The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan Every Child Can Read
GREAT. There is not only comfort and the ease of a burden brought to us
by the sight and consideration of these, but an endeared love born in us
by it; for who can, if he doth but once think that pardon comes, not
only by promise, but thus, but be affected with the way and means of his
redemption, and so love the Man that hath wrought it for him?
CHR. True: methinks it makes my heart bleed, to think that He should
bleed for me. Oh, Thou loving One! Oh, Thou blessed One! Thou deservest
to have me: Thou hast bought me. Thou deservest to have me all: Thou
hast paid for me ten thousand times more than I am worth. No marvel that
this made the water stand in my husband's eyes, and that it made him
trudge so nimbly on. I am persuaded he wished me with him; but, vile
wretch that I was! I let him come all alone. Oh, Mercy, that thy father
and mother were here! yea, and Mrs. Timorous also! Nay, I wish now with
all my heart that here was Madam Wanton too. Surely, surely, their
hearts would be affected; nor could the fear of the one, nor the
powerful passions of the other, prevail with them to go home again, and
refuse to become good pilgrims.
GREAT. You speak now in the warmth of your affections: will it, think
you, be always thus with you? Besides, this is not given to every one,
nor to every one that did see your Jesus bleed. There were that stood
by, and that saw the blood run from His heart to the ground, and yet
were so far off this, that instead of lamenting, they laughed at Him,
and instead of becoming His disciples, did harden their hearts against
him. So that all that you have, my daughters, you have by a peculiar
feeling made by a thinking upon what I have spoken to you. This you
have, therefore, by a special grace.
[Sidenote: SIMPLE, SLOTH, PRESUMPTION]
Now, I saw still in my dream, that they went on till they were come to
the place that Simple, and Sloth, and Presumption lay and slept in, when
Christian went by on pilgrimage; and, behold, they were hanged up in
irons a little way off on the other side.
MER. Then said Mercy to him that was their guide and conductor, "What
are those three men? and for what are they hanged there?"
GREAT. These three men were men of very bad qualities: they had no mind
to be pilgrims themselves, and whomsoever they could they hindered. They
were for sloth and folly themselves, and whomsoever they could persuade
with, they made so too, and withal taught them to presume that they
should do well at last. They were asleep when Christian went by; and,
now you go by, they are hanged.
MER. But could they persuade any to be of their opinion?
GREAT. Yes, they turned several out of the way. There was Slow-pace that
they persuaded to do as they. They also prevailed with one Short-wind,
with one No-heart, with one Linger-after-lust, and with one Sleepy-head,
and with a young woman--her name was Dull--to turn out of the way and
become as they. Besides, they brought up an ill report of your Lord,
persuading others that He was a hard task-master. They also brought up
an evil report of the good land, saying it was not half so good as some
pretended it was. They also began to speak falsely about His servants,
and to count the very best of them meddlesome, troublesome busy-bodies.
Further, they would call the bread of God, husks; the comforts of His
children, fancies; the travel labor of pilgrims, things to no purpose.
CHR. "Nay," said Christiana, "if they were such, they never shall be
bewailed by me: they have but what they deserve; and I think it is well
that they hang so near the highway, that others may see and take
warning. But had it not been well if their crimes had been engraven on
some plate of iron or brass, and left here where they did their
mischiefs, for a caution to other bad men?"
GREAT. So it is, as you well may perceive, if you will go a little to
the wall.
MER. No, no: let them hang, and their names rot, and their crimes live
for ever against them. I think it a high favor that they were hanged
afore we came hither who knows, else, what they might have done to such
poor women as we are?
Then she turned it into a song, saying:
"Now, then, you three, hang there, and be a sign
To all that shall against the truth combine;
And let him that comes after fear this end,
If unto pilgrims he is not a friend.
And thou, my soul, of all such men beware
That unto holiness opposers are."
Thus they went on till they came at the foot of the Hill Difficulty,
where again their good friend Mr. Great-heart took an occasion to tell
them of what happened there when Christian himself went by. So he had
them first to the spring. "Lo," saith he, "this is the spring that
Christian drank of before he went up this hill: and then it was clear
and good; but now it is dirty with the feet of some that are not
desirous that pilgrims here should quench their thirst." Thereat Mercy
said, "And why are they so envious, I wonder?" But said their guide, "It
will do if taken up and put into a vessel that is sweet and good; for
then the dirt will sink to the bottom, and the water come out by itself
more clear." Thus, therefore, Christiana and her companions were
compelled to do. They took it up, and put it into an earthen pot, and so
let it stand till the dirt was gone to the bottom, and then they drank
thereof.
[Sidenote: TWO DANGEROUS PATHS]
Next he showed them the two by-ways that were at the foot of the hill,
where Formality and Hypocrisy lost themselves. And said he, "These are
dangerous paths. Two were here cast away when Christian came by; and
although, as you see, these ways are since stopped up with chains,
posts, and a ditch, yet there are that will choose to adventure here,
rather than take the pains to go up this hill."
CHR. The way of transgressors is hard. It is a wonder that they can get
into those ways without danger of breaking their necks.
GREAT. They will venture: yea, if at any time any of the King's servants
doth happen to see them, and doth call unto them, and tell them that
they are in the wrong ways, and do bid them beware the danger, then they
will railingly return them answer, and say, "As for the word that thou
hast spoken unto us in the name of the King, we will not hearken unto
thee; but we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our
own mouth." Nay, if you look a little farther, you shall see that these
ways are warned against enough, not only by these posts, and ditch, and
chain, but also by being hedged up; yet they will choose to go there.
CHR. They are idle: they love not to take pains: up-hill way is
unpleasant to them. So it is fulfilled unto them as it is written, "The
way of the slothful man is a hedge of thorns." Yea, they will rather
choose to walk upon a snare than go up this hill, and the rest of this
way to the City.
Then they set forward, and began to go up the hill; and up the hill they
went. But, before they got to the top, Christiana began to pant, and
said, "I dare say this is a breathing hill: no marvel if they that love
their ease more than their souls choose to themselves a smoother way."
Then said Mercy, "I must sit down;" also the least of the children began
to cry. "Come, come," said Great-heart, "sit not down here, for a little
above is the Prince's arbor." Then took he the little boy by the hand,
and led him up thereto.
[Sidenote: THE ARBOR ON THE HILL]
When they were come to the arbor, they were very willing to sit down,
for they were all in a pelting heat. Then said Mercy, "How sweet is rest
to them that labor, and how good is the Prince of pilgrims to provide
such resting-places for them! Of this arbor I have heard much, but I
never saw it before. But here let us beware of sleeping; for, as I have
heared, for that it cost poor Christian dear."
Then said Mr. Great-heart to the little ones, "Come, my pretty boys, how
do you do? what think you now of going on pilgrimage?"
"Sir," said the least, "I was almost beat out of heart; but I thank you
for lending me a hand at my need. And I remember now what my mother has
told me, namely, 'That the way to heaven is as up a ladder, and the way
to hell is as down a hill.' But I rather go up the ladder to life, than
the hill to death."
Then said Mercy, "But the proverb, is, 'To go down the hill is easy.'"
But James said (for that was his name), "The day is coming when, in my
opinion, going down-hill will be the hardest of all."
"That's a good boy," said his master; "thou hast given her a right
answer."
Then Mercy smiled, but the little boy did blush.
CHR. "Come," said Christiana, "will you eat a bit, a little to sweeten
your mouths, while you sit here to rest your legs? for I have here a
piece of pomegranate, which Mr. Interpreter put in my hand just when I
came out of his doors: he gave me also a piece of a honeycomb, and a
little bottle of spirits."
"I thought he gave you something," said Mercy, "because he called you
aside."
"Yes, so he did," said the other; "but, Mercy, it shall still be as I
said it should, when at first we came from home; thou shalt be a sharer
in all the good that I have, because thou so willingly didst become my
companion."
Then she gave to them, and they did eat, both Mercy and the boys. And
said Christiana to Mr. Great-heart, "Sir, will you do as we and take
some refreshment?"
But he answered, "You are going on pilgrimage, and presently I shall
return; much good may have do to you: at home I eat the same every day."
Now, when they had eaten and drunk, and had chatted a little longer,
their guide said to them, "The day wears away; if you think good, let us
prepare to be going." So they got up to go, and the little boys went
before; but Christiana forgot to take her bottle of spirits with her, so
she sent her little boy back to fetch it.
Then said Mercy, "I think this is a losing place: here Christian lost
his roll, and here Christiana left her bottle behind her. Sir, what is
the cause of this?"
So their guide made answer, and said, "The cause is sleep or
forgetfulness: some sleep when they should keep awake, and some forget
when they should remember. And this is the very cause why often at the
resting-places some pilgrims, in some things, come off losers. Pilgrims
should watch, and remember what they have already received, under their
greatest enjoyments; but, for want of doing so, ofttimes their rejoicing
ends in tears, and their sunshine in a cloud: witness the story of
Christian at this place."
[Sidenote: MISTRUST AND TIMOROUS]
When they were come to the place where Mistrust and Timorous met
Christian, to persuade him to go back for fear of the lions, they
perceived as it were a stage, and before it, towards the road, a broad
plate, with a copy of verses written thereon, and underneath the reason
of the raising up of that stage in that place rendered. The verses were
these:
"Let him that sees this stage take heed
Unto his heart and tongue;
Lest, if he do not, here he speed
As some have, long agone."
The words underneath the verses were, "This stage was built to punish
such upon, who, through timorousness or mistrust, shall be afraid to go
farther on pilgrimage. Also on this stage both Mistrust and Timorous
were burned through the tongue with a hot iron, for endeavoring to
hinder Christian in his journey."
Then said Mercy, "This is much like to the saying of the Beloved, 'What
shall be given unto thee, or what shall be done unto thee, thou false
tongue? Sharp arrows of the mighty, with coals of juniper.'"
So they went on till they came within sight of the lions. Now, Mr.
Great-heart was a strong man, so he was not afraid of a lion. But yet,
when they were come up to the place where the lions were, the boys, that