Concerning the Three Principles of the Divine Essence

Cb. 24] OF TRUE REPENTANCE 661

broken out of their l garden ; besides, thou art so > Or park, strong, that thou hast broken down the hedge of their garden,, and hast taken possession of their dwelling. Besides, thou hast made their meat as bitter as gall, that they cannot eat it ; thou hast broken their throne with thy horns, and hast brought a strong 2 host into their garden, and thou » company, of hast used a strange power, to drive them out of" their garden ; and though they have thee in their fetters, yet thou opposest them, as if thou wouldst destroy their kingdom ; thou breakest their cords in pieces, and breakest their bands, and thou art a continual stormer of their kingdom ; thou art their worst enemy, and they thine ; and if thou wert but gone out of their garden, they would be contented, but thou being in it still, the strife continueth, and hath no end, till the Ancient [of Days] cometh, who will part you asunder.

7. Or dost thou suppose that we are mad, that we write thus? If we did not see and know it, we should then be silent. Or canst thou not once know the thorny bath, wherein thou swimmest? Dost thou still say, thou art in the garden of roses ? If thou thinkest thou art there, see well whether thou art not in the devil's pasture, and art his most beloved hind, which he fatteneth to the slaughter for his food.

8. I tell thee for certain, and it is in earnest ;

when I was at 8 Jericho, there my beloved Com- » in or of the panion opened my eyes for me, that I saw ; andp. 662 behold, a great generation of men and multitudes of people and nations were together, one part were like beasts, and one part like men, and there was strife between them ; and beneath there was the abyss of hell, and the beasts saw not that, but the men were afraid and would be gone ; to which the devil would not consent, because his garden had 1 Or de- no doors [open] ; but they 1 brake open his garden, and so he must watch at the door that they do not run away from him ; but the beasts (which were men also) they did eat of his food, and drank of his drink, and he did nothing to them, because he fattened them for his slaughter, and there was a continual enmity between the right men and the bestial men.

9. Or dost thou suppose this is not true, which my beloved Companion hath shewn me, when he opened my eyes, that I saw ? Then come, and go with me to Jerusalem, we will go together along the way to Jericho, and see it well enough ; and by the way is this garden, wherein the devil with his great generation dwelleth ; we will shew thee great wonders, thou shalt see and know all that which we mentioned above, if thou art but a man, and not the devil's fatted beast.

10. Behold, we understand by Jerusalem the paradise, and by the way to Jericho the going forth out of paradise into this world, where then the world captivated us in her garden, where continually the great sea of misery is wherein ourCh. 24] OF TRUE REPENTANCE 663 soul swimmeth. Also the devil is therein, who hath bound us with the chains of the anger of God, and he leadetb, the poor soul captive (in the dark garden of Hesh and blood) into his fierce garden of anger ; where the new-born souls continually break out of his garden, and break his hellish kingdom in pieces ; also they have taken possession of his

1 royal throne, where he was an angel, and with their 1 regal or horns (which are the spirit of God) have broken in pieces his hellish kingdom which he set up ; also they oppose him with their storm out of hell into heaven, and assault his kingdom ; but he holdeth the poor soul captive with the chains of the anger, in this evil flesh and blood, and continually setteth on the crew of the wicked, that they seduce it, and

2 baptize it in the anger of God up to the very lips ; a Or dipiit. and there the poor soul standeth up to the neck in the sea of misery, ready to be drowned ; and there the devil thrusteth it down with the vices and sins of the body, and would drown the poor soul in the anger of God in the abyss of hell.