(20) But serve ye the Most High God, and worship Him continually : And hope for His countenance always, And work uprightness and righteousness before Him, That He may have pleasure in you and grant you His mercy, And send rain upon you morning and evening, And bless all your works which ye have wrought upon the earth, And bless thy bread and thy water, And bless the fruit of thy womb and the fruit of thy land, And the herds of thy cattle, and the flocks of thy sheep.

(2) And as He will answer for us thus in spirit, so will He stir other men in spirit to give us our needful things that belong to this life, as meat and clothes with all these other; if He see that we will not leave the work of His love for business about them. And this I say in confusion of their error, that say that it is not lawful for men to set them to serve God in contemplative life, but if they be secure before of their bodily necessaries. For they say, that God sendeth the cow, but not by the horn. And truly they say wrong of God, as they well know. For trust steadfastly, thou whatsoever that thou be, that truly turnest thee from the world unto God, that one of these two God shall send thee, without business of thyself: and that is either abundance of necessaries, or strength in body and patience in spirit to bear need. What then recketh it, which man have? for all come to one in very contemplatives. And whoso is in doubt of this, either the devil is in his breast and reeveth him of belief, or else he is not yet truly turned to God as he should be; make he it never so quaint, nor never so holy reasons shew there again, whatnot ever that he be.

(1) Trust in God, as opposed to human exertions. The beasts said, "O enlightened sage, Lay aside caution; it cannot help thee against destiny; To worry with precaution is toil and moil; Go, trust in Providence, trust is the better part. War not with the divine decree, O hot-headed one, Man should be as dead before the commands of God Lest a blow befall him from the Lord of all creatures." He said, "True; but though trust be our mainstay, The Prophet cried with a loud voice,

(33) But let every one enter into himself, and labour to be a righteous Man, and fear God, and do right, and consider that this his Work shall appear in Heaven before God, and that he stands every Moment before the Face of God, and that all his Works shall follow after him, and then the Lily of God springs and grows, and the World stands in its Seculum. AMEN.

(54) If a man may attain thereunto, to be unto God as his hand is to a man, let him be therewith content, and not seek farther. This is my faithful counsel, and here I take my stand. That is to say, let him strive and wrestle with all his might to obey God and His commandments so thoroughly at all times and in all things, that in him there be nothing, spiritual or natural, which opposeth God; and that his whole soul and body with all their members may stand ready and willing for that to which God hath created them; as ready and willing as his hand is to a man, which is so wholly in his power, that in the twinkling of an eye, he moveth and turneth it whither he will. And when we find it otherwise with us, we must give our whole diligence to amend our state; and this from love and not from fear, and in all things whatsoever, seek and intend the glory and praise of God alone. We must not seek our own, either in things spiritual or in things natural. It must needs be thus, if it is to stand well with us. And every creature oweth this of right and truth unto God, and especially man, to whom, by the ordinance of God, all creatures are made subject, and are servants, that he may be subject to and serve God only. Further, when a man hath come so far, and climbed so high, that he thinketh and weeneth he standeth sure, let him beware lest the Devil strew ashes and his own bad seed on his heart, and nature seek and take her own comfort, rest, peace, and delight in the prosperity of his soul, and he fall into a foolish, lawless freedom and licentiousness, which is altogether alien to, and at war with, a true life in God.

(66) Yet it is seen that some wealthy People drew near to Christ, whereby it may be perceived, that the Kingdom of Heaven consists not in Misery only, but in Joy in the Holy Ghost; and none ought to esteem himself happy, because he is poor and miserable; he is in the Kingdom of the Devil notwithstanding, if he be faithless and wicked. Also none that is rich ought therefore to cast his Goods and Wealth away, or give them to be spent lavishly, in hope to be saved in so doing; no, Friend, the Kingdom of God consists in Truth, and in Righteousness, and in Love towards the Needy; to be rich damns none that use it aright; thou needest not to lay down thy Scepter, and run into a Corner, crying; that is but Hypocrisy. Thou mayest do Righteousness, and better Service to the Kingdom of God in holding thy Scepter, by helping the Oppressed, protecting the Innocent, and granting Right and Justice, not according to thy Covetousness, but in Love, and in the Fear of God; and then thou art also a Brother to Joseph of Arimathea, and shalt shine brighter than others, as the Sun and Moon compared with the Stars. It is only the Pride, Covetousness, Envy, Falshood, and Anger, that is the Crown of the Devil; therefore conceive it right. Of Christ's Rest in the Grave [or Sepulchre.]

(5) To accomplish the welfare of his fellow-creatures he has an Army, the troops of which are Love of Right, Constancy, Joy, and Abandonment. The Love of Right he will frame from the fear of suffering and from pondering upon merits. When he has uprooted his foes, he will strive for increase of vigour by means of his armies, which are the love of right, pride, joy, abandonment, devoted heed, and self -submission. Countless are the faults in myself and my fellows that I shall have to destroy, and hundreds of thousands of seons must pass ere even one of these fade away. But I find not in myself the least morsel of vigour to set myself to undo these faults; I am doomed to boundless anguish, and why does my bosom not burst? Many are the virtues in myself and my fellows that must be gained, and hundreds of thousands of aeons will scarce be enough for the practice of even one of them. But I have never practised the least morsel of virtue; to no purpose has been spent the birth so hardly and marvellously won. The joy of the great festivals in worship of the Lord has not been mine; I have done no honour to the Law, nor fulfilled the desire of the poor; I have not given security to them that are in fear, nor happiness to the afflicted; I have been only a vexation of my mother's womb, to work sorrow. Because of old I departed from the love of right, I am now in this evil plight; who would forsake the love of right? This love the Saint has proclaimed to be the root of all righteous works; and its root is the constant meditation upon the fruit that grows from deeds. Manifold are the pains, the sorrows, the terrors, and the disappointments that arise to sinners. Whithersoever the desire of the righteous turns, it is greeted with happy issue, because of their merits; and whithersoever turns the sinner's yearning for pleasure, it is smitten with swords of pain, because of his sins. They that are godly of works enter the wombs of broad, sweet-smelling, cool lotus-blossoms; their lustrous forms grow nurtured by the Conqueror's sweet melody; then they issue in comely beauty from the lotus-flowers awakened by the sunbeams of the Holy One, and are born as Sons of the Blessed in the presence of the Blessed. As to them that are ungodly of works, shrieking in anguish, they are flayed of their whole skin by the Death-god's henchmen, their bodies bathed with copper molten in the fire, their flesh cut off in gobbets by hundreds of blows from flaming swords and pikes, and they fall again and again upon beds of red-hot iron. Then let the love of righteousness be with you, and be heedful thus to foster it.

(81) That in lieu of one thou may'st see a thousand joys, For by quenching the light the soul is rejoiced, Whoso to display his devotion renounces the world, The world is ever with him, before and behind." In one 'twas said, "Whatsoever God has given thee In His creation, that He has made sweet to thee; Yea, pleasant to thee and allowable. Take it, then, And cast not thyself into the pangs of abstinence." In one 'twas said, "Give up all thou possessest, For to be ruled by covetousness is grievous sin."

(11) 'Trust in God, yet tie the camel's leg.' l Hear the adage, 'The worker is the friend of God;' Go, O Quietists, practice trust with self-exertion, Exert yourself to attain your objects, bit by bit. In order to succeed, strive and exert yourselves; If ye strive not for your objects, ye are fools." They said, "What is gained from the poor by exertions Again, know that self-exertion springs from weakness; What is more lovely than committing oneself to God? Many there are who flee from one danger to a worse;

(108) Whatever a man sacrifice in this world as an offering or as an oblation for a whole year in order to gain merit, the whole of it is not worth a quarter (a farthing); reverence shown to the righteous is better.

(3) Therefore it was enjoined upon the Hebrews To offer still, though sometimes what was offered Might be commuted, as thou ought'st to know. The other, which is known to thee as matter, May well indeed be such that one errs not If it for other matter be exchanged. But let none shift the burden on his shoulder At his arbitrament, without the turning Both of the white and of the yellow key; And every permutation deem as foolish, If in the substitute the thing relinquished, As the four is in six, be not contained. Therefore whatever thing has so great weight In value that it drags down every balance, Cannot be satisfied with other spending. Let mortals never take a vow in jest; Be faithful and not blind in doing that, As Jephthah was in his first offering, Whom more beseemed to say, 'I have done wrong, Than to do worse by keeping; and as foolish Thou the great leader of the Greeks wilt find, Whence wept Iphigenia her fair face, And made for her both wise and simple weep, Who heard such kind of worship spoken of.'

(1) The poor man's regrets for having placed his trust in man and not in God. When he recovered himself he said, "O God, I have sinned in looking for aid to a creature! Although the Prefect showed great liberality, He gave me a cap, but Thou my head full of sense; He gave me a garment, but Thou my tall form. He gave me gold, but Thou my hand which counts it; He gave me a horse, but Thou my reason to guide it; He gave me a lamp, but Thou my lucid eyes; He gave me sweetmeats, but Thou my appetite for them; He gave me a pension, but Thou my life and being;

(11) Rend not thy plumage off, but avert thy heart from it Were there no hostility, that war would be impossible. lladst thou no lust, obedience to the law could not be. Where no antagonist, what need is there of armies? Ah! make not thyself an eunuch, not a monk, Without lust denial of lust is impossible God says, "Expend;" wherefore earn money. Since expenditure is impossible without previous gain? Although the passage contains only the word "Expend," Read "Acquire first, and then expend."

(10) What is better and nobler than true poorness in spirit? Yet when that is held up before us, we will have none of it, but are always seeking ourselves, and our own things. We like to have our mouths always filled with good things, that we may have in ourselves a lively taste of pleasure and sweetness. When this is so, we are well pleased, and think it standeth not amiss with us. But we are yet a long way off from a perfect life. For when God will draw us up to something higher, that is, to an utter loss and forsaking of our own things, spiritual and natural, and withdraweth His comfort and sweetness from us, we faint and are troubled, and can in no wise bring our minds to it; and we forget God and neglect holy exercises, and fancy we are lost for ever. This is a great error and a bad sign. For a true lover of God, loveth Him or the Eternal Goodness alike, in having and in not having, in sweetness and bitterness, in good or evil report, and the like, for he seeketh alone the honour of God, and not his own, either in spiritual or natural things. And therefore he standeth alike unshaken in all things, at all seasons. Hereby let every man prove himself, how he standeth towards God, his Creator and Lord.

(25) Therefore, O dear Soul, turn, and let not the Devil captivate thee, and regard not the Scorn of the World; all thy Sorrow must be turned into great Joy. And though in this World thou hast not great Honour, Power, and Riches, that is nothing; thou knowest not, whether Tomorrow will be the Day it will come to thy Turn [to die.] Does not a Bit of Bread taste better to the Needy, than the best Dainties to the great Ones? What Advantage has the rich Man then, but that he sees much, and must be tormented and vexed in many Things, and in the End must give an Account of all his Doings and Stewardship, and how he has been a Planter in this World? He must give an Account of all his Servants, and if he has been an evil Example to them, and has been a Scandal to them, so that they have walked in ungodly Ways, then their poor Souls cry eternally cfor Vengeance upon those their Superiors; there all stands in the Figure in the Tincture. Why dost thou contend and strive so much after worldly Honour that is transitory? Rather endeavour for the Tree of Pearl, which thou earnest along with thee, and shalt rejoice eternally in its Growing and Fruit.

(71) In one 'twas said, "Reference to thine own weakness Is ingratitude for God's mercies towards us. Rather regard thy power, for thou hast power from God. Know thy power to be God's grace, for 'tis of Him." In one 'twas said, "Leave power and weakness alone; Whatever withdraws thine eyes from God is an idol." In one 'twas said, "Quench not thy earthy torch, If thou neglectest regard and care for it, Thou wilt quench at midnight the lamp of union." In one 'twas said, "Quench that torch without fear,

(2) "'1. Why doth the mighty [one] boast himself in his wickedness? "'2. Thy tongue hath studied unrighteousness all the day long; as a sharp razor hast thou practised craft. "'3. Thou lovedst wickedness more than goodness; thou lovedst to speak unrighteousness more than righteousness. "'4. Thou lovedst all words of submerging and a crafty tongue. "'5. Wherefor will God bring thee to naught utterly, and will uproot thee and drag thee out from thy dwelling-place, and will root out thy root and cast it away from the living. (Selah.) "'6. The righteous will see and be afraid, and they will mock at him and say: "'7. Lo, a man who made not God for his helper, but trusted to his great riches and was mighty in his vanity. "'8. But I am as a fruit-bearing olive-tree in the house of God. I have trusted in the grace of God from all eternity. "'9. And I will confess unto thee, for thou hast dealt faithfully with me; and I will wait on thy name, for it is auspicious in the presence of thy holy [ones].' "This then is now, therefore, my Lord, the solution of the eleventh repentance of Pistis Sophia. While thy light-power hath roused me, I have spoken it according to thy desire."

(182) Ho! seek aid of Him, not of another than Him Seek water in the ocean, not in a dried-up channel. On cleansing the inward temple of the heart from self-conceit and reliance on carnal reason. When the body bows in worship, the heart is a temple, And where there is a temple, there bad friends are weeds When a liking for bad friends grows up in you, Flee from them, and avoid converse with them. Root up those weeds, for, if they attain full growth, O beloved, this weed is deviation from the "right way," You crawl crookedly, like infants unable to walk.

(21) In like manner, when the King of kings says "Abstain," Again, "Eat ye," is said recognising the snares of lust, And afterwards, " Exceed not," to enjoin temperance. When there is no subject, When thou endurest not the pains of abstinence And fulfillest not the terms, thou gainest no reward. How easy those terms! how abundant that reward! A reward that enchants the heart and charms the soul! Prayers to God to change our base inclinations and give us higher aspirations. O Thou that changest earth into gold,

(1) As to a "man of heart," he takes no hurt, He who gains health from practicing abstinence is safe; The prophet said, "O disciple, though you be bold, Yet enter not into conflict with every foe." Within you is a Nimrod; enter not his fire; But if you must do so, first become an Abraham. If you are neither swimmer nor seaman, A swimmer brings pearls from the deep sea; Yea, he plucks gain from the midst of perils. If the saint handles earth, it becomes gold; If a sinner handles gold, it turns to dust.