THE DIALOGUE.
Jeana, Samuel, Helena.
Jea.
Much graced Sir, who prudently doth spare
This time for recreation and repair,
Whereby we may timous occasion take
You with our cases to acquainted make:
Your doctrine sound, sincere, and sober living,
Full confirmations be of firm believing.
For such as present things so little prize,
Must have more permanent before their eyes.
And what can that man of this world make,
When it doth him, and he doth it forsake?
Now what we have for to impart, concerns
Another World than this vain world discerns,
Sam.
Most noble and religious Lady, sure
You are of what my service can procure.
There hes a world of Believers been,
Dispersed through this world, and unseen:
[...]ut hated so, that whosoever profest
[...]incere believing, them did this world detest.
For as the Head, so must the Members be,
[...]repar'd by sufferings, ere they be set free;
[Page 2]But, as our sufferings do abound, so sure
Our Captain comforts doth for us procure,
Which qualifies, and swallows up the sore,
That, by our troubles, we triumph the more▪
For in this transient march, through worlds of woes▪
Our heaven within-begun makes us rejoyce:
While all our furious Persecutors fell,
Their present pleasures but preceed their hell.
This, I suppose, you partly know: therefore
Propose your purpose, we shall parley more.
Jea.
We know, there's nothing can preferred be
Unto that peace and true tranquillitie,
Procured by our Prince of peace and grace,
To true Believers, that do him imbrace:
And that, albeit we be the only Butt,
At whom both devils and men their arrows shoot,
Maliciously to murther by their might,
Yet are we ever conquerours in fight:
And while the wicked make their cup to flow
Of wrath, our comforts in our crosses grow,
With pleasures present, far above the pain,
Which doth but for some minuts short remain.
Much more that store, which, by believing, is
Confirm'd to them of everlasting blesse.
But we who for Professors do appear▪
And make acquaintance with them most sincere,
Follow the means, and meetings on the Mountain,
Flock to the Streams of the Life-giving Fountain:
Fed with that Milk and Honey Heav'n distills,
Which every fainting, panting heart full fills.
Yet when again our King doth call us out,
And to some speciall charge we go about,
[Page 3]Then, ere we be aware, we are surpris'd
By subtile slights, against us that's devis'd:
So as we cannot change so many places,
But trials more we meet of diverse cases.
And for an instance clear, we do present
An Israelite contrite, in mourning spent,
Well known to be in duties diligent,
Grave, humble, gracious, to devotion bent:
Chearfull, and choysing, for her greatest gain▪
Others unto the Well of Life to train.
But now you see, what sadnesse doth possesse
Her soul, and how her sighing doth increase:
And still, the more by us she is exhorted,
She doth the more refuse to be comforted,
And often answers us, Who can but grieve,
When he is gone, that should my grief relieve:
And that her Life, her Light, and her Delight,
In deaths dark shads, doth shut her out of sight:
Consuming daily under slavish fears,
Become benumb, beneath untimely tears.
Sa.
The seed of Grace is, with such sweetnesse, shed
Into the soul, where the new birth is bred:
And she, delighted in these feelings sweet,
Cannot, with patience, pains of child-birth meet:
And, till the New-man formed be again,
From fainting cannot make the heart refrain:
So as a pleasant life we have, untill
We come to act, and there our cause we spill.
For when on duties we delight to dwell,
And are assisted, we are apt to swell:
And when we find not accesse, as we think,
Then under sadnesse we are like to sink;
[Page 4]But if, in sense, we were our selves denying,
And, under absence, on His grace relying:
And made our life witness our true believing,
And on believing ground our upright living▪
We should attain unto some progresse then,
And so enjoy the lot of loved men.
For now Believers are by faith to act,
As if themselves most happy they could make:
And clearly yet to see themselves self-lost,
That of their actings they can nothing boast.
Like little children to the parent cleaving,
Possesse the Patent of this Royal giving:
And yet, by force of faith, through Bulwarks break,
And with all violence, the Kingdom take:
For its by grace, through faith, His gift, that we
Are safe preserved and victorious be:
Nor may we think our daily trials strange,
Nor that to divers crosses we do change.
Till this old man of flesh be fully slain,
He's looking back to the flesh-pots again:
Made up he is of many naughty notions,
Imaginations and superfluous motions:
Must be by many strange restraints restrained,
Before he be from vice to vertue gained.
But the Believer only wonder can,
A self-lost, blind-born brute, a saved man
Become: and such to Satan slaves have been▪
Adopted Sons to God, and washed clean!
To see the poyson, in our Nature spewed
By Satan, to be purged, and subdued!
To see this viperous brood in us supprest,
And there a work of grace again encreast!
[Page 5]The mistery great of Godlinesse doth here,
God manifested in the flesh, appear!
The work misterious of Gods Sp'rit divine,
In our Regeneration doth shine:
The work of faith, whereby Believers feed
And fruitfull grow, by joining to their Head,
A mistery deep; for as we do imploy
Him, in his faithfulnesse, we do enjoy,
In every triall when we tempted be;
But often do mistake most fearfullie,
Whereby we do procure our own tormentings,
And call our faith in question, and repentings.
This the Believer only knows and proves,
Discerns, observes, and his Preserver loves;
For the Believer is the subject, where
God doth his glorious wonders most declare,
The portraict vile of the old man defacing,
And the new man with his own Image gracing.
There be, for the Believer, wonders wrought,
Above the apprehensions of our thought:
Wonders in the Believer daily move,
Rounded in the unbounded Orb of love:
Wonders are by Believers brought about,
That cruell tyrants cannot cancell out:
And by Believers to be enjoyed are
Joyes wonderfull, above conceiving far.
But we shall spare: for more exactly those
Matters we must debate before we close.
Now to the purpose, and the Person precious▪
Whom I have seen, and still esteemed gracious,
Notable in the Assemblies of the Saints
And solemn Meetings, where Believers haunt [...].
[Page 6]I know the case, and truly see it clear,
Fraught with the fruits of faith, of love and fear▪
But she is not in that condition now,
So to confesse, far lesse this to avow;
But in this sentence most succinct, I'le shew
The matter, and the meaning shall pursue▪
And this it is,
"Heavens child of hope, doth faint for want of sight,
"Resolv'd to grope through darkest deeps for light:
And this assertion sure for to explain,
Take notice now, and answer you again.
You see Celestiall from terrestriall things
Exhaling vapours, that much darkness brings.
Eclipses do our naturall Sun surprise,
Which yet we see most royally arise.
The worlds first birth, from Gods most pure intention,
Eternall purpose, and divine invention,
Was made to be, by no materials
Existent▪ pre-existent Seminals;
In darknesse swadled up, untill the bright▪
Creating word in time commanded light;
And when this light aright composed stood,
Night to preceed day-light, God saith is good.
Jea.
This dispensation sad, you take, I see,
To flow from causes one or more of three:
The first from provocation, I conceive,
The second, what for triall we receive,
The third, to Soveraignity ascends,
The Cause supreme, where causes all depends.
You know, suppose that naturall things be used,
And to illustrate sp'rituall matters chused▪
[Page 7]Spirituall things are not demonstrate clearly
By naturall, that worke by nature merely:
The one by the prefixed Rule doth run,
The other Arbitrary, how and when.
And yet suppose these generals should contain
Much to this purpose, when by searching seen,
Yet ye must nearer come, her case to clear
From such effects as may be seen appear;
For if she be bemisted, left alone
In this confus'd condition, she is gone.
Sam.
Will ye not condescend that all things be
Good in their time appointed certainly:
And that our only wise and holy King
Profoundly hath contrived every thing,
Spirituall, naturall, morall, arbitrary,
Contingent, voluntar, and necessary,
And ordered so, this contrary to that,
Man may with dread and reverence stand thereat.
Jea.
We trust your charity hes so conceived
That Scripture-truths are all by us believed:
Albeit that under trials severall may,
By strong assaults, much weaknesse oft bewray:
We know He's the supream and only good,
And all things to his glory do conclude:
And that suppose rejected we should be,
It were our place his grace to magnifie;
His wisdom, justice, truth, and holinesse
We question not, but our untowardnesse
In not adverting to his counsels grave,
Which only could and should from swerving save:
And yet our tender Lover hath appointed,
And with spirituall unction hath anointed,
[Page 8]With coming some, and cordialls stor'd that be,
Soveraign for Soul-diseases seasonablie.
[...]Mongst whom ye be of speciall esteem,
In binding up the wounds that desperat seem.
I pray you speak in proper speeches plain,
As this perplexed party best may gain:
And lead us in these mysteries divine,
Untill the Sun begin again to shine.
Sam.
I know it worthy of our pains shall prove,
To dyve in this deep mystery of love:
Therefore▪ I shall not spare to condescend,
Some of our precious time herein to spend.
This mourning Bride (sure) has propined been
With precious, sweet sp'rit-consolations clean,
Whereby the King of Kings doth recreate,
Replenish, purifie, and elevate
The soul that to espouse he is, whereby
She in his absence sick of love doth ly.
Jea.
Be pleas'd more specially us to acquaint
With these so precious presents, and how sent,
And how received, that so effectuall prove,
As to procure such firm and fervent love.
Sam.
He cleared hes her blear'd and blinded eyes,
Inflam'd her heart, so as she feels and sees.
Her Comforter convey himself with kissings,
And breath into her soul supernall blessings▪
The beauty of whose visage her invites
To trace him out when he doth make retreats;
For in her heart so hes he shed that seed,
Which her affections after him doth lead:
And at a word, created now anew,
She bids the whole Creation adiew,
[Page 9]And in this Sphere of Love celestial soare,
Not stooping to terrestriall triffles more,
Untill her Lover come, and do relieve
Her weighted sp'rit, and heart contrite revive.
Jea.
Why doth she not in patience possesse
Her soul, and so attend his timousnesse?
Sam.
Basenesse of mind such patience she esteems,
Which would suspend her of these warming beams,
By influence whereof she alone doth live,
And therefore closely unto him doth cleave.
Jea.
But is her project lawfull? let me know.
Sam.
True love was never limited by law.
Jea.
But earthly minds in mounting high do burn.
Sam.
The Spirit by habit heavenly doth turn.
Jea.
Doth she the body then the more disdain?
Sam.
No, but doth tune it to a sp [...]rituall strain:
For it's the organ ordained for to sing
The praises of her Lovely Prince and King.
Jea.
How doth she then so sadly ly and still?
Sam.
She doth attend his presence and his will,
Preparing straight his praises to expresse,
But, till his coming, lurks in heavinesse,
Jea.
But where is then the hold of Faith and Hope
Fast held, but pressing nearer hard to grope,
Desiring still the Marriage-day to see,
When in His Robes she may arrayed be.
And joyning then his sweet soul-feeding face,
Her firm affections fervent may imbrace.
Hele.
Poor Pilgrim I, in dole and deep unrest,
For want of Faith, with hellish fears supprest,
Here wandring as a woefull wretch alone,
So void of sense, can do no more but moan.
[Page 10]Unworthy of respect, regard, or view,
Much lesse your face, my spirits to renew:
It is my wonder that your worth should stay,
So to respect this crocked clog of clay,
So hardned, that affections cannot melt
To mold a new, by any motions felt:
Yet happy you, you Blessings do procure,
Who would conduct, and doth instruct the poor:
But from the wayes of wisdome I have gone
So far astray, that I may mourn alone,
And groan for grief, now when I cannot mend,
But all my dayes in dole and dolor spend:
And for to understand your friendly speech,
Or meaning thereof, hardly can I reach.
But true it is, sometimes I have exprest
Some secrets that should not have been confess,
Of feelings sweet, above expression far,
Which for the time but seeming shadows are:
For now deserted, like a desart owle,
I hopelesse ly, and can but hopelesse howle,
Bewailing oft that ever I was born,
For all is gone and I am left forlorn.
Sam.
Dear friends, conveened here for this intent▪
With misteries of Love to be acquaint:
Let us unweary, willingly attend,
For all her griefs shall sure in gladnesse end.
Jea.
Our true desire and most delight shall be,
We may more clear this Divine science see,
And with the whole affections of our heart,
To learn the Heavenly Methods of this Art.
I know the heart contrite and broken sp [...]rit
Is for our King a Receptacle meet▪
[Page 11]I know with timous comforts he doth turn
Unto the pure in sp'rit who for him mourn.
I know, the thirsting soul, and hungry heart,
In His sweet face, have fulness for their part.
I know, that pleasures in eternitie
Attend their souls that fleshly follies flee.
I know, the penny-earn'st of Peace and Bless,
Received by the meek and lowly is,
And wisely witnessed here may we see,
The might of truth, and height of mercy free,
The strength of Faith, shining through filial fear,
The wing of Love, weak ones to hide and bear.
Hele.
I wonder much that you so wise and grave,
Such groundlesse expectations can conceive!
For shew'd you are so far of this my case,
That I presumed should have made you cease:
But presuppone that these your strange conceits
Were true of me, which unto me relates,
But nothing unto me I think belong,
Yet were it fearfully free Love to wrong,
And should bewray ingratitude, so far,
As justly might me from his grace debar:
For, sure I am, I had not been cashiered,
If to offend my King my heart had feared:
But gading I, so far astray have stept,
And in confusions such my self have wrapt,
That now mine eyes are dimm'd, my tongue bedumb'd,
Mine ears are deafned, and my heart benumb'd,
That what I hear I do not apprehend,
But sure I see my well you do intend.
Jea.
Yet with permission, and submission now,
My friend, let me obtain this sute of you.
[Page 12]This is a day of grace, and it may prove,
If you improve it well, a time of love.
Unto this timous counsell grave advert,
Gainstand these griefs, that do disturb thy heart.
Think on what light, life, liberty and peace,
Thou lately tasted hes by special grace,
The earnest of these Treasures rich procured,
For thee, and by the Lover sweet secured;
But under cloud eclipsed thou must be,
By proof to find thine own infirmitie.
In Patience, Faith, Dependency, Submission.
Importunately presse, thou hes commission:
Then look, and long, and to this promise cleave,
And when thou art rebuked, yet believe.
He.
Madam, your counsell gracious, grave, and good,
Does all desir'd felicities include:
But I have forfault all these offers fair,
And of these Blessings now am stripped bare:
And when I hear of former happinesse,
Grief, horrour and despair, the more increase.
Once was I light, and now in darknesse ly,
Once was I life, now in deaths jawes I dye,
Once had I freedome, now in bondage bound▪
Once had I peace, now in vexation stound,
You speak of pleasures, in a word anew,
But dolefully may I bid them adiew.
For I an earn'st of wrath endure I think,
Might all the sinfull sons of Adam sink:
The evil spirit, when he does depart,
Returning, enters in the empty heart:
And every devil, of whatsoever deceit,
May in this soul receive a several seat.
Jea.
No more; Refrain,
There is too much of this untimely strain.
O fearfull but it be, for to let slip,
Of Sacred Truths, by Faith, the saving grip!
And O! how bitter are the agonies
Of absence in soul-searching secrecies?
O horrour, terrour, dread, what dreadfull height
Is absence totall, in eternal night!
When timely tastes do so the godly tare,
Where shall the godlesse go beneath despair?
But I forbear, Sir, speak to her so plain,
That she may be brought to her self again.
Sam.
This darknesse does th'approach of day presage:
And us the more unto the means ingage.
Thou harden dost thy self in thy mistakes,
And of our tendernesse advantage makes:
Thou dost expose thy self a present prey,
Syrene deceits of Sathan to obey:
Misled with carnal wit, by quaint convoyance,
So subtilly to worke thy souls annoyance.
Wilt thou prescribe his coming, or confine
His counsels to these finit thoughts of thine?
Dare thou his faithfulnesse draw in debate,
Because he doth not on thy humours wait▪
Doth he his influence dispense for hyre?
Dar'st thou a reason of his rules require?
But these demands in time and place recall:
Examine, and answers receive we shall.
And now in patience yet we shall persist,
And with convincing arguments insist:
Think on, when we from darknesse unto light
Translated were, and did receive our right
[Page 14]Unto His Royal Court, and House of Wine,
Where loves bright banner over thee did shine:
Then didst thou see in darknesse thou hadst been,
Clos'd, Embrion-like, into the womb unseen;
Untill thy Lover, Mover in this place,
The fruits of His free love made thee imbrace:
Then didst thou clearly see, that gracious He
Indur'd to be obscur'd, for gracelesse thee:
And that He might thy glorious dayes begin,
Assum'd thy flesh, and suffered for thy sin:
Purg'd and perfumed thee His Bride to be,
And did present himself Bridegroom to thee,
Thy King, thy Captain, and thy Husband now:
And to engadge thee more him to avow,
His Princely Robes thou saw him lay aside,
Enter the lists, and in his armour bide,
Till all thy foes he had defyed in fight,
And from their malice fred thee by his might,
And led thee here among these sweet contents,
Where only children of the King frequents.
But that thou may'st convinced be the more,
I shall this Countrie set thy face before:
For as it seems, thou dost so sullen ly,
Thou art surprysed with a lethargie:
Or for a proof, art left a little space
To try what love thy Lover can displace.
Thou knowst the Citty of our Royall King▪
Where He to breed and woo his Bride doth bring:
What glorie and excellencie, alone
Believers, shining see about the Throne?
Thou seest Him righteous Judgements dayly read:
Give doome unto thy foes, thy causes plead.
[Page 15]When from His Ivorie pallaces he comes
Thee to imbrace, the smell of His perfumes
Affect the Virgin-bowels for to move,
Frames and inflames the quickned heart to love:
For certainly unto Beleevers true,
That be renew'd, all things becometh new;
And in this World of wicked workers, we
A World enjoy of sweet felicitie,
Consisting in a Righteousnesse procured
For us, with sp'ritual joy and peace secured.
And this new heav'n, and earth, and citty fair,
Whether the Elect chosen called are,
Above comparison, you know, excells
The rarest, fairest, richest parallels.
The River that out-through the Citty slides
For every severall Cittizen divides
Unto refreshment: and the fruitfull tree,
That renders various fruits abundantly
For every season, unto all affections,
And soveraign physick, health for all complexions.
Our everlasting light, without declining,
Advancing gloriously, and brightly shining:
Curse from the Crosse, force from affliction shed,
The sting from death, from fear and bondage fred:
Where we may dayly sing among the branches,
And swime among the streams, our thirst that quenches
And bath us in that River, sweetly flowing,
And feed upon the Spices, neatly growing
About the banks of these delicious fields,
That hony, milk and wine so pleasant yeeld [...] ▪
Where we no task are set, but for to sing
The praises of our Liberal Royal King:
Mov'd by his spirit, his name for to avow,
As Members of His Body mystical,
And dyving still in Divine Myst'ries all:
In Oracles and Ordinances seeing
Him, and Him in His dispensations eyeing.
He.
These Metaphors I know not what they mean,
Nor to discern your plainest speech attain:
The one enfolding deepest mysteries,
The other not discern'd with carnall eyes.
Sam.
Thou dost not only in the Faith bewray
Thy weaknesse, but doth wilfully betray
Thy self, in contradicting sweetest feelings▪
Experimented sensible revealings,
Flowing and falling timous tides of love,
Which did thy-then lively affections move.
Thou know'st what every word we speak doth mean,
And that it is thy Lovers language clean,
Appointing for our weaknesse figures frail,
The splendor of spiritual things to vail,
As wine and milk, aples and hony sweet,
Under his shadow feasting we delight:
Lest in His light we should be rapted so,
That souls should suddenly abortive go.
Can'st thou the body of the Sun behold,
And not be dazled, if thou wert so bold?
Whose light and operations yet thou may
Enjoy, and not thy weaknesse so bewray:
Amongst the shadows thou may'st feed securely
Upon the substance that doth then allure thee:
Where dyving dayly in this depth by seeing,
From glory unto glory formed being,
[Page 17]We come to true tranquillity at length,
And there enjoy our Lovers joy, our strength [...]
So as we may, with peace, a space suspend
That Glories breaking up, that doth attend
To be imparted, for eternitie,
When we by grace matured for it be.
Eyes, ears and hearts, see, hear not, nor conceives
Now, what the true Believer then receives:
Farlesse, who can our King conceive aright,
Untill we be admitted to his sight,
Who, in such Glory inaccessible,
Enjoyes Himself, to us impenitrable?
But by the grace of faith, so apprehended,
As, for our comfort, He hath condescended:
So as we must be bred, led, fost'red here,
For sights unseen, by such as do appear.
This is the life, ye know. Believers live,
To whom both grace and glory He doth give.
Up then, my heart, take heart among thy mates,
Ly not so sad, thy Wel-beloved wait [...]
To see thee stir: for He will thee sustain,
Suppose both weak and wanting thou hast been.
Up, up, come, come, go, go with us.
Hel.
No, no,
What thou hast said, I do believe; But lo,
I am but blind, although to see I seem,
And what I seem'd to see, falls out a dream
Or vision, vanish'd by the way it came,
Nor know I how I do, or what I am.
Sam.
This is not unto death, I thee assure,
But shall His honour, and thy health procure:
What thou hast seen and felt, do not deny,
But His unchanged love believe, apply.
Hele.
[Page 18]How can the blind, the deaf, the dumb confesse,
Believe, apply, faith, or felt-love professe?
Doubtlesse I have His fervent love again
Provoked, and forsaken am.
Sam.
Refrain,
Thy sense is gone, it seems: but where's thy reason?
For thou art bourding with a birth of treason.
Because through weaknesse thou canst him provoke,
Must he his constant counsell then revoke?
When in thy birth and blood thou lay, in bands
And hands of death, did he not give commands,
Death to be gone, and thee ordain'd to live,
What merite for this mercy didst thou give?
Knows he not well, that thou no good canst do▪
Without his presence, and supply thereto?
And shall he now reputed be a changer?
Hele.
No: but to me he makes himself a stranger.
Sa.
Strange! when thou hast thy self from him estranged,
Thy reason should conclude that he is changed:
Or that he hath estrang'd himself so far,
While such love-tokens resting with thee are.
Hast thou not, biding still beside thee here,
A Mirror full of beauty, passing clear:
Wherein thou dost his portraict true possesse,
Full means to keep thy heart from heaviness?
He woo'd thee in a time of fervent love,
That thou shouldst constant, faithfull, loyall prove:
Preparing, trimming, purifying, till
The Nuptiall-rites he should compleat fulfill.
Do not what he hath done for thee deny,
Extoll his acte, and on his truth rely.
Hele.
What thou hast said, that surely have I seen
Acted by him, for me hath truly been,
[Page 19]I am convinc'd, and more than any speach,
Or largest heart-conceptions can reach.
But true it is, when I to admiration.
His deeds had found, surpassing declaration:
And then far, far, far over and above,
Had felt his sweetnesse in a time of love:
My melting heart within his heart relenting,
That almost warms affections in recenting.
But in that sweetnesse then I fell asleep,
Surprised with such sopor sad and deep:
That when I did awake, my only One
Was gone, and now poor I, do die alone;
For in his absence. I'm become a block.
A wretched, fruitlesse, and a withered stock.
Sa.
Dost thou conceive, these blinks, these smiles, these smells,
These melting motions, whereof now thou tells,
Were tendred out, thy fancy for to feed?
No: but to strengthen faith, for fruit and feed.
Hele.
Then shall I no more look to see my Love.
Sam.
Sense follows such, as do most faithfull prove,
And feelings flee, when they are followed most:
But when we stand by faith, there's nothing lost.
Hele.
Oh! lost? What losse can be compar'd to this,
To lose the only (Author) of my blisse?
Sam.
Thy Blesse? Conceive me, and resolve me this:
If thou hadst thy desire unto thy wish,
Shouldst thou in this poor dusty, rusty shrine,
Indure that splendor, by these beams should shine
Upon thy sp'rits? Thou know'st how soon they failed,
When with a little blink thou wast assailed.
Look up, make bold, take hold, hold fast by hoping:
And till thine eyes anointed be, be groping
[Page 20]Amongst thy Mates, where I have seen thee there,
Presse forward with thy pith, do not despair.
He.
I know not what, nor yet whereof ye mean.
Sam.
I witnesse will, as yet, what I have seen.
When first thy Princely Lover, to this place
Translated thee, could'st thou then sleep or cease?
But with Associats of the Citty using,
Uncessantly in deepest mysteries musing.
A frequent waiter at solemnities,
Much mov'd in minding our immunities,
About the River spying out thy spots,
And washing in the Streams away thy blots:
Upon the Mountains, where Heav'ns dew distills.
And Fountain, that with all refreshments fills.
Thou art so fram'd, and to a habite new,
Inflam'd with firm affections, pure and true:
Exactly set, uncessantly to sing
The praises of thy ever-glorious King:
The rarest Aires and sweetest musick matching,
And unto new inventions nightly watching;
Adorned with such ornaments ingrain,
That most infective tempests never stain.
What hes indured been by men of mights,
For to defend our priviledged rights,
Thou hast observ'd, and deeply pondered then,
Composed to be wondred at by men.
These things deny thou canst not, witnesse clear
The Cittizens thine own Associats here:
Witnesse thy vestures new, these shining Robes,
From mourning more refrain, restrain thy sobs.
This world new no dolor such admits,
Felt-love, believe, forbear these faithlesse fits.
Hele.
[Page 21]That world of yours no falshood doth admit,
Faithlesse profession is a feigned fit:
You in the faithfull witnesse do believe,
And by believing faithfully do live:
You grafted in the lively Olive grow,
Where substance sweet doth from that fatness flow.
I formerly have in these courses gone,
With others, as you instantly have shown,
But I have stept aside in following lies,
Upon the mount of many vanities:
What could it make, suppose I should explain
The folly and the figments of my brain,
The levitie of my affections vile?
Some seeming goodnesse under secret guile.
You by your importunacy do presse
Me more particularly to expresse:
If better more, then prejudice it could,
Or pertinent it were, I surely should.
Sa.
Whence comes this conscience of those heart-conceits?
Whence flow these conflicts of these soul-debates?
Corruption 'gainst corruption doth not side,
Satan against himself doth not divide.
Weaknesse and wandring do in us remain,
And yet our Lover doth us not disdain,
He fails us not, as we do (doating) deem,
But that he absent to our sense doth seem:
That we may see what of our selves we may
Expect, if he should our supply delay:
And what can make us more our selves forsake,
Then hell-black us, milk-white for Heaven to make?
Such sweetnesse from the breasts thou hast been sucking,
That weaned now, thou dost but fall a drouping:
[Page 22]Thou hast been dandled on thy keepers knees,
And fed with suggar'd soul-festivities:
But now for to obtain the Royall prize,
Thou must to work, and run, and fight; arise.
Hele.
It's easie Sailing in a gentle Gale,
But grievous when the tempest strieks the Sail:
It's easie fighting with your fleeing foes,
But dreadfull when it turnes to bloody blows:
It's easie speaking to a wounded heart,
But not so easie to retreat the dart:
And searching tryals light to some may be,
Which work to others much perplexity.
I pray you therefore leave me now alone,
You, may I hurt, help can you make me none
Sa.
In darkest dayes, and sharpest stormes that blow,
Our Pilot, how to land us safe, doth know:
And we within the vail, our Anchor sure
Do cast, and so can ride it out secure.
Our Captain stands victorious in the field,
He never lost a man that did not yeeld.
Our sweet Physician, full of science, sees
Our wounds, diseases, and their remedies,
And doth with cordials unto us addresse,
When dwining we do dream of nothing lesse;
And it is good thou dost not us regard,
Lest at thy hands we should expect reward.
But till you take a breathing, we shall walk,
Beside thee here, and to the matter talk.
Now ye my friends devote, and Ladies dear,
Who this discourse (of ours) do over-hear,
Speak your opinion from experience plain,
And we shall to our purpose turn again;
[Page 23]For in her griefs, if we cannot be grieved,
We shall be griev'd when she shall be relieved:
But of her burdens who doth take a part,
Her comfort shall reflect upon their heart.
Maria, Anna, Grissilla, Eliza. Thomas.
Maria.
IT seems it shall not easy be to find
The bands that do her in this bondage bind:
But let us now recite our speciall failings,
Their causes and effects, and our prevailings▪
And to avoid contest, I shall break in,
And as you bid, be bold for to begin:
Court-breeding leading us to high aspirings,
Swelling in such ambitious desirings,
We can for self-promotion, formall prove
In every project where we minde to move:
And can (Chamelion-like) all colours take,
As for the gaining of our point may make:
And from what airt we see the air to swirle,
For that same course quickly our sails can hurle.
But when we of our selves do get a sight,
We guard against this Idol with our might,
Most deeply humbled at the heart, that we
Are wasted in this frothy vanity:
For then it pleas'd my King to clear mine eies,
Divinely to discern deep mysteries,
[Page 24]And take a Pardon in that time of love,
Which made my frozen heart in melting move.
Yet after this, anone I must you tell,
A fearfull tryall unto me befell:
Even after tasting many comforts sweet,
Intent some meditations to repeat,
Of most concernment, preasing to procure,
In supernat [...]rall truths, my standing sure;
Such as of souls the immortality,
Whose being in and out of bodies be:
The resurrection, and immortalizing
Of bodies mortall, naturall, spiritualizing:
And minding thence, some higher to ascend,
So far as finite thoughts might comprehend
Of God, his goodnesse, wisdome and his might,
Pre-ordinating all in order right:
By His eternall counsel, pleasure, will,
Who all things works, moving, unmoved still:
But instantly, a voice, both pure and plain,
My musing mov'd unto another strain.
So friend-like and so friendly muttering then,
Must thou be found the only fool of men:
What businesse is this thou goes about?
What strange chymaeraes shall we see come out?
We guided be by reason, and by sence,
Where be thy groundlesse grounds? on what pretence
Dost thou intangle, and perturb thy mind
In courious qui [...]ks, whereto thou art inclin'd?
Art thou so senslesse, as thus to conceive,
Dust turn'd to dust, turn ghostlesse from the grave:
Or that thy vanisht spirits shall return,
These ashes to inspire, spent in that urne?
[Page 25]Some giddie-headed people wonders tell,
Of God, of Heaven, satan, sin and hell:
But these be foolries, fitted to deceive
Some facile Sp'rits, that fancies do conceive▪
Canst thou defraud thy self of all thy blesse,
By framing to thy self a hell like this?
While as thou might in many pleasures flouri [...]
And nature in her native notions nourish.
But even then, when I (perplexed) though
What could it be that this diversion wrought:
Unto my sence, there was reply so clear
Return'd in my behalf, which made appear
The devil, his drift, and his deluding lure,
Discourse of me by flatt'rie to procure:
But my firm faithfull Watch-man and my Love [...]
Seeing the malice of this murthering mover,
Preveens this cruel plot, and interposes
His subtilty, and sophistry discloses:
Objections more then now I can recent▪
Which none but very devils could invent,
Confuted and refuted were so clear,
By him alone, who did for me appear.
But then, said I, (in this confusion vext)
Since it is so, how am I thus perplext?
Then instantly, my great deliverance wrought,
Was wondrously by my Redeemer brought:
When to grosse Atheism, the tempter, he
Had cast his baits for to have hooked me:
And if the inward Teacher had not taught
Me, how to answer these his reasons, fraught
With subtilties, so mystick, that again
I had been tortur'd in that fearfull train.
[Page 26]But sad and bitter were the sore rebukes
Of my dear Lover, and the frowning looks
That I endur'd, for daring to adventure
With this deceiver in the lists to enter:
Moreover, fears not only me affright,
But, also, I must with afflictions fight:
With many terrors, and with troubles toyled,
And by infirmity am often foyled:
But yet I find it for my best to be
Prest and distress'd in this perplexitie:
For on the rode I read, in letters fair,
Love unconceivable, and wisdome there:
And ever since, when I such whisperings hear
Flow from that buzing snake, I stop mine ear.
ANNA.
We of the Citty, sumptuously do live,
And to maintain our wealth do mainly strive.
So avaritious and luxurious grow,
As we in wealth and worldly honours flow▪
But when our Lover doth remove the vail,
We see the rotten ship wherein we sail,
And fecklesse wares, whereon our souls we waste▪
Then to the death we do our selves detest:
But being bred in such societies,
As do advert unto varieties
Of outward formes, must civile be and neat,
According to our rank, degree and state.
I have been shew'd by one that's most sincere,
That many dangers 'mongst them do appear:
And that her self was fearfully afraid,
Lest unknown fear her weakness had bewrai'd▪
[Page 27]And if I warned had not been before,
I might have splitted on this deadly shore:
But after deeper search, I did perceive
My self was nothing, but a living grave,
Where noysome serpents in the members crawl,
The faculties infecting of the soul:
The soul again, vain, arrogant and proud,
For all her wak'nings walking under cloud.
Then after this I had a fearfull blink,
Which under desperation made me shrink:
But then even at the twinkling of an eye,
My Saver, present set me fully free:
So as unto his praise, I must record,
A self-lost soul was saved by the Lord.
Thus my Redeemer so did me Redeem.
My danger and deliverance seen did seem
So near, and I so filled with conceiving,
Sense led me from the way of firm believing:
But in that sweetnesse, when I fell asleep,
I swell'd up in a deadly fever deep:
And moving miss'd the Author of my joy,
So then my nearest friends I did imploy,
Who helps prescrib'd, and potions did prepare
To swage my swelling, and my health repair.
But then there did such fears my soul assail,
Which through my weakness often did prevail,
To bring in question, how to persevere
Before the straits and tryals that appear.
I was brought very low, but never heal'd,
Untill compassion with my Prince prevail'd
Me to restore, and make me surely see,
A stedfast faith was firm stability.
[Page 28]So when I look'd unto my Lovers might,
All faithlesse fears evanisht out of sight.
GRISSILLA.
We in the Academie that be nourish'd,
And fruitfull grow, when we have early flourish'd:
Physick▪ Laws, Metaphysicks we debate,
What serves for mans soul, body, or estate:
And by our science and inventions then,
Reduce to order for the use of men:
But swell in pride, and in disdain, when we
Others so far below us we espy:
And often our too curious spirits swerving,
Do over-turn our selves by our deserving;
For by deep speculation, we do see
Wonders, that by none other seen can be;
Produc'd by natures force, and render'd then
In rare effects, to be admir'd of men.
The stars in severall places we espy,
In constellations, as they ordered be:
Desing'd for signs in ev'ry Variation,
Ascent, descent, degrees and inclination:
Severall effects on every severall thing,
That from the earth, from air and oceans spring.
Gold, Pearles, Stones precious in the earth secured,
Deep steeping closely, till they be matured:
Where by the stars, they do procure their strength,
Of bodies short continuance, and their length:
Of Animals, Herbs, Flowers, their vertues all,
Their birth and growth, their durance and their fall▪
Which as in this clear prospect we do see,
By proof, their operations learn'd have we.
[Page 29]And I one day these marvels so admiring,
Their causes and effects too much desiring,
To search by natures light: And not adoring
The God of nature, but by nature poring,
In this deep study I was sorely stained
With infidelity, and then arraigned,
And left forlorn, a little, as I shewed,
Untill that by contrition renewed,
I accesse had, and granted was to see
That my dear Lover, and Life-giver, He
Was natures Author, and that her effects
Were done directly, still as he directs.
Afflictions, fears and too much carnall care,
Temptations be, which lead unto despair:
Again by grace, resisting and repelling,
A devillish drift doth lift the heart to swelling,
And herein I much weaknesse have bewrayed,
But happily therewith hath been essayed,
For of his goodness I again do gain,
To guard against these vile debourdings vain.
ELIZA.
We who into the Country bred have been,
And little of the Court or Citty seen,
But in the Wildernesse alone were living,
Our bleitting droves unto the fountains driving.
Alongst the quickning springs and cooling streams,
Sheltr'd with sweetest sprigs from scorching beams,
Delighted in our silent Cipresse Bowers,
Adorned with the fairest rarest flowers:
And satisfied herewith as with silk,
Preferring to their sharpest spice, our milk:
Ingenuous care, and frugall industry,
We live and die in ignorance indured,
And ly in gross profanity obdured,
And cannot see, untill by speciall grace.
A brighter light do shine upon our face:
But after I was call'd, and caus [...]d to see,
And made asham'd of my profanity:
Thereby affected with my Lovers love,
That nothing else near to my heart could move:
The Devil then, under a glist'ring vail,
My weaknesse (unawares) did so assail,
That I had drunk the poyson'd cup so deep,
My senses by the venom were asleep;
For he some instruments had so deceiv'd,
And to most impious principles beslav'd:
Under pretext of love to Christ alone,
Exalting him up to his Royall Throne,
With all that unto him do truly cleave:
That they by doctrines were not now to live,
That they are clean, and cannot be defil'd:
Illuminate, and cannot be beguil'd:
That all are theirs, and all things common be
Unto that love-bred, love-fed Family:
With others such-like hatcht-patcht proofs so specious▪
And drest with speeches, seeming very gracious:
My carnall heart did presently affect
To bring a present heaven in respect:
But when the way so pleasant did appear
To flesh and blood, I did begin to fear,
And took me to consult with truth divine:
So as the Majesty therein did shine
[Page 31]Of Holinesse, and Righteousnesse so clear,
The filthinesse, and folly did appear,
Wherein they swell, perverting truth so far,
That they obdur'd unto conviction are:
And hereby found I also out again,
That I unstable, facil was, and vain:
And so alas! have blasted been, and broken
With all these blustrings, whereof you have spoken:
Have seen my self, self-lost, self-damn'd, and saved,
And yet so senslesse, and so self-depraved,
So far corrupt, so foolish, and so frail,
Conceits impure so much with me prevail:
And yet with mercy and compassion clear
Am compassed, more than I can admire;
For I to wrath my self do still expose,
But my Redeemer still doth interpose:
And when I would my self in darknesse cast,
I rescu'd am, for he doth hold me fast:
And when despar'dly I would make retreat
From this new City, and these pleasures sweet,
And searches every postern gate, and lirk,
My own destruction cruelly to worke,
By separating, yet I am surrounded
In so wise windings, wherein I am bounded:
And breath'd upon, even when the breath is failing,
And helped up by everlasting healing:
Whereby my safety doth proceed, I prove▪
From infinite, and from unchanged love;
For as I am confounded and ashamed,
To see my self in such convictions blamed,
So am I more comforted, to repose
Upon my Prince, and in his peace rejoice:
[Page 32]And now I grant, that by His grace I gain
In watchfulnesse, and also do refrain,
To taste, or touch, or to aproach too near,
Where perill of infection doth appear.
TH0MAS.
O deep profound! O! what a deepnesse is
[...]he wisdome, knowledge and eternall blesse,
[...]f this, who is the glorious King of Saints?
[...]d graciously among his children haunts?
[...]d O! How many are our miseries?
[...]d O! How rescued by such mysteries?
[...]re I by providence above perceiving,
[...]ght lessons once receive, above conceiving
[...]any, but by these are taught aright
[...] see themselves, and to abhore that fight.
[...] we this while a main Professor been,
[...]use I hated vice, and sin obscene,
[...]eigh'd against it, and did vertue love,
[...] vicious hate, and verteous did approve:
[...] in this gracious fellowship have seen,
[...]t hitherto I have but blinded been:
[...] do I see Believers and their rights,
[...]ir world new and their renewed lights:
[...] tryals and the straits they did endure,
[...]ork for their well, and they preserved sure:
As also, I have seen these lad assailings
Of satan, and your speciall prevailings,
Whereof I never knew, nor lesse nor more,
For they were mysteries great to me before.
We in the wilderness that have been bred,
Amongst the brute, on brutish lust were fed:
[Page 33]Your breeding been in School, in Court, and Citty,
Delicious, curious, delicate and witty:
But not exeem'd from tryals more then we,
Expos'd to many that most dreadfull be.
You do by curious speculations give
Place to the serpent, darts at you to drive:
But as he hes into his fang so fast,
Such windings He for us needs not fore-cast:
For this I do confesse, albeit I could
My heav'n upon this love to vertue hold,
Yet Satan of hypocrisie a spice,
Hes in the heart shed, where it sliely lyes:
For seeing you with others, who assemble
At solemn meetings, I would them resemble,
Dissemble what within my bosom grew,
And learn to prattle things I never knew:
Likewise, I find too great a tryall here
At meetings, when both Sexes do appear,
And ordered so, that oppositely airted
The venome of much vanity is darted
Out from the poyson of infective eyes,
At civill and sacred festivities.
Now these and many such enormities,
Naughty, profane, vain superfluities,
We civill men do see, and do forbear
To mortifie, when they do most appear▪
But you the flesh who do subdue so far,
That fairly springing up afresh you are,
Like fruitfull branches, and like garden-flowers,
That wat'red be by sweet Celestial showers,
Preserve your peace, when we our selves consume,
In making up Inditement for our doom.
Andrea, Grissilla, Anna.
And.
GReat, good, grave Ladies, wise and Virgins pure▪
Ye know ye could not well our sight endure:
For we, what folly in the flesh remains,
By much experience, tasting have with pains,
Do make it now our trade for to travers
Through all the corners of this Univers:
Unvailing vice, and bearing witnesse good
Against that venom, which infects our blood:
And ev'ry one of you, in all your places
With this sweet fellowship of gracious faces,
Cannot deny, but ye had warning all,
Against these slights, which might procure your fall.
Now are we glad to hear you so confesse
Your weaknesse, and your Lovers lovingnesse.
Anna.
The most sincere, and self-deny'd agrees
Upon these sacred sweet solemnities,
Which we frequent: for there, by cords of love,
After our Lover, we are mov'd, and move:
In all sincere devotion avowed,
And unto new obedience are bowed.
Nor doth our lib'rall Lord us quite deprive
Of recreations▪ whilst we warily live.
And.
True, this the mind of many is indeed,
But may no [...] us discourage to proceed.
The kindnesse of our King doth us constrain
To seek his glory, and your sp'rituall gain.
[Page 35]Daily and dolefull proof doth witnesse well
Our weaknesse, and we may much folly feel
Possesse our hearts: for, when we tempted be,
Surpris'd we are, and can it not foresee.
Many affected seem, and make a show
To follow us, that back again do go.
The cunning Serpent sleeps not, but by flight,
Knows how to enter our corruption right:
Can give it life, and then a bait most sweet,
Prepared for our pleasure, we shall meet,
Colour'd with recreations, in the name
Of lawfull liberties, to save the blame.
This I may say, and can it now avow,
We doing are, our selves for to undo,
All that we can; But, when we are intent
The sacred Mysteries for to frequent,
Advancing still in faith, our selves forsaking,
Tending our King, and his sweet Crosse up-taking:
(And who is he that doth aright detest
Himself, and on his Lovers favour feast▪
And is not this poor ignorance engrain,
When recreations we prefer profane,
Which profite not, nor pleasure, but do perish,
Before the fruit appear from-out the flourish?
Whereas, if we (ev'n here in our traversings)
Had with our King constant and clean conversings)
Then should our tasting, smelling, hearing, seeing,
Render a relish, unto all admiring.
When in the gal [...]ies he himself were shewing▪
Feed on his face, enliv'ning grace renewing:
And when he doth himself again retreat,
We have his Word and Works for to repeat,
[Page 36]Where from the least, most common that is nam'd,
Most wondrous wayes of wisdom are proclaim'd.
And if these marvels we did rightly see,
Then recreated should we fully be,
Above what all created comforts can
Confer upon the sp'rituall-graced man.
Ye know, tho we translated be to light,
Yet all of us our nat'rall temper right
Retain, so as a stronger potion will
Some person save, which would another kill:
So with the gracious we do still consent,
In sowing seeds of sp'rituall nourishment:
But then the sturdy ground must break and bruise,
So as the season may the seed infuse.
An.
We know your meaning unto us is good,
And better seen it is then understood:
Out of zeal in every thing you are,
From self-experience bidding us beware:
And in this present purpose to proceed,
It seems that this discourse may be apply'd:
For we of severall ranks, degrees, professions
Presented have our case and our confessions:
And as there be of sev'rall persons here,
So do our tryals diversly appear:
And doubtlesse, what would helpfull be to some▪
Should most untimous to another come.
You see it so, not one of us doth find
What bands in bondage doth this dam'sell bind:
So sure there doth concur, as seems to me,
Some other grounds of this varietie
Of exercise, unto us incident,
Who all are sprung from one root and discent,
[Page 37]Such as to our effectuall calling may
Refer, or to the maner, time or way.
Gris.
Certain, if we exactly ponder would
All that upon our nature and this mould
Had influence, it verily should prove▪
Our feeble, frail conceptions far above:
We in the generall jointly do confesse,
Stars, constellations, signs celestiall hes
Much operation in our bodies all,
Their generation, standing and their fall;
Bodies of Elements compounded been
Of humors, some more grosse, and some more clean,
In some more equall, some lesse equalling:
Whence strength and weakness, health and sickness spring:
Hence dispositions and affections move,
Which in some lesse, in some more vicious prove:
Our distance also from the temp'rat Zone,
The frigid and the hot, the Horizon,
Climat, our customs and our education,
Our frequent fellowship and conversation:
All these, and many more have force upon
Our facile minds, and fond affection.
By this connexion of so many things,
Distinguishable by so many signs:
So many various thoughts impression have,
That poyson'd inclinations do receive:
Hence is it that some sole-commanding thing
Bears rule in every one as Soveraign King:
Which in the fervor of a strong respect,
Follow the Aples that they most affect:
And in the frenzie of these carnall fires,
Dote on the idol of their chief desires:
[Page 38]And from that folly never can refrain,
Untill the sting of death revive their pain:
So when the soul physician comes to cure,
Our sicknesse (sees) and what we can endure:
And unto our infection he applyes,
For all contagions, severall remedies,
Corrections, crosses, that we may relent;
Comforting cordials, lest our heart should faint.
And when we have been gained and allured,
And of his favour faithfully assured,
By real feeling of our lost condition,
And [...]deliv [...]ry by our Lords tutition:
Yet not the lesse, we must be humble held,
So as the devils darts may be repell'd:
He did in Paradice with our Parents plead.
And prosecutes his splen against their Seed
Nor is the old man yet so fully slain,
But that he can recover life again:
If we be left a little to be try'd
By light temptations, we shall step aside,
Unlesse we be prevented or restrain'd,
And so by free immediate grace maintain'd.
Now these strong reasons and right grounds may be
Of Christian cases the varietie:
Nor do I doubt, but that the Christ'an-call,
Maner and time be not alike in all:
Some saved are with fear, some love constrains,
Some hurled from the fire with harder pains:
Much difference of exercise can make,
Which also may the name of tryall take.
And.
Enough, dear friend, now have you made us see
Our own experience more perspicuouslie:
[Page 39]For we be of our birth and breeding wilde,
As likewise of all people most defil'd:
But as by times some of us hes been tam'd,
Then of our selves we have been much asham'd:
Made it our study vice for to detect.
Destroy, and to draw vertue to respect:
We censur'd be by many that are good▪
To be too rigide, being people rude:
Who to be too far curbed do disdain,
And plead for recreations too profane,
But since it pleas'd our King us to recall
To this His Paradice spirituall:
And since we did with you assemble here▪
We have been set to get the heart sincere:
And what by speculation we take,
Make it impressions unto practice make:
And with much order do our selves addresse,
To shew to men their nat'rall naughtinesse,
And that ev'n in the best there doth remain
Some of the life of death, as yet, unslain:
But as for us, we have been so ingrain'd
In that corruption, which all flesh hath stain'd,
It so habituall unto us became▪
That we converted were unto the same:
And when our eyes at first to see were clear'd,
Our miserie and mercy most admir'd,
The causes and the wrath so vively seen,
His everlasting armes to interveen:
There did concur force, fear, love infinite,
Our full reclaiming thereby to compleat:
And now our crosses and corrections we
Find for the death of sin in us to be:
[Page 40]Even such, by which, heav'ns wisdome does reform us,
And to our King and Comforter conform us.
An.
This grave and graced person in his speech,
If ponder'd well it were, might many teach:
For this we know, that of one propagation,
Countrie and clime, and of one education
Are all that tribe, and surely such as here
Arrived be, most zealous do appear.
And as for us who came from every airt,
Of severall qualities partake apart:
As also, some more early, some more late
Have called been unto this happy state,
Some, by our Soveraign King his ointments sweet,
By love came running, when he did invite:
Some, from the sense of wrath when they did cry,
Such mercy felt, that they did melt thereby.
Thus we by conf'rence find, that there must be
Strong reasons' for this strange diversity
Of exercise, and that it is to train
Us to the truth, from triffles false and vain.
And this we know, though we be civill bred,
And in the plat-form fair of vertue led,
And have not been brought under publike blame,
That could have brought us unto open shame,
That yet the seed of ev'ry vice remains
In us, as others only grace restrains:
And as we more or lesse infected are,
Our antidotes stronger or weaker were.
And more particular or plain to be,
You pardon will, to save our modesty:
For our dear Lover, who by grace hath lov'd us,
Above the grace bestow'd, hath never prov'd us:
[Page 41]And when our Sex to suffer for their love
Is call'd, they constant do and loyall prove.
Tho.
We as these Ladies congregated are
From every airt, where shines the morning star,
Diff'rent by birth, humors and education,
By sight, society and conversation:
Some in their youth have hither been translated,
Some in their age here happily been stated.
Some sav'd by fear, and some by force constrain'd
To come, but all by Love and mercy gain'd,
So that with us strange diff'rences must be:
But far more strange is this strange harmonie,
Where contrare inclinations do incline
All to one end: O endlesse depth divine!
And that the rod upon our folly lies,
More happinesse it is then we can prize.
Chastis'd we be as children for our good,
When through the fire, or the most furious flood
Of sore afflictions, we be safely led,
Who in the barren wilderness are bred.
The purest white drinks in the blewest dye:
And if you do take pains for to apply
Some red, some green, according to the grain:
But unto white shall never turn again:
Right so, though we be stain'd, we can receive,
By industry and education grave,
Civility and righteous colours sweet:
But the first tincture never shall delete,
Untill by blood and water both our blots
Be purged out, for cleanging all our spots.
This is the myst'ry deep that we should mind▪
How we may be unto our King combin'd,
[Page 42]By bands of love, in sucking in His blood,
Which doth our consolations all include:
While we perceive the spawn of our proud foes
Remain unpurg'd, wherein can we rejoice?
We suffer not, it is but this old man,
And we should beat him down in what we can:
Delight to see him totally destroyed,
And all devices for that end imployed:
That we unto the image of our King
May once appear, and so his praises sing▪
Mariona, Grissella.
Ma.
WE do not deem that this distressed Maid
Is tainted with the things that we have said:
Or that such guilt, so grosse, could find a place
For to obscure such gravity and grace;
But we by bitter proof have truly proved
Matter in us remaining, unremoved,
Which can such motions bring unto respect,
When on these painted Portraicts we reflect,
That are suggested by the serpent slie,
Or by the sense sent to the phantasie;
But though we cannot shun, we see the craft,
And Arrows keen he doth against us shaft;
Armour of proof we stand in, and resist
The sharpest dart he at our heart can thrust,
The fairest Idol that he can invent,
The sweetest Apple that he can present:
[Page 43]And when we sleeping be, surpriz'd and foyl'd,
And ere we be aware, betray'd and spoyl'd:
Our Captain sees, and cannot long refrain
Us to relieve, and set us right again,
So as to him we do more closely cleave,
And watchfull walk for all the time we live:
This subtile hunter he is ever spying
Where we be weakest, and is ever trying
By all means set, to make us swell or swither,
The spunk of life by spouts of hell to smother.
This impure sp'rit, prince of the air, doth carry
Into the brain many vain vapours aery,
Which the affections surely should infect,
If timously we did them not detect:
But if this airt the carnall part incline
To blink asquint when he doth Saint-like shine,
Then are we over-clouded, and we know
Our Jealous Lover must us then reprove:
For he corrivall never could indure▪
But sealed for himself will have us sure:
Since all that we can wish conjoyn'd in one
Of blesse, combined is in him alone:
And we convinced be abundantly,
Of love-obligements unto loyalty,
And when he sees us truly humbled much
Under these trials which the heart doth touch,
Then in his tendernesse to us doth turn
With comforts, as we in his absence mourn.
Thus when we stand, or fight, or faint, or fall,
He is so near that we are saved all:
This love, above all finite reach ascending,
Unalterable, and so condescending.
[Page 44]That even when we are secluded sore,
We oblidg'd be for to believe the more;
For if we were not so rebuked, then
Carelesse we should become, like carnall men.
These are the flames, this is that force of love,
Floods cannot quench, might, slight cannot remove.
This is our King, our Sunne, our Shield, our Friend,
Who by his blood hes us to him combin'd:
Whose splendent rayes, full fraught with vertue, shall
From this grosse drosse affections pure exhale,
And fix within that element of love,
Where our delights alone on him may move.
Gris.
Much graced Matron, your discourse devote,
Much verity and charity doth note.
Ye who above us do so far resort,
Can best discern these Arrows to retort,
That from the prince of darknesse darted still
Within the dark for to infest the will.
Your charity (grave Matron) most agrees
With rich experience and with cleared eyes.
The mystery of mercy you have seen
Melted in love, and moulded have you been,
So as no evill you can think or wrest
To worst, but all interprete to the best:
But many novices come to this place,
Who tasted have and do belong to grace,
Are often on extreams, as they abound
In feelings, or are under absence drown'd:
And in their hal [...]y on dayes will not allow
Esteem, to any that be them below,
As little for themselves do they preserve,
When under darknesse drouping they do starve.
[Page 45]And we be ever checking those mistakes,
But self-conceit obdurate many makes:
Till they be tortur'd under many tryals,
And taught to live by faith, in self-denyals:
But for the number wherewith we must meet,
Not possible it is for to repeat.
Some hes been spoken to by our dear friends,
Both from intention, purpose good. and ends,
And suffer me as yet to signifie,
Of these our travels the necessitie.
As by this simile we'll better see,
If we dissect our own Anatomie.
The matter, composition and the Art
Of Heav'n, admirable in ev'ry part,
Flesh, blood, bones, nerves, veins, arteries sustaining.
Humours, hot, cold, moist, dry, and mixt containing;
Seat and assistance, offices and ends,
Each other serving, none another offends;
And all disperst through all this fabrick rare,
By instruments above a thousand pair:
From top to toe by searching we may see
No lesse then wonders in variety.
The very head a magazin is made
Of marvells, most magnificent and dread.
And whoso should down to the foot descend,
And on the parts therein contained spend
Some space, in every place they should perceive
Hundreds, which wonders were for to conceive:
And every one that charge for to fulfill,
Appointed by the glorious Makers will:
As by pre-ordination God doth give
These souls immortall, whereby we do live:
[Page 46]Ye likewise see that all these parts and pow'rs,
Composed in this little world of ours,
And animated by this living breath,
Lyes dwining now under the sting of death,
And that through this defiled body spreads
These soul-preserving, now life-poys'ning threeds;
For as the body doth in part defect,
Then can the soul thereby work no effect.
Ye likewise see, the soul cannot be seen,
Which in the body hath infused been:
That both might be an instrument to raise
The Authors greatnesse, and his goodnesse praise.
And for this end, endow'd above conceiving
With large capacities, fit for receiving
All that our Maker shall reveal, to make
Us see him, and his service undertake:
So as her gifts in such excellencies,
In number, worth and great varieties,
Exceeds what e're be said of bodies may,
As doth the breath of God excell this clay:
Not only ample, simple, pure, capacious,
But also subtile, pregnant and sagacious:
To dyve, to search, to soar and never cease,
Untill she do her Author once imbrace,
In whom she shall (far, far above desiring)
Be fed with wonders unto all admiring;
But now in all her parts so far depraved,
By listing to her lust, and so beslaved,
That when she's taught, and rescu'd, yet again
Constant she cannot in her course remain:
But steps aside, and doth her self deprive
Of these revivings that should her enlive.
[Page 47]And as it is most strange, aright to see
These contraries corporeall to agree,
This structure of the body to maintain,
Untill it must turn to the dust again:
Albeit some interruptions often make
The soul in all her agitations slack;
But how much more incomparable ye know
Were it to keep in frame? These fancies move
In our light minds, imaginations vain,
From which the carnall part cannot refrain,
Which most doth mar that special consolation
We should enjoy by sp'rituall contemplation,
By dyving in these mysteries divine,
Wherein the glory of our King doth shine:
And whereby we are by his light delighted,
Untill by this his grace we be perfected.
But when his Spirit, to prevent our swelling,
Or from the vapors of that venom dwelling
In us, obstructed is, who then, oh! who
So over-clouded can but sadly go?
For he's the soul by which the soul doth live;
Ev'n as the soul the body keeps alive:
Then never think it strange to see us grieve
When he is gone, who should our heart relieve:
Nor strange to see him forc'd for to retire,
But rather wonder that he should appear,
And through the latters lend a friendly blink,
When he perceives the fainting heart to shrink:
And rather think it strange that so remisse
We prove, in searching what the quarrel is
Of such desertions as the heart do vex,
And with dejection do the sp'rit perplex.
[Page 48]I do confesse believing were the best,
In quietnesse and confidence to rest:
But saving faith to holinesse adheres,
And guarded is with many filiall fears,
And out of love is ever sorely moved,
When evidences are of love removed.
Though you conversant are, and so inured
In heav'nly matters, and so well secured,
Can stand before the gates of hell and make
Your progresse, yet the weak may stumbling take
For in this case much grace we take to be,
Hopefull, sincere, in heart humilitie.
And studying to make out a true disjunction,
From every motion can obstruct that unction,
Whereby we be conjoyn'd in that communion
With our dear Lover, in a sp'rituall union.
So as by grace, grafted in him we grow
Up, by that influence that from him doth flow,
Untill we be into his image formed,
And most devotly to his will conformed:
But you appear so prudent, that therefore
We leave to be consider'd lesse and more.
These our essayes at your command pursued,
To be by you corrected and renewed:
And as ye do think meet in time and place,
Compos'd and right applyed to the case.
Samuel, Helena.
Sam.
MOst precious people, saved and secured,
By force of felt and fervent love allured:
Your conferences free I have been hearing,
And do approve, and for your better clearing
Do certify, that your most Princely Love
These actings in his children doth approve.
We who be named gracious, be it known,
No grace, but what is giv'n, have of our own,
And by that grace immediatly maintained,
Converted, call'd, as you, and so sustained.
The diff'rence only doth consist in this,
The King his pleasure good was us to blesse;
[...]ince from the womb we came to humane sight,
To sanctify us by his heav'nly light;
And separate we be for this effect,
To do and suffer as he does direct:
[...]ot specially his elect Flock to feed,
And them unto the living Fountain lead.
You have been over-hearing what was said,
[...]n reference to this distressed Maid:
You have been carefull hereby to conceive
The myst'ry of her case, I do perceive:
You have been searching out for second causes,
Which cautioned would be with certain clauses.
[...]ut you are sober, and are satisfi'd▪
[...]om solide grounds of reason certifi'd.
[Page 50]And this is right; for never one as yet,
Of soundest and profoundest searching wit
In natures secrets, by the Physicks poring,
Or winged with the Metaphysicks soaring,
Exactly could, the causes and effects,
Matter and form, with all their due respects,
Produc'd by natures infinite variety,
On severall objects, marvelous rariety,
Conceiv'd by science, or by all their Art
Ever demonstrate to the thousand part:
Our princ'ples are with much experience fraught▪
So by our practice we are daily taught:
And new essays are set on work, again
More light by new discoveries to attain.
Our King, the God of Nature, only knows
The nature, matter, form, effects and cause
Of all things: for by Him they are, and shall
Bring forth his glory and our gladnesse all.
This Microcosme (Man) a world contains
Of various parts, his Maker all maintains:
And this great world, in all its sev'rall acts,
Subservient unto mans up-making makes;
Bodies celestiall, in their sev'rall Spheres,
And all that to the Firmament adheres,
In all their various courses, contribute,
To our continuance, comfortable fruit.
What herb, fruit, flow'r, beast, fowl or fish there is,
But bend their best concurrence to our blesse?
The weak, the strong, the bitter, sowre and sweet,
The hot, the cold, in their degrees compleat,
In all their concords and their sympathies,
Discords, divisions and antipathies,
[Page 51]Find mater for their master (Man) to make
Him see, they do his service undertake.
And who can doubt but man immortal might
Have stood, if not deprived of that light
(Deservedly) which in his soul did shine,
And did all knowledge necessar confine,
His present being to preserve, if he
Preserved had his prime integrity?
They stand in force, but we, now fallen blind
Judicially, death and destruction find
Amidst the means of life: but yet our King
Doth us to light and life from darkness bring,
So as that now we may most clearly see,
That ev'ry case we come through doth agree
With our condition present, presuppose
We should much weaknesse under wrath disclose.
And as, amongst the sons of men, we find
That many are, in many things, inclin'd
Alike, none of all Adam's race have been,
That in all things to sympathize were seen;
For as we diff'rent in our faces be,
So in our gifts is great diversity.
But as all Simples, from the earth that grow,
Or from th' elementary Ocean flow,
By skilfull composition refin'd,
Wonders do work when they are well combin'd:
Ev'n so with men, in all their sev'rall motions,
Deeds, dispositions, and their various notions,
There doth result, by heavens high decree,
To our great King, a heav'nly harmonie.
Let it our study deep be, to devise
The Author of these wonders how to prize▪
From nothing, and maintained wonderously.
How wonderfully have we wandred far?
How wonderfully we reclaimed are?
Wonder upon that glorious Majesty
That shines on all his works so wondrously!
Wonder upon his condescentions sweet,
Whereby these wonders with our weaknesse meet!
Him, him, who perfect is and infinite,
Simple, eternall, essentially compleat,
Surpassing wonder, sacredly adore,
And in adoring humbly wonder more!
Wonder upon his wisdomes deep contriving!
By death to bring thy death-bound lifes relivieng▪
That his eternall Son thy flesh assum'd,
To ransom thee that unto death was doom'd:
That he eternally did so delight
T'obscure his glory, to procure thy light:
That by th'eternal Sp'rit he us inspires,
With grace divine, faith and devote desires:
To know, believe himself, his truth and love,
And thereinto most loyally to move.
These be the contemplations best, that can
Beseem and do become the love-bred man.
These thoughts sublime can elevate alone
The heart, soul-savory fruit to feast upon:
To seal an union and communion sweet,
In all transcendent love, divine, compleat:
With him in heav'n, who hath mans nature plac'd,
And by his spirit us on earth so grac'd.
Let us suppose, that all the worlds of men
Stood up on life that ever lived, then
[Page 53]That every man a different world were,
Of all things that hath been, shall be, or are,
And variously these all were animated,
With all indowments that have been created;
These all were, also, into one compacted,
And all were in one quintessence extracted.
Those spirits pure, most peircing sure should prove,
And yet be dazled at this depth of love.
In darkest clouds this love finds out a cleft,
To send a death-bound soul a quickning lift;
And when our Sun seems be eclipsed far,
Faith playes her course by the least twinkling star.
The Wran may flighter on this oceans brim,
The Dolphine dyve, the Elephant may swim.
For loves sweet sympathies consist in looks,
Blinks, smiles and smells, whereby the Lover hooks
The loved, and the loved thence again,
From passion strong cannot it self refrain.
Let this suffice, and ere we do remove,
We'll consolate this Lady sick of love:
Her Lover shall, ere it be long, be sure,
Shine on her soul, and so her peace procure:
For she in child-birth of fair grace doth ly,
Let us some cordials for her pangs apply.
And now speak damesell, and let us hear
What fruit from our endeavours doth appear,
Hele.
Now am I so o'recome, constrain'd to note
Your travels for my well have been devote:
For ev'ry parcell of your free confessions
Renews the sense to me of like transgressions:
But now in speciall, you have specified
Some errors, that I would were rectified▪
[Page 54]And all that ye have said, I must confesse,
For every word my grief may well increase.
When I look up, what my most Princely Love,
Before he brought me here, made me to prove;
And likewise, also, since he brought me here,
What kingly bounty daily doth appear,
Freely bestow'd upon a fondling poor,
Whose worth could never thing, but wrath procure?
And now I am convinc'd, for I have prov'd.
That with such fervent love he hath me lov'd:
That for my frailties, and infirmnesse great,
His grace and mercy he would not retreat:
Or that his bowels, which for me were moved,
By this my stumbling should have been removed;
But this rich bounty, and this love divine
I lost, and am, deserv'dly, left to dwine
And pine away, in sp'rituall poverty,
For pride of sp'rit, unseen takes root in me:
Which now I find the cause of all my anguish,
Wherein I do consume away and languish:
Nor should I yet have seen this vain conceit,
But by the fruit of that vile root of late:
For I did suffer my fond heart to think
That I was setled, so I could not sink:
And that by grace receiv'd I could sustain,
Till from this tent translated I had been:
I doated on his gifts, did not adore
Himself, of whom I did enjoy that store▪
The idol of the heart was set in place
Above the Author of my grace and peace:
And now, therefore, of force confesse I must,
His judgements are both righteous and just:
[Page 55]For grace abus'd, thus gracelesse here to ly▪
In place of peace, in deep perplexity.
Sam.
And art thou past recov'ry, can'st thou say?
Is there no ground of hope whereon to stay?
Or art thou so vain-gloriously affected,
Ev'n when that seed of Satan is dissected?
Hele.
No, but I am therewith infected sore,
That seperate I cannot any more
Therefrom, then from my self, for it's become
Deaf to rebuke, and to defence but dumb.
Sam.
Dost thou not know, for this is still confes [...],
Remnants in us remain undispossest:
Of much perversity, which all our life
To purge, will keep us in continuall strife?
Hele.
And I immunity do not, indeed,
From provocation, or correction plead▪
But this a sprig so privily doth sprout,
And with the root and fruit of grace break out
So sp'ritually, and so commixt convoy'd,
Untill it get the life of grace destroy'd.
Ev'n as these sp'rits, whereby we be enliv'd,
By veins and arteries, the blood deriv'd
Out from the heart the body to maintain,
Unknown contains therewith the bodies bain;
For what I do, or what I do endure,
Progresse in grace to make, or growth procure▪
In mortifying self, self to reform,
This venom unawars doth all deform:
I cannot speak a word by rule of reason,
Nor think nor act religiously in season:
But this vile poyson of spirituall pride,
Doth sliely in the heart deceitfull slide.
[Page 56]This is the thing our King could not endure
In Angels, for by pride they fell impure:
What may I then (base wretch impure) expect,
Who on some drams of grace receiv'd reflect?
I am as if of grace a treasure sure
In store I could at my command procure,
Whereas my conscience shewes that I am stain'd
With all that justly may make me disdain'd:
And that which might this mighty monster check,
His subtilty perverse, detect and break:
But with this tincture now I am so tainted,
And throughly as I were therein indented:
Which when I see, and am ashamed sore,
Haughty hereof I do become the more.
Sam.
And what but grace, in this most fearfull sight,
Could thee sustain against the Serpents slight?
Whereby thou formerly hes still prevailed
'Gainst all the policie he hes assailed.
Hele.
The flesh and sp'rit defil'd with thoughts impure▪
Which carnall hearts do unto lusts allure:
I see and do gainstand by grace, but this
Bred up with grace, grace to displace it is;
And cannot pitch but on the print of grace,
Sincerity of grace for to deface.
Sam.
How then is this thou can so moved be,
Since grace thou does confesse remains in thee:
Whereon this witch doth fix and keep thee waking,
And cast thee over in this fever quaking?
Consider, when a King provok'd hes been
By his own Son, by many pranks obscene,
Should give commands in bands to make him ly
In prison dark, to humble him thereby:
To try if he his folly would repent,
Give orders for his further liberty,
Out of the prison dark to set him free:
And yet this ranting child should still remain
So sensless as to think he could retain
This life of freedom, and abused light,
By his own industry or naturall right:
Were it not then convenient for to cast
Him in the darkest pit in fetters fast,
Till he by pain and pinching hunger there,
Were taught of vain conceits for to despair?
Doth this comparison thy pallat please?
Can'st thou apply it to thy own disease?
And if thou can, then shall it truely prove
The strong effects of a Parentall love.
Hele.
Nothing in nature can decipher more
The case and cause of my distractions sore:
But naturall causes have a naturall cure,
Yet who a wounded spirit can endure?
How far the heavens above the earth doth bend,
Spirituall things our naturall thoughts transcend.
My Princely Parent penetrats the sp'rit,
And loves the single humble heart contrite:
He, He alone, with searching piercing eyes,
This privy pride and arrogancie sees:
And cannot passe't, for it doth derogate
Most from His dispensations intimate.
Hereby in bondage I indure these stounds,
These hellish torments and these deadly wounds
Of conscience, wherein I to death am bleeding,
Forc't by the folly of this fancie feeding▪
Sam.
[Page 58]I would have thought thou shouldst preferred far
Thy Lovers wisdom, and affections were
All similies before could be devis'd
By any finite creature, or advis'd:
Thou by his secret censures sees, he sees
The deepest of these damned subtilties:
And throws thee under bondage, till thou be
Taught how to guard against this devilry.
Now then consider him who sees so brightly,
And in such wisdom makes the wound so rightly:
Physick appoints the poyson for to drain
From the infected soul, and flesh to strain:
Which by experience many children knows
Is tended with the like tormenting throws:
But wants He skill or will, who is our King,
Both health and heav'n out of this hell to bring?
Albeit this tumor must retain a tent,
The remnant of the humour for to vent,
Faith in thy Lover hath this strong perfume,
Which can this poyson pestilent consume.
Hele.
This devilrie so close to me doth cleave,
Which man and angel from my King doth drive,
That I am tott'ring much on this turmoile,
And tortured so, most like to take the foile.
Sam.
Come, come, we ly too long aloof, I see,
Towards the shoar now let us tackling be.
Mistakes, misapplications most miscarries
The minds of many, when their judgements varies:
Bemisted in the want of faith, whereby
They should distinctly see, weigh and apply.
We have been speaking of much fervent love,
Which in thy Lover doth His beloved move;
[Page 59]But now, Oh thou, much loved once, admire,
What most transcendent love doth here appear,
When He redeem'd thee thou wast lost, and yet
Thou wilt thy self destroy, if He permit.
That grace thy Lovers gift (thy glory) should
Thy bain become, imagine this who could?
Or could thou have imagin'd that thy flourish
A cancar-worm into the bud could nourish?
Or that when thou was satisfied with singing,
Thou was unto thy idoll incense bringing?
This cockatrice to kill in secret lyes,
But being seen, she by her venom dies.
Grace from the Author, as from the fountain water,
When cut, becometh putrified mater,
Like blood, which from the heart, through all the veins
In circular motion by the nerves retains
Strength in the members, and returns again,
To pay the tribute and more vigour drain.
But being obstructed, it corrupt becomes,
The member wanting nourishment benums,
Or as our curling brooks and silver streams,
Which from the fountain to the river foames,
By secret cranies, through the ground, the same
Sweet current turns unto from whence she came.
Right so our Lover and our Princely King,
The ocean unexhausted and the spring,
Of whom we have, from whom do derive
All that we do enjoy, in whom we live.
While from this sourse we daily vigour drive,
Life to preserve, and let it passage have,
Uninterrupted to the font amain,
Then it's increast, and we refresht again:
[Page 60]But when these gifts of grace we do seclude
From this right course, we do our selves denude
Of all our comfort, whence doth swiftly grow,
(If not foreseen) our sudden overthrow:
Loves darling then, dost thou not thence conclude,
Thy ardent Lover hath thee dearly lov'd:
Who for a little space his grace restrains,
That thou may seek himself, where grace remains.
This love transcendent might a heart of steel
Melt, when affections do such fervour feel.
Hele.
My heart is rather like a heart of flint,
Which cannot melt, but doth endure the dint.
Sam.
Loves force to flesh thy stony heart converts▪
Hele.
Love unto pride my fleshly heart perverts.
Sam.
A fleshly heart is vices willing slave,
A heart of flesh impressions doth receive
Of grace and vertue, whereby vice it sees,
Resists, subdues, rejoyce in victories.
Hele.
Oh now! was any ever sunk so far
In deaths dark shade, and yet delivered were.
Sam.
Believe me, for I do assure thee, this
Of many children the condition is:
And ne're an abject did as yet bemoan
This ground of grief where-under thou dost groan:
But so it is, that till experience teach,
We do not to the rule of practice reach.
Hele.
Happy, thrice happy should I such esteem,
Who by experience so well taught had been,
To keep that order in his princely sight,
As His sweet company continue might.
Sam.
It's true we are new born again indeed,
And planted here upon heav'ns dew to feed:
[Page 61]But our Bride-groom, with whom there is no change,
Most faithfull bides, in all our failings strange:
Yet will permit to tempt us, for our triall,
As we may best be bred to self-deniall:
The gravell also of this poys'ned flesh
Seeds do ingross, that would spring up afresh,
Unlesse by crosses and corrections meet
They were supprest, and we more purifi'd.
But this in gen'rall we may all conclude,
That ev'ry stripe we get is for our good:
Though bitter, biting, sad and fretting sore,
Sweet fruit unto thy taste shal come the more:
And when by proof we find the sweet effects
Produc'd in ev'ry one our King elects;
As purging potions life and health preserving,
Preventing us from sinking in our swerving:
The old man and his notions so subduing,
The new man and his motions so renewing,
That we in our infirmnesse do rejoice,
And under all our suff'rings do repose
In such submission as sweet peace doth bring,
Whence, out of sorrow, heav'n on earth doth spring:
Whereof if we did not our selves deprive
By fond mistakes, we should delightfull live.
Then for to condescend of force we must,
That no affliction springeth from the dust,
Nor yet temptation doth from fortune flow,
But do by Providence directly grow,
And by heav'ns wisdom unto us apply'd,
That we may be perfected when we're try'd.
Hel.
In ev [...]ry thing this day that can be nam'd,
find my self most worthy to be blam'd;
Which certainly much detriment doth bring
To many, and if that the force of love,
Which in this famous fellowship doth move,
Me to attend, so for my help inclin'd,
Far contrar to my self-conceited mind,
I should have been in this confusion longer,
Weak'ned my self, and made my bands the stronger;
For, till these free discourses do appear,
In this society assembled here,
And by this timous and this tender treating,
Wherein your Grace hath been with me debating,
I never could have thought a soul could live,
To which so much contagion should cleave:
At least a person, in this land of grace,
That could the tract of such vain idols trace.
But now more perfectly I do perceive,
That he who freely sought us out, must save,
And by immediate grace must still preserve:
For daily we to be disgrac'd deserve.
Now to believe, O but I do desire!
But senslesse prove when I would most aspire.
Sam.
Thou shew'st thy self most sensible of hearing:
Consent therefore, thou shalt come unto clearing.
Hel.
Some of Gods sons, as they have heard have seen.
Some, that they might endure, have suff'red been
To take a blink of Him cannot be seen.
Sam.
Now may we clearly see what thou dost mean:
Thou senslesse prov'st, indeed, in thy desirings,
Which properly in thee are proud aspirings:
Its strange thou shouldst be satisfi'd so slightly,
Not vap'ring for high visions more brightly,
[Page 63]Or looking to be rapt above heav'ns arches,
About the borders of the divine marches.
Must thou be steward of the Royal treasure?
Will no less serve thy sense than Moses measure?
Hast thou for such a charge so strong a back?
Should not thy brains below the burden break?
Job, faithfull in incomparable trialls,
In darkest dayes, gave dev'ls and men defyalls:
And never got a blink of light, untill
He fell submissive to his Makers will.
Thou knows we live by faith, and not by sight,
By faith we suffer, and prevail in fight.
Where is the fruit of all that sense receiv'd
By thee before: and what if all that's crav'd,
Were streamed out upon thy strong desires,
Shouldst thou not spend them on thy carnall fires?
And when these sparkles of thy heart were spent,
So much the more thy sorrow should augment,
The child of light, through fearfull darknesse groping,
Takes faster grip and firmer hold, by hoping.
Thou canst not deem, and nothing now thou knows,
Who at the coals of this corruption blows:
Nor see how sliely Lucifer can slide,
At twi-light time, a plant of privy pride:
Ev'n when we do in all our strength resist,
Then can he at the part best fenced thrust,
And cunningly cause us ly open there,
Whereat the poyson'd dart he doth prepare.
This venom all of us do clearly see,
This child of grace her great vexation be:
And when she armed best against it is,
How Satan can infest her with a kisse.
[Page 64]Advert with wonder, heav'nly, earthly hosts,
Wonder, all glorious, glorified ghosts:
Wonders are seen which make you all adore,
Renewed marvels make you wonder more.
Pure spirits, fill the souls of your desirings,
Extend your minds unto these deep admirings,
The quintessence of heav'ns counsell glorious,
Man murder'd, on his murderer victorious,
In suff'ring Satan sift, and so surprize,
And with such depth of subtilty devise
Uncessantly, and in such wyndings lurking
Ev'n in our duties, our destruction working.
But here the myst'ry of salvation is
Crown'd with the cape-stone of eternal bless
Of preservation, by our glorious King,
Who our deliv'rance by his death doth bring:
An instance clear hereof, before our eyes,
All the beholders evidently sees:
A chosen, called, faithfull child of grace,
Who for the prize most fervently doth prease,
Too much neglecting what she had before,
And strongly stretching to increase the more.
One much enrich'd with light, and lively motions▪
Experience deep, and many sp'rituall notions,
In darknesse for deliverance debating,
Her poor condition and her case relating,
Sincerely set, our counsell to receive,
But sylour'd, can her self not undeceive;
For at her best attainment now you see,
How Satan snatches opportunity:
He sees the cup she doth delight to drink,
And in the liquor doth the poyson sink.
[Page 65]Let us infer, from what we have been hearing,
And from this pregnant instance here appearing:
Since all the children of the first Creation
Deservedly are under condemnation,
And that the cause ev'n to the Elect cleaves
So close, as unto any one that lives:
And that we ev'ry one are severally,
According to our humors diversly,
To some deceit or other more propense,
Then can appear by search unto our sense,
Which would unto infinitnesse amount
Above what finite we could make acompt:
And that so many legions of lights,
Malicious devils and spirituall mights,
Our natures, cases, places, erudition,
Daily attend our changes and condition;
And every one with every severall bait,
For every posture on us all await.
For this proud wretch doth desp'ratly disdain,
That we should be restor'd by grace again:
Or that our nature now should be renewed,
Or venom purged out, that he had spued
Therein, whereby we in his Image stood,
Till it be blotted out by divine blood;
Yet we, even we that most enlightned be,
Too carelesse live, before this cruelty▪
Much more, and most for to be blam'd we prove,
Not studying still this boundlesse depth of love,
Which in our Lover moves him feed and keep
His straying, sterving and restored sheep;
Yet all that we can do, doth but increase
Our debt, but more his mercy doth expresse.
[Page 66]This love we clearly cannot look to see,
Untill this body clarified be,
At least, untill it be dissolv'd, that so
The soul her Lover to enjoy may go.
But how is this that we cannot submit
Unto this wisdome, and our selves acquit
By firm believing, as the duty chief,
Whereby from bondage we receive relief?
We see not that our drouping and dejections
His faithfulnesse dishonours, by reflections,
The growth of grace and inward peace obstructs,
The seeds of weeds into the heart conducts,
Th'envyous man with all his snares and cares,
The serpent slie with all his slights and snares,
Canst thou before the fiery tryall stand,
When men and devils do against thee band?
Such are in store, and more, thee to befall,
If fond conceits thy folly foster shall:
Ambition such were much to be commended,
Which with sobriety might be defended:
But ye who by confiding quiet may
Repose, beware presumption to bewray.
The Lark, the Princely Eagle ne're envyes,
Suppose she see him skifting through the skies:
Ten thousand stage above her highest higher,
The suns resplendant beams and beauty nigher.
I am too tedious, but to be excused,
Such disputs to anticipate are used.
Dear daughter, once disdain for to repine
At dispensations that are so divine:
Restrain the rising of such grosse deceits:
Refrain devising of such crosse debates.
[Page 67]A little faith finds out a fair relief.
Say, I believe, Lord help my unbelief,
And once resolve submission sincere,
Like to the pupill in the fathers fear,
Till which thou cannot put thy faith in act,
To comfort thee, though thou thy brains should crack:
Come then, threap kindnesse yet upon thy King,
Tell him that in the prison thou wilt sing
His praises, and ne're cease untill thou see
His face in grace, and then imbraced be.
This counsell, daughter, for to practice strive,
For it shall prove the way to make thee thrive;
He either shall the cloud of mist remove,
Or thee remove the clouds and mist above,
Where thou's be feasted in a minuts space,
With all the fruits of thy believing grace:
And from that instant, in eternity
Thy King enjoying shall rejoycing be.
Hele.
O fearfull cloud of separation sad,
What heart can hear and not for fear fall mad?
Oh, wonderfull! that ye so wise can move
Me to unmoved stand, who must remove,
Where death bound ghosts down go, depriv'd of light,
And suffer so in an eternall night.
Sam.
How art thou now come up at words to carpe?
Perverting sense, and using censures sharp,
And wherein thou convinced art before,
Would lead us unto repetitions more:
But lend a blink unto our travels past,
And thou thy self wilt censure for thy haste,
For we are leading thee into believing,
While thou unto thy facile sense art cleaving.
Hele.
[Page 68]Oh, to believe 'twere possible for me,
But till I can, excuse, I cannot lie:
And well I know it is Gods love constrains
You to this more then ordinary pains:
And I shall let you see I do not slight
Your travels, but do still recent them right:
For I confesse, your presence all before,
There's not a word hath past you less or more,
In reference to my condition duely,
But found so plain, I do apply it truely:
And I shall not deny but I have tasted
The Heav'nly Manna, and thereon have feasted:
And at the fountain have refreshed been,
Therein revived and returned clean.
And that when (slumbring) I began to swell,
I have been left in darknesse for to dwell,
Untill it pleas'd my King, who knows my pain,
For my relief me to revive again.
I likewise do confesse what ye have said,
In ref'rence unto provocations made,
Which have recited been by severall here,
And pertinently made for to appear
From sound experience, much diversity,
And nearest numberlesse variety,
That with the like I have been led astray▪
And drawn upon my self a cloudy day:
The crosse did with corruption so increase,
I forc'd have been my folly to confesse,
For I might read in every severall rod
Real offences against a righteous God,
Who yet from wretched me did not remove
His tender mercy, faithfulnesse and love:
His goings were for wak'nings unto me.
Again, I shall not take unto denyals,
But that I have acquainted been with tryals
From all the Fiends and their infernall states,
Where I have often felt and dealt debates.
His brood within his instruments without,
Inviron and invest me round about,
And yet from all their cruelty and spight
Have been preserv'd from that malicious might,
And where they had permission to perplex,
Turn'd to my good, and them the more may vex:
And as this is by you my friends affirmed,
Is likewise now by me again confirmed.
But not the lesse, [...]lace, that I can say,
I have no benefite thereby this day:
You have been arguing long and I replying,
Contending much, and many things denying,
Wherein convinc'd that ye the right maintain,
Yet know ye not what sorrows I sustain,
For I had never darknesse known aright,
If once I had not seen the shining light,
Nor what it were to be beslav'd with devils,
If of their seed I had not seen the evils,
Nor what deliv'rance or defence could mean,
If fearfull danger were not something seen,
But while so many eminent I see,
For light and life, inlargement, liberty,
Forsaken, and before the tryall fail,
How can I then presume for to prevail,
Who now so long, so fearfully do ly,
Without relief or hope of remedy?
[Page 70]If ye my dolours knew, ye would deplore
That wofull anguish and vexation sore
That I am wrangled with and wrapped in,
When terrours of the second death begin,
Of outward suffering I make no acount,
Although they do (ye know) too much amount:
A raging devil in the wicked reeling,
Venting their venom with villanous reviling.
Professed friends do privily supplant
The most engaged in their ranting taunt:
And being held in fetters, raging roar,
Because they cannot reach for to devour
My person, means, profession and my name.
To burie in the dust of death they dream.
But when the prince of darknesse doth begin,
This dark and dozned heart again within,
To raise his works, and to enlive his brood,
What can I (men) lesse then lost wretch conclude?
And more, this tyrant hath attain'd the leading
Of my affections, ev'n while I am pleading
Against his faunings and his flatt'ring baits,
Whereby I dragged am in dang'rous straits,
And cannot stint, because I have no strength,
Nor hope to be relieved at the length;
For this I sigh, for this I weep and mourn,
For this my bowels in my belly turn,
For this I seperate my self alone,
For this my blood and moisture both are gone.
Because the Comforter, that can relieve
My heart, no answer for my grief doth give:
But in this desp'rate case, at distance keep,
While all these serpents do about me sweep
[Page 71]With open jaws, sharp claws and cruell sting,
Trusting to sink, and swallow quick, they sing▪
Sam.
Well I perceive, you have at length been plain,
Yet all doth turn unto one thing again,
Except some aggravation of the space,
The measure and ingredients in the case:
This closse eclipse, with storms of flying fire,
Darknesse and thundring bolts of dreadfull ire
From devils and from every instrument
They could devise, to work they detriment,
And then least for thy self to stand and fight,
So far above thy cunning and thy might:
Partly, because that thou hes known them fall,
Compar'd with thee a shrub, were cedars tall;
But yet look over thine accounts, and cast,
Thou may come to a reckoning right at last.
These persons eminent at first did yeeld,
They never try'd the fight upon thee field:
And look again aright, and thou shalt see
Such as thy self triumph in victory:
Who in the fight by slight have oft been foil'd,
And yet by strength renew'd, the spoiler spoild:
Consider also, if thou couldst have stood
Before old Belial and his brutish brood:
If they were not by chains of strength restrain'd,
And thou to use thy armes aright were train'd.
The measure and the space which most doth move thee,
Is the appointment of thy Prince to prove thee:
That thou may taste His power in preserving,
Under thy want and weaknesse of deserving.
Do no more plague thy self with this debate,
Against this blessed and believing state.
[Page 72]A fixed faith all slavish fear removes,
And in its orbe unto the Author moves:
For measure, time and means, simplie surrender
Thy self to Him, He is wise, kind and tender,
Whereof much rich experience thou abuses,
And for tranquillity this torment chuses:
Wherein be sure thou shalt be tortured, till
Thou do submit sincerly to His will.
Hele.
Now do I well perceive by your discourse,
I have not soundly looked to the sourse
Of dispensations, as I might have seen,
A secret providence did me sustain,
Ev'n in these darkest dayes and dangers dread,
Which all my torture and my torment breed:
For if I had, then had I never thought
These fiery-brands, that my vexation wrought,
Had loosed been, but were in fetters ty'd,
And suff'red but to bark till I were try'd.
I likewise see (as you have said) that such,
Who in a flourish hes professed much,
The field did never by confession face▪
But turn'd in searching tryals with disgrace.
And for the measure and the space, I know
It's good for me so to be keped low:
I suffered was many essayes to take,
Which weigh'd aright, might many humble make,
And upon me there lyes, unto believing,
More real bands then upon any living:
And now, that I should limit him, doth wound
Me most, to whom I am so deeply bound:
And that I have so wilfully resisted
The sp'rit, whereby you have with me insisted;
[Page 73]For I have doing been what in me lay
My soul unto the murderer to betray:
But now my Saviour worthily shall have
His will, for He, I see, will me but save:
And here I do acknowledge my mistakes,
And that my diffidence the dottage makes:
Bemisted in the mud so have I been,
And so gainsaid what I have felt and seen:
The truth of all that ye have now exprest
Is clear to me, and so by me confest;
For He my Lover, is not only wise,
And strong and fair, and lovely in mine eyes,
But He is wisdom, beauty, might and love,
Where all delihgts most eminently move,
His countenance the Suns bright rayes obscures,
His love the adamantine heart allures,
His wisdom all His works in order dresses,
His might maintains His right, and pride suppresses:
And I am bound His bountie to believe,
Which changes not, but shall my sp'rit relieve,
In His good time, on whom I do rely,
And studie shall my self how to deny.
Sam.
Now art thou happy, and my heart is glad
To see thy faithfull heart from fainting fred:
Hold fast and follow hard with firm desires,
Faith quenches not, but kindles sacred fires.
Hele.
It doth become me well to wait, I see;
But, Oh again, that He would smile on me:
How shall I find Him out? and where, I pray?
Sam.
Hold straight, believe me, thou art in the way:
Deck up thy self, approach, He sees thee come,
And with His comforts shall thee overcome.
[Page 74]The Royal King a Princely Garden plants
With curious flowres, and thither daily haunts,
Feeding among the Lillies, smelling Roses,
Nuts, Spices and perfums, composing Poses.
A sweet Loves feast for thee He doth prepare
Down in the fruitfull flow'ry valleys there;
And from the valley shall convey thee thence,
Where thy try'd faith in that long long'd for sence
Is swallowed up, there, where the marriage loves
Exceeding all conceiv'd desires thou proves:
There, where He shall thy faith bred soul imbrace
Within the consolations of His face:
Wherein the splendor of that brightnesse poring,
And in the glory of that glore adoring,
Renewed rayes, immortall life restoring,
Admiring, magnifying, and sweetly soaring
High up amongst these holy, heavenly hosts
Of glorious and glorified ghosts,
With golden harps about the throne who sing
New songs of their redemption to their King.
Hele.
O but these sweet expressions relish well,
My frozen heart begins to melt I feel▪
These words unto my wearied soul I think,
Like precious oyl so savingly do sink,
Slides down, like my Beloveds wine so sweetly,
Wakens from sleep, my tongue to speak compleatly.
O that once for Himself He would me seal!
What can be nam'd that may with love prevail:
Insist therefore, For I do gladly hear,
And till the tongue be loos'd shall lend the ear.
Sam.
The weakest means have force enough to move
Affections, when they be surpriz'd with love.
[Page 75]He cals and sees thee come from mountains steep,
Which Leopards and cruel Lyons keep,
Leaning on thy Beloved, who doth love
His truth and strength at length to see thee prove.
Observe with me this brief gradation now,
And I shall cease a space and hearken you.
For help to our capacity, compare
The outward splendor of this fabrick, where
By nature from the caverns of the womb,
Out of which dungeon to the world thou came:
Again compare the difference aright
Betwixt this Paradice and that dark night
Of nature, which the other so transcends,
As over bodies lively sp'rits ascends,
And there the diff'rence vast again conceive,
Betwixt the life of sense we shall receive,
And this of faith, wherein we forward thrust,
Untill we be refined in the dust.
When interruptions all shall be removed,
And we inlarg'd to love as we be loved,
In knowing and injoying him who is
The Author of our everlasting blesse.
In this gradation we may something see,
But under what it is infinitley.
The Warning.
Jea.
OUr dearest friend unto his charge again
Is gone, and I no longer may remain:
But ere we part, sweet girle, I must thee give
Some warnings, that thou may more warily live.
Thou hast been weighted in this absence short,
But sees not what the journey may import,
Now thou art glistering fair upon the mountain,
Extracting life from the life-giving fountain,
They Sp'rits sp'rituallized are, and poring,
Thy clearer apprehensions highly soaring,
Both bred and fed by divine excellencies,
And breathings of the sweetest influences,
And so delighted art to shine by grace,
And holinesse before thy Lovers face:
But yet remember when thou sadly lay
In bondage, under absence, then this day
Of so clear seeing, if thou couldst conceive
Right, so bethink, if now thou canst believe,
That ever such a thing should thee befall,
As may again thy liberty enthrall:
But in the bodie while thou art, beware,
For we are tempted, and in danger are
To be insnar'd, for the old man is prone
To snatch at every bait before us thrown:
For this, I wish thee wisely to uptake
The case of every child of God, and make
[Page 86]The diff
[...]rence right 'twixt the rebellious man
And the obedient, new-born Christian;
The last a weakling, but a willing child.
The first both wicked, false, perverse and wild,
Upon whose back the crosse, the rod must ly:
The serpents brood may be born down thereby
Which both so numerous and so nimble be,
As atoms in the air before thine eye:
Or vapours-like from brooks corrupt that rise
And do the shining of the Sun surprise:
Such is the sinning sin, such is the seed
Of Sathan in the soul, such is the breed
Whereby the new-born Christian is annoy'd,
Till by the grace of Christ they be destroy'd.
Worldly desires, delights, cares, fears to daun.
The weeds of carnall lust how to supplant,
So as the seed of grace may sweetly spring,
Which successe makes us under sadnesse sing;
Believing certainly the truth of this,
That all these troubles shall encrease thy bless.
And presuppose, by dispensations yet,
Thou wert rapt up into an higher fit,
Whereby in Paradise thou could'st behold
Above what either should or could be told:
Couldst thou, who doest in this flesh temple dwell,
Indure these rayes, and neither rust nor swell?
No, under cloud again thou must retreat,
And with the messenger of Satan meet:
Enter the lists therefore▪ by faith defend
Thy Crown, by perseverance to the end;
For if thou carnally become secure,
Thy fall shall all thy comlinesse obscure.
[Page 87]When under sad desertion thou wanders,
And knowst not what thou dost, nor where thou danders,
But doest what all thy dayes makes thee asham'd,
When thou art smittenand by grace reclaim'd.
These dreadfull, dolefull these disastrous dayes,
When on our souls the subtill Serpent prayers:
These weaknings, warnings, warmings dipt in love,
These smels from heaven, which affections move,
Are meas'red out according to the need
Of every member, by the carefull Head:
And if to do, or to endure thou be
Appointed, then anointed thou shalt be
With grace sufficient unto stedfastnesse,
And get a blink to comfort in distresse:
So as a Christian, in thy sufferings all
Christ's glorifi'd, wherein thou glory shall:
And argue may thou art in Him compleat,
When Head and members in affliction meet.
But thou must be upon thy guard, and watch,
Against the Serpent▪ at thy soul doth snatch:
He will uncessantly against thee fight
By stratagems, renew'd by day and night,
With snares, and nets, and grins laid in the way,
To hold thee fast, when thou dost slide or stray;
And where he finds thee weak or wandring, will
Enter thy breach, and break thee by his skill.
Corruption from within makes open doors,
To what temptations from without occurres.
And sometime Syren-like he will assail
With flatt'ries, but if he do not prevail,
He will affright thee with a thousands fears,
Which on thy sp'rit that evil spirit rears.
[Page 88]There is no course God for our help doth take,
To keep us humble or our comfort make▪
But he doth thereunto himself apply,
To make us doat or else despair thereby.
By mediat means when he doth not prevail,
Then by his fiercest darts he will assail,
And levell at thy faith, the fruit of grace,
Thy hope and love, the new man to deface.
He will suggest, inject vile monst'rous notions
Into distrust, of Atheisme the motions,
And seek no better party then our reason,
To parly with him on the points of treason:
Capitulation-proof, he knows to be
Means to o'recome, experimentallie.
Now then the sp'rituall armour timous take,
And to the fight of faith with fervour make,
Under the Royall standard of thy love
Advance, and by his martiall motions move.
Thou know'st Gods secret ones to circumveen,
No hellish plots have unattempted been;
And what cannot the devil yet contrive,
According as his malice doth him drive?
And what is it he can contrive, but sure,
A man to act it out, he shall procure?
For unto such an instrument he can
Masked materials furnish for the man:
And wicked men have still an open ear,
The serpent's subtile whisperings to hear:
And at a wink can change his voice and sight,
Shining Saint-like in much angelick light:
To gaine his point how far he shall prevail
By fained friendship, fawning shall assail.
[Page 89]In such commixtion, and so deep devise,
Here to supplant, and there for to surprise:
But when this craft doth crosse his closse design,
Then in a spleen he sharps his cruell sting,
And in his fury kindles fiery tryals
For all that dare give his commands denyals.
And never think it strange that man forsaken
Of God, hath now of Satan service taken:
Since Law, nor Gospel, Instance, Word or Rod
Will waken, or reclaim lost man to God:
But they in wicked obduration, will
Persist, their fathers lusts for to fulfill.
Or that the devil rationall man can make,
Sometime the colours of a Saint to take:
Another time in tyrrany to boyle,
By cruelty the blood of Saints to spoyle:
For he of every man the Idol knows,
And at his feet his full contentment throws,
And lets him see this is the way alone
To rise, to stand, to settle in his throne:
And cannot this deceiver, thus deceive,
In making him vain-vile-man to conceive,
That when he hath receiv'd the world in hyre
To his ambitious carnall hearts desire:
That as a Saint he hath it to possesse,
And for his followers as their propernesse.
So as they may by any slight or might
People suppresse, for to maintain that right.
Is not this truth whereon we fix our standing
Clear, that the devil hath man at his commanding.
Prophets, Apostles false, false Christs, also
We warned are to guard against, ye know.
[Page 90]Who when like rav'ning Wolves they be within,
Cloathed like sheep, can so present their skin.
Since Cain first his brothers blood did spill,
The first-born man, the second man did kill:
Unto this day men-murd'rers are lurking,
And as they moved be do fall a working.
But lest man should, when he is settled, think
Upon his wicked course, and then forethink
His villany, the devil leads him fair
Upon exploits and deep devices rare:
To make him famous and his fancie feed,
So as his thoughts no further may proceed.
And see ye not some worldly Monarchs great,
For to maintain and to increase their stare,
Are only set their neighbours to disthrone,
That they may reign and only rule alone:
And therefore guard against this strong temptation,
This trying flame of cruell tribulation:
But be not moved, for they cannot smite,
But as God for his glory doth permit;
And in the tryall of his Saints he will
Them humble, but thereby their joyes fulfill.
For thy triumphant King, and Captain just,
These mights, their slights down at his feet shall thrust.
The shining Cherub from his brightnesse shall
Together with the fairest Cedar fall.
The Beast, the Prophet and the Whore flagitious,
With all their pomp, their spleen and pride pernicious,
Whose terrour troubled men while they did live,
The fiery lake the fatall stroak shall give.
Then be not mov'd, the change may glad thy heart,
When from their heav'n they to their hell depart.
[Page 91]Thou from thy hell at heaven shall arrive,
While they in bail, in blesse thou's ever live:
For when the devil, by his instruments,
With the blood of Saints doth mix the Elements.
Shall not these suff'rings, then so much the more,
Shorten their journey and increase their glore:
And are they not o'rejoyed when they see
Their blood include the Church felicitie.
But for thy further tryall, yet again,
What if the Lord the influence should restrain
Of light, and life, and liberty, even when
Thou art the butt of hell and hellish men?
This▪ this is it should make the tryall sad,
For if his face upon thy soul thou had
Shining, thou should'st disdain that dreadfull crew
Of devils and all the darts they could renew:
But in this exigent he is so near,
That when thou least expects he shall appear:
And when thou hast thine own frail faintings felt,
Immediate love and mercy shall thee melt:
And yet what if that thy good God advise
A deeper draught, thy folly to surprise.
We are so prone to fix on proofs, we prove
Both naturall in our faith, our hope, our love:
What then when in the light thou seems to live,
And in much lively liberty revive,
And with much confidence thou dost conceive
That all that thou hast sought, thou shalt receive▪
And yet thou art not only quite denyed,
But the response is contrary replyed:
Well this is sharp, but certainly it's sweet,
That divine checks should with our idol meet.
[Page 92]That when vain we would our own morcels carve,
We should be left in hazard for to starve:
Himself, Himself alone, and nothing else,
But what of him, and of His vertue smels.
He, and not we, knows what is for our good,
And never will His own thereof denude;
Both how and when to help, for he doth hear
Our sp'rituall supplications, all sincere:
Which qualified according to His will,
He fails not for our well, but shall fulfill.
What if again, poor weakling, yet alace,
Thou shouldst ly groaning at the Throne of grace,
And knowst not how to seek, or what to say,
Far lesse can presse or pertinently pray?
Yet this is good, God sees thy strong desires,
And flames the sacrifice with sacred fires:
And to His praise, doth make our peace appear,
Out of the odours of our sighs sincere:
So that, as yet, we may convinced be,
That all His gifts are grace and mercy free:
For tho the way be strait and full of snares,
And we infirm, possest with fears and cares:
Our fault it is, we do not soar above
What tempests all the gates of hell can move.
We should an heaven upon earth enjoy,
If thus we did believe, thus him imploy,
On him repose, him love, in him delight:
Who is th'ingraven-form, and glory bright
Of the eternall God, in whom we have
Accesse by grace, to come, seek and receive
All that is for our good, who so doth give
Above what we can ask, seek or believe.
Hele.
[Page 93]Enough, enough, there needs no more,
My Lover doth my life restore:
[...]n him alone I move, I live,
And bound I am him to believe:
Affections cannot have the force
From his dear love me to divorce.
The flatteries, frowns, the hooked baits,
Whereby the cunning hunter waits
To snatch me unawars, my eyes
Anointed are, and clearly sees
The lying Serpent sliely lurking,
And in his brood most boldly working
Both from within and from without.
But my most Royal Captain stout
Hath crusht the Serpents cruell head,
And pleads my cause against his seed,
And daily helps me to subdue
The old man and his notions new,
To purge the heart and make it clean,
And in temptation doth sustain
My fainting, and my failings crave
Both food and physick, these I have.
And when I suffer with my Love,
Such comforts as come from above,
And on my sp'rit conferred be,
By His good Sp'rit, spiritually:
That if the Devil knew, he would
Restrain his malice if he could.
So what can interrupt my peace
In this free, full, unchanged grace:
Untill through times and trials we
Make entry in eternity.
Jea.
[Page 94]Enough, enough, I do confesse indeed
With this, which is, in watchfulnesse proceed,
Guard well against security, and sure
Thou shalt from swerving be the more secure.
These wak'nings, and these warmings of affections,
As antidotes unto thy dull dejections▪
Out of the cisterns of salvation spring,
Whence we, in sucking consolation, sing:
And if we hereby do our strength renew,
For stormy tempests that be to ensue,
Then happy we, when we have rightly used
These mercies rich; But when they be abused,
By fond conceiving that they shall endure,
We fall asleep, and carnally secure:
And sure, before we be aware, we shall
In slipp'ry places slide, or catch a fall:
And in that slumber be surpris'd again,
And with disgrace shall our Profession stain.
Most bitter proof and sad experience dear
Hes made this truth in ages all appear:
That many sons go groaning to the grave,
For grieving him, so graciously does save:
By whose immediate mercifull supply
They be sustain'd that still dependent be:
There is no reason for our standing, but
Eternall love that chois'd us, changed not.
Infinite mercie seen can also move
The finite thing, infinite love to love.
Thus living dyving in this sweet abysse▪
I leave thee, in a most transcendent blesse:
And to my charge again shall now apply,
And thou by sure experience shalt try
[Page 95]The precious fruit of precious time so spent,
That these thy pains thou never shalt repent.
But as of my infirmnesse thou wast tender,
My Lord to thee shall recompences render
Abundantly▪ above what finite we
Can seek, believe, or think, infinitely.
Gris.
I likewise go, farewell, my friends most dear,
Who witness were unto these wonders here.
Our King, how comely in his comings be,
And in his goings, for our goods is He?
You see what sadnesse in his absence is,
And in his presence what a heav'n of blesse:
And that through godly sorrow from within,
Our sp'rituall comforts rise▪ and do begin.
Now seek His Name, for therein ye shall see
His mercy meeting with your misery:
And that His grace and His unchanged love
[...]s greatly our ingratitude above:
And that His Name, as precious ointments sweet
Of fragrant smell, the Virgins pure invite;
For in these ornaments he doth appear
Amongst us in the Pallace-garden here,
Where, by his breathings, mixt with warming showres,
[...]eds out in flourishes our sweetest flowres,
[...]nd spices, that he doth delight to see,
[...]mell, taste, defend, and cause to fructifie.
[...]here shall we find our friends frequent that place,
[...]ceiving and communicating grace,
[...]o know our King, as he doth visits give;
[...] there the dwyning soul he doth revive:
[...]e blind, the deaf, the dumb, the lame also,
[...]o see, and hear, and speak, and come, and go,
[Page 96]And for the stately pallace royall, fair,
He purifies the comers and prepare.
Come, let us come, for here his glorious Name
Of all the Students is the only theam:
And all these curious Mazes and Meanders
Delightfull be unto the understanders:
Attending still till they translated be
Into the mansions of eternity.
A SONG OF DEGREES, Ascending from what we were in Nature, to what we are in Grace, and thence to what we shall be by believing.
NOw Saviour dear, my soul receive,
Flesh, blood and bones slides to the grave
Grace hath procur'd, by argument
Of Nature, now, a full consent,
That the body shall remain
Asleep till I return again;
And that I shall approach and prove,
Sweet Saviour, now, thy saving Love,
Amongst these mansions shining bright,
Where souls are feasting on thy sight▪
And at what instant thou dost call,
The body then assume I shall;
That thence restor'd for evermore,
We in thy face may God adore:
That seeing there as we are seen,
Where never cloud doth interveen,
Nor subtile serpent shall appear,
With syren songs to tempt the ear,
So set our present thoughts above;
As is the Heaven of heavens so far
From thoughts infirm, that finite are:
But yet because the Glory there
Transcends believing, let us spare,
And set our Songs in order right,
According to our present Light
Of faith, which fraught with wonders clear,
By pond'ring makes grac'd-men admire.
His Love and beauty still increasing,
While we His praises be expressing:
Let us make His Glorious Name
Our deepest thoughts, our chiefest theam:
So as we may with singing move,
In joyfull Songs of Praise and Love.
His Name, His Name most highest high,
Essentiall God in Majesty;
Who with the Father and the Sp'rit,
As Counseller, did take delight
In this most Glorious Universe,
And here with men for to converse,
By wisdome viewing all the wonders
That now appear, surpassing numbers;
In these magnificent degrees,
And statutes of eternities:
All things by Omnipotency,
From nothing, op'ning instantly.
Omniscience, all things observing,
His providence all things preserving,
In all their comings, goings, courses,
Places, cases, and recourses,
Set by supream preordination,
Of that eternall counsell standing,
And unsearchably commanding:
Seen and unseen varieties,
Diversities, rarieties,
From that Infinity proceeding,
Transcending this dimm twi-light reading:
Even in these clear excellencies,
That obvious be unto our eyes;
Far lesse find out Him infinite,
In His perfections full compleat:
Incomprehensible and pure,
Uncheangable, that does indure:
But let our faithfull thoughts be fixt
Upon that new creation next,
Wherein we deeply be concern'd
To dive, and be divinely learn'd:
Not by the line of humane learning,
But by the spirit of discerning;
To know how that most fatall fall
The race of Adam damned all,
Deserv'dly left (and so forlorn)
In bands of death and darknesse born:
Till in that Counsell now admired,
That wisdom wonderfull umpired,
Mercy and justice entering band,
In upright righteousnesse to stand,
To ransome from that rotten stock,
And so redeem a saved flock;
By sep'rating a second Root,
That should produce a precious fruit.
Regenerat, renew, confirme:
Whereby the power of His Sp'rit,
The marvell of all marvels meet,
When Members mysticall implanted
Be in the divine nature fainted;
As being in the Head divine,
Where God doth in His fulnesse shine:
For by this mysterie adored,
Christ mystical's from death restored.
Here Soveraignity does shine,
And Love anterior to time,
Unto the Elect does appear
Illustrious, and shining clear,
Omniscience, observing all.
And every one about this ball,
In every one, and all their cases,
That by His pleasure He imbraces:
Omnipotency, such preserving,
As be convinc'd of no deserving:
His providences likewise prove
The firmnesse of His faithfull Love;
The travell of His Soul reviving,
In that all-wonderfull contriving,
And fully satisfi'd therein:
Because the fruit should purge our sin,
Whereby we ly in bands of wrath,
Untill we do apply His death:
Opening our eyes to see, with grief,
Our selves, and Him a sure relief:
Firmly fixing in our thought
The wondrous wayes, whereby he brought▪
From reasonlesse to rationall men:
From reason render'd reasonlesse,
Not standing in our steadfastnesse;
But prostitute to sinfull lust,
Were under death and darknesse thrust:
Again, this true, eternall Love,
Mov'd by His Sp'rit, again to move
Upon that then confused masse,
More marr'd then the first Chaos was.
When this good Sp'rit to order wrought
That glorious work from nothing brought:
Whereby we may our weaknesse see,
The more observant hence to be:
Impressions pressing on the heart,
From which he never will depart,
Untill His Image be repair'd,
And we for glorie be prepar'd,
But guides us all the way we go:
And when we wander warns us so,
That through a world we are led
Of snares, that be before us spred:
Where swarms of devils are devising
Daily, our darkned souls surprizing;
And what a fray of lusts unclean,
Are from the spawn of satan seen;
Kindled, and cannot quenched be,
Untill corruption crushed be.
O wonder now! and wondering sing▪
The praises of this wondrous King:
God His own Son, Gods sole delight,
The life of man, the worlds light;
That he might die for mans up-making:
Obscur'd, be put to grief and brusing,
And all with chiefest pleasure chusing,
In time prefixt, His Seed to see,
EMANUEL marvelous will be:
And now, as then, divinely seeing,
Imbraces in this glorious being:
Every minut under time,
Souls redeem'd from every clime,
Where this glorious Gospel's sounding,
Alairts and parts this globe surrounding;
Swarming up in severall Legions,
Received in celestiall regions:
And ordered in prepared places,
According to their gifted graces.
This is our glorious King of Hosts,
Sing to His praise, you blessed ghosts:
For at His feet you [...] foes do fall,
While He conveens, combines you all:
Because your high and glorious Head,
His fulnesse you and Members made:
His pains your gains, His glory now
Made Him delight to be with you.
Angels in these wonders using,
Minds apted rapted be in musing:
And ministring their service still,
Adoring do His glorious will;
And Souls redeem'd their songs begin,
This glory as they enter in:
And we in contemplation now,
Delight to sympathize with you:
Your King, and in His glory soaring:
Swiming in Oceans of delights,
And visions of transcendent sights.
These glorious objects of your seeing,
The subject of your singing being,
When His comfortable reflectings
Shines upon your crosse neglectings,
And your putting Him to grief
Meets with this Royal Grace-relief:
Seeing now as you are seen,
And knowing that you might have been
Amongst the damn'd, by your deserving,
Under utter darknesse starving:
Where millions every minut rumble,
And in endlesse torments tumble:
While you upon His face do feed,
And the righteous reasons read
Of all His judgements, just and high,
That holy and unchanged be.
When all the Generations
Of men, since the creations,
And Angels, come, both good and bad,
To hear their sentence sweet and sad:
When at the twinkling of an eye,
The wicked shall rejected be,
And will endure eternall pain,
Rather then see that face again,
In righteous judgement justly burning,
For their grievous guilty spurning:
When the Faithfull father'd aright,
Remain rejoicing in His sight:
And now incorporate in the head:
Wherein of God all fulnesse growes,
And on the Members overflowes;
Here men and Angels clearly see
The Counsells of eternity,
Wherein the Son of God rejoyced
Eternally to see proposed
This state of Sonship to the Saints,
With whom espoused now He haunts
In heavens of blesse so far above,
As is the heavens we see to move
This earth above, and passe accounts,
As infinite finite surmounts,
From ev'ry severall soul, whose cases,
Differs further then their faces:
But when in these infinities
We enter, and eternities,
And in the pleasures thereof placed,
And glory there by grace imbraced;
According to the great design
Of God, our Lord doth then resign
Power, Kingdome and authority
To God alone, who sets him free
Of all his foes, who be brought down,
When he receives the Royall C [...]own
Of triumph, now Christ mysticall,
Fully compleat who filleth all:
Now in Hi [...] Bride redeem'd rejoycing,
And she with joy on Him reposing,
In these vast dimensions bright,
Where He alone is all her light.
The subjects of their Songs each one:
Nor could created-heavens contain
These glorious Songs, there heard and seen,
Sounding out from every airt,
And every soul a severall part:
And in such order sweet compos'd,
As all the heavens shall be rejoyc'd
In the uncessant consolation
Of this redeemed corporation,
When the King of Kings, the Head,
A King hes every Member made,
And Priest, to offer praises due,
And constantly their Songs renew.
But as we said, so let us cease,
Towards these mysteries to prease:
Eye hes not seen, ear cannot hear,
Nor heart conceive, till we appear,
What for the Chosen was prepar'd,
And then it duely be declar'd:
Only by believing this,
Shall be above believing blesse:
And blessednesse, which might allay
All our wrestlings in the way,
And under hope the soul sustain,
Untill we may the fruit obtain;
When we shall joine, and be victorious,
In that triumphant state so glorious;
And springing through the Skies, shall sing
All joyfull praises to our King.
FINIS.