Classic Poem

O Thou great Kindler of Diuine desire,
(Deere Light of Lights without which all is Hel)
Before me go, with Flames of Heau'nly Fire
By which I may my Compasse keepe so wel
That on these groundlesse, boundlesse Seas that swell
To ouerwhelme me, I may safely go,
The Wonders of those Deepes abroad to tel:
Calme Fancies Stormes, and let my Course be slow:
For hast therein may speed mine ouerthrow

Erect my Thoughts, direct my Iudgement so
That neither, either do misgo, or tire;
And let my Numbers with that fury flow
Which thou alone, in Wisedome , set'st on fire;
Make all my Meusures meet in Truth intire:
That is in thee ( Sole Truth ) for out of Thee
Are nought but Errors Rockes , and Vices Mire,
To wracke al those that trauel Truth to see
Without thy Compasse , wherein compasse me

First, for thy Name! (sith It al Thoughts transcends,
Much more all Words) here, at my setting out,
Sith thy Word onely thy name comprehends)
Ile balke It , as a Gulph of deepest doubt!
Therefore a further way Ile go about
To seeke thy nature . so, thy name to finde;
And, as I go Ile send forth Care my Scout,
To see my passage cleare before, behind,
Wherein my Muse must glide to know thy kind

Then, at thy Properties I will begin.
(Now blesse my Course , for, I am laucht from Land )
Which are (as they eternally haue beene)
Of thy meere Essence where they do not stand
As Accidents in Substance: for, thy Hand
Thrusts from thy Substance Accidents , and all
That seeke to bring thy boundlesse Pow'r in Band
For, thou art free, and holdest that in thrall
(How euer great) that seeks to make thee small

Thy Properties , and Attributes are one:
For, all is proper, that attributes ought
To thee, if free from imperfection;
Hate, Anger , and the like, in vs are nought,
But in thee good, and iust, and as they ought
Thou can'st loue ardently, and neuer dote!
And hate extreamely, without hatefull thought!
But, they in vs can neuer scape the note
Of both, when both those Passions are aflote

Thou giu'st thy selfe those Titles in thy Stile:
And not so much to stoup to vs thereby
(To make vs know thee, by our selues, the while)
But, for they are in thee most really;
Yet, not [as in vs] Ill, and diuersly:
In vs they Qualities , and Vertues be;
But in Thee they are most essentially!
Many in vs, but onely one in Thee;
Sith with thy simple Essence they agree

Thou art omnipotent iust, gratious, wise:
Yet not as they are diuerse, but as one:
For these be thine essential Properties ,
Which in thee meete in perfect Vnion
To make Thee simply great , and good alone!
Then from thee, great- Good , now Ile turn my speach
Vnto mine Equals in Creation;
Sith Folly feares to Wisedomes Sprit to preach
My selfe, and others, teach me then, to teach.

Then, euen- Christians , let an abiect one
(With your allowance) spend his powrelesse might
In ernest search of this Trin-vnion ,
As farre as of himselfe he giues me sight,
Either by Nature's , or diuiner light,
Whereby I see his Actions fixt are still
Vnto his Properties , which act aright:
For through Loue he doth loue, & wil through Will:
And, so he doth what he doth else fulfill.

Which Properties are twofold: some there be
Eu'ry way proper to his nature blest:
As his Omnipotence, Vbiquitie ,
Eternity , sole- Wisedome , and the rest:
With these nor Men , nor Angels can be drest.
Others in part, and by Comparison;
As Wisedome, Iustice, Mercy, , may inuest
Man, his viue Image , (Brother of his Sonne)
But, not (as in Them) in perfection!

For, sith they are Substantially in God
(And not, as in Man , casually they be)
They must be odly eu'n, sith eu'nly odd
Is He, in whom they are no Trinity,
Though so He be in strictest Vnity:
But being of Him, wholy infinite,
They must be One by their infinity:
For, were they many, they were definite;
And for the waight of his Worth too too light

Who is a N AIVRE supernaturall!
So say Diuines , so sayes Phylosophy
Which call God, Nature , naturizing all
That was, or is, or shal, in nature, be:
The Creature then, is so of Him that he
Is not his nature; nor, may he be Stil'd
Nature her selfe: though as she is a She
Shee's but a Creature, now with sinne defil'd,
Yet makes she All for God and Man's hir Child.

So, Nature made, the Maker made to make
All Things beneath his Seat , for him alone:
Not that He after toyle need rest to take;
Nor can He toile, though still in Action,
Yet acteth by subordination
To N AIVRE , nature's then, subordinate:
That made, to that without Creation:
The first, makes by the last (in loue or hate)
What is in naturall or monstrous state.

In which respect some wicked Ones there were
Affirm'd two Natures in the Diety:
That's good, and bad; sith so it seemes't appeare
In things created vniuersally:
But vnto G OD they did great iniury
To multiply his nature, being One;
And so make Gods by such plurality:
Then in that Nature , purely good alone,
To put in Ill , doth put him from his Throne

Though to him often, Hate ascribed be,
Yet that in him, is simply, good, and iust,
For, hee thereby impugns Impiety .
And, in his wrath, he doth (what Iustice must)
Scowre, Ill from G ood , Sith Euill , Good doth rust:
Yet, he to Wrath still goes with Leaden feet,
Sith his Wrathes hands are yron that bray to dust:
But he, in mercy, flies the Meeke to meet,
On feet that winged are to make them fleet.

When he proclaim'd his Stiles magnificence
To him, to whom he gaue his Lawes for vs,
He vs'd more words in number, more in sence
To note his Mercy , then his Iustice: Thus
His Mercy , ore his Wrath's victorious:
But yet his Iustice to extenuate
To graund his Graie is sacrilegious:
Both are most great, and good; and most do hate
Comparisons vnequall, breeding bate

For, as a perfect Circle doth containe
Full as much length, as bredth; and depth as height:
So, in Him all things equall do remaine
By his infinity, and boundlesse might,
That in themselues do keepe on compasse right!
Then, all in God, is G OD ; sith he is all:
One, and the same: that is, all infinite;
And, of himselfe super-substanciall
Being all one Cause of All in generall!

But, with Truthes warrant we may this auouch,
That sith G RACE did his Iustice satisfie
(For his Elect ) it is contracted much;
Nay tane away; at least made temporary:
Yet both doe meet in one infinity
In the saluation of each chosen-One:
For, iust he deemes it (and most righteously)
To saue th' vniust, made most iust in his Sonne
Who is the Summe of all perfection!

Then, heere is place, great place, for Hope , and Feare
But more for Hope , then Feare and yet the lacke
Of Feare , through Hope , doth make vs oft appeare
As vniust Iudges , that do Iustice , Racke
While they for it (by it) go quite to wracke.
To hope, and not hate sinne, most fearefull is:
As Feare is when no Hope , no Sinne doth backe:
" But when Loue feares to sinne, Hop's nere amisse:
Then, kind are Hope , and Feare , when thus they kisse

Then, as the right vse of this knowledge hy
[The knowledge of the highest E XCELLENCE !]
Is sweet, and safe: so, the abuse doth lie
Wide open to the spoiles of foule Offence
Which doth his Iustice most of all incense:
The vse is: not to know him as he is:
But, him to loue, and serue with reuerence:
Th' abuse is; making his iust Propertis
Vnequall; while we liue, and hope amisse.

For lesse ning of his Iustice , we presume
Vpon his mercy most uniustly; whence
Come all the shapes of sin our Soules assume,
Worse then th' effects of too much diffidence:
For, sinnes presumptious, Iustice most incense
To mind great mercy, when great feares affright
Is meet, if meet be [likewise] penitence;
But, when we weene such mercy is our right,
To mind great Iustice then doth mend our plight.

To hope, and liue well, fearelesse, still we may;
To hope, and liue ill's, worse then mortall Feare ,
For, it, to death, our Soules doth soon'st betray:
" Then hope we well, when well our selues we beare;
But, when we fall, let Feare with Hope vs reare.
To know if we be worthy Hate or Loue ,
Doth not still easily to vs appeare:
Then still to know, it doth vs still behoue
Lowly to moue to Loue, Hate to remoue.

For, some haue made their nests the Starres among
That soon'st haue downe bin ding'd to lowest Deepes
And othersome, from lying but in dung,
Aboue the Heauen's are heau'd: for, low he creepes
(Strange Paradox) that soonest climbs those Steepes!
When we do creepe (though high we climbe withall)
We seldome slide; for, care our footing keepes:
But when we stand on Tip-toe on a Ball
(Though sliding still) we finally must fall.

But heere my Muse , repose thee with Apollo ,
That now is fallen asleepe in Tethis Bed;
That as he doth, so thou thy worke maist follow:
Then sleepe with him, while Angels hold thy head,
And heauenly visions may therein be bred:
Go soft and faire; thus much at once is much
In wayes that Mists , and Brambles ouerspred,
Where hast makes waste: for, Briers intangle such
That there would post, and make their Souls to gruch.