Hier begynneth the booke callyd the Myrrour of the worlde ...

Of the gretenes of the firmament. and of the heuene whi∣che is a boue yt. Capitulo. xxj^o.

YF the erthe were so grete & so spacyous. and so mo∣che more for to reseyue an hondred thousand tymes as mo∣che pepyl as euer were in thys world / and euery man of them were so myghty for to engender a nother man euery day durynge / an hondreth thousand yere / & that euery man were as grete as a Geaunt / & euery man had his hows as grete as euer had eny kynge. & woodes ryuers chāpanyes gardyns medowe & pastures & vyneyerdes. eueych a boute his castell or place for to lyue wyth / & that ech had so grete foyson / that euerych myghte holde / an hondreth seruaūtes for to serue hym. and euerych of this seruaūte helde xx other. & had therto grete roume and pourpris in their maner / Alle thyse myght moche plenty••usly be reseruyd in the firmamēt & yet sholde ther be moche place voyde▪ more thā all they my¦ght purprise and take for to playe and disporte them therin yf they wold / Thenne ought we wel to knowe / that our lord god is moche myghty. and of ryghte hye affayre / wh∣an he canne make of noughte so noble a thynge / as the heuen / and the sonne / and all other thynges that ben on the heuen in thayer. on therth & in the See / Suche a lord and suche a maister oughte wele to be good that can make so no¦ble thynges / of whiche we haue very knowleche. & we oughte parfytli to loue hym / And wele we may euery man thynke that the thynge that is a boue is moche gentyl and moche nobyl / whan it that is vnder is so subtyl / ffor that

whiche is aboue is mor•• grete an hondred thousand tymes than it whiche is benethe / & ouer moche more than can be knowen or may be compted by ony nombre / or may be thought / For this is a thinge that in no manere shal ha∣ue ende ne terme / ¶Therfore I may wel vnderstonde / that theris nothyng that may pourpryse / ne esteme in gretenes ne other wyse this whiche is aboue the firmament / where the heuene taketh his place ne may be re∣plenysshid ne fylled wyth nothyng that may be / but yf it be wyth the goodes of our lord god fyllyd / but the right debo∣nayre lorde is so moche full of all goodes that be fylleth al∣le other thynges / whiche ought to haue parte and meryte in goodes / And the euyll departeth fro the good in suche wyse that it is voyde and disgarnysshed from all goo∣des what someuer it be / & that it shal be lyke as it were nou∣ght wherof it is redde herof. that synne is nought / for as mo¦che as it is voyde & disgarnysshid of all goodes & rendrid y^e body & the soule somoche feble & disgarnysed of all goodes of all vertues / & of all graces that / that one is totally dystroyed and perysshed wyth that other / ffor alle way the euyll com∣eth to nought / And contrarye the good goth alway gro∣wyng and in amendyng / And therfore ther is none euyl but synne whiche is nought / For ye may vnderstande that it cometh to nought as donge / The is nothyng that ought to be made right / But be only this that ought to be permanent / ¶And therfor it is good aman to holde hym nyghe the good. For the good amendeth al wa¦yes / And who that customly doth gladly the good wer∣kes / they ben the cause to lede hym to heuene / as he that hath none other wythdraughte ne other dwellyng place / And therfor he muste enhabyte there / hym behoueth to come in to heuene for to reteyne there his place / and also for to fylle it

Ther is noman in the worlde that can doo so moche good but that he shal alway fynde his place / and his repayre pro¦pyce after his merites. ffor as moche as this so moche no∣ble a place is withoute ende and wythout terme in suche wi∣se that no goodes what someuer they be shal neuer haue ter¦me ne ende. ne neuer shal haue defaulte. but it is contynuel∣ly ful of alle consolacion / of alle delices of alle goodes of al¦le Ioye and of alle gladnesse / wythout hauyng ony thynge voyde. Of whiche they that deserue it of our lord shal haue ful possession of alle the inestimable goodes. ¶Of helle I may frely saye to you. that ther is nothyng sauf sorowe & martyrdom / truly the most anguysshous the most horrible & so moche sorowful that ther is no like And yf so were that the chyldren that haue ben syth. Adam were all dampned yet it myght not be fylled by them / though they were twyes so many more / & they that be theryn perisshed▪ shal be damp∣ned and perpetuelly tormented. ffor after that they be damp¦ned they shal abyde euer as longe as god shal be whiche is wythout begynnyng and wythout endyng And there they shal brenne in fyre eternel withoute hope of alegeaunce of ony mercy of ony hope to haue ony better but alleway wer∣se fro tyme. to tyme / as it is so that the saued sowles desire y^e day of dome and of iugemēt for to be gloryfied in body and sowle / The dampned sowles redoubte and drede it thynkyn¦ge that after that day they shal be perpetuelly tormented in body and in sowle. And to that dredeful day they be not tor∣mented in the body / but in the sowle / ¶And I haue recyted this thinge shortly to this ende that it may be knowen cer∣taynly that ther is no good deede but it shal be rewarded ne none euyl dede but that it shal be punysshed This is the wil∣le of the creatour And maker of all thynges wythoute whom ther is none that in ony maner hath ony power /

& heis so moche a debonayer lorde ful of souerayn puissaūce and of grete and of infynyt goodes that ther is no compa∣ryson to hym. And he that all thynge created / made & esta∣blisshid of nought at his playsyr and wyll / But syth we haue spoken to yow of the inestimable gretenesse of the firmament wherin the sterres be sette whiche alleway is in moeuyig / so shal ye vnderstonde that ther is an heuen aboue Where they that ben there moeue nothyng. but ben contynu∣elly in one estate. lyke as sōme man remeuyth hym from som place to another. the first place meuyd hym not / But he that shold goo so al aboute lyke rounde aboute a circle. shold ofte goo fro place to place er he come to his place. and so longe he myght goo that he shold come right to the place fro whens he departed first / But that place shold not meue / but holde him alway in a poynt. now will ye thus vnderstō¦de of this heuen / that ther is no maner place that is reme∣uyd fro the sterres ne fro the firmament. but they holde them. also fermly all. as they most maye. this heuē muste be vnder¦stonde by them whiche ben Astronomyers. This is that gyueth to vs his colour blew. the whiche estendeth aboue thayer. the whiche we see whan thayer is pure and clere all aboute / And it is of so grete attemperaunce / that it may ha¦ue no violence. this is the heuen that encloseth the firma∣ment / Now I shal saye yow all appertly▪ that this that ye may vnderstonde here tofore. by heeryng. may not be taken ne knowen / ne be proued yf it be trouthe or non. ne may not be by ony arte of demonstraunce. lyke as may be seen by e∣yen. For the wytte of a man hath not the power. But ne∣uertheles we shal saye to you this that we truly may fynde by wrytyng in certayn places lyke as sōme Auncient phi¦losophers haue ymagyned and thought / of whiche they fon¦de certayn resons /