One Thing is Needful, Poem 2
Prison-Meditations, Directed to the Heart of SUFFERING SAINTS AND REIGNING SINNERS: By JOHN BUNYAN, in Prison. 1665.
1. FRiend, I salute thee in the Lord,
And wish thou may'st abound
In Faith, and have a good regard
To keep on Holy Ground.
2. Thou dost encourage me to hold
My Head above the Flood,
Thy Counsel better is than Gold,
In need thereof I stood.
3. Good Counsel's good at any time,
The Wise will it receive,
Tho' Fools count he commits a Crime
Who doth good Counsel give.
4. I take it kindly at thy hand
Thou didst unto me write,
My Feet upon Mount Sion stand,
In that take thou delight.
5. I am (indeed) in Prison (now)
In Body, but my Mind
Is free to study Christ, and how
Unto me he is kind.
6. For though men keep my outward man
Within their Locks and Bars,
Yet by the Faith of Christ I can
Mount higher than the Stars.
7. Their Fetters cannot Spirits tame,
Nor tye up God from me;
My Faith and Hope they cannot lame,
Above them I shall be.
8. I here am very much refresht
To think when I was out,
I preached Life, and Peace, and Rest,
To Sinners round about.
9. My business then, was Souls to save,
By preaching Grace and Faith,
Of which the comfort now I have,
And have it shall till death.
10. They were no Fables that I taught
Devis'd by cunning men,
But God's own Word, by which were caught
Some sinners now and then.
11. Whose Souls by it were made to see
The evil of their sin;
And need of Christ to make them free
From death, which they were in.
12. And now those very Hearts, that then
Were Foes unto the Lord,
Embrace his Christ and Truth, like men
Conquered by his Word.
13. I hear them sigh and groan, and cry,
For Grace to God above;
They loath their sin, and to it dye,
'Tis Holiness they love.
14. This was the work I was about,
When Hands on me they laid,
'Twas this from which they pluck'd me out,
And vilely to me said,
15. You Heretick, Deceiver, come
To Prison you must go,
You preach abroad, and keep not home,
You are the Churches foe.
16. But having Peace within my Soul,
And Truth on every side,
I could with comfort them controul,
And at their charge deride.
17. Wherefore to Prison they me sent,
Where to this day I lie;
And can with very much content
For my Profession die.
18. The Prison very sweet to me
Hath been, since I came here,
And so would also hanging be,
If God will there appear.
19. Here dwells good Conscience, also Peace
Here be my Garments white,
Here, though in Bonds, I have Release
From Guilt, which else would bite.
20. When they do talk of Banishment,
Of Death, or such like Things,
Then to me God sends Hearts content,
That like a Fountain springs.
21. Alas, they little think what peace
They help me to, for by
Their rage my Comforts do encrease;
Bless God therefore do I.
22. If they do give me gall to drink,
Then God doth sweetning cast,
So much thereto, that they can't think
How bravely it doth taste.
23. For as the Devil sets before
Me Heaviness and Grief,
So God sets Christ and Grace much more,
Whereby I take relief.
24. Though they say then, that we are Fools
Because we here do lye,
I answer, Goals are Christ his Schools,
In them we learn to dye.
25. 'Tis not the baseness of this state
Doth hide us from God's Face,
He frequently, both soon and late
Doth visit us with Grace.
26. Here comes the Angels, here comes Saints,
Here comes the Spirit of God
To comfort us in our restraints
Under the wickeds Rod.
27. God sometime visits Prisons more
Than lordly Palaces,
He often knocketh at our Door,
When he their Houses miss.
28. The Truth and Life of heav'nly things,
Lifts up our Hearts on high,
And carries us on Eagles Wings,
Beyond Carnality.
29. It takes away those Clogs that hold
The Hearts of other men,
And makes us lively strong and bold
Thus to oppose their sin.
30. By which means God doth frusturate
That which our Foes expect;
Namely our turning the Postate,
Like those of Judas Sect.
31. Here comes to our rememberance,
The Troubles good men had
Of old, and for our furtherance,
Their Joys, when they were sad.
32. To them that here for Evil lye,
The place is comfortless,
But not to me, because that I
Lye here for Righteousness.
33. The Truth and I, were both here cast
Together, and we do
Lye Arm in Arm, and so hold fast
Each other; This is true.
34. This Goal to us, is as a Hill,
From whence we plainly see
Beyond this World, and take our fill
Of things that lasting be.
35. From hence we see the emptiness
Of all this World contains;
And here we feel the Blessedness
That for us yet remains.
36. Here we can see how all men play
Their parts, as on a Stage,
How good men suffer for God's way,
And bad men at them rage.
37. Here we can see who holds that ground
Which they in Scripture find;
Here we see also who turns round
Like Weathercocks with' Wind.
38. We can also from hence behold
How seeming Friends appear
But Hypocrites, as we are told
In Scripture every where.
39. When we did walk at liberty,
We were deceiv'd by them,
Who we from hence do clearly see
Are vile deceitful Men.
40. These Politicians that profest
For base and worldly ends,
Do now appear to us at best
But Machivilian Friends:
41. Though Men do say, we do disgrace
Our selves by lying here
Among the Rogues, yet Christ our face
From all such filth will clear.
42. We know there's neither flout nor frown
That we now for him bear
But will add to our heavenly Crown,
When he comes in the Air.
43. When he our righteousness forth brings
Bright shining as the day,
And wipeth off those stand'rous things
That Scorners on us lay.
44. We fell our earthly Happiness
For heavenly house and home;
We leave this world because 'tis less,
And worse than that to come.
45. We change our drossie Dust for Gold,
From Death to Life we fly:
We let go Shadows and take hold
Of Immortality.
46. We trade for that which lasting is,
And nothing for it give;
But that which is already his,
By whom we breath and live.
47. That liberty we lose for him,
Sickness might take away:
Our goods might also for our sin
By Fire or Thieves decay.
48. Again, we see what Glory 'tis
Freely to bear our Cross
For him, who for us took up his,
When he our Servant was.
49. I am most free, that Men should see
A hole cut through mine Ear;
If others will ascertain me
They'll hang a Jewel there.
50. Just thus it is, we suffer here
For him a little pain,
Who, when he doth again appear
Will with him let us reign.
51. If all must either dye for sin
A Death that's natural;
Or else for Christ, 'tis best with him,
Who for the last doth fall.
52. Who now dare say, we throw away
Our Goods or Liberty,
When God's most holy Word doth say
We gain thus much thereby.
53. Hark yet again, you carnal Men,
And hear what I shall say
In your own Dialect, and then
I'll you no longer stay.
54. You talk sometimes of Valour much,
And count such bravely man'd,
That will not stick to have a tutch
With any in the Land.
55. If these be worth commending, then,
That vainly shew their might;
How dare you blame those holy Men
That in God's quarrel fight?
56. Though you dare crack a Cowards Crown,
Or quarrel for a Pin;
You dare not on the Wicked frown,
Nor speak against their sin.
57. For all your Spirits are so stout,
For matters that are vain:
Yet sin besets you round about,
You are in Satan's chain.
58. You dare not for the Truth engage,
You quake at Prisonment;
You dare not make the Tree your stage
For Christ that King potent.
59. Know then true Valour there doth dwell
Where Men engage for God,
Against the Devil, Death and Hell,
And bear the Wickeds rod.
60. These be the Men that God doth count
Of high and noble Mind;
These be the Men that do surmount
VVhat you in Nature find.
61. First they do conquer their own Hearts,
All worldly fears, and then
Also the Devils firy darts,
And persecuting Men.
62. They conquer when they thus do fall,
They kill when they do dye:
They overcome then most of all,
And get the Victory.
63. The worldling understands not this,
'Tis clear out of his sight:
Therefore he counts this world his bliss,
And doth our Glory slight.
64. The Lubber knows not how to spring
The nimble Foot-man's stage;
Neither can Owls, or Jack-Daws sing
If they were in the Cage.
65. The Swine doth not the Pearls regard,
But them doth slight for Grains,
Though the wise Merchant labours hard
For them with greatest pains.
66. Consider Man, what I have said,
And judge of things aright;
When all mens Cards are fully plaid,
Whose will abide the Light?
67. Will those, who have us hither cast?
Or they who do us scorn?
Or those who do our Houses wast?
Or us, who this have born?
68. And let us count those things the best
That best will prove at last;
And count such Men the only blest,
That do such things hold fast.
69. And what though they us dear do cost,
Yet let us buy them so;
We shall not count our labour lost
When we see others woe.
70. And let Saints be no longer blam'd
By carnal Policy;
But let the Wicked be asham'd
Of their Malignity.
FINIS.
End of the text · John Bunyan, One Thing is Needful (1683)