Page:Metamorphoses (Ovid, 1567).djvu/11

The fowrth day he did make the lyghts of heaven to shyne from hye,
And stablished a law in them to rule their courses by.
The fifth day he did make the whales and fishes of the deepe,
With all the birds and fethered fowles that in the aire doo keepe,
The sixth day God made every beast both wyld and tame, and woormes
That creept on ground according to their severall kynds and foormes.
And in the image of himself he formed man of clay
To bee the Lord of all his woorkes the very selfsame day.
This is the sum of Moyses woords. And Ovid (whether it were
By following of the text aright, or that his mynd did beare
Him witnesse that there are no Gods but one) dooth playne uphold
That God (although he knew him not) was he that did unfold
The former Chaos, putting it in forme and facion new,
As may appeere by theis his woordes which underneath ensew:
"This stryfe did God and nature breake and set in order dew.
The earth from heaven, the sea from earth he parted orderly,
And from the thicke and foggie aire he tooke the lyghtsome skye."
In theis few lynes he comprehends the whole effect of that
Which God did woork the first three dayes about this noble plat.
And then by distributions he entreateth by and by
More largely of the selfsame things, and paynts them out to eye
With all their bounds and furniture: and whereas wee doo fynd
The terme of nature joynd with God: (according to the mynd
Of lerned men) by joyning so, is ment none other thing,
But God the Lord of nature who did all in order bring.
The distributions beeing doone right lernedly, anon
To shew the other three dayes workes he thus proceedeth on:
"The heavenly soyle to Goddes and starres and planets first he gave
The waters next both fresh and salt he let the fishes have.
The suttle ayre to flickering fowles and birds he hath assignd,
The earth to beasts both wyld and tame of sundry sorts and kynd."
Thus partly in the outward phrase, but more in verie deede,
He seemes according to the sense of scripture to proceede.
And when he commes to speake of man, he dooth not vainly say
(As sum have written) that he was before all tyme for ay,
Ne mentioneth mo Gods than one in making him. But thus
He both in sentence and in sense his meening dooth discusse.
"Howbeeit yit of all this whyle the creature wanting was
Farre more divine, of nobler mynd, which should the resdew passe
In depth of knowledge, reason, wit and hygh capacitee,
And which of all the resdew should the Lord and ruler bee.
Then eyther he that made the world and things in order set,
Of heavenly seede engendred man: or else the earth as yet
Yoong, lusty, fresh, and in her flowre, and parted from the skye
But late before, the seedes thereof as yit hild inwardly.
The which Prometheus tempring streyght with water of the spring,
Did make in likenesse to the Goddes that governe every thing."
What other thing meenes Ovid heere by terme of heavenly seede,
Than mans immortall sowle, which is divine, and commes in deede