HET EERSTE DEEL. THE FIRST PART

II.

An engraving within a rectangular frame. On the left, a woman in a long dress stands in a garden, pointing her hand toward a seated figure. At her feet lies a spilled bag of coins and several playing cards. On the right, a seated man in robes appears in distress, clutching his chest. He has prominent rays or wing-like flames emanating from his head, with a star hovering directly above. In the background is a manicured garden and a large classical building with an arched window and a square tower. The initials "I.L." are engraved in the bottom right corner of the image frame.

JESUS AND THE SOUL.

The Soul Sets Itself Against Flesh and Blood.

"Would you then so completely and entirely forsake me,
My bosom friend? original: "halsvriendin," literally "neck-friend," meaning an intimate companion who embraces one's neck O Soul, and rob me
Of my highest good, my luxuriant, playful life,
And lead me into a deep slavery?
Would you violate your friend, your closest companion?
And make me a scorn and mockery to everyone,
And cast me into much sorrow and misery;
Consider carefully, can that be right before God?"
So speaks the Flesh, the old man original: "den ouden mensch," a reference to the Apostle Paul's description of the unregenerate human nature in Romans 6:6 of sins.
Hear the answer I give him:
"It is better that you be bound for a time,
Than that you should drive me into eternal bonds:
You are a rogue, and weave original: "spint," literally "spins" as with thread nothing but misery for me:
You care only for your belly, and act like a beast;
And when you come to your besieged end,
Because your foundation lies in the Spirit of the Stars, Spirit of the Stars: In 17th-century mystical thought, this refers to the sidereal or astral spirit—the part of man's nature tied to the physical cosmos which perishes at death
Then you break apart, and let me depart;
If God's light does not shine in my Soul-fire; Soul-fire: A mystical term for the fundamental essence of the soul, which requires the "light" of God to be transformed from a consuming fire into a divine radiance
Then I must wander in eternal darkness,
Because I originate from eternal nature;
Therefore, O guest, I have been commanded to keep watch;
You turn to dust, original: "stuift tot niet," literally "blows away to nothing" but I...