thou not know that thou wert a creature, and hadst not the fan and castingshovel in thy own hand or power? 166. O, why do I pity thee, thou stinking goat? O thou cursed stinking devil! how hast thou spoiled us? How wilt thou excuse thyself? What wilt thou object to me? Objection. 167. Thou sayest, if thy fall had not been, man would never have been thought of.* * " never have been thought of " (erdacht worden), " thought out". St M. renders the idea very well: " n'eût pas été conçu dans l'imagination divine," " would not have been conceived in the divine imagination." Answer. O thou lying devil! Though that should be true, yet the Salitter out of which man is made (which is also from eternity, as well as that out of which thou art made), had stood in eternal joy and bright glory, and had likewise risen up in God, and had tasted of the gracious, amiable, blessed love in the seven spirits of God, and enjoyed the heavenly joy. 168. O thou lying devil, stay but a little, the spirit will discover thy shame to thee; tarry but a little while longer, and thy pomp, pride * and pageantry will be at an end. Stay, the bow is bent, the arrow will hit thee, and then whither wilt thou fall? The place is ready provided and prepared, it wanteth only to be kindled; wilt thou bring fuel ** lustily to it, that thou be not frozen with cold? Thou wilt sweat very hard: Dost thou suppose thou shalt obtain the light again? No, but hell fire. Smell thy sweet love, guess at it, what is that called? Gehenna; yes, that will be in love with thee eternally.
* "thy pomp, pride," etc., lit., "thy show will be over." ** " wilt thou bring fuel." The German form is more emphatic, being in the imperative mood, "only bring fuel," etc. 169. Woe, woe, poor miserable blinded man, why sufferest thou the devil to make thy body and soul so dark and blind? O temporal good, and the pleasure and voluptuousness of this life! thou blind whore, why dost thou go a wooing and a whoring to the devil? 170. O security! the devil watcheth for thee. O highmindedness! thou art a hellish fire. O beauty, pomp or bravery! thou art a dark valley. O potency of dominion! thou art a raging and a tearing of the hellish fire. O selfvindication or vengeance! thou art the fierce wrath of God. 171. O Man! why will the world be too narrow for thee? Thou wilt needs have it all for thyself; and if thou hadst it, thou wouldst not have room enough. O, this is the devil's highmindedness, who fell out of heaven into hell. 172. O man! alas, O man! why dost thou dance with the devil who is thine enemy? Art thou not afraid* that he will thrust thee into hell? Why dost thou go on so securely? Is it not a very narrow stick on which thou dancest? Under that small narrow bridge is hell! Dost thou not see how high thou art, and how dangerously and desperately thou goest? Thou dancest between heaven and hell. * "art thou not afraid," or "dost thou not care," or "art thou not mindful." 173. O thou blind man! how doth the devil mock at thee? O, wherefore dost thou trouble heaven? Dost thou think thou wilt not have enough in this world? O blind man! is not heaven and earth thine? Nay, God himself too? What dost thou bring into this world, or what dost thou take along with thee at thy going out of it? Thou bringest an angelical garment into this world, and with thy wicked life thou turnest it into a devil's mask or vizor. 174. O thou miserable man, return, the heavenly Father hath stretched forth both his arms and calleth thee; do but come, he will take thee into his love. Art thou not his child? He doth love thee. If he did hate thee, he must be at odds with himself. O no, it is not so: there is nothing in God but a merciful, amiable love and bright glory. 175. O ye watchmen of Israel! why do ye sleep? Awake from the sleep of whoredom, and dress or trim your lamps: The Bridegroom cometh, sound your trumpets. 176. O ye covetous, stiffnecked and drunken roisterers! how do you woo and go a whoring after the covetous devil? Thus saith the LORD, Will ye not feed my people which I have committed to your charge? 177. Behold I have set you upon Moses' chair, and entrusted you with my flock; but you mind nothing but the wool, and mind not my sheep, and therewith you build your great palaces. But I will set you on the stool of pestilence, and my own Shepherd shall feed my sheep eternally. 178. O thou fair world, how doth heaven complain of thee? How dost thou trouble the elements? O wickedness and malice! when wilt thou leave, and give over? Awaken! awaken! and bring forth, thou sorrowful woman; behold thy Bridegroom cometh, and requireth fruit at
you not know that you were a creature, and had not the fan and castingshovel in your own hand or power? 166. O, why do I pity you, you stinking goat? O you cursed stinking devil! how have you spoiled us? How will you excuse yourself? What will you object to me? Objection. 167. You say, if your fall had not been, man would never have been thought of.* * " never have been thought of " (erdacht worden), " thought out". St M. renders the idea very well: " n'eût pas été conçu dans l'imagination divine," " would not have been conceived in the divine imagination." Answer. O you lying devil! Though that should be true, yet the Salitter out of which man is made (which is also from eternity, as well as that out of which you are made), had stood in eternal joy and bright glory, and had likewise risen up in God, and had tasted of the gracious, amiable, blessed love in the seven spirits of God, and enjoyed the heavenly joy. 168. O you lying devil, stay but a little, the spirit will discover your shame to you; tarry but a little while longer, and your pomp, pride * and pageantry will be at an end. Stay, the bow is bent, the arrow will hit you, and then whither will you fall? The place is ready provided and prepared, it wants only to be kindled; will you bring fuel ** lustily to it, that you be not frozen with cold? You will sweat very hard: Dost you suppose you shall obtain the light again? No, but hell fire. Smell your sweet love, guess at it, what is that called? Gehenna; yes, that will be in love with you eternally.
* "your pomp, pride," etc., lit., "your show will be over." ** " will you bring fuel." The German form is more emphatic, being in the imperative mood, "only bring fuel," etc. 169. Woe, woe, poor miserable blinded man, why sufferest you the devil to make your body and soul so dark and blind? O temporal good, and the pleasure and voluptuousness of this life! you blind whore, why do you go a wooing and a whoring to the devil? 170. O security! the devil watches for you. O highmindedness! you are a hellish fire. O beauty, pomp or bravery! you are a dark valley. O potency of dominion! you are a raging and a tearing of the hellish fire. O selfvindication or vengeance! you are the fierce wrath of God. 171. O Man! why will the world be too narrow for you? You will needs have it all for yourself; and if you had it, you would not have room enough. O, this is the devil's highmindedness, who fell out of heaven into hell. 172. O man! alas, O man! why do you dance with the devil who is your enemy? Art you not afraid* that he will thrust you into hell? Why do you go on so securely? Is it not a very narrow stick on which you dancest? Under that small narrow bridge is hell! Dost you not see how high you are, and how dangerously and desperately you go? You dancest between heaven and hell. * "art you not afraid," or "do you not care," or "art you not mindful." 173. O you blind man! how does the devil mock at you? O, wherefore do you trouble heaven? Dost you think you will not have enough in this world? O blind man! is not heaven and earth your? Nay, God himself too? What do you bring into this world, or what do you take along with you at your going out of it? You bring an angelical garment into this world, and with your wicked life you turnest it into a devil's mask or vizor. 174. O you miserable man, return, the heavenly Father has stretched forth both his arms and calls you; do but come, he will take you into his love. Art you not his child? He does love you. If he did hate you, he must be at odds with himself. O no, it is not so: there is nothing in God but a merciful, amiable love and bright glory. 175. O you watchmen of Israel! why do you sleep? Awake from the sleep of whoredom, and dress or trim your lamps: The Bridegroom comes, sound your trumpets. 176. O you covetous, stiffnecked and drunken roisterers! how do you woo and go a whoring after the covetous devil? Thus says the LORD, Will you not feed my people which I have committed to your charge? 177. Behold I have set you upon Moses' chair, and entrusted you with my flock; but you mind nothing but the wool, and mind not my sheep, and therewith you build your great palaces. But I will set you on the stool of pestilence, and my own Shepherd shall feed my sheep eternally. 178. O you fair world, how does heaven complain of you? How do you trouble the elements? O wickedness and malice! when will you leave, and give over? Awaken! awaken! and bring forth, you sorrowful woman; behold your Bridegroom comes, and requires fruit at
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