The Anatomy of Melancholy

Name: The Anatomy of Melancholy
Author: Robert Burton

1651 English with a close modern English rendering

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The Anatomy of MelancholyMember 3 Against Poverty and Want and Other Such Adversities

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Modern English Page · Branch 569 of 1495

Member 3 Against Poverty and Want and Other Such Adversities

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1651 English

333–333–334

Hanna wept sore, and troubled in mind, could not eat; but, why weepest thou, said Elkanah her husband, and why eatest thou not? why is thine heart troubled? am not I better to thee then ten sons? and she was quiet. Thou art here vexed in this world; but say to thy self, Why art thou troubled, O my soule? Is not God better to thee then all temporalities, and momentany pleasures of the world? be then pacified.

And though thou beest now peradventure in extreme want, it may be ’tis for thy further good, to try thy patience, as it did Jobs, and exercise thee in this life: trust in God, and rely upon him, and thou shalt be crowned in the end. What’s this life to eternity? The world hath forsaken thee, thy friends and fortunes all are gone: yet know this, that the very hairs of thine head are numbred, that God is a spectator of all thy miseries, he sees thy wrongs, woes, and wants, ’Tis his good will and pleasure it should be so, and he knows better what is for thy good then thou thy self.

His providence is over all, at all times he hath set a guard of angels over us, and keeps us as the apple of his eye, Ps. 17.8. Some he doth exalt, prefer, blesse with worldly riches, honours, offices and preferments, as so many glistering stars he makes to shine above the rest: some he doth miraculously protect from theeves, incursions, sword, fire, and all violent mischances,

and as the Poet fains of that Lycian Pandarus, Lycaons son, when he shot at Menelaus the Græcian with a strong arm, and deadly arrow, Pallas, as a good mother keeps flies from her childs face asleep, turned by the shaft, and made it hit on the buckle of his girdle; so some he solicitously defends, others he exposeth to danger, poverty, sickness, want, misery, he chastiseth and corrects, as to him seems best, in his deep, unsearchable and secret judgement, and all for our good.

The tyrant took the city (saith Chrysostome) God did not hinder it; led them away captives, so God would have it; he bound them, God yielded to it: flung them into the furnace, God permitted it: heat the Oven hotter, it was granted: and when the Tyrant had done his worst, God shewed his power, and the Childrens patience, he freed them: so can he thee, and can help in an instant, when it seems to him good.

6854.BurtonPrinted page 333, asterisk: “1 Sam. 1.8.” 1 Samuel 1:8.

6855.BurtonPrinted page 333, c: “James 1.2. My brethren, count it an exceeding joy, when you fall into divers temptations.” Here temptations means trials or tests, as well as temptations in the narrower modern sense.

6857.BurtonPrinted page 333, d: “Afflictio dat intellectum; quos Deus diligit castigat. Deus optimum quemque aut mala valetudine aut luctu afficit. Seneca.” “Affliction gives understanding; God chastens those he loves. God afflicts the best men with ill health or grief.” Seneca.

6858.BurtonPrinted page 333, e: “Quam sordet mihi terra quum cœlum intueor!” “How mean the earth seems to me when I look at heaven!” No author is specified here.

6859.BurtonPrinted page 333, asterisk: “Senec. de providentia cap. 2. Diis ita visum, dii melius norunt quid sit in commodum meum.” Seneca, On Providence, chapter 2: “So it has seemed good to the gods; the gods know better what is to my advantage.”

6862.BurtonPrinted page 333, dagger: “Hom. Iliad. 4.” Homer, Iliad 4.

6864.BurtonPrinted page 333, dagger: “Hom. 9. voluit urbem tyrannus evertere, & Deus non prohibuit; voluit captivos ducere, non impedivit; voluit ligare, concessit, &c.” Homily 9: “The tyrant wished to overthrow the city, and God did not prevent him; he wished to lead them captive, and God did not stop him; he wished to bind them, and God consented, and so on.” Chrysostom is named in the body; the sermon collection is not specified.

6865.BurtonPrinted page 334, f: “Psal. 113. De terra inopem, de stercore erigit pauperem.” Psalm 113: “[He raises] the needy from the earth, lifts the poor from the dunghill.” Compare verse 7; the opening phrase is abbreviated.

The Anatomy of Melancholy: Member 3 Against Poverty and Want and Other Such Adversities

p. 569

Hannah wept bitterly and, troubled in mind, could not eat. “But why are you weeping?” said Elkanah, her husband. “Why do you not eat? Why is your heart troubled? Am I not better to you than ten sons?” And she was quiet. You are troubled here in this world; but say to yourself, “Why are you troubled, my soul?” Is God not better to you than all worldly possessions and the world’s fleeting pleasures? Then be at peace.

Though you may now be in extreme want, perhaps it is for your further good: to test your patience, as Job’s was tested, and train you in this life. Trust in God and rely on him, and you will be crowned in the end. What is this life beside eternity? The world has forsaken you; your friends and fortunes are all gone. Yet know this: the very hairs of your head are numbered. God witnesses all your miseries; he sees your injuries, sorrows and needs. It is his good will and pleasure that things should be so, and he knows better than you do yourself what is good for you.

His providence watches over everything at all times. He has set a guard of angels over us and keeps us as the apple of his eye, Psalm 17:8. Some he raises up, advances and blesses with worldly riches, honours, offices and promotions, making them shine above the rest like glittering stars. Some he miraculously protects from thieves, raids, sword, fire and every violent calamity.

As the poet tells of the Lycian Pandarus, Lycaon’s son: when he shot a deadly arrow with a strong arm at Menelaus the Greek, Pallas turned the shaft aside—as a good mother keeps flies from her sleeping child’s face—and made it strike his belt’s buckle. In this way God carefully defends some; others he exposes to danger, poverty, sickness, want and misery. He chastens and corrects them as seems best to his profound, unfathomable and hidden judgement, all for our good.

“The tyrant took the city,” says Chrysostom; “God did not prevent it. He led them away captive: God allowed it. He bound them: God consented. He threw them into the furnace: God permitted it. He heated the oven hotter: it was granted. And when the tyrant had done his worst, God revealed his power and the young men’s patience, and set them free.” He can do the same for you, and can help in an instant whenever he sees fit.

6856.1 Samuel 1:8 records Elkanah’s questions. Hannah’s renewed eating and changed expression are reported later, in 1:18, after her prayer and Eli’s response; Burton compresses the sequence. “Why are you troubled, my soul?” recalls Psalms 42–43. Temporalities are worldly possessions or advantages.

6860.The margin combines scriptural-sounding maxims with Seneca. Compare Hebrews 12:6 and Seneca, On Providence 4.8, which asks why God afflicts the best with illness, grief or other troubles. The separate citation to On Providence 2 supports the general discipline-of-adversity theme, but its exact quoted wording has not been located. The numbered hairs recall Matthew 10:30 and Luke 12:7.

6861.Psalm 17:8 supplies the apple-of-the-eye image; the guard of angels recalls Psalm 91:11. Burton combines these promises rather than quoting one continuous biblical passage. Prefer and preferments concern advancement, office and patronage.

6863.Homer, Iliad 4.127–140: Athena diverts Pandarus’s arrow toward the meeting of Menelaus’s belt-clasps and armour. The arrow still penetrates and wounds him; the divine intervention prevents a fatal wound. Burton compresses the episode. Pallas is Athena; Mars in the earlier comparison is Ares.

6866.The tyrant is Nebuchadnezzar; the “children” are the three Hebrew youths in Daniel 3. Chrysostom’s On the Statues 6.11 repeats the sequence: city destroyed, captives taken, bonds, furnace, fiercer heat, then divine rescue. This comparison is in English translation. Burton’s “Hom. 9” and his Latin wording still require an identified edition. The Psalm 113 margin begins the next printed page and belongs to this sentence.

About This Reading Edition

Robert Burton’s Anatomy ranges across medicine, philosophy, poetry, religion, and everyday life in its inquiry into melancholy. This complete parallel edition pairs the 1651 English text with a close modern English rendering, preserving the three Partitions, Democritus Junior’s address to the reader, verse, and the historical index.

Historical Text and Translation

The historical text follows the sixth edition, printed at Oxford for Henry Cripps in 1651, using the McGill University Library copy. The supplied edition documents missing printed pages 98–99 supplied from another 1651 copy at the Bavarian State Library. Historical folio labels and their irregularities remain visible; web reader numbers identify reflowed passages and do not claim to reproduce PDF pagination.

About Diotimos Editions

Diotimos Editions prepared the close modern English rendering and editorial matter. All 8,755 original and modern passage pairs remain aligned, with verse breaks, italics, continuations, and linked annotations preserved. Burton’s 6,781 historical notes retain their attribution; 6,895 editorial notes remain distinct. The introduction, Note on the Text, contextual lexicon, indexes, source documentation, and bibliography are included. The engraved frontispiece remains available in the original downloads.

Rights

Burton’s historical text is in the public domain. The modern English rendering, introduction, notes, and editorial matter are © 2026 Diotimos Editions and appear with the site owner’s permission. The complete supplied PDF, EPUB, Word, and Markdown files remain available unchanged. The PDF and Word edition preserve the original parallel page layout.