The Last Battle of the Soul, Religious tract 6
THE QVEENES Lamentations for the death of her Son.
O But GOD is most terrible, when hee is angrie, He hath called as in a solemne day my terrors round about: surelie against mee is he turned, hee turneth his hand against mee all the day, My flesh and my skinne hath he made olde, hee hath broken my bones: Hee hath builded against mee, and compassed mee with gall and trauell: He hath set mee in dark places, as they that bee dead of olde: Hee hath hedged mee about that I cannot get out: Hee hath made my chaine heauie: Hee hath turned aside my wayes, and pulled me in pieces: He hath made me desolate: He hath bent his Bow & set me as a marke for his arrowes: He hath caused the Arrowes of his Quiuer to enter into my reines: Hee hath filled mee with bitternesse: Hee hath made mee drunke with worme-wood: The verie Sea monsters are carefull for their young ones: They drawe out the breast to giuegive them sucke.
How should I bee like the vnnaturall Iob. 39. 14Ostrich which leaueth her egges in the earth, and forgetteth that the foote may orush them, or that the wild beast may breake them? Shee is hardened vers. 16▪against her young ones, as though they vers. …17.vvere not hers: God hath depriued her of wisedome, neither hath hee imparted to her vnderstanding.
Alas, alas, the joye of our heart is ceased: our dance is turned into mourning: The crowne is fallen from our head: Woe vntounto vsus that wee hauehave sinned, for this our heart is faint, for these thinges our eyes are dimme.
Wherefore, Lord, doest thou forget vsus for euer, & forsake vsus so long time? Thou hast vtterlie rejected vsus: Thou art verie vvroth against vsus: O that mine eyes were a liuelie Spring of teares which day and night might trickle downe for the lamenting of my losse.
O yee Daughters of Britaine my natiue Soile: Conueene your selues together: Come all and joyne your sorrowes with mine: Come contribute teares in aboundance, that wee may deplore our domage: Come, come and helpe mee to mourne for my first Borne: It is Gods will, it is Gods commandement that yee mourne with these that mourne: With whom will yee mourne, if yee refuse to mourne with mee?
O noble Ladies of Britaine, think vponupon my sorrows: My griefe is great, mine heart is broken, mine eyes doe faile with teares: Come yee all and condole with mee: Cast off your Rayments of joye: And thou BOHEMIA with the PALATINAT mak to your selues new Robes of doole: Fill al the Lāds with mourning like that mourning in Zacharie, Zach. 12. 11The mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon, for the death of good Iosiah. Mine heart is sore gripped with griefe: Iam lik the Pelican in the vvildernesse: Mine eyesPsal. 102. 6 doe faile with teares; my bowels are troubled, my Liuer is powred vponupon the earth: I was at ease, but hee hath broken mee asunder: Hee hath also taken mee by the necke and shaken mee to pieces, and set mee vp for his marke: His Archers compasse mee round about: Hee cleaueth my reines asunder, and doeth not spare: Hee powreth out my gall vponupon the ground: Hee breaketh mee with breach vponupon breach: Hee runneth vpō me lik a Gyant: My face is foule with weeping, and on mine eye-lids is the shadow of death: My Friendes scorne mee, but mine eye powreth out teares vntounto God: When a few yeares are come, then I shall goe the way whence I shall not returne.
The Lord hath made me as a byword of the people: Mine eyes are dimme by reason of sorrow, and all my members are as a shadow: Know now yee all that God hath compassed mee with his net: Hee hath fenced vp my way that I cannot passe, and hee hath set darknesse in my pathes: Hee hath stript mee of my Glorie, and taken the Crowne from mine head: Hee hath destroyed mee on euerie side, and I am gone, and mine hope hath hee remoued like a tree.
His troupes come together and raise vp their way against mee, and encampe round about my Tabernacle: He hath put my brethrene far from mee: My Kins-folke hauehave failed and my familiare friendes hauehave forgotten mee: HaueHave pittie vponupon mee, O yee my Friendes for the hand of God hath troubled mee.Apostrophe ad filium mortuum
O my Sonne, my dearest Sonne is gone: Hee is lost, where shall I finde him? O FREDERICK my Son where art thou? Shall I see thee no more? Shall I neuer kisse thy mouth againe? Once did thou lye in my bellie neere vntounto mine heart▪ but now alas, thou lyes sleeping in slime: Now thy bedde is made among the crawling wormes: Thy Princelie Bodie now lyeth in the place of silence: O where is thy Coloure now? Where is thy Countenance? Long shall it before I see thy smilling Face and twinkling Eyes: My deare Heart FREDERICK, Long may I cry before that thou make answere: How hauehave I lost Thee? How past thou from mee? When said thou thy last adewes? What were thy last adews? what were the last words thou spake vntounto me? Where saw I thee last? Oh, if I had knowne when I last saw thee, that I would neuer againe see thee aliue: Then would I hauehave kissed thee, then would I hauehave more constantlie considered thy countenance: I would hauehave said in my selfe, Is this the Face that I shall neuer see againe? Is this the Mouth that shall neuer speake againe? Are these the Eares that shall neuer heare againe? Are these the Eyes that shall neuer see againe? That Mouth, that Nose, these cherrie Cheekes and lillie Lippes, these Eares and Eyes would I hauehave kissed tenne thousand times kissed and ouer againe.
Alas that I should hauehave so journed so neere vntounto the Waters: Alas that euer I knew that mercilesse Element.
O cursed Waters! O Waters ofApostrophe ad mare & flumina. Marah full bitter are yee to mee: O Element which of all others shall bee most detestable to my Soule! I shall neuer wash mine handes with thee but I shall remember what thou hast done to my best beloued Son the Darling of my Soule, I shall for euer be a friend to the Fire which is thy greatest foe.
*NoteAway Riuers, away Seas, Let me see you no more: If ye were sensible Creatures, my deare Brother CHARELES Prince of the European Seas should scourge you with his Royall Shippes; with his thundering Cannons hee should pierce you to the bottome.
*NoteO Seas of sorrowes, O fearefull Floods, O tumbling Tempests, O wilfull Waues, O swelling surges, O wicked waters, O dooleful deeps, O peartest Pools, O botchfull butcher Boats, was there no merciemercy among you for such an hopfull PRINCE? O that I could refraine from teares and that because they bee salt water like vntounto your selues: Away with you Seas of sorrowe, for yee hauehave robbed mee of my dearest Darling of account, hencefoorth yee shall neuer bee able to repaire my losses: O my Sonne FREDERICK, my Son, my Sonne FREDERICK, would God I had dyed for Thee, O FREDERICK my Sonne, my Sonne.
A. H.