Chapter 51 continues:
As I shall tell, in the Servant that was shown as Adam,
I saw many properties that could not belong to a single Adam.
I remained much of that time unknowing:
full understanding was not given me then.
In that mighty example
three properties of the Revelation were hidden;
I saw and understood:
every Shewing is full of secret things.
And now I must tell these three properties
in which I am now more comfortable.
First: the teaching I understood as it was taught;
Second: the inward teaching I understood afterward;
Third: the whole Revelation
from the beginning to the end of this book,
which our Lord God in His goodness brings
freely, often,
to my understanding.
These three are so united in my understanding,
that I cannot, may not, separate them.
By these three, united as one, I have learned
how I ought to believe and trust in our Lord God:
that by the goodness in which He showed it,
and for the same purpose
He shall declare it to us when it is His will.
For, twenty years after the time of the Shewing,
save three months,
I had inward teaching, as I shall tell:
Julian added this caution here:
‘You must take heed to all the properties and conditions
that were shown in the example,
though they may seem misty and indifferent to you.’
I assented willingly, with great desire,
and saw inwardly,
heeding all the points and properties
that were shown then,
as far as my wit and understanding would serve:
beginning with how I saw the Lord and the Servant,
the manner of sitting of the Lord,
the place that he sat on,
the colour of his clothing
the manner of shape,
his outward countenance,
his nobleness and his goodness within;
at the manner of standing of the Servant,
the where and how of the place ;
his manner of clothing, its colour and shape;
his outward appearance
and his inward goodness and unloathfulness.
I understood that the Lord that sat stately
in rest and peace, is God.
I understood that the Servant that stood before the Lord,
was shown for Adam:
that is to say, one man was shown for all men,
that time, and his falling,
to make it understood how God sees the falling of everyone.
For in the sight of God all mankind is one,
and one man is all mankind.
This man was hurt in his might,
made very feeble; stunned in his understanding
so that he was turned from seeing his Lord.
But his will was kept whole in God’s sight;
for I saw our Lord commend and approve his will.
But himself was prevented,
blinded from knowing his own will;
causing him great sorrow, grievous distress.
He does not see his loving Lord clearly,
who is fully meek and mild to him,
nor does he see himself truly in his loving Lord’s sight.
I know well when these two are wisely and truly seen,
we shall get rest and peace here in part,
and by His plenteous grace
the fulness of the bliss of Heaven.
And this began a teaching which I saw then,
how I might come to know how He beholds us in our sin.
I saw that only Pain blames and punishes,
our courteous Lord comforts and sorrows;
and He is toward our soul always in glad cheer,
loving, and longing to bring us to His bliss.
The place the Lord sat on was simple,
on the earth, barren and desert,
alone in wilderness;
his clothing was ample, very seemly, as becomes a Lord;
the colour of his cloth was blue as azure,
most sad and fair.
His cheer was merciful;
the colour of his face was fair-brown, with fullsome features;
his eyes were black, most fair and seemly,
showing outwardly full of lovely pity,
and inwardly, a high regard,
long and broad, all full of endless heavens.
The lovely regard
in which He held His Servant constantly,
especially in his falling,
I thought it might melt our hearts for love
and burst them in two for joy.
This fair looking was a seemly mingling,
marvellous to behold:
part Ruth and Pity,
part Joy and Bliss.
The Joy and Bliss are as far above Ruth and Pity
as Heaven is above earth:
the Pity was earthly, the Bliss heavenly:
the Father’s Ruth and Pity was for Adam’s fall,
His most loved creature;
the Joy and Bliss was for His dearworthy Son,
who is equal with the Father.
The Merciful vision of His loving face
filled all earth,
went down with Adam into hell,
constant pity,
keeping him from endless death.
Mercy and Pity dwell with mankind
until we come to Heaven.
But man is blinded in this life;
we do not see our Father as He is.
When He in His goodness shows Himself to man,
He shows Himself homely, as man.
And yet I reason truly
we must know and believe
our Father is not man.
His sitting on the barren, desert earth,
signifies this:
He made man’s soul to be His own City,
His dwelling-place:
which is most pleasing to Him of all His works.
And when that man fell into sorrow and pain,
he was not fit to serve that noble office;
therefore our Lord Father prepared Himself no other place,
but sat upon the earth abiding mankind,
which is mingled with earth,
till that time by His grace,
His dear Son had brought again His City
to noble fairness with His hard travail.
The blueness of the clothing showed His steadfastness;
the brownness of his fair face,
with the seemly blackness of the eyes,
truly showed His holy solemnity.
The length and breadth of his garments,
which were fair, flaming about,
showed that He had, enclosed in Him,
all Heavens,
all Joy and Bliss:
this was shewed in a moment of time,
where my understanding was led into the Lord;
in which inward showing I saw Him highly rejoice
for the worshipful restoring
that He will and shall bring His servant to
by His plenteous grace.
And yet I marvelled,
beholding the Lord and the Servant.
I saw the Lord sit stately,
and the Servant standing reverently before his Lord.
In which Servant there is double understanding,
one without, another within.
Outwardly: he was clad simply,
as a labourer ready for his toil;
and he stood full near the Lord,
not evenly in front of him,
but in part to one side, on the left.
His clothing was a white tunic,
single, old, and all defaced,
dyed with sweat of his body,
strait-fitting to him, and short,
as it were an handful beneath the knee;
thread-bare,
as though it should soon be worn out,
ready to be ragged and rent.
And of this I marvelled greatly,
thinking: this is unseemly clothing
for the Servant that is so greatly loved
to stand in before so worshipful a Lord.
And inwardly in him was shown a ground of love:
this love he had to the Lord was equal
to the love that the Lord had to him.
anthonyinuk 