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[Conceive not, happy malecontent! although]

I am come a light into the world, and whosoever believeth in me shall not abide in darkness. John 12. v. 46.

1

Conceive not, happy malecontent! although
Thou stand'st below,
But thy inlarged eye may freely rove,
And soar above;
Nay all that ambient Darkness clear's the light
Unto thy sight,
And all those silver streakes of light which were
Seemingly hid before, do now appear.

2

Although the space of Heaven, which doth lie
Before thine eye,
Seem's small; thy bulk's too little and unfit
To measure it,
What seem's an inch will quickly unbeguile
And prove a mile;
Stars seem like spangles; but a tube let's see
This massie globe of th'Earth's far less then they.
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3

Trust not from this thy sense with things that are
Above her sphear;
Shee's purblinde, and at distance cannot see
Things as they be,
Reason may help, but not secure her: either
May err together.
Nothing more wilde, and weak, and erring, than
The reason of poor incollected man.

4

But faith, which seeme's to overthrow her quite,
Set's her aright;
And drawe's remotest objects home unto her;
That what before
Was small and too too bright she could not see;
May now agree;
Faith is the best prospective, they who rest
Without her, seeing most, do see the least.
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Epigram 1.

They talk of killing monsters, 'lass! Faith is
(View her attempts) the greatest Hercules.
She things the most impossible doth know
How to believe, and that because th'are so.
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