The CC.lxxviij questyon ¶ Tho thaâ— are domâ— â—ooles borne And doys 〈…〉 HOles that no good can Ne no wyt haue of man And are borne of theyr mother so Men tel of them what so they do As a chyld that hath no wyt But doth al that lyketh it And bettar do can it nought But as it falleth in the thought And by cause theyr wyt is no more Dampned be they not therfore But they that in wyt were borne And after it haue forlorne And dyd euyl there before Whyle that they in wyt wore And no mercy of god asked Of that dede whyle theyr wit lasted And after knew nother good nor yl Tho shal be at goddys wyl ¶ The CC.lxxix questyon ¶ Aungels that with god are dere Kepe they mennys sowles here EUery man what so he be That beleuyth in the Trynyte Hath an aungel hym to zeme And to tech hym to good to lene And al his good thoughtes and dedes Puttys hym his aungel that ledys A wicked aungel he hath also Wicked dedes to put hym to And his wyt is lent hym fre And good and euyl knowes he Whether aungel he folowe wyl And the good aungel is fâ—lwo Whan he sees his man mysgo And his ioy is wel the more Whan men doys after his lore For of hym selfe hath man ryght nought But wickydnes in dede and thought ¶ The CC.lxxx questyon ¶ How may aungel y t hath no body Shew hym selfe here to man openly AUngel that is in goddys syght To se al thyng hath he myght But hym may no body se For a goostly thyng is he And throughe mannys pryson Is aungel somtyme sent here doune And he may come also smerte As eny thought in mannys herte Of the ayre he takyth a body And than is he sene openly And than aman here hym can And he hym as another man But were not that body truly Hym myght se no bodely eye ¶ The CC.lxxxj questyon ¶ Are deuyls spyers euer more Of that the folke do euerywhore DEuyls are euer more redy Where so aman doth wickedly And many mynysters haue they That are walkyng nyght and day And that neuer more blynne Men to tempt and brynge in synne And whan man hatâ— doâ— also Anone his mayster heteâ—â—ys it to But yf that it so bâ—falle That eny of the deuyls all With some good man be doune cast His poure wyl no lengar last Among his felowes he shal be sheâ—â— And be cast in great tourment So sore them â—â—nes hespâ—de nought Of the thyng that he after wrought ¶ The .lxxxij. questyon ¶ How is that fyre on what manere Purgatorye that men calle here Fyre of purgatorye is There moch wo is and no blys Thethere shal face al tho That shal be saued and no mo They that are here of repentaunce And do not fully here prâ—â—aunce There shal he it fulfyl be dene For to make hym fully clene But there shewes to them in that wo Aungels and other hallowes mo For whos loue they dyd 〈◊〉 hâ—re And they amend them at theyr shâ—re Syght of them and trust al so Of blys that they shal after to That shal be the comforte all For they wote to blys they shal But that shal after that goddys sonne be Deed truly vpon the rode tr◠¶ The CC.lxxxiij questyon ¶ What thyng is it men calle helle And how come sowles therin to dwell HElle is a stede of payne and wo And yet are there helles two The nether and the vppar helle And the nether the worse we â—el For ther is the great pyne And pryncâ—paly are there in ¶ The fyrst payne is I wot That aboue other fyre is hot As that our fyre is of nature Aboue fyre wrought of the paynture ¶ That other payne than is great cold Such that no man yong ne old May suffer it so straynyng it is And there is nother ioy de blys ¶ The thyrd payne that is in that helle Are dragons and adders felle That in the fyre lyue also As fysshes in the water do ¶ The fourth is such stynke in that hole That nothyng may it thâ—◠¶ The fyfte scourgears fowles to â—ete As smyth doth 〈…〉 â—â—mours great ¶ The syxte payne that there is dyght Is great darknes without lyght ¶ The seuente is the confusyone Of al the synnes aman bâ—e done For euery man shal knowe and se His dede though hym loth be ¶ The ryght payne shal be the crye That the dragons so gryssely And the adders that there wone Shal crye vpon hym euer anon ¶ The nynth is that he shal for go The syght of god and euer to be in wo A wicked shal haue al this pyne For he forsoke the ordres nyne Of aungels that in heuyn wore Ne wrought not after goddys lore But tho that now wend to helle Shal not al in the nether dwelle In the hyer shal be theyr dwellyng As adam and his ospryng Unto the tyme of the prophete That theyr synne with his deeth shal bete ¶ The CC.lxxxiiij questyon ¶ They y â— in holle haue they re dwellyng Wote they or knowe they eny thyng Ryghtwyse sowles knowe wel Al men and thâ—yr dedes euery dele And they wore al that euer is Both in sorowe and in blys Wicked sowlâ— that is in helle Knowes al that with them dwelle But of heuyn wote they nought Ne of no good dede that is wrought The good pray euer more For them that dyd them good before And they present to god also The good dedes that we do And the syght in the Trynyte Makyth them al thyng to know and se ¶ The CC.lxxxv questyon ¶ The good that hens begon al tyte Come they now to ioy perfyte UNto ioy thoughe they be brought Parfyt ioy haue they nought As they shal afterward come tyl And why I shal the say the skyl If thou come vnto a feste There rych metes are and honest And thou be set alone to mete The sadlyare shalt thou ete But yf a good felowe come to the shal That thou daryst to ete with al Thou etyst meryare than thou dedyst before And thy mete doth the good the more Euyn so the sowle that is in blys Hath moch ioy there that he is But perfyt ioy hath it nought Tyl his felowe be therto brought Which is the body that it in lay And that shal be at domysday Whan they to gether shal come agayne Eyther of other shal be fayne And haue of other great delyt Than shal be theyr ioy perfyt And tho that shal to helle fare Shal than haue perfyt care ¶ The CC.lxxxvj questyon ¶ May sowles ought shew theÌ„ vntyl Theyr freÌ„des ech tyme whaÌ„ they wyl GOod sowles that are in blys May ech tyme that theyr wyl is Shew them to frendes that wold them se Slepyng or wakyng whether it be But the sowle that is in helle Behouyth euer more styl to dwelle Tho y t are in purgatory are byleue That the good aungel may them geue
agayne kynde That men yong men shuld fynde That of al thyng wysar were Than old men and coude more â—or of the braynes of the man Is moch of the wyt that he can And the braynes of the olde Are sadder and more may holde Than of a yong man that are lyght And to hold are of no myght Also the eldar that aman is The more tyme of profe hath be his And the more aman may here and se The more most his conyng be In .xl. yere more can men Than in .viii. nyne or ten Wherfore ought old to be wysare Than eny yong man in fere The old may men ouer renne wel But ouer the other neuer a dele ¶ The CC.lxviii questyon ¶ Tel me now I pray the What thyng delyte may be BOdely delyte is hele And for to haue ryches fele And the body at ese to make And many gyftes for to take For yf that thou in he le be In some thyng thou delytes the Be thou rych and fast may wynne Thy delyte is than therin And he that wyl curteys be told And geuyth gyftes many folde For to get hym loos and pryese His delyte therin lyese A couytous man delytes hym sore For to gather more and more And that he to gather hath delyte Comes some tyme other to profyte Another delyte is there yet And goostly delyte hyght it Whan aman delytes hym nothyng But in the seruyse of heuyn kyng Neyther in catel chyld ne wyfe But in holynesse of lyfe Of al delytes the best that is For it geuyth the endlesse blys ¶ The CC.lxi questyon ¶ What kynde appul was that That our father Adam ate ADam ete an appul ryght Such as we now se in syght And that appul for his synne Tokyn of deeth bare there with in For that y t was fyrst swetest of al Be came byttar as eny galle In tokyn that he that fyrst had space Was put there fro and from grace And in to wo and sorow than Wherof the appul soure be came And the synne was not for that That he so the appul ate But by cause he brake the coÌ„maundment Of his maker that made hym shent And al that euer came of them to For theyr synne went in to wo ¶ The CC.lxxii questyon ¶ Why lerne thes yong chyldren so More than thes old men do CHyldren are hottar of kynde ThaÌ„ eny old man that meÌ„ fynde And curyous they are also To the thyng y t meÌ„ theÌ„ settis to Lyghtly takyng and holdyng For theyr wyt is euer waxing Cold man hath saddar wyt Wherfore harde takyng is it And of long tyme hath he seen Many thynges that hath bene Wherof he hath before Therfore he taketh not moch more And mannys wyt is more thynkyng In other thynges y t he hath in occapyeng And chyldren but of theyr lesson Haue no occupacyon Therfore theyr wyt is theron set And are of nought els let ¶ The CC.lxii questyon ¶ Which is the dylectablest syght That is vnder sunne lyght THe delectabelest thyng that may be Than is to heuyn for to se And thynke on hym that al hath wroght Heuyn erth and al of nought Sonne mone and sterre bryght That is delectable goostly syght Delectable syght there is also That bodely thyng longes vnto As to se delytes hym many one That he loues and longes to se on For man delyteth hym to be hold Thyng that he loues and haue wold Though it lothly be and blacke For loue men say hath no lacke And be it so fayre as it ought And aman loue it nought In the syght hath he no lykyng Ne delytes hym therin nothyng ¶ The CC.lxiij questyon ¶ Why made god as thou mayst se Heere on mannys body for to be MAter that man hath of eche lym Toke fyrst god of erthe slyme And comparyd to erth he is For as on erthe waxeth gris So waxeth heere vpon the man Other frute nought geue he can And on the fyrst man heer gan spryng In the stede of his clothyng Whan he clothyng of grace had lorne For he hym to god had mysborne He sawe hym nakyd and shamed sore On al the lymes that on hym wore Than sent god heer on hym waxyng That to his heles was hangyng There with was his body clad And Eue no nother clothyng had ¶ The CC.lxxv questyon ¶ Why come some this world vnto Doumbe borne and defe also LOng before that god began This world for to make or man Wyst he wel that man shuld sinne And goddys hest to breke begyn And stablest he forth by The turnyng about of the sky And the planets in theyr goyng For to gouerne al thyng And the sygnes there they in go For to worke both wel and wo And in some poynt of tho Are some borne defe and doume also Some croked and some blynd As men may many fynde And al for adamys synne is that Whan that he the appul ate And be cause he synned in his assent In al the wyttes that god hym lent Wher by in ech wyt that man haas Fallyth this aueature percaas In tokyn that adam forsoke God in them al and the appul toke ¶ The CC.lxxvj questyon ¶ Profyteth the folke ought vnto The almesdedes that they here do AMan that doth here almesdede He is worthy of moch mede If he for god it do only And he trust in hym stedfastly â—o moch payne it wyl hym saue In purgatory that he shuld haue And he that beleuyth not in god truly But in ydols beleuyth sykerly No almes do he ne may Thoughe he the pouere gyue alday For almes dede may none it proue With out it be geuen for goddys loue And gyue for hym beleue in hym nought This may not be to gether brought For yf a man now wore With a spere wounded sore Lechcrafte myght do no good to hym Whyle the yren styked therin Neuer thelesse aman is synne May soner haue grace for to blynne And throughe knowlegyng may he loos For almesdedes that he does ¶ The CC.lxxvij questyon ¶ A iuge synnes he ought That denies them y â— yl hath wrought Or synnes he ought also with al That the iugment fulfyl shal BUt yf iuges were set The wicked somtyme for to let An euyl world shuld sone begyn And peryl were to lyue therin Wherfore is it good to be here Wicked dedes to correct and dere For he that workes here amys In so moch as in hym is He wrathes god of heuyn sore Than is iuge ordayned therfore Wreckar of goddys cause to be Wronge to denie in euery countre Now yf he deme hym that doth yl Me thynketh he doth goddys wyl And he that the iugment shal do Unto hym shaâ— dempt is so He hath no pâ—ryl therin But waysshes his hand in blode of synne Now than who so in iugment shal fyte Loke that he fro ryght not â—yte For gyft fauourâ— ne for made For he wrathes god so thaâ— dede But in 〈◊〉 iuges ryght Synnes 〈…〉 the plyght ¶
them and god in eternall blys ¶ The vij questyon ¶ The kynge askyd yf deuyls also All thyng knowe and all thyng may do UEryly syr quod Sydrac we do fynde That deuyls ar of aungels kynde And by cause they of theyr nature ware Of full grete conynge they ar And they ar more goostly Than man that hath body Therfore knowe they more than man By nature moche secrecy tell can Saue thynges that ar commyâ—ge Of that they know lytell or nothynge Thynges that I haue don or thou That knowe they well I now Of euyl wyll and euyl thought Thereof wote the deuyls nought Ne none but god alone I ensuer the Of a manys herte the preuyte The deuyls may well yuel do But good they ne haue wyll vnto And yet may they not fulfyll To do iâ— yuel all theyr wyll No more haue they myght vntyll Than good aungels them suffre wyll ¶ The viij questyon ¶ What shape ar aungels what thynâ— They can do a sayd the kynge ON owyse haue they euyn The lyknese of god of heuyn For bodylese they ar and hâ—yght Full of fayre bed and of lyght And there is nothyng in kynde That they ne wote and haue in myâ—de No wonder that they of knowlege be For all thynges in god they se And all that they haue wyll vnto Without greuaunce may they do ¶ The ix questyon ¶ The kynge than Sydrac askyd Yf god Adam with his hande formyd MAn and all that god hym lent Was made of his comaundment And who so vnderstande can A feble nature is in man And of a fowle thynge god hym dyght To confounde the deuyl and his myght For man so feble to 〈◊〉 y t he came fro That is to hym gret soâ—â—wâ— and wo Of the fouer elements as 〈◊〉 the Our parent Adam made be For his kynde 〈◊〉 was goddis wyll Shulde â—oue 〈◊〉 of the world fulfyll For god knewe â—e for 〈◊〉 the shuld syn And lâ—se the vertu that he was â—reat in And that he shulde as aman vnwysse Not longe lyue in paradyse All other thynges dyd he make To mannys behoue and for his sake And many wormes he made also As mees freys and other mo Man to sorowe and byte sâ—ime tyde Be cause he shulde not fall in pryde And that he shulde remembre by this Howe feble a thynge that he is Whan so feble a thynge and so vyle Shall hym gretly wex and trobyll Of myre and rayne se men may How they ar trauelyd all day So besy shulde we of ryght God to serue with all our myght For vnto our delyte made he Aâ—l thynges that we se And we and they were made also Unto god worshype to do ¶ The .x questyon ¶ The kynge askyd hym than In what stede made god Adam IN Ebroâ— ar god â—olde it haue Where 〈…〉 was put in graue But fyrst he was â—et in paradyse A fayer stede thaâ— in the est lyese There is ioy and grâ—t deâ—yre And trees a many 〈◊〉 of fruyte And euery frute 〈◊〉 of myght As god hastyth 〈◊〉 with vertu dyght One frute there is that yf aman Had ones ete of it neueâ— after than He shulde hounger eny more And another also groweth thore That is callyd the frute of lyf Both good for man and wyf For who so etys of that tree Shall neuer syke nor olde he Whan Adam was thether brought There was Eue than of hym wroght So were they made as we fynde Of one flesh and of o kynde Be cause they shuld be wher they went As of one fleshe so of one assent God made them that they shulde not syn The more mercy after to wynne And whan that god had Adam makyd He and Eue were both nakyd But therof shamyd they noght Untyll they had synne wroght Whan they of the appull had byten abyte Eyther shamyd of other was tyte For they sawe them than vnclad Of clothyng a grace that they had And in paradyse they wore Seuen howers and no more The thyrde hower after his mâ—kyng Gaue Adam name to all thyng The syxth hower ete his wyfe The appull that made all the stryfe The seuenth hower Adam dyd of yt ete And was chasyd and streyth out hete The aungel cam thyther anon ryght With a sworde of fyre very bryght And with the fyre be set he there The walles of paradyse that there were So that no man there in shuld wone Untyl the commynge of goddys sonne After his deth he shall vndo The fyre that it doth compase so And Adam and his frendes all Into heuyn conducte shall ¶ The xj questyon ¶ ThaÌ„ asâ—yd he whyther went Adam Out of paradyse whan he came AFter that he went anon There he was made in Ebron A hundreth yere there lede his lyf And had chyldren by his wyf But at lenght Cayn that was fell Dyd kyll his brother Abel Adam therfore came his wyf not nere By the space of a hundreth yere Makyng grete sorow that Abel was slayne Than bade hym the aungel go agayne And know his wyf as he shulde do Sayeng that the wyll of god was so For cursed of god was Cayn And aâ—l the sede that cam of hym And of that cursed sede forlorne Goddys sonne wolde not be borne That fuâ—fylâ—ed Adam and â—eth begot he Of whos sede goddys some borne shalâ— be And wete thou syr that from Adam Unto the tyme that Noe came Neuer fell on erthe no rayne Ne none raynebowe was ne fayne Flesshe that tyme no man dyd ete No wynde than was god none be lete The wether was all tymes there Fayer as somers day and clere And plenty was of all thynge Tyll mannys syn it made lettynge ¶ The .xij. questyon ¶ Dyd Adam eny other syn than it He broke goddys bode y e appul byt NAy he dyd none other synne But a greater myght he not begyn For he couetyd god to be And for that the appul ete he And shuld no creature of wyte His creatorys bode ouersyt Yf you before god now were And some aungel sayde to the there That thou behynde shuldest se Or the worlde shuld destroyed be And god the bade loke on hym fast And no where els thy eyen cast Goddys bode thou shuldyst fulfyll And let all the worlde spyll For that Adam couthe no good Before god somtyme he stode And behynde he lokyd as vnwyse Wherfore he lost paradyse And in that one synne that he dyd Seuyn synnes were there hyd ¶ Fyrst pryde for that he Desyred goddys lyke to be ¶ Inobedyence another also For he brake that god bade hym do ¶ Couetyse the thyrd dyd hym greue For he couetyd more than god wold gyue ¶ Sacrylege was the fouerth synne That Adam was wrappyd in For he toke vpon hym thore That god had forbyden hym before ¶ The fyfte may be called by reason Goostly fornicacyon For his very spouse he forsoke And to the deuelys counsell hym toke Wherby his ryght sponsale he brake And in
But euer the more he may wyn The more care is he in Wherfore it is good in trauayl stronge Thoughe a man wyn to rest among ¶ The C.vij questyon ¶ On what maner may it ryse That men wax soles and vnwyse ON many maners cometh it to That men foles wax also Some are symple as foles borne Some by euyl theyr wyttes haue lorne And some by lesyng of theyr blode Some for theyr braynes wax al wode Some of wickyd humours begyn And some for the hete that they haue be in Some by cause theyr hert is of feble myght And some for euyl syght on nyght And some that wake ouer fast That dryeth the braynes at the last And many maners are there mo That workes vnto man great wo ¶ The C.viij questyon ¶ Is the sowle or the body wo Whan one shal depart another fro FOr soth it greuyth them fulsore And ful mornyng are therefore Felyng great angâ—ysshe and wo Whan that one partyth the other fro And yf it at theyr wyl wore They depart wold neuer more If a yong man toke awyfe That he louyd as his lyfe And she hym more than althynge Who so betwyx them made departynge Departyng them agayne theyr wyl That shuld plese them both ful yll So is it betwyx the sowle and the body They are spoused to gether inwardly And so great loue together holde That they neuer depart wolde And yf they febely haue wrought Sythen they together ware brought Than chely is the sorow al Whan that they depart shal For the body rottyh awaye The sowle goyth to payne for aye Than it is no wonder that they be wroth And dredyng of thyr departyng both ¶ The C.ix. questyon ¶ Whether shal men hold the more A old man or a yong man that wore UNto neyther shal men holde There both are for fooles tolde For yf the yong a foole is And he be instructed amys The hote nature wyl in hym glowe And humours as a lowe Which hetyth his hert and his blode And makyth hym iolyfe and wode And whyle that hete lasteth so A short rede shuld he assent to But an old fool yf there be one That hath lytel hete or none And he be tangeled with iolyte A ryght kynde fool is he For his tyme he had before And now wold haue one more And that iolynesse men in hym fynde Is of force and of no kynde And so is he ioylyfe amys For he sheweth more than in hym is As he that flesshe wold sethe kyndly With the claryte of the sonne verely But to such fooles olde Shal no wyseman hym holde ¶ The C.x. questyon ¶ Why raynys it in one yere more Than in a nother and wherfore SOmtyme that it raynyth so In one yere more than in a nother do Fyrst of goddys wyl I it fet And than of gouernal that he hath set As of mouyng a the planetys And of the sygnes that them metys After as they meue lowe or hye Make they the yeres were or drye And al comyth of goddys wyl Rayne it snewe it or be it styl ¶ The C.xi. questyon ¶ Why hath not god maÌ„ so wrought That he ne had synned nought IF god had man fyrst so dyght That he after ne synned myght Of meryt ware no man worthy For no goodnes of his body Al the meryt agayne shuld go Unto god there it came fro And of goddys blys no man worthy wore But he deseruyd it had before And ware man made on such manere That he myght no synne do here His goodnes of hym lefe ware nought But his that hym so hath wrought For of that that the behouyth nede Arte thou worthy to haue no mede But the man that of his wyl May do both good and yl And doth the good worthy he is For to come vnto that blys That god hath ordayned hym vnto And that the deuyl shuld also Shame hym that god had man ordayned To haue the blys that he of myscaryed By the werkes of his owne wyl The good to take and fle the yl ¶ The C.xii. questyon ¶ Is it good to haue entormetyng Agayne euery man of althyng AMan shal clyme on a tre That he thynketh esyest be The frute for to come vnto If he wyl his profyt do And he that on the sonne beme wyl clyme He may breke his necke some tyme For he that clymeth ouer hye May happe somtyme to wrye Euyn so it faryth with mannys demenar That entermetyth a boue his powar Late them that are rych and fers Entyrmet them with theyr pers And the pouer whare they fare With such other as they are But sometyme the pouer is pert perde To stryue with the rych in his pouerte But with the rych to entyrmet He may lose and nothyng gete And yf that it so befall That arych hym to cownsel call Entyrmete hym of no more Than that he is called fore Late rych with the rych man Do the best that they can And worke they good worke they yl Euer the pouer hold hym styl With his lyke about he go And entyrmete hym as with the Whare he shal haue drede none To hurte his hede agayne astone ¶ The C.xiii. questyon ¶ Tel me now for what sake That god wold y t world make GOd made y e world as was his wyl The palays of heuyn to fulfyl Of the which aungels fel out before For the pryde they in wore And for that the trynyte Was not worshypped as it shuld be Than made he man that blysse to wyn That aungel had lost by synne But al tho that here are wrought Shal not to that blys be brought None but tho that are worthy For the good dedes of theyr body ¶ The C.xiiii questyon ¶ How was the world made as it is And how holdys it tel me this WHan aungel had don amys And was fal out of blys God coÌ„maunded there vnto Be made the world it was so Fyre ayre theÌ„ hyest drew truly For they ware lyghtest sykerly Erth and water doune them drest And the water vpon the erth doth rest And al foure by and by Ware hangyng in the mydel of the sky And fastenyng haue they none But of goddys myght a lone God made the world of the lykenesse Of an egge more ny lesse Be the shelle take I shal The fyrmament that closyth al Be the whyte the water take I That is betwene the erth and the sky Be the yolke that is innermest Take I the erth that is lowest And whan the yolke is sodde harde Awhyt is in the mydwarde Wherby I take hel For it is fortherest from the shel And so is hel heuyn fro Ferrest put in sorow and wo And echone is as thou mayst se There god them ordayned fyrst to be ¶ The C.xv. questyon ¶ Is eny other folke than we That of the sonne hath the claryte Dyuers other the world are in And fer from vs they byn Under vs they are loo That theyr fete agayne
heuyn blys That nothyng here haue don amys ¶ The C.lxxxvij questyon ¶ Do men the rych honour ech one And vnto the pouer eyhgt none In the other world also As men here in this do ARych man more honour shal haue In other world than he can craue And the pouer more shame suffer Than eny man here and greatter The rych there shal honour fynde And the pouer set behynde But they haue no man there dere After as he was rych here Understand now yf thou can Al the ryches of the man Is the sowle that hym is in And yf it be clene out of synne It is noble and rych Hym shal aungels of make mych And worshyp do to hym truly For the goodnes that he is rych by The pouer sowle that synful is Shal nother haue honour ne blys The aungels turne theyr face therfro For it for pouert goyth to wo Worshyp gettyth it ryght none Ware it rych it had good wone But his ryches was al spent And from hym clenely it went Whan he goddys precept forsoke And to deedly synne hym toke Therfore after as his ryches wore Is he worthy to be honoured thore ¶ The C.lxxxviij questyon ¶ Shal the father bere eny bourthyn For his sonne or his sonne for hym THe father of the sonne shal bere No burthen that hym may dere Ne the sonne not charged is With that the father doth amys Ech man of his owne synne Is charged that he deyes in But for the sonne the father may Be charged oft and euery day As yf that the sonne mysdo And the father wote that it be so And chastyse hym not of his synne But sufferyth hym to be therin He synnes al so wel as he And for hym charged shal be The sonne for his dede doyng And the father for his sufferyng But the father is charged nought Of that that the sonne wrought But that he myght a hym corrected If he had to hym ought seyed But by sufferaunce ther is he in nede Charged for his sonnys mysdede ¶ The C.lxxxix questyon ¶ They that slee men and vndo Take they theyr synne them vnto NAy synne y t one man hath wrought May charge a nother nought No man with ryght may other slo For no mysdede ne for no wo But yf it by lordshyp be That of god hath the pouste Iustyce for to do the ryght Therto is hym geuen myght And yf aman for wrath or hate Sle another in the gate The synne of the ded chargys hym nought Hym that hym to ded brought But what he dyd euyl or wele Shal cleue by hymselfe euery dele Nought than may be of godys mercy That he that ys slayne wrongfully May of som synne releasyd be For the sharp dede that he Agaynst ryght was brought vnto And he that hym slew also Encresyth his synne where he goyth By also many as he sleyth For greatter synne nought tel I can Than wylfully to slee a man ¶ The C. lxxxx questyon ¶ Which is most sorow thynkyth the That thou heryst or doest se SIght of eye wyl more dere Than that a man here 's with ere For that a man sees with eye That may be no flatery For he sees al the dede doyng And al the sorowe of that thyng That moste go ryght nere the herte And doth it aldermost smert For olde men say and it is newes That eyne ne se herte ne rewes But that a man is told vnto He wottyth neuer yf it be so And though he trow he say aryght Yet deryth it nothyng the syght For the herte thynketh as it wold It is not perchaunce as it is tolde And thus conforteth he vyturly Al the wyttes of the body Syght of eye is bodely And heryng of ere is goostly Ryght as the wynde so is heryng That is herde and sene nothyng Wherfore more sorow is to se Than to here what so it be ¶ The C. lxxxxj questyon ¶ Myght men eny folke synde That etyth other agayne kynde HE that trauayles day and nyght To hurte his neyghbor with vnryght To lese his good that he wan With trauayle or craft that he can And that he shuld his lyfe with lede For to clothe hym with and to fede Me thynke he byteth hym very sore And eteth hym as that it wore Yet is there another manere Aman to ete another here Yf he a lesyng on hym lye Wherfore he hathe great vylonye Or sayth of hym euyl behynd his backe Or before men maketh of hym alacke He eteth hym without methe Thoughe he not byte hym with his tethe And he that sleeth aman also And hath no cause ther vnto Or for gyft that hym is hyght Forsothe he than hym eteth ryght And more maners theâ—e is of mete That aman may another ete ¶ The C. lxxxxij questyon ¶ Which is the worst thyng of thes thre Morder thefte or a slanderer to be TO be a slanderer is a wycked lyfe For he maketh ofte great stryfe He is aboute day and nyght To make debate vnto his myght And so may he by wickyd rede Be encheson a man to be deed Wherfore it is great folye To haue such one in company Theft also is great synne For he that wyl neuer blynne To stele his neyghbor fro That he hath byde for moch wo And so doth he agayne hym dryue In wo and trauayl to lyue Or to begge for euer more Loke what synne he doys thore But the most synne of al tho Is man to murdre and slo For he destroyeth that stature That god made after his fygure And reues lyfe ther it shuld be And goddys seruyse so lettyth he Mannys lycknes slo shal he nought Ne none but god that hym hath wrought ¶ The C. lxxxxiij questyon ¶ Forgeuyth god with good chere Al the synnes that a man doth here IF al the droppes in the see And grasses that in erth may he And al the leues men can neuen And al the sterres of heuen And al the fysshes that swyme can And al the heres of beast and man Ware al on one synne brought The tenthdele ne were they nought Of the mercy of god of heuen For that may no man sume ne reken Had aman done al the synne That al this world durst begyn And he had sorow in herte therfore And wold leue and do no more God wold on hym haue mercy And forgeue it hym redely Admyttyng hym among his meyne And of his turnyng glade be But he that leuyth not his synne Ne nought therof wyl blynne Nother mercy wyl craue He is worthy none to haue For who so askys vnworthely It may be denyed iustly ¶ The C. lxxxxiiij questyon ¶ Why trauaylys aman so In this world as men do FOr two thynges pryncypaly The one to susteyne the body The other that it strong be To serue god in Trynyte As in prayer and almesdede For tho wyl the sowle fede And to gather haue in mynde To leue his chyldren and
in chyld getyng Shuld no man haue thought velany Amonge other of his company Nomore than now is velanye For to loke a man in the eye ¶ The CC.lx. questyon ¶ WhaÌ„ water hylled y e world euery dele Hyllyd it paradyse as wele THat flode in erth god sent also The most dele of the folke to fordo And for to wasshe the mekyl synne That the world that tyme was inne But in paradyse came it nought For there was no synne in wrought But one that adam the appul ate And the synne lay not in that It lay in the brekyng Of the precept of heuyn kynge And for the synne that he dyd thore Myght he therin dwele no more With al his synne was he out cast Unto this world here at the last And whan no synne was there aboute In paradyse whan he was out What wold the flode than do therin Whare was left no synne ¶ The CC.lxxj questyon ¶ Of what age made god adam Whan he in to this world came ADam god made and his fere At his licknes for they are to hiÌ„ dere And yong ryght as aungels wyse For the loue that he and his Shuld the ordres of aungels fulfyl That Lucyfer began to spyl But whan they mysded at the last And of paradyse ware out cast Theyr here began to wax and sprede And to theyr heles doune it yede And after theyr here on to se Them semed of thyrty yere to be ¶ The CC.lxij questyon ¶ Tho that at the dome shal dey And haue not serued to helle the wey Nore tyme of purgacyon so sone may be What shal come of them tel me THey that so long here lyue shal Untyl god the world deme al And them behouys on al wysse Unto the dome for to arysse And hath not seruyd here to dwele With wicked in the payne of helle Ne nought worthy so redely are In to heuyn for to fare Untyl theyr sowle clensed is Of that it here dyd amys God shal send them south to sey So sharpe a payne or they dey That shal clense them ouer all And for al the dayes stand them shal That they had be worthy to take In purgatory them clene to make Also in theyr vp takyng Shal come to them a sharpe clensyng And so shal they vp wende In to the blys with out ende ¶ The CC.lxiii questyon ¶ Whan soule come to the body also Whiche part gothe it in therto GOddys wyl may not mys What so he wyl anone it is But when god asoule shal make To a body that it shal take Of his myght he makys it al Within the body it haue shal As thou seyst vpon a tre Pere or appul whether it be Whan it to waxe shal begyn The carnel bredyth there with in And waxes in the frute holly So doth the sowle in the body ¶ The CC.lxiiij questyon ¶ Who named fyrst al thyng And teched them theyr conyng GOd whan he had made adam Gaue him strength beute wisdoÌ„ And he gaue vnto thynges al Names as men them call And he gaue man conyng also As behoued his lyfe vnto Of goddys grace and of his wyl And than be lefte they so al styl Fro the tyme that they begon to be Unto our seconde father Noe He newed and teched al thyng As adam dyd at the begynyng Our second father we hym cal For the dyluuy drouned al But Noe and his sonnes thre And theyr wyues of them came we Neuerthelesse Noe came Of the gendure of adam But that tyme no men had lyues But they foure and theyr wyues And or he dyed came of them two xxiiij thowsand and mo ¶ The CC.lxv questyon ¶ Whereof it be and wherfore That some men are lesse some more COmenly a mannys waxyng Is after the tyme of his beryng And somwhyle man more or lesse is After the vessel he lay in I wys He that is planet of that yere Whan a chyld is borne so here If he in tyme of the byrth be Of his sygne in the entre That chyld so shal be kyndly But lytel man of his body And yf he be the sygne amyde For the more man he shal be kydde And yf it in the endyng falle Than is he more than the other al And by cause y â— planets of more myght wore In the tyme here before Wherfore men than ware Of greattare myght than now are And euer more whyle the world shal stand The more shal al thynges be lesse and ¶ The CC.lxvj questyon ¶ Whether is perylousare to haue Hete or cold thy selfe to saue HEte and colde ouer mesure Are ful hote to endure If thou haue cold and clothles be Yet may thou somwyse helpe the For to styre and go fastly Or some wayes trauayle thy body Trauayle in keelth than is good It wyl sone enchafe thy blode And whan the blode in hete is brought Al the lymes eschafe for nought But yf thou haue an outrage hete It is euyl for to bete There may thou helpe thy selfe not so As thou in the cold may do The hete wyl gather more and more And greue aman al to sore But yf he eny drynke may fele Or with some other thyng hym kele Ful drye it wyl his body make And great euyl cause hym to take Wherfore than is more payne to haue Hete than keelth and surear to saue ¶ The CC.lxvij questyon ¶ Doth the chyld folowe naturally The wycked coÌ„dycyoÌ„s of his pareÌ„t truly THoughe father and mother wicked be And the chyld may lyue and the And do as he ought to do Toward god and man also It shal hym nothyng dere That his forgoars wicked were No more than it dereth where to grow Though a thefe or wicked man it sow And be his father neuer so good Ne his mother neuer so myld of mode And hym selfe be wicked truly Defyled with dedes wickedly It fareth as where that fyrst men brynne And after the erth sowes it in That shal neuer in erth spryng Ne frute shal it none forth bryng ¶ The CC.lxvi questyon ¶ Whether is bettar and lesse to spyl Aman to speke or hold hym styl SPeke and leue is both to do As aman sees tyme therto Thou may somtyme a word sey That may cause the for to dey Aâ—d somtyme may thou hold the styl That may turne the vnto yl Wherfore yf thou shalt speke eny whore Auyse the on it before Also wel as thou can That it be scath to no man And that thy wordes may a vayle Or els losys thou thy trauayle If thou eny word say shal For to pay thy frend with al And it be a gayne two or thre Unsayd were it bettar be A man shuld haue in many poyntes A cranes hals with many ioyntes That he not speke to rath Wherof shuld turne scath But that he may his word with cal Or it passe the ioyntes al ¶ The CC.lxvij questyon ¶ Whether ought wysar to be Yong man or old as thynkes the I Thynke it ware