University of Virginia Library

Diuinitie, The twentie three pleasure.

Diuinitie dooth number out our dayes,
And showes our life, still fading as a flowre:
Bids vs beware of wanton wicked wayes,
For we are sure to liue no certaine howre.
Arithmaticke doth number worldly toyes,
Diuinitie innumerable ioyes.
Then iudge I pray which yeeldes the more delight,
Dininitie, then chuse it for thy ioy:
Studie that chiefe, and labour day and night,
By that to learne to shield thee from annoy.
And thou shalt finde it salueth euery sore:
And saues the soule, and what ioy can be more?
By Rethoricke, now some doe take delight,
To paint a fable with a gallant glose:
But no such tale is gratefull in Gods sight,
Besides, he will each secrete shift disclose.
His tale is best before the Lorde, who sayes,
He doth in hart repent his sinfull dayes.
Who dooth in deed his sinfull life confesse,
Who pardon craues, and calles to God for grace,
His tale is heard, him God doth rightly blesse,
And eke in heauen prouides for him a place.
God graunt vs all our prayers so to vse:
That he may not our penitence refuse.
Now some againe delight in Histories,
To reade the Acts of some couragious Knight:


To thinke vpon the gallant victories,
To reade againe the order of the fight.
And doe such stories breede delight in deede?
Then take delight the Scriptures for to reade.
There shalt thou finde how Christ a battell fought,
Against the deuill and his cursed traine:
Subdude them all, their force preuailed nought,
But all were driuen into eternall paine.
Blessed be he that so hath brought in thrall,
Him that would else haue surely slaine vs all.
And tell me then, although some valiant Knight,
Did conquere Realmes, and by his force of armes
Subdued Princes by his onely might,
And made them know his force vnto their harmes,
Yet thinke of him, that by his onely might,
Did saue both thee, and all the world by fight.
Oh valiant acte, and worthie to be read,
Who sau'd our liues, who else had sure bene slaine,
And further when our bodies here be dead,
Hath sau'd our soules from euerlasting paine.
God graunt vs all vnder that Christ to fight,
Who so our soules hath saued by his might.
And of good deedes, to reade doost thou delight?
That worthie are for to be borne in minde,
Then reade how Christ vnto the blinde gaue sight,
Healed the sicke in body and in minde,
Did giue the lame their limmes, and what else more?
Gaue the diseasde a salue for euery sore.
Where can you reade, of one so good a man,
Tushe, there is none without exception:
Let vs delight our selues there now and than,
His great good deedes to reade and looke vpon.
And we shall finde thereby such heauenly ioyes:
As we shall count all Stories else but toyes.
For if we doe to minde, his goodnesse call,
How great a good he hath bestowed on vs:


By his deare death and bloud to saue vs all,
Are we not bound to thinke onely Iesus,
To be in deede the Author of our ioy,
And onely he that keepes vs from annoy?
Yes out of doubt, and therefore thus I end,
God graunt vs all, to take him for our ioy:
To loue our God, which is our onely friend,
That saues our soules, and bodies from annoy.
And to esteeme all worldly thinges but toyes:
And set in Christ our all and onely ioyes.