136. And there all the holy souls and angels (in
one love) will highly rejoice, that the poor soul is
delivered from such great necessity [or misery] ;
and the great joy then taketh its beginning from
thence, of which Christ said, That there is more
j°y for one sinner that repenteth, than for ninety
and nine righteous that need no repentance. And
the soul will praise God, that he hath redeemed it
out of these great sins ; and herewith the praise
of Christ [in] his merit, passion, and dying for the
poor soul, springeth up in eternity, and it is the
right song of the redeemed bride, which riseth up
in the Father, where the souls so highly rejoice,
1 dependants, that the driver is captivated, and his 3 confederates
accomplices.
[or followers].
37. And here is fulfilled that which king David
descanteth upon : Thou shalt rejoice to see how the
wicked are recompensed ; how the wicked driver
4occasioner, [hunter or oppressor], and 4 incendiary of malice
or stirrer up . . . '
of evil. and wickedness, is tormented in his prison; for
the sins that are washed away shall not appear in
heaven (as in the abyss of hell) in the form of
fire ; but as Isaiah said, Though thy sins were as
red as blood [or scarlet], (if thou turn) they shall
be like wool} white as snow ; they shall stand in
Ch. 19] ENTERING OF THE SOULS TO GOD 489
a heavenly figure, for men to sing of in a hymn
of praise, and a psalm of thanksgiving, for their
deliverance from the driver.
238. And now seeing the departure of souls is
various, so also their * source [quality or condition] l Or torment
after their departure is various ; so that many of
the souls departed 2 are indeed for a long time in 2 Or have a
purgatory for
purgatory, if the soul had been defiled with gross a tedious
wh.il 6.
sins, and hath not rightly stepped into the true
earnest regeneration, and yet do hang a little to it ;
as it useth to be with those that have been laden
with temporal honour and might [or authority and
power], where many times their own power and
profit prevaileth over right, where wickedness or
malice (and not wisdom) is the judge ; and here a
great burthen is laid upon the poor soul, and that
poor soul also would fain be saved.
39. Here cometh man, and prayeth before God
for forgiveness of sins, and the fox hangeth behind
his cloak ; he would be justified, and his unrighteousness sticketh in the abyss, and that will
not suffer him to enter into the new regeneration ;
his covetousness hath taken too much hold of him ;
his wicked Babel (of Antichrist's opinions) will not
let him come to the true earnest conversion ; they
bar up the gate of love, [and] the spirit of this
world (in the lust of the flesh) continueth always
[predominant or] chief.
40. And yet however, when the point [or hour]
of death cometh, that the conscience is roused, and
490 THE THREE PRINCIPLES [Ch. 19
3that the poor soul beginneth to tremble for great
fear at the [torment or] source of hell, then these
also would fain be saved, though there is very little
faith in them, only mere unrighteousness, falsehood,
and pleasure of the earthly life. The groanings and
tears of the poor stand hard before it, and the devil
readeth the book of conscience to the mind ; and
there standeth also before the mind the pleasure of
the world, and [the person] would fain live [somewhat] longer, and promiseth to lead a life in
[forbearance of evil, or] abstinence ; and the mind
inclineth a little towards God [or goodness], but the
sins beat that [inclination] down again, and then
*0run- there ariseth great doubt in * unquietness ; yet,
righteousness. innevertheless, many of them lay hold on the Saviour
by a thread.
41. And now when death cometh and severeth
the body and soul asunder, then the poor soul
hangeth by a thread [of faith], and will not let go ;
2 budded and yet its 2 essences stick fast in the anger of
essential
virtues. God, the source [or pain] of the gross sins 3 torment
3 boil up in it. ^ tke thread of faith (in the new regeneration) is
very weak ; and here therefore now they must
press through the gate of the deep, through the
passion, and through the death of Christ, [through
the kingdom of hell], to God ; and hell hath yet a
strong band about the soul, the falsehood is not yet
washed off.
The source text as printed, transcribed diplomatically. Where the source language uses a non-Latin script that reaches us only through a Victorian romanisation, this layer is labelled transliteration, because that is what we hold.