Page:Historical Works of Venerable Bede vol. 2.djvu/203

 Rh righteousness. Let no seeds of wickedness or malice be hidden in any of our hearts: for man sees the face, but God examines into the heart, nor can any thing be concealed from the eyes of His Omnipotence. Let us make ready ourselves in all goodness, that Vedast, our illustrious bishop and pious preacher, may rejoice to lead us on the last day before the tribunal of our Great Judge, so that, by the number of his children, his glory may be amplified, and we may earn the privilege of hearing that gracious sentence pronounced, "Come, ye blessed of my Father, enjoy the kingdom which hath been prepared for you from the beginning of the world!" He does not cease to help us daily in our earthly conflict by his pious prayers uttered from his heavenly country, desiring that we, his dearest children, begotten in Christ by his fatherly piety, may arrive at the glory of everlasting happiness. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every one of you in order, according to the measure of his strength, bravely resist the promptings of the Devil, that he may become worthy the crown of victory which shall never fade, in company with our pious father. "For the affections of this world" saith the apostle, "are not worthy to be compared to the future glory, which shall be revealed in us." The Divine Love, therefore, hath willed that the time of our labour should be brief and the reward of it lasting, and that for tribulation which shall last but for a time, we shall rejoice in the recompense of glory everlasting. Now, we have heard, when the life of God's beloved priest was read, what devotion he displayed in every excellence, how he chastened his body by rigorous abstinence, and strove to perform offices of charity to all men. Let us go on with all alacrity of mind, and with all our strength of body, following the traces of his holy life, that we may merit to be made partakers of the happiness in which he reigns with Christ. Let no carnal concupiscence or secular ambition impede our course: let us, by deeds of