The Everlasting Gospel

There is not one Moral Virtue that Jesus Inculcated but Plato & Cicero did Inculcate before him. What then did Christ Inculcate? Forgiveness of Sins. This alone is the Gospel, & this is the Life & Immortality brought to light by Jesus, Even the Covenant of Jehovah, which is This: if you forgive one another your Trespasses so shall Jehovah forgive you, That he himself may dwell among you; but if you Avenge, you Murder the Divine Image & he cannot dwell among you because you Murder him; he arises Again & you deny that he is Arisen & are blind to Spirit.

Was Jesus Humber? or did he Give any Proofs of Humility? Boast of high Things with Humble tone, And give with Charity a Stone? When but a Child he ran away, And left his parents in dismay. When they had wander’d three days long These were the words upon his tongue: ‘No Earthly Parents I confess; I am doing my Father’s business.’ When the rich learned Pharisee Came to consult him secretly, Upon his heart with Iron pen He wrote, ‘Ye must be born again.’ He was too proud to take a bribe; He spoke with authority, not like a Scribe. He says, with most consummate Art, ‘Follow me, I am meek & lowly of heart,' As that is the only way to escape The Miser’s net & the Glutton’s trap. What can be done with such desperate fools Who follow after the Heathen Schools? I was standing by when Jesus died; What I call’d Humility they call’d Pride. He who loves his Enemies betrays his Friends; This surely is not what Jesus intends, But the sneaking Pride of Heroic Schools And the Scribes’ & Pharisees’ Virtuous Rules. For he acts with honest, triumphant Pride; And this is the cause that Jesus died. He did not die with Christian Ease, Asking pardon of his Enemies. If he had, Caiaphas would forgive; Sneaking submission can always live. He had only to say that God was the devil, And the devil was God, like a Christian Civil, Mild Christian regrets to the devil confess For affronting him thrice in the Wilderness; He had soon been bloody Caesar’s Elf, And at last he would have been Caesar himself, Like Dr Priestly & Bacon & Newton. Poor Spiritual Knowledge is not worth a button, For thus the Gospel Sir Isaac confutes: ‘God can only be known by his Attributes, And ass to the Indwelling of the Holy ghost Or of Christ & his Father, it’s all a boast And Pride & Vanity of the imagination, That disdains to follow this World’s Fashion.’ To teach Doubt & Experiment Certainly as not what Christ meant. What was he doing all that time, From twelve years old to manly prime? Was he then Idle, or the Less Abut his father’s business? Or was his wisdom held in scorn Before his wrath began to burn In Miracles throughout the Land, That quite unnerv’d Caiaphas’ hand? If he had been Antichrist, Creeping Jesus, He’d have done any thing to please us; Gone sneaking into Synagogues, And not us’d the Elders & Priests like dogs, But Humble as a Lamb or Ass Obey’d himself to Caiaphas. God wants not Man to Humble himself: This is the trick of the ancient Elf. This is the Race that Jesus ran: Jumble to God, Haughty to Man, Cursing the Rulers before the People Even to the temple’s highest Steeple; And when he Humbled himself to God, Then descended the Cruel Rod: ‘If thou humblest thyself, thou humblest me; Thou also dwell’st in Eternity. Thou art a Man, God is no more; Thy own humanity learn to adore, For that is my Spirit of Life. Awake! arise to Spiritual Strife, And thy Revenge abroad display In terrors at the Last Judgment day. God’s Mercy & Long Suffering Is but the Sinner to Judgment to bring. Thou on the Cross for them shalt pray, And take Revenge at the Last Day.’ Jesus replied, & thunders hurl’d: ‘I never will Pray for the World. Once I did so when I pray’d in the Garden; I wish’d to take with me a Bodily Pardon.’ Can that which was of woman born, In the absence of the Morn, When the Soul fell into Sleep, And Archangels round it weep, Shooting out against the Light Fibres of a deadly night, Reasoning upon its own dark Fiction, In Doubt which is Self Contradiction? Humility is only doubt, And does the Sun & Moon blot out, Rooting over with thorns & stems The ruied Sould & all its gems. This Life’s dim Windows of the Soul Distorts the Heavens from Pole to Pole, And leads you to Believe a Lie When you see with, not thro, the Eye, That was born in a night to perish in a night, When the Soul slept in the beams of Light.

Was Jesus Chaste, or did he Give any Lessons of Chastity? The morning blush’d fiery red: Mary was found in Adulterous bed; Earth groan’d beneath, & Heaven above Trembled at discovery of Love. Jesus was sitting in Moses’ Chair, Thy brought the trembling Woman There: ‘Moses commands she be ston’d to death’. What was the sound of Jesus’ breath? He laid His hand on Moses’ Law; The Ancient Heavens, in Silent Awe, Writ with Cruses from Pole to Pole, All away began to roll. The Earth trembling & Naked lay In secret bed of Mortal Clay, On Sinai felt the hand divine Putting back the bloody shrine; And she heard the breath of God As she heard by Eden’s flood: ‘Good & Evil are no more! Sinai’s trumpets, cease to roar! Cease, finger of God, to write! The Heavens are not clean in thy Sight; Thou art Good, & thou Alone, Nor may the sinner cast on stone. To be Good only is to be A Devil, or else a Pharisee. Thou Angel of the Presence Divine, That didst create this Body of Mine, Wherefore has thou writ these Laws And Created Hell’s dark jaws? My Presence I will take from thee: A Cold Leper thou shalt be. Tho’ thou wast so pure & bright That Heaven was Impure in thy Sight, Tho’ thy Oath turn’d Heaven Pale, Tho’ thy Covenant built Hell’s Jail, Tho’ thou didst all to Chasos roll With the Serpent for its soul, Still the breath Divine does move, And the breath Divine is Love. Mary, Fear Not. Let me see The Seven Devils that torment thee. Hide not from my Sight thy Sin, That forgiveness thou maist win. Has no Man Condemned thee?’ ‘No Man, Lord’ ‘Then what is he Who shall Accuse thee? Come Ye forth, Fallen fiends of Heav’nly birth That have forgot your Ancient love And driven away my trembling Dove. You shall bow before her feet, You shall lick the dust for Meat, And tho’ you cannot Love, but Hate, Shall be beggars at Love’s Gate. What was thy love? Let me see it; Was it love, or Dark Deceit?’ ‘Love too long from Me had fled; ‘Twas dark deceit, to Earn my bread; ‘Twas Covet, or ‘twas Custom, or Some trifle not worth caring for: That they may call a shame & Sin Love’s temple that God dwelleth in, And hide in secret hidden Shrine The Naked Human form divine, And render that a Lawless thing On which the Soul Expands its wing. But this, O Lord, this was my Sin, When first I let these devils in In dark pretence to Chastity, Blaspheming Love, blaspheming thee. Thence Rose Secret Adulteries, And thence did Covet also rise. My sin thou hast forgiven me; Canst thou forgive my Blasphemy? Canst thou return to this dark Hell, And in my burning bosom dwell? And canst thou die that I may live? And canst thou Pity & forgive?’ Then Roll’d the shadowy Man away From the Limbs of Jesus to make them his prey, An Ever devouring appetite, Glittering with festering Venoms bright, Crying: ‘Crucify this case of distress, Who don’t keep the secrets of Holiness! All Mental Powers by Diseases we bind, But he heals the Deaf & the Dumb & the Blind. Whom God has afflicted for Secret Ends He comforts & Heals & calls them Friends.’ But when Jesus was Crucified, Then was perfected his glitt’ring pride. In three Nights he devour’d his prey, And still he devours the Body of Clay; For dust & Clay is the Serpent’s meat, Which never was made for Man to Eat.