Man. Yea, but where shall I these preparatives find?
Rea. Thou shalt them find within thine own breast.
Of thee it must come; it must be thy deed;
For voluntary sacrifice pleaseth God best.
Thou canst not thereof have help or meed
But if this gear of thine own heart proceed.
Man. Well, I shall endeavour me to the uttermost;
And till I have found them I shall never rest.
But how shall I know them? that wot I ne'er;
I pray you show me that before your departing.
Rea. It needeth not thereof to inquire:
Thou shalt know them at the first meeting.
Of two contraries there is but one learning;
That is to say, when thou knowest well that one
The other contrary is known anon.
Then he goeth out and Meekness cometh in.
Meekness. Whoso wotteth histories of scripture well
Shall find that for pride and presumption
Lucifer, which sometime was a glorious angel—
For that his offence had such correction
That both he, and eke many a legion
Of his order—was cast down to hell
By rightful Justice, perpetually there to dwell.
Remember also Adam, the first of our line,
What pain he suffered for pride and disobedience!
Causeth he not a great decay and ruin,
In all the progeny, for the same offence?
In suchwise that he, and all that were born since,
Be utterly disherited and put from paradise;
And so we be made thrall unto sin and vice.
And lost should we be all, of very justice,
Ne had be that God of His merciful goodness
Did us, soon after, with His own blood mainprize
And us redeemed from pains endless;
So that we do not disobey or transgress
His high commandments, but demean us well
After His laws while we here dwell.
And forasmuch as man's nature
Is frail, and lightly to sin will assent,
Either of purpose or on witting peradventure,
There the said good Lord hath him sent,
Again every sin, a remedy convenient.
For He ne would have one soul to be lore
Whom He hath dear bought, as I said before.
The root of all sin is pride, ye know well;
Which is mine adversary in all that he may;
Where I am in place he may not dwell.
His malicious power I can right well allay;
And teach every creature the remedy and way
How to subdue pride; which no man can do
Without that I, Meekness, must help thereto.