Chapter 56

And thus I saw full surely that it is readier to us to come to the knowing of God than to know our own Soul. For our Soul is so deep-grounded in God, and so endlessly treasured, that we may not come to the knowing thereof till we have first knowing of God, which is the Maker, to whom it is oned. But, notwithstanding, I saw that we have, for fulness, to desire wisely and truly to know our own Soul: whereby we are learned to seek it where it is, and that is, in God. And thus by gracious leading of the Holy Ghost, we should know them both in one: whether we be stirred to know God or our Soul, both [these stirrings] are good and true.

And so I saw with certainty that it is easier for us to know God than to know our own soul. Our soul is so deeply rooted in God and so endlessly treasured that we cannot know it until we first know God. God is its maker, to whom it is united. But I also saw that, for the sake of fullness, we should desire wisely and truly to know our own soul. This desire teaches us to seek our soul where it is, in God. With the gracious guidance of the Holy Ghost, we should come to know both together. Whether we are moved to know God or our soul, both desires are good and true.

God is nearer to us than our own Soul: for He is [the] Ground in whom our Soul standeth, and He is [the] Mean that keepeth the Substance and the Sense-nature together so that they shall never dispart. For our soul sitteth in God in very rest, and our soul standeth in God in very strength, and our Soul is kindly rooted in God in endless love: and therefore if we will have knowledge of our Soul, and communing and dalliance therewith, it behoveth to seek unto our Lord God in whom it is enclosed. (And of this enclosement I saw and understood more in the Sixteenth Shewing, as I shall tell.)

God is nearer to us than our own soul. He is the ground in which our soul stands. He is also the means by which our substance and our sense-nature are held together, so they will never part. Our soul rests in God in true peace and stands in God in true strength. Our soul is naturally rooted in God in endless love. Therefore, if we wish to know our soul and commune and delight with it, we must seek our Lord God, in whom it is enclosed. (I saw and understood more about this enclosing in the Sixteenth Shewing, as I shall tell.)

And as anent our Substance and our Sense-part, both together may rightly be called our Soul:¹ and that is because of the oneing that they have in God. The worshipful City that our Lord Jesus sitteth in is our Sense-soul, in which He is enclosed: and our Kindly Substance is enclosed in Jesus with the blessed Soul of Christ sitting in rest in the Godhead.

Our Substance and our Sense-part may together rightly be called our Soul:¹ because they are united in God. The honored City where our Lord Jesus sits is our Sense-soul, in which he is enclosed. And our Kindly Substance is enclosed in Jesus, together with the blessed Soul of Christ, which rests in the Godhead.

And I saw full surely that it behoveth needs to be that we should be in longing and in penance unto the time that we be led so deep into God that we verily and truly know our own Soul. And truly I saw that into this high deepness our good Lord Himself leadeth us in the same love that He made us, and in the same love that He bought us by Mercy and Grace through virtue of His blessed Passion. And notwithstanding all this, we may never come to full knowing of God till we know first clearly our own Soul. For until the time that our Soul is in its full powers² we cannot be all fully holy: and that is [until the time] that our Sense-soul by the virtue of Christ's Passion be brought up to the Substance, with all the profits of our tribulation that our Lord shall make us to get by Mercy and Grace.

And I saw with complete certainty that we must remain in longing and penance until we are led so deep into God that we truly know our own Soul. I truly saw that our good Lord himself leads us into these great depths. He leads us in the same love in which he made us. It is also the same love in which he redeemed us, through Mercy and Grace and the power of his blessed Passion. Yet despite all this, we can never fully know God until we first know our own Soul clearly. For we cannot be completely holy until our Soul has its full powers². This will happen when our Sense-soul is brought up to the Substance through the power of Christ's Passion. It will be brought up with all the benefits of our suffering that our Lord will help us gain through Mercy and Grace.

I had, in part, [experience of the] Touching [of God in the soul], and it is grounded in Nature. That is to say, our Reason is grounded in God, which is Substantial Naturehood.³ [Out] of this Substantial Naturehood Mercy and Grace springeth and spreadeth into us, working all things in fulfilling of our joy: these are our Ground in which we have our Increase and our Fulfilling.

I had some experience of God’s touch in the soul, and it is grounded in Nature. In other words, our reason is grounded in God, who is Substantial Naturehood.³ Mercy and Grace spring from this Substantial Naturehood and spread into us. They work in all things to bring our joy to fulfillment. Mercy and Grace are our foundation, in which we grow and reach fulfillment.

These be three properties in one Goodness: and where one worketh, all work in the things which be now belonging to us. God willeth that we understand [this], desiring with all our heart to have knowing of them more and more unto the time that we be fulfilled: for fully to know them is nought else but endless joy and bliss that we shall have in Heaven, which God willeth should be begun here in knowing of His love.

These are three qualities of one Goodness. Wherever one is at work, all are at work in the things that now belong to us. God wants us to understand [this] and to desire with all our hearts to know these qualities more and more until we are fulfilled. For knowing them fully is nothing less than the endless joy and bliss we shall have in Heaven. God wants that joy and bliss to begin here, as we come to know his love.

For only by our Reason we may not profit, but if we have evenly therewith Mind and Love: nor only in our Nature-Ground that we have in God we may not be saved but if we have, coming of the same Ground, Mercy and Grace. For of these three working all together we receive all our Goodness. Of the which the first [gifts] are goods of Nature: for in our First making God gave us as full goods as we might receive in our spirit alone,⁴—and also greater goods; but His foreseeing purpose in His endless wisdom willed that we should be double.

For reason alone cannot help us grow unless we also have memory and love alongside it. Nor can we be saved by the ground of our nature in God alone. We must also have mercy and grace, which come from that same ground. For we receive all our goodness through these three working together. The first [gifts] among them are gifts of nature. For when God first made us, he gave us all the good things we could receive in our spirit alone,⁴ and even greater gifts. But in his endless wisdom, he foresaw and intended that we should be double.