A 'þrostyl' ys þe namë kyd;
Line 7480
hyt come fleyng by seynt Benet,
And, mery [myry.] synggyng, by hym hym set;
Noþeles, he hadde grete ferly [wundyr]
Þat hyt flegh hym so ny.
Line 7484
Seynt Benet wende he myȝt hyt ha take,
For hyt sate by hym so spake. [tame]
he blessed hym fyrst, and bedde hys hande
To take þe brydde þat was syttande;
Line 7488
As sone as he hadde made þe croyce,
Þe bryde flegh furþ, and left hys voys.
Þat þrostel sagh he no more;
hyt become, he ne wyst whore.
Line 7492
Þan come on hym so sodenly
So grete temptyng of lecchery,
Þat neuer er, syn he was bore,
So grete temptyng was hym byfore;
Line 7496
Þe fendë þan put yn hys þoght
Þat he hadde, or seye, or wroght.
Onës he sagh a feyre womman, [folio 50a:2]
And al day yn hys þoght she ran;
Line 7500
Swych þoght so hadde hym [þoght had hym so.] ouercome,
Þat þe þoght of God, hyt had ny [nygh.] fornome;
And foule longyng had hym so take
Þat hys ermytage he hadde nygh [nygh he had.] forsake;
But Ihesu, þat seeþ al þyng,
Line 7505
he sagh weyl hys grete temptyng;
Þogh he suffred hym weyl be to-blaste,
he suffred hym nat be dowün kaste; [down kast.]
Line 7508
Þe fende may nat but tempte þy wyl,
Þe [Þy.] selfe behoueþ þe dede fulfyl;
And for he stode so stalwrþly, [O, stalwrly H.]
Þe holy goste was to hym redy.
Line 7512
with-oute hys cellë, þornës wore,
