Select English works of John Wyclif; edited from original mss. by Thomas Arnold.

ÞRIDDE SONDAI GOSPEL AFTER OCTAVE OF TWELFÞ DAI.

[SERMON XXXIV.]

Cum descendisset Jesus de monte.—MATT. viii. [I.]

ÞIS gospel telliþ of two myraclis þat Crist dide, and conteyneþ myche witt aboute þes two myraclis. Þe story telliþ how Jesus cam doun of þe hille, whan he hadde ȝovun his lawe to his disci|plis, and a myche peple suede him, for devocioun þat þei hadden in his lawe, and eke in his wordis. And lo, þere cam a mesel man, and loutide him and seide, Lord, ȝif þou wolt, þou maist hele me. And Crist seide he wold, and bade him be hole. It is comounly supposid þat þis leprous man trowide þat Crist was boþe God and man, and so Crist myȝte hele him, but of his owne wor|þinesse affiede he not þis; and herfore he seide þat, ȝif Crist wolde, he myȝte hele him of his lepre, and þan was Crist God. And God wolde þat proude men and leprous heretikes wolden wel confesse þe feiþ, and þan shulden þei be hool. And Crist stretchid out his hond, and touchide him, and seide, Y wole make

þee hoole, and able þee þerto; and þus doiþ God to whom he ȝyveþ grace. And anoon was clensid þe lepre of þis man. And þis hasty helynge bitokeneþ þis myracle; and þat Crist touchide þis leprouse techiþ us now þat þe manhede of Crist was instru|ment to his godhede, for to do myraclis þat he wolde weren do [wer done, C.] , and þat touchinge of leprouse men was leveful to men þat þus wolden helpe hem. But Crist myȝt not be blemyshid by touchinge of þis leprouse; and so tauȝte Crist his everlasting good wille, and tauȝte us to performe þe good wille that we have. And after Crist bade him, See þat þou telle no man, but go and shewe him to þe preest, and offre þat ȝifte þat Moises bad in witnesse of siche helþe.

And so men seien, on þree maneris may þis word be undir|stonden. First þat þis man shulde telle no man herof bifore þat he had offrid þat Crist bad him do. Þe secounde cause and betere is, þat Crist bad þis, to teche us to flee boost, and þanke of siche men to whiche we done good bi maner of mercy; and þus we shulden not telle þis, bi entent of mannis þank. Þe þridde weye seiþ, þat Crist bad þis negatife, to flee sclaundre of Goddis lawe and man, and flee bostinge of himsilfe, and conseyvynge of yvel of God. And, for þe olde lawe was þan ceesid, Crist bad fille þis lawe as autor þerof. And þus whan a man shewiþ by his holy lyf, actif lyf, þat is two dowfe bryddis, or contemplative lyf, þat is a paire of turturs, bi siche signes he shewiþ þat his synne is forȝovun, and þat unto preestis þat wel undirstonden þis. And þus synful men shulden conseile with preestis, and take of hem medecine to fle more synne.

Þe secounde myracle techiþ how Crist helide an heþene man, for love of centurion þat kepte Capharnaum, þat was heed toun of þe contre of Galile. Þis centurio tolde Crist þat his child lay in his hous syke on the palesie, and was yvel turmentid. But Luke telliþ how þis knyȝt dide al þis by olde men of þe Jewis þat myche preisiden þis knyȝt, and seiden þat he was frend to hem, and bilde hem a synagoge. And Crist cam wiþ hem nyȝe to þis knyȝtis hous, and þis knyȝt seide þus unto Jesus Crist, Lord, Y am not worþi þat þou entre under my roof, but seie oonly wiþ word, and my servant

shal be hool. For Y am a man putt in þis place bi power of þe emperour, havynge under me knyȝtis, for to do myn office, and Y seide to on, Go, and he goiþ, and Y seide to anoþer, Come, and he comeþ, and Y seide to my servaunt, Do þis, and he doiþ it. And bi þis wolde þis knyȝt mene þat Crist hadde no nede to entre in to his hous to hele þis seke man, siþ Crist is God Almyȝty, under no power. Jesus herynge þes wordis woundride in hise wittis: al if he wist and ordeyned bifore þat þis knyȝt shulde þus trowe [So in B; towe, A; betrew, C.] , and herfore seide Crist to þe folk þat sueden him, Soþely Y seid to you, Y fond not so myche feiþ in al þe folk of Israel, neiþer preestis ne comouns. Crist mente not of hise apostlis ne of his modir ne of his maynè, for þei weren take from Israel, as Crist was here a strange lord. And herfore bihetiþ Crist his Chirche þat shal be of heþene men, þat many of þe este and west shal come and reste wiþ patriarkes in þe kyngdom of hevene, where children of þis rewme shal be putt out, and cast into helle; þere shal be wepynge, þat is, sensible sorewe, and gnastinge of teeþ, þat is more, for it is peyne of harm of blisse, þat passiþ al sensible peyn. And Jesus seide efte to þis knyȝt, Go, and þi servaunt shal be hool; for as þou trowist, bi my grace, be it done unto þee. And þe childe was maad hoole in þe same houre, þat Crist spake þus. We shal wite þat feiþ is a ȝifte of God, and so God may not ȝyve it to man but ȝif he ȝyve it graciousely. And þus alle goodis þat men have been ȝiftes of God, and þus whan God rewardiþ a good werk of man, he corouneþ his owne ȝifte. And þis is of grace, for alle þingis ben of grace þat men have of wille of God; and Goddis goodnesse is firste cause why he ȝyveþ men þes goodis. And so it may not be þat God do good to men, but ȝif he do þes goodes freely bi his grace. And wiþ þis we shall graunte þat men disserven of God; for in grace þei maken hem worthi to have þis good of God; but we shal not undirstonde þat ech grace of God is a lump of þingis þat may be bi hymself, but grace is a manere in man bi which he is graciouse to God, and oþer grace on Goddis side is good wille of God. And for siche grace in God men resceyven grace in hem, and chiding of ydiotis, as was Pilagius and oþer, þat conseyven not

þat a þing may be but ȝif it be bi himsilf, as ben substancis, is for to scorne and to leve to foolis. For nyne kyndis of acci|dentis have contrary manere, siþ ech of hem is a manere of substance of a þing, and it may not be by himsilf, as heretikes dreemen. And herfore leeve we þis, and lerne we of þis knyȝt to be meke in herte in word and in dede, for he grauntide first þat he was under mannis power, and ȝit bi power of man he myȝt do many þingis; myche more shulden we knowe þat we ben undir Goddis power, and þat we may do noo þinge but by power of [om. A.] God; and ȝif we disusen þis power, woo shal us be þerefore. And so þis rote of mekenesse shal gete oþer vertues to us, and grace of God to disserve mede of hevene and goodis of glorie, as it was in þe gentil knyȝte.