THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH.
NOW at the end of this vale was one more, known as the Vale of the
Shade of Death, and Christian must needs go through it, for this cause,
that the way to the Celestial City lay through the midst of it.
I saw then in my dream, so far as the bounds of the vale, there was on
the right hand a most deep ditch; that ditch is it to which the blind
have led the blind in each age, and have both there lost their lives.
Once more, lo, on the left hand there was a fell quag, in the which,
strange to say, if a good man falls he finds no ground for his foot to
stand on.
The path was here quite strait, and hence good Christian was the more
put to it; for when he sought in the dark to shun the ditch on the one
hand, he was prone to tip on one side souse in the mire on the next.
Nigh the midst of the vale I saw the mouth of hell to be, and it stood,
too, hard by the side of the way. And at times the flame and smoke
would come out so thick and with such force, that he had to put up his
sword and seize more fit arms, known as _All-prayer_; so I heard him
cry, "O Lord, I pray thee save my soul!"
Thus he went on a great while; and as he came to a place where he
thought he heard a band of fiends come forth to meet him, he stopt, and
did muse what he had best to do. He brought to mind how he had of late
held his foes at bay, and that the risk to go back might be much more
than to go on. So he made up his mind to go on: yet the fiends did
seem to come near and more near. But when they were come just at him
he did cry with a loud voice, "I will walk in the strength of the Lord
God": so they gave back, and came on no more.
When Christian had trod on in this lorn state some length of time, he
thought he heard the voice of a man, as if in front of him, say thus:
"Though I walk through the vale of the shade of death I will fear no
ill: for Thou art with me."
Then was he glad for that he learnt from thence that some who fear God
were in this vale as well as he; that God was with them, though in that
dark and dire state. So he went on. And by and by the day broke. Then
said Christian, "He doth turn the shade of death to morn."
Now as morn had come, he gave a look back to see by the light of the
day what risks he had gone through in the dark. So he had a more clear
view of the ditch that was on the one hand, and the quag that was on
the next; in like way he saw how strait the way was which lay twixt
them both. And just at this time the sun rose; and this was one more
boon to Christian: for, from the place where he now stood as far as to
the end of the vale, the way was all through set so full of snares,
traps, gins, and nets, here; and so full of pits, falls, deep holes,
and slopes, down there; that had it now been dark, as it was when he
came the first part of the way, had he had five times ten score souls,
they had for this cause been cast off. But, as I said just now, the sun
did rise.
In this light hence he came to the end of the vale.