The Mother and the Child, Psalm 51
Pſalme 51. Miſerere mei Deus.
HAueHave mercy vponupon me my God,1 HaueHave merciemercy vponupon mee, O Lord, after thy great goodnes: according to the multitude of thy merciemercy doe away my offences. according to thy great clemencie, and for thy boundleſs mercies ſake forgiue me the puniſhment which I hauehave iuſtly deſerued. For if thou expect vntill my faſtings, watchings and prayers ſhal ſatisfie for my ſinne; alas Lord, when can this bee? My treſpaſſe reacheth frō earth vntounto heauen, and ſurpaſſeth in immenſitie of greatnes. Who then is able to compaſſe it, or bring it down, ſaue only thy ſacred merciemercy? which as far ſurpaſſeth the meaſure of our ſinnes, as the greatneſs of thy iuſtice is beyond ours. It is thy merciemercy O Lord, which compaſſeth this vniuerſe, which holdeth togither the whole frame of this world, which otherwiſe is readie to diſſolue and fall vponupon our heads, to burie through his ruine the memory of our ſinnes: to deſtroy, from before thy face, our ingrate, diſloyall, and felonious race; which diſclaimeth her birth, creation and preſeruation, all which it holdeth of thy bountie. O then let this mercifull bounty, which ſhineth in thy Diuinitie, now extend it ſelfe vntounto me, not ſparingly, or niggardly, but fully and plentifully. As thou didſt once cauſe the waters to paſſe their bounds, and couer the toppes of the higheſt mountaines, to extirpate and ſweepe away the wicked inhabitans of the earth: ſo now caſt out the torrent of thy merciemercy vponupon mee, O Lord, not to ſwallow mee vp, but to bathe mee and clenſe mee from my wickedneſſe.
2 Waſh me thorowly from my wickednes and cleanſe me from my ſinne.But let it not content thee O Lord, once to hauehave made mee cleane, and to ſay how thou haſt regenerated and waſhed me in the bloud of thy chaſte and innocent lamb: for thou diddeſt not make me ſo white, and pure, but thou maieſt now finde mee as foule and vncleane. I hauehave plunged my ſelfe into the depth of filth: I am ſo beſmeared, and ſo disfigured, that thou wilt not acknowledge mee for thine. Yea, it maketh me demaund ſometimes of my ſelfe, vvhether I be hee whom thy hands hauehave created: and my heart is ſo ful of ſhame and confuſion, that it dareth not reſolue me. O my God, thou haſt created me of durt & clay: and behold, I am become ſuch as I was before thou ſpreddeſt thine hand ouer me. I hauehave deſpoyled me of my ſtrength and my beauty, to reueſt my ſelfe in mire and filth. But wherefore O Lord, doſt thou not forme and faſhion mee anew? Is thy hand ſhortned? is thy willingneſs, to ſhewe merciemercy to thy creature, fallen away? Oh thou that art Almightie! Oh, thou that art euen goodnes it ſelfe, wherfore art thou ſo ſlack? O Lord, thine own worke is become obſtinate againſt thee, and taketh pleaſure in disfiguring, and disforming it ſelfe: be thou as obſtinate againſt thy worke, to make it faire and perfect in deſpight of it.
3 For I acknowledge my fault: and my ſin is euer before me.But O my God, I will no longer ſtand out in mine owne conceit againſt thee: hold and take mee to thee: turne me as thou wilt, put a new print vponupon this clay, renew it, put a new ſtampe vponupon it, for loe it is preſt to follow thy will. But when thou haſt faſhioned me anew, do not then leaue me to my ſelf, O Lord: Put thy bridle within my mouth, that it may through abſtinence, allay that gourmandizing, which fouleth it: through chaſtitie it may coole the ſhameleſſe heates of luſtes, which enflame it: through humilitie, it may beate downe that pride and arrogance, which biting enuie hath bred in it, that cōpaſsionate charitie, may driue from it hatefull and greedy couetize: that a care to ſerue and worſhip thee, my bee as a ſpurre alwaies in the ſides of lazie and fetarde negligence. For otherwiſe O my God, too much hauehave I proued, how I ſhall bee handled by theſe troopes of vices which enuiron mee. They will deface, and throwe downe in ſuch ſort thy handie work, that when thou ſhalt come, thou ſhalt finde onelyonly the ſhells and ſhiuers all broken and bruiſed. I hauehave known them too well: theſe are they that hauehave brought me to that ſtate, wherin I now ſtand: and loe they ſtand in aray round about me, reproaching mee, and vpbrayding mee with theſe blottes, wherewith they themſelues hauehave defiled mee, and making me guilty of thoſe iniuries which they hauehave done me.
I hauehave ſinned, I confeſſe O my God, I hauehave ſinned:4 Againſt thee onelyonly hauehave I ſinned, and done this euill in thy ſight: that thou mighteſt be iuſtified in thy ſaying, and cleare when thou art iudged. loe I offer vntounto thee the bottome of my heart, take a view of my whole life. I hauehave ſinned in the fight of heauen and earth, and all the world is witneſs of my fault. But if I had not ſinned, how could thy mercy be ſhewed? how wouldeſt thou acquite thee of thy promiſes of grace, which thou haſt ſo long before proclaimed, by the mouth of thy holie Prophets? When thou ſhalt come to ſit vponupon thy eternall throne of iuſtice, who would feare thee, if we were all iuſt? But that men may know and acknowledge thy greatneſs, it is meete that when we ſhal appear before thee, wee caſt downe our ſelues humbly vponupon our face, and cry, O ſweet Lord, we will not ſtand in our owne defence before thee, our fault is too manifeſt, but behold our pardon is in our hand: thou thy ſelfe haſt giuen it vsus, loe it is ſigned with thy bloud, ſealed with thy image, which for our redemption hath been printed in the infirmitie of our fleſh.
Thinkeſt thou my GOD that when I ſhall appear before thee,5 Behold I was ſhapen in wickednes: and in ſinne my mother cō ceiued me. I will put any confidence in mine owne innocencie, or dare to iuſtifie my ſelfe in thy preſence? Alas, I know Lord I was no ſooner borne, but I ſinned: my mother looked to bee deliuered of a childe; and loe a lumpe of ſinne? How much better had it beene, if ſuch fruite had prov'd abortiue, which ſhameth the tree that bare it, the earth that nouriſhed it, and the ayre that breathed vppon it. I did nouriſh my ſelfe with ſinne, when I was yet in my mothers wombe, I ſucked it in with her milke, and lo it is ſo growen vp with me, that it ouer-ſhadoweth my head, and caſteth a miſte before mine eyes.
6 But loe thou requireſt truth in the inward parts: and ſhalt make mee vnderſtand wiſedome ſecretly.But when I ſee the eyes of my bodie, ſo ſeeled with ſin, which compaſſeth me: I opē the eyes of my ſoule, and begin to diſcerne a far off the rayes of thine infallible trueth, and acknowledge the marueilous ſecrets of wiſedome, which thou haſt manifeſted to me. Then my ſoule, abandoning the impuritie of my bodie, lifteth it ſelfe to heauen, & vieweth the circuite thereof; and caſting her eye vponupon the book of life, there doth ſhe peruſe the treatie of the newe Couenaunt, which thou haſt made with men: and after, returning into her miſerable bodie, doth fill it with hope of ioy, promiſing it aſſured victorie ouer ſinne.
For ſhee hath learned in heauen,7 Thou ſhalt purge me with hyſop, and I ſhall be cleane: thou ſhalt waſh me, and I ſhall be whiter then ſnow. that thou wilt take a branch of odoriferous hyſope in thine hand, & wilt ſprinkle vponupon me the water of purification: thou wilt waſh me, and I ſhall be whiter then ſnow: there ſhal no more ſportes of ſinnes appeare in me. What pure lee ſhall this bee O Lord, which made of the cinders of my ſinnes, conſumed by the fire of thy louelove, with the water of thoſe teares which my repentance hath diſtilled from my heart, and in the ſun of thy grace, ſhall waſh away our weeping, and ſhall breede in vsus ſpiritual ioy: and in the end ſhall whiten in the puritie and candor of iuſtice,8 Thou ſhalt make me heare of ioy and gladnes: that the bones which thou haſt broken may reioice. to make vsus hereafter ſhine as the ſtarres in the firmament.
Then ſhall no ſound enter into our eares, but of that ioifull trumpet of ſaluation, which ſhall proclaime grace and merciemercy to all that will receiue them. Then ſhall wee ſee our carcaſſes which were conſumed with rottenneſs, riſe vp out of their beds, to be partakers of this vniuerſall ioy, wherevnto thou haſt inuited the vvhole world.
But that I may appeare before thee,9 Turne thy face from my ſinnes, and blotte out all my miſdeedes. in ſuch honourable attire, as is befitting ſuch honourable magnificence; treade downe, O my God, all my faults vnderunder foote, burie them in the centre of the earth, that no eye may bee able to ſee them, make an euerlaſting ſeparation betwixt me, and mine iniquitie, which at this preſent I forſake, and from whom I vow an irrevocable diuorce.
10 Make me a cleane hart O God: and renew a right ſpirit within me.Receiue my ſoule which I offer vntounto thee: make it pure and cleane: renewe in my heart ſuch a ſpirite, as ſhall conceiue nothing but truth and holineſs. Make it, O Lord God, a temple for thy holy ſpirit to dwell in; that henceforth all my thoughts may breath out nothing, but the praiſes of my God: that thy will bee alway imprinted in my breaſt, and thy glorie written in my lippes.
When thou haſt ſo reueſted and adorned mee,11 Caſt mee not away from thy preſence: and take not thy holy ſpirit from me. with pietie, and integritie, then ſhall I bee aſſured that nothing can ſeparate mee from thy preſence: and then as the true eagle looketh right vponupon the ſunne, ſo will I fixe my eyes vppon the face of thine eternitie, and ſhall beholde in thy maruellous and glorious countenance, all the perfections which I am not able now to conceiue. O let thy ſacred ſpirite neuer more diſlodge from my hart: for hee it is which vponupon the wings of zealous louelove, ſhall carrie me into thy boſome, there to make me partaker of thine heauenly ioyes.
12 O giuegive me the comfort of thy help again, and eſtabliſh mee with thy free ſpirit.Make me then euermore to taſte the ſweetnes of this immortall life: ſaue mee ſpeedily, from the rockes of this world, which on euerie ſide threaten ſhippewracke. And as the Mariner now comne vntounto the hauen, crowneth the maſte of his ſhippe with garlands in ſigne of ſafetie: ſo crown me my God with the precious giftes of thine holy ſpirit, for pledges of euerlaſting bleſſedneſſe, which thou haſt promiſed mee. I ſay, of thy ſpirit which raigneth among thy faithfull, which giueth faith to thine elect, louelove to thy beloued, and hope to them, whom thou haſt predeſtinated.
And ſo whilſt my ſoule ſhal abide in this exile,13 Then ſhall I teach thy wayes vntounto the wicked: and ſinners ſhall bee conuerted vntounto thee. waiting when thou ſhalt call him home, I will teach thy wayes vntounto the wicked, by following which, they may pleaſe thee; and will direct them how to paſſe through the darkneſſe of this world, without ſtumbling at ſuch offences, as daily offer themſelues: they ſhall beleeue mee, and ſo be conuerted vntounto thee, O father of light: they ſhall receiue thy faith into their hearts, and ſhall walke in thine obedience.
14 Deliuer me frō bloud-thirſtineſs O God, thou that art the God of my health: and my tongue ſhall ſing of thy righteouſnes.I know O Lord, that ſome will againſt my voice ſtoppe their eares, and obſtinately perſiſt in their vices; they will conſpire my death, and ſeeke to drench their barbarous crueltie, with my bloud. Deliuer me from their hands O God, and preſerue mee, that I may declare thy iuſtice, and pronounce their condemnation. I will foretell their wretchednes, and they ſhall feele it: yea, as ſoon as I hauehave made an ende of ſpeaking it, thy hand ſhall ſmite them: and no ſooner ſhal thy hands hauehave ſmitten them, but they ſhal be broken like a Potters veſſell, and come to ſodaine deſtruction.
Then ſhalt thou open my lippes,15 Thou ſhalt open my lippes, O Lord: and my mouth ſhall ſhew forth thy praiſe. and my mouth ſhall ſhew forth thy praiſe, & declare thy victory: the aire ſhall bee calme, the winde ſhall ceaſe, the riuers ſhall ſtay their courſe to hearken to my voice, whilſt it ſhall chaunt & reſound the maruellous actes of the eternall God. For thy praiſe ſhall euer be the ſacrifice which I will offer vntounto thee, and which ſhall bee euer acceptable in thy ſight.
16 For thou deſireſt no ſacrifice, elſe would I giuegive it thee: but thou delighteſt not in burnt offerings.I would ere this hauehave filled thine aultars with the bloud of beaſts: I would hauehave ſlaine a thouſand oxen & a thouſand ſheep to thine honour: but bloud doth ſtinke in thy noſtrils, thou art not pleaſed with fleſh: the ſmoke of ſuch offerings doth but vaniſh in the ayre, and can not aſcend vp vntounto thee: it is the voice alone of a righteous man, vvhichwhich findeth paſſage into heauen, and therin is preſented vntounto thee.
17 The ſacrifice of God is a troubled ſpirit, and a contrite heart O Lord, ſhalt thou not deſpiſe.Oh how acceptable, a ſacrifice before thee is a hart pierc't with repentance! an hart humbled and deiected in the knowledge of its ſins! neuer ſhall ſuch a one be reiected. For the way to aſcend vntounto thee, is to deſcēd in our ſelues: to touch the heauens, we muſt fall down grouelling vponupon the earth: to bee heard of thee, wee muſt bee ſilent: and to bee crowned in thy kingdome, wee muſt ſuffer paine and affliction in this vvorld. Theſe are the ſacrifices by which wee muſt make an attonement to thee, and enter into that couenaunt which thou haſt appointed.
And if thou wilt O Lord,18 O be fauourable and gracious vntounto Sion: build thou the wals of Ieruſalem. that we offer oxen and buls, that wee make thine aultar fatte with the bloude of beaſts; if thou wilt that by the death of the innocent holocauſt, wee ſhall repreſent the death and innocencie of him whom thou haſt deſtinied for the redemption of our ſoules; if the figuring of that which is to come, in the perſon of that immaculate lamb, bee acceptable, in killing of Sheepe and Rammes: O then look downe with thy eye of pitie vponupon thy poore people, comfort thy diſtreſſed Sion, giuegive courage to her poore inhabitants, that they may repayre the decayed walles of thy holy citie, and build vp thy temple, though not with that glory which thou deſerueſt, yet with as great as the riches of this world will retch vntounto.
Thither then ſhal all thy faithfull flocke come from all parts to ſacrifice vntounto thee:19 Then ſhalt thou be pleaſed with the ſacrifice of righteouſnes, with the burnt offerings and oblations: then ſhall they offer yong bullockes vponupon thy aultar. and there ſhalt thou accept the propitiation for their ſins. But O my God, it is neither the bloud nor death of beaſts, which can waſh away their offences: the expiation of their diſobedience and ſtubbornneſſe is prepared from all eternitie.
This is that ineſtimable ſacrifice, that immaculate holocauſt, which ſhall take away the veile, diſpell the darkneſſe, breake the partition wall; to make vsus ſee face to face, the truth of our ſaluation; to make the bright beames of merciemercy ſhine vponupon vsus, and to reſume vsus vntounto the communion of that eternall happineſſe, from vvhichwhich wee of our ſelues had fallen. O moſt merciful God, which haſt opened the eyes of mine vnderſtanding, to ſee the myſterie of my ſaluation; make me O Lord, by a liuely faith, to taſte of that fruite, which flouriſhed vponupon the tree of the Croſſe, and ſhall quicken with his iuice mortified ſoules: preſerue and heale vsus for euer from that miſerie and calamitie, which hath ſo miſerably fallen vponupon the race of man, & hath been deriued from the firſt to the laſt through their diſobedience.