Bunyan, John, 1628-1688 -- Criticism and interpretation
3. Then, as the saying is, it goes without saying that 'Mr. Prywell was
always a jealous man.' Great lovers are always jealous men, and Mr.
Prywell showed himself to be a great lover by the great heat of his
jealousy also. 'Vigilant,' says the excellent editress again; 'cautious
against dishonour, reasonably mistrustful--low Latin _zelosus_, full of
zeal. "And he said, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of
hosts."' Now, it so happened that some of Mr. Prywell's most private and
not at all professional papers--papers evidently, and on the face of
them, connected with the state of the spy's own soul--came into my hands
as good lot would have it just the other night. The moth-eaten chest was
full of his old papers, but the pieces that took my heart most were, as
it looked to me, actually gnashed through with his remorseful teeth, and
soaked and sodden past recognition with his sweat and his tears and his
agonising hands. But after some late hours over those remnants I managed
to make some sense to myself out of them. There are some parts of the
parchments that pass me; but, if only to show you that this arch-spy's so
vigilant jealousy was not all directed against other people's bad hearts
and bad habits, I shall copy some lines out of the old box. 'Have I
penitence?' he begins without any preface. 'Have I grief, shame, pain,
horror, weariness for my sin? Do I pray and repent, if not seven times a
day as David did, yet at least three times, as Daniel? If not as
Solomon, at length, yet shortly as the publican? If not like Christ, the
whole night, at least for one hour? If not on the ground and in ashes,
at least not in my bed? If not in sackcloth, at least not in purple and
fine linen? If not altogether freed from all, at least from immoderate
desires? Do I give, if not as Zaccheus did, fourfold, as the law
commands, with the fifth part added? If not as the rich, yet as the
widow? If not the half, yet the thirtieth part? If not above my power,
yet up to my power?' And then over the page there are some illegible
pencillings from old authors of his such as this from Augustine: 'A good
man would rather know his own infirmity than the foundations of the earth
or the heights of the heavens.' And this from Cicero: 'There are many
hiding-places and recesses in the mind.' And this from Seneca: 'You must
know yourself before you can amend yourself. An unknown sin grows worse
and worse and is deprived of cure.' And this from Cicero again: 'Cato
exacted from himself an account of every day's business at night'; and
also Pythagoras,
'Nor let sweet sleep upon thine eyes descend
Till thou hast judged its deeds at each day's end.'
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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