did the shameless old men that solicited her, saying, " It is better for me to fell into your hands without doing it than to sin in the sight of the Lord." [1]
iii. The third favour is, for the carnal marriage which I renounce to admit me to a spiritual; espousing Himself spiritually with my soul, with the espousal of " justice and judgment," " mercy" and " frith," [2] and communicating to me such sovereign delights of the spirit that I shall forget those of the flesh, proving in this His word which He gave when He said that whosoever should leave a wife for His love, renouncing that choice that he had to be married, " shall receive a hundredfold" in this life, that is, a delight so great that should "a hundredfold" exceed the delight he would have had in marriage; [3] for so excellent is the sweetness of chastity that it is impossible to know it but by proving it
Colloquy. — O Spouse of chaste souls, grant me such virtue that thereby mine may be Thy spouse! O my soul, seeing thou art such a lover of delights, renounce liberally the vile delights of the flesh, that thou mayest enjoy the most sweet delights of the spirit! Amen.
iv. The fourth favour is, for those carnal children which I might have had to give me abundance of spiritual children incomparably better, filling me with good works, with rich merits and with many souls gained to Christ by my example and word, of which I may be the spiritual father and mother, fulfilling that which He promised by His prophet when He said, " Let not the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree. For thus saith the Lord to the eunuchs," " I will give to them in my house and within my walls a place and a name
