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
Nor could those Diabolonians that were in the town do that hurt as was
designed they should; for Mansoul was now awake. But alas! poor people,
they were sorely affrighted at the first appearance of their foes, and at
their sitting down before the town, especially when they heard the
roaring of their drum. This, to speak truth, was amazingly hideous to
hear; it frighted all men seven miles round, if they were but awake and
heard it. The streaming of their colours was also terrible and dejecting
to behold.
When Diabolus was come up against the town, first he made his approach to
Ear-gate, and gave it a furious assault, supposing, as it seems, that his
friends in Mansoul had been ready to do the work within; but care was
taken of that before, by the vigilance of the captains. Wherefore,
missing of the help that he expected from them, and finding his army
warmly attended with the stones that the slingers did sling, (for that I
will say for the captains, that considering the weakness that yet was
upon them by reason of the long sickness that had annoyed the town of
Mansoul, they did gallantly behave themselves,) he was forced to make
some retreat from Mansoul, and to entrench himself and his men in the
field without the reach of the slings of the town.
Now having entrenched himself, he did cast up four mounts against the
town: the first he called Mount Diabolus, putting his own name thereon,
the more to affright the town of Mansoul; the other three he called
thus—Mount Alecto, Mount Megara, and Mount Tisiphone; for these are the
names of the dreadful furies of hell. Thus he began to play his game
with Mansoul, and to serve it as doth the lion his prey, even to make it
fall before his terror. But, as I said, the captains and soldiers
resisted so stoutly, and did do such execution with their stones, that
they made him, though against stomach, to retreat, wherefore Mansoul
began to take courage.
Now upon Mount Diabolus, which was raised on the north side of the town,
there did the tyrant set up his standard, and a fearful thing it was to
behold; for he had wrought in it by devilish art, after the manner of a
scutcheon, a flaming flame fearful to behold, and the picture of Mansoul
burning in it.
When Diabolus had thus done, he commanded that his drummer should every
night approach the walls of the town of Mansoul, and so to beat a parley;
the command was to do it at nights, for in the daytime they annoyed him
with their slings; for the tyrant said, that he had a mind to parley with
the now trembling town of Mansoul, and he commanded that the drums should
beat every night, that through weariness they might at last, if possible,
(at the first they were unwilling yet,) be forced to do it.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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