Conviction de peccato

TITULO

The First Stage

Conviction de peccato

As I walked through the wilderness of this world, I lighted on a certain place where was a den, 3 and laid me down in that place to sleep; and as I slept, I dreamed a dream. I dreamed, and behold, I saw a man clothed with rags, standing in a certain place, with his face from his own house, a book in his hand, and a great burden upon his back. Isa 64:6; Luke 14:33; Psalm 38:4. I looked and saw him open the book, and read therein; and as he read, he wept and trembled; and not being able longer to contain, he brake out with a lamentable cry, saying, "What shall I do?" Acts 2:37; 16:30; Habak 1:2,3. In this plight, therefore, he went home, and restrained himself as long as he could, that his wife and children should not perceive his distress; but he could not be silent long, because that his trouble increased. Wherefore at length he brake his mind to his wife and children; and thus he began to talk to them: "O, my dear wife," said he, "and you the children of my bowels, I, your dear friend, am in myself undone by reason of a burden that lieth hard upon me; moreover, I am certainly informed that this our city will be burnt with fire from heaven; in which fearful overthrow, both myself, with thee my wife, and you my sweet babes, shall miserably come to ruin, except (the which yet I see not) some way of escape can be found whereby we may be delivered." At this his relations were sore amazed; not for that they believed that what he had said to them was true, but because they thought that some frenzy distemper had got into his head; therefore, it drawing towards night, and they hoping that sleep might settle his brains, with all haste they got him to bed. But the night was as troublesome to him as the day; wherefore, instead of sleeping, he spent it in sighs and tears. So when the morning was come, they would know how he did. He told them, "Worse and worse:" he also set to talking to them again; but they began to be hardened. They also thought to drive away his distemper by harsh and surly carriage to him; sometimes they would deride, sometimes they would chide, and sometimes they would quite neglect him. Wherefore he began to retire himself to his chamber to pray for and pity them, and also to condole his own misery; he would also walk solitarily in the fields, sometimes reading, and sometimes praying: and thus for some days he spent his time. Now I saw, upon a time, when he was walking in the fields, that he was (as he was wont) reading in his book, and greatly distressed in his mind; and as he read, he burst out, as he had done before, crying, "What shall I do to be saved?" Acts 16:30,31.

.1 Durante que io camminava per le deserto de iste mundo, io perveniva a un certe loco, ubi il habeva un cava. Hic io me addormiva e habeva un sonio. .2 Io soniava, e tosto io videva un homine, vestite de povre vestes lacerate, qui stava in un certe loco, con le facie revolvite de su proprie casa, con un libro in mano, e con un grande fardello super su dorso [Is 44:6; Lc 14:33; Ps 38:5; Hab 2:2]. .3 Io reguardava, e le videva aperir le libro e leger in illo. Durante le lectura ille comenciava lacrimar e tremular, tanto que ille non poteva plus continer se e per un voce lamentose ille critava: "Que debe io facer?” [Act 2:37]. .4 In ille lamentabile condition ille retornava a casa e cercava celar a su sposa e a su filios su proprie suffrentia, ma ille non succedeva facer lo, proque su pena augmentava semper plus. .5 Finalmente ille se effundeva a su sposa e a su filios e diceva: "Mi car sposa, e vos, mi amatissime filios, io es triste e profundemente turbate: le fardello que io porta es tro pesante, .6 in ultra io ha essite informate que in tote certitude, nostre citate essera comburite per un foco que venira del Celo: nos omnes perira miseremente si nos non trova un via pro fugir, un via que io non mesmo cognosce”. .7 In audir iste parolas, su familia esseva multo surprendite, non proque illes habeva credite al parolas que ille diceva, ma proque illes comenciava timer que ille se affollava. Comocunque, nam le nocte se avicinava, illes le exhortava a vader a lecto, in le spero que le somno poterea calmar su cerebro. .8 Le nocte, tamen, esseva pro ille tanto travaliate quanto le jorno e, pro isto, ille lo passava in singultos e in lacrimas. Assi, quando le jorno arrivava, illes voleva informar se como ille stava nunc, ma ille respondeva: "Semper pejo, semper pejo”. .9 Ille desirava pois continuar a parlar a illes, in le spero de convincer les, ma in van, illes comenciava a indurar se; illes etiam probava a facer le revenir al ration per le manieras forte, aliquando per derision, aliquando per reproches e, altere vices, illes simplemente le ignorava: pro isto ille comenciava retirar se in su camera a precar e a compatir les, ma etiam a condoler su proprie miseria. In ultra, ille passava le tempore in camminar solitari per le campos, aliquando in leger, aliquando in precar. .10 Un vice, durante que ille camminava per le campos, io videva que, como il esseva su habitude, ille legeva ille su libro e ille me pareva particularmente inquiete e, durante su lectura, como ille jam habeva facite, ille se effundeva e diceva: "Que debe io facer pro salvar me?” [Act 16:30,31].