his courage ' gan to gather When he perceiv'd no rage but pitty rather In his new Hoast who with milde looks and meek Seem'd as it were succour of him to seek Showing him oft one of his paws wherein A festering thorn for a long time had been Then though still fearfull did the Slaue draw nigher And from his foot he lightly snatcht the Bryer And wringing gently with his hand the wound Made th' hot impostume run vpon the ground Thenceforth the Lion seeks for Booties best Through Hill and Dale to cheer his new-com Guest His new Physician who for all his cost Soon leaues his Lodging and his dreadfull Hoast And once more wanders through the wildernes Whether his froward Fortune would address Vntill re-taen his fell Lord brought him home For Spectacle vnto Imperiall Rome To be according to their barbarous Laws Bloudily torn with greedy Lions paws Fell Canniball Flint-harted Polyphem If thou would'st needs exactly torture him Inhumane Monster hatefull Lestrigon Why from thine owne hand hast thou let him gon To Bears and Lions to be giuen for prey Thy self more fell a thousand-fold then they African Panthers Hyrcan Tigres fierce Cleonian Lions and Panonian Bears Be not so cruell as who violates Sacred Humanity and cruciates His loy all subiects making his recreations Of Massacres Combats and sharp Taxations ' Boue all the Beasts that fill'd the Martian Field With bloud and slaughter one was most beheld One valiant Lion whose victorious fights Had conquered hundreds of those guilty wights Whose feeble skirmish had but striv'n in vain To scape by combat their deserued pain That very Beast with faint and fearfull feet This Runnagate at last is forç't to meet And being entred in the bloody List The Lion rowz'd and ruffles-vp his Crest Shortens his body sharpens his grim ey And staring wide he roareth hideously Then often swindging with his sinnewy train Somtimes his sides somtimes the dusty Plain Hewhets his rage and strongly rampeth on Against his foe who nigh already gon To drink of Lethè lifteth to the Pole Religious vows not for his life but soule After the Beast had marcht som twenty pase He sodain stops and viewing well the face Of his pale foe remembred rapt with ioy That this was he that eased his annoy Wherefore conuerting from his hatefull wildenes From pride to pitty and from rage to mildenes On his bleak face he both his eyes doth fix Fawning for homage his lean hands he licks The Slaue thus knowing and thus being knowen Lifts to the Heav'ns his front now hoary growen And now no more fearing his tearing paws He stroaks the Lion and his poule he claws And learns by proof that a good turn at need At first or last shall be assur'd of meed THER 's vnder Sun as Delphos God did showe No better Knowledge then Our self to Knowe Noscete ipsuÌ„ Ther is no Theam more plentifull to sean Then is the glorious goodly Frame of MAN The second part of this sixt book Wherein is discoursed at large of the creatioÌ„ of Man For in Man's self is Fire Aire Earth and Sea Man 's in a word the World's Epitomé Or little Map which heer my Muse doth try By the grand Pattern to exemplifie A witâ—y Mason doth not with rare Art And of the wonders of Gods wisedom appearing both in his body and Soule Into a Palace Paros Rocks conuert Seel it with gold and to the Firmament Rayse the proud Turrets of his Battlement And to be brief in every part of it Beauty to vse vse vnto beauty fit To th' end the Skrich-Owl and the Night-Rav'n should In those fair walls their habitations hold But rather for som wise and wealthy Prince Able to iudge of his arts excellence Even so the Lord built not this All-Theater For the rude guests of Air and Woods and Water The world made for Man But all for Him who whether he survey The vast salt kingdoms or th' Earth's fruitfull clay Or cast his eys vp to those twinkling Eys That with disordered order gild the Skyes Can every-where admire with due respect Th' admired Art of such an Architect Now of all Creatures which his Word did make Man was created last why MAN was the last that living breath did take Not that he was the least or that God durst Not vndertake so noble a Work at first Rather because he should haue made in vain So great a Prince without on whom to Raign A wise man never brings his bidden guest Fit comparison Into his Parlour till his Room be drest Garnisht with Lights and Tables neatly spred Be with full dishes well-nigh furnished So our great God who bountious euer keeps Heer open Court and th' ever-bound-les Deeps Of sweetest Nectar on vs still distills By twenty-times ten thousand sundry quills Would not our Grandsier to his Boord inuite Yer he with Arras his fair house had dight And vnder starry State-Cloaths plaç't his plates Fill'd with a thousand sugred delicates All th' admirable Creatures made beforn Which Heav'n and Earth and Ocean doo adorn All other creatures nothing in respect of Man made to the Image of God with as it were great preparation not all at once but by interims first his Body and then his reasonable Soule Are but Essays compar'd in every part To this divinest Master-Piece of Art Therefore the supream peer-les Architect When of meer nothing he did first erect Heav'n Earth and Aire and Seas at once his thought His word and deed all in an instant wrought But when he would his own selfs Type create Th' honour of Nature th' Earths sole Potentate As if he would a Councell hold he cyteth His sacred Power his Prudence he inuiteth Summons his Loue his Iustice he adiourns Calleth his Goodnes and his Grace returns To as it were consult about the birth And building of a second God of Earth And each a-part with liberal hand to bring Some excellence vnto so rare a thing Or rather he consults with 's onely Son His own true Pourtrait what proportion Gen. 1 16 What gifts what grace what soule he should bestowe Vpon his Vice-Roy of this Realm belowe When th' other things God fashion'd in their kinde The Sea t' abound in Fishes he assign'd The Earth in Flocks but having Man in hand His very self he seemed to commaund He both at-once both life and body lent To other things but when in Man he meant In mortall limbs immortall life to place Hee seem'd to pawse as in a waighty case And so at sundry moments finished The Soule and Body of Earth's glorious Head Admired Artist Architect divine Innocation Perfect and peer-les in all Works of thine So my rude hand on this rough Table guide To paint the Prince of all thy Works beside That graue Spectators in his face may spy Apparant marks of thy Divinity Almighty Father as of watery matter It pleas'd thee make the people of the Water
By his example giving vs behest On the Seaventh Day for evermore to Rest. For God remembred that he made not Man Of Stone or Steel or Brass Corinthian But lodg'd our soule in a frail earthen Mass Thinner then Water britteler then Glass He knowes our life is by nought sooner spent Then having still our mindes and bodies bent A Field left lay for som fewe Years will yield The richer Crop when it again is till'd A River stopped by a sluce a space Runs after rougher and a swifter pase A Bowe a while vnbent will after cast His shafts the farther and them fix more fast A Souldier that a season still hath layn Coms with more fury to the Field again Even so this Body when to gather breath One Day in Seav'n at Rest it soiourneth It re-collects his Powrs and with more cheer Falls the next morrow to his first Career But the chief End this Precept aims at is To quench in vs the coals of Covetize That while we rest from all profaner Arts Gods Spirit may work in our retired hearts That wee down-treading earthly cogitations May mount our thoughts to heav'nly meditations Following good Archers guise who shut one ey Simile That they the better may their mark espy For by th' Almighty this great Holy-day Was not ordain'd to daunce and mask and play Against profaners of the Sabaoth To slugg in sloath and languish in delights And loose the Reans to raging appetites To turn Gods Feasts to filthy Lupercals To frantike Orgies and fond Saturnals To dazle eys with Prides vain-glorious splendor To serue strange Gods or our Ambition tender As th' irreligion of loose Times hath since Chang'd the Prime-Churches chaster innocence We ought on the Lords Day atteÌ„d his seruice me ditate on the euerlasting Rest on the workes of God God would that men should in a certain place This Day assemble as before his face Lending an humble and attentiue ear To learn his great Name 's deer-drad Loving-Fear He would that there the faithfull Pastor should The Scriptures marrow from the bones vnfold That we might touch with fingers as it were The sacred secrets that are hidden there For though the reading of those holy lines In private Houses som-what move our mindes Doubtlesse the Doctrine preacht doth deeper pearce Proves more effectuall and more waight it bears The practise of the faithfull in all reformed Churches on the Sabaoth Day He would that there in holy Psalmes we sing Shrill prayse and thanks to our immortall King For all the liberall bounties he bestow'th On vs and ours in soule and body both He would that there we should confess his Christ Our onely Saviour Prophet Prince and Priest Solemnizing with sober preparation His blessed Seals of Reconciliation And in his Name beg boldly what we need After his will and be assur'd to speed Sith in th' Exchequer of his Clemency All goods of Fortune Soule and Body lie He would this Sabbaoth should a figure be The Corporall Rest a figure of the spirituall Of the blest Sabbaoth of Eternity But th' one as Legall heeds but outward things Th' other to Rest both Soule and body brings Th' one but a Day endures the others Date Eternity shall not exterminate Shadows the one th' other doth Truth include This stands in freedom that in seruitude With cloudy cares th' one 's muffled vp som-whiles The others face is full of pleasing smiles For never grief nor fear of any Fit Of the least care shall dare come neer to it 'T is the grand Iubilé the Feast of Feasts Sabbaoth of Sabbaoths end-less Rest of Rests Which with the Prophets and Apostles zealous The constant Martyrs and our Christian fellows Gods faithfull Seruants and his chosen Sheep In Heav'n we hope within short time to keep He would this Day our soule sequestered Meditation of the workes of God especially on the day of Rest. From busie thoughts of worldly cares should read In Heav'ns bow'd Arches and the Elements His bound-less Bounty Powr and Providence That every part may as a Master teach Th' illiterat Rules past a vulgar reach Com Reader sit com sit thee down by mee Exhortation to this Meditatiâ— with the vse and profit thereof Think with my thoughts and see what I doo see Hear this dumb Doctor study in this Book Where day and night thou mai'st at pleasure look And therby learn vprightly how to liue For every part doth speciall Lessons giue Even from the gilt studs of the Firmament To the base Centre of our Element Seest thou those Stars we wrongly Wandring call The Planets teach vs to follow the will of God Though diuers wayes they daunce about this Ball Yet ever more their manifold Career Follows the Course of the First Mouing Sphear This teacheth thee that though thine own Desires Be opposit to what Heav'ns will requires Thou must still striue to follow all thy dayes God the first Mover in his holy wayes The Moon teacheth that we haue not any thing that we haue not receiued Vain puff of winde whom vaunting pride bewitches For Bodies beauties or Mindes richer Riches The Moon whose splendor from her Brother springs May by Example make thee vail thy wings For thou no less then the pale Queen of Nights Borrow'st all goodnes from the Prince of Lights Wilt thou from Orb to Orb to th' Earth descend The Elementary fire and ours where our happinesse and where our misery consists Behold the Fire which God did round extend As neer to Heav'n the same is cleer and pure Ours heer belowe sad smoaky and obscure So while thy Soule doth with the Heav'ns converse It 's sure and safe from every thought perverse And though thou won heer in this world of sinn Thou art as happy as Heav'ns Angells been But if thy minde be alwayes fixed all On the foul dunghill of this darksom vale It will partake in the contagious smells Of th' vnclean house wherin it droops and dwells If enuious Fortune be thy bitter foe The Aire that afflictions are profitable for vs. And day and night do toss thee to and fro Remember th' Aire coâ—â—â—reth soon except With sundry Windes it be oâ—t swing'd and swept The Sea which somtimes down to Hell is driv'n The Sea that we ought for no respect to transgresse the Law of God And somtimes heaues afroathy Mount to Heav'n Yet never breaks the bounds of her precinct Wherin the Lord her boisterous arms hath linkt Instructeth thee that neither Tyrants rage Ambition's windes nor golden vassallage Of Auarice nor any love nor fear From Gods Command should make thee shrink a hair The Earth which never all at once doth moue The Earth that we should be constant Though her rich Orb received from aboue No firmer base her burthen to sustent Then slippery props of softest Element By her example doth propose to thee A needfull Lesson of true Constancy The Eares of Corne
Not for th' effect it had but should haue kept If Man from duty never had mis-stept For as the ayr of those fresh dales and hills Preserved him from Epidemik ills This fruit had ever-calm'd all insurrections All civill quarrels of the cross complexions Had barr'd the passage of twice childish age And ever-more excluded all the rage Of painfull griefs whose swift-slowe posting-pase At first or last our dying life doth chase Strong counter-bane O sacred Plant divine The excellencie of that Tree What metall stone stalk fruit flowr root or ryne Shall I presume in these rude rymes to sute I Vnto thy wondrous World-adorning Fruit The rarest Simples that our fields present-vs Heal but one hurt and healing too torments vs And with the torment lingring our relief Our bags of gold void yer our bulks of grief But thy rare fruits hid powr admired most Salveth all sores sans pain delay or cost Or rather man from yawning Death to stay Thou didst not cure but keep all ills away O holy peer-less rich preseruatiue We cannot say what Tree it was Whether wert thou the strange restoratiue That suddainly did age with youth repair And made old Aeson yonger then his heir Or holy Nectar that in heav'nly bowrs Eternally self-pouring Hebé pours Or blest Ambrosia Gods immortall fare Or els the rich fruit of the Garden rare Where for three Ladies as assured guard A fire-arm'd Dragon day and night did ward Or pretious Moly which Ioues Pursuiuan Wing-footed Hermes brought to th' Ithacan Or else Nepenthé enemy to sadnes Repelling sorrows and repealing gladnes Or Mummie or Elixir that excels Save men and Angels every creature els No none of these these are but forgeries But toyes but tales but dreams deceipts and lies But thou art true although our shallow sense May honour more then sound thine Excellence The Tree of Knowledge th' other Tree behight Of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Euill Not that itselfly had such speciall might As mens dull wits could whet and sharpen so That in a moment they might all things knowe 'T was a sure pledge a sacred sâ—gne and seal Which being ta'n should to light man reveal What ods there is between still peace and strife Gods wrath and loue drad death and deerest life Solace and sorrow guile and innocence Rebellious pride and humble obedience For God had not depriv'd that primer season Of the excellence of mans knowledge before Sin The sacred lamp and light of learned Reason Mankinde was then a thousand fold more wise Then now blinde Error â—ad not bleard his eys With mists which make th' Athenian Sage suppose That nought hee knowes saue this that nought hee knowes That euen light Pirâ—â—oâ—s wavering fantasies Reave him the skill his vn skill to agnize And th' Abderite within a Well obscure As deep as dark the Truth of things immure Hee happy knew the Good by th' vse of it How he knew good and euill before Sinne. He knew the Bad but not by proof as yet But as they say of great Hyppocrates Who though his limbs were numm'd with no excess Nor stop this throat nor vext his fantasie Knew the cold Cramp th' Angine and Lunacy And hundred els-pains whence in lusty flowr He liv'd exempt a hundred yeers and foure Or like the pure Heav'n-prompted Prophets rather Whose sight so cleerly future things did gather Because the World's Soule in their soule enseal'd The holy stamp of secrets most conceal'd But our now knowledge hath for tedious train Oâ— mans knowledge sincâ— his Fall A drooping life and over-racked brain A face forlorn a sad and sullen fashion A rest-less toyl and Cares self-pining passion Knowledge was then even the soules soule for light The spirits calme Port and Lanthorn shining bright To straight steptfeet cleer knowledge not confus'd Not sowr but sweet not gotten but infus'd Now Heav'ns eternall all-fore-seeing King Why the Lord put man in the Garden of Eden Who never rashly ordereth anything Thought good that man having yet spirits sound-stated Should dwell els-where then where he was created That he might knowe he did not hold this place By Natures right but by meer gift and Grace That he should never taste fruits vn-permitted But keep the sacred Pledge to him committed And dress that Park which God without all tearm On these conditions gaue him as in farm God would that void of painfull labour he Of his exercise there Should liue in Eden but not idlely For Idlenes pure Innocence subuerts Defiles our body and our soule peruerts Yea soberest men it makes delicious To vertue dull to vice in genious But that first travell had no sympathy With our since-travails wretched cruelty Distilling sweat and panting wanting winde Which was a scourge for Adams sin assign'd For Edens earth was then so fertile fat 4. Comparisons That he made onely sweet Essayes in that Of skilfull industry and naked wrought More for delight then for the gain he sought In brief it was a pleasant exercise A labour lik't a pain much like the guise Of cunning dauncers who although they skip â— Run caper vault traverse and turn and trip From Morn till Even at night again full merry Renue their daunce of dauncing never weary Or else of Hunters that with happy luck 2. Rousing betimes som often breathed Buck Or goodly Stagge their yelping Hounds vncouple Winde lowd their horns their whoops hallows double Spur-on and spare not following their desire Themselues vn-weary though their Hackneis tyre But for in th' end of all their iolity Ther 's found much stifness sweat and vanity I rather match it to the pleasing pain Of Angels pure who ever sloath disdain 3. Or to the Suns calm course who pain-less ay 4. About the welkin posteth night and day Doubtless when Adam saw our common ayr Adam admireth the beauties of the World in generall He did admire the mansion rich and fair Of his Successors For frosts keenly cold The shady locks of Forrests had not powl'd Heav'n had not thundred on our heads as yet Nor given the earth her sad Diuorces Writ But when he once had entred Paradise But most especially of the Garden of Eden The remnant world he iustly did despise Much like a Boor far in the Country born Who never having seen but Kine and Corn Oxen and Sheep and homely Hamlets thatcht Which fond he counts as Kingdoms hardly matcht When afterward he happens to behold Our welthy London's wonders manifold In this comparison my Author setteth down the famous City of Paris but I haue presumed to apply it to our own City of London that it might be more familiar to my meere English and vn-trauaild Readers The silly peasant thinks himself to bâ— In a new World and gazing greedily One while he Art-less all the Arts admires Then the faire Temples and their top-less spires Their firm foundations and the massie pride Of all
How long they had that Garden in possession Before their proud and insolent Transgression What Children there they earned and how many Of whether sex or whether none or any Or how at least they should haue propagated If the sly malice of the serpent hated Causing their fall had not defil'd their kin And vnborn seed with leprosie of Sin If void of Venus sith vnlike it is Such blessed state the noble flowr should miss Of Virgin-head or folk so perfect chaste Should furious feel when they their loues imbraç't Such tickling flames as our fond soule surprise That dead a-while in Epilepsâ—e lies And slack our sinews all by little and little Drowning our reason in foule pleasure brittle Or whether else as men in gender now Sith spouse-bedspot-less laws of God allow If no excess command sith else again The Lord had made the double sex in vain Whether their Infants should haue had the Powr We now perceiue in fresh youths Iusty flowr As nimble feet lims strong and vigorous Industrious hands and hearts couragious Sith before sin Man ought not less appear In Natures gifts then his then-seruants were And loe the Partridge which new-hatched bears On her weak back her parent-house and wears In stead of wings a bever-supple down Follows her dam through furrows vp and down Or else as now sith in the womb of Eue A man of thirtie yeares could neuer liue Nor may we iudge ' gainst Natures course apparant Without the sacred Scriptures speciall warrant Which for our good as Heav'ns deer babe hath right To countermaund our reason and our sight Whether their seed should with their birth haue brought Deep Knowledge Reason Vnderstanding-thought Sith now wee see the new-fall'n feeble Lamb Yet stayn'd with bloud of his distressed Dam Knowes wel the Wolf at whose fell sight he shakes And right the tear of th' vnknow'n Eaw he takes And sith a dull Dunce which no knowledge can Is a dead image and no liuing man Or the thick vail of Ignorance's night Had hooded-vp their issues inward sight Sith the much moisture of an Infant brain Receiues so many shapes that ouer-lam New dash the old and the trim commixation Of confus'd fancies full of alteration Makes th' Vnderstanding hull which settle would But findes no firm ground for his Anchors hold Whether old ADAM should haue left the place Vnto his Sonnes they to their after-race Or whether all together at the last Should gloriously from thence to Heav'n haue past Search whoso list who list let vaâ—â—t in pride The decision of such Questions is a busie idlenes T' haue hit the white and let him sage decide The many other doubts that vainly rise For mine owne part I will not seem so wise I will not waste my trauail and my seed To reap an empty straw or fruitless reed Alas we know what Orion of grief Rain'd on the curst head of the creatures Chief Sin makes vs perceiue more then sufficiently what happines our Grand-sire lost and what misery he got by his shamefull Fall After that God against him war proclaim'd And Satan princedom of the earth had claim'd But none can know precisely how at all Our Elders liv'd before their odious fall An vnknow'n Cifer and deep Pit it is Where Dircean Oedipus his marks would miss Sith Adam's self if now he liv'd anew Could scant vnwinde the knotty snarled clew Of double doubts and questions intricate That Schools dispute about this pristin state But this sole point I rest resolved in But for sinne man had not been subiect vnto Death That seeing Death 's the meer effect of sin Man had not dreaded Death's all-slaying might Had hee still stood in Innocence vpright For as two Bellows blowing turn by turn Simile By little and little make cold coals to burn And then their fire inflames with glowing heat An yron bar which on the Anuil beat Seems no more yron but flyes almost all In hissing sparks and quick bright cinders small So the Worlds Soule should in our soule inspire Th' eternall force of an eternall fire And then our soule as form breathe in our corse Her count-less numbers and Heav'n-tuned force Wherewith our bodies beauty beautified Should like our death-less soule haue neuer died Heer wot I well som wranglers will presume Obiections against the estate of man who had not beene subiect vnto death but for Sinne. To say Small fire will by degrees consume Our humor radicall and how-be-it The differing vertues of those fruits as yet Had no agreement with the harmfull spight Of the fell Persian dangerous Acomte And notwithstanding that then ADAMS taste Could well haue vsed all without all waste Yet could they not restore him euery day Vnto his body that which did decay Because the food cannot as being strange So perfectly in humane substance change For it resembleth wine wherein too rife Simile Water is brewd whereby the pleasant life Is ouer-cool'd and so there rests in fine Nought of the strength sauour or taste of wine Besides in time the naturall faculties Are tyr'd with toyl and th' Humour-enemies Our death conspiring vndermine at last Of our Soules prisons the foundations fast I but the Tree of life the strife did stay Answer to those obiections Which th' Humours caused in this house of clay And stopping th' euill changed perfect good In body fed the body of the food Only the soules contagious malady Had force to frustrate this high remedy Immortall then and mortall man was made Conclusion Mortall he liv'd and did immortall vade For 'fore th' effects of his rebellious ill To die or liue was in his power and will But since his Sin and proud Apostasie Ah! die he may but not alas not-dy As after his new-birth he shall attain Onely a powr to neuer-dy again FINIS THE IMPOSTVRE THE II. PART OF THE I. DAY OF THE II. WEEK THE ARGVMENT Iustice and Mercy modul'd in their kinde Satans proud Hate and Enuie to Mankinde His many Engins and malitious Wiles Whereby the best he many-times beguiles Why he assum'd a Body and began With Eue by Her to vndermine her Man Their dreadfull Fall Their drousie Conscience Gods righteous Sentence for their foul Offence On them and Theirs Their Exile Eden barr'd With flaming Sword and Scraphin for guard O Who shall lend me light and nimble wings That passing Swallows and the swiftest things Euen in a moment boldly-daring I From Heav'n to Hell from Hell to Heav'n may fly O! who shall showe the countenance and gestures Of Mercy and Iustice which fair sacred sisters With equall poiz doe euer ballance ev'n Th' vnchanging Proiects of the King of Heav'n Th' one stern of look the other milde-aspecting Th' one pleas'd with tears the other bloud affecting Th' one bears the Sword of vengeance vnrelenting Th' other brings Pardon for the true-repenting Th' one from Earths Eden Adam did dismiss Th' other hath rais'd him to a higher Bliss Who
against Adam Eue. They are driuen out of Eden Bears the hard penance of his high transgression And Adam heer from Eden banished As first offender is first punished Hence quoth the Lord hence hence accursed race Out of my Garden quick auoyd the place This beautious place pride of this Vniuerse A house vnworthy Masters so peruerse Those that in quarrell of the Strong of Strongs Simile And iust reuenge of Queen and Countries wrongs Were witnesses to all the wofull plaints The sighes and tears and pitifull complaints Of brauing Spaniards chiefly braue inword When by the valiant Heav'n-assisted sword Of Mars like ESSEX Englands Marshall-Earl Then Albions Patron and Eliza's Pearl They were expulst from Cad'z their deerest pleasure Losing their Town their honour and their treasure Woe worth said they woe worth our Kings ambition Woe worth our Cleargy and their Inquisition He seeks new Kingdoms and doth lose his old They burn for conscience but their thirst is gold Woe and alas woe to the vain brauados Of Typhon like-inuincible ARMADOS Which like the vaunting Monster-man of Gath Haue stirr'd against vs little Dauids wrath Wo-worth our sins wo worth our selues and all Accursed causes of our suddain fall Those well may ghess the bitter agonies And luke-warm Rivers gushing down the eys Of our first Parents out of Eden driv'n Of Repeal hope-less by the hand of Heav'n For the Almighty set before the dore The earthly Eden shut-vp for euer from Mankinde Of th' holy Park a Seraphin that bore A waving sword whose body shined bright Like flaming Comet in the midst of night A body meerly Metaphysioall Which differing little from th' ONE vnicall Th' Act-simply-pure the onely-beeing BEEING Approcheth matter ne'rtheless not being Of matter mixt or rather is so made So meerly spirit that not the murdering blade His ioyned quantity can part in two For pure it cannot Suffer ought but Doo FINIS THE FVRIES THE III. PART OF THE I. DAY OF THE II. WEEK THE ARGVMENT The World 's tranform'd from that it was at first For Adams Sin all Creatures else accurst Their Harmony dis-tuned by His iar Yet all again concent to make Him war As th' Elements and aboue all the Earth Three ghastly FVRIES Sicknes War and Dearth A generall Muster of the Bodies Griefs The Soules Diseases vnder sundry Chiefs Both full of Horror but the later most Where vgly Vice in Vertues Mask doth boast THis 's not the World O! whither am I brought Sin hath changed and disfigured the face of the World This Earth I tread this hollow-hanging Vault Which Dayes reducing and renuing Nights Renues the grief of mine afflicted sprights This Sea I sail this troubled Ayr I sip Are not The First-Weeks glorious workmanship This wretched Round is not the goodly Globe Th' Eternall trimmed in so various Robe 'T is but a Dungeon and a dreadfull Caue Of that First World the miserable graue All-quickning Spirit great God that iustly-strange Inuocation Iudge-turned-Father wrought'st his wondrous change Change and new-mould me Lord my hand assist That in my Muse appear no earthly mist Make me thine organ giue my voice dexterity Sadly to sing this sad Change to Posterity And bountious Giuer of each perfect gift So tune my voice to his sweet-sacred Clift That in each strain my rude vnready tong Be liuely Eccho of his learned Song And hence-forth let our holy Musik rauish All well-born Soules from fancies lewdly-lauish Of charming Sin the deep-inchaunting Syrens The snares of vertue valour-softning Hyrens That toucht with terrour of thine indignation Presented in this wofull Alteration We all may seek by Prayer and true Repentance To shun the rigour of thy wrathfull Sentence * The TraÌ„slator heere humbly vaileth-bonnet to the Kings Maiesty who many yeeres since for his princely exercile translated these FVRIES the VRANIA and some other Pecces of Du BARTAS But yer we farther pass our slender Bark Must heer strike top-sâ—ils to a Princely Ark Which keeps these Straights Hee hails vs threatfully Star-boord our helm Com vnderneath his Lee. Ho Whence your Bark of Zeal-land Whether bound For Vertues Cape What lading Hope This Sound You should not pass sauâ— that your voyage tends To benefit our Neighbours and our Frends Thanks Kingly Captain daign vs then we pray Som skilfull Pylot through this FVRIOVS Bay Or in this Chanell sith we are to learn Vouch safe to togh vs at your Royall Stern YER THAT our Sire O too too proudly-base Turn'd tail to God and to the Fiend his face This mighty World did seem an Instrument True-strung well-tun'd and handled excellent Happy estate of the World before Sinne set forth by a Similitude Whose symphony resounded sweetly-shrill Th' Almighties prayse who play'd vpon it still While man serv'd God the World serv'd him the lyue And liue-less creatures seemed all to striue To nurse this league and louing zealously These two deer Heads embraced mutually In sweet accord the base with high reioyc't The hot with cold the solid with the moist And innocent Astraea did combine All with the mastick of a Loue diuine For th' hidden loue that now a-dayes doth holde The Sympathy yet appearing between certain Creatures is but as a litle shadow of the perfect vnion which was among all Creatures before Mans Fall The Steel and Load-stone Hydrargire and Golde Th' Amber and straw that lodgeth in one shell Pearl-fish and Sharpling and vnites so well Sargons and Goats the Sperage and the Rush Th' Elm and the Vine th' Oliue and Myrtle-bush Is but a spark or shadow of that Loue Which at the first in every thing did moue When as th' Earth's Muses with Harmonious sound To Heav'ns sweet Musick humbly did resound But Adam being chief of all the strings Of this large Lute o're-retched quickly brings All out of tune and now for melody Of warbling Charms it yels so hideously That it affrights fell Enyon who turmoils To raise again th' old Chaos antik broils Heav'n that still smiling on his Paramour Of the Discord that Sinne hath brought among all things Still in her lap did Mel and Manna pour Now with his hail his rain his frost and heat Doth parch and pinch and over-whelm and beat And hoars her head with Snowes and ielous dashes Against her brows his fiery lightning flashes On th' other side the sullen enuious Earth Sundry notable Antipathies From blackest Cels of her foul brest sends forth A thousand foggy fumes which every where With cloudy mists Heav'ns crystall front besmear Since that the Woolf the trembling Sheep pursues The crowing Cock the Lion stout eschews The Pullein hide them from the Puttock's flight The Mastie's mute at the Hyaenas sight Yea who would think it these fell enmities Rage in the sense-less trunks of Plants and Trees The Vine the Cole the Cole-wort Swines-bread dreads The Fearn abhors the hollow waving Reeds The Olyue and the Oak participate Even to their earth signes of
Som through the Plain but neither in the chace Dares once look back no not with half a face Their fear had no restraint and much less Art This throwes away his shield and that his dart Swords Morrions Pouldrons Vaunt-brace Pikes Launces Are no defence but rather hinderances They with their hearts haue also lost their sight And recking less a glorious end in Fight Than thousand base deaths desperatly they ran Into the flood that fats rich Canaan Then Iordan arms him 'gainst these infidels With rapid course and like a sea he swels Lakes vnder ground into his channel range And shallowest Foords to ground-less gulfs do change He fumes he foams and swiftly whirling ground Seems in his rage these bitter words to sound Die Villains die O more than in famous Foul Monsters drench your damned soules in vs. Sa sa my Floods with your cold moisture quench The lust-full flame of their self-burning stench Drown drown the Hel-hounds and revenge the wrong Which they haue done our Mother Nature long The River swiftly whirling-in the slaues Aboue with Bowes beneath with Bodies paues The gaudy Plume yet floting light and soft Keeps for awhile the hollow helm aloft But yet at length even those that smim the best Down to the bottom sink among the rest Striving and struggling topsi-turuy tost While fain they would but cannot yield the ghost Because the flood vnwilling to defile His purest waues with spirits so foul and vile Re-spews them still into themselues and there Smoothers and choaks and rams them as it were Then both at once Bodies and Soules at last To the main Sea or his own shoar doth cast The Kings of Sodom and Gomorrha then Their own Ambush serues against themselues Hoping to train the King of Elams men Among the Clay-pits which themselues before T' intrap the Foe with boughs had covered or'e Ran thither-ward but their confused flight In their owne ambush made their owne to light Wherin they lost the flowr of all their rest Sooner of death then of deaths fear possest One as he flies with trembling steps the dart Which from behinde nigh pearst him to the heart Tangling his foot with twyning tendrels tho Of a wilde Vine that neer a pit did growe Stumbles and tumbles in hung by the heels Vp to the waste in water where he feels A three-fold Fate for there O strange he found Three deaths in one at once slain hangd and drownd Another weening ore a Well to skip From the wet brim his hap-less foot doth slip And he in falls but instantly past hope He catcheth holde vpon a dangling rope And so at length with shifting hands gets-vp By little and little to the fountains top Which Thadael spying to him straight he hies And thus alowd vnto the wretch he cries Varlet is this is this the means you make Your wonted yoak of Elam off to shake Is this your Skirmish and are these your blowes Wher-with t' incounter so courageous Foes Sir leaue your ladder this shall serue as well This sword shall be your ladder down to Hell Go pay to Pluto Prince of Acheron The Tribute heer deni'd vnto your owne Heer-with he drawes his Fauchin bright and keen And at a blowe heaws both his arms off clean His trickling hands held fast down fell his Trunk His blood did swim his body quickly sunk Another roughly pushed by the Foe Falls headlong down into a Bog belowe Where on his head deep planted in the mud With his heels vp-ward like a tree he stood Still to and fro wauing his legs and arms Simile As Trees are wont to waue in windie storms Another heer on hors-back posting ouer A broad deep clay-pit that green boughs do couer Sinks instantly and in his suddain Fate Seems the braue Horse doubly vnfortunate For his own neck he breaks and bruzing in With the keen scales of his bright Brigandin His Masters bowels serues alas for Tomb To him that yerst so many times did comb His crispy Crest and him so frankly fed In 's hollow Shield with oats and beans and bread Simile Even so somtimes the loving Vine and Elm With double domage ioyntly over-whelm Shee wails the wrack of her deer Husbands glade He moans his Spouses feeble arms and shade But most it grieues him with his Trunk to crush The precious Clusters of her pleasing Bush And press to death vnkindly with his waight Her that for loue embraceth him so straight Yet Lot alone with a small troup assisted Lots valour The Martiall brunt with Manly breast resisted And thirsting Fame stands firmly looking for The furious hoste of Chedorlaomor But as a narrow and thin-planted Cops Of tender Saplings with their slender tops Is fell'd almost as soon as vnder-taken By Multitudes of Peasants Winter-shaken Lot's little Number so environ'd round Hemm'd with so many swords is soon hew'n down His vndanted resolution Then left alone yet still all one he fares And the more danger still the more he dares Like a strange Mastif fiercely set vpon Simile By mongrell Currs in number ten to one Who tyr'd with running growen more cunning gets Into som corner where vpright he sets Vpon his stern and sternly to his Foes His rage-full foaming grinning teeth he showes And snarls and snaps and this and that doth bite And stoutly still maintains th' vnequall fight With equall fury till disdaining Death His Enemies be beaten out of breath Arioch admiring and even fearing too What Lot had done and what he yet might doo Him princely meets and mildely greets him thus Cease valiant youth cease cease t' incounter vs. Wilt thou alas wilt thou poor soule expose And hazard thus thy life and Fame to lose In such a Quarrell for the cause of such Alas I pitty thy mis-fortune much For well I see thy habit and thy tongue Thine Arms but most thy courage yet so yong Showe that in SODOM's wanton walls accurst Thou wert not born nor in Gomorrha nurst O chief of Chivalry reserue thy worth For better wars yield thee and think hence-forth I highly prize thy prows and by my sword For thousand kingdoms will not false my word Past hope of Conquest as past fear of death Lot taken prisoner LOT yields him then vpon the Princes Faith And from his Camel quick-dismounting hies His Royall hand to kiss in humble wise And th' Army laden with the richest spoyl Triumphantly to th' Eastward marcht the while No sooner noyse of these sad novels cam Abraham with his family of 300. goes to rescue Lot Vnto the ears of faithfull ABRAHAM But instantly he arms to rescue LOT And that rich prey the heathen Kings had got Three hundred servants of his house he brings But lightly arm'd with staues and darts and slings Aided by MAMRE in whose Plain he wons ASCOL and ANER AMOR's valiant sons So at the heels he hunts the fearless Foe Yet waits aduantage yer he offer blowe Favour'd by streightness of the ways
instantly shalt rue If e'r you saw at Sea in Summer weather Simile A Galley and a Caraque cope togither How th' one steers quick and th' other veers as slowe Lar-boord and star-boord from the poop to prowe This on the winde that on her Owres relies This daunteth most and that most damnifies You may conceaue this Fight th' huge Polypheme Stands stifly shaking his steel-pointed beam Dauid dooth trauerse round about him light Forward and back to th' left hand and the right Steps in and out now stoops anon he stretches Then he recoyls on either hand he reaches And stoutly-actiue watching th' aduerse blowes In euery posture dooth himself dispose As when at Cock-pit two old Cocks doo fight Simile Bristling their plumes and red with rage do smight With spurs and beak bounding at euery blowe With fresh assaults freshing their fury so That desperate in their vn yeelding wrath Nothing can end their deadly fewd but death The Lords about that on both sides do bet Look partially when th' one the Field shall get And trampling on his gaudie plumed pride His prostrate Fo with bloody spurs bestride With clanging Trumpet and with clapping wing Triumphantly his Victory to sing So th' Hebrew Hoast and so the Heathen stranger Not free from fear but from the present danger Behold with passion these two Knights on whom They both haue wagerd both their Fortunes sum And either side with voice and gesture too Hartens and cheers their Champion well to doo So earnest all that almost euery one Seems euen an Actor not a looker-on All feel the Skirmish twixt their Hope and Fear All cast their eyes on this sad Theater All on these two depend as very Founders Of their good Fortune or their Fates Confounders O Lord said DAVID as he whirld his Sling Be bowe and Bowe-man of this shaft I fling With sudden flerk the fatal hemp le ts go The humming Flint which with a deadly blowe Pearç't instantly the Pagans ghastly Front As deep as Pistol-shot in boord is wont The villain 's sped cries all the Hebrew band Goliah overthrowne The Dog the Atheist feels Gods heauy hand Th' Isacian Knight seeing the blowe stands still Fro th' Tyrants wound his ruddy soule doth trill As from a crack in any pipe of Lead That conuoyes Water from some Fountaines head Simile Hissing in th' Aire the captiue Stream doth spin In siluer threds her crystall humorthin The Giant wiping with his hand his wound Cries tush 't is nothing but eft soones the ground Sunk vnder him his face grew pale and wan And all his limbs to faint and fail began Thrice heaues he vp his head it hangs as fast And all a-long lies Isaac's dread at last Couering a rood of Land and in his Fall Simile Resembles right a lofty Tower or Wall Which to lay leuel with the humble soil A hundred Miners day and night doo toil Till at the length rushing with thundrous roar It ope a breach to th' hardy Conquerour Then two lowd cries a glad and sad were heard Wherwith reviv'd the vaunting Tyrant stird Re-summoning vnder his weak Controule The fainting Remnants of his flying Soule And to be once more buckling yer he dies With blowe for blowe he striues in vain to rise Such as in life such in his death he seems For euen in death he curses and blasphemes And as a Curre that cannot hurt the flinger Simile Flies at the stone and biteth that for anger Goliah bites the ground and his owne hands As Traytors false to his fel hearts commands Then the Hebrew Champion heads the Infidel With his own sword and sends his soule to Hell Pagans disperse and the Philistian swarms Haue armes for burthen and haue flight for armes Danger behinde and shame before their face Rowting themselues although none giue them chase Armi-potent Omnipotent my God Dauids Thanksgiving for the victory O let thy Praise fill all the Earth abroad Let Izrael through Thee victorious now Incessant songs vnto thy Glory vow And let me Lord said DAVID euer chuse Thee sole for subiect of my sacred Muse. O wondrous spectacle vnheard-of-Sight The Monster 's beaten-down before the Fight A Dwarf a Sheepheard conquers euen vn-armd A Giant fell a famous Captain armd From a fraile Sling this Battery neuer came But 't was the Breach of a Tower-razing Ram This was no cast of an vncertain Slinger 'T was Crosse-bow-shot rather it was the finger Of the All-mightie not this hand of mine That wrought this work so wondrous in our eyne This hath Hee done that by a woman weake Can likewise stone the stout Abimelech Therefore for euer singing sacred Layes I will record his glorious Power and Praise Then Iacob's Prince him ioyfully imbraces Prefers to honours and with fauours graces Imployes him farre and nigh and farre and neere From all sad cares he doth his Soueraigne cleere In Camp he curbs the Pagans arrogance In Court he cures the Melancholy Trance That toyls his soule and with his tunefull Lyre Effectâ— of Musick Expels th' ll Spirit which doth the body tyre For with her sheath the soule commerce frequents And acts her office by his instruments After his pipe she dances and againe The body shares her pleasure and her paine And by exchange reciprocally borrowes Some measure of her solace and her sorrowes Th' Eare doore of knowledge with sweete warbles pleas'd Sends them eft soones vnto the Soule diseas'd With darke black rage our spirits pacifies And calmly cools our inward flame that fries So O Tyrtéus changing Harmonie Examples of the same Thy Rowt thou changest into Victorie So O thrice-famous Princely Pellean Holding thy hart 's reâ—nes in his Tune-full hand Thy Timothie with his Melodious skill Armes and dis-armes thy Worlds-drad arme at will And with his Phrygian Musicke makes the same As Lion fierce with Dorik milde as Lambe So while in Argos the chaste Violon For 's absent Soueraigne doth graue-sweetly groan Queen Clytemnestra doth resist th' alarmes Of lewd Aegysthus and his lustfull Charmes So at the sound of the sweet-warbling brasse The Prophet rapting his soule 's soule a space Refines him selfe and in his fantasie Graues deep the seal of sacred Prophesie For if our Soule be Number some so thought It must with number be refreshed oft Or made by Number so I yeeld to sing We must the same with some sweet Numbers bring To some good Tune euen as a voice sometime Simile That in its Part sings out of tune and time Is by another voice whose measur'd straine Custome and Arte confirms brought in again It may be too that DAVIDS sacred Ditty Quickned with Holy-Writ and couched witty Exorcist-like chaç't Natures cruel Fo Who the Kings soule did tosse and torture so How e'r it were He is in euery thing A profitable seruant to the King Who enuious yet of his high Feats and Fame His Faith and Fortitude distrusts the same And the diuine Torch
Poore Eue beleeues him straight Man beleeues his wife And biteth by and by the Apple asking-life Whereof so soone as he had tasted he begins But all too-late alas to see his cursed sinnes His eyes indeed were ope and then he had the skill To know the difference between the good and ill Then did he knowe how good good waâ— when he had lost-it And euill too he knew but ah too deerely cost-it Leauing himselfe besides the sorrow of his losse Nothing but sad despaire of succourin his crosse He found himselfe falne down froÌ„ blisse-full state of peace Into a ciuill warre where discords neuer cease His soule reuolting soone became his bitter foe But as it oft befalls that worst doo strongest growe She is not eas'd at all by th' inly striuing iarres Which doo annoy her more then th' irefull open warres Wrath hatred enuie feare sorrow despaire and such And passions opposite to these afflict as much Distracting to and fro the Princesse of his life In restles mutinies and neuer ceasing strife Then th' humor-brethren all hot cold and wet and dry Falne out among themselues augment his misery So that by their debate within his flesh there seeded A haruest of such weeds as neuer can be weeded All creatures that before as Subiects did attend-him Now 'mong themselues conspire by al means to offend-him In briefe Immortall borne now mortall he became And bound his soule to bide Hells euer-burning flame Leauing his wofull heires euen from their births beginning Heires of his heauy paine as of his hainous sinning So that in him the Lord condemned all mankind To beare the punishment to his foule sinne assign'd And none had euer scap't had not the God of grace Desiring more to saue then to subuert his race Redeem'd vs by the death of his deer onely Son And chosen vs in him before the World begun Forgiuing vs the fault and with the fault the fine All saue this temporall death of Adams sin the signe Now in the horror of those ease-lesse end-lesse paines It may be rightly said that euill euer raignes That 's euill's very selfe and not this seeming-woe Wherof the want on world complaineth daily so Liv'd we ten thousand yeeres continually tormented In all fell tortures strange that euer were inuented What 's that compar'd to time that never shall expire Amidth'infernall flames whose least-afflicting fire Exceedeth all the paines all mortall hearts can think Sure all that we endure till Laethe drops we drink Is all but ease to that or if it be a paine 'T is in respect of that a very trifle vaine But were 't a great deale worse why should we euill name That which we rather finde a medicine for the same Health wealth security honour and ease doo make vs Forget our God and God for that doth soone for sake vs Whereas afflictions are the ready meanes to moouevs To seeke our health in him that doth so deerely loue-vs 'T is true indeed say some that benefit they bring-vs But yet the smart thereof doth so extreamely wring-vs That th' euill which they feele that doo endure the same Makes them esteeme it iust to giue it that for name Mans nature certainly it cannot be denied Is thrall to many throes while here on earth we bide In body and in soule the troubled soule sustaines A thousand passions strong the body thousand paines And that 's the wretched State the which yer-while I said Was iustly due to vs when Adam disobay'd But he that 's once new-borne in Iesus Christ by faith Who his assured hope in God sole setled hath Who doth beleeue that God giues essence vnto all And all sustaineth still that nothing doth befall But by his sacred will and that no strength that striueth To stop his iust decrees can stand or euer thriueth Not onely doth accept all paines with patience The which he takes for due vnto his deepe offence Nor onely is content if such be Gods good pleasure To feele a thousand-fold a much more ample measure But euen delights therein and void of any feare Expects th' extremitie of all assaults to beare Whether almighty God abate their woonted vigor Or that his may not feele their crosses cruell rigor Doo wholly arme them with new forces for the nonce To beare the bitter brunt or whether both at-once And to approoue this true how many dayly drink Of torments bitter Cup that neuer seeme to shrink Alas what sharper smart what more afflicting paines What worser grieâ—e then that which ceas-lesly sustaines He that by some mischance or els by martiall thunder Vnhappily hath had some maine bone broke in sunder What torment feeleth not the sore-sicke deepe-diseased One while with cruell fit of burning Feuer seised Another while assail'd with Colick and with Stone Or with the cure-lesse Gout whose rigour yeelds to none Or thousand other griefes whose bitter vexing strife Disturbes continually the quiet of our life Yet notwithstanding this in all this painfull anguish Thogh the most part repyne plain mourn languish Murmuring against the Lord with malcontented voice Some praise his clemencie and in his rods reioyce How many such deere Saints haue fel tormenters seene To die betweene their hands through moody tyrants teen So little daunted at their martyrdome and slaughter That in th' extremity they haue expressed laughter How many at the stake nay in the very flame Haue sung with cheerful voice th' Almighties prais-ful name Yet were they all compact of artirs and of veines Of sinewes bones and flesh and sensible of paines By nature at the least as much as any other For being issued all from one selfe earthly Mother What makes theÌ„ then to find such extreme smart so sweet What makes them patiently those deadly pangs to meet No doubt it is the Lord who first of nothing made-vs Who with his liberall hand of goodnes still doth lade-vs Some more and other lesse and neuer ceaseth space From making vs to feele the fauours of his grace Accurst are they indeed whom he doth all abandon To doo their Lust for Law and runne their life at randon Accurst who neuer taste the sharp-sweet hand of God Accurst ah most accurst who neuer feele his rod. Such men by nature borne the bond-slaues vnto sinne Through selfe-corruption end worse then they did beginne For how they longer liue the more by their amisse They draw them neerer Hell and farther-off from blisse Such men within themselues their euils spring containe There is no outward thing as falsly they complaine Cause of their cureles ill for good is euerything And good can of it selfe to no-man euill bring Now if they could aright these earthly pleasures prize According to their worth they would not in such wise For lack or losse of these so vaine and transitorie Lament so bitterly nor be so sadly-sorrie But ouer-louing still these outward things vnstable To rest in true content an houre they are not able No not a moments time their feare
immortall Layes EVEN NOVV I listned for the Clock to chime Before he conclude the first Day he treateth of Angels Dayes latest hower that for a little time The Night might ease My Labours but I see As yet Aurora hath scarce smil'd on me My Work still growes for now before mine eyes Heav'ns glorious Hoast in nimble squadrons flyes Whether This-Day God made you Angels bright The time of their Creation not certainly resolued Vnder the name of Heav'n or of the Light Whether you were after in th' instant born With those bright Spangles that the Heav'ns adorn Or whether you deriue your high Descent Long time before the World and Firmament For I nill stiâ—ly argue to and fro In nice Opinions whetherso orso Especially where curious search perchance Is not so safe as humble Ignorance I am resolv'd that onceth ' Omnipotent Created you immortall innocent Good fair and free in brief of Essence such As from his Own differd not very much But euen as those whom Princes fauours oft Some of theÌ„ are â—allen reuolting from God and are cast into Hell therefore called Euill Angels Wicked Spirits and Diuels Aboue therest haue rais'd and set-aloft Are oft the first that without right or reason Attempt Rebellion and doo practice Treason And so at length are iustly tumbled down Beneath the foot that raught aboue the Crown Euen so som Legions of thoselofty Spirits Envy'ng the glory of their Makers merits Conspir'd together stroue against the stream T' vsurp his Sâ—epter and his Diademe But He whose hands doo neuer Lightnings lack Proud sacrilegious Mutiners to wrack Hurld them in th' Aire or in som lower Cell For where God is not euery where is Hell This cursed Crew with Pride and Fury fraught Of vs at least haue this aduantage got That by experience they can truly tell How far it is from highest Heav'n to Hell For by a proud leap they haue tane the measure When head long thence they tumbled in displeasure These Fiends aâ—e so far-off from bett'ring them The insolent and audacious attempts of Satan and his Fellowes against God and his Church By this hard Iudgement that still more extream The more their plague the more their pride increases The more their rage as Lizards cut in peeces Threat with more malice though with lesser might And euen in dying shewe their liuing spight For euer since against the King of Heav'n Th' Apostate Prince of Darknes still hath striv'n Striv'n to depraue his Deeds t'interr their Story T' vndoo his Church to vnder-mine his Glory To reaue this World's great Body Ship and State Of Head of Maister and of Magistrate But finding still the Maiesty diuine Too strongly â—â—nâ— t for him to vnder-mine His Ladders Canons and his Engines all Force-less to batter the celestiall Wall Too weak to hurt the Head he hacks the Members The Tree too hard the Branches he dismembers The Fowlers Fishers and the Foresters Set not so many toyls and baits and snares To take the Foul the Fish the sauage Beasts In Woods and Floods and fear-full Wildernes As this false Spiritsets Engines to beguile The cunningest that practice nought but wile With want on glaunce of Beauties burning eye The diuers baits of the Diuell to entrap mankind He snares hot Youth in sensuality With Golds bright lustre doth he Age intice To Idolize detested Auarice With grace of Princes with their pomp and State Ambitious Spirits he doth intoxicate With curious Skill-pride and vain dreams he witches Those that contemn Pleasure and State and Riches Yea Faith it selfe and Zeal be somtimes Angles Wherewith this-Iuggler Heav'n-bent Soules intangles Much like the green Worm that in Spring deuours The buds and leaues of choisest Fruits and Flowrs Turning their sweetest sap and fragrant verdure To deadly poyson and detested ordure Who but alas would haue been gull'd yer-whiles Their Oracles With Night's black Monark's most malitious wiles To hear Stones speak to see strange wooden Miracles And golden Gods to vtter wondrous Oracles To see Him play the Prophet and inspire So many Sibyls with a sacred fire To raise dead Samuel from his silent Toomb 1. Samuel 28. 14 17. To tell his King Calamities to-com T inflame the Flamine of Ioue Ammon so With Heathen-holy fury-fits to knowe Future euents and somtimes truly tell The blinded World what afterwards befel To counter fait the wondrous Works of God Their false Miracles Exod. 7 11 22. 8 7. His Rod turn Serpent and his Serpent Rod To change the pure streams of th' Egyptian Flood From clearest water into crimsin blood To rain-down Frogs and Grass-hoppers to bring In the bed-chambers of the stubborn King For as he is a Spirit vnseen he sees The plots of Princes and their Policies Vnfelt he feels the depth of their desires Who harbours vengeance and whose heart aspires And as vs'd dayly vnto such affects Such feats and fashions iudges of th' effects Their Wiles Besides to circumvent the quickest sprighted To blind the eyes euen of the clearest sighted And to enwrap the wisest in his snares He oft fore-tels what he himself prepares For if a Wise-man though Mans dayes be don As soon almost as they be heer begun Wherefore their effects are so strange wonderfull And his dull Flesh be of too slowe a kinde T' ensue the nimble Motions of his minde By th' onely power of Plants and Minerals Can work a thousand super-naturals Who but will think much more these Spirits can Work strange effects exceeding sense of Man Sith being immortall long experience brings Them certain knowledge of th' effects of things And free from bodie 's clog with less impeach And lighter speed their bold Designes they reach Not that they haue the bridle on their neck God restraines them at his pleasure To run at random without curb or check T' abuse the Earth and all the World to blinde And tyrannize our body and our minde God holds them chain'd in Fetters of his Power That without leaue one minute of an hower They cannot range It was by his permission The Lying Spirit train'd Achab to perdition 1. Kings â—2 35 Making him marchagainst that Foe with force Which should his body from his soule diuorce Arm'd with Gods sacred Pass-port he did try Iust humble Iob's renowned Constancy Iob. 1 15 c. He reaues him all his Cattel many wayes By Fire and Foes his faithfull Seruants slayes To losse of Goods he adds his Childrens loss And heaps vpon him bitter cross on cross For th' Onely Lord somtimes to make a tryall Why the Lord sometimes le ts loose those wicked Spirits Of firmest Faith somtimes with Errors violl To drench the Soules that Errors sole delight Le ts loose these Furies who with fell despight Driue still the same Nail and pursue incensed Their damned drifts in Adam first commenced But as these Rebels maugré all their will T' assist the Good befoâ—ç't
thick-round Cloud ditect When not of force to thrust their rayes through-out-it In a round Crown they cast them round about-it Like as almost a burning candle put Simile Into a Closet with the door close shut Not able through the boords to send his light Out at the edges round about shines bright But in 's declining when Sols countenance Direct vpon a wat'rish Cloud doth glance A wat'rish Cloud which cannot easily Hold any longer her moist Tympany On the moist Cloud he limns his lightsom front Of the Rainbow and how it is made And with a gawdy Pencill paints vpon 't A blew-green-gilt Bowe bended ouer vs For th' aduerse Cloud which first receiueth thus Apollos rayes the same direct repells On the next Cloud and with his gold it mells Her various coulours like as when the Sun Simile At a bay-window peepeth in vpon A boule of water his bright beams aspect With trembling lustre it doth far reflect Against th' high seeling of the lightsom Hall With stately Fret-work ouer-crustod all On th' other side if the Cloud side-long sit And not beneath or iustly opposite How it comes to passe that sometimes appear diuers Suns and Moones at once To Sun or Moon then either of them Forms With strong aspect double or trebble Forms Vpon the same The Vulgar's then affright To see at once three Chariots of the Light And in the Welkin on Nights gloomy Throne To see at once more shining Moons then one But O fond Mortals Wherefore doo yee striue A check to mans Pride in striuing to yeeld reason in Nature of all these accidents With reach of Sense Gods wonders to retriue What proud desire rather what Furie's drift Boldens you God-less all Gods works to sift I lle not deny but that a learned man May yeeld some Reason if he list to scan Of all that moues vnder Heav'ns hollow Cope But not so sound as can all scruple stop And though he could yet should we euermore Praysing these tools extoll His fingers more Who works withall and many-waies doth giue To deadest things instantly soules to liue True Philosophy for Christians to apply all to their conscience for amendment of life Me thinks I hear when I doo hear it Thunder The voice that brings Swayns vp and Caesars vnder By that Towr-tearing stroak I vnderstand Th' vndaunted strength of the Diuine right hand When I behold the Lightning in the Skies Me thinks I seeth ' Almighties glorious eyes When I perceiue it Rain-down timely showrs Me thinks the Lord his horn of Plenty pours When from the Clouds excessiue Water spins Me thinks God weepes for our vnwept-for sins And when in Heav'n I see the Rain-bow bent I hold it for a Pledge and Argument That neuer more shall Vniuersall Floods Presume to mount ouer the tops of Woods Which hoary Atlas in the Clouds doth hide Or on the Crowns of Caucasus doo ride But aboue all my perced soule inclines When th' angry Heav'ns threat with Prodigious Signes When Natures order doth reuerse and change Preposterously into disorder strange Let all the Wits that euer suckt the brest All the learned in the World cannot out of the school of Nature giue reason for many things that are created in the High and Middle Regiōs of the Aire Of sacred Pallas in one Wit be prest And let him tell me if at least he can By rule of Nature or meer reach of man A sound and certain reason of the Cream The Wooll and Flesh that from the Clouds did stream Let him declare what cause could yerst beget Amid the Aire those drizzling showers of Wheate Which in Carinthia twice were seene to shed Wherof that people made them store of Bread God the great God of Heav'n sometimes delights The true cause of these Prodigies From top to toe to alter Natures Rites That his strange Works to Nature contrary May be fore-runners of some misery The drops of Fire which weeping Heav'n did showr Vpon Lucania when Rome sent the Flowr Exāples drawne out of the Historie of the Romās Iews Turks French both Ecclesiasticall and profane Of Italy into the wealthy Clime Which Euphrates fatts with his fruitfull slime Persag'd that Parthians should the next yeer tame The proud Lucanians and nigh quench their Name The clash of Arms and clang of Trumpets heard High in the Aire when valiant Romans warr'd Victoriously on the now-Canton'd Suisses Cymbrians and Almans hewing all in peeces Gainst Epicures profane assertions showe That 't is not Fortune guides this World belowe Thou that beheld'st from Heav'n with triple Flashes Cursed Olympius smitten all to ashes For Blasphemies 'gainst Th' ONE Eternall-THREE Dar'st thou yet belch against the TRINITIE Dar'st thou profane spit in the face of God Who for blasphemers hath so sharpe a rod Iews no more Iews no more of Abr'ham Sons But Turks Tartarians Scythians Lestrigons Say what you thought what thought you when so long A flaming Sword ouer your Temple hung But that the Lord would with a mighty arm The righteous vengeance of his wrath perform On you and yours that what the Plague did leaue Th' insatiate gorge of Famine should bereaue And what the Plague and Famine both did spare Should be clean gleaned by the hand of War That sucking Infants crying for the teat Self-cruell Mothers should vnkindely eat And that yer long the share and coultar should Rub off their rust vpon your Roofs of gold And all because you cursed crucifi'd The Lord of life who for our ransom dy'd The ruddy Fountain that with bloud did flowe Th' huge Fiery Rock the thundring Heav'ns did throwe Into Liguria and the Bloudy Crosses Seen on mens garments seem'd with open voices To cry aloud that the Turks swarming hoast Should pitch his proud Moons on the Genoan coast The Poet seuere ly taxeth his Countrymen for not marking or not making vse of strange exextrarordinary tokens of Gods imminent displeasure O Frantick France why dost not Thou make vse Of strangefull Signes whereby the Heav'ns induce Thee to repentance Canst thou tear-lesse gaze Euen night by night on that prodigious Blaze That hairy Comet that long streaming Star Which threatens Earth with Famine Plague and War Th' Almighty's Trident and three-forked fire Wherwith he strikes vs in his greatest Ire But what alas can Heauens bear threatnings vrge Sith all the sharpe Rods which so hourely scourge Thy sens-lesse back cannot so much as wrest One single sigh from thy obdurate brest Thou drink'st thine own bloud thine owne flesh thou eatest In what most harms theethy delight is greatest O sens-less Folk sick of a Lethargy Who to the death despise your Remedy Like froward Iades that for no striking stur But wax more restif still the more we spur The more your wounds more your securenes growes Fat with afflictions as an Asse with blowes And as the sledge hardens with strokes the steel So the more beaten still the less ye feel
stately Toombes externly gilt and garnisht With dust and bones inwardly fill'd and furnisht But inwardly shee 's no less fraught with riches Of the riches vnder or within the Earth Nay rather more which more our soules bewitches Within the deep folds of her fruitfull lap So bound-less Mines of treasure doth she wrap That th' hungry hands of humane avarice Cannot exhaust with labour or device For they be more then ther be Starrs in Heav'n Or stormy billows in the Ocean driv'n Or ears of Corn in Autumn on the Fields Or Savage Beasts vpon a thousand Hills Or Fishes diving in the silver Floods Or scattred Leaves in Winter in the Woods Slat Iet and Marble shall escape my pen Of Minerals I over-pass the Salt-mount Oromene I blanch the Brine-Quar Hill in Aragon Whence there they pouder their provision I 'le onely now emboss my Book with Brass Dye't with Vermilion deck't with Coperass With Gold and Siluer Lead and Mercury Tin Iron Orpine Stibium Lethargy And on my Gold-work I will onely place The Crystall pure which doth reflect each face The precious Ruby of a Sanguin hew Of pretious stones The Seal-fit Onyx and the Saphire blew The Cassidonie full of circles round The tender Topaz and rich Diamond The various Opal and green Emerald The Agate by a thousand titles call'd The skie-like Turquez purple Amethists And fiery Carbuncle which flames resists I knowe to Man the Earth seems altogether No more a Mother but a Step-dame rather Because alas vnto our loss she bears Blood-shedding Steel and Gold the ground of cares As if these Mettals and not Man 's amiss Had made Sin mount vnto the height it is But as the sweet bait of aboundant Riches Bodies and Soules of greedy men bewitches The vse or abuse of things makes theÌ„ good or euill helpfull or hurtful to Mankinde Gold gilds the Vertuous and it lends them wings To raise their thoughts vnto the rarest things The wise not onely Iron well apply For houshold turns and Tools of Husbandry But to defend their Country when it calls From forrain dangers and intestine bralls But with the same the wicked never mell But to do seruice to the Haggs of Hell To pick a Lock to take his neighbours Purse To break a House or to doo somthing worse To cut his Parents throat to kill his Prince To spoyl his Country murder Innocents Even so profaning of a gift divine The Drunkard drowns his Reason in the Wine So sale-tongu'd Lawyers wresting Eloquence Excuse rich wrong and cast poor Innocence So Antichrists their poyson to infuse Miss-cite the Scriptures and Gods name abuse For as a Cask through want of vse grow'n fusty Makes with his stink the best Greek Malmsey musty So God's best gifts vsurpt by wicked Ones To poyson turn through their contagious But shall I baulk th' admired Adamant Of the rare vertue of the Loadstone Whose dead-live power my Reasons power doth dant Renowned Load-stone which on Iron acts And by the touch the same aloof attracts Attracts it strangely with vnclapsing crooks With vnknow'n cords with vnconceived hooks With vnseen hands with vndiscerned arms With hidden Force with sacred secret charms Wherewith hee wooes his Iron Misteriss And never leaves her till he get a kiss Nay till he fold her in his faithfull bosom Never to part except we love-less loose-em With so firm zeal and fast affection The Stone doth love the Steel the Steel the Stone And though somtime som Make bate com betwixt Still burns their first flame 't is so surely fixt And while they cannot meet to break their mindes With mutuall skips they shew their loue by signes As bashfull Suters seeing Strangers by Parley in silence with their hand or eye Who can conceiue or censure in what sort One Loadstone-touched Annlet doth transport Another Iron-Ring and that another Till foure or fiue hang dangling one in other Greatest Apollo might he be me thinks Could tell the Reason of these hanging links Sith Reason-scanners haue resolved all That heavie things hangd in the Aire must fall I am not ignorant that He who seeks In Romane Robes to sute the Sagest Greeks Whose iealous wife weening to home-revoke-him With a Love-potion did with poyson choak-him Hath sought to showe with arguing subtilty The secret cause of this rare Sympathy But say Lucretius what 's the hidden cause That toward the North-Star still the needle draw's Whose point is toucht with Load-stone loose this knot And still-green Laurell shall be still thy Lot Yea Thee more learned will I then confess Then Epicurus or Empedocles W' are not to Ceres so much bound for Bread Of the excellent vse of the Mariners Compasse Neither to Bacchus for his Clusters red As Signor Flauio to thy witty triall For first inuenting of the Sea-mans Diall Th' vse of the Needle turning in the same Diuine deuâ—â— e O admirable Frame Whereby through th' Ocean in the darkest night Our hugest Caraques are conducted right Whereby w' are stor'd with Truch-man Guide and Lamp To search all corners of the watery Camp Whereby a Ship that stormy Heav'ns haue whurld Neer in one Night into another World Knowes where she is and in the Card descries What degrees thence the Equinoctiall lies Cleer-sighted Spirits that cheer with sweet aspect My sober Rymes though subiect to defect If in this Volume as you ouer-read it You meet som things seeming exceeding credit Because perhaps heer proued yet by no-man Their strange effects be not in knowledge common Think yet to som the Load-stone's vse is new And seems as strange as we haue try'd it true Let therefore that which Iron draw's draw such To credit more then what they see or touch Nor is th' Earth onely worthy praise eternall Of medicinable Earthes For the rare riches on her back externall Or in her bosom but her own selfs worth Solicits me to sound her glory forth I call to witnes all those weak diseased Whose bodies oft haue by th' effects been eased Of Lemnos seal'd earth or Eretrian soil Or that of Chios or of Melos I le All-hail fair Earth bearer of Towns and Towrs Of Men Gold Grain Physik and Fruits and Flowrs The Earths Encomion Fair firm and fruitfull various patient sweet Sumptuously cloathed in a Mantle meet Of mingled-colour lac't about with Floods And all imbrodered with fresh blooming buds With rarest Gemmes richly about embost Excelling cunning and exceeding cost All-hail great Heart round Base and stedfast Root Of All the World the Worlds strong fixed foot Heav'ns chastest Spouse supporter of this All This glorious Buildings goodly Pedestall All hail deer Mother Sister Hostess Nurse Of the Worlds Soverain of thy liberall purse W' are all maintained match-less Emperess To doo thee seruice with all readiness The Sphears before thee bear ten thousand Torches The Fire to warm thee foldes his heatfull arches In purest flames aboue the floating Cloud Th' Aire to refresh thee willingly
Mercury For ship for shop book bar or Court or Citie Smooth Orator swift Pen-man sweet Musician Rare Artizan deep-reaching Politician Fortunat Marchant fine Prince-humour-pleaser To end his course takes neer a twelue-months leasure For all the while his nimble winged heels Dare little bouge from Phoebus golden wheels And lastly Luna thou cold Queen of night Regent of humours parting Months aright Of the 1. which is the Sphear of Lunâ— The lowest Planet nearest the Earth Chaste Emperess to one Endymion constant Constant in Love though in thy looks in constant Vnlike our Loues whose hearts dâ—ssemble soonest Twelue times a year through all the Zodiak runnest Now if these Lamps so infinite in number Should stil stand-stil as in a sloathfull slumber Then should som Places alwaies in one plight Have alwaies Day and â—om haue alwaies Night Of the necessitie of diuers motions of the Heauens Then should the Sommers Fire and Winters Frost Rest opposite still on the self same Coast Then nought could spring and nothing prosper would In all the World for Want of Heat or Cold. Or without change of distance or of dance If all these Lights still in one path should prance Th' inconstant parts of this lowe Worlds contents Should neuer feel so sundry accidents As the Conâ—unction of celestiall Features Incessantly pours vpon mortall Creatures I 'll n'er beleeve that the Arch-Architect Of the force and influence of the Câ—lestiall body vpon the terrestriall With all these Fires the Heav'nly Arches deckt Onely for Shewe and with these glistering shields T' amaze poor Shepheards watching in the fields I 'll n'er beleeve that the least Flowr that pranks Our Garden borders or the Common banks And the least stone that in her warming Lap Our kind Nurse Earth doth covetously wrap Hath som peculiar vertue of it owne And that the glorious Stars of Heav'n have none But shine in vain and haue no charge precise But to be walking in heav'ns Galleries And through that Palace vp and down to clamber As Golden Gulls about a PRINCES CHAMBER Sens-less is he who without blush denies What to sound senses most apparant lies And 'gainst Experience he that spets Fallacians Is to be hisst from learned Disputations And such is he that doth affirm the Stars To have no force on these inferiours Though heav'ns effects we most apparant see In number more then heav'nly Torches be I nill alleadge the Seasons alteration Sundry proofes of the same 1 The diuers seasons 2 The fearefull accideÌ„ts that coÌ„monly succeede Eclipses Caus'd by the Sun in shifting Habitation I will not vrge that neuer at noon daies His enuious Sister intercepts his Raies But som great State eclipseth and from Hell Alecto looses all these Furies Fell Grim lean-fac't Famine foul infectious Plague Blood-thirsty VVar and Treason hatefull Hag Heere pouring down Woes vniuersall Flood To drown the World in Seas of Tears and Blood I 'l overpass how Sea doth Eb and Flowe 3 The ebbing flowing of the sea As th' Horned Queen doth eyther shrink or growe And that the more she Fills her forked Round The more the Marrow doth in bones abound The Bloud in Veins the sap in Plants the Moisture 4 The increase and decrease of marrow bloud and humours in diuers creatures And lushious meat in Creuish Crab and Oyster That Oak and Elm and Firr and Alder cut Before the Crescent have her Cornets shut Are neuer lasting for the builders turn In Ship or House but rather fit to burn 5. The apparant alterations in the bodies of sick persons And also that the Sick while shee is filling Feele sharper Fits through all their members thrilling So that this Lamp alone approoves what powrs Heav'ns Tapers have even on these soules of ours Temp'ring or troubling as they be inclin'd Our mind and humours humours and our minde Through Sympathy which while this Flesh we carie Our Soules and Bodies doth together marry I 'l only say that sith the hot aspect Of th' Heav'nly Dog-Star kindles with effect A particular proose by the effects of certaine notable stars ordinarily noted in some Moneth of â—he yeare A thousand vnseen Fires and dries the Fields Scorches the Vallies parches-vp the Hills And often times into our panting hearts The bitter Fits of burning Fevers darts And opposit the Cup the dropping Pleiades Bright-glistering Orion and the weeping Hyades Neuer almost look down on our aboad But that they stretch the Waters bounds abroad With Clowdy horror of their wrathfull frown Threatning again the guilty World to drown And to be brief sith the gilt azure Front Of Firmest Sphear hath scarce a spark vpon 't But poureth down-ward som apparant change Toward the Storing of the Worlds great Grange We may coniecture what hid powr is given T' infuse among vs from the other Seaven From each of those which for their vertuerare Th' Almighty placed in a proper Sphear Reiecting the Stoiks he sheweth that God as the first Cause doth order all things and what vse we should make of the force Course Light of the coelesti all bodies Not that as Stoiks I intend to tye With Iron Chains of strong Necessitie Th' Eternal's hands and his free feet enstock In Destinies hard Diamantin Rock I hold that God as The first Cause hath giv'n Light Course and Force to all the Lamps of Heav'n That still he guides them and his Providence Disposeth free their Fatall influence And that therefore the rather we belowe Should study all their Course and Force to knowe To th' end that seeing through our Parents Fall T' how many Tyrants we are waxen thrall Euer since first fond Womans blind Ambition Breaking made Adam break Heav'ns High-Commission We might vnpuff our Heart and bend our Knee T' appease with sighs Gods wrathfull Maiestie Beseeching him to turn away the storms Of Hail and Heat Plague Dearth and dreadfull Arms Which oft the angry Starrs with bad Aspects Threat to be falling on our stubborn necks To give vs Curbs to bridle th' ill proclivitie We are inclin'd-to by a hard Nativitie To pour som Water of his Grace to quench Our boyling Fleshes fell Concupiscence To calm our many passions spirituall tumours Sprung from corruption of our vicious humours Latonian Twinns Parents of Years and Months Heer proceeding to the second part of this book he treateth at large of the Sun and Moon Alas why hide you so your shining Fronts What nill you shew the splendor of your ray But through a Vail of mourning Clouds I pray I pray pul-off your mufflers and your moorning And let me see you in your native burning And my deer Muse by her eternall flight Shal spread as far the glory of your Light As you your selues run in alternat Ring Day after Night Night after Day to bring Thou radiant Coach-man running end-les course Of the Sun entring into the descriptioÌ„ wherof he confesseth that he knowes not well where to begin Fountain
cherish and reioyce And prety-fondling she doth prize it higher Then her own beauties which all else admire But as fell Fates mingle our single ioyes With bitter gall of infinit annoyes An extream Fever vext the Virgins bones By one disease to cause two deaths at once Consum'd her flesh and wanly did displace The Rose-mixt-Lillies in her lovely face Then far'd the Foul and Fairest both a-like Both like tormented both like shivering sick So that to note their passions one would gather That Lachesis spun both their lives together But oft the Aeagle striving with her Fitt Would fly abroad to seek som dainty bitt For her deer Mistress and with nimble wing Som Rail or Quail or Partridge would she bring Paying with food the food receiv'd so oft From those fair Ivory Virgin-fingers soft During her nonage yer she durst essay To cleave the sky and for herself to prey The Fever now with spitefull fitts had spent The blood and marrow of this Innocent And Life resign'd to cruell Death her Right Who three dayes after doth the Eagle cite The fearfull Hare durst now frequent the Down And round about the Walles of Hero's Town The Tercel-gentle and swift Falcon flew Dread-less of th' Aegle that so well they knew For shee alas lies on her Ladies bed Still-sadly mourning though a-live yet dead For O! how should she live sith Fatall knife Hath cut the threed of her lives deerest life O're the deer Corps somtimes her wings she hovers Somtimes the dead brest with her brest she covers Somtimes her neck doth the pale neck embrace Somtimes she kisses the cold lips and face And with sad murmurs she lamenteth so That her strange moan augments the Parents wo. Thrice had bright Phoebus daily Chariot run Past the proud Pillars of Aicmaenas son Since the fair Virgin past the fatall Ferry Whear lastly Mortals leaue their burthens weary And yet this doleful Bird drown'd in her tears All comfort-les Rest and Repast forbears So much alas shee seemeth to contend Her life and sorrows both at once to end But lastly finding all these means too-weak The quick dispatch that she did wish to wreak With ire and anguish both at once enraged Vnnaturally her proper brest she gaged And tears her bowells storming bitterly That all these deaths could yet not make her dy But lo the while about the lightsom door Of th' hap-les house a mournfull troop that bore Black on their back and Tapers in their fists Tears on their cheeks and sorrow in their brests Who taking vp the sacred Load at last Whose happy soule already Heav'n embra'çt With shrill sad cries march toward the fatall Pile With solemn pase The silly Bird the while Following far-off her bloody entrails trails Honoring with conuoy two sad Funerals No sooner had the Ceremonious Flame Embraç't the Body of her tender Dame But sodainly distilling all with blood Down soust the Eagle on the blazing wood Nor boots the Flamine with his sacred wand A hundred times to beat her from her stand For to the midst still of the Pyle she plies And singing sweet her Ladies Obsequies There burns herself and blendeth happily Her bones with hers she lov'd so tenderly O happy Payr vpon your sable Toomb May Mel and Manna euer showring come May sweetest Myrtles ever shade your Herse And evermore live you within my Verse So Morn and Euening the Fift Day conclude And God perceiv'd that All his Works were good THE SIXT DAIE OF THE FIRST WEEK THE ARGVMENT Inuiting all which through this world aspire Vnto the next Gods glorious Works t' admire Heer on the Stage our noble Poet brings Beasts of the Earth Cattell and Creeping things Their hurt and help to vs The strange euents Between Androdus and the Forrest Prince The little-World Commander of the greater Why formed last his admirable Feature His Heav'n-born Soule her wondrous operation His deerest Rib. All Creatures generation YOu Pilgrims which through this worlds City wend Toward th' happy City whear withouten end An exhortatiōto al which through the Pilgrimage of this life tend toward the euerlasting City to consider well the excellent workes of God heer represented by our Poet. True ioyes abound to anchor in the Port Whear Deaths pale horrors never do resort If you would see the fair Amphitheatres Th' Arks Arcenalls Towrs Temples and Theatres Colosses Cirques Pyles Ports and Palaces Proudly dispersed in your Passages Com com with me For ther 's not any part In this great Frame where shineth any Art But I will show 't you Are you weary since What! tyr'd so soon Why will you not my friends Having already ventur'd forth so far On Neptnn's back through Windes and Waters war Rowe yet a stroak the Harbour to recover Whose shoars already my glad eyes discover Almighty Father guide their Guide along Inuocation And pour vpon my faint vnfluent tongue The sweetest hony of th' Hyantian Fount Which freshly purleth from the Muses Mount With the sweet charm of my Victorious Verse Tame furious Lions Bears and Tigers fierce Make all the wilde Beasts laying fury by To com with Homage to my Harmony OF ALL THE Beasts which thou This-Day didst build The Elephant To haunt the Hills the Forest and the Field I see as vice-Roy of their brutish Band The Elephant the Vant-gard doth command Worthy that Office whether we regard His Towred back whear many Souldiers ward Or else his Prudence whearwithall he seems T' obscure the wits of human-kind somtimes As studious Scholer heeself-rumineth His lessons giv'n his King he honoreth Adores the Moon mooved with strange desire He feels the sweet flames of th' Idalian fire And pierçtwith glance of a kinde-cruell ey For humane beauty seems to sigh and dy Yea if the Graecians doo not miss-recite His combat with the Rhinocerot With 's crooked trumpet he doth somtimes write But his huge strength nor subtle wit can not Defend him from the sly Rhinocerot Who never with blinde fury led doth venter Vpon his Fo but yer the Lists he enter Against a Rock he whetteth round about The dangerous pike vpon his armed snout Then buckling close doth not at randon hack On the hard Cuirass on his Enemies back But vnder 's belly cunning findes a skin Whear and but thear his sharpned blade will in The scaly Dragon being else too lowe For th' Elephant vp a thick Tree doth goe So closely ambusht almost every Day To watch the Carry-Castle in his way Who once approaching straight his stand he leaues And round about him he so closely cleaues With 's wrything body that his Enemy His combat with the Dragon His stinging knots vnable to vn-ty Hastes to som Tree or to som Rock whearon To rush and rub-off his detested zone The fell embraces of whose dismall clasp Haue almost brought him to his latest gasp Then sodainly the Dragon slips his hold From th' Elephant and sliding down doth fold About his fore-legs fetter'd in such order
Mans body crea ted of the dust of the Earth So of an earthly substance mad'st thou all The slimy Burgers of this Earthly Ball To th' end each Creaturemight by consequent Part-sympathize with his own Element Therfore to form thine Earthly Emperour Thou tookest Earth and by thy sacred power So tempered'st it that of the very same Dead shape-les lump didst Adams body frame Yet not his face down to the Earth-ward bending Like Beasts that but regard their belly ending For ever all but toward th' azure Skyes Bright golden Lamps lifting his louely Eyes That through their nerues his better part might look Still to that Place from whence her birth she took Also thou plantedst th' Intellectuall Powr In th' highest stage of all this stately Bowr His head the seat of vnderstāding That thence it might as from a Cittadell Command the members that too-oft rebell Against his Rule and that our Reason there Keeping continuall Garrison as 't were Might Auarice Enuy and Pride subdue Lust Gluttony Wrath Sloath and all their Crew Of factious Commons that still striue to gain The golden Sceptre from their Soverain Th' Eys Bodie 's guides are set for Sentinel The Eyes full of infinite admiration In noblest place of all this Cittadel To spy far-off that no miss-hap befall At vnawares the sacred Animal In forming these thy hand so famous held Seemed almost to haue itself excell'd Them not transpearcing least our eyes should be As theirs that Heav'n through hollow Canes do see Yet see small circuit of the welkin bright The Canes strict compass doth so clasp their Sight And least so many open holes disgrace The goodly form of th' Earthly Monarch's face These louely Lamps whose sweet sparks liuely turning With sodain glaunce set coldest hearts a-burning These windows of the Soule these starry Twinns These Cupids quivers haue so tender skinns Through which as through a pair of shining glasses Their radiant point of pearcing splendor passes That they would soon be quenched and put-out But that the Lord hath Bulwarkt them about By seating so their wondrous Orb betwix The front the Nose and the vermillion Cheeks As in two Vallies pleasantly inclosed With pretty Mountains orderly disposed The Browes and Eye lids And as a Pent-house doth preserue a Wall From Rain and Hail and other Storms that fall The twinkling Lids with their quick-trembling hairs Defend the Eyes from thousand dang'rous fears Who fain would see how much a human face A comly Nose doth beautifie and grace Behold Zopyrus who cut-off his Nose For 's Princes sake to circumvent his foes The Nose The Nose no less for vse then beauty makes For as a Conduit it both giues and takes Our living breath it 's as a Pipe put-vp Wherby the moyst Brain 's spongy boan doth sup Sweetsmelling fumes it serueth as a gutter To void the Excrements of grossest matter As by the Scull-seams and the Pory Skin Euaporate those that are light and thin As through black Chimneys flyes the bitter smoak Which but so vented would the Houshold choak And sith that Time doth with his secret file The Mouth Fret and diminish each thing every-while And whatsoever heer begins and ends Wears every howr and its self-substance spends Th' Almighty made the Mouth to recompence The Stomaks pension and the Times expence Even as the green Trees by their roots resume Sap for the sap that howrly they consume And plaç't it so that alwayes by the way By sent of meats the Nose might take Essay The watchfull Ey might true distinction make 'Twixt Herbs and Weeds betwixt an Eel and Snake And then th' impartiall Tongue might at the last The Tongue Censure their goodnes by their savory taste Two equall ranks of Orient Pearls impale The Teeth The open Throat which Queen-like grinding small Th' imperfect food soon to the Stomack send-it Our Maister-Cook whose due concoctions mend-it But least the Teeth naked and bare to Light Should in the Face present a ghastly sight With wondrous Art over that Mill doo meet Two moouing Leaues of Corall soft and sweet The Lippes O mouth by thee our savage Elders yerst Through way-les Woods and hollow Rocks disperst With Acorns fed with Fells of Fethers clad When neither Traffik Love nor Law they had Of the excellent vse and end of speach Themselues vniting built them Townes and bent Their willing necks to civill Government O mouth by thee the rudest wits haue learn'd The Noble Arts which but the wise discern'd By thee we kindle in the coldest spirits Heroïk flames affecting glorious merits By thee we wipe the tears of wofull Eyes By thee we stop the stubborn mutinies Of our rebellious Flesh whose rest-less Treason Striues to dis-throne and to dis-sceptre Reason By thee our Soules with Heav'n haue conuersation By thee we calm th' Almighties indignation When faithfull signs from oursoules centre fly About the bright Throne of his Maiesty By thee we warble to the King of Kings Our Tongu's the Bowe our Teeth the trembling strings Our hollow Nostrils with their double vent The hollow belly of the Instrument Our Soule 's the sweet Musician that plaies So divine lessons and so Heav'nly layes As in deep passion of pure burning zeal Ioues forked Lightnings from his fingers steal But O! what member hath more marvails in 't The Eares Then th' Ears round-winding double labyrinth The Bodie 's scouts of sounds the Censurers Doors of the Soule and faithfull Messengers Of diuine treasures when our gracious Lord Sends vs th' Embassage of his sacred Word And sith al Sound seems alwaies to aseend God plac't the Ears where they might best attend As in two Turrets on the buildings top Snailing their hollow entries so a-sloap That while the voice about those windings wanders The sound might lengthen in those bow'd Meanders As from a Trumpet Winde hath longer life Or from a Sagbut then from Flute or Fife Sundry Similies expressing the reason of the round winding Mazes of the Ear◠Or as a noise extendeth far and wide In winding Vales or by the crooked side Of crawling Riuers or with broken trouble Between the teeth of hollow Rocks doth double And that no sodain sound with violence Pearcing direct the Organs of this Sense Should stun the Brain but through these Mazie holes Conueigh the voice more softly to our Soules Another comparison to that pur pose As th'Ouse that crooking in and out doth run From Stony-Stratford towards Huntington By Royall Amptill rusheth not so swift As our neer Kennet whose Trowt-famous Drift From Marleborow by Hungerford doth hasten Through Newbery and Prince-graç't Aldermarston Her Siluer Nymphs almost directly leading To meet her Mistress the great Thames at Reading But will my hands in handling th' human Stature The hands Forget the Hands the handmaids vnto Nature Th' Almighty's Apes the Instruments of Arts The voluntary Champions of our hearts Mindes Ministers the Clarks of
quick conceipts And bodies victuallers to prouide it meats Will you the Knees and Elbow's springs omit Which serue th' whole Body by their motions fit Ioynts The Knees and Armes For as a Bowe according as the string Is stiff or slack the shafts doth farther fling Our Nerues and Gristles diuersly dispense To th' human Frame meet Motion Might and Sense Knitting the Bones which be the Pillars strong The Sinews Gristles and Bones The beams and Rafters whose firm Ioynts may long Maugre Deaths malice till our Maker calls Support the Fabrik of these Fleshly Walls The Feet Can you conceal the Feets rare-skilfull feature The goodly Bases of this glorious Creature But is' t not time now in his Inner Parts To seeth ' Almightie's admirable Arts First with my Launcet shall I make incision To see the Cells of the twin Brains diuision The Treasurer of Arts the Source of Sense The Seat of Reason and the Fountain whence Our sinews flowe whom Natures prouidence Arm'd with a helm whose double lynings fence The brains cold moisture from its boany Armor Whose hardnes else might hap to bruise or harm-her A Registre where with a secret touch The studious dayly som rare Knowledge couch O how shall I on learned Leaf forth-set That curious Maze that admirable Net Through whose fine folds the spirit doth rise and fall Making its powrs of Vital Animal Euen as the Blood and Spirits wandering Through the preparing vessels crooked Ring Are in their winding course concoct and wrought And by degrees to fruitfull Seed are brought Shall I the Hearts vn-equall sides explain Of the Heart Which equall poiz doth equally sustain Wherof th' one 's fill'd with bloud in th' other bides The vitall Spirit which through the body slides Whose rest-les panting by the constant Pulse Doth witness health or if that take repulse And shift the dance and wonted pase it went It shews that Nature 's wrongd by Accident Or shall I cleaue the Lungs whose motions light Of the Lungues Our inward heat doo temper day and night Like summer gales wauing with gentle puffs The smiling Medows green and gaudy tuffs Light spungy Fans that euer take and giue Th' aetheriall Air whereby we breathe and liue Bellows whose blast breathing by certain pawses A pleasant sound through our speech-Organs causes Or shall I rip the Stomachs hollowness Of the Stomach That ready Cook concocting euery Mess Which in short time it cunningly conuerts Into pure Liquor fit to feed the parts And then the same doth faithfully deliuer Of the Liuer Into the Port-vain passing to the Liuer Who turns it soone to Blood and thence again Through branching pipes of the great Hollow vain Through all the members doth it duly scatter Much like a fountain whose diuided Water It self dispersing into hundred Brooks An apt Similitude Bathes som fair Garden with her winding Crooks For as these Brooks thus branching round about Make heer the Pink there th' Aconite to sprout Heer the sweet Plum-tree the sharp Mulberie there Heer the lowe Vine and there the lofty Pear Heer the hard Almond there the tender Fig Heer bitter Worm-wood there sweet-smelling Spike Euen so the Blood bred of good nourishment Of the Bloud Nourishment By diuers Pipes to all the body sent Turns heer to Bones there changes into Nerues Heer is made Marow there for Muscles serues Heer Skin becoms there crooking Veins there Flesh To make our Limbs more forcefull and more fresh But now me list no neerer view to take Of th' Inward Parts which God did secret make Nor pull in peeces all the Human Frame That work were fitter for those men of Fame Those skilfull sons of Aesculapius Hippocrates or deep Herophilus Or th' eloquent and artificiall Writ Of Galen that renowned Pergamite 'T sufficeth me in som sort to express By this Essay the sacred mightiness Not of Iapetus wittie-fained Son But of the true Prometheus that begun Of the Creation of the Soule And finisht with inimitable Art The famous Image I haue sung in part Now this most peer-les learned Imager Life to his louely Picture to conferr Did not extact out of the Elements A certain secret Chymik Quint-essence But breathing sent as from the liuely Spring Of his Diuinenss som small Riuerling Itself dispersing into euery pipe Of the frail Engin of this earthen Type Not that his own Selfs-Essence blest he brake Of her Essence and substance Or did his Triple-Unitie partake Vnto his Work but without Selfs-expence Inspir'd it richly with rare excellence And by his power so spread his Rays thereon That euen as yet appers a portion Of that pure lustre of Coelestiall Light Whearwith at first it was adorn'd and dight This Adam's spirit did from that spirit deriue Which made the World yet did not thence depriue Whence it is proceeded Of Gods self-substance any part at all As in the Course of Nature doth befall That from the Essence of an Earthly Father Diuers Similes An Earthly Son essentiall parts doth gather Or as in Spring-time from one sappy twig There sprouts another consubstantiall sprig In brief it 's but a breath now though the breath Out of our Stomacks concaue issueth Yet of our substance it transporteth nought Onely it seemeth to be simply fraught And to retain the purer qualities Of th' inward place whence it deriued is Inspired by that Breath this Breath desire I to describe Whoso doth not admire His spirit is sprightless and his sense is past Of the excellēce of Mans soule Who hath no sense of that admired Blast Yet wot I well that as the Ey perceiues All but it self euen so our Soule conceiues All saue her owne selfs Essence but the end Of her own greatnes cannot comprehend Yet as a sound Ey void of vicious matter How she may know her selfe Sees in a sort it self in Glass or Water So in her sacred Works as in a Glass Our Soule almost may see her glorious face The boistrous Winde that rents with roaring blasts Three fit comparisons to that purpose The lofty Pines and to the Welkin casts Millions of Mountains from the watery World And proudest Turrets to the ground hath whurld The pleasing fume that fragrant Roses yeeld When wanton Zephyr sighing on the field Enammels all and to delight the Sky The Earth puts-on her richest Lyuory Th' accorded Discords that are sweetly sent From th' Iuorie ribs of some rare Instrument Cannot be seen but he may well be said Of Flesh and Ears and Nose intirely void Who doth not feel nor hear nor smel the powrs The shock sound sent of storms of strings of flowrs The Soule not only vitall but also diuine and immortall Although our Soule 's pure substance to our sight Be not subiected yet her motion light And rich discourse sufficient proofs doo giue We haue more soule than to suffice to liue A Soule diuine pure sacred admirable Immortall
lately From Ferdinando as a famous Work Vnto Bizantium to the Greatest Turk Wherein a spirit still mouing to and fro Made all the Engin orderly to go And though th' one Sphear did alwaies slowely slide And opposite the other swiftly glide Yet still their Stars kept all their Courses ev'n With the true Courses of the Stars of Heav'n The Sun there shifting in the Zodiack His shining Houses neuer did forsake His pointed Path there in a Month his Sister Fulfill'd her course and changing oft her lustre And form of Face now larger lesser soon Follow'd the Changes of the other Moon O compleat Creature who the starry Sphears Of mans resemblance to his first Paterne which is God Canst make to moue who ' boue the Heav'nly Bears Extend'st thy powr who guidest with thy hand The Day 's bright Chariot and the nightly Brand This curious Lust to imitate the best And fairest Works of the Almightiest By rare effects bears record of thy Linage And high descent and that his sacred Image Was in thy Soule ingrav'n when first his Spirit The spring of life did in thy limms inspire-it For as his Beauties are past all compare So is thy Soule all beautifull and fair As hee 's immortall and is neuer idle Thy Soule 's immortall and can brook no bridle O◠sloath to curb her busie Intellect He ponders all thou peizest each effect And thy mature and settled Sapience Hathsom alliance with his Prouidence He works by Reason thou by Rule Hee 's glory Of th' Heav'nly Stages thou of th' Earthly Story Hee 's great High-Priest thou his great Vicar heer Hee 's Souerain Prince and thou his Vice-Roy deer For soon as euer he had framed thee Other testimonies of the excellency of Man constituted Lord of the World Into thy hands he put this Monarchy Made all the Creatures knowe thee for their Lord And com before thee of their own accord And gaue thee power as Master to impose Fit sense-full Names vnto the Hoast that rowes In watery Regions and the wandring Heards Of Forrest people and the painted Birds O too-too happy had that Fall of thine Not cancell'd so the Character diuine But sith our Soules now-sin-obscured Light Wherein consisteth Mans selicitie Shines through the Lanthorn of our Flesh so bright What sacred splendor will this Starr send forth When it shall shine without this vail of Earth The Soule heer lodg'd is like a man that dwels In an ill Aire annoy'd with noysom smells Excellent comparisons In an old House open to winde and weather Neuer in Health not half an hour together Or almost like a Spider who confin'd In her Webs centre shak't with euery winde Moues in an instant if the buzzing Flie Stir but a string of her Lawn Canapie You that haue seen within this ample Table Of the Creation of Woman made for an ayd to Man and without whom Mans life were miserable Among so many Modules admirable Th' admired beauties of the King of Creatures Com com and see the Womans rapting features Without whom heer Man were but half a man But a wilde Wolf but a Barbarian Brute ragefull fierce moody melancholike Hating the Light whom nought but naught could like Born solely for himself bereft of sense Of heart of loue of life of excellence God therefore not to seme less liberal To Man then else to euery animal For perfect patern of a holy Loue To Adams half another half he gaue Ta'en from his side to binde through euery Age With kinder bonds the sacred Mariage Euen as a Surgeon minding off-to-cut Simile Som cure-less limb before in vre he put His violent Engins on the vicious member Bringeth his Patient in a sense-less slumber And grief-less then guided by vse and Art To saue the whole sawes off th' infected part So God empal'd our Grandsiers liuely look Through all his bones a deadly chilness strook Siel'd-vp his sparkling Eys with Iron bands Led down his feet almost to Lethè Sands In brief so numm'd his Soul's and Body's sense That without pain opening his side from thence He took a rib which rarely he refin'd And thereof made the Mother of Mankinde Grauing so liuely on the liuing Bone All Adams beauties that but hardly one Could haue the Louer from his Loue descry'd Or know'n the Bridegroom from his gentle Bride Sauing that she had a more smiling Ey A smoother Chin a Cheek of purer Dy A fainter voice a more inticing Face A Deeper Tress a more delighting Grace And in her bosom more then Lillie-white Two swelling Mounts of Ivory panting light Now after this profound and pleasing Traunce Their Mariage No sooner Adams rauisht eyes did glaunce On the rare beauties of his new-com Half But in his heart he gan to leap and laugh Kissing her kindely calling her his Life His Loue his Stay his Rest his Weal his Wife His other-Self his Help him to refresh Bone of his Bone Flesh of his very Flesh. Source of all ioyes sweet Hee-Shee-Coupled-One Their Epithalamie or wedding Song Thy sacred Birth I neuer think vpon But rauisht I admire how God did then Make Two of One and One of Two again O blessed Bond O happy Mariage Which doost the match 'twixt Christ and vs presage O chastest friendship whose pure flames impart Two Soules in one two Hearts into one Hart O holy knot in Eden instituted Not in this Earth with bloud and wrongs polluted Profan'd with mischiefs the Pre-Scaene of Hell To cursed Creatures that ' gainst Heav'n rebell O sacred Cov'nant which the sin-less Son Of a pure Virgin when he first begun To publish proofs of his drad Powr Diuine By turning Water into perfect Wine At lesser Cana in a wondrous manner Did with his presence sanctifie and honour By thy deer Fauour after our Decease The commodities of Mariage We leaue behinde our liuing Images Change War to Peace in kindred multiply And in our Children liue eternally By thee we quench the wilde and wanton Fires That in our Soule the Paphian shot inspires And taught by thee a loue more firm and fitter We finde the Mel more sweet the Gall less bitter Which heer by turns heap vp our human Life Eu'n now with ioyes anon with iars and strife This done the Lord commands the happy Pair Propagation by the blessing of God With chaste embraces to replenish Fair Th' vnpeopled World that while the World endures Heer might succeed their liuing Pourtraitures He had impos'd the like precept before On th' irefull Droues that in the Desarts roar The fethered Flocks and fruitfull-spawning Legions That liue within the liquid Crystal Regions Thence-forth therefore Bears Bears ingendered The Dolphins Dolphins Vulturs Vulturs bred Men Men and Nature with a change-less Course Still brought forth Children like their Ancestors Vnnaturall Cōiunctions produce monstrous Births Though since indeed as when the fire hath mixt-them The yellow Gold and Siluer pale betwixt them Another Metall
our seruice deaf vnto our sighs A Pagan Idol void of powr and piety A sleeping Dormouse rather a dead Deïtie For though alas somtimes I cannot shun But som profane thoughts in my minde will run I neuer think on God but I conceiue Whence cordiall comforts Christians soules receiue Of the Prouidence of God In God Care Counsail Iustice Mercy Might To punish wrongs and patronize the right Sith Man but Image of th' Almightiest Without these gifts is not a Man but Beast Fond Epicure thou rather slept'st thy self Epicurus and his followers denying the same consuted by sundry Reasons When thou didst forge thee such a sleep-sick Elf For life's pure Fount or vainly fraudulent Not shunning th' Atheïsts sin but punishment Imaginedst a God so perfect-less In Works defying whom thy words profess God is not sitting like som Earthly State In proud Theátre him to recreate With curious Obiects of his ears and eys Without disposing of the Comoedies Content t' haue made by his great Word to moue So many radiant Starrs as shine aboue And on each thing with his owne hand to draw The sacred Text of an eternall Law Then bosoming his hand to let them slide With reans at will whether that Law shall guide Like one that hauing lately forç't som Lake Simile Through som new Channell a new Course to take Takes no more care thence-forth to those effects But lets the Stream run where his Ditch directs The Lord our God wants neither Diligence 1 Gods power goodnes wisdom shine gloriously in gouerning the world Nor Loue nor Care nor Powr nor Prouidence He prov'd his Power by Making All of nought His Diligence by Ruling All he wrought His Care by Ending it in six Daies space His Loue in Building it for Adams Race His Prouidence maugrè Times wastefull rages Preseruing it so many Yeers and Ages For O! how often had this goodly Ball By his own Greatnes caus'd his proper Fall How often had this World deceast except Gods mighty arms had it vpheld and kept 2 In him and through him all things liue and moue and haue their Beeing God is the soule the life the strength and sinnew That quickens moues and makes this Frame continue God's the main spring that maketh euery way All the small wheels of this great Engin play God's the strong Atlas whose vnshrinking shoulders Haue been and are Heav'ns heauie Globes vpholders God makes the Fountains run continually 3. All things particularly are guided by his Ordinance and Power working continually The daies and Nights succede incessantly The Seasons in their season he doth bring Summer and Autumn Winter and the Spring God makes th' Earth fruitfull and he makes the Earth's Large loignes not yet faint for so many births God makes the Sun and Stars though wondrous hot That yet their Heat themselues inflameth not And that their sparkling beams preuent not so With wofull flames the Last great Day of wo And that as mov'd with a contrary wrest They turn at-once both North and East and West Heavn's constant course his heast doth neuer break The floating Water waiteth at his beck Th' Air 's at his Call the Fire at his Command The Earth is His and there is nothing fand In all these Kingdoms but is mov'd each howr With secret touch of his eternall Powr God is the Iudge who keeps continuall Sessions 4 God is the Iudge of the World hauing all Creatures visible and invisible ready armed to execute his Iudgements In every place to punish all Transgressions Who void of Ignorance and Avarice Not won with Bribes nor wrested with Deuice Sins Fear or Fauour hate or partiall zeal Pronounceth Iudgements that are past appeal Himself is Iudge Iury and Witnes too Well knowing what we all think speak or doo He sounds the deepest of the doublest hart Searcheth the Reins and fifteth euery part Hee sees all secrets and his Lynx-like ey Yet it be thought doth euery thought descry His Sentence giuen neuer returns in vain For all that Heavn Earth Aire and Sea contain Serue him as Sergeants and the winged Legions That soar aboue the bright Star-spangled Regions Are euer prest his powrfull Ministers And lastly for his Executioners Sathan assisted with the infernall band Stands ready still to finish his Command God to be brief is a good Artizan That to his purpose aptly mannage can Good or bad Tools for for iust punishment Yea he makeeh euen the wicked this instruments to punish the wicked and to proue his Chosen He arms our sins vs sinners to torment And to preuent th' vngodly's plot somtime He makes his foes will-nill-they fight for him Yet true it is that human things seem slide Vnbridledly with so vncertain tide That in the Ocean of Euents so many Somtimes Gods Iudgements are scarce seen of any Rather it seems that giddy Fortune guideth Againe against Epicures who hold that all things happen in the World by Chance All that beneath the siluer Moon beâ—ideth Yet art thou euer iust O God though I Cannot alas thy Iudgements depth descry My wit 's too shallow for the least Designe Of thy drad Counsails sacred and diuine And thy least-secret Secrets I confess To deep for vs without thy Spirit 's address Yet oftentimes what seemeth at first sight 1 Gods Iudgements past our search yet euer iust in theÌ„selues Vniust to vs and past our reason quite Thou mak'st vs Lord acknowledge in due season To haue been don with equity and reason So suffering th' Hebrew Tribes to sell their brother Gen 45. ver 6. 7 and Gen. 50. vâ— 20. Thy eternall Iustice thou didst seem to smother But Ioseph when through such rare hap it chanced Him of a slaue to be so high aduanced To rule the Land where Nilus fertill flood Dry Heav'ns defects endeuours to make good Learn'd that his enuious brethrens treacherous drift Him to the Stern of Memphian State had lift That he might there prouide Relief and Room For Abraham's Seed against then time to com When thy strong arm which plagues the Reprobate 2. In executing his iudgements on the rebellious he sheweth mercie on his Seruants The World and Sodom did exterminate With flood and flame because there liued then Som small remains of good and righteous men Thou seem'dst vniust but when thou sauedst Lâ—t From Fire from Water Noah and his Boat 'T was plainly seen thy Iustice stands propstious To th' Innocent and smiteth but the vicious He wilfull winks against the shining Sun 5 He sheweth his power in the coÌ„fusion of the Mightiest and in the deliuerance of his Church That see 's not Pharao as a mean begun Forth ' Hebrews good and that his hardned hart Smoothed the passage for their soon-depart To th' end the Lord when Tyrants will not yeeld Might for his Glory finde the larger field Who sees not also that th' vniust Decree Of a proud Iudge and Iudas treachery The Peoples
their sacred ornaments beside Anon he wonders at the differing graces Tongues gests attires the fashions and the faces Of busie-buzzing swarms which still hee meets Ebbing and flowing ouer all the streets Then at the signes the shops the waights the measures The handy-crafts the rumors trades and treasures But of all sights none seems him yet more strange Then the rare beautious stately rich Exchange Another while he maruails at the Thames Which seems to bear huge mountains on her streams Then at the faâ—-built Bridge which he doth iudge More like a tradefull City then a Bridge And glancing thence a-long the Northren shoar That princely prospect doth amaze him more For in that Garden man delighted so That rapt he wist not if hee wak't or no If he beheld a true thing or a fable Or Earth or Heav'n all more then admirable For such excess his extasie was small Not hauing spirit enough to muse withall He wisht him bundred-fold redoubled senses The more to taste so rare sweet excellences Not knowing whether nose or ears or eyes Smelt heard or saw more sauors sounds or Dies But Adams best and supreame delectation Happines of the first Man before his fall Was th' often haunt and holy conuersation His soule and body had so many waies With God who lightned Eden with his Rays For spirits by faith religiously refin'd 'Twixt God and man retain a middle kinde And Vmpires mortall to th' immortall ioyn And th' infinit in narrow clay confine Som-times by you O you all-faining Dreams We gain this good but not when Bacchus steams Of the visions of the spirit And glutton vapours ouer-flowe the Brain And drown our spirits presenting fancies vain Nor when pale Phlegm or Saffron-coloured Choler In feeble stomacks belch with diuers dolor And print vpon our Vnderstandings Tables That Water-wracks this other flamefull fables Nor when the Spirit of lies our spirits deceiues And guile-full visions in our fancy leaues Nor when the pencil of Cares ouer-deep Our day-bred thoughts depainteth in our sleep But when no more the soules chief faculties Are sperst to sereue the body many waies When all self-vned free from dayes disturber Through such sweet Trance she findes a quiet harbour Where som in riddles som more plain exprest Shee sees things future in th' Almighties brest And yet far higher is this holy Fit Of the certainty of the visions of the spirit the body being at rest When not from flesh but from flesh-cares acquit The wakefull soule it self assembling so All selfly dies while that the body though Liues motion-les for sanctified wholly It takes th' impression of Gods Signet Soly And in his sacred Crystall Map doth see Heav'ns Oracles and Angels glorious glee Made more then spirit Now Morrow Yesterday To it all one are all as present aye And though it seem not when the dream 's expir'd Like that it was yet is it much admir'd Of rarest men and shines among them bright Like glistring Starrs through gloomy shades of night But aboue all that 's the divinest Trance Of diuine extraordinary visions and Reuelations When the soules eye beholds Gods countenance When mouth to mouth familiarly he deales And in our face his drad-sweet face hee seales As when S. Paul on his deer Masters wings Was rapt aliue vp to th' eternall things And he that whilom for the chosen flock Made walls of waters waters of a rock O sacred flight sweet rape loues soueraign bliss Of the excellency of such visions and Reuelations Which very loves deer lips dost make vs kiss Hymen of Manna and of Mel compact Which for a time dost Heav'n with earth contract Fire that in Limbeck of pure thoughts divine Doost purge our thoughts and our dull earth refine And mounting vs to Heav'n vn-mouing hence Man in a trice in God doost quintessence O! mad'st thou man divine in habitude As for a space O sweetest solitude Thy bliss were equall with that happie Rest Which after death shall make vs ever-blest Now I beleeve that in this later guise What manner of visions the first Man had in Eden Man did conuerse in Pleasant Paradise With Heav'ns great Architect and happy there His body saw or body as it were Gloriously compast with the blessed Legions That raign above the azure-spangled Regions ADAM quoth He the beauties manyfold Man is put in possession of EdeÌ„ vnder a conditioÌ„ That in this Eden thou doest heer behold Are all thine onely enter sacred race Come take possession of this wealthy place The Earth's sole glory take deer Sonn to thee This farm's demains leave the Chief right to me And th' only Rent that of it I reserue is One Trees fair fruit to shew thy sute and seruice Be thou the Liege and I Lord Paramount I 'le not exact hard fines as men shall woont For signe of Homage and for seal of Faith Of all the profits this Possession hath I only ask one Tree whose fruit I will For Sacrament shall stand of Good and Ill. Take all the rest I bid thee but I vow By th' vn-nam'd name where-to all knees doo bow And by the keen Darts of my kindled Ire More fiercely burning then consuming fire That of the Fruit of Knowledge if thou feed Death dreadfull Death shall plague Thee and thy Seed If then the happie state thou hold'st of me My holy mildnes nor high Maiesty If faith nor Honour curb thy bold ambition Yet weigh thy self and thy owne Seeds condition Most mighty Lord quoth Adam heer I tender Before Sinne Man was an huÌ„ble and zealous seruant of God All thanks I can not all I should thee render For all thy liberall fauours far surmounting My hearts conceit much more my tongues recounting At thy command I would with boyst'rous shock Goe run my self against the hardest rock Or cast me head long from som Mountain steep Down to the whirling bottom of the Deep Yea at thy beck I would not spare the life Of my deer Phoenix sister-daughter-wife Obaying thee I finde the things impossible Cruell and painfull pleasant kinde and possible But since thy first Law doth more grace afford Vnto the Subiect than the souerain Lord Since bountious Prince on me and my Descent Thou doost impose no other tax nor Rent But one sole Precept of most iust condition No Precept neither but a Prohibition And since good God of all the Fruits in EDEN There 's but one Apple that I am forbidden Euen only that which bitter Death doth threat Better perhaps to look on then to eate I honour in my soule and humbly kiss Thy iust Edict as Author of my bliss Which once transgrest deserues the rigor rather Of sharpest Iudge then mildnes of a Father The Firmament shall retrograde his course Swift Euphrates goe hide him in his source Firm Mountains skip like Lambs beneath the Deep Eagles shall diue Whales in the air shall keep Yer I presume with fingers ends to touch Much less
shall direct my pen to paint the Story Of wretched mans forbidden-Bit-lost glory What Spell shall charm th' attentiue Readers sense What Fount shall fill my voice with eloquence So that I rapt may rauâ—sh all this I LE With graue-sweet warbles of my sacred stile Though Adams Doom in euery Sermon common And founded on the error of a woman Weary the vulgar and be iudg'd a iest Of the profane zeal-scoffing Atheïst Ah! Thou my God euen Thou my soule refining He hath recourse to God the onely giuer of all sufficiency and dex teritie in good and holy things In holy Faith's pure furnace cleerely shining Shalt make my hap farr to surmount my hope Instruct my spirit and giue my tongue smooth scope Thou bountious in my bold attempts shalt grace-me And in the rank of holiest Poets place-me And frankly grant that soaring neer the sky Among our Authors Eagle-like I fly Or at the least if Heav'n such hap denay I may point others Honors beautious Way WHILE Adam bathes in these felicities The enemy of God enuieth Man and plotteth his destruction Hell's Prince sly parent of revolt and lies Feels a pestiferous busie-swarming nest Of neuer-dying Dragons in his brest Sucking his bloud tyring vpon his lungs Pinching his entrails with ten thousand tongues His cursed soule still most extreamly racking Too frank in giuing torments and in taking But aboue all Hate Pride and Enuious spight His hellish life doo torture day and night For th' Hate he bears to God who hath him driv'n Iustly for euer from the glittering Heav'n To dwell in darknes of a sulph'ry clow'd Though still his brethrens seruice be allow'd The Proud desire to haue in his subiection Mankinde in chain'd in gyues of Sins infection And th' Enuious heart-break to see yet to shine In Adams face Gods Image all diuine Which he had lost and that Man might atchieue The glorious bliss his Pride he did depriue Growen barbarous Tyrants of his treacherous wil Spur-on his course his rage redoubling stil. Or rather as the prudent Hebrue notes 'T is that old Python which through hundred-throats Doth proudly hiss and past his wont doth fire A hell of Furies in his fell desire His enuious hart self-swoln with sullen spight Brooks neither greater like nor lesser wight Dreads th' one as Lord as equall hates another And iealous doubts the rising of the other To vent his poyson this notorious Tempter His subtiltie in executing his Designes Meer spirit assails not Eue but doth attempt her In fained form for else the soule diuine Which rul'd as Queen the Littlâ—-worlds designe So purely kept her Vow of Chastitie That he in vain should tempt her Constancy Therefore he fleshly doth the Flesh assay Suborning that her Mistress to betray A subtle Pandar with more tycing sleights Then Sea hath Fish or Heav'n hath twinkling lights For had he beene of an ethereall matter Why he hid him in a Body Of fiery substance or aiereall nature The needfull help of language had he wanted Whereby Faiths ground-work was to be supplanted Sith such pure bodies haue nor teeth nor tongues Lips artires nose Palate nor panting lungs Which rightly plaç't are properly created True instruments of sounds articulated And further-more though from his birth h 'had had Why he appeared not in his owne likenes nor transformed him into an Angel of light Hart-charming cunning smoothly to perswade He fear'd malitious if he care-less came Vn-masked like himself in his own name In deep distrust man entring suddainly Would stop his ears and his foul presence fly As opposite taking the shining face Of sacred Angels full of glorious grace He then suspected least the Omnipotent Should think man's Fall scarce worthy punishment Much like therefore som theef that doth conceiue Similâ— From trauailers both life and goods to reaue And in the twi-light while the Moon doth play In Thetis Palace neer the Kings high-way Himself doth ambush in a bushy Thorn Then in a Caue then in a field of Corn Creeps to and fro and fisk eth in and out And yet the safety of each place doth doubt Till resolute at last vpon his knee Taking his leuell from a hollow Tree He swiftly sends his fire-wingd messenger At his false sute t' arrest the passenger Our freedoms felon fountain of our sorrow Thinks now the beautie of a Horse to borrow Anon to creep into a Haifers side He hides him vnder diuers figures Then in a Cock or in a Dog to hide Then in a nimble Hart himself to shroud Then in the starr'd plumes of a Peacock proud And least he miss a mischief to effect Oft changeth minde and varies oft aspect At last remembring that of all the broods Why he chose the Serpent In Mountains Plains Airs Waters Wildes and Woods The knotty Serpent's spotty generation Are filled with infectious inflammation And though they want Dogs teeth Bores tusks Bears paws The Vultures bill Buls horns and Griphins claws Yea seem so weak as if they had not might To hurt vs once much less to kill vs quite Yet many times they treacherously betray vs And with their breath look tongue or train they slay vs He crafty cloaks him in a Dragons skin All bright-bespect that speaking so within That hollow Sagbuts supple-wreathing plies The mouer might with th' Organ sympathize For yet the faith-less Serpent as they say With horror crawl'd not groueling on the clay Nor to Mankinde as yet was held for hatefull Sith that 's the hire of his offence ingratefull But now to censure how this change befell Sundry opinions hereupon Our wits com short our words suffice not well To vtter it much less our feeble Art Can imitate this sly malitious part Somtimes me seems troubling Eues spirit the Fiend 1 Made her this speaking fancy apprehend For as in liquid clouds exhaled thickly Water and Ayr as moist doe mingle quickly The euill Angels slide too easily As subtile Spirits into our fantasie Somtimes me seems She saw wo-worth the hap 2 No very Serpent but a Sepents shape Whether that Satan plaid the Iuggler there Who tender eys with charmed Tapers blear Trans-forming so by subtile vapoury gleams Mens heads to Monsters into Eels the beams Or whether Diuels hauing bodies light Quick nimble actiue apt to change with sleight In shapes or shewes they guilefull haue propos'd In brief like th' Air whereof they are compos'd For as the ayr with scattered clouds be-spred Is heer and there black yellow white and red Resembling Armies Monsters Mountains Dragons Rocks fiery Castles Forrests Ships and Wagons And such to vs through glass transparent cleer From form to form varying it doth appear So these seducers can growe great or small Or round or square or streight or short or tall As fits the passions they are moued by And such our soule receiues them from our ey Somtimes that Satan only for this work 3 Fain'd him a Serpents shape wherein
rare gloryl reach thy happy hand Reach reach I say why doost thou stop or stand Begin thy Bliss and doo not fear the threat His audacioâ—s impudence Of an vncertain God-head onely great Through self-aw'd zeal put on the glistring Pall Of immortality doe not fore-stall As enuious stepdame thy posteritie The souerain honour of Diuinitie This parley ended our ambitious Grandam The Apostasâ—e of Eue. Who only yet did heart and ey abandon Against the Lord now farther doth proceed And hand and mouth makes guilty of the deed A nouice Theef that in a Closet spies A Comparison A heap of Gold that on the Table lies Pale fearfull shiuering twice or thrice extends And twice or thrice retires his fingers ends And yet again returns the booty takes And faintly-bold vp in his cloak it makes Scarce findes the doore with faultring foot hee flies And still looks back for fear of Hu-on cries Euen so doth Eue shew by like fear-full fashions The doubtfull combat of contending Passions She would she would not glad sad coms and goes And long she marts about a Match of Woes But out alasâ— at last she toucheth it And hauing toucht tastes the forbidden bit Another comparison liuely expressing the Fall of Man by the prouocation of his wife Then as a man that from a lofty Clift Or steepy Mountain doth descend too swift Stumbling at somwhat quickly clips som lim Of som deer kinsman walking next to him And by his headlong fall so brings his friend To an vntimely sad and suddain end Our Mother falling hales her Spouse anon Down to the gulf of pitchie Acheron For to the wisht Fruits beautifull aspect Sweet Nectar-taste and wonderfull effect Cunningly adding her quaint smiling glances Her witty speech and pretty countenances She so preuails that her blind Lord at last A morsell of the sharp-sweet fruit doth taste Now suddainly wide-open feel they might Siel'd for their good both soules and bodies sight But the sad Soule hath lost the Character The effects of their disobedience And sacred Image that did honour Her The wretched Body full of shame and sorrow To see it naked is inforçt to borrow The Trees broad leaues wher of they aprons frame From Heav'ns faire ey to hide their filthy shame Alas fond death-lings O! behold how cleer The knowledge is that you haue bought so deer In heav'nly things yee are more blinde then Moals In earthly Owls O! think ye silly soules The sight that swiftly through the earth 's solid centres As globes of pure transparent crystall enters Cannot transpearce your leaves or do ye ween Couering your shame so to conceal your sin Or that a part thus clouded all doth lie Safe from the search of Heav'ns all-seeing ey Thus yet mans troubled dull Intelligence Had of his fault but a confused sense As in a dream after much drink it chances Disturbed spirits are vext with rauing fancies Therefore the Lord within the Garden fair The extraordinary presence of God awakes their drousie soules swallowed vp of Sinne and begins to arraign them Mouing bâ—times I wot not I what ayr But super naturall whose breath diuine Brings of his presence a most certain signe Awakes their Lethargie and to the quick Their self-doom'd soules doth sharply press and prick Now more and more making their pride to fear The frowning visage of their Iudge seuere To seck new-refuge in more secret harbors Among the dark shade of those tusting arbors Adam quoth God with thundring maiesty Where art thou wretch what doost thou answer me Thy God and Father from whose hand thy health Thou hold'st thine honour and all sorts of wealth At this sad summon's wofull man resembles Description of the horrible effects of a guilty Conscience summoned to the presence of God A bearded rush that in a riuer trembles His rosie checks are chang'd to earthen hew His dying body drops an yeie deaw His tear-drown'd eys a night of clouds bedims About his eares a buzzing horror swims His fainted knees with feeblenes are humble His faultring feet doe slide away and stumble He hath not now his free bold stately port But down-cast looks in fearfull slauish sort Now nought of Adam doth in Adam rest He feel's his senses pain'd his soule opprest A confus'd hoast of violent passions iarr His flesh and spirit are in continuall warre And now no more through conscience of his error He hears or feesth ' Almighty but with terror And loth he answers as with tongue distraught Confessing thus his fear but not his fault O Lord thy voice thy dreadfull voice hath made Adams answerâ— Me fearfull hide me in this couert shade For naked as I am O most of might I dare not come before thine awfull sight Naked quoth God why faith-less renegate God vrgeth the cause of his deiection and feare Apostate Pagan who hath told thee that Whence springs thy shame what makes thee thus to run From shade to shade my presence still to shun Hast thou not tasted of the learned Tree Whereof on pain of death I warned thee O righteous God quoth Adam I am free Adams reply excusing himself and couertly imputing his Guilt to God Examination of Eue who excuseth her self likewise on another From this offence the wife thou gauest me For my companion and my comforter She made me eat that deadly meat with her And thou quoth God O! thou frail treacherous Bride Why with thy self hast thouseduâ—'t thy Guide Lord answers Eue the Serpent did intice My simple frailty to this sinfull vice Mark heer how He who fears not who reform An example for Indges Magistrates His high Decrees not subiect vnto form Or stile of Court who all-wise hath no need T' examine proof or witnes of the deed Who for sustaining of vnequall Scale Dreads not the Doom of a Mercuriall Yer Sentence pass doth publikely conuent Confront and hear with ear indifferent Th' Offenders sad then with iust indignation Pronounceth thus their dreadfull Condemnation The Sentence of the supreame Iudge against the guilty Prisoners and first of all against the Serpent Ah cursed Serpent which my fingers made To serue mankinde th' hast made thy self a blade Wherewith vain Man and his inueigled wife Self-parricids haue reft their proper life For this thy fault true Fountain of all ill Thou shalt be hatefull'mong all creatures still Groueling in dust of dust thou ay shalt feed I 'le kindle war between the Womans seed And thy fell race hers on the head shall ding Thine thine again hers in the heel shall sting Rebel to me vnto thy kindred curst Against the Woman False to thy husband to thy self the worst Hope not thy fruit so easly to bring-forth As now thou slay'st it hence forth euery Birth Shall torture thee with thousand sorts of pain Each artire sinew muscle ioynt and vain Shall feel his part besides foul vomitings Prodigious longings thought-full languishings With change of colour
Kings-euils Dropsie Gout and Stone Blood-boyling Leprie and Consumption The swelling Throat-ache th' Epilepsie sad And cruell Rupture payning too-too bad For their hid poysons after-comming harm Is fast combin'd vnto the Parents sperm But O! what arms what shield shall wee oppose Some not known by their Cause but by their Effects onely What stratagems against those trecherous foes Those teacherous griefs that our frail Art detects Not by their cause but by their sole effects Such are the fruitfull Matrix-suffocation The Falling-sicknes and pale Swouning-passion The which I wote not what strange windes long pause I wot not where I wote not how doth cause Or who alas can scape the cruell wile Some by sundry Causes encreasing and waxing worse Of those fell Pangs that Physicks pains beguile Which being banisht from a body yet Vnder new names return again to it Or rather taught the strange Metempsychosis Of the wise Samian one it self transposes Into som worse Grief either through the kindred Of th' humour vicious or the member hindred Or through their ignorance or auarice That doe profess Apollos exercise So Melancholy turned into Madnes Into the Palsie deep-affrighted Sadnes Th' Il-habitude into the Dropsie chill And Megrim growes to the Comitial-Ill In brief poor Adam in this pitious case Comparison Is like a Stag that long pursu'd in chase Flying for succour to som neighbour wood Sinks on the suddain in the yeelding mud And sticking fast amid the rotten grounds Is over-taken by the eger Hounds One bites his back his neck another nips One puls his brest at 's throat another skips One tugs his flank his haunch another tears Another lugs him by the bleeding ears And last of all the Wood-man with his knife Cuts off his head and so concludes his life Or like a lusty Bull whose horned Crest Another comparison Awakes fell Hornets from their drowsie nest Who buzzing forth assail him on each side And pitch their valiant bands about his hide With fisking train with forked head and foot Himself th' ayr th' earth he beateth to no boot Flying through woods hills dales and roaring rivers His place of grief but not his painfull grievers And in the end stitcht full of stings he dies Or on the ground as dead at least he lies For man is loaden with ten thousand languors An amplification of Mans miseries compared with other Cretures seldomer sick and sooner healed and that by naturall Remedies of their owne hauing also taught Men many practices of Physike All other Creatures onely feel the angors Of few Diseases as the gleaning Quail Onely the Falling-sicknes doth assail The Turn-about and Murram trouble Cattel Madnes and Quincie bid the Masty battel Yet each of them can naturally finde What Simples cure the sickness of their kinde Feeling no sooner their disease begin But they as soon haue ready medicine The Ram for Physik takes strong-senting Rue The Tortois slowe cold Hemlok doth renue The Partridge Black-bird and rich painted Iay Haue th' oyly liquor of the sacred Bay The sickly Bear the Mandrak cures again And Mountain-Siler helpeth Goats to yean But we knowe nothing till by poaring still On Books we get vs a Sophistik skil A doubtfull Art a Knowledge still vnknowen Which enters but the hoary heads alone Of those that broken with vnthankfull toyl Seeks others Health and lose their own the-while Or rather those such are the greatest part That waxing rich at others cost and smart Growe famous Doctors purchasing promotions While the Church-yards swel with their hurtfull potions Who hang-man like fear-less and shame-less too Are prayd and payd for murders that they doo I speak not of the good the wise and learned Within whose hearts Gods fear is wel discerned Who to our bodies can again vnite Our parting soules ready to take their flight For these I honour as Heav'ns gifts excelling Pillars of Health Death and Disease repelling Th' Almighties Agents Natures Counsellers And flowring Youths wise faithfull Governours Yet if their Art can ease som kinde of dolors They learn'd it first of Natures silent Schollers For from the Sea-Horse came Phlehotomies From the wilde Goat the healing of the eys From Stork and Hearn our Glysters laxatiue From Bears and Lions Diets we deriue 'Gainst th' onely Body all these Champions stout Striuesom within and other som without Or if that any th' all-fair Soule haue striken 'T is not directly but in that they weaken Her Officers and spoyl the Instruments Wherwith she works such wonderous presidents But lo foure Captains far more fierce and eger Of foure Diseases of the Soule vnder them cōprehending all the rest That on all sides the Spirit it self beleaguer Whose Constancy they shake and soon by treason Draw the blind Iudgement from the rule of Reason Opinions issue which though self vnseen Make through the Body their fell motions seen Sorrow's first Leader of this furious Crowd Muffled all-over in a sable clowd 1. Sorrow described with her company Old before Age afflicted night and day Her face with wrinkles warped every-way Creeping in corners where she sits and vies Sighes from her hart tears from her blubbered eys Accompani'd with self-consuming Care With weeping Pitty Thought and mad Despair That bears about her burning Coles and Cords Asps Poysons Pistols Halters Kniues and Swords Fouls quinting Enuy that self-eating Elf Through others leanness fatting vp herself Ioying in mischief feeding but with languor And bitter tears her Toad-like-swelling anger And Ielousie that never sleeps for fear Suspitions Flea still nibbling in her ear That leaues repast and rest neer pin'd and blinde With seeking what she would be loath to finde The second Captain is excessiue Ioy 2. Ioy with her Traine VVho leaps and tickles finding th' Apian-way Too-streight for her whose senses all possess All wished pleasures in all plentiousnes She hath in conduct false vain-glorious Vaunting Bold soothing shame-less lowd iniurious taunting The winged Giant lofty-staring Pride That in the clouds her braving Crest doth hide And many other like the empty bubbles That rise when rain the liquid Crystall troubles The Third is blood-less hart-less wit-less Fear 3. Feare her Followers That like an Asp-tree trembles every where She leads bleak Terror and base clownish Shame And drowsie Sloath that counter faiteth lame With Snail-like motion measuring the ground Having her arms in willing fetters bound Foul sluggish Drone barren but sin to breed Diseased begger starv'd with wilfull need And thou Desire whom nor the firmament 4. Desire a most violent Passion accōpanied with others like as Ambition Auarice Anger and Foolish Loue. Nor ayr nor earth nor Ocean can content Whose-looks are hooks whose belly 's bottom-less Whose hands are Gripes to scrape with greediness Thou art the Fourth and vnder thy Command Thou bringst to field a rough vnruly Band First secret-burning mighty-swoln Ambition Pent in no limits pleas'd with no Condition Whom Epicurus many Worlds suffice not Whose
furious thrist of proud aspiring dies not Whose hands transported with fantastike passion Bear painted Scepters in imagination Then Auarice all-arm'd in hooking Tenters And clad in Bird-lime without bridge she venters Through fell Charybdis and false Syrtes Nesse The more her welth the more her wretchedness Cruell respect-less friend-less faith-less Elf That hurts her neighbour but much more her self Whose foule base fingers in each dunghill poar Like Tantalus starv'd in the midst of store Not what she hath but what she wants she counts A wel-wingd Bird that neuer lofty mounts Then boyling Wrath stern cruell swift and rash That like a Boar her teeth doth grinde and gnash Whose hair doth stare like bristled Porcupine Who som-times rowles her ghastly-glowing eyn And som-time fixtly on the ground doth glaunce Now bleak then bloody in her Countenance Rauing and rayling with a hideous sound Clapping her hands stamping against the ground Bearing Bâ—cconi fire and sword to slay And murder all that her for pitty pray Baning her self to bane her Enemy Disdaining Death prouided others dy Like falling Towrs o'r-turned by the winde That break themselues on that they vnder-grinde And then that Tyrant all-controuling Loue Whom heer to paint doth little me behooue After so many rare Apelleses As in this Age our Albion nourishes And to be short thou doest to battail bring As many Souldiers 'gainst the Creatures King Yet not his owne as in this life Mankinde True very Goods or seeming Goods doth finde Now if but like the Lightning in the sky These sudden Passions past but swiftly by The horrible effects of the Passions of the soule far more dangerous then the diseases of the body The fear were less but O! too-oft they leaue Keen stings behinde in Soules that they deceiue From this foul Fountain all these poysons rise Rapes Treasons Murders Incests Sodomies Blaspheming Bibbing Theeuing False-contracting Church-chaffering Cheating Bribing and Exacting Alas how these far-worse then death Diseases Exceed each Sicknes that our body seises Which makes vs open war and by his spight Giues to the Patient many a holsom light Now by the colour or the Pulles beating Or by som Fit som sharper dolor threatning Whereby the Leach neer-ghessing at our grief Not seldom findes sure means for our relief But for these Ills raign in our Intellect Which only them both can and ought detect They rest vnknown or rather self-conceal'd And soule-sick Patients care not to be heal'd Besides we plainly call the Feuer Feuer The Dropsie Dropsie ouer-gilding neuer With guile-full flourish of a fained phraze The cruell Languors that our bodies craze Whereas our fond self-soothing Soule thus sick Rubs her owne sore with glozing Rhetorik Cloaking her vice and makes the blinded Blain Not fear the touch of Reasons Cautere vain And sure if euer filthy Vice did iet The miserable corruption of our Times worse then all former Ages In sacred Vertues spot-less mantle neat 'T is in our days more hatefull and vn-hallow'd Then when the World the Waters wholly swallow'd I le spare to speak of foulest Sins that spot Th' infamous beds of men of mighty lot Least I the Saints chaste tender ears offend And seem them more to teach then reprehend Who bear vpon their French-sick backs about All riotous Prodigalitie disguised with the name of Liberalitie Farms Castles Fees in golden shreads cut-out Whose lauish hand at one Primero-rest One Mask one Turney or one pampering Feast Sends treasures scrap't by th' Vsury and Care Of miser Parents Liberall counted are Who with a maiden voice and mincing pase Quaint looks curl'd locks perfumes and painted face Effeminate curiofitie luxuvious Pride miscalled Cleanlines Base coward-hart and wanton soft array Their man-hood only by their Beard bewray Are Cleanly call'd Who like Lust-greedy Goates Insatiate lust and Beast like Loosenes surnamed Loue. Brothel from bed to bed whose Siren-notes Inchaunt chaste Susans and like hungry Kite Fly at all game they Louers are behight Who by false bargains and vnlawfull measures Extream Extortion counted Thrist Robbing the World haue he aped kingly treasures Who cheat the simple lend for fifty fifty Hundred for hundred are esteemed Thrifty Blasphemous Quarrels brauest Courage Who alwaies murder and reuenge affect Who feed on bloud who neuer doe respect State Sex or Age but in all humane lyues In cold bloud bathe their paricidiall kniues Are stiled Valiant Grant good Lord our Land Inhuman Murder highest Manhood May want such valour whose self-cruell hand Fights for our foes our proper life-blood spils Our Cities sacks and our owne Kindred kils Lord let the Launce the Gun the Sword Shield Beturn'd to tools to furrow-vp the field And let vs see the Spyders busie task Wov'n in the belly of the plumed Cask But if braue Lands-men your war-thirst be such If in your brests sad Enyon boyl so much What holds you heer alas what hope of crowns Our fields are flocks-less treasure-less our Towns Goe then nay run renowned Martialists Re-found French-Greece in now Natolian lists Hy hy to Flanders free with conquering stroak Your Belgian brethren from th' Iberians yoake To Portingal people Galizian-Spain And graue your names on Lysbon's gates again FINIS THE HANDI-CRAFTS THE IIII. PART OF THE I. DAY OF THE II. WEEK THE ARGVMENT The Prayse of Peace the miserable states Of Edens Exiles their vn-curious Cates Their simple habit silly habitation They finde out Fire Their formost Propagation Their Childrens trades their offerings enuious Cain His better Brother doth vnkindly brain With inward horror hurried vp and down He breaks a Horse he builds a homely Town Iron 's inuented and sweet Instruments Adam fore-tells of After-Worlds euents HEavn's sacred Imp fair Goddess that renew'st The Poet heere welcometh peace which after long absence seems about this time to haue returned into France The Benefits she brings with Her Th' old golden Age and brightly now re-blew'st Our cloudy sky making our fields to smile Hope of the vertuous horror of the vile Virgin vnseen in France this many a yeer O blessed Peace we bid thee welcom heer Lo at thy presence how who late were prest To spur their Steeds couch their staues in rest For fierce incounter cast away their spears And rapt with ioy them enter-bathe with tears Lo how our Marchant-vessels to and fro Freely about our trade-full Waters go How the graue Senate with iust-gentle rigour Resumes his Robe the Laws their ancient vigour Lo how Obliuions Seas our strifes do drown How walls are built that war had thundred down Lo how the Shops with busie Crafts-men swarm How Sheep and Cattle cover every Farm Behold the Bon-fires waving to the skies Hark hark the cheerfull and re-chaunting cries Of old and young singing this ioyfull Dittie Iö reioyce reioyce through Town and Citie Thanks-giuing to God for peace Let all our ayr re-eccho with the praises Of th' everlasting glorious God who raises Our ruin'd State who
and Agent of all accidents With whom at once the three-fold times doe fly And but a moment lasts Eternity O God behold me that I may behold Thy crystall face O Sun reflect thy gold On my pale Moon that now my veiled eys Earth-ward eclipst may shine vnto the skies Ravish me Lord O my soules life reviue My spirit a-space that I may see a-lyue Heav'n yer I die and make me now good Lord The Eccho of thy all-cel estiall Word The power of Gods spirit in his Prophets and the difference between such the distracted frantike Ministers of Satan With sacred fury suddainly he glowes Not like the Bedlam Bacchanalian froes Who dauncing foaming rowling furious-wise Vnder their twinkling lids their torch-like eys With ghastly voice with visage grizly grim Tost by the Fiend that fier cely tortures them Bleaking and blushing painting shreeking swouning With wrath-les wounds their sense-les members wounding But as th' Imperiall Airy peoples Prince With stately pinions soaring hy from hence Cleaues through the clouds and brauely-bold doth think With his firm eye to make the Suns eye wink So Adam mounted on the burning wings Of a Seraphick loue leaues earthly things Feeds on sweet Aether cleaues the starry sphears And on Gods face his eys he fixtly bears His brows seem brandisht with a Sun-like fier And his purg'd body seems a cubit higher Then thus began hee Th' ever-trembling field Adam declares to his Son in how many Daiet the World was created Of scaly folk the Arches starry seeld Where th' All-Creator hath disposed well The Sun and Moon by turns for Sentinell The cleer cloud-bounding Ayr the Camp assign'd Where angry Auster and the rough North-winde Meeting in battail throwe down to the soil The Woods that midling stand to part the broyl The Diapry Mansions where man-kinde doth trade Were built in Six Dayes and the Seav'nth was made The sacred Sabbaoth So Sea Earth and Ayr And azure-gilded Heav'ns Pavilions fair Shall stand Six Dayes but longer diversly Then the dayes bounded by the Worlds bright eye The First begins with me the Seconds morn How many Ages it shall endure Is the first Ship-wright who doth first adorn The hils with Vines that Shepheard is the Third 1. Adam That after God through strange Lands leads his Heard 2. Noah And past mans reason crediting Gods word 3. Abraham His onely Son slayes with a willing sword The Fourth 's another valiant Shepheardling 4. Dauid That for a Cannon takes his silly sling And to a Scepter turns his Shepheards staff Great Prince great Prophet Poet Psalmograph The Fift begins from that sad Princes night 5. Zedechias That sees his children murdred in his sight And on the banks of fruitfull Euphrates Poor Iuda led in Captiue heauiness 6. Messias Hoped Messias shineth in the Sixt Who mockt beat banisht buried cruci-fixt For our foul sins stil-selfly-innocent Hath fully born the hatefull punishment The Last shall be the very Resting-Day Th' Ayr shall be mute the Waters work shall stay 7. Th' Eternall Sabbath The Earth her store the stars shall leaue their measures The Sun his shine and in eternall pleasures We plung'd in Heav'n shall ay solemnize all Th' eternall Sabbaoths end-less Festiuall Considerations of Adam vpon that which shuld be fall his Posterity vnto the end of the first World destroyed by the Flood according to the relation of Moses in Genesis in the 4. 5. 6. and 7. chapters Alas what may I of that race presume Next th' irefull Flame that shall this Frame consume Whose gut their God whose lust their law shall be Who shall not hear of God nor yet of me Sith those outrageous that began their birth On th' holy groundsill of sweet Edens earth And yet the sound of Heav'ns drad Sentence hear And as ey-witness of mine Exile were Seem to despight God Did it not suffize O lust full soule first to polygamize Suffiz'd it not O Lamech to distain Thy Nuptiall bed but that thou must ingrain In thy great-Grand-sires Grand-sires reeking gore Thy cruell blade respecting nought before The prohibition and the threatning vow Of him to whom infernall powrs do bow Neither his Pasports sealed Character Set in the fore-head of the Murderer Courage good Enos re-advance the Standard Of holy Faith by humane reason slaunder'd And troden-down Inuoke th' immortall powr Vpon his Altar warm bloud-offrings pour His sacred nose perfume with pleasing vapour And teend again Trueth 's neer-extinguisht Taper Thy pupil Henoch selfly-dying wholly Earths ornament to God he liueth solely Lo how he labours to endure the light Which in th' Arch-essence shineth glorious-bright How rapt from sense and free from fleshly lets Sometimes he climbs the sacred Cabinets Of the diuine Ideas euer-lasting Having for wings Faith fervent l'rayer and Fasting How at sometimes though clad in earthly clod He sacred sees feels all inioyes in God How at somtimes mounting from form to form In form of God he happy doth transform Lo how th' all-fair as burning all in loue With his rare beauties not content aboue T' haue half but all and ever sets the stairs That lead from hence to Heav'n his chosen heirs Lo now he climeth the supernall stories Adiew deer Henoch in eternall glories Dwell there with God thy body chang'd in quality Of Spirit or Angel puts on immortality Thine eys already now no longer eys But new bright stars doe brandish in the skyes Thou drinkest deep of the celestiall wine Thy Sabbaoth's endless without vail in fine Thouseest God face to face and neervnite To th' ONE-TRINE Good thou liv'st in th' Infinite But heer the while new Angell thou dost leaue Fell wicked folk whose hands are apt to reaue Whose Scorpion tongues delight in sowing strife Whose guts are gulfs incestuous all their life O strange to be beleev'd the blessed race The sacred Flock whom God by speciall grace Adopts for his even they alas most shame-less Do follow sin most beastly-brute and tame-less With lustfull eys choosing for wanton Spouses Mens wicked daughters mingling so the houses Of Seth and Cain preferring foolishly Frail beauties blaze to vertuous modesty From these profane foul cursed kisses sprung A cruell brood feeding on bloud and wrong Fell Gyants strange of haughty hand and minde Plagues of the World and scourges of Man-kinde Then righteous God though ever prone to pa Seeing his milde-ness but their malice harden List plead nolonger but resolues the fall Of man forth-with and for mans sake of all Of all at least the living creatures gliding Along the ayr or on the earth abiding Heav'ns crystall windows with one hand he opes Whence on the World a thousand Seas he drops With th' other hand he gripes and wringeth forth The spungy Globeof th' execrable Earth So straightly prest that it doth straight restore All liquid flouds that it had drunk before In every Rock new Rivers doe begin And to his aid the snowes com tumbling in
Prince May'st thou surmount all those in Excellence Which haue before thee Rul'd th' hard-ruled Scots And ruder Picts painted with Martiall spots That first Fergusius glory of his dayes Ev'nus and Donald may enuy thy Praise And even the Scott'sh or rather th' Hebrew Dauid Iesses great son so holily-behaved Give place to thy Renown and therewithall Give thee his Zeal and Heart heroïcall And all his best which doth thee best belong As he hath given thee his sweet Harp and Song THOVGH profane service of Idolatry Had drown'd the whole Earth vniversally Though shame-less sin born with the COLONIES Through all the World through all did Tyrannize Yet in Chaldea was their chiefest Seat Their strength in Shinaar and that City great Built on the slymy strand of Euphrates Was the proud Palace where they held their Feasts So that even Sem's and Heber's sacred Ligne Where God his grace yet seemed to confine Sucking the Sin-bane of Assyrian aire Did like the Heathen every day impaire Simile Forgot the true God followed rashly-rude The gross grand Error of the multitude Degeneriz'd decay'd and withered quight Likesom rare Fruit-Tree over-topt with spight Of Bryers and Bushes which it sore oppress With the sowr shadow of their Thorny tress Till choakt withall it dies as they do growe And beareth nought but Moss and Misseltoe But God desirous more for vs then him The Calling of Abraham In som one stock to saue Faith's sacred stem Like as before from the All-drowning Flood He sav'd the worlds seed in an Ark of wood Marks Abram for his owne and from false Rites To men to Beasts to Stocks to Stones to Sprights Him gratiously to his owne Service drawes Not by meer Conduct of exteriour cause As by contempling th' Artship richly-rare Which gilds the Seeling of this Globe so fair Earthsfruitfull power producing goodly-green From so small seeds so huge and mighty Treen Flowrs fragrant aier so fresh and divers-died Seas foaming Course whose ever-Tilting Tide Ebbing or flowing is confin'd to Season Bounded with lists guided with reans of Reason But by the motion of his Spirit which seals In our hearts Centre what his word reveals And prudently in his fit time and place Dispensing frankly his free gifts of Grace Doth inwardly bear-witnes and aver-it Vnder our Spirits that'â—is God's Holy Spirit The sacred Faith of Abram languisht not In Idleness but alwayes waakt and wrought The fruits of a true faith and the effect thereof And ever lively brought forth Patience Humility Hope Bounty Innocence Love fervent Zeal Repentance Temperance Sincerity and true Perseverance Fruits that like Load-stones haue avertue given Through Faith to draw their Father-Tree to Heav'n And guide the soules to God the spring of life Of 's kins-man Lot and Sara his deer Wife Who with him following the Almighti's call Wend to the strand where Iordans course doth craul Their owne deer Country willingly forsake And true-religious less account do make Of goods and lands and quiet-lifes content Than of an end-les friend-les Bannishment O sacred ground of Vertu 's sole perfection O shield of Martyrs Prophets sure direction Soule 's remedy O contrite heart's Restorer Tears-wiping tame-grief Hopes guide hunting horror Path of Salvation Pledge of Immortality O lively FAITH through thy admired quality How many wonders doost thou work at once When from Sin 's slumbers thou hast waakt vs once And made vsmly in our spirits conceiue Beauties that never outward eyes perceiue Alas said Abram must I needs forgoe Natural conside rations to haue stopped the Iourney of Abraha These happy fields where Euphrates doth flowe Heer first I drew this vitall air and pleas'd With my births news my Mothersthroes I eas'd Heer from her tender brest as soft as silk My tender gums suckt my first drop of milk Heer with the pleasure of mine infant-smile Her Cares and Cumbers I did oft beguile Heer my chaste Sisters Vnkles Aunts and Kin My prity prattling haue delighted in Heer many a time I want only haue clung And on my Fathers wrinkled neck haue hung Heer I haue past my Lad-age fait and good Heer first the soft Down on my chin did bud Heer I haue learn'd Heav'ns Motions and the nature And various force of Fire Air Earth and Water Heer I haue show'n the noblest tokens forth Both of my Mindes and of my Bodies worth Heer I have spent the best part of mine age Heer I possess a plentious Heritage Heer I haue got me many friends and fame And by my Deeds attain'd a glorious Name And must I hence and leaue this certain state To roam vncertain like a Runnagate O're fearfull Hils and thorough foaming Torrents That rush-down Mountains with their roring currents In dreadfull Desarts where Heav'ns hottest beam Shall burn without within vs Thirst extream And gloomy Forrests full of ghastly fear Of yelling Monsters that are dwelling there To seek a Country God knowes where and whither Whose vnknowen name hath yet scarce sounded hither With staff in hand and wallet at our back From Town to Town to beg for all we lack To guise ourselues like counterfaiting Ape To th' guise of Men that are but Men in shape T' haue briefly nothing properly our owne In all the World no not our Grave-place knowen Is' t possible I should endure to see The sighs and tears my friends will shed for me O! can I thus my Native soyl forsake O! with what words shall I my farwell take Farwell Chaldea deer delights adieu Friends Brothers Sisters farwell all of you Farwell for ever Can I thus alas Rudely vnwinde me from the kinde embrace Of their deer arms that will me faster holde 2. Comparisons Than trembling Ivie doth the Oak enfolde Or then the Vine doth with her crawling spray The boughs of Elm her limber limbs to stay Can I expose with perill of my life Th' vn-vulgar beauties of my vertuous wife To the none-sparing lust of that loose Nation That brutely burns in all abhomination Besides what rigour nay what paricide To hale from Tygris shoat to Iordans side A weak olde-man a man so weak and olde He scarse can creep without our help and holde Yet 't must be so for so the Lord commands His resolution aboue al discour se of reason A carnall man on carnal reason stands But for all Reasons Faith suffizeth me Who lodge with God can never House-less be Then cheerly marcht he on and though the age And death of Terah slow'd his pilgrimage Therest of His he doth conduct in fine To Canaan since called Palaestine Where God pours down such flouds of goods vpon them The great blessing of God on his obedience And bountiously bestowes such blessings on-them That their abundance shortly seems t' exceed God's Promises and their desires indeed Their fruitfull Heards that hill and dale do haunt Resemble not the breed of th' Elephant Which slowe in coupling and in calving more Pyning her Master so long time
Adorn'd self-gazing with a lofty ey His faction present AARON also by Lord shield thy Cause approve thee veritable Let not thy Name be to the Lewd a Fable Oint thine Anointed publikely by Miracle Showe whom thou hast selected for thine Oracle Said MOSES then and even as yet he spake The groaning Earth began to reel and shake A horrid Thunder in her bowels rumbles Their dreadfull punishment And in her bosom vp and down it tumbles Tearing her Rocks Vntil she Yawn a way To let it out and to let in the Day Heav'n sees to Hell and Hell beholdeth Heav'n And Divels dazled with the glistring leav'n Of th' ancient Sun yet lower fain would dive But chain'd to th' Centre all in vain they strive CORE round compast with his Rebel friends Offers to BELZEBVE and to the Fiends His bodie 's batter'd with Rocks falling down And arms of Trees there planted vp-side-down He goes with Noise down to the Silent Coast Intoombd alive without all Art or cost And all the rest that his proud side assum'd Scaping the Gulf with Lightning are consum'd And AARON'S Office is confirm'd by God Aarons charge is confirmed by miracle With wondrous Signes of his oft-quickned Rod Which dead re-buda re-blooms and Almonds bears When all his Fellows haue no life in theirs Now shall I sing through MOSES prudent Sway Sundry victories of the Israelites vnder the coÌ„duct and direction of Moses How ISRAEL doth AMALEC dismay ARAD and OG that of huge Giants springs Proud HESEBON and the five Madian Kings With the false Prelat who profanely made Of Prophets-gifts a sacrilegious trade Who false sayes true who striving past all shame To force the Spirit is forced by the same Who snaring th' Hebrews with frail Beauties graces Defiles their bodies more their soules defaces Doubt-les his Deeds are such as would I sing But half of them I vnder-take a thing As hard almost as in the Gangik Seas To count the Waves or Sands in Euphrates And of so much should I a little say It were to wrong him and his Praise betray His Noble Acts we therefore heer suspend Reseruing the Warres for another Discourse our Poet hasteth to the death of Moses And skip vnto his sweet and happy End Sith th' End is it whereby we iudge the best For either Life how Man is Curst or Blest Feeling his vigour by degrees to waste And one Fire quencht another kindling fast Which doth his Spirit re-found his soule refine And raise to Heaven whence it was sent divine He doth not Now study to make his Will By his example Men are warned not to deferre to make their Will till it be too late to bee troubled with the busines of this world T' Entail his Land to his Male-Issue still Wisely and iustly to divide his Good To Sons and Daughters and his neerest Blood T' assigne his Wife a Dowry fair and fit A hundred times to add and alter it To quittance Friendships with frank Legacies To guerdon Service with Annuities To make Executors to Cancel som T' appoint himself a Palace for a Tomb. I praise a Care to settle our Estate But when Death threats vs then it is too-late A seemly Buriall is a sacree Rite But let the living take that charge of right He lifting higher his last thoughts besides The Common-Weale's care for the Church prouides And graving his discourse with voice devout Bids thus far-well to all that stand about O IACOB's seed I might say my deer sons He pronounceth the blessings and the curses writteÌ„ in Leviticus 26 Deutro 28. where vnto the people say Amen Y' are sense-les more then metalls stocks or stones If y' have forgot the many-many Miracles Wher-with the Lord hath seal'd my sacred Oracles And all the Favours in this savage Place In forty yeers received of his grace Therefore O ISRAEL walk thou in his fear And in thy hearts-heart not in Marble bear His ever-lasting LAVV before him stand And to his Service consecrate thy hand If this thou do thy Heav'n-blesâ— fleecy Flocks Blessings on those that obey Shall bound about thy Pastures Downs and Rocks As thick as skip in Sommer in a Mead The Grass-hoppers that all with Deaw are fed Thy fruitfull Eaws fat Twins shall bring thee ever And of their Milk shall make a plentious River Th' olde Tyrant loads not with so-many loans Toules Taxes Succours Impositions The panting Vassalls to him Tributary As thy rich Fields shall pay thee voluntary Thy children and thy children's children set About thy Table side by side at meat Shall flourish like a long and goodly rowe Of pale-green Olives that vprightly growe About a ground and full of Fruit presage Plenty of Oyl vnto their Master sage Sons of thy sons shall serue thy reverend Eld Thou shalt die quiet thou shalt live vnqueld Blessed at home and blessed in the Plain The blessed God shall send thee timely Rain And holsom windes and with his keyes of grace Open Heav'ns store-house to thy happy Race Thy proud fell Foes with Troops of armed men Shall charge thee one way but shall flie thee ten The Peace-Plant Olive or Triumphant Bay Shall shade thy gates Thy valour shall dismay And daunt the Earth and with his sacred aw Thy Saviour-King shall giue the World the law If other-wise the Megrim Gowt and Stone Curses on the Disobedient Shall plague thee fel with thousand pangs in one Thy numbry Flocks in part shall barren â—e In part shall bring abortives vnto thee Accurst at home accursed in the Plain Thy labour boot-les and thy care in vain Thy Field shall be of steel thy Heav'n of brass Thy Fountains dry and God displeas'd alas In steed of holsom showrs shall send down flashes Of Lightning Fire Hail Sulphur Salt and Ashes Thou shalt reap little where thou much hast shed And with that little shall thy Foe be fed He shall the fattest of thy Heard devour Before thy face and yet thou must not lowr Thou shalt build fair another haue thy Place Thou wed a wife another 'fore thy face Shal loose her Bride-belt God with rage shall smight Thy stubborn heart with blindnesse and affright So that a wagging leaf a puff a crack Yea the least creak shall make thee turn thy back Thou never shalt thine adverse Hoast survay But to be beaten or to run away A People stout for strength and number ample Which th' Aegle hath for Ensigne and Example With a new Wall thine ancient Wall shall dam And make thee Famisht thy void bowels cram With thine owne bowels and for want of meat Thine owne deer Children's trembling flesh to eat And then thy Remnant far disperst from home O're all the Corners of the earth shall roam To shew their Curse they shall no Country ow'ne And which is worse they shall not be their Owne AMEN said all the Hoast Then like the Swan This dying Song the Man of GOD began SIth ISRAEL O
am dead Be gratious to my Blood and raze not fell My Name and Issue out of Israel Thus sayd the King and tears out-went his words A pale despair his heavy hart still-girds His feeble spirit praesaging his Miss-fortune Doth every-kinde of Oracles importune Suspicious seeks how Clotho's Clew doth swell And cast of Heav'n wil needs consult with Hell In Endor dwelt a Beldam in those dayes The Woman Witch of Endor Deep-skild in Charms for this weak sex always Hath in all Times ben taxt for Magik Tricks As pronest Agents for the Prince of Styx Whether because their soft moist supple brain Doth easie print of every seal retain Or whether wanting Force and Fames desert Those Wyzards ween to winn it by Black-Art This Stygian scum the Furies fury fell This Shop of Poysons hideous Type of Hell This sad Erinnys Milcom's Fauourite Chamosh his Ioye and Belzebubs delight Delights alonely for her exercise In secret Murders soudain Tragoedies Her drink the blood of Babes her dainty Feast Mens Marrow Brains Guts Livers late deceast At Weddings aye for Lamps she lights debates And quiet Loue much more then Death she hates Or if she reak of Love 't is but to trap Som severe Cato in incestuous Lap Somtimes they say she dims the Heav'nly Lamps She haunts the Graues she talks with Ghosts she stamps And Cals-vp Spirits and with a wink controules Th' infernal Tyrant and the tortur'd Soules Arts admiration Izraels Ornament That as a Queen Command'st each Element And from the Toomb deceased Trunks canst raise Th' vnfaithfull King thus flatters her with prayse On steepest Mountains stop the swiftest Currents From driest Rocks draw rapid-rowling Torrents And fitly hasten Amphitrites Flood Or stay her Eb as to thy self seems good Turn day to night hold Windes within thy hand Make the Sphears moue and the Sun still to stand Enforce the Moon so with thy Charms som-times That for a stound in a deep Swoun she seems O thou al-knowing Spirit daign with thy spell To raise-vp heer renowned Samuel To satisfie my doubtfull soule in sum The issue of my Fortunes yet to com Importun'd twice or thrice she that before Resembled one of those grim Ghosts of yore Which she was was wont with her vn-holsom breath To re-bring-back from the black gates of death Growes now more gastly and more Ghost-like grim Right like to Satan in his Rage-full Trim. The place about darker then Night she darkes Shee yelles she roars she houles she brayes she barkes And in vn-heard horrid Barbarian tearms She mutters strange and execrable Charmes Of whose Hell-raking Nature-shaking Spell These odious words could scarce be hearkned well Eternall Shades infernall Dëities Death Horrors Terrors Silence Obsequies Demons dispatch If this dim stinking Taper Be of mine owne Sons fat if heer for paper I write detested on the tender skins Of time-les Infants and abortiue Twins Torn from the wombe these Figures figure-les If this black Sprinkle tuft with Virgins tress Dipt at your Altar in my kinsmans blood If well I smell of humane flesh my food Haste haste you Fiends you subterranean Pow'rs If impiously as fits these Rites of yours I haue invok't your grizly Maiesties Harken O Furies to my Blasphemies Regard my Charms and mine inchanting Spell Reward my Sins and send vp Samuel From dismall darknes of your deep Abysse To answer me in what my pleasure is Dispatch I say black Princes quick why when Haue I not Art for one to send you ten When stubborn Ghost The Palfraies of the Sun Doo fear my Spells and when I spur they run The Planets bow the Plants giue ear to me The Forrests stoop and even the strongest Tree At driery sound of my sad whisperings Doth Prophecie fore telling future things Yea maugre Ioue by mine almighty Charms Through Heav'n I thunder with imperious Arms And comst not thou O so I see the Sage I see th' ascent of som great man his age His sacred habite and sweet-graue aspect Som God-like raies about him round reflect Hee 's ready now to speak and plyant too To cleer thy doubtings without more a doo Saul flat adores and wickedly-devout The fained Prophets least word leaues not out What dost thou Saul ô Izraels Soveraign Against those that resort to Witches Witches of late feard only thy disdain Now th' are thy stay O wretch doost thou not knowe One cannot vse th' ayde of the Powers belowe Without som Pact of Counter-Seruices By Prayers Perfumes Homage and Sacrifice And that this Art meer Diabolicall It hurteth all but th' Author most of all And also that the impious Atheïst The Infidel and damned Exorcist Differ not much Th' one Godhead quight denies Th' other for God foul Satan magnifies Th' other Satan by Inchantment strange Into an Angell of the Light doth change When as God would his voyce thou wouldst not hear Now he forbids thee thou consult'st els-where Whom living Prophet thou neglect'st abhorr'st Him dead thou seek'st and his dead Trunk ador'st And yet not him nor his forth ' ougly Fiend Hath no such power vpon a Saint t' extend Against th' illusion of Sathan false Apparitiōs and Walking Spirit◠Who fears no force of the blasphemous Charms Of mumbling Beldams or Hels damned Arms From all the Poysons that those powers contriue Charm-charming Faith 's a full Preservatiue In Soule and Body both He cannot come For they re-ioyne not till the day of doom His Soule alone cannot appeer for why Soules are invisible to mortall eye His Body only neither can it be For dust to dust that soon corrupts we see Besides all this if 't were true Samuel Should not alas thine eye-sight serue as well To see and knowe him as this Sorceresse This hatefull Hag this old Enchanteresse This Divell incarnate whose drad Spell commands The rebell-Fury of th' Infernall Bands Hath Lucifer not Art enough to fain A Body fitting for his turn and train And as the rigor of long Cold congeals Simile To harsh hard Wooll the running Water-Rils Cannot he thicken thinnest parts of Air Commixing Vapours glew-them hue them fair Simile Even as the Rain-Bowe by the Suns reflection Is painted fair in manifold complection A Body which we see all-ready formd But yet perceiue not how it is performd A Body perfect in apparant showe But in effect and substance nothing so A Body hart-les lung-les tongue-les too Where Satan lurks not to giue life ther-to But to the end that from this Counter-mure More covertly he may discharge more sure A hundred dangerous Engins which he darts Against the Bulwarks of the bravest harts That in the Sugar even of sacred Writ He may em-pill vs with som Banefull bit And that his counterfait and fained lips Laying before vs all our hainous slips And Gods drad Iudgements and iust Indignation May vnder-mine our surest Faiths Foundation But let vs hear now what he saith O Saul What frantick fury art thou moov'd with-all To now re-knit my broken
thred of life To interrupt my rest And ' mid the strife Of struggling Mortals in the Worlds affairs By power-full Charms to re-entoyl my Cares Inquir'st thou what 's to-come O wretched Prince Too much too-soon what I fore-told long since Death 's at thy door to morrow Thou and Thine Even all shal fall before the Philistine And great-good Dauid shal possesse thy Throne As God hath sayd toÌ„ be gain-sayd by none Th' Author of Lies against his guise tels true How Sathan comes to tell things to-come Not that at-once he Selfly all fore-knew Or had revolv'd the Leaues of destiny The Childe alonly of Eternity But rather through his busie observation Of circumstance and often iteration Of reading of our Fortunes and our Fals In the close Book of clear Coniecturals With a far-seeing Spirit hits often right Not much vnlike a skilfull Galenite Who when the Crisis comes dares even foretell Whether the Patient shall doo ill or well Or as the Star-wise somtimes calculates By an Eclipse the death of Potentates And by the stern aspects of greatest Stars Prognosticates of Famine Plague and Wars As he foretold in brief so fell it out Saules death Braue Ionathan and his Two Brethren stout Are slain in Fight and Saul himself forlorn Lest Captiue he be made the Pagans scorn He kils him-Self and of his Fortune froward To seem not conquer'd shewes him Self a Coward For 't is not Courage whatsoe'r men say Against Self-killing But Cowardize to make ones Self away 'T is even to turn our back at Fears alarms 'T is basely-faint to yeeld vp all our Arms. O extream Rage O barbarous Cruelty â— All at one Blowe t' offend Gods Maiesty The State the Magistrate Thy Self in fine Th' one in destroying the deer work divine Of his almighty Hands the next in reaving Thy needfull Service it should be receiuing The third in rash vsurping his Commission And last Thy Self in thine owne Selfs-Perdition When by two Deaths one voluntary Wound Doth both thy body and thy soule confound But Isbosheth his deer Son yet retains His Place a space and Dauid only Raigns In happy Iuda Yet yerlong discreet He makes th' whole Kingdoms wracked ribs to meet And so He rules on th' holy Mount a mirror His Peoples Ioy the Pagans only Terror If ever standing on the sandy shoar Comparison Y' haue thought to count the rowling waues that roar Each after other on the British Coast When Aeolus sends forth his Northern Poast Waue vpon Waue Surge vpon Surge doth fold Sea swallowes Sea so thickly-quickly roul'd That number-les their number so doth mount That it confounds th' Accompter and th' Accompt So Dauid's Vertues when I think to number Their multitude doth all my Wits incumber That Ocean swallowes me and mazed so In the vast Forest where his Prayses growe I knowe not what high Fir Oak Chest-nut-Tree Rather what Brasil Cedar Ebonie My Muse may chuse Amphion-like to build With curious touch of Fingers Quauer-skild Durst she presume to take so much vpon-her A Temple sacred vnto Dauids honour Others shall sing his mindes true Constancie Epitome of Dauids Vertues In oftlong exiles try'd so thorowly His Life compos'd after the life and likenes Of sacred Patterns his milde gracious meeknes Towards railing Shimeâ— and the * Nâ—bâ—â— Churlish Gull His louely Eyes and Face so bewtifull Som other shall his Equity record And how the edge of his impartiall sword Is euer ready for the Reprobate To hewe them down and help the Desolate How He no Law but Gods drad Law enacts How Hee respects not persons but their Facts How braue a Triumph of Selfs-wrath he showes Killing the Killers of his deadly Foes Som other shall vnto th' Empyreall Pole The holy fervor of his Zeal extoll How for the wandring Ark he doth prouide A certain place for euer to abide And how for euer euery his designe Is ordered all by th' Oracle Diuine Vpon the wings of mine els-tasked Rime Through the cleer Welkin of our Western Clime I 'll only bear his Musike and his Mars His holy Songs and his triumphant Wars Lothere the sacred mark wherat I aim And yet this Theam I shall but mince and maim So many Yarnes I still am fain to strike Into this Web of mine intended WEEK The Twelue stout Labours of th' Amphitryonide Of his valour and victories Strongest of Men are iustly magnifi'd Yet what were They but a rude Massacre Of Birds and Beasts and Monsters here and there Not Hoasts of Men and Armies ouer throw'n But idle Conquests Combats One to One Where boist'rous Limbs and Sinnews strongly kniâ— Did much auaile with little ayde of Wit Bears Lions Giants foild in single fight Are but th' Essayes of our redoubted Knight Vnder his Armes sick Aram deadly droops Vnto his power the strength of Edom stoops Stout Amalek euen trembles at his name Prowd Ammons skorn he doth return with shame Subdueth Soba foyls the Moabite Wholly extirps the down-trod Iebusite And still victorious euery month almost Combats and Conquers the Philistian Hoast So that Alcides massie Club scarce raught So many Blowes as Dauid Battails fought Th' expert Great * Pompey Captain who the Pontiks quaild Wun in strange Wars in ciuill Fights he faild But Dauid thriues in all and fortunate Triumphs no lesse of Sauls intestine hate Of Isbosheth's and Absaloâ—'s designes Then of strong Aram and stout Philistines Good-Fortune alwayes blowes not in the Poop Of valiant Caesar she defeats his Troop Slayes his Lieutenants and among his Friends Stabb'd full of Wounds at length his Life she ends But Dauid alwayes feels Heav'ns gratious hand Whether in person He himself command His royall Hoast or whether in his sted By valiant Ioab his braue Troops be led And Happinesse closing his aged eye Even to his Toomb consorts him constantly Fair Victory with Him even from the first Did pitch her Tent his Infancy she nurst With noble Hopes his stronger years she fed With stately Tropheis and his hoary head She Crowns and Comforts with her cheerful Balms Triumphant Laurels and victorious Palmes The Mountains stoop to make Him easieway And Euphrates before Him dryesaway To Him great Iordan a small leap doth seem Without assault strong Cities yeeld to Him Th' Engine alone of His far-feard Renown Beats Thunder-like Gates Bars Bulwarks down Gads goodly Vales in a gore Pond he drenches Philistian Fiers with their owne Blood he quenches And then in Gob pursewing still his Foes His wrath 's iust Tempest on fell Giants throwes O strong great Worthies will soÌ„m one-day lay When your huge Bones they plough-vp in the Clay But stronger greater and more WORTHIE He Whose Heav'n-lent Force and Fortune made you be Maugre your might your masly Spears and Shields The fatt'ning dung-hill of those fruitfull Fields His Enimies scarcely so soon he threats As overthrowes and vtterly defeats On Dauids head God doth not spin good-hap But pours it down
long Pike a space Perfume thy head with dust and sweat appeer Captain and Soldier Soldiers are on fire Hauing their King before them Marching forth Fellow in Fortune witnes of their Worth I should inflame thy hart with Learnings loue In Peace not to be over-studious yet to vnderstand the Principals of all Prince-fit Sciences Saue that I know what diuine habits moue Thy profound Spirit only let th' ornament Of Letters wayt on th' Art of Regiment And take good heed least as excesse of humor In Plants becomes their Flowring Lifes consumer So too-much Study and delight in Arts Quench the quick vigour of thy Spiritual parts Make thee too-pensiue ouer-dull thy Senses And draw thy Minde from Publike cares of Princes With a swift-winged soule the Course suruay Of Nights dim Taper and the Torch of Day Sound round the Cels of th' Ocean dreadly-deep Measure the Mountains snowie tops and steep Ferret all Corners of this nether Ball But to admire the Makers Art in all His Power and Prudence and resemble not Simile Some simple Courtier or the silly Sot That in the base-Court all his time hath spent In gazing on the goodly Battlement The chamfred Pillers Plinths and antique Bosses Medals Ascents Statues and strange Colosses Amaz'd and musing vpon euery piece Of th' vniforme fair stately Frontispice Too-too-self-rapt through too-self-humoring Losing him-self while others finde the King Hold euen the Balance with clean hands clos'd eyes The principal peculiar office of a King Reuenge seuerely Publike Iniuries Remit thine Owne Heare the Cries see the Tears Of all distressed poor Petitioners Sit oft thy Self in Open Audience Who would not be a Iudge should be no Prince For Iustice Scepter and the Martiall Sword Ought neuer seuer by the Sacred Word Spare not the Great neither despise the Small Let not thy Lawes be like the Spiders Caul Simile Where little Flyes are caught and kild but great Passe at their pleasure and pull-down the Net Away with Shepheards that their Flocks deface Chuse Magistrates that may adorn their Place Such as fear God such as will iudge vprightly Men by the seruants iudge the Master lightly Giue to the Vertuous but thy Crown-Demain Diminish not giue still to giue again For there too-deep to dip is Prodigality And to dry-vp the Springs of Liberality But aboue all for Gods sake Son beware Hic labor hoc Opus Be not intrapt in Womens wylie snare I fear alas good Lord supreamly sage Auert from Mine th' effect of this Praesage Alas I fear that this sweet Poyson wil My House here-after with all Idols fil But if that neither Vertu 's sacred loue Nor Feare of Shame thy wanton Minde can moue To watch in Arms against the Charms of Those At least be warned by thy Fathers Woes Fare-wel my Son th' Almightie cals me hence I passe by Death to Lifes most excellence And to go Raign in Heav'n from World-cares free The Crown of Izrael I resigne to thee O thou that often for a Princes Sin Transport'st the Scepter euen from Kin to Kin From Land to Land Let it remaine with Mine And of my Sons Sons in successiue Ligne Let that Al-Power full deer-drad Prince descend Whose glorious Kingdom neuer shal haue end Whose iron Rod shall Satans Rule vn-doo Whom Iacob trusts in Whom I thirst for too ' DAVID deceast His Son him tracking right Initium Regni SALOMON With heart and voice worships the God of Might Enters his Kingdom by the Gate of Pietie Makes Hymâ—s and Psalms in Laud of the true Deïtie Offers in Gabeon where in Spirit he sees While his Sense sleepes the God of Maiesties His Vision The Lord of Hoasts who Crownd with radiant flames Offers him choise of these foure louely Dames First Glory shaking in her hand a Pike Not Maid-like Marching but braue Souldier-like Description of Glory Among the Stars her stately head she beares A siluer Trumpet shril a slope she wears Whose Winde is Praise and whose Stentorian sound Doth far and wide o'r all the world redound Her wide-side Robes of Tissue passing price All Story-wrought with bloody Victories Tryumphs and Tropheis Arches Crowns and Rings And at her feet there sigh a thousand Kings Not far from her coms Wealth all rich-bedight Of Riches In Rhéa's Thetis Pluto's Treasures bright The glittering stuff which doth about her fold Is rough with Rubies stiff with beaten Gold With either hand from hollow steans she powrs Pactolian surges and Argolian showrs Fortune and Thrift and Wakefulnes and Care And Diligence her dayly Seruants are Then cheerfull Health whose brow no wrinkle bears Of Health Whose cheek no palenesse in whose eye no tears But like a Childe shee 's pleasant quick and plump Shee seems to fly to skip to daunce and iump And Life 's bright Brand in her white hand doth shine Th' Arabian Birds â—are plumage platted â—ine Serues her for Suâ—-coat and her seemly â—â—ain Mirth Exercise and Temperance sustain Last Wisedom comes with sober countenance Of Wisedom To th' euer-Bowrs her oft a-loft t' aduance The light Mamuques wing-les wings she has Her gesture cool as comly-graue her pase Where e'r she go she neuer goes with-out Compasse and Rule Measure and Waights about And by her side at a rich Belt of hers The Glasse of Nature and her-Self she wears Hauing beheld their Bewties bright the Prince Seems rapt all-ready euen to Heauen from hence Sees a whole Eden round about him shine And ' mid so many Benefits Diuine Doubts which to chuse At length he thus begun O Lord sayth he what hath thy Seruant don That so great Blessings I should take or touch Or thou shouldst daign to honour me so much Thou doost preuent my Merit or deer Father Delight'st to Conquer euen my Malice rather Fair Victorie's a noble Gift and nought Is more desired or is sweeter thought Than euen to quench our Furie's thirst with blood In iust Reuenge on those that wrong our Good But oft alas foul Insolence comes after And the long Custome of in humane Slaughter Transforms in time the myldest Conquerors To Tigers Panthers Lions Bears and Boars Happy seems He whose count-les Herds for Pasture Dis-robe alone Mount Carmels moatly Vesture For whom alone a whole rich Countrey torn With timely Tools brings forth both Wine and Corn That hath soft Sereans yellow Spoils the Gems And precious stones of the Arabian streams The Mines of Ophir th' Entidorian Fruits The Saban Odours and the Tyrian Sutes But yet we see where Plenty chiefly sways There Pride increases Industry decays Rich-men adore their Gold whoso aspires To lift to Heav'n his sight and Soules Desires He must be Poor at least-wise like the Poor Riches and Fear are fellows euer-more I would liue long and I would gladly see My Nephews Nephews and their Progeny But the long Cares I fear and Cumbers rife Which commonly accompany long-Long-Life Who well liues long liues for this age of
askt in vain For what is it Elijah cannot do If he be hungry Fouls and Angels too Becom his Stewards Fears he th' armed Bands Of a fel Tyrant from their bloody hands To rescue him Heav'n his confederate Consumes with Fire them and their fierie hate Or would he pass a Brook that brooks no bay Nor Bridge nor Bank The Water giues him way Or irks him Earth To Heav'n alive he hies And sauing Henoch onely He not-dies This Man of God discoursing with his heir Elijah taken vp aliue into Heaven Of th' vpper Kingdom and of Gods Affair A sodain whirl-winde with a whiffing Fire And flaming Chariot rapts him vp intire Burns not but fines and doth in fashion strange By death-les Death mortall immortall change A long-tail'd squib a flaming ridge for rut Seems seen a while where the bright Coach hath cut This sacred Rape nigh rapt Elisha too Who taking vp his Tutors Mantle tho Follows as far as well he could with ey The fire-snort Palfreys through the sparkling Sky Crying My father father mine fare-well The Chariots and the Horse of Izrael The Thisbian Prophet hangs not in the Air Amid the Meteors to be tossed there As Mists and Rains and Hail and hoarie Plumes And other Fierie many-formed Fumes Amid the Air tumultuous Satan roules And not the Saints the happy heav'nly Soules Nor is he nailed to some shining Wheel Ixion-like continually to reel For CHRIST his flesh transfigur'd and divine Mounted aboue the Arches Crystalline And where CHRIST is from pain and passion free There after death shall all his Chosen bee Elijah therfore climbs th' Empyreal Pole Where ever-blest in body and in soule Contemns this World becoms an Angel bright And doth him firm to the TRINE-ONE vnite But how or why should He this vantage haue Yer CHRIST right call'd the first-fruits of the Grave O happy passage O sweet sacred Flight O blessed Rape thou raptest so my spright In this Dispute and mak'st my weaker wit So many wayes to cast-about for it That I confess the more I do contend I more admire and less I comprehend For lack of wings then biding heer belowe With his Successor I proceed to showe How soon as he took-vp his Cloak to bear-it Elizeus or Elisha Within Elisha shin'd Elijah's Spirit By powr whereof immediatly he cleaves An vn-couth way through Iordan's rapid waves Past hope he gives to the Sunamian Wife A Son and soon restores him dead to life With sodain blindness smightes the Syrian Troup The which in Dothan did him round in coup Increaseth bread and of a pound of Oyl Fills all the Vessels in a Town that while His hoary head in Bethel laught to scorn Is veng'd by Bears on forty children torn Naaman's cleans'd and for foul Simonie Gehazi's punisht with his Leprosie Mends bitter Broath he maketh Iron swim As porie Cork vpon the Water's brim Rich Iericho's sometimes sal-peetry soil Through brinie springs that did about it boil Brought forth no fruit and her vn-holsom Brooks Voyded the Town of Folk the Fields of Flocks The Towns-men therefore thus besought the Seer Thou seest our Citie 's situation heer Is passing pleasant but the ground is naught The Water worse we pray thee mend the fault Sweeten our Rivers make them pleasanter Our Hills more green our Plains more fertiler The Prophet calls but for a Cruse of Salt O strangest cure to cure the brynie fault Of all their Floods and casting that in one Foul stinking Spring heals all their streams anon Not for an houre or for a day or twain But to this Day they sweet and sound remain Their Valley walled with bald Hills before But even a horror to behold of-yore Is now an Eden and th' All-circling Sun For fruitfull beauty sees no Paragon There labour-les mounts the victorious Palm There and but there growes the all-healing Balm There ripes the rare cheer-cheek Myrobalan Minde-gladding Fruit that can vn-olde a Man O skilfull Husbands giue your fattest Plains Five or six earths spare neither cost nor pains To water them rid them of weeds and stones With Muck and Marle batten and baste their bones Vnles God bless your Labour and your Land You plough the Sea and sowe vpon the sand This Iurie knowes a Soil somtimes at least Sole Paradise of all the proudest East But now the brutest and most barren place The curse of God and all the Worlds disgrace And also Greece on whom Heav'ns yerst so good Rain nothing now but their drad Furie's Flood The grace of God is a most sure Revenue A Sea of Wealth that ever shall continew A never-failing Field which needs not ay The cool of Night nor comfort of the Day What shall I say This sacred Personage Not only profits to his proper Age But after life life in his bones hee leaves And dead the dead he raiseth from their graves Nor is Elisha famous more for Miracles Than for the Truth of his so often Oracles He showes the Palms and Foils of Israell Benhadad's death the Raign of Hazael Beyond all hope and passing all appearance Deiected Ioram's neer relief he warrants For now the Syrian with insulting Powrs The fiege and Famine of Samaria So streict besiegeth the Samarian Towrs That even al-ready in each nook agrising Fell wall-break all-break Famin ill-advising Howls hideously even the bare bones are seen As sharp as kniues thorough the emptie skin Of the best bred and each-man seems almost No Man indeed but a pale ghastly Ghost Som snatch the bread from their owne Babes that pine Som eat the Draff that was ordain'd for Swine Som doo defile them with forbidden flesh Som bite the grass their hunger to refresh Som gold for Birds-dung waight for waight exchange Som of their Boots make them a Banquet strange Som fry the Hay-dust and it savorie finde Som Almond-shels and Nut-shels gladly grinde Som mince their Fathers Wills in parchment writ And so devoure their Birth-right at a bit The King when wearie he would rest awhile Dreams of the Dainties he hath had yer-while Smacks swallows grindes both with his teeth and iaws But only winde his beguil'd bellie draws And then awaking of his owne spare Diet Robbs his owne brest to keep his Captains quiet He is importun'd heer and there about Aboue the rest a Woman skrieketh out In moornfull manner with disheueled haire Her face despight her fashion showes despaire O! stay my Liege heat hear a grieuous thing Mothers eat their owne Children Iustice great Ioram Iustice gentle King O no not Iustice did I Iustice craue Fondling in Iustice thou canst nothing haue But a iust death nay but a Torture fell Nay but a Torment like the pains of Hell Yet even this Plea is worse then death to me Then grant me Iustice Iustice let it be For O! what horror can restrain desire Of iust Revenge when it is once afire My Lord I bargain'd and to bind the Pact By solemn Oath I sealed the Contract
of Christ. On our Horizon brought the dayes broad light Haue led men's soules in dark eternall night Feel torments worthy of their wickedness 23 Next Symmachus Porphirius marches first Lucian and Celsus then whose hardned heart The Gospell knowen did labour to subvert And Iulian also of all Caesars worst 24 Who knowing well that tortures were but vain To force the Saints from the right Faith to straie By sugred stile studies another way Turns truth to lies and lies to truth again 25 Next I perceive the Circumcised Crew 4. Cabalists and Talmudists Rabbies Of Cabalists and butly Talmudists Troubling the Church with their mysterious Mists Who wel-nigh dead'gainst CHRIST do spet and spew 26 Much like to Snakes that wagg their sting-les sting When as their heads and bodies being slain They threat their Foes with force-less fury vain And to their Graues their Thirst of vengeance bring 27 Now com the Doctors of the Alcaron 5. Turkish Doctors Who mingling poyson by their subtill glose The World 's blinde eyes with darker Clouds inclose They shew their sorrow by their saddest mone 28 But who are these that wear Faith's Livery 6. Heretiks old and new And bear the badge of Faith's best Souldiars And yet are laden with such bolts and bars And so despised of Faith's company 29 These if I err not are the Heretiks Who pusht by proud and curious spirits do blend Both Heav'n and Earth and busily contend To lead the World in crooked paths and Creeks 30 Now as soft windes with straight constrayned breath Through chinks and crannies stealing privily Hurt more our health than boistrous blasts that fly And roule abroad the stones vpon a heath 31 And as the Foe that shakes the Citie 's wallâ— With thundring shot is not so dangerous As a lewd Burgess false and mutinous That in the Town stirs-vp domestik brauls 32 So Pagans Turks Iews doo not damnifie The Faith like these their open violence May be avoyded but false fair-pretence Is hardly scaped with much ieopardie 33 They make like vs a fair religious showe They haue like vs one Church one FAITH one Lord They read like vs one Bible and one Word So sly they are Gods Church to over-throwe 34 In foremost rank heer go the Sadduces That to deny Angels and Resurrection Both Spirits of grace and of reiection Then th' Esseans foul and Formal Pharises 35 Next that deceiver that devised first Simon Magus Nicolaus Author of the Sect of the Nicolaites Church-chaffering and after him insues That mariage-Foe who brutishly renews Pluto's not Plato's Common-law accurst 36 Cerinthus next all bruis'd and bleeding fresh Of Beam-pasht wounds that brain'd him suddainly When in the Baths profane he did denie Christs holy God-head hidden in our flesh 37 For having likewise warr'd against the same God-head of th' onely Man-God Ebion Paul Samyan Photin Carp'crate Artemon Shewe by their looks their sorrow and their shame 38 There mourns that Manés who did fondly fain Two divers Gods Authors of Good and Ill There Valentin the air with cries doth fill Who did deny that bodies Rise again 39 Cerdon great Patron of the Stoïcall Marcion Menander pitious Moan do make There sighes Apelles saying Christ did take Not simply flesh but flesh fantasticall 40 There goes Basilides who canoniz'd Cyrenean Simon in our SAVIOVRS steed Montanus there afrantik head indeed Who guiltless Children kill'd and sacrifiz'd 41 There Tatians Encratiâ—s Severioâ—s Sabellians too which seeking th' vnity In Gods great Essence lost the Trinity Abhor too-late their fond conclusions 42 There th' Alexandrian Priest that yerst did voyd Arrius His entrails at the stool whose Heresie Witching wel-neer th' Earths Vniversity With Sword and Schism the World so much annoy'd 43 Sadly beholds sad-marching Macedonius And Eunomus who at the first had sowen His poysonie seeds but after of their owne They gathered two other Sects erronious 44 Bizantian Nestor and our owne â—â—lagius Libian Donatus Luciferians Euticheans fond and fond Priscillians All frown and fret for inward grief outrageous 45 Shall I conceal Seruetus and the train Of those Dëists that in Sarmatia swarms And Kingling Muncer that with frantik arms Founds hundred sorts of Anabaptists vain 46 Both Syrtes sands I might as eas'ly number As number those whose sweet in chanting Writs With Error 's dregs have drenched wanton Wits Chiefly'n this Age which all corruptions cumber 47 For Satan now him so insinuates In faithless hearts that ween themselues be wise That so foul Error can he not devise But shall be backt by strong associates 48 I see the Beast that bears the purple Whore Great Anti-christ vsurping powr divine 7. Antichrist the Schismatiks Set on Seaven Hills who with her whordom's wine Makes drunk the Princes that her Seat adore 49 And last of all I see the Schismatiks Which renting Christ's vnseamed coat in twain Trouble the Church-peace with contentions vain Following too neer the steps of Heretiks Canto III. 1 GReat Sire's great Son Oliue God's liuely face Wisedom conceiued of the onely Wise To vs given Giver First and Last born twise Once in full Time once out of all Times space 2 Beam of that Sun which fills the world with Light Life of our life our death's death Stinger's sting Our perfect wise iust holy valiant King Word that no word can full express aright 3 O Lord draw draw me draw me from this throng Whose feet and hands are bold to war with thee For with dry eyes I can them never see Nor without grief recite them in my Song 4 Ah! I am out now my deer God I goe From Babel to Iernsalem the Land Of Life Saints house and holy Ark to stand Against all Seas and all rough storms that blowe 5 Lo heer these Champions that haue brauely-bold Withstood proud Tyrants stoutly consacring Their liues and soules to God in suffering Whose names are all in Life's fair Book in-roll'd 6 All-hail Saint-Souldiers let vs once imbrace O valiant Knights let me your hands and brows Adorn with Palms and with Apollo's boughs Let present honours former shames deface 7 Com sacred Kings O holy Princes com Com to this Triumph Lords whose valiant hands Haue Satan's kingdom sought to bring in bands And in your Crowns giv'n Faith the chiefest room 8 He that the first Isaac infranchized Moses Iosua Leads by the hand that Duke whose faithfull word Stopt Phoebus Coursers and whose conquering Sword Subdu'd the Land the Lord had Promised 9 He that but armed with an Asses bone Samson Slew thousand Foes Sangar Othoniel Ahod and Ieptha Barac Samuel And th' Heathen's scourge triumphant Gedeon 10 That great King-Prophet Poet Conqueror Dauid Sweet Psalmograph Asa that Idols brake He that made all the Idol-altars quake Iosias And after did the Paschal Lamb restore 11 Iehosaphat Ioathan Azarias And he whose life the Lord did dis-abbridge Whom Heav'nly arms from Assur did vnsiedge The most religious match-less Ezechias 12 Wise
to digest Whose tongue is still true Trumpet of the minde A body testing when it hath no rest A waxen mildnes in a steely minde A soule tra-lucent in an open brest Which others thoughts through boany wals can finde Whose front reflects maiestical-humillity Whose graue-sweet looke commandingly-intreats Which in one instant fear and loue begets A King still warring to obtain tranquillity To saue his Country scorning thousand dangers Mirrour of Fraunce and miracle of Strangers SONNET 15. If that before thee fall rebellious Towers If battered walls before thy Souldiers loofe If hugest Rocks be pearced by thy powers If 'gainst thine Armes no armour be of proof If that our fields flowe with Iberian blood If that thy Campe compos'd of many a Caesar Can by no dismall dangers be withstood Iousting with Gyants as it were at pleasure If lofty Mountains to thine homage vail If valleys rise to bulwarke thee about If for thy sake rivers doo flowe and fail 'T was neither Canons nor our conflicts stout Nor strength nor stomack got these victories No 't was thy presence Henry and thine eyes SONNET 16. They be to blame then that thy boldnes blame For having put thy self so oft in danger Sith against Rebels and against the Stranger Thy looks like lightning did thy Troops inflame Fraunce fought before all bloody faint and lame Craving thine aid to venge her hatefull wrong When like a Lion to preserue her yong Thou lay'dst about thee to redeem the same Then had'st thou cause to hazard so thy life In extream perils extream remedies But spare thee now thy State is free from strife Soveraign our safety in thy safety lies Codrus could keep his onely by his death Thou thine alone by thine owne living breath SONNET 17. What wreath were worthy to becom thy Crown What Carr-Triumphant equall with thy worth What marble statue meet for thy renown Thou that hast rais'd the Lilly of the Earth What honourable Title of Addition Dost thou deserue who ioyning might with mildenes Hast sav'd this great Ship from a sad perdition Nigh lost in th' Ocean of warrs civill wildenes O modern Hercules thy Countries Father Hope not of vs thy iust-deserved meed Earth is too-base in Heav'n expect it rather Our Laurels are too-pale to crown thy deed Who thus hast salv'd the vniversall Ball For th' health of Fraunce imports the health of all SONNET 18. Pardon me Henry if Heav'ns siluer raine Dewing thy Pearles impearle mine humble Laies And if my verse void both of price and paine Presume thy Vertues passing-price to praise Pardon great King if that mine Infant Muse Stutter thy name and if with skill too-scant I limne thee heare let zeale my crime excuse My steel's attracted by thine Adamant For as the Sunne although he doo reflect His golden Rayes on grosser Elements Doth neuer spot his beautiful aspect So though the praises of thine Excellence Doo brightly glister in my gloomie stile They nothing lose of their first grace the while SONNET 19. Now sith as well by conquest as succession France is thine owne O keepe it still therefore 'T is much to conquer but to keepe possession Is full as much and if it be not more Who well would keepe so plentifull a portion Must stablish first the Heav'nly Discipline Then humane Lawes restraining all extortion And Princely wealth with publike weale combine A Princes safety lyes in louing People His Fort is Iustice free from Stratagem Without the which strong Cittadels are feeble The Subiects loue is wonne by louing them Of louing them n' oppression is the triall And no oppression makes them euer loyall SONNET 20. Bold Martialists braue Imps of noble birth Shining in steele for Fraunce and for your King Yee Sonnes of those that heretofore did bring Beneath their yoke the pride of all the earth It is an honour to be high-descended But more t' haue kept ones Country and fidelitie For our owne vertues make vs most commended And Truth 's the title of all true Nobilitie Your shoulders shoar'd vp Fraunce euen like to fall You were her Atlas Henry Hercules And but for you her shock had shaken All But now she stands stedfast on Ciuill PEACE Wherefore if yet your war-like heat doo worke With holy Armes goe hunt the hatefull Turk SONNET 21. But you that vaunt your antike Petigrees So stately tymbring your surcharged shields Perking like Pines aboue the lower Trees Ouer the Farmers of your neighbour fields Is' t lack of loue or is it lack of courage That holds you Snaile-like creeping in your houses While ouer all your Countries Foes doo forrage And rebell out-rage euery corner rouses If no example of your Ancesters Nor present instance of bright-armed Lords The feeble Temper of your stomack stirres If in your liues yee neuer drew your swords To serue your King nor quench your Countries flames Pardon me Nobles I mistooke your names SONNET 22. You sacred Order charg'd the Church to watch And teach the holy Mysteries of Heav'n From hence-forth all seditious plots dispatch And Father-like to all be alwaies euen Through superstition stirre to strife againe Reuolts a mischiefe euermore pernicious Pluck vp abuses and the hurtfull graine Sprung from the Ignorant and Auaricious Auoid Ambition common cause of strife Your reuerend Robe be free from staines of blood Preach holy Doctrine prooue it by your life Fly Idlenes choose exercises good To wit all workes of liuely faith and pietie So to your fold shall flock the blest Societie SONNET 23. You graue assembly of sage Senators Right Oracles yee Ephori of Fraunce Who for the States and Iustice maintenance Of Sword and Balance are the Arbitrers That from hence-forth against all enemies Our PEACE may seat her in a setled Throne Represse the malice of all mutinies Which through th' aduantage of these times haue growne At a lowe tyde 't is best to mend a breach Before the flood returne with violence 'T is good in health to counsaile with a Leach So while a People's calme from insolence 'T is best that Rulers bridle them with awe And for the future curbe the lewd with law SONNET 24. People lesse setled then the sliding sand More mutable then Proteus or the Moone Turn'd and return'd in turning of a hand Like Euripus ebbe-flowing euery Noone Thou thousand-headed head-les Monster-most Oft slaine like Antheus and as oft new rising Who hard as steele as light as winde arttost Chameleon-like each obiects colour prysing Vnblinde thy blinde soule opethine inward sight Be no more Tinder of intestine flame Of all fantastike humors purge thy spright For if past-follies vrge yet griefe and shame Lo like Obliuions law to cure thy passion State-stabling Peace brings froward minds in fashion SONNET 25. Engins of Uulcan Heav'n-affrighting wonders Like brittle glasse the Rocks to cyndars breaking Deafning the windes dumbing the loudest thunders May yee be bound a thousand yeeres from speaking Yee hate-peace Hacksters flesht in Massacres Be you for euer banisht from our
in the Re-prise 3 Hernand was happy by this Enterprise To take so soon our Amiens without blow More happy yet to die yer the Re-prise Els had he dy'de for shame to leave it so Vpon the Reduction of Nantes Nantes would not yeeld so soon they sayd Nor be recovered so good cheap And yet for all defence it made 'T was made to make the Britton Leap Vpon PEACE ◠Souldiers late prest are now supprest Crost and cassierd from further pay Yet will they in this time of rest Take vp their lendings by the Way 2 This PEACE it seemeth doth not sound To all the world for every-where More Sergeants now doo goe the Round Then Souldiers yerst accustom'd were Vpon Captain Coblar A merry Coblar left the warrs To turn vnto his Occupation And asked by his Customers The reason of his alteration 'T hath pleas'd quoth he the King t'ordain That each his Office take again Upon Warre Here vnder this huge heap of stones Lately enterr'd lyes cruell WARRE Pray God long rest her soule and bones Yet there is nothing worse for her Upon Rowland Rob-Church Heer lyeth Rowland that was lately slain In robbing of a wealthy Chappell spyde Yet I beleeue he doth in Heav'n remain Sith onely for the Churches Good he dyde Upon Captaine Catch Heer vnder Captain CATCH is layd Who sixe times chang'd from side to side Of neither side it seem'd afraid He wore a white Scarfe when he di'de Yet som suspect and so doo I For his inconstance showne before That to the Black-band he did fly But now he can revolt no more Upon Sir Nequam Neuter Heer lyeth he who the more safe to pray On both sides Neuter between both abode Whether his Soule is gone I can not say Sith he was nor for Diuell nor for God Pax omnibus vna FINIS A l'honeur de la Paix chantée par Monsieur du NESMF rechantée en Anglois par Monsieur SYLVESTRE SAns Paix rien ne sub siste en Paix tout croist dure Dieu maintient par sa Paix le beau Grand Vniuers Et le Petit bastis de membres si diuers Touts s'entr ' aydans l'vnl ' autre en commune facture Elle vnit a son Dieu l'humaine creature Elle emplit de Citez les Royaumes deserts Elle bride les fols rend les champs couverts De biens donans plaisirs vesture nouriture Enuoy-la donc O Dieu a nos Princes Roys En nos maisons en nous fay que d'vne voix Nous suyvions les accords de ton Nesme admirable Lors a iamais ser as louè de nos Gaulois Par ses chants tout-divins Syluestre en Anglois Redoublerace loz d'vn stile immitable P. CATELLE I'attens le temps THE PROFIT of Imprisonment A PARADOX Written in French by Odet de la Noue Lord of Teligni being Prisoner in the Castle of Tournay Translated by IOSVAH SYLVESTER Acceptam refero To his long-approoued friend M. R. Nicolson I. S. wisheth euer all true content TO thee the same to me as first I meant Friend to the Muses and the well-inclinde Louing and lov'd of euery vertuous minde To thee the same I the same Song present Our mutuall loue 's eternall Monument Wherein our Nephewes shall heer-after finde Our constant Friendship how it was combinde With linkes of kindnes and acknowledgement Accept again this Present in good part This simple pledge of my sincere affection To Tangley Thee and thy Soon-calm-in-hart Perfect good-will supplies all imperfection Chameleons change their colour Guile her game But in both Fortunes Vertue 's still the same A Sonnet of the Author to his Booke THe body ouer prone to Pleasures and delights Of soft fraile dainty flesh and to selfe-ease addicted Abhors Imprisonment as a base paine inflicted To punish the defaults of most vnhappy wights The soule as much surpriz'd with loue of heauenly sights And longing to behold the place that appertaines-her Doth loath the body as a Prison that detaines-her From her high happines among the blessed sprights Then sith both body and soule their bondage neuer brooke But soule and body both doo loue their libertie Tell tell me O my Muse who will beleeue our Booke He that hath learn'd a-right both these to mortifie And serue our Sauiour Christ in body and in spirite Who both from thrall hath freed by his owne only merit A Paradox That Aduersity is more necessary then Prosperitie and that of all afflictions close Prison is most pleasant and most profitable HOw-euer fondly-false a vain Opinion seeme If but the Vulgar once the same for right esteeme Most men account it so so in absurdest things Consent of multitude exceeding credit brings Nor any meane remaines when it is once receiued To wrest it from the most of erring minds deceiued Nay whose shall but say they ought to alter it He headlong casts himselfe in dangers deepest Pit For neuer nimble Barke that on aduenture runnes Through those blew bounding Hills where hoarie Neptune wunnes Was set-vpon so sore with neuer-ceast assault Maintain'd on euery side by winds and waters salt When raging most they raise their roughest tempest dreaded As th' idiot multitude that Monster many-headed Bestirres it selfe with wrath spight furie full of terror Gainst whatsoeuer man that dares reproue her error Who vndertakes that taske must make account at first To take hot warres in hand and beare away the worst Therefore a many Workes worthy the light haue died Before their birth in brests of Fathers terrified Not by rough deeds alone but euen by foolish threats Yet onely noise of words base cowards onely beats Then feare who list for me the common peoples crie And who so list be mute if other-minded I Scorning the feeble force of such a vaine indeuour Will freely spight of feare say what I censure euer And though my present State permit me not such scope Mine vn-forbidden pen with Errors pride shall cope Close Prison now a-daies th' extreamest miserie The world doth deeme I deeme direct the contrarie And there-with-all will proue that euen Aduersities Are to be wished more then most Prosperities And for Imprisonment though that be most lamented Of all the griefes wherewith men feare to be tormented Yet that 's the Sate most stor'd with pleasure and delight And the most gain-full too to any Christian wight A Paradox no doubt more true then creditable The which my selfe sometimes haue also thought a fable While guile-full vanities fed not but fill'd my minde For strengthening sustenance with vn-substantiall winde I hated Death to death I also did detest All sicknes and disease that might a man molest But most I did abhorre that base esteemed State Which to subiections Law our selues doth subiugate And our sweet life enthralls vnto anothers will For as my fancie wisht I would haue walked still Death thought I soone hath done and euery griefe besides The more extreame it is the lesser time abides But now besides that I esteemd the
prisoners trouble Much worse me thought the time his martyrdome did double So that to scape that scourge so irk some to my hart I could haue beene content to suffer any smart Lo by blind ignorance how iudgements are mis-led Now that full thirtie monthes I haue experienced That so-much-feared ill 't is now so vs'd to me That I a prisoner liue much more content and free Then when as vnder cloake of a false freedome vaine I was base slaue indeede to many a bitter paine But now I see my selfe mockt euery-where almost And feeble me alone met by a mightie hoast Of such as in this case doo not conceiue as I But doo esteeme themselues offended much thereby And therefore Father deere this weake abortiue Child For refuge runnes betweeneth ' armes of his Grand-sire mild If you accept of it my labour hath his hire For careles of the rest all that I heere desire Is onely that yourselfe as in a Glasse may see The Image of th' estate of my Captiuitie Where though I nothing can auaile the Common-weale Yet I auaile my selfe atleast some little deale Praising th' all-powerfull Lord that thus vouch safes to poure Such fauours manifold vpon meeuery houre Wherof your self yer while so sweet sure proof haue tasted In cruell bitternes of bands that longer lasted Now I beseech his Grace to blesse mine enterprise My heart and hand at once to gouerne in such wise That what I write may nought displeasing him containe For voide of his sweet aide who works he works in vaine Within the wide-spred space of these round Elements Whatsoeuer is indewd with liuing soule and sense Seekes of it selfe selfe-good this instinct naturall Nature her selfe hath grauen in harts of Creatures all And of all liuing things from largest to the least Each one to flie his ill doth euermore his best Thereof it comes we see the wilde Horse full of strength Tamely to take the bit into his mouth at length And so by force we tame each most vntamed beast Which of it selfe discreet of euils takes the least And though that that which seemes to be his chiefe restraint He often-times despise that 's by a worse constraint As when the Lyon fierce feare-lesse pursues the shining Of bright keen-piercing blades and 's royal crest declining Full of the valiant Fire that courage woonts to lend Runnes midst a million swords his whelplings to defend More fearing farre that they their libertie should lose Than on himselfe the smart of thousand wounding blowes But all things haue not now the selfe same goods and ils What helpeth one the same another hurts and kils There 's ods between the good that sauage Beasts do like And that good good indeed which soul-wiseman must seek When Beasts haue store of food and free from foe's annoy Smart-lesse and sound and safe may as they list enioy Their fill of those delights that most delight the sense That that 's the happines that fully them contents But reasonable soules as God hath made mankind Can with so wretched Good not satisfie their mind But by how much the more their inly sight excels The brutish appetite of euery creature els So much more excellent the good for which they thirst Man of two parts is made the body is the worst The Heav'n-born soule the best wherein mans blisse abides In body that of beasts nought hauing els besides This body stands in need of manie an accessorie To make it somewhat seeme the soule receiues this glory That selfly she subsists and her aboundant wealth Vnlike the bodies store is euer safe from stealth Our body took his birth of this terrestriall clod Our spirit it was inspir'd of th' inly breath of God And either of them still striues to his proper place This earth-born stoopes to earth that stics to heauen apace But as the silly bird whose wings are wrapt in lime Faine but in vaine attempts to flie full many a time So our faire soule surcharg'd with this foule robe of mud Is too-too often held from mounting to her GOOD She striues she strikes sometimes she lifts her vp aloft But as the worser part we see preuaileth oft This false fraile flesh of ours with pleasure's painted lure Straight makes her stoop againe downe to the dust impure Happy who th' honour hath of such a victory He crowns his conquering head with more true maiesty Then if he had subdued those Nations by his might Which doo discouer first Aurora's early light And those whom Phoebus sees from his Meridian Mount Th' Anti-podes and all more then the sand to count For small the honour is to be acknowledg'd King And Monarke of the world ones selfe vn-maistering But each man on his head this Garland cannot set Nor is it giuen to all this victorie to get Onely a very few Gods deere-belov'd Elect This happy Goale haue got by Vertues lyue effect Therest soon weary of this fame so painfull War Like well of Heauen but loue the earth aboue it far Some drunk with poysony dregs of worldly pleasures brute Know where true good consists but neuer doo ensue't Some doo ensue the same but with so faint a heart That at the first assault they doo retire and start Some more courageous vow more then they bring to passe So much more easie 't is to say then doo alas And all through too-much loue of this vaine worlds alâ—urements Or too-much idle feare of sufferings and endurements Meerevanities whereto the more men doo incline The farther-off they are from their chiefe Good diuine Therefore so many think themselues so miserables Therefore the aire is fill'd with out-cries lamentable Of such as doâ— disdaine the thing that better is To entertaine the worse with forfeit of their blisse Therefore we see those men that riches doo possesse Afflicted still with care and therefore heauinesse Abandons neuer those that fed with honours fill Fawne vpon Potentates for â—litting fauours still And cause God wot they haue to be at quiet neuer Sith their felicitie is so vncertaine euer Neither are Kings themselues exempted from vexation How-euer Soueraignesway they beare in any Nation For now they wish to win anon feare losse no lesse Yea though for Empire they did this wide world possesse Not one of them withall could full contented be For how man more attaines the more attempteth he Who therfore couets most such soon-past goods vncertain Shall ne'r enioy the ioy of goods abiding certain But who so seeks to build a true content to last On else-what must else-where his first foundation cast For all things here below are apt to alter euer Heere 's nothing permanent and therefore whosoeuer Trusts thereto trusteth to a broken staffe for stay For no earth's vanity can blesse a man for aye We must to make vs blest our firme assurance found Els-where then in this world this change-inthralled ground We must propose our selues that perfect perish-les That true vnfained good that good all danger-les From th' vniust
his wretchednes he sooner comes to knowe That from worlds vanities he may himselfe aduance Which hold all those frō heauen that still delight that dance He feares not those at all that with their vtmost might Hauing the body slaine can do no farther spight But onely him that with ten thousand deaths can kill The soule and body both for euer if he will He knowes it is their lot that seek to please their God To be afflicted still with persecutions rod So that what euer crosse how euer sharpe assaile-him His constant harts-content and comfort cannot faile-him But he must die say you alas can that dismay Where is the Labourer that hauing wrought all day Amid the burning heat with wearinesse oppresl Complaines that night is come when he shall goe to rest The Marchant that returnes from some far for raine Lands Escaping dreadfull rocks and dangerous shelfs and sands When as he sees his ship her home-hauen enter safe Will he repine at God and as offended chafe For being brought too soon home to his natiue soil Free from all perils sad that threaten Saylours spoile He knowes frō thousand deaths that this one death doth lose him That in heauens euer-ioyes he euer may repose-him That he must bring his Bark into this Creeke before In th' euerlasting Land he can set foot a-shoare That he can neuer come to in-corruption Vnles that first his flesh doo feele corruption So that all rapt with ioy hauing his helpe so readie This ship-wrack he escapes as on a rock most steddie But more perhaps then death the kind of death dismaieth Which serues him for a bridge that him to heauen cōuaieth Whether he end his dayes by naturall disease Or in a boysterous storme do perish on the Seas Or by the bloody hands of armed foes be slaine Or by mischance a stone fall downe and dash his braine Or by the murdering ball of new-found earthly thunder By day or els by night his bones be pasht a-sunder Or burned at a stake or bitterly tormented By cruell slaughter-men in tortures new-inuented Alas alas for that much-lesse then least he careth For as a man falne downe into a Pit he fareth Who if he may be drawne vp from the noisom place Where Adders Toades and Snakes crawle ouer feet face Respects not whether that ye vse a silken skaine Hemp-rope or chaine of gold so he get vp againe Euen so so he may come to his desired blisse The maner and the meanes to him in different is As for the differing paine if any him doo torture If it be violent he knowes it is the shorter But be it n'er so long long sure it cannot last To vs whose Post-like life is all so quickly past Now such a man in whom such firme contents do hyue Who can denie to be the happiest man aliue And who so impudent that dareth now professe That this worlds fained sweet whose vnfain'd bitternesse Brings to this very life full many torments fell And after dingeth downe to th' endles paine of Hell Should be prefer'd before these seeming-sowrs that make vs Taste many true-sweet sweets yer this dead life forsake vs And after lift vs vp to that same blessed ioy That euermore shall last exempt from all annoy So few there will be found as I suppose so deeming As many which more fear'd with these ills falsly-seeming Than inlie falne-in-loue with Heauen-ioyes excellence Approouing this estate flye't as the pestilence And yet in this estate is found felicity As far foorth as it may amid the vanity Of this frail fading world where ech thing hourly changes For neuer from itselfe true happinesse estranges It neuer doth decay it neuer doth decrease Inspight of angry Warre it euer liues in peace Maugre poore want it hath ten thousand kinds of wealth Amid infirmities it hath continuall health Inuiron'd round with woe it doth reioyce and sing Depriv'd of dignities it 's greater than a King It sits secure and safe free from hart-pining feares For euer with it selfe it all deere treasures beares Not needing any aide of men-of-armes to watch them Nor fearing fraud nor force of any foe to catch-them Whereas we daily see so many men whose mind To transitorie trash of world-wealth is inclinde In their aboundance beg and in their plenty poore For who hath had so much that hath not wished more No treasures can suffice the gulfe of their desire Yea make them Emperours yet will they more aspire Peace cannot pacifie the fell rebellious broyle That in their troubled soule doth euer burne and boyle For euery short content of any false delight A thousand bitter throwes torment them day and night All their estate doth stand abroad in hands of Strangers Therfore the more their wealth the more their daily dāgers The more their miseries because the more they need Much strength and many men vnto their hoords to heed Dreading with cause least craft and cruelty or either Bereaue them of their blisse and treasure both together Needs must we then confesse that in aduersity There is more happines then in prosperitie Sith that the minde of man so soone it selfe betrayes Vnto the guilefull snares that worldly pleasure layes Which make vs at the last head-long to Hell to runne All which aduersitie doth make vs safely shunne But here it may be askt if pleasure state and store Plunging vs in the Pit of vices more and more Be subiect so to make vs more and more accurst Must we esteeme that griefe which sense esteemeth worst More fit to better vs and bring vs vnto blisse Then those whose smarting sting is not so strong as this Sure sith that in ourselues our cause originall Of blisse and bale we hide it matters not at all For still the faithfull man one and the same remains Whether the grief be great or little he sustains Sith how so e're it be he takes occasion thence To seek in God alone his comfort and defence But for because our soule the while she doth consort With this grosse fleshly lump cannot but in som sort Suffer as sensible yea oftentimes so far That her best functions all lesse apt and able are Than els at other times I doo suppose the proof Of one then other ill auailes more in behoof That this is so we see a sick-man oft to finde Such ioyfull quietnes and comfort in his minde That he esteems himselfe the best content a-liue But yet the sharpe disease which doth his health depriue With-holdeth in som sort his senses and his wit That freely other-where he cannot vse them fit And so it fares with him that through-resolued well Endures the cruell strains of any torture fell Now for the banisht man the changing of his dwelling Neuer disturbes his ioy And he whose wealth excelling Turns in a trice to want by whatsoeuer chaunce His courage never shrinks nor yet his countenaunce So that in their content all foure are all a-like A-like reioycing all in their afflictions eke A-like
tools To help our knowledge with as in all other Shools God euer cares for those that fear his name for loue And if that any such such inconvenience proue If any money need or els through ample distance Be destitute of friends he gets them for assistance The fauour of their foes whose harts he handles so How euer they intend his childrens ouerthrowe That his of what they need haue euermore inough According as he knowes to be to their behoof Now say that we consent say som that this is true But what if somwhat worse then all this worst ensue What if he be enforc't his Countrey to forsake What if continuall fits his sickly body shake What if he lose at once his wealth and reputation Repleat on euery side with euery sharp vexation Can he still keep his ioy and can he still retain Such means to profit still for all his grief and pain Concerning his content it 's alwayes all a-like Whether that euery grief particularly strike Or whether all at once he feel their vt most anger And if he be surpris'd with so extream a languor That as I sayd before the spirit it in force Through suffering of the smart that doth afflict the corps To leaue his Offices so that he cannot write Nor read nor meditate nor study nor indight It is so quickly past that in comparison Regarding so great good 't is not to think vpon For by a mighty grief our life is quickly ended Or els by remedy itself is soon amended And if it be but mean then is it born the better And so vnto the soule it is not any letter Besides we must conceiue our spirit as opprest With fainting wearines somtimes desireth rest To gather strength again during which needfull pawse We are not to be blam'd sith need the same doth cause So that the time that 's lost while such sharp pangs do pain May be suppos'd a time of taking breath again In prison to conclude a man at once may tâ—â—e All manner of extreams of earthly misery In which respect perhaps the worsesom deem of it Being as 't were the Butt that all men striue to hit But I esteem the same the perfecter for that For if one crosse alone can make vs eleuate Our groueling earth-desires from cogitations base To haue recourse to God and to implore his grace Seeking in him alone our perfect ioy and blisse Much more shall many griefs at once accomplish this For many can doo more then one without respect And still the greater cause the greater the effect Indeed say other-som these reasons haue som reason But then whence comes it that so many men in Prison With hundred thousand pains pincht and oppressed sore In steed of bettering there wax worser then before In steed of sweet content doo still complain and crie In steed of learning more lose former industry Though in apparance great your sayings seem but iust Yet plain experience sure we think is best to trust That hidden vertue â—are that so great good atchiues Lies in the Prisoners hart not in his heauy Gyues The good growe better there the bad become the wurse For by their sinne they turn Gods blessing into curse And that 's the cause the most are mal-content and sad Sith euer more the good are fewer then the bad But wherefore doth not God to all vouchsafe this grace Proud earth-worms pawse we there let 's fear before his face Admiring humbly all his holy Iudgements high Exceeding all too far our weak capacitie The Potters vessell vile doth vs our lesson showe Which argues not with him why he hath made it so Much less may we contend but rather rest content With that which God hath giuen He is omnipotent All gracious and all good most iust and perfit wise On som he poures a Sea of his benignities On som a shallow Brook on other som a Flood Giuing to som a small to som a greater Good As from eternity hath pleas'd th' eternall Spirit To loue men more or lesse without respect of merit For my part should I liue ten Nestoâ—s yeers to passe Had I a hundred tongues more smooth then Tully's was Had I a voice of steel and had I brazen sides And learning morâ— then all the Helyconian guides Yet were I all too-weak to tell the many graces That in ten thousand sorts and in ten thousand places Ten hundred thousand times he hath vouchsafed me Not for my merits sake but for his mercy free But yet 'mong all the goods that of his liberall bounty I haue receiv'd so oft none to compare accoumpt-I With this close prisonment wherein he doth with-drawe-me Far from the wanton world and to himself doth draw-me I posted on apace to ruin and perdition When by this sharp-sweet Pil my cunning kinde Physition Did purge maugre my will the poysony humor fell Where with my sin-sick hartalâ—oady gan to sivell I lookâ— for nothing lesse then foâ— these miseries And pains that I haue provid the worlds vain vanities Had so seduç'tany soule with baits of sugred bane That it was death to me from pleasure to be tane But crossing my request God for my profit gaue Me quite the contrary to that which I did craue So that my body barring from a freedom small He set my soule at large which vnto sinne was thrall Wounding with musket-shot my feeble arme he cur'd The festring sores of sinne the which my soule endur'd Tripping me from the top of som mean dignity Which drew me vpto climbe the Mount of vanity He rais'd me from the depth of vices darksom Cell The which incessantly did ding me down to Hell Easing me to conclude of all the grief and care Wherewith these false delights forever sauced are He made me finde and feel amid my most annoyes A thousand true contents and thousand perfect ioyes But som perhaps amaz'd wil muse what kinde of pleasure Here I can take and how I passe my time and leasure For in foule idlenes to spend so large a time It cannot be denied to be a grieuous crime First in the morning when the spirit is fresh and fit I suck the honey sweet from foorth the sacred VVrit Wherein by faith we taste that true celestiall bread Whence our immortall soules are euer onely â—ed Then search I out the sawes of other sage Diuines The best here to be had among whose humainlines Supported by the grace of Gods especiall power I leaue the thorn behinde and pluck the healthsom flower Somtimes I doo admire in books of Heathen men Graue-sayings sauoring more a sacred Christian pen Than many of our age whose bold vnlearned pride Thinking to honour God hath err'd on euery side Sometimes when I obserue in euery ancient storie Such vertues presidents trim patterns of true glory I wofully bewaile our wretched wicked dayes Where vertue is despis'd and vice hath all the praise Oft I lament to see so many noble Wits Neglecting Gods high praise that best
feeds Divined truely it should never die Then what shall This that far the same exceeds He labour'd Lines which though they doe endure All turns of Time yet was their Stuf profane But These are drawne of STVF more heavenly-pure That most shall shine when Those are in the wane He though his Braines profanely were diuine And glorious Monuments of Art compos'd Was yet exil'd for many a looser Line That made them wantons chastly else dispos'd But Thou cleer BARTAS his dear SYLVESTER Whose Lines do lead to VERTVES only gain And with sweet Poesies strew'st the way to Her How should the World remunerate thy pain And if from Hearts Aboundance Tongues do speak And what we most affect we most do minde It argues thou this Argument didst seek Sith in thy Soule before thou didst it finde So BARTAS was but Mid-wife to thy Muse With greater ease to vtter her Conceits For whose deare birth thou didst all ease refuse Worlds-weal and being a Marchant thy Receits This pain so pleas'd thy labouring Thoughts that thou Forsook'st the Sea and took'st thee to the Soil Where from thy royall Trade thou fell'st to Plow Arts furrows with thy Pen that yeeld but toyl This stole thee from thy self thy self to finde In sacred Raptures on the Muses Hill And went'st out of thy Body with thy Minde More freely so to vse thy Wit and Will And O! how hapless had we Briâ—tans been Sith heer is stor'd such sweet Soule rauishments Hadst thou not made them to vs clearly seen Who giue thee for it praising Discontents If so great Art and Grace finde nought but Fame Of famous Men for grace the Press shall be Prest but for Vices Seruice Sourse of Shame So Times to come in Print our shame shall see But O bee 't farre from this so famous Isle For Armes and Learning either to neglect Sit it doth grace and glory quite exile And is the cause of many a bad effect O terren Gods as ye to State aspire Lift Learning vp with you especially If matcht with Wisedom and divine desire So shall yetwice be like the DEITY And weigh what powr the PENS of such possess Of such for others will but gild your Crimes Their PENS eternize can your worthiness And make ye glorious past succeeding Times But you do iustly to neglect and scorn The cursed crue that do the Muse abuse For they your praises to dispraises turn As Vice in praysing VERTVES grace doth vse Their wine-driuen Braines inuolv'd in Follies Cloud Fly here and there and where not with a trice And though both Beggars base yet passing proude Constant in nothing but in constant Vice Making loose lines forsooth their Scala Coeli A Tauerne for a Temple to adore Their only god their guts their beastly Belly To whom they offer all their slender Store The Laudes of such are odious like their Lives They Pitch pollute what-ere they do but touch Whose glory to the fowlest shame arrives Then well you fence your fame to keep off such But they whose liues and lauds and lines are SOVRCE Of Morall vertue running by each stone Men High and Hard that let them in their Course To Seas of glory like cleere Helicon O! these ye should support and still receiue Into the Ocean of your bound-less love For these like truest Friends will take and give No more but what true Vertue shall approve If these should pine away through your neglect Your memories shall dy or live with shame Sith such a Muse is the chief Architect To reare from Earth to Heav'n a lasting NAME Achilles fame with him had been interr'd Had HOMER'S lines notty'd it to the Starrs And of Aeneas we had never heard Had Virgils STRAINES not been his Trumpetters One of the NINE had been our Warwick's GVY The NINE whose worth all Times so much commend And so disrankt great BVLLENS GODFEREY Had he but had a TASSO for his friend LAVRA had nere so greenly growen above Hir Peeres as now she doth to after-times Had she not had a PETRARCH to hir Love Which made hir mount with Nâ—TCTAR dropping Rimes No no ye cannot but out-liue your Eame If yev phold not FAME'S best Notaries If these yescorn your glory is but game For when ye dye in game your glory dies And though blest PHACE hath turnd our Spears to Spades Let it not turn our Pens to Ploughes or worse By Learning som should live as som by Trades In blessed STATES that would incur no curse Where Vertue is not rais'd and Vice supprest There all to Vice will run and so to wrack For then the worst shall Lord it ore the best And where that is all goes to vtter sack Reward and Punishment like Armes of Steel Do still vphold each KING vpholding STATE For neither wants but it begins to reel But both imploy'd stands sure in spight of Hate Then may thy HOPES wingd by thy virtuous Muse Dear Syluester expect some cherishment In this blest State that still those Armes will vse To staie her Grace and grace her Gouernment But if thy paines acquire but pure renowne Thou art Christ's Image crost for Glories crown Beneficium dando accipit qui digno dedit The vnfained louer of thine Art honesty and vertue IOHN DAVIES of Hereford FINIS A briefe Index explayning most of the hardest words scattered through this whole Worke for ease of such as are least exercised in these kinde of readings A A Bysse a gulfe or bottomles pit Abderian Abderite Democritus the laughing Philosopher of Abdera a citie in Thracia Aben-Roes a learned Philosopher of Corduba sprung from Arabian parents Abidus Leanders Towne Academian Shades Platos Schoole Aceberon a riuer in Hell Acconite Libbards or Wolfes bane Achilles the most valiant captain of the Myrmidons Adonis a most beautiful yong man beloued of Venus Adrian Sea the gulfe of Uenice Adriatike Sea the gulfe of Uenice Aeson the father of Iaso made young againe by the skill of Medea Aethâ—riall heauenly Aesâ—ulapius an excellent Physician father of Apollo Africa the South-quarter of the World Aiax Shield a prouerb for asure defence Aiguescald a bath in Gasconie Alarbies and Alarbians wilde vpland Arabian theeues Albion England the I le of great Brittaine Alcestâ— the most chaste and louing wife of admetus that gaue her owne life to saue her husbands Alcides Hercules Alcides spires Hercules Pillers Alcides griefe the falling Sicknes Alcmaena the mother of Hercules Alcaron the Turks Law and Religion Aleband a Cittie in Caria of olde famous for the best Bowe-strings Alecto looke Furies Alexanders Altars were at the foot of the Ryphean Mountaines Almicâ—â—thâ—rats and Almadarats Arabian names of Circles which are imagined to passe through euerie degree of the Meridian Paralel to the Horizon vp to the Zenith Alhidade a Rule on the backe of the Astrelabe to measure heights breadths depths Amafrosse gutta serena a disease in the sinnewes of the Sight Amalthean Horne plenty of all things Amblygone a flat Triangle
saue vs at thy throne of mercy great Forgiue vs Lord and holde farre from vs all These plagues that on our heads are like to fall Alas what helpeth vs thy heavy stroke To binde our necks to such a servile yoke Wherewith th' Assyrian tyrants long haue grieved Thine Izak till their bondage thou relieved If so this natiue ground that new is tild If so these Hostries new with folke refild If so alas our chaste and modest Dames Our infants young our Virgins good of fames Should be a pray to Ammon and to Perse To Calde and the mutine Parthian fierse If that we see this Altar made prophane And witches it abuse with Idols vain Yet Lord if thou no pittie on vs take At least great God do for thy glories sake Haue pitie on this holy building now Where not a God hath sacrifice but thou Where not a God but thou hast residence To feel the sauour sweet of frankensence Hold back O Lord the Caldean cressets bright From these rich Cedar vaults of stately hight Preserue these vessels ornaments of gold From sacrilegious hands of neighbours bolde And let the blood of beasts before thy face Thy Iustice stay and grant thy seruants grace This prayer done the people went their way Then Ioachim conuen'd that present day The princes all of Iuda and them praid Gainst this mischief for counsell and thus sayd Companions if your former zeal remain If ardent loue to God ye still retain If wife or childe may cause your care or loue Which should the Centers of your senses moue If in your brests a noble hart doth bide Let deed bear witnes at this wofull tide For sauing God and your foresight in deed T is done t is done with vs and all our seed And after this th' Immortall shall not see This altar fume before his maiestee When th' Air is calme and still as dead and deaf Comparison And vnder Heav'n quakes not an aspin leaf When Seas are calme and thousand vessels fleet Vpon the sleeping seas with passage sweet And when the variant winde is still and lowne The cunning Pylot never can be knowne But when the cruell storme doth threat the Bark To drowne in deeps of pits infernall dark While tossing tears both father mast and sail While mounting seems the Azur sky to skail While driues perforce vpon som deadly shore There is the Pylot knowen and not before Alas I pray you then what care and strifes Haue we to keep our honours goods and lifes Forget not then the care of this same place Your countreyes weale Gods glory and his grace But humbly giue your selues into the hand Of God most high and with a holy brand Repurge your spirits from euerie hatefull sinne Which causeth God his Iustice to begin And see what may to God be agreeable For Iacobs weal and for you profitable This said an ancient traytour from his youth Who fostred gall in hart with hony in mouth Enforcing from his eyes som fained tear To cloke his malice spacke as ye shall hear My tongue me fails my hair for dread vp-starts My heavy spirit from pensiue corps departs The oration of a subtill worldling When I be think me of yone tyrant stout Who hath bed round the world with bloud about Approching threats our townes with fiery flames Our selfs with death dishonour to our Dames Yet when I call to minde the curtsie great That this great Lord doth vse who doth intreat Not onely those that beastiall are become And haue their hope in brutall Idols 〈…〉 But euen to zealous folke who do embrace The faith and law like vs of Abrams race Who being well aduisde did humbly sue His pardon and escap't his vengeance due Then thanke I God who sends vs such a foe As plagues the proude and lets the humble goe For we assoone shall vanquish him with teares As will be long to wrack him with our weares Then whil'st we may haue choise of eitherstate Of peace or warres his fauour or his hate Let vs not follow seeing skath at hand The follie of our fathers to gainstand But rather let vs beare another saile And serue his king as best for our availe But think not yet that I this counsell giue For craft or warrant forthy selfe to liue For I haue els my daies so neerely spent That for to dye I could be well content Th' Assyrian neede not in my brest to strike His fethred Dart nor yet his trembling pike Yea if my youth to me should eft returne And make my youthly bloode within me burne So honour I my God and country deare That for to dye for them I would not feare As Sampson did if so my death might yield The victory of the Uizroy and the field But most I feare least we with curious zeale Fight for the lawe yet fight against her weale Against our selfs to bring so great a wrack That proud and cruell tyrants shall vs sack And grow in pride suppressing Iudas strength For to contemne the glory of God at length For Israell being lost who shall ensue To render here to God deuotions due What people sparsâ—d on this earthly ball From Indian shoare to where the Sunne doth fall Or from the Climate of the northren blast Vnto that place where sommer ay doth last Hath God elect save Israell for his owne Vpon this Hill to have his glory showne At this the valiant Cambris of renowne With righteous rage grew pale and gan to frowne And brake the silence with a vehement stile His courage mov'd the Princes all the while Nay rather where I stand let ope the ground Quoth he to swallow me in pit profound Yea rather righteous Heav'n let firy blast Light on my head that thou on Sodom cast Ere I my malice cloke or oversile In giving Izac such a counsell vile For if the Leader of this folk profane Vpon our bodies onely sought to raigne Although that we haue dearely bought alway Our freedom from our first maternall day Which dearer is then gold for to be kept I would assent the holy Church except But since more pride this tyrants heart enroules To lay a greater burden on our soules Who are the vassels of that onely King That Thunder sends and scepters down doth thring ' Should we forget him who made vs of nought ' More then all wondrous things that he hath wrought Who treats and loues vs like our Father King Still vnder shadowes of his wondrous wing Will he that we receiue a Prince ambitious For God a gods contemner Nemrode vitious Whose beastly life is of so vile a fame That of a man he merits not the name Goe to goe to let men for men assaye With sword and shot to deale it as we may The victory lies not in mortall hands Nor barded horse nor force of armed bands These are but second instruments of God Who as him list may send them euen or od But if our soueraigne God willes such annoy That
Hyest that in taking away the chieftaine she might at one instant destroy all the Heathen Army Herein giuing example that the beginning and end of all high attempts ought to be grounded vpon the fauour and earnest calling vpon him without whome all wisedome and humaine force is nothing but winde and who contrariwise may by the most feeble instruments of the world execute things most incredible and incomprehensible to humaine capacity THE FOVRTH BOOKE of IVDITH THen wofull Iudith with her weeping ees Beholding Heav'n and prostrate on her knees Held vp her guiltlesse hands and God besought Discouv'ring him the secrets of her thought O God quoth she who armed with a spear Dan Symeon who reveng'd his sister dear Lend me the blade in hand that I may kill This Tyrant that exceeds all Sichems ill Who not contents to soyle the sacred bed Of wedlocke chaste but more with mischief led Entends thy holy name for to confound And race Solyma temple to the ground Ambitious Satrap he whose hope doth stand In mortall men led with vnrighteous hand Who rules a hundreth thousand stalworth steeds That combat craues and in our pastures feeds Not dreading thee who daunts both man and beast And kills and captiues them when they ween least Who strengths the poor and pridefull men down thrings And wracks at once the powers of puissant kings Grant gratious God that his bewitched wit May with my crisped hair be captiue knit Grant that my sweet regards may gall his hart With darts of loue to cause his endles smart Grant that these gifts of thine my beuty small May binde his furious rage and make him thrall Grant that my artificiall tongue may moue His subtill craft and snare his hart in loue But chiefly Lord grant that this hand of mine May be the Pagans scourge and whole ruine To th' end that all the world may knowe our race Are shrouded so in rampiers of thy grace That neuer none against vs durst conspire That haue not felt at last thy furious yre Euen so good Lord let none of these prophane Returne to drink of Euphrate nor Hytane Thus Iudith prayd with many-a trickling tear And with her sighs her words retrenched wear At night she left her chamber sole and cold Attyr'd with Ceres gifts and Ophir golde O siluer Diane regent of the night Darst thou appear before this lucent light This holy starre whose contr ' aspect most clear Doth stein thy brothers brightnes in his Sphear While thus she ment vnseen away to slyde Her pearls and Iewels caus'd her to be spyde The musk and ciuet Amber as she past Long after her a sweet perfume did cast A Carboncle on her Crystall brow she pight Whose firy gleams expeld the shady night Vpon her head a siluer crisp she pind Loose wauing on her shoulders with the wind Gold band her golden hair her yvry neck The Rubies rich and Saphirs blew did deck And at her eare a Pearle of greater valew Ther hong then that th' Egyptian Queen did swallew And through her collet shee shewde her snowie brest Her vtmost robe was colour blew Coelest Benetted all with twist of perfite golde Beseeming well her comely corps t'enfolde What else she wore might well been seen vpon That Queen who built the tours of Babylon And though that she most modest was indeed Yet borrowd she som garments at this need From Dames of great estate to that entent This Pagan Prince she rather might preuent Achior then who watched at the gate And saw this Lady passing out so late To Carmis spake who warded eke that night What is she this where goes this gallant wight So trim in such a time hath she no pitty Of this most wretched persecuted City Quod Carmis then their flowrisht heer of late Merari one that was of great estate Who had no childe but one and this is she The honour of that house and family The fathers now do venture body and soule That treasures vpon treasures they may roule But for the wit or learning neuer cairs That they should leaue to their succeeding hairs Like those that charely keeps their rich araye In coffers close and lets it there decay While that the naked bodies dyes for cold For whom the clothes are dearly bought and sold. But as the painfull plowman plyes his toyle Comparison With share and culter shearing through the soyle That cost him dear and ditches it about Or crops his hedge to make it vnder-sprout And neuer stayes to ward it from the weed But most respects to sowe therein good seed To th' end when sommer decks the medowes plain He may haue recompence of costs and pain Or like the maid who carefull is to keep The budding flowre that first begins to peep Out of the knop and waters it full oft To make it seemly showe the head aloft That it may when she drawes it from the stocks Adorne her gorget white and golden locks So wise Merari all his study stilde To facion well the maners of this childe That in his age he might of her retire Both honour and confort to his harts desire For look how soon her childish tongue could chat As children do of this thing or of that He taught her not to read inuentions vain As fathers dayly do that are profain But in the holy scriptures made her read That with her milke she might euen suck the dread Of the most high And this was not for nought Insomuch as in short time she out-brought Apparant fruites of that so worthy seed Which chaung'd her earthly nature far indeed As done the pots that long retains the taste Of licour such as first was in them plaste Or like the tree that bends his eldren braunch That way where first the stroke hath made him launch So see we wolfs and bears and harts full olde Som tamenes from their daunted youth to holde Thus ere the Moon twelf dosâ—n chaunges past Virginitie The maydens maners fair in form were cast For as the perfite pylot fears to runne Vpon the rocks with singling sheet doth shunne Cyanes straits or Syrtes sinking sands Or cruell Capharois with stormy strands So wisely she dishaunted the resort Of such as were suspect of light report Well knowing that th' acquaintance with the ill Corrupts the good And though they euer still Remain vpright yet som will quarrell pike And common bruit will deem them all alike For look how your Companions you elect For good or ill so shall you be suspect This prudent Dame delighted not in daunce Nor sitting vp nor did her selfe aduance In publike place where playes and banquets been In euery house to see and to beseen But rather vnderstanding such a trade Had been the wrack of many-a modest mayd Who following wandring Dina wanton dame Haue oft time put their noble house to shame She kept at home her fathers habitation Both day and night in godly conuersation She pitious Nurse applyde her painfull thought To serue and nourish
to battell drew Thus 'tweene them two did cruell war ensew Arphaxaâ— armed all the yles of Greece Where Iason was but sought no golden fleece But golden lingots with aboundant gaine Wher Phasis streame bedeawes the pleasant Plaine The Harmastans and Albans strong and wise That sowes but once and haue their haruest thrise The men that neer to Oxus banks abydes And those that Antitaurus horns diuydes And those that mans the mount vpon whose brest The ship that scap't the genrall flood did rest And those that are not hid within the Reame Wher proude Iaxartes flowes with furious streame In short the Medes brought men to ayde their plea From Pontus far beyond the Caspian sea And of this Hoste Arphaxat was commander With hope and heart more high then Alexander My prince desirous then to winne or dy Left nought vndone that furthred to supply His troubled state He armed Syttacene And waged Archers out of Osrohene Ye Lords of Lands that yelds the hundreth corne Leaue Euphrates and bounds where ye were borne Ye Carmans bolde that all on fish do feede And of their pelts do make your warlike weede Leaue Hytan bounds go seek the golden sands Ye Parths ye Cosses Arabs and ye lands That of your Magi Prophets thinks ye knowe Their spells diuine yourself for pâ—kmen showe O Calde chaunge thine Astrolab and square To speare and shield for we no wight will spare Of able age of high or lowe degrie That trails the pike or launce layes on his thie Let women Children and the burghers olde At home alone let them their houses holde We sommond eke the Persians and Phoenicians The soft Aegyptians Hebrews and Cilicians To come in haste and ioyne their force to ours But they disdainfully deteind their powrs And with their wicked hands and words vnsage They did our sacred messengers outrage My maister for a time putvp this wrong Attending time to quite these enmies strong With purpose more at leasure to prouide T' abate this sacrilegious peoples pride Two greater kings were neuer seen beforne Battell Then camped was in Ragau field at morne With hauty harts enarmed all in yre Ech soldier set another so on fire That scarsly they could keep them in their bound Till pipe or Cymball or the trumpets sound Denounce the choke but with their furious faces They thret their foes afarre with fell menaces And strokes at hand two thousand Lads forlorne To blunt the sword were down in battell borne Vpon their flanks flew feruently the stones That bet their bucklers to their brused bones The squadrons then steps sternly to the strokes With harts in humain all the battell yokes And are supplide with many mighty bands Som counters them and sternly them withstands With foot to foot ech other ouer plyes Both Meds and Caldes clasp with gastly cryes Like Nilus stream that from the rocks doth romble Or Encelade when he in tombe doth tomble Here som lies headles som that cannot stand Trails on his wombe and wants both foot and hand Cut off with stroks some perâ—'t throu plate and mails Some shoulder-â—lasht some panched in th' entrails Some brains outbet some in the guts were gor'd Some dying vomit blood and some were smor'd Some neither quick nor dead do yet attend What place it pleaseth God their soules to send So loth the little life that doth abyde Is from the dying body to diuide The ground that erst was yellow greene and blew Is ouercled with blood in purpure hew While this man giues some one his deadly baine He of another gets the like againe The rage encreasing growes with yrefull flame The field is spred with bodies dead and lame Like as ye see the wallowing sea to striue Flood after flood and waue with vvaue to driue Comparison Then waues with vvaues the floods with floods do chase And eft returnes vnto their former place Or like the crops of corne in mids of May Blowne vvith the vvestren wind aside doth sway Both to and fro as force doth them constraine And yet their tops redresseth vp againe So whiles the Syrians are by Medes displaced And whiles the Medes by Syrianâ— are rechased Then like two raging floods that down do fall From two contrarie mutine mountains tall Downe bearing bridge and bank and all destroyes And striues which one may do the most annoyes So these two kings in force and courage stout Excels the rest with slaughter them about Wherso they'preast they left on either side Behinde them two long opened wayes and wide For all their bucklers Moâ—ions and Quiraces Were of no proofe against their peisant maces Yet for the time the Medeâ— so fearcely fought That they th' Assyrian bands in terrour brought And pauld his soldiers harts and brak their might Who ouercome tooke them to shamefull flight The Medes pursewd and wounded in that chace Ten thousand men but none vpon the face In short this day our Scepter had depriued Had I not like the thunder dint arriued In battels brunt Their male and their vantbras Their helme and shield before my Coutelas Were fraile as glas and neuer a stroke I lent But deadly was and them more terrour sent Then all our camp The soldier then in feare With trembling hand could scarsly weild his speare The pal-hewd knight with hart in brest that quakes His thyes in saddle and feet in stirrops shakes For dread of me There some with trenchant glaiue From hight of head to middle down I claiue And some so farre I foyned through the Iack The blade aperde a foote behinde his back So that the Medes afrayd at such a thing In heat of fight they fled and left their king Who seing himself betrayd his clothes he rent And bloodie towards Ragau towne he went Where we him met yet Braue did him defend And sought amongst his foes a famous end As doth the Tyger wilde who sees her den Beset about with hunters dogs and men That turns her feare to furious raging rife And will not vnreuenged lose her life So he them thunderbet wherso he went That neuer a stroke in vaine his right hand spent But er with murdring blade they could him quell Full many-a bold precursor he sent to hell At last Arphaxat gan of slaughter tyre And wounded sore left both his life and yre And fell as doth some huge high planted oak That long hath byde the winds and many-a stroak Of many an axe yet stoutly doth sustaine Their trauels long and frustrats all their paine The roote doth sigh the dale doth roring sound And to the heauen the noyse doth high rebound His head now here now there seemes to incline And threats him here and there with great ruine Yet stands vpright aboue the highest okes Till vanquisht with a thousand thousand strokes He falls at last and brings with him to ground Both trees and cattell to the Plaine profound So with Arphaxat fell the Medes empyre My king the king of kings then in his yre Ras'd