the brauÌ„ches of the vertue of mercy of almesse ca. Cxxxi The seuen brauÌ„ches of mercy on the lyfte syde and the fyrst braunche C. Cxxxii The seconde braunche Ca. C.xxxiii The thyrde braunche Ca. Cxxxiiii The fourthe braunche Ca. Cxxxv. The fyfte brauÌ„che of mercy Ca. Cxxxvi. The .vi brauÌ„che of mercy Ca. Cxxxvii The vii braunche of mercy Ca. Cxxxviii How a person ought to do almesse Ca. Cxxix Of the lyfe actyfe and of the lyfe coÌ„templatyfe ca Cxl Of the vertue of chastite the fyrste degre Ca. Cxli The seconde degre of the vertue of chastyte Ca. Cxlii She thyrde degre of the vertue of chastyte Ca. Cxliii The fourth degre of the vertue of chastyte Ca. Cxliiii The .v. degre of the vertue of chastyte Ca. Cxlv The vi degre of the vertue of chastyte Ca. Cxlvi The .vii. degree of the vertue of chastyte Ca. Cxlvii Of the fyrst estate of them that ben hole and chaste of body Ca. Cxlviii The seconde estate of them that ben corrupte Ca. Cxlix The thyrde estate and the fourth estate Ca. CL. The fyfthe estate of chastyte Ca. Cli. The .vi. estate of the vertue of vyrgynyte and chastyte Ca. Clii The seuenth estate of the vertue of chastyte Ca. Cliii Of the gyfte of sapyence Ca. Cliiii Of the fyrst degree of sobrenes of mesure Ca. Clv. Of the seconde degree of sobrenes of mesure Ca. Clvi Of the .iii. degre of sobrenes of atteÌ„perauÌ„ce Ca. Clvii Of the .iiii. degree of sobrenes of mesure Ca. Clviii The v. degree of sobrenes of mesure Ca. Clx. The .vi degree of sobrenes of attemperauÌ„ce Ca. Clx. The .vii. degre of sobrenes of attemperauÌ„ce Ca. Clxi. Explicit Our fader that art in heueÌ„ sanctified be thy name thy kingdom come to vs / thy wyl be done in erth as in heuen / our dayly brede gyue vs to day for gyue vs our deâ—â— as we forgyue our deâ—â—s lede vs not in to teÌ„ptacoÌ„n but delyuer vs froÌ„ euyl ameÌ„ ¶ The fyue commaundementes of the chyrche ¶ The sondayes here thou masse and the â—estes of coÌ„maundement ¶ Of thy synnes thou the confesse at the leest one tyme of the yere ¶ And thy creatour thou shalte receyue / at Eester humbly ¶ These feestes thou shalte halowe / that ben gyuen the in coÌ„maundement ¶ The foure ymbres bigyles thou shalte feste 〈◊〉 the â—â—me entyerly ¶ Here after ben conteyned and declared the x coÌ„maundementes of the lawe whiche our lorde delyuered vnto Moyses the prophete for to preche to the people for to holde and kepe Capitulo primo FOr to haue and to come vnto the knowelege of the .x. commauÌ„demeÌ„tes of the lawe the whiche euery creature reasonable is holden for to kepe for to haue lyf pardurable It is to wete the syth that creacyon of humayne creature four lawes haue beÌ„ ¶ The fyrst lawe is called the lawe of nature Whiche is none other thynge but knowelege of good and euyll by the whiche we knowe that whiche we ought to ensyewe after reason / and also that whiche we ought to fle / that is to doo other that whiche we wolde after reason sholde be done to vs. And not to doo to other the / whiche we wolde after reason sholde not be done to vs. And this lawe gaue god to man to woman in his creacion / that same lawe euery creature reasonable ought to kepe / and by Ignoraunce not to be excused / syth they haue vnderstandynge of reason ¶ The ii lawe cometh of the deuyll to dystroye the lawe of nature aforesayd / and that is sayd lawe of concupyscence whiche was put in the creature reasonable by the syÌ„ne of Inobedyence / whiche was in our fyrst fader / for to fo he dysobeyed to god by synne / the body humayne was obeyssaunt to the soule and to reason entyerly / but as so ne as he had dysobeyed god / the body by concupyscence dysobeyed to reason Of whiche it happeth ofte / how be it that the creature by the fyrst lawe of nature knewe the good to be done / and the euyll to be eschewed Alwaye by concupyscence and folysshe plesaunce is lefte the ryght Iugement of reason / is enclyned to do the contrarye and this sayth saynt powle / that he founde a lawe in his membris / that is to wete the sayd lawe of concupyscence whiche gaynsayed to the lawe of reason whiche was in the soule / and of this lawe of concupyscence set by synÌ„e in the creature None escaped but onely Ihesu the glorious virgyÌ„ marie The .iii lawe is said the lawe wryton whiche was delyuerd for the creature / that by the lawe of concupyscence wolde enclyne hym ageynst the Iugement of reason to do euyll / to withdrawe hym to do synne for doubte of punycyon / thys lawe was delyuered to moyses and to the chyldren of Israhel The .iiii. lawe is sayd of loue and of grace whiche is none other thyng but to loue god his neyghboure And was delyuered by cause that the lawe of scrypture whiche for drede to be punysshed withdrewe the creature to do euyll was not suffycyente / for how well that it empesshed the dede / as touchynge the werke Neuertheles it empesshed not to the creature the wyll too do euyll / the whiche thynge is deedly synne / as oftentymes as it is concluded in the thyÌ„ge that sholde be as to the deed / and this .iiii. lawe of loue is in two commauÌ„dementes pryncypally comprysed The fyrst is this Thou shalte loue thy god with all thy herte / with all thy soule / with al thyn entendement / and with all thy myght The .ii. is that thou shalt loue thy neyghboure as thy selfe And these two commaundementes be so conioyned that the one may not be accomplysshed without that other ¶ Of the fyrst commaundement Ca. .ii. FOr to haue the knowelege of the sayd fyrst commaundement ought for to be knowen that .ii. thynges enclyne vs to loue god The fyrst is to here gladly for to speke of hym ofte / for naturally whan we here of ony persone sayd grete good / we ben enclyned to prayse loue hym / therfore to go oft to holy chyrche to predycacioÌ„s and sermons / is to a creature grete vtylyte prouffyte The seconde thynge is to thynke ofte and to haue in myÌ„de the grete benefaytes that a creature hath receyued / receyueth euery day of god / for naturally we ben enclyned to loue them that done vs good This loue of god is acquyred goten by these two thynges in a creature is kepte and multyplyed by .ii. other thynges Fyrst for to withdrawe take away his herte fro the loue of temporall goodes For the herte may not be parfyte in dyuers thynges / and therfore none may loue god and the wordly thynges togyder perfytly Secondly for to haue stedfast pacyeÌ„ce in trybulacoÌ„n to suffre it for the loue of god / for the
thynge that loue hath moost trauayle for / by moost payne is goten / ought to be moost loued / moost dere worthely kept / and this sapyence is moche necessary and prouffytable to all them that wyll go with god / For thus as sayth holy scrypture / by many trybulacyoÌ„s behoueth vs to entre in to the realme of heuen And this manyfesteth and sheweth to vs the lyues of sayntes / the whiche for to come to god haue so moche suffred and endured After it is to wete / that to thaccomplysshement of the sayd commaundement .iiii. thynges admonesteth the creature ¶ The fyrst is to haue in mynde contynually the goodes that the creature hathe receyued of god as sayd is tofore For whan the creature consydereth that he hath receyued of god body soule / all other godes that he hath / spyrytuall and temporall / the perylles also whiche he hath escaped The glory of heuen whiche he hath apparayled to vs. The creature humayne shall Iuge that he oweth to loue god with all his herte The .ii. reason is to haue in consyderacion the grete puyssaunce / excellence / nobles of god And with that the grete mysery pouerte of our self / by the whiche consyderacyon the creature shall Iuge / the whan he shall loue god with all his herte / he shall serue hym with all his myght / whiche yet he doth full lytel vnto the regarde of his grete excellence noblenesse and puyssaunce ¶ And therfore the creature humayne sholde alway the more for to enforce hym to loue / to serue / for to honour god ¶ The thyrde reason is to take away the loue and affeccyon of worldly thynges as sayd is to fore For where all the herte suffyseth not for to loue almyghty god suffycyently / consydered his grete excellence noblenes and puyssaunte magnyfycence as is tofore sayd / thenne he that putteth in his herte the loue of thyÌ„ges temporell / the whiche ben but stynkynge fylthe and ordure to the regarde of god / semeth well that he dooth to god grete velony / and in this case he loueth not god with all his herte after the sayd commauÌ„dement / for of so moch as the herte of the creature is set to loue other thynge than god of so moche it is lesse in god The fourth reason is to kepe hym selfe and to put from hym all synnes and in especyall deedly synne / for no creature beynge in deedly synne may loue god For by deedly synne the creature offendeth god and is pryued and out of grace / whiche thynge is contrary to his loue ¶ Of the fyrst commaundement of the law Ca. iii. WE ought thenne accordynge to the sayd fyrst commaundement to loue with all our herte The whiche thynge the creature dothe / whaÌ„ in all his werkes his entencyon is ryghtfull and after goddes wyll For the entencyon of the creature is suche vertu that he rendre his werkes operacyon after god good or euyll / and therfore what so euer werke that the creature do yf his entencion be euyl the operacyon and al the werke is without meryte / and conuerted fro it / in to do euyll / herof it is sayd in the gospell by our sauyour Ihesu cryst / yf thyn eye be euyll all thy body is derke That is to saye yf thyn entencyon be euyll / all thy werkes ben derke and in synne and wtout meryte And therfore it behoueth to rendre the werke of the creature good and merytorye and that his entencyon be ryghtfull accordynge to goddes wyll But bycause that for to rendre the werke of the creature good and merytoryous accordynge vnto god / suffyseth not onely good entencyon But it behoueth also to haue the ryghtfull entencion and good wylle lyke as it may appyere in hym / that wyll stele and take other mennys goodes for to nourysshe and fede the poure peple / For thentencyon of the wylle to gyue for goddes sake to the pore peple is good But the wylle to stele or take awaye other mennes goodes is euyll for to so do And therfore that dede shal be euyll / and may not be excused For by cause that an euyll werke for ony good entencyon may not be excused It is sayd after in the commaundement / that the creature ought to loue god with all his soule That is to saye that his wyll accorde in all his werkes to the wyll of god / this demaunde we of god whan we say our pater noster whan we praye god that his wyll be done in vs. ¶ Also by cause that yet for to accomplisshe the sayd commaundement / suffyse not onelye good entencyon and good wyl it is after sayd in the same commaundement / that the creature ought to loue his god with all his entendemeÌ„t and vnderstondynge That is to saye that in thentendement of the creature be no deedly synnes delybered by consentynge ne concluded For alle consentynges concluded in thynge that sholde be as touchynge the dede of deedly synne / though soo be that the dede be not done outward as touchynge the werke that ony thynge ensie we therof / yet it is deedly synne And the creature beynge in deedly syÌ„ne may not loue god as aboue is sayd Also by cause that yet for taccomplysshe the sayd commaundement suffyse not onelye good entencyon good wyll as touchynge the werkes withoutforth / that in thentendement of the creature groweth deedly synne by consentynge / but it behoueth that the creature put and employe all the strengthe and puyssaunce that he hath in good werkes and dedes Iuste and vertuous / that they be to thonoure and worshyp of almyghty god and to the saluacion of hym self and his neyghboure It is sayd afin the foresayd commaundement that the creature ouÈt for to loue his god with all his myght and with all his strengthe And therfore all they that put and employe all theyr myght and strengthe in the werkys of synne / done ageynst the sayd commaundemenet synne deedly Thus it appyereth clerely that for taccomplysshe the sayd fyrst commaundement pryncypall The creature ought to gyue vnto god entencyon / wyll / entendement and all his strength and good wyll by the maner that is aforesayd ¶ The seconde commaundement of the lawe is how eche man ought to loue his neghboure Ca. .iiii. FOr to haue knowleche of the seconde commaundement pryncypall aforsayd touchynge the loue of his neyghboure whome the creature ought to loue as hym self It is to wete that to the loue of our neyghbour four thynges ought to moue vs. Fyrst for by cause that we all ben chyldren of god by creacyon And naturally brethern and systers loue that one that other And thus we ben all members of Ihesu Cryst / whiche is our heed and one membre loueth another naturally Secondly to this ought to brynge vs the loue obeyssaunce that we owe to god as aforesayd is / whiche commaundeth vs to loue our neyghboure Thyrdly to
lorde how well dranke we yester euen the good wyne / and how good mete ete we Thenne after this be wepeth the gloton his synnes and sayth Alas sayth he I wende well this nyght to haue dyed / the wyne yester euen was ouer stronge / myn heed aketh I shal not be eased tyll I haue dronken This god of the wombe of glotonye is ouer euyll For fyrst he becometh a tauerner goer / and frequenteth tauernes / after he playeth at the dyse / and after he selleth his good away / after he becometh a rybaude / an holyer and letchour / and at the laste he hangeth on the galowes This is the salary and scotte that is ofte payde for the synne of glotonye This synne is departed after saynt Gregory in to .v. braūches For there is synne in fyue maners in etynge drynkȳge therfore some drynke tofore tyme / or wtout reasō or mesure / or ouer ardauntly or ouer plentyuously or ouer curyously Thenne the braunche of this synne is to eete tofore tyme. Ouer moche to ete is a foule thynge to a man that hath aege dyscrecyon whan he may not abyde a due houre for to ete and drynke By grete excesse of glotony it happeth ofte that a man that is hole and stronge of bo drynketh and eteth without cause reasonable tofore tyme ordeyned / and that he cometh to the meet as dothe a dombe beest And moche sȳne and maladyes bodely happen oft by the customes / therof it cometh that this gloton sayth that he may not faste ne doo penaunce For he sayth he hath an euyll heed and an euyll herte also And certaynly he sayth trouthe / and for to breke the fastynge dayes and vygylles commaunded is ryght a grete sȳne For he dampneth hym selfe / and also wyll haue company with hym / and withdraweth and letteth them to doo well And ledeth them vnto hell For he maketh theym to breke theyr fastes / to doo glotony / whiche they wolde kepe yf it were not the euyll company and felaushyp For these glotons and these lechoures amonge all other euylles that they do / done a synne that is proprely the crafte of the deuyll / that is whan they lette and withdrawe all them that they may fro well doynge / and mocke and scorne all them that loue to do wel ¶ These glotons say that they may not faste / but they lyen falsely For lytell loue of god causeth theym to say so For yf they loued as moche the veray glory of heuen as they do the vayne glory of the worlde For lyke as they faste for theyr worldy occupacyon and temporall goodes often vnto the nyght as well myght they faste vnto noone for the loue of god yf that they loued hym And yf that they dyde desyred theyr saluacyon But they be lyke vnto the chylde that all day wyll haue breed in his honde And trouthe it is the lyke as one synneth by etynge and drynkynge ouer erly Ryght so one synneth by ouer late souper These people that so moche loue to wake by nyght and wast the tyme in ydlenes / and go late to bedde / and aryse late synneth in many maners Fyrst in this that they waste lose the tyme and torne it / whan they make of the nyght the daye and of they daye the nyght God curseth suche people by the prophete For men ought on the day to do good occupye hym in good and holy werkes And in the nyght to prayse god / and to praye hym deuoutly / and to yelde hȳ thankȳges of his gyftes But they that then lye in theyr beddes whan they sholde be vp and rysen must nedes slepe whan they sholde praye to god and worshyp hym / and here the seruyce of our lorde / and thus lese all the tyme / and the daye and the nyght Also in these grete wakynges ben commysed many synnes / as play at the chesse at tables at the dyse / and is there spoken many folysshe wordes and corrupte / of whiche many synnes folowe ensyewe And also the caytyues waste theyr bodyes theyr tyme / theyr soule / theyr wytte / and theyr good The .ii. braunche of glotony is to ete and drynke outragyously and without mesure These that so done ben lyke vnto a gulfe that swaloweth all / in lyke wyse as an abysme It is ouer grete wysdome to kepe mesure in etynge and drynkynge Also it is grete helthe for moche people dye ofte tofore theyr tyme by outragyous etynge / and drynkynge / and by suche excesses and suche outrages comen and sourdeth many maladyes and sekenesses But he the wyll knowe and take this mesure / he ought to knowe that there be many maners for to lyue in the worlde Some lyueth after the flesshe and after the eases of the body Some after theyr Iolyte Other after theyr Ypocrysye Other after physyke Other after theyr honeste Other after that theyr synne requyreth Other after theyr spyryte / and after the loue of god ¶ They that lyue after the flesshe as saynt Poule sayth sleeth theyr soules / for they make of theyr bely theyr god They retayne neyther reason ne mesure / and therfore they shall haue in that other worlde payne and tourment without mesure ¶ They that lyue after theyr Iolyte wyll holde company with foles / suche folke can not / may not / ne wyll not holde ne kepe measure ne reason They that lyue after Ypocrysye ben they that ben marters to the deuyll Suche Ypocrytes haue two mesures For the ii deuylles that tourmenteth thypocryte ben moche contrary that one to that other / the one sayth ete ynough that thou mayst be fayre and fatte The other sayth thou shalte not / but thou shalte faste so that thou be pale and lene / to th ende that the worlde holde the for a good man And that it may appere that thou doost moche penaunce Now it behoueth that the Ypocryte haue two mesures / one lytell and another grete / of the whiche they vse the lytell mesure tofore the people / and the grete mesure they vse so that no man seeth them / they retayne not the true mesure that ben auarycyous In suche maner as the mouthe wyll / whiche is lady of the house / and commaundour Thenne bytwene the bely and the mouthe of the gloton ben thre dysputacyons The bely sayth I wolde be full / the mouth sayth I wyll not be ful the bely sayth to hȳ I wyll that thou ete take ynough and dyspende largely The mouthe sayth I shall not I wyll that thou restrayne the. And what shall the sory caytyf do whiche is seruaunt to his two euyll lordes Two mesures maken the peas The mesure of the bely in an other mannes hous good and large / and the mesure of his mouth in his owne hous soroufull and ouerscars ¶ They that lyuen after physyke kepen the mesure of ypocras / whiche is lytel and streyte / and it happeth ofte
that / the soule is deed For lyke as the body is deed withoute the soule So is the soule deed without the grace of god It is called vertue by cause it adourneth the soule with good werkes with good maners / it is called charyte bycause it Ioyneth the soule to god / also dooth all thynge as it were with god For charyte is nothynge elys but a dere vnyte / That is the perfeccyon and the beneurte to whiche we ought to entende Moche were deceyued the auncyente phylosophers that so curyously dysputeden enquyreden who was the souerayne good in this lyfe / and neuer coude they fynde ne knowe it / For some sette theyr stuyde and theyr wytin delytes of the body The other in rychessys the other in honeste but the grete phylosopher saynte Poule whiche was rauysshed vnto the thyrde heuen / and passed all the other phylosophers techeth vs by many reasons that the souerayne good in this lyfe and that the quene of vertues is for to loue god and to haue veray charyte in hym selfe For with out this good ne aualen all the other goodes ryght nought And who that hath this good of charyte he hathe all other goodes / and whan all other goodes shall fayle / this good shall not fayle and aboue all the grete goodes that ben this charyte is lady And thenne the gretest good the whiche is vnder heuen Is charyte And also after by cause that thou wylte and desyerest this good the whiche by ryght is called vertue / and that thou desyerest to loue it moost / and to seche it aboue all other goodes And I wyll yet shewe vnto the his valure it is acustomed for to deuyle thre maner of goodes in the worlde / that is to wyte goodes honourable godes delectable goodes prouffytable There be no mo goodes ne veray ne good ne fayre but these thre maners / and this seest thou openly of the worlde that none desyreth ne loueth ony thynge but that he wene that it be honourable or delectable or prouffytable The proude secheth thȳge honourable The couetous man seketh thynges prouffytable The delycious secheth thynges delectable And whan they sechen this thynge vaynlye Euery man ought to knowe that vertues haue these thre propretees For vertue is moche honourable and delectable and prouffytable ¶ What vertues been goodes honourable Ca. .lxvii. ALl vertues ben goodes honourable / this mayst thou see in this manere Syxe thynges been in this worlde moche desyred by cause that they seme moche honourable / that is to wyte beaulte wytte prowesse power fraunchyse and noblesse These ben .vi. fountaynes of vanyte Of vayne glorye cometh and sourdeth a plante Beaute is a thynge moche loued For it is a thȳge moche honourable / and neuerthelesse beaute that the eyen and the body se and loue / is a thynge fals couerte and vayne It is fals for he or she is noo thynge fayre But our eyen ben vayne and feble that see noo thynge but the skȳne wtoutforth Thenne who myght see as clere as a beest that is called a lynx whiche seth thorughe oute a walle he sholde clerely see that a fayre body nys but a whyte sacke ful of stynkynge dunge / lyke a dunghylle couerd with snowe or with grene grasse ¶ Also I saye to that the this beaulte is moche shorte not abydynge For it is sone faylled and anone passed as a fume or a smoke and as the flour of the felde or of the medowe Anone as the soule departeth fro the body / fayre well all the beaulte is faylled and gone Thenne the beaute that the body hath / the soule hath gyuen it too hym And therfore moche fooles ben they that for the beaute of the body gloryfye themselfe But the beaute of the soule is the ryght beaute / whiche alwaye encreaceth and neuer shall fayle This is the veray beaute by whiche the soule pleaseth god to the aungelles that seeth the herte This beaute rendreth gyueth to the soule graces vertues and loue of god For she reformeth reparaylleth and rendreth her ryght enprynte That is the ymage of her maker / which is beaute without cōparyson / and who best resembleth in getynge the vertues / in pluckynge vp and caste from hym all synnes / kepe his cōmaundemētes entyerly he is moost fayre Then the moost fayre thynge that is vnder god / is the soule whiche hath parfytly his ryght four me and his ryght clerete / coloure of floure / clerenes of the sonne / fygure of man / and pleasaūce of precyous stones And all that the eye of the body seeth of beaute is fylthe foule to the regarde of the soule / all that may be thoughte of beaulte may not be cōpared to the soule ¶ Of veray sapyence Ca. lxviii CLere wytte and clergye is a thynge moche honourable / and moche to be praysed But and thou wylte be wyse a ryght and lerne verey clergye / do so that thou haue veray good / that is grace and vertues That is the veray sapyence that enlumyneth the herte of a man / lyke as the sonne enlumyneth all the worlde This wytte passeth sourmounteth all the wytte of the worlde / lyke as the sonne passeth the clerenes of the mone / For the wyt of the worlde is but foly / lyke as the scrypture sayth / and chyldehode wodenes Foly is in them that so moche loueth the worlde and his beaute / and that can not knowe the day fro the nyght Ne Iuge betwene grete and lytell / and bytwene precyous and vyle They wene the mone to be the sonne For they wene that the honoure of the worlde be veraye glorye / and a lytell apple to be a grete mountayne / for they wene that the worlde be a grete thynge But to the regarde of heuen it ne is but pouerte They wene that a glasse be a saphyr And they wene that theyr strengthe theyr power be moche grete / whiche is more feble more frayle than is glasse ¶ Also I saye that this chyldehode of the wytte of the worlde is in them that so moche make them wyse for to kepe and ease the body and to be in delyces whiche lyuen as a chylde / that seche nothynge ellys but to do theyr propre wyll In suche people reason is deed and therfore they lyuen as beestys / for theyr wytte is al torned and corrupt / lyke as is the taste and sauour of a seeke man or of a woman grete with chylde / whiche fyndeth more sauour and appetyte in a soure apple than in brede made of whete / and more sauoure in a cool than in good metes Also these people may not byleue that there is more Ioye delyte in louynge god and to serue and to honoure hym / than in doynge the wyll of the caroyne of theyr body For they can not ryght fully Iuge betwene swete and bytter Also I saye that the wytte of
the worlde is wodenesse in theym that so moche be subtyll in fyndynge malyce for tengyne and deceyue other / bee it by strengthe or by plee or by barate And that ne thynke ne studye sauf to auaunce and enhaunce them self / and to greue other This wytte as sayth saynt Iames is the wytte of the deuyll / whiche alwaye payneth hym self to do harme to other But the veray wytte that the holy ghoost enseygneth and techeth to the frendes of our lorde is in knowynge without mysprysynge what euery thynge worthe / he sheweth that the worlde is vayne in beynge foule in valour / in louynge it and sauourynge it The rychessys been vyle and transytorye And the delytes ben bytter After he gyueth feelynge that the loue of god and vertues is a thynge veray precyous swete / veray for she fylleth the herte nouryssheth it She is precyous for one may bye god and all that he hath She is swete / for it is the manna that all thynges maketh swete / labour sorowe wepynges shames trybulacyons aduersytees martyrdomes and all paynes And all that one may thȳke to loue / it maketh it sauoure lyke sugre This is the wytte and the sapyēce wherof the scrypture sayth This is the sapyence oute of whiche groweth purete and veray conscyence ¶ Of the prowesse of the knyghtes of Ihesu Cryst Ca. lxix AFter I saye that vertues charyte gyueth very prowesse Thenne there is no prowesse by ryght but in the knyghtes of god whiche the holy ghoost adoubeth and armeth with vertues charyte In prowesse ben thre partyes Hardynes / strengthe / stedfastnesse There is none noble by ryght but yf he haue these .iii. thȳges / but yf he be hardy / prudent / entreprenaunt of grete thynges / and stronge puyssaunt for to pursue them and ferme stable to fynysshe theym But without wyt and without pourueyaunce no thynge auayleth none of these thre thynges For lyke as sayth the boke of the arte of chyualry Errour without batayle may not be amended For it is anone cōpared Folysshe entrepryse is where as lyeth lytell prouffyte / moche dyspence grete payne and peryll These ben thentrepryses of them that be called wyse and hardy in this worlde / that theyr bodyes and theyr soules putteth in synne / in peryll / and in payne for to gete a lytel lose and praysynge whiche is moche vayne / and lytell endureth ¶ But vertue dooth make a man of grete herte / and of wyse entrepryse / whan that she maketh a man the whiche is nothynge but erthe soo hardy / that he dare entrepryse for to conquere the realme of heuen / and to vaynquysshe all the deuylles of hell that ben so stronge ¶ This enterpryse is good wyse and moche prouffytable For there is therin lytel perylle / and lytell payne but there is glorye honour and prouffyte inestymable / perdurable without mesure / who hath no vertu hath no grete herte / but he is lyke hym that is aferde of nought Suche ben they that doubten the euylles the aduersytees / perylles / trybulacyons of the worlde And that haue drede to lese that / whiche they may not longe kepe ¶ They haue no grete herte that gyue it ouer for nought / lyke as done they that gyue theyr hertes for to loue the godes of fortune / whiche in trouthe ben ryght nought / but fylthe charge and ordure too the regarde of the goodes glorye perdurable ¶ Thenne suche people ben lyke a chylde / that loueth better an apple or a myrrour than a royame But vertu gyueth grete herte by ryght For vertue maketh them too conquere heuen / despyse the worlde / to bere grete dedes of penaunce And to supporte and gladly suffre all the euylles of the worlde and to endure theym for goddes sake And also for too withstonde and resyste all the assaultes of the deuyll Lyke as the wyse and prudente Seneke sayth / wepynges myschaunces / sorows trybulacōns / harmes shames / perylles / and all that whiche euyll fortune may menace and doo / haue noo more power ayenst vertu / than one drope of water sholde doo in the see / vertue maketh a man hardy as a lyon / stronge as an holyfaunte / ferme and durablee as the sonne whiche alwaye renneth and is neuer wery Thenne there is no prowesse ne strengthe but in vertues Of veray seygnorye whiche gyueth grace vertues .lxx THus is there none veray seygnory / but in vertues A grete lorde is he that knoweth all the worlde Suche a lorde gyueth too a man suche vertues and grace For he setteth a man in his ryght estate / in whiche he was fyrst sette in and made The man was made in suche honour and in suche seygnorye / that he was lorde ouer all creatures that were vnder heuen / to whome all thynges obeyed / and to whome no thynge myght noye ne greue / and this is the ryght estate to the man and to his seygnorye / but he lost this seygnorye by synne And myght not recouer it ageyne but by vertu But vertue setteth a man on hygh and setteth the worlde vnder feet and maketh hym too conuerse in heuen / vertue maketh a man by good ryght gretter lorde of the worlde / than the kynge is of his reame For of the goodes of the worlde he hath as moche as his herte desyreth / he hath his vsage and his sustenaunce / and as moche as he may haue for suffysaunce / and more suffysantlye than the kynge hath in his reame For all that the good hath and the euyll / al is his Therfore of all he doth his prouffyte and preyseth god and thanketh and loueth hym the more doubteth and serueth And in this he seeth knoweth that euery creature is made for to serue hym Also there is another seygnorye moche grete / withoute whome there is none by ryght lorde for he is emperour and lorde of hym self / that is of his body and or his herte / whiche he Iustyceth theym in good pees and dooth his wylle For his herte is so ioyned to the wyll of god / so that of all that / that god dooth he thanketh hym / and it playseth hym well And this is the seygnorye that vertue gyueth too hym that hath it Of this speketh Seneke and sayth as grete honour gyueth god to the / whan thou arte lorde and emperour of thy self and more whan a kynge / ha lorde god how many kynges emperours other grete lordes haue ben in the worlde and also barons / that haue citees / castellys / royames that haue not this seygnorye For they be not lordes of theyr hertes By cause that it tormenteth ofte / by wrath or by maletalente / or by couetyse / or by desyre that they may not accomplysshe ¶ Here is spoken of veray fraunchyse Ca. .xxi. AFter this I saye there is none that hath veray fraunchyse / yf he haue
herte ¶ But now vnderstonde and beholde that this that God gyueth vnto the poore of spyryte is the heuen / and to the debonayre the erthe / where shal be the auarycyous men thenne and the felons / but in the tormentes of helle ¶ Of the seuen gyftes of the holy ghoost / and fyrst of the gyfte of scyence Ca. C.x. THe fyrst gyfte of the holy ghoost is the gyfte of scyence / whiche maketh a man humble dredefull The seconde maketh hym swete and pyteous The thyrde maketh hym clere sceynge / and connynge / and therfore it is called the gyfte of scyence For it maketh a man wyse and connynge in mesure in all thynges / whan this gyfte descendeth in to the herte of a persone / he extyrpeth and casteth out the rote and the synne of yre and of felonnye whiche troubleth the herte / and maketh a man lyke as he were fro hym self so that he seeth no thynge ne for hym self ne for to conduyte other But this gyfte enlumyneth the herte on al partes so that he may not be deceyued of ony persone / lyke as the gyfte of pyte maketh the man Innocent / soo that he wyll none deceyue / wherof saynt Iohan sayth in thappocalyps in spyryte / that the holy man that was all full of this espyryte / was all full of eyen tofore and after And an aungell shewed to Zacharye the prophete a stone wherin were seuen eyen These ben the eyen that the good men haue / for they see clere within theyr herte and all aboute them That is to saye vnder and aboue / on the ryght syde and on the lyft syde This gyfte of scyence is maystre of the werkes / and that is to saye of vertues of the soule For he maketh all Iuste to a poynte by lyne rule plombe / he taketh fyrst his bounde and his poynte / and that is that the wyse man sayth In all that thou begynnest / beholde the ende / to what ende thou shall come / after he holdeth the lyne For he goeth by ryght waye afore by ryght entencyon After he maketh all by rule For he maketh it all playne and by mesure For he loueth the comyne waye of good people without to fynde noueltees After he preueth his syght and his werkes by plombe For he taketh hede that his body enclyne not towarde the ryght syde by prosperyte ne to the lyft syde by aduersyte This gyfte of sapyence is lyke to the pryour of a cloystre of the soule / whiche kepeth thordre / maketh it to be kept oueral / Fyrst in the herte after in other offyces in this herte ben .ii. sydes .ii. thȳges / the vnderstōdynge the wyl / the reason affecion whā these two sydes and these two thynges accordeth togyder / they make moche swete melodye and moche fayre seruyce That is to wete whan the wyll / wyll all that whiche the vnderstondynge ensygneth to god / and that affeccyon feleth all that whiche reason vnderstandeth / yf they vnderstande well in these .ii. sydes whiche ben in the soule / whan and how they ought to accorde In one syde ben .iiii. lockes / and in that other syde .iiii. for reson hath foure offyces That is to enquire / to Iuge / to remembre and to shewe that whiche they vnderstande by worde This gyft ensygneth the reason that whiche he ought to lerne and enquyre / and in what ordre / and in what maner / and what ende / and this is a moche grete craft For the mysprysynge in these thynges is moche peryllous / it behoueth to vnderstonde the reason / and to lerne that whiche is necessarye / prouffytable / and honeste / and for to withdrawe fro the contrarye O god how a creature leseth his tyme / and dyspences for to lerne thynges that ben of no value / but vaynglory and synne But the holy ghoost by this gyft ensygneth lyghtly and maketh a man to lerne ordynatly that / whiche is moost necessarye to the prouffyte of the soule And that ledeth hym moost ryght vnto the loue of god for the helthe and the prouffyte of his soule / and to helpe his neyghboure Also it behoueth the reason well to enquyre the trouthe of the thȳges And also how he ought for to beleue Well to beleue is whan a man beleueth symply / and stedfastly all that whiche god sayth commaundeth without ouer moche to enquyre / and without to enserche the counceyles of god and the profounndnesse of his Iugementes the heyght of his magnyfycenciall magesty / and the reasons of his holy Sacramentes / Well to beleue is whan one beleueth not ouer hastely / ne ouer late / ne to eueryche / ne to none / for that one and other is vyce as sayth seneke After good enquyrynge cometh wel to Iuge For to Iuge well it apperteyneth that one afferme no thȳge to the tyme that he hath enquyred the trouthe of the thynge / that he be well encerteyned / and that he entremete not to Iuge that whiche apperteyneth no thynge to hym / lyke as ben the secrete thynges and hydde / thentencyons of hertes / the thinges that may not be torned on the ryght syde ne on the lyfte syde / that yet they be vnderstonde to the better parte Of whiche the spyryte by this gyfte maketh the reason to Iuge well / and to knowe the ryght / and to determyne bytwene good thynges and euyll thynges bytwene the lytel thynges and the grete thynges / for he must prayse euery thynge after his valure Also this spyryte maketh the reason to remembre For he remembreth a man all that is nedefull to hym / lyke as god sayth in the gospel The thynges that ben passed he must remembre and brynge ageyne to memorye The thynges that ben present he must vnderstonde remembre and ordeyne The thynges that ben to come he must purueye fore ordeyne and aduyse These ben the seuen partyes of the vertue of prudence / after that whiche the phylosophre sayth Also he maketh the reason for to speke by mesure and be stylle gladly / and not to speke tyll it be nede Soo that the worde be tofore well aduysed and well thought or it come to the tongue And that the worde be wayed and poysed as good money preued lyke as Salamon sayth ¶ Soo that the worde be accordynge vnto god and without synne of good mater and of good fourme That is that it haue not ouermoche / ne ouer lytel And that it be well employed For good money ne a good worde ought not to be gyuen for nought ¶ Herof sayth god in the gospell that we sholde not caste the precyous stones tofore hogges and swyne That is to vnderstonde the precyous wordes of our lorde god before them / and to suche persones that sette them selfe not to werke for theyr helthe But lyueth in the ordure of theyr synnes Therfore holy scrypture calleth them hogges This gyfte aforesayd ordeyneth and accordeth
that other party of the hert That is the wyll where it hath .iiii. partyes / loue / drede / Ioye / and sorowe That is that one loue that / whiche he oweth / so as he oweth / as moche as he oweth / and that he drede not also that whiche he oweth / and that he haue no Ioye ne delyte / sauf in that he oweth after god / and also how he oweth / and as moche as he oweth And that he haue no sorowe ne heuynes / but in that whiche he oweth / and also how he oweth / and as moche as he oweth whan these .iiii. partyes ben accorded / thenne it is sayd that a man is well attempred whan he is not ouer colde ne ouer hote / ne ouer drye / ne ouer moyst And in semblable maner as to the body of a man cometh ouer many maladyes / for the dysatempraunce of these foure qualytees / or of these foure humoures Ryght so the herte of a man cometh to hym the vyces and synnes by the dysatempraunce of these foure maners Whan these two sydes of the herte ben accorded and ordeyned / that is the reason and the wyll Thenne is a man ordeyned within hȳ selfe These ben the two sprynges of the rote of a moche fayre vertue the whiche is called equyte Equyte proprely is that the whiche is doone by good Iugemente and true sentences / not ouer softe / ne ouer rude / without bowynge and enclynynge vnto that one partye / nor vnto that other / whan one gooth forthe aryght as alyne / for equyte is none other thynge but vnyte / that is egalte / all egall / who hath this vertue is a trewe Iuge and wyse For he doth no thynge but it be enquyred examyned lyke as a good Iuge ought to do Thenne the fyrst degree of this vertue / is that a man be a good Iuge of hym self for he ought to entre in to hym self / and beholde his conscyence / and wel to examyne his thoughtes and his wylles / whether they ben good or euyll / and to ordeyne all to the regarde of reason / so that wylle and reason be at one accorde For lyke as saynt Bernarde sayth / vertue is none other thynge but thassente of reason and of wyll That is that wyll without gaynsayenge / saye and do / and also put in oeuure / that is to saye in dede and werke that whiche reason sayth / sheweth / and enseygneth / ¶ Of the seconde dgree of equyte and of ryght wysnes Cxi THe seconde degre of this vertue is / that a man be a ryghtfull Iuge / and holde the ryght lyne of equyte bytwene hym self and that whiche is vnder hym That is his body whiche he hath in kepynge whiche he ought here to nourysshe / that it may serue / and be so dyscyplyned and chastysed that it wyll of all and in all thynges obeye vnto the soule / lyke as a good chamber yer obeyeth to her maystresse / a good dyscyple to his mayster without gaynsayenge For the reason ought to be lyke as a trewe arbytrour bytwene the soule and the body / whiche ought to kepe the ryght of eyther parte In suche maner that the spyryte be a good lorde / the body be a good seruaūte veray subgette obeyssaunt to the soule Now is it nede too holde in this partye ouerall equyte ryght mesure in drynkynge and etynge / in clothynge and in arayenge / and in all the thynges that the body commaundeth For it enclyneth more to ouermoche than to ouer lytel After hym behoueth the .v. wyttes of his body wel to conduyte and to gouerne / by reason and by equyte / so that eueriche serue in his offyce without synne and with out mysprysyon / lyke as with the eyen to beholde / the ere 's to here / the nose to smell / the mouthe to taste and to speke / the handes and all the body to touche Whan these v. wyttes ben well kepte frome synne / thenne is the castell sure and ferme For these ben the gates of the soule These ben the wyndowes by whiche dethe entreth ofte in to the soule This wytnesseth the prophete ¶ Of the .iii. degre of the vertue of equyte Ca. C.xii. THe thyrde degree of the vertue of equyte is the a man be a good Iuge / that he holde equyte / bytwene hym self / and that / that is tofore hȳ That ben the temporall thynges / whiche oft dystroyeth body and soule / as whan a man setteth his loue ouermoche on them / lyke as dooth the auarycyous men all they that aboue mesure loue worldly thynges For they haue theyr hertes knytte in the nettes of the deuyll / as Iob sayth / that is to plees quarelles / forayne werkes / wherin they ocupye them so / that in the lyfe spyrytuall ne to theyr saluacyon they can nought do / ne may not ne wyll not entende / so moche ben they blynde and bounden in theyr synnes / wherof it happeth that whiche Seneke the wyse man sayth That by this we synne and go out of the waye / that as touchynge the party of the bodyly lyfe / euery man thynketh and is besy / but for to ordeyne his lyfe spyrytuell for to haue glory pardurable no man thynketh ne studyeth Now this is then moche grete necessyte / that a man set not ouer moche his herte in forayne thynges / for who that soo ouer moche dooth / he falleth in the charges and in the couetyses of the worlde whiche is the rote of all vyces ¶ Of the fourth and fyfth degre of the vertue of equyte Ca. C.xiii. THe fourthe degre of the vertue of equyte is that a man se clerely on his ryght syde / that is that he take hede and take example of the good for to gouerne hym / that be lyke as at his ryght syde And of the good and wyse men he take wytte example But in this syde behoueth to holde dyscressyon and equyte For all the people may not goo by one waye / ne all the good / ne al the wyse / haue not al one selfe grace / lyke as the membres of a body haue not one selfe offyce / and herof ben many persones nouices deceyued in theyr herte / lyke as sayth the boke of collacions of holy faders / whiche treateth of the perfeccyon of vertues / for whan they se a man wel perfyte moche prouffyte in one estate and in one grace Anone they entende / desyre / and wyll resemble hym / and whan they se another / that in an other estate dooth also moche good / also they crye and renne after / and also to the thyrde and the fourthe with none they abyde ne reste They be also lyke as the yonge greyhounde / whiche is yet all yonge / that renneth after euery beest that he seeth tofore hym / and dooth noothynge but maketh hym wery and leseth his tyme. Here of telleth
degrees / the brauÌ„ches / the fruyte the spyrytuell good that cometh therof in this worlde and in that other Of the fruyte of this tree sayth Dauyd to vs in the psaulter in this wyse Blyssed is he that entendeth to the nedy to the poore That is to say that he abyde not so longe tyll the poore demaunde hym / but that he gyue without askynge Ne he hath no herte to gyue that gyueth not wtout askynge / he dooth wel that gyueth to the pore but he dooth moche better that gyueth wtout demaundyÌ„ge And therfore sayth Dauyd the prophete / blyssed is he that entendeth to the poore / wherfore is he blyssed / he sayth after in the sayd place / that god shall delyuer hym in the euyl daye fro his ennemyes That shall be at the daye of dome whiche shall be harde and euyll to them that shall be dampned bycause they haue not fulfylled the werkes of mercy ¶ Thenne shall the Iuge say to them at that day Goo ye cursed in to the fyre of hell with the deuylles to be dampned / whan I had honger and thyrst ye gaue to me neyther meet ne drynke I haue be seke and ye vesyted not me I was naked and ye clothed me not And therfore they shall be delyuered to theyr enemyes / that ben the deuylles of hell / and they that haue ben pyteous and that haue entended to the poore people shall be delyuerd that daye and sholde be put in the possessyon of heuen Lyke as our lorde sayth in the gospell For he shall saye vnto them that haue done and accomplysshed the werkes of mercy Come ye blessed of my fader Receyue ye take ye the kyngdome of heuen whiche that I haue made redy for you syth the begynnynge of the worlde For that whiche ye haue done to the poore / ye haue done to me Grete honoure shall god doo to them / whan he shall thanke theym of the werkes of mercy / and shal gyue to them the glorye perdurable And therfore sayth he in the gospell Blessed ben the mercyfull For they shall haue mercy / by cause they haue enlonged the lyf of the poore people by theyr almesse / and therfore they that haue had pyte of the membres of Ihesu Cryst / and haue susteyned them in this worlde / and haue comforted and ayded them in theyr aduersytees It is wel reason that he do to them mercy whiche delyuerth fro al aduersytes and fro all myserye / and so shall he do whan he shall gyue to them the lyf perburable / wherto mercy shall lede them and herberowe theym ¶ Of the lyf actyf of the lyf contemplatyf Ca. Cxl. THe holy scrypture wytnesseth enseygneth to vs .ii. maners of wele and goodes / by whiche a persone cometh to the lyf perdurable / the fyrst is called the lyf actyf / by cause it is in labour of good werkes / and maketh a man to entende to the proufyte of hym self and of his neyghbour The seconde is called conteÌ„platyf / by cause it is in reste of good werkes / and ne entendeth to noo thynge but to loue and to knowe god Thenne is he ydle of werkes without forth / and lyke as he were in a dreme / or heuely a slepe / but he is awaked withinforthe for to thynke vpon god / and for to loue hym And for the loue that he hay e to god / he put all other thynges in forgetynge / lyke as he were all rauysshed and fyxed in god / and desyreth for to be dysceuered fro the mortall body / for to be alway with Ihesu cryste The fyrst lyfe / is the felde of good werkes where the knyghtes of god assaye and preue them The seconde reste theym with all myghty god in the chambre of clene conscyence The fyrst entendeth for to fede god with the meet of good werkes The seconde entendeth for to be fedde and fulfylled of god by veray comfort spyrytuell ¶ Of the fyrste is sygnyfyed by Martha whiche was besy to fede our lorde / as it is sayd in the gospell The seconde is sygnyfyed by Mary magdaleyn whiche sate at the fete of Ihesu cryst / herde his wordes The fyrst is a way and entre to the seconde For noo persone may come to the lyfe contemplatyf / yf he be not fyrst proued well in the lyf actyf Lyke as sayth saynt Gregory The gyftes and the vertues wherof we haue spoken tofore / appertayneth to the fyrst lyfe / whiche is called actyf The two last gyftes of whiche we shall speke / by the helpe ayde of the holy goost / that is to wete the gyfte of vnderstandynge and of the gyft of wysdome and sapyence appertayneth to the seconde lyfe / whiche is called contemplatyf This lyfe hath two thynges lyke as we haue tofore touched / that is to wete in the ryght knowlege of god and in parfyte loue The gyft of vnderstandynge ledeth to perfeccyon of ryght knowlege The gyft of sapyence ledeth to perfeccyon of loue We shall saye fyrst of the gyft of vnderstandynge after that the holy goost shall teche and ensygne vs. This gyft that is called the gyft of vnderstondynge ne is none other thynge after the sayntes and the doctours / but a lyght and a clerenes of grace the whiche the holy goost sendeth in to the hert by vnderstoÌ„dynge a man is lyft vp to knowe his maker and the thyÌ„ges spyrytuell whiche may not be seen bodely And all the thâ—ges that apperteyneth to the helthe of the soule / and to naturall reason to whiche the vnderstondynge of a maÌ„ by hym selfe may not come This gyfte is called lyghte / for it purgeth the vnderstondynge of a man fro the derkenes of Ignouraunce / and fro the spottes and fyfth of synne For lyke as the bodely â—yght taketh away the derkenes / and maketh the bodely thynges to be seen clerely Ryght so this spuÌ„â—ll lyght purgeth the vnderstondyÌ„ge of a man / to that whiche he may see clerely and knowe certeynly / as a man may knowe in this mortal lyf god his maker / and the spyrytuell creatures / lyke as ben the aungellys and the soules and the thynges that apperteyne to the helthe of soules That ben the artycles of the feyth of whiche we haue spoken tofore This knowleche is not but in conscyence wel purged / pure and clene For lyke as sore eyen charged with fylthe may not beholde the clere lyght Ryght so the vnderstondynge of a man / whan it is of hym self may not beholde / ne knowe spyrytuell thynges / yf it be not wel purged fro al tatches of errour and of fylthe of synne / by veray fayth whiche purgeth the hertes as the scrypture sayth But the gyfte of the holy ghoost of whiche we speke here perfourmeth this purgacyon at the hert so that the holy soule whiche is purged enlumyned with this lyght of vnderstondynge may see and knowe god / and all that whiche is to hym necessarye
lygnage of chyldren Fourthly fame or renomme lowable Fyfthly rychesses After it is to wete that some be not sayd fader for cause of carnall generacyon / but for many other causes Somme ben sayd fader / and to eche of theym we ought for to bere honour and reuerence Fyrst some be sayd fader for good and holy doctryne / and good ensaumple that they haue gyuen and shewed of good and holy contemplatyf lyf As the apostles and other sayntes / for by theyr holy doctryne they haue made as chyldren of Ihesu cryst by faythe And to them we ought to bere honoure / reuerence / and obeysaūce / not onely with the mouth / but by ensyewynge theyr werkes / and theyr good and holy lyues and doctryne Secondly some ben sayd fader for the admynystracyon that they haue of god / lyke as the prelates ben of holy chyrche / to whome we ought to gyue honoure in obeynge to them and to theyr commaundemētes / as to the mynysters of god Thyrdly some be sayd fader for the garde and defence that they ought to doo theyr people as ben the kynge / the prynce and other lordes whiche haue the people to gouerne and to kepe and them we ought to loue and honoure and to them obeye by subiection / for theyr power cometh of god Fourthly some ben sayd fader / and ben to be honoured for the we le and good that is receyued of them / as ben they that socoure the poore in theyr necessyte / as fader by pyte and by compassion Fyfthly some be sayd fader and ought to be honoured for theyr olde aege / as ben the people whiche ben of grete aege AFter the sayd fyrst commaundement partyculer touchynge the loue dyleccyon of his neyghboure / whiche enduceth and somoneth a creature to doo wel Folowen the other .vi. whiche defende to a creature to doo euyll And therfore that amonge all the euylles that a creature may do to another / the gretest euyl is to sle him / this was gyuen to moyses in the seconde commaūdement of the .vii. is Thou shalt not slee / that is to wete creature reasonable of thy propre wyll auctoryte To the knowleche of whiche commaūdement is to wete that after holy scrypture been slayne creatures resonable in many maners / Fyrst by smytynge in the body and hurtynge in suche maner that deth ensyeweth therof / and this is not only agaynst the secōde cōmaūdemente pryncypall a fore sayd whiche commaundeth hym for to loue his neyghboure as hymselfe But it is agaynst nature for naturally all thyngees lyke semblable loue eche other Secondly by gyuynge counseyll fauour or ayde tendeth a creature to slee a nother bodyly / or to make hym to fall into dedly synne Thyrdly in makynge conforte and also ayde vnto a creature for to sle a nother corporally or for to cause hym for to fall in to dedly synne Fourthly in consentynge hym selfe to the bodly deth of another spyrytuall as touchynge to dedly synne / as to make a nother for to fall The whiche consentynge is vnderstonde / as oftymes as I may lette a nother fro deth corporall or spyrytuall as touchynge dedly synne and I let hȳ not By this it appereth clerely ynough that a creature somtyme sleeth a body / by iniurye done to his body in suche wyse that deth ensyeweth And sometyme the soule for to make it fall in to dedly synne and somtyme body and soule to gyder / by sleynge hym selfe or a woman grete with chylde lyuynge The seconde commaundemente defendeth hym too do euyll to a persone conioyned in maryage and that is this Thou shalte do none aduoutrye / that is to saye with a woman conioyned to a nother by maryage thou shalte haue no commyxyon / or flesshely company Ne a woman also maryed with ony other man thā her husbōde it is to wete that man woman in doynge a gaynst the sayd cōmaūdement synne fyrst a gaynst the lawe of god whiche hath defēded auoutrye by the sayd commaūdement / and yet they synne ageynst the lawe of god / by the whiche it is sayd / that this whiche god hath conioyned by maryage / that by man it may not be deceuered ne departed In gyuynge ouer his body by carnall copulacyon to another For after the holy scrypture man and woman by maryage ben constytued tweyne in one flesshe Yet eft they synne ageynst the sacrament of maryage made in the face of holy chyrche By the whiche man and woman promytte theyr trouth to other By vertue of the whiche othe the body of the man lōgeth to the woman / and the body of the woman is to the man / and ne ought not to be abandoned ne delyuered to other by cōmyxcyon carnall / alwaye how well that in the thynges aforesayd they synne deedly as sayd is yet the offēce and synne of the woman / that abandoneth her body to an other man than her husbonde by company carnall / and commyxcion / is more greter whan chyldren or lygnage ensueth than is of the man For with the sȳnes aforsayd she commytteth theft / in gyuynge to her husbonde heyres for to succede to hym of an other man than of hymselfe / and by this the woman cōmytteth sacrylege / treason and theft And in other cases the synne of the man that hathe commysed aduoutrye / is to be reprehended more than of the woman / by cause that he ought for to haue more greter knowlege / and to be more stronge for to keke hym from synne / than the woman whiche is frayle / and deceyued lyghtly by concupyscence Also a man is ordeyned and constytued heed and mayster of the woman / and in doynge that synne he gyueth to his wyf euyll ensample And also it is to wete that by the commaūdemente aforesayd is not onely defended aduoutrye of the man and woman assembled by matrymony / but also all fornycacion cōmyxcion / and flesshely companye bytwene man and woman other than in lawfull maryage is deedly synne / and deffended by the sayd commaundement / and to holde the contrarye is heresye For to take awaye fro god that whiche is gyuen and consecrate in the holy sacrament of baptesme for to gyue to a creature is more grete Iniurye and mysprysion and more greter synne than to take it fro a creature Thenne sythe that it is defended that suche Iniurye be made to a creature by more stronger reason / it ought in no wyse to be done vnto god Also yet ageynst the sayd commaundement ne mespryseth not onelye man woman by aduoultry and fornycacyon as touchynge the dede or fayte / but all the tymes that for to doo it they haue the wylle delyberyd and concluded Without the dede be doone or folowe it is deedly synne / also all byholdynges touchynges and kyssynges made by deliberacion for to come to the dede of carnall cōmyxcion and fornycacion as well by man as by woman out of
ladyes in suche maner that they knowe not them self / ne se not theyr defautes / ne theyr folyes ne theyr sȳnes / This is the most peryllous malady of all other Truely he is in grete peryll to whome all treacle torneth to venȳ / lyke as doctryne chastysynge dooth to proude For the more men chastyse blame them of theyr defautes / so moche more be they angry and defende them Pryde is the fyrst doughter of the deuyl / and she that hath moste gretest parte in his herytage Pryde warreth ayēst god his goodnes all graces / and agaynst all the good werkes that ben in the man For pryde maketh of almesse synne / and of vertue vyce / and thus is pryde a theef to god / and with the goodes that one ought gete heuen / he maketh hym wyn hell This synne is the fyrste For it assauteth the knyghtes of our lorde / and that laste leueth theym For whan the knyghtes of our lorde haue ouercomen vaynquysshed all other vyces and synnes Thenne assaute theym moost strongly the synne of pryde and of vayne glory ¶ The braūches of the synne of pryde ben these Ca. xiiii THe synne of pryde deuydeth hym departeth in so many partyes that vneth they may be nombred But there ben in this synne .vii. pryncypal partyes / whiche ben as .vii. braunches that yssue growe of an euyll rote Of whiche the fyrst braunche is dysloyalte or vntrouthe The seconde dyspyte The thyrde is surquydrye whiche some call presumpcyon The .iiii. folchaste / whiche is called ambycyon The fyfthe vaynglorye The .vi. ypocrysye The .vii. euyll and foule shame of well doynge To these seuen partyes and braunches appertayne all the synnes that groweth of pryde But eueryche of these seuen braunches haue many smal bowes ¶ The fyrst braunche is dysloyalte or vntrouthe Ca. xv THe fyrst braunche of pryde is dysloyalte / whiche deuydeth hym in to thre braunches The fyrst is euyll The seconde is werse The thyrde is worste That one is vylaynous That other is wode The thyrde is renyenge Vylanous generall is in all sȳnes / for no synne is wtout vylonye But the vylony of whiche we speke here specyally that groweth of pryde is a partye of dysloyalte / whiche is called of clerkes Ingratytude that is vnkyndenes That is to say forgetynge of god and of his yeftes / that men thanke not our lorde ne yeue hym laude and praysynges therof But he forgeteth and rendreth euyll for good and velonye for curtesye This vylonye doth euery creature to our lorde god whan he forgeteth his goodnes grace and yeftes / and yeldeth not to hym therfore praysynges and thankes lyke as he ought to do But oftymes fyghteth in euyll custome and vsage ageynst the wyll of god This is moche grete vylony whā a persone receyueth grete bounte and goodnes / daygneth not ones to saye gramercy / yet is the vylonye greter whan one seeth / and whan he forgeteth But the slouthe is ouer grete whan a persone receyueth all waye the bountees rendreth alwaye euyll for good / who then bethought hym well and toke hede of the bountees and goodes that god hath gyuen and done to hym and doth contynuelly fro day to day / for he hath noo goodes / but god hath gyuen them to hym Ne goodes of nature / as beaute / helthe strengthe of body clere vnderstondynge and naturall wytte as of the party of the soule Ne goodes of fortune as rychesses / honoures / hautesses Ne goodes of grace / as ben vertues / grace / good werkes wel ought suche one to thanke god / honour doute loue hȳ with all his godes / for one bounte requyreth asketh another Of the .ii. bough of the fyrst braunche Ca. xvi THe seconde bough of dysloyalte that groweth of pryde is woodnes That man is holden for wode that is out of his wytte / in whome reason is gone departed Thenne he is a ryght grete fole and well may be sayd out of his wytte and wode that in good ernest wasteth destroyeth / and setteth in euyl vsage the godes that ben not his / but ben the godes of his lorde of whiche he must straytely count and gyue a rekenynge / that is to wete the tyme that he hath loste / and how he hath employed his tyme / and of the temporall goodes how he hath vsed them the whiche he had in kepynge / hath dyspended theym in folyes / in outrages / and in euyl vsages tofore the eyen of his lorde that is god Ne hath not pourueyed hym to rendre his accompt / knoweth well that he must reken wote not whan / ne the day / ne the houre Suche folye is called forcenery or woodnes Of this vyce and of this synne ben the grete proude men that vse ryght euyll the godes that god hath lent them ¶ Of the .iii. boughe of dysloyalte Ca. xvii THe thyrde boughe of dysloyalte that cometh of pryde is renyenge he is well renyed that the londe whiche he holdeth of his lorde putteth in the hande of his enemy / dooth to hȳ homage This synne doo all they the synne mortally For in asmoche as in thē is they do homage vnto the deuyll And become seruauntes caytyues of the enemye and rendre to hym all that they holden of god / bothe body and soule And all other thynges that they haue they put in the seruyce of the deuyll And how be it that suche folke saye and calle them crysten / they renye god by werke / and shewe that they ben not But in thre maners a man is callyd renegate or renyed / and fals crysten Or for by cause that he byleueth not that he ought lyke as dooth the bougre or the heretyke / and the apostata that renyeth his feythe Or by cause that they breke the feythe that they byleue / lyke as done they that ben pariured / and be lye theyr fayth Or by cause the beleue more thā they ought to do / lyke as done deuynours Sorciers / the charmerers whiche vse and werke by tharte of the deuyll / and all they that in suche euyll werkys byleue and sette theyr hope synne deedly For all these thynges ben ayenst the feythe / and therfore holy chirche for bedeth and deffendeth theym These been the maners of desloyaulte whiche is the fyrst braunche of pryde ¶ The seconde braunche of pryde capitulo .xviii. THe seconde braunche of Pryde is despyte / whiche is a moche grete synne / and how well that deedly synne be not wythout despyte of god / Yet alwey after that we here speke / in this despyte specyally may one synne in thre maners Or by cause that a persone preyseth not ryghtfully another in his herte lyke as he ought to do Or by cause he bereth not reuerence ne honour there as he ought to do or by cause he obeyeth not aryght theym to whome he ought to obeye ¶
is theyr synne Also it is whan god smyteth / chastyseth / or correcteth them to th ende they sholde knowe theyr synnes theyr defautes / and that to the ende they repent and amende them They conne hym no thanke but dyspyse hym saynge O what haue I trespaced / what wyll god do with me And thus they murmure ayenst god Thus dooth and say the foles For that the whiche sholde be tryacle and purgacōn of the soule it tourneth to them venȳ / the medycyne torneth to the deth After they be of so dyuers wyttes that they knowe no good doctryne But alway defēde theyr sentence what soeuer it be / in that wyse they fal oft errour and in false oppynyons / in heresyes and myscreaūce Blasphemye is also as sayth saynt Austyn whan one byleueth that whiche he ought not to byleue But especyally we call blasphemye whan one myssayeth of god or of his sayntes / or of his creatures or of his sacramentes that be made in holy chirche / this synne blasphemye is done in many maners as in the saynge in his mynde or thought / as done the heretykes / or whan it is sayd by couetyse of wynnyng As done the enchauntours or the sorceryers Or whan it is sayd by dyspyte as done these grete swerers / that sweren so vylaynously by god / by his blessyd moder and by all his sayntes / whiche is a moche horryble thynge to here and to herken Suche folke ben lyke an hounde enraged and wood that byte and knowe nothynge theyr mayster ne lorde This synne is so grete that god punyssheth it somtyme openlye lyke as we haue sayd tofore / whan we speke of the euyll and wycked people ¶ Of this synne sayth god in the gospell / that it shall neuer be pardoned ne foryeuen in this worlde ne in that other / That is to saye vnnethe he shall be forgyuen / by cause that vnnethe he repenteth hym / or it may be perauenture that he shal neuer repente hym Of the .iiii. braunche whiche is ambicion Ca. .xx. THe fourth braūche of pryde is ambycyon That is an euyl desyre to amounte ryse hyghe This synne is the panne of helle in whiche the deuyll fryeth his frytours / This braunche stratcheth hym in many maners on the ryght syde on the lyfte syde For they that desyre to waxe hye and ryche wyll playse somme / therof growen many synnes / lyke as it were on the ryght syde That is to wete losangerye / flaterye seduction / adulacion / folyly geuynge / folyly despendynge / by cause they sholde ben holden large curtoys / vnto other they wyll noye and greue and therof comen and sourde the synnes on the lyfte syde As for to myssaye of hym whome he wyll gryeue for tenhaunce hym self / and gyue too that other blame And that wers is / that he desyreth the deth of hym / that holdeth that thynge for whiche he entendeth and desyreth / and of this braūche groweth stryues Treason / euyll counsayll / and conspyracyons ¶ The fyfthe braunce is vaynglorye capitulo xxi THe fyfth braunche of pryde is vaynglorye This is folysshe pleasure or vayne praysynge That is whan ony feleth in his herte a reioysynge of that / that is or weneth to be preysed of somme thynge that is in hȳ or weneth to haue And wolde be preysed or that / of whiche he ought to preyse god And by the vyane glorye taketh aweye fro god that whiche is his For of all maner goodes what someuer they be / he ought to haue that honoure the glorye And to vs the prouffyte Vaynglorye is the grete wynde that bereth doune the grete toures and the grete steples The grete castellys and the grete forteresses / and dryueth doune to therthe the grete forestys / and maketh the grete montaygnes to quake shake These ben the hye men and the moost valyauntes / the grete prynces and the grete lordes This is the peny of the deuyll by whiche he byeth all the fayre wares in the fayre of thys worlde markettes These ben good werkes And for bycause that there ben thre maners of goodes the whiche the man hath of god / and that the deuyll wyll bye theym with his peny Therfore this braunche departeth hym in thre bowes oute of whiche sourde soo many synnes the no clerke may nombre theym These .iiii. maners of goodes that the man hath of god ben the goodes of nature the goodes of fortune the goodes of grace The goodes of nature ben the goodes that a parsone hath by nature as towarde the body / or towarde the soule The goodes of the partye of the body ben helthe reaulte strengthe prowesse good faconde / good voys and lyghtnes of body The goodes of the partye of the soule been clere vnderstandynge / clere wytte to vnderstonde reteyne Subtyll engyne for to fynde good memorye and mynde vertues naturell by the whiche a man is more naturally curtoys than another or more large or more debonayr / or more attempred or more gracyous / or to be well ordeyned Of all these yeftes ought euery man to prayse thanke god / serue and honoure hym For fro god comen all these goodes that we may haue but the proude man selleth theym to the deuyll for the false money of vayn glorye And fyghteth ofte ageyn god with al the goodes than he hath lente to hym / whiche ben here aboue declared ¶ How many persones haue accustomed to synne oft by vaynglory in dyuers maner / euery man may Iuge in hym selfe In the goodes of fortune ben hyghnes / honoures rychesses / delyces and prosperytees / the whiche ben called in many maners For whan dame fortune hathe torned her whele And hath reysed a man hath set hym in the moost hyest degree of her whele as a wynde mylle dooth / and vnto the moost hyest mounte and come all the .xii. wyndes and blowe meruayllously with the wynde of vaynglorye For whan that he is soo hye reysed in prosperyte / he thynketh in his herte on his grete dygnyte After in his prosperyte After in his ryches After on the grete companye that foloweth hym After on the fayre meney that serueth hym After in his fayre manoyrs After on his fayre horse After on the plente of of his fayre robes After on thapparayle of his lodgynge in vessell and in beddes / and in other maner harneys that is fayre and noble After on the grete presentes and on the grete feestes that ben made to hym ouer all where he gooth After on his grete renoume his grete loos praysynge whiche fleeth all about / wherin he Ioyeth gloryfyeth the veray caytyf in his herte that he wote not where he is These ben the .xii. wyndes of vaynglory / that is to say / maners of temptacyons of vaynglory / whiche they haue that ben in this hye estate / or in the worlde / or in relygyon / or clerke / or lay man
pourchace and do so moche by deceyte fraude / that the ylke thynge that is weyed semeth to be more of weyghte thā it is The fourth manere for too synne in marchaundyse is to selle the derrer for the terme / herof we haue spoken tofore ¶ The fyfthe is to selle otherwyse than that mustre is and worse / lyke as these scryueners wrytars done that at the begynnynge shewe and wryte good letter / and after make werse and shende all ¶ The .vi. is in hydynge and concelynge the trouthe of the thynge that is solde / and so do these brokers and coorsers of hors The seuenth is to make pourchace that the ware or thynge that is solde seme moche better than it is / lyke as done the merciers and drapers that chesen and make the places derke where as they selle theyr clothe ware And in many other maners may men synne in marchandyse but it sholde be ouerlonge to saye here ¶ The nynthe braunche of auaryce Ca. .lxiii. THe .ix braunche of auaryce is in many mysteres or craftes In this synneth moche peple and in many maners lyke as done these commyn women / whiche for lytel wynnynge abandone and gyue them self al to synne Also these hazardours / bawdes kepars of forboden games many other whiche for temporell prouffyte abandone theym too dyshoneste vnthryfty craftes / whiche may not be done without synne as well of them that do it as they that susteyne it ¶ The .x. braunche of auaryce is in euyll playes and games / as the dyse at cardes tables or what someuer games that men play at for money or for gayne temporelle Suche maner playes in especyall of dyse and tables ben deffended and for boden by the decrees and lawe for many perylles that comen therof The fyrst is couetyse / the seconde ouer grete vsure as .xii. for .vi. and not at a moneth or thre dayes / The thyrde synne to multeplye lesynges vayne wordes / and that werse is grete blasphemyes of god and of his sayntes The angre and wrath that oftymes hath be taken too correcte and chastyse the other For somtyme theyr vysage hath be torned bacward behynde Somtyme sōme haue loste theyr eyen Somme theyr speche ¶ There was a knyght that sware by the eyen of god / anone the eyen of his heede sprange oute and fyll vpon the eschequer ¶ There was also an archer by cause he had all loste at playe / in despyte he drewe his bowe and shotte vp towarde god on hye / and on the morne whan he was sette ageyne at his play / the arowe fyll doune vpon the eschequyer all blody of blood and threste oute his eyen ¶ The fourth is euyl example that they whiche playe gyuen to other that beholde the playe ¶ The fyfthe is to lese the tyme whiche ought too be employed in good werkys many other wyse ¶ One thynge ought not to be forgeten / that is that he that wynneth at suche games may not / ne ought not in ony manere to reteyne his gayne / but he ought to gyue it all for goddes sake / but yf it were in suche manere that he played for another / or by deceyte or by force lyke as doeth he that maketh another to playe with hym by force In this manere he ought to rendre it to hym that hath loste In lyke wyse I saye of that whiche is wonne at tournoys These been the braūches of auaryce / there bē ynough of other but they appertayne more to clarkys than to laye men / and this book is made more for the laye men than for clerkys that knowe the scryptures ¶ One thynge ought ye too knowe that the auarycious man hath a deuyll to whome he serueth / whiche is called in the gospell māmona / and that deuyll maketh to his seruaunte syx commaundementes The fyrst is to kepe well that he hath / the seconde that in no wyse he mynysshe it The thyrde is that he encreace it alwaye be it daye or nyght / the fourth that he gyue noo thynge ne do almesse for goddes sake / ne curtosye to ony other The fyfthe that he ne lene ne gyue to the poore nedy ony thynge / ne put not in peryll Ieoparde that whiche he hath in his possessyon The .vi. that he refrayne hym self and restrayne his meyne fro mete and drynke for to spare his good ¶ Of the synne of lecherye whiche is loue dysordynatly .xlvii. THe .vi. heed of the beest of hell is lecherye / the whiche is outragyous loue and dysordynate in flesshely delytes Of this synne the deuyll deceyueth a mā in .vi. maners Lyke as sayth saynt Gregory Fyrst in folysshe false beholdynges After in folysshe and leude talkynges and wordes After in false touchynges After in false kyssynges After cometh the dede For fro folysshe beholdynge comynycacōn cometh speche / fro speche to touchȳge / fro touchynge to kyssynge / and fro kyssynge to the dede Thus subtylly bryngeth the deuyll that one to the other Fyrst this synne is deuyded in two maners For there is lechery of herte / and lecherye of body Lecherye of herte hath foure degrees For the spyryte of fornycacyon whiche is the fyre of lechery enbraceth the hert / and maketh fyrst to come the thoughtes / the fygures and the Imagynacyon of synne in the herte / and in consentynges / after the herte delyteth hym in folysshe thoughtes / and yet he delyteth how well that yet he wyll not do the dede / in his thought he abydeth / and this delyte is the seconde degree / whiche may be a deedly synne / so grete may the delyte be The thyrde degre is the consentȳge of the herte of reason and of wyll / and these consentynges concluded ben deedly synne in caas that the deed by dedly synne after the consentynge cometh the desyere / and grete brennynge of the flesshe that they haue to this synne / and do ne many synnes in the day in seynge the ladyes and the damoyselles rychely and fresshely apparayled / whiche ofte dysguyse and araye theym proudly for to make the foles and musardes to muse and beholde theym certes they synne moche greuously / for by theyr coueytyse / by theyr pryde by theyr cause peryssheth many soules / moche peple put to deth and to synne For thus as sayth the prouerbe / dame dator is the arblast to the tour For she hath not a membre in hyr body but it is a grynne of the deuyll As salamon sayth / wherof must be gyuen acomptes at the daye of Iugement of the soules whiche by thoccasyon and cause of them be dampned That is to vnderstonde whan they by occasyon and cause other to synne by theyr entysynge and labour Lecherye of the body is departed in to the lecherye of the eyen of the eerys of the mouth / of the handes / and of all the fyue wyttes of the body / and in especyall of
that he the lyueth by physyke deyeth ¶ They that lyuen after honeste they kepe and holde the mesure of rayson / lyuen honourably in the worlde For they eren in tyme and houre And taken in gree and at worth that whiche they haue curioyslye clenly and gladlye They that lyue after that theyr synne requyreth kepe suche mesure as is charged to theym in penaunce They that lyue after the spyryte ben they that for the loue of god rule and gouerne them self lyke as the holy goost ensygneth and techeth theym to holde and kepe mesure reason ordre They haue the lordshyp and seygnorye ouer theyr body whiche is so dysciplyned and endoctryned by penaunce and so wel chaâ—â—ysed that he demaundeth none ouâ—trage and doeth that whiche the spyryte commaundeth and withoute contradyction Now mayst thou see by that whiche we haue here sayd that the deuyll hath many engynes for to take the peple by theyr throtes and by theyr â—â—…tony For fyrst he sheweth to theym the wynes and the 〈◊〉 whiche ben fayre and delyeyouses / lyke as he dyd to Eue the apple / and yf it be not worthe he sayth to hyÌ„ 〈◊〉 drynke lyke as dyd suche one / thou must nedes 〈…〉 companye wylte thou that men mocke and scorne 〈…〉 wylte thou ben holden a popelarde Or he sayth 〈…〉 thou must nedys kepe the helthe of thy body / who hath 〈…〉 hath no thynge Be not an homycyde of thy self Thou owest to thy body his sustenauÌ„ce Or he sayth to 〈…〉 otherwyse Beholde and consydere the good that thou dooste / what thou mayst do Thou etest not for the delytes of the body / but for to serue god Thou oughtest to kepe thy strength to god lyke as dauyd the prophete sayth Of these reasons abouesayd be somtyme attayned deceyued the moost wyse men The thyrde brauÌ„che of this vyce is to renne take ouer gredely the mete / lyke as the dogge dothe the carayne / how moche greter is the gredenes so moche greter is the synne For lyke as it is not synne to haue the rychesses Iustly goten truely but not ouer moche to loue theÌ„ / ne to vse them euyll / ryght soo it is not syÌ„ne to ete But that it be not ouer gredely ne ouer disordynatly All maner metes ben good vnto good people to them that by reason / by measure vseth theym without ony excesse without outrage / and alway we ought too prayse god rendre thankynges to god of his goodnes of his gyftes / by the swetenes of the meet we ought to thynke on the swetnes of god / of that celestyall / swete mete of glory pardurable whiche fylleth accomplyssheth the desyre of the herte Therfore men rede in houses of relygyon at mete by cause that whan the body taketh his refeccyon on that one parte / that the soule sholde take his spyrytuall mete refeccyon on that other parte The .iiii. braunche of this synne of glotony is of them the ouer nobly wyll ete drynke / whiche dyspende waste that wherof an C. poore men myght be well fed Suche people syÌ„ne dyuersly Fyrst in grete despences that they make After in that / that they vse ouer grete gredynes delyte than vayne glory that they haue But this is not onely thexces of the throte / but it is for pryde / for the praysynge of the world that they seke soo dere metes multyply soo many meases wherof oft tymes growe many syÌ„nes The .v. brauÌ„che of glotony is the curyosyte of glotons / that thynke on none other thynge but for to delyte theym in metes / they ben ê“prelye lycherous whiche seche not sauf onely the delytes of theyr throte mouth In .iii. thynges namely lyeth the synne of suche people Fyrst in the grete charge that they haue in pourchasynge and in arayenge theyr metes After in the glorye and in the grete playsyr that they haue in seynge and beholdynge theym / and that they may recounte what dylygence they put to that / that the metes ben well arayed / and that eueryche haue his ryght propre sawce / how they may of one thynge make dyuers messes dysguysed for the delycyousnesse of the mouthe / and whan the messys or the metes comen in one after another / thenne be sayd the bourdes for entremesses and thus goeth the tyme / and the caytyss forgete theym self and reason slepeth and thynketh no thynge of the deth / ne on the synnes that they do / theyr stomacke cryeth and sayth Dame throte ye slee me I am soo full that I am lyke to breke Thenne the lychorous tongue answereth though thou sholdest to brest I shal not suffre this lycorous mete escape me / after the lycorousnes of meete cometh vaynglorye that is to remeÌ„bre it Thenne desyre wysshe they that they had as longe a necke as a crane / as grete a bely as a cowe that they myght yet deuoure and swalowe more mete Now hast thou herde the synnes that comen of glotonye and of lycourousnesse / and by cause that these synnes sourden and comen ofte in the tauerne whiche is fouÌ„tayne of synne Therfore I wyll a lytell touche the synnes that ben made and done in the tauerne The tauerne is the scole of the deuyll where as his dyscyples studye / and his propre chapel where as his seruyce is done / and that is the place where he sheweth doeth his myracles bothe daye and nyght / suche as appertey-come to shewe his vertues to make his myracles lyke as ye may se in many places / the blynde for to se / the lame and croked to be redressed / to madde men theyr wyt to dombe men speche / and to deefe men theyr herynge But the deuyll in the tauerne dooth all the contrary / for the tauerne is his chapel / as is aforesayd where men doth to hym seruyce / for whan the man gooth to the tauerne he gooth all ryght / and whan he retorneth he hath neyther fote ne hande / by whiche he may hymselfe bere ne sustayne And whan he gooth thyder he speketh well / hereth vnderstandeth / and whan he retorneth he hath loste all this / lyke as he that hath neyther wytte ne reason ne memorye in hym selfe Suche ben the myracles that the deuyll maketh in the tauerne / and what lesson is sayd in the tauerne I shall saye to you There is redde / lerned / herde and seen all fylthe and ordure of synne / that is to wete / glotonye / lechery / swerynge / forswerynge / lyenge / myssaynge / renyenge god his saynces / mysherkenynge / brawlynge and many other syÌ„nes Thenne sourdeth and cometh stryues / homycydes / or manslaughter / there is lerned to steele / to hange / the tauerne is a fosse pytte of theues / and also it is the fortresse of the deuyll for to warre ayenst god and his sayntes /
wyselye / yf thou saye how shall it bee lerned I shall now telle to the. Thou oughtest to knowe that this lyf nys but deth For deth is a departynge / this knoweth euery man And therfore it is sayd of a man whan he deyeth that he departeth / whan he is deed he is departed This lyfnys no thynge but a departynge / ye truely a moche shorte departynge For all the lyf of a man yf he lyued a thousande yere / it is not onely a moment to the regarde of that other lyfe / whiche alway dureth In tourment or in Ioy pardurable This witnesseth to vs the kynges / the dukes / the erles / the prynces / and the emperoures whiche had somtyme the glorye of this worlde Now wepe they in hell / crye and howle / cratche and sayth alas / what auayleth vs our power / honour / noblesse / Ioye / beautees and all rychesses Soone is all this departed and fayled as a shadowe or smoke and moche faster fledde from vs than byrdes fleynge / or quarelles oute of a crosse bowe Thus departeth away our lyfe Now we were / and anone we ben deed / and all our lyfe was not a lytel moment Now be we in pardurable tormentes Our Ioye in wepynge Our carolles and feestes in sorowe Roobes / hoodes / feestes / dygnytees / games / rychesses / and all welthes ben fayled vs. Suche ben the songes of hell lyke as holy wryte recounteth For to shewe to vs that this lyfe is nothynge but a departynge / and this dethe is nothynge but a departynge / and to lyue is nothynge but to departe Thenne the lyuynge in this worlde is noo thynge but for to deye / and this is true as the pater noster For whan thou beganest for to lyue / anone thou begannest / for to deye / and for too approche vnto the dethe / and all thy yonge aege and thyn olde aege and all thy tyme the whiche is passed / the deth hath conquered and retayned Thou sayst that thou hast .xl. yere whiche is not trouthe the dethe hath theym And neuer shall he yelde them to the agayne Therfore the wytte of the worlde is but all folye And certayne the clerkys seynge / seen noo thynge at all / daye and nyght they done one thynge / the more they do the lasse they knowe / alwaye they deyen and can not deye / for nyght and daye thou deyest as I haue sayd to the. Yet in another maner I shall teche the this clergye / to th ende that thou knowe well to lyue and well to dye Now take hede vnderstonde the deth is no thynge but the deceuerynge of body soule / this knoweth well euery man vnderstondeth Now techeth vs Cathon the wyse man / lerne sayth he to deye To departe and deceuere oft thy soule and thy spyryte fro they body / lyke as dyd many of the grete phylosophres that soo moche hated this lyf despysed the worlde soo moche desyred to deye that they slewe them lelf by theyr owne agrement but it auaylled thym no thynge For they had not the grace ne the faythe of our lorde Ihesu Cryst But the holy men whiche loue god drede hym / of thre dethes haue they passed the tweyne For they ben deed as touchynge synnes / and deed as touchynge that worlde Now abyde they the last deth that is the thyrde / that is the deceuerauÌ„ce of soule and body Bytwene them heuen is but a lytel walle / for they passe it by thought and by desyre And thoughe the body is in this worlde on this syde / the herte and the spyryte is on that other syde in that other worlde / there where theyr conuersacion is in heuen / lyke as sayth saynt poule Theyr solace theyr Ioye / theyr consolacion is by thought on the ferther syde in heuen / where theyr conuersacion is lyke as sayth saynt Poule And therfore they hate theyr lyf whiche is but deth desyre the bodely deth For this damoysell bereth Ioye that is the deth that crowneth al the sayntes set them in Ioye infynyte Deth is to a good man ende of all his euyls / gate and entre of all goodes Dethe is the ryuer that departeth dethe and lyfe Dethe is on this syde lyfe / and on the other syde also But the wyse men of this worlde whiche ben on this syde of the ryuer of this worlde seen so clere And on that other syde they se nothynge And therfore ben they called in scrypture fooles and blynde For this dethe they call departynge And the dethe that is comune to good they call the ende And therfore they hate soo moche the dethe For they knowe not what it is / ne on that other syde of the ryuer they haue not conuersed / ne knowe nothynge what gooth therout Thenne yf thou wyll knowe what is good and what is euyll / yssue out of thy selfe / yssue out of the worlde / lerne to dye Dysseuer thy soule fro thy body by thought Sende thyn herte in to the other worlde That is in heuen / in hell / and in purgatory There shalte thou se what is good and what is euyll In hell thou shalte se mo sorowes and dyuers tourmentes than ony man may or can deuyse / or ony herte thynke / In purgatory also thou shalte se moo tourmentes than ony may endure In heuen thou shalt se more Ioye and glory than ony may desyre In hell shall be shewed and ensygned to the how god vengeth deedly synne Purgatory shall shewe and ensygne the how god purgeth deedly syÌ„ne In heuen thou shalt se clerely vertues good werkes how hyely they ben gouerned and rewarded And in the se thre thynges vnderstande how all that / that the behoueth to knowe to lyue well and deye well ¶ How men lyue dyenge in this worlde Ca. lxi Remembre frendes grete and small For to be redy whan dethe dothe call NOw beholde and take hede a lytell / and ennoye ne greue the not at these thre thynges Therfore to knowe and wyll to hate synne Forgete thy body one tyme in the daye go to hell lyuynge / to th ende that thou go not thyder at thy dethe Thus doone ofte the good men the wyse There thou shalte se all that the herte hateth / colde / hete / honger / thyrst / and dyuers tourmentes / as wepynges syghes / and waylynges / that the herte may not thynke ne â—onge deuyse / alway shall endure without ende / therfore is this payne by right called perdurable / which is alwaye dethe in lyuynge / and lyfe in dyenge / whan thou shalte se thenne that this one deedly synne muste nedes be so dere bought / thou haddest leuer be flayne al quycke tofore thou sholdest consente for to doo one onely synne After go to purgatorye / there shalt thou see the paynes of soules / whiche haue had very repentauÌ„ce of theyr synnes in this
But he is a good marchaunte that of euery thynge knoweth well clerely the trouthe and the propre vertue / lyke as the holy ghoost enseygneth vs / another maystre techeth vs too knowe the grete thynges fro the smale the precyouse fro the vyle / the swete from the bytter ¶ Of the goodes of fortune Ca. .lxiiii. THey calle the smalle goodes the goodes of fortune whiche dame fortune hath aboute her whele / alwaye taketh awaye and gyueth / and torneth that whiche is aboue to falle vnder These ben the precyouse stones that the fooles haue bought for rubyes for saphyrs and for emerawdes These ben also as Ieweles and yonge chyldren whiche god gyueth to vs for to solace vs with / and for to drawe our loue to hym By cause that he knoweth well that we been tendre feble and that we may not holde the sharpe wayes of penaunce / of anguysshe and of martyrdome / lyke as done the good knyghtes of god whiche conquere the royame of heuen by strengthe and take it by theyr prowesse and theyr good vertues Thenne that is not the grete good ne well ryghtful For yf that were the grete good and veray Then were foles the blessyd chyldren of god Ihesu Cryst whiche chosen pouerte shame and sharpnesse for to gyue and to shewe to vs ensaumple And refused the ioyes the honoures and the rychessys of this worlde / yf these goodes transytorye worldly and temporall ben veray good / thenne be not al the veray goodes in heuen Then is not god parfytelye good and happy by cause he wyll not vse suche goodes / Thenne god is not good ne naturall by cause he gyueth not these worldly goodes to his frendes / but he gyueth theym more largely to his enemyes / yf these were veray good / thenne were foles all the sayntes / al the good clerkys the wyse phylosophres that fledde fro suche worldly goodes despysed theym as dunge / yf these be veray good / thenne fayleth the holy scrypture that calleth them lyes and vanytees / nettes and grynnes of the deuyl / this is as trewe as the pater noster For these ben the engynes of the deuyll / by whiche he deceyueth the soules in a thousande maners / and byndeth theym and taketh and holdeth theym But the wyse marchaunte that is the wyse man / whome the holy ghoost enlumyneth by veray knowleche / that oueral knoweth and can decerne what euery thynge is worth / he seeth ryght well vnderstondeth that all the worlde is not a good morsell for too fylle the herte of one man / and that there is therin moche euyll and lytell good And therfore he beholdeth the euylles perylles that ben therin / and knoweth well that it is trouthe that is comunelye sayd / who that gyueth not that whiche he loueth / he taketh not whiche he desyreth Suche folke gyuen the worlde for to haue heuen / forsaketh ouerall rychesses for ioye / fylthe ordure for golde / and leue all for godes sake / rychesses delyces honoures / and bycome poore in this worlde for to wynne good and for to gete the rychesse of heuen This is the moost fayrest lyf moste sure that may be in this worlde There ben other that see that in many maners may one do his prouffyt his sauacyon with goodes temporall that he may haue without ouermoche to loue theym For god commaundeth not a man to leue al. They reteyne them / but lytel they preyse them They vse them but lytel they loue them / lyke as dyd Abraham Iob and Dauyd / many other whiche eschewed fledde the peryls And they do spyrytuell prouffyte with temporall goodes / wyll by heuen with theyr almesses and other good dedes They can bye out theyr synnes helpe theyr neyghboures They can the more loue god / drede doute hym for the perylles that they be in / and the more humble them selfe whan they se and consyder theyr synnes theyr defautes / whan in sharpe and strayte wayes of penaunce they dare not go / whan so lytel for goddes sake they wyl suffre gyue / whiche so moche suffred to saue them / and wolde .xxxii. yere in this worlde be poore for to enryche them in heuen They saue them selfe well but it is harde to do For it is a more lyght thynge to leue all the godes at ones / than to retayne them not to loue theym ¶ Of the godes of fortune whiche folowe here Ca. lxv THe meane or myddle of goodes ben the goodes of nature and of doctryne Of nature lyke as beaute of body / prowesse / force / or strengthe / vygour / lyghtnes / debonayrte / clere wytte clere engyne for to fynde / good memorye for to retayne well / good voyce for to synge well All these goodes aforesayd nature bryngeth theym in the natyuyte or byrth of a persone Doctryne clargy all other godes be goten by studye or by accustomaūce / lyke as ben good vertues / good maners / and other vertues But these be not yet veray good ryghtfull For they doo not that whiche is perfytely good For many a phylosophre / and grete clerkes Emperoures Kynges / and many other prynces and other grete lordes the whiche hath had many of these goodes ben dampned in hell pytte ¶ Also all these goodes hath our lorde gyuen to his enemyes as well as to his frendes To Sarasyns To Iewes To false crysten men lyke as he hath too good men Also this is not veray good that faylleth at nede / and that may be loste maulgre hym self And thought theuys may not take theym and robbe theym Yet the deth taketh them alwaye at the laste Also I saye that the veraye goodes aydeth alwaye and greuen neuer / but certeynlye suche goodes and suche graces forayne ben oft domage greue them that haue them / yf they vse them not well accordȳge to god For some auaunt them and ben proude and dyspyse the other / whan they to whome god hath gyuen suche graces and suche goodes as I haue tofore sayd and named / yf they vse them not well and Iustly accordynge to god / they shall bee in gretter tormente in helle And straytly they must acompte and yelde a rekenynge at the daye of dome / of that they haue done / and how they haue vsed and despended it Notwithstondynge they haue goten goodes that god hath lente to them for multeplyenge and encrees Here after is shewed of the goodes of grace Ca. .lxvi. NOw haue I shortly shewyd the tytell good and the meane good Now wyll I shewe to the whiche is the veray good ryghtfull parfyte This doeth he whiche hath the good with ryghte and vnderstondynge For withoute the whiche was neuer no good with ryght This good is called the grace of god and vertue charytee Grace by cause that she gyeueth lyf and helthe too the soule For withoute
not grace verue Then yf thou wylte knowe what is veray fraūchyse of a man of a woman by ryght Thou oughtest to vnderstonde that a man hath .iii. maner of fraunchyses One of nature / another of grace / and the thyrde of glorye The fyrst is free wyll by whiche a man may chese do frely good or euyll This fraunchyse holdeth euery man of god so frely that no man may do it wronge / ne all the deuylles of helle may not enforce a man ayenste his wyll to do a synne without his accorde and consentemente For yf a man dyd euyll ayenst his wyll / he sholde haue therof no synne / for as moche as he in no wyse myght eschewe it / lyke as sayth saynt austyn This fredom and fraūchyse hath euery man But this fredō is not in chyldren / ne in wood men / ne in fooles / by cause they haue not the vsage of reason by whiche they can chese the good from the euyll A man putteth awaye from hym this fraunchyse in grete partye whā he synneth deedly For he selleth hymself vnto the deuyll for the delyte of his synne And yeldeth hym self vnto hym and bycometh his seruaunt by synne so that he may not caste hym self out / ne put hym fro his wyll / for he hath deserued the deth of helle / yf the grace of god helpe hym not The seconde fraunchyse is suche that the wyse man hath in this worlde / whome god hath fraunchysed by grace and by vertues from the seruyce of the deuyll / and fro synne / that they bee not bonde to golde ne to syluer / ne to temporall godes of this worlde ne to theyr bodyes whiche is caroyn / ne to godes of fortune / whiche the deth may soone take awaye / but they haue theyr hertes lyft vp and gyuen to god / so that they preyse noo thynge the goodes of the worlde / ne the honours / ne the vanytes / ne kynge / ne duke / ne meschaunce ne pouerte / ne shame / ne deth For they ben now deed to the worlde / and haue the herte soo deceuered taken awaye fro the loue of the worlde / that they desyre the deth lyke as the werkman his payment of his Iourney or dayes labour / and the labourer his hyre / and also lyke as they that ben in the torment and in the fortune of the see / desyre to come to port salue And lyke as the prysonner desyreth good delyueraunce / and as the pylgrym desyreth to come ageyne in to his contreye And yf they be parfytelye free in this worlde lyke as a creature may be / thenne fere they ne doubte they no thynge but god / ben in gret pees of herte For they haue then theyr herte in god and ben in heuen by desyre And this fraunchyse cometh of grace and of vertue But yet all this fraunchyse nys but seruytude vnto the regarde of the thyrde fraunchyse that they haue that been in glorye They be verayly free For they be verayly delyuerd fro all perylles and fro all tormentes / fro fere of deth and of deth / fro the grynnes and empesshements of the worlde fro myserye / fro pouerte / and fro all payne of herte of body wtout retornynge / of whiche thynge there is none fre in this worlde / how parfyte that he be ¶ Of veray noblesse Ca. .lxxii. THey that shall haue the seconde fraunchyse of whiche I haue spoken shal come to grete noblesse The veray noblesse cometh of gentyll herte Certeyne none herte is gentyll but yf he loue god There is no noblesse but to serue and loue god and to kepe hym fro all synnes and from the seruage of the deuyll Ne there is no vylanye but to angre god by synne Ther is no man by ryght gentyl / ne noble of the gentylnesse of his body For as touchynge the body we ben all sonnes of one moder That is of the erthe and of sylthe of whiche we al haue taken flesshe and blood Of this parte there is none gentyll ne free But our swete fader Ihesu Cryst whiche is kynge of heuen that fourmed the body of the erthe and created the soule to his ymage and semblaunce / and all in lyke wyse as it is of the carnall fader / that is moche glad and ioyous whan his sone resembleth hym Ryght so is it of our fader Ihesu Cryst For by the holy scrypture / and by his messagers he techeth vs / that we sholde payne our self to resemble hym And therfore he sent to vs his blessed sone Ihesu Cryst in to therthe for to brynge gyue to vs the veray exemplayre / by whiche we may be reformed to his ymage and semblaunce lyke as they that dwelle in the hye cytee of heuen That been the aungellys and the sayntes of heuen / where eueryche is of soo moche more hye and more noble As more proprely he bereth this fayre ymage therfore the holy men in this worlde payne hem self to knowe god / and to loue hym with all theyr herte / and purge theym clense and kepe them from all synnes For of soo moche as the herte of a creature is more pure and more clene without synne / of so moche he seeth more clerely more euydently the precious face of Ihesu cryst / and of so moche he loueth more ardauntly / of soo moche he resembleth more proprelye And by that he hath the more gretter glorye And this is the veray noblesse that god hath gyuen vs. ¶ And therfore sayth ryght well Saynt Iohan the appostle and euangelyst / that then̄e we shall be the sonnes of god / and we shall resemble hym proprely / whan we shall see hym euydently lyke as he is This shall be in his glorye / whan we shall be in heuen For no man seeth so dyscouerd ne so clerely the beaute of god / lyke as sayth saynt poule But thenne we shall see hym face to face proprely and clerely whan we shal be in glorye in his Ioyous companye ¶ The veray noblesse of a man thenne begynneth by grace and by vertues / that is parfyght glorye This noblesse maketh the holy ghoost in the hertes that he purgeth and enlumyneth in trouthe and in parfyte charyte These ben the grettest goodes that god hath doone to aungellys lyke as saynt Denys sayth by whiche they resēble theyr maker Thus werketh the holy ghoost by grace and by vertue in the hertes of good men / by whiche they be reformed to thymage and too the semblaunce of theyr maker Ihesu Cryst as moche as it may be in this mortall lyf For they reyse theym self soo in god / and enbrace theym self so with the loue of god And all theyr entendement / al theyr entencyon / theyr wyll / theyr memorye is all conuerted to god And this loue and this enbracement and desyre whiche encreaceth Ioyneth and vnyeth so the herte to god / that they may noo
thynge wyll / but that / that god wyll For there is not bytwene theym and god but one selfe wyll And thenne he hath the ymage the semblaunce of god as moche as may be had in this worlde And this is the moost grete noblesse the moost hye gentylnes to whiche one may atteyne or mounte Ha good god how ferre from this noblesse and fro this hyenes ben they that make them so noble and so quaynte Of this poore noblesse that they haue of theyr moder the erthe whiche bereth nouryssheth the hogges as well as she dooth the Emperoures and the kynges And they auaunt them of theyr gentylnes / bycause they wene they be of more gentyl fylthe than the other And of this kynred and parage conne they ryght well recounte and tell But that other syde that other nobles they beholde nothynge at all / of which cometh veray noblesse and the gentyl parage They sholde beholde and take hede to theyr veray exemplayre Iesu cryste / whiche more loued and honoured his moder / than dyde ony other man And neuerthelesse whan one sayd to Ihesu cryste Syr your moder and your cosyns stondeth without to seche you / he answered to them and sayd And who is my moder / and who is my fader and cosyns / who some euer do the wyll of my fader that is in heuen / he is my broder / he is my fader / my syster / my moder For this is the noble syde and the gentyl kynred by whiche cometh and groweth to the herte veray glory and of that other groweth and spryngeth vayne nobles and pryde ¶ How charyte is the gretest of vertues Ca. lxiii NOw I haue suffysauntly shewed to the that there ben no goodes honourable by ryght but vertues and charyte This is the fayre loue of god For there is none other good prouffytable without this vertue of charyte This wytnesseth to vs saynt Poule that sayth thus Yf I haue as moche scyence so that I knewe all clergye and all langages / and spake as well as men or aungellys / and knewe al the scryptures and the counseylles of god / and yf I delyuered my body to martyrdome / and gaf all that I had to poore people / and yf I dyd by myracles that the mountaynes lepen from one place to another / yf I had not the vertue of charyte / al this sholde not auaylle me ¶ Now beholde thenne and take hede that saynt Poule whome we ought to byleue / hath here named the grettest thynges and good that one may do / and the moost auaylle and prouffyten That ben penaūce of the body / to suffre martyrdome to ayde the poore people / to conuert synners / and to haue scyence of langages and thappostles sayth all these thynges auayllen not wtoute charyte / and yf suche and so grete godes auayllen not / how shold lasse good auayle That same mayst thou knowe by reason Thynke on this prouerbe whiche is comunely sayd As moche is a man worthe as his londe is of value This is as trewe as the pater noster / who well vnderstandeth / how the man is of no value / or somme thynge or more or lasse And this is no doubte but it be that he haue loue and charyte of god / and who that hath moost is moost worthe / and who that hath lasse is lasse worthe / and who that hath nougth is nought worthe For how well that a man hath temporall godes / lyke as is golde or syluer or other rychesses / or of spyrituel goodes or naturall goodes / lyke as is arte / subtyll engyne / scyence / clergy / strength / prowes or other goodes How shall I saye that they prouffyte / for they ben the moost parte more cruelly dāpned / bycause they vse not aryght the goodes that god hath lent to them for to multyplye and for to wynne than ben they that nothynge knowe ¶ Also yf he do bodyly werkes / as done the labourers / the mynstrelles and other werke men Or yf he do spyrytuall werkes as to fast / wake / clothe the poore / were heyre / yf this be without charyte al this auayleth nothynge For he shall neuer haue therof meryte But he that hath vertue and parfyte charyte / of all that that god sendeth hym in this worlde he dothe his prouffyte And with all conquereth grace and glory ¶ Charyte is good and sure marchaundyse For ouer all it wynneth and neuer leseth She hyeth all the good wares / and maketh all hers and alway she hath her peny agayne This is the loue of the herte whiche is the peny / with whiche she byeth all the godes of the worlde / and it remayneth alwaye in the almerye / loue of charyte hath in all places his sales Charyte wynneth in all quarelles / and hath vyctory in all batayles She dooth so moche that it is as moche worth to her to gyue a peny / as to another an hondred pounde And also charyte dooth so moche that it auayleth one as moche to faste one day / as another all the lente / to say one pater noster / as another to say a psaulter And this is for none other reason / but by cause that as moche is a man worthe as his londe is of value / and soo moche ben worthe his werkes / for so moche as a man hath veray loue in god / so moche he wynneth more euery daye The loue the whiche a man hath to god is the poyse weyght of saynt Myghell For none other thynge may not weye whan one taketh euery daye his wages / but the loue charyte And therfore I say that there is none good profytable / proprely to speke by ryght / but fayre loue and charyte Of two maners of delectable goodes Ca. lxxiiii IN lyke wyse as god made man of body and soule Ryght so hath he gyuen two maners of delectable godes for to drawe his herte to hym / and in whome is all the veray delyte ¶ The some goodes cometh withoutforth / by the .v. wyttes or the body / by seynge / by herynge / by smellynge / by tastynge and by touchynge These .v. wyttes ben also as fyue conduytes / by whiche the goodes delectable of the worlde entreth in to the herte for to delyte hym and for to lycke and drawe to the veray delyces whiche ben in god to serue / to loue and to honoure hym / for all the delyte of this worlde that the fyue wyttes haue / ben not but a droppe of dewe to the regarde of the fountayne that is Ihesu cryste But of the grete see of these goodes / descendeth the droppe of dewe / whan one seeth it a ferre resemble to a precyous stone But whan one weneth to take it it falleth to groūde and becometh nought Thus is it of the delytes of the fyue wyttes bodely / whan one thȳketh or fygureth or wyssheth / or whan one desyreth them
/ it appereth moche precyous But whan a man hath holdeth them / anone they be lost / become truffes and dremes Thynke on the delyte of the last yere / and of thy dreme to nyght / thou shalte se that all is one / anone they passe anone they come agayne / in no maner may they fulfyll the herte of a man And yf in a droppe be as moche swetenes / that it is the swetenesse of all the foūtayne Then is that a delectable good And therfore the wyse holy men in all that they sawe in this worlde / sauoured of the delectable goodes of the worlde preyseden god / and moost desyred the loue of hym / and the more that they sawe the droppes swete / the more they desyred to come to the foūtayne celestyal And therfore it is wel knowen that the more that one forgeteth the droppe / the more he loueth the fountayne / the reuerse The more that one loueth the droppe the more he hateth the fountayne and forgeteth it And the more that the swetenesse of the worlde pleaseth to a creature whiche he so moche desyreth / the lasse hathe he of the swetenesse of god Therfore the gode men take the lasse of the swetenesse of the worlde as moche as they may and wyll not vse the flesshly delytes ne the deduytes that comen by the fyue wyttes bodyly A good lorde god how moche ben they fooles / and more than beestes / that knowe well that the body of a man is the moost foule thynge that may be / that the soule of a man is the moost noble thynge / the moost precyous and the moost noble creature that may be Therfore they sholde not wene that the goodes that come of the body be more delectable and swete / than they of the spyryte / whiche ben veray good / pure / and perdurable / and may fulfyl the herte and replenysshe it Suche godes gyueth god to a man in this worlde / whā he gyueth to hym pease of herte and vyctorye ayenst his synnes and ayenst thenemyes of helle And gyueth to hym glorye of conscyence and apeasyble herte / whan he replenyssheth the herte with loue spyrytuell Ioye Of suche Ioye ne of suche delyte / no semblaunce ne no comparyson may be foūden in the ioyes of the worlde ne ben not but drops to the regarde of the foūtayne of swetenesse that is Ihesu Cryst This is the fountayne of swetenes of whiche our lorde speketh in the gospell / who that shall drynke of the water that I shall gyue hym he shall become a lyuynge foūtayne whiche shall make hym lepe in to the lyfe pardurable This is the fountayne of Ioye / of swetenes / and of charyte / the whiche may fylle and replynysshe the herte And none other thynge what someuer it be / may not fyll it ¶ Of this fountayne hath tasted Dauyd the prophete whiche sayth in his psaulter O lorde god how moche is the multytude of thy grece swetenes / whiche thou kepest to thy seruauntes and departest to thy frendes And certayne who had well tasted and sauoured this swetenes that god hath gyuen to his frendes / he sholde dyspyse all the delyces and all the Ioyes of this worlde / and sholde chese retayne the spyrytuall Ioye And sholde do lyke as they that bulte the meele and deceuereth the floure fro the bren and grous / and as they that make oyle / that take the clere pure fatte / and leue the grosse matere For Ioye of the herte that cometh of god to loue / to serue / and honoure hym whiche is veray Ioye parfyte / lyke as sayth the prouerbe That none hath parfyte Ioye yf it come not of loue And therfore this Ioye is called oyle in holy scrypture / lyke as our lorde sayth by the prophete I shall gyue sayth he oyle of Ioye for wepynge This is Ioye of herte pure and veray for wepynge of penaunce Of this oyle ben enoynted they that god hath made kynges and lordes of the worlde and of them selfe And then̄e is a man parfyte crysten whan that he is enoynted with holy cresme For of crysme is sayd cryste / and of Cryst is sayd crysten / that is of Ihesu cryste And who that is enoynted of suche oyntemente / the whiche is of Ioye and loue of god / he lyueth in god / and god in hym Lyke as the holy appostle sayth And this is thenne the lyf of a crysten / that is to speke ryght / the lyf of a man / this is a good lyf and blyssednes that crysten men ought to seche and desyre for to gete the lyf perdurable / ye knowe moche wel that he is not in lyf / but in langoure / that alwaye lyueth in payne / in thought and in anguysshe This is no thynge but now wepe / and anone laughe Now is at ease / now is he at mysease / now is he in angre / now is he in pease / now in Ioye / now in sorowe Thenne who that wyll lede a good lyf / and lyue Iustly without synne / seche he that he haue the veray good / thenne he shal haue lyf honourable / delectable and prouffytable And thenne he shal lyue as a man resonable That is to saye holyly / ordynatly / wysely Ioyously meryly Meryly without angre / wysely without erroure / and. Ioyously without sorowe / and this lyf hath one by grace and by vertue / and none otherwyse ¶ Here after is spoken of vertues in especyal Ca. lxxv NOw I haue shewyd to the generally here tofore the dygnyte and the valure of the vertue of charyte / and wherfore one ought to gete it For grete prouffyt cometh for to haue it / as Ioye / honoure / and glorye perdurable But by cause men knowe not the thynge so wel in generall as they do in specyall Therfore is myn entencyon to speke of vertues in especyall / in suche manere that eueryche that wyll studye in this boke may ordeyne his lyf by vertue and by good werkes For otherwyse lytell sholde auaylle to knowe the good yf he do it not For lyke as sayth saynt Iames the appostle / who the knoweth the good doth it not / he synneth mysdoth / he is a fooll That knoweth the ryght way / and ernestly go out of it The holy scrypture sayth thus The wyse man or wyse woman hath a fayre gardyn full of verdure and fayre trees / and of good fruytes / wherof god sayth in the boke of loue to the holy soule My syster / my frende thou arte a gardyn enclosed of two closures That is of the grace of god and of aungelles This gardyn planted the grete gardyner That is god the fader whan that he admolysshed and made softe the herte of the creature humayne / and made it swete and treatable lyke waxe chaufed And as good erthe well arayed and cultyued / and worthy that good ympes sholde be
purge it fro all synnes And that he vouchesauf to come and dwelle as a kynge and a lorde / gouernour / and commaundour in houre hertes / so that all the herte be his / and that he be kynge lorde and alwaye that we mayse hym For it is lyfe pardurable to haue the reame of god within vs. Therfore sayth our lorde in the gospell / that the realme of god is as a treasour hyd in a felde / that is in the herte of a good man / whiche is more grete than all the worlde The .iii. petycyon request of the holy Pater nrÌ„ Ca. lxxxi FIat voluntas tua sicut in celo et in terra This is the .iii. pytycyon request / where we pray our lorde that his wyll be done in vs / lyke as it is done in heuen / that is in holy aungelles that ben in heuen / whiche ben so inlumyned confermed in god / that they may wyll none other thynge but that whiche god wyll / we may not haue this petycyon ne this perfeccyon but we haue the gyft of couÌ„ceyle / whiche is the thyrde gyft of the holy goost / that techeth vs to do his good wyll / that he conuert our caytyfe frayle wyll so that in vs growe no propre wyll / but that his wyll be onely lady of the herte holy / doo in vs what someuer he wyll / lyke as his wyll is done in holy aungelles of heuen whiche may not synne And that alway dooth the wyl of god wtout myspryse and gaynsaynge ¶ Now hast thou herde the thre petycions and fyrst requestes of the holy pater noster / whiche ben the hyest moost worthy In the fyrste we demaunde the yeft of sapyence In the seconde the gyft of vnderstandynge / and in the thyrde the gyft of counceyle / lyke as I haue tofore shewed ¶ These thre thyÌ„ges we do not requyre demauÌ„de / bycause we sholde haue them in this mortall lyf parfytely But we shewe vnto our good fader Ihesu Cryst our desyres / that they be alwaye in heuen where they ought to be To the ende that these thre requestes petycyons be doone and accomplyshest in vs in the lyfe pardurable / we demaunde them in this present lyfe In the other foure petycyons that cometh after we speke an other langage For we say to our good fader Ihesu cryst Gyue to vs ê‘done vs / kepe vs / delyuer vs. For yf we haue not of Ihesu cryst these foure petycyons requestes in this present worlde / we ben but deed For they be necessarye vnto euery persone in this mortall lyfe ¶ The .iiii petycyon and request Ca. lxxxii DAnem nrÌ„m cotidianuÌ„ da nobis hodie Well techeth vs our good mayster Ihesu cryste / to speke humbly and wysely For he techeth vs to say Fayre fader gyue to vs this daye our breed cotydyan or dayly What may the sone lesse demaunde of his fader / than onely breed for to passe forthe the daye / he demaundeth none outrage / ne wyne / ne flesshe / ne fysshe / but he demaundeth breed no more not for a yere / ne yet for a weke / but for to passe with the day onely This semeth that it is a lytel thynge that we demaunde / but certaynly we requyre a moche grete thyÌ„ge / whan we requyre of an abbot the breed of an abbay / or requyre the fraternyte / the companye / the parte / the ryght in al the godes of thabbay Ryght so it is of hyÌ„ that axeth of god this dayly breed / he hath fratnyte parte company / and ryght in all the goodes that ben in heuen This is the blyssed breed of heuen / of that blyssed couente The brede of heuen The brede of aungellys / the brede delectable / the brede of the lyf perdurable For it gyueth lyf vnderstondynge / neuer to deye / and preserueth a man / wherof god sayth in the gospell I am the brede of lyf whiche descended fro heuen / who that shall ete of this brede shall alwaye lyue wtout deyenge This brede is ryght good mete For it stauncheth all the hongres of the worlde / and fylleth a man and replenyssheth this doth not other mete / this is the breed and the mete that thou takest at the sacrament of the aulter And this mete thou oughtest to take in grete ardour and in grete deuocyon of herte / and in grete desyre That is to vnderstonde that thou oughtest to byleue feythfully that this mete so moche precyous is the veray body of Ihesu Cryste / and the soule / and the godhede all togyder without errour and withoute to demaunde or aske ony ferther For god may more than man may vnderstonde After a man ought to vnderstonde and chewe this precyous mete / lyke as the oxe fedeth of the grasse and cheweth his cudde / and then he taketh it in That is to saye that one ought to remembre deuoutlye and ofte by partyes / the bountes and graces of our lorde / and all the sorowes that Ihesu Cryste suffred in erthe for vs. Thenne the herte fyndeth the sauour of this precyous mete and causeth a ryght grete ardour of the loue of god in ryght grete desyre and wyll to do and to suffre all that he may for hym / and more than he may And all this doth the vertue of this blessed brede celestyall of the sacramente of the masse whiche is the veray precyous body of Ihesu Cryst This is the brede that comforteth and enforceth the herte to that / that he be well stronge to suffre to do grete thynges for the loue of god But this may not be but yf he haue the fourthe gyft of the holy goost / whiche is called the gyft of strength / whiche armeth and encourageth the knyght of god / and maketh hyÌ„ to renne gladly to martyrdome and to suffre Ioyously the tourmeÌ„tes Now mayst thou se / whan we demaunde this breed of aungelles We demaunde the gyft of strength For lyke as the bodely breed or materyall susteyne the body and enforce it Ryght so the gyft of strength maketh the herte stronge to suffre and to do grete thyÌ„ges for god This breed celestyall of aungelles / we call our for he was made of our paste he was sone of god the fader / was sone borne of the gloryous vyrgyn Mary Blyssed be this gloryous vyrgyn fro whome came this blyssed floure For that was the debonayre Ihesus / that was crucyfyed on the crosse for to redeme the worlde fro paynes of hell And this dyde he for the grete brennynge loue that he hadde vnto vs. This is the bysquyt of whiche he garnysshed his shyppe of holy chyrche for to passe the grete se of this peryllous worlde / he is oures / for he left to vs at his departynge leue takynge at his laste testament the swete Ihesu cryst / the ryght large / as the moost grete and moost ryche
the yeftes and all the good that a man doth / or that he can gete / is for to put awaye and destroye pryde and all synnes and euylles And therfore whan god hath gyuen to a man this that he hath requyred of god in the .vi. requestes aforesayd Thenne certaynlye it is of veray nede that god delyuer hym from the puyssaunce of the fende / fro all his engynes and from all his temptacyons And therfore cometh at the laste this petycyon and requeste as the ryergarde whiche sayth thus Sed libera nos a malo a men / that is to saye Fayre fader Ihesu Cryste delyuer vs fro all euyll / fro all synnes and fro all perylles passed / present / and to come And fro all thengynes of the fende our enemye / that we lose not by pryde the goodes that thou hast gyuen to vs. ¶ In this requeste we praye to god that he gyue to vs the yefte of holy drede By the whiche we may be delyueryd fro the fende and from his temptacyons / and fro all manere of euyll / that is fro all perylles and fro al synnes in this worlde and in that other amen So be it as we haue sayd / so moche is it to saye this worde amen ¶ Now hast thou herde the seuen petycyons and requestys / that god made with his blessed mouthe for to enseygne and teche vs to lerne all that whiche we may and ought to praye demaunde for the body and for the soule and for this worlde and for that other And all is conteyned and comprysed in the holy Pater noster Now kepe the well that thou saye it aryght with herte and with mouthe For grete good shall come to the therof / yf thou so do ¶ Thus endeth the seuen petycyons of the holy Pater noster ¶ Of the .vii. gyftes of the holy goost Ca. lxxxvi AFter the petycyons and requestes that ben conteyned in the holy pater noster Vs behoueth to speke in grete reuereÌ„ce of so hy a mater as of the holy gyftes of the holy ghoost / lyke as he hym selfe of his grace shall ensygne and teche vs. And we shall say fyrst whiche ben the gyftes of the holy ghoost ¶ After wherfore they be called gyftes / and wherfore they be called of the holy goost After wherfore they be seuen gyftes of the holy ghoost ne moo ne lasse Also we shall say of the goodes that the gyftes of the holy goost do Custome it is / reason and curteysy / that a hye man / ryche / valyaunt / and noble / whan he wyll go to his spouse that he loueth with all his herte / that he bete to her of his Iewelles ¶ Ysaye the prophete saw in his spyryte the gloryous espousaylles that were made in the bely of the blyssed vyrgyn Mary / whan the blyssed sone of god espoused her / and toke in her our blode our flesshe / our humanite our nature So recounteth to vs the sayd prophete of the Iewelles the fayre gyftes that he brought with hym for to gyue to vs his espouse and to her parentes And sayth thus the sayd prophete moch curteysly Fro the rote of Iesse shall yssue a rodde the shall bere the floure of nazareth That is to say / out of the grete charyte / and fro the grete enbracynge or brennynge of the loue of god shall come to vs a rodde whiche shall bâ—re the floure of floures For nazareth is as moche for to say as floure And Iesse is as moche to say as enbracyÌ„ge or brennynge And vpoÌ„ this floure shall rest the holy goost the spyryte of sapyence of vnderstondynge / the spyryte of strength and of counceyle / the spyryte of scyence and of pyte / the spyryte of the drede of god These ben the graces of whiche he was all full fro the houre that he was conceyued in the precyous bely of his moder lyke as the grete se is full of water / and is well and fouÌ„tayne of all the fresshe waters and salte / of whiche he arouseth and watreth all the worlde Ryght so was he as sayth saynt Iohan theuangelyst so full of grace / of veryte or trouthe the of his plante we take all These .vii. spyrytes these seuen gyftes we take them and receyue in the holy baptesme But thus as the graces corporell whiche god gyueth to chyldren / in wytte / in bounte / in strengthe / and in other graces / whiche he gyueth at his playser to eueryche he sheweth hym lytyll / lyke as a chylde groweth and cometh forth Ryght so is it in spyrytuell graces / after that / that eueryche prouffyteth and groweth in good werkes / and gyueth all his herte / all his thought to god / after that / god gyueth to hym more of his graces / that sheweth the same gyftes by werkes / somme in one / other in / other / at the playsyre of the holy ghoost as sayth saynt Poule the appostle Then in our begyÌ„nynge these graces and these vertues ben lowe / and ryse on heyght That is fro the spyryte and yefte of drede vnto the gyftes of sapyence For holy drede is the begynnynge of sapyeÌ„ce Lyke as Dauyd sayth Salamon But in Ihesu Cryste weren alwaye all the graces and al the vertues plenerly without ony mesure And therfore the prophete setteth them in descendynge eche gyftes after the ordre of his dygnyte / lyke as the petycyons requestes of the holy Pater noster ben sette forthe after the ordre of theyr dygnyte / the hyetofore / and the lower after ¶ Why they be called gyftes / for thre reasons Ca. .lxxxvii. SVche maner graces haue to name gyftes / for .iii. thynges for thre reasons Fyrst for theyr dygnyte for theyr valour / yf a man at the courte of the kynge gyue a robe to a chylde / or to a poore man a dysshe of weyght This is noo thynge that ought to be called the gyfte of a kynge Therfore calleth saynt Iames thappostle all the other temporall goodes that god gyueth / not a gyft / but lytell gyftes whiche ben moeuable and passyÌ„ge But these graces abouesayd he called them gyftes parfyte For god gyueth them to no creature / but that he gyueth hyÌ„ hym selfe ✿ ¶ The seconde reason is bycause that the other graces and the other gyftes he leneth theym to vs for to vse them in this present lyfe But the seuen gyftes tofore sayd ben veray gyftes by ryght without reprysynge and reprehendynge / for whan all the other gyftes shall fayle / these .vii. gyftes shall alwaye abyde in theyr ferme estate Thenne they be soo proprely oures that we maye not lese theym ageynst our propre wyll / lyke as we may lese the other The thyrde reason and the pryncypall is / that the selfe gyftes be purely for loue And thou knowest well that a gyft leseth the name of gyfte whan it is not gyuen purely for loue For whan the
in what sorowe / in what myschyefe / and in what peryll thou arte in this present worlde For thou art semblable and lyke vnto a man the whiche peryssheth in these slepynge fast in a shyppe or other vessell / ne feleth / ne vnderstandeth / ne also apperceyueth his peryll and daunger the whiche he is in That is to vnderstande and saye caytyf beholde agayne thy lyf fro now backewarde For thou comest fro the tauerne of the deuyll / where as thou haste wasted mysspent thy lyfe and tyme in foule ordure and fylth of synne / and loste al thyn aege / and all the goodes che whiche god hath gyuen vnto the. What doost thou That is to say / consyder how thou arte faynte and frayle wery slowe towarde thy body and towarde thy soule Thou wenest to be hole and stronge / but peraduenture thou hast the humours corrupte in thy body whiche shall lede the to the deth And in thy soule thou hast euyl maners / that shall lede the to the dethe of hell yf the grace of god kepe the not After whither goest thou / that is for to saye Caytyf thȳke beholde and vnderstande that thou goest to thy deth wherin thou shalte fall in to the hondes of Herode / that is the deuyll of hell and his meyne Thou goest vnto the Iugement and dome where thou shalte se the Iustyce our lorde god soo cruell / soo strayte / and soo puyssaunt Thou goost in to hell where thou shall fynde fyre styn kynge sulphre / and mo than a thousande tourmentes that The tree of sȳnes the rote of pryde Enuy. Symony Blasphemynge Yre Auarice vayn glory Slouth Glotony Lechery neuer shall fynysshe to tourment the. Thus dooth the holy ghoost to the synner to opē his eyen / to beholde aboue hym / and vnder hym / and tofore hym and behynde hym ¶ These ben foure strokes of dethe the whiche fereth the sinner and maketh hym to trȳble and too haue drede And these foure beholdynges and consyderacions proprely ben the foure stremes of the vertue of humylyte that the gyfte of drede planteth in the hert of the synner whan god vysyteth hym ¶ Here foloweth of the foure rootes of the synne of pryde Ca. lxxxxxviii THe foure thoughtes and consyderacyons the whiche ben tofore reherced pulleth out and taketh awaye frome the roote out of the gardyn or herber of the herte the foure rootes of pryde / that is of the proude man the whiche weneth for to knowe moche thynge / Or for to be of the valour of moche thynge / or that he may do and compryse moche thynge / or to haue moche thynge These ben the foure hornes That is for to vnderstande the foure cowardyses the whiche shamed the countree that our lorde god shewed vnto the holy man Zacharye the prophete But the foure thynges that he shewed hym proprely after that they came for to be et downe these tofore sayd foure hornes the whiche ben the foure thoughtes and cōsyderacyons toforesayd For whan a man frome whens he cometh / and whan that he vnderstandeth and alsoo knoweth the pouerte / the vylete / and veraye fraylte of his byrthe / how and in what maner he was conceyued as in synne / of soo foule mater and fylthe made fourmed In so poore an house herboured and lodged In so grete pouerte borne and brought forthe In what paynes and myseryes nourysshed and fostred In what laboures and trauayles he hath lyued And he hath loste spente his tyme folysshely about vayne and transytorye vanytees / he seeth and consydereth the grete nombre multytude of his synnes and trespaces And knoweth clerely the good dedes the whiche he hath lefte and not doone by his slouthe and neclygence Thenne the grace of the holy ghoost maketh him to fele / to Iuge and for to knowe in his herte / that he is of noo value / ne noo thynge worthe / after whan he thynketh where he is / and seeth this worlde whiche is nothynge but an exyle / a desert full of berys lyepardes / a forest full of theuys and engynes a see full of tempest and perylles / a fourneys brennynge and enbraced with fyre and of all synnes / a felde of bataylle and of anguysshe / where alwaye byhoueth to lyue in warre fyght ayenste the deuylles whiche ben so subtyll and so sage Thenne the grace of God maketh hym for to fele aryght and perceyue that he felt nothynge for to gouerne hym well touchynge his saluacyon yet agayne whan the synner thynketh / consyderethe and knoweth his synnes and his defautes that he is full of synnes / and voyde of all good dedes and werkes Thenne thē holy ghost maketh him to fele and to know his pouerte / and that he hath no spyrytuell good in hym After whan the synnar seeth tofore hym whiche waye he goeth / and he seeth the deth / to whome noo man may gaynsaye On that other parte the synnar seeth the Iustyce and the vengeaunce of god so Iuste soo ryghtfull whiche is so moche to be doubted / by whos handes he must passe / he seeth and knoweth the paynes horryble of helle from whome the synnar may not escape Thenne god gyueth hym to knowe that the power of a man and of a woman is nought / and that they may do no thynge wtout the specyall grace of god Thenne the synnar begynneth to haue the spyryte and yeft of drede In these thoughtes and consyderacyons ben the braunches of the rote of the tree of humylyte This tree is planted besyde the fountayne of the drede of god / of whiche it is alwaye arowsed watred as well in wynter as in somer Now oughtes thou to knowe that these .vii. vertues of whiche I purpose to speke of haue eche of them seuen degrees / by whiche it prouffyteth / aryseth / and groweth in the herte of a creature / and his good werkys by whiche is sheweth outewarde For vertue groweth on hye / lyke as doeth the palme / the cypres or the cedre / and after spredeth and casteth his braunches on all sydes ¶ Of the vertue of humylyte Ca. lxxxxix OF the vertue of humylyte speketh saynt Ancelme / and sayth that it hath .vii. degrees by whiche it mounteth on hye before that it come to perfecion Now vnderstonde well how the fyrst degree of humylyte knoweth his pouerte / his synnes / and his defautes For lyke as sayth saynt Bernarde humylyte is the vertue that maketh a man to mespryse and despyse hym self / and holde hym for vyle whā he knoweth hym self verayly ¶ This knowleche groweth of the .iiii. rotes tofore sayd But ther ben somme that knowe well theyr deffautes and theyr synnes / and theyr pouertees / but they fele theym not Therfore the seconde degre of humylyte / is to fele and to complayne his synnes / his defautes / his sorowe / and his maladye he renneth gladly to the leche / that feleth
so humbled and voyde of theyr spyryte / that theyr spyryte is al mynuysshed / for god hath it al / and the holy ghoost hath replenysshed the hous of his herte / and is there lorde / enhaunceth them that ben poore of spyryte These ben the veray meke and humble / whome he maketh to regne in heuen by holy hope and by holy conscyence / and therfore sayth our lorde in the gospel / that the royame of heuen is theyres Not onely by promesse / but by fyne certeynte / lyke as they that begane somtyme to receyue the fruytes and the rentes how they sholde be blessed in that other worlde That may no man knowe vnto the tyme that he be there For the herte of a mortal man may not thynke it / ne expresse with mouthe / ne also here it with his ecrys ¶ Of the gyftes of holy drede of pyte Ca. Cviii. THe fyrst gyfte of the holy ghoost maketh the herte humble dredefull and to doubte god and hate all synnes / and therfore it is named the gyftes of drede ¶ The seconde gyfte of pyte maketh the herte swete debonayre and pyteous And therfore is it named the gyfte of pyte And that is proprely a dewe and a traycle ayenst the venym of felonnye / and in especyall ayenste the venym of the synne of enuye / of whiche we haue spoken tofore For this gyfte of pyte taketh awaye plucketh of the herte the rote of enuye / there heleth it parfyghtely Thenne the herte that receyueth this gyft / and feleth in hym a dewe / whiche maketh hym to germyn a swete rote / and ryght well attempred / that is good loue / oute of whiche groweth a fayre tree berynge grete fruyte / that is a fayre vertue and good that is called in latyn māsuetudo That is to say swetenes and debonayrte of herte / whiche maketh a man swete / debonayr / charytable / and amyable For this vertue maketh a man to loue his neyghbour parfytely / hym selfe after god This tree hath vii degrees by whiche he moūteth on heyght These .vii. degrees sheweth to vs saynt Poule / there where he admonesteth and prayeth that we doo payne to that / that we be all one in god The fyrst reason is that we haue al one herte / the hye and the lowe / the poore and the ryche That is that we haue all one fader in heuen That is god whiche made vs all comunely to his ymage and semblaunce And bycause that all we haue one creatoure and maker whiche made vs all of one mater and of one fourme / to one ende / that is that we be all in hym and with hym Lyke as he sayth in the gospel It is moche grete reason that we loue eche other / for the beestes / and the byrdes loueth his semblable The seconde reason is that we be all crysten baptysed in the sacrament of baptym poore and ryche That is that we be all wasshen with the precyous blode of Ihesu cryste And we were redemed with one maner money / and as moche cost that one as that other Moche thenne owe we to loue eche other to honoure for god hath moche loued vs and praysed vs / hath made vs of grete dygnyte The thyrde reasō is bycause we haue all one fayth and ben bounden all to one lawe whiche all is accomplysshed / Lyke as saynt Poule sayeth in this worde / Loue thy neyghboure as thy selfe Of this det is no man quyte for ony thynge that he can do / this det oweth eche man to other / and who that moost rendreth moost oweth ¶ The fourth reason is that we haue all one mayster and one lorde that is god of whome he holde all body and soule / and all that we haue / he made vs all and fourmed / hath vs all redemed of a lyke pryce / he shall Iuge vs all / and rewarde largely to all them that shall haue kepte and holden his commaundementes / that haue loued eche other truely The fyfthe reason is bycause that we be all felawes in the hoost of our lorde / And we be all his knyghtes and souldyours / whiche we all abyde one rewarde / that is the glory perdurable / and loue and cōpany of all sayntes ¶ The .vi. reason is that we lyue all of one speryte spyrytually / lyke as we lyue of one ayre corporally By this spyryte we ben all sones of god by adopcyon That is by aduoery / and sones of holy chyrche / brethren germayne of fader and moder / a spyrytuell fraternyte / whiche is better worthe than a carnall fraternyte / lyke as the speryte is of more value than the body ¶ The seuenth reason is bycause that we ben all membres of one body / of whiche Ihesu cryste is the hede / and we ben the membres the whiche lyueth all of one meet That is of the precyous flesshe and blode of our sauyour Ihesu cryste / the whiche so moche loueth vs / and vs holdeth so dere and well be loued / that he gyueth vnto vs his ryght precyous blode for too drynke / and his dygne and precyous flesshe for to ete Therfore remembreth vs so oft saynt Poule this loue whiche he sheweth vnto vs. For a more quicker reason ne more fayrer example may he not shewe vnto vs of veray amyte and frendshyp / yf so be that thou thynke well and stedfastly on these toforesayd reasons Thou shalte fynde .vii. degrees of amytye and frendshyppes the whiche cometh of the gyftes of pyte ¶ Of .vii. maners of spyrytuell loue Ca. Cix OF this stocke and oute of this rote growen vii braunches For this vertue sheweth hȳ in seuen maners lyke as loue is knowen / whiche is emonge the membres of a body in vii maners Fyrst the one of the membres kepeth and countregardeth the other / that it do to hym none euyll / ne that it faylle hym not / ne that it doo hym none harme ne domage to his power / and herin we vnderstonde our Innocency whiche we ought to kepe eche anenst other For this commaundement is wryton in the herte of euery persone That is that thou do to another after god that / whiche thou woldest that he dyd to the and that thou sholdest not do to another / otherwyse thā thou woldest sholde not be doone to the. Ne the thy ryght honde sholde smyte the lyft honde Also that one membre suffre swetely that other that it doo to it no harme / ne no vengeaunce ne wrathe But yf that one membre haue harme or hurte / that other membres fele it And in this vnderstonde we parfyght debonayrte whiche hath iii. degrees The fyrst is that he reuenge hym not The seconde that he reteyne not wrathe ne yre The thyrde that he ne fele no moeuynge of hate ne yre towarde his neyghboure for ony thynge that he doth ¶ Also the membres obeyen al to theyr souerayn For
they do al to theyr power that / whiche the herte comaundeth them / and the eyen ensygnen them In this vnderstonde we the vertue of obedyence of whiche we haue spoken tofore / whiche ought for to be apparaylled and aourned in loue and in charyte as lyke as sayth saynt Peter the appostle Also that one membre helpeth that other / and serueth that other without daunger or peryll / without contradyccion and without auaryce And herin we vnderstande the vertue / the whiche is called charyte / of whiche a man then̄e helpeth and socoureth an other gladly with the power the god hath gyuen hym / or he ensygneth or counceyleth with the wytte that he hath Or he gyueth and departeth largely for the loue of god the goodes and rychesses that he hath Thenne is sayd of hym that he is moche charytable / and thus commaundeth to vs saynt Peter / that the graces that almyghty god hath gyuen vnto vs / that we admynyster theym vnto our neyghboures and prochanes wherof Tullius the phylosophre sayth / we ought to fele al that whiche is in the worlde and groweth and encreaseth / all is made for to serue man And the men be made the one to ayde and helpe the other For the one is engendred of the other Lete vs then̄e do that for whiche we be borne and the whiche nature ensygneth and sheweth vs / and seche we all the comune prouffyte For thus as sayth the holy appostle saynt Poule / we ben all membres of one onely body All the membres feleth and drawe to theym that whiche is done to eueryche / be it good / or be it euyll be it Ioye / be it anguysshe / whan one smyteth the fote the mouthe sayth ye greue and hurte me ¶ By this we vnderstonde and knowe the vertue of veraye pyte / the whiche we ought to haue comynly / whiche hath two offyces as sayth saynt Poule That is to wete to Ioye for the good that other do and haue And to sorowe for the euyls that other fele make ¶ Also yf a membre be seke or hurte / al the other helpe it to th ende that may be garysshed and holy In this vnderstonde we the vertue of Iustyce and of correcyon / without the whiche the body of the holy chirche may not endure For the roten membres defoule the other that ben hole / who that wyll thenne chastyse his brother and his neyghboure / and repreue and punysshe his subgette / late hym take hede at hym self / whan that a membre is seke or hurte / the herte hath grete compassyon / and feleth grete sorowe And that is for the grete loue that he hath to it / he sette honde to / moche swetely and ofte ¶ And lyke as sayth Seneke / lyke as all the membres of the body aydeth and bere vp eche other Ryght so ought euery man for to supporte his neyzboure / and to correcte and plucke awaye the woundes of synnes that ben in his herte ¶ Fyrst there ought for to be layed therto the oynementes and thenplaystres of swete admonycyons ¶ Also yf this be nought worthe there must be layed therto the sharpe poudres and poynaunte of harde reprehencyon And yf that helpe not / thenne lete come the swerde to dysseuere / or for to excommynye hym / or to bannysshe hym out of the contreye or to withdrawe fro hym Also the membres honoure and kepe that one that other / and do worshyp lyke as sayth saynt Poule / we owe to bere and do reuerence one to another / and specyally they that haue grete nede to be supported These ben the moost folysshe moost feble Them ought men moost to supporte Thenne the wyse men sage beren and supporten alwaye the fooles and the feble / lyke as the bones bereth the flesshe / and as the pyler bereth the hous This is ayēst myssayers / that so gladly cryen and sayen the deffaultes and the synnes that they se in other Also that one membre deffendeth that other at nede put hȳ tofore to saue that other / for at nede is seen who is a frende / whan that one fote slydeth / the other helpeth it anone Whan that one wolde smyte the heed / the hande putteth hym tofore In that vnderstande we parfyte and pure amyte / wherof god sayth in the gospell Who may do greter amyte or frendshyp / than to sette his lyfe for his frende This frendshyp sheweth to vs Ihesu cryste the veray frende / whiche for vs set his soule and his body to dethe shamefull And the dyde he to gyue to vs example / lyke as sayth saynt Peter / also saynt Iames / that god hath sette his soule for vs. And ryght so ought we to sette our soules for our brethren and for our neyghboures / yf we be aryght the membres of the body of Ihesu cryste / whiche is our heed Who that hath this vertue aryght I shall say appertly that he is well blyssed This is the vertue that our good mayster Ihesu cryst ensygneth vs whan he fayth in the gospell / blyssed be the debonayre For they shall possede the lande of theym that lyueth in glorye without ende ¶ Now vnderstande well this blyssynge that the debonayre hathe in this worlde For the parfyte debonayr ben now in possessyon of the erthe That is to vnderstonde in iii. maners Fyrste of the erthe of lyuynge people That is god hym selfe / whiche is the herytage of theym that lyue pardurably that is of the sayntes and of good people in lyke wyse as the erth is habytacyon of beestes and of men And bycause that god hymselfe is the erthe of lyuynge men / he hath the debonayres in his possessyon For they doo nothynge but that whiche pleaseth god Therfore it is ryght that they haue god in theyr possessyon Lyke as Dauyd the prophete sayeth in his psaulter The debonayres sayth he shal haue the erthe in possessyon in herytage And also they shall haue delectacyons in multytude of peas And the holy man saynt Austyn sayth the no man shall haue god in his possessyon / but the fyrst he shal be in his Also the debonayr haue in this worlde the londe of theyr herte in possessyon For they be by ryght lordes of theyr herte The felone is not lorde of his herte / and the debonayre hath the mystrye of his herte and of his euyll maners ¶ And Salamon sayth that he is more valyaunte / that maystryeth well his herte than he that taketh a stronge castell and cyte ¶ Also the debonayre ben lordes of therthe / that is of worldly goodes For yf they lese them they shal neuer be troubled ne angry therfore But they that ben angry whan they lose worldly goodes / be not lordes of theym ne of theyr hertes But ben seruauntes therto / and therfore it is ryght and reason that they that haue here the goodes temporell and spyrytuell / haue in them self theyr possessyon of the
hath stolen and mysused the goodes of his lorde whiche ben but lent to hym for to wynne wt. Tho ben the godes of nature / of grace / and of fortune / of whiche he must rendre gyue acompte and rekenynge moche straytely / how he hath folyly dyspended them hath put them to euyll vse Also he is a murderer of the doughter of a kynge / that is of his owne soule / the whiche was doughter of the kynge of glory by grace / whome he hath slayne put to dethe by deedly synne Also he is a traytre For the castell of the herte and of his body whiche god hath gyuen hym to kepe / he hath yelded to the deuyll whiche is his mortall ennemy / well ought he to demeane grete sorowe that is in suche peryll / ought ofte for to wasshe his bedde / that is his conscyence The teeres chase dryue awaye the deuyll out of his hert / lyke as scaldynge water dryueth a dogge out of the kechyn After the repentaunce ought to come confessyon / that is the good chamberyer whiche maketh cletnehe hous casteth out al the ordures with the brome of the tonge / wherof Dauyd sayth in the psaulter ¶ Now vnderstonde well how a man ought to confesse hym ¶ Here after is conteyned how that a man ought to confesse hym Ca. Cxxviii VNto that / that confessyon auaylleth to the sauacyon of the soule byhouen syxe condycions ¶ The fyrst is that it be made wysely and this is in two thynges / the fyrst that he take good hede / to whome he ought to confesse hȳ after wherof he ought to be confessed / saynt Austyn sayth / that it whiche one sholde doo for to eschewe and flee the deth of the body / ought one do for to eschewe the dethe and the dampnacyon of the soule The seke man for teschewe and to flee the dethe / and for to haue helthe secheth gladly the best physycian and the moost wyse that he may fynde Thus sayth sayth Austyn / who so wysely wyll confesse hym and fynde grace anenst god / he ought to seche suche a confessour / whiche can and may bynde and vnbynde / and also counceylle That is that the confessour can well knowe synne / and counceylle the synnar and that he haue power to assoylle hym / and to gyue hym penaunce after the synne For accordynge to his synne he ought to haue penaunce Also who so wyll confesse hȳ wysely he ought dylygently remēbre his synnes tofore or he confesse hym and enserche all his herte and his conscyence / how he hath dysplesed god and his blyssed moder and all his company of sayntes and ought to remembre all his lyfe in grete drede Lyke as dyde the good kynge Ezechyas whiche sayd thus I shal remembre all my yeres in the grete bytternes of my soule and my hert The synner ought to entre in to the hous of his hert / and not to passe through lyke a mynstrell whiche a bydeth not gladly in his hous For he hathe no werse home than his owne But in his hert a man ought to dwell and consyder all his sȳnes defautes Wherof he ought to yelde accomptes and reason truely to god and to his confessoure / and ought to remembre to ordayne wel his acompte / lyke as he that is adiourned tofore his lorde for to rendre acomptes of all his receytes paymentes And also well to take hede tofore the wrytynge of his conscyence / that he fayle not to accompte all his lyfe For yf he fayle of his acompte / god shall not fayle of his Whan a man hath dylygently remembred his synnes / and beholden how and in how many maners he hathe dyspleased god / and how oftentymes / and how gretely he hath synned And how longe he hath abyden in synne Then̄e he ought to confesse hym anone and hastely ¶ And this is the seconde condycyon that ought to be in confessyon The kynge Dauyd rose at mydnyght for to confesse hym Lyke as he sayeth in the psaulter / and abode neuer vnto a moneth / ne to the ende of a yere And the wyse man sayeth thus in an other place Ne tary thou not to conuerte to god / ne withdrawe the not ne seke no delayes fro day to day For in taryēge is moche peryll for many reasons Fyrst for the condycyon of synne For synne is a fyre brēnynge / whiche may not be quenched but by lacrymable cōfessyon And moche were he a fole that sawe his hous brēnynge / wolde not hastely ren to fetche water to quenche the fyre Also it is a grete malady sekenes to dwell in synne and the veray medycyn is confessyon / and certayne lytell prayseth he his helthe / that feleth hym selfe seke to the dethe / and desyreth not to be guarysshed and heled Also the dethe whiche is nyghe and all about for to espye the synner / ought to moeue and excyte hym hustely to confessyon For he knoweth not the day / the houre / ne the poynte or mynute whan the dethe shall come the whiche surpryseth oft the synner / there where he taketh no hede And certaynly who that knewe what day he sholde deye he sholde make hym redy in the best hastyest wyse that he myght Also yf a synner sawe well the peryl wherin he is For he is in the holde pryson of synne and in the throte of the lyon of hell and of the dragon that wyl deuoure hym / he sholde hastely go to confession / and that as soone as he myght Also a synner ought for to se what he hath lost by his synne / the goodes pardurable the goodes spyrytuell His tyme and hym self whiche he myght al recouer by deuoute confessyon Moche thenne were he a foole yf he hasted not to recouer that whiche he had loste Also the mercy of god that abydeth for the sȳner and knocketh at his dore as sayth thappocalyps For he that ought to haste hym to be confessed For of as moche as god abydeth so longe the sȳner / of so moche is his Iustyce more harde and more cruell / whan he seeth hȳ slowe and neclygent For lyke as the archer gyueth his bowe more bente / and tharbelaster to the crosse bowe so moche more smitteth it the harder and stronger And certaynly god hath his bowe bent and redy to lose as sayth the psaulter for to sle the synners yf they wyl not conuerte them and yf they take not good hede Also the synner that ouer longe taryeth to confesse hȳ forgeteth ofte his synnes Soo that it happeth that vnneth that he is well and truly confessed For he forgeteth many synnes whiche he shall neuer remembre / so of them shall he neuer repente / ne neuer be confessed / of whiche it is to hym grete perylle ¶ Also whan a synnar is tofore his confessour he ought to expresse saye his synnes clerely / soo that his confessour see euydently
drynke Then shewed god to Moyses a staffe of tree / sayd to hym that he sholde put it in to the water that was so bytter And whan he had put it therin / it was all swete The bytter water ben the trybulacyons of the worlde The staffe of the tree that made it swete / that is the crosse on whiche the debonayre Ihesu cryste was hanged on for vs. For who that remembreth well this sorowe that he suffred on the crosse There is no payne ne aduersyte / ne tribulacion temporall / but it it is swete and lyght to suffre The fourth thynge is to thynke on the spyrytuall godes that the trybulacyons dooth to them that suffreth them pacyently For the trybulacyons proueth the knyght of god A knyght knoweth not well his strengthe / vnto the tyme that he hath ben in batayle in prees Wherof saynt Poule sayth / that the pacyence proueth a man / and an aungel of heuen sayd to Thoby / by cause that thou were pleasaunte to god It behoueth that temptacyon shall proue the. ¶ Also trybulacyon purgeth the soule as the fyre purgeth the golde in the forneys / and as the flayle the corne whan it beteth it And as the hamer the yron / as sayth saynt Gregory Also trybulacyons ben the medycynes of the maladyes of synne For lyke as sayth the holy scrypture The greuous malady maketh a man sobre whome sȳne hath made dronke oftymes Wherof saynt Gregory sayth Lete it not be harde to the that thou suffre dysease on thy body whan thou arte guarysshed of the malady of synne within forth Also by trybulacyons is won the crowne of glory / whan one hath good pacyence Wher of saynt Iames sayth / blyssed is that man that suffreth temptacions / that is aduersyte trybulacyon / lyke as a good knyght that suffreth the strokes / for whan he shall be well assayed proued / he shall haue the croune of glory These .iiii. remembraūces aforsayd comforte moche thē that ben in trybulacion The .v. spyrytuell braunche of mercy is to pardone his maltalente euyl wyll to euery body For lyke as saynt Gregory sayth / who gyueth his pens or his almesse to the poore and pardoneth not his euyll wyll / his almesse is nothynge worth For god receyueth not the gyfte as longe as the felonnye is in the herte / for god weyeth / preyseth / and taketh the gyfte after his wyll And therfore our lorde sayth in the gospel ¶ Yf that we forgyue not eche other / our fader of heuen shall not forgyue vs our synnes Thenne he that wyl not pardonne and forgyue sayth ageynst hym self / as ofte as he sayth the pater noster / for he prayeth that god pardonne hym / lyke as he pardonneth his euyll wyll to other It is sayd of themperour theodose / that he helde it for a grete shame / yf one dyd to hym vylonye or Iniurye that prayed hym to forgyue hym / and whan he was moost angry / then he forgaue moost sonnest For he had lyuer drawe to hym people by debonayrte and by loue / thenne by drede ¶ The .vi. braunche of this vertue is to haue in the herte pyte and compassyon of the synnars / and of them that be in trybulacyon or in pouerte / or in aduersyte For that one membre ought to bere the maladye of that other wherof saynt Poule sayth / who that is seke / and I am seke with hym And saynt Gregory sayth / that so moche is a man more parfayt / as he feleth more in hym self the sorowe of another ¶ The .vii. braunche of mysyry corde is to praye for the synnar / and for his enemyes / and for all trespasses For soo commaundeth our lorde Ihesu Cryste in the gospell Praye ye sayd he for theym that done to you euyll / and so shal ye ben the sones of your fader whiche is in heuen / as who sholde saye / otherwyse ye ben not the sones of god / and thenne ye haue nothynge in his herytage ¶ Now is it then̄e grete almesse and grete prouffyte for the soule to praye for the synners / for Mekenes rote Mercy and pyte atrēpaūce Iustyce Compassyon Prudēce Force Forgiuenes Faythe Hope Charyte his enmyes / and for all them whiche ben departed out of this presente lyfe These ben the seuen braunches of mercy of this tree on the ryghte syde ¶ Here after foloweth the seuen braūches of mercy vpon the lyfte syde Ca. C.xxxii LYke as this tree of mercy hath seuen braunches on the ryght syde / so ben there seuen braunches on the lyfte syde These ben the seuen werkes of mercy corporell / whiche holdeth the body / lyke as the other beholdeth the soule too foresayd ¶ The fyrst braunche is to fede the hungry the nedy and the myseased / this admonesteth vs the holy scrypture in many places Fyrst Thobye whiche sayd to his sone Ete thy brede with the nedy the poore that deye for hungre and Salamon sayth / yf thyn enemye haue hūgre gyue hym to ete / yf he haue thyrst gyue to him drynke Also our lorde sayth in the gospel / whā thou shalte make a grete dyner / calle the poore people / the blynde / the lame the Impotent and thou shalte be blessed For they may not yelde it to the ageyn But god shal yelde to the in the resurreccyon generalle / an hondred folde double This is ageynste ryche men that done grete oultrages of mete / for bobaunce / pryde / vaynglorye of the worlde haue no pyte on the poore people But they ought to haue grete drede that they falle not in meschyef / lyke as it byfell to the ryche gloton / of whome god sayth in the gospel / whiche ete euery daye delycyously / and suffred the poore Lazare deye for hungre at his yate But as to the deth of that one of that other was a grete chaunge For Lazare was borne with aūgellys in to Abrahams bosome / the ryche man auarycyous gloton had his sepulture in helle / where he desyred to haue one drope of water for to refresshe his tongue Alas yf all the water of the see had ronne ouer his tongue / it sholde not haue ben coled in that fyre perdurable of helle whiche may not be quenched Therfore it is good to fede the poore peopell For there by may one escape fro the paynes of helle / and wynne the glorye of heuen / lyke as sayth holy scrypture / wherof our lorde Ihesu Cryste shal saye at the daye of Iugement Come ye blessed of my fader in to the royame of heuen whiche is redy to you For whan I had hungre And thyrste ye gaue to me to Eete and to drynke For that whiche that ye dyd to the leste of my poore people / ye dyd it to me ¶ The seconde braunche of mercy .. Cxxxiii THe seconde braunche of mercy is to clothe the poore naked people That is
other myscreauntes to do this / moche more ought pyte compassyon to moue the crysten men to do this / whiche by our faythe see that the bodyes be reysed rewarded with the soules And therfore who that loueth the soule of his neyghboure he ought to loue the body / doo bury it whan it is deed with all humanyte and mercy that he may ¶ Now hast thou herde the braunches of the tre of mercy ¶ These ben werkes of mercy corporell and spyrytuell ¶ Here after is sayd how almesse ought to be done Ca. Cxxxix IT is soo that there is moche people that lese theyr almesse and theyr other good dedes whiche they do / bycause they do theym not as they ought to do Therfore I wyll shewe here shortly how almesse ought to be done / and how it is prouffytable pleasaunt to god Fyrst I wyll shewe shortely how a persone ought to do almes / wherof he sholde doo almesse For a mā must doo it of his owne good not of an other mannes / and of suche good that is well and truely goten God setteth nothynge of none euyll gyfte Almesse whiche is made of thefte / or of takynge awaye of other mennes good / of rauyne / or of vsure / or of other euyll goten good pleaseth nothynge to god Wherof the holy scrypture saythe Thou shalte not make sacrefyce ne oblacyon vnto god of heuen / of oxen / nor of shepe / ne of thynge wherin is ony spotte of synne For god hath grete abhomynaciō of suche sacrefyse The wyse man sayth that who that doth sacrefyse to god of the catayll or godes of the poore man He dooth lyke to hym that sleeth the sone tofore the eyen of his fader And saynt Austyn sayth what gyfte is that / whiche the one taketh gladly / and that other wepeth And therfore ought euery man take hede wherof he dooth his almesse ¶ Also he ought to take hede of whome he dooth it wherof the scrypture sayth / Beware to whome thou shalte doo good / do well to the good That is to hym that thou wenest that he be good And gyue noo thynge to the wycked for cause of theyr wyckednesse Lyke as they do whiche gyue to rybauldes to menestrellys for theyr wyckednesse / whiche is a grete synne as saye the sayntes / but who that gyueth to them not for euyll / but for pyte and compassyon for theyr pouerte / or of theyr wyues / or of theyr chyldrē yf they haue ony / or of theyr faders or moders / or for ony other good cause or reason / as for to withdrawe thē fro synne he dooth well ¶ Thenne the almesse ought to be gyuen vnto the poore / more to theym that be veray poore of herte and of wyll whiche haue lefte for goddes sake that whiche they had / moche more thanne to other that be not poore with theyr wyll / but somtyme of pure necessyte And somme there be trewauntes and sloufull for to doo ony good / and myght gete theyr lyuynge yf they wolde ¶ And somme there be that by fayntyse she we somme hurtes and be faytours of theym self that deceyue the worlde To suche ought a man not to gyue his almesse / but it ought to be gyuen to the poore orphanes / to shamefast people to to poore wydowes / to the dyseased and lame / and vnto seke poore people where as it is nede / and whan one may do it And yf a man is bounden to gyue to straungers / he is moche more bounde without comparyson to his fader moder more than to ony other For nature ensygneth it / and god commaūdeth it ¶ It is redde of the storkes / that they nourysshe fader moder whan they be olde and may not purchase theyr meet Thenne nature techeth that one ought to do good to his fader moder / and therfore it is well ryght and reason that myschefe fall to all them that do euyl to theyr faders as it oftyme happeth Also a persone ought to take hede how he ought to do almesse and the maner of gyuynge For .iii. condycions ought to be had in gyuȳge almesse The fyrst is that a man ought to gyue gladly and with good herte For god hath more regarde to the hert than to the handes Wherof god in his sacryfyce as saynt Gregory sayth / be holdeth not onely the thynge that is gyuen / but with what herte Lyke as it appereth well in the gospell of the poore woman that had nomore but two mytes whiche she offred in the temple And our lorde sayd / that she had offred more than all the other whiche had offred grete thinges / for more pleaseth somtyme to god a peny that a poore man gyueth gladly for goddes sake / than yf a ryche man had gyuen an hondred marke in syluer with grutchynge And therfore sayth the wyse man in the scrypture Make alwaye good chere he sayth in all thy gyftes And saynt Poule sayth that god loueth moche the gyuer that is gladde and curteys There ben some people ryght ryche / and be so rude velaynous to the poore / that whan they demaunde theym almesse they answere to theym so vylaynously and so churlysshely / that they do call theym truauntes / and vagabundes / and say vnto them mo than an hondred reproches and vylonnyes Suche almesse pleseth not god and therfore sayth the wyse man in holy scrypture Enclyne and bowe thyn eere to the poore man without heuynesse and answer hym swetelye ¶ The seconde thynge that apperteyneth to do almesse / is that it be done anone and hastelye wherof Salamon sayth saye thou not to thy frende / goo and come ageyn to morne / and thenne I shall gyue to the / whan thou mayst gyue anone And also god sayth / withdrawe not longe thy gyfte fro the poore and fro theym that be nedy That is to saye / make thou not hym abyde / whan thou mayst gyue forthwith This is ageynste many ryche men whiche make poore men to crye after theym / that haue to doo with theym And soo moche delaye them / that they must ofte praye requyre theym tofore that they wyll ony thynge doo They selle ouer dere theyr bounte curtosye / that they do to them for lyke as seneque sayth / nothynge is so dere bought as that whiche is requyred and the prouerbe sayth that it is ouer dere bought that is demaūded Thus sholde euery man hastely do for his soule / as longe as he is alyue and hole / wherof the wyse man sayth Fayre sone sayth he do well to thy self yf thou haue wherof / offre to god worthy offrynges as longe as thou lyuest For the deth shall not tarye but that she cometh ¶ And in another place he sayth do well to thy frende tofore thy deth / that is to thy soule / to whome thou oughtest to do well tofore thy deth / as to thy true frende /
/ and prouffytable to his sauacyon And that is the blessynge wherof god speketh in the gospel whan he sayth blessed be they that be clene of herte / for they shal see god in presence by fayth / in lyght and enformed by the gyfte of vnderstondynge / and after the deth they shal see hym in heuen face to face clerely without ende as sayth saynt Poule This gyfte taketh awaye all ordure and fylthe fro the herte / and maketh hym clene parfytelye fro all ordures of synne and specyally for the spotte of the synne of lecherye For who that of this synne is entatched is veray blynde For he hath loste the eyen of the herte of reason and of vnderstondynge Soo that he may not vnderstonde ne knowe his maker / ne thynge that is holsom ne helthe of his soule But is lyke a beest that hath neyther wytte ne reason in hyÌ„ self / wherof Dauyd sayth in the psaulter / that a man to whome god hath done soo grete honoure that he hath made hym to his ymage and his semblaunce / by whiche he may knowe god and haue hym / whiche he hath not doone to ony other beest / yf he forgete his maker / the bounte that he hath doone to hyÌ„ he is becomen semblable to folysshe beestes whiche haue none vnderstondynge The synne that maketh moost a man to be lyke a foule beest / is the synne of Lechery / of whiche we haue spoken tofore in the treaty of vyces The gyft thenne of vnderstondynge whiche is contrary vnto this ordure / dystroyeth fro the herte the synne of lechery / and setteth therin purete cleÌ„nes / out of whiche groweth a ryght fayre tree That is the vertue of chastyte by whiche they come to this blyssynge / whiche god promytteth to theÌ„ that kepe clennes of herte whan he sayth blyssed be they that be clene of hert For they shall se god Bycause that they shal haue the eyen of the hert wel purged and well enlumyned of the gyft of vnderstandynge This tree groweth prouffyteth moche lyke to the other byforesayd by seuen degrees These ben .vii. thynges that whiche moche auayleth to lyue chastely ¶ The fyrst degree of the vertue of chastyte Ca. C.xli. THe fyrst degree is clene conscyence / that is the roote of this tree For wtout clene conscyence chastyte may not please god This clennes / chastyte purete requyreth that the herte may be kept fro yll thoughtes / so that the herte coÌ„sent to no syÌ„ne For who so coÌ„senteth to syÌ„ne to euyl thought to euyll desyre of his herte / he is not chaste / how well that he kepe hym fro the deed For / for the consentynge onely delybered and purposed / he sholde be dampned yf he deyed in the same state Thre thynges auaylle moche to kepe clennesse of herte The fyrst is to here gladly the worde of god and the sermons wherof our lorde sayth in the gospell to his dyscyples / ye be all clene sayd he by the wordes that I haue sayd to you For the worde of god is lyke a fayre myrrour in whiche one may see the spottes of the herte The seconde thynge is veray confessyon / whiche is the fountayne where one ought ofte to wasshe hym of all ordure of synne The scrypture sayth in the boke of kynges that Elysee the prophete coÌ„mauÌ„ded to Naman whiche was a lepre / that he sholde wasshe hyÌ„ .vii. tymes in the flome Iordan for to be clene and heled of his maladye / and whan he had wasshen hym there / he was al hole and clene The flome Iordan is as moche to saye as the streme of Iugement / whiche sygnefeth confessyon / where one ought to Iuge hym self with grete sorowe of herte and with grete repentaunce of his synnes so that a streme of teeres renne by the conduyt of his eyes / and thus the synnar shall be hole of the mezelrye of synne And therfore sayth saynt Bernard / loue confessyon yf thou wylte haue beaute For veray confessyon and hole is the beaute of that soule The .iii. thynge is to haue remeÌ„braunce of the passyon of Ihesu Cryste For no temptacyon ne none euyll wyll may not duell in the herte that thynketh and remembreth ofte the deth and the passyon of Ihesu Cryste For this is the armure that the deuyll doubteth moost / as that by whiche he is ouercomen and leseth his power This is ryght well sygnefyed to vs in scrypture / where as Moyses reysed vp a serpent of brasse by the commaundement of god vpon a perche on hye that all the people sawe it And all they that behelde it were heled of the bytinge and hurtynge of the serpentes The serpent of brasse that henge on the perche / sygnyfyeth the body of Ihesu Cryste hangynge on the crosse That was the serpent without venym / of whiche was made the tryacle of our saluacyon / for who someuer feleth hym smyten and enuenymed of pryckynge and styÌ„gynge with the venymous serpentes of hell / that ben the deuylles / lete hym beholde by veraye fayth on the serpent of brasse That is to saye that he haue in herte perfyte mynde of the passyon of Ihesu cryste / anone he shal be heled and delyuered of the temptacyons of the ennemy that is the deuyll ¶ The .ii. degree of the vertue of chastyte Ca. C.xlii. THe seconde degree of the vertue of chastyte / by the whiche this tre groweth prouffyteth / is for to kepe his mouth fro vylanous wordes / whiche ben of rybaudry dyshonestes / or suche as torneth to dyshonour For by suche wordes by suche wynde is oft quyckened enflamed the fyre of lechery / wherof the scrypture sayth Who speketh of a comyn woman is brennynge as fyre And saynt Poule sayth that the shrewde wordes cortumpeth good maners / therfore who that kepe hyÌ„ chastly / he behoueth that he kepe hym fro suche wordes / who that gladly speketh them / or gladly hereth them / he leseth god / sheweth well that he is not chaste For there may none other thynge yssue out of a vessell but suche as is wtin it yf the wordes be soule and vylaynous It is an open sygne that the ordure the fylthe and the vyâ—onnye is in the herte For of the habundaunce of the herte the mouthe speketh / this sayth our lorde in the gospel The thyrde degree of the vertue of chastyte Ca. Cxliii THe thyrde degree of the vertue of chastyte / is to kepe well the fyue wyttes of the body / the eyen fro folye beholdynge ere 's fro herkenynge of folye and vayne wordes The nose thrylles fro ouermoche delytyÌ„ge in swete sauours and wycked odours The tongue fro euyll speche and rybauldous langage And the mouth fro ouerswete and delycyous metes drynkes These ben the .v. gates of the cyte of the herte / by whiche the deuyll entreth ofte / these ben the wyndowes of the hous by whiche deth entreth ofte
And yet he wyll also that they haue in the chirche theyr hedes couerd / soo that no man be styred by theym to euyll / ne synne not in beholdynge of theym / but they ought to be arayed as deuoute and good women / whiche shewe the bounte of theyr herte by good werkys / and therfore sayth saynt Ambrose / who wyll be herde in prayer / he ought to take awaye fro hym al sygne of pryde / and ought to enclyne hym to god with his herte by veray confessyon / and by penaūce in profounde humylyte / for to moeue god to doo hym mercy For as he sayth proude habyte geteth no thynge of god / but it gyueth cause to Iuge euyll of hym the weereth it ¶ Now I haue shewed to the thre thynges that ought to be in prayer / fayth / hope and deuocyon But to that / that prayer may be perfyghtly agreable and playsaunte to god and worthy to be enhaunced and herde / it behoueth foure thynges That is that it haue .ii. wynges whiche bere it tofore god These two wynges ben almesses and fastynges / or other penaunces / wherof the aungell sayd to Thobye Prayer is good whan it hath in hym self fastynge and almesse / without these two wynges the prayer may not flee to god For as sayth saynt Ambrose / good lyf maketh the prayer to flee to god But synne letteth it and with draweth it ageyn / wherof thou oughtest to wete that in two maners is prayer lette / lyke as sayth saynt Ysodore One is by cause a mā kepeth hym not fro synne and fro doynge euyll And for that a persone wyll not forgyue the euyll wylle that he hath to another persone For in lyke wyse as the oynemētes wyll not hele the wounde / as longe as the yron is wythī Ryght so auaylleth not ne prouffyteth noo thynge the prayer to hym that sayth it as he hath euyl wylle to another And therfore sayth the prophete / lete vs lyfte vp our hertes our handes to god He lyfteth vp his hert his hādes to god that lyfteth vp his prayers by good werkes And thappostle sayth that he that lyfteth vp his pure handes to god in prayer lyfteth vp in pure clene conscyence without synne For god enhaūceth not the prayer that cometh of a conscyence full of ordure and of synne wherof he sayth by the prophete whan ye shal multeplye your prayers I shal not here them / for your handes be all blody ful of synne who ben they that haue theyr hādes blody but they that dystresse the pour peple which ben vnder them take awaye fro them their good by force they haue the handes ful of blood of the blood of pour peple for they take a way fro them their lyf / their sustenaūce by couetyse by theyr rauyne do grete oultrages etē the morsellys ful of synne wherfore they shal paye the scotte in that other worlde For the scripture sayth that god requyreth the blood of the pour peple For they must gyue a rekenyng or sytte therfore and therfore who wyl be enhaūced herde of god in his prayers late hym not come tofore God the swerde drawen Ne the hādes blody ne wyth voyde handes That is to say in wyll to synne ne spotted of vntrouthe ne voyde of good werkes For thus sayth our lord in the gospel Thou shalt not come tofore me with voyde handes / he cometh with empty handes tofore god that cometh to praye and requyre hym withoute makyng present of good werkes / for to hym he shytteth and closeth his yate that requyreth hym and bryngeth no thynge / herof haue we example in the gospell / whiche sayth that the yate was shytte to the folysshe vyrgyns that had none oyle in theyr lampes / god sayd to them I knowe you not For god knoweth none but them that haue theyr lampes ful of oylle that is to saye them that haue the herte full of pyte and of grace purged and clene of all synnes and shewe it by good werkes Suche people hereth god gladly and openeth to them his yate / and receyueth gladly theyr prayers Now saye I thenne that prayer lyke as it rested on four pylers as it is sayd tofore / and is moche playsaunt to god For it geteth lyghtly of god all that it hath nede be it in body or in soule as sayth the scrypture / wherof saynt Iames sayth that moche auaylleth the besy prayere of a ryghtwyse man For it auaylleth to hele al maladyes of body of soule / and sayth yet that prayer that cometh of fayth heleth the seke persone / yf he be in synne it shall be perdonned The holy scrypture sayth that Moyses the prophete vaynquysshed Amalech and his hoost / not by bataylle / but by holy prayers For as it is sayd of an holy man Moche more auaylleth the prayer of a saynte than the fyghtynge of many thousand synnars The prayer of a good man perceth heuen Thenne shall he ouercome his enemyes in erthe A good olde and deuoute woman geteth more soone a good requeste of god in glorye in prayenge hym deuoutely / than a thousande knyghtes may gete of londe in longe tyme by force of armes / and therfore it is good to praye and requyre god with the orysons of good folke / and specyally of couentes of relygyous people / whiche ben assēbled for to serue god for to praye nyght daye deuoutely for al theyr benefactours For the prayer is moche worthe towarde our lorde For lyke as sayth the scrypture More auayleth more may doo towarde god the prayer of many good persones than ony can expresse or say For as it is sayd of an holy man It may not be but the prayers of many good persones togyder be herde of god and graunted The prayes and requestes of all the hole couent togyder / is sooner passed and herde of thabbot / than the request and prayer of one monke alone In lyke wyse hereth god more soone the request of theym that ben assembled for to serue hym And therfore sayth god in the gospell / yf twayne of you accorde togyder to aske and requyre me All that they requyre my fader of heuē I shall do it ¶ Now haue I spoken of seuen degrees of the tree of the vertue of chastyte / by whiche this vertue groweth mounteth / prouffyteth Now behoueth to saye of the braunches of this tree whiche ben seuen / after the .vii. estates of the people the ben in this worlde ¶ Of the fyrst estate of them that ben entyer and chaste of body Ca. C.xlviii THe fyrst estate of the worlde is of them that ben hole chast of body / haue kept theyr maydenhede / but neuertheles they be not bounden to this / but that they may be maryed In suche estate ought a persone to kepe chastyte that is clennes purete of hert of body / wherfore the
tofore other vertues whan it is without spotte and without ordure of synne for who that is hool chaste of body is corrupte of hert of thought he or she is lyke a sepulcre which is whyt fayr withoutforth within is ful of careyn of dede bodyes stynkyÌ„g rotyÌ„ vyrgynyte is lyke to a whyt robe wherin the spottes be more foule more apparauÌ„t / than in a robe of another colour Thys robe ouÈt to be wel kept fro .iii. spottes that is of fylthe / of blode and of fyre / thyse .iii. spottes defoule more thys whyt robe than other The spotte of fylthe / is the couetyse of the worlde / which ought not to be in the hert that wyl plese god the world his enemye / as sayth sayÌ„t gregoire / he sheweth that there is no frende of god that wyl plese the world whyche is enemye of god wherof sayÌ„t IohaÌ„ sayth / who that wyl be freÌ„de of the world shal be enemy to god saint poul saith yf I wold plese the peple of the world I shold not be the true seruauÌ„t of Iesu cryst It is a sygne that he wyl not plese the world that his hert is al set to god he that hath ouer grete araye curyous aboute hys body is not so for no ê‘soÌ„e secheth neuer beaulte ne couryosyte of roobes ne of paremeÌ„tes yf he supposed not to be seen of the peple who that secheth moost of suche beaute leseth most the beaute of his soule of his coÌ„scieÌ„ce wythinforth by which they shold plese god wherof sayÌ„t Bernard sayth to theÌ„ that secheÌ„ these fayre precyous robes the fayr paremeÌ„tes for to please the worlde to shewe theÌ„ The doughters of babylone beÌ„ of coÌ„fusyon for theyr glorye shall torne to perdurable dampnacyon yf they be not ware kepe them well They clothe them sayth he with purple and of fayre precyous robes / and vnder those fayre robes is ofte the conscyence poore and foule / naked of good dedes and of vertues / ful of synnes They shyne withoutforth of precyous stones / of ouches of glode syluer / but they be foule byfore god and abhomynable / and saynt Bernard sayth that they that so araye them in euyll entencyon / and done more than theyr estate requyreth / synnen greuously / but al the glorye of the doughter of the kynge of glorye / as Dauyd the prophete sayth is withinforth / that is in holy conscyence and in good vertues / where as is no poynte of couetyse but for to playse to god / and in this wyse the spot of fylthe defoylleth not Also a persone ought to kepe hym fro the spotte of blood That is of thoughtes and of flesshly desyres / wherof saynt Ierome sayth that suche vygynyte is sacrefyce offrynge to Ihesu cryste / whiche is not entatched in the herte of ony euyl thought or consentynge for lyke as hym self sayth No thynge auayleth vyrgynyte of body where as is corrupcyon of herte or of thought or of consentynge Also the fruyt is not good how well that it be fayre withoutforth / whan it is full of wormes and of retynnesse withinforth ¶ Also he ought to kepe hym fro the spote that cometh of the fyre / the fyre brenneth and bruleth the whyte robe of chastyte of vyrgynyte / that is whaÌ„ gladly they here or herkene foule wordes that may moeue them to synne For thus as sayth saynt Poule / also other tymes we haue sayd it tofore The euyll wordes / corrupten the good maners And therfore sayth Seneke / kepe the fro euyl wordes dyshonest For who that is so accustomed / he dredeth not ne ferreth no shame / falleth the more lyghtly in to synne / therfore who that wyll clenly kepe the whyte robe of vyrgynyte hym behoueth to kepe hym well fro saynge herynge suche wordes as therby he myght brenne The catte brenneth oft her skynne / so dooth not the wylde catte Vyrgynyte amonge all other vertues is compared and lykened to the floure de lys / whiche is a moche fayre floure / and moche whyte Wherof our lorde sayth in scrypture by the mouth of Salamon My frende / that is the holy soule of a vyrgyn / is as the lely amonge the thornes The specyall frende of our lorde is the soule of them that kepe vyrgynyte of herte of body For that is a vertue by whiche the soule geteth moost specyally the loue and the famylyaryte of our lorde / wherof saynt Iohan theuaÌ„ge lyst was a clene vyrgyn / and was amonge all thappostles moost famylyer whith our lorde moost pryue / as it appereth in the gospell / neuertheles he loued well thother / but he loued saynt Iohan moost for his virgynyte this floure de lys or lylye that kepeth his beaute amonge the thornes of temptacyons of the flesshe / for the flesshe that is our body humayne is but a smoke / that hath noo charge as of hym selfe but as thornes and nettles / that is the euyll menynges / whiche oft prycketh the soule / but the floure of vyrgynyte taketh noo hede of the thornes / whan it is well rooted in the loue of god whiche defendeth it fro thornes of temptacion / this floure ought to haue .vi. leues / thre graynes of golde tofore The fyrst leef is the holenes of thy body / that is to say that the body de entyer and hole wtout corrupcyon of lecherye For yf a vyrgyn were corrupte and all ageynst her wyll / she sholde not lese therfore the rewarde of vyrginyte Wherof saynt Lucye vyrgyn martyr sayd to the tyraunt yf thou corrupte me ayenst my wylle / my chastyte shal be doubled as touchyng the meryte of the crowne of glory The second leef of vyrgynyte is clennesse of hert For lyke as saynt Iherome sayth nought auaylleth to haue vyrgynyte of the body / that hath wylle for to marye hyÌ„ or hyr he speketh of them that hath auowed chastyte For who that hath auowed to kepe vyrgynyte or chastyte / he ought to kepe his hert clene and chaste The thyrd leef of vyrgynyte is humylyte For vyrgynyte wyth pryde pleaseth not god And therfore sayth saynt bernard that it is a moche fayre thyÌ„ge of humylyte wyth vyrgynyte And that soule moche pleaseth to god that iÌ„ humylyte gyueth preysyng of vyrgynyte vyrgynyte embelyssheth humilyte I dare wel say sayth he that wythoute humylyte the vyrgynyte of our lady saynt marye had neuer pleased our lord The fourth leef of the lylye of vyrgynyte is drede of god For they that ben veray vyrgynes ben woned to be tymerous ferful shamefast / that is no meruayle For they bere a moche precyous tresour in a moche feble vessel TheÌ„ne our blessyd lady the vyrgyn marie was alwaye hyd and had drede whan the aungell appyered to her But the drede of god is the tresorer whiche kepeth the tresour of vyrgynyte / which
the deuyl may not take a waye for it kepeth the yates of the castel / wherim the tresour is enclosed The yates of the castel of the hert where the tresour of vyrgynyte is in ben the wittes of the body These yates kepē the drede of god that they be not opened to the enemye of helle / by vayn curyosyte of seȳge or of heeryng / or of smellyng of spekyng or tastyng / or goyng in euyl companye For curiosyte of seynge or of herynge the vanytees of the world ben waye and cause of the synne of lecherye / wherof is sayd in the scrypture that Dyna doughter of Iacob whan she went musyng by curyosyte to see the women of the contre / where anone she was rauysshed and corrupte of the sone of the lorde of the toune / and therfore who wyl kepe vyrgynyte / hȳ byhoueth moche to withdrawe and kepe his .v. wyttes bodyly fro al vayn curyosyte / and this ought be done by holy drede / for a persone oweth alwaye to drede to angre god This is the sence of the .v. vyrgynes of whome our lorde sayth in the gospell / whan he sayd that the royame of heuen is lyke to .x. vyrgynes / of whome fyue were wyse / and the other fyue were fooles He calleth here the royame of heuen holy chirche / whiche is bynethe in this worlde / wherin ben alwaye good and euyll / foles wyse / whiche ben membres of holy chirche / by the fayth that they haue receyued in baptesme The fyue wyse vyrgyns sygnefye them that kepe and gouerne well the fyue wyttes of the body of whiche we haue spoken The fyue vyrgynes foles sygnefye them that folysshly kepe them The .v. leef is sharpenes of the lyf of penaunce For who wyll kepe vyrgynyte / he muste moche chastyse his flesshe and subdue it by penaunce / and that the body do the wyll of the soule by fastynge / by wakynge in prayers / other penaūce Sharpnesse of lyf is lyke a stronge hedge for to kepe the gardyn of the herte / that the euyll beestes assaylle it not / that ben the fendes of helle to th ende that they may not entre / whiche entende studye for to stele and take awaye the tresour of vyrgynyte / therfore ought this tresour to be well enclosed and wel kepte that it be not loste For who that leseth it may neuer recouer it no more than the lampe that is broken may not be made hole ageyn ¶ The .vi. leef of vyrgynyte is perseueraūce that is to haue ferme purpoos to kepe well that is promysed to god / wherof Saynt Austyn sayth in the boke of vyrgynyte and adresseth his wordes to the vyrgyns sayenge Folowe ye the lambe sayth he / that is Ihesu Cryste / in kepynge stronglye that whiche ye haue auowed to god Doo ardauntly as moche ye may / that the we le of vyrgynyte perysshe not in you For ye may not do that thynge / by whiche vyrgynyte may be recouerd / yf it were loste / lyke as we haue shewde by ensaumple of the lampe / and saynt Bernarde Sayth / estudye ye to the vertue of perseueraunce / for she onely wynneth and geteth the crowne of glorye The syxthe leef aforsayd enbelyssheth and maketh moche fayre the lylye of vyrgynyte / but it byhoueth to haue withinforth thre graynes of golde / whiche sygnefyen .iii. maners to loue god For vyrgynyte without loue is lyke as a lampe without oyle / wherfore the fooles vyrgyns by cause they fylled not theyr lampes of this oylle / were shette out fro the weddynge / and the wyse vyrgyns that fylled theyr lampes of this oyle entred in to the weddynge with the spouse The thre maners for to loue god whiche ben sygnefyed by the thre graynes of the lylye / saynt Austyn enseygneth them whan he sayth thus Thou shalt loue god with all thyn entendement without errour / with al thy wylle without gaynsayenge and with all thy mynde withoute forgetynge In suche maner is thymage of god parfayte in a man after .iii. dygnytees that ben in the lyf That is to wete / entendement memorye / and wyll / whan these .iii. thynges ben wel ordeyned to god / thenne ben the thre graynes of golde of the lyly / of the golde of charyte whiche gyueth bounte / beaute / and valure of all vertue For wythout this golde noo vertue is tofore god neyther fayre ne precyouse Otherwyse sayth saynt Bernard of the manere to loue god and sayth thus O thou that arte a crysten man / lerne how thou oughtest to loue god / lerne to loue hym wysely / swetely and strongely / wysely that thou be not deceyued by nycete Swetely that thou be not moeued by prosperyte Strongely that thou be not ouercomen by aduersyte In this maner is fayre the flour delys of vyrgynyte / whan she is suche as is sayd tofore / and this is the seconde reason by whiche thestate of vyrgynyte ought moche to be preysed for her beaute the thyrde reason wherfore thestate of vyrgynyte ought moche to be preysed is for her bounte and for the prouffyt that cometh of it For vyrgynyte is a tresour of soo grete value that it may not be preysed / wherof the scrypture sayth that noo thynge is worthy to be compared to a chaste herte / of the chastyte of vyrgynyte / for vyrgynyte aboue all other estates bereth the moost grettest fruyt the moost grettes proffyt They that ben in maryage and kepe it well as they ought to do haue the .xxx. folde fruyt They that ben in wydowhede haue the .xl. folde fruyt But they that kepe vyrgynyte haue the hondred folde fruyt For lyke as our lorde sayth in the gospel that the seed that falleth in good lande maketh fruyt .xxx. folde .xl. folde / and an hondred folde These .iii. nombres xxx.lx an hondred apperteyne to .iii. estates toforesayd The nōbre of .xxx. whiche is of .x. thre tymes whiche maken .xxx. apperteyneth to thestate of maryage / where ought to be kept the .x. commaundementes of the lawe in the faythe of the holy trynyte The nombre of .lx. is more grete and is of x.vi tymes For .vi. tymes .x. maken .lx. and apperteyneth to thestate of wydowhede For in such estate ought to be kept the precepts / thē ought to be done the .vii. werkes of mercy of whiche we haue spoken tofore / but the nōbre of an hondred whiche is moost grete moost perfyte for it representeth a fygure rounde / whiche is moost parfyght moost fayr emonge the other fygures For lyke as the rounde fygure / the ende retorneth to his begynnyng maketh it roūde lyke a crowne Ryght so the nombre of an C. ioyneth the ende to the begȳnyng For .x. tymes .x. maken an hōdred which sygnefyeth the crowne that the wyse vyrgyns hadde / and how be it that in that state of maryage / in the state of wydowhede may be wonne the crowne of
glorye haue more meryte anenst god than haue many virgyns For many ben in heuen of thē that haue been in maryage in wydowhede whiche be more nygh to god haue more meryte / than many of the vyrgyns Neuer theles the virgyns haue a specyal crowne aboue the crowne of glory whiche is comyn to al saȳtes by cause the vyrgȳs haue a specyal vyctorye of theyr bodyes For for to folowe the lambe what someuer waye that he gooth / that is Ihesu cryst / to whome they be espowses / they haue left theyr carnal spowsayles / for to be with hym in the spowsaylles perdurable There shal they been well arayed nobly apparaylled of a specyal parement so gente so fayr so auenaunt that no tongue may tell therfore I wyl nomore say but that whyche the scrypture sayth that speketh of the fayr parementes that they haue more especyal thā they that ben of other estates to foresayd yet sayth the scripture that they synge newe sōges so melodyous soo fayr that none other synge that ben not in their estate That newe sōge that they sȳge sygnefyeth a newe Ioye especyal meryte preysȳg that they haue by cause that they haue wel kept theyr estate of vyrginyte And this is the .v. estate of chastyte and the fyfthe braunche of this tree The .vi. braunche of the vertue of vyrgynyte Ca. Cli THe .vi. estate that ought to kepe the vertue of chastyte / is in the clerkes ordred for to serue in holy chirche / as ben subdekens / dekens / preestes / prelates / and relygyouse Al the people ben bounden to kepe chastyte by many reasons Fyrst for the ordre whiche they haue receyued / whiche requyreth to lyue holyly / by cause that the holy sacrament of the masse is so hye and so holy / that all they that receyue it be bounden to kepe chastyte for they may not marye after that they haue promysed too holy chyrche For they be appropred to serue god in his chyrche / and at his aulter / and treaten touchen with theyr handes the thynge sayntyfyed as the vessels halowed the chalyce corporas And that whiche is gretter without comparyson the body of Ihesu cryst whiche the preest sacreth and too theym it byhoueth to gyue it to other ¶ Now thenne owen they to be moche clene and lyue ryght holyly / for reason of the hye lorde to whome they serue / that is the saynt of all sayntes and lorde of all lordes / whiche hateth all ordure of synne / wherof he hym self sayth Be ye holy as I am holy / for suche a lorde suche meyney / for the reason of the place wherin they serue This is the chirche whiche is dedycate too serue god It is founden that emonge the paynyms and the sarasyns / the preestes of theyr lawe that seruen in the temple kepen chastyte / and ben deuyded deceuerd fro the other by cause they sholde not lese theyr chastyte Moche more ought to be clene wtout romparyson more chaste the prestes of crystyante / that seruen to god in his temple whiche is saynte fyed dedycate / approued to serue god / yet ought they to be more holy and clene by cause they serue at the table of god of his cup of his mete The table of god is the auter The cuppe is the chalyce / his brede and wyn is his propre body and his propre blood Moche owen to be holy all they that suche seruyce done to god / wherof saynt Poule sayth that it byhoueth that a bysshop the other mynystres of holy chirche be chaste and without synne This vertue of chastyte was sygnefyed in the olde lawe there where god comaunded to theym that ought to ete the lambe without spotte / whiche sygnefyed the body of our lorde Ihesu cryste they sholde be gyrde on they raynes The gyrdle of the mynystres of holy chirche owen to be gyrde / that is with the vertue of chastyte whiche restrayneth and quencheth the delytes and the vyces of the flesshe wherfore god commaunded to Aaron whiche was preest and bysshop of the lawe / that he and al his sones sholde be cladde with synnen clothes of chastyte / gyrde aboue with / whyte gyrdylles of lynnen Aaron the chyldren that serueden in the tabernacle sygnefyen the mynystres of holy chirche / whiche owen to be cladde with lynnen roobes of chastyte / whiche is sygnefyed by the whyte lynnen For lyke as the lȳnen towayl tofore it be well whyte it must be beten and ofte wasshen In lyke wyse byhoueth it the flessh to be beten and corrected by penaunce / and ofte wasshe his herte and his conscyence by veray confessyon and repentaunce to th ende that they myght haue the whyte cote of chastyte / but this cote ought to haue aboue the whyte gyrdle That is to saye that chastyte ought to be straytly kept / strayned by abstynence as moche as reason may suffre whiche is the boucle of this gyrdle Otherwyse may it be sayd that the lynnen cote sygnefieth chastyte of hert The gyrdle aboue sygnefyeth chastyte of body whych oweth to restrayne the desyres the wylle of the flesshe for to kepe the chastyte of the soule This same is sygnefyed to vs in the aube in the gyrdle that the mynystres of holy chyrche vse to clothe them whan they wyl say masse For they owen to be chaste within theyr hert and wythout in the body Moche foule is the spotte of synne and specyally of lecherye in the mynystres of holy chyrche For they ought to be the eyen of holy chyrche as sayth the scrypture For lyke as the eyen aduysen the body shewen to hym the waye by whiche he ought to goo Ryght so in lykewyse owen the prelates and alle the other mynystres of holy chyrche to shewe the waye of helthe to other Thenne also as the spotte of the synne of lechery is more foule in them thā in other persones Also as the spotte that is in the eyen is more foule greuous than in the other membres of the body Ryght soo is the spotte of the synne of lecherye more foule and more peryllous in clerkes / in prelates in relygyous and in all other peple of the chyrche than in other folke ¶ Also all the peple of holy chyrche ben or owen to be myrrour and exaumple there wherin the laye people ought to loke in for to take good doctryne in good example but whan the myrrour is rusty and foule men may wel se the spotte and thordure that is in the myrrour But he that in suche a myrrour loketh / seeth not the spotte that is in hym self ne what is in the myrrour whiche so is foule and troubled But whan the myrrour is wel clere and clene thenne may one wel see hym self therin and knowe his spottes Also whan the prelate is of good lyf and of good fame / than ought one to take example
of body / lyke as we haue shewed afore And therfore sayth our lorde Ihesu cryste in the gospell / that blessed ben they that ben clene of herte For they shall see god This blessynge begynneth here / for they ben purged fro derknesses of errour / as to the vnderstondynge / and fro the spottes of synne / as to the wylle / and therfore they see god by fayth enlumyned of clerenes / whiche cometh of the gyfte of vnderstondynge by whiche a man knoweth his creatour / and all that apperteyneth to the helth of his soule / without slydinge / wtout doubtynge / and without wauerynge in the fayth of Ihesu Cryste where they be so Ioyned and fermly fouÌ„ded / that they may not departe theym for deth ne for to suffre ony tormente what someuer it be ¶ And therfore ben blessed they that be clene of hert in this mortall lyf For they haue the eyen of the herte / the vnderstondynge and the wyll soo clere and so clene that they see god and byleue hym by fayth ferme and certayne lyke as we haue sayd tofore ¶ wherof our Lorde sayd to saynt Thomas / by cause thou hast seen me / thou hast byleued me But they ben blessed that haue not seen me bodyly / and haue byleued me certeynly / but this blessynge shal be perfyght in the lyf perdurable / where he that is clene of hert whiche here seeth hym by fayth / that is alwaye derkly There in his glory shall se hym face to face all clerely as sayeth saynt Poule That is the blyssynge to aungelles and to sayntes whiche se hym in his precyous vysage / to knowe one god in thre persones / to beholde clerely in that myroure where all thynges shyneth / aungelles all the sayntes loketh therin / and meruayleth them / and taketh there theyr glory / and neuer may they be ful for to loke therin For there is all beaute / all bounte / all swetnes / fouÌ„tayne of lyfe pardurable / and all that whiche herte may wyll and desyre But yet I shall say a lytell For lyke as sayth the scrypture The eyen mortall may not beholde ne ere here ne herte of man thynke / what that god hath arayed and made redy to his frendes / that loueth / serueth / and kepe his commaundementes / and that kepe theÌ„ from synne Wherof saynt Ancelme sayth Soule sayth he lyft vp thyn entendement there aboue / and thynke as moche as thou mayst what we le / how grete and how moche delectable is that good whiche conteyneth in himselfe the Ioye and the delyte of all godes And not suche Ioy and suche delyte as is founden in creatures / but as moche more Ioye / as the creatoure and maker is more grete and more worthy / more excellent / than his creatures O sayth he thou faytour thou man that goest soo folyly for to seche dyuers goodes / to thy soule and to thy body Loue thou and seche one good / wherin ben all godes / and he shall suffysethe For the good that god hath graunted and gyuen to his frendes / that is hym selfe the whiche is the souerayne good of whom cometh and sourdeth all other goodes / as stremes / the whiche yssueth out of the quycke fountayne ¶ Certaynly right blyssed shal he be sayth saynt Austyn / the whiche without vylonye shall se the vysage dyscouered and the glory of god / and shal be transformed in to thymage of glory where as he shal see god as he is / the whyche syght is glorye crowne without ende / and all the rewarde and meryte of sayntes This shall be al the good of man This sayth mayster hughe of saynt vyctor The man that made all and formed For therfore wolde god by come man / whiche made in himself al men blessyd in body and in soule / by cause that the man sawe hym with the eyen with his body in humanite And that the soule sawe hym in his deyte so that he founde swetnes and delyte in his creatour maker / within and without within his deyte and with oute in his humanyte This shall be the Ioye of euery creature his Ioye his delyte lyfe perdurable of his blessyd vysyon That is the blessynge / that they attende whiche kepe clennes and chastyte of herte and of body ¶ Of the yefte of sapyence Ca. Cliiii THe last yeft the souerayne and the moost hye is the yeft of sapience or of wysedom whiche is a grace that the holy ghoost gyueth to the herte contemplatyf / by whiche he is esprysed of the loue of god that he desyereth ne secheth none other thynge but to see god / to haue hym / to delyte in hym / to loue hym / to honoure and serue hym / and dwelle with hym This is the somme of perfeccyon / and the ende of contemplacyon ¶ The gyfte of vnderstondynge of whiche we haue spoken tofore maketh god to be knowen and the thynges spyrytuell as by syght symple byholdynges But the gyfte of sapyence maketh to fele knowe god by taste / then sapyence is none other thynge but a sauery knowleche / whiche is with sauoure grete delyte of herte / for otherwyse knoweth not he the wyne that drynketh it in a fayre voyre or glasse / yf he drynke and taste it not sauour it Many phylosophres knewen god by scrypture and by the creatures / lyke as by a myrrour wherin they behelde by reason and by vnderstondynge his myght / his beaute / his wytte and his bouÌ„te / in that whiche they see the creatures that he hath made so grete so fayre and so well ordeyned Then they knewe hym / by symple byholdynge of vnderstondynge and natural reason But they neuer felte hym by taste of ryÈt loue ne by deuocyon Ryght soo ben there many crysten persones / clerkes and laye / whiche well knowe hym by fayth and by scrypture / but by cause they haue theyr taste dysordynate by synne / they may not fele hym nomore than the seke persone may fynde taste or souour in good mete ¶ The gyfte of sapyence whiche the holy ghoost putteth in a perfyght herte / purgeth and clenseth it fro all ordure of synne / lyfteth vp soo the spyryte of a man that he Ioyneth hym to god by ardaunt desyre of loue / soo that he is al with god / there he fyndeth hym / there he nouryssheth hym / there he fatteth hym / there he delyteth and resteth hyÌ„ / and there he slepeth There he forgeteth all his trauaylles / all his flesshely desyres and erthely / hym self / so that he remembreth no thynge but god whome he loueth aboue all thynges This is the laste degree of the laddre of perfeccyon that Iacob sawe in his slepe whiche touched heuen / by whiche auÌ„gellys mouÌ„ted descended / the degrees of this laddre ben the .vii. gyftes of the holy ghoost / of whiche we haue spoken tofore / by these .vii. degrees
moūten the aūgellys / these ben they that lede the lyf of aūgellys in erthe by purete clen̄esse of conscyence / whiche haue the herte in heuen by veray desyre holy cōuersacion Whan they prouffyte fro vertue to vertue / tyl they se god clerely and loue hym parfytely But whan they be mounted to the laste degree / somtyme / behoueth it to them to descēde by humylyte For of as moche as a good man is more parfyte / of soo moche he is more humble / lasse preyseth hym selfe Thenne is a good man and a perfyte / ought for to be lyke a tree the whiche is charged laden with fruyte For the more that the tree is charged and laden with fruyte / the more he enclyneth boweth to the erthe In a nother maner may be vnderstonden that the aungelys descenden for the good men that lede the lyfe of aungelys in erthe by theyr holy lyfe whā they be moūted in to the souerayne degre of contemplacion where the yeft of sapyence lede them so that they be ioyned to god that they forget al that whiche is vnder god for the grete swetensse that the herte feleth Whiche is so rauysshed in god whiche passeth all other delytes Soo that it byhoueth them ofte to descende froo this swetenes such rest and fro suche delyte that they fele of the cōforte of god whiche haue yeue them to souke in suche swete contemplacion / where they that ben perfyte ought to entende ¶ Another reason there is wherof it byhoueth too descende froo the hye degre of contemplacion where the spyryte of sapience hath ledde hȳ For the corrupsyon of the flesshe of the body of the creature humayne is so grete that the spyryte may not in this mortall lyfe longe abyde in so hye estate of contemplacion ne fele that grete swetenesse / whiche passeth all the grete delytes the whiche may be felte in this worlde / lyke as they knowe whiche haue proued it / wherof the countrepoys of the flesshe is so heuy / that it draweth doune the spyryte wyll it or nyll it And therfore this grete swetenesse that the herte contemplatyf feleth by the gyft of sapyence in this mortall lyfe / ne is but as a lytell taste by which one may assauour and fele how god is swete and sauoury But whan he shall come to that grete tauerne / where the tonne is / and shall be sette a broche / that is in the lyfe pardurable / there where god of peas / of loue / of Ioy of solace / and of all swetnes shall be abandoned to euery persone in suche wyse / that all shall be fylled / lyke as Dauyd sayth in his psaulter For all the desyres of the herte shall be accomplysshed whan god shall make dyscende vpō his frendes a flode of peas / lyke as sayth the prophete / wherof they shall so moche drynke / that they shall be all dronke Of this dronkenesse speketh Dauyd in his psaulter and sayth thus Of the glory of paradyse shall all be dronken sayth the prophete to god / of the grete plante that is in your hous And ye shall gyue them drynke of your swetenes and of your delyces For with you is the fountayne of the lyfe pardurable / the whiche fayleth not That is god hym selfe whiche is the fountayne of lyfe that may not deye / wherof sourdeth descendeth vpon all the sayntes that ben and shall be in heuen a flode of Ioy / of delyte and of peas / so grete / that all they that drynketh therof ben all dronken That is the peas and the blyssȳge that shall be in the worlde that is to come For whiche Ioye to wynne and to haue / one ought to lyue sobrely in this worlde as sayth saynt Austyn For none ne drynketh in this ryuer / ne is not dronke of the plante of Ioy but yf he kepe sobrenes This is the vertue that the gyft of sapyēce planteth in the herte / ageynst the outrage of glotony For sapyence ensygneth sobrenesse as Salamō sayth / whiche sayth in this wyse Sobrenes is a tree moche precyous and good / for it kepeth the helthe of the soule and of the body as scrypture sayth / and of the oultrage of glotonnye / of etynge / of drynkynge comen many maladyes and of tyme the deth For of ouermoche etynge and drynkynge deyen many folke and ofte the deth taketh theym sodeynlye / lyke as one taketh the fysshe with an hoke / that is too saye the morsel in the mouthe This vertue of sobrenes ought one to kepe aboue al thynges For the goodes that it dooth to hym that well kepeth it Fyrst sobrenes kepeth to reason and to vnderstondynge his fredome and fraunchyse / so that it putteth taketh awaye dronkenesse For he that is dronken is so surprysed of wyne / that he leseth reason and vnderstondynge is lyke as he were drowned in ale or wyne And whan he weneth to drynke the wyne / the wyne drynketh hym The seconde good that sobrenes dooth / is that it delyuerth a man fro ouer foull seruytude / that is fro the seruytude of the bely For the glotons they that ben oultragous of wyne and metes maken of theyr bely theyr god as sayth Saynt Poule Certaynly he putteth hymself in grete fylthe / and in foule seruytude / that serueth so foule a lorde as is his bely / out of whiche may no thynge yssue but fylthe and stynkynge ordure But sobrenes kepeth a man in his seygnorye For the spyryte ought to haue seynorye vpon the body And the body ought to serue the soule / lyke as the chambryere that serueth her maystresse / and sobrete kepeth this ordre The thyrde good that sobrenes dooth / is that he kepe well the yate of the castell ageynst the oost of the deuyll / that is the mouthe whiche is maystre yate of the castel of the herte / whiche the deuyl asseylleth maketh warre to vs as moche as he may But sobrenes deffendeth the yate thentre / that is the mouthe And whā the yate of the mouth is open / thoost of sȳnes entren lyghtly And for nought fyghteth he ayenst other synnes that reteyneth not his tongue / who hathe this vertue of sobrenes he hath the lordshyp of his body / lyke as man maystryeth the hors by the brydle Sobrenes hath the fyrst bataylle in thoost of the vertues and kepeth deffendeth the other vertues / wherewith the deuyl tempted fyrst Adam our fyrst fader and Eue our fyrst moder that was towarde the mouthe that they sholde ete of the fruyt whiche god had deffended / the deuyll ouercame them whan they consentyd to the temptacyon For to kepe sobrenes nature enseygneth vs and the holy scrypture Nature techeth vs. Foremonge beestes a man hath the leste mouth after his dody Also a man hath his membres double / as two eyen / two ere 's / but he hath but one mouthe / and therfore
nature techeth vs that one ought to ete and drynke lytyl and sobrely For nature is susteyned with lytell mete / and by ouermoche mete is ofte beten doune The holy scrypture enseygneth sobrenes in many maners by many examples / lyke as they may see that connen vnderstonde scrypture / and byholden the lyues of sayntes ¶ Also euery creature techeth to vs sobrenes For in all nature god hath sette a ryght mesure whiche alwaye holdeth the moyen bytwene ouermoche and ouer lytell / after that whiche reason enlumyneth enseygneth by the grace of god For in these temporall goodes / that whiche is ouermoche to one / is lytel to another / that whiche sholde be oultrage to a poore maÌ„ sholde be lytel oftymes to a ryche man / but sobrenes atteÌ„perauÌ„ce setten oueral mesure As well in spyrytuel goodes as in fastynges in wakynges and in other werkes of vertues / whyche been done and made for the Loue of god And For the helthe of the Soule as moche as Reason wyl The vertue of attemperaunce is of sobrenes This vertue kepeth mesure resonable / not onely in etynge drynkynge but in al vertues / lyke as sayth Saynt Bernard For this vertue setteth all thoughtes and al the menynges of the herte / and all the wyttes of the body vnder the lordshyp of ryght reason / as sayth Tullyus the wyse man / so that reason enlumyned by gyfte of sapyence / holdeth in pees the lordshyp of the herte and of the body And this is the ende and thentencyon of all vertues that the herte and the body be wel ordeyned to god / soo that god onely be lorde souerayn in suche manere that all be in his obedyence And this maketh sobre the loue of god whiche putteth hym with all the herte to the wyl of god wherof Saynt Austyn sayth / that the vertue of attemperaunce and of sobrenes is a loue whiche kepeth hym in entyernesse without corrupcyon / and withdraweth vs fro the loue of the worde / whiche troubleth the herte and putteth it to dysease / and taketh fro hyÌ„ ryght knowlech of god and of hym self / lyke as a persone seeth not clerely in water troubled But the loue of god whiche is pure and clene / and is departed fro all erthely loue and fro carnall affeccyon setteth the herte in pease For it setteth it in his propre place That is in god / there he resteth / there he is in pees Ne he hath no pees ne Ioye ne reste but in god wherof our lorde sayth in the gospel / ye shal be oppressed in this worlde / but in me ye shal fynde pees / saynt Austyn sayd to god / lorde myn herte may not be in pees / vnto the tyme it reste in the / suche loue cometh not of an erthly hert / ne of the maryce of this worlde but it descendeth fro that hye roche vpoÌ„ whiche it sette and fouÌ„ded the grete cyte of heuen of holy chirche / that is Ihesu cryste / whiche al is sette founded fermly by true fayth that ben the holy hertes of good men Fro this hye roche descendeth that fountayne of loue in to the herte that is well purged and taken awaye fro the loue of the worlde This welle is so clere that he knoweth hym self and his maker / lyke as one seeth hyÌ„ self in a fountayne wel clere and clene / vpon this fountayne he resteth and the herte â—ast by / after the trauayll of good werkes So as we rede of our lorde Ihesu cryst / that whan he had so moche gone that he was wery / he sat doune and â—ested hym vpon the welle This is the fountayne vpon whiche a good herte that wyll saue hym self / resteth hym in the loue of god This fountayne is so swete that he that drynketh therof forgeteth all other swetenes and all other sauour and therfor it is soo swete and good to drynke / for of so moche as the fountayne feleth better the erthe so moche is it more holsom and better to drynke This is the fountayne of wytte of sauour For he that drynketh therof he knoweth / feleth sauoureth the grete swetenes that is in god / that is the souerayn wytte of man / to knowe wel his maker / and to loue hym / drede hym / serue honoure hym with all his herte For without this phylosophye / al other wytte nys but folye Suche wytte setteth the holy ghoost in the herte / whan he gyueth the gyfte of sapyence / whiche fedeth nourissheth the herte with spyrytuell Ioye maketh it dronke with his holy loue / that is the wytte whiche the holy ghoost setteth in the herte that is wel purged clensed fro al ordure of synne lyke as tofore is sayd This spyrytuell wytte that cometh of the parfyght loue of god maketh the herte sobre attempred in al thynges by mesure / so that the herte that is in suche estate is in pees lyke as it may be in this mortall lyf For in this worlde none may lyue without tournoyes bataylle of temptacyon / whiche god sendeth for to preue his knyghtes / by cause they can vse the armes of vertue For other wyse they myght not be good knightes / yf they were not preued how they can resyste to temptacyons And men be woned to make tournoyes in tyme of pease / but whaÌ„ a good knyght hath ouercomeÌ„ the tournoye / he retorneth home to his hous / there he resteth hyÌ„ at his ease Ryght so doth the good herte whan he hath wel foughten ouercomen the tournoye of temptacyons wel strongly resysted them Then he cometh ageyn to hym self resteth in god / whiche comforteth hym after his trauayl whiche he hath resysted ageynst the synnes / so that he forgeteth there al his trauaylle / thynketh on no thynge but on god in whome he fyndeth all that he desyreth This is the fruyt that the tree of sobrenes bereth whiche cometh of the gyft of sapyence / lyke as I haue shewed tofore Sobrenes nys none other thynge / but to kepe ryght mesure in al thynges / in .vii. maners ought a persone to kepe mesure / whiche ben lyke to seuen degrees by whiche groweth prouffyteth the tree of sobrenesse ¶ Of the fyrst degree of sobrenes of mesure Ca. Clv. THe fyrst degree of sobrenes is that a man ought to set mesure in his vnderstondynge Specyally in the poyntes of the artycles of the fayth / he passeth me sure whiche wyll seche reason natural / in that whiche is aboue reason / aboue the vnderstondynge of a man / as done the heretykes and myscreauÌ„tes whiche wyl mesure theyr fayth after theyr vnderstondynge but they ought to mesure rheyr vnderstondynge reason / vnto the mesure of the fayth / as done good crysten men Therfore sayth saynt poule / that one shold not be wise more thaÌ„ fayth bereth but by sobrenes after the mesure of
warreth the castell of the herte / whan that they fynde the gate open that is the mouthe they do take lyghtly the castell And therfore sayth Dauyd in the plaulter I haue sette good garde vnto my mouthe ayenst myn ennemy / that is ageynst the deuyll The garde of my mouthe is reason and dyscrescyon / the whiche examyn the wordes tofore that they yssue out of the mouthe This is the balaunce of the wyse worde as I haue sayd tofore Now ought the worde to be peysed tofore that it be spoken And it ought to be knowen that trouthe holdeth the worde ryght Trouthe accordeth the entencyon of the herte / and the worde of the mouthe to gydre / so that the mouthe saye no thynge but trouthe / lyke as it is in the herte This brauÌ„che ought not to hange on the ryght syde ne on the lyft For neyther for loue pryue / ne for prouffyte temporal / ne for hate of other / ought not to be lefte to saye the trouthe / there as it ought to be sayd and nede is Ne lesynge ne falsenesse ought not to be sayd for no persone ¶ Of the .iiii. degree of sobrenes of mesure Ca. Clviii LYke as a persone ought to kepe mesure in spekynge Ryght soo ought he to kepe mesure in herynge and herkenynge For as moche may one synne in euyl herynge / as in euyl spekynge Thenne he that gladly hereth to speke euyl of a another / is parteyner and felowe of the synne of hym that sayeth it For none ought to say gladly euyll of another / specyally to a grete man / yf he wene that it pleseth to him that hereth it / wherof an holy man sayth / that there sholde be none myssayer ne euyll speker / yf oone wolde here hym ¶ These grete and hye lordes ought well to kepe them and take hede what they here and what they byleue / for they fynde but fewe that tell them trouthe And flateryes and lesynge ben grete chepe in theyr courtes The grettest derthe that is aboute these grete lordts is of veryte and of trouthe / therfore ben they ofte deceyued For they here gladly and by leuen lyghtly that whiche pleaseth them Seneke sayth that there lacketh noo thynge to grete estates and vnto grete lordes but trewe spekars / and sayâ—…s of trouthe For of lyars they haue grete plente A man ought to haue his ere 's open / for to here gladly the good wordes / whiche auayllen and prouffyten to the helthe of the soule And a man ought to haue his ere 's closed and stopped to lewde and folysshe wordes whiche may noye and greue / may not helpe / wherof the wyse man sayth in the scrypture Stoppe thyn ere 's with thornes / and herkene not the euyl tongue The euyll tongue is the tongue of the serpent of helle whyche the euyll sayers bere and enuenymeth hym that hereth them ¶ Ageynst suche tongues one ought too stoppe his ere 's with thornes of the drede of our lorde / or of the thornes / of whiche our lorde was crowned in remenbrauÌ„ce of his passyon / they sholde not gladly here the euyl sayers / ne the flaterers / ne lewde wordes ne dyshonest ¶ In another manere may this worde be vnderstonden Stoppe thyn ere 's with thornes The thornes that prycketh / sygnefyen harde wordes / by whiche one ought to repreue the euyll sayers / and shewe to them that they wyl not gladly here them There is a serpent whiche is called in latyn aspis whiche is of suche nature that he stoppeth one of his ere 's with the erthe And that other ere he stoppeth with his taylle to the ende that he here not thenchauntour ¶ This serpent enseygneth vs a grete wysedome / that we sholde not here thenchauÌ„tour That is the flaterer / the lyar / and euyll sayers whiche enchaunte ofte the ryche men / how that wolde stoppe one of his eerys with erthe / and that other with his taylle / he sholde not retche to be enchaunted of the deuyl / ne of euyll tongues He stoppeth one of his eeres with erthe / that thynketh that he is of the erthe / and to the erthe shall retorne And thus a man remembreth his Infyrmy◠〈…〉 â—ylete wherfore he ought to humble hymselfe nothynge prayse That other ere he ought to stop with his tayle 〈◊〉 remembraunce of dethe whiche he ought moche to fere and drede / who that thus coude and wolde stoppe his ere 's â—e wolde not gladly here ne remembre / ne say / ne herken / wordes that sholde dysplease god Thus shall he be well mesured in herynge in this fourth degre of sobrenes of attemperaunce ¶ The .v. degree of sobrenes of mesure Ca. C.lix THe .v. degree of the vertue of sobrenes / is to kepe mesure in habyte in vestymentes / in precyous robes where a man or woman passeth oft mesure / dothe grete outrage And bicause that the makynge of them is ouer curyous / or ouer proude / or ouer grete and excessyf of dyspences it is grete syÌ„ne oftymes causeth many other to do syÌ„ne / in suche thynges one ought to kepe mesure For yf ouer precyous ouer curyous aray were not syÌ„ne / our lorde wolde not haue spoken so hardly in the gospel / ayenst the euyl ryche man that clad hym so proudly with soft byse precyous purple And truely he is moche a fole / a chylde of wyt that of a gowne / robe / or what someuer precyous clothyng it be / that is proude therof / for there is none of what so hye estate he be / but that he is cladde arayed of deed bestes for to consyder well / it is all but vanytee and fylth / and all becometh stynkynge ordure / Certaynly he or she sholde well be holden for a fole the whiche wolde be proude for to bere the habyte or the vesture the which sholde not be but as a sygne / and a memoryall of the shame of his fader / and of his synne This is the vsage 〈…〉 / whiche was neuer fouÌ„de but for the synne of â—â—am our fyrst fader / and of Eue our fyrst moder / for togâ—â—er their confusyon and oures / whan we see a byere 〈◊〉 a dede corps / whiche is couerd and apparaylled aboue It is a sygne that there is within a dede body Ryght so it happeth oftymes that vnder these fayr rebes / the soule is deed by synne Specyally in them that gloryfye them ben proude Yf the pecocke be proude of his taylle / or the cocke of his creste / it is no meruaylle / for nature hath gyuen it to theÌ„ and they do after theyr nature But a man or a woman that hath wytte and reason / whiche knoweth well that nature hath not gyuen to hym suche a robe or gowne he ought not to be proude of the arayement of his body / whiche is not but of dede beestes / or of that
whiche cometh fro the erthe / ne also of the queyntyse or parementes that be in his heed Therfore sayth the wyse man in the scrypture Ne gloryfy that not in fayre robes And saynt Poule sayth that the women ought to araye theym with sobrenes and mesure That is to saye by mesure without outtrage / after that the state of the persone requyreth / certeynly it is not without oultrage whaÌ„ a persone hath for his body soo many gownes and robes that many poore men myght be susteyned of the surplus and of it whiche is ouermoche / yet yf they were gyuen at the laste for goddes loue / it sholde be somwhat / but they be gyuen to rybauldes whiche is soo grete synne Therfore ought to be kepte in suche thynges mesure and good ordenaunce / after that / that the state of the persone requyreth / as I haue sayd tofore ¶ The fyfthe degree of the vertue of sobrenes and of attemperaunce Ca. C.lx. THe syxt degre of sobrenes of attemperaunce is that eueriche kepe mesure in good maner where of Senecke sayeth / yâ— thou arte sobre or attemporate take good hede that the moeuynges of thyn herte of thy body be not foule ne disauenaunte For of the dysordynauÌ„ce of the herte cometh the dysordynaunce of the body / some be so chyldysshe of so nyce manere that they make theÌ„ selfe to be holden for a fole It appertayneth to a man of of value whiche is in grete and hye estate / that he be well ordeyned well amesured in al his dedes all his sayenges of fayre good countenaunce tofore all people so that none take euyl example of hym / that they be not holden for a fool For as a phylosopher sayth A childe of age a chylde of wyt of maners ben al one the scrypture sayeth that a chylde of an hondred yere shall be cursed That is to say that he that is of grete age / lyueth as a childe shall be cursed Whereof saynt Poule sayeth of hym selfe whan I was childe I dyde as a childe but whan I came to the age of a perfeyte man I lefte my chyldehode For who that holdeth a maÌ„ of age for a childe / he holdeth hym for a fool And therfore sayeth saynt poul Be not a childe of wytte / but in malyce be lytell as a childe whiche hath no malyce Now is it thenne a fayre thinge honest proufytable honourable / specyally to grete men of hy state to kepe mesure resonable in couÌ„tenaunce and in all his gouernaunce and that he be wel ordeyned ouer al tofore god and tofore the people And this is the .vi. degre of this tree ¶ The seuenth degree of the vertue of sobrenes and of attemperaunce Ca. Clxi. THe .vii. degre of the vertue of attemperaunce of sobrenes is to kepe mesure of ouermoche drynkynge etynge / for thoultrage of etynge drynkynge doth moche harme to the body and to the soule / lyke as I haue sayd tofore Therfor sayth our lorde in the gospell / take good hede that your hertes be not greued ne charged with glotonnye ne dronkennesse That is to saye that ye doo noo oultrage of etynge and drynkynge Sobrenes kepeth mesure in etynge and drynkyÌ„ge that he do none oultrage Of thoultrages that a persone doth in etynge and drynkynge I haue spoken tofore where as is treated of vyces / there as I spake of the synne of glotonnye / to whiche this vertue of sobrenes and of attemperaunce wherof I haue here spoken is contrarye specyally / wherof I wyl now nomore saye ¶ Now hast thou herde wherby this tree of sobrenes and attemperauÌ„ce groweth and prouffyteth / and yf thou wylt knowe the brauÌ„ches of this tree / byholde the other vertues whiche be conteyned in this boke / thou shalte fynde oueral this vertue For as I haue sayd tofore / this vertue is suche that it setteth mesure in al thynges The vertue of whiche I haue spoken tofore ben braunches of this vertue / for it sheweth it self in all the other / wherfore I wyl sette none other braunches but the vertues toforesayd ¶ This tree bereth moche fayre fruyt That is pees of the herte lyke as I haue tofore shewed For he that hath this vertue / he hath hys herte dysseuered fro the loue of the worde is Ioyned to God by charyte / that is the dere loue of god whiche putteth al other thynges in oblyuyon / whiche 〈◊〉 not ordeyned to god And 〈◊〉 suche manere the herte reâ—â—eth in god / where he hath all his comforte and his Ioye that he thynketh on none other delyte Suche comforte and delyte setteth the holy ghoost in the her that is parfyte in the vertue of sobrenes and of attemperaunce / whiche cometh of the gyfte of sapyence / lyke as I haue sayd tofore Certaynly who that myght haue suche pees of the herte / and fele that he rested in god whiche is the ende and the accomplysshement and the suÌ„me of all good desyres he sholde be well blessed in this worlde and in that other For then sholde he wynne that blessynge that god promyseth in the gospel to theym that kepe this pees entyerly without brekynge whan he sayth / blessed be the peasyble For they shall be called the sones of god They be peasyble sayth saynt Austyn that ordeyne and setten all the moeuynges of the herte / vnder the seygnorye of ryght reason of the spyryte / they ben called by ryght the sones of god / for they bere the semblaunce of theyr fader / whiche god of pees and of loue soo sayth saynt Poule Thenne pees and loue of god is the thynge that moost pleaseth god and maketh a man resonable to god / and the contrarye to the deuyl whiche is enemy of god Also they ben called the sones of god For they folowe theyr fader more nyghe than the other For pees and loue folowe theÌ„ more nyghe than ony other vertue ¶ Also they say theyr houres to theyr fader Ihesu cryst For god came not in to thys worlde but for to make peas bytwene god and man / bytwene man and aungell / bytwene man and hym self / for whan he was borne the aungellys songen for the pease that God had brought in to the erthe Gloria in excelsis deo in terra c. and therfore that the peasyble people seche no thynge / purchace but pees as moche as they may / to wardâ— god / theyr neghboure / and themselfe / they be called speâ—yally the sones of god / for they do the werkes of theyr fader Therfore thenne bycause they be the sones of god / ben they blyssed in this worlde by specyall grace / but this blyssynge shall be blyssed whan they shall be in peasyble possessyon of therytage of god theyr fader / that is of the reame of heuen / where they shal be in sure peas / and in perfyte peas / where all theyr desyres shall be accomplysshed There shal not mowe be euyll / ne sorowe / ne aduersyte / ne defaulte / but haboundaunre of all goodes / and plente of Ioye glorye without ende That shall be pees honourable / pees delectable / pees perdurable / and pees whiche surmounteth all wytte as sayeth saynt Poule And syth this peas passeth all wytte / and sence it passeth all wordes For herte may not thinke ne tongue deuyse / neere here the pees and the glorye that god kepethe to his frendes therfore I can not saye that thyng that may be suffysauÌ„t to the lawde preysyÌ„ge therof / wherof now I wyll say nomore But here I shal fynysshe make an ende of my matere to the praysynge and lawde of oure lorde To whome be gyuen all honour / whiche brynge vs in to his companye / there / where as is lyfe perdurable without ende AMEN FINIS THis boke was coÌ„pyled made at the request of kynge Phylyp of FrauÌ„ce in the yere of thyÌ„carnacioÌ„ of our lorde M.CC.lxxix translated or reduced / oute of Frensshe into englysshe / by me wyllyaÌ„ Caxton at requeste of a marchauÌ„t mercer of London whiche InstauÌ„tly requyred me to 〈…〉 for the we le of alle theâ— that shalle rede or here it / as for a specyall 〈…〉 to knowe all vyces and braunches 〈◊〉 them / and also an vertues by whiche well vnderstonden and seen may dyrecte a parsone to euerlastynge blysse / whiche boke is callyd in frensshe / le lyure Royall that is to saye thâ—â—…yall boke / or a boke for a kynge For the holy scrypture calleth euery man a kynge / whiche wysely and parfytly can gouerne and dyrecte hyÌ„self after vertue / and this boke sheweth and enseygneth it se bubtylly / so shortly / so perceyuyngly and so parfyghtly / that for the shorte comprehencyon of the noble clergye and of the ryght grete substaunce / whiche is comprysed therin It may and ought to be called well by ryght and quycke reason aboue all other bookes in frensshe or in englysshe / the boke ryall or the boke for a kynge / and also by cause that it was made and ordeyned at request of that ryght noble kynge Phelyp le bele kynge of FrauÌ„ce / ought it to be called Ryall / as tofore is sayd / whyche translacyon or reducynge out of frensshe in to englysshe was achyeued / fynysshed accomplysshed the .xiii. day of Septembre in the yere of thyncarnacyon of our lorde M. CCCCC .vii. The .xxii. yere of the reygne of kynge Henry the seuenth ¶ Here endeth the boke called the ryoall Enprynted at London in fletestrete at the sygne of the sonne by Wynkyn de worde wynkyn de worde