Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse

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

fame, þat is his name writun in þe book of liif, is betere þanne alle þes oþer, and þerof man shulde more joie, þese fourþe goodis ben betere þan þe goodis told bifore. And siþ a man travailiþ here for to gete þe fifte [fyveþe, E.] good, it moot nedis be beter þan þei, siþ it is eende of alle bifore. And in travaile aboute þese goodis, and algatis in priis [pris, E.] of hem, stondiþ al þe mede in þis liif, and al unþank of peyne of helle; for now þis worlde haþ blindid men aȝens her witt and her resoun, þat goodis of fortune, þat ben lest, ben moost told bi of þes fyve. And for þes, and worldli name, men fiȝten and traveilen hugeli; but al if þes ben goode in kynde, neþeles havynge of hem profitiþ not to man here, but for vertues and goodis of blisse. And ofte it falliþ, þat þis havyng þat philosophris tellen leest bi, harmeþ to man in oþer goodis, for unskilful love of hem; and so in love of mannis soule, wiseli weyed as it shulde be, stondiþ al þe mede of man, þat he haþ here in erþe. Loke þat he love moost his God, siþ he is þe beste þing þat mai be, and siþ, he love [So E; A has loveþ.] him silf, and aungelis wiþ [and, E.] neiȝboris, as þei ben goode. But in þis love, man shal have ordre; as kynde haþ tauȝte him for to love first himsilf, and oþer in kynde after þat þei ben nere to him. And in anoþer ordre of love, betere and ferþere, shal man love more; but þis craft of good love is turned now up so doun, for þis world and worldli goodis passen now in weiȝte of love. And herfore þes worldli men chaffaren aboute worldli goodis, and her traveile wiþ þer bisynesse techen þat þei loven moost þes goodis. And certis þei failen in craft of love, and comen not to þe goode of blisse; and bi þis cause haþ Crist ordeyned his prestis to be not worldli, but to lyve in povert of þis world, and in peyne of her bodi. For þus dide Crist wiþ hise disciplis, and tauȝte us to sue him. And bi þis cause men supposen þat many prelatis of þis Chirche hiden Goddis tresour in þe erþe, to her owne dampnacion; and so at þe daie of dome, God shal not seie, Wel be þee, but God shal seie, austernli; Of þi mouþ Y juge þee, for þou shuldest have þis cunnynge, and lyve þerafter bi þy state [So E; A reads, love þerafter bi þe state, which is nonsense.] . And þus diden þes confessouris, and so þei camen to joie of hevene;
/ 448
Pages Index

Actions

file_download Download Options Download this page PDF - Page 256 Image - Page 256 Plain Text - Page 256

About this Item

Title
Select English works of John Wyclif; edited from original mss. by Thomas Arnold.
Author
Wycliffe, John, d. 1384.
Canvas
Page 256
Publication
Oxford,: Clarendon Press,
1869-71.

Technical Details

Link to this Item
https://name.umdl.umich.edu/afb3713.0001.001
Link to this scan
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/c/cme/afb3713.0001.001/292:4

Rights and Permissions

The University of Michigan Library provides access to these materials for educational and research purposes. These materials are in the public domain. If you have questions about the collection, please contact [email protected]. If you have concerns about the inclusion of an item in this collection, please contact [email protected].

DPLA Rights Statement: No Copyright - United States

Related Links

Manifest
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/api/manifest/cme:afb3713.0001.001

Cite this Item

Full citation
"Select English works of John Wyclif; edited from original mss. by Thomas Arnold." In the digital collection Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/afb3713.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed April 29, 2025.
Do you have questions about this content? Need to report a problem? Please contact us.