On a prayer booke sent to Mrs. M. R.

LOe here a little volume, but large booke,
(Feare it not, sweet,
It is not hipocrit)
Much larger in it selfe then in its looke.

It is in one rich handfull, heaven and all
Heavens royall Hoasts incampt, thus small;
To prove that true schooles use to tell,
A thousand Angells in one point can dwell.

It is loves great Artillery,
Which here contracts it selfe and comes to lye
Close coucht in your white bosome, and from thence
As from a snowy fortresse of defence
Against the ghostly foe to take your part:
And fortifie the hold of your chast heart.

It is the Armory of light,
Let constant use but keep it bright,
Youl find it yeelds
To holy hand, and humble hearts,
More swords and sheilds
Then sinne hath snares, or hell hath darts.

Onely bee sure,
The hands bee pure,
That hold these weapons and the eyes
Those of turtles, chast, and true,
Wakefull, and wise
Here is a friend shall fight for you,
Hold but this booke before your heart,
Let prayer alone to play his part.

But o', the heart
That studyes this high art,
Must bee a sure house keeper,
And yet no sleeper.

Deare soule bee strong,
Mercy will come ere long,
And bring her bosome full of blessings,
Flowers of never fading graces;
To make immortall dressings.
For worthy souls whose wise embraces
Store up themselves for him, who is alone
The spouse of Virgins, and the Virgins son.

But if the noble Bridegrome when hee comes
Shall find the wandring heart from home,
Leaving her chast abode,
To gad abroad:

Amongst the gay mates of the god of flyes
To take her pleasures, and to play
And keep the divells holy day.
To dance in the Sunneshine of some smiling
but beguiling.
Spheare of sweet, and sugred lies,
Some slippery paire,
Of false perhaps as faire
Flattering but forswearing eyes

Doubtles some other heart
Will git the start,
And stepping in before,
Will take possession of the sacred store
Of hidden sweets, and holy joyes,
Words which are not heard with eares,
(These tumultous shops of noise)
Effeactuall whispers whose st…l voyce,
The soule it selfe more feeles then heares.

Amorous Languishments, Luminous trances,
Sights which are not seen with eyes,
Spirituall and soule peircing glances.
Whose pure and subtle lightning, …lies
Home to the heart, and setts the house on fire;
And melts it downe in sweet desire:
Yet doth not stay
To aske the windowes leave, to passe that way.

Delicious deaths, soft exhalations
Of soule deare, and divine annihilations.
A thousand unknowne rites
Of joyes, and rarifyed delights.

An hundred thousand loves and graces,
And many a misticke thing,
Which the divine embraces
Of the deare spowse of spirits with them will bring.
For which it is no shame,
That dull mortality must not know a name.

Of all this hidden store
Of blessing, and ten thousand more;
If when hee come
Hee find the heart from home,
Doubtles hee will unload
Himselfe some other where,
And powre abroad
His precious sweets,
On the faire soule whom first hee meets.

O faire! ô fortunate! ô rich! ô deare!
O happy and thrice happy shee
Deare silver breasted dove
Who ere shee bee,
Whose early Love
With winged vowes,
Makes haste to meet her morning spowse:
And close with his immortall kisses.
Happy soule who never misses,
To improve that precious houre:
And every day,
Seize her sweet prey;
All fresh and fragrant as hee rises,
Dropping with a balmy showre
A delicious dew of spices.

O let that happy soule hold fast
Her heavenly armefull, shee shall tast
At once, ten thousand paradises
Shee shall have power,
To rifle and deflower,
The rich and ros…all spring of those rare sweets,
Which with a swelling bosome there shee meets,
Boundlesse and infinite —
— bottomlesse treasures,
Of pure inebriating pleasures,
Happy soule shee shall discover,
What joy, what blisse,
How many heavens at once it is,
To have a God become her lover.