hoot, and her foule wedir and coold. Clepynge of þes werk|men is clepynge to goddis dome, þat is þe laste trumpe þat seint Poul spekiþ of. Crist shal bigynne at men of þis last tyme, for men of þis last age shal be more blessid, and be first in worþynesse þan men of oþer ages, siþ þe manhede of Crist is in þe sixte age, and his modir wiþ apostlis shulen passe oþer in blisse, and so in oþer agis þe later hadden more grace, siþ Crist is þe emperoure, þat wendiþ ever alarginge. Þe sevenþe age is clepid of men þat slepen in purgatorye, and þe eiȝte age of blissed men in hevene, and in þes eiȝte agis endiþ al þis world.
And so al þes laborers toke ech one his peny. But men of þe first hour demeden þat þei shulden have more þan men of þe enlevenþe hour, ffor þei travailiden first and longer. And þus þei grucchiden aȝen þe housebonde, and seiden to him; Þes comen in þe last houre, and þou madist hem evene to us, þat baren þe charge and þe hete of þe daie of traveile. But he answeride to oon of hem, and seide þus to him, Frend, Y do þee no wronge; for of a peny þou cordist wiþ me. Take þat is þine, and go ful paied, for Y wole ȝyve þis laste as myche as Y wole ȝyve þee. Where it is not leveful to me to [So in B and C; om. A.] do wiþ my owne þing as Y wole? Wher þin eyen ben wickid for þat Y am good? Þus shal þe laste be firste, and þe first be last; for many ben clepid, but fewe of hem ben chosen. Þis grutchinge of þes seintis is not stryvinge of hem, but woundringe in soule, as Seint Gregore [See the nineteenth Homily of Pope Gregory (Benedictine edition, Paris, 1705), vol. i. p. 1512. The labourers that murmured are inter|preted to mean the saints under the old dispensation, who, though they had merited heaven by their good lives, yet obtained it not, till the descent of Christ into hell had set them free, and opened to them the gates of Paradise.] seiþ. And so þis demynge and grutching þat þis gospel spekiþ of is woundrynge in soule, and þankinge of Goddis grace, þat he ȝaf so myche joie to men for so litil traveile. For more joie þei myȝt not have, but fulli as myche as þei wolden. And so shal al witen wel þat God doiþ no wrong to hem, but þat he hiȝt hem graciously, he haþ fully ȝyven hem; ne noon of hem shulde grutchen aȝen goodnesse of þis just fadir, for he may ȝyve of his owne, more þan ony man may
