happy byrth A wakes the powers both of heav'n and earth In a melodious harmony to ring A peale of Hale-lu-jahs to their King And so it is for whiles these shepheard boyes Who Pan-like pipe their pastorall Oades and Joyes On oaten reeds had softly laid them down To watch their flocks from stealth's confusion Lo th'Angell Gabriel from heav'ns glorious throne Is sent t' unclasp heav'ns long clasp'd sanction And tell them that their greater Pan was borne Whose stafe and sheep-hook should be made of thorn Feare not says he my frends I come t' unfold The sweetest news that ever yet was told In heav'ns high Senat or in earths deaf-eare Let such then as have eares to heare mee heare For lo In Bethlehem there 's born to day That Hyerarchick-prince whose hands must sway The trinall-Mace of heav'n of earth and hell And all those armies in then bosom dwell Thus hath hee spoke and straight a glorious Chore Of Angels in a Diapason's loare Second his message with the sweetest sound That in D-la-sol or in E-la's found Glory say they be to the Lord on high To men all peace and all prosperity And upon earth let blessings and good-will Each hungry maw and empty cup full-fill Ne're did the fractions of a ratling thunder When first it bursts the roarid-clowd asunder Bring more affrightning terror to the eare Of some weake stripling conquered by feare Then doth this Vision wound the soule and sence Of these poore shepheards fraught with ignorance Yet up say they goe let us quickly try The truth of this so strange a Heraldry For sure hee must bee some great Potentate Of whom so great things be prognosticate And he whom these Seraphick Chores adore Must own an earthly Monarchy and more To Bethleems walls then in all haste they run Before Aurora could display the Sun And finde the Saviour of the world display'd And in poore Bethleems armes despis'd and layd Not usher'd nor attended but with wake Neglect and penury for our plenties sake Here O what find they or what find they not A Lamp of light ecclips'd with darknesse blot A new-born Babe yet got before all time A spotlesse Lamb yet spotted with our crime A King of Kings yet served as a slave A Lord of life yet vassal'd to the Grave A very God yet cloath'd with flesh and bone A Prince yet harbour'd in Confusion What 's here I pray that carnall eyes or sense Can honour with Religious reverence A Carpenter a Hand-maid and a child A Cottage and a Crib with beasts defil'd Yet loe for all that basenesse they behold They tell to Mary what the heav'ns have told To them whose heart doth all those sayings hide Till God and Time her doubtings should decide But ay me happy happy Virgin-maid Me thought of late my staggering Mase had stray'd Too farre in pointing out thy humbled station In thy Sonnes dark eclipsed Incarnation But ah I see sublunar griess doe still Renew their Tides for e'r they obbe they sill And glut themselves with our afflictions load Untill our grave become our last aboad Needs therefore must I rouze once more my quill And make her drink once more the Nectar'd rill Of divine Numbers that I may expresse Those teares that toyle and bitter wofull case With which thy harmlesse heart is pierced thorow Whilst thy deare suckling our first griefs doth borrow Seven times hath Titan now with swift Cariere Run all th'Ecclyptick of his bandilier And couching seven times in th'Atlantick deep Hath lull'd as oft Earths drowsie globe asleep Loe now his eight and new approaching Ray Hath call'd on Phaeton to proclaim the Day And by the sacred Ceremonious Rites Of Legall sanctions now the Heav'n invites The ever blessed Virgin-maid to sacre Her Sonne by Circumcision mans Peace-maker But ah great Nymph what dost thou now and why Greet'st thou thy Sonne with such a cruelty That ev'n in stead of those sweet warbling aires That should his griefes beguile and charm his cares Thou mak'st the Runnals of his pretious blood Distain the ground in so impetuous flood What hast thou quite forgot that pitious strain Which Nature wafting in affections Main On all that tender Progeny bestowes Which from her bowels and her belly flowes Or tell me dost thou think that this poor vail Of flesh wherein th'Eternall's Sonne doth dwell Although it truly was assum'd in thee Can ev'r partake thy sinfull Leprosie No no I feare dread Nymph I wrong too sore Thy Loves deep Ocean and thy Faith 's rich store For ne're a drop of that his Crimson dye Fall's to the ground but with a Sympathy Of griefes of teares and sorrow-ringing-knell Thou didst his scriechings and his teares bewail Yea what is more I finde thee Royall Dame So wrapt 'twixt Faith and Fear 's obstrep'rous flame That whilst th'intend'st by Circumcisions stroak To consecrate thy Sonne to beare our yoak No sooner dost thou precognosc his teares Or yet presage his smart by thy weak feares When loe me thinks I heare thee sweetly say My hope my help my love my life my stay Ah shall I live and be reserv'd to see My hearts delight and Soules sole balm thus be Both cut and carved by the butch'rous knife Of any Flamine who did e're take life No no my Love my Darling my Delight Love cannot so her Gordian knot bequite As once to make thee but become a pray To bloody rigour in a legall way Back Phoebus back for shame goe hide thy head And golden Tresse in Thetis watry shade Look not on such a savage sight nor see So foule a Scean presented unto thee Earth stop thy mouth and doe thou drink no more These crimson drops of blood and spotlesse gore Which my poor babe distills but rather mourne And to thy wonted Chaos straight returne And O thou Flamine whosoe're thou be Whose hand 's accustom'd to this butchery Here I adjure thee by that sumptuous All Which Heav'n or Earth doth sacred count or call Touch not my Sonne with such a bloody knife For in his wound I bleed and lose my life But rather kneeling at his De'ties throne Know that his wounds and scars should be thy own Yet whilst againe thou ruminat'st th' Abysse Of Gods unshun'd decree and Righteousnesse O how I see thee bound thy fraile desire And what thou canst not comprehend admire For since th' Eternall gives this strict command That every male inhabiting this Land Of Promise should by Circumcisions badge Be known a Co-heire of his heritage O how thou daunt'st thy thoughts and curb'st thy tongue As sacrilegious instruments of wrong And though thy flesh a while had th'upper hand Yet now I see the Spirit doth countermand The fraile suggestions of thy naturall will And to his righteous lore subject them still For thus me thinks I heare thee plead Altho 'T is hard to see my Sonne dismembred so Yet since 't is God who hath my comfort been Whose Love my life doth every way maintain
To see from whence and for what wondrous cause This radiant Torch so rich a splendor showes But all 's in vain nor Art nor Nature may I'ts scite light motion to the world display For all of those are in this subject rare Divine miraculous extraordinare But he from whom Nature first beg'd her light And hidden Science by his artlesse might Inspires those Sages and doth make them see This Star's the Prodrome of that Majestie By whom the Sonnes of Japhet now are led Within the Tents of Shem to hide their head Fie on thee Juda Salem fie on thee Why didst not thou as well as they foresee The glorious sun-shine of thy Visitation And greet the worker of this great Salvation But ah thy snorting dreams did thee deceive For thou didst still imagine thou shouldst have A Prince of such a temporall arm and power As to a honny-sweet should change thy sowre But loe whilst thou in darknesse lov'st to sleep A Nation com'th from farre and stately keep Their festivals of Joy thy Tents about Whilst thou and eke thy children are thrust out O God whence com'th't that those above the rest Have known thy Starre and so themselves addrest In paths of toyl and tedious pilgrimage To searrh thy birth as they did see thy badge Could Nature or her handmaid Art discover Thy Star or it distinguish from another No surrely no Combine them both in one And both shall teach us but confusion For without grace the naturall Man 's a foole And Arts chief Doctor when he sits at Schoole And doth investigate Heav'ns Earth and Aire And all those hoasts which Capriolls here or there In Natures precincts still the more he sees Arts hidden secrets Natures mysteries And sees not God the more his wit shall serve To glut his fancy but his soule to starve Thus they being led by the Celestiall light Through rocky Deserts and the toyls of night Doe come at last to Bethlehems walls and there This Torch stands fluttering o're them in the aire Till by thy guiding grace they doe espie The place wherein this Monarch-Prince doth lie No sooner doe they this sweet Babe behold Then by heav'ns inspiration they are bold T' unload their asses and their Camels backs T'untrusse their fardles and ungird their sacks And lay these sumptuous presents richly sweet Gold Mirhe and Incense at the Sucklings feet Whether they by Prophetick spirit did see His Kingdome Priesthood and his Prophecie Or if that by affections naturall Vain They thus doe greet him as their Soveraign I struggle not too much Let this suffice That in Religious awe they bow their knees And with a sacred sweet consorting voyce Thus doe they greet him and thus they rejoyce Thrice great thrice blessed and thrice holy Lord By whose Majestick uncontrolled Word What e're was fram'd within the point of Time Or hath a being in the aâ—â—r'd Clime Whose right hand doth from all Etern'ty bear Our clasped Issues unshun'd Kalendar Whose wisdome pow'r and deep providence guides The Delian Princesse in her sev'rall tides How boldly may we now rejoice and sing And call the carroling beav'ns thy praise to ring Who mak'st thy wondrous light to shine even there Where death made darknesse his Cubiculare Of old whilst Jacob was desir'd to blesse Josephs two sonnes with a Prophetick kisse He wisely cross'd his armes and his right hand He puts on Ephraims head where he did stand And on Manasseh made his left hand stay And so by practice he did prophecy That Japhets seed should dwell i' th' tents of Shem. And eke Manasseh bow to Ephraim This day we see that Vaticiny true Whilst we wilde prodigals our necks subdue To thee our God making Manasses share Rich as the vintage of Abiezer Since Israel therefore will not heare heare then You Heav'ns and Earth and shame the sonnes of Shem For we will praise th' Eternall and record The never failing goodnesse of the Lord. O blessed Babe how great art thou what store Of blessings girds thy Loyns for evermore For thou art he who dost exalt the horn Of Judah and his Pallaces adorn With bowls of Nectar and Ambrosian dyet And mak'st her graze in pastures of true quiet The Scepter of true Government 's on thy shoulder And thou shalt crush thy foes to dust and powder On Davids throne thou as his Sonne shalt sit In Judgment and in Truth t' establish it Yea Peace and Plenty shall thy steps attend And of thy Kingdom there shall be no end O loving Childe how lovely-faire art thou How sparkling are thy eyes how sweet thy brow How fragrant are the odours that distill On thee from Gilead and Hermonims hill Amongst the flowr's thou' rt chief the Rose the Lilly The Pink the Turn-sol and the Daffadilly Have no such odorif'rous smell or taste As thou reverb'rat'st from the West to th' East Live ' then sweet Babe the miracle of Time Earths mighty Champion Balm of humane crime Let thy great voyce in Peace resound throughout Earths flowry kirtle and Seas glassie spout That so thy favour in each part may be Immortall Nectar to Posteritie O what are we great God what 's our deserving That to confirme our faith so prone to swerving Thou dost thus shake heav'ns solid Orb and make Thy selfe a Vassall for a Vassals sake O that we could discern aright and know What duty service feare and love we owe Thee for that endlesse love wherewith thou hast Reclaim'd us from our wandrings to thy rest Teach us ô teach us so to run our race In patience and in patience to possesse Our Soules that thou at thy great day may'st clear Our Aegypt to a Goshen's hemisphear And change the tenour of our tragick story To the Catastroph ' of an endlesse glory The Massacre CANTO 7o. DIstraction tumult teares oppression jarre VVrath causlesse envy cruell murther warre Yea all those woes which Fury can forth bring Are now the Discant which my Muse must sing For whilst of late th' Eternall did invite By secret motions of his sacred Sp'rit Three Eastern Sages wisely to imbrace Th' occasion of their long long-look'd-for peace Like to Apollo's Priests intranc'd they rove From Herod's Palace to the Courts of Jove And with a thundring voyce they roare and cry Where 's Juryes King where where 's that Royall boy In whom the heav'ns have daign'd t' exalt the Throne Of Sions hopelesse Desolation His Star hath brought us from our home-bred joyes From ease from rest and from our quirks and toyes And made us tread those paths of sad exile T' imbrace the comforts of our widow-while Scarce had they breath'd those accents of unrest When vulture-feare layes hold on Herod's brest In such a sort that curs'd Erynnis crew Doe both his senses and his soule subdue What 's this I heare quoth he what threats be those Those wandring Pilgrims to the heav'ns up-throwes What brainsick tidings of a new-born King Are those which now through Jewryes Coasts do ring
interpretation is thus taken My God my God why hast thou me forsaken One saith he calls Eliah stand aside And let us see what Saint in heav'n can guide Him from this crosse surely if any come We will believe him we will make him roome Not onely doe those Burreaves him revile And ' gainst that holy one lift up their heel But also that proud mastive who did at His left hand suffer as he perpetrat Calls to him and in proud luâ—ibrious manner Commands him to display his pow'rfull banner And as he had sav'd others save him selfe And him likewise from splitting on this shelfe But Jesus holds his peace to make it plaine That he revil'd did not revile again Though Jesus hold his peace yet doth that mate Which on his right hand hung thus ope the gate To his just ire and rebukes his brother He can his fury now no longer smother Proud rayling rascall saith he we be here To suffer for our sinnes as doth appeare By all the Legends of our murd'ring ditty Justly doe men therefore withdraw their pitty From us but this just man what hath he done His innocence is cleare as middayes Sun Why dost not thou feare God and in this station Beg shelter from a deeper condemnation But what thou wilt not doe behold I will Lord look upon me in thy mercy still And when thou com'st unto thy kingdome then Remember me in mercy heale my pain Jesus beholding this his faith replies Man I doe tell thee that in Paradise This night thou shalt be with me and shalt taste The glorious Nectar of my Fathers feast Father once more all thing are finshed Which thy great law requires diminished Is nothing which her Sanctions did crave And now I 'm ready to be laid in grave I therefore come to thee Into thy hands I recommend my Sp'rit let not deaths bands Triumph ore me for it I vanquish'd have Yet I 'le subject my selfe unto the grave By this he bows his head and giveth up The Ghost and so hath drunken up his cup. One of those Souldiers who did him attend Hoping to gaine some honour in the end Takes up his Speare to try if Christ were dead And in his side doth thrust it over head Straight from the wound doth flow both blood and water Whose still dissever'd streams themselves so scatter As never Tigris and Euphrates did More th' one from th' other at their sourse divide When the first Adam snorted in his sleep Great Isr'els Watchman who poore man doth keep Took from his side a rib of which he made An helpe unto the man who was her head And now the second Adam on his Crosse Lacks not a bone but to repaire that losse From out his side whereon his bride now stands Sends forth pure water first to wash her hands And that clean hands may have as clean a heart He sends her blood to purge her better part His water purgeth and refresheth more Then that which from Rephidims rock did rore His blood speaks better things then Abels did When she in Vesta's lap her head did hide And truly such a water or such blood Nor Baalzephom shoare nor Ganges flood Did ever borrow from earths bubling vain While as they pard their tribute to the Main Loe how the sonne of God in human nature Loe how for Man poore creature the Creatour Loe for the guilty how the innocent Loe how the lowly for the insolent Suffers payes covers satisfies at once Death debt shame wrath for our exemptions Come wayward Gentile come rebellious Jew Come scoffing Atheist Semichristian thou Prodigious misbeliever natures slave Blasphemous mockers of the crosse and grave Come come I say and if you needs must scorn Those hands those feet this heart that crown of thorn From whence my Saviour in such sev'rall rills Celestiall Nectar to the world distills If nothing here on earth you see below Can your hard hearts to his obedience bow Look up above your head and see what strange Commotions through th' heav'nly regions range And from their troubles learn in time to tremble Least those their palsies prove your deaths preamble For whil'st his soule doth to the heav'ns ascend Which to his Father he did recommend Straight with his last gaspe earth's round globe doth shake As if her engines axle-tree should breake The broad enameld courtaine of the sky Obfuscat with dark clouds doth droup and dye And since he whose right hand first formed Nature Hath so much suffred for a sinfull creature The frame of Nature now hath sworn to show That natures God hath suffred here below Hence hoary Saturne turns his face awry And scorns to gaze so great a butchery The bounteous Jupiter now amazed stands And scorns with Amalthaea to shake hands Blood-thirsting Mars throws down his dart and cries What Phlegra 's this whose Typhon scales our skies The wanton now betakes her to her heels And puls her Pidgeons from Apollo's wheels The witty Merc'ry throws his pen aside He cannot see to write for nights black pride And Cynthia now beholding Titans Car Ecclipsed by a brighter morning star Runs from th' Eoan to th' Hesperian coast And grapleth Titan in her arms so fast That brave Latona's son nor can nor may But through her sad imbrace take leave of day Now is the Temples vaile rent quite in twaine And Jew and Gentile reconcil'd againe Now are the flint-hard rocks found cut asunder That mans hard heart might at it's hardnes wonder Now are the graves devouring gates cast up And long interred dust drinks new lives cup That heav'ns and earth and hell and all may see That power of th'Eternalls victorie Whereby he hath as both true God and Man For man subbu'd Deaths great Leviathan The Triumph CANTO 6o. ERE Cairo's Monarch would let Isr'el goe From out the fornace of affliction loe The holy one of Israel bigge with ire Is forc'd in wrath to blow so fierce a fire Against him that a Decad of stern woes Must fall upon him ere he melt his snowes So deeply were they froze amidst his heart That nothing but deep wrath can him convert Of all those plagues which did on Misraim fall Me thinks the last save one was worst of all For what are fields or fruits or brooks or trees In respect of mans gracious faculties And life it selfe is small being compar'd With utter darknesse wherein man ensnar'd By living death and dark Cimerian mist Of Goshens childe is made a Memphytist Such were the foggy mists that now doe stand For three houres space through all Judaea's land So that th' inhabitants doe gaze with wonder To see the sun obscured from his splendor But Titan once more doth reclear his eye And shuffling off his Sisters canopy Doth joy to see his eldest brothers bed With such triumphing trophees honored Now whil'st the stern Centurion sees the damp That Christ his death hath wrought in Natures camp He shrinks away for feare and doth professe Surely this man hath
sinner from his sinnes convert He shall the father to the son rejoyn The son gainst father shall no more repine Each lofty Mountain and declining vally Through which our bubling brooks doe crawl and dally Shall change their state for those shall be made low And these exalted to an eminent show Things rough shall be made smooth things crooked streight And on rous things shall lose their pondrous weight And all the sucklings sleeps in natures lap Shall see the lightning of his thunder-clap That all the world may learn t' adore and kis Immanuel whose harbenger he is O how can 't bee saies Zachary that I Whose loynes are fruitles juceles barren dry Or that my wife Elizabeth whose raines Have stopt the fruitfull current of their vains Should recollect recover and rebring A living Runnal from a wither'd Spring No Zachary saith the Angell know that hee Whose glory wisdom pow'r and Majesty Turns heav'ns bright Sphears about earths drossy ball Shall make thy tragick-Theatre comicall And lest that like a bull rush beaten reed Thy faith should faint or hope should lose her Creed Recall the memoyr's of the daies of old How Nature hath been by his pow'r control'd And thou shalt see that to the supreme powrs VVee stand subjected and what ere is our For let mee ask whence comes these Nectar'd drops Which like pure Balme doe drench Pomonaes tops Who makes the Oceans mutinous waves reflote Or who enamels Vestaes petticote VVho doth the fields refresh or flowrs re-flowr Who Bride-like busks Apolloes Paramour Who leads brave Titan captive through the sky Or who decks Cynthia with a silver dy Who brings old Boreas from his frozen Cave Who makes his furie all the world out-brave Who can command the light in darknes Camp To checker portraits in a dornick Champ Or who can shut again Lights glistring ey To snort in midst of darknes Canopy All these like antient Hieroglyphicks may God's wondrous power to the world display But since thou by a faithles feare wilt try His might goe mannage thy security By Sarahs loynes the faithfull Abraham's wife Whose barren belly is a well of life Behold Rebecca and the barren Anna Mother to Samuel wife to Elkana And by the histoyr ' of their strange exchange Command thy reason and thy sense t'estrange Their course from Nature and repose alone Thy faith and hope ev'n against hope upon His never failing word whose power can frame From senslesse stones a seed to Abraham 'T is true that Nature since the world began Strugleth ' gainst Faith within the naturall man And like a mutinous Hagar strives to steal The lot from Isaack to her Ishmael And he who hath not learned to deny Himselfe his reason wit and industry And with the welcome of affections kisse Submit himselfe to God and all that 's his May well expect but never shall embrace The dignities of Glory or of Grace And now since by a further doubting thou Hast call'd his word in doubt who 's only true Loe I who stand before his glorious eyes Who though unseen himselfe yet all things sees Must tell thee that till these things come to passe Which he hath spoke who shall be is and was This just deserved Rod on thee shall fall That thou shalt neither heare nor speake at all But shalt be dumb till with thine eyes thou see Th' accomplishment of this my Heraldrie Thus having with dread Majestie engraven In Zacharies heart this sowre-sweet-newes from heaven Like lightning when it darts alongst the skies His wings support him and away he flies The Annunciation CANTO 3o. STay stay your course you christall heav'ns and you Swift rolling Sphears whose vaulted Arches bow An azur'd brave Pavilion o're Ear ths bail Stay stay your motions sweetly musicall Arrest your course likewise you twinckling starrs Who dallying in your gold rich ammel'd Carrs Doe like brave Torches and still burning Tapers Light natures Chappell at her ev'ning Vespers And Amphitrite thou where Syrens dwells And celebrate their Nymph-like festivalls Braule thou no more in that tumultuous guize That sacks the Merchant 's far fetch'd Indian prize But like a Bride who knows her Bride-groom's diet Greet thou thy Neptune with a sacred quiet And whilst thy waiting hand maids-cristall brooks Desert their Fountains and their floury crooks To bring a Consort of their watry Calls To gratulate thy Nymph-like Nuptialls Then clasp them in thine arms with joyfull heast And bid them welcome to thy Virgin feast Till reconvey'd with Tritons for their trayne Thou sendst them to their bubling sourse againe Empamper'd Vesta on whose embroider'd kirtle Hangs Alloes Cassia Spicknard Balme and Mirtle Carowse that Nectar which the Heav'ns doe weep To all those sucklings in thy lap doe sleep That they may dance amidst thy pearlelike shower A Masquedrade before thy Paramour Thus like a bold-fac'd Herald I proclame To Nature and her Universall frame Ev'n from Boötes in his whirling Carre To pale Orion's tempest boding Starre A sacred quiet and a sweet cessation From all their influence course and operation Till he whose Royall and Imperiall Throne Transcends our azur'd skies and heav'ns each one Doe from the Senate of his own good pleasure Send Man the Message of his Soules rich treasure Sixe times hath now faire Phaebe cut a caper In opposition to her brothers Taper And six times couch'd againe within his armes Sh' hath glut her selfe with his delightfull charmes Since earst a heav'n-born Legat hath declar'd To Zachary That for his faiths reward From out his wife Eliz'beths barren wombe The great Messiahs Prodrome John should come Now now Time big with fulnesse doth require That he who first did blow our Soules bright fire Should contribute truth life and light unto Those shady Tipes which did his Sonne foreshow That so the gracelesse World by him might plant Within their hearts his gracious Covenant Time then being full Night in a sad Sea-green Or pitchy-purpled mantle like Deaths Queen Had tane her Brother Morpheus Mace in hand And sent a drowsie rest over all the Land The ever-sacred ever Virgin-mother Whose glory neither heav'n nor earth can smother Great Arimathea's joy and Bethels Crowne And Palestina's dread sweet rich Renowne Still ruminating heav'ns unshun'd decree How from a Virgins belly there should flee A Soule dread Monarch and Celestiall Prince Whose blood should purge our leprous foule offence Prevent the rosie mornings warbling train And hyes her to a neighboring Grove amain That there in darknesse shady lap she might In divine contemplations spend the night Yet stay my Muse stay but a little while And view this grove which Eden-like doth smile That by the survey of so sweet a shade My muse may some way make my Reader glad Neare to that place whence hoary Jordane slides From Hermons hill and makes his twin-born Tides To meet in Marons lap in view doth lye The ever fruitfull pleasant Galily Whose right hand 's dipt in those tumultuous waves Which by Tiberius
armes present The blessed seed that seales our Government That as unto the first-born did belong The double portion and revenge of wrong So in his double portion we may have Grace upon Grace and our destroying Grave May so bee shut that wee may sing and cry Death where 's thy sting Grave where 's thy victory And that this second Temples lofty frame May far exceed the first house prototheam And that which God by Haggai's mouth did speake May now in time a full perfection take Loe here the man to whom the hid desire Of all the nations in a zeal-bred fire Are captivate doth stand that all th' opprest By sin in him may find true ease and rest The first house sure by ceremonious rites And Typick emblems of spirituall sweets Did lead the Priests and people both to run And hope th'approach of this imperiall Sun But now the body 's come the shades evanish And Titan's new-born rayes night's clouds doth banish And though the Oracles be dumb though th' Ark Preserve no Manna nor no budding Mark Of Priest-hood for on him all those rely'd He finish'd them they him presignify'd Yet loe this day the never erring Word Of God is brought to pass and doth afford More lively consolation to the Soule And those sad raptures which our peace controle Then all the bathings purgings exhalations That great Jedidiah put for expiations Could furnish to the sinne perplexed hart For Antimony ' gainst the Serpents dart For now the long contesting jar doth cease That kept at ods Truth Mercy Justice Peace Whilst in our flesh our first begotten brother Makes all those Graces kisse each one another Blest then be God who when his Church is tost 'Twixt swallowing Calpe and Abila's coast Hath sent his Son as Palinure to guide And bring her safe to shore gainst Neptun's pride And make her when shee 's shut from out Shem's tents In Japhet's state-house hold her Parl'aments For he hath sworn that hee will ne're forsake her Till like a faithfull-Bridegroom homehee take her The Epiphany CANTO 6o. WHere am I now what splendor strangely rare Is this which darting through the Heav'ns and aire Dazles my sight with such a glorious ray As makes my Muse to stumble at mid-day For whil'st of late my weakly warbling quill Did only from her Virgin-snowt distill The tear-drown'd ditties of a Virgin milde And wofull accents of a wailing Childe Loe now perforce I soare and tread a march Alongst the confines of th' Etheraeal arch And in th' abortive birth of rhime descry The radiant troops of heav'ns brave Infantry Not that I mean by search of curious art T'investigat each circle zoane and part Wherewith our azur'd heav'ns being cut asunder Doe parallel our earthly globe that 's under No no who shall with roaving straines aspire To search these tapers of Celestiall fire T' unfold the Zodiak in his foure-fold Trine And heaven-divider Equinoctiall Line Our Tropiques colours and our Zeniths hight Our Pole Horizon and our Nadir right With Dand's daughters may attempt to bring From Lethe's never empty'd sourse and spring Their buckers full of water but in vain For by the way they empty still again I cease therefore t' inquire why Saturnes spheare Revolves his course but once in thirty yeare Why Jupiter by twelve yeares milde aspect Doth churlish Saturnes froward frownes correct Why cruell Mars with proud out-braving pace Doth in two twelve-months moderate his race Why Titan heav'ns Lieutenant once a yeare Confines and crownes his still renew'd Cariere Why Paphian Venus and old Juno's foe Are not asham'd once every yeer to goe And tread a March behind Apollo's wheeles Like Lacquayes waiting on their Masters heeles And why Luciua in her Love-bred-passion Should each Month once in fresh new-fangled fashion Greet her Apollo that by his bright shine Of twelve stolne kisses she may make thirteen No leaving those and their unsearehed sourses Their Apogae's and Pyrogae's in courses Their Progresse Transits and their Applications Directions Revolutions Separations Their Quadrats Sextiles Trines and Oppositions Conjunctions Lights-translations Prohibitions Their House their Exaltation and Triplicity Their Term their Face and such essentiall dignity How Fortitude stands here and doth importune And how Debility there threats a misfortune How this Sâ—ar's fix'd that strayes and proves erratique How this Conjuction's partile and that platique I leave to Chalda-Star-gazers and those Whom Nile and Tigris in their armes inclose And in a modest path shall onely bring My Muse to quiver on a maiden string How he by whom heavn's starres both rise and fall Makes Starres doe homage at his Pedestall Come then thou great irradiat morning Starre By whom Oryon and the Pleyads are Thou Star of Jacob by whose power and might The Stars were made ' gainst sisera to fight Thou thou whose dread and uncontroll'd command Enforc'd the Sun in Gibeah to stand And Moon i'th'Vaile of Aialon to stay Till thou thy force didst to thy foes display Thou whose right hand seven rut'lant Stars dost hold And crown'st thy Church with radiant Stars of Gold Even thou whose light so decks thy smallest Saint That he exceeds the Stars o'th'Firmament And by thy light dost make their light more rare Then brave Aurora when she cleeres the aire And finally Great thou whose dreadfull rage Hath thrust that wandring Star from out lights stage Whose name is Wormwood and hast plac'd his Cell In chaines of darknesse and the depth of hell Come thou I say and by that Spirit of thine Whose light lends light to every Star to shine Rouze up my Muse to that all-conquering Verse Which may in sacred hymnes and Odes rehearse The unmatch'd love and the immortall glory Of thee my God in pain-born Rhimes best story For when thou like the Bride-groom of our Soul Didst for our sake thy Majesty controll 'T is true that no externall pompe or show Which lacquaies humane greatnesse here below Did waite upon thy birth or yet advance Their footstools to support thy radiance Thy head no royall Diadem did wear Thy back no curious Tissue roab did bear Thy bed did smell no incense thy reposes Knew neither Turn-sols Lyllies Pinks nor Roses But all thou hadst thy nakednesse t' ore shade Was a poore hole to hide thy glorious head Yet as the heav'ns of late in love sent forth Their Gabriel to Annunce thy wondrous birth So now in still unwearied love they send This blazing Star thy cradle to attend By whose direction three great forraign Sages Scorning their home-bred wealth and heritages Are now content to come from farre and see Earth wedded to th' Prince of Eternitie Thy starre they saw and wrapt with dread amaze To see a starre dart forth so splendid raies And smother all her neighbr'ing lamps as farre As Titan doth his sister Cynthia's carre Straight way they run and with industrious care They search their antient Annalls every where Their Oracles and Sybils more and lesse Their Journals and their Ephimerides
What shall my eyes be thus reserv'd to gaze Ev'n in my glorious prime the darkned rayes Of black disgrace ecclipse my glory so That I from Honor it from me must goe No no great Caesar hath in due regard Of my deservings for my sake ensnar'd Old Hircanus by force of Parthian wrath To drink his last draught in the Cup of Death And have not all his off-spring which doe wander About the Stygian lake even Alexander Antipater and Aristobolus With Mariamnes and Antigonus Faire Alexandra and each Ghost elsewhere Who in the helm of Sion claim'd a share Been sent as Vassals of my wrath to plead In heritance in cloudy Deaths dark shade And lest that Hydra-like their power or wit Should breed a Rivall on my Throne to sit Have not my wits more subteliz'd than theirs Pluckt up that grave Sanhaedrine by whose cares The state of Salem fortifi'd her stage Against the stormes of Fortunes spightfull rage So that no bud nor branch may thence re-spring That may my power to a period bring Whence com'th it then that such a sad affright Of alteration turns my Day to Night And makes a lightning flash of sad-â—v'rthrow Disturb the Ocean where my hopes did flow It may be that the heav'ns whose boundlesse powers Controlls these currents and these tides of ours Have grudg'd to see me great and therefore send Those Heralds to proclame my Glories end For this I know which former times have taught That mortall men whose mindes are alwaies fraught With care to conquer in their deepest care Are but like bubbles blown alongst the aire Which by our breath 's no sooner blown and cherish'd Then by a counterpâ—ffe 't is gone and perish'd Else wherefore did the Fates so proudly thrust Great Niniveh and Babel to the dust Why have they trod on Carthage with their foot Or laugh'd to see brave Ilion's lights blown out Yea push'd at Craesus and Darius Crowne And thrust the Macedonian from his Throne But that the world may learn that honor's strain Is hardl'acquir'd but quickly lost again Shall I therefore like to a Childe whose eare Hath ty'd him in the bands of causlesse feare By hearing of a foolish doting fable Apprentice all my thoughts to this unstable Narration and trust that for a truth Which hath no warrant but a wand'rers mouth Or shall I like Endimion in the deep Of base security lye still and sleep VVhen Heav'ns by that great care of me they take Doe by these warnings bid me thus awake No ' gainst the Heav'ns I spurn not yet I scorn A Monarch and much lesse a Babe new born Should in Judaea to that state arise As may my Glory and my Crown surprise I will therefore look what a treacherous art Dissembling fury in a hollow heart Can add to high exploits and then imploy My wits to search the corner where that boy Can lurk whose fame thus makes the world agast And drunk with expectation and at last By sad experience I will make him hear That Crownes are weighty things for babes to wear VVhilst thus 'twixt Fear and Envy 's mutinous hoast The subtelizing Tirants soule is toss'd Rage breaks at last the gap and opes the way To vent the passions which his soule dismay Goe saith the subtle fox goe quickly call The Talmudists and Rabbins great and small The Priests the Prophets Pharises and Scribes Through all Judaea's severall coasts and tribes Make them revolve consider search and try The time and place of his Nativity VVhom these distracted Pilgrims have so farre Search'd by prognostication of a starre For wheresoe're or whosoe're he be Whose light thus threats t' obscure my Majestie I can conform my minde unto my fate And kisse the foot that tramples on my state And if the heav'ns will needs blot out my name I 'le doe him homage who procures the same Thus hath the viper big with fierce envy Breath'd out the flashes of his cruelty But God who dwelling in the heav'ns unfolds The heart's hid secrets rheines and deepest holds Laughs this dissembling project all to scorn And by his spirit doth secretly suborn The Sages to retire another way That so he may the Tyrants rage display He warneth also Joseph and his Bride To take the childe and step a while aside To Aegypt that Gods will might so be done Who sayes From Aegypt I have call'd my Sonne Exod. 4. Hosea 11. O God how deep 's the Ocean rich the store Of mercy thou lay'st up for evermore To such as truly doe rely upon Thy Providence for their salvation The Sword by day may fiercely rage and smite The Pestilence may rove abroad by night The Cedars may be pluck'd up from their station The Mountains may be hurl'd from their foundation The windes may blow the Seas may rage and even Black darknesse may ecclipse the lights of heaven But he who with a fully fixed minde On thee doth stay his Soule shall surely finde He needs not feare the crafty hunters snare Which for his downfall's stretched here and there For when the world was drown'd by Nereus waves Thy Noah like a Neptune them outbraves When fire sack'd Sodome loe thy Lot survives And in his Zoar like a Vulcan lives When Jericho's vain trust o'returns her walls Thy Rachab sits and sings her festivals When Syrian Captaines would command thy Seer Thy Seraphins doe guard him in their Quier When Babels scorching flames shall threat thy Saints They stand unstain'd and all their Aetna daunts And what needs more the Lions in their den May ramp and roar against the sonnes of men But hee who shall within thy shadow hide His head and in thy Tents and Courts abide Though heav'ns earth ayre and seas and all were shaken Shall never perish never be forsaken Yet stay my muse arrest thy course a space T' attend the tenor of this tragick-case VVhich with an unexpected troup of feares From secret ambush doth assault my ears What roaring griefs and tear-drownd plaints be those The neighboring Eccho's to the heav'ns up-throwes VVhat mourning groans and sad lamenting cries Be those which over this high mountain flies Ay me what 's this be those the caroling voyces Of a proud conquering army whose rejoyces Evaporate up to the azur'd round Reverberat the earth 's environ'd ground Or is' t the gleanings of that grievous cry VVhich conquer'd-wretches in their butchery And soule-depriving smart doe cut asunder Like clouds condensed when they melt with thunder No sure it is no voice of tryumph nor The voice of such as are tryumphed o're These wofull screeches rather represent The ditties of some harmless innocent VVhich by the tort'ring butchers butch'rous clap Are stab'd or stifled in the mothers lap And so it is for cruell Herod hath Subsign'd and seal'd a warrant for the death Of all those Infants which in Bethleem's coast Of two yeeres time or under age can boast For so the reverend Seer Hieremie Jer. 30.5 Hath in his never fayling Prophecy Foretold
thoughts espy With a loud voyce he boldly thus doth say Alas I now perceive it for a truth This people doe draw neer me with their mouth Whil'st as their hearts are farre from me for loe Not for my Doctrine sake they doe me know But for the barlie loaves they did partake When I did feed them for my mercy sake But travell not I pray you for that meat Which is as quickly gone as it is eate But labour for that bread which lasts for ever Which I the sonne of man to you deliver Your Fathers in the deserts did eate Manna And prais'd the giver with a loud Hosanna Yet did they perish dye and eke consume In their stifnecked murmuring A mertume But he who eats the bread that I shall give him Shall never perish for it shall revive him I am the bread of life which came from heaven My father unto you this bread hath given That by his bread of life which is supernall He may your soules maintain to life Eternall As many then as come to me shall neither Have thirst nor hunger for my glorious Father Sent me from heav'n not my own will to doe But mans hard heart unto his yoak to bow That so man may eschew his burning wrath And scape the sorrows of the second death No man hath seen the Father but the Sonne Who in the Fathers bosome dwels alone He doth reveale him unto whom he pleaseth Whose crosse he lightneth and whose soule he easeth No man ascendeth unto heav'n but he Who came from heav'n and doth in Majestie Though base on earth yet when he thinketh sit Doth on his Fathers right hands glory sit And at his second comming saves his sheep From sinking in that never fathom'd deep Whereas the sulpher of th'Eternalls breath Layes hold upon the vessels of his wrath And makes the faithfull and the righteous all Be fill'd with glories endlesse festivall The Metamorphose CANTO 6o. FOre-chosen Jacob Isaac's second Swaine Jah-struggling champion and victorious man Thou royall she apheard and tresprudent Siere Whom Palestina's Princes did admire Vouchsafe me but t' approach thy dying throne And charge thee with this Gordian knot alone And like Apollo thou thy front shalt see Deckt with a garland from the Lawrell tree Whence come th' Enthusiasm and that sacred sury Which made thee all thy carnall senses bury In Lethe's lap and with religious rage Divide Chams tents to Israels heritage VVhence hadst thou wisdome and sweet inspiration To precognose and with true divination Foretell that Juda's tribe should beare the sway Till Shilo should ecclipse his Majesty How madest thou Joseph like a fruitfull Vine That doth her arms about her Bridegroom twine Drunk with the grapes of Ephraims royall cup Which weak Manasseh's hands could not beare up But above all I stand amaz'd to see Lewd Levi's scatt'rings dare t' approach so nigh To Joves Ariell offring there upon For sinne and sinners expiation Is Dinah dead or Sechem's blood gone dry That thou dost thus forget his villany And without smarting for his foule offence Exalt him to the high-Priests eminence 'T is strange that divine Justice should permit Him who i th' chaire of sinners so hath sit Without corrections rod possesse the throne And sing the carrols of exemption O now I see thy tongue was not thy own A higher power hath it rul'd and thrown Even He great He whose wayes we cannot spy Because his will 's the square he worketh by Who where he will have mercy there he pardons And where he will with draw his grace he hardens From his good pleasure then and no where else It is that Levi's tribe the rest excels And on his Ephod whiter then the snow Hath tyed his breast plate where in sumptuous show Stands Vrim and great Thummims true direction For light of knowledge and for lifes perfection So then from loyns of that unhallowed stem Which Jacob thrust from Israels diadem The Lord hath chosen a successive race Of royall Priesthood who before his face Shall in that course which David did prescribe Burn incense and their sacrifice contrive With never alter'd though alternat order Till Melchizedeck come and crush their border All those like Comets when they first appeare In our sublunar regions hemispheare Did draw mens wandring eyes and wondring hearts To scan their sequels whether smiles or smarts But all in vaine nature can ne'er unty The clasped books of heav'ns great mystery For till the Word was Flesh great Judah's throne Ne'er knew her perfect exaltation And Aarons rod did ne'er her top bow down With reverence to Melchizedecks Crown But when thou cam'st those figures types and tropes Had reall Essence for unreall hopes For where the Sun doth shine in lights aray All clouds evanish night gives place to day Since then thou art true light and since with thee Darknesse dare plead for no societie O let me but be bold this once to follow Thee to thy Tabor that my sp'rit being shallow May by the lustre of thy glories shine Taste of that light that never shall decline But aye me whil'st I see the hill so steep The gulfe of my poore misery so deep The flesh so fraile the sp'rit so soone o'retak'n The flax so quench'd the bruised reed so shak'n The load of sinne so great my faith so faint So strickt the forfeit of the Covenant I cannot choose but feare lest by the way My hasting doe defraud me of my pray Unlesse thou help who help'd the faithfull thiefe For I believe Lord help my unbeliefe Come then dread Saviour let me search the time Wherein thou didst to Tabors fastege clime Thy Scriv'ners differ many therefore doubt Thy journies Epoche how they shall finde out One sayes that it was fully six daies after That thou didst make their soules o'reflow with laughter By promising that some who stood thee by Should not see death nor taste mortality Till they being witnesse of thy raptures story Should see the Sonne of man come in his glory Another saith the dayes were almost eight After that promise that thou scal'dst this height Thus doe some weake mindes stumble whilst they spy Amidst thy truth so great variety But foolish we in vanity still wallow We straine a Gnat yet doe a Camel swallow We grope at noone day and make known our blot Whil'st in a rush we seek a Gordian knot For where the eight day's neere and six are spent By true arithmetick the seventh is meant Upon this day when heav'ns and earth were made And all their frame and fabrick finished Th' Eternall seeing all his creatures good Proclam'd the seventh dayes rest and so it stood Upon this day from Mysraims darkned Cell God did redeem his first born Israel Upon this day from Baalz phons shoare To Migdoll he his people dry-foot bore Upon this day from Syna's thundering jaw He gave the Sanctions of his sacred Law Upon this day in Cana's wedding shrine He turned fountaine water unto wine And
though the Dev'll rook place Within his soule and made him seven times more The sonne of Sathow then he was before Let all such then as in Gods house appeare Eat of his bread and drink his wine with feare For as one house together cannot hold The God of Jacob and base Dagons mold So in mans secret soule or hidden heart God will have nothing if the Dev'll have part If Jerubbael serve the Lord above He must cut down his fathers heath'nish grove If Tarshish ships would safe sale home to shore A flying Jonas they must hug no more And if a Lawyer would goe safe to heaven He must forget or five or six or seaven For God is one and loveth no division A gracious Union is his best provision Were Achan living he would tell thee truth That poverty excells that wealth which doth Mans honour unto shame and sorrow sell And well-nigh makes his soule a slave to hell Rejected Saul who spared Am'lecks flock Were he alive would still hold Samuels cloak And never let him goe till he got grace By true repentance to redeem his race Bless'd is the man who since he naked come Into the world and naked must turn home Doth by the shelter of his quiet fire Make food and raiment curb his vast desire For Worlds Empires Courts Crowns Kings Are rich in cares when Rest hath better things But peace of Conscience makes the soule rejoyce More then the world and all her fading toyes The Agonie CANTO 2o. WHat man is he would truly know Christs Passion Then let him read that Lecture in this fashion First as a Story next a Gospell then A Pattern last a Benefit to men A story first it is where men may know That God in heav'n governs the world below A Gospell 't is which teacheth us how God Converts our serpents to an usefull rod A pattern 't is which doth in all our crosses Command that patience counterpoise our losses A benefit at last it brings to such As by true faith his garments hem doe touch O that we could first know aright then trust Then imitate then hold him as hee 's just So should we be learn'd Schollers faithfull Saints Obsequious Servants rich Participants But ah our wishes and our weak desires Cannot suffice to blow those zeal-bred fires Which on Jove's sacred altars still should burn And our oblations unto ashes turn Come therefore let us view that Paschall Lamb Whose blood disdain'd the cursed tents of Ham And drenching Goshens doors with wraths proud hand Did smite the first-born in all Misraims land But ay me where shall I begin to wonder At thee dread Monarch mighty sonne of thunder Eternities sole word and first-born sonne Heav'ns promis'd Earth accomplish'd Holy one Thy majesty the very heav'ns admire Thy power in the world doth still appeare Thy Justice all the damn'd in hell doe know Onely to man thou dost thy Mercy show Come then great thou mans preordain'd peace-maker Teach me the fittest way how I may sacre My pen r'expresle the fearfull agonie Thou suffer'dst for us in Gethsemanie Time place and person are the fittest square To make this building truly regular If any shall enquire the period when Thou didst begin to suffer for us men Scripture doth say it was a darkned houre While as the sonnes of darknesse had most power The place is known Gethsemans garden for 'T was meet that where Adam did fall before There thou the second should'st in bloody sweat Repaire the forfeit of our lost estate The person who sustains this weight of woe Is very God and very Man also God that his worth might Gods wrath sarisfie Man that in weaknes he might smart and dye O but this time and houre must yet be shown A little more sometimes 't is call'd thy own Sometime 't is theirs That we may know the right Disperse our cloudy doubt and give us light To speak the truth at first this houre was theirs Then thine then ours on these three paire of staires Time tripping up and down hath made the sourse Of our redemption to perfect her course Their time it was of sinne and sinfull wrath Such was the power both of sinne and death Thy houre it was of suffering and of smart For feare and anguish did oppresse thy heart Our houre it also was for then began The expiation of the sinnes of man Their houre of darknesse and thy houre of death Our houre of life and liberty from wrath When thou great master first at Cene's wedding Turn'd water into wine at Maries bidding I heard thee check her and in seeming wrath As if she had ev'n sinned to the death Say woman what have I to doe with thee My houre is not yet come get thee from me Of late when from a steep high mountain they Intend to throw thee down thou shrunk'st away And giving place unto their furious sume Thou told'st them that thy houre was not yet come Since then when high-Priests Pharisees and all Thy foes together did conspire thy fall Thou told'st them as a program of their doome They toyl'd in vain thy houre was not yet come How many houres of honor hast thou had How many times hast thou been worshipped When Sages from the East did presents bring And layd them at thy feet as Juries King VVhen in the desert Angels brought thee meat And by their service did proclaim thy State When on mount Tabor thy bright face did shine And heav'ns proclam'd thee heire of their divine Inheritance when Salems strders didring With loud Hosannaes to thee as their King Although those houres were all and alwayes great Yet did'st thou not account their pompe or state Worthy to have the note of thy great houre But when thou com'st to make our sweet thy sowre That houre thou tak'st and only counts it thine Because in it thy Father did propine That cup of wrath to thee men should have drunk If thou from his fierce wrath hadst fled or shrunk While thou with thy great Father and his Spirit Before all time did'st all times praise in herit All houres were thine all times and all times motion Did bow their knees to thee at thy devotion Yea when unto thy Image man was made And for his use the world was furnished Thou mad'st the Stars the Sun and Moon to shine And servefor poore mans use but not for thine Man had and hath all times at his command Sometime he sits and sometime he doth stand Sometime he laughts and sometime sadly weeps Sometime he watcheth some time sweetly sleeps Sometime he builds sometime he doth destroy Sometime he 's dumpish sometime rapt with joy All those doe stand subdu'd unto man's will At his direction their tides band fill But thou no time hast chosen save this one Poore houre of darknesse this thou call'st thine own Nor dost thou so for thine own sake but that Thou being a Lambe of God immaculat In this dark houre of suff ring thou
top which thou didst lately saile What wonder is' t though stripling I be shaken And with a tempest trespasse be ov'rtaken But bless'd be God thy fall was not so soule But true repentance hath restor'd thy soule That all the world may know As sinne breeds death The promise of true life Repentanee hath Look how a well-rig'd Pinnace set to sea With blind and Maine and Misaens liberty Lacking a Pilot who by due regard Should sit at stern and point her treâ—bling card Whil'st Dolphin-like she skips against the skies As if she would Joves starry throne surprise And like a Triton in the glassie field Dives down again and being forc'd to yield To Neptunes rage she visits Pluto's cell As if she sought Euridice from hell But recomforted by sweet Zephyr's gailes Whose following favours fill her empty sailes In short time she attains her wished shore Where winters tempests threaten her no more So fareth it with the irres'lute brests Of Adams off-spring who doe build their rests On their own strength no sooner doe they scale The Barracad's of Fortunes slippry ball When either fainting feare be-leads their heels And so they sink Or else their Chariot wheels Drawn by presumptuous Palfries trot so fast That hardly can they shun a fall at last Unlesse some strong strong hand doe curb their rein And so their ruine and their shame restrain For whil'st th' impetuous fancies of fraile man Sets him to try the worlds vain Ocean Unlesse a steddier hand than is his own Doe guide his course he 's either quite orethrown Or dash'd in peeces ' gainst some sturdy rock So furious be the flames of Sathans shock Thrice happy he whom Jacobs God doth guide And in his secret tent doth alwayes hide Thrice happy he whose heart kept in Gods hand Doth neither faintly fall nor proudly stand But in a due contemp'rature of Grace 'Twixt faith and feare doth wisely run his race O surely such a one when windes doe blow When seas doe rage and earth no rest doth know Shall by the secret influence of heaven So steare his course and hold his ballance even That neither death nor life nor wealth nor want Nor weale nor woe can crush his Covenant But holding still the gripes of grace h' hath got Still eyes his Pole and so he finketh not The Assize CANTO 4o. OF late I heard the High Priests Cock crow day Of late I saw Aurora shrink away From Darknesse center to th' Eoan plain T'enamell Heav'ns and guild the Ocean But ay me scarcely could the pearly morn With opall light our earthly globe adorn When loe Ixyons dark condensat cloud Did Pha'ton Titans Coach-man so oreshroud That one should think two nights combin'd in ire Had met together to drown out Sols fire A presage sure that ere that Sun should set A brighter Sun should be exanimat Yet hopefull day hath over come that shade And Titans rayes reclear'd made Flora glad But all this while since yester-nights surprise Till now that Phaebus 'gins to deck the skies My Saviour hath been bound with twisted cords Beaten with blowes wrong'd by sarcastick words Fond Jews and foolish Souldiers tell me why You doe outbrave him with such cruelty Had he not by his own will more been ty'd Then by the Cart-ropes of your swelling pride He like to Sampson might have burst your flax And made your bonds to melt away like wax But now what eye can choose but weep to see Those hands which fram'd the heav'ns the earth the sea And by his dainty singers framed man More nearly fine then art or nature can Thus wrung and wrested with a cord or rope Even whil'st Arachne-like he spins our hope But ah me Mans hard heart 's indured so That he can no compassions strain allow On him who from the heav'ns vouchsafes to take Our nature for our Soules redemptions sake Now Annas High-Priest and his sonne in law Great Caiaphas unto a Councell draw The whole Sanhaedrin Pharisees and all Whose suffrage can or life or death empale To judge the just one by injustice He Submits himself to all their tyrannie But ô you fooles and hypocrites wherefore Serves all this tumult and this mut'nous stirre One blow in secret might have finished Your wrath against him such the Baptist had But now I see Envy and Malice both Concurre together to oppresse the Truth And under shew of truth and justice must Sentence be giv'n unjustly ' gainst the just And since the Scriptures be not yet fulfill'd His blood in secret must not now be spill'd The Bench is set the Judges are conveen'd The guiltlesse is accus'd and guilty deem'd False witnesse now are sought and many come The hall is full there is no empty room At last two sonnes of Bielal are brought They witnesse ' gainst him what he never thought Thou sayd'st deceiver say they Let this Temple Be quite destroy'd and in three dayes more ample I will re-build it Fourty years and six Were spent in squaring stones and carving sticks To build it first and now thou say'st in three Dayes space thou wilt repair 't more sumptuously What canst thou doe it But he holds his peace And answers not to that their forged case And wisely doth he so for bruise a fool Even in a morter yet his folly still Shall cleave unto him wrangling is a vice And to the truth brings often prejudice The High-Priest seeing this saith I adjure Thee by the living God to tell me sure If that thou be the Christ the sonne of God Say either yea or nay and there he stood Jesus replies Thou say'st it I am he This world another Saviour shall not see And that thou may'st my words the more believe I tell thee that hereafter God shall give The Sonne of Man this honour to sit down At his right hand in glory and renown And thou shalt see him come again from thence To judge this world by righteous recompence At those words Caiaphas his cloaths doth rend Ev'n from their top unto their lower end Although against the laws expresse commend Lev. 21. â—â— Which to the contrair tyes the High Priests handâ— O now I see there 's an appointed time And for each thing beneath the Sun a Prime A time to laugh and so a time to weep A time to travell and a time to sleep A time to build a time eke to destroy A time to sorrow and a time to joy A time to rest a time to run our race A time to speak a time to hold our peace Whil'st foolish Ruffians did their cavill spue He neither said that they were false or true But now whil'st he his Fathers name doth heare Setting aside of humane force all feare He boldly speaks the truth and doth display The hidden Godhead in his flesh did lie The High Priest hath his robe no sooner tore When thus he speaks What need we any more To cite a witnesse ' gainst him hath not he Blasphemed God before us impiously
shalt finde what 't is to shroud A bloody heart under thy wash'd hands cloud Water hath but a superficiall strain It cannot purge the heart nor make it clean No Davids hyssop water nor Jobs snow Though ne're so well dissolued in their thaw Nor Abanah nor Parphars gliding streams Nor hoary Jordan whose author'ry claims Preheminence above all rills because In her the Syrians leprosie did pause Shall not be able to dissolve that spot Which by this jurisdiction thou hast got And thrice unhaphy cruell-hearted Jews Had you the wit to prâ—câ—gnosce the news That this mans blood shall as a passing bell One day against your soules and bodies knell You neither should have wish'd his blood to fall On you nor on your seeds memoriall Hence is my Saviour from the bench forth sent That with a lashing whips sad chastisement His back and belly in a bloody gore Of forty stripes save one may feele the sore And reconvey'd to Pilats house again As if he had not suffred wrong nor pain He 's stripped naked Adam-like while as He blush'd for shame because he naked was But fig-tree leaves there cover'd Adams skin Here no fig-tree can lend a leafe wherein My Saviour can enwrap his bleeding wound Whose gutt'ring drops distains the very ground Pilat beholding this begins to hault Such was the rancour of his false hearts fault For sinne at first doth to the sense seem sweet But tart as gall in end saith th'hypocrite He labour'd therefore much to let him goe But neither heav'n nor earth will now say so But still the more that Pilat pleads him free The more they thirst the Christ to crucifie And that his royall dignities they may Though in a sarcasme to the world display They with a Crown of thorns doe deck his head His Royalty by this stands fignifi'd And he who in our flesh our head became In bloody letters writes our anagram Next this a scarlet robe they put upon him And in his hand a Rood then gazing on him VVith ecce homo they doe bend their knees And greet him with those incongrueties Haile Master say they haile thou Juries King Thy Crown and Scepter tels us thou must ring But ay me gratious Saviour whil'st they now Enact the Scean of thy dishonour how Doe heav'n and earth declare thy glorious worth And unto thee true Majesty bring forth Their Crown of thorns confesseth thou art King Their purpure robes our sinnes true covering The reed put in thy hand as Scepter showeth VVhat heav'n and earth and hell unto thee oweth And whil'st in scorne to thee they bend their knees They shew that all the worlds chiefe royalties Shall doe thee worship for the Lord once swore And it shall come to passe Each creature In heav'n and earth shall bow before thy rod And ev'ry tongue confesse thee to be God And their last ecce homo shall at last Through heav'n and earths whole fabrick so be cast That such as strip'd and scourg'd and pierc'd thee shall Before thy footstoole with great terrour fall And learn unto their griefe that thou art King VVhil'st all thy Saints shall Halelujahs sing To thee whose crosse whose cares whose pains whose shame Procures their light their life their Diadem The Crosse CANTO 5o. THrough many sad afflictions and at last Through gates of death the righteous man is cast Yet never man hath tasted of so many Sad tribulations nor was death by any So born as by my Saviour from whose birth Untill his sad return unto the earth He never found a place wherein to hide His head from malice envy wrath and pride And yet for all those suffrings which be gone He doth but now begin his Passion Pilat hath judged and condemn'd him too His heart still saying that his tongue 's untrue And now at last like Abel to the field Though innocent he must be led and killd The place wherein his Crosse is made to stand Is Golgotha a place infamous and All putrifi'd with dead mens skuls and bones And loathsome vapours of corruptions Yet here and no where else must he be made A sweet-smell'd savour both for quick and dead And if we to traditions may give trust Where the first Adam lay the second must By his dread suffring and his woes make full The hollow caverns of first Adam's skull That as in Adam's name 's four letters ly The hidden ridle of his Impery A 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 D 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 A 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 M 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 So by that self-same word and borrow'd name The Second must his Gospels bounds proclame The Jewish criminations though unjust Have made him now a vassall to their lust Not to the Altar but to Calvary Not to the Temple but the Cursed tree Not in the City but without the gate Not in a corner but in publique hate Not in a valley but upon a mountain His pretious blood must bubble from its fountain That to all corners of the Earth great he May offer mercies liberality When first his Parents to the Temple went And him unto the Lord did represent He in that morning morning-like was made A morning sacrifice for quick and dead Now in the ev'ning of his life must he An ev'ning offring and oblation be That by his quiet rest and ev'ning sleep He might us in perpetuall quiet keep Now is our Isaac on his way and beares Upon his back the symbole of our feares In such a patient way thâ—â— Nature might Have been asham'd to see so sad a sight If faintings watchings bloody swears and blowes If stripes and platted thorns and such like throwes Of inhuman'ty might ' gainst man prevaile It was no wonder though his sp'rits did faile Of old when Moses sent twelve men to try Canaans forces and fertility Two of those twelve from Eschol did re-bring As first fruits of faire Palestina's spring Some pomgranats some figs and grapes which ty'd Unto a pole and on their shoulders lay'd They to the Camp of Israel did show As pledges of that good Lands fruitfull flow The man who walk'd before did well resemble The sonnes of Sinay who by weakneâ— tremble Under th' imperiall Law 's ov'rburth ning yoak Which galls the necks of Isr'els fainting flock He who did walk behind is Sions child His burthen's light his yoak is undefil'd His foot nor faints nor shrinketh in his way Till in his Camp his burthen down he lay The burthen of rich grapes which 'twixt them hangs Is Jesus Christ from out whose cluster springs The Law and Gospell in a golden cup Making men drunk with faith with love with hope But here before our eyes is truly set A reall emblem and no counterfeit Proposed hieroglyphick of that case Which all the faithfull doe in Christ embrace My Saviour goes before and willingly Takes up his Crosse and bears it patiently Till fainting by the way he 's forc'd to lend Unto an alien his Crosse lightest end Doe not
date I for my last and glorious change shall waite For He who was dead is alive and shall To me be Alpha and Omega All. The Trophee CANTO 7o. CHrist had not come from heav'n to earth but that He might our dying soules re-animat He had not liv'd on earth so long to try Cares watches griefes reproaches misery Had he not meant to write us an example In patience upon their necks to trample Nor had he took our flesh if not to die That by his suff'rings he might satisfie The wrath of God due unto mans offence And reconcile that sin-bred difference Nor had he dy'd were 't not to rise again And reunite us to our Soveraigne Nor did he rise but that he might ascend And so bring our Redemptions to an end Thus was he born thus did he live and thus He hath both dy'd and rose againe for us That our new birth new life and new death may By him be turn'd to an eternall day Now if that any ask who shall perswade VVeake man that he such mighty power had The trembling earth the darkned sunne the grave The quickned dead the rent vaile and that slave VVhich in earths centers dwels can all declare The Virgins sonne and eke th' Almighties heire True God and Man earths Monarch heav'ns great King Did those stupendious works t' effect forth bring But if sublunar things subject to errour Can neither work our joy nor strike with terrour Our hardned hearts let glorious Angels then Serve to extirpate misbeliefe from men For they did by their presence shake those fooles VVho by their spears and staves and murth'ring tools Sought to detaine the Lord of Life i' th' grave Let all such guardians such reward still have Then to some weaker women whose true care And love to life had quickly brought them there They furnish matter of true consolation Declaring his true life whose death and passion Had but of late their soule so pierc'd with woe That naturall comfort could not cure their blow Such as our conscience is or good or bad Accordingly we are rejoyc'd or sad When God to us his countenance doth show Or in a cheerfull smile or frowning aw The righteous Man is like the Lyon bold The wicked shrink for feare within their hold And one day when their joyes away shall fly Then shall they shrink and feare eternally One woman there was of a speciall note The Magdalen of late known by her spot But now by penitentiall tears made clean She greater grace and favour doth obtain For he whodwelleth in the heav'ns doth weigh The hearts of men in scales of Veritie And looks not on our outward carnall things But on that treasure which the heart forth brings To this poore woman then they first doe talk And with her in the way of comfort walk That she who sometime was a sinner might To after-sinners shew the wondrous hight The depth the length and breadth of mercy that Unto the penitent's accumulat For God doth not take heed to what we were But unto what we by adoption are For still his mercies supr'abound and more Where sinnes abundant plenty dwelt before If he can see our tears our cheeks distaine And bubble up from true repentance vaine Some eight dayes hence this Nymph began to weep And make her tears bedew her Masters feet Her eyes as yet have not shut up their sluces So deep 's the memoyr of her youths abuses And eke so fresh the relish of his smart Who spent his blood to purge her sinfull heart That she cannot her throbbing sighs restrain Nor from her restlesse seas of teares refraine But when sh'ath weep'd enough she still weeps more And ' gainst her sorrowes cannot shut the doore VVhil'st thus she weeps she turnes unto her stay And bowing down beholds where Jesus lay And loe two Angels there doe sit the one VVhere Jesus head did lye and rest anon Another she espies there where his feet Had their impression in the hard rock set They see the woman weep and thus enquire VVoman why weep'st thou what dost thou desire She answers Sure I weep not without cause For here of late in deaths devouring jawes My Lord did lye but now alas he 's gone And none can tell me whither no not one They thus reply what foole art thou to seek The living ' mongst the dead did he not speak And preach to you last day in Galile The sonne of man must suffer and third day Rise up again he is not here goe goe Tell his Disciples that he 's rise But loe VVhil'st thus they parley Jesus comes and still Rebukes her for her mis-informed will VVoman saith he woman what dost thou mean VVhat wilt thou never from thy teares abstain She takes him for the Gardner and saith Sir If you have took him hence pray let me heare VVhere you have layd him and be sure from thence I will re-bring him at what-ere expence To those fond words my Saviour saith But Mary She answers him Rabboni Without tary Falls down before his feet to kisse them but He to that fond affection yeeldeth not O doe not touch me Mary saith he for I am not yet ascended but what 's more Expedient for the world goe quickly tell My weak Disciples that the gates of hell Which gap'd against me now have no more pow'r To hedge me in for I have broke their door And to my members doe propine Lifes cup That they may dine with me I with them sup O what a masse or magazen is here Of pretious comfort by a Gardiner Breath'd to a woman O what large extent Of pardon 's sealed to a Penitenâ—â— For whil'st I see her thus so sadly weep And him comfort her ' gainst her griefs I keep In minde that Program which of late he told Blessed are they who mourn for loe behold They shall reap comfort and thrice blessed they Who ask seek knock for verily I say They shall receive and finde and enter for To such my Father doth not shut his door Next this whil'st I behold the great mistake Wherein her true affection although weake Made her believe a Gardner she had seen I doe impute it to her tear-drown'd eyn I cannot choose but make my soule to smile At this so happy fraud and sweet beguile For never man did to my weak esteem Give him a fitter stile or truer name For where did ever garden in the stower Of stormy rage produce so sweet a flower Or where did ever Gardner plant or frame So rich an imp in such a withring stem Did he not first in Paradise re-plant The promis'd Primrose of the Covenant In Baal-haman graft'd he not that Vine About the which the Saints their armes doe twine Is not he Sharons Rose the Valleyes Lilly Engeddies Camphire Bethleems Daffadilly Gethsemans Gilly-flow'r and Golgaths Rheu And Arimathea's Turn-sol ever true It is not then a great mistake to call Him Gardner who makes those to rise and fall O glorious Gardner
Of Peace of Mercy and of Lovesick-motion VVherewith the Man-God my Redeemer hath Releas'd my Darling both from Sin and Death But since my wit is weake my pen unable My judgment shallow and my hand unstable To give a true characterizing strain Unto thy Greatnes Goodnes Mercies-Main O grant that whilst thou openest thus my mouth T' unfold the Tenor of thy sacred Truth I bee not like those stones which by the way Unmov'd themselves the beaten rode display Nor like that Canall and that watry Spout VVhich from the fountaine to it's bubling snout Conveys pure streams of coole refreshing water For th' use of others whilst it self 's no better No first inform my mind then cleer mine eye That I may learn what depth of Deiry Thy VVisdome hath entrencht within the Vail Of flesh and made it there reside and dwell Then touch my lips and guide my babling pen That I may warble to the sons of men The sweet Hyblaean Nectar of thy Powre That brings us sweetnes from our bitter-sowre So shall I teach thy Saints thy waies aright Whilst thy all-seeing eye vouchsafes mee sight The Prodrome CANTO 2o. I Sing the wonders of that wondrous GOD Who being essentially one is Trin'ly od Not in that first born Word-begotten Mater Whose after-byrth was fire ayre earth and water From whom and to whom as their native sourse Time reconveys his childrings circled course Nor gaze I that re-colonizing Boat Wherein old Noah twelve months pent did float On steepe high Mountains and Ryphaean woods Like Neptune trampling on those swallowing floods Which from Heav'ns-sluces Earths hid vains and Seas Deep-channels did God's wrath anatomize Nor minde I now to lim that wondrous Love Which burning in Elohim's brest above Did Shem and Heber's sacred line re-bring From Shinar's soyl and fayre Euphrates spring T' attend the loadstar of th'Eternals call Amidst those plains where Jordan's course doth craule Nor shall my bubling pen those plagues expresse Which from the heav'ns in wraths enrag'd excesse On Zâ—an's field and Mizraim's flowry Tent Were as postilions of their wrath down sent Nor sing I those divine decrees and wonders VVhose voice contemper'd with a thousand thunders Breeds more respect in Israel's haughty heart VVho notwithstanding acts the truants part Then all those Lawes which Numa could afford Or yet the Spartane or Cecropian Lord L. S. No those already have in matchlesse Ore Traverst both Vestae's lap and Thetis shore And by the pencill of a glorious Gawl D. B. Have drawn the curtain of our azur'd All In such a sort that time shall never bring So sweet a draught from Hippocrene's spring Save that which Albian's Mercury Trismegist J. S. Hath quintessenc'd from Ampelonaes brest No no my care shall bee in heav'n-bred trance To gaze his more then wondrous excellence From whom all things as from their common father Doe all their essence and their being gather That true beginning midst and end of all VVho but beginning midst or end at all Is ground and top of that uncoupled chaine VVhich links poore sinners to their Soveraign The blessed Son I sing of God and Man VVho born in time yet was ere time began The Son of God th' eternall living rock And royall off-spring of great David's stock That blest Redeemer whom the Prophets old By heav'n-bred revelations oft foretold On whom their figures shadowes Types and Tropes Built all their truths moralities and hopes The God of Gods I sing and King of Kings From out whose mouth a two ed'd smyter-springs Dividing twixt the marrow and the bones And manifesting th' hearts hid motions VVhose words are misteries whose works are wonders VVhose eyes are lightnings and whose voice is thunders VVhose hayres are whiter then the new faln snow Whose sparkling eyes like flames of fire doe glow VVhose loynes are girt with gold of better fine Then Titan lusters in his mid-day shine VVhose foot 's of burning brasse and trampleth down The rage of Lethe Styx and Acharon Him him I sing Earth Earth attend my song That so the hony-suckles of my Tongue May like those showres which on the Meads doe trill Celestiall Nectar to the world distill For though my pen in peace should snort and ly The Rocks the Mountains and the Stones would cry Crant therfore ô my God Grant grant betimes Peace to my Soule and soule unto my Rhimes Yea quintessence my soule and eke advance My care-free spirit in some celestiall trance That purg'd from passion thy divine addresse May guide me through this desert wildernesse Of humane weaknesse that my Pen from thee And Lines may borrow such a dignity As may expresse in lofty quavering songs The lofty prayse which unto thee belongs But stay my Muse and lanch not to the Ocean VVhose never ebbing Tide and restles motion No Pilot yet could know aright or keep Himself from Naufrage in so vast a deep For this is sure That in this voyage stands Charybdis gulfe and Scilla 's shelf and sands 'Twixt which the whistlings of an easie gale Must guide thy Bark and not a blustrous sale Yet keep not alwaies peace my Muse for now 'T is time to cleere thy care-eclipsed brow And by the numbers of thy sacred fury To stray along th'enamel'd coasts of Jurie Goe then from Dan to Bethel thence anon To Aroer Keilah Adullam Ziff Maone To Shilo Gilgall Mizphe Ramah Nob And these sky-threatning towr's whose spires doe rob Their white from Pelops shoulder and their Ore From Peru Ganges and Hydaspes shore And while thou viewst those coasts and pleasant fields Which milk and hony in abundance yeelds Vaile vaile thy top-saile and in rev'rence greet That sacred Flamyn whose heav'n-ravish'd sp'rit Doth at Joves Altar with a zeale-bred fire Evaporat his Soules sincere desire Haile flowry Jordan then and you sweet torrents Of christall-water whose Meandring currents So many Saints have sip'd and O thou soyl Whose arms gave rest from that tumultuous toyl Wherein our Fathers forty yeers did stray And O you sacred-walls where eft-soon lay That mighty God and Man whose chrimson shower From out his side made him our Saviour Yea O you hills you dales and fields each one Where Earths-sole Phoenix Heav'ns-true Paragon Did from his Cradle to his Crosse endure Our sinnes-disease and griefs-distemp'rature Haile haile I cry you all a glad good morrow Let neither blustring winds nor rain-bred sorrow Your Meads unflowre or yet your woods disleave Or choak your torrents in their bubling grave No let nor haile nor snow nor frost nor Ice By their tumultuous violent prejudice Your brows enage or yet your Tresses scorne Till from your tops your golden fleece be shorn But rather let the heav'ns with smiling face Your Nayids and your Napa's so embrace That by the tincture of their milk-sweet raine Your floury virdure may still fresh remaine As long as Titan takes delight to post From Japan to the great Herculaean coast But above all Hail hail thou ghostly-Father
Zachary Th' Almighties Flamin his anoynted rather Ev'n thou who by thy lot within this shrine With hallowed Judgment and with Art divine Attendst thy service and observ'st thy station To expiat Israels sinfull conversation O how my ravish'd Soule doth now admire The glorious fabrick of this glorious Quire Wherein thou standst for Porphyr Gold and Mabre Strive t'eternize the curious workman's-labor No whilst within this house my greedy eye Doth glut her self on Arts brave industry No sooner can I rest my thoughts upon This carved seiling or that graven stone But lo a rare rare Deity ties my Sense To ruminat his matchlesse eminence For whilst I call that Majesty to minde Whose grace and glory peace and truth hath shin'd Within those walls what need I more to seek Nile's Hyeroglyphicks or the Delphian Creek The Rabbiâ—-Talmud characters of Perss Turks Alcaron or Sybillaean verse No those are all but fancies and inventions Of humane frailties and of frail intentions Which like their owners perish in that rust Which Time and Canker portrays in the dust But here and here alone I know within These vaulted-Arches Man infect with Sin May read the Programs of th'Eternal's Love Made manifest for Adam's sonns behove Son saith the Syre what proud ambitious strain Hath led thee hither that thou shouldst prophane Jehovah's sacrifice and solemn Rite With babling Riddles of a brain-sick sprite Look but I pray thee what dread adorations The Idoll godlings of the godles Nations Require within their shrines and shadowing Grove And thence learn thou to dread th' Almighty Jove Shall Jupiter Ammonius or Apollo Or wandring Cynthea whom the Sylvans follow At Daphne's trypod Dodona or there Whereas th' Argolick sages did repair Require a grave and reverend Majesty To enact their hel-born magick mystery And shall not he who 's one and trinally od Of kings chief King and above all gods God Receive a reverend form and sacred guize Of worship in his daily Sacrifice Or tell me Son have nere thy eares as yet Heard how his Ark did scaily Dagon smit And all the Princes with a deadly wound In Ashdod Gath and Ekrons coasts confound Or knowst thou not poore Vzzah's fatall storie Or Abthu and Nadab's fatall glorie Who in their vain presumptions fell and falling Bid man observe the compasse of his calling All those stand written in truth's sacred book That wee may read when upon them wee look His fearfull glory and unapproched might Who sets us in his never slumbring sight Out therfore get thee out from hence and stand With Israel in his porch whose heav'd up hand Dejected heart and humbly-patient ey Attends the Missa of this Mistery At this rebuke I goe yet scarce am gone When loe the relicts of a mourning groane Cut in a thousand parcells seems to call Mee back to gaze some divine spectacle Returning then amazd behold I finde After the rushing of a mighty winde A light ore-shadow Zachary more cleere Then that which gilds our mid-daies hemispheere In midst whereof at Zacharies right hand Behold a glorious Cherubim doth stand Whose smiling eyes and countenance excels All human beauties and all creatures els About his head a semi-circled Crown Of Iris parti-colour'd coat was drawn Which to my poore amazed wandring eyn Seem'd dy'd in opall yellow blue and green The curled hayrs which on his head doe grow Are whiter far then new faln flaughts of snow 'Twixt which the sparks of gold bespangled brands Makes Ganges blush and Tagus loath her sands His eys like stars in dark Cymerian night Dart forth their flashings with a wondrous light And like that troop which trips about the Pole In restles wandrings here and there they role Next this with two Seraphick wings he flies Whereon the heav'ns have daind t'immortalize Their rarest beauties in the rarest hue Of crimson red and pure vermilion blue Down from his middle to his feet is drawn A pretious vail more cleere then any lawn On which stands portray'd by celestiall Art That love-sick Foule which tares her tender heart And yeelds a Runnall of her deerest blood To glut her Paricids amidst their food A little lower Jesse's son doth stand With peeble stones and sling-staffe in his hand Trampling Goliah's glory in the dust Who in his strength and sinnewy force did trust Loe here the Phoenix aromatick cole Burns her to dust and yet revives her soule And there Arachne from her belly spins The tissue-mantle that obscures our sins These and a thousand other severall passions Of severall figures severall forms and fashions Stand checker'd all as emblems of that Love Which weds our frailties to a spotles Jove At this great sight old Zachary stands mute Confus'dly amaz'd amaz'dly irresolute For by a pallid ghostly feare his sense Of speech and hearing lose their influence At last like to the Delian Princess when She fluttereth over the Atlantick Ocean He curbs the fit that conquer'd him before And to his reason thus he opes the dore O! what is this that I behold faith he Is this a fain'd evanishing Majesty Of Molech Milcom Chamosh Ashtaroth Of Baal Dagon or that spirit which doth Transform'd in light bewitch with darknes spell Those howling ghosts which on Earths center dwell No sure I am those Idols are not such They neither heare nor see nor talk nor touch They smell not taste not and in all their bands There is no heart that knows or understands As for that hellish Prince or fearfull spirit Lights hatefull foe who darknes doth inherit I know that here he never dare aspire To view the secrets of this sacred fire Whose Censers in their sweet exhaling cloud Presignifie that Shiloe in his blood Shall such a fragrant Sacrifice reveale As shall bruise down the head that bites his heele What then it is some vision sent from heav'n But those have ceas'd and our deserts have driv'n That sacred Chore and great Angelick train To shun the lewd societies of Men. Whilst thus old Zachary's mutinous thoughts are all Beleaguer'd by Opinion's Generall Feare Hee whose feare restrains the Lions jaws And curbs the rigour of the Tygers paws Cries by his Angell Zachary feare no more For lo thy prayer 's heard and come before His glorious eyes who shuts our tears each one In bottles of due retribution Recall therefore thy Spirits from gates of death For lo thy barren wife Elizabeth Shall beare a Son and thou shalt call him John Heavn's holy-Ghost shall alwaies rest upon His head and his celestiall pow'r shall sacre Thy Son a Minion to the worlds great Maker Nor wine nor strong drink shall hee taste at all Nor shall a rasor make his tresse to fall But as a Nazarite both in name and spirit He shall Eliah's talent re-inherit And as a Lyon he shall roare and cry Prepare before Messiah's face the way In him thou shalt rejoyce for many one Jew Prosolyte and far-bred nation Shall joy in him for by his heav'nly Art He shall the
name the world out-braves And in her left hand for a nose-gay hath The Cedar sweetl'ore shaded Nazareth Here scarce a furlong from her Eastern gates VVhich on the new-born Titans rayes awaits Nature hath formed though with artlesse Art A Grove in whose each portion and each part There 's such a modell of her power inborn As matchd with this laughs all the world to scorn For here the clymat sweetly temper'd hot Hath thrust away the winters petticoat And like a Lover in a flourishing green Makes lusty May continually be seen Yet least the scorching blinks of Titan's ey Should parch or wither Florae's tapestry Sweet Zephyr sends a musky sighing breath To shelter Vesta from the Lyon's wrath Here long liv'd Oaks and noble Palm-trees sprayes With amorous Myrtles and immortall bayes Never disleav'd but still re-growing new Their clasped arms in thousand Arbors threw There still did dangle to the gazers eyn A thousand fruits some sweetly ripe some green Which in their colour taste and shape did mock The Lemon Orange and the Apricock Ayr 's daughter Eccho which the woods doth haunt From high rebabling Rocks doth here rechaunt The sweet contemper'd Notes and maryed layes Which Linots Larks and Nightingales displayes All which amidst their warblings flat and sharp Exceeds Arion's or the Thracian's harp And yeelds a descant sweeter far than that Which Linus or Amphyon modulat Anon along this grove in pompe doth slide A Runnell with a rofie broydered side Whose sand's pure gold whose peeble's pretious stones Whose chiding murmurs were majestick grones And whose least draught is sweeter then that drink That now in Creta decks Cerathus brink Here down she lies beside those streams whose gushing Makes sweeter musick with their gentle rushing Then Juball's hammers when they fram'd that sound Whence Syren-musick's Gam-Vt first was found And sadly sitting in this grove alone She lends her eare to that division Which from the murmuring brook's sad accent flows And thence unto a higher strain she throws Her contemplation yea from thence shee scales And censures heav'ns imperiall festivals Father says shee of light and learned Arts Great all of all who unto all imparts Some parcell of thy selfe that thou alone Maist still be all in all 's Communion Voutchsafe to heare thy hand-maids voice a space Who truly humbled here before thy face Doth lick the dust at thy imperiall feet To testifie that her poor heart's contrite Whence comth't that these poore drops of christall water Which Earth from out her hollow brests doth scatter Can yeeld so sweet bewitching notes and sound As turns the wanton's-myrth t'a-harts deep wound Or whence com'th't that those byrds whose artles bill With C-sol Fa-uth's notes the Spheeres doe fill Doe greet th' approach of lights advanc'd cariere With sweeter strains than Art instructs his quire What have those creatures force or pow'r at all Coutch'd in their bosoms that can eyther thrall The giddy minde to taste a sober quiet Or rouse th' afflicted from their dismall diet No no 't is thou and thou alone whose voyce Can make the Soule to feare or yet rejoyce For as thy hand hath form'd the heart in Man And as thy eyes from highest heav'ns doe scan Our hidden reynes so by thy pow'r thou guides Our Soules swift current in their severall tides For whilst thy iight and countenance doth shine With Sextile aspect Quadrat or with Tryne On our dark hearts O how they joy t' advance Their light before thy ' lightning countenance And whilst again Sins drossie globe doth stand Just interpos'd betwixt thy shining brand And our dark hearts O then Cymerian-night Succeeds in lieu of thy celestiall light Hence by that sweetnes which wee find in thee Wee loathe the blinks of natur's royaltie And find her treasures but a bubling sourse Which from thee for thee to thee bends its ' course Hence flow our griefs hence brookes and desert dales With seeming murmurs pittiously bewailes Thy absence and their mourning sables weare Till thou return and cleere their hemispheere Come therefore thou A lmighty-Spirit of spirits Great-Light of lights whose Majesty inherits That wondrous Light to which no flesh attains Which in this muddy vail of flesh remains Come come I say and by thy Spirit inspire This Spirit of mine with thy celestiall fire That in thy Light my Soule may cleerly see That great unsearched Deep of Majestie Which dwelling in thee doth exchange my story Of Death and Darknes to true Light and Glory Scarce hath she from the flames of zeale-bred fire Evaporat these accents of desire When loe from heav'ns high Senate there doth fly A Legat of Hierarkick Majesty Who with due reverence and obsequious Rites The blessed Virgin thus salutes and greets Hail sacred Nymph Haile Virgin-Bride and thou On whom the heav'ns dread Soveraign doth allow The favor of a freely-granted grace The Lord 's with thee rest therfore still in peace Blessed bee thou and blest beyond all those That ere from Grandam Evahs loyns arose Let Heav'ns thy blisse extend as farre inscorn Of Earths best hap as ev'r the pearly Morn The radiant Noon or rheumy Ev'n can see Or Neptunes brauls or Vestaes tapestrie For from thy wombe a Monarch-Prince shall spring Sinne death and hells eternall taming King The sacred Founder of mans Soveraign blisse The worlds rich Ransome Peace and Righteousnes He shall be called Great and Strong of strongs The most high Sonne to whom of due belongs The keyes of David Solomon's Ivory Throne And Jacob's Lot-divided-tents each one His shafts shall thrill the foes which him assaile His force shall all th' Infernall furies quaile Each knee in heav'n and earth shall to him bow And every tongue confesse him God most true For by his blood he re-unites again Earths wandring Subjects to their Soveraign Looke how one daz'led with the splendor bright Of Titan's rayes being lately brought to light From darknesse of a black Cymerian deep Where nev'r a Cranny suffer'd light to peep Being too too soon re-cleer'd stands gazing so As one disself'd and doubtfull where to goe Ev'n so the Maid at this unlook'd-for tale Halfe dead with terrour first growes ashy pale Then re-comforted with dejected eyes First views her Nuntio and then thus replyes O how can 't be that I within whose brest Lusts sparkling flames did never plead for rest Whose Virgin-modest chaste and tender eare Did nev'r infamous Ruffian bablings heare Yea I whose thoughts unsported nev'r was wed To th' wanton pleasures of a Mariage bed Should bud such blossoms or such fruits forth bring As makes the barren to rejoyce and sing Peace Mary saith the Angell peace and feare not The Holy Ghost ore-shaddowes thee then dare not With curious search of humane Reason's strength To limit him whose wayes for breadth and length For height and depth are all a boundlesse treasure Acknowledging no limit bound nor measure For willt thou look on his unsearched Spirit Invisible immortall infinit All Majesty all self-omnipotent Pure
wise just good impassive excellent Eternall Monarch All-commanding all End of all ends of Firsts th' Originall Great Light of lights Cause of all causes and Chiefe Life of lifes unseen all-seeing brand Who e'r the Worlds Idaea first was fram'd E'r Eurus blew e'r Seas or Earth was nam'd Ev'n from Eternity did in One combine One Trine-une essence one essentiall Trine Him shalt thou finde e'r Time could stretch his station In unsearch'd deep eternall Observation Fore-know his creatures in their severall ends And severall courses that the same attends Yea as his aye and all fore-seeing eye Fore-knew his creatures from eternity So hath hee made his pleasure and good will A still enflamed Limbeck wherein till Mans waies are so confin'd compos'd control'd That all his Mercure's turn'd to perfect gold This is his work though wondrous in our eyes Ev'n his whose throne transcends our starry skies From contrair's to extract a contrair ' story Whose contestation still effects his glory Thus did he in the worlds first byrth forth bring This universall-All from out nothing And by his word hee made lights glistring Lamp Shine in the midst of darknes shady Camp Thus doth he now in times last time from far Call things that are not ev'n as though they were And makes his Mercy sup'r abound in store Where Sins abundant plenty dwelt before No heare mee Virgin pause for pause thou must Hee that revives the Phoenix from her dust Hee that from darknesse center springs the day Hee that from gates of death doth life display And he who without woman first did make Of Adams rib an Evah for his sake Shall without knowledge of a Man provide To make the' a-sacred Mother Virgin Bride Thus spoke hee and then disappears and now The maid 's alone who on her knees doth bow And with her hands lift up to heav'ns high throne She sighs this sacred exultation Loe here I am thy servant mighty Lord Bee 't unto mee according to thy word If thou on mee hast plac'd thy hearts delight Then let thy hand-maid prosper in thy sight Yet O thou great and everlasting Father How shall I wonder or evanish rather At this thy wondrous work thou dost expresse On mee the chiefest worm of wretchednesse For thou hast look'd upon the base condition Of mee thy servant in so wondrous fashion That henceforth all succeeding times shall call Mee bless'd because of this memoriall Thy mighty hand hath done for mee great things And great 's thy name thou royall King of kings For by the strength of thy right hand thou scatters Man's vain imaginations like spilt waters Thou thrust'st the mighty down from Iv'ry seats And makst the abject to possesse their states Thou fill'st the hungry with thy blessings store And mak'st the full through penury to roare Thou mak'st thy promise a continuall creede To Abraham Isaac Jacob and their feede Yea from the stem of Jesse thou mak'st known To all that feare thee ' thy salvation Bless'd bee thou then thou God of Israel who Hast visit and redeem'd thy people so That by the splendor of that Bright day star Which thou hast made to shine both neer and far The tender mercies of our tender God In wondrous plenty visits us abroad And gives us matter while the world 's great frame Endures to prayse and magnifie thy Name Immanuel or Puerperie CANTO 4o. GReat God who by thy words great pow'r brought From nothing's-Chaos this our all things by rth Great Spirit whose secret certain prescience Fore-knows and guides all humane accidents Eternall Light from whose all-seeing ey Nothing is hid no not eternity If ere thou mad'st my silly simple Soule In sacred rage to rise above the Pole Now now reflect bright Sun thy golden rayes On my poore Moone eclips'd by thy delays Ravish my Spirit Life of my Soule revive My starving thoughts that I may truly give A perfect strain and perfectly record The Incarnation of thy ' ternall Word That so in sacred fury I may limbe Though with a coale the first-born Prince of Time And to the after-age in verse expresse God living suffering rising in the flesh But ay me where shall stripling I begin T' unfold this Daedal ' Labyriuth wherein Nature shall sooner lose her selfe then gain A steddy course amidst this Ocean For nature never hath as yet exprest His first-born being in th'Eternal's brest And how shall humane wisdom now forth tell The second byrth-right of Immanuel 'T is true some doating Atheists big with tumors Of brain-sick Heresies impoys'ning humors Like blinde men groaping in the day have run By light of Nature to display this Sun But all in vain the more they scan this point The more they find their judgements out of joynt Here one conceiting God cannot be born Ebion Hath therefore laught his Deity to scorn Another seeing him true Gods true Son Marcion Denieth him Man by Incarnation A third beholding him both God and Man Euâ—iches Confounds his Natures by a naturall span A fourth enforc'd by force of truth to see Nestor God joyn'd with man in Pers'nall unitie Hath from his true distinguish'd Natures frame Giv'n him two Hypostatick persons theame Which like Hippocrates undissever'd twins Together quicken live dye ends begins But hath not Esay much more cleerly told To Judahs King that Time should once unfold Esay 7.14 From out a Virgins womb a glorious Prince Whose Passion should expiate our offence Immanuel God with us and even Man of the Virgin and a God from Heaven Not God alone but Man also or rather God of himselfe Sonne gotten of the Father Both God and Man in whom both reall Natures Of God and Man distinguish'd by true features And severall functions stands dissever'd so As no division can their seat ore-throw And so distinguish'd that albe't there be Two Natures there distinguish'd really Yet to averre two Persons thereupon Were Sathans dark prevarication No no Immanuel and that God with us Our Advocate our Judge and our Jesus Abiding what he was e'r Time become In Time what he was not and being the same Was in our flesh without Confusions wonder Or rending of his Person ev'r asunder Inaugurate by Heav'ns dread Monarchs love A Prophet Priest and Prince for our behove A Prophet by whose documents we learne The things which Nature never could discerne By force of Reason for th' Almighty did In secret silence his best Counsels hide Till his Eternall word made flesh should frame The glorious promulgation of the same A Priest also the Virgins Sonne must be T' accomplish the Almighties dread Decree Of Mercy and of Justice both so that Th' Almighty might in both b'inviolat A Soveraign Prince he needs must be also To lead Captivity captive and ore-throw That Prince of Darknesse who by Sinnes proud hands Kept both our life and liberty in bands That as by him our feares our foes and all Captivities are captivate and thrall So he in God may make us
to possesse True Joy true Peace true Life and Righteousnesse Stay then poor Muse thy course soare not too high To search out that unsearched mysterie To know whose great unparalell'd perfection No Flesh hath yet attain'd by flesh-direction Content thy selfe in modesty to view His birth and at his Pedestall to bow Whose glorious light our darknesse doth expell And being God youchsafes with Men to dwell Come then and in a safe approach behold Him whom the heav'n of heav'ns could not enfold Now couch'd within a Crib and make poor beasts The witnesse of his Genethliack feasts A wake then Bethleem let me aske thee where Are all thy pleasant shades and dainty fare Thy sumptuous tables and thy quilt-strawd beds Whereon thy guests of late did rest their heads Where 's now thy pomp thou house of David where Are love and mercy banished that there Where Davids seed and Davids Lord likewise Should dwell thou shouldst his Royalty despise O sure I am it cannot be but now The house of David only doth allow His name but not his nature for I see Ev n in the throng of his Posteritie His Darling thrust to doores and forc'd to lay The worlds dread Soveraign in a cratch of clay But ô the deepnes and the riches both Of Wisedome and of Providence that doth Shine in thy wayes ô God whil'st thou dost make Thy Counsels known for our salvations sake This pur-blind world doth think that Fortune guides And Chance governs the ever-changing tides Of humane actions but 't is nothing so Live as wee list and goe where ere we goe Th'ore-ruling pleasure of thy secret will Governs our actions both in good and ill In Nazareth Christ was conceiv'd but loe In Bethleem he must be born and shew Himself first Man and there first breath our ayre Who makes the bread of Life our Soules rich fare That as he was a Naz'rite by conception Both separate from sinne and sins infection So he in Bethleems magazen might len ' The bread of life unto the sonnes of men One place must not engrosse him who was born For all no that were mock'ry and base scorn T'intrench his splendor in one private place Whose rayes must cherish all the world with grace Rome then was Stage where worldly honors grew Athens the Ocean where the Arts did flow Jerusalem the great Pontificate Where Rabbins in the Chaire of Moses sate But lo for Bethleems sake he now disdaines The trophies of those Metropolitans Not that the place could adde to his renown For Place can neither dignifie nor crown The Person but the Person doth decore And make the Place more splendid then before So he who from out Darknesse did display The worlds first lustre and baptiz'd it Day Ev'n he who from out Deaths devouring jawes And from the roaring Lions cruell pawes Makes lifes sweet well-spring richly to abonnd From Penuries despised womb and wound Makes Righteousnesse and Mercy Truth and Peace Each one another sweetly to embrace In whatsoever chance or change therefore This mortall life involve me the rich store Of his refining Providence shall still Enrich my Table and my Cup full-fill Yea make me sleep in safe and quiet rest Because he turneth all things to my best Yet let me stay a while and view this change Which through the world in Triumphs pomp doth range And makes fair Sions sons like Sinayes Clown To yeeld due homage to a Strangers Crown O God whence comes this wondrous alteration Whence springs the current of this desolation That they who erst were blest in fleecy flocks Whose Rivets were of milke whose steepest Rocks Distill'd a hony sweeter then the Mead Whereon their nibling troops did prank and feed Being blest at home abroad and in each plaine Blest by the ayre by sun-shine and by raine Whose force did daunt the Earth with trembling aw Whose Scepter writ their neighboring States their law Whose terrour made their proudest enemies then ' Gainst them march one way flye before them ten Should now as Vassals sigh and pant and groan Under the load of strange Subjection And bow their necks to bear the grievous Loans Of Tributes Taxes Impositions O now I see 't is not so much thy Care Great Caesar to augment thy glories share That these importning cruell Subsidies Like roaring thunders through the world now flies As 't is th' Almighties pleasure now even now Because the time is full from heav'n t' allow The worlds great Monarchy to thee that so The sonnes of Jacob may discern and know The visitation of their look'd for Grace And wisely learn the things which preach their Peace For I must tell thee Israel that since Thy Diadem's subdu'd t' a forraign Prince And since the Helm of thy Government stands Within the circuit of a Strangers hands The time is come that Shilo's golden ray Should light thy darknesse and begild thy day And that the Star of Jacob now should shine Not in an earthly grandeur but divine Hence hence it comes yet in obedience strain The Virgin goes to Nazareth amain But ore-charg'd by her burthen 's forc'd to stay And beare her Sonne at Bethleem by the way Where ô what 's Caesars Caesar hath and what Is due to God to God is consecrate For Caesar hath his penny God his Son The Devill his bane Man his salvation What shall I then dis-know thee ô thou Prince Of my salvation since for my offence Thou art subjected to these foule despisings That Sinne or Sathan send from their devisings In this so great and rare Nativity Let Junctyne Origen or great Ptolemie Copernicus or Tichâ—bra or they Who with the starry Influence doe play Look on this Non-such-birth and if they can Display his midnight or meridian It feares me much their judgements shall come short Of what this Theam and Birthright doth import For rule the Cuspe of his eight house who will His death shall our deaths Dominator kill And maugre hell and earth which him assaile He breaks the Dragons head and curbs his taile Isa 7.14 Isa 11.10 Gen. 49.9 Gen. 49.23 For Virgo beares him he in Libra lives The Archers wound him Leo him revives For though mans reason cannot think but all His Starres were dignifi'd both great and small Yet lo his Mother voyd of friend and Kinne Must make a Stable her bed-chambers Inne The Parlours all are fill'd with uncouth guests Their Chambers all are stuff'd with sumptuous feasts Proud pomp stern ryot foule and loath'd excesse Have took up Bethleems roomes both more and lesse And Superfluity dances such a round That for Necessity no place is found But she whose table in the heav'ns was deckt Must beare her Sonne disdain'd and disrespect Now now the Oxe may say I know my owner Now sayes the Asse This is my masters corner But Israel and Bethleem cannot know What homage to their Saviour they ow For every Prophet's honor'd save at home And he although amongst his own he come Yet was he
at hand Yet 't is not he such transmigrations now Dare plead no place amidst a Christian crew For by th'Eternals uncontrol'd decree As dust we are so to the dust goe we And till the time that heav'ns shall be no more Our bodies are not what they were before Nor shall our soules or lifes true quickâ—ing spirit Their wonted dwelling houses re-inherit Who is it then Now I perceive 't is he Concerning whom the Prophet Malachy Hath by a divine wisedome thus foretold Wonder you fooles come come you wise Behold Before the comming of that dreadfull day Wherein the Lord his glory shall display Eliah first shall come and by his voyce The father in his children shall rejoyce The children to their fathers wiser Will Shall bow their necks and be obedient still Lest comming to them with a searching fan His vengeance finish what their finnes began Yea sure I am 't is he for now I finde The Scribes and Pharises whose judgement 's blinde I. â— Run to his Baptisme though in scorn that so They may th ' Eternals Counsell overthrow But all in vain he with a soaring eye Rips up their hidden deep hypocrisie And by his threatning duely milde and grave Their hid dissimulation doth outbrave O vip'rous brood ô froward generation O Serpent-Issue of a sinfull Nation Who hath fore-warn'd you to eschew the doome And scape the scorching wrath that is to come Bring forth therefore bring forth I charge you here Those fruits of new-birth which makes faith appeare And glory not that Abraham's sonnes you are For he who calls what 's not as though it were Can make those senssesse stones if he have need Bring forth to Abra'm a Religious seed No rather know that these be now the times Wherein the hand of Justice fannes our crimes And trenching axes laid unto the Root Cut down the wither'd sticks are void of fruit 'T is true indeed I baptize you with water But loe there 's one to come who what I scatter Shall recollect he reaps where none was sown And but advantage will not have his own He 's great indeed and mightier farre then I I am not worthy his shoo-straps t'untye With water I baptize you ô but he Shall baptize with a fire of Deitie For in his hand he holds that searching fan Wherewith he doth his barn-floores treasure scan If we be found true wheat his hand shall keep Our soules from falling in th' infernall deep But if like chaffe we prove his swallowing ire Shall thrust us headlong in a quenchlesse fire Stray then no more through those poor desert fields Which neither state nor pomp nor glory yeelds To gaze on me a Reed toss'd too and fro Where any whirl-windes puffe delights to blow But rather in a wise discretion learn Your gracious Visitation to discern For this is he that should be sent expect None other to relieve your soules defect Looke on his wayes and by his works goe try The true prognosticks of his Majesty By him the blinde have eyes the lame their hands The deafe their eares the dead are loos'd from bands The Leaper's cleans'd and what is more the poore Receive the Gospell and the Crosse endure And that your Judgements may lack all excuse Behold the stone you builders did refuse Shall be approv'd and on the Corners top Shall stand that there by faith by love by hope His children may a living house be made To hold him for foundation and for head Loe where he comes my soul doth sweetly know him Bow bow your haughty necks yeeld what you ow him For he 's that great immac'lat Lamb of God Who having layd aside his wraths sharp rod Doth by a love-sick Mercies bloody gore So purge our sinnes that sinne stands ours no more Ne're did the swallowing Nilus rapid waves Provok'd to anger by th' Aeolian slaves Hurle down his streames to the Asphaltick lake With greater force than doth the Baptist shake By those his roaring thunders the proud knees Of these dissembling Scribes and Pharisees Yet scarce hath he like that fore-running starre VVhich doth proclaim th'approach of Titan's carre Fore-warn'd the world of that Imperiall Sun Whose race in Truths eccliptick line is run When loe that spotlesse Lamb whose spotlesse love And suffrings weds us to the Lord above Comes straight unto him and in modest fashion Without or pomp or pride or ostentation Requires to be baptiz'd in Jordan's flood The typick Emblem of his saving blood But John remembring what he was replies O sacred thou whose throne transcends our skies Why dost thou crave to be baptiz'd of me Since I should rather be baptiz'd of thee The servants state is not above his Lord Nor can my weaknesse that true strain afford Of due obedience that belongs unto thee O get thee from me for thy eyes undoe me Peace saith Immanuel John thy flesh is weak Th'Eternals hidden Counsels to partake For ne're hath flesh his riddles truly view'd But he who with his Heifer first hath plough'd Wouldst thou then know wherefore I doe desire To be baptiz'd of thee who can with fire Rebaptize thee Know that my Charge is such As without Unction none usurps to touch I doe not run unsent my Father hath Before all time decreed That by my death The sting of death and of deaths Lords great power Should so be curb'd that they no more devoure That I may then obey my Fathers will Ambros in Luc. c. 3. And all the law of Righteousnesse fulfill VVhich may contemper Mercies milde sweet yoak To Justice proud though just revenging stroak And so become a righteous Mediator Betwixt the Creature and the dread Creator I must be baptiz'd first that so I may My heav'nly function to the world display Adde hereunto that in this flesh of mine Which from the earth is earth from heav'n divine I must the state of of every thing renew And to my Gospell Moses Law subdue Man must be new the old man now must perish And by a new-born faith his soule must cherish The heav'ns shall be renew'd th' old flie away The Earth renew'd shall smell like maiden-May The Law is old a new command I give That men henceforth by faith love hope must live And as the Covenant's chang'd so must the Seale Make room for Grace and bid the Law farewell And what is more That Man may see I love To make his mansion in the heav'ns above Loe here his badg and cognizance I take On mee not for my own but for his sake That when my father Man's great Seale shall see On my fore-head and man made one with me He may from man his furious wrath withdraw And make him Heyre by Grace not by the Law And that vain man may never scorn those rites By which as Canals of coelestiall sweets Th' Almighty pours his Grace upon their Soule Men may their haughty hearts and necks controule To bow unto his Ordinances for No soule shall enter in at mercies door
Gods true Sonne then let me see Some token of it that I may believe He hath a care of thee that thou mayst live Full forty dayes thou hast been here alone Wand'ring and wond'ring in this Mansion Earth yeelds no bread the brooks doe yeeld no water The Downes no Locust Combes no honney scatter Clouds yeeld no Manna Ravens take no care To feed thee with their flesh-pots late or ear Sarepta's widow doth not breake her Cake Which for her own last dinner she did bake Is this th' Almighties care is this his love Which he of late did unto thee improve As to his Sonne that thou should'st starve and dye By famine and extream necessity No get thee up exchange these stones to bread Eat freely then and be thou satisfi'd For skin to skin and all the worlds rich choise Man will renounce before his life he lose Full forty dayes I have been here proud Clown R. Replies my Saviour and have beaten down This flesh of mine with fasting all the while That in this Lent of mine I might beguile Thy pur-blinde eyes whose chiefest aime and straine Is but to crush my flesh because humane Moses my servant neere this place before Fasted as long whil'st Sinay's tops did rore And he who Baal's folly did proclame Full forty dayes did try the same extreame Yet neither th' one nor th' other sought to thee For help in their extream necessitie But by my Fathers strengthning power they Were without outward meanes maintain'd alway My Father without bread or water can Maintain that life which he hath giv'n to man The heav'ns on Israel did Manna powre Like Coriander in a snow-white showre To some he doth lifes meanes miraculously Beyond their expectation multiply That when they look'd t' have kept nothing in store Their nothing still increas'd and grew the more Then to distrust my Fathers providence T' abuse my power and under the pretence Of working miracles t' obey thy will Were base in me and a prodigious ill Indeed man lives by bread but that 's not all Each word which from my Fathers mouth doth fall Must either blesse the bread to man or then It shall not nourish him 't shall prove his bane Thus hath the venemous snake his first dart flung Yet hath it neither wounded hurt nor stung My Saviour for his still uncharmed eare Without impression that assault did heare A second dart therefore the Traitor tryes And that it may prevaile he proudly flies Unto the top of Salems Temple there To crush by pride what 's not crush'd by dispair The first tentation's ground was starving want Now doth presumptuous plenty charm in chant For where one poore extream can never doe it He hath another and he puts us to it Jerusalem is now the worlds chiefe glory The Temple is Jerus'lems highest story The Pinacle's the loftiest step of that There is my Saviour by the Tempter set I have desir'd thee to make bread of stones Saith the proud murth'rer but behold at once Thou didst reply Thy Fathers providence Would shelter thee from Natures indigence Come then come let us try thy Fathers power Cast thy selfe down from top of this high tower For well I know what 's writ in David's book And thou mayst learn it when thou list to look That he hath giv'n his Angels astrict charge To bear thee in their armes as in a Barge To keep thee safe and sound in flesh and bone Psal 81. Lest thou shouldst dash thy foot against a stone How long shall I now suffer thee damn d dogge R. Saith my Redeemer like a wallowing hogge Disturb my sacred Cisterns by such wiles The Sonnes of Adam alwaies thou beguiles It is no new thing to heare thee blaspheme This is the program of thy Academe Grace hath abounded man may sinne the more Elected and Redeem'd trip still therefore The spirit of bondage and of feare is gone Burst then the fetters of Adoption O how it wounds me thus to heare thee tare My sacred Oracles with poysoned aire As if in them there were not couch'd such truth As could both comfort age and confound youth I know 't is written but I know as well There 's something written there thou dost conceal And dar'st not utter for it would declare The snaky sophism of thy subtile snare In all thy wayes thou dost omit this stance Yet here 's the rule of Gods great providence If man would wish or hopefully expect The safe protection of the bless'd elect He must not wander in his fancies measure Or tread the wandring path of his own pleasure But in the path of that Saint-beaten rode That 's pointed out unto him by his God If so he walke he shall be safe and sure If otherwise his death he shall procure Art not thou now asham'd so treacherously To wrest th'Eternals truth impudently To cut asunder that which God conjoyns And with an endlesse falshood gird thy loyns Take then from out that sacred Scriptures fountain A stone cut without hands from out the mountain To split thy forehead from out David's sling And curb the poyson'd venome of thy sting Behold it 's written both to man and thee Tremble and feare doe not presume too high For who so wanders from this beaten rode Doth tempt the Lord and lift his heel ' gainst God Deut. 6.16 Yet once more must this murtherer goe fling His last and finall dart against our King The blast of fainting and of black dispaire Nor of presumptions fire-ball thrown i'th'aire Have not prevail'd yet will he not be quiet But ayming at his envies richer diet He sets my Saviour on a steep high mountain From which each river and each bubling fountain Each pearly mead and shady shelt'ring grove Where either Serpents hisse or Satyrs rove Each vinyard drunk with grapes or cloi'd with clusters And ev'ry place where pleasure makes her musters And ev'ry other sense-contenting thing Which to a carnall minde content can bring Are in an eyes short twinkling set before him And promis'd to him if he would adore him See'st thou not those sayes he all those be mine View take possesse them I will make them thine And with their title I will here endow thee If thou wilt once but bow thy knees unto mee Now now and ne'er till now did my Redeemer Waxe fierce with fury ' gainst this bold blasphemer R. What Bow to thee thou foul abortive slave Thou dust eater thou canker of the grave Thou down-faln star thou filthy proud glow-worm Whose fall yet fils both Earth and Seas with storm Proud begger slave thou saist the world is thine And yet it is the Lords and all therein The treasures of the winds the cloudes of Raine The wine press'd grapes and all the sheaves of graine The fishes of the Sea the fowls o' th' aire The beasts o' th' Earth that nibble here and there The floods the rivers watry ponds and lakes Which from the clouds or ocean welspring takes
The walled Cities and rich stored shops The honny combs and those Elixar'd drops Of balm myrhe incense Nard and sweet perfume That serves to deck the bride and the bridegroom The warriour the master of the schoole The young the old the wise and eke the foole The Counsell tables and the Courts of Kings And all the treasures that the earth forth brings Are onely his he giveth them and when He thinks it fitting takes them back again Those thou hast set before me yet dost hide The hidden moaths that frets their inner side As if I did not know what weal and woe Daunce in a circle wheresoe're they goe What can our wealth or want my minde betray Can peace bewitch me or can warre affray My fixed thoughts thy eyes are cloid with gravell And so thou losest both thy toyle and travell Can sicknesse health life death vain glory shame Or any other worldly anatheme Make me forget my Father or forgot One jot of that true worship which I owe Unto him No go get thee gone avoid Proud Sathan for thou knowst not things of God But things of men from this I will not swerve That 's writ The Lord thy God alone goe serve And worship yea beside him worship none For that shall turn to thy confusion The Doctor CANTO 3o. AS when the Sunne obliqu'ly looking on A roride cloud frames a Parelion But looking with a streight oppos'd aspect On Phoebe makes herhis full rayes reflect So when from Jordans streams our great Messiah Went to the desert our late born Eliah Although the bridegrooms friend yet seem'd to weep For fear a hyreling should disperse his sheep But seeing him victoriously return This joy-bred fire doth in 's bosome burn O how my Soule doth now rejoyce sayth he To see the Sonne of Man march valiantly Returning from the desert Sathans den Cloth'd with the spoyle of sinne for sinfull men Loe where he commeth full of grace and truth No man in such abundance opes his mouth He was before me though he now doth follow Eternity his Majesty doth hollow From out his fulnesse we doe all receive Grace upon grace and what good else we have The Law was giv'n by Moses but by him Comes grace and truth and peace wherein we swim No man at any time hath seen the Father Save this his sonne from whose hid hands we gather That hidden Manna and those Quailes by which Our soules are fed and we to life made rich He commeth to the world for it he made Yet in it hath no place to rest his head He commeth to his own yet they refuse him He commeth to the builders they abuse him But unto all that doe receive him he Shall give this glory and prime dignity That they the sonnes of God shall all be call'd And as true heires of heaven be there enstall'd Even unto such as in his name believe To whom nor Nature flesh nor blood can give The new-births note but onely that great God Who in our flesh hath made his full abode And that it may be known that this is he Goe you my sonnes goe get you up draw nigh Unto him clasp him in your soules soft armes For he 's the Antidote for all your harmes At these fore-warnings John and Andrew goe And greet him thus Great Rabbi let us know Where thou dost dwell so shall we joy to see The mansion of thy true felicity Where I doe dwell saith he let him that would My dwelling know look on the foxes hold And sparrows nests for they have rooms wherein Their young ones nestle and their doune begin O but the Sonne of man hath no place where To rest his head save only this poore ayre That every creature breaths and this is all He counteth his and this at last shall fall If you will therefore follow me quit-clame What ever in this world doth sumptuous seem Take up your crosse and follow me and so You shall my dwelling and my riches know For who so shall reject my Crosse and blame't Of him in glory I shall be asham'd But who so shall my Crosse with patience bear He shall with me in glory rest coheire No sooner hath he spoke these words when loe As swift as arrow shot from Indian bow Andrew doth to his brother Symon run And with these tydings of Salvation Accosts him Brother I have found the great Messith whom the world expect'd of late The Saviour Christ the holy and th'annoynted Great Peace-maker by Prophets all forth pointed Come come I pray th' let our hearts draw near him And while 't is call'd to day ô let us heare him Symon ariseth and with Andrew go'th To see the miracle of Time and Truth But ere he can within true distance come Christ cals him by his name Thou' rt welcome home Thou sonne of Jonah saith he this thy name Of Symon hence I change with better fame Thou shalt be call'd Cephas that is a Stone For thou shalt help to lay a foundation ' Gainst which the Devill and the gates of hell May freely push but never shall prevaile A little after this in Galile As Jesus walked he did Philip see And bids him follow him he straight obeyeth But by the way Nathaniel he espyeth Nathaniel saith he come we have sound The man of whom the Scriptures doe abound Whom Moses and the Prophets have fore-told According to the promises of old Nathaniel gladly girdeth up his loynes And with his fellow Philip journey joynes But e're Nathaniel can come neere unto him Christ spies him and with these sweet words doth woe him Come come Nathaniel come thou voyd of guile The Sun on such another doth not smile In all Judaea's Coasts What 's this I heare Saith just Nathaniel e're I can come neere One cals me by my name whence dost thou know me For in the face till now I never saw thee Nathaniel saith Christ that 's nothing for E're Philip call'd thee I thee knew before When under the fig-tree thou naked stood Copartiner with Adam in his blood O now my God Nathaniel saith I see Thou art the very Sonne of the most High And promis'd King of Israel who should give Life to all such as in thee doe believe The night now come Christ to the mountain goeth Where all the while he to the heav'n upthroweth His supplications with strong cries and tears And graciously is heard in what he fears Next morning to his service he doth call Matthew and Thomas Barthol mew and all The rest of those Disciples whom he meant To make the Preachers of his Covenant O happy blessed blessed happy Call It doth no sooner touch their ears at all When straight it doth their starving soules renew And their affections to his will subdew Speak alwaies so my God and by thy grace Say to my fainting Soule seek thou my face And my poore Soule shall answer as appear'th Speak what thou wilt ô Lord thy servant heareth When thou at first did'st lay
the worlds foundation Thou did'st but speake and all this all 's creation Did to thy great Imperiall word obey Loe here shin'd light their shady darknes lay Here Hill's proud tops did on their tiptoes stand There did the Ocean roare against the sand Here on the floury bottoms fragrant mead The nibling troups securely prank and feed There in the bosome of the glassie deep The scaly nations softly swim and creep The ayrie legions scud along the skies As if they meant the Welkin to surprise And every thing that hath or life or sense To thy command'ment gave obedience And whil'st thou com'st an old world new to make No other toole nor mattock thou wilt take But that same word of thine that thou mai'st still By thy great Word thy glorious Will fulfill Since by thy Word then which is only wise Thou dostillighten thy Disciples eyes O let me heare thee in great Moses chaire Confound those Rabbins whom the world admire That by thy Doctrine I may learn that wit Which never nat'rall man could teach as yet To Nazareth he goeth and entring there Unto their Synagogue he doth repaire And reads in Esayes volume this sweet text Esay 61.1 Jehovahs Sp'rit is me let all vex'd With sinne afflicted hearts come heare my word For I am the annoynted of the Lord Whom he hath sent his Gospell to proclame To free the Captives and restore the lame Give sight unto the blinde binde up the bruised And give them grace who doe not quite refuse it This day saith he this Text is now fulfil'd This day is grace down from the heav'ns distill'd And happy he who heareth and believeth In him who this Salvation freely giveth But veng'ance shall his portion be who stops His ears against my heav'n elixer'd drops Doe not you call to minde how that of old From Ebals threatning tops it was foretold A thousand curses should fall down upon A sinfull froward generation But who so should their soules enclinet obey The sacred Sanctions of the mount Siney Ten thousand blessings from Gerizims store Should on their heads be multiplied and more Now is the time and here am I the man From out whose mouth or curse or blessings can Receive effect or force to save or kill They heare my word and they obey my will Blessed is he therefore whose heart is pure For of my heav'nly kingdome he is sure Blessed are they who hunger for my grace They shall be fill'd and satisfied with peace Blessed are they who doe in secret mourn Their sorrows to their solace shall return Blessed be you when men for my name sake Shall of your life and goods proud havock make Blessed be you when ' gainst you men speak evill And call you sonnes of Beliall and the Devill For what they derogat from your regard They adde against their will to your reward Yea bless'd and more then blessed shall you be When you be thrust from their societie Thrust from their Synagogu's excommunicate Rebuk'd blaspheam'd and all disconsolate Be not dismaid but rather be you glad The Prophets old no better service had The Sonne of man himselfe shall so be us'd Contemn'd reproach'd disdain'd and fouly brus'd And sure I am that when the master hath No softer shelter and no surer path The servant should not grudge nor yet disdaine If with his master he shall share like paine But wo to such whose riches shall abound Whose heart and hands are in their store house sound I tell you truly they have their reward No after pleasure is for them prepar'd Woe woe to those who laugh and never weep Destruction to their soules doth softly creep Woe woe to such as vainly cry peace peace Thinking the mountaine cannot change his place For sorrow griefe and plagues shall on them come Like travell on a womans burth'ned wombe Stoln bread and water sweet are to the taste But gall and worm-wood's easier to digest Blesse you therefore such as doe curse you for If you shall blesse your friends and doe no more What honour can you crave of God by them Who live estrang'd from God they doe the same Doe good to those who harm you pray for those Who persecute your Soules with griefes and woes Give to all such as aske you freely len And look for no requitall back agen So shall you show your selves th' Almighty's sonnes When you be cloath'd with his perfections You are this worlds chief salt while you have savour Your work with God and Men shall finde true favour But if you lose your savour then your taste Shall all your service to the dunghill cast You are a Citty set upon a hill Which to the worlds proud gaze stands object still Dream not you can be hid all eyes are on you And all mens motions doe depend upon you If whil'st they wander in an oblique Car Your course prove constant like a fixed Star If whil'st they stumble in Cymerian night You walk in Goshen like the sonnes of light Whil'st muddy cares doe their best joyes controle If your affections rest above the Pole If whil'st their runnalls Marah like prove tart Your springs drink sweet and so rejoyce the heart If whil'st they hold in hand a fruitlesse goad You bud ripe Almonds like to Arons rod If whil'st a stranger cals you you repine And know no shepheards voice but only mine In all your wayes if you shall still intend Your masters glory and no other end Then ô how happy happy thrice you be Life is your lot your term eternitie Then feare not man whose hand can doe no more But kill the body feare God rather for When he hath kil'd the body yet he can Powre out destruction on the soule of man And send both soule and body down to hell In chains of darknesse and of death to dwell 'T is true those precepts which I now doe Preach Exceed the narrow bounds of humane reach Yet though the flesh be weak the Spirit 's strong And grace can rectifie stern natures wrong Think not I come to put the law at under Or what the Lord hath joyn'd to cut asunder No no the Law and Gospell be two brothers The sonnes of one man though of severall mothers That Hagars brood who unto bondage beareth This Sarahs sonne who 's free and nothing feareth That 's Sinays suckling who with terrour shaketh This Syons nursling whom no feare awaketh That first this last that strong but this the stronger And so the elder must needs serve the younger The Law requireth works the Gospell Faith Both have one ayme though in a severall path For he who sweetly speaketh in them both Is but one God and one same sp'rit of truth Works without faith are like to fig-tree leaves Which seem to shelter but in end deceive's And faith unlesse good works doe crown her head May seem to live yet 's spirit'ally dead For as faith laying hold on th' Mediator Makes man stand just before the just Creator So works
joyn'd unto faith tells that faith 's true Which works by love and doth mens lusts subdue Then preach them both keep both and so you shall Your selves and others both to rest recall Doe not you know when many run a Race With panting breasts and sweat-besmeared face He onely who proves constant to the end Obtaines the Crown but if he shall offend And stumble at the stumbling stones i' th' way His stumbling makes his honour to decay If men then for a temporall Crown take pain And strive so hardly for a sading gain How much more should the uncorrupted Crown Of glory honour and dominion Make you to run your race without cessation Since your reward 's eternall consolation Be carefull therefore that your masters name By your neglect be not expos'd to shame And that whil'st others by your words be saved You of your masters joy be not be reaved A certaine Sower on a time went forth To sow his seed of rich and pretions worth And as he sow'd some by the way-side fell And that the soules of th' aire did quickly smell And pickt it up Some fell in stony ground That took no root because no earth it found Some amongst thorns did fall that straight did spring And yet was choak'd by their o're-shadowing Some fell in fertile ground and taking root Did to the Sower bring expected fruit According to his travell toyl and pain The thirty sixty and the hundreth grain I am the husband-man my word 's the seed If that doth perish it doth not proceed From Sower from the seed or from the season For those were all combin'd in right and reason To work a happy harvest But mans heart Is that unhappy ground in whose each part Such hidden store of deep corruptions lye As turn'th my toil unto fond vanrtie For sometime Sathan vultur-like doth pray Upon the word and beares it quite away Sometime mans obdur'd heart more hard then stone Rejects my word by induration Sometime the thorny cares of humane life Mix'd with the word are at such mutuall strife That what at first takes root doth very now To persecutions storm and tempest bow In such a sort that root and stalk and blade In this their conflict's quickly vanquished The fertile ground 's the faithfull heart that doth Return unto th' industrious hand that sow'th So rich an increase that for every ten The master hath a thousand back again Watch therefore lest while as you sleep there come The envious man who in the good seeds roome Sowes darnell cockle and those cursed tares Which cursed and malignant ground forth-beares For to your master you must make accompt Of what you sow and eke what doth surmount He will not have his own true seed alone He needs must have reduplication The heav'ns and earth may perish but one jot Of this my Doctrine shall not be forgot Till all things be accomplished which either Concerns my glory or my glorious Father The Powers CANTO 4o. WHen Moses followed Jethroes fleecie flocks And made them graze on Horebs golden locks At unawares he look'd aside and spies A bush on fire whose flame to heav'n up flies The bush still burns and yet remains unburned To dust and ashes it can not be turned O what a strange prodigious sight saith he Is this which now 's presented to mine eye A crackling thorne a fierce consuming fire In mutuall conflict yet doe both conspire To shew the world the strangest rarest theam That e're was toss'd in natures A cadeam I will therefore goe view 't but by the way A voice proceeding from the bush can say Stay Moses stay doe not approach too nigh Corruptions can not dwell with Majesty Cast thy shoes off thy feet for it is found The place whereon thou stand'st is holy ground Yet since I see thee beg with fresh desire To search the secrets of this scorching fire Heare what I tell thee Loe this burning bush Doth represent my Church which by the push Of Pharoah's proud oppression's brought so low That she doth almost faint by his ov'rthrow Yea that shee 's not consumed in that flame Comes from my power who am what I am Her hid corruptions call for my corrections My promise to her Fathers pleads protection The one she bears the other in short time Shall wound her foes and expiate her crime My word shall teach her and my power shall heal The wounds and bruises of my Israel What here was promis'd to the Church before The Law from Sinay's thundring tops did roare Is now accomplish'd in the Gospels day For by his word he points her first the way Then by his dread mirac'lous power doth cure The sad distempers of her imposture Who doubts his power let him but make bold And view the wond'rous works he wrought of old Consider Moses hand put in his bosom By Leprosie tnrn'd white like Aprils blossom Consider Nilus streams turn'd unto blood Consider Israel fed with Angels food Remember how Rephidim's rock's a poole And Mara's rill made sweet in Israels bowle The Sun in Gibeah stands a whole day still An Asse controles her foolish riders will Fire comes from Heav'n and dryes Eliahs trench A sonne is giv'n to Shunam't gratious wench Jonah's preserved by a swallowing Whale The Lyons stoope and crouch to Daniel Three children walking in a fi'ry flame Lose not one haire their clothes are free fro th' same All those as wonders did attend his Law And to his word did yeeld respective aw And shall the Gospels message of our peace Lack her attendants no in any case His pow'r shall still accompany his word And by those two shall all things be restor'd That man 's indured heart by those two may Read Lectures of his truth and love each way Come then proud Scribe come doting Pharisee Come wrangling Lawyer come along with me And see what wonders are in Juda done Then judge if your Messiah be not come In Cana's village last day there was made A Nuptiall banquet richly furnished Not with luxurious superflu'ties store But with satieties plenty and no more The bidden guests doe come ' mongst many other Christ Jesus commeth and his Virgin Mother That by his presence he might sanctifie Gods Ordinance and Mans societie The friends are plac'd the tables richly cloy'd The bowls of wine are here and there convoy'd And no things lack that true content would have Or measure wish or moderation crave Yet as it often unto men befalls Some crosse doth still attend their festivalls Their wines are spent his mother tells him so Woman saith he what 's this I have adoe With thee my 'pointed time is not yet come Yet for thy sake I 'le shew my self to some Cause bring me here fixe water-pots of stone Which you use for Purification They bring them to him Fill them now saith he With fountain water that I may them see Fill fill them full fill them unto the brim And with true fountain water make them swim 'T
tear-drown'd eye Weeps out his soules sad sorrowes but for what They neither know nor can prognosticat Is this the grave saith he where Laz'rus lyeth Is this the Tomb which his dead corps implyeth It is say they then roll away this stone Which holds him in his dusty mansion No no saith Martha now the time is past This is the fourth day since we made it fast Corruption e're now hath made him stench His putrifaction no perfume can quench What Martha saith he have not I e're now Told thee that if by faith thou shouldst subdue Thy soule thou shouldst behold the pow'r of God Change Moses serpent to an usefull rod They roll away the stone to heav'n doth he Lift up his heart his hand and weeping eye And with a loud voyce he doth thus encall His Fathers hearing O great All of all O dread Creator and ô loving Father From whom all creatures doe their essence gather I thank thee that thou now hast heard me nay I know that thou dost heare me every way But that this people may believe that thou Who in thy selfe art very truth and true Hast sent me thy right hands great strength to prove And to the sonnes of men make known thy love To thee I cry'd and yet to thee doe cry That thou wouldst their hard hearts once mollifie This said he straight on Lazarus doth call Come forth come forth stay no more there at all I have the keyes of life and death therefore To thee my quickning spirit I restore No sooner hath he spoke these words then he Who lay in death and graves captivitie Comes forth bound hand and foot with those poor ties Which laugh to scorn lifes superfluities Now loose him saith he loose him let him goe For God is Lord of life and death also O what a world of miracles doe here In coacervat troops of pow'r appeare He weeps and spends his teares this tells he 's Man His word awakes the dead God only can He makes the bound to walk and blind to see All this t' expresse his sacred Deity Yet will not loose the bonds nor move the stone Himselfe but gives to men direction To act that part that by this Riddle he May teach the sonnes of men a mysterie That he who without man did man first make Will not man but by man save or forsake Qui fecit te sine te non servat te sine te For though God works his work mirac'lously Yet t'ordinary meanes he doth man ty And now in end to shew how Christ of late The deafe and dumb did both re-consolate How for the payment of a Tributes penny A Dolphine from the deep affords him money How graciously th' Adulteresse is freed And both from sinne and shame stands purifi'd How that poor man who from the wombe was blinde By clay and spittle doth his eye-sight finde How Jairus daughter and the widdows sonne Of Naine were reviv'd how he alone Did feed five thousand with five barly loaves How dry-foot on the Seas proud waves he roaves I dare not longer undertake to tell Lest under such a weight my spirits faile Let this suffice those few which here be shown Make both his Godhead and his Manhead known The Proselyt's CANTO 5o. AS when a grave and sage Gymnosophist Minding to put his Scholler to the list Of publick dispute whence he hopes to gaine The honour of his long turmoyling paine Prescribes him first some disputable Theam To be contested in the Acadeam Which being toss'd in Dialectique manner By quircks and Sophismes of a subtill strainer Gives correspondent hopes or fears of what The publick The'ter can emarginat So Nicodemus having oft times heard Of that rich glory and that rich reward Which Christ had promis'd to all such as should By his directions be govern'd and rul'd Goes privily by night to him to try Who was the stronger Christ or th' Pharisie Master saith he I see thou art a man Come out from God for certainly none can Or speake or doe as thou hast spoke and done Without some divine inspiration Is' t so saith Christ brave Nicodemus now I needs must tell thee what thou dost not know Except a man be born again 't is sure He shall not enter in at Glories doore Be born again saith he what 's this I heare VVhat man can make this paradox appeare Can he that 's old return to 's mothers wombe And thence being born again a childe become This Maxim seemeth very strange to me It over-tops my weak capacity VVhat dost thou think this strange doth Christ then say That man must needs be born again Nay nay Unlesse a man be born again by water And by the Spirits inward hid lavacre He cannot enter in Gods kingdome for What 's born of flesh is flesh and what is more What is born of the Spirit 's likewise Spirit VVithout this birth no man can heav'n inherit The winde blows where it lists thou hear'st the sound Thereof but canst not tell where 't may be found From whence it comes or whither it doth goe So hidden are his waves who makes it blow Come come saith Necodemus tell me where Thou canst be bold this Doctrine to averre Thou speak'st to me of being born again But of a new birth I conceive no strain Thou prat'st to me of heav'ns great Kingdome but Of that Monarchick state I see no jot Make me then see a reason and a cause Of what thou speak'st else hold thy peace and pause VVell Nicodemus now of truth I see That Nature is to Grace an Enemie And what the nat'rall man thinks wisdome that Doth God as folly excommunicat And what the Lord counts wisdome that doth Nature Abhorre as voyd of her perfections feature VVhat if I should be bold but to demand Of thee this question what strong pow'r and hand Did frame thee in thy mothers womb when yet In darknesse as a Non-ens thou didst sit Whose fingers there condens'd thy bones what power Did fill thy veines with Bozra's crimson shower VVho made thy nerves and artyrs so to tie Thy bodies compact and societie Who fram'd thy braines great Chaos liver spleen Thy boyling choller or thy moyst'ning phleagm VVho made thy eyes so watchfull Centinels VVho made thy nose Judge of so various smels VVho made thy tongue to speak or eares to hear VVho made thy knees to bow or back to bear And last of all whence hadst thou that poor breath Whose presence lends thee life whose absence death Whose influence warms thee with celestiall fire And whose unmoved motion doth aspire In a poor minute to run round about Earths drossie globe and Seas green glassie spout Then in an eyes poor twinkle strives to know The treasures of the windes hail rain and snow Thence falling down doth view that woefull deep Wherein the Vessels of Gods wrath doe weep Thence scaling all the heav'ns doth scan the course Of all the Stars in their imperiall sourse Thence soaring higher
flies above the Pole And all the Stars where Charles great wain doth role And in the highest heav'ns doth steale a glance Of great Jehova's glorious countenance And with a ravish'd strain doth strive to see His one true Essence and his persons three That in the volume of his face she may The programs of his frowns and favour spy All those within thy hollow bosome dwell And yet by natures help thou canst not tell Nor when nor where nor how this bulk was made Begun advanc'd inlarg'd or finished Why dost thou then require that nature should Investigate or labour to unfold The secret footsteps and that hidden way Wherein th' Almighty doth his pow'r display Dost thou not know that in thee two men dwell The spirit and the flesh whose tides doe swell So boistrously each one against the other That cruell Cain when he had kill'd his brother Was never stuff'd with more vindictive spleen Then doe these two betwixt them entertain Water hath no more force to drown the fire Fire to drink water doth no more aspire Ayre in earths caverns hath not such a roar Earth doth no more ayres levity abhorre Heat against cold and moysture against drougth Doth not so largly ope their yawning mouth The light with darknes keeps no better coyle Death striving against life hath no such toyle As have these two whil'st their unstay'd desire To ruine one another doth aspire Hence doth arise so fierce a conflict that Unlesse the one the other subjugat With laboring Rebecca in her push Man may exclaime If so why am I thus For loe the good man would he cannot doe And th' ill he would not that he 's thrust unto Yet whosoever to the flesh shall give Obedience and in her Statutes live Shall from the flesh reape nothing but corruption And drink the bitter dregs of her destruction But he who by the spirit is made free From carnall lusts and their captivitie Shall by th' obedience of the Sp'rit have peace When all the turmoiles of the flesh shall cease But ay me now I see this world is gone And drown'd i th' deep of induration For though the light hath plentifully shin'd In all her corners yet men have repin'd Against the light and made their deeds so evill That they are slaves to Belial and the Devill Thus hath he gravell'd Nicodemus sp'rit And of a Pharisee made a Proselyte For nature being convinc'd must hold her peace And humane reason unto God give place Hence forth from Judah he doth take his way And in Samaria purposeth to stay Faint in his journey by the extream heat Which Earth to Titan did reveberat He comes to Sichars well but all in vain One drop of water he can not obtain Here down he sits straight from Samaria come A woman to draw water for her home Woman saith he I thirst extreamly pray Lend me some water this my thirst t' alay The jorney's long and eke the season hot Let me then drink some water from thy pot Some water saith she that is strange ô man That thou a Jew I a Samaritan Canst seek refreshment or a drink from me Those keep no commerce nor societie Woman saith he ô that thou couldst but know That gift of God and who it is that now Doth beg of thee some water for his thirst Surely thou shouldst have been my begger first And I to thy petition would have given A cup of better water brought from Heaven For who so drinks this water thirsts again But who tastes my unemptied Ocean Shall never thirst for from th' Eternal's throne It spring'th and tak'th eternall motion Master saith she you talk to me of water Whose bubling sourse some better streams doth scatter But to my taste I never yet could see A welspring of more pretious dignitie Our Father Jacob dig'd this well of old He drunk of it his children al 's ' were bold To fet it to their Cattels use art thou Greater then they I pray thee let me know That when I thirst hereafter I may drink And draw the waters of that better brink Goe saith he then and make thy husband come That when thou drink'st he also may have some I have no husband saith she Now I heare Thee speak the truth for it is more then clear That husbands five thou hast already had And he whom now thou hast thou hast not wed Thus hast thou sinn'd and in thy sinne dost lye Drunk with the dregs of sinnes security Yet though sinnes seed time seem a delicate Her harvest and her gleaning's desolate Master saith she a Prophet now thou art For thou display'st the secrets of my heart Messiah when he comes can doe no more But tell us all things this thou dost before I am the man saith he expect no other The only sonne of God by flesh thy brother Yea amongst many brethren the first borne And of great David's house th' exalted horne Shee hears those words and leaves her water pot Behinde her and to poore Samaria's lot She hies her self with all the speed she can And cals them from their trades each man by man Come come saith she now blessed be the Lord He hath made true the tenure of his word Which promiseth that in the end of time Messiah's blood should expiat our crime Come I have found him and what 's strange behold What I have done in all my life h' hath told Yea he hath fann'd the secrets of my heart And made my soule by griefe for sinne to smart I never heard so grave and learn'd a Preacher So strickt a schoole-man and so wise a Teacher Ne're doth the Phaenix when she first doth flie From out her Urn with self-bred infancie With richer troops attempt her first-wing'd march Along the conclave of th'ethereall Arch Than now my Saviour from Samaria â—â—th T' attend his doctrine and enrich their faith He seeth them hunger and he opes his mouth To feed them with those clusters of his truth Your fathers saith he worship'd in this mountain Here did they dig sweet water from this fountain But now the time drawes neere and is at hand When neither here nor in Judaea's land God shall be serv'd alone through all the world The chariot of his glory shall be hurl'd God is a Spirit all that doe him feare In sp'rit and truth unto him must draw neare You worship what you know not ô but we Know whom we worship in sinceritie And though salvation's to the Jewes first shown Yet shall the Gentiles for Gods sonnes be known O now say they unto the woman we Believe him not for what you testifie But having heard him with our eares our selfe On him we build our soules eternall health For now we see he is that Christ should come To ransome Israel with a pretious summe Thus turning to Judaea's coasts again Great multitudes doe follow him amain For they by him mirac'lously were fed VVhen in the desert they were hungered But whil'st he doth their hidden
as upon this day he next shall come To Judge the world and render life to some So on this day he takes delight to goe To Tabors top that there he might forth show A glance of that great glory which we shall One day possesse in his great marriage hall For when six ages of the world are run The seventh shall finish our Redemption Thus having found the time we next must view The place wherein Christ Jesus doth allow To cloath himselfe with glory for a while And cover Jacobs hands with Esau's guile The place is Tabors mountain top whereon He manifests his glories vision For till we climbe above earths drossie ball We are not fit t' enjoy heav'ns Festivall On top of Moriahs mountain Abram rear'd An altar to that God he lov'd and fear'd On Carmels top Eliah pray'th for fire And heav'ns obtemper his devout desire On Horebs top and in that hollow cave Whil'st he from Jesabel his life doth save Earth trembleth windes doe roare and flaming coals Of fire for his protection raves and roles On Pisgahs top meek Moses lyeth down And sleepeth in his first corruption On Nebo's top did Aaron sweetly lay His bones whil'st as his soule to heav'n did stray So on mount Tabor will my blessed Saviour First pray and then transforme his true behaviour That by him we may learn when we draw neer To God in aspirituall Hemispheare To cast distractions worldly cares and pains Behind our backs and make our chiefest strains To rest on high and whilst we talk with God T' obnubilate our heads within his cloud Leaving our Asses on the plain below Whil'st we to heaven our sighs and sobs upthrow The circumstance of time and place descry'd Wherein the Sonne of Man was clarifi'd 'T is fit we look on his attendants next That so our swarving faith may once grow fixt Those were three great ones Peter James and John Those sonnes of thunder this a pretious stone If any shall enquire why to those three My Master manifests his Majestie I answer first that Scripture doth command That every Truth accomplished shall stand By Declaration of some two or three And from their mouth receive stability Next unto this to them he shew'th indeed His future suff'rings should no way proceed From lack of power to confound his foes But from his love to mankinde hence he throws A way his robe of weaknesse and grows rich In glories vesture whose embroider'd stitch Bezaleel for all his skill and art Ne'er paralell'd in whole or yet in part And finally to those three first is shown His glory for they be the first must own His fellow sufferings least then orflings they Should seare his Crosse and so his cause betray He gives them here a glance of that reward Which for their after sufferings was prepar'd Thus on Mount Tabors top and lofty stage Those three receive the greatest priviledge That ever mortals in the flesh did see Being chain'd in bonds of base mortalitie But ô no sooner have they climb'd up there When loe their Master kneeling in his prayer They fall asleep so weake is this our flesh That what the sp'rit desires it doth empoish Yet seldome doth the flesh in quiet sleep But some distemper to the soule doth creep Whil'st Adam slept his rib was stoln away And sleep did Noahs nakednesse display Whil'st Sampson slept his Nazarisme's gone The Church asleep disknow'th her holy one In Jaels tent while Sisara sleeps he 's kill'd Jonah from sleep must wake ere th' sea be still'd Yea if the master of the house doe snort The thiefe digs thorow and the goods transport 'T is good therefore that men should watch and pray That Christ may be their light both night and day From sleep then can those three no sooner wake When of their Master they doe notice take And finde his count nance clarifi'd as farre Beyond his wonted feature as that starre Which gildes our midday doth exceed that lamp That cuts her capers in our midnight Camp And all his body deck'd with brighter beams Then Cynthia when she 's drunk with Neptunes streams The new faln snow was never halfe so white The Fullers soape makes nothing so perfect Jobs snowy water Davids hyssop drops VVhen from th' Alembicks cloud it softly hops Could never make a cloth so fresh and new As are his vestures in Celestiall hew Yea with him Moses and Eliah walk In glory and comfort him with their talke Concerning those dread sufferings which he was T' endure by Pilate and by Caiaphas Ne'er could the heav'ns afford two fitter guests To talk with him of fastings or of feasts Then were those two for Moses gave the Law And with Eliahs heav'n commanding aw The following Prophets made the world to try The power of th' Eternals verity Yet unto Christ both Law and Prophets tend From him they had beginning he 's their end Now to the world I see he did not come T' undoe the Law or Prophets but to summe Them both together that to both he might Be guide by day and loadstarre in the night VVherefore then should we in our deepest joyes Forget our Crosse or in our crossing toyes Forget our glory since our Saviour Amid'st his richest glory can endure To heare of crosses sorrows stripes and wrongs In stead of trophies triumphs shows and songs 'T is fitting then that in our peace we think Upon that wormwood cup we once must drink For humane mindes doe best digest their gall VVhen expectation cooks their Madrigall Peter awake beholds this glorious Trine And like a man awak'd from out his wine Cries to his master 't is good we be here O that I could three tabernacles reare The first for thee my Shilo and Messiah Then one for Moses then one for Eliah So should we spend our time in rest and peace Feeding upon the glory of thy face And being satiat with thy glories store Return to our sublunar toyls no more Now Peter tell me art thou truly ' wake Or sleep'st thou still that thus thou dost mistake Shall Tabor be thy dwelling place for ay Or shall my Saviour from his suffrings stay Shall Moses and Eliah still remain On Tabors top and not return again To that Celestiall joy from whence they came Fie on those stag'ring wishes fie for shame 'T is shame that men should give their fancies scope But greater shame to sleep their eyes be'ng ope Or therefore speak the truth or sleep thou still A drousie braine doth judgements project spill And yet I pardon thy ecstatique mood What thou didst speak thou no wayes understood Now scarce hath Peter from a zeale bred fire Evaporat those accents of desire When loe from heaven a bright irradiat cloud O'reshades the place whereas my Saviour stood And from on high did sound this loud loud voyce Be glad ô heav'ns and ô thou Earth rejoyce For here 's my first born sonne my best beloved Heare him for in him onely y' are approved At this dread
in miseries For God who alwaies doth thy sinnes abhorre Takes no delight to chastise ever more And alwayes chide with man yet one sound blow Of Justice shall repay what he doth ow To mens forgot prevarication So righteous is his rod and indignation That when mens Cup of sinne doth over-top He fills his Cup of wrath and man drinks't up Here ends ASTRAEA OR The second week Gloria Patri Filio MELPOMENE On this last Scean we read a Tragick story How Judas did betray the Lord of Glory How in Gethseman's garden Christ swet blood How he was taken bya multitude How he was judged and condemn'd to die How he was rack'd and nail'd t' a cursed tree How from the grave he riseth up again And scales the heav'ns Melpom'ne maketh plain The Conspiracy CANTO 1o. WHEN Haniball at Canna did ov'rcome Terentiuâ— Varro Generall of Rome When Caesar in Pharselia did defeit Great Pompey fautor of the Marian state No bigger wax'd their fame and praise abroad Nor did at home their mut'nous envies load For seldome doth faire Rachel gaine the day But squint-ey'd Leah steal'th the night away So whil'st Christ Jesos in Judaea doth Display his divine and his humane truth By stilling of the Oceans untam'd stage By curbing of the Hyperborean rage By raising of the dead from deaths cold hands By losing men and women from hells bands By purging of his Fathers glorious Temple Whose Reformation makes his fame more ample But straight as did his fame mount to a top Right so did envy strive to break it up The Pharisees the Scribes and Priests therefore Conveen a Councell wherein they deplore The sad succeeding ills which might ensue If they his speedy fame should not subdue Sathan hath once already sought t'assaile The crazie bulwarks and the batter'd wall Of humane nature wherein God doth show The great affection he to man doth ow Here once againe with a redoubled wrong He makes his front more fierce redoubts more strong And as a recrue bring'th with him a main Battalion of Church-men for his traine For what one cannot doe that many may And sad experience teacheth this alway They come together then unto one place Whom love did never joyn i' th' bond of peace For they the wayes of peace have never known They sought not what was Gods but what 's their own Who can but wonder at this Convocation And foule discording concords combination Though Cain did his brother Abel kill Although ' gainst Isaac rise an Ishmael Though Esau doe his brother Jacob hate Though Saul envy the happy Davids state Though Simeon and Levi Joseph knit And thrust him in a deep and hopelesse pit Though cruell Jesabel proud Achabs wife For Naboth's viney ard doe take Naboth's life It is not strange for since th' Eternall did The womans seed from Sathans seed divide There hath been is and ever shall remaine A horrid gulfe of hatred them between And till th' eternall Conqu'rour gain the field Their conflicts cannot e're be reconcil'd Whil'st then we see the worlds great Monarchs all Kingdomes Empires Republicks great and small Combine themseves against the Lords anoynted As though Earth's axle-tree were all disjoynted Yet let no man who 's born a sonne of thunder Be brought to gaze it with the eyes of wonder For though the counsels of Achitophel The threats of Saul and Achabs Josabel The fi'ry fornace and the Lyons den Doe rage and roare against the sonnes of men Yet shall the sonnes of God by his great might Shine as the Sunne in his Meridian light Their flesh may perish by the fire and sword But God preserves their soules alive by is word What shall we doe say they if this man live The world runs after him he will deprive Us of our honour and the Romane Nation Shall quickly drive us from this habitation We have nor eyes to see nor ears to heare Nor hearts to understand what danger 's neare Saith Caiaphas for 't is more fitting fane That one should perish then the jaws of was Should swallow upon Nation round about Disturbe our altars and our liver put out This spoke he not so much of his own wit As he who in the heav'n of heav'ns doth sit Did by this High Priests mouth his truth foretell And how he meant to save his Israel O God! how wond'rous strange and different be The different actors of this Tragedie For in this plot I doe perceive still four Opposed aspects on my Saviour Th' Almighty in it hath his right hand first Sathan his left hand next and that 's accurs'd The great Sauhedrim for the third room plead And Judas last for gain will lose his head God had decreed from all Eternitie To pay the ransome of our miserie In his sonnes blood yet sure they needs must fin Whose fingers had the deepest touch therein For whil'st they in a hid intent doe minde The sonne of God in darknes bonds to binde Th' Almighty doth their rapid rage ov's throw And tyes themselves unto Eternall woe For as the moystning hope of cloud bred raine Here drown'th a field there doth refresh the grain Or as the warming blinks of Furan's ray Makes this floure flourish that to shrink away So what the world and Sathan mindes to harme Gods providence doth so 〈◊〉 their charme That what they for our prejudice intend His wisdome turneth to a blessâ—â—â—â—â— O what a world of wonders doe concurre While as th' Almighties hand o'rerules the sturre Of humane actions for his unseen singers Doe curb the station of their strongest hingers Sometimes he suffers sinne and lends her being Then takes she Ic'rus wings and soars a fleeing Sometimes he stops her course and makes her stay And then for her intent she findes no way Sometime he sers about her such a border That she cannot transgresse her lim'ted order Sometime he sits at helm and set at stern Doth her unequall motions so govern That in her proudest strains let her doe what She will he still doth stand immaculat Leaving foul sinne to Sathans foul direction Whil'st he lends onely nerves unto the action As when the sun hath on a dunghill shin'd Where many hid corruptions lay combin'd The stench proceeds not from the Suns pure ray But from the hid corruption therein lay So whil'st by sinne man doth transgresse Gods lawes God of the sinne must not be call'd the cause But man abusing his licentiat will By concupiscence doth prove guiley still O God how hid's thy way who can beguile Thy frown of justice or thy meicies smile For man amidst them both is bound and free Enfranchiled and in captivitie His will is free for it is no wayes ti'd Yet notwithstanding all his works beside Are captivat for man can doe no more Then thy good pleasure pre 〈…〉 before Thus be those hellish hounds with envy big ' Gainst Davids righteous heire and Jesse's sprig And that they may the better act their parts They charge their Serjeants with
we know what discrepance of old The name of Jew and Gentile did unfold For whil'st unto the Lawes empire the Jew Did both his heart and haughty neck subdue Rebellious Japhet wandring in his pride Like to the wilde Asse turn'd his neck aside But now by this sole crosse they 're reconcil'd And unto Japhets sonnes is how reveal'd The myst'ry of godsinesse in such store That whil'st Christ as a Jew doth goe before Cyrenes Gentile sweetly walks behinde And in the Crosse doth consolation finde That Jew and Gentile bound and free and all Who for salvation hunger thirst and call May know that by the crosse of Christ alone The way is opened to Salvation Thus hath he bore his crosse it him must beare He under it did grone it him must reare And he whose power the world doth underprop Must by a cursed tree be now born up This engine of the crosse was strange and rare Appointed by the Romans in their warre For such as with a proud uplifted hand Their higher pow is injunctions did withstand And for all such whose hand did foile or stain Their Temples or their Idols did prophane This Crosse along the ground is lay'd and on It's torturing rack and large dimension Of height of bredth and length the glorious Christ Must be out stretch'd in every joynt and wrest That as the heav'ns are high above our head And as the East from Welt's distinguished And Hels deep center is contriv'd below So in his tort'ring Crucifix they show The program of their 〈◊〉 tyrrannie And the great patience of his Deâ—â—â—e Whil'st we poore men draw neer unto our death We wish that Natures hand should stop our breath We wish that paine and shame should not at tend Nor prove the Lacquaies of our latter end And last of all we wish that our last stage Should have the blessing of Gods heritage Of all those favours his Crosse's depriv'd And all their contrairs stand on it subscrib'd 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 For violence doth curb dame Natures hands And shame and torture at her right hand stands And where a blessing should have said farewell The cursed tree doth make that prop to faile All those beyond all humane trust doe run Against my Saviour with confusion Never did fountain from its bubling spout So rich a runnall to the world send out As did the Cinque ports of his bodies wound While perforat he lay upon the ground Never such shame did any man sustaine As he yet never did he once complain And last of all what curse is like to that Where heav'n rejects him who 's immaculat Those and all those my Saviour beyond measure Hath tasted at his glorious Fathers pleasore That had not he been very God and Man He surely should have perish'd in his pang But that great Godhead which in him did dwell Upholds him still and makes him to prevaile Thus to the Crosse he 's nail'd and with him two Base murth'ring malefactours in a row Were to their crosses also ty'd that they By their just sufferings in some fashion may His innocence obscure and make men think That he with them deserv'd like cup to drink Yet so hath Isay prophecy'd before And so it needs must come to passe what 's more His Crosse must over head import his Theam Jesus of Naz'reth Juries King by Name Whose foure acrostick letters doe imply This Hierogly prick stamp J. N. R. J. O how those three accursed crosses now Stand in resemblance that 't is hard to know Who in the trespasse or transgression's chiefe The Lamb or Lyon th' innocent or thiefe But heav'ns doe fully know it for from thence Thrice hath he had applause and eminence Earth know'th him also for his divine power Hath many times to sweet exchang'd their soure Devils of hell did also know'm for loe His own words pow'r their legion did ov'rthrow So heav'n and earth and hell and all must grant 'T is not the Crosse but Cause that makes the Saint O happy thrice and thrice thrice happy tree Though curs'd to some yet art thou bless'd to me For never man yet reap'd or could forth bring So bless'd a harvest from so curs'd a spring As thou hast done while death from thee did wrangle A blessed Quadrat from a curs'd Triangle Many sweet trees have grown up since the first Adam did by a trees fruit quench his thirst But never tree did any such fruit beare As on thy branches at this time appeare Faire Edens figge tree lent her leaves to hide The first mans sinfull stranefull outer side An Olive branch to Noah first display'd The Oceans rage was still'd and quite allay'd Aarons poore rod had such a secret worth That in one night it budded and brought forth Ripe Almonds Moses rod did smite the rock And living waters follow'd all the flock A piece of wood is cast in Mara's spring And sweeter draughts ne'er fountaine did forth bring A woodden pole a serpent doth uphold And who so by the Serpent's stung makes bold To look upon it straightway is made whole From all that poyson in his bones did role But all of those compar'd with thee proves naught No such a relish no such sugger'd draught Can man bring from them as is brought from thee Immortall life from curs'd mortalitie Yet doe not I or praise thy selfe or ground Whereon thou standst for better may be found But blessed be the Gardners hand for that Sweet bud he did in thee inoculat For such a fruit as thine was never seen The balme's blood-red the virtue 's alwayes green Whil'st thus he stands or hangs upon his crosse Some woefull women did bewaile his losse But thus he doth intreat them Weep no more For me you Daughters of Jerus'lem for To waile my sufferings thus is alwaies vaine Heav'ns have ordain'd it I doe not complain But if you weep weep for those woes which shall Upon this perverse generation fall For since the dayes of Noah till this houre Yea since fierce fire foule Sodome did devoure So deep a wrath and such consuming fire Was never kindled in th' Almighties ire Nor did his wrath burn ever halfe so hot Against a Nation for her Leprous spot As shall against this Nation shortly burn Till heav'ns high wrath their pride to ashes turn But ô thou heav'nly and most gratious Father Pardon their sinnes forgive their trespasse rather Then punish this their fault for Father now I doe perceive some know not what they doe Whil'st thus he hangs and payes our bloody ransome Hot in the conflict like another Sampson He cries I thirst straight doe they fill a cup With Wine and Myrrhe to him they reach it up He smelleth it but would nor drink at all For now he spies their mercy 's mix'd with gall This being done his soule is sore perplex'd And with his Fathers frowns for us so vex'd That he is forc'd to cry to th' ears of many O Eli Eli lamma Sabachthani Which by
been Gods sonne no lesse For who did ever see so firm and strong Expressions of Deitie ev'n among Infirmities and weaknesse saddest strains As now burst forth in Naturesbubling vains By this just Joseph Arimathea's Lord Hath beg'd of Pilat by submissive word That he Christs body might have pow'r to take Down from the Crosse and in his grave to make Him rest who rest and peace had promised Unto all such as sought to him for ayde Pilat yeelds to it Joseph's quickly gone Through Salems streets and rich stor'd shops each one And of pure balm and myrhs elixar'd Nard A hundred weight he buyes and afterward Embalmes my Saviours body and doth binde It in a Tyrian lawn more dainty fin'd Than that which Venus putteth on the eyes Of Cupid to obscure his leacheries Then in his Garden corner with all haste In his new-digged tombe he hath it plac'd And that the body there might rest secure He puts a stone upon the Sepulture ' Mongst many passions of the soule by which Man doth his guilty minde surcharge too much Whil'st he doth wander in that desert where Nothing is reap'd in end but griefe and care That pultrone Feare for most part leads the ring Where Cruelty hath harp'd on Envies string For nothing can secure that sordid mind Where wrath and malice are in one combin'd Hence doth the High Priest and his rascall-train To Pilats hall return yet once again And under colour of a wise prevention Belch out the vomit of their foul intention This fellow say they while he liv'd did say Pull down this Temple and on the third day I will re-build it Lest therefore by night Some steal him from his grave and so affright The world with frantick tales of 's resurrection Let us walk wisely and ' gainst this infection Prepare an an tidote for by such toyes The weaker may be led to great annoyes Goe goe saith Pilus doe what ere you list Hath not his blood yet satisfi'd your thirst 'T is strange to see that death cannot put end Unto that wrath which doth on rage depend The very beasts that live by cruell pray Drink blood eat flesh but cast the bones away But ay me poor faint-hearted Muse how long Wilt thou sigh forth his obsequies whose wrong Though all the Main were turn'd to teares and ink Could not suffice to write them on her brink Weep therefore weep a space and weeping look Not like a runnall or a bubling brook Whose proudest swellings we no sooner spy But straight they are exhaust their channell 's dry But like the Ocean whose unfathom'd deep Sends forth those restlesse streames which never sleep For here thou hast the deepest deep distresse That ever heart could think or tongue expresse The sonne of God heav'ns master-peece the bright Transplendent glory of th' Almighties light Th' eternall Word which was e're time began In time for man made man nay not a man A worm a wretch a servant nay a slave To calumny contempt to crosse to grave Yet peace my Muse and let not griefe exile Thee from due comfort let a blushing smile Comfort thee rather for those wounds which stands Imprinted in his heart his feet his hands Make him although despised and disdain'd To carnall eyes where sinne and shame 's maintain'd A pretious Victime off red up for thee To whom of due belong'd the cursed tree Yea he is that great star of Jacob who Makes Japhet unto Shem's sweet tents to go And bids the world write anthems of Rejoyces Because his grave makes ours a bed of Roses Where though he for a season rest and sleep Yet shall not earth him in her armes long keep But as the Sonne of God he thence shall rise And lead Captiv'ty captive through the skies And thence ascending to his glorious throne Shall be our all in all and all in One For notwithstanding all that stamp and stirre Whereby his grave is sealed and made sure Up up again he shall Gods holy one Can in the grave take no corruption But by his Resurrection makes our faith Triumph the more ore sinne ore hell and death The former times prefigur'd have this truth Did he not save one from the Lions mouth Was not another thrown amidst the Sea And after three dayes set at libertie Yea were not three at one thrown in the fire As vassals of a Tyrants proud desire Yet by his pow'r so preserv'd that the flame Did neither harm their haires nor garments seame Did not he by his mighty pow'r ere now Naims poor widowes sonne to life renew When Lazarus had four dayes ly'n in grave Did he not by his word his soule receive When as the good Centurion's daughter lay Asleep did he not turn her night to day When Eutichus did from his third loft fall Did not his quickning sp'rit his sp'rit recall And when Tabitha jappa's Nymph lay dead Did not his Cumi straight lift up her head Those and a thousand more then those doe stand As great Herculean trophces in his hand Those were but shaddows he the substance is The type was theirs the antitipe is his And all of those beare witnesse that his power Can kill and quicken rescue and devoure Now doth the date of that appointed time Wherein he should arise from Deaths dark clime Draw neer for from the sixt dayes afternoon The Sabbaths whol day he did rest eft soon The eight daies morn no sooner'gins to break But loe the sonne of Righteousnes doth wake And with a better light the world recleare Then ever Titan brought t' our Hemispheare And as that God who did the world create Upon the sixt day did man animate And on the seventh day celebrate his rest A type of our Eternall heavenly feast So did my Soules most grarious Redeemer Crush on the sixt day my soules sad blasphemer And on the seventh day resting in the grave Did from Goliahs hand his Isr'el save And rising on the eight dayes morne hath made The womans heel to bruise the serpents head This day of old had small or no respect But now to heav'n it doth our hearts erect And justly makes his Gods a ther the Sunne VVho in th'Eccliptick of true light doth run This day more sacred should be kept then any Because by it Salvation spirings to many And therefore 〈…〉 as farre As Titan hath beyond 〈…〉 staâ—reâ— For look how much our second birth is more Then our first birth 〈◊〉 is our Sabbath for Upon the sixth day we had our Creation But on this Sabbath light life and salvation And since upon this day we from our fall With him have rise it is Dominicall And merits to be sign'd with ink that 's red Because his blood our debt hath can celled Th' intended period of the time now come The sonne of Jesse Israels brid egroome Comes from his late bed-chamber richly deckt With Majesty with glory and respect His wedding garments robes and rings are on His griefes his passions and his woes
are gone His foes are fill'd with feare amaze and wonder Like Latmos rent with heav'ns high ratling thunder Seraphick Spirits bow before his face Mortality to glory now gives place And all the Children of his wedding Chamber Whose lips are Corrall and whose locks are Amber Whose eyes Carbuncles are in dark of night Gladly doe now attend this mornings light And from the grave they role away that stone Which Caiaphas had fet his seale upon 'T were strange to see that was could make that sure That heav'ns had destin'd to distemp'tature But now the Scriptures are fulfill'd which say He gives his Angels charge 〈◊〉 thy way To keep thee lest thy foot should either slip Or'gainst a stone at any time should trip Yet was it neither Angels might nor power That did return life to my Saviour But that same Godhead which in him did dwell Restor'd his life and did his death expell For though his soule was from his body cut His Godhead from his Man hood was not shut For that great tye of Hypostatick union Shall never be dissolv'd or lose communion No no Mans nature which he did assume And unite to the Word i' th' Virgins wombe Shall in no after time or taste Confusion 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Or by a stronger hand ' plain of Division Or by a change smell any Alteration Or by or death or life have Separation But shall for ay that union retaine Where three are one and one is three againe No sooner doth my Soules brave Sampson draw Gaza's gate-barrs asunder then his aw Maketh earths wieghty globe to reatch and reele About him like Ixyons giddy wheele The dead arise and to the Citty goe As witnesse of his great triumphing show The Lyons to their dens return apace Because great Judah's Lyon shakes his tresse And all the beasts of neighb'ring Forrests feare Whilst they this matchlesse Lyon's roaring heare The chirping birds whose sweet melodious notes Bring sweeter crotchets from their carr'ling throats Then all Apollo's nymphs can straine or sing Unto his Harps delicious fingering Betake themselves unto their wings to flie Rather then in an Earthquakes arms to die The nibling Lambs which graze on Vesta's kirtle And sips her hony suckles and her mirtle Leaving their breakfast bleat and cry and call Each one to gaze anothers festivall Great Neptune and his Thetye now sing dumbe Because the Soveraign of the Seas is come To put a hooke in their nostrills and draw Leucotheo from Achelous maw But above all the long-liv'd Phenix seems As freshly wak'd from her reviving flames To greet him with the rarest welcome that E're Lark or Finch or Linot modulat And at his foot her starry Spangled Crown As to the righteous owner she throws down For she reviv'd hath thousand years in store But he requickneth lives for evermore In end comes Titan dayes bright shining eye Who lately slept in darknesse Cannopy And from his Orient or Eoan wave Where Neptune doth his steps in pearle engrave Seeing a clearer Sun i' th' West arise To all his Naids and his Napaeis cries Look here and see the rare yea rarest wonder That ever Earth held up or Heav'ns kept under Two Suns arise at once and in one day Two Titans to the world their lights display The one wherof although he rise must fall The other knowes no Occident at all Thus is my Saviour up and mangre hell And all the pow'rs of darknesse there doe dwell A new light life and liberty is given To all that hunger for the light of Heaven 'T is true no article o' th' Christian faith More faithlesse or reluctant en'mies hath Then hath the Doctrine of the Resurrection Whil'st it stands canvass'd by humane direction Yea nature ne'er requir'd a better sport Then tosse this Ball within her Tennis-court For faith it selfe can hardly sound this deep How a scatter'd non ens to an ens can creep Although that Nature and the Scriptures both Have writ the hieroglyphicks of this truth The Phoenix spicie nest her Mistris burneth Yet she from out her fatall Urne returneth When length of time sun-staring Eagles spills They doe revive by casting off their bills Hearbs trees and plants which in the winter wither I' th' spring receive both sap and life together The Corn we sow doth first corrupt and die Yet from that death their grains doe multiply And if 't be true Medaea for the sake Of Jason made old Aesons youth t' awake But Scripture tells us that the first man hath By sinne subdu'd all mankinde unto death And that the second man doth yeeld more grace Requickning that which dy'd by our trespasse And unto Abram's seed the Lord hath said I am the livings God and not the dead Adde unto this that he who first did make All things of nothing can from something take With lesser pain this little world of Man Then when at first he from the dust it span Nor is it just that any coupled paire Who work together should not have like share Of glory after death who in their life ' Gainst Sin and Sathan kept a conjunct strife Why art thou then so sad my Soule and why Art thou cast down with such anxiety Dost not thou know that Christ is made thy head And thou by faith his living member made He is thy husband thou his wedded wife Whil'st he doth live how canst thou doubt of life He is the root and thou his ingraft-branch When thou art judg'd he sitteth on the bench He is our Main which by our faith 's hid pores Refreshing waters to our springs restores And till his never ebbing streams goe dry We need not fear to lack a new supply Naked from out our mothers wombe we come And thither naked must we once goe home Yet we believe earth shall not still enfold Us in her arms that were too base a hold For any in whose soule the sp'rit of grace Hath made his mansion or a dwelling place No sure suppose these putrid tents of clay Wherein we sojourn for a night or day Must be dissolved better buildings we In heav'n shall have For Immortalitie Shall this our Mortall swallow and devoure Our weaknes then shall be exchang'd to power Corruption shall to incorruption turne And shame shak'd off we shall no longer mourn For what by Nature we doe here inherit Shall there renew'd be by th'Eternals Sp'rit Though then the grave unto weak natures taste Relish no better then the hemlocks feast Yet from her arms we reap a richer store Then ever nature did possesse before For there the poore have peace from their oppression There earths horsleeches shrink from their possession There rich and poore the high the low and all To earthly tempest ly no more made thrall But waiting for the return of their Judge In secret for a while lye still and lodge Since then I know that my Redeemer liveth And that he shall perform what faith believeth In all the periods of my lifes poore
whose right hand doth plant The rut'lant starres amidst the Firmament Who pav'st the Ocean with thy orient gem Plant in my soule thy Artimesian stem And like the lotos in Euphrates bosome Be thou the Sun that still re-clears my blossome But ay me what is this I now doe heare Thee say to Mary Mary come not neare And touch me not Art thou that fi'ry bush Which made old Moses stand afar no tush The flames and threats of Sinay now are gone And thou art made our very flesh and bone Yea thou hast bid us touch and taste and feele How good thou art to Isr'els Common-weale And yet as if thou wouldst some distance try Thou stopp'st our wonted famil'arity It is not long since thou endur'dst a touch Which justly tearmed might have been Non-such A Traitor kissed thee a Rascall knave Did with his buffet and his spit out-brave Thy glorious face thy head was crown'd with thorns Thy hands and feet were pierc'd and with proud scorns Of thy unlook'd for death a speare did part The water and the blood from out thy heart Those touches thou endur'dst but ay me now Thou call'st for distance but I know not how It can subsist with thy unchanged love To change a sweet imbracet'a sad remove But pardon me my God for now I finde That too much love hath made her judgment blinde For since she saw thee put in porta mortis Her eyes have still been drown'd in aqua fortis And in her rapture whil'st she cryes Rabboni She turnes her Benjamini to Benoni For though thou still be what thou wast before True God and Man yet art thou now some more Then man and mortall but immortall now Kodesh laihova is writ on thy brow The Vrim and the Thummim on thy breast Tels Aaron's dead and Melchisedeck â—s Priest And since true life hath triumph over death Now must we live no more by sense but faith And by the spirit not the flesh must we Now seek our God and his felicitie Some eight dayes hence Christs Disciples meet And in a private chamber closely sit The doores being shut Christ Jesus commeth in And greets them with his 〈◊〉 then doth begin To rouz their 〈…〉 Soulles from â—eare to â—aith Which oâ— salvaâ—ion 〈…〉 promise hath To waken Thomas from his misbeliefe For lack of faith ' mongst many sins is chiefe Thomas saith he thou hast of late deny'd To trust my Resurrection till my side My hands my feet and all my wounds doe give Thee by thy touch true reason to believe I pitty this thy weaknes for I know The sourse and fountain whence this stream doth flow Is not proud malice but infirmitie The sp'rit speaks faith flesh infidelitie T is true that when those wounds I did receive And from my Crosse was carried to my grave Thou didst not see me for thou rann'st away When Judas by his kisse did me betray But now thou art return'd and so am I Thou from thy fears I from mortality And since I see upon thy fingers end Thy faith and resolution doth depend Come come thy touch not only shall be fed But al 's ' thy other senses satisfied Come come I say behold those wounds of mine And let not misbeliefe ' gainst faith repine Reach here thy fingers boldly touch my hands Touch those my feet see how my side yet stands Wide open with those wounds which did of late My harmlesse body cru'ly penetrate And be not thou a faith lesse Did'mus more But make true faith ov'rflow thy hard hearts shore Thomas no sooner doth stretch out his fingers To touch Christs side when loe from off her hingers Christ pulls his heart which then was hard as stone And with the touch of true contrition Makes him bewaile his infidel'ty more Then he was bent to harden it before O now I finde saith he and cryes aloud Thou art the Christ my very Lord my God O happy Thomas what a happy change Is this which now doth in thy bosome range Of late thou saidst Unlesse I surely see The stamps of death in his mortalitie I will not trust what ever can be sed That he from death can be recovered But now behold what nature could not see Faith doth perceive behold that Mustard tree Of faith in thee hath been most shrewdly shaken Yet from the root it hath not quite been taken O what a forcelesse force of heav'ns high thought This alteration in thy brest hath wrought For one thing thou didst see believe another And this made Faith and Nature joyn together One thing thy eyes did see that he was Man Thy heart believes him God 't is more than can By natures rules or documents of art Couch in thy conscience or confirm thy heart But ô the power of the Almighty who Unto the weak joyns grace and nature so That what weak nature cannot work for want Of strength grace there doth furnish supplement And though that faith doth build her house on that Which to the nat'rall eye 's unseen yet what May help weak nature and procure her strength She doth amasse together and at length From both their Magazens draws forth that store Of grace which Sathan can deface no more Thrice happy Thomas who didst thus believe Because thou saw'st but if that God shall give The grace to such as never saw to trust Thrice happy they their faith shall make them just For when they by the heav'ns great power shall Arise to make their last Judiciall Account their unseen faith shall make them see Death hath no sting Grave hath no vietorie Thus standeth Thomas to the faith converted From him a hard heart by a touch is parted Christ to the rest of those his brethren saith Brethren these times require much strength of faith Harken therefore to what I to you say 'T is long since I first said I goe my way And you were heavy that I so should speak For then your faith was wav'ring faint and weak But now your eares have heard youe eyes have seen What I have suffred yet my wounds be green Gird up your loynes therefore henceforth be strong For he who wrongeth you to me doth wrong And whoso harmeth you he harmeth me I love you as the apple of mine eye Yet must not I alwayes on earth remain I to my Father must return again And to your Father to my God I goe And to your holy one and God also My God is your God and my Father 's yours The gates of hell and all their darkned powr's Shall not be able ' gainst you to prevaile My Scepter and my Rod their strength shall quaile Full forty times brave Titan now hath run About the world and stay'd where he begun Full forty dayes hath he yea each day once Saluted and adieu'd both Horizons Full forty times hath Pha'ton's Chariots wheel Bid Flora both good morrow and farewell Now now 't is time that Jesus should goe hence T' enjoy the throne of his magnificence Not
like Duke Joshuah's Sun which did not set Till he proud Amâ—lecks forces did defeat Nor like to Hezekiah's Sun whose rayes Went back on Aha's dyall ten degrees No no this Sun in Gibeah must not stand His foes are foyl'd already by his hand Nor will he now turn back on Aha's dyall To give us of our health a second tryall But like his Grandsire David's Sun he now Come from his late bed-chamber needs-must bow The heav'ns and all their vaulted arches that He may regain his first Magnificat Unto the mount of Olives out goes he And with him his Disciples foure times three Save one and many others of both sexes He with his poor Disciples intermixes There doth he pause a little and anon To him his Schollers move this question Master say they 't is long since we expected T' have seen Judaea's kingdome re-erected But still our expectation hath been vain Our hoped freedome we cannot obtain Wilt thou at this time that our state restore Once let us know and we enquire no more Poore weak and wayward Orphans he replies 'T is not for you to know the mysteries Of times and Seasons which my Father yet In his unclasped Kalendar keeps knit But what 's more fitting for you I reveale Goe back to Jerusalem there stay still And I to you the Comforter shall send Who shall you govern unto the worlds end For as my Father sent me I send you O that his grace your soules may so endue That your sweet savour wheresoe're you goe May like the Balme of Gilead still flow And by your preaching my poore Gospell may Celestiall glory to the world display Then stretching out his hands he doth them blisse And greets them with this sweet Cignaean kisse O great ô holy ô righteous ô all-seeing Father in whom we live and have our being Now come I to thee where I was before The earth had limits or the sea had shore For thou and I are one thou art in me And from Eternity I was in thee One glory with thy coeternall Spirit Did thou and I before all time inherit We all are one that one is blessed three A blessed Union of bless'd Trinitie I pray thee and I know thou dost me heare Keep those thy servants hearts in thy true feare Thy word is truth and truth is in thy word Besides thy word nothing can truth afford Sathan did lye against us at the first And by his lye hath made mans soule to thirst After a lying vanity but I Have come from thee by truth to edifie Their ruin'd soules and make thy truth again Repaire thy image in their hearts hid plain The world shall hate them for thy truth ô then Strengthen their hearts against the threats of men That in true wisdome they may boldly tell When I am gone that I Immanuel Th' Eternall word yea thy Eternall sonne Being flesh of their flesh bone of their bone Have in the flesh by my sad suff'rings payd What e're was due to sinne and so allay'd The fury of thy wrath unto all such As by true faith my garments hem shall touch Give grace also unto that word which they Shall in my name or Preach or Prophecy That in their hearers hearts it may take root And in convenient time bring forth good fruit That so good works and faith their soules may cure And they may of Salvation be made sure This said he with a sweet and deere imbrace Joyns hand to hand his face unto their face And breathing on them bids them all farewell Till he return their glory to reveale He by a bright oreshading cloud is straight Heav'd up and taken quite out of their sight Thus doth a shining cloud to heav'n up-cary The Sonne of God born of the Virgin Mary On whom while as the people fix their eyes Two glorious Angels from heav'ns Senat flyes And standing by them with a sweet impire Thus doe correct their vain and vast desire You men of Galile why stand you here Groping at noon-day in your Hemisphere This very Jesus whom you now behold Within a clouds bright cannopy enrol'd Shall from the heav'ns in this same manner come To give the world her last and righteous doom Thousands yea thousand thousands Angels than Shall shout before the glorious Sonne of man Upon the Cherubs and the Seraphs hee Shall ride and on the windes swift wings shall flee He shall no rapture nor no whirl-winde crave To raise his Saints from out their snorting grave But as the worlds great owner he shall make The Earths foundation like a whirl-gig quake The Sun shall lose his light the Moon her Ore The starres shall fall from heav'n the Sea shall rore And every soule that hah or breath or sense Shall stand before his great Omnipotence For He the righteous Judge to them shall render Both to th'Apostate and the faithfull stander Due retribution of what they have wrought In publick word and deed or private thought But since nor Man nor Angell knowes that houre Let all flesh labour their peace to procure Yea let them watch and pray and still take heed Lest while they think to live they prove not dead Here with this Cloud in which He did ascend I wrap my Raptures and my Verse shall end Here ends MELPOMENE or the third Week Gloria Patri Filio Spiritui Sancto FINIS