rodde of dyscyplyne in refraynynge hit from Rebellyon and other vayne Iolytees. Sayut Bernarde sayth vpon the Cantycles. that the dysacustomynge of [Page] good werkes / muste be chastysed & holpen by the bytte of discyplyne. He sayth also in a Pystle. O how well good disposicyon yeldeth discyplyne to the state of the body. and the habytacōn of ye thoughtes abateth the slepe of the hede. she ordeyneth the contynuaunce of the vysage. she tempereth the tonge / she refrayneth the throte / she appeseth the Ire / & dresseth the goyng Thyrdely our lord shall aske / yf we haue laboured our body in vertue & in werkes of penaunce. Therof sayth saynt Austyn in his book of Baptysyng of children That Adam was chased oute of Paradyse terrestre / because yt delycyous place it sholde sygnyfye / that labour whiche is contrary to delyte shold be shewed vnto the tendre flesshe of the childern. And therfore our bodyes may be called a laborȳg best. which our lord hath sente vs to do & accomplysse the werkes of penaunce. Holde not the body then in yolenesse / in an moche as yu knowest not / how longe hit shall abyde with the. But perfourme the werkes of penaūce. Lest perauenture he asketh it agayn that hath lence hit the. Crysostom sayth. If yu haue borowed an Oxe or an Horse / thou wylte anone sette hym a werke lest he be asked agayn of the on the morow / why wylt not thou semblably do with thy body. as thou wylt do w▪ the Horse or Oxe. Thus then norysshe dyscretely thy body / whiche is lent the by Ihesu Cryst in suche wyse as [Page xxx] thy nature may be susteyned / & the vyces ouercome & thy body corrected by the rodde of discyplyne / so as it may be obedyent & resplendysshyng in Chastyte. Instructe it to good labours / so that hit chase away all ydlenesse & fynally that thou mayste yelde our lord a good & a Iust Rekenyng there of atte the daye of Iugement. Thyrdely we muste yelde rekenyng of our next kynnesmen. Fyrste the fader of the sone. As is wryten in the fyrst boke of Lrynges in the seconde chapitre & the thirde of Hely that was punysshed for his childeren because he knewe they dyde a mysse / & corrected not theyr defautes Therfor is also wryten in Salomon the nyne & twenty chapytre. Lerne and teche thy sone. And to the same purpose sayd A wyse man. If thou haue a sone / correcte hym yf he synne. lest by right thou abye not his trespace. Secondely the Prelate shall gyue Rekenyng of his subgette or dyocesan. For it is wryten in Ezechyell the eght and therty Chapitre. My sone I haue sette the to be a beholder & ouerseer of men in the hous of Ysrahell. when thenne thou herest ony of the wordest of my mouth shew them on my behalfe That is to wyte If I saye to a felon. O theff yu shalt dye an euyll deth. And yf thou shewe not my sayeng to hym. to thentent that he may amende hym / yf he dye in that wyckednesse. I shal aske of thy hāde his lyfe agayne. Item the [Page] same Ezechyell sayth in his .xxxiii. chapytre. Beholde and see how I am my selfe aboue all my other herdemen. And I shall aske my bestayll of theyr hondes The lordes or Prynces Royall shall yelde rekenȳg & accomptes of theyr subgettis As it appereth in the Book of Nombres in the .xxv. chapitre / where the worldely Prynces are cōmaū ded to be hanged on the galowes for the synne of theyr people / because the people dyde fornycacyon with the doughters of Moab whiche they called theyr Sacryfyce. As is redde in the sayde chapitre. Suche thenne be the Prynces & Prelates. As is wryten in Iheremyas the fyue and twenty chapitre. Howle ye herde men & crye strongely / & cast vpon you asshes / for your dayes be complete / to thentent yt ye be slayne and caste in the erthe as precyous vessels. Beholde thenne these prelates of the chirche / & the prynces vnyuersall of the Erthe. that be constytute aboue all other. Loke how they gouerne by example. How they instructe by wordes. How they defende by dede the poore people. that arne commytted to theyr gouernaūce. Certeynly the prelates owen to teche theyr people and defende them wysely from the assawtes of Heretykes worse and more cursed thanne wolues / and from theyr cautellys wylyer thanne foxes. And the temporall Prynces owen to doo Iustyce vppon trespassours and defende theyr good [Page xxxi] subgettes. And kepe wedowes. orphanes. & wretched persones. And not to gryue ony body by vnrightfull exaccyons / or Iniust causes They may knowe what is wryten in the booke of Sapyence the .vi. Chapitre. Howe there shall be a right harde Iugement to thoos / that ben precellent aboue all other. Certeynly mercy shall be graunted vnto the good poore man. but the badde riche man shall suffre grete tourmē te. O ye prelates of the chirche / and ye prynces of the vnyuersall worlde these wordes ben addressed vnto you / to thentent ye sholde lerne wysdome and not to fall therfrom and that ye enstructe gouerne and defende youre subgettes so well that ye may be sure atte the last daye of the righte harde Iugement. where the gretest and strongest payns shall be to thoffenders / that haue ben myghtyest here. Fourthly it behoued to yelde Rekenynge of all our wylles & werkes. And Anastasye saythe vpon the Symboll. (Quicun (que) vult saluus esse &c.) Howe atte the comynge of oure Lorde Ihesu Cryste alle mankynde shall arryse bodely / and yelde Rekenynge of theyr propre werkes. That is hit that is wryten by Thappostle in the seconde Pystle ad Coryncheos the fyfthe chapitre. where he sayth. It behoueth that we shewe vs alle manyfestely before the Iudycyall sete of Ihesu Cryst to the entente that eueryche resceyue there good or euyll [Page] accordyng to theyr merytes & desertes. It is redde in Ecclesiastes in the last chapitre. Our lorde shall bryng vnto the Iugemente all thynges that be done And not oonly the grete & greuous synnes / but also those yt we thynke belytyll or none The paas of a man semeth but a smale thynge. Neuerthelesse it shall be Rekened for atte the fynall day of Iugement. Therfore say the Iob in his .xiii. chapitre. Syre thou hast welmarked my wayes & my pathes / & haste beholden the Traces of my fete. And after he seyth in the chapitre folowȳg Thou hast nombred al my steppes. Item also it is wryten in Ecclesiasticus in the seuententh chapitre. His eyen beholde Incessauntly all the wayes of men. As to saye / he wyll Rewarde alle that they done accordyng there after. We rede in Vitis patrū. an example of an angell / that somtyme nombred all the paaces of an Heremyte / whiche paas is a lesse thynge than an ydle worde. Therfore seythe Saynte Mathew in his .xii. chapitre. That men shall yelde Rekenynge and Reason atte the day of dome of euery Idle worde that they haue sayde. It is wryten in the boke of Sapyence in the fyrst chapitre He that speketh euyll and peruersely shall not mowe hyde hym atte the daye of Iugement. And correction shall not passe besydes hym. Vayne thoughtes semeth but a lytyll thynge. Neuerthelesse it is wryten in the Book of [Page xxxii] Sapyence in the fyrste chapitre How felonous & euyll thoughtes must be answered vnto. For he wyll serche all our thoughtes. It is also wryten in Isaye in the last chapitre. I shall serche theyr werkes & theyr thoughtes. & shall come & assemble my selfe with people That is to saye to deme them as I shall Iuge them. Therfore speketh Iohell also in his thirde chapitre. I shall assemble all maner of people in the last dayes / & shall brynge them to the vale of Iosaphat. And there I shal dispute with them techyng my people / and myn herytage of Israhell. Alle our thoughtes / our wordes / and our werkes shall be thenne righte straytely Iuged. And as Saynt Gregory saythe vpon the Gospell of Saynt Mathew the thre and twenty chapitre. All the heres of our hedes be nombred. Semblably God consydereth all our goynges & stappes. And wyll that alle our vayne thoughtes & our ydle wordes shall not rest vndyscussed atte the day of Iugement. Certayne alle our werkes shall be thenne as manyfestely shewed vnto all people / as though they were wryten in our forhedes. As it is wryten in Ecclesyastyco▪ in the enleuenth chapitre Atte the ende of man / all his werkes and dedes shall be vncouered and made open. Fyftely it behoueth to yelde Rekenyng and accomptes not oonly of the synnes that we haue done / but also of the vertuous and good [Page] dedys that we haue lefte vndone Saynt Mathew sayth in the fyue & twenty chapitre. Thene shall the grete Lrynge saye to thoos on his lyfte honde Departe from me ye wycked synners and go in to the fyre euerlastyng. whiche is made redy for the deuylles and theyr angeles. I haue ben hungred & ye haue not fedde me [...] whiche one of the causes why the fals ryche glotone fonde no water to refresshe hym with / was yt he ne wolde suffre the pouer Lazar to haue ye crō mes that fyll from his table. One shall not Rekenen oonly of thynges done and forgeten. but also of tyme lost in executyng euyll thynges / and lefte that / that was good vndone. It is wryten in Ecclesiastes the .xvii. chapitre. That our lorde hath gyuen man a nombre of dayes / & a season to then tent he shold vse hit well and holsomly to his pleaser / and theyr owne helthe / wherof many folkes taken none hede / & Improfytably wast theyr tyme / wherupon Saynte Bernarde complayneth hym to his Scolers sayeng. There is no thynge more precyous here than tyme. But alas now a dayes it is moost vyly loste. The dayes of Saluacyon passen / and noman hedeth hit. There is none complayneth hym of the losse of a daye / and yet it can neuer be recouered. Ther shall not be loste an here of an hede nor a moment of a tyme. but alle shall come to a due Rekenyng. O what drede hadde Saynt Ancelme [Page xxxiii] in his Medytacyons sayeng. O vnprofytable and drye tree. what shall be thyn answere the day whenne thou shalte be questyoned to gyue Rekenyng of all thy werke / & accompte for ye lest twynkelynge of thyn eye and all the tyme of lyfe that hath ben lente the. How thou hast dyspended hit. And therfore sayth Sapyens in Ecclesiastes the fourth chapitre. My dere beloued sone / kepe and spende well thy tyme. The sixthe and the laste thynge that behoueth to gyue Rekenyng and accomptes for is all the yeftes that we haue resceyued of oure lorde God. Suerly our lord hath gyuen vs noo thynge / but that he wyll haue therof bothe Reason and Rekenynge / where by hit semeth rather that he hath but lente hit vs then gyuen hit vs absolutely. Certaynly he shall calle vs to Rekene. For all his gyftes be they spyrytuell as the gyftes of grace to the soule / or temporall as strengthe delyueraunce / and beaute of the body / or worldely rychesse / power / and worshyp in this lyfe of alle these thynges. It appereth by Example and by a parabole in the Gospell of saynt Mathew in the fyue and twenty Chapitre of the fyue talentes / whiche be peces of money / & of Saynt Luke in the nynetenth chapitre▪ How ye noble man delyuered to his seruaūtes certeyn rychesse / wherof they were fayne to yelde Reason & doo accompte for euery thyng therof pertyculerly [Page] As it is wryten in Iob. the .xix. chapitre. I mowe ye that at Iugement all these thynges afore sayd shall be rekened for full straytely / wherfore sayth Iob in his .ix. chapitre. what shall I doo whenne our lorde shall ryse vp to Iuge alle men. And whenne he shall questyone me / what shall I answere thenne. O how lyghtely and how soone shall he come askynge a due Rekenynge and accomptes of all our werkes. Oure perdycyon is nyghe / and the tyme hasteth faste and is alwaye commyng. That is to saye / whenne oure lorde shall come and Iuge his people. For as sayth Abdeas in his oonly chapitre. The day of our lord shall come in the euenynge atte mydnyght. Atte Cocke crowe / or in the mornyng. As is to saye. If he come sodeynly / yt he ne fynde you slepynge This that I saye to you I saye it in lyke wyse to all other. Be ye wakyng thenne & slepe not. For yf ye watche not. I shall come to you as a thef. & ys shall not know whenne ne what houre. It is red in Apocalyps in the last chapitre. Lo see how I come anone & brynge with me rewardes to yelde euery man after theyr desertes. Now then̄e my right dere frende / sens yt must nedely of so many thynges and eueriche of them yelde due rekenyng & accōpte be not vnpurueyed / but make dilygently. examen thyselfe dilygently / & purge well thy conscyence to the bothom. to the entent. that when our lorde [Page xxxiiii] shall come to Iuge all thynge / as well dede as quyke Thou mayst couenably & resonably answere / & therby to haue his mercy grace and pardone of al thy synnes. And this is that Ecclesiasticꝰ ammonysshed vs in the .xviii. chapitre sayenge. Examen thyselfe before the daye of Iugemente. And that shall be to thy helpe in the presence of our lord Ihesu cryste.
¶ How the horryble abydyng of the last day & extreme daye of Iugement is to be doubted.
¶ The thirde chapytre of the seconde parte.
THe last thynge yt rendret the fynal Iugement to be dredefull and doubtable. is the terryble sentence that thenne shall be pronowuced by ye Iugement of god the rightfull Iuge This sentēce shall be terryble & ferefull / & specyaly for .iii. thynges. The fyrst is the doubte & the Incerteynte of the sentence / for there is noman sure whether it shall be gyuen with hym or ayenst hym. And as it is wryten in Ecclesiastes the ix chapitre. They be Iust & wyse. & theyr werkes be in ye hondes of god. how be it there is noman here that knowes whether he stande in hate or loue / & all thȳges to come. be in none certeyn. To this purpose it is redde in Vitis patrū. Howe that an abbot called Agathon / beynge in ye artycle of deth And so lyeng by the space of .iii. dayes without meuynge [Page] or openyng of his eyen. His brethern seeng hym soo lyeng / pusshed hym / sayenge vnto hym. Fader abbot / where arte thou. Atte last he answered. I am in the presens of alle folkes / wherfore they sayd vnto hym. then thou dredest and art aferde. Vnto whome he answered. Though I haue kepte the cōmaundementes of our lord as vtuously as to me was possyble yet I am a man / & wote not whether my werkes be agreable vnto hȳ for the domes of our lord be all other then the Iugementes of men. & yt is the cause of my drede. I haue neyther hope ne wanhope before god. Saynte Austyn seyth That. that we deme to be Iustyce / well examined before the dyuyne Iustyce / is often Iniustyce. And therfore it is wryten in the Prouerbes of Salomon the xiiii Chapitre. There is one waye / whiche semeth Iuste to a man / but the ende therof ledeth hym to deth And for asmoche as this holy fader Agathon coūterposyng in his hert all these thynges a fore sayd. all be it that he was right dylygent to kepe ye cōmaundementes of our lord. Yet alwaye he drad full sore the laste daye of Iugement. It is also red in Vitis patrū how ther was somtyme an auncyent fader / whiche sayde. I drede .iii. thynges / that is to say. Fyrst when my soule shall departe out of my body. Seconde when she shall come before our lord. The .iii. when she shall abyde & here the fynal sentence of ye last day [Page xxxv] of Iugement. Lo see how many holy faders haue drad this last day of Iugemēt for ye none certeyn of the doubtfull sentēces yt there shalbe gyuē. now certeynly it is a thȳg whiche of reason ought tyme rously to be drad. It is wryten in the Gospell of saynt Mathew ye .vii. chapitre & by the wordes of our lord Ihesu cryst. Many men shall saye to me. Syr syr. haue we not ꝓphecied in thy name. & caste out ye deuels of men & done many v (er)tuoꝰ dedys Then he shall saye vnto them I know you not nor euer knew you. depart frome. If the ꝓphetes & those yt haue chased out deuels. & those yt haue done myracles in the name of our lord be so put a backe who shal then now be sure. & who shal conne lyue here so holyly. but at day of dome he ought to trē ble & fere. Certeynly none / for vpon the erthe is there no body purely clene withoute fylthe not a childe of one day olde for it is bow in origynal synne Therfor it is wrytē in I saye the lxiiii. chapitre we be all made as a fowle clothe / & we oughte to drede all our werkes whiche shalbe shewed before vs atte dome. all though we thynke them good v (er) tuoꝰ & Iust. Therfor say the Iob in his ix. chapitre I haue drad al my werkes Sēvlably saynt Poule wiche was a delectable chosyn vessell. all be it he was then full clene in cō scyēce in so moche he sayde in the .xxiii. chapitre of Thactes of Apostles. I haue ben conuersant with oure lorde with all [Page] my myght & in good cō scyence to this daye. And yet it is accordyng where to the same holy Apostle ferefull wrote in his fyrste Pystle ad Coryntheos the faueth chapitre sayd. I fele not myselfe gylty in ony thyng / that notwithstondyng I fere yet by cause I am not Iustyfyed. Saynte Gregory sayd. The Iust men diede in alle theyr werkes / when they wysely consydre how the must come a fore the hyghe Iuge. For as Thappostle wryteth vnto the Romayns the xiiii. chapitre. we shall come all before the trybunall sete of Ihesu Cryste Alas thenne I wretched synner what shall I saye or what shall I do▪ when I shall come before soo grete a Iuge without good werkes for my helpe. The seconde thyng whiche causeth this sentence to be terryble. Is the harde lamentable and Intollerable vtteraunce of the sayd sentence / whenne our lord Ihesu Cryste shall saye. Go ye fro me ye cursed peple. To that purpose is wryten in the Gospell of Saynt Mathew in the .xxv. chapitre / whenne the sone of man shal come in his mageste and all his angelles with hym. Then̄e he shall sytte in the hyghe Iudycyall sete. & all maner of peple shall assēble before hym / & shall deuyde ye one from ye other as the sheparde kepeth ye shepe from the wolues. Certeynly he ordeyneth & setteth ye shepe on his right honde / & the wolues on the lyfte honde And then shall the kynge of glory [Page xxxvi] saye to thoos that shall be an his righte honde. Come ye on with me that be blessed of my fader / and possesse the Royalme of glorye / that is enorned for you from the begynnyng of the worlde. I haue ben hongry. and ye haue fedde me &c. Thenne he shall saye to thoos on his lyfte honde Departe from me ye yt be cursed / and goo in to eternall fyre / whiche is arredyed for deuylles. And theruppon sayth a wyse man. The wordes of the Iuge in sentence are but short / as come ye & go ye. For he shall saye to those that be reproued Go on your waye. And to those yt be Iust. come ye with me. O how gracioꝰ shall yt worde of our lord Ihesus cryst be / when he shal saye come ye wt me O how harde bytter & in tollerable shall the pronownsyng of yt worde be Departe ye fro me. or go ye frome. Suerly Go ye frome is a full sharpe worde And come ye with me is a full blessed worde. Saynt Bernarde sayth O how cruell shall those wordes be. Go ye frome / to them on the lyfte honde, spoken by the kynge of kynges geuer of all lyfe which shall saye to other. Come ye with me This is yt cuttyng swerd wt two edges yssewed out of ye mouthe of ye sone of man / as it is wryten in ye fyrst & xix chapitre of the Apocalyps. Certeynly he shall thenne smyte the erthe with the Rodde of this mouthe / & shall slee the felonous synner by his werkes. As it is wryten in I saye the .xi. chapitre. [Page] O how terryble a thyng shalbe to here this voys. Therfore saythe Saynt Austyn vpon the Gospell of Saynt Iohan. Those that fyll backewarde by one worde of Ihesu Cryst / whenne he went towardes his passyon / what shall they doo / when̄e they here the voyce of the sante Ihesu cryst whenne he shall Iuge all the worlde. for certeyn he shall braye lyke a lyon. As Amos sayd in his iii. chapitre. when̄e the lyon shall braye / who is he yt thenne shall not be aferde. I saye in his .v. chapitre sayth. His brayeng shall be lyke a lyon. Iheremye also sayth in his xxv. chapitre. Oure lorde shall braye from an hyghe / and from his tabernacle shall descende his voys / wherof the sowne shal extende vnto thextre myte of the erthe. & shall make his dome & Iugement vnto ye people. The voys of our lord shall be thenne in grete magnifycens. It is the voys of oure lord yt shall breke downe the hyghe Cedres of the moūte of Lyban. that is to vnderstonde. His enmyes proude people enhaunsed And yet all be it they haue ben soo raysed It shal thenne fayle and vanysshe as smoke. And atte that Iugement they shall be made humble / and reduced to noo beynge. This voys soo comyng from our lorde / shall be lyke a thundre betyng the erthe. Therfore seyth Iob tremblynge in his fyue and twenty Chapytre. Who shall mowe beholde thondre / or sowne of the magnytude [Page xxxvii] of oure lorde. And the Psalter sayth. Oure lord hath thondred from heuen / and the moost hyghe hath vttred his voys. Iob sayth in his seuen and therty Chapytre. Oure lorde shall thondre meruelously by his voys / and he dooth manye grete thynges / whiche oughte not to be enserched nor mused on. And Saynte Ancelme saythe in his Medytacyons / wherfore slepeste thou slougthefulle soule worthy to be caste oute of alle lyghte / he that waketh not nor dredeth not this grete thondre slepeth not / but rather is dede. The worde of our lord shall be in maner a right hote lightenyng / wherfore zacharye in his .ix. Chapytre. sayth. His darte shall departe lyke a lyghtenyng And our lord shal sowne the trompe Certeyn as it is wryten in Isaye in the seuen and twenty chapitre. In that last day shall sowne the grete trompe. And therfore sayth Crysostome vpon the Gospell of Saynt Mathew. the foure and twenty chapitre. The vertues of heuen shall be moued. now truly yu shall be by a grete voys. whiche is of the terryble trompe / wherunto alle wyndes & elementes obeyen / whiche voys renteth stones & openeth helle / and breketh the gates of brasse and breketh the lygatures of dede bodyes and restoreth the soules to the bodyes ageyn. & cō strayneth them to come to the grete Iugement. And all these thynges be consumed agayne more [Page] lightly then the flyght of an arow passynge in the ayre / wytnesse of Thappostle yt sayth in his fyrst pystle ad Coryntheos in the xv chapitre. In a moment in the twynkelyng of an eye in the sownyng of the last trompe shalbe the Iugement. Of this trompe speketh Saynte Iherome vpon the Gospell of Saynt Mathew. sayeng / when & as often as I thynke on the laste day of Iugement. I tremble for fere / be it when I ete or when I drynke & in ony of my werkes / me thynketh alwayes that terryble trompe sownes in mynere sayeng. Aryse ye aryse ye dede folkes & come to your Iugement. All men troubled or greued ought by penaūce to thynke oftētymes in this day & it shall be a grete wele & ease to theyr soules. And therfore saythe Saynte Gregory in an Omely. My ryghte dere brethern & frendes / lete ye daye of Iugement be alwaye afore your eyen. For what greuous thyng soo euer ye here / it is but soft in comparyson of that sore daye. we ought also to fere & drede the same day For yt is the grete Iourney the Iourney of wrathe & of bytternesse. Sophony as sayth in his fyrst chapitre. The waye of oure lordes Iourney shall be full bytter. For there shal be noman so stronge. but then he shall be troubled that shall be the very day of wrath trybulacion an guysshe chalange myserye & derkenesse of clowdes & stormes of the sowne of the trompe. Isaye in his xiii chapitre sayth [Page xxxviii] The daye of oure lorde shall come / whiche shall be full of Indygnacyon [...]ath & of furour. Iohel also in his .iii. chapitre sayth. The sonne shalbe conuerted in to derkenes & the mone in to blood a fore the cōmyng of ye grete & horryble day of our lord. O how drad Saynt Bernard that same day when̄e he sayd / whyles I yt am a mortall man remēbre what I shalbe after my deth The fere there of putteth me in terryble doubtes. for I am not verrely assured of yt / that I longe after. for the day of fere / of wrath / of Ire / and of furour. the day of waylyng & the vengyng of synners / affrayeth me hydeously. Of this same day sayth he also in one of his sermons / they shal be all bare & naked before the trybunall sete of Ihesu cryst to thentent yt they maye here ye [...]oys of his Iugement. Be cause they haue stopped here eres from ye weyes of good coūseyl. Now what seyth our lord god. Doo ye penaūce / neuerthelesse ther be many yt disymylyngly close theyr eres & wyl not here hit / & thynke it is to harde to doo. O remēbre ye felons because of your obstynacy / ye shall here therfore the harde & lamentable worde pronoū ced vnto you. That is to seye. Go ye cursed people in to euerlastynge fyre▪ what shal then those poore wretched ꝑpetuell dāpned people saye. Seenge the holy blessyd peple called vp Ioyefully in to the eternall glory and blysse of heuen. And they that be dampned in to the Iufynyte [Page] paynes of helle. Certeynly as it is wryten in the boke of Sapyence ye .v. chapitre They shall wepyngly say in themselfe for the gret anguysshe of theyr soules. Let vs do penaūce / for we be thoos yt haue blasphemed hit / & as foles out of all wytte & reason had in derysion the lyuyng of the penytēt folkes / thynkyng it was no worshipfull lyfe How be it we see them now taken & accepted with the sone of god / & theyr werkes allowed & cherysshed so yt they be accompanyed with the happy & blessyd sayntes / & we with ye dampned fendes of helle We haue erred from the way of trouth / the lyght of Iustyce hath not shyned in vs / nor the sonne of rightwysnesse rysen in vs. we haue lefte ye wayes of our lord Ihesu cryst & haue gone daūgeroꝰ & euyll wayes / yt is to saye The wayes of Iniquyte & perdycion / what hath our gret pryde proufyted or auayled vs. or what auantage haue we had of all our grete richesse / par de all is paste as a byrde fleyng in the skye / or a shyppe glydyng thorugh the water. wherof the traces can not be apperseyued. Now thenne to make confession is ouer late for theyr repentaūce groweth but for the payne yt they suffre. And therfore they can obteyne no pardon / also they are past ye place of mercy & grace. & be in the place of equyte & Iustyce. For when̄e the Iuge / whiche oughte soo gretely to be doubted hathe pronoūced his Iugement & sentence / sayeng. [Page xxxix] Go fro me ye wycked. & Come to me ye blessyd / theyr Remedye is paste. To this purpose rede we in [...]itis patrū. How ther was some tyme an holy man / whiche was tempted with the spiryt of for nycacyon / & he besought our lord yt his enemye the fende whiche tēpted him myght appere visibly vnto him. & so he dyd. Thene the sayd holyman seyde vnto the fende / what auayleth the thus for to tempte the people / parde it is a grete foly. for whē ne ye hast brought ony to synne thy trespas is the gretter / & consequently ye augmentest thyne owne payne To whom the fende answered. Certeynly all yt is trewe / but I knowe well the mo folkes yt cause to synne / the more I deferre the commynge of the day of dome. I drede that daye aboue alle thynges / and the heryng thenne of that harde sentence. Goo ye wycked and cursed in to eternall fyre / whiche is made redy to the deuyll and his angellys. And therfore I doo my power to prolonge the tyme of comynge of ye sentence. O good lorde what cause of drede haue these fendes and these vnhappy synners thenne. If thou wylt be assured in this horryble and dredefull Iourney. Sowe nowe in thy lyfe the werkes of Mercy Pyte and Iustyce. O howe blessyd and howe happy shall he be / that now entendeth to the poore languysshyng nedy people. For in yt harde Iourney oure lorde wyll delyuere them therfore from alle [Page] daūgere. It is wryten in the Prouerbys of Salomon in the .xi. chapitre. The mercyfull man dothe grete good vnto his soule / and dooth also the digne fruytes of penaūce For they yt now sowe teres & lamentacōns the rewarde therof shall come & brynge them in to the lodgyng of Ioye and of gladnesse. But there be many yt sowen now presentely thornes & cokyll / wenynge to repe & Inne good whete / but ywys foles it wyll not be soo. For as Thappostle sayth ad Galathas in the .vi. chapytre. Suche as a man hath sowen here / suche shal he repe then̄e for hȳ selfe. And therfore sayth our lord by his prophete. Ozee in his .x. chapitre / ye haue sowen felony & haue reped iniquyte & he that hath sowen synne & euyll werkes / he shall be repen & Ioyned in to the paynes of helle. But he yt hath sowen vertues & the good werkes of penaūce He shall repe & gadre the euerlastynge glory. And alle that haue done well shall rest in the Ioyes of heuen. And those that haue done synne and wyckednesse shall go and reste in the paynes of helle. Certaynly theyr werkes folowen them. As it is wryten in the Apocalyps the .xx. Chapytre. After theyr werkes men shall be both saued and dampned. It is redde in the Gospell of Saynt Iohan the fyfth Chapytre. An houre shall come to the whiche all that be in Monumentes or Tombes shall here the voys of our lorde. And they that [Page xl] haue done well / shall go in the Resurreccion of lyfe. And they that haue done wyckedly / shall go vnto the Iugement of dethe. It is wryten in the seconde Chapitre of the Apocalyps how the Iuge shall saye. I am he that ensercheth the hertes of persones and shall gyue to euery of you his Rewarde after his werkes. And as sayth Abdeas. It shall be done vnto the / as thou hast done To the same purpose is wryten in Iheremye the .l. chapitre. And these be the wordes of the eternal Iuge vnto the euyll angell spekyng of the dāpned synners / yelde and doo hym after his dedys and werkes. And therfore yf thou wylt haue a good heruest and habun daunce of fruyte / sowe good werkes largely in the tyme of this presente lyfe. For he that soweth them now largely / shall gadre them then habundantly. And he that now soweth them sparyngly / shall then gad them scarsely / & he yt soweth them with blyssynges▪ shall gadre them with grete Ioye & gladnesse. As it is wryten in the seconde Epystle ad Coryntheos in the ix. chapitre For he that soweth his sedys in syn̄e & maledyccōns / semblably shall Inne & gadre them And as it is wryten in a Prouerbe. The sede that man sowes in this present lyfe / shalbe his hous when̄e the Iuge shal say Come ye & go ye. The thirde thyng. why the dome of the Iuge shall be terryble. It is to be remē bre how dampned soules [Page] shall be by the mornyng sentence. full of all sorow eternally separated and departed from god & his sayntes of paradyse / and putte on the lyfte honde vnto the tendes of helle. Certeynly Incontynente & without caryeng that this horryble sentēce shal be pronoūced by ye mouth of Ihesu cryste. The perpetuell deuylles shall be there arredyed & redy for to take and rauayne the soules of the wretched sȳ ners / whiche they shall lyghtely brynge vnto euerlastynge tourmentes and paynes. This maye appere vnto vs by a fygure in the book of Hester the .vii. Chapitre of the mynystres of kynge Assuer / whiche were desyrous and redy to take Amon as it is conteyned in the same Chapitre. How the worde was not all out of the mouthe of the sayd kyng. But that the mynystres hadde couered the vysage of the same Amon. In lyke wyse the deuylles in this hydeous Iourney shall be more then redy to resceyue ye soules of these wretched synners. And this is wryten in the Lamentacions of Iheremye in the fyrste Chapitre. Alle his persecutees haue taken hym. Iohan Crysostom sayth in the book of Repayryng of forfaytours. Remembre these cruell and terryble tourmentoures that neuer may shew mercy on ony body & ledeth downe the vnhappy synners vnto euerlastynge tourmentes. And Hugho of Saynte Vyctour. sayth. That the horryble mynystres of helle shall [Page xli] be apparayled and arredyed incontynent as the sentence is gyuen / to take the condempned vnto tourmentes. And thenne ye wretched vnhappy caytyffes lamentably shall say. they haue caught me lyke as a deuoryng lyon lurkȳgly hath taken his pray. O what sorow and payne / wherof maye not be estemed in mānes mȳ de nor by tellyng pronoū ced / wherfore saynt Bernarde sayth in his Medytacyons / what thynkest thou / what wepynge / what waylynge / and what sorowe shall be whenne the synners shall be expulsed oute of the companye of Iuste men / and putte from the syght of God and delyuered and caste vnto the hondes of the deuylles to go with them in to euerlastyng fyre / and vtterly banysshed from alle the Ioyes of heuen / to abyde in the derknesse there suffryng payns for theyr demerytes after the quantyte of theyr synnes. And then̄e the myserable synners beynge in despeyre of the Redempcion shall entre into the lowest partyes of the erthe in the hōdes of our lordes glayue there to remayn with out seeng of ony lyghte. Of this payne of separacyon or departyng sayth also Crysostome. Some foles wene and thynke to haue theyr wysshynge yf they maye escape the gehenne of helle. But as to me I saye that there be other tourmentes moche more greuoꝰ. that is to saye to be estraūged and cast away from the grace of the soueraygne [Page] glory / & I deme that the banysshyng ther from is the moost egre & greuoꝰ torment. wherupon saith saynt Gregory He is gretely tormented yt is constrayned to be put a part from the presens of oure lord. And I deme yt it is the moost greuous thyng yt may be / & passeth all ye gehēnes of helle. The same saynt Gregory saith of this worde of the Gospell of Saynt Mathew the xvi. chapitre. He shall be cutte & sent in to the eternall fyre. Certeynly ye gehēne of helle is a thynge intollerable and none can cōprehende how intollerable it is. Neuerthelesse yf there were a .M. gehennes in helle / ther is none so lamētable payn as to be exempt from the honour of the blessyd glory of heuen. & to be hated of our redemer Ihesu cryste maker of all thynges For as saint Austyn seith The wycked reproued shall leuer sustene all the tormentes of helle / then to beholde the rightfull Iuges face angred with them. Iohell sayth in his seconde chapitre. The erthe hath trembled for his face & moeuynge of his eyen / the sonne & the mone haue derked / ye sterres haue withdrawen theyr shynyng. the people haue ben tormēted beholdyng his vysage. Certeynly sȳ ners shall then̄e perysshe before his face / thorugh the grete sorow they shal haue of them selfe. And when they shall see hym comyng his vysage from them▪ it shall meue them to myserably. And then̄e the Iuge egrely shall say as is wryten in Iheremie [Page xlii] the .xviii. chapitre. In the day of theyr perdycyon I shall shewe them my backe / and not my face. O what shal be ye separacōn O how bytter & sorowfull shall it be to the synner to departe fro the face of our lorde / when̄e he shall horrybly say. I tell you I knowe you not / & therfor seyth a wyse man The departyng of frendis is right sorowful. but the separacōn of the body & the soule from the presens of the deyte / is the moost sorowfull thynge. For all this thynges a fore sayd and many other. whiche infynytly myght be rehersed / for breefnesse of tyme I passe them ouer. But yet awake ye awake ye my dere frendis & lyfte vp your hedes. abhortyng & feryng ye tymerous & dredfull day of Iugement. For as Sophonyas in his fyrst chapitre sayth. The daye of oure lord approcheth nyghe & shall not tary. It is wryten in Isaye in the .xiii. chapitre. Sorowe ye and crye / for the daye of our lord is nyghe. Slepe not then̄e. For ye knowe not the day ne the hour. as it is wryten in the Gospell of Saynt Mathewe the xxv. chapitre. It is also wryten vnto the Tessalonyes in the last chapitre of ye fyrst Pystle. My brethern ye knew well yt the day of our lord shall come by nyght as a thef. and whenne men shall thynke themselfe assuredly in peas. He shall come sodeynly and take them in a mortall defaulte / wherfor my brethern Reste not in the syn̄e of wretchednesse. Leest that day [Page] suppryse you not sodeynly as a thef. Surely we be al the children of day and the sones of lyghte. Thenne let vs not slepe as other doo. But let vs awake and be sobre as it is wryten in ye same chapitre. It is wryten in the Gospell of Saynt Luke in the .xxi. chapitre. Gyue attendaunce in youre selfe. Leest perauenture youre hertes be fulfylled with gloteny and dronkenship & in other vayne werkes of this present lyfe. And lest yt the forsayd daungerous day fall not sodenly vnto you. whiche shall fall vnyuersally to all thoos yt shall be vpon the erthe. Be ye then̄e in your prayers. so yt at al tymes ye may be the more dygue and able to flee al the daungers that be to come whenne yt shall be afore the sone of man? As it is wryten in the same chapitre for a trouth. There shall be thenne tremblyng fere and sorowe intollerable And therfore sayde Iohell in his seconde chapitre Our lordes daye shall be grete & right terryble. And who shall be he yt shall mow sustene or suffre it. Isaye sayth also in his seconde chapitre. They shall entre in to the cauernes amonges stones & hydplaces of the erthe for drede of our lordes face and of the glory of his mageste whenne he shall aryse to smyte & punysshe the erthe. And as it is redde in Abacuk in the .iii. chapitre In his [...]snes he shal trede downe the erthe / & the people shall be abasshed of his furour. Isaye in his .x. chapitre sayth / [Page xliii] what shall ye do in that daye of vysytacyon & of calamyte comynge from terre partyes / to whome shall ye renne to haue so [...]our & helpe. Certeynly the syn̄er shall haue then noo refuge solace nor socours. And therfore sayd Ancelme in his book of Medytacōns. On ye right honde shall syn̄es be accusyng the wretched synner On the lyfte honde infynyte nōbre of deuels. vnd (er) nethe the cōfusyon of helle / whiche is gretly to be doubted / & ouer this the presens of the wrothfull Iuge / & withoute all the worlde brēnyng / & within this the conscience glowyng. This ought to be remēbred. Alas the myserable synners taken in ye trappe. whether shal they flee. It shall be then̄e Impossyble to hyde them. It shall be an Intollerable oredefull thyng to appere in that daye. The sayde sentence is mure ferefull and daungerous / be cause it Iuged not oonly the body / but also it condempneth the soule. To yt purpose is there red an example / how that there was somtyme .ii. bretheren / wherof the one was a fole & ignorant / & the other was wyse / whiche went togydres in a way. & as they walked / they come at laste to a forked way. whiche ledde to sondry places / wherof the one was fayre and pleasaunt. and the other sharpe & no thyng inhabyted And when̄e the fole saw the fayr & delectable way he sayd. Brother goo we this waye. Thenne the wyse brother answered. I knowe well that this [Page] waye whiche thou wylte lede vs is fayer & delectable. but netheles in the ende it wyll beyng vs to an right euyl lodgyng. And therfore I coūseyll yt we take the other waye. For all be hit yt it be sherpe & not inhabited / fynally it wyll bryng vs to right a good & honest harberoughe & full of reste / where vnto the fole answered. I wyll rather trust myneye in yt I see / than thyn in that yu seest not. And so sette hym forthe in the softe and delectable way whiche thynge the wyse brother seeng that he coude not make hym relynquysshe his purpose / folowed hym And whenne they hadde gone togyder a lytyll space / they fortuned anone to be taken with soldeyours / whiche dysceuered them and put them in to dyuerse prysones. Now hit happened that the kyng of ye countree commaunded on a daye / that all prysoners sholde be broughte afore hym yt he myghte Iuge them accordyng to theyr demerytes. And whenne these two brethern came afore hym / & echone knewe other / the wyse brother sayd. O syr kyng & our Iuge. I complayne me gretly of this mā my brother / for as we wente togydies in a way he beyng reputed a fole and I wyse. yet neuerthelesse. he wolde not beleue me no: goo after me the good waye that I taught hym but hath made me to folowe hym in ye euyll way wherin we were taken / and so he is gylty of my dethe. And to the corntarye the ignorāt fole sayd [Page xliiii] to the same kyng. Syr I haue gretter cause & strenger Reason to complayne me agaynst my brother / for where he ought not to haue byleued me nor folowed me lyghtly in ye waye / whiche he knewe well was euyll & daū gerous. for & he wolde not a folowed me. I wold haue retourned ageyn and folowed hym / whereby I sholde in noo wyse haue fallen in his daungere / & therfore he is verrey gylty of my deth. when̄e these wordes were hadde on eyther partye. The kynge pronownsed & gaue a sentence sayeng Thou fole / thou woldest not trust thy wyse brother / & thou wyse haste folowed this fole in his euyll wayes / wherfore ye bothe shalbe hanged & cōdempned to dethe. Semblably shall it be at the day of Iugement in the consūmacōn of this worlde. when by ye almyghty power of god the soule of euery man & woman shall retourne ageyn & be reioyned to the yr owne bodyes apperȳg before the hyghe Iuge to resceyue dome & Iugemēt of all thynges knowen & forgoten. for ye folysshe body because it wold not folowe ye coūseyll of ye wyse soule / & the wyse spyryte because it wolde not resyste but ensue the folysshe body. they shalbe both dā pned togyd (er) in the last extremyte of Iugemēt. For this cause the sentence of the Iuge is called a swerde wt two edges. as is writen in. thapocalips in the fyrst chapitre. For it shal stryke the wretched synner bothe in body & soule It is wryten in the Gosspell [Page] of seynt Mathew in the .x. chapitre. Drede hȳ yt shal mow lese & pu [...] [...] the ye body & soule in [...] gehēne of helle The qualyte of the sayd Iuge yeldeth & sheweth the sayde sentence to be dredefull & daūgeroꝰ Certeȳly it shal be ꝓnoūced by a circūspecte & a right prudent Iuge whiche shal neuer fayle. for euery thyng is notarily to hȳ knowē. for god knoweth the hydde thyngis of the hert & sercheth the werkes of men. wherfor it is writē ad Hebreos in the .iiii. chapitre. Alle thȳgis be opē to his eyen for he loketh into the hertes. As it is red in ye fyrst book of Lrynges in ye xvi chapitre. Also it is red in Ecclesiastes the xxiii. chapitre The eyen of our lorde be moche clerer then̄e the sonne. for they behold all the wayes of man / & the ꝓfoūde depnesse & the hertes of men / & see alle the hydde thynges of the erthe. And as Boece de consolacde sayth. Grete curyosyte to do well is introducte vn [...] because all yt we do is done afore hym yt seeth all thynges. Iheremy seith in his xxii chapitre. Thyn eyen be open vpon all the wayes of the childern of Israell & I shall yelde to eueryche of theym after his wayes & after the fruyte of his admynystracions. Certeynly the Iuge is gretely to be drad. whiche loketh vpon al thynges bothe open & shette / & all secrete thyngis to him knowen / all derke thynges to hym is clere / all dome thynges answere vnto hym / & all thoughtes speke to hym without voys [Page xlv] & al sylences cōfesse them vnto him This sentence is to be gyuen by the Iust Iuge / whiche wyll not be [...]owed / & he shall Iuge all the circuyte of the erthe. & the peple in equyte▪ He grutcheth not attethe myght of ony body / nor he excepteth no ꝑsone what soeuer they be / nor he ne wyll be appeased then by ony gyftes. It is wryten in Deutronomii in the .x. chapitre God is grete myghty & terryble. whiche wyll fauour no ꝑsone nor he resceyueth no gyftes. Certaynly a pure & a clene conscyence then shal be more worth. then the purses full of syluer. The habondaūce of rychesse shall not proufyte thenne / nor ony thyng yt longeth to riche people. But oonly shal proufyte the werkes of Pyte & of Iustyce. It is wryten in Ezechiell in the .vii. chapitre. Theyr mony shall be then theyr doūghylle / neyther theyr golde nor theyr syluer shal mow delyuer them in ye day of furour of our lord. Then̄e shal appere ye fraude & the falshed▪ of this worlde. & vylenesse of all richesse. O how swete a thyng & how grete a Ioye shall it be then̄e to those yt haue hated this worlde. & how sorowfull & bytter shal it be vnto them yt haue had it in lust and delectacōn. This sentence is also to be gyuen by the Iuge yt wyll not be corrupt then by prayers nor appeased by desyres. And as it is wryten in the Prouerbys of Salomon in the .vi. chapitre. He wyll not obtempre then nor bowe to oni requestis what soeuer [Page] they be. Crysostom sayth the angeles wyl not then intercede nor pray for the men / for the Iuste Iuge wyll shew there no mysery corde. but wyll yelde to eueryche after his meryt & the merytes egally not bowyng Iustyce / & therfore sayth he by his ꝓphete Ezechiel in the vii. chapitre. I shall do the right after thy wayes & shal Iuge the after thy Iugemēt [...] & I shall make the knowe yt I am thy lorde. For yt cause sayd Iob all dredefully. I resyne alle my werkes knowyng the / yt ne wylt spare ony thyng the delynquentes or trespassours. of all these thȳ ges speketh Saynt Bernarde in a pse whiche he made sayeng. Certaynly our lord shall Iuge Iustly & shall except no persone nor shall be corrupt by ony pryse nor gyftes Semblably he shall not bowe for ony maner of prayer O my right dere frende labour then dylygētly to bere Iustyce thyder as yu shalt fynde no mysery corde. For as it is wryten in the Prouerbys of Salomō The riches shall not proufyte in the day of vē geance / but Iustyce shall cause thenne delyuerance from deth And yf the scolers yt can not theyr lessōs drede gretly to be examyned of theyr mayster. lest they sholde be egrely punysshed. how moche sholde the synners drede then thextremye examynynge of the souerayne Iuge / when they haue not studyed in the boke of Iustyce & of trouth. Certeynly in ye apposayle is examyned all thynges yt now be nought / the vniuste synners [Page xlvi] shall be punysshed / & the seed of felons shall perishe. & to the contrary the Iuste people shall be then in the eternall memory & shall not drede in ony wyse ony euyil accusacyon. It is wryten in Ecclesyastyco the .xviii. chapitre. Make redy Iustyce afore the Iugement This fynall sentēce shalbe also gyuen by a Iuge cruelly moued whiche in noo wyse shall mowe be appeased. For oure lorde Ihesu Cryste that naturally is now amyable & meke as a lambe shall appere th [...]nne as a lyon right cruell & gretely moued. And therfore sayde Ozee in his .xiii. chapitre It may well be the wordes of our lord by the couetous glotons & proude people at the day of Iugemente / sayeng thus. they haue fulfylled them selfe in theyr pastures & arreysed vp theyr hertes. & forgeten me. I wyll be to them as a lyonesse & as a leoparde in the way of assy [...]yence. I shall come ageynst them as a she bere / which hath lost her whelpes / and shall breke theyr Iugementis within & shall destroy them lyke a lyon. How myght one remembre a more cruell thyng then by thoos beestes. Our lord shall say to the felons yt shall be condāpned / as is wryten in Ezechiell in the .vii. chapitre. The conclusyon is come / & now cometh the ende vpon the / & I shall sende my furour in to yt Certeynly syr as the fyre brennes the forestes & the mystes breke vppon the molyteynes. Semblably in that tempeste yu shalte [Page] then persecute thy syn̄ers & trouble them in thyne Ire. And then thy wrath shall be chased lyke fyre and shall abasshe the people in thyn anger. It is wryten in Isaye in the xxx. chapitre. The name of oure lorde shall come from right ferre / his fersenesse shall be brennyng and greuous to bere / his lyppes shall be fulfylled with Iudygnacyon / and his tonge shall be lyke a deuouryng fyre / and his spyryte shalbe lyke a broke rennyng ouer the brȳ kes for to destroye people and to bryng them to no thyng. Iob toke somtyme this furour in a vysyon whenne he sayd / who shal be that lyuyng man yt shall do so mykell with the that thou wylt defende me from helle & hyde me tyll thy furour be paste. Certeynly the furour of the Iuge shall be soo grete thenne / that it can not be expressed by ony wordes nor thought by ony corages Derely all the Iugementes and sentences that haue ben ayenst & vpon the humayne lynage sith the begynnyng of the worlde. be but lyke a lityll flāme or a sparke in regarde to the furour of Ihesu Cryste / whiche he shall excercyse in the laste daye of Iugement. And how straytely shall he that is rysen debonayr & past vp in to heuen retourne to doo Iugement and therfore sayth saynt Gregory in an Omely. vpon the worde of saynt Iohan euangelyst yt saynte Thomas one of ye xii. apostles called Dydymꝰ whiche is to saye longe doubtyng sayd thus. My [Page xlvii] brethern and frendes ordre your lyf your werkis and your condycyons / & puruey / for he that is rysen meke and amyable shall come harde & stray [...]e at the day of Iugemet Certeynly at that day of examynacyon / whiche is so gretely to be doubted / he shall shewe hymselfe clerely among angeles & archangeles and among the trones and domynacions / among the pryncypals and potestates / and all the skyes shall be moued / and the erthe & the other elementis in the fere and drede of his seruyce. Set then afore your eyen this Iuge yt is cause of so grete abasshemēt. and fere & drede him both now and herafter. To thentent that wheūe he shall come / ye shall not see hȳ in fere. but be wel assured he ought to be dred now to the ende that he shold not be doubted thenne. Certeynly yf one of you hadde to saye or allege a cause ageyn your enmye and sholde to morow present you to my Iugemēt perauenture ye wyll passe all the nyght without grete slepe / remembryng your selfe in grete payne & thought what thynges myght be alleged ayenst you / & what ye wolde answere to thobieccyons / & sholde drede gretely leest I sholde be sharpe vnto you. and wolde fere lest it sholde▪ be thought that ye were culpable / & wolde serche what I where. and whether I sholde become Certeynly not longe after I haue be man. I shal become wormes / and after wormes powdre Now then yf the Iugement of [Page] hym that is but pouder is to be drad & hadde in soo grete fere. By what entencyon is it to be thoughte that fere muste be moost dredefull / whiche is of the Iugemēt of the moost grettest and hyghest mageste. Alle these thynges sayd saynt Gregory in the chapitre aforsayd. Yet is there somme thyng more concernyng the sayd sentence / that is to wyte / that there is no puyssaunce can resyste it. And as it is wryten in the boke of Sapyence in the .xi. chapitre. who shal be he that shal resyste the vertu of thyne arme. Isaye also said in his xlvii chapitre. I shall take vengeaūce on theym. and no man shall resyste me. Veryly none shall mowe resyste hit / but edely alle muste appere there generally yf they wyll or not. they shall abyde before the angelles the sentence of the souerayne Iuge / whiche spake by Isaye. hym selfe in the sayd chapitre to the synners that are to be condampned. & thus thy shame shall be knowen and the vylen reproche shall be seen / wheruppon I wyll take vengeaūce and shall noo man mowe resyste hit. Iob sayd in his .ix. chapitre. God is he that in his wrathe no man may resyste. And as it is wryten in the book of Hester the .xiii. chapitre. Fayre lord god kyng omnypotent alle thynges be sette vnder thy Iurysdyccyon. and is none that may resyste thy wyll. Certeyn yt haste made the skye the erthe and all that is conteyned in the circuyte of [Page xlviii] the worlde / thou art lord of all thynges / & is none that may resyste thy wyl This is the grete myghty and puyssaunt lord / of whose gretnesse & myght there is noo nombre nor ende & he shall drede none be they neuer so myghty. It is wryten in the boke of Sapience in the vi chapitre. Oure lord shall drede no body what so euer he be / for he hath made both grete & smale. It is red in the Apocalyps. in the .vi. chapitre. Our lorde shall not drede the gretenesse of man what so euer he be. The kynges of the erthe / the prynces of the worlde / the trybunes. the riche. the stronge / & all men aswell bonde as fre. shall hyde them in the caues & emong stones of the roches. sayeng to the mounteynes / falle vpon vs / & hyde vs from the face of hym that sytteth in the trone / and the wrathe of the lambe / for the grete day of Ire is come. It is redde in the same Apocalyps in ye xviii chapitre. The kynges of the erthe shall wepe / and they shall specyally complayne that haue made fornycacyon with Babylon and haue lyued in delectacyons / when̄e they shall see the smoke of his embrasynges and shall wyll them to be ferre for fere of the tourmentes. Certayne as saynt Mathewe sayth in his .xxii. chapitre. There shall be then grete trybulacōn / & so grete. that sythens the begynnyng of the world tyll now was there neuer none lyke. Secondly there is another thyng that agrogeth ye sayd sentence [Page] That is to saye. that there is no place there for sȳ ners to hyde them in / & as Saynt Ancelme sayd It shall be then a thyng impossible one to hide hȳ And therfore he sayth in his .xxiiii. chapitre. Ther shall no tenebres be there nor no shadowe of dethe that they may hyde those that haue done iniquyte. Saynt Bernard sayd in one of his sermons. That before the Iudicial chere of Ihesu cryst shall they stande all naked / yt haue stopped theyr eres to the voys of counseyll / wherfore they shall here the voys of the Iugemēt as it is before alledged. My right dere brother & frende drede this daye & doubte cordyally the sayde Iuge & lord that shall deme all thynges / to the entent that yu mayste the more dylygently eschewe all synnes. And it is red in an other place. That in dredyng oure lorde it withdraweth euery man from euyll doyng. There is yet an other thynge whiche agrogith this sentence. there is no place to apele to ony other / nor space for to flee To that purpose seyth the Psalter whether shall I goo bakwarde from thy spiryt. & how shall I flee bakwarde from thy face / yf I mount vp in to the skye / yu arte there. yf I descende in to helle yu arte present there besydes me. & therfore sayth our lord of synners by Amos in the xix. chapitre. They shall flee and there shall be none saued of them / yf they descende in to helle / my hande shal pull them vp from thens / & yf they hyde [Page xlix] them in the moūteyne of Carmele. I shall seke them tyl I haue put them thens. And yf they hyde them in the botom of the see. I shal sende a dragon whiche shal deuour them And yf they go in to seruage amonges theyr enmyes. I shal sende a swerde whiche shall slee them & shall cast myn eye vpon them in wrath & not in loue. Iob sayth in his x. chapitre. Our lord oughte to Iuge all thyngis & is none that may escape his hondes. Certeyly I see clerely the honde of our lorde almyghty wyll fynde vs ouer alle. And therfore sayth the Auctour of the chare of the soule / what wylte thou riche man do / that neuer shalt lyue surely. whether shalte thou retraye the / whether wylt thou torne thy body / for yu arte not sure here nor ellys where fore and thou stye vp in to the skye / or descende in to helle / he that hath domynacōn is ye cruell & myghty kynge. If thou go in to the see / that kynge hath gouernaūce there / thou shalt not mowe thenne goo no parte surely / for thou shalt be foū de euery where. Certeynly yu shalt haue noo place to flee to / nother in thy dethe / nor in thy lyfe. O how well comprehended this Elezearus that sayd I wyll neyther flee quyk nor dede from ye hondes of the almyghty. As it is wryten in ye seconde boke of Machabe the .vii. chapitre. Lo by thyse our lordes sayenges it appereth in many maners that fynall Iugement is to be redoubted of all / & shall be [Page] for thaccusacōn of dyuerse thynges / whiche must be vyolently suffred sustened & born. & for the Iust Reason that must nedes be yelden syngulerly & generally of alle thynges. And for ye diffynytyf sentence that shall be then̄e pronoūced right horrybly by the Iust Iuge. The remembraūce then of these thynges dilygently contynued / that is to saye of the fynal Iugement & of the sentence that shall be gyuen there / as it is sayd shall p̄serue & defende & not without reason euery man from fallyng in to synne / & eschewe to do euyll to the ende. to come fynally to the glory with the happy sayntes of paradyse.
¶ Here begynneth the prologue of the thyrde parte of the foure laste thynges to come.
THe thirde of the four laste thynges wherof the remembraūce preserueth from syn̄e is helle or the infernall gehenne. And therfore sayth Anastasye of saynt Anthony the heremyte. when̄e the deuyll tempted hym to ony synne / he remēbred the paynes of helle due vnto synners▪ wiche thought was so enprynted in his herte yt fynally he therby vaynquysshed the deuyll and was delyuered from his temptacyons and rested free from all synne. It is to be noted howe touchyng this mater present thre thynges are pryncypally [Page l] to be consydered. Fyrst the dyuerse nomynacyon of the paynfull places of helle. Secondely the many folde afflyccions of thinfernall mynystres. Thirdely the strange & dyuerse maners of the tormentes of helle of the whiche .iii. thynges the remembraūce proufyteth gretely and withdraweth a man from fallynge to synne.
¶ Howe helle is named by holy scrypture in dyuerse wyse.
¶ The fyrst chapitre of the thirde part princypal
IT is now fyrst to be Declared pryncypally the nomynacyon of the paynefull places of helle / wherfore it is to be knowen that helle is a place full of fyre and is soo called de Infero infers. That is to saye to bere in / for the soules of synners be borne in to it for to suffre payne there eternally And therfore sayth Iob in his seuenthe chapitre. He that shall descende in to helle shall not come agayne ne euer retourne vnto his house. And also helle is oftentymes called gehenne of fyre. The forsayd saynt Gregory in his fourth booke of his dyalogys sayde. Certeynly it must be byleued that there is oonly but one fyre in the gehenne of helle / but it tormenteth not all synners after one maner / for euery mā shall haue payne after the quantyte of his gylte [Page] and trespace. Isydorꝰ in the booke of souerayne goodnesse sayth that the fyre of the gehēne of helle shall shyne & lyght to the dampned folkes in encreasyng of theyr paynes to thentent that they may see theyr owne sorowes. it shal neyther light nor shyne to theyr consolacōn nor gyue them cause of ony reioysyng. The payn of thoos yt be dampned is doubled by sorow & paynes that tormēteth the soule & fyre that brenneth the body. Of this fyre of helle speketh ye Psalter sayeng. The coles shall falle vpon synners whiche shall be cast in to the fyre hauyng no conforte in theyr myseryes / our lord shall tormmente them with his Ire & the fyre shall deuour them. wherfore it is wryten in Isaye in the .ix. chapitre The people shall be as mete vnto the fyre / it is also sayd to euery synner in Ezechyell in the .xxi. chapitre. Thou shalt be fyres mete. In Iheremy the .xv. chapitre seyth our lord to the dampned folkes. thenbrasyng fyre inferyour shall broyll and brenne vpon you all. this fyre is of that nature yt perpetually it shall bren̄e and shall neuer haue nede to be renued. It is wryten in Iob the .xx. chapitre. The fyre whiche canne neuer be quenched shal vtterly deuour them O howe sore shall oure lorde venge hym thenne vpon the dampned synners. As it is sayd in Ecclesiastico in the .vii. chapitre. The flesshe of synners shall haue vengeance by fyre. This fyre of [Page li] the gehenne of helle is differente from the materyall fyre pryncypally in iii. thynges Fyrst in fyrsnesse & egrenesse for the power of hit in brennynge is Infynyte / wherfore sayth saynt Sebastyane whenne the angell of heuen rowned hym in the ere / he sayd that our sensyble fyre is noo more lyke the fyre of helle / then the fyre peynted vpon a wall is lyke our materiale fyre. Secondely in enduryng. For our materyale fyre may be quenched and so may not that. It is wryten in Isay in the last chapitre / that the fyre for synners shall not be quenched. Thyrdly in wastyng. for our sensyble materyall fyre may consume and wast all thynges as ye philosophre seith but ye fyre infernall may not wast nor cōsume neyther the body nor the soules of syn̄ers by brennynge. Iob sayth in his .xx. chapitre of the synners beyng in helle. He shall bye ful dere now that he hath done & yet he shall not be wasted. Iohan crysostom seyth also that oure materyall fyre consumeth all thynge that is leyed in hit / but the fyre of helle tourmenteth contynuelly thoos that be therin / & yet it preserueth them alway in lengthynge theyr paynes. Therfore it is sayd that it is not to be quenched not oonly because it can not be put out but that it shall not sease to destroye them yt shall come therin. For ye cause sayth the holy scripture that the synner shal be clothed with corrupcyon not oonly of theyr lyf [Page] but in languysshyng and tormentes alway comynge. Certaynly noo voyce coude expowne nor noo worde coude expresse the gretenes of the payn. nor the feruentnes of that fyre. Alas what shal we do therfor there. & what shal we answere / for in helle shall be but gryndyng of tethe / yowlyng. cryeng. & wepyng in payn / but thē ne penaunce is to late / & from all partes shall cō forte and helpe be put awaye / there shall be noo thyng but augmencacyons of paynes. as that fyre of helle is not of nature to druoure / no more is it to gyue noo comfortable lyght. It is an obscure fyre / and the flamme therof tenebrous. Secondely helle is called locus inquietus. that is to saye a restles place euer enduryng and shall neuer haue ende / wherfor it is sayde in this lyfe that there is one place whiche is alwaye styll / that is to wyte the centre of the skye. Other be somtyme troubled as mene partes of ye ayer / semblably it maye be proued that the lowest parte is alwayes in trouble without rest And therfore it is called tartarus. For after Papy tartarus is as mykell to saye as troubled and obscure Certaynly the vnrest and trybulacōn cometh there specyally of three thynges. Fyrste the varyaunce of paynes as one sayth / the weder is troubled / when it is nowe medled with reyn. now wt hayll. now with snowe. or suche storme whiche as it is sayd / be of all those maners in helle as wytenessen prophetes [Page lii] sayeng. It shall rayn vpon synners bothe fyre & brymstone. and the spyrytes of tempest shall gyue them parte of theyr tourmentes. Secondly of the mynystres infernall. As it is wryten in Iheremye the .xvi. chapitre. Those deuylles that ye haue serued / nether nyghte nor day shal suffre you in rest. Thirdely thenter chaūged crye. as it is wryten in Isaye the .lxv. chapitre. ye shall wepe for sorowe & by contrycyon of soule howle. In trouthe our lord shall answere to all those yt so shall howle and crye. As it is sayd in Iheremye the .xxx. chapitre. Wherfore cryest thou & howlest thou nowe by contrycyon sythe thy sorowe is not to be heled. I haue punysshed the thꝰ for thy wycked felonous synnes. Thirdely helle is called a place right distempred. As Auernus. That is as mykell to saye as a thyng withoute a temperaūce of delyte for the paynes be noo thyng moderated there / but contynue in grete excesse / of trouth there is therin without mesure excessesyue tenebres / whiche be called exteriores. as saynt Mathewe sayth in his .xxii. Chapitre. we haue example of this in Exodo in the .x. chapitre. By the manyable tenebres that were sometyme in Egypte. O how mykell shall the tenebres of helle be more greuous than those. It is wryten in Iob in the .xx. chapitre. All horryble tenebres shall come on hym. Ageyne then shall the [...]ners saye. As it is sayde in the [Page] Psalter. They haue cast me in to the lowest lake and in the tenebrous place and in the shadowe of dethe / they haue lodged me in the obscure place as dede fro this worlde / wherfore my soule is angry with me. Semblably it is wryten in the Lamē tacyons of Iheremye. They haue lodged me with thoos that be sempyternally dede / there is therin an excessyfe hete. As Iob sayth in his xiiii. chapitre. The hete is grete therin, and the cause is that it breketh not oute but is closed in / as the hete in an ouen. The Psalter sayth. Whenne thou arte an angred thou shalte put the synners in an ouen ful of fyre. Also our lord shall torment them with his wrath / and fyre shall deuoure them / there is there also a right sharpe colde. As is wryten in Iob in the sayde chapitre. It is sayd the water of snowe is colder thenne all other waters / Yet the waters of helle maye not be compared with of chyllyng nor colde. And therfor seyth ful gen [...]yus in his Pystles. There is in helle .ii. pryncypall maner of tormentes / that is to wyte by in tollerable colde and by inquencheable hete. It is wryten in the xxiiii chapitre of Saynt Mathew There shall be in helle bothe wepyng and colde certeynly the effluccōn of teeris by wepyng cometh of hete / but the inwarde sorowes is caused by colde. To this purpose wytnesseth Iob in the sayde xxiiii. chapitre. The synner ouerpassed with the [Page liii] colde water of snow / gothe after in to the grete fyry hetes. It is founde also in a lytyll booke of the dedes of Alexander the kyng of Macedone. That when̄e he was for clommed with the Isse & with the colde of the snowe he wolde goo to the fyre of colys. O how myserable and paynful shal this trouble be to thoos that shall not dye nor haue lightnyng in that piyson of helle / but be tourmented there Infynyt [...]ly Fourthely helle is called a noyfull waylyng place and therfore after Papie it is named Acheron / yt is as mykell to saye as a place without Ioye lackyng all goodnesse. For this cause sayth the Comentator Aueroys in the iiii. chapitre of Poetrye. That helle hath a contynuell sorow and wepyng without consolacyon. In trouth the dampned folkes there beneth haue no comforte in the worlde / for the orysons & prayers that ben sayd in the chirche mylytant may proufyte them no thyng / and from aboue cometh there no helpe to them / there falleth on them no myse rycorde. wherfore they be in dyspayre of ony grace in tyme comyng & knowe certeynly yt they with out remedy and not to be quyte out of the pryson / and so they rest sempiternally in waylynge in sorowe and in desolacyon. It is wryten in the boke of Sapyence in the iiii. chapitre. That the dampned soules shall be vtterly in desolacyon. Also the dampned soule sayth in the fyrst chapitre [Page] of the Trenys of The remye. I am cast in desolacyon & am conuycte in to wepyng. It is wryten in Isaye in the xxxiiii chapitre. That the wretched synner shal be in desolacion duryng the worlde of worldes. Alas alas what payne is yt to be endured. O moost cruell payne. O desolacion full of all tourmentes. & therfore o thou man remembre the & prynte often in thy herte & mynde these thynges aboue sayde to thentent▪ thou may esche we & withdrawe the from synne. & ther by haue the moost precyous glorye & felycyte perdurable.
¶ How those that descende into helle be cruelly punysshed.
¶ The seconde chapitre of the thirde parte payncypall.
NOwe to procede folowyng by ordre it resteth to be expowned howe there be many & dyuerse afflyccyons gyuen by the sold (er) yours of helle. Those sol deyours ben to vnderston de the deuylles / whiche ben tourmentours & hangemen ful abhomynable to beholde and cruell in theyr dedys / neuer wery to tourmente nor to gyue paynes. I saye fyrst that those deuyles be horryble to beholde. And therfore they be so paynted in the chirche with hydeous & horryble fygures / to this purpose it is redde that where somtyme a relygyous man was leynge in his dortor among his brethern. It happened in a [Page liiii] nyght that he cryed horrybly / where thorugh all the brethern of his couente resorted vnto hym / & they foūde hym staryng & his eyen fixed vppon a walle fyrmely withoute moeuyng & wolde answere to noo questyon yt they demaūded hym / he was so moeued with a mernelous fere. & in the morow his pryour came vnto hȳ & asked what hym ayled that nyght / & he answered. He hadde seen the deuyll. And thenne it was questyoned hym / what shappe he was of. And he answered yt his shappe ne myght lyghtly be descryued / & sayd / yf there were here an ouen full of fyre & yonder the deuyll. I had as leef entre in to the ouen / as longe to beholde on his moost horryble fygure. and as sainte Bernarde sayth in the Psalme of Qui habitat in adiutorio. O my right dere brethern what thyn he ye / yf it were a thyng syttyng / that one of thise prynces of tenebres / that be of soo many hydeous and merueylous shappes sholde come and appere amongen you with his grete cruelte and vnformed tenebroꝰ body. what temporale or spyrytuale wytte myght susteyne to beholde hym. It is redde in the book of Ditis patrū. How there was somtyme an auncyent man that sayd. I trowe there is noo lyuyng creature / but and he same the deuyll in the same fourme that the dampned soules see hym / he sholde no more lyfe after / but shortely sholde dye. Also Saynte Gregorye sayth of [Page] one called Cryssoryus / whiche beynge full seke sawe besyde hym a grete multytude of deuylles / wherfore he cryed full hydeously after helpe. he torned hym this waye and that waye. to thentent he sholde not see them / but he was so feruently troubled with them in fere / that right soone he dyed. Certeynly all those that see the deuylles be in suche gret troubles that all men diede the syghte of them / and not withoute Reason / for theyr horryble fygure tourmenteth those to deth that beholdeth them. It is wryten in Iob the .xx. chapytre Horryble thynges shall go and come vpon them And that Saynte Bernard sheweth whenne he sayd. O my soule what fere shall yu haue / whenne thou shalt leue the presence of all thynges where in thou haste Ioye / the syght of that / that is agreable vnto the and all thy famylyaryte. and shalte entre allone ferfully in to the regyon / whiche is to the vnknowen / whenne the righte terryble and horryble monstres shall come in grete companyes agaynst the. O how grete a deformyte shall be in thoos horryble deuylles that shall appere in figures of righte cruell beestys. And as it is wryten in the .xi. chapitre of Sapyens. Because they permytted errours as done serpentes and other superflue beestys / thou hast sente them a multytude of dome bestys in vengeaunce to the entente that they maye knowe wherin they haue [Page lv] synned / they to be tourmented by the same. Certayne it is not Impossyble that the moost myghty honde that hath create and made all the vnyuersall worlde of thynge vnsene. shold sende a multytude of fers beres of hardy lyons and other many furyous beestys of dyuerse shappes castyng vapures of fyre gyuyng stynkyng smokes puttynge out of they eyen sparkes brennyng of fyre. but all these thynges sholde be to the hurte of synners and also the beholdynge myght slee them / as it is wryten in the chapitre a fore sayde. Iob sayde in his .xvi. chapitre. Myne enemy hath beholde me with terryble eyen. He also sayth in his .xli. chapitre. His loke and beholdyng is lyke a glystryng of fyre out of his mouth stremyng as it were brennyng lampes. and popilleth as water boylynge out of a potte. Therfore sayth a Poete that there be therin serpētes vomyshyng out of theyr mouthes brennyng flammes with the whiche blastes the soules of the myserable synners ben all perysshed Secondly the fendes be cruell by effecte. where as it is wryten in Iob the xvi. chapitre. They are assembled ayenst me. they haue opened theyr mouthes vppon me as a rauyssyng lyon / they haue tēpted me. they haue mocked me & grennyngly & felonesly shewed me their tethe. Also in Ecclesiastico in the .xxi. Chapitre. is sayde. Theyr tethe be lyke the tethe of lyons / whiche deuour the soules [Page] To this purpose is wryten in the fyrst Pystle of saynt Peter the .v. chapitre That how the deuyll is lyke a braynge lyon / whiche gooth sekyng to deuour som soule. Certeyne the deuyll shall be appoynted at ye last day for to deuour synners. It is wryten in Isaye in the lvi. chapitre. O ye all bestes of the feldes & wyldernes come ye for to deuoure. Iheremye in his .xii. chapitre sayth. Come ye alle bestes and assemble and make you redy for to deuour. Saynt Gregory in his Dyalogis talketh therof and sayth. That there was somtyme a monke not yet verely monke in dede but so named / whiche was called Theodorus. It was righte dyspleasant vnto hym / whenne one spake to hym for his saluacon / he wolde not oonly leue to do good / but it lothed hym to here speke therof / & as Theodorus was at the artycle of dethe. al his brethern of his couent assembled aboute hym in prayers & deuout orysons yt they myght helpe & defende his soule at ye departyng from his body. then he began sodenly to crye & with a grete voyce had them breke of & leue theyr orysōs & prayers & departe / for he was gyuen vnto an horryble dingon for to be deuoured / whiche he sayd for theyr praiers might not deuoure hym. & yet he had swalowed his hede / & prayed them therfore go thens & pray nomore / but lete hȳ do that. that he purposed to do / sens he was gyuen vnto hym / & the forsayd [Page lvi] Theodorꝰ sayd / why suffre ye me soo longe to be in this case. Thenne sayde his brethern vnto him what is it that thou seest make the fygure of the crosse vpon the. To who me the sayd Theodorus answered with a lamen table crye. I wolde feyne blesse me / but I can not / for I am to hardely prycked and oppressed with the vyolence of this dragon. And whenne his brethern herde hym saye soo. they fyll flatte to the erthe with wepynge teeres / and began agayne theyr prayers and orysons deuoutly for the helpe and Redempcyon of this Theodorus / whiche soone after sodeynly began to crye with a lowde voyce sayeng. I yelde louyng thankes and grace to god my creatour / for now that Dragon / whiche sholde haue deuoured me is dryuen and chased away fro me by your gode and deuout prayers and orysons. Also Saynte Gregory telleth an example in the fourthe boke of his Dyalogis that how in the partes of Anchone in a monastery called Congolathon be fell somtyme that there was therin a monke whiche was taken for a very holy man meruelously well dysposed towarde god / But whenne his bretheren went that he had fasted he was accustomed secretely to ete. And when̄e he was at the batayll of deth / he called generally for all his bretheren. sayeng vnto them. I am delyuered nowe vnto a dragon to be deuoured / whiche wt his tayll hath [Page] knytte togydre my fete & also my knees & putteth his hede in to my mouth & draweth my soule oute of my body / and after he had sayd those wordes he dyed forth withall. It maye seme these wordes be for the condēpned synners whiche be wryten in Iheremy in the .li. chapitre. He hath eten me lyke a dragon. This dragon is hydeous & grete & hath vii. hedes & .x. hornes in the same as it is wryten in the Apocalyps in the xii. chapitre. There hath ben a grete batayle in the shye so yt saynt Mychyell & his angell hath fought with ye dragon & his angell whiche myght not resyst. & syth theyr rowmes in heuen coude not be foū de but were cast downe & so yt dragon aūcyent serpēt / whiche is called ye deuyll sathan enforceth hȳ self to make warre vpon the vnyuersall worlde here. And for ye cause it is red in the same chapitre. That harme come to yt erthe & to ye see / for the deuyll is descended among you with all his grete furyous anger This deuyl hath a merueylous grete hate vnto all good peple whiche disposeth them to take possessiō in ye towme of heuen / from whens he was put out & chased in to theterrnall paynes / & ye more yt the day of dome approcheth the more tēpteth he more cursedly & more forseth hymselfe to do euyll in destroynge of soules. O how grete is ye wyckednesse & the malyce of this deuyll of helle. wherof Saynt Bernard talketh in a prose sayeng O howe felonous shall [Page lvii] then this tormentours be whiche shall payne & tormente synners. how terryble shall theyr vengeaūce be in vengyng vyces wret chednes & synnes Certeȳ ly theyr cruell malyce is yet augmēted in dyuerse maners. Fyrste because they be so innumerable & of so dyuerse sortes. The Psalter seyth. why be those so multyplyed that tormenteth me / & there be many that dresse them a yenst me. and as it is wryten in Iob in the .xix. chapitre They haue asseged my tabernacle about me It is wryten in [...]itis patrū. That there was a good auncyent man that sawe the duyll enuyronynge the people & were as thyke as beys that make hony / wherfore it is sayd also in the Psalter. They haue cōpassed me as beys be cause they be many & of grete myght▪ as Thapostle wytnesseth in his pistle ad the Epheseos in the .vi. chapitre. where he calleth them prynces & potestates & gouernours of the world be cause they be subtyll and myghty to noy soules. ye Psalter seyth. The stronge haue fought my soule This strengthe is vnder stonde by the deuylles. It is red also of that streng the in Iob the .xli. chapitre. There is noo myght vpon the erthe to be compared with that / yu hath done soo yt it dredeth noo man saue him that seeth all thynge from aboue & is kyng ouer all the childeren of pryde the deuylles shall ernstfully exercyse theyr myght in pryde to the punission of synners & them shall cruelly [Page] tourmente. It is wryten in Ecclesiastico the xxxix chapitre. There be spyrytes that be ordeyned to take vengeaunce & hath confermed the tormentes in theyr furour enduryngly tyll the consummacōn of the worlde. Iob sayth in his .xvi. chapitre. He hath compassed me with his speris & hath not spared me. but hath hurt my reynes / he hath caste my bowell to the erthe / & gyuen me woundes vppon woūde & this come sholderyng ayenst me lyke agaynd Thirdely the malyce & cruelte of the deuyl is cōforted & is more greuous be cause they are neuer wery of tormentyng As it is wryten in the boke of Danyell in the .iii. chapitre The mynystres shall not sease in sturynge the fyres of the fourneys to the causynge of paynes. Therfore sayd a wyse man that there be tourmentours. whiche be more to be lothed then serpentes / & they be blacke & defourmed & wyll not be beten downe And they be neuer wery to do harme / but newly encreasen theyr malyce al way redy & boylyng desyrously to put soules to payne / and Incessantly they excersyse theyr cruelte more and more. And it is sayde to all synners in Deutronomye in the .xxviii. chapitre. Thou shalt serue for thyne enemy whenne oure lorde shall sende the naked vnto hym in honger and thyrste and in alpouerte. And thenne shal thysore woundes enereace perpetuelly. O howe grete shall the paynes be there to dampned folkes [Page lviii] whiche shall laste contynuelly in anguysshe and myserye withoute Intermyssyon lackynge peas or reste. It is redde of the synners in Ezechyell in the seuenth Chapitre. That whenne they shall fele this Anguysshyous payne / they shall desyre and requyre to haue peas / but thenne they gete none / for they sall haue conturbacyon and sorowe vppon sorowe. It is wryten in Thapocalyps the .xiiii. Chapitre. That thoos that haue ben beestly shall therfore haue noo rest by day nor nyght. Then̄e mowe the synners well saye. as it is wryten in Isaye in the xxxviii. chapitre. I shall not see oure lorde god in the lyuyng londe / nor I shall noo more beholde ony man / that is inhaby tour of reste. Semblable as it is wryten in Ihere mye the .xlv. Chapitre. Alas I am vnhappy / for oure lorde hath added in me sorowe to sorowe / for I can fynde noo Reste. Sorowe shall be thenne caste atte his hede / and alle Inyquyte shall descende vppon hym. Nowe by these thynges aboue sayd it manyfestly appereth how suche as descendet in to helle be punysshed with many dyuerse paynes / and therfore me thynketh dere bretheren how it sholde be often in your Remembraunce to defende you from fallynge to synne / whereby ye sholde lese the companye of the happy & blysshed sayntes and the celestiall glorye. whiche is perdurable and shall dure worlde withouten ende.
¶ How there be many condycyons of tourmentes encreasynge the paynes of helle.
¶ The thyrde chapitre of the thyrde parte pryncypale.
NOw resteth to declare the thyrde parte of this mater / whiche is in shewyng the condicōn of thinfernale tourment whiche be full dyuerse. Certeyne there be sondry condicōns yt specyally encreace by occasyons the paynes of helle. The fyrste is bytternesse wepyng gryndyng of tethe / complaynyng the perpetuell dethe / paynfull languyssynge in despayre / & the wrath & blamyng of the creatour of alle thynges with other many tourmē tes & paynes innumerable to be recyted / whiche doubteles shall be well fel [...]e & vnderstonde there by syn̄ers / as it appereth in dyuerse places of holy scrypture / & as it is wryten in Thapocalyps in ye .xvi. chapitre. They haue eten theyr conges for grete sorowe & haue blasphemed the god of heuen for theyr anguysshys & theyr woūdes. saynt Gregory sayth that he yt is cō dempned to the cormentes fyndeth more payne there then̄e can be supposed or thought. sayne The rome seyth that the force of the sorow in helle shal be soo grete yt it can not addresse his corage / but as the force of the said so rowe wyll cōstrayne. Certeyn the synner shall say then as is wryten in Iheremye in the .viii. chapitre. My woo encreaseth [Page lix] in sorowe vppon sorowe. The egrenesse of the paynes of helle shalbe so grete that synners shall hate & dysprayse lyfe / whiche vnyuersally is delyted & with a brennyng desyre wysshe to fynde deth whiche euery man wolde flee. As it is wryten in ye Apocalyps in the .ix. chapitre. A day shall come yt men shall desyre & wysshe for deth / & shall not haue it / they shall requyre deth & it shall flee away from them. In trouthe our lorde wytnesseth the egrenesse of the paynes of helle in Iheremy in the .ix. chapitre / where he sayth. I shall fede my people with absynth / comonly named worm wode the whiche is a bytter herbe. & I shal gyue them to drynke galle / wherby is signifyed the bytternes of the tormentes of helle It is red yt this egrenesse was wel consydered by a yonge man whiche was delycyously nourysshed. Neuerthelesse he entred in to thorder of prechers / and whene he had ben in the sayde order a whyle / there came a man from his kynesfolkes to amonisshe hȳ to depart thens or he were professed / shewyng hȳ howe delyciously he had ben brought vp & therfore he myght not susteyne ye dures paynes & troubles perteynyng to the sayd order. The yonge man answered. I haue entred in to this order knowynge well yt I was voluptuously nourysshed and myght not well suffre. But I remēbre well that the troubles paynes of helle shall be importable / wherfore I hadde [Page] leuer to susteyne the lityll payne of this ordre / then the paynes whiche ar incōparable. For Iob saythe in his .vi. chapitre. the snowe shall falle vppon them that shall drede the lytyll myst. This consyderacyon moued an here myte called Pyers to enterpryse a merueylous penaunce. whiche he accomplysshed / as Saynt Gregory sheweth in the .iiii. boke of his dyalogis this heremyte dyed by a sekenesse / & yet after his deth his soule was restored agayne to his body. Also Saynt Gregory sayth / that there was somtyme a monke horn of Irlond (er) called Pyers. this monke affermed how he had seen the greuous tourmentes of helle. the innumerable paynfull places & flāmes of fyre. and tolde how he hadde seen there certeyn mighty men of this worl de hanged vp in the sayd flāmes. And he sayd as he was brought for to be cast in / sodeynly appered an angell clothed alle in whyte. whiche saued him and bad hym goo thens & attentyfly to remēbre how he sholde lyue from thens forthwarde to kepe him out of the danger of the paynes. After that he had herde that voyce. he reuyued and came to him selfe lityll and lityll and shewed vnto his brethern there all the thyngis that he had felte and seen / and from that day forthwarde he vsed & lyued a blessyd lyfe in fastyng & doyng penasice. so that by his conuersacion after it myght well seme ye paynes of helle ar to be dred The secōde cōdicion [Page lx] encreasyng the paynes of helle is the multyplyeng of the tourmentes there. In certeyn they be innumerable. And as the psalter sayth. The paynes / whiche be without nombre haue enuyroūd & beclypped me. It is wryten in Deutronomy the xxxii chapitre. I shall assemble many dyuers paynes vpon them. & I shal accō plyshe or spende the shot of myn arowes in them. & as it is wryten in Isay the .v. chapitre. His arowes be full sharpe & alle his bows are bent / oure lorde hath many arowes in his quiuer / whiche he hath not yet shot forthe / but after ye Iugement he shall smyte alle synners with them. These arowes are the dyuerse paynes of helle / where as sȳ ners shall be thenne tour mented in many maners the Psalter sayth. The arowes of the myghty. yt is to saye of oure lorde be sharp amonges the coles of desolacyon. Our lorde sayth in Deutronomy ye xxii. chapitre. I shall [...]mbrewe myne arowes in theyr blood / my swerde shall deuour theyr flesshe they shall perysshe by famyne / & the byrdes shall strangle them with a ful bytter morsell. I shall sende avenst them the tethe of wylde bestes with the furour of those yt rampe & deuour vpon the erthe. Outwarde ye swerd shall destroye them. & Inwarde fere & drede shall wast them Of this multytude of paynes speketh saynt Gregory in the .viii. chapitre of Saynt Mathew sayeng. They shall be caste out in to thuttermeste [Page] tenebres / that is to saye helle where shall be an vnsuffrable colde / an vn quencheable hete / an immortale worme / an intollerable stynche / a derkenesse manyable / and an hortyble vysyon of deuel les thresshyng and betynge a confusyon of syn̄ers a separacyon of all Ioyes And therfore sayd a wyse man / yt helle is a mortyfyeng pyt full and accomplysshid with all paynes and myseryes. The Psalter seyth. It shall reyne brymstone vppon synners and the spyrytes of tempestis. whiche be part of the sorowes and tourmēntes of helle. And that sayeng is to be noted by cause that there be many other partes of tourmentis impossyble to be expressed. all that euer we haue spoken of the paynes of helle is a full lytyll thynge in regarde of the grete infynyte multytude of them / but to thentent yt the multyplycacōn of the [...]e paynes may be the more expressely declared. It is also to be noted howe dampned soules shall be full of all myseryes & so rowes. for they shall euer haue wepyng eyen gryndyng of theyr tethe. stynche in theyr noses wayllyng in theyr voyces. fere in theyr eres / brennynge of fyre in all theyr membres / & therin shalbe boū den honde & fote. Lo how the wretched syn̄er descendyng in to helle shall be fulfylled with all tormentes. It is wryten in Iob the .xv. chapitre of ye dāpned man how tribulacōn shal holde him. & anguys she shall enuyron̄e hym. And in the .xiii. chapitre [Page lxi] of Isaye. How all mennys hertes shall be abasshed & ferde for the sorowes & torcyons that shal holde hym hauynge the payn that women suffre trauelyng of childe / echo ne shall sorowe vpon his neyghbour / & theyr broyled faces shall affray eue riche other. Therfor Baruch sayd in his .vi. chapitre. Theyr faces be blacked with smoke / for the faces of all synners shall be brought to the lykenesse of a rounde potte. as it is wryten in Iohell the seconde chapitre. Also it is sayde in Ecclesiastyco the .xlviii. chapitre. The paynes of a woman trauelynge shall come vnto them. The same also is wryten in Ozee the .xiii. chapitre. Soo as it appereth there be many scorges & fleyles in helle for to bete synners therwith. Certeynly the dampned soule shall mowe saye with the Psalter. The sorowes of deth haue compassed me / & the paynes of helle haue foūden me. It sayth. It hath compassed me for this cause. For it is to hym a vestyment or coueryng of maledyccion. whiche shal be both within hym & withoute hym. O what vestyment shall this be that shal be women with soo paynfull thredes / & those without nombre / whiche can neuer be vndone nor taken away. for with an inmortale stryng it shall be inseparably bounden vnto the synner. This shall be a sore and a bytynge vestyment to be suffred. This is the vestymente that is wryten of in Isaye in the .xiii. chapitre [Page] sayeng. Thy vestyment shall be wormes. The cō syderacōn of these many folde paynes reuoked & called Dauyd from syn̄e & caused hym to doo penaūce. & therfore he sayd to our lorde. How many sorecribulacōns hast yt she wed me. & yt cōuerted hast reuyned me. The consyderacōns also of thise for said paynes moeued somtyme an heremyte for to take-vppon hym a right sharpe paynfull lyf. whiche he ledde in his heremitage. as it is red in Vitis patrū. It was axed of hȳ why he wolde so slee him selfe. And he answered. All the labour of my lyf is not suffycyent to be cō pared to one of the dayes of tourmentes that be or deyned & reserued for synners in tyme to come Beda sheweth vs in his wrytyng of Englond. how yt in ye tyme of yonge Constātyne ther dyed a knyghte about the yeres of our lord .viii. C. and .vi. whiche knyght reuyued. & after for the paynes yt he had seen / he fledde in to an heremytage / as it is red in Vitis patrū / & he made hȳ a lityll hous by a Ryuyer syde. In the whiche ryuyer he wolde renne oftentymes all clothed in the wynter tyme. & wold suffre his clothes to frese vnto his fleshe / & thenne after he wolde lepe in to a bayn as hote as hit was possyble to hȳ to suffre. And this lyf he ledde vnto his deth. And when̄e folkes sawe hym do soo / they blamed hym therfor. & he sayd to them Yf ye had seen that I haue seen / ye wolde do as I do. & rather more Saynt [Page lxii] Gregory sayth. The vysyon of the paynes of helle is the moost excellente moeuyng that can be to penaunce and contricion The thyrde condycyon encreasyng the paynes of helle is the euerlastyngnesse therof. It is wryten in the boke of Sapyence the .iiii. chapitre. Oure lorde shall mocke them. That is to vnderstonde synners after they shall fall from theyr worshyp among them that be sempyternally dede. Saynte Mathew sayth the .xxv. chapitre. They be those / that shall goo in to tourmentes. In Iudyth the xvi. chapitre is red / that our lord shall sende wormes of fyre ayenst theyr fleshe / that they may brē ne and yet lyue and fele the paynes for euer. To that purpose speketh Isaye in his last Chapitre thꝰ. Theyr wormes shal not dye / nother theyr fyre quenche. And therfore sayth our lord in Deutronomye in the .xxxii. chapitre. The fyre is kyndeled with my furour and shall brenne in to the lowest parte of helle / and that shall be perpetuelly and endelesly. Isaye in his .xxxiii. chapitre sayth. O whiche of vs shal mowe suffre and endure the deuourynge fyre / who shall mowe be amonge those that shall be brente sempyternally. In the xxxiii. chapitre of the same Isaye is sayde. The groūde where they dwelle shall be conuerted into brennynge pytche nyght and daye / and shall not quenche / and the smoke shall be from generacōn to generacōn vpon them [Page] duryng the world of worldes. It is wryten in the Apocalyps in the .xx. chapitre. The deuyll shalbe sente in to the lake of fyre and sulpher and brymstone. where the euyll beste and the false prophete shall be tormented nyghte and day in the worlde of worldes. And he that shal not be fonden in the book of lyfe / shall be sente in to the lake of fyre there for to dwelle in the shadowe of dethe / where is none ordre / but sempyternall horrour and sorowe. It is wryten in Iob the .x. chapitre / and also Saynt Gregory seyth in his Moralles a right horryble worde. That is to wyte. Thenne shall the myserable synners suffre a grete payne with a grete fere / a grete flamme with a derkenesse / and deth without deth / an ende without fynysshyng / for that dethe shall euer lyue / and that ende shall begynne alwaye ageyne. and that faute shall neuer fayle And a poete sheweth howe that myserable dethe can not dye nor fynysshe / but semeth alle waye that it begynneth and reneweth wepynges and languysshynges. Peter de bloys sayd in a pystle. There shall be none order of ony maner of tormentes nother sparynge / but endelesly the paynes shall renue & begynne ageyn / dethe can not dye there / for it shall be alway ꝑmanent and neuer cessyng to thentent yt ye condāpned soules may myserably alway encreace in theyr paynes and sorowes and be nourysshed in eternall dethe. The [Page lxiii] Psalter sayth. They be casten in to helle as shepe and dethe fedeth them. Mowe thenne this synners haue theyr fedynge of deth. what shalbe their drynke. Herkene what is wryten in Deutronomye in the .xxxii. chapitre. the burgynge of the grape & the vyne that they shall haue / shall be aysell and galle of Dragons / and the venym of the Adder called aspe. whiche is incurable. O wherewith shall the synners be nourysshed / seest yt not howe they be perpetually tourmented with the mooste cruell deth / they shall lyue then in dyeng / & shall be dede lyuyng. Saynte Bernard seyth in a boke that he sente vnto Pope Eugeny. The bytynge worme & the lyuyng dethe. I grouge and secre gretely. I drede to falle in to the handes of the dethe that euer lyueth / and of the lyfe that neuer dyeth. Saynte Gregory sayth. That the felon synners shall dye of inmortall deth. O good lord eternall why hast yu suffred me doo contrarye thy wyll & werke myne owne sorow / why helpest thou not me out of syn̄e. wherby I myght escape this ꝑpetuel deth. O how happy. o how blissed shal he be yt shal not be fouled nor smonged with the fylthes of synne / & yt hath not reioysshed him in the sensuale voluptacyons of this transytorye worlde / nor in tēporall vanytees. Certeyn I am ferde yt we myserable synners haue erred from the waye of lyfe / & that the lyght of Iustyce hath not shyned [Page] vpon vs / we haue not folowed the wayes of oure lorde / but haue taken the vnhappy wayes of Iniquyte & perdycion. It is wryten in Isaye the .xlix. chapitre / we haue laboured in vayn & for nought we haue wasted all oure strengthe. what hath our pryde auayled vs / what hath profyted our pompe & the vanyte of the richesses of this worlde / what be we amended by oure Iewelles. or precyous garnementes. by our delicioꝰ metes and drynkes / oure glotonyes / our laughynges & ydle disportes. now what auantageth vs all thynges. wherin we haue vaynely vnproufytably / & dampnably spent oure tyme. Alas alas / we haue lost & passed our dayes without fruyte. and may be lykened to werse then a dounghyll / and all those thynges be paste / but oure wretchednesse shall remayne to oure eternall tourmentes. Oure lorde shall saye to euery dampned soule. as is wryten in Iob in the .xx. chapitre. He shall suffre tourmentes & paynes after ye multytude of his wycked operacyons. and in the xviii. chapitre of thapocalyps is wrytē. As moche as he hath gloryfyed hym selfe in delytes & pleases / as moche tourment & payne shalbe yeuen him therfore to remayne therin eternally. Now is it not a grete folye for the riche or vayne pleasyr of this world or ony other myserable thyng a man to submytte hym to perpetuall tormēt both of his body & of his soule. Iohan crysostom sayth in his book [Page lxiiii] tytled of the reparacyon of defaultes / what contynuaūce of lecherye & space of delectacyons wylt yu compare to the sempyternall paynes. Now take yt thou lyue. C. yere in delectacynns / sette therto an other. C. & yet. C. & after that .x. hondred yf yu wylt yet what comparyson is this to theternyte. Maye not all the tyme of oure bodely lyfe. though we entended neuer so voluptuously be resembled vnto a dreme of the nyght in regarde of the sempyternall lyfe. Is ther ony persone yt ought wyl to haue one pleasant & delectable nyght in diemes / & therfore to fynde the sempyternall paynes / & so chaū ge for a pleasant dreme so lytyll enduryng / to haue ye paynes of helle. whiche be ꝑpetuel. what shal we speke of this pleasyr / or of those paynes. The pleasyrs passe lyghtly awaye / & the paynes must remayne euerlastyngly. Now take it. that the tyme & the space of the pleasyrs & of the paynes were egale. Is there ony that ought to be so mad or soo folysshe / as to chese for to haue for one day of pleasyr here a day of dampnacyon in helle. Remembre how that one houre of bodely sekenesse in this worlde putteth awaye alle pleasyr for the season. Right so Remembraunce how the perpetuell paynes ought to resyst ayenst all synnes. O how grete tourment and payne shall be to the dāpned soules / theyr euerlastynge dampnacyon and perpetuell deth is so harde & so sore / that I wote [Page] not how / that I coude expresse hit greuousely Inowe. for certeynly it can not suffycyentely be spoken. conceyued in mynde nor comprehended in herte. Nowe take we that there were a pece of metalle as grete as myghte be comprehended within the concauyte of the .viii. spere. and euery .M. yere there sholde be taken frō hit a lytyll pece lyke a grayn / and so consequentely tyll it were all broughte to no thyng / sholde not the eternyte be fynysshed by that tyme / & the dampned soules delyuered out of theyr paynes. I answere and saye you nay / for the perpetuyte shall be thenne but atte the begynnyng. there can be no ꝓporcion in a thynge Infynyte / as Arystotyle the phylosophre sayth in his .viii. booke of his physykes. Certaynly yf dampned soules myghten knowe & vnderstande that they sholde be delyuered out of thyntollerable paynes of helle as soone as the sayd pece of metalle were soo wasted & gone / as is aboue sayd yet they myght haue hope of theyr Redempcyon ayenst that season / and haue some maner of confort. knowyng that theyr tourmentes sholde some tyme taken ende / yet the yeres wolde be incomprehensyble and innumerable. Nowe surely one of the grettest paynes is the desolacyon and defaulte of hope euer to be redemed and delyuered oute of theternall tourmentis For as it is wryten in Isay the .xxxiiii. chapitre. The synner shall be [Page lxv] in desolacyon tyme and worlde withouten ende. It is wryten in the booke of Trenys the thirde chapitre. Myn ende and myne hope in god is perysshed. Iheremye in his xv. chapitre asketh / why is my sorowe made imꝑpetuell and my woundes in desperacōn / wherunto is answered in the .x. chapitre of the Prouerbys. That whenne the felon synner is ones dede. there is thenne none hope to be had. Entende & remē bre this all ye that be for geters of oure lorde / leest that this moost cruell & sorowfull place of helle swalowe you / frō whens ye maye neuer be pulde oute. Loo nowe ye maye see clerely / how the wretched synner can not be redemed oute of helle. wherfore my ryghte dere frendes I amoneste & requyre you / bere that remembraūce well in youre myndes / and conceyue well the Example of the pece of metalle aboue specyfyed. And now telle me what thou felest. and what thyn owne hert demeth and Iugeth in this mater. I wene certaynly thy dyscrecyon wyll gyue therunto credence / for trewe it is / & to trouth by Reason yt must nedes applye. Also bethynke the of the dyuerse prouynces of londes & ymagine euery Regyon of them. Consyder the sees the ryueres & the poondes. Enclose in thy mynde the circuyte of the worlde / & goo euery where therof. Flee vp in to the ayer / and thenne descende in to the lowest parte of therthe / & of all this thynke in thy [Page] mynde / thou hast made an hole substance & ymagyne & extende how gret a thynge this shold be / & yf hit myght not be consumed by tracte of tyme / & thenne tell me what yu thynkest of thynfynyte paynes of synners. whether sholde be longe endurynge the consumyng of the same substance. or the relessyng of the perdurable paynes. I [...]owe thou wylt agre. yt there can no thynge be compared to a perpetuyte / wherfore we ought all in our corages tymerousely to tremble & fere it. Now who is he yt dredeth hit not. who is he yt abassheth not therof. who is he yt had not leuer abyde the consumyng of ye forsayd substance. than the tyme of eternyte. Lete this sayde substance and this tyme of eternyte be couched vpon thyn herte and thou shalt fynde it a proufytable thyng & gretely to thyne auantage. For yf thou wylt not correcte and reuoke thy selfe from thy synnes by the loue yt thou owest to bere vnto god. yet the myrour & Remembraunce of the Intollerable & Infynyte paynes sholde reuoque / sequestre and withdrawe the from synnes. O lorde god that this perdurable payne is to be eschewed & drad. And wepynly we ought to Remembre our synnes by grete contryon / that we myght there by come to the euerlastyng saluacyon. Loo here afore hath be shewed the encreasyng of thynfernale paynes / and how they may neuer cesse nor finysshe. whiche was well consydered by one somtyme [Page lxvi] called Fulson of Mercelles / whiche was in his dayes an excellent Iouge lyre all abandouned and gyuen to the vanytees of the worlde. In a daye he bethought hȳ of the paynes of helle & of the eternyte theeof / & Remēbred in his herte. If he were compelled to lye in a fayre and a softe bed well hanged and pleasantely dressed & for no necessyte myght departe out of it. yet all were it neuer so delycyous / it coude not lye in his power contynually to endure hit. And there vppon Remembred hym how he shold then mowe susteyne thintollerable ꝑ petuell paynes of helle / whiche are languerouse & from thens none may departe. This forsayde Fulson consyderyng that lefte all his vayne worldely delytes and made hym selfe a monke / and lychen was archybysshop of Tholouse / where he lyued and guyded hym right holyly in the seruyce of our lord. The consyderacōn of the perpetuell paynes of helle sholde endure & comforte euery gode soule to fyght & resyst myghtly ayenst his ghostely enemy / for yf the fende vaynquysshe & ouercome hym / he may be sure to lye therfore withoute grete repentaūce & grace in the sempyternale paynes of helle. And therfore for Ihesus sake with alle your myght fyght & resyste vygorously ayenste the cruell enemye of all mankynde / whiche dooth noughte but lyeth in a wayte for to brynge vs alle to dampnacyon. Egesyppus sayth in his [Page] book of the destruccyon of Iewes. How that one of the grete Capytaynes of kynge Alexander beynge chyef of an Hoost / sawe on a tyme an Innumerable armee comyng ayenst him to fyght with hym. And whenne his people sawe them come / they dysposed them to ete and to drynke for to make them of the more bodely myght and putte therin theyr truste. This good Capytayne seeng that they gaue more hope to theyr bodely strengthes than to the power of hym. whome all other myghtes can not resyste. sayd in this wyse. O ye noble and worthy men / lete vs dyne nowe togyder / for we be lyke to souppe this nyght in helle alle in a companye. This people heryng these wordes to eschewe that heuy soupper / put theyr affyaunce in our lorde & sette on / and fought soo vyguorously / that they with Tryumphe and honour ouercome theyr enemyes. Consyderyng that Remembraunce of the paynes of Helie sholde withdrawe vs from worldely delytes. Hit is redde in Vitis Patrum. Howe there was an Auncyent man that sayde / whenne a woman wyl weene her childe and make it to lothe the swetenesse of hyr mylke / she wyll put vpon her pappes hede a lytyll mustarde or some other bytter thyng / when̄e the childe feleth that / it withdraweth & putteth a waye his appetyte from the swete mylke. So semblably the soure Remembraunce of the perpetuell [Page lxvii] tourmentes & paynes of helle ought to reuoque a man from all the vayne delectacyons of this wretched worlde. Iob sayth in his .vi. chapitre. May not a man cast of a thynge / whiche sholde cause hym the right bytter dethe. That is to saye / the paynes perpetuell. Prosper seyth. In this presente lyfe the temporall delytes be full pleasant / & the trybulacions full bytter. But who is he that sholde not gladly suffre trybulacyons in this lyfe for fere of the sempyternall paynes of helle And who is he that ought not to dyspyse the delycyouse pleasyrs of this worlde forto haue the moost happy Ioye of euerlastynge blysse. It is sayd also in the Legende of Saynte Iohan the Euangelyst. That riche and myghty folkes were conuerted by his predycacyon / and relynquysshed alle theyr worldely rychesses. Yet they sawe after some / yt were theyr seruaūtes reysed in the flatryng glory & fortune of this worlde wherfore they repented them / that they hadde lost all theyr goodes soo. whiche thynge Saynte Iohan vnderstood by the holy goost. and prayde vnto our lord for their saluacyon / and thenne our lorde chaūged certeyne peces of tymber vnto fyne golde / and harde flynte stones vnto precyouse Ieweles. and so they were restored vnto gretter tresoure and rychesse / than euer they hadde loste for oure lordes sake. Then̄e it happened that Saynt Iohan reuyued [Page] from deth a yongly man whiche shewed vnto chose folkes the eternall glorye that they hadde loste for [...]ichesse of this worlde / & how the paynes of hell dyde but abyde them whenne the folkes herde & vnderstode yt they were soo abasshed & in soo grete fere. that forth withall they myspraysed / despysed and refused all worldely rychesse and delytes and wylfully retourned vnto theyr pou [...]te for theyr saluacyon. It is redde in Vitis patrum. How there was some tyme a yong frere that sayde vnto a fader of his order. I am slouthefull & wery to sytte alway thus styll in my celle. To whome this good fader answered / thou hast not sene nor vnderstonde the tormentis yt be to come in helle / whiche shalbe ꝑpetuelly enduryng. & therfore yf thou prynte yt wel in thyn hert / though thy celle were full of wormes. yu sholdest not grouge / but woldest abyde in hit paciently for to eschewe these pourable paynes. For euery syn̄er must endure the eternale tormentis of helle / or ye right sharpe paynes of purgatory / or elles he must do and suffre suffysant penaunce in this worlde. Thenne what vnhappy creature is he that is so blynde and so ha [...]tred with vngrace & lacke of Reason / that hadde not leuer suffre here suffysante panaunce than in helle to be tourmented & punysshed with outen ende. Isydore saythe. Thynke in thyne herte alle the sekenesses & paynes of this worlde [Page lxviii] alle the bytternesses and sorowes what soo euer they be. comparyng them dystynctely with the gehenne of helle / and thou shalt mowe well knowe that alle paynes here be in Regarde as noo thynge vnto thoos. Saynte Bernard sayth in a Pystle. Thou diedest to wake on nyghtes / to faste and to labour with thyn handes. But Remembryng the perpetuell flā mes all that ought to be but lyght vnto the. Certayne alle solytarye lyfe is to be confonted by that Remembraunce. And yf thou knewest thextreme dyscussynge of alle ydle wordes / sylence sholde dysplease the noo thyng. Saynte Austyne in a sermon sayth. How delectable thoughtes cause often humayne nature to be conquered and ouercomen with the delytes and the voluptuous concupyscence of this worlde / whiche eschewe alle labours. and are nought but pleasyrs and folowe alle wayes delectacyons. But whenne that thoughtes falle to Remembraunce of the necessyte and daungerous laste Iugemente with the eternale Paynes. What other for fere of those tourmentes / or somtyme for hope of the moost riche Rewarde hit moeueth a man from alle the passyons of his pleasyrs and Voluntarely to ryse vppe in Batayll ayenst them encendynge to haue vyctorye vppon his fyrst delectable vayne pleasante thoughtes. Abacuk saythe desyrousely in his .iii. Chapytre. Rottynnesse [Page] wyll entre in to my bones / and sprynge vnder me in my lyfe by cause I sholde rest me the day of trybulacyon. Beholde here my righte dere frendes howe fructuouse and howe hoolsome is the Remembraunce of the Infernalle paynes. The psalter sayth. Synners they be transported in to helle. Wherfore by good medytacyons euery man in his lyfe entende to the resystence of that daungere. Or ellys they muste lyuynge dye perpetually. It is redde. How he is e [...]re [...]sely happy that beholdeth the de [...] [...]enebres. That is to saye. To regystre in his herte the Infernale tourmentes / and that with a contynuall Remembraū ce in contemplacyon to frequente that sure memory. Now me thynketh I haue suffysantely shewed you the manyfolde maners of the dyuerse paynes of Helle / and howe vayllable and to what proufyte groweth the memoryale Remembraunce therof. O mortall man / what errour / what folye / and what faute is in the / whenne it lyeth in thy free arbytrement to haue Ioyes euerlastyng and wyllyngly castest thy selfe in to the Infernall tourmentes and paynes / from whens none may retourne. but brenne there in fyre worlde without ende.
¶ And here begynneth the ꝓlogue vpon the .iiii. parte of the .iiii. last thyngis whiche be for to come
THis thirde parte of the four laste thynges whiche be for to come. wherof soueraynely the Remembraunce withdraweth a man from synne. Is the mynde of the euerlastynge celestyall glorye. And yf a man refrayne hymselfe from mourder of from ony crymynale cause for fece of losynge of his honour or temporale goodes. how moche more ought he refreyne / drede & eschewe all synfull operacōns. wherby he myghte lese the moost blysfull sempyternall Ioyes. saynte Austyn sayth in a boke of his confessyons. There is a Ioye / whiche is not to be gyuen to the felon synners / but to those that of theyr free wyll loue and worshyppe the lorde god / and thou thy selfe arte that Ioye. For this cause it is wryten in the fyrste Pystle ad Coryntheos the .vi. chapitre The felon synners shall not possesse the kyngdome of heuen / but shall confusedly be put therfrō as the vyle glotons and dyshonest folkes be chased out of thēperour his courte / and not suffre to sytte among kynges and prynces at theyr excellente and solempne tables. And Cassydore sayth yt euery man is putte & cast from the deyte after the quantyte of his synnes. And certeynly his castynge fro. is mesured after ye delectacōns that he hath had in them Now sholde [Page] not then̄e euery creature eschewe to do synne. & haue it in abhomynacyon as a mortall thyng / knowyng yt therby is lost the celestyall eternall glorye. O what shall I poore wretche bareyn of know seche saye▪ or how shall I talke of this glorye incō prehensyble. Certeynely there was neuer eye yt sawe / nor ere yt herde / nor here yt thought the Ioye yt god hath ordeyned for those yt he loueth. As is writen in the fyrst Pystle ad Coryntheos the .ii. chapitre. Therfor what shal I now more saye or wryte / in this werke I am as one born blynde yt dysputeth in colours hauynge no cōfydence to myn owne ꝓper wyste. But there for I must referre myself to ye testymonyes of scriptures / by ye whiche I wyll speke. It is to be noted / how albe it in the heuenly glory there be innumerable thyngis playnly approuyng the Ioye & felycite therof. Yet I wyll specyally shewe how it is to be rocomeded for .iii. thȳ ges The fyst for the soue rayne & excellent clerenesse therof. Secondly for ye moste habundaūce of the goodnesses that be therin And thirdely for ye moost blyssull Ioye therof ꝑdurably enduryng. the beaute therof. nor the clernesse can not be mesured / the Infynyte goodnesse can not be estemed. nor theternall Ioye can not be compared nor sufficiētly praysed. Of these .iii. thynges I shall treate breefly by order in this last part.
¶ How the Royalme & kyngdome of heuen is praysed for his beaute & clerenesse.
¶ The fyrst chapitre of the fourth parte and the last pryncypall.
FIrst the kyngdome of heuen is to be recommended for the souerayn beaute & clerenesse therof as it is wryten in the boke of Sapience the .v. chapitre wherin it is called the Royalme of beaute. The Psalter sayth. Lord I haue loued the beaute of thyn hous. It is also wryten in Thoby the. xiii chapitre. I shal be happy yf the Relyques of my sedes may see the dernesse of Iherusalem / wherof the gates be made of Saphyres & emerawdes & other precyoꝰ stones. The cyrcuyte of the walles wt fayre bryght stones. & all the places paued with fyne golde. It is wryten in Thapocalips the xxi chapitre That cyte was made of fyne golde pure & clene as glasse. The fondement of walles enourned with all precyous stones. The twelue gates shall haue twelue Margarytes. And the stretes of the cyte shall be of fyne golde shynyng as bryghte as glasse. The temple is not yet spoken of▪ Certeynly almyghty god is the temple therof / and the Lambe is the lyght. The forsavd Cyte hath noo nede of the Sonne / nor of the Mone to lyght hit with all. For the clerenesse of oure Lorde shall [Page] Illumyne hit / and the Lambe shall be the lanterne / and the peple shall mowe walke by that clerenesse. It is also redde in the .xxii. Chapitre of Thapocalyps. It shall neuer be nyghte there / wherfore there nedeth no candell nor lanterne / nor lyght of the sonne. For the bryghtnesse of our lorde shall lyght and Illumyne them enduryngly worlde withouten ende / whiche sayeng may well accorde with that / that is wryten in Isaye the .lx. chapitre. Thou shalt haue thenne noo nede of the shynyng of the sonne nor Resplendysshyng of the mone. For oure lorde shall lyghte & Illumyne the sempyternally. In trouth he is a glas without ony spot & a light Illumynyng euerlastyngly As it is wryten in the boke of Sapyence the .vii. chapitre. Also oure lorde shall be the Resplendysshynge of glorye. As is wryten to the Hebreos in the first chapytre. whiche resplendysshyng shall be an hole lyght. Abacuk in his .iii. chapitre sayth of this resplendysshyng all the sayntes shall take in the Royame of heuen clerenesse and sempyternall lyght. wherwith all they shall reioyse them incessantely in grete felycyte. It is also wryten in the book of Iugys the .v. chapitre. Those that loue the / shall shyne and resplende as the sonne doth in his rysyng. Also is writen in the book of Sapyence the .iii. Chapitre. How those that be Iuste shall shyne in theyr faders Royalme lyke the [Page lxxi] sonne. O lorde sempyternall groūde of all vertu. how good and how gloryous is the Royalme / and how ought thy tabernacles to be beloued. how grete is thy beaute / how habundante is thy Resplendysshyng in thy cyte. how merueylous is the bryght clerenesse therof / and how souerayn is the swetnesse of thy celestyal cōtree. For this cause seythe Saynt Austyn in his book of free arbytremen te. Soo grete is the beaute of Iustyce / soo grete is the swetenesse of thyn eternall lyght. That yf it were not expedyent to de lyte therin but one houre of the daye for to haue that Ioye oonly. The in numerable dayes of this present lyfe full habundante of alle temporall goodes ought therfore resonable to be myspreysed & forborne. Now certeynly it is not vnresonably spoken / nor withoute a grete groūde / that better is to be one daye in that courte than a thousande in this world. O celestyal Iherusalem. O shynyng hous full of al bryghtnesse I wysshe my pilgrymage to reche vnto the / and to be possessed in the by hym that made both the & me. And therfore seyth Saynt Bernarde in his thyrde book vppon the Gospell Missus est angelus Gabriel. O how gloryous is the Royalme of heuen The kynges haue assēbled them in a mont that is to vnderstonde. to loue prayse and gloryfye hym that is kynge aboue alle kynges and lorde ouer all lordes. In the resplendysshynge contemplacion [Page] of whom the Iuste people shall shyne as the sonne in the Royame of theyr fader. To this purpose seyth the Psalter thou shalt replenisshe me with gladnes in thy face Iob seyth also in ye xxxiii chapitre. His face shalbe seen in gret Ioyeful gladnes. All those shall beholde & haue syghte of that moost swete Vysage / yt haue trewely serued our lorde & sauyour Ihesu cryst in humylyte of herte / in good labours & vertuous werkes. Isaye sayth in his .xxxiii. chapitre They shall see the kyng of kynges in his grete beaute. O how blysfull. O how aggreable. O how swete & how happy shall be the beholdyng of our sauyoure Ihesu cryste to those yt haue ꝑfyghtly loued him Certeynly they shal mowe Ioyefully saye as is wryten in Abacuk the iii chapitre. I shall reioyse me in our lord & disporte me in Ihesu crist my god O how gretly shal those reioyse them yt shalbe fulfylled with the celestyall Ioyes / & what gladnesse shall they haue yt shall be Illumyned with the vysyon of the resplendysshynge face of our lorde god. The whiche Ioye & gladnesse shall be permanent & abydyng worlde without ende.
¶ How the celestyal royalme is to be cōmended for the goodnesse that is therin.
¶ The seconde chapytre of the fourth parte & the last pryncypall.
THe Royalme of heuen is secondly recō mended for thabondante [Page lxxii] goodnesse therof. Saynt Austyn sayth in his book de Ciuitate dei. That. yt god hathe ordeyned for those yt he loueth / maye not be oonly atteyned by hope without it be cōpryseo with charyte & soo it may will be atteyned. the Rewardes of the happy sayntes can not be nombred nor estymed / thabū daūce therof is withoute ende. & is so precyous yt it can not be suffycyentely preysed. Of the suꝑhabū dante ryche goodnesse of this celestyal Royalme is wryten in Deutronomi in the .viii. chapitre thus Our lorde god shall lede the in a good cōtree / whiche is Indewed with waters. with fontayns. with sprȳgis. with feldes. with montayns Out of ye whiche shall come floodes & ryueres. He shall lede the also in to a londe / where groweth whete / barly / & vynes / & where growe fygues & apples / grayns & olyfs / oyle & hony / & there without ony necessyte thou shalte ete thy brede with habundance of all good is Now certayn this is a right comodyous cō tree fulfylled with swetenesse / this is the contree / to the whiche were sente the sones of Adam As is writen in the book of Iugys the .xviii. chapitre / whiche sayd at theyr Retourne. we haue seen a comodyous plentyfull contree right riche / wyll ye not myspreyse it nor cesse we not / but lete vs go take possessyon therof. For there is no labour / & our lorde shall gyue vs a roome therin / wherby we shall haue none necessyte nor lacke. For there is no [Page] thyng that enoyeth / and all good delectacyons be there Saynt Austyn saythe that the eternall beatytude & wele be specyally in two thynges. That is to wyte. In the absence of all euyll / and in the presence of all wele. Now yf yt wylt axe me / what thynges be in heuen. I can answere the none otherwyse / but all thynge that is good is there. and all thyng that is nought canne neuer come there. And therfore sayth saynt Gregory. There is noo good thynge desyred nor lacked there / nother there is ony thynge within hit yt hurteth or enoyeth. It is wryten in the laste chapitre of thapocalyps They shall noo more haue honger nor thyrst / nor the sonne nor the hetes shall no more hurt them for the lambe of god / whiche sytteth in ye myddle of the crone shall gouerne and bryng them to the fontayne of the water of lyfe. And more is folowynge in the same chapitre he seyth. Shewe me the flode the ryuere of the water of lyfe. who hath thyrste / come and drynke / who wyll haue of that water of lyfe come and take it. And he that hath of that water / shall neuer be thyrsty / as it is wryten in the gospel of saynt Iohan in the. iii chapitre. O how happy and how blessyd is that contree / where god shall be all thyng in all thyng and where is no pouerte. nor lacke of ony thynge that is good. This contree is the celestyall pasture / wherin shall nede nothyng to be wysshed. For [Page lxxiii] in this pasture shall oure lorde beayte and fede his trewe louers whome he wyll beclyppe perpetually. Therfore sayth oure lorde in Ezechyell the xxxiiii. chapitre. I shall put them in theyr cōtrees & fede them in the montayns of Israhell. Now certeynly the happy sayntes of heuen be wel fedde with knowleche of the souerayne trouthe / whiche is to them a ful fructnouse pasture. be it when they entre in contemplacōn of the dyuynyte / or in consyderynge the grace of the humanyte. And in bothe these they shal fynde cause to be sacyate and fed with delectacyons. And they shall fele the fruyte of souerayn swetenesse / & as the Psalter sayth. He hath gyuen the thy fyll of the fyne fatnesse of the floure of the whete. The fatnesse of the floure of the whete is delectacion of swetenesse caused by the loue of god. Of the whiche flour of whete by the same loue mote my soule be fulfylled / and thenne I shall reste in the eternall Ioyouse surete alwayes wexynge grene and neuer to drye. Here is now shewed how good is this contree where in the happy men shal be fed / whiche is so fruyt full and plenteuous. Certaynly this is the contree of lyfe. In the whiche we must hope to see ye goodnesse of our lord. the Psalter sayth / we shall all be fulfylled with the goodes of thyn hous. Now what be the goodes / that sayntes shalle be fulfylled with. but oonly the grace of the Incomprehensyble [Page] glorye. Saynt Bernard sayth in a sermon of the Dedycacyon. The resonable soule made after the ymage of God may well be occupyed with al other thyngis. but it may not be all fulfylled. Certeynly she cōprehendyng god may not be fulfylled with lesse thynge than god. we shal not oonly be fulfylled with this vnrecytable glory. but also we shall be dronken & assotted theron. It is redde in Iheremye the .xxxi. chapitre. I shall make dronke the soules of the preestes of grace / that shalbe at the grete soupper whiche is ordeyned for good folkes. He shall sette and admynystre them mete of glorye. and gyue them drynk of merueyloꝰ Ioye & swetenes Then it shal be sayd to those that shal ete there. As is wryten in the Cantycles the .v. chapitre. My right dere frendes. Ete and drynke and make you dronken. In Isaye the .xxix. chapitre also it wryten Make you dronken / but not with wyne / & wher with then̄e shall they make them dronken / with Ioye and with gladnesse and with felycyte / and with many maners of the celestyall glorye. O good lord god eternall. how swetly shal thy good and newe seruauntes be dronken with the plenteuousnes of thyne house / & with the voluptuousnesse of the. For in the is the fontayne of lyfe / the fontayne of beatytude and of glorye permanent and neuer fayllyng. Certeynly all swetenesse belongeth to thyne house. It is the house of [Page lxxiiii] our lord / the cyte of god / whiche is full of all rychesses / & resplendysshed with all goodes. Therfore seyth Isay in his xxiii chapitre. Thyn eyn shal see Iherusalem full habundant of alle goodes. The grete multytude of the copyous habundance of the thynges before sayde of this cyte sholde not holy satysfye to calle vs thyder / but also right specyally the restfull multytude of this peas. wherin those yt be happy / shall delyte them enherytyng ye contree aboue specifyed The same Isaye sayth in his lv chapitre. ye shal passe out in Ioye / & shall be brought in to peas. O how grete shall the habū dance of this peas be in Iherusalem / wherin it shall remayne perpetuelly without ony waire. Isay yet sayth in the .ix. & .xxxii. chapitres. My peple shall be in the beaute of peas / & in the tabernacles of confydence / & in the riche habundance of reste. Also Thobye sayth in ye .xiii. chapitre. O Iherusalem cyte of god. happely blyssed be thoso yt loue the / and reioyse them in thy peas. It is in Ezechyell the .xiii. chapitre. The sayntes see in the vysyon of peas / there is Ioye & peas with peas / whiche is soo precyous. yt it surmoūteth / and is by yonde all humayne vnd (er) standyng. Now then̄e he yt wyl be particypable of soo grete a Ioye & peas with the sayntes eternally an hyghe in heuen / he must lerne now to suffre humbly and haue pacyence here a lowe in erthe For as it is wryten in a [Page] book called Aurora drawen oute of the Byble. By suffrance is wonnen that moost noble rest / & ther is none so wyse that can reioyse that peas. but oonly it is hadde by trauayll and suffryng of trybulacōns and paynes pacyently in this mortall worlde &c.
¶ How the Royalme of heuen is praysed and landed for the Ioye & blysse yt is therin euerlastyngly.
¶ The thyrde chapitre of the fourthe parte and the last pryncypall.
THyrdely the Royalme and kyngdome of god is to be recōmended for grete Ioye & gladnesse that is therin eternally enduryng / & there vpon sayth Saynt Gregory in an Omelye. who hath that tonge that can suffysantely declare and expresse the Ioyes of that souerayne Cyte. Or who hath conuenably the vnderstondyng to comprehende / how grete those Ioyes be to the companyes of Angellys / and to the happy soules. And how Inestymable is that moost blysfull eternall Ioye and glorye in beholdynge the vysage of oure lorde god hauynge noo maner of trouble nefere of dethe / but lyue in reioysyng them of that moost precyous gyfte of grace / whiche shall euer be permanent and without corrupcyon. Certayn that Royalme ye cyte of our lorde must be vnderstonde Iherusalem / whiche Iherusalem is moost [Page lxxv] bonteuousely plenteuously and blyssedly edyfyed. O cyte of cytees / whiche is soo habundantely full of blysfull Ioyes to the happy soules loued be yu. It is wryten in Isaye the last chapitre. Reioyse you with Iherusalem. & disporte you in her to the ende / that ye may know and be fulfylled & fedde with the pappe of consolacyon / and that ye may be habundant in all maners with the delectacōns of that glorye. Of the whiche inmesurable felycyte and glory of that noble Cyte speketh Saynt Austyn in his boke of the cyte of our lorde sayeng. O how grete shall the felicite be there. where shal be nother payne / nor harme / nor wele / nor good thyng hydde / but entendynge hooly vnto the louynges and praysynges of our lord. It is wryten in Isaye in the lxiiii. chapitre. There was neuer eye that sawe withoute the that Ioye / whiche yt haste ordeyned to them that abyde the / nor more grete gladnesse can be than that thou wylt gyue those that thou louest whiche they shall possesse perpetuelly. It is red in the same Isaye the .xxx. Chapitre. They shal come in to syon and all louynges and sempyternall Ioyes vpon theyr hedes. The Psalter saythe. Our lord hath knowen the dayes of those yt be pure & not smouged / and theyr herytage shall be perpetuell. It is wryten in Thobye the .xiii. chapytre. Lorde thou arte right gretely eternall / & thy Royalme is in alle [Page] worldes. Saynt Austyne sayth in his book of the Cyte of our lord. we shal be vnderstandyng & shal see / preyse & loue ont lorde. This shall be in then de / whiche is withouten ende. Now what sholde we desyre to be our ende. but to serche & seke the wayes to atteyne the comyng in to that royame wherin Ioyes haue none ende / whiche royame is ye royame of all the worldes / and certaynely thy power and lordshyppe is vppon all generacyons. Thoby sayth in his xiii. Chapitre. Blessyd be oure Lorde / whiche hathe soo hyghe reysed Iherusalem to the entente / that his royame be aboue in the worlde of worldes. O how gloryous is the Royame / where in the blyssed sayntes reioy se them with Ihesu Cryste / and they cladde as in whyte aulbes folowe alwayes the lambe Now of this worlde to come speketh saynt Austyn in his boke of the debate by twix vertues & vyces sayeng The loue of this prelence worlde is departed from me / for there is no creature / but he must nedys fynysshe & dye here. Hit all other wyse of the loue of the worlde / that is to come. In the whiche all be soo vyuyfyed / that they can neuer dye after therin. And therin is none aduersyte / noo trouble / none anguysshe no payne / no dysease ennoyng. nor werynesse. but therin reygnen sempyter nall Ioyes. The Psalter sayth. The Iuste folkes eten and drynken / and reioysen them in the [Page lxxvi] presens of our lord delycynge them in gladnesse. And alle sorowe & waylynges fleeth from them It is wryten in Thapocalyps the .xxi. chapitre. Our lorde shall drye the teeres of theyr eyen. Moreouer / there shal be then no wepyng. sayeng. sorowe. nor dethe. for all that shall be passed before. Isaye sayth in his .xxv. chapitre. Our lorde shall take awaye the teeres of euery face / & shall take away the repreuys of his people in euery londe / & then the folkes shall saye Here is oure lorde god / whome we haue abyden whiche shall saue vs / we haue susteyned and suffred for hym. And therfore we reioyse vs with and by hym in saluacyon. O how grete shall be that Ioyeful gladnesse to those that shall be gloryfyed not oonly in loule / but also in body It is writen in Isaye the .lxi. chapitre. They shall be double possessed in theyr londe. And in the Prouerbis the laste chapitre is wryten. Alle his famylyare husholde seruaūtes shall be cladde double. That is to wyte with two aulbes yt one is the body. whiche they now possede. tho ther the soule. & they shal not oonly haue Ioye of theyr owne proper good werkis. but also syngulerly of the merytes of the happy sayntes. Our lord sayth in Iheremye the xxxiii. chapitre. I shall enhabyte them assuredly / & they shall be my people. I shall be theyr god. and shall gyne them an herte and a soule▪ not oonly by the vnyte of substance / [Page] but by the boside of charyce. Beholde me righte dere frendes / yf the soule of a martyr / of a confessour / of a virgyn & youres be allones Consequē tly it semeth that ye shal reioyse you in their Ioyes & that your soules shall be semblable vnto the apostles or ony other sayntes. Saynt Gregory saythe how charyte shall be so plenteuously there that that wyll. whiche he hath not for hym selfe. he shal reioyse in seeng an other to haue it. Certeynly those merueylous and manyfolde Ioyes can neuer entre mannes herte here and there euery hert shal be replenysshed and fulfylled with them. For wt in and without / aboue and benethen. and in euery parte the happy soules shall merueylously reioy se them. In the Inwarde parte by the purenesse of theyr conscyences. In the outward parte by the gloryfyeng of theyr bodyes. In the lower parte by the renouelyng beautees of the heuens and of the creatures there. In the hyghest parte by the clere and vysyble syghte of our lorde god. And in alle other partes by the Ioyefull & delectable cō panye of all the sayntes of heuen. Now trewely there is no man that can ymagyne or thynke the gretenesse of the Ioyes yt be there. I ne can telle the reioysyng of the Inhabytātes in henen reygnynge there amonge the angelles of our lord god perpetuelly. It is writen in the Gospell of Sayn te Mathewe in the .xxv. chapitre. Entre thou in [Page lxxvii] to the Ioye of thy lorde / entre thy selfe in to that Ioye / and with all thyne herte entre therin Of those Inmesurable quantytees of the celestial Ioyes speketh Saynt Bernarde in his book of Medytacyons. Theyr gladnes hath all thyng in possessyon / therin all festynges be possessyd. and the men accompanyed with angelles shall remayne there perpetuelly withoute hauyng ony maner fleshly Infyrmyte. There is infynyte Ioyousnes / ther is sempyternall beatytude / & after ye one is there to receyue it / he shall remayne therin ꝑdurably / there is reste without labour / peas and frenshyp without enuye. quietenes & surete without dangere & the moost pleasant swe tenesse in the vysyon of our lord god. Saynt Bernarde sayth. The Ioyes & swetenesse of that contree is soo grete / that yf a man were therin but oonly ye space of an hour all the Ioyes & delectacyons of this presente lyfe myght comparabyly by Reason be myspraysed. & al Ioyes swecenes & beautees yt coude be thought & had here / be but paynes bytternesses & fylthes in regarde of those / righte as the myght & boūte of our lorde god excedeth & surmoūtheth alle other worldly thyngis O good lorde god / what haue I wylled to haue in this er the when in heuē al thynges sholde be moche more desyred than ony power here. golde. sylner. or ony precyoꝰ stones. Now what shall I more say of this contree & holy Cyte [Page] of Iherusalem where in the stretes is songen Incessantly Alleluya with Ioyouse & swete melodyous tunes. As is wryten in Thoby the .xiii. chapitre. It is red also in Isay the .li. chapitre. xlll Ioye & gladnes shall be founden in ye contree with accyons of graces & voyces of louynges & all shall saye in his Temple / louyng honour and glorye be to the lorde. And therfore the voys of gladnes and helthe shal sowne in the tabernacles of Iuste folkes. In the Cyte of our lorde sowne contynuelly thorgons of the sayntes / whiche haue vtterly forgeten the trybulacōns paynes / labours / & wretchednesses of this worlde vsynge in enioyeng the celestyall blysse. O how swetely / how pleasantly. and howe clerely synge those in delasol that before haue wepte in gammoth & in are. Of this Cyte speketh Saynt Austyne in his book of medytacyons sayeng. O cyte / whiche is a celestyall house and a sure contr [...]e conteynynge all thynge / that maye cause delect acyon. There is thynhabytyng of rest. The people is there without murmour or grouge. O how many gloryous thynges be sayde of this Cyte. the Inhabytacyon of our lorde is in the as in a thynge enioyenge alle good thynges. There is peas / pyte / bounte / clerenes / lyght / vertu / honeste / glorye / reste / louynge / loue / good concorde / Ioye / swetences / blys / and perdurable lyfe. Of all those and the perdurable lyfe shal [Page lxxviii] the happy soules be certayne and sure withoute ony lesyng therof. Isaye sayth in his .xxxii. chapitre. There shall be surete for euer. Ezechyell sayth in his .xxxviii. chapitre. They shall inhabyte fermely in eternyte withoute ony maner of fere. It is redde in the Prouerbes of Salomon in the fyrste Chapitre. He that hath well herkened / shall reste without fere and enioye in habundance. Saynte Austyn sayth. That the eternall surete enourneth and fulfylleth the beatytudes of alle the celestyall goodnesses. where yf that sempyternyte sholde faylle / alle the other celestyall goodnesses be they neuer soo swete / sholde be the lesse to be praysed. Saynte Iohan sayth in his xviii. chapitre. In assurynge vs / there is noo man that shalle bereue you your Ioye. O hous of our lorde. Cyte of the grete kynge / how Innumerable and how grete be thyne eternall Ioyes with the manyfold gladnesses of those happy soules yt be enhabyted with the. Now surely lord they be well blyssed that be Inhabyted in thyn hous in louynge the durynge the worlde of worldes. who is he hauyng an hole Remembraunce that is soo Ignorant / that he thynketh not that alle the companye of heuen loueth the not dyuynely in heuen. The assurance of this perpetrell celestyale Ioye and gladnesse maye be vnderstonde in that / that it is compared vnto the olyfe tree. As [Page] Ozee sayth in his .xiiii. chapitre. His glorye shall be lyke an olyfe tree. whiche is & contynueth grene wynter and somer. Of this eternall glorye sayth also Iohan Crysostom in his boke of the Reparacion of the falle of man. How grete shall the voluptuoulnesse be / how grete shall the Ioye and gladnesse be to the soule to be with Ihesu criste reco [...]ned to his proper generacyon and assuredly and vndoubtely to beholde and see our lord. The gretenesse nor the quantyte of that Ioyeful blys can not be tolde nor recyted. For one reioyseth hym not oonly of that wele and pleaser that he vseth and hath presently in oeure / but moche more by cause he maye be sure. Those Ioyes pleasers and blys shall neuer admynyshe nor ende. Loo who is he that shall be partyner to that Ioye / whiche is endeles. Certayne it is ordeyned for folkes / lordes and other shall reioyse them in the glorye of our lorde that haue folowed his traces in this worlde / wherby they shall reygne with hym gloryfyed worshypped and crowned eternally in heuen. O my right welbeloued brethern how gretely shall ye reioyse you / yf ye be transported vnto that eternall glorye Certayne ye shall saye then̄e in cryeng and syngynge as it is wryten in Isaye the .lxi. chapitre. I gladde and Ioyefull shall reioyse me in oure lorde / and my soule shall be mery in my god / by cause he hath cladde me [Page lxxix] with the vestyment of saluacyon. Of trouthe as it is wryten in Iob the xxii chapitre. Thou shalt be habundant thenne in the delectacyon of the moost myghty lorde / and shalt lyfte vp thyn eyen towarde god / and the lyghte shall shyne in thy wayes Of this lyght is wryten in Ecclesyastyco the .xi. chapitre. It is a delectable lyght to see the sonne That is to vnderstonde Ihesu Cryste. whiche to knowe and beholde perdurably passeth and surmoūteth all the Ioyes of this worlde / & is no meruayll. for that knowleche and vysyon is the fode glorye and lyfe sempyter nall of the happy sayntes. Saynt Iohan sayth in his .xviii. chapitre. the eternall lyfe is this / to know the sool veray god and Ihesu Cryste / whome thou sendest downe in to this erthe for oure redempcyon. Now thenne he that maye obteyne and come to that blysfull knowleche after dyuyne lecture & to see god face to face / that shall be the moost excellente Ioye and a spryngyng of all Ioyefull gladnesses. saynte Bernard sayth in his sermon. Verayly that is a trewe and a souerayne Ioye / whiche is cōceyued and had not oonly by one creature / but also by the creatour and maker of all creatures / whiche Ioye yu shalte haue when he shall shewe the his face. wherfor the ꝓphete de syryngly sayd. Lorde I requyre the / lete me see thy gracyous face full of all Ioye and gladnesse Alas my delectacyon is prolon [Page] ged from me tyll I may haue that grete wele. and tyll I maye be drawen vnto god my sauyour / I shall shede teeres nyghte and daye. Certaynly the vysyon by the whiche our lorde is seen face to face is in the thyrde heuen / and yf it myght be sayd / it is the paradyse of thousande heuens / wherin the fontayne of clere water is seen by the happy lyfe. Isaye sayth in his .lx. chapitre Thou shalt see then the face of our lorde / and shalte be habundant in delectacyons and Ioyes sempyternally. O how good arte thou lorde of Israell to them that haue rightfull hertes / whiche wyll gyue them soo grete soo ryche and soo pleasante Ioyes. My right dere brethern ye here gladly speke of these delectacyons and Ioyes. and take pleaser therin. Neuerthelesse ye ought not to be Ignorant to vnderstonde that the blessyd sayntes come neuer to these Ioyes / but by grete paynes and labours. Saynt Gregory seyth in his Omely The gretenesse of the rewardes gyueth me corage / and my labours oughte not to fere me / for one maye neuer atteyne to the grete rewardes but by grete labours. That noble prechour Saynte Poull in the seconde Pystle to Tymothe the seconde Chapitre sayth. How that there shall be none crowned / but suche as haue manfully foughted. Verely euery man shall receyue his Rewardes / whiche shall be after his labours. There [Page lxxx] be dyuerse that wyll not lyue well / and yet they desyre to dye well. They maye knowe the dethe of sayntes is full precyous in the presens of our lorde / they maye knowe also when our lord hath gyuen reste to his soules they shall dwelle in his herytage permanentely by cause they haue be those that alwayes haue folowed hym in resystynge temptacyons. Many of you wolde regne with Ihesu Cryste / but ye wyll suffre noo thynge for his sake. Balaam ariolus was suche one / for in consyderynge the castell of the childern of Israhell he entended the hauyng of the eternall beatytude / and sayde in hymselfe. Dye my soule as Iuste folkes dye / and be my laste thynges semblable vnto theyrs / he delyted gretely theyr gloryous ende / but he grouged to take theyr labours and paynes where by they hadde deserued the glorye eternall. O god lorde Ihesu we wolde gladdely regne with the. Neuertheles we wyll not labour nor be partycypable to thy suffrances Thou chaseste myserye and pouerte / and we haue taken vs vnto voluptuousnesses and delectacyons. Thou hast taken vpon the and suffred bytternesses and sharpenesses to thy body / and we haue chosen and folowed oure sensuale pleasyrs. Saynte Bernarde sayde. The sone of god is borne / to whoos wyll was graunted alle that myght please hym. He chose to be borne in the [Page] moost greuous tyme / & the blessyd lityll babe borne of a poore moder vnnethe hauynge clothes to wrappe and couer it in the crybbe. Certeinly Ihesu Cryste / whiche neuer is deceyued chace that / ye moost molested & greued his fleshe. Loo thenne it is best swettest and moste profytable to chese the bardeste payne in this worlde. And who soo euer amonesteth or techeth otherwyse one ought to beware of hym and gyue hym lityll credence. It was ones promysed by Isaye a lityll childe / that coude repreue the euyll and chese the good. The euyl was the voluptuous pleaser of the body & the good was the payne and afflyccion therof. A trouthe this childe is the sone of god / whiche chose thaffliccōns and repreued & forsoke the voluptuoꝰ pleasers. As sainte Bernard sayd. O righte dere childe / thou haste chosen from thy begynnyng here corporal affliccions / & in suffrance hast entred into thy glory whiche was properly thyne owen / and we lyuyng in delectacions wolde entre in to that glorie / wherin we be but strangers and not dygne to come thyder / but by thy grace. There agaynst speketh Saynte Austyn sayeng. If it haue behoued Ihesu criste lorde and kynge whose name is aboue all names to haue suffred & therby hath entred in to his eternall glorie / what hope or trust shall we haue to come thyder without suffrance / syther we be strangers / and can ha [Page lxxxi] ue none entre there but by hym. O how folyshe and how hard herted we be truste in reioysyng vs in this worlde and after to regne with Ihesu crist in heuen / he entred there in all naked / yet was he therin lorde / and we wolde entre therin that be alcharged with superfluoꝰ garnementis with richesse of golde and syluer & precyoꝰ stones. He entred therin chast and fastyng & thou wylt entre therin full of glotonye and lecherye. He dyed vpon the crosse for to redeme the / yt delycyously slepeste in thy bed. Sholde then the seruaūt haue yt the mayster had not and wyll not bye it as he dede Certeynly nay / and me thynketh it were a thyng to vnresonable. Herken now what a Poete sayth. The lord hath swet vpon the crosse shall not the seruaunt do the same. Now bere your crosse for he hath borne his / taste of the vynegre as he dede. The reuerence nor the ease of the seruaunt sholde not be more than that of the lorde. If yu wylt folowe him yu must ensue his tourmentes / and holde for certayne / thou canst not come in heuen by delytes and pleasyers. And therfore whenne thou shalt paye onto oure lorde thy de [...]e of naturall dethe whiche thou owest vnto hym. fle voluptuousnes. breke thy delytes / refrayne thy fleshe / & dye then̄e in the loue of Ihesu criste. Saynt Iherom sayth in a Pystle that he sent vnto Iulyan how it was a grete diffyculte and a thynge as is Impossyble a [Page] man to vse and haue the welthe and pleasyer of this worlde pure / and also of that to come. and that the fyllynge of his bely here sholde fede his soule / and that he sholde from delytes and pleasers here / goo to delytes and pleasers there / and that he sholde appere gloryfyed in bothe worldes. He seyth also in an other place / that it is Impossyble a man to be habundant in worldely richesses / and ensue Ihesu cryste. For nature wyll not that twoo contraryes be medled togyder. Certaynely we maye not bothe be seruauntes vnto god and to the deuyll. Other I am deceyued / or in the ende they shall be begyled that byleueth it not. Thynke how the richesses of this worlde tourne to necessytees in thother worlde / the dampned Diues ete and dranke and lyued delycyously werynge precyous garnementes here / but when he was dede / because he wolde not byleue Moyses / he apperce [...]ued his defaultes and felte them well when he was in the tormentes of helle / saynt bernard shewed this also by a speche yt was betwix Cryst & saynt Peter. where he said thꝰ Abrahā sayde to the false riche gloton. Thou hast had many gret welthes in thy lyf & ye lepre hath suffred many paynes▪ but now he is in Ioye & consolacōn. & yu arte in payne & torment euerlastynge / what shall we more saye. After that we ende soo must we be Iuged / wepynge is thextremyte of Ioye & ye may [Page lxxxii] not haue Ioye in this worlde by aduersyte / but by aduersyte here ye may haue theuerlastyng Ioye Certayne it is manyfeste. that this worldly goodes be not veray goodes nother they be trewe that soo accepte them. The sentence of Salomon is Iust. His sentence is that it is better to be in the hous of lamentacyon / than in the hous of worldely felycyte. For those that in theyr lyfe here haue receyued worldly prosperytees shall after therfore be tourmented / and for reioysynge in theyr consolacyons here / is ordeyned them a sempyter nall payne / what maye be the ende of those that haue here soo grete multytude of solaces & pleasers. Doubteles no thynge but afflyccyons and sorowes. Consequentely thoos that reteyne the pleasyrs and solaces of this world. that not with stondyng the vnyuersall tourmentes and sorowes remaynen vnto them. They haue taken vnto them the coragis of wretches / and all suche as theyr corages be ledde by theyr good angelles / despyse and refuse the goodes of this present lyfe / and chose to suffre penaunce therin / wherby they atteyne the goodes of our lorde with all solace. Saynte Bernarde seyth Lete thy soule thenne renounce to be in consolacion here in this valleye of teres myseres and sorowes for tourmentes and paynes shall come vnto those that receyue here theyr Ioyes and solaces. Now thenne dysprayse [Page] and despyse shoos transytory vanytees. and flee the worldely delectacyons and Ioyes / and beware that thou gloryfye not thy selfe but in the crosse of our lorde Ihesu Cryste. Petre de bloys wroot vnto a kynge of Englonde vppon the boke of Iob / wenest thou that one may haue Ioye in this presente lyfe / and also in that / that is to come. Nay▪ without his Ioye here be sprengeled with bytternesse and sorowe. Thou arte deceyued to presume to haue perfayte Ioye bothe here and there to vse this worlde and take the delytes therof / and neuerthelesse to obteyne the richesse of the glorye celestyall / and to Ioye with Ihesu Cryste. Herkene more what is sayd in the Gospel by the riche man whiche was tourmented in the fyre of helle that desyred a drope of water for the refresshyng of his tonge. It was answered hym. Thou haste receyued ye welthe of the worlde / and Lazar the payne therfore he hath now delectacyon and Ioye / and thou arte in the payne & torment. The sayd Peter de bloys sayd / we myght well repute and calle foles the holy kynges and prophetes / thapostles. the martyrs / the confessours and the delycate and tender virgynes whiche all haue myspraysed & fled from the worldly richesses / and haue offred and taken them to the trybulacōns and shamous dethes for the loue of Ihesu cryste. If they myght haue obteyned by voluptuouse [Page lxxxiii] delectacions the Ioyes of heuen. whiche they haue not goten but by an guys and payne in this worlde. Veryly frendes / what soo euer be sayde beleue fermely and holde for certayne. Ye shall neuer entre heuen but by the wayes that the dyscyples of Ihesu Cryste haue taught you. That is to wyte / by trybulacyons by good wordes / good werkes. and good fayth. And what haue the dyscyples taught / haue the not shewed vs to lyue so berly and Iustely and to reteyne with all our power / humylyte / charyte / pacyence / constance & all other vertues. to misprayse the world & all the partes therof. to flee richesses and delectacyons / to doo penaunce / & vygorously to reioyse in trybulacōns Now do then semblably after them and theyr doctryne / & ye shall lyue for euer eternally. Be ye of constante corages in alle your anguysshes and labours hauynge hope in the helpe of oure lorde / and he shall soone hele and relyeue you. Labour manfully as good knyghtes with Ihesu Cryste and wery not in your selfe sayeng. Our labours be grete / and we soo feble / that fynally we may not perseuere in this purpose. recomforte your selfe / and herkene well the wordes of Saynte Gregory sayeng. There oughte no tyme be thought long / nor ony labour grete / wherby is goten the glorie eternall. As Iohan Crisostome saide vppon the Gospell of Saynte Mathewe. If [Page] [...]e [...] he haue begonne his Iourney thynke the waye laborous / he ought to be thought slouthefull yf the perylouse wa wes of the see be thought easy and sure to the maroneis by the delectacyon that they haue to theyr owen proufyte for wynnynge of temporall goodes therupon. Semblably the stormes frostes and reynes to the labourers of therte for theyr wynnynge / the woundes and strokes to the good knyghtes and champyons for theyr honour and auantage. yf all these be thoughte easy / moche more payne ought to be taken without felyng ony grouge for the recouer of the celestyall blysse / whiche is ordeyned for the Rewarde of them that wyll deserue hit. Take none hede of thy paynfull lyfe here / but beholde wheder it wyll lede the. Take Regarde to the pleasant lyfe here / but Remembre how soone it wyll faylle the. Trewely ye maye wel thynke that the royalme of heuen is no thynge appertinent vnto slud gardes nor the eternall beatytude ordeyned to recheles and yole folkes. As Pope Lyon sayd in a sermon. And the Gospell of Saynt Mathewe sayth the .xi. Chapitre. The Royalme of heuen is wonnen in suffrynge of force and vyolence in this worlde. And it may well be byleued / for Ihesu Cryste sayde that suffryng vyolence geteth it A Potte sayde. Your lyuynge muste be sharpe / youre laboure paynfull / and your clothynge greuous [Page lxxxiiii] and soo muste alle your other thynges be here / yf ye wyll be lodged there aboue in heuen. This may appere manyfestly vnto you. Also in the Actes of the Apostles the .xiiii. chapitre is wryten. How our entre in to heuen muste be by many trybulacyons. O how well was it vnderstonde by Saynt Austyn That one maye not entre the blysse of heuen but by trybulacyon and payne in this worlde. For he sayd. A my soule yf we sholde alwayes supporte and susteyne tourmentes and paynes here. and also suffre by a longe space the gehenne of helle / to thende that we myght there by surely see our lorde Ihesu Cryste in his glorye and be accompanyed with his sayntes. Now were it not an excellente dygne thynge to haue soo grete a wele / as to be partyners to soo parfayte a glorye. Petrede bloys sayde. My membres faylle me by age / and be enfebled by fastynges / and broken with labours / and I melte wt teeres of myn eyen. But yf all my brayn and the mary of my boones were conuerted in to teeres / yet were it not suffysant passyon in this present tyme in comparyson to atteyne therby the glorye to come / whiche shall be shewed vnto vs. If a man knewe what thynge he is / and what it is of hym and of god / he wolde thynke that suffryng of thousand dethes for his sake were but as noo thynge. Beholde nowe howe good [Page] and how proufytable it is to suffre penaunce for our lordes sake. Susteyne it then gladly & endure it benygnely takynge an exāple by morderers & theuys cōdempned to dethe. whiche wolde gretely reioyse them selfe. yf they myght by the hyttyng of of one of theyr eres haue theyr lyues saued. Reioyse your self semblably in grete gladnesse / for in doynge of a lytyll penaū ce here ye maye escape & exclude the dethe of your soules & wynne the eternall Ioye. Thenne thou man that art mortall suffre for to atteyne the lyfe that to perpetuell / suche payne as thou woldest endure for to saue thy selfe temporall / whiche is in incertayne & of lytyll enduryng. To this purpose it is wryten in Ecclesiastico the .vi. chapitre. Thou shalte a lytyll laboure / and here in this worlde is the lytlenesse of penaunce. and thou shalt soone ete and drynke the generacyon therof / that is to vnderstonde ye fruytes of the glorye / whiche be engendred with the labour of penaunce. It is writen in the boke of Sapyence the .iii. chapitre. yt that be wery of a lytyll / yet dyspose you well and your Remuneracion & rewarde shall be right grete. Saynte Effram sayd. My right dere and beloued brethern / the labour of our instytucyon is but lytyll / and the rest is grete / our afflyccyon dureth not longe. but oure Retrybucyon / that is to wyte / the delytes of paradyse. The Ioye and gladnesse there shall endure [Page lxxxv] worlde withouten ende. The wyse man sayde in Ecclesyastes the laste Chapitre. Beholde howe lytyll I haue laboured / and I haue founde for me grete Reste. By the Reasons aboue wryten it appereth manyfestely / that though our labours here be but lytyll and good / our Rewardes in heuen maye be grete and many / for the Ioyes there are Impossyble to be comprehended or declared by vs / for there was neuer erthely herte that coude ymagine the pleasers therof / nor to ony comparyson eye coude see / nor ere here the delectacyons melodyes and swetnesses that be there / and the goodnesses Iwys can not here dyrectely be sauoured nor felte / but it may well be surely thought / that all that euer is felte delectable or good in this present worlde is but as the resplendysshynge and a shadowe of the goodnesse of heuen / whiche we ought to take as an allec tyfe desyryng to come to the orygynall & rote ther of / and to haue parte of that moost precyous blysse / whiche is our enherytance. Now in concludynge fynally it may appere by grete euydence and Inuynsyble reasons. that the four last thynges aboue alledged / whiche is to wyte / the bodely dethe / ye day of Iugement / the gehenne of helle / & the glorye of peradyse defenden and withdrawen from synne in many maners / suche as haue the same four last thynges withouten oblyuyon in a contynuale [Page] Remembraunce. Where by they acceyne and edytye theyr soules to remayne eternally in the moost gloryous blys of heuen. And whenne ony falle to synne / it is by cause they haue not the sayde four thynges cordyally emprynted in theyr myndes. And alas nor the suffrance of our lorde. There be to fewe that consyder and poyse the sayde four laste thynges. Many there be that thynke to lyue longe / and to repente them in theyr age / and there by appeyse the Iuge and flee the danger of helle And in that hope lyue in delectacyons and ydlenesse. And yet after they thynke so possede heuen eternally. O what presumptuous folye is hit to beleue and trust therto. That argumēt cōcludeth not / but mocketh and deceyueth all suche / as haue hope or confydence therin. Therfore doo penaunce to youre saluacyon / or ye shall peryshe and dye in youre synnes to your dampnacyon. It is wryten in Ecclesyastes in the seconde chapitre. If we doo noo penaunce / we shall falle in the hondes of onre lorde. and not in to the hōdes of man. Alas now who is he that suffysantely bewayleth his synnes / that hath good pacyence with his enmye / yt hath compassyon vpon the poore people / & relyeueth them in theyr necessytees / that duely mynystred Iustyce / and that for noo vayne glorye ne lucie of the worlde wyll offende his cōscience Our [Page lxxxvi] generacyon is soo wretchyd and soo frayle that our hertes can not addresse to the wele / but rather to the harme / we fauoure and delyte worldely thynges / and seke not after Ihesu Cryste / we loue vyces / we flee vertues / and lye and reste in our owen synnes as beestes doo in theyr owen dounge / and therin rote myserably. Our lorde lokoth vppon the sone of man / and beholdeth yf there be ony axinge grace or in good dysposycyon / but well away he seeth to fewe Inclyned therto / and many dysposed to the contrarye in all synne and wretchednesse / where by is to be drad / that the myserable tyme of this worlde is nyghe comen / whiche Mycheas prophecyed of in his .vii. Chapitre sayeng. Holynesse is perysshed in the erthe / and amonge the men is there none that is ryght wyse. O Remembre well how euery man almoost now a dayes seketh for his owen particuler cause and lucre / the shedyng of blode and the wrongynge of other / what shall I more saye / fewe there be that wyll entende to ony good perfeccyon / nor open theyr eyen for theyr saluacōn / so be they blynded in theyr malycyous folye. O cursed malyce & vnhappy folye. wherby the lyfe is voluntarely loste. and the dethe wonne. the wele despysed. and the harme accepted / our lorde dyspleased / and the fende obeyed. Now thenne my right dere brethern and frendes stryke [Page] not of your hedes with your owne swerdes / as to saye / lete not your owen dedes be your destruccion perpetuall. Ryse out of synne. loke vp and remembre you what oyfference is betwix eternale dampnacyon and perpetuale Ioye and blysse. Forsake & renounce your synnes / and defende you from the fendes power / whiche ye may surely do with contrycyon / and in axinge helpe and grace of our lorde. Iwys it is meruayll that man / whiche aboue all erthly thynge is a creature resonable ensueth not the verayorygynall of reason / but dysprayseth & forsaketh that / that is moost proufytable & eternally good for that / that is mortale and moost harmefull. O good lorde what vnhap causeth it / and werfore sholde we by oure folye lose tho soules that thou hast bought so dere with thy moost precyous bloode. Certaynely the cause is lacke of prudence / good counseyll / grace / and cordyall Remembraunce of the sayde four laste thynges. O our Redemptour almyghty and mercyfull Ihesu / graunte vs soo thy grace / that we may yet surely purueye for our last thynges / and soo cordyally frequente the Remembraunce of thy godhede that it cause vs here after to repelle and reuoque oure synnes. Resyste our goostely enemye / and conforme vs in alle good werkes vnto thy blessyd wyll / to the obteynynge fynally with the happy sayntes of thyne eternall glorye. [Page lxxxvii] To whiche bryng vs the fader / and the sone / and the holy goost reygnyng in vnyte sempyternally worlde withouten ende.
AMEN
THis boke is thus translated oute of frenshe in to our maternall tonge by the noble and vertuouse lorde Anthonie Erle Ryuyres. Lorde Scales and of the Isle of wyght. De fensour and dyrectour of the [...]uses Apostolyque for oure holy fader the Pope in this Royame of Englonde Vncle and gouernour to my lord prynce of Wales / whiche boke was delyuered to me wyllyam Caxton by my sayd noble lord Ryueires on the daye of puryfycacyon of our blessyd lady fallyng the tewsdaye the seconde daye of the moneth of Feuerer. In the yere of oure lorde a. M. .CCCC. and .lxxviii. for to be enprynted / and soo multyplyed to goo abrood amonge the people / that therby more surely myght be Remembred the four laste thynges vndoubtably comynge. And it is to be uoted that sythen the tyme of the grete tribulacōn and aduersyte of my sayde lorde / he hath ben full vertuously occupyed / as in gōynge of pylgremages to Saynt Iames in in Galyce / to Rome / to Saynte Barthylme we / to Saynte Andrewe / to Saynt Mathewe / in the Royalme of Naples. and to Saynte Nycholas de Bar in Puyle. and other [Page] dyuerse holy places. Also he hath procured and goten of our holy fader the Pope a grete and a large Indulgence and grace vnto the chapell of oure lady of the Pyewe by Saynte Stephens atte Westmestre for the relyef and helpe of crysten soules passed out of this trā sytorye worlde / whiche grace is of lyke vertue to thindulgence of Scala celi. And not withston dyng the grete labours and chargis that he hath hadde in the seruyce of the kynge and of my sayde lorde prynce / as well in wales as in England whiche hath be to hym noo lytyll thought and besynes bothe in spyryte and in body / as the fruyt therof experymently sheweth. yet ouer that tenriche his vertuous dysposycyon / he hath pnt hym in deuoyr atte all tymes when̄e he myght haue a leyser / whiche was but starmele to translate dyuerse bookes out of frenshe in to englyshe. Amonge other passyd thorugh myn honde the booke of the wyse sayenges or dystes of phylosophers / and the wyse and holsom prouerbys of xprystene the pyse sette in metre. Ouer that hath made dyuerse balades ayenst the seuen dedely synnes. Furthermore it semeth that he conceyueth well the mutabylyte and the vnstablenesse of this presente lyfe. and that he desyreth with a grete zele and spyrytuell loue our goostly helpe and perpetuell saluacyon. And that we shall abhorre and vtterly forsake the abhomynable [Page lxxxviii] and dampnable synnes. whiche comunely be vsed now a dayes / as Pryde / periurye / terryble sweryng / thefte / murder / and many other. Wherfore be toke vppon hym the translatynge of this presente werke named Cordyall / trustynge that bothe the reders and the herers there of sholde knowe themselfe herafter the better / and amende theyr lyuynge or they departe and lose this tyme of grace to the recouer of theyr saluacyon. Whiche Translatynge in my Iugemente is a noble and a merytoryous dede / wherfore he is worthy to be gretely commended / and also syngulerly Remembred with our good prayers. For certaynely as well the reders as the herers well conceyuyng in theyr hertes the forsayde foure laste thynges maye there by gretly be prouoqued and called from synne to the grete and plenteuous mercy of our blyssed sauyour / whiche mercy is aboue alle his werkes. And noo man beynge contryte and confessed nedeth to fere the obteynynge therof / as in the preface of my sayde lordes booke made by hym more playnly it appereth. Thenne in obeynge and folowynge my sayde lordes commaundemente. In whiche I am bounded soo to doo / for the manyfolde benefetes and large rewardes of hym hadde and receyued of me vndeserued. I haue putte me in deuoyr taccomplysshe his sayd desyre and com [Page] maundemente / whome I beseche almyghty god to kepe and mayntene in his vertuous and laudable actes and werkes. And sende hym thaccomplyssnemente of his noble and Ioyous delyres and pleasers in this worlde. And after this shorte daungerous and transytory lyfe euerlastynge permanence in heuen. Amen. Whiche werke presente I began the morne aiter the sayd Puryfycacyon of oure blyssed Lady. Whiche was the daye of Saynt Blase Bysshop and Martyr And fynysshed on the euen of the Annuncyacyon of oure sayde blessyd Lady fallyng on the wennesdaye the four & twenty daye of Marche. In the .xix. yere of hynge Edwarde the fourthe.
¶ Enprynted atte westmystre Anno vss.
¶ Registrū quaternon.
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