And y a-waket þer-wiþ / witles nerhande
As a frek þat feye were / forþ can y walke
In manere of a mendinaunt mony ȝeres aftur
And mony tymes of þis meteles / muche þouht y hadde
Furst {o}hou fortune me faylede / at my most neode
And hou Elde manasede me / so myhte happe
Þat if y leuede longe / leue me by-hynde .
And vanysche al myn vertues / and myne faire lokkes
And how þat Freres folowden / folk þat was riche
And people þat was poure / at litul pryse setten .
Ne corps of poure Commune / in here kirke-ȝerd most ligge .
But he quyke by-queþe hem auht / or wolde helpe quite here dettes
And how couetyse þus ouur-cam / alle kynne sectes
As wel lered as lewed / and lord as þe bonde
¶ And how þat lewede men beon lad / but oure lord hem helpe
Þorgh vnconnynge curatours / to incurable peynes
¶ And hou Imaginatif / in dremeles me tolde
Of kynde and of his connynge / & what connynge he ȝaf to bestes
¶ Hou louynge he is to eche a lyf / a londe and a watere
For al he wisseþ and ȝiueþ wit / þat walkeþ or crepeþ
And y merueilede in herte / hou ymaginatif seyde
Þat Iustus by-fore ihesu / in die iudicij .
Non saluabitur / but vix helpe /
And wen he had seid so / how sodeynliche he vanyschede
And so y musede vpon þis matere / þat me luste slepe .
¶ Þenne came concience / and clergie aftur .
And beden me ryse and rome / for wiþ resoun scholde y dyne
¶ And y aros and romede forth / wiþ reson we mette
We reuerencede reson / and romede forth softely
And metten wiþ a maystur / a man like a frere
¶ Concience knew hym wel / and welcomed him faire .
Þei weschen and wypedoun / and wenton to þe dyner
¶ Pacience as a poure þing cam / and preyde mete for charite
Y-like to Peres plouhman / as a palmere were
Crauede and cryde / for cristes loue of heuene /
A meles mete for a poure man / or money if þei hadden .
¶ Concience knew him wel / and welcomed hem alle
Weschen and wypeden / and wenten and seten .
¶ Þe maystur was made sitte furst / as for þe most worþi
Reson stode and styhlede / as for a styward of halle
¶ Pacience and y weren / y-put to beo mettes
And seton by oure-selue / at a syde table /
¶ Clergye cald aftur mete / and þenne cam scripture
And seruede hem thus sone / of sondry metes monye
Of Austyn of Ambrosie / of alle þe foure Euuangelies
Edentes et bibentes que apud illos sunt .
¶ Ac of þes metes thes maystur / myhte nat wel chewe
For-þi he ete mete of more cost / mortrews and potages
Of that þat menne myswonne / thei made hem wel at ese
¶ Ac here sauce was ouur soure / and vnsauerly grounde
In a morter Post mortem / of mony byttur peynes .
But if þey synge for þo soules / and wepe salte teres
Vos qui peccata hominum comeditis nisi pro eis lacrimas & eorum effuderitis
ea que in delicijs comeditis in tormentis euenitisT : & cetera .
Þenne reson radde / rith a-non aftur
Þat concience comaunde scholde / to do come scripture
And brynge bred for pacience / bytynge a partie
And to me þat was his mette þo / and oþer mete boþe
¶ He sette a sour lof and seyde / agite penitenciam
And seth he drow vs drynke / diu perseuerans .
As longe quaþ he as þe lyf / and lycame may dure
¶ This is a semely seruice / seyde pacience
¶ Þenne cam contricioun / þat hadde coked for hem alle
And brouht forþ a pytaunce / was pro hac orabit omnis sanctus in tempore oportuno .
¶ Concience confortede vs / boþe cleregie and scripture
And seyden cor contritum et humiliatum / deus non despicies .
¶ Pacience was wel a-payed / of this propre seruice
And made murye wiþ þis mete / ac y mornede euere
For a doctor at þe hy deys / drank wyn faste
Ve uobis qui potentes estis ad bibendum vinum /
And ete mony sondry metes / mortrews and poddynges
Brawon and blod of þe goos / bakon and colhoppes .
¶ Þenne seyde y to my-self / þat pacience hit herde
At seynt poules by-fore þe people / what penaunce þei suffreden
Alle þat coueyted to come / to heuene kynne ioye
And how þat Paul þe apostle / what penaunce he þolede
For oure lordes loue / and holy lettrure telleþ
/ in fame & frigore /C
¶ Ac me wondreþ in my wit / why þat þei ne preche
As paul þe apostele prechede / to þe people ofte
periculum in falsis fratribusC
Holywrit bit men beo war / and wysly hem kepe
Þat non falce frere / throw flateryng hem by-gyle
¶ Ac me is loth þau y latyn knowe / to lakken eny secte
For al we beoþ breþeren / thau we beo diuerse cloþed .
¶ Ac wust y neuere frek / þat frere is y-called
Of þe fyue mendinauns / and made eny sarmon
Þat toke þis for his teome / and tolde hit with-oute glose .
Thei prechen þat penaunce / is profitable for þe soule
And wat meschief and mal-ese / crist for man þolede .
¶ Ac this doctor and dyuynour / and decresistre of canoun
And al-so a gredy glotoun / with two grete chekes
Hath no pyte on vs poure / he parforneþ vuele
That he precheþ he preoueþ nat / to pacience y tolde
¶ And wuschede wytturly / with a wylful / wyl ful egre
Þat in þe mawe of þat mayster / alle þo metes were
Disches and dobelers / with al þe deyntes aftur
¶ Y schal iangle to this iordan / with his iuste wombe
And appose hym what penaunce is / and purgatorie on erthe
And why he leueþ nat as he lereþ / let beo quaþ pacience
¶ And seyde þow schalt seo þus sone / whan he may no more
He schal haue a penaunce in his panche / and poffe at eche worde
¶ Þenne schul his gottes godolon / and he gonne to galpe
Now he hathe dronke so deope / he wol dyuyne sone
And preouen hit by here apocalips / & by þe passion of seynt aueray
Þat noþur bakon ne brawon / blammanger ne mortrews
Is nothur fichsche ne fleisch / but fode for penaunces
And take witnesse at þe trinite / and take his felow to witnesse
What he found in a forel / of a Freres lyuynge
And but þe furst lef be lesynge / leof me neuere aftur
¶ And þenne is tyme to talke / and to appose this doctour
Of dowel and of dobet / and if dobest do eny penaunce .
¶ Y sat stille as Paciens wolde / and þus sone þis doctour
As rody as a Rose / roddede his chekes
Kowede and carpede / and concience hym herde
And tolde of a Trinite / and toward me he lokede
¶ What is dowel sir doctour quaþ y is dobest eny penaunce
dowel quath þis doctour / and he drank aftur
do þi neyhbore non harm / ne þi-selue noþer
Þan dost þow wel and wysely / y dar hit wel a-vowe
¶ Certes sire þan sayde y / hit semeþ nat here .
In þat ȝe parteþ nat with vs poure / þat ȝe passeþ dowel /
Nothur louyeþ as ȝe lereþ / as oure lord wolde
Et visitauit et fecit redemptionem & cetera .
And ȝee fare þus wiþ ȝoure seke freres / ferly me þenkeþ
But dowel endite ȝow / in die Iudicij .
¶ Þenne concience ful corteysly / a contenaunce he made
And preynte vpon pacience / to prey me beo stille
¶ And seyde him-self sire doctour / by so hit beo ȝoure wil
What is dowel and dobet / ȝe dyuynours knoweþ
¶ I haue seyde seyde þe seg / y can say no betere
Bute do as doctours telleþ / For dowel y hit holde
¶ Þat trauailleþ to teche oþere / For dobet y hit holde
And he þat doþ as he techeþ / y hald hit for þe beste
Qui facit et docuerit magnus vocabitur /
¶ Now þow clergie quaþ concience / carpe what is dowel
¶ Haue me excused quath clergie / by crist bot in scole
Schal no suche motyf beo meoued / for me bute there
For Peres loue þe plouhman / þat inpugnede ones
Al kynne connynges / and alle kynne craftes
Saue loue and leaute / and louhnesse of herte
¶ And no tyxt takeþ / to preoue þis for trewe
Bute dilige deum et proximum / and domine quis habitabit in tabernaculo .
And preoueþ by pure sckil / inparfit alle þinges
Nemo bonus /C
But lel loue and treuþe / þat loþ is to beo founde
¶ Quaþ Peres þe plouhman / pacientes vincunt
By-fore alle perpetual pees y schal / preoue þat y seyde
And a-vowe by-fore god / and for-sake hit neuure
Þat disce . doce . diligere / deum and þin enymy
Hertely þow him helpe / emforþ þy myhte
¶ Cast hote coles an his hed / of alle kynde speche
Fond þow þrow wit and word / his loue for to wynne
And ȝif hym eft and eft / euere at his neode
Conforte hym with þi catel / and with þi kunde speche
And leye on him þus wiþ loue / til he lauh on þe
And but he bowe for þis betynge / blynd mot y worþe .
¶ And when he hadde worded þus / wuste no man aftur
Were Peres plouhman by-cam / so pryueliche he wente
And reson ran aftur / and riht with hym ȝeode
Saue concience and clergie / y couthe no mo aspie .
¶ And pacience propreliche spake / þo peres was þus passed
Þat loueþ lelly quath he / bute lutul þing coueyteþ .
¶ I wolde and y wil hadde / wynnen al Fraunce
With-outen bruttyng of burnes / or eny blod-schedynge
I take witnesse quod he / at holy writ a partye
pacientes vincunt .C
¶ For by him þat me made / myhte neuure pouerte
Meseise ne meschief / ne man with his tonge
Teone þe eny tyme / and þow take Pacience
And bere hit in þin bosom / a-boute wher þow wendest
In þe cornel of a cart wheol / wyþ a crow crone
Schal neuure burne beo a-baysched / þat haþ þis a-boute hym .
Nothur hete ne hayl / ne helle pouke hym greue
Noþur Fuyr noþur flod / ne beo a-ferd of enymy
Caritas expellit omnem timorem .
¶ Þer nys whit in þis worlde / þat wolde þe lette
To haue al londes at þi likynge / and þe here lord make
And maystre of al heore meoble / and of here money aftur
Þe kynge and al þe comune / and clergye to þe loute
As for heore lord and ledere / and lyuen as þou teches
¶ Þis is a dido quaþ þis doctor / a dysours tale
Al þe wit of þis world / ne whit mennes strenthe
Can not parformen a pees / of þe pope & of his enymys
Profitable for boþe parties / and put þe bord fro hym .
And toke concience and Clergie / to consail as hit were .
Ac y toke kepe hou concience / conieyed sone þis doctour
And sithe he seyde to clergie / so þat y hit herde .
¶ By crist quaþ concience / clergie y wol nat lye
Me were leuur by oure lord / and y lyf scholde
Haue pacience parfitliche / þan half þi pak of bokes
¶ Lettrure and longe studye / letteþ fol monye
Þat þei knoweþ nat quod pacience / what is kynde pacience .
¶ For-þi quaþ concience / cryst y the by-teche
With pacience wol y passe / parfitnesse to fynde
Thus þei wente forþe here way / wiþ a gret wil y folwed .
¶ Þenne hadde pacience al pilgryms hauen / in here poke vitailes
Sobrete and sympul speche / and sothfast by-leoue
To conforte hym and concience / if þei come in place
Þer vnkyndenesse and couetyse is / hongry contreis boþe
¶ And as þei wente by þe way / of dowel can þei carpe
Þei mette wiþ a Mynustral / as me þo þouhte
¶ Pacience apposede hym / and preyde he sholde telle
What craft þat he couþe / and cortesly he seyde
¶ Y am a Ministral quaþ þis man / my name is actiua vita
Peres prentys þe plouhman / alle people to conforte
What manere ministralsie / my dere frend quaþ concience
Hast þow vsed or haunted / al thy lyf-tyme
¶ Ministracye can y nat muche / bute maken men murye
As a waffrer with waffres / and wel-come godes gyftes
¶ Of my labour þei lauhe / þe lasse and þe more
Þe poure and þe riche / y plese and payn fynde .
And fewe robes y founde / or forrede gownes
Wolde y lye and do men lauhe / þen lacchen y scholde .
Manteles oþer moneye / a-monge lordes Ministralles
¶ I can nat taboure ne trompe / ne telle faire gestes .
Farten ne fythelon / at festes ne harpon
Iapen ne iogelon / ne genteliche pipe
Noþe sailen ne sautrien / ne synge wiþ þe geterne
¶ I haue none goode gyftes / at these grete lordes
For no bred þat y by trauaile / to brynge by-fore lordes
Ne were hit þat þe parische / prayeþ for me an sonedays
I am sory þat y sewe or sette / but for my-self one
¶ Ac þe preost and oþer people / prayeþ for peres plouhman
And for me Actif his man / þat ydelnesse hatte
For lordes and lorelles / luthere and goode
Fro myhelmasse to myhelmasse / y fynde mete and drynke .
¶ Y fynde payn for þe pope / and pray hym y wolde
Þat pestilences to pees / and to parfit loue turne
For funde y þat his blessynge / and his bulle myhte
Letten this luther eyr / and lechen þe syke
As þe bokes bereþ witnesse / þat he bere myhte
In his mouth mercy / and amende vs alle
Super egros manus imponent et bene & cetera .
Þenne wolde y beo bysy / and boxom to helpe
Eche kynne creature / þat on cryst by-leeued
¶ For sythe he hath þe pouer / þat seynt petur hadde
He hathe pureliche þe pot / with þe same salue .
Argentum et aurum non est michi quod autem habeo hoc tibi do /
¶ Ac if myhte of myracle hym faile {}/ hit is for men beoþ nat worþi /
Fort to haue þe grace of god / and no gult in þe pope
For may no blessynge do vs bote / but if we wol amende
Ne mannes preyere make pees / a-mong cristone people /
Tyl pruyde beo pureliche for-do / and þat þrow payn defaute
Ex habundancia panis et vini turpissimum peccatum aduenit /
Pure plente of payn / þe people of sodomye .
And rest of riche metes / rybaudes hem made /
¶ Pees quath pacience / y preye þe syre
For þauh neuere payn ne plouh / ne potage were
Pruyde wolde putte hym-self forthe / thauh no plouh erye .
¶ Hit am y þat fynde al folk / and from honger saue
Throw þe hye help of hym / þat me hydur sente
¶ For lente was þer neuure lyf / bute lyflode were y-schape
Wher-of or were-fore / and where-with to lyuen .
Þe worm þat woneþ vndur erthe / and in watur fyssches .
Þe cryket by kynde of fuyr / and corelu by þe wynde
¶ Bestes by gras and by grayn / and by grene rotes
In menynge þat al men / myhte þe same
Lyuen throw lel by-leoue / as oure lord witnesseþ .
Quodcumque pecieritis patrem in nomine meo dabitur enim vobis . & alibi .
Non in solo pane viuit homo sed de omni verbo quod procedit de ore dei
¶ Hauest þow ay quath Actyf suche mete wiþ þe
¶ Ȝee quaþ pacience and hente / out of his poke
A pece of þe Pater noster / and profrede to vs alle
¶ And y lustned and lokede / what lyflode hit were
Þen was hit fiat voluntas tua . þat scholde fynde vs alle
Haue Actyf quaþ pacience / and ette þis when þe hongreþ
Or when þow clomsest for corde / or clyngest for drouþe
Ne schal neuure gyues þe greue / ne gret lordes wrathe
Prysone ne oþer payne / for pacientes vincunt
¶ By so þow beo sobre of syht / and of tonge boþe
In ondyng in hondelyng / in alle þy fyue wittes
Þat þow care for no corne / for cloþ ne for drynke
Ne deþ drede ne deuul / dey as god likeþ
Wheþur throw hongur or throw hete / at his wil beo hit
For if þow lyuest aftur his lore / þe schorter lyf þe betere
Si quis amat christum / mundum non diligit istum .
Throw his breþ bestes woxon / and a-brod ȝedon dixit & facta fuerunt
Ergo þrow his bestes lyuen / boþe men an fysches
As witnesseþ holy writ / when we seye oure graces
Aperis tu manum tuam et imples omne & cetera .
¶ Hit is founde þat fourty wyntur / folc lyueden and not tylede
And ouȝt of flynt sprang þe flod / þat folke and bestes dronken
¶ And in Elyes tyme / heuene was y-closed
Þat no regne reynede / thus redeþ men in bokes
Þat mony wyntur men lyueden / and of no mete telden .
¶ Seuene slepen as seyþ þe bok / more þan syxti wyntur
Lyuedoun wiþ-oute lyflode / and at þe last a-wakedoun
¶ And if men lyueden as mesure wolde / scholde neuure beo defaute
A-mong cristone creatours / if crystes word beo trewe .
dabo tibi secundum peticionem tuam & cetera .
¶ What is parfit pacience / quath actiua vita
Meoknesse and mylde speche / and men of o wil
Þe wuche wil loue ledeþ / to oure lordes place
And þat is charite chaumpioun / chief of alle vertues
¶ And þat is poure pacient / al peryles to suffre
¶ Where pouerte and pacience / plese more god al-myhty
Þan doþ rithfol richesse / and resonabli to spende .
¶ Ȝe quis est ille quaþ pacience quyk laudabimus eum .
¶ Þaugh men rede of riche / ryht to þe worldes ende
And whan he drouh hem to þe deþ / þat he ne dradde him sarrer
Þan eny poure pacient / and þat preoue y by resoun .
¶ Hit are but fewe folk of þes riche / þat ne falleþ in arerage
Þer þe poure dar plede / and preoue by pure Resoun
To haue a-lowaunce of his lord / by lawe he claymeþ ioye
Þat neuure ioye hadde / of rythful Iuge he askeþ
¶ And seith lo bryddes and bestes / þat no blisse knoweþ
And wylde wormes in wodes / þrow wyntur þow hem greuest
And makest hem wel nere meok / and mylde for defaute
Aftur þenne þow sendest hem somor / þat is hem seuereyn ioye
And blisse to al þat beon / boþe wylde and tame
¶ Þenne may beggares as bestes / aftur blisse asken
Þat al here lyf han lyued / in langor and defaute .
But god sende hem tyme / of som manere ioye
Other here or elles-wer / elles were hit reuþe
For to wroþerhele was he wrouht / þat neuere was ioye y-schape
¶ Angeles þat in helle now beon / hadden some-tyme ioye .
And diues in his deynteys lyuynge / and in douce vie .
And now he buyeþ hit fol bittere / he is a beggare of helle
¶ Mony man haþe his ioye here / for al here wel dedes
And lordes and ladies beon cald / for leodes þat þei haue
And slepeþ as hit semeþ / and somor euure hem folowiþ
¶ When deþ awakeþ hem of here wele / þat were here so riche
Þenne aren hit pure pore þinges / in purgatorie or in helle
¶ Dauid in þe sauter / of suche makeþ muyde / muy[n]de
And seith dormierunt / et nichil inuenerunt & cetera . & alibi . velud sopnium / so[m]pnium surgencium .
¶ Hic Explicit passus sextus /
{....}
In þat ȝe