Imitation 2 831 verses
1When is present all is well and nothing seemeth hard, but when is not present everything is hard.
2When speaketh not within, our comfort is nothing worth, but if speaketh but a single word great is the comfort we experience.
3Did not Mary Magdalene rise up quickly from the place where she wept when Martha said to her, “The Master is come and calleth for thee”?
4Happy hour when calleth thee from tears to the joy of the spirit!
5How dry and hard art thou without !
6How senseless and vain if thou desirest aught beyond !
7Is not this greater loss than if thou shouldst lose the whole world?
8What can the world profit thee without ?
9To be without is the nethermost hell, and to be with is sweet paradise.
10If were with thee no enemy could hurt thee.
11He who findeth findeth a good treasure, yea, good above all good; and he who loseth loseth exceeding much, yea, more than the whole world.
12Most poor is he who liveth without , and most rich is he who is much with .
13It is great skill to know how to live with , and to know how to hold is great wisdom.
14Be thou humble and peaceable and shall be with thee.
15Be godly and quiet, and will remain with thee.
16Thou canst quickly drive away and lose His favour if thou wilt turn away to the outer things.
17And if thou hast put Him to flight and lost Him, to whom wilt thou flee, and whom then wilt thou seek for a friend?
18Without a friend thou canst not live long, and if be not thy friend above all thou shalt be very sad and desolate.
19Madly therefore doest thou if thou trusteth or findest joy in any other.
20It is preferable to have the whole world against thee, than offended with thee.
21Therefore of all that are dear to thee, let be specially loved.
22Let all be loved for ’ sake, but for His own.
23 alone is to be specially loved, for He alone is found good and faithful above all friends.
24For His sake and in Him let both enemies and friends be dear to thee, and pray for them all that they may all know and love Him.
25Never desire to be specially praised or loved, because this belongeth to God alone, who hath none like unto Himself.
26Nor wish thou that anyone set his heart on thee, nor do thou give thyself up to the love of any, but let be in thee and in every good man.
27Be pure and free within thyself, and be not entangled by any created thing.
28Thou oughtest to bring a bare and clean heart to God, if thou desirest to be ready to see how gracious is.
29And in truth, unless thou be prevented and drawn on by His grace, thou wilt not attain to this, that having cast out and dismissed all else, thou alone art united to God.
30For when the grace of God cometh to a man, then he becometh able to do all things, and when it departeth then he will be poor and weak and given up unto troubles.
31In these thou art not to be cast down nor to despair, but to rest with calm mind on the will of God, and to bear all things which come upon thee unto the praise of ; for after winter cometh summer, after night returneth day, after the tempest a great calm.
