The Good Lord shewid this booke shuld be otherwise performid than at the first writing. And for His werking He will we thus prey, Him thankand, trostand, and in Him enjoyand. And how He made this shewing because He will have it knowen, in which knoweing He will give us grace to love Him. For fifteen yeere after it was answerid that the cause of all this shewing was love, which Jhesus mote grant us. Amen. Eighty-sixth chapter.
The Unfinished Book and the Call to Prayer
Julian acknowledges that the book is begun but not yet finished, and calls all to prayer, thanking, trusting, and rejoicing in God, who showed His revelation to be known and loved.
This book is begun by God's gift and His grace, but as far as I can see, it is not yet finished.1 So, out of love, let us all pray to God, with God's working, thanking, trusting, and rejoicing.2 For this is how our good Lord wants to be prayed to, according to the understanding I took from all His own meaning and from the sweet words where He says so gladly, "I am the ground of your beseeching." For truly I saw and understood in our Lord's meaning that He showed it because He wants it known more than it is, and in that knowing He will give us grace to love Him and cling to Him. For He looks on His heavenly treasure on earth with such great love that He will give us more light and solace in heavenly joy as He draws our hearts, because of the sorrow and darkness we are in.3
Love Is the Meaning
After fifteen years of longing, Julian receives a spiritual answer that the meaning of the showing is love, confirmed through a catechetical dialogue and the teaching that love alone is the Lord's meaning.
And from the time it was shown, I often longed to know what our Lord's meaning was. And more than fifteen years afterward I was answered in spiritual understanding, saying this: Would you know your Lord's meaning in this? Know it well: love was His meaning. Who showed it to you? Love. What did He show you? Love. Why did He show it? For love. Hold yourself in that, and you'll know and understand more in it.4 But you will never know or understand anything else in it, forever. In this way I was taught that love was our Lord's meaning.
Eternal Love Before Creation
Julian sees that God loved us before making us, and that love is the ground of all His works, giving us our beginning in that eternal love.
And I saw with complete certainty, in this and in everything, that before God made us He loved us—a love that was never lessened, no, and never shall be. And in this love He has done all His works, and in this love He has made all things for our good.5 And in this love our life is everlasting. In our making we had a beginning. But the love in which He made us was in Him from without beginning, and in that love we have our beginning.
The Revelation Ends
Julian prays that all this will be seen in God without end, and declares the end of the Revelation of love of the blessed Trinity for our comfort and solace.
And all this will be seen in God without end—may Jesus grant us that.6 Amen. So ends the Revelation of the love of the blessed Trinity, shown by our Savior, Christ Jesus, for our endless comfort and solace, and also that we may rejoice in Him in this passing journey of this life.
Final Prayers and Blessings
Julian offers a series of final prayers: 'Amen' and 'Jesus,' then prays that the book come only to faithful lovers, warns against picking and choosing, and calls for thankfulness to Christ for the showings.
Amen. Jesus. Amen. I pray Almighty God that this book comes only into the hands of those who will be His faithful lovers, and of those who will submit themselves to the faith of Holy Church and obey the wholesome understanding and teaching of people of virtuous life, mature age, and deep learning. For this Revelation is high divinity and high wisdom, so it cannot dwell with anyone who is enslaved to sin and to the Devil. And beware that you don't take one thing according to your affection and liking and leave another, for that is the way of a heretic. But take everything together with the rest, and truly understand that it all accords with holy Scripture and is grounded in it, and that Jesus, our true love, light, and truth, will show this wisdom to all pure souls who ask Him for it with humility and perseverance. And you to whom this book comes, thank our Savior Christ Jesus wholeheartedly that He made these showings and revelations for you and to you, out of His endless love, mercy, and goodness, for your safe guidance and ours and for leading us to everlasting bliss—which may Jesus grant us. Amen.
Read the original Middle English
This booke is begunne be Gods gift and His grace, but it is not yet performid, as to my syte. For charite pray we all to God, with Godds werking, thankand, trostand, enjoyand. For thus will our good Lord be prayd, as be the understonding that I tooke in al His owne mening and in the swete words wher He seith full merrily, I am ground of thi beseking. For trewly I saw and understode in our Lords mening that He shewid it for He will have it knowen more than it is, in which knowing He will given us grace to loven Him and clevyn to Him. For He beholdith His hevenly tresure with so grete love on erth that He will give us more light and solace in hevenly joy, in drawing of our herts, for sorow and merkness which we arn in.
And fro that time that it was shewid I desired oftentimes to witten what was our Lords mening. And fifteen yer after and more I was answerid in gostly understonding, seyand thus: Woldst thou wetten thi Lords mening in this thing? Wete it wele, love was His mening. Who shewid it the? Love. What shewid He the? Love. Wherfore shewid it He?
For love. Hold the therin, and thou shalt witten and knowen more in the same. But thou shalt never knowen ne witten therein other thing without end. Thus was I lerid that love was our Lords mening. And I saw full sekirly, in this and in all, that ere God made us, He lovid us, which love was never slakid, no, never shall. And in this love He hath don all his werks, and in this love He hath made all things profitable to us. And in this love our life is everlestand. In our making we had beginning.
But the love wherin He made us was in Him from withoute begynning, in which love we have our beginning. And all this shall be seen in God without end, which Jhesus mot grant us. Amen.
Thus endith the Revelation of love of the blissid Trinite shewid by our Savior, Christ Jesu, for our endles comfort and solace and also to enjoyen in Him in this passand jorney of this life.
Amen. Jhesu. Amen.
I pray Almyty God that this booke com not but to the hands of them that will be His faithfull lovers, and to those that will submitt them to the feith of Holy Church, and obey the holesom understondying and teching of the men that be of vertuous life, sadde age, and profound lerning. For this Revelation is hey Divinitye and hey wisdam, wherfore it may not dwelle with him that is thrall to synne and to the Devill. And beware thou take not on thing after thy affection and liking and leve another, for that is the condition of an heretique. But take everything with other, and trewly understonden all is according to holy scripture and growndid in the same, and that Jhesus, our very love, light, and truth, shall shew to all clen soules that with mekenes aske perseverantly this wisdom of Hym. And thou to whome this booke shall come, thanke heyly and hertely our Savior Crist Jhesu that He made these shewings and revelations for the, and to the, of His endles love, mercy, and goodnes, for thine and our save guide and conduct to everlestyng bliss; the which Jhesus mot grant us. Amen.
Notes
- 1 ↩Middle English 'performid' means brought to full performance or completion, not merely 'performed' in a modern theatrical sense.
- 2 ↩'Charite' is rendered as charity for the theological-virtue motive of the shared prayer; love would also be allowable under the lexeme policy.
- 3 ↩'Merkness' is murkiness/darkness. The phrase 'in drawing of our herts' is taken as the manner of the gift (as He draws our hearts); attachment of the phrase is slightly elastic in the Middle English.
- 4 ↩ME 'Hold the therin': 'the' = thee; rendered as 'Hold yourself in that' for the divine counsel to remain within love.
- 5 ↩ME 'profitable to us' rendered as 'for our good' (beneficial/advantageous), not commercial profit.
- 6 ↩Middle English 'mot' is optative ('may'); rendered as a closing petition rather than obligation.
Revelations of Divine Love (Showings) companion
A daily portion of stillness
Chosen Portion delivers one short contemplative reading and a guided moment of silence each day — the ascent, one step at a time.
Chosen Portion is the paced doorway into this collection: it portions the dense mystical treatises into one daily reading plus guided silence, exactly as the 14-day plan teaches.
- Daily bite-sized excerpts from the contemplative classics, never a wall of text
- A built-in timed stillness practice that grows from 2 minutes to 10
- Gentle progression through the tradition — the app remembers where you are on the ascent