E-Book, Englisch, 240 Seiten
Bunyan / Lovik The Pilgrim's Progress
1. Auflage 2009
ISBN: 978-1-4335-1880-5
Verlag: Crossway
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection
From This World to That Which Is to Come
E-Book, Englisch, 240 Seiten
ISBN: 978-1-4335-1880-5
Verlag: Crossway
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection
John Bunyan (1628-1688) was a Reformed Baptist preacher in the Church of England. He is most famous for his celebrated Pilgrim's Progress, which he penned in prison. Bunyan was author of nearly sixty other books and tracts, including The Holy War and Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners.
Weitere Infos & Material
s I walked through the wilderness of this world, I came to a certain place where there was a cave;1 and I lay down in that place to sleep. As I slept, I dreamed a dream, and in this dream I saw a man clothed in rags,2 standing in a place with his face turned away from his own house. He had a book in his hand and a heavy burden upon his back.a
I looked and saw him open the book and begin to read; and as he read, he wept and trembled. Not being able to contain himself, he cried out in a loud voice, “What shall I do?”b3
In this condition he went home and tried to keep to himself for as long as he could, so that his wife and children would not see him in distress. But after a short time his anguish had increased so much that he could not remain silent. So he began to share with his wife and children what was on his troubled mind; and this is what he told them:
“Dear wife and children, I am greatly troubled by this burden that torments me and grows and weighs so heavily upon me. Moreover, I have received information that the city in which we live will be burned with fire from Heaven.4 When this happens, all of us will be destroyed, unless (by a way I do not as yet see) some way of escape can be found, so that we may be delivered.”
Hearing this, his family was greatly amazed, not because they believed what he said to them was true, but because they thought that he was losing his mind. So as the evening approached, hoping that sleep might settle his mind, they quickly put him to bed.
But the night was as troublesome to him as the day. Instead of sleeping, he spent the night in sighs and tears. So when morning came, his family came to find out how he was doing. “Worse and worse,” he told them. He started speaking to them again about his fears and concerns, but they became cold toward him. They tried to change his outlook by treating him rudely. Sometimes they would deride, sometimes they would chide, and other times they would just ignore him.5
So he began retiring to his private room to pray for them and to pity them, and also to try to find consolation for his own misery. He would often walk alone in the fields, sometimes reading and sometimes praying; and for a long time this is how he spent his days.6
Then one day I saw the man walking in the fields (which he often did), reading in his book, and greatly distressed in his mind. As he read, he burst out, as he had done before, crying, “What shall I do to be saved?”c7 I noticed that he looked this way and then that way, as if he would run; yet he stood still, because he could not decide which way to go. Just then I looked and saw someone named Evangelist coming toward him.8 Evangelist came up to the man and asked, “Why are you crying out?”
He answered, “Sir, I understand from reading the book in my hand that I am condemned to die and after that to come to judgment.d I am not willing to do the first,e nor able to do the second.”f
Evangelist points Christian to the sheep gate.
Then Evangelist asked, “Why are you not willing to die, since this life is attended with so many evils?”
The man answered, “Because I am afraid that this burden that is on my back will sink me lower than the grave, and I shall fall into Hell.g
“And, sir,” continued the man, “if I am not ready to die, then I am not prepared to go to judgment and from there to execution. Thinking about these things distresses me greatly.”
Then Evangelist said, “If this is your condition, why are you standing still?”
The man responded, “Because I do not know where to go.”
Then Evangelist gave him a parchment and unrolled it so that the man could read, “Flee from the wrath to come.”h9 When he had read it, the man looked at Evangelist very carefully and said, “Which way should I run?”10
Then Evangelist, pointing with his finger to a very wide field asked, “Do you see the distant narrow gate?”i11
“No,” the man replied.
Then Evangelist asked, “Do you see the distant shining light?”j
“I think I do,” the man answered.
Then Evangelist said, “Keep that light in your eye, and go up directly toward it, and soon you will see the narrow gate. And when you finally come to the gate, knock and you will be told what to do.”12
So I saw in my dream that the man began to run. He had not run very far from his home when his wife and children, realizing what was happening, cried after him to return.k But the man put his fingers in his ears and ran on crying, “Life! Life! Eternal life!” So without looking back, he fled toward the middle of the valley.
The neighbors also came out to see what was going on, and when they saw who it was that was running, some mocked him, others yelled out threats, and some cried after the man to return. Among those were two who decided to bring him back by force. The name of the one was Obstinate, and the name of the other was Pliable.13
Now by this time the man was a good distance away. But Obstinate and Pliable were determined to pursue him, which they did. Soon they caught up with him, and he asked them, “Why have you run after me?” The neighbors answered, “To persuade you to go back with us.”
“But that is not possible,” the man replied. “You live in the City of Destruction, the place where I was born; and I believe that if you stay in that city you will die sooner or later, and then you will sink lower than the grave, into a place that burns with fire and brimstone. Please consider, good neighbors, coming along with me.”
“What!” said Obstinate. “And leave our friends and comforts behind us?”
“Yes,” said the fleeing man Christian (for that was his name), “because all that you leave behind is not worthy to be compared with even a little of what I am seeking to enjoy.l And if you will come along with me and not give up, we will both be blessed with treasure to spare, beyond anything we can imagine.m Come along with me and see if what I am telling you is not true.”
“What are you looking for?” Obstinate replied. “What is so valuable that you would turn your back on all the world to find it?”
“I am looking,” Christian explained, “for an ‘inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in Heaven.’n It is kept safe there to be given at the appointed time to those who diligently seek it.o You can read about it in my book.”
“Nonsense!” said Obstinate. “Away with your book. Will you come back with us or not?”
“No!” said Christian. “I have laid my hand to the plow and cannot look back. I have started this journey, and I must finish it.”p
“Come on, Pliable,” Obstinate urged his companion. “Let’s turn around and go home without him. There is a group of these mixed-up lunatics who get a crazy idea in their head and are wiser in their own eyes than seven men who can render a reason.”q
Then Pliable said, “Don’t be so harsh. If what the good Christian says is true, the things he is looking for are better than anything we have. I feel like I should go along with my neighbor.”
“What! More fools still?” Obstinate replied. “Do what I say, and go back. Who knows where this lunatic will lead you? Go back; go back and be wise.”
“Don’t listen to him,” Christian urged. “Come with me, Pliable. There are things to be gained such as I was telling you about, and many more glories besides. If you don’t believe me, read about it in this book; and as far as the trustworthiness of this book goes, it is all confirmed by the blood of Him who made it.”r “Well, neighbor Obstinate,” said Pliable, “I have come to a decision. I have decided to go along with Christian and to cast in my lot with him.” Pliable thought for a second and then turned to Christian and asked, “But do you know the way to the desired place?”
“I was given directions by a man whose name is Evangelist,” Christian said. “He told me to go as quickly as I could to the little gate that is just up ahead, and once there we will receive instructions about the way before us.”
“Come then, good neighbor,” Pliable replied. “Let’s be going.” Then they went on together.
“And I will go back to my home,” said Obstinate. “I will not be a companion of such misled fanatical fellows.”
Now I saw in my dream, after Obstinate returned to the City of Destruction, that Christian and Pliable began to talk as they walked together through the middle of the valley. Thus they began to converse.
“I am glad,” Christian said, “that you were persuaded to come along with me. I am surprised that Obstinate returned so quickly to the City of Destruction. I think if he had felt the power and terror of the unseen, as I have, he would have been persuaded to come along with us.”
“Come, neighbor Christian, since it is just the two of us, tell me more about the wonderful things that await us when we arrive at the place to which...
