The Holy War, Made by King Shaddai Upon Diabolus, for the Regaining of the Metropolis of the World; Or, The Losing and Taking Again of the Town of MansoulBunyan, John
ReligionChristian
The Holy War, Made by King Shaddai Upon Diabolus, for the Regaining of the Metropolis of the World; Or, The Losing and Taking Again of the Town of Mansoul
Bunyan, John
Christian fiction; Soul; Spiritual warfare -- Fiction
_Clerk_. We may spare further witness; this evidence is plain and full.
Set him by, gaoler, and set Mr. No-Truth to the bar. Mr. No-Truth, thou
art here indicted by the name of No-Truth, (an intruder upon the town of
Mansoul,) for that thou hast always, to the dishonour of Shaddai, and the
endangering of the utter ruin of the famous town of Mansoul, set thyself
to deface, and utterly to spoil, all the remainders of the law and image
of Shaddai that have been found in Mansoul after her deep apostasy from
her king to Diabolus, the envious tyrant. What sayest thou, art thou
guilty of this indictment, or not?
_No_. Not guilty, my lord.
Then the witnesses were called, and Mr. Know-All did first give in his
evidence against him.
_Know_. My lord, this man was at the pulling down of the image of
Shaddai; yea, this is he that did it with his own hands. I myself stood
by and saw him do it, and he did it at the commandment of Diabolus. Yea,
this Mr. No-Truth did more than this, he did also set up the horned image
of the beast Diabolus in the same place. This also is he that, at the
bidding of Diabolus, did rend and tear, and cause to be consumed, all
that he could of the remainders of the law of the King, even whatever he
could lay his hands on in Mansoul.
_Clerk_. Who saw him do this besides yourself?
_Hate_. I did, my lord, and so did many more besides; for this was not
done by stealth, or in a corner, but in the open view of all; yea, he
chose himself to do it publicly, for he delighted in the doing of it.
_Clerk_. Mr. No-Truth, how could you have the face to plead not guilty,
when you were so manifestly the doer of all this wickedness?
_No_. Sir, I thought I must say something, and as my name is, so I
speak. I have been advantaged thereby before now, and did not know but
by speaking no truth, I might have reaped the same benefit now.
_Clerk_. Set him by, gaoler, and set Mr. Pitiless to the bar. Mr.
Pitiless, thou art here indicted by the name of Pitiless, (an intruder
upon the town of Mansoul,) for that thou didst most traitorously and
wickedly shut up all bowels of compassion, and wouldest not suffer poor
Mansoul to condole her own misery when she had apostatised from her
rightful King, but didst evade, and at all times turn her mind awry from
those thoughts that had in them a tendency to lead her to repentance.
What sayest thou to this indictment? Guilty or not guilty?
‘Not guilty of pitilessness: all I did was to cheer up, according to my
name, for my name is not Pitiless, but Cheer-up; and I could not abide to
see Mansoul inclined to melancholy.’
_Clerk_. How! do you deny your name, and say it is not Pitiless, but
Cheer-up? Call for the witnesses. What say you, the witnesses, to this
plea?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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