And mix contentions in the cup, that mantled once with comforts,
Bitterly and justly shall ye rue the punishment due to unbelief;
Ye trust not each the other, nor the mutual vows of God;
Take heed, for the pit may now be near, a pit of your own digging,—
Faith abused tempteth unto crime, and doubt may make its monster.
Man verily is vile, but more in capability than action;
His sinfulness is deep, but his transgressions may be few, even from the absence of temptation:
He is hanging in a gulf midway, but the air is breathable about him:
Thrust him not from that slight hold, to perish in the vapours underneath.
For, God pleadeth with the deaf, as having ears to hear,