þus þe general undirstonding of þe laste dai of dome shulde be knowe unto men, and special knowinge shulde be hid, and whanne and how it shal be. And þerfore Cristen men ben apaied in knowing of Goddis lawe, for þat is ynowȝ to hem, and þerafter þei shulden lyve. And ȝif þei ben idil from þis knowinge, God wole axe ful streite acountis. So ȝif a lord al witty as God ȝaf a man al þat he hadde, in noumbre and mesure and in weiȝte, to serve þis lord after þes goodis, þis lord wolde seie to þis servant, þat axide more þan were ȝnowȝ: Servant, holdist þou me a fool? how usist þou þat þat þou hast? ne have Y not ȝove þee ȝnowȝ of cunynge nedeful to þee? And moche cuninge hast þou hid, and puttist it not in werk; and þou shuldist wite þat þee were better to worche after þis cuninge þan for to have newe cunninge, and þus to be idil wiþ þis. God is þis lord þat mesuriþ man bi cuninge þat he ȝyveþ to him, and wole þat man worche after þis cuninge; and þus shal man occupie him, and not aboute newe cunnynge, and leve þe work þat he shulde do. And þus synnede [synneden, E.] oure firste fadris, bi byheste þat þe fend hiȝte hem, þat þei shulden not die to ete þus, but be as Goddis, knowing good and yvel; and þus synneþ ech man þat is slow in Goddis service, for he leeveþ to putte in work þe witt þat God haþ ȝovun him, and languishiþ after a newe cunninge þat comeþ of his idilnesse; and þis is a sin|ful ende, þat mote nede bring in peyne. And so we synnen com|unli here bi þe firste synne of þe fend, and aȝens þe witt of God, as ȝif we wolden be al cunnynge. Þenke what witt þou hast of God, in which þou art now ydil, and putt wiseli þat witt in work, and holde þee paied of Goddis grace; for ellis þou takist þis grace in veyn, and runnest in dett aȝens þi God.
And þis is a comune synne in prelatis, boþe more and lasse; for God haþ ȝovun hem witt in mesure, how þei shulden profite to his Chirche, and þei disusen ofte þis tresour, and languishen after witt as fendis; for þe presumen and tempten God, and graunten pardoun for longe tyme, and þei witen never where God haþ ordeyned þat þis pardon mai stonde bi him. And þus if men wolden wel examyne dedis ungroundid in holi writt, þei
