Chapter 62

For in that time He shewed our frailty and our fallings, our afflictings and our settings at nought,¹ our despites and our outcastings, and all our woe so far forth as methought it might befall in this life. And therewith He shewed His blessed Might, His blessed Wisdom, His blessed Love: that He keepeth us in this time as tenderly and as sweetly to His worship, and as surely to our salvation, as He doeth when we are in most solace and comfort. And thereto He raiseth us spiritually and highly in heaven, and turneth it all to His worship and to our joy, without end. For His love suffereth us never to lose time.

For at that time he showed our weakness and our falls, our sufferings and the contempt we endure,¹ the scorn and rejection we face, and all the misery I thought could befall us in this life. Along with this, he showed his blessed power, his blessed wisdom, and his blessed love. He showed that he cares for us in times of misery as tenderly and sweetly, to his glory, and as surely, for our salvation, as he does when we are most at ease and comforted. And he also lifts us spiritually, high into heaven. He turns it all to his glory and our joy, without end. For his love never lets us lose time.

And all this is of the Nature-Goodness of God, by the working of Grace. God is Nature² in His being: that is to say, that Goodness that is Nature, it is God. He is the ground, He is the substance, He is the same thing that is Nature-hood.³ And He is very Father and very Mother of Nature: and all natures that He hath made to flow out of Him to work His will shall be restored and brought again into Him by the salvation of man through the working of Grace.

All this comes from the natural goodness of God, through the working of grace. God is Nature² in his being. In other words, the goodness that is Nature is God. He is the ground and the substance of Nature. He is Nature-hood³ itself. He is the true Father and true Mother of Nature. He has made all natures flow out of him to do his will. Through the salvation of humanity and the working of grace, all these natures will be restored and brought back into him.

For of all natures⁴ that He hath set in diverse creatures by part, in man is all the whole; in fulness and in virtue, in fairness and in goodness, in royalty and nobleness, in all manner of majesty, of preciousness and worship. Here may we see that we are all beholden to God for nature, and we are all beholden to God for grace. Here may we see us needeth not greatly to seek far out to know sundry natures, but to Holy Church, unto our Mother's breast: that is to say, unto our own soul where our Lord dwelleth; and there shall we find all now in faith and in understanding. And afterward verily in Himself clearly, in bliss.

For all the natures⁴ that he has given in part to different creatures are found whole in human beings. They are present in fullness and power, in beauty and goodness, in royalty and nobility, in every kind of majesty, preciousness, and dignity. Here we can see that we all owe God for nature, and we all owe God for grace. Here we can see that we need not search far to know the different natures. We need only turn to Holy Church, to our Mother’s breast. This means turning to our own soul, where our Lord dwells. There we shall find all these natures now through faith and understanding. Afterward, we shall truly see them clearly in God himself, in bliss.

But let no man nor woman take this singularly to himself: for it is not so, it is general: for it is [of] our precious Christ, and to Him was this fair nature adight⁵ for the worship and nobility of man's making, and for the joy and the bliss of man's salvation; even as He saw, wist, and knew from without beginning.

But no man or woman should take this as applying only to themselves. It is not so, for it applies to everyone. It belongs to our precious Christ, and this beautiful nature was prepared⁵ for him. It was prepared for the honor and nobility of human creation, and for the joy and bliss of human salvation. This is just as he saw and knew from before the beginning.