Altenglische legenden.

                                
                                  Es night & day in dole and drede.
                                
                                  If werldes riches be to þam send,
                                
                                  To goddes louyng þai suld it spend,
                                
                                  For als nakid sal þai wend oway
                                
                                  Als þai come furth on þe first day;
                                  Line 270 
                                
                                  If þai gif gudes to goddes louyng,
                                
                                  To blis in heuyn it will þam bring;
                                
                                  And in euil vse if þai it spend,
                                
                                  It wynnes þam wo with-outen end.
                                
                                  Þe thrid: who will þe werld forsake,
                                  Line 275 
                                
                                  He sayd, þai suld ensaumple take
                                
                                  At þe sun & mone and sternes bright,
                                
                                  Þat dose þaire deueyre day and night,
                                
                                  Þai send þaire light to ilka place,
                                
                                  To mend al men þat mister hase;
                                  Line 280 
                                
                                  Vnto þam-self þai hald noght fre
                                
                                  Bot castes al furth in comunalte.
                                
                                  So suld we comun oure erthly gude,
                                
                                  Þat none fail for defaut of fode;
                                
                                  Vnto oure - self we suld noght spare
                                  Line 285 
                                
                                  And suffer oþer men mys - fare.
                                
                                  Þe ferth caus may be cald vnhapp,
                                
                                  Þat so a mans hert may vmlapp:
                                
                                  He dredes his gude sal fro him fall,
                                
                                  So þat he dar noght part with all.
                                  Line 290 
                                
                                  Þe buke says seruand he es
                                
                                  Vnto þe fend & to riches;
                                
                                  He serues to þe fend fully,
                                
                                  For he serues vnto mawmetry
                                
                                  When his hert & will er ordand euyn
                                  Line 295 
                                
                                  More to his gudes þan to god of heuyn;
                                
                                  For þan, als witnes haly writ,
                                
                                  His gude him ȝemes, & he noght it.
                                
                                  Þe fift: men suld refuys riches
                                
                                  For grete charges and for bysines
                                  Line 300 
                                
                                  And grete trauayl by many ways
                                
                                  Þat fallis þarto both nightes & days.
                                
                                  For werldly gudes who so will gete,
                                
                                  Ful oft - tymes bus haue trauayl grete.
                                
                                  When it es getyn, þan has he drede,
                                  Line 305 
                                
                                  To spend it vnto his moste spede;
                                
                                  With mekill drede he will it kepe,
                                
                                  To make haue werldly wirshepe.
                                
                                  Bot þe werst es, when he has wo
                                
                                  And sorowe when he sal part þarfro:
                                  Line 310 
                                
                                  Him think it es to him so dere,
                                
                                  He wold ay þat þai samyn were;
                                
                                  To part þarfro he has grete payne —
                                
                                  And oþer frendes þar - fore er fayne.
                                
                                  Þir thre maners men may reherce
                                  Line 315 
                                
                                  Als es contend here in two uerse:
                                
                                  Diues diuicias non congregat absque dolore,
                                
                                  Non tenet absque metu, non deserit absque dolore.
                                
                                  Þe sext teches both old and ying
                                
                                  To refuys riches for ruseing,
                                
                                  For riches bringes in rosing so
                                
                                  Þat it ledes to ay - lastand wo.
                                  Line 320 
                                
                                  Duble desese it dose to sum:
                                
                                  In þis life, & in life to cum;
                                
                                  In þis life gers it him haue rose,
                                
                                  Þat he takes no hede how he dose,
                                
                                  In hert it makes so hawtayne
                                  Line 325 
                                
                                  Þat nouþer he sese to ioy ne payne;
                                
                                  With rosing so þe werld him glose
                                
                                  Þat lastand life it gers him lose;
                                
                                  Þus duble harm to a man it wins.
                                
                                  And duble gude fro him it twins:
                                  Line 330 
                                
                                  Þat es grace þat he here suld haue,
                                
                                  To sese of syn, and his sawle saue;
                                
                                  It reues him will wele forto wirk
                                
                                  Owther vnto god or haly kirk,
                                
                                  And so he loses ay-lastand sele,
                                  Line 335 
                                
                                  Þat he suld wyn, if he did wele. —
                                
                                  Whils saynt John prechid on þis wise
                                
                                  And wissed men þe werld to despise,
                                
                                  So was þore broght furth him biforn
                                
                                  A body þat was to beriyng born;
                                  Line 340 
                                
                                  His frendes for him ful fast gun grete
                                
                                  And fell byfore þe appostell fete.
                                
                                  Þe moder him prayd to rays hir sun,
                                
                                  Als he with Drusyane are had done:
                                
                                  "Gude sir, do to my sun þat same
                                  Line 345 
                                
                                  Thurgh might of þi god & his name!"
                                
                                  On þis wise all þe pople prayd.
                                
                                  And when saynt John herd how þai sayd
                                
                                  And how sad trowth in þam was sett,
                                
                                  He knelid to grownd, & for Joy gret.
                                  Line 350 
                                
                                  And by he had made his prayere,
                                
                                  Þe childe rase vp both hale & fere.
                                
                                  Al loue þai god þan in þat stede.
                                
                                  And saynt John bad him þat was dede [folio 22] 
                                
                                  Þat he sul tell þo brether two

                                  Line 355

About this Item

Title: Altenglische legenden.
Author: Horstmann, Carl, ed. b. 1851.
Canvas: Page 38
Publication: Heilbronn,: Gebr. Henninger,; 1881.
Subject terms: Saints -- Legends; English poetry; Legends

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Collection: Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse
Link to this Item: https://name.umdl.umich.edu/afw1383.0001.001
Link to this scan: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/c/cme/afw1383.0001.001/176:2.8

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Manifest: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/api/manifest/cme:afw1383.0001.001

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Full citation: "Altenglische legenden." In the digital collection Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/afw1383.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed June 22, 2025.

Altenglische legenden.

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