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| IN 1 loothsome race, pursued by slipperie life, | |
| Whose sugred guile with glittering ioy present, | |
| The carefull ghoast, oppressed sore with strife, | |
| Yeeldes ghastly grones from painefull passions sent. | |
| The sinfull flesh, that beares him here in viewe, | 5 |
| Insteed of life dooth dreadful death pursue. | |
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| The way he seeth by touch of merit’s grace, | |
| Wherein to runne, alas! he gladly would; | |
| But filthy flesh, his wretched dwelling-place, | |
| Dooth so rebell at that which doo he should, | 10 |
| That sillie soule, who feeles his heauie need, | |
| Can onely will, but nought performe in deed. | |
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| The will through grace doth oft desire the good, | |
| But all in vaine; for that the fleshly foe | |
| Yeeldes forth such fruites as sinnes hath bred in bud, | 15 |
| And blindly suckes the sap of deadly woe; | |
| Esteeming shewes of fickle fancies knowne, | |
| And scorning fruite by grace eternall sowne. | |
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| Though eye doth see that death doth swallow all, | |
| Both life and lust, and euerie sound delight; | 20 |
| Yet wretched flesh through sinne is made so thrall, | |
| That nought it markes apparent thinges in sight, | |
| That might him traine to care of better grace— | |
| Both doth his bale with greedy lust imbrace. | |
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| Then since desert, and all thinges weare away, | 25 |
| That nought remaine but fruite of grace or sinne; | |
| God build in vs such conscience as can say, | |
| This fruite’s not mine, but sinne that dwell me in. | |
| For why? to sinne I dayly doo in sight, | |
| That vnto Christ I may reuiue my spright. | 30 |
