it Spiritus ex Spiritu. The third Principle is Spiritus ex Spiritibus, a Spirit which proceeds both from the first Spirit, and from his Voice. The Fourth Principle is Aqua de Spiritu, a Certain Water which proceeded from the Third Spirit, and out of that Water went Aire and Fire. But God forbid that I should speak any more of them publickly, it is enough that wee Know the Original of the Creature, and to whom wee ought to ascribe it. The Cabalist when hee would tell us what God did with the Three Mothers, useth no other phrase than this, Ponderavit Aleph cum omnibus, & omnia cum Aleph, & sic de Singulis, He weighed (saith he) Aleph with All, and All with Aleph, and so he did with the other Mothers. This is very plain, if you consider the various mixtures of the Elements, and their Secret Proportions. And so much for the Physicall part of the Cabala, I will now shew you the Metaphysicall. It is strange to Consider what Unitie of Spirit, and Doctrine, there is amongst all the Children of Wisdom. This proves infallibly that there is an Universall Schoole-master, who is Present with all Flesh, and whose Principles are ever Uniforme, namely the Spirit of God. The Cabalists agree with all the world of Magicians, That Man in spirituall Mysteries is both Agent and Patient. This is plain:

For Jacobs Ladder is the greatest Mysterie in the Cabala. Here wee find two Extreams: Jacob is one, at the Foot of the Ladder, and God is the other, who stands above it, immittens (saith the Jew) Formas, & Influxus in Jacob, sive Subjectum Hominem, shedding some secret Influx of Spirit upon Jacob, who in this place Typifies Man in general. The Rounds, or steps in the Ladder signifie the middle Natures, by which Jacob is united to God, Inferiors united to Superiors. As for the Angels of whom it is sayd, that they ascended & Descended by the Ladder, their Motion proves they were not of the superior Hierarchie, but some other secret Essences, for they Ascended first, and Descended afterwards: but if they had been from above, they had Descended first, which is Contrarie to the Text. And here Reader, I would have thee studie. Now to return to Jacob, it is written of him, that he was asleep, but this is a Mysticall Speech, for it signifies Death, namely that Death which the Cabalist calls Mors Osculi, or the Death of the Kiss, of which I must not speake one Syllable. To bee short, they agree with us in Arcano Theologiae: That no word is efficacious in Magic, unlesse it be first quickened by the Word of God. This appears out of their Semhamaphores; for they hold not the names of Angls effectuall, unlesse

some name of God, as יה or אל be united to them then (say they) in the power and vertue of those names they may worke. An Example hereof wee have in all Extracted names, as Vehu-Iah, Elem-Iah, Jeli-El, Sita-El. Now this Practice in the Letter was a most subtil Adumbration of the Conjunction of the Substantiall Word or Spirit with the Water; See that you understand me rightly, for I meane with the Elements and so much for the Truth. To Conclude, I would have the Reader observe, that the false Grammaticall Cabala consists onely in Rotations of the Alphabet, and a Metathesis of Letters in the Text, by which means the Scripture hath suffered many Racks, and Excoriations. As for the true Cabala, it useth the Letter onely for Artifice, whereby to obscure, and hide her Physicall Secrets, as the Egyptians heretofore did use their Hieroglyphics. In this Sense the Primitive Professors of this Art, had a literal Cabala. as it appeares by that wonderfull, and most ancient Inscription in the Rock in Mount Horeb. It conteines a Prophecie of the Virgin Mother, and her Son Christ Jesus. ingraven in Hieroglyphic fram'd by Combination of the Hebrew letters, but by whom God onely knows, it may be by Moses or Elijah. This is most certain, it is to be seen there this day. and wee have for

it the Testimonies of Thomas Obecinus, a most learned Franciscan, and Petrus a Valle, a Gentleman, who travailed both of them into those parts. Now that the learning of the Jewes, I mean their Cabala, was Chimicall, and ended in true Physicall performances, cannot be better proved than by the Booke of Abraham the Jew, wherein hee layd down the Secrets of this Art in Indifferent plaine Termes and Figures, and that for the Benefit of his unhappy Country-men, when by the wrath of God they were scattered over all the World. This Book was accidentally found by Nicholas Flammel a French-man, and with the help of it hee attained at last to that miraculous Medicine, which Men call the Philosophers stone. But let us hear the Monsieur himself describe it.

There fell into my hands (saith he) for the Summ of two Florens, a gilded Book, very old, and large; It was not of Paper, nor Parchment, as other books bee, but it was made of delicate rindes (as it seemed to mee) of Tender young Trees: The Cover of it was of Brasse, well bound, all ingraven with Letters, or strange figures, and for my part, I think they might well bee Greek Characters, or some such ancient language. Sure I am, I could not read them, and I know well they were not Notes, nor

Letters of the Latine, nor of the Gaule, for of them I understood a little. As for that which was within it, the Bark leaves were ingraven, and with admirable diligence written, with a point of Jron in faire and neat Latin letters coloured. It contained thrice Seven leaves for so were the leaves counted at the top and alwayes every Seventh leafe was without any writing, but instead thereof upon the first seventh leaf there was painted a Virgin, and Serpents swallowing her up; In the Second Seventh a Crosse where a Serpent was Crucified; and in the last Seventh there were painted Deserts, or Wildernesses, in the middest whereof ran many faire Fountains from whence there issued forth a Number of Serpents, which ran up and down here and there. Upon the first of the Leaves was written in great Capitall letters of gold ABRAHAM THE JEW, PRINCE PRIEST LEVIT, ASTROLOGER, AND PHILOSOPHER, TO THE NATION OF THE JEWES, BY THE WRATH OF GOD DISPERSED AMONG THE GAULES SENDETH HEALTH.

After this it was filled with great Execrations, and Curses (with this word Maranatha, which was often repeated there) against

every person that should cast his eyes upon it, if hee were not Sacrificer or Scribe. Hee that sold me this Booke, knew not what it was worth, no more than I, when I bought it. I believe it had been stolne or taken by violence from the miserable Jewes, or found hid in some part of the Ancient place of their Habitation. Within the Booke, in the Second leafe hee comforted his Nation, counselling them to fly Vices, and above all Idolatrie, attending with sweet patience the Comming of the Messiah, who should vanquish all the Kings of the Earth, and should reigne with his people in glorie aeternally. Without doubt this had been some wise, and understanding Man. In the third leafe, and in all the other writings that followed to help his Captive Nation to pay their Tributes to the Roman Emperours, and to doe other things, which I will not speak of, hee taught them in Common words the Transmutation of Mettals; hee painted the Vessels by the sides and hee informed them of the Colours, and of all the rest, except the first Agent of the which he spake not a word but onely (as he said) in the fourth and fifth leaves he had iutirely painted it, and figured it with very great Cunning and Workmanship: for though it was well, and Intelligibly

figured and painted yet no man could ever have been able to understand it, without being well skill'd in their Cabala, which goeth by Tradition and without having well studied their Bookes. The Fourth and fifth leafe therefore was without any writing all full of faire Figures inlightned or as it were inlightned, for the work was very Exquisit. First hee painted a young man, with wings at his Ancles having in his hand a Caducean Rod writhen about with two Serpents, wherewith hee strooke upon a Helmet which covered his head; hee seemed to my small judgement to be Mercurie the Pagan Gad. Against him there came running, and flying with open wings, a great old man, who upon his head had an Houre-glasse fastned, and in his hands a Hooke or Sithe like Death, with the which in terrible and furicus Maner, he would have cut off the feet of Mercurie. On the other side of the fourth Leafe, hee painted a faire Flower on the top of a very high Mountaine, which was sore shaken with the North wind; it had the Root blew the Flowers white and red, the leaves shining like fine Gold; And round about it the Dragons and Grisfons of the North made their nests. On the Fifth leafe shere was a faire Rose tree flowred in the middest

of a Sweet Garden, climbing up against a hollow Oake, at the foot whereof boyled a fountain of most white water, which ran headlong down into the Depths, notwithstanding it passed first among the hands of infinite people, who digged in the Earth, seeking for it; but because they were blind, none of them knew it, except here and there One, which considered the weight. On the last side of the fife leafe, was painted a King, with a great Faucheon, who caused to bee kill'd in his presence by some Souldiours a great Multitude of little Infants, whose Mothers wept at the Feet of the mercilesse Souldiours. The Bloud of these Infants was afterwards gathered up by other Souldiours, and put in a great vessell, whereto the Sun and the Moone came to bathe themselves. And thus you see that which was in the first five leaves; I will not represent unto you that which was writien in good and Intelligible Latin in all the other written leaves, for God would punish mee because I should commit a greater wickednesse than he, who (as it is sayd) wished that all the men of thn world had but one head, that hee might cut it off at one Blow. Thus farre Nicholas Flammel.

I could now passe from Moses to Christ, from the Old Testament to the New: not that I would interpret there, but request the Sense or the Illuminated. I desire to know what my Saviour means by the Key of Knowledge, which [Marginal note: Luc. cap. 11. ver. 52] the Lawyers (as he tells mee and them too) had taken away. Questionlesse it cannot signifie the Law it self, for that was not taken away being read in the Synagogue every Sabaoth. But to let go this: I am certain, and I could prove it all along from his Birth to his Passion, that the Doctrine of Christ Jesus is not onely agreeable to the Laws of Nature, but is verified and established thereby. When I speak of the Laws of Nature, I mind not her Excessive irregular Appetites and Inclinations, to which shee hath bin subject since her Corruption, for even Galen looked on those obliquities as Diseases, but studied Nature her self, as their Cure. We know by experience that too much of any thing weakens, and destroyes our Nature, but if wee live Temperately, and according to Law, wee are well, because our Course of life accords with Nature. Hence Diet is a prime Rule in Physic, far better indeed than the Pharmacopaea, for those sluttish Recepts doe but oppresse the stomach, being no fit fuell for a Coelestiall fire. Believe it then, these excessive bestiall Appetites proceeded from our Fall, for Nature of her