The sinners glasse containing Augustines Ladder to paradise : with diuers meditations and prayers, both for morning and euening / collected out of Saint Augustine and other ancient fathers.

CHAP. XII. What Meditation is.

BY Meditation wée may the better know God & our selues.

Meditation bringeth knowledge, knowledge bringeth compunction, compunction causeth de∣uotion, deuotion causeth prayer. Meditation is an often moouing of the minde, very diligent and foreséeing, to search or finde out the meaning of thinges, which are hard to bee vnderstood, and to bring secrete thinges to knowledge. Knowledge or learning, is when a man is inlightned by of∣ten. Meditation, to the knowledge of himselfe. Compunction, is when through the considera∣tion

of his owne euills, the heart is touched with an inward griefe. Deuo∣tion is a godly and an būble affection towardes God. Hamble by the knowledge of his owne infirmities, godly by the consideration of the di¦uine mercy. Prayer is a deuotion of the minde, conuerting to God, tho∣rough holy and humble affection. Affection is a certaine selfe will, and swéete inclination of the mind, wholy towardes God: for there is nothing mouing God so much to loue and mercy, as the

pure affection of the minde. Mens natures is to loue and prayse the knowledge of heauenly and earthly thinges. But they are much better that preferre before this knowledge, the know∣ledge whereby to know themselues. For truely more prayse worthy is the soule, that knoweth his owne infirmity, and misery, then it which searcheth the course of the starres, and natures of things. For the soule which waiteth vpon the Lord, moued by the fer∣uency of the holy Ghost,

and imbaseth it selfe be∣fore him in his loue: and though not able, yet willing to enter into him, and hee shining o•• that soule, it wayteth on him, and findeth him, and acknowledging the grief of minde not to bée com∣pared to his mercy, hath good cause méekely to wéepe, and to beséech him, that hee will haue mercy and compassion on it, and to put from it all misery. This poore soule, néedy and sorrow∣full, knowledge puffeth not vp, because loue and charity edifieth and esta∣blisheth

it. For man set∣teth before him know∣ledge, that is to know himselfe, and his owne infirmities, rather then to know the force and vertue of hearbes, and the nature of all liuing creatures, and setting before him this know∣ledge, hée setteth before him griefe and sorrow: that is, in what hee hath rebelled, and lailed in, in this his life and pilgri∣mage in the earth, consi∣dering of his owne coun∣try which hee is to go to, and to sée his liuing and eternal God. He sorrow∣eth

that he is kept in ba∣nishment and exile, be∣cause hee is delayed and put off from his king∣dome. Hee sorroweth whilest hee calleth to minde, what and how great euils he hath done, and what intollerable paines for them hee is like to suffer.