Thenne cam sleuthe al by-slobered with two slimed yes
Y moste sitte to be shryue / or elles sholde y nappe
Y may nat wel stande ne stoupe / ne with-outen a stoel knele
Were y brouhte in my bed / but yf my taylende hit made
Sholde no ryngyng do me to ryse / til y were rype to dyne
A bigan benedicite with abolk / a bolk / and his breste knokkede
What a-wake renke quod repentaunce / and rape to shryfte
Yf y sholde deye be þis day / y drede me sore
Y can nat parfitly my pater noster / as þe prest hit syngeth
Y can rymes of robyn hode / and of randolf Erle of Chestre
Ac of oure lord ne of oure lady / þe leste þat euere was maked
Y haue voued voues fourty / and forȝeten hem amorwen
Y parfourmede neuere penaunces / þat þe prest me hihte
Ne ryht sory for my synnes / y seyh neuere þe tyme
And yf y bidde eny bedes / but yf hit be in wrath
That y telle with my tonge / is ten myle fro myn herte
Y am occuepied vch aday / haliday and oþere
With ydele tales / at þe ale / and oþerwhile in chirches
Goddes payne and his passioun / is puyre selde in my thouhte
Y visitede neuere feble man / ne fetered man in prisone
Y hadde leuere here an harlotrye / or a lesyng to lauhen of
Or to lacke men / or to likene hem in vnlikyng manere
Vigilies and fastyngdayes / y can forȝeten hem alle
And ligge abedde in lente / and my lemman in myn armes
Til matynes C and masse be y-do / thenne haue y a memorie at þe freres
Y am nat shryue somtyme / but yf seknesse hit make
Nat twies in ten ȝer / and thenne t{l}elle y nat þe haluendele
¶ I · haue be prest and parsoun / passynge thritty wyntur
Ȝut kan y nother solfe ne synge / ne a seyntes lyf rede
Ac y can fynden in a feld / and in a forlong an hare
And holden a knyhtes Court / and acounte with þe reue
Ac y can nat construe catoun / ne clergialiche reden
Y forȝete hit as ȝerne / and yf eny man hit aske
Sixe sithe oþer seuene / y forsake hit with othes
And thus haue y tened trewe men / ten hundrit tymes
And my seruauntes som-tyme / here salerie is bihynde
reuthe is to here rekenynge / when we shal rede acountes
so with wikkede will / my werkemen y paye
Yf eny man do me a been feet / or helpeth me at nede
Y am vnkynde aȝen his cortesie / y can nat vnderstande hit
For y haue and haue y-had / sumdel haukes maners
Y am nat luyred with loue / but þer lygge ouht vnder þe tumbe
The kyndenesse þat myn emcristen / kud me ferne-ȝer
Sixty sythes y sleuthe / haue forȝeten hit sethe
In speche and in sparyng of speche / y spilde many a tyme
Bothe flesch and fysch / and vitailes kepte so longe
Til eche lyf hit lothed / to loke þeron or smylle hit
Bothe Bred and ale / Botere mylke and chese
And ȝede aboute in my ȝouthe / and ȝaf me to no thedom
And sethe a beggare haue y be / for my foule sleuthe
¶ Heu michi quod sterlilem / ster[i]lem duxi vitam / iuuenilem
Repentest the nat quod repentaunce / and ryht with þat he swowened
Til vigilate the veile / fette water / at his eyus
And flatte hit on his face / and faste on hym cryede
And sayde war the for wanhope / þat wolde the bytraye
And bete thy-sulue vppon þe breste / and bidde hym of grace
For is no gult so greet / þat his goodnesse is more
¶ Thenne sat sleuthe vp / and seynede hym ofte
And made vowe to-fore god / for his foule sleuthe
Shal no sonday be this seuene ȝere / but yf seknesse hit make
That y ne shal do me ar day / to þe dere chirche
And here mateynes and masse as y amonke / a monke were
Shal non ale aftur mete / holde me thennes
Til y haue euensong y-herd / y bihote to þe rode
¶ Ac wheche been þe braunches / þat bryngeth men to sleuthe
Is when men mourneth / not for his mysdedes
The penaunses þat þe prest enioyneth / parformeth euele
doth non Almesdede / drat hym nat of synne
Lyueth aȝen þe bileue / and no lawe kepeth
And hath no likynge / to lerne ne of oure lord to here
But to harlotrie and to hore-dom / or elles of som wynnynge
When me carpeth of Crist / or of clannesse of soule
A wexeth wroth and wol not here / but wordes of murthe
Penaunse and pore men / and the passioun of seyntes
He hateth to here there-of / and alle þat þer-of carpeth
This beth þe branches beth y-war / þat bryngeth a man to wanhope
Ȝe lordes and ladies / and legates / of holy churche
That feden foel sages / flateres and lyares
And han lykyng to lythen hem / in hope to do ȝow law{e}he
¶ Ve vobis qui {.}ridetis & cetera
And ȝeueth such mede & mete / and pore men refuse
In ȝoure deth-deynge / y drede me sore
Laste tho manere men / to muche sorwe ȝow brynge
Consencientes & agentes / pari pena punientur
Patriarkes and prophetes / precheours of goddes wordes
Sauen thorw here sarmon / mannes soule fram helle
Ryht so flateres and fooles aren þe fendes procuratours
To entise men thorw here tales / to synne and to harlotrie
Clerkes þat knoweth this / sholde kenne lordes
Non habitabit in medio domu{e}s mee qui facit supbiam / sup[er]biam T qui loquitur iniqua & cetera
Sholde non harlote haue audiense / in halle ne in chaumbre
There þat wyse men were / wittnesseth goddes wordes
Ne no mysproud man / amonges lordes be y-louede
Clerkes and knyhtes welcometh kynges munstrals
And for loue of here lord / lyueth {at} hem at festes
Muche more me thynketh / riche men ouhte
Haue beggares byfore hem / þe whiche ben goddes mustrals / mu[n]strals
As he sayth hym-sulf / seynt Ion bereth witnesse
Qui vos spernit / me spernit
For-thy y rede ȝow ryche reueles / when ȝe maketh
For to solace ȝoure soules / suche munstrals to haue
The pore for afoul / a foul sage / sittynge at thy table
With alered / a lered man to lere the / what oure lord suffrede
For to saue thy soule / fram satan thyn enemye
And fithele the with-oute flaterynge / of godfriday þe feste
And ablynd / a blynd man for abordor / a bordor / or abedredene / a bedredene womman
To crye alargesse / a largesse to-fore oure lord / ȝoure good loos to shewe
Thise thre manere munstrals / maketh aman / a man to lauhe
And in his deth-deynge / they don hym greet confort
That by his lyue lened hem / and louede hem to here
Thise solaseth þe soule / til hym-sulue be y-falle
There flaterers and foles / with here foule wordes
Leden tho that lythed hem / to luciferes feste
With turpiloquio a lay of sorwe / and luciferes fythele
To perpetuel payne / or purgatorie a wikke
For a LX lythed and louede / þat godes lawe despiseth
¶ dare histrionibus & cetera
Tho was repentaunce aredy / and redde hem alle to knele
Y shal byseke for alle synnefole / oure sauiour of grace
To Amende vs / of oure mysdedes / do mercy to vs alle
God þat of thi goodnesse / gonne þe world make
And madest of nauhte auhte / and man liche thy-sulue
And sethe soffredeste hym to synege / a sykenesse to vs alle
And for oure beste as y beleue / what so þe boek telle
¶ O felix culpa & {m}necessarium peccattum Ade
For thorw þat synne thy sone / ysent was til erthe
And bicam man of amayde / a mayde / mankynde to amende
And madest thy-sulue with thy son / oure soule & oure body ilych
¶ Ego in patre & pater in me / et qui me videt / videt patrem meum & cetera
And sethe in oure secte / as hit semed deyedest
On a friday in fourme of man feledest oure sorwe
Captiuuam / Capti[u]am duxi T captiuitatem
¶ The sonne for sorwe þerof / lees liht for a tyme
A-boute mydday when most liht is / and mel-tyme of sayntes
Feddest tho with thy flesch and blood / oure forfadres in helle
Populus qui ambulabat in tenebris / vidit lucem magnam & cetera
The lihte þat lup oute of the / lucifer hit blente
And brouhte thyne y-blessed / fro thennes in-to þe blisse of heuene
The thridde day þer-aftur / thow ȝedest in-to oure sekte
A synful marie þe sey / ar seynte marye þy dame
And also to solace synfole / thow soffredest it so were
Non veni vocare iustos set peccatores & cetera
And al þat mark hath y-made / Matheu Ion and lucas
Of thy douhtiokest dedes / was don in oure sekte
¶ verbum caro factum est
And by so muche hit semeth / the sykerloker we mowe
Bidde and biseche the / yf hit be thy wille
That art furste oure fadur / and of flesch oure broþer
And sethen oure sauyour / and seydest hit with thy tonge
That what tyme we synnefole men / wolden be sory for dedes T
That we han don ylle / dampned sholde we ben neuere
Yf we knowlechede and cryde / Crist þerfore mercy
Quandocumque ingemuerit peccator / omnes iniquitate / iniquitate[s] eius non recordabor ampliuus / ampli[us]
And for muchel mercy / and marie loue thi moder
Haue reuthe of alle these / rybaudes / þat repenten hem sore
That euere they gulte / aȝeyn þe god / in gost or in dede
Thenne hente y an horn / of deus tu conuersus viuificabis nos
Remisse sunt iniquitates / & quorum tecta sunt peccata
That alle seyntes {songen} for synfol songen with dauid ·
¶ Homines & iumenta saluabis quamadmodum / q[ue]madmodum multiplicasti misericordiam meam deus
A thousend of men tho / throngen to-gyderes
Criede vpward to Crist / and to his clene moder
To haue grace to go to treuthe / god leue þat they mote
Ac þer ne was wye non so wys / þat the way thider couthe
But blostrede forth as bestes / ouer baches and hulles
Til late was and longe / þat thei a lede mette
Y-parayled as a paynyem / in pilgrimes wyse
He bar a bordoun / ybounde with abrood / a brood liste
In awethewynde-wyse / a wethewynde-wyse / ywrithe al aboute
A bolle and a bagge / a LX bar by his syde
An hundret of Aunpolles / on his hat sette
Signes of syse / and shelles of galys
And many acrouch / a crouch on his cloke / kayes of Rome
And þe vernicle bifore / for men sholde y-knowe
And se by þe signes / wham a LX souht hadde
This folk frayned hym furste / fro whennes he come
¶ Fro synoye he sayde and fro þe sepulcre of oure lord
In bedlem and in babiloyne / y haue be in bothe
In Armonye in Alisaundre / y haue be in bothe
Ȝe may se be þe signes / þat sitten on my cappe
Y haue souht gode seyntes / for my soule helthe
And y-walked ful wyde / in wete and in drye
¶ Knowest thow auht acorsent / a corsent quod they / þat men calleth treuthe
Kouthest wissen vs to-day / whoder-out treuth woneth
Nay so me god hehelpe / [he]lpe / sayde þe gome thenne
Axen aftur hym / but now in þis place
I · knowe hym as kyndely / as Clerk doth his bokes
Consience and kynde wyt / kenned me to his place
And maden me sykerenesse sethen / to seruen hym for euere
Bothe to sowe and to sette / þe while y swynke myhte
And to sowen his seed / suewen his bestes
Withynne and with-outen / to wayten his profit
Iich / [I]ch haue y-be his foloware / al this fourty wynter
And y serued treuthe sothly / som-del to paye
In alle kyne craftes / þat he couthe deuise
And thow y sey hit my-sulf / y serue hym to paye
Y haue myn huyre of hym wel / and oþerwhiles more
He is þe presteste payere / þat eny pore man knoweth
He with-halt non hewe / his huyre ouer euen
He is as louh as alombe / a lombe / and leel of his tonge
And ho-so wilneth to wyte / where þat treuthe woneth
¶ Y wol wissen ȝow wel / ryht to his place
Ȝe leue Peres quod thise pilgrimes / and profrede Peres mede
Nay bi þe perel of my soule / Peres gan to swerie
Y ne wol fonge aferthynge / a ferthynge / for seynt Thomas shryne
Were hit i-tolde treuthe / þat y toke mede
Ac ho-so wole wende þer treuthe is / this is þe way theder
Ȝe mote go thorw mekenesse / alle men and wommen
Til ȝe come into Consience / y-knowe of god sulue
That ȝe louye hym lord / leely aboue alle
That is to sey sothly / ȝe sholde rather deye
Thenne eny dedly synne do / for drede or for preeyere
And thenne ȝoure neyhebores nexst in none wyse apayre
Other-wyse then ȝe wolden / they wrouhte ȝow alle tymes
For to ȝe fynde aford / a ford / ȝoure fader honoureth
Wadeth in at þat water / and wascheth ȝow wel there
And ȝe shal lepe þe lihtloker / al ȝoure lyf-tyme
¶ Honora patrem & matrem & cetera
And thenne shalt {tw} thow se swere nat / but if it be for nede
And nameliche an ydel / þe name of god almyhty
Thenne shalt thow come by a croft / C Ac come thow þer-ynne
The croft hatte coueyte nat / menne catel ne here wyues
Ne none of here seruauntes / þat nuye hem myhte
Loke þou bere nat þere a-way / but yf hit be thyn owene
Tho stokkes þere stondeth / ac stynte thow nat þere
Thei hatte stele nat and sle nat stryk forth by bothe
And leueth hem in þe luft hand / and loke þer-aftur
And hold wel þe haliday / heye til euen
Thenne shaltow blenche at a berw / bere no fals witnesse
Is frithed in with floreynes / and othere fees monye
Loke thow plokke no plonte þere / for perel of thy soule
Thenne shaltow se say soth / so hit be to done
In none manere elles nat / for no mannes preeyre
And so shaltow come to a Court / as cleer as þe sonne
The mote is of mercy / the manere in þe myddes
And al þe wallyng is of wyt / for wil ne sholde hit wynne
The carneles ben of cristendom / þat kynde to saue
And alle þe hous / been yheled / halles and chaumbres
With no leed but with loue / and with lele speche
The barres aren of buxumnesse / as bretherne of o wombe
The Brygge hatte byde wel / the bet may they spede
Vche a piler is of penaunces / and preyeres to seyntes
The hokes aren Almesdedes / þat þe ȝates hange on
Grace hatte þe gateward / a goed man for sothe
His man hatte amende ȝow / many man hym knoweth
Tel hym this ilke tokene / treuthe woet þe sothe
Y am sory of my synnes / and so y shal euere
And parformed þe penaunce / þat þe prest me hihte
Biddeth amende ȝow / to meke ȝow to his maister grace
To opene and vndo / þe hye gate of heuene
That Adam and Eue aȝenes vs alle shette
¶ Per Euam cuntis / cun[c]tis clausa est / & per mariam verginem iterum patefacta est & cetera
A ful leel lady vnlek hit of grace
And he LX hath þe keye and þe clycat / thow þe kyng slepe
And may lede in þat he loueth / as here lef lyketh
And yf grace graunte the / to go in this wyse
Thow shalt se treuthe sitte / in thy-sulue herte
And solace thy soule / and saue the fram payne
And charge charite / achurche / a churche to make
In thyne hole herte / to herborwe alle trewe
And fynde alle manere folk / fode to here soules
Ȝef loue and leute / and oure lawe trewe
¶ Quodcumque pecieritis / in nomine meo dabitur enim vobis
Ac be war thenne of wrath nat / þat wikkede shrewe
For he hath enuye to hym / þat in thyn herte setteth
And poketh forth pruyde / to preyse thy-suluen
The boldenesse of thy been-fetes / maketh the blynd thenne
So worth thow dryuen out as deux LX / and þe dore yclosed
Y-keyed and y-clyketed / to close the with-outen
Hapliche an hundred wynter / ar thow eft entre
Thus myhte thow lesen his loue / to lete wel by thy-sulue
And geten hit agayne thorw grace / Ac thorw no gifte elles
Ac ther ben seuene susteres / þat seruen treuthe euere
And aren porteres ouer þe posternes / þat to þat place bilongen
That on hatte astinence / a[b]stinence / and vmbletee an-noþer
Charite and chastite / ben his chief maydenes
Pacience and pees / muche peple þei helpe
Largenesse þat lady / lat in ful monye
Noen of hem alle / helpe may in betere
For he payeth for prisones / in places and in peynes
And ho is sib to þis seuene / so me god helpe
Is wonderliche welcome / and fayre vnderfonge
Ho is nat syb to this seuene / sothly to telle
Hit is ful hard be myn heued eny of ȝow alle
To geten ingang at eny ȝate / bote grace be þe more
¶ By Crist quod a cotte-pors / y haue no kyn there
Ne y quod an hapeward / by auht þat y knowe
Wyte god quod a wafrestere / wiste y this for sothe
Wolde y neuere forthere no foet / for no frere prechynge
Mercy is amayden / a mayden there / hath myhte ouer hem alle
And she is sib to alle synfole / and here sone bothe
And thorw þe helpes of hem two / hope þou non oþer
Thow myhte gete grace there / so thow go by-tymes
¶ Ȝe villam emi quod oen / and now y moste thedre
To loke how me liketh hit / and toek his leue at Peres C
Anoþer anoen riht / nede he sayde he hadde
To falewe with fiue ȝotes / ȝo[k]es / for-thy me bihoueth
To goo with a good wil / and graytheliche hem dryue
For-thy y pray ȝow {Peres} / parauntur ȝif ȝe moten
Treuth telleth hym this / þat y be excused
Thenne was oen hihte actif / an hosbande he semede
Y haue wedded a wyf / wel wantowen of maneres
And loure on me and lihtly chyde / and sygge y louede another
I may nat come for a kitte / so a LX cleueth on me
visione
notate lewede prestes
· 7us ·
visione
· 7us ·
visione
// Hyer askyd þe puple
a palmere after treuþe
a palmere after treuþe
· 7us ·
Nne / [N]e none of here seruauntes
visione
· 7us ·
visioe / visio[n]e P