The Pilgrim’s Progress, John Bunyan [most popular novels .txt] 📗

as the laying of the trenchers, and as setting of salt upon the board, when compared with the feast that our Lord will make for us when we come to His house.

So supper came up;867 and first, a heave-shoulder, and a wave-breast,868 were set on the table before them, to show that they must begin their meal with prayer and praise to God.869 The heave-shoulder, David lifted his heart up to God with; and with the wave-breast, where his heart lay, with that he used to lean upon his harp when he played. These two dishes were very fresh and good, and they all eat heartily well thereof.

The next they brought up, was a bottle of wine, red as blood.870 So Gaius said to them, Drink freely; this is the juice of the true vine, that makes glad the heart of God and man.871 So they drank and were merry.

The next was a dish of milk well crumbed; but Gaius said, Let the boys have that, that they may grow thereby.872 Then they brought up in course a dish of butter and honey. Then said Gaius, Eat freely of this; for this is good to cheer up, and strengthen your judgments and understandings. This was our Lord’s dish when He was a child: “Butter and honey shall He eat, that He may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.”873

Then they brought them up a dish of apples, and they were very good tasted fruit. Then said Matthew, May we eat apples, since they were such, by, and with which, the serpent beguiled our first mother?

Then said Gaius⁠—

Apples were they with which we were beguil’d
Yet sin, not apples, hath our souls defil’d.
Apples forbid, if eat, corrupt the blood;
To eat such, when commanded, does us good.
Drink of His flagons, then, thou church, His dove,
And eat His apples, who are sick of love.

Then said Matthew, I made the scruple, because I awhile since was sick with eating of fruit.

Gaius. Forbidden fruit will make you sick but not what our Lord has tolerated.

While they were thus talking, they were presented with another dish, and it was a dish of nuts.874 Then said some at the table, Nuts spoil tender teeth, especially the teeth of children; which when Gaius heard, he said⁠—

Hard texts are nuts (I will not call them cheaters),
Whose shells do keep their kernels from the eaters.
Ope then the shells, and you shall have the meat;
They here are brought for you to crack and eat.

Then were they very merry, and sat at the table a long time, talking of many things. Then said the old gentleman, My good landlord, while we are cracking your nuts, if you please, do you open this riddle:875

A man there was though some did count him mad,
The more he cast away, the more he had.

Then they all gave good heed, wondering what good Gaius would say; so he sat still awhile, and then thus replied⁠—

He that bestows his goods upon the poor,
Shall have as much again, and ten times more.

Then said Joseph, I dare say, Sir, I did not think you could have found it out.

Oh! said Gaius, I have been trained up in this way a great while; nothing teaches like experience; I have learned of my Lord to be kind; and have found by experience, that I have gained thereby. “There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet; but it tendeth to poverty.”876 “There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing; there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.”877 Then Samuel whispered to Christiana, his mother, and said, Mother, this is a very good man’s house, let us stay here a good while, and let my brother Matthew be married here to Mercy, before we go any further.878

The which Gaius the host overhearing, said, With a very good will, my child.

So they stayed there more than a month, and Mercy was given to Matthew to wife.

While they stayed here, Mercy, as her custom was, would be making coats and garments to give to the poor, by which she brought up a very good report upon the Pilgrims.879

But to return again to our story. After supper the lads desired a bed; for that they were weary with travelling: then Gaius called to show them their chamber; but said Mercy, I will have them to bed. So she had them to bed, and they slept well; but the rest sat up all night; for Gaius and they were such suitable company, that they could not tell how to part. Then after much talk of their Lord, themselves, and their journey, old Mr. Honest, he that put forth the riddle to Gaius, began to nod. Then said Great-heart, What, Sir, you begin to be drowsy; come, rub up; now here is a riddle for you. Then said Mr. Honest, Let us hear it. Then said Mr. Great-heart,

He that will kill, must first be overcome,
Who live abroad would, first must die at home.

Ha! said Mr. Honest, it is a hard one, hard to expound, and harder to practise. But come, landlord, said he, I will, if you please, leave my part to you; do you expound it, and I will hear what you say. No, said Gaius, it was put to you, and it is expected that you should answer it. Then said the old gentleman,

He first by grace must conquer’d be,
That sin would mortify;
And who, that lives, would convince me,
Unto himself must die.880

It is right, said Gaius; good doctrine and experience teaches this. For, first, until grace displays itself, and overcomes the soul with its glory, it is altogether without heart to oppose sin; besides if sin is Satan’s cords, by which