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

ÞE GOSPEL OF O CONFESSOR AND BISHOP.

[SERMON LXXVIII.]

Homo quidam nobilis abiit in regionem.—LUC. xix. [12.]

ÞIS gospel telliþ how men shulden lyve, as þe nexte bifore dide in a lyche parable, and knyttiþ þerto many treuþis. And it mai falle ful wel þat Crist in dyvers tymes seide dyvers parablis, þe which weren of liche sentencis. Crist seiþ þat, o noble man wente out into a fer contre for to take to him a rewme, and turne aȝen, whan he hadde do. Doctouris seien comunli þat þis nobleman is Crist, þat wente out of þe God|hede, and bicam man heere in erþe, for to gete him a rewme of þe Churche of trewe men. But Crist lefte not to be God, al if he made his manhede wiþouten; and þus he styede aȝen to hevene, whanne he hadde made þis marchandiȝe [marchaundise, E.] . And þis is a noble man, as þis regioun is ferre; for nobler man þan is Crist mai noon be in þis world, siþ speciali God is his Fadir, and his modir is wiþouten synne, and þis child is God and man. But where mai be a nobler man? And as moche as Crist made him lasse, as fer fro Godhede is þis regioun. And here taken many men, how Crist þat is þis noble man was porest man here in erþe, and suffride for us many peynes. And noblei of oure prelatis shulde not lette hem to be pore, siþ þei ben sinful wiþ her eldris, and mai not come to Cristis noblei. And siþ al þat Crist suffride here, he suffride for love of his lawe, he loveþ to litil Crist or his lawe þat grutchiþ aȝens þis poverte. And false glosis seid in þis mater maken prestis synne more grevous, for it is a moche synne a preest to seie

þat he is Cristis viker, and by auctorite of Crist reuliþ fulli his liif, and ȝit he gabbiþ upon Crist and bi blasfemye bigiliþ þe peple.

Þis noble man clepide ten servantis, þat ben alle þe kynde of men, and ȝaf hem ten besauntis, þat weren delid among hem; and bad hem chaffare wiþ þis moneie til þat he come aȝen. Þes ten besauntis ben alle þe goodis þat Crist ȝaf here to man|kynde, and her chaffaryng wiþ þes is her profitable worching; and Crist at þe dai of dome wole axe rekenyng of alle þes. It is no charge to us now to wite how moche þis moneie is, for moneie changiþ ofte in priis, after þat þe prince wole ordeyne. Þe citisenis of þis noble man weren hiȝe prestis of þe temple, wiþ scribis and Phariseis; and al þis peple hatide Crist and senten message after him, now bi prestis, now bi dekenes, now bi knyȝtis of Heroude, and ever to take Crist in wordis to fynde hem cause to dampne him. And, for þei myȝten not bi her lawe, þei feyneden many gabbingis. And ever þei meneden and seiden in dede, þat þei wolden not þat Crist rengnede on hem; and neþeles Crist is hiȝest king and regneþ upon al þis world. And cause of þis rebellioun was þe lore of Cristis lawe, for he tauȝt poverte and mekenesse, and lore to bringe men to hevene; and al þis displeside hem, for þei weren þe fendis children. And þus have cardinalis pursued þe pope [pursued the Pope. This seems to be an allusion to the rejection of Urban after his election by the majority of the Cardinals in 1378. The 'persecution of their prelates by subjects' may possibly refer to the rising of the Commons in 1381 and the murder of Archbishop Sud|bury.] , and many sugettis her prelatis, and many prelatis pursuen trewe men þat grutchen aȝens her lordship; and alle þes seien in dede þat þei wolen not þat Crist rengne over hem. And for þer message is fals, and failiþ þe ground of truþe, þerfore seiþ God þat þei senden [senten, E.] a message bihinde him, for þis [and for þis, A; E om. and.] is feyned vanite, for to putte treuþe bihinde [om. E.] . But it is maad, longe after at tyme of þe dai of dome, þat Crist cam aȝen, whanne he had gaderid al his rewme, for þanne shal holi Chirche be hool, and ever dwelle wiþ her kyng. And for hool cumyng of þis rewme we preien in our Pater nosters.

Whanne þis kyng shal come aȝen for to juge alle maner men, he shal bidde clepe hise servantis, to whom he ȝaf bifore his moneie, þat þei shewen how þei hadde chaffarid wiþ goodis, þat þei hadde take [taken, E.] of God [So E; A wrongly includes the words wiþ—God in the italics.] . Þe juste servant come and seide; Lord, þi besaunt haþ geten ten. And þe kyng seide to him, Wel be þee, goode servaunte; for þou was [wast, E.] trewe in litil, þou shalt ben havynge power upon ten citees. Þes ten citees ben alle þe goodis þat seintis shal have in hevene. And þe toþer servaunt cam, and seide; Lord, þi besant haþ maad fyve. And þe kyng seide to him, And be þou upon fyve citees. And þe þridde wickede servant came, and seide to þe lord; Sire, lo here þi besaunt, put aȝen in a sudarie. For Y drede þee herfore, þat þou art austerne [an austerne, E.] man þat takist þing þat þou puttist not, and repest þat þou hast not sowun. Þe king seiþ to him, Of þi owne mouþ Y juge þee, wickide servaunt. Þou seiest, þou wistist þat Y was an austerne man, taking þing þat Y putte not þere, and reping þat Y have not sowun; and whi ȝavest þou not my moneie to þe table, to be occurid [to be ocurid, E, and excludes rightly from the italics; A includes.] , and Y shulde have axid after my moneie, wiþ oker þerof.

Þer ben sum men þat lyven here in swete and bisynesse, and casten hem not for to profiten wiþ goodis þat God haþ lent hem for to wynne þe blisse of hevene, as God haþ bodyn hem to do. And þes ben þe þridde servant þat shewiþ Goddis moneie in a cloiþ; for goodis of kynde shal man bringe to Goddis dome, mawgrey [magrey, E.] his. And his liif in þis world is money wlappid in sweting cloiþ. But God jugiþ sich men of her owne conscience, siþ ech man shulde wite, þat God, over goodis þat he ȝyveþ, axiþ profite of mennis workes; but to men, and noon to him. And so, siþ God puttiþ in chaffare þing to profite bi mennis traveile, men shulden traveile fast þerwiþ for to profite to hem silf; and so God repiþ many þingis þat he sue [sewe, E.] not bi him silve, for he helpiþ man to worche, and al þe profit he ȝeveþ to man. And þus seiþ Austin [S. Aug. Enarratio In Psalm. XXXVI. 'Attende quid facit foe|nerator. Minus vult dare certe, et plus accipere: hoc fac et tu; da modica, accipe magna. Vide quam late crescat foenus tuum. Da tem|poralia, accipe aeterna: da terram, accipe coelum. Et cui dabo, forte dicis? Ipse Dominus procedit quem foeneres, qui tibi jubebat ne foenerares.'] þat Goddis oker is leueful and gracious, for God

okuriþ not wiþ man, but ȝif God make þe encrees; and al þe vantage of þis okir, God kepiþ to man and not to him. And so man ȝyveþ Goddis moneie for to drawe at þe table, whanne he puttiþ Goddis ȝyftis to wynne him þe blisse of hevene; and þanne þis kyng haþ encrees to his worship, and mannis profite.

And so seiþ Jesus Crist to aungels þat stonden biside; Take þis besaunt fro þis þef, and ȝyve it him þat haþ ten besauntis. And þes seintis seiden to Crist, Lord, he haþ ten besauntis. For evry þing seiþ himsilf, and ech þing seiþ oþer to God; and þus telliþ Cristis jugement to men, þat Crist wole not bigile. For soþe Y seie to ȝou; to ech þat haþ shal it be ȝovun, and bi þis ȝifte shal he have plente; but from him þat haþ not, þat þat he haþ shal be taken awey. For þis is trewe sentence of seintis, þat just men þat han hevene, han alle worldli þingis bi resoun of her Lord: and so alle unjuste men, þat God ȝyveþ helle for her service, have not justli, al ȝif þei semen to have moche. And ȝif þou axe who shal take aweie goodis fro þese uniuste men, siþ þei ben comunli myȝte, and no man dar take fro hem; Crist an|sweriþ here and mai not gabbe, þis just man to whom God ȝeveþ hevene takiþ fro þis uniuste man þat þat him semeþ to have; and not bi his owne autorite, ne bi strengþe of him silf, but bi autorite of God, and bi vertue of his lawe. And al ȝif worldli men semen to have myche goodis, ȝit þis is a false havynge, for it is unjuste to God; and siþ God is chief lord, þat jugiþ men þus to have and þus to wante bi his lawe, no man shulde aȝen-seie þis. And uniust occupacion, clepid havynge to þis world, is soþeli noon havynge, but holding of oþer mennis goodis [This favourite opinion of Wyc|lif's, that mortal sin invalidates the right to hold property or lordship, both as regards laymen and as re|gards ecclesiastics, is set forth at large in his De Dominio Civili and other treatises. Among the twenty|four propositions condemned by the Synod of 1382 (Lewis, p. 108), was the assertion 'that a civil lord is no lord, a bishop no bishop, a prelate no prelate, whilst he is in mortal sin.'] . And sum men þat shal be saif, al if þei semen now pore, neþeles þei have now hevene, and alle goodis of þis world: but þis havyng is now hid, and ȝit unknowen to men, for Goddis riȝt is not ȝit put in possessioun. Þis trewe sentence of seintis is now

scorned bi mannis lawe; neþeles seintis have now alle þing þat þei wolen have. And as philosophris seien, havyng is on many maneres. And herfore þis gospel seiþ þat unjust man haþ not sich þing, and þe gospel of Mathew seiþ þat him semeþ to have it; for if man robbe oþer mannis goodis, and waste hem at his wille, neþeles he haþ hem not, but occupieþ þingis þat ben not his.

But Crist spekiþ at þe dai of dome of false prestis, þat weren his enemyes, to angelis and seintis in hevene; þat þei shulden bringe hem bifore hem, and sle hem in his presence, for þei shal be dampned by Goddis jugement. And þis dampn|yng to helle is a manere of sleying more noyous þan bodili sleying. And seintis shal here juge wiþ God. And þe storie of þe gospel telliþ, how Crist, whanne he hadde seid þes wordis, wente bifore oþer men and stieden [styȝede, E.] into Jerusalem. And þis bitokeneþ þat þis sentence, al if it be scorned here in erþe, ȝit it is kept saf in hevene, and is above mannis power.