Chapter 3

HYPOCRISY. God speed you all that be of God's belief: The mighty Jehovah protect you from ill. I beseech the living God, that he would give To each of you present a hearty good-will With flesh to contend, your lust for to kill, That, by the aid of spiritual assistance, You may subdue your carnal concupiscence. God grant you all, for his mercy's sake, The light of his word to your heart's joy. I humbly beseech him a confusion to make Of erroneous sects which might you annoy: Earnestly requiring each one to employ His whole endeavour God's word to maintain, And from strange doctrine your hearts to refrain. Grant, Lord, I pray thee, such preachers to be In thy congregation, thy people to learn, As may, for conscience' sake and of mere sincerity, Being able 'twixt corn and cockle to discern, Apply their study to replenish the bern; That is thy Church, by their doctrines increase, And make many heirs of thine eternal peace. Amen. Amen. But soft, let me see who doth me aspect. First, sluggish Saturn of nature so cold, Being placed in Tauro, my beams do reject, And Luna in Cancro in sextile he behold. I will the effect hereafter unfold: Now Jupiter the gentle, of temperature mean, Poor Mercury the turncoat, he forsook clean. Now murthering Mars retrograde in Libra, With amiable tryne apply to my beam; And splendent Sol the ruler of the day, After his eclipse to Jupiter will lean: The goddess of pleasure (dame Venus, I mean) To me her poor servant seem friendly to be: So also doth Luna, otherwise called Phoebe. But now I speak mischievously, I would say, in a mystery; Wherefore, to interpret it, I hold it best done, For here be a good sort, I believe, in this company, That know not my meaning, as this man for one. What! blush not at it; you are not alone: Here is another that know not my mind, Nor he in my words great favour can find. The planet Mercurius is neither hot nor cold, Neither good, nor yet very bad of his own nature, But doth alter his quality with them, which do hold Any friendly aspect to him: even so I assure We Mercurialists, I mean hypocrites, cannot long endure In one condition, but do alter our mind To theirs that talk with us, thereby friendship to find. The little cameleon, by nature, can change Herself to that colour to which she behold: Why should it then to any seem strange, That we do thus alter? why are we controll'd, Sith only the rule of nature we hold? We seek to please all men, yet most do us hate, And we are rewarded for friendship debate. Saturnus is envious; how then can he love Adulation or Hypocrisy, to him most contrary? The Jovists, being good, do look high above, And do not regard the rest of the company. Now Mars, being retrograde, foretelleth misery To tyrannical practice to happen eftsoon, As shall be apparent before all be done. Which Tyranny with flattery is easily pacified; Whereas Tom Tell-troth shall feel of his sword; So that with such men is fully verified That old-said saw, and common byword, _Obsequium amicos_--by flatteries friends are prepared, But _veritas odium parit_, as commonly is seen: For speaking the truth many hated have been. By Sol understand Popish principality, With whom full highly I am entertained, But being eclipsed shall show forth his quality; Then shall Hypocrisy be utterly disdained, Whose wretched exile, though greatly complained, And wept for of many, shall be without hope, That in such pomp shall ever be Pope. By Venus the riotous, by Luna the variable, Betwixt whom and Mercury no variance can fall, For they, which in words be most unstable, Would be thought faithful, and the riotous liberal: So that Hypocrisy their doings cloak shall. But whist! not a word, for yonder come some: While I know what they are, I will be dumb.

[_Step aside_.