glad to get than we should be to flee and escape all the pains
of hell.

But surely God is marvellous merciful to us in the thing in which
he may seem most rigorous. And that is (which many men would little
think) in that he provided hell. For I suppose very surely, cousin,
that many a man--and woman, too--of whom some now sit, and more
shall hereafter sit, full gloriously crowned in heaven, had they
not first been afraid of hell, would never have set foot toward
heaven.

But yet undoubtedly, if we could conceive in our hearts the
marvellous joys of heaven as well as we conceive the fearful pains
of hell--howbeit, we can conceive neither one sufficiently. But if
we could in our imagination approach as much toward the perceiving
of the one as we may toward the consideration of the other, we
would not fail to be far more moved and stirred to suffering for
Christ's sake in this world, for the winning of those heavenly joys
than for the eschewing of all those infernal pains. But forasmuch
as the fleshly pleasures are far less pleasant than the fleshly
pains are painful, therefore we fleshly folk, who are so drowned in
these fleshly pleasures and in the desire of them that we have
almost no manner of savour or taste for any pleasure that is
spiritual, we have no cause to marvel that our fleshly affections
are more abated and refrained by the dread and terror of hell than
spiritual affections are imprinted in us and pricked forward with
the desire and joyful hope of heaven.

Howbeit, if we would set somewhat less by the filthy voluptuous
appetites of the flesh, and would, by withdrawing from them, with
help of prayer through the grace of God, draw nearer to the secret
inward pleasure of the spirit, we should, by the little sipping
that our hearts should have here now, and that instantaneous taste
of it, have an estimation of the incomparable and uncogitable joy
that we shall have (if we will) in heaven, by the very full draught
thereof. For thereof it is written, "I shall be satiate" or
satisfied, or fulfilled, "when thy glory, good Lord, shall appear,"
that is, with the fruition of the sight of God's glorious majesty
face to face. And the desire, expectation, and heavenly hope
thereof, shall more encourage us and make us strong to suffer and
sustain for the love of God and salvation of our soul, than ever we
could be made to suffer worldly pain here by the terrible dread of
all the horrible pains that damned wretches h