The answere to the doute afor by a mervelous example of a lord and a servant; and God will be abidyn, for it was nere twenty yeres after ere she fully understode this example; and how it is understod that Crist syttith on the ryth hand of the Fader. Fifty-first chapter.

And than our curtes Lord answerd in shewing full mystily a wondirful example of a lord that hath a servant, and gave me syte to my understondyng of botyrn, which syght was shewid double in the lord, and the syte was shewid dowble in the servant. Than on partie was shewid gostly in bodily lyknes, and the other partie was shewid more gostly without bodyly lyknes. For the first, thus: I saw two persons in bodyly likenes, that is to sey, a lord and a servant, and therewith God gave me gostly understondyng. The lord sittith solemnly in rest and in peace; the servant standyth by, aforn his lord reverently, redy to don his lords will. The lord lookyth upon his servant ful lovely, and swetely and mekely he sendyth hym to a certain place to don his will. The servant, not only he goeth, but suddenly he stirtith and rynnith in grete haste for love to don his lords will, and anon he fallith in a slade and takith ful grete sore. And than he gronith and monith and waylith and writhith, but he ne may rysen ne helpyn hymself be no manner wey.

And of all this the most myscheif that I saw him in was faylyng of comforte. For he cowde not turne his face to loke upon his lovyng lord which was to hym ful nere, in whom is ful comfort; but as a man that was febil and onwise for the tyme, he entended to his felyng, and induryd in wo, in which wo he suffrid seven grete peynes.

The first was the sore brosyng that he toke in hys fallyng, which was to hym felable peyne. The second was the hevynes of his body. The third was febilnes folowyng of these two. The fourth, that he was blinded in his reason and stonyed in his mend so ferforth that almost he had forgotten his owne luf. The fifth was that he myte not rysen. The sixth was most mervelous to me, and that was that he lay alone. I lokid al aboute and beheld, and fer ne nere, hey ne low, I saw to him no helpe. The seventh was that the place which he lay on was a lang, herd, and grevous.

I merveled how this servant myte mekely suffren there al this wo.

And I beheld with avisement to wetyn if I cowth perceyve in hym any defaute, or if the lord shuld assigne in hym any blame. And sothly ther was none seen. For only his good will and his grete desire was cause of his fallyng. And he was as unlothful and as good inwardly as whan he stode afor his lord redy to don his wille. And ryth thus continualy his lovand lord ful tenderly beholdyth him, and now with a double cher - on outward, ful mekely and myldely with grete ruth and pety, and this was of the first; another inward, more gostly, and this was shewid with a ledyng of my understondyng into the lord which I saw hym heyly enjoyen for the worshipful resting and nobleth that he will and shall bryng his servant to be his plenteuous grace; and this was of that other shewyng. And now my understondyng led agen into the first, both kepand in mynd. Than seith this curtes lord in his menyng: Lo, lo my lovid servant, what harme and disese he hath takeyn in my service for my love, ya, and for his good will; is it not skyl that I reward hym his afray and his drede, his hurt and his mayme, and al his wo? And not only this, but fallith it not to me to gevyn a geft that be better to hym and more worshipfull than his own hole shuld have ben?

And ell me thynkyth I dede hym no grace. And in this an inward gostly shewing of the lords menyng descendid into my soule, in which I saw that it behovith neds to ben, stondyng his grete and his own worship, that his dereworthy servant which he lovid so mech shuld ben verily and blisfully rewardid without end aboven that he shuld a ben if he had not fallen; ya, and so ferforth that his fallyng and his wo that he hath taken therby shall be turnyd into hey and overpassing worship and endles bliss.

And at this poynte the shewing of the example vanishid, and our good Lord led forth myn understondyng in syte and in shewing of the Revelation to the end. But notwithstondyng al this forthledyng, the mervelyng of the example cam never from me for methowth it was goven me for an answere to my desir. And yet cowth I not taken therin ful understondyng to myn ese at that tyme. For in the servant that was shewid for Adam, as I shal seyn, I saw many dyvers properties that myten be no manner way ben aret to single Adam. And thus in that tyme I stode mekyl in onknowyng. For the full understondyng of this mervelous example was not goven me in that tyme, in which mystye example three propertes of the revelation be yet mekyl hidde. And notwithstondyng this, I saw and understode that every shewing is full of privities. And therfore me behovith now to tellen three propertes in which I am sumdele esyd.

The frest is the begynnyng of techyng that I understod therein in the same tyme. The second is the inward lernyng that I have understodyn therein sithen. The third, al the hole revelation from the begynnyng to the end, that is to sey, of this boke, which our Lord God of His goodnes bryngyth oftentymes frely to the syte of myn understondyng. And these three arn so onyd as to my understondyng that I cannot, ner may, depart them. And be these three as on, I have techyng wherby I owe to leyvyn and trostyn in our Lord God, that of the same godenes that He shewid it, and for the same end, ryth so, of the same goodnes and for the same end, He shal declaryn it to us whan it is His wille.

For twenty yeres after the tyme of the shewing, save three monethis, I had techyng inwardly, as I shal seyen. It longyth to the to taken hede to all the propertes and condition that weryn shewd in the example thow thou thynke that they ben mysty and indifferent to thy syte. I assend wilfully with grete desire, and seeing inwardly with avisement al the poynts and propertes that wer shewid in the same tyme as ferforth as my witt and understondyng wold servyn, begynning myn beholding at the lord and at the servant, and the manner of sytting of the lord and the place that he sate on and tho color of his clothyng, and the manner of shapp and his cher withouten and his nobleth and his godeness within; at the manner of stondyng of the servant, and the place wher and how, at his manner of clothyng, the color and the shappe, at his outward havyng, and at his inward goodnes and his onlothfulhede.

The lord that sate solemnly in rest and in peace, I understond that he is God. The servant that stode aforn the lord, I understode that it was shewid for Adam, that is to seyen, on man was shewid that tyme, and his fallyng, to maken therby understonden how God beholdith a man and his fallyng. For in the syte of God, al man is on man, and on man is all man. This man was hurte in hys myte and made ful febil, and he was stonyed in his understondyng, for he turnyd from the beholdyng of his lord. But his will was kept hole in God sygte, for his will I saw our lord commenden and approven. But hymselfe was lettid and blyndyd of the knowing of this will, and this is to him grete sorow and grevous disese. For neither he seith clerly his lovyng lord, which is to him ful meke and mylde, ne he seith trewly what himself is in the sygte of his lovyng lord. And wel I wote whan these two are wysely and treuly seyn, we shall gettyn rest and peas her in parte, and the fulhede of the bliss of Hevyn be His plentiuous grace.

And this was a begynnyng of techyng which I saw in the same tyme wherby I myte com to knowyng in what manner He beholdyth us in our synne. And than I saw that only paynys blamith and punishith, and our curtis Lord comfortith and sorowith, and ever He is to the soule in glad cher, lovand and longand to bryngen us to bliss.

The place that our Lord sat on was symple, on the erth, barren and desert, alone in wildernes. His clothyng was wide and syde, and ful semely as fallyth to a lord. The color of His cloth was blew as asure, most sad and fair. His cher was merciful. The color of His face was faire browne with fulsomely featours; His eyen were blak, most faire and semely, shewand ful of lovely pety; and within Him, an hey ward, longe and brode, all full of endles hevyns. And the lovely lokeing that He loked upon His servant continuly, and namely in his fallyng, methowte it myte molten our herts for love and bresten hem on to for joy. The fair lokyng shewid of a semely medlur which was mervelous to beholden. That on was ruth and pety, that other was joye and bliss.

The joy and bliss passith as fer reuth and pite as Hevyn is aboven erth. The pite was erthly, and the blis was hevenly. The ruth in the pite of the Fadir was of the falling of Adam, which is His most lovid creatur. The joy and the bliss was of His dereworthy Son, which is evyn with the Fadir. The merciful beholdyng of His lofly cher fulfilled al erth and descendid downe with Adam into Helle, with which continuant pite Adam was kept from endles deth. And this mercy and pite dwellyth with mankind into the tyme we com up into Hevyn.

But man is blindid in this life, and therfore we may not sen our Fader, God, as He is. And what tyme that He of His goodnes will shewin Hym to man, He shewith Him homley as man. Notwithstonding I saw sothly we owen to knowen and levyn that the Fader is not man. But His sitting on the erth barreyn and desert is this to menyn: He made mans soule to ben His owen cyte, and His dwellyng place, which is most plesyng to Hym of al His werks. And what tyme that man was fallen into sorow and peyne, he was not al semly to servyn of that noble office. And therfore our kind Fader wold adyten him no other place, but sitten upon the erth abeydand mankynd which is medlid with erth till what time be His grace His derworthy Son had bowte ageyn His cyte into the noble fayrhede with His herd travel. The blewhede of the clothing betokinith His stedfastnes; the brownhede of His fair face with the semely blakhede of the eyen was most accordyng to shew His holy sobirnes. The larghede of His clothyng which were fair, flamand abowten, betokenith that He hath beclesid in hym all hevyns and al joy and blis.

And this was shewid in a touch, wher I sey, myn understondyng was led into the Lord, in which I saw Him heyly enjoyen for the worshipful restoring that He wil and shal bring His servant to be His plenteous grace.

And yet I mervellyd, beholdyng the lord and the servant afornseid. I saw the lord sitten solemnly and the servant stondand reverently aforn his lord, in which servant is double understondyng, on withouten, another within. Outward, he was clad simply as a labourer which wer disposid to travel, and he stode ful nere the lord, not even fornempts hym, but in partie asyd, that on the lift. His clothyng was a white kirtle, sengil, old and al defacid, died with swete of his body, streyte fittyng to hym and short, as it were an handful benethe the knee, bar, semand as it shuld sone be weryd up redy to be raggid and rent. And in this I mervelid gretly, thynkand: This is now an onsemely clothyng for the servant that is so heyly lovid, to stondyn afor so worship lord.

And inward, in him was shewid a ground of love, which love he had to the lord was even like to the love that the lord had to hym. The wisdam of the servant saw inwardly that ther was on thing to don which shuld be to the worshipp of the lord. And the servant, for love, haveing no reward to hymselfe ne to nothing that might fallen on him, hastely he stirt and ran at the sendyng of his lord to don that thing which was his will and his worship. For it semyd be his outward clothyng as he had ben a continuant labourer of leng tyme. And be the inward syte that I had both in the lord and in the servant, it semyd that he was anew, that is to sey, new begynnyng to travellyn, which servant was never sent out aforn.

Ther was a tresor in the erth which the lord lovid. I mervelid and thowte what it myte ben. And I was answered in myn understondyng: It is a mete which is lovesome and plesant to the lord. For I saw the lord sitten as a man, and I saw neither mete ner drynke wherwith to servyn hym. This was on mervel. Another mervel was that this solemn lord had no servant but on, and hym he sent owte. I beheld, thynkyng what manner labour it myte ben that the servant shud don, and than I understode that he shuld don the gretest labor and herdest travel that is. He shuld ben a gardiner, delvyn and dykyn, swinkin and swetyn, and turne the earth upsodowne, and sekyn the depnes, and wattir the plants in tyme, and in this he shuld continu his travel and make swete flods to rennen, and noble and plenteous fruits to springen which he shuld bryng aforn the lord and servyn hym therwith to his lykyng.

And he shuld never turne agen till he had dygte this mete al redye as he knew that it lekyd the lord, and than he shuld take this mete with the drinke in the mete, and beryn it ful worshipfully aforn the lord.

And al this tyme the lord shuld sytten on the same place abydand his servant whome he sent out. And yet I merveylid from whens the servant came. For I saw in the lord that he hath wythyn hymselfe endles lif and al manner of goodnes, save that tresor that was in the erth, and that was groundyd in the lord in mervelous depenes of endles love. But it was not all to the worship till this servant had dygte thus nobly it, and browte it aforn him, in hymself present. And without the lord was nothing but wildernes. And I understod not all what this example ment, and therfore I merveylid whens the servant cam.

In the servant is comprehendid the Second Person in the Trinite, and in the servant is comprehendid Adam, that is to sey, al man. And therfore whan I sey the Son, it menyth the Godhede which is even with the Fadir; and whan I sey the servant, it menyth Christs manhood which is rythful Adam. Be the nerehede of the servant is understode the Son, and be the stondyng on the left syde is understod Adam. The lord is the Fadir, God; the servant is the Son, Christ Jesus; the Holy Gost is even love which is in them both. Whan Adam fell, God Son fell. For the rythfull onyng which was made in Hevyn, God Son myte not fro Adam, for by Adam I understond all man. Adam fell fro lif to deth into the slade of this wretchid world, and after that into Hell. Gods Son fell with Adam into the slade of the Mayden wombe which was the fairest dawter of Adam, and therfor to excuse Adam from blame in Hevyn and in erth, and mytyly He fetchid him out of Hell.

Be the wisdam and goodnes that was in the servant is understode Godds Son. Be the por clothyng as a laborer standand nere the left syde is understode the manhood and Adam, with al the mischef and febilnes that folowith. For in al this, our good Lord shewid His owne Son and Adam but one man. The vertue and the goodnes that we have is of Jesus Criste, the febilnes and the blindnes that we have is of Adam; which two wer shewid in the servant. And thus hath our good Lord Jesus taken upon Him al our blame, and therfore our Fadir may, ne will, no more blame assigne to us than to His owen Son, derworthy Criste. Thus was He the servant aforne His comeing into erth, stondand redy aforne the Fader in purposs till what tyme He would send hym to don that worshipfull dede be which mankynde was browte ageyn into Hevyn, that is to seyn, notwithstondyng that He is God, evyn with the Fadir as anempts the Godhede. But in1995 His forseeing purpose that He wold be man to saven man in fulfilling of His Faders will, so He stode afore His Fader as a servant wilfully takyng upon Hym al our charge. And than He stirt full redily at the Faders will, and anon He fell full low in the Maydens womb, haveing no reward to Himselfe ne to His herd peyns.

The which kirtle is the flesh; the syngulhede is that there was ryte now atwix the godhod and manhede. The steytehede is povertye. The eld is of Adams waring; the defaceing of swete, of Adams travel. The shorthede shewith the servant labour. And thus I saw the Son stonding, sayeing in His menyng: Lo, my der Fader, I stond befor The in Adams kirtle alredy to sterten and to rennen. I wold ben in the erth to don Thy worship whan it is Thy will to send me. How long shal I desiren?

Ful sothfastly wist the Son whan it was the Fader will, and how long He shal desiren. That is to sey, anempt the Godhede, for He is the wisdam of the Fader. Wherfor this mening was shewid in understondyng of the manhode of Criste. For all mankynd that shal be savid be the swete incarnation and blisful passion of Criste, al is the manhood of Criste. For He is the hede, and we be His members, to which members the day and the tyme is onknown whan every passand wo and sorow shal have an end and the everlestyng joy and bliss shall be fulfylid, which day and time for to se al the company of Hevyn longyth. And al that shall ben under Hevyn that shal come thider, ther wey is be longyng and desire, which desir and longing was shewid in the servant stondyng aforen the Lord, or ell thus, in the Sons stondyng aforn the Fadir in Adams kirtle. For the langor and desire of al mankynd that shal be savid aperid in Jesus, for Jesus is al that shal be savid, and al that shal be savid is Jesus - and al of the charite of God, with obediens, mekeness, and patience, and vertues that longyn to us.

Also in this mervelous example I have techyng with me as it were the begynnyng of an ABC, wherby I may have sum understondyng of our Lordis menyng. For the privities of the Revelation ben hidd therin, notwithstondyng that al the shewing arn ful of privityes. The syttyng of the Fadir betokynyth His Godhede, that is to sey, for shewyng of rest and peas, for in the Godhede may be no travel. And that He shewid Hymselfe as Lord, betokynith to our manhode. The stondyng of the servant betokynyth travel; on syde and on the left betokynyth that he was not al worthy to stonden ever ryth aforn the Lord. His stertyng was the Godhede, and the rennyng was the manhede. For the Godhede sterte from the Fadir into the Maydens wombe, falling into the taking of our kynde. And in this falling He toke gret sore.

The sore that He toke was our flesh in which He had also swithe felyng of dedly peynis. Be that He stod dredfully aforn the Lord, and not even ryth, betokynith that His clothyng was not honest to stond in even ryth aforn the Lord. Ne that myte not, ne shuld not, ben His office whil He was a laborer. Ne also He myte not sitten in rest and peace with the Lord till He had woon His peace rythfully with His herd travel. And be the left syde, that the Fadir left His owne Son wilfully in the manhode to suffre all mannys paynys without sparing of Him.

Be that His kirtle was in poynte to be raggid and rent is understonden the sweppys and the scorgis, the thornys and the naylys, the drawyng and the draggyng, His tendir flesh rendyng - as I saw in sum partie the flesh was rent from the hedepanne, falland in pecys into the tyme the bledyng failyd, and than it began to dryand, agen clyngand to the bone. And be the wallowyng and wrythyng, gronyng and monyng, is understonden that He myte never rysen al mytyly from the tyme that He was fallen into the Maydens wombe till His body was slaine and ded, He yeldyng the soule in the Fadirs hands with al mankynd for whom He was sent.

And at this poynte He began first to shewen His myte, for He went into Helle, and whan He was there He reysid up the gret rote out of the depe depenes, which rythfully was knit to Hym in hey Hevyn. The body was in the grave till Estern morow, and from that tyme He lay never more. For then was rythfully endid the walowyng and the wrythyng, the groning and the monyng. And our foule dedly flesh that Gods Son toke on Hym, which was Adams old kirtle, streyte, bare and short, than be our Savior was made fair, now white and bryte, and of endles cleness, wyde and syde, fairer and richer than was than the clothyng which I saw on the Fadir. For that clothyng was blew, and Christs clothyng is now of a fair semely medlur which is so mervelous that I can it not discrien, for it is al of very worshipps.

Now sittith not the Lord on erth in wilderness, but He sittith in His noblest sete which He made in Hevyn most to His lekyng. Now stondith not the Son aforn the Fadir as a servant aforn the Lord, dredfully, unornely clad, in party nakid, but He stondith aforn the Fadir ever rythe rechely clad in blissfull largess with a corone upon His hede of pretious richess. For it was shewid that we be His corone, which corone is the Fadirs joye, tho Sonys worshippe, the Holy Gost lekyng, and endless mervelous bliss to all that be in Hevyn. Now stondith not the Son aforn the Fadir on the left syde as a laborer, but He sittith on His Fadirs ryte hond in endles rest and peace. But it is not ment that the Son syttith on the ryte hond, syde be syde, as on man sittith be another in this lif, for ther is no such syttyng, as to my syte, in the Trinite. But He sittith on His Fadirs ryte hand, that is to sey, in the heyest noblyth of the Fadirs joyes. Now is the spouse, Gods Son, in peace with His lowvid wife which is the fair mayden of endles joye. Now sittith the Son, very God and man, in His cety in rest and peace which His Fadir hath adyte to Him of His endles purpose, and the Fadir in the Son, and tho Holy Gost in the Fadir and in the Son.