Mel Heliconium :: :: University of Virginia Library

Who 'gainst the world, and sin, and Satan fights,
Had need of Bullocks strength, and Serpents slights.
If God pulls off thy horn, knocks down thy pride;
Go to repentance river, there abide,
Till sin be choak'd in tears, and do not scorn
To offer him thy Amalthæan horn
To feed the poor; but if thy strength thou spend
On drink, and whores, a flood shall be thy end.

ACTÆON.

Think you on this, who spend your dayes, and strength,
And means, on Whores, Dogs, Parasites; at length
They'l woorry you: before you feel their wounds,
Look to their teeth, shun these Actæons hounds.

ADONIS.

You that hunt after pleasures, eye that Boare,
Who would your health, and wealth, and souls devour.
Dote not on beauty; beauty's but a flower,
Whose pride and lustre fadeth in an hour.
Strive that your names may flourish after death,
Let them out-live Adonis flower, & yeeld a fragrant breath.

ADMETUS.

Let not Man think on Hymen, till he finde
What is Apollo's and Alcides minde.
And you weak Maids, and Widows too, before
You marry, shun the Lyon and the Boare.
Think not to carry Hope and Confidence,
Till you subdue pride and concupiscence:
By Hope lay hold on Christ, he will sustain
Your souls in death, and them restore again.

ÆACUS. MINOS. RHADAMANTHUS.

Consider Judges, though you be but dust,
Gods sons you are, yea Gods, if you be just.
Let no man sin securely, though alone;
For each man hath three Judges in a Throne
Within his brest: these Judges will torment thee
Here and in Hell, where no man shall lament thee.
Now we are men, which heretofore were Ants;
Then let us live like men, and not like Wants,
Still digging: leave your holes, and fix your eyes
Upon your starry-house, the spangled skies,
Where Christ your head, and Lord and Judge doth dwell,
The onely Judge of Heaven, Earth, and Hell.

ÆGÆON.

As he who did against great Jove rebell,
Was struck with Thunder, and knockt down to Hell:
So God will all you Monsters over-turn,
Who gainst the King, the Church, the State dare spurn.
Your glory shall be shame, black Hell your mansion,
Furies your fellows, brimstone and fire your pension:
Your motion's like Ægæons; when he turns,
Ætna doth shake, and for a while it burns:
But when you move, you shake the world asunder,
Whose bowels smoke, and burn and roare, till you be struck with Thunder.

ÆNÆAS.

He that would safely passe black Acheron,
And scape the dangers of hot Phlegeton,
Must carry with him Wisdoms golden rod,
Sybill must guide him; thats advice from God:
So shall he not fear dangers, nor miscarry,
When Styx he crosseth in old Charons wherry.
What strength of Towns, or Castles can withstand
Sibyllas head-peece, and a golden hand.
But yet, beware of gold, I would advise thee;
For gold ill got, will down to Hell intice thee.
And if thou wouldst true gold and wisdom finde,
Seek after Christ, and on him fix thy minde.
Be chaste like Doves, and let Gods Word instruct thee,
There are the Doves which will to Christ conduct thee.
If Kings will fear great Jove who reigns above,
Then Vulcan, Neptune, Mercury, and Love
Shall serve them; Juno's spight shall not destroy them,
Nor Æolus with all his breath annoy them.

ÆOLUS.

He's Æolus, a God, and not a man,
That anger can
Subdue, and keep unruly passions under,
He's a wonder.
He is a King, and stronger then the winde,
That curbs his minde.

It's ill, when wealth conspires with violence
'Gainst innocence.
That State's a Sea; Ships sink, or drive on shoare,
When such storms roare.

ÆSCULAPIUS.

He that would prove a good Physitian,
Must be a Centaur, that's a horse and man:
And he that will keep men from Charons boat,
Must be a Cock, a Crow, a Snake, a Goat.
Let him that's sick, and bruis'd, who cryes and grones,
Repair to Christ, he'l heal the broken bones:
He can do more then Æsculapius,
Who brought from death to life torn Virbius.
He first subdu'd death in himself, and then
Restor'd us all to life, who were dead men,
Dead in our sins, and dead in Gods just ire;
But Christ hath kill'd our death, and quencht that fire
Which doth torment and burn, but not consume,
A fire which gives no light, which yeelds no sume.
His death then is our life, our drink his blood;
His stripes our physick, and his flesh our food.
And when he comes again in Majestie,
To plague the workers of iniquity,
Sitting upon the clouds, whose voice like Thunder,
Shall shake heav'ns Tower, and cleave the earth in sunder:

Then will he raise all those that sleep in dust,
And crown with immortality the just.

ALPHÆUS.

As Arethusa running through the main,
Yet doth its taste and colour still retain:
Salt Doris cannot taint it; let us then
Be good still, though we live with wicked men.
And as Alphæus runs, and will not stop
Untill he rests in Arethusa's lap;
So run my soul, untill thou be possess'd
Of thy belov'd, and of eternall rest.
And who would think, that love could set on fire;
Cold waters chuse cold waters to desire:
Can Cupid wound a river, can he scorch
The fencelesse waters with his flaming Torch?
No, no; but thou, O Lord, the God of Love
Can wound my heart, and warm it from above.
My cold and waterish heart, so now inflame
With love of thee, that I my course may frame
To thee through all the foes of cares and fears,
And through the salt sea also of my tears.
I am Alphæus, thou that living Well
To which I run, and where I hope to dwell.

AMPHION.

In this we see the force of Eloquence,
By which grea Towns have walls, and stones have sence.
This is the onely pleasant melody,
Which caus'd rude men imbrace civility.
Stones hear not sounds; its not the warbling Lute,
Nor solemn Harp, nor Trumpet, nor the Flute,
Nor Songs, nor any Organ musicall
That could give sence to stones, or build a wall:
But Christ our Lord with his cœlestiall layes,
Hath from Amphion born away the praise;
Whose charming voice no sooner 'gan to sound,
But Sions walls were lifted from the ground:
He rais'd us senslesse stones out of the dung
Of Errour, by the musick of his tongue,
That we might, at his voice, and in his name,
Make up the walls of new Jerusalem.

ANTÆUS.

Take heed, all you that would o'rethrow
Your greedy mindes, and them subdue,
You fling them not in things below,
For so their force they'l still renew:

But lift them up with all your strength,
That they may see the wealth and joy
Which is above, and so at length
You shall your Avarice destroy.
At any time if Satan shall
With crosses fling you on the ground,
Lose not your vertue with your fall,
But let your courage then abound.
Take heed he lift you not too high
With pride in this your spirituall strife:
For then hee'l get the victory,
And spoil thee of eternall life.
Lord lift my minde out of the dust,
And make it mount above the skies;
Be thou my treasure where no rust
Can come, which Moaths and Theeves defies.
And when with crosses I'm cast down,
Let not my strength and courage fail;
Let constancie Lord be my Crown,
Then in my fall I shall prevail.

APOLLO.

When God out of rude Chaos drew the light,
Which chas'd away the long confused night
O're all this All, it did display
Its golden beams, and made the day.
So when mankinde did in the Chaos lye,
Of ignorance and grosse idolatry,
There did arise a light, a Star
Brighter then Sun or Moon by far.
Who with his fulgent beams did soon disperse
The vapours of this little universe
Till then no morning did arise,
Nor sparkling Stars to paint the skies.
This is that Sun, this is the womans seed,
Who with her arrows wounded Pythons head;
Its he who kill'd the Gyants all,
Which were the causes of our fall.

He is that shepherd which in flowry Meads
Doth feed his wandring flock, and then he leads
Them to the brook that softly glides,
And with his shepherds-crook them guides.
Its he that did Jerusalem immure,
And made it strong, that it might stand secure
Against all forrein enemies,
Against assaults and batteries.
He's Wisdom, he that Prophet which displaid
What was before in darknesse bosome laid;
Whose Oracles did never fail,
Whose Miracles made all men quail.
He is the Sun that rides triumphantly
On the blew Chariot of the spangled sky,
Whose Chariot's drawn with horses four,
Justice and Truth, Mercie and Power.
He is the God of all sweet harmony,
Without whose word there is no melody;
He's sweeter to a pensive minde,
Then any musick we can finde.
He is the God of physick, he can ease
The soule of sin, thy body of disease.
He only helps the heavie heart,
He only cures the inward smart.
But sometime he his winged shafts lets fly
Amongst his foes, and wounds them mortally.
Who can unbend his reaching Bow?
Who can avoid his piercing blow?
Then seeing Christ is this resplendant Sun,
Which Gyant-like about the world doth run;
Who shew'd to Jews his rosie face,
And to all Gentiles offers grace.
Let us at last with reverence admire
This great Apollo, heavens greatest fire:
Come, let us Palms and Laurels bring,
And to him Io Pæans sing.

Apollo and a King parallel'd.

Like as Apollo's sparkling flame,
Doth cherish with his beams the frame
Of this round Globe we see:
So Kings extend on us the light
Of their just Laws, and with their might
Keep us from injury.
They let their Arrows flye at those
Who dares their Rules and Laws oppose.
And vex the innocent
A King the plaguey Python slayes,
And Gyants that will Thunder raise
Within his firmament.
He is a good Physitian,
That bitter Pills and Cordialls can
Prescribe when he thinks cause
He makes a sweeter harmony,
Then Harp, or Lute, or Psaltery,
With his well tuned Laws.
He holds his bow with his left hand,
And at his right the graces stand,
As white as driven snow,
To let us see that by his raign
More good we have, and much more gain
Then damage by his bow.
The Muses in a grove of Bayes
About him dance, and sing sweet layes,
Each hath her instrument;
To shew, that under such a King
All things do flourish, Schollers sing
With comfort and content.
He hath the Ravens piercing eye,
He's a white Swan in purity,
And hath the Bullocks strength:

He shall out-live the Palm and Bay,
His Name and Laws shall not decay,
But conquer all at length.
His head doth shine with golden locks,
He is a shepherd of great flocks,
Whom in the fragrant Meads,
He feeds and guides them with his crook,
And drives them to the silver Brook,
And to the shades them leads.
He wears a Tripos on his Crown,
A Triple Monster trampled down,
Before him prostrate lyes.
Now if this Sun shines any where,
He shines sure in our Northern sphære,
And moves in British skies.

ARACHNE.

Thou that in knowledge dost excell,
Must humble be,
And think what on Arachne fell,
May fall on thee:
It was her pride did her undo,
And pride may overthrow thee too.

Let not the miser spend his strength,
And lose his health
To catch a silly Fly at length,
For such is wealth:
The carefull wretch at his last gasp
Shall finde that wealth is but a wasp.

Take heed thou do not use thy tongue
To sting the good;
For they that thus good men do wrong,
Are Spiders brood:
Nay worse; for bad tongues far surpasse
That poyson which cracks but a glasse.

Judges your Laws you must not make,
Like Spiders cords,
Which onely Pesants use to take
And passe by Lords:
This is indeed a powerfull Law,
Which keeps both rich and poor in awe.

But we must Spiders strive to be
In providence,
Where dangers are we must foresee,
And flye from thence;
Sea-men for want of good forecast,
Are soon surpris'd with every blast.

ARION

That arch-Thief Satan, Pyrate of mankinde,
Had rob'd us of Gods grace, had spoil'd the minde,
And flung us in the sea of misery,
In which we must have dyed eternally:
Ev'n as those Theeves who had conspir'd to 'ntomb
Arion in old Glaucus glassy womb;
Who by his Harp from that salt grave was saved,
And on the Dolphins scaly back received:
On which, as on a horse triumphing rides,
And with his musick charms the windes and tides.
The sea-Nymphs are amaz'd to hear such noise,
And with unusuall dancings shew their joyes.
Stern Neptunes Trident doth the waves appease,
And Tritons blew horse tramples on the seas;
Thetis stands still and hears, the fishes skip
To hear this Song, to see this living ship.

The Dolphin was the ship, the pilot, and
The compasse too, that brought him to the land.
If this was true, t'was strange, sure this I know,
That Satan out of Paradise did throw
Adam unto a briny sea of cares,
Which had more dangers then his head had hairs.
The breath of Gods just indignation
Did raise the billows of this Ocean,
Which with a night of clouds obscur'd the sky,
And did involve with mists heavens brightest eye.
This incontrolled storm did rore and rage,
And nothing could the wrath thereof asswage,
Untill that storm was heard which calm'd the seas,
Unmask'd the Sun, and did the windes appease.
The Gentile Princes, who before were wilde,
Are by this musick charm'd, & made more milde.
Sions new Song hath caus'd great Potentates
Submit to Christ their crowns, their wealth, their states.
They yeeld their backs to him, him they support
In his sea-tossed members to their port.
And as Arion did the fish bestride,
Which through the main was both his ship and guide:
So Christ supports us to our wish'd for shore,
He's Winde, and Star, Card, Pilot, Ship, and Oare.
Or else the Church the Dolphin is; the Gale
Gods Word; the World's the Sea on which we sail:
Who through this Sea would passe, and come to land,
Must use this Gale, and on this Dolphin stand.

ARISTÆUS

When Aristæus lost his troops
Of honey, people, and their hopes;
And when Cyrene he ador'd,
He had his swarms again restor'd.
Wee are the Bees, and Christ is he
Who would himself an off'ring be;
He was both Altar, Priest and Hoast,
He found us out when we were lost.
He got us pleasure by his pain,
His death's our life, his losse our gain.
In that we do injoy our lives,
In that our wexin Kingdom thrives:
In that we sit on fragrant flowers,
Bedew'd with pearly drops and showers;
In that our Cells with Nectar slow,
In that our yong ones live and grow:
In that we play in open air,
In that the Heavens are so fair;
In that we have so long a Spring,
And with our humming Meads do ring:
All this we have, and more then this,
By vertue of Christs sacrifice.
Its he who with his gentle breath,

Tempers the heat of Jova's wrath.
Its he that loves us night and day,
And yet like fools we run away.
He is our husband, not our foe,
Then whither will you from him go?
You run, but do not see, alas,
The Serpent that lurks in the grasse.
O Lord, when thou dost call on me,
Uncase my eyes, that I may see
Thy love, and beauty of thy face;
And so support me with thy grace
That I may stand; or if I fall,
I may not lose my soul withall.

ATALANTA.

We're all in Atalanta's case,
We run apace,
Untill our wandring eyes behold
The glitt'ring gold:
And then we lose in vanity
Our race, and our virginity.

Gods holy Temple we pollute,
And prostitute
Our souls to foul Hippomenes,
With all boldnesse;
So having lost humanity,
Fierce Lyons we become to be.

And then our heads we must submit,
To curb and bit
Of mother earth, whose heavie Wain
We draw with pain:
And yet we cannot cease to draw
Earth, till earth hide us in her maw.

O that we could our sins deplore,
And kill the Boare
Of wanton lusts, e're we hence go
To shades below:
O that our rocky hearts could rend,
And from them Chrystall Rivers send.

O God, all filthy lusts destroy,
Which me annoy,
And give my flinty heart a blow,
That tears may flow:
O let me not thy house profane,
Which thou hast purchas'd with thy pain.

ATLAS

Go too my soul, thy doors unlock,
Behold the Son of God doth knock,
And offers to come in:
O suffer not to go from hence,
So great a God, so just a Prince,
That were a grievous sin.
Refuse not then to intertain
So great a guest, who would so fain

Come lodge and sup with thee:
If thou refuse, he can command
The Gorgon which is in his hand
Thy soul to terrifie.
His word the Gorgon is, which can
Turn unto senslesse stones that man
Whose gates will not display
Themselves to him, who still intreats
To come unto our Cabinets;
And yet wee'll not give way.
O Lord, whose word doth me sustain,
And all that's in the earth and main,
And in the painted skies:
Let me those goodly fruits of gold
Which in thy gardens shine, behold
With these my feeble eyes.
Lord give the King a lasting name,
And strength, that he may bear the frame
Of this great Monarchy:
From whom if Prudence do not part,
Nor light of Knowledge from his heart,
Wee'll fear no Anarchy.
Make thou his golden splendor shine
As far as did King Atlas Mine
To earths remotest bound,
And let his head ascend as high
As Atlas did above the sky,
With light and glory crown'd.

AURORA.

As fair Aurora from old Tithons bed,
Flyes out with painted wings, and them doth spred
Upon the firmament;

So from the heavens golden Cabinet,
Out flyes a morning all with Roses set
Of graces redolent.

Whose presence did revive the hearts of those
Whom night of sin and errour did inclose
Within her darkest Cell;

This morning on a purple Chariot rides,
Drawn by four milk-white Steeds, the reins he guides
In spight of death and hell.

Christ is this morning, who triumphantly
On the bright Chariot of his Word doth flye;
The four white horses are

The four Evangelists, whose light doth run
As swift as doth Aurora, or the Sun,
Or Moon, or any Star.

Its he that Eagle-like our youth renews,
And in us all infirmities subdues;
Its he whose radiant wings

Displaid abroad, hath chas'd away the night,
And usher'd in the day, which mentall light
And true contentment brings.

O thou whose face doth guild the Canopy
Which doth infold fire, air, and earth, and sea,
Extend thy glorious rayes

On me, Oh let me see that countenance
Which may dispell the night of ignorance,
So shall I sing thy praise.