A pretious booke of heauenlie meditations, called a priuate talke of the soule with God which who so zealouslie wil vse and pervse, shal feele in his mind an vnspeakable sweetenes of the euerlasting happines: written (as some thinke) by that reuerend, and religious Father S. Augustine; and not translated onlie, but purified also, and with most ample, and necessarie sentences of holie Scripture adorned, by Thomas Rogers.

Chap. 15.

That man of himselfe can do nothing without the assi∣stance of God.

O Lord most mightie a and puissant, God of the spirits of al fleshb, whose eies are vpon y^• waies of the sonnes

of mene from the time of their birth, euen til the daie of their burial, that thou maist render vnto eueric man according to his workesd either good or e∣uile.

Shew to me, that I maie con∣fesse my wretchednes to thee. For I said, that I was richf, and had neede of nothing; & knew not how that I was wretched, and miserable, and poore, and blind, and naked.

I supposed my selfe should be somewhat, when in deede I was nothing. I professed my selfe wiseg, and I became a foole. I thought I was prudent, and I was deceiued. For now I see, it is thy gifth, without whome we can do nothingi. Because if thou Lord keepe not the Citiek, in vaine doth he watch, that keepes the same.

Thus hast thou taught me, that I might know my selfe. For thou hast forsaken me, and tri∣ed mel, not for thy owne sake, that thou mightest know me; but for my sake, that I might know thee.

For as I said, I thought, Lord, I should haue bin somewhat of my selfe; I thought I had had sufficiencie of my selfem; and perceaued not how it is thou, Lord, which rulest men, vntil thou wentest 〈◊〉〈◊〉 fro me for a spaceo, & I tooke a fal. Then did I see, and perceaue, how it was thou which ruled me; and how I fel of my self, and rose againe through thy gracep.

O lightq, thou hast opened mine eies, and raised me vp, & lightned mer. Now therefore I see, that mans life vpon earth is but a tentations; and that no

flesh can glorie in thy sightt, nor be iustifiedu. For al good∣nes, be it little or much, is thy giftx; and we haue nothing of our selues but euily

Whereof then maie al flesh glorie? of wickednes? but that is no glorie, but miseriez. May it glorie of anie good then? and of anothers goodnes? O Lord, goodnes is thinea, and thine is the glorieb. For he who seeks of thy goodnes his ownec, and not thy glorie, 〈◊〉〈◊〉 a verie theefe and robber, like the diuel him∣selfe, who would haue robbed thee of thy gloried

For whosoeuer would haue praisee of that good thing which is thine, and seeketh not therein thy glorie, but his owne; yea al∣though he get praise of menf for thy gift; yet is he dispraised of thee. Because of thy gift he

sought his glorie, & not thine. And he who is praised of men, and dispraised of thee, neither can be defended by men, when thou shalt iudge; nor be deli∣uered, when thou shalt con∣demne.

But, ô Lord, who hast formed meg from the wombe of my mother, suffer me not to fal in∣to that reproch; and neuer let it be cast in my teeth that I wold haue stolen awaie thy glorie.

Al glorie be ascribed vnto theeh, from whome al goodnes doth proceedei, but vnto vs open shamek, and miserie, to whom al euil doth belong, vn∣les thou take merciel.

For thou shewest mercie, ô Lord, thou shewest mercie o∣uer alm, and hatest nothing which thou hast maden; thou giuest vs of thy good thingso;

and makest vs rich, ô Lod God, with thy most excelēt benefits. p. For thou louest the pooreq, & makest them rich euen with thine owne richesr.

O Lord, behold now we are thy poore children, and thy little slockes, open to vs thy gatest, that the poore may eate, and be satisfiedu; so they which seeke thee, wil praise thee.

For I know, Lord, and con∣fesse through thine instruction, that they alone shal be enri∣ched x who know themselues to be poore, and acknowledge their pouertie before thee. For such as thinke themselnes rich when they are poorey, shal be barred from the participation of thy riches.

Wherefore, ô Lord my Godz vnto thee do I confesse my po∣uertie, that al the glorie may be

thinea: inasmuch as the good which I haue done is thine.

I confesse, ô Lord, as thou hast taught me, I am nothing else but altogither vanitieb, a shadow of deathc, a darke dun∣geon, and a barren and emptie groundd, bringing foorth no∣thing without thou blesse me, and bearing no fruite but con∣fusion, sinne, and damnation.

If I had any goodnes, I recei∣ued it of theee; if I haue anie at this time, it is thine, or I haue it from thee. When I stood, I stood through thee; but when I fel, I fel through my selfe; and al∣waies I had stuck in the miref, if thou haddest not plucked me out; I had alwaies bin blind, if y^u haddest not lightned meg. When I fel, I had not risen a∣gaine, vnles thou haddest rea∣ched foorth thine handh Yea,

and when thou haddest ere∣cted me, I had falen by and by, if thou hadest not held me vpi. And oftentimes I had peri∣shed, haddest thou not gouer∣ned mek.

Thus euermore Lord, euer∣more thy grace & mercie hath preuented me1, deliuering me from al euil, sauing me from those past, raising mee from these present, and arming me against miseries to come: in like sort cutting awaie y^e snares of sinne before me, and remo∣uing al occasions and causes of offence. For vnlesse thou had∣dest done so, I had committed al the sinnes of the world.

For I am persuaded, ô Lord, there hath no sinne bin com∣mitted afore time by man, but another may do the same, if his Creator leaue him, by whome

he was made a manm. But that I did not so, thou hast brought it to passen; that I absteined, thou diddest commaund; and that I beleeued, it was of thy grace poured vpon meo.

For thou Lord, diddest guide me both for me and thy selfe; and thou hast giuen me gracep and vnderstanding to absteine both from adulterie, and other wickednes.

Notes

• a

  Ne. 9, 32. Psal. 96, 4. Iere. 32, 17. 18. 19.
• b

  Nom. 27, verse. 16.
• e

  Ier. 32, 29.
• d

  Psa. 62, 12 Rom. 2, 6. Roue. 2, 23.
• e

  2. Co. 5, 10
• f

  Reu. 3, 17.
• g

  Rom. 1, 22
• h

  Iam. 1, 17.
• i

  Iohn. 15, 5. Philip. 2, 13
• k

  Psa. 127, 1.
• l

  Psal. 17, 3. Psal. 139, 1.
• m

  2, Co. 3, 5.
• n

  Psa. 48, 14. Matth. 2, 6.
• o

  Psa. 71, 12.
• p

  Psa. 37, 23 24. Prou. 24, 16.
• q

  1. Ioh. 1, 5. 7.
• r

  Iohn. 1, 4. 5. 7. 8. 9.
• s

  Iob. 7, 1. 2, &c.
• t

  1. Cor. 1, 29
• u

  Ro. 3, 20. Galat. 2, 16.
• x

  Iam. 1, 17.
• y

  Esai. 64, 6. Genes. 6, 5. Genes. 8, 21
• z

  Psal. 52, 1. Ierem. 9, 23
• a

  Iam. 1, 17.
• b

  1. Chr. 16, verse. 28. 29. Psal. 29, 1. 2. Esai. 42, 8. Luke. 2, 14.
• c

  Ioh. 5, 44. Iohn. 7, 18.
• d

  Esa. 14, 13.
• e

  Iere. 9, 23.
• f

  Eccl. 11, 2.
• g

  Esa. 44, 24
• h

  Luk. 2, 14.
• i

  Iam. 1, 17.
• k

  Dan.9, 7.
• l

  Wis. 11, 20. 21, &c.
• m

  Esai. 54, 7 8.
• n

  Wis. 11, 21.
• o

  Iob. 1, 21. Iob. 5, 8. 9. 10, &c. Psal. 146, 5. 6. 7, &c. Matth. 6, 11. Matth. 7, 7. 8. 9. &c.
• p

  Psa. 113, 5. 6. 7, &c.
• q

  Psal. 12, 5.
• r

  Luk. 6, 20.
• s

  Luk. 12, 32
• t

  Psa. 78, 23
• u

  Psa. 22, 26
• x

  Matt. 5, 3. Luke. 6, 20. 21, &c.
• y

  Reu. 3, 17. 18.
• z

  Psal. 7, 1. 3.
• a

  1. Chr. 29. verse. 10. 11. 12.
• b

  Psal. 39, 5. Psal. 144, 4.
• c

  Psa. 44, 19.
• d

  Gen. 1, 2.
• e

  1. Cor. 4, 7. Iames. 1, 17••.
• f

  Psa. 69, 14.
• g

  Iohn. 1, 4, 9.
• h

  Psa. 37, 23, 24.
• i

  Phil. 2, 13.
• k

  Esa. 48, 17.
• 1

  Psa. 59, 10.
• m

  Iob. 10, 8. 9. 10, &c. Psa. 139, 14. 15. 16. Esaie. 45, 7. 8. 9, &c.
• n

  1. Cor. 4, 7
• o

  Wis. 3, 14. Rom. 12, 3. 6.
• p

  Iam. 1, 17.