That þe montaigne bymenuþ / & þe merke dale
And þe feld fol of folk / y schal ȝou faire schewe
countenance, chere.
A louely lady of lere / in lynnen y-clothed
Cam doun fro þat castelle / and calde me by name .
how
Hou bysy thei beon / a-boute þe mase .
Þe most partie of þe people / þat passeþ on this eorthe
Haue thei worschip in þis worlde / they wilneþ no betre .
Of other heuene þan here / thei holden no tale
Y was a-ferd of hure face / thaw / she faire were
And seide mercy madame / wat may þis beo to mene
Þe tour vpon þe toft quod sheo / trewþe is ther-Inne
And wolde þat ȝeo wrouȝt / as his word techeþ
For he is fadur of faith / and formour of alle
To beo faithful to him / he ȝaf ȝow fyue wyttes
For to worchipon him þer-with / wile ȝeo lyuen here .
Wer-fore he het þe Elementz / to help ȝow al tymes
And bringe forth ȝoure byleue / bothe linnen and wollen
And in mesure þauh hit muche were / to mak ȝowe attese / att ese
¶ He comaunded of his cortasie / in comune thre þynges
Aron now nedfol but þo thre / nempne hem y þinke .
And rekene hem by-rewe / reherse hem wher þe likuþ
¶ Þe feorst of tho is fode / and vesture þe secunde .
And drynk þat do þe gode / ac drynk nauȝt ouȝt of tyme .
Lo lot . in his lyue / þrow likerouce drynk
Wykkedliche wrouȝte / and wrathed god almyȝhty
In his dronkenesse a day / his dowtres he dihte
And lay by hem boþe / as the bok telluþ
In his gloteny by-gate / gurles þat weren cheorles
And alle he wyted hit þe wyn / his wikkede dede .
Inebriamus eum vino & dormiamus cum eo vt seruare
Possumus de patre nostro semen / Genesis
Thorgh wyn and thorgh wommon / ther was Lot encombred .
For-þi dred delitable drynke / bothe day and nyhtes .
Mesure is medicine / þauh thow muche wilne
¶ Al is nauht good to the gost / that the gout askeþ
Ne lyuelode to the licame / þat lef is to the saule
Leof nouȝt thi licame / for a lyer him techeþ
That is this wikked worlde / wolde the by-gyle
For the feond and thy fleisch / folwen to-gederes
And seoth thy saule / and seythe hit the in herte
And wisseþ þe to be war / and wold þe deceyue .
A madame mercy quod y / me likeþ wel ȝoure wordes
Ac the moneye of this molde / þat men so fast kepon
Telluþ me ȝe now to wam / that tresour by-longeþ
¶ Go to the gospel quath heo / and seo wat god seyde
Wen the poeple aposede him / of a peny in the temple
And god askeþ at hem / wat was þe coyne
Cesares the seyde / sotly we knowen
Reddite Cesari seyde god / þat to Cesar by-falleth
Et que sunt dei deo / or elles ȝe don ille .
for rithfulliche resoun / schold rewle ȝow alle
And kynd wit beo wardeyn / ȝoure welþe to kepe
And tutour of ȝoure tresour / and take ȝowe at nede
For howsebondrye an he / holdeþ to-gederesLX
¶ Y Fraynede hure faire tho / for him þat hure made
Þe dep dale and the merk / vnsemely to seo
Wat may hit by-mene / madame y by-seche /
¶ Þat is the castel of care / wo-so comeþ þer-Inne
May banne þat he bore was / in body and sowle .
Ther-Inne wonyeþ a wyht / wrong is his name
Fadur of falshede / fond hit furst of alle
Adam and Eue / he eggede to ille
Consailled caym / to kullon his brother
Iudas he by-Iapede / þrowe Iewene seluer
And afturward he heong him / hey on an Ellerne
He is lettere of loue / and lyeth alle tymes
Þat trust in eorthly tresour / he by-trayeth saunest
To encombre men with couetyse / þat is his kynde
Þen hadde y wondur in my wit / wat wommon sheo were
Þat suche wyse wordes / of holy wryt sowede
And hanslede heore on the hy name / er scho þenne went
Wat scho were witturly / þat wissede me so and tauht
¶ Holycherche y am quod scho / þow ouhtest me to knowe
Y vndurfong þe formest / and freo man þe made
Thow browtest me borwes / my bidding to folfulle
PTo leoue on me and louy me / al thy lif-tyme
¶ Þenne kneoled y on my kneos / and cride heore of grace
And preyed heore pytesly to preye / for me to amende
Al-so to kenne me kyndely / on crist to by-leue
And teche me to no tresour / but tel me this ilke
How y may saue my sowle / þat seynt ert y-holde
Wen al tresours beon tryed quod scheo / trewþe is þe best
Y do hit on deus caritas / to deme þe sothe
Hit is as dereworth a druwry / as dere god him-selue
For he is trewe of his tonge / and of his two handes
And dothe þe werkes þer-with / and wilneþ no man ille
He is a god by þe gospel / and graunt may hele
And lyke oure lord al-so / by seynt luc hes wordes .
¶ Clerkes þat knowen this / schold kennen hit a-bowt
For crysten and for vncriston / cleymen hit echone
¶ Kynges and knyhtes / scholde kepon hit by resoun
ryden and rappe a-doun / in reomes a-bowte
And to take trespassours / and tyen hem fast .
Til trewþe had termined / here trespas to theP ende
And halde with him and with heore / þat han trewe accioun
And for no lordeyne loue / leue þe trewe partye
Trewly to take / and trewly to fitht
Is þe profession and pure ordre / þat appendeþ to knyhtes
Ho-so passeþ þat poynt / is apostata of knyht-hod
For thei schold nat fast / ne for-bere serke
But feythfully defende / and fith for trewþe
And neuere leue for loue for loue / for loue / in hope to lac seluer
¶ Dauid by his dayes / dobbede knythtes
And dud hem swere on here swerd / to serue trewþe euere
¶ Wan god by-gan heuene / in þat gret blis
He made knyhtes in his cort / creatures tene
Cherubyn and seraphyn suche seuene and a-nother
Lucifer Louelokest tho / ac litel whyle hit dured
He was an archangel of heuene / on of godes knyhtes
He and oþer with him / þat helde nat with trewþe
Lopon out in lotly forme / for his false wille
He hadde leof to be lik / his lord god almyhty
Ponam pedem meum in aquilone & ero similis altissimo
Lord wy wolde he tho / thulke wikkede Lucifer
lhepen a-loft in the northe syde
To sitten on þe sonne syde / þer þe day roweþ
Ne were hit for northermen / a-non y wolde telle
¶ Ac y wolle lakke no lif / quod that lady sothely
Hit is sikeror by sowþe / ther þe sonne reigneþ
Þanne in þe north by mony notus / no man leoue other
For þuder as þe feond fleih / his fot fort sette
Ther he failede and feol / and his felows alle
And helle is there he is / and he ther y-bounde .
Euene contrarie sit crist / clerkus knowen þe sothe
dixit dominus domino meo / sede a dextris meis
Ac of this matere no more / moeuen y nelle
Hewes in the haliday / aftur heton wayton .
Þey care nouȝt þei hit beo cold / knaues wen thei worchen
¶ In wondurwyse holywrit / telluþ how thei fullon
Some in erthe some in ayer / some in helle deope
Ac lucifer lowest / lithe of hem alle .
For pruyde þat him pokede / his peyne hath non ende
Alle þat worchen þat wykket is / wenden þei schulle .
Aftur here deth-day / and dwelle þer wrong is
And alle þat han wel y-wrouht / wenden thei scholle .
Estward til heuene / euere to a-byde
Ther trewþe is þe throne / þat trinite Inne sytteþ
Lere hit thus lewede men / for lettred hit knoweþ
Þat trewþe and trew loue / is no tresour betere .
¶ Y haue no kynde knowyng quod y / ȝe mot kenne me betere
By wat wey hit waxeþ / and vndur out of my menyng
¶ Thow dotete daf quod scho / dolle ar þi wittes
Y leoue thow lernedest to lyte / latyn yn þi ȝougþe
Heu michi quod sterilem duxi vitam iuuenilem
Hit is a kynde knowyng / þat kenneþ in þyn herte
For to louy thi lord / leouest of alle
And deye rather þen to do / eny dedly synne
Melius est mori quam male viuere .
And this y trowe beo trewþe / ho-so can teche þe betre
Loke thow soffre hym to seye / and so myht þow lerne
For trewþe telleþ þat loue / is tryacle of synne
And most souereyn salue / for sowle & for body
¶ Loue is plonte of pees / most preciouce of vertus
For heuene holt hit ne myhte / so heuy hit semede
Tyl hit hadde on eorth / ȝoton him-selue
Was neuere vpon lynde / lyhter ther-aftur
As wen he hadde of þe fold / fleisch and blod taken
Tho was hit portatif and persaunt / as point of an elde
May non armure hit lette / nothur hye walles .
And a mene as þe meyre is / by-twene þe kynge and þe comune
Riht so is loue a ledere / and þe lawe schappuþ
Vp man for his misdedes / þe mercement he taxeþ
¶ And fort / fort[o] knowe hit kyndely / hit comseþ by myhte
In the hert þer is þe hesd / he[a]d / and þe hye welle
¶ Of kynde knowyng in herte / þe comseþ a myhte
That falleþ to þe fader / þat formede vs alle
How vs he lokede with loue / and let his sone dye
Meokly for oure misdedes / to amende vs alle
And ȝut wolde he hem nowe / þat wrouht {ye}him alle þat tene
But mildeliche with mowþe / mercy he by-souhte
To haue pite on that people / þat peynede him to deþe
Here myȝht thow se ensaumple / in him-selue one
Þat he was myhtfol and meok / and mercy gan graunte
To hem þat henge him hye / and his herte thorled .
For-thi y rede ȝow riche / haue rewþe on þe poere
Þauh ȝe be myhty to mote / beoþ meke in ȝoure werkes
Þe same mesure þat ȝe meteþ / a mys other elles
Ȝe schulle be weyon þer-with / wen ȝe wendon hennes
Eadem mensura qua mensi fueritis remetietur vobis .
Thaw ȝe be trew of ȝoure tonges / and trewliche wynne
And beo as chast as a child / þat noþur chit ne fyhteþ
But ȝif ȝe loue lellyche / and lene þe pore
Of suche god as god sent / goodliche parte
Ȝe haue no more merit / in masse ne in howres
Þan malkyn of heore Maydenhod / wam no man desiruþ .
For Iames þe gentul / Iuggeþ in his bokes
Þat faith with-owte feat / is febelere þen nouht
Fides sine operibus mortua est .
¶ Chastite with-oute charite / worth cheyned in helle
Hit is as lewede as a laumpe / þat no liȝht is Inne
Menye chapeleyns aren chast / ac charite hem failleth
Are non hardur þan hongrior / þan men of holy churche
Auerous and euel willed / wan thei ben auaunsed
And vnkynde to here kyn / and to alle cristene
¶ They chewen here charite / and chiden aftur more
Encombred myd coueytise / thei connauht owt crepe
So hard hath auerice / hasped hem to-gederes
¶ And þat is no trewþe of þe trinite / but trecherie and sinne
And luthur ensample leoue me / to þe lewed poeple
For theos aren wrodes / writen in þe Euuangelie .
Date et dabitur vobis / for y dele ȝow alle
And þat is lok of loue / þat vnloseþ grace
Þat conforteþ alle cristene / encombred with synne .
¶ So loue is leche of lyf / and lisse of al peyne
And þe graffe of grace / and graythest to heuene
¶ For-thy y may seye as y sayde / by siht of þis tixt
Wen alle tresours ben tried / trewþe is the best
¶ Loue hit quod þat lady / lette may y no lengere
To lere the wat loue is / and leue at me scho lauhte
Explicit passus secundus /
w
nota
debet esse .for. credo.
he dight, he dressed, here he deflowred
xix
Mathei .xxij.
{Matheo}
primus Iohannis . iiij . capitulo
ysay xiiij
Jonas prophete & ecclesiastes tertio T
darke
{...}
wolde it
hill
gat, appointed
ar. be
take
but
wenches
chereles without chere.
theerfore
feare.