coupled to me."[45] The true spouse of our soul is God, and then are we truly coupled unto Him, when we draw near Him by hope and soothfast love.  And right as after hope cometh love, so after Levi was Judah born, the fourth son of Leah.  Leah in his birth cried and said:  “Now shall I shrive to our Lord."[46] And therefore in the story is Judah cleped “Shrift."[47] Also man’s soul in this degree of love offereth it clearly to God, and saith thus:  “Now shall I shrive to our Lord.”  For before this feeling of love in a man’s soul, all that he doth is done more for dread than for love; but in this state a man’s soul feeleth God so sweet, so merciful, so good, so courteous, so true, and so kind, so faithful, so lovely and so homely, that he leaveth nothing in him—­might, wit, conning,[48] or will—­that he offereth not it clearly, freely, and homely unto Him.  This shrift is not only of sin, but of the goodness of God.  Great token of love it is when a man telleth to God that He is good.  Of this shrift speaketh David full oft times in the psalter, when he saith:  “Make it known to God, for He is good."[49]

Lo, now have we said of four sons of Leah.  And after this she left bearing of children till another time; and so man’s soul weeneth that it sufficeth to it when it feeleth that it loveth the true goods.[50] And so it is enough to salvation, but not to perfection.  For it falleth to a perfect soul both to be inflamed with the fire of love in the affection, and also to be illumined with the light of knowing in the reason.

CAPITULUM V

HOW THE DOUBLE SIGHT OF PAIN AND JOY RISETH IN THE IMAGINATION

Then when Judah waxeth, that is to say, when love and desire of unseen true goods is rising and waxing in a man’s affection; then coveteth Rachel for to bear some children; that is to say, then coveteth reason to know these things that affection feeleth; for as it falleth to the affection for to love, so it falleth to the reason for to know.  Of affection springeth ordained and measured feelings; and of reason springeth right knowings[51] and clear understandings.  And ever the more that Judah waxeth, that is to say love, so much the more desireth Rachel bearing of children, that is to say, reason studieth after knowing.  But who is he that woteth not how hard it is, and nearhand impossible to a fleshly soul the which is yet rude in ghostly studies, for to rise in knowing of unseeable[52] things, and for to set the eye of contemplation in ghostly things?  For why, a soul that is yet rude and fleshly, knoweth nought but bodily things, and nothing cometh yet to the mind but only seeable[53] things.  And, nevertheless, yet it looketh inward as it may; and that that it may not see yet clearly by ghostly knowing, it thinketh by imagination.