CONTENTS.

THIS Book teacheth how a man should follow the poor life of our Lord Jesu Christ, and how a man should live inwardly, and how he should come to right true perfection, and teacheth sundry lovely differences of godly truth.

No.

In the first place, this book teacheth how poverty is a (state of) being withdrawn (detached) from all creatures

[1]1

What is a poor man's holding, since he holdeth to nothing, and yet all things hold to something

[2]2

How some folk say this is the highest poverty and detachment, that a man be as when he was nothing

[3]3
How man ought to know and love God
[4]3
What man's knowledge is
[5]4

What use there is in a man's having in him a rational distinction in images and forms, since with them he cannot be saved (or blessed). To this it is answered that distinction is useful for right poverty in four ways

[6]5
If man should be also poor in graces and virtues
[7]6, [8]7

If a man can have virtue essentially who has his bodily necessity, and yet inwardly doth not possess it as property

[9]8
What chance or accident is
[10]8
If the favour of creatures hindereth poverty
[11]11, [12]12

Rich folk cannot have a thorough love and truth to a right poor man; this be proved by eight matters

[13]14, [14]15

In the next place, how true poverty is a free capacity or power (vermögen).

A question, What is freedom?
[15]16

If freedom is hindered when a man giveth himself up into obedience to another man, and how in three ways a man letteth himself to another

[16]17

It is not necessary that a right perfect man, who hath become empty of himself and of all things, should let himself to another for the sake of four things

[17]18

How a poor man should hold himself in lawful matters

[18]19, [19]20, [20]23
A poor man may let himself in three wise
[21]23

If a poor man should at all times take heed of his heart, and never cumber himself with outward things

[22]24-[23]26

How shall we understand if the impulse to outward works of love be from the evil spirit, or from nature, or from God

[24]27

Through four matters shall a man know if the impulse to outward works of love is from the evil spirit

[25]28

Through three matters a man should know if the impulse to outward works be of nature

[26]30

Through three matters shall a man know if the impulse to outward works of love be from God

[27]31-[28]34

Distinction between godly freedom and subordinate freedom

[29]35, [30]36
Of two kinds of subordinate freedom
[31]37-[32]42

In the third place, how true poverty is a pure working.

How what is called pure is when a thing is one and separate from the manifold or mixed

[33]43

How working is to make something out of nothing, or of one thing another or better than it was before, and out of something nothing

[34]43-[35]47

Of how working can be in poverty, since it is a pure being

[36]48

In man is a natural work, a work of grace and a godly work. In the first place--

How three kinds of work are in man, bodily, sensual, and spiritual

[37]49-[38]54

How natural knowledge is to be attributed and not attributed

[39]55

What difference there is between knowledge natural, of grace and godly

[40]56, [41]57
A natural man is to be known by three things
[42]58

This natural understanding is useful to a man to come to a complete detachment from himself and all things

[43]59
Secondly, of the work and knowledge of grace.

How Holy Scripture is understood fundamentally through divine grace

[44]60

Through the knowledge of grace is also understood the distinction of virtue and what is unvirtuous (vice)

[45]61
Through grace also man knows his sins
[46]62

Through grace a man knoweth the injury that lieth in sin

[47]63

How not nature but the badness in nature ought to be blamed

[48]64-[49]66

Through grace each sin is known in its degree and how it is called

[50]67-[51]73

Through grace the distinction of spirits is known, for there are four kinds of spirit that speak in man

[52]75-[53]81
Secondly, how the natural spirit speaketh in man
[54]82, [55]83

What distinction there is between natural and divine truth

[56]84
If divine truth can be known without images
[57]83-[58]86

In the third place, how the angelic spirit speaketh in man

[59]87
If a true repentance hath all virtue
[60]88

How many men guard against sins, and yet have not all virtues

[61]89

How man should not drive out the images and forms of the angel if he hath need of them

[62]91

Distinction between natural, angelic, and devilish images

[63]92-[64]96

Since a right poor man is raised above all creatures in God, how can he then tarry at the images of the angel or of another creature

[65]97

In the fourth place, how the Divine Spirit speaketh in man

[66]98
Three things make a friend
[67]99-[68]101

How some men say, If they knew the dearest will of God they would fulfil it, and how they say untruth in this

[69]102, [70]103

Since no accident or defective quality can attach to God, how then can He hate sin?

[71]104

How it is the noblest gift that a man can give, that he give himself

[72]106

Threefold use lieth in this, that man getteth his temporal good through God

[73]107

If a man can be perfect, who keepeth his necessity from without, and yet holdeth all things to be nothing for the love of God

[74]108-[75]111

How the flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh

[76]112

Why Christ said, Blessed are the poor in spirit, as you cannot be perfect without poverty of temporal things?

[77]113, [78]114

In the third place. Of the godly work and of three kinds of men.

Some keep their necessity from without, but are empty (of all earthly desire), and leave themselves to God inwardly; others leave temporal good outwardly for God's sake, and yet remain coarse and unenlightened inwardly, and these two classes war (contend) with one another, and each of these think it is right; the third leave all things outwardly and inwardly through God, and look inwardly what God will have of them; with this they are satisfied, and they dispute with no one

[79]115
What the work of God is in souls
[80]116, [81]117

Whoso followeth Christ as He went before us becometh one spirit with God

[82]118

How Christ hath two kinds of work in Him, and which work we ought to follow

[83]118

That we follow Christ as close as we can on earth, maketh us near to God in the kingdom of heaven

[84]119

By two kinds of work a man draweth nigh the aim, that is Christ--one is internal, the other external; and in the internal work man should have three aims

[85]121

The first aim that man ought to have internally is to see his own defects, and how he may he free of them

[86]123

The second object that a man ought to have internally is the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ

[87]124, [88]125

Whoso will know and seek godly truth, he findeth them nowhere else than in the Passion of Jesu Christ

[89]126, [90]127

Of a bodily heaven that is over us, and of a spiritual heaven that is in us, and that is the essential being of the soul in which God dwelleth

[91]128-[92]130

The third object that man ought to have in his internal work that he may come to the right aim, that is God in His simple divinity

[93]131

Of the external work that man may draw nigh the right aim, that is Christ

[94]132

The Spirit of God speaketh in man without image and form, life, light, and truth.

In the first place, the Spirit of God speaketh life in man

[95]133-[96]135

Why sermons should be heard, since the highest happiness of man lies in this, that he hear the eternal Word in himself

[97]136

When man has heard the word of the Teacher, or hath exercised himself in other virtues, he should turn inwardly and perceive the eternal Word in himself, and he ought to drive out violently what hindereth him in this

[98]137-[99]139

How God the Father speaketh His Word in the being or essence of the soul, and is the Teacher in the powers of the soul

[100]140, [101]141

The other way that the Spirit of God speaketh in the soul is light

[102]142

What light can the soul receive since she is herself light, as she hath sundered herself from all grossness

[103]144

If the soul is to receive the divine light she must turn to it

[104]145

Man must exceed the righteousness of the hypocrites and scribes if he is to be enlightened with the divine light

[105]146, [106]147

Whereby a man can know the distinction between natural and divine light

[107]148

How several men have not much divine influence (or influx), and yet their soul is not on that account dead

[108]149, [109]150

The divine sun begetteth the fish in the water, the beast on the earth, the bird in the air, the phoenix in the fire, and many hidden secret things that God only knoweth

[110]151, [111]152

The third thing that God speaketh in the understanding of man, without image or form, is truth, and how the understanding of man is likened unto lust

[112]153

What a perfect will is, whereof the works and virtue are essential.

How the will is movable if it turneth to the creature, and immovable if it turneth to God

[113]156
What an essential work is
[114]157

How the will given up to God is immovable and yet always advanceth (runneth) in God

[115]158

How the will of man ought to be immovable, but yet he turneth to this and to that as long as man is in time

[116]159

What a man's own self-will is, and what a resigned will is

[117]160

How there are several men, who have their necessity, and yet inwardly hold nothing as property, and thereby they think that they are empty of their own will

[118]161

How man possesseth himself in spiritual things in a twofold manner

[119]162-[120]164

If it be better that a man should take heed of his heart inwardly, or that he should cumber himself with external matters

[121]165-168

If it be good or not that a man should give himself up to the authority of another, since the lights shining into him are various

[122]169

If you should always follow the teaching of an exemplary man

[123]170

In two things man should understand if he is touched by God

[124]171