(4) Beneath my head the others are dragged down Who have preceded me in simony, Flattened along the fissure of the rock. Below there I shall likewise fall, whenever That one shall come who I believed thou wast, What time the sudden question I proposed. But longer I my feet already toast, And here have been in this way upside down, Than he will planted stay with reddened feet; For after him shall come of fouler deed From tow'rds the west a Pastor without law, Such as befits to cover him and me. New Jason will he be, of whom we read In Maccabees; and as his king was pliant, So he who governs France shall be to this one." I do not know if I were here too bold, That him I answered only in this metre: "I pray thee tell me now how great a treasure Our Lord demanded of Saint Peter first, Before he put the keys into his keeping? Truly he nothing asked but 'Follow me.' Nor Peter nor the rest asked of Matthias Silver or gold, when he by lot was chosen Unto the place the guilty soul had lost.

(25) And whatever is done or can be done for him, seemeth him all too little and too poor, for he thinketh himself worthy of still more and greater honour than can be rendered to him. And of all the men who serve him and are subject to him, even if they be downright thieves and murderers, he saith nevertheless, that they have faithful, noble hearts, and have great love and faithfulness to the truth and to poor men. And such men are praised by him, and he seeketh them and followeth after them wherever they be. But he who doth not order himself according to the will of these high-minded men, nor is subject unto them, is not sought after by them, nay, more likely blamed and spoken ill of, even though he were as holy as St. Peter himself. And seeing that this proud and puffed-up spirit thinketh that she needeth neither Scripture, nor instruction, nor anything of the kind, therefore she giveth no heed to the admonitions, order, laws and precepts of the holy Christian Church, nor to the Sacraments, but mocketh at them and at all men who walk according to these ordinances and hold them in reverence.

(6) So that a second time it now be wroth With buying and with selling in the temple Whose walls were built with signs and martyrdoms! O soldiery of heaven, whom I contemplate, Implore for those who are upon the earth All gone astray after the bad example! Once 'twas the custom to make war with swords; But now 'tis made by taking here and there The bread the pitying Father shuts from none. Yet thou, who writest but to cancel, think That Peter and that Paul, who for this vineyard Which thou art spoiling died, are still alive! Well canst thou say: "So steadfast my desire Is unto him who willed to live alone, And for a dance was led to martyrdom, That I know not the Fisherman nor Paul."

(1) Peter responded to these comments and said, "Sometimes you urge us on toward the kingdom of heaven, but at other times you turn us away, master. Sometimes you encourage us, draw us toward faith, and promise us life, but at other times you drive us away from the kingdom of heaven."

(17) Here will the Prince and Arch-Shepherd pronounce his Sentence, saying to the kGodly;i Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom that has been prepared for you from the Beginning; I have been hungry, thirsty, naked, sick, in Prison and Misery, and you have fed me, given me Drink, clothed me, comforted me, and visited me, and have come and helped me in my Misery, therefore enter into eternal Joys. And they will answer, Lord, when have we seen thee hungry, thirsty, naked, in Prison, or in Misery, and have served thee? And he will say, What you have done to the least of these my Brethren, you have done that to me. And to the Wicked he will say, Away from me, ye Cursed, into the eternal Fire; for I have been hungry, thirsty, naked, in Prison, and in Misery, and you have never ministered unto me. And they will answer, Lord, when have we seen thee so, and not ministered to thee? And he will say, What you have not done to the least of these my poor Brethren, that you have not done to me; and they must depart from him.

(100) They showed Jesus a gold coin and said to Him, "Caesar's men demand taxes from us." He said to them, "Give Caesar what belongs to Caesar, give God what belongs to God, and give Me what is Mine."

(5) He said, "I tell you the truth, no one will ever enter the kingdom of heaven because I ordered it, but rather because you yourselves are filled. Leave James and Peter to me that I may fill them."

(1) And when the disciples had heard this, they fell down, adored him and said: "Help us now, Lord, and have mercy upon us, in order that we may be preserved from these wicked chastisements which are prepared for the sinners. Woe unto them, woe unto the children of men! For they grope as the blind in the darkness and see not. Have mercy upon us, O Lord, in this great blindness in which we are. And have mercy upon the whole race of men; for they have lain in wait for their souls, as lions for their prey, making it [ sc. the prey] ready as food for their [ sc. the rulers'] chastisements because of the forgetfulness and unknowing which is in them. Have mercy then upon us, our Lord, our Saviour, have mercy upon us and save us in this great stupefaction."

(11) They say, accordingly, that the blessed Peter, on seeing his wife led to death, rejoiced on account of her call and conveyance home, and called very encouragingly and comfortingly, addressing her by name, "Remember thou the Lord." Such was the marriage of the blessed and their perfect disposition towards those dearest to them.

(5) What I was saying of that only bride Of the Holy Ghost, and which occasioned thee To turn towards me for some commentary, So long has been ordained to all our prayers As the day lasts; but when the night comes on, Contrary sound we take instead thereof. At that time we repeat Pygmalion, Of whom a traitor, thief, and parricide Made his insatiable desire of gold; And the misery of avaricious Midas, That followed his inordinate demand, At which forevermore one needs but laugh. The foolish Achan each one then records, And how he stole the spoils; so that the wrath Of Joshua still appears to sting him here. Then we accuse Sapphira with her husband, We laud the hoof-beats Heliodorus had, And the whole mount in infamy encircles Polymnestor who murdered Polydorus. Here finally is cried: 'O Crassus, tell us, For thou dost know, what is the taste of gold?' Sometimes we speak, one loud, another low, According to desire of speech, that spurs us To greater now and now to lesser pace.

(65) Are we not Lords in his Kingdom? And being in his Ministry, [Service or Worship,] we are the most holy and best. Who may compare himself with us? He is ascended into Heaven, and he has given us his Dominion on Earth. The Keys of Peter, he must be [Deputy, Vice-Roy, Vicar, or] Keeper of the City, and those he has left us to [open] the Kingdom of Heaven and of Hell. Who will take them away from us? We can get into Heaven well enough, though we be evil, it matters not, we have the Keys that can open it; we are Priests in Power, [or Ministers having Authority,] we will let those in that make much of us, [fatten us,] and give much to our Kingdom; and then the Christian Church will be in great Honour, [Glory, and Esteem,] when they so highly honour her Ministers [or Servants;] that will well please our Lord [and Master.] Where is there such a Kingdom as we have? Should not that [Kingdom] be crowned with the most glorious Crown of this World? And should not all bend and crouch before it?

(3) 'But now, Sir, take all the sacrificial offices.' Ushasti said: 'Very well; but let those, with my permission, perform the hymns of praise. Only as much wealth as you give to them, so much give to me also.' The sacrificer assented.

(2) And how was that? Surely thus. Our lovely Lord Jesus Christ, unto whom no privy thing is hid, although He was required of Martha as doomsman for to bid Mary rise and help her to serve Him; nevertheless yet, for He perceived that Mary was fervently occupied in spirit about the love of His Godhead, therefore courteously and as it was seemly for Him to do by the way of reason, He answered for her, that for the excusing of herself list not leave the love of Him. And how answered He? Surely not only as doomsman, as He was of Martha appealed: but as an advocate lawfully defended her that Him loved, and said, “Martha, Martha!” Twice for speed He named her name; for He would that she heard Him and took heed to His words. “Thou art full busy,” He said, “and troubled about many things.” For they that be actives behove always to be busied and travailed about many diverse things, the which them falleth, first for to have to their own use, and sithen in deeds of mercy to their even-christian, as charity asketh. And this He said unto Martha, for He would let her wit that her business was good and profitable to the health of her soul. But for this, that she should not think that it were the best work of all that man might do, therefore He added and said: ‘But one thing is necessary.’

(5) When they arrived (the king) ordered proper presents to be made separately to each of them. And rising the next morning he said: 'In my kingdom there is no thief, no miser, no drunkard, no man without an altar in his house, no ignorant person, no adulterer, much less an adulteress. I am going to perform a sacrifice, Sirs, and as much wealth as I give to each Ritvig priest, I shall give to you, Sirs. Please to stay here.'

(1) It came to pass then, when Jesus had finished saying these words, that Philip came forward and said: "Jesus, my Lord, my thought is exalted, and I have understood the solution of the song which Pistis Sophia hath uttered. The prophet David hath prophesied concerning it aforetime in the one-hundred-and-sixth Psalm, saying: "'1. Give ye thanks unto the Lord, for he is good, for his grace is eternal. "'2. Let the delivered of the Lord say this, for it is he who hath delivered them out of the hand of their foes. "'3. He hath gathered them together out of their lands, from the east and from the west and from the north and from the sea. "'4. They wandered round in the desert, in a waterless country; they found not the way to the city of their dwelling-place. "'5. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. "'6. He saved them out of their necessities. They cried unto the Lord and he hearkened unto them in their affliction. "'7. He led them on a straight way, that they might go to the region of their dwelling-place. "'8. Let them give thanks unto the Lord for his graciousness and his wondrous works unto the children of men. "'9. For he hath satisfied a hungering soul; he hath filled a hungering soul with good things, "'10. Them who sat in darkness and the shadow of death, who were fettered in misery and iron. "'11. For they had provoked the word of God and made wroth the determination of the Most High. "'12. Their heart was humbled in their miseries; they become weak and no one helped them. "'13. They cried unto the Lord in their affliction; he saved them out of their necessities. "'14. And he led them out of the darkness and the shadow of death and brake their bonds asunder. "'15. Let them give thanks unto the Lord for his graciousness and his wondrous works unto the children of men. "'16. For he hath shattered the gates of brass and burst the bolts of iron asunder. "'17. He hath taken them unto himself out of the way of their iniquity. For they were brought low because of their iniquities. "'18. Their heart abhorred all manner of meat and they were near unto the gates of death. "'19. They cried unto the Lord in their affliction and he saved them out of their necessities. "'20. He sent his word and healed them and freed them from their miseries. "'21. Let them give thanks unto the Lord for his graciousness and his wondrous works unto the children of men.' "This then, my Lord, is the solution of the song which Pistis Sophia hath uttered. Hearken, therefore, my Lord, that I may say it clearly. The word in Booth which David hath spoken: 'Give ye thanks unto the Lord, for he is good, for his grace is eternal,'--it is the word which Pistis Sophia hath spoken: 'I will give thanks unto thee, O Light, for thou art a saviour and thou art a deliverer for all time.' "And the word which hath David spoken: 'Let the delivered of the Lord say this, for he hath delivered them out of the hand of their foes,'--it is the word which Pistis Sophia hath spoken: 'I will utter this song to the Light, for it hath saved me and saved me out of the hand of the rulers, my foes.' And the rest of the Psalm. "This then, my Lord, is the solution of the song which Pistis Sophia hath uttered in the midst of the four-and-twenty invisibles, desiring that they should know all the wondrous works which thou hast done for her, and desiring that they should know that thou hast given thy mysteries to the race of men." It came to pass then, when Jesus had heard Philip say these words, that he said: "Well said, blessed Philip. This is the solution of the song which Pistis Sophia hath uttered."

(9) "Since I was glorified like this once before, why do you hold me back when I am eager to go? After my labor you have made me stay with you another eighteen days because of the parables. For some people it was enough to listen to the teaching and understand 'The Shepherds,' 'The Seed,' 'The Building,' 'The Lamps of the Young Women,' 'The Wage of the Workers,' and 'The Silver Coins and the Woman.'

(6) I in that place was Peter Damiano; And Peter the Sinner was I in the house Of Our Lady on the Adriatic shore. Little of mortal life remained to me, When I was called and dragged forth to the hat Which shifteth evermore from bad to worse. Came Cephas, and the mighty Vessel came Of the Holy Spirit, meagre and barefooted, Taking the food of any hostelry. Now some one to support them on each side The modern shepherds need, and some to lead them, So heavy are they, and to hold their trains. They cover up their palfreys with their cloaks, So that two beasts go underneath one skin; O Patience, that dost tolerate so much!" At this voice saw I many little flames From step to step descending and revolving, And every revolution made them fairer. Round about this one came they and stood still, And a cry uttered of so loud a sound, It here could find no parallel, nor I Distinguished it, the thunder so o'ercame me.

(20) And so it fell out, that every one would get the greatest Conflux of People he could, that he might be esteemed by most People; and these Lip-Christians did so multiply, that the sincere hearty Desire to God was left, and they only looked upon the Lip-priests, who did nothing but cause Strife and Contentions; and they all vapoured and boasted of their own Art and Skill which they had learned in the Schools and Universities, and cried, Look here is Christ, come running hither, thus and thus has Paid written; and another says, Come hither, here is Christ, thus and thus has Peter written; he was the Disciple of Christ, and had the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, this cannot be amiss; they do but deceive you, follow after me.

(2) The master answered and said, "What good is it to you if you do the father's will but you are not given your part of his bounty when you are tempted by Satan? But if you are oppressed by Satan and persecuted and do the father's will, I say he will love you, make you my equal, and consider you beloved through his forethought, and by your own choice. Won't you stop loving the flesh and fearing suffering? Don't you know that you have not yet been abused, unjustly accused, locked up in prison, unlawfully condemned, crucified without reason, or buried in the sand as I myself was by the evil one? Do you dare to spare the flesh, O you for whom the spirit is a wall surrounding you? If you consider how long the world has existed before you and how long it will exist after you, you will see that your life is but a day and your sufferings an hour. The good will not enter the world. Disdain death, then, and care about life. Remember my cross and my death, and you will live."

(5) Incoronated with a second crown Was through Honorius by the Eternal Spirit The holy purpose of this Archimandrite. And when he had, through thirst of martyrdom, In the proud presence of the Sultan preached Christ and the others who came after him, And, finding for conversion too unripe The folk, and not to tarry there in vain, Returned to fruit of the Italic grass, On the rude rock 'twixt Tiber and the Arno From Christ did he receive the final seal, Which during two whole years his members bore. When He, who chose him unto so much good, Was pleased to draw him up to the reward That he had merited by being lowly, Unto his friars, as to the rightful heirs, His most dear Lady did he recommend, And bade that they should love her faithfully; And from her bosom the illustrious soul Wished to depart, returning to its realm, And for its body wished no other bier. Think now what man was he, who was a fit Companion over the high seas to keep The bark of Peter to its proper bearings.