The Psalter, or Psalms of David and certain canticles / with a translation and exposition in English by Richard Rolle of Hampole ; ed. from manuscripts by the Rev. H. R. Bramley ... With an introduction and glossary.

[PSALM CI.]

DOMINE exaudi oracionem meam: & clamor meus ad te veniat. ¶ Lord here my prayere; and my cry cum til the. ¶ That is, the cloude of synnys let noght the affecte of myn askynge.

2. Non auertas faciem tuam a me: in quacumque die tribulor inclina ad me aurem tuam. ¶ Turne noght away thi face fra me: in what day that .i. am in anguys held til me thin ere. ¶ That is, the lyght of thi mercy shyne ay on me, that my fas ouercum me noght, that angirs me & tempis me.

3. In quacunque die inuocauero te: velociter exaudi me. ¶ In what day that .i. hafe inkald the: swiftly thou here me. ¶ That is, in what hete of persecucioun .i. kall the in til me. swiftly thou here me: for .i. aske noght erth bot heuen.

4. Quia defecerunt sicut fumus dies mei: & ossa mea sicut cremium aruerunt. ¶ ffor my dayes failyd as reke: and my banys as kraghan [S crauckond. M cracon. bis B 288. brent grees. bis.] dryid. ¶ His dayes he kallis his tyme of this warld, the whilke for the pride of adam faylid, as reke raysyd wytis away, and my banys, that is, strenght of my saule, as kraghan [S crauckande.] dryed thorgh the fyre of couaytis, when the fatnes of thi luf dryed out of me.

5. Percussus sum vt fenum & aruit cor meum: quia oblitus sum comedere panem meum. ¶ Smytyn .i. am as hay and my hert dryed: for .i. forgat to ete my brede. ¶ That is, .i. am made dedly as hay, that lityl whill haldis the grennes. whils we dwell in kepynge of godis laghe we ere grene. when we syn oure hert dryes. and we forgete to ete oure brede. that is, to delit vs in godis worde doand it.

6. A voce gemitus mei: adhesit os meum carni mee. ¶ ffro the voice of my sorowynge: my bane droghe till my fleyss. ¶ That is, fra the sorowful eggynge of the deuyl, that was. ȝe sall be as goddis. the vertu of my saule droghe til my fleyssly likyngis.

7. Similis factus sum pellicano solitudinis: factus sum sicut nicticorax in domicilio. ¶ Like .i. am made til the pellicane of anly stede: .i. am made as nyght rauen in the house euysynge [S eskyng. L evesyng. ȝ other MSS. euesyng.] . ¶ Raban and cassiodire says. that by there thre foghils ere vndirstandyn thre maner of men: by the pellicane, that is foghil of grete lennes, and is sustaynd with lytil mete. and fleghis noght with many, bot has delite be it ane. Heremytis ere likynd, that flees the felaghshipe of men, and punyssh thaire synnys, or louys god in anly stede. the nyght rauen bitakyns him that dwellis in his hous|ynge. bot he haldis him fra the comun sight of men. and fles the ese of this life, lufand the nyght of penaunce.

8. Vigilaui: & factus sum sicut passer solitarius in tecto. ¶ I woke: and .i. am made as sparow solitary in the hous. ¶ The sparow. that flees fra the wod, & sekis his nest in a hous, and is fayn tharof. bitakyns a rightwisman, that has his hert ay fra the warld. and is glade and ioyful that his wonyng stede is graythed in heuen. and he says he woke, for oft suffirs he many angirs of ill men.

9. Tota die exprobrabant michi inimici mei: & qui laudabant me aduersum me iurabant. ¶ All day vpbraydid til me my fas: and tha that louyd me agayns me thai sware. ¶ My fas, that was bifore my fleysly frendis, vpbraydid til me, doand penaunce, wrechidnes that .i. had done. swa dos the deuyl to desayfe men. and that louyd me when .i. oysid seculere life with thaim. agayns me sware. that it is ypocrisy that .i. fare with. and that thai did.

10. Quia cinerem tanquam panem manducabam: &

potum meum cum fletu miscebam. ¶ ffor aske .i. ete as brede; and my drynke .i. mengid with gretynge. ¶ That is, thorgh penaunce .i. wastid all leuyngis of syn. the whilke is bitakynd bi askis. and my drynke. that is, solace of this life, .i. mengid with compunccioun of hert. that my thoght was na tyme sett on any erthly comforth. and this pyne is til me.

11. A facie ire indignacionis tue: quia eleuans allisisti me. ¶ ffra the face of the wreth of thi dedeyn: for vpliftand thou downsmate me. ¶ Thou liftid me vp in honur of makynge. bot for my pride thou downsmate me in til wrechidnes of syn and hell. when.

12. Dies mei sicut vmbra declinauerunt: & ego sicut fenum arui. ¶ My dayes as shadow heldid: and .i. dryed as hay. ¶ My dayes like till me heldid away fra the day lastand. that thai ere bot as shadow: that is, myrk and vayn, passand withouten profit. and .i. dryed as hay. that is, .i. lost the fayrhede of heuen, .i. vanyst.

13. Tu autem domine in eternum permanes: & memoriale tuum in generacione & generacionem. ¶ Bot thou lord dwellis withouten end: and thi menynge in generacioun & genera|cioun. ¶ Thou dwellis lord, that thou delyuer me and safe me fra vanyssynge. & thi menynge, that is, hetynge of endles life, and of life that now is: thorgh the whilke thou thynkis on vs, and we on the. that is, in this generacioun, & in [M. S &. U in.] a nother vndedly.

14. Tu exurgens domine misereberis syon: quia tempus miserendi eius, quia venit tempus. ¶ Thou risand lord sall hafe mercy of syon: for tyme to hafe mercy of it, for tyme cumys. ¶ Thou risand to feght agayn the deuyl, sall hafe mercy of thi kirk: for now is tyme of grace & tyme of mercy.

15. Quoniam placuerunt seruis tuis lapides eius: & terre eius miserebuntur. ¶ ffor til thi seruauntis payid the stanys of it: and of the erth of it thai sall hafe mercy. ¶ There stanys ere haly men, or vertus: & thai hafe pite of thaim, that ere erth in halykirke, and sorows for thaim.

16. Et timebunt gentes nomen tuum domine: & omnes reges terre gloriam tuam. ¶ And genge sall drede thi name; and all kyngis of erth thi ioy. ¶ That is, thi myght, in the whilke thou ert gloriouse & forto drede.

17. Quia edificauit dominus syon: & videbitur in gloria

sua. ¶ ffor the lord edifyd syon: and he sall be sene in his ioy. ¶ That is, he has made rightwis men stabil in crist. and of thaim he sall be sene in his ioy. that is, in the shynynge of godhede.

18. Respexit in oracionem humilium: & non spreuit precem eorum. ¶ He lokid in the prayere of meke: and despisyd noght the bede of thaim. ¶ He lokid with a blithe eghe in thaire prayere, that knawis thaire frelte and vnworthynes: and swa he pryuyd thaim noght of thaire askynge.

19. Scribantur hec in generacione altera: & populus qui creabitur laudabit dominum. ¶ Writen be there in a nother generacioun: and folke that sall be made sall loue the lord. ¶ There thyngis, of destruccioun of adam and of reparaylynge thorgh crist. be writen in a nother generacioun. that is new in grace. for that is the folke that louys god. that thaim made in vertus.

20. Quia prospexit de excelso sancto suo: dominus de celo in terram aspexit. ¶ ffor he lokid fra his halighe heghe: lord fra heuen in erth he lokyd. ¶ His haligh heghe is ihū crist: fra him he lokid in men of erth, to help thaim.

21. Vt audiret gemitus compeditorum: vt solueret filios interemptorum. ¶ That he here the sorowyngis of fettird: that he lese the sunnys of slane. ¶ The sunnys of slane apostils and martirs ere we. whaim ihū crist lesis fra the bandis of synnys, and fra the fettirs of vile couatys, if we sothfastly hafe sorow of slike bandis and fettirs.

22. Vt annuncient in syon nomen domini: & laudem eius in ierusalem. ¶ That thai shew in syon the name of lord: and his louynge in ierusalem. ¶ Thai that shew wele in syon the name of ihū. that is, in contemplatife life. in ierusalem. that is, in sight of pes. thai may baldly shew his louynge. for contemplacioun and rest in godis luf ere bath to gidire.

23. In conueniendo populos in vnum: & reges vt serui|ant domino. ¶ In samyn cumand folke in an: and the kyngis of thaim that thai serue til lord. ¶ That is, thai sall preche that the folke cum samyn in pes and charite and dwell thar in. and til that thaire prelatis ere haldyn that thai all serfe til god, noght til the worlde.

24. Respondit ei in via virtutis sue: paucitatem dierum meorum nuncia michi. ¶ He answerd til him in way of his vertu: the letilnes of my dayes send til me. ¶ Louynge answers til

god when men thankis him in worde and werke. in way of his vertu, that is, in crist, noght in his merits. the letilnes of my dayes. that is, make me to bihald how fa & ill ere my dayes of this life here: that .i. luf noght this exil fra heuen.

25. Ne reuoces me in dimidio dierum meorum: in gene|racione & generacionem anni tui. ¶ Kall me noght in the halfe of my dayes: in generacioun and of generaciouns thi ȝeris. ¶ That is, halfe noght my fa dayes. bot make me to last til .i. cum til ful dayes in perfeccioun of life. for thi ȝeris, whidire .i. thynk, ere in generacioun of generaciouns. that is, in endles life, in the whilke is a generacioun that is gedird of all generaciouns of goed men.

26. Inicio tu domine terram fundasti: & opera manuum tuarum sunt celi. ¶ In bigynynge thou lord growndid the erth: and the werkis of thi hend ere heuens. ¶ Godis hend he kallis his myght and his will, thorgh the whilk, as with hend, god wirkis.

27. Ipsi peribunt tu autem permanes: & omnes sicut vestimentum veterascent. ¶ Thai sall peryss bot thou dwellis: and all as clathynge elde sall thai. ¶ That is, heuens, he menys of the ayre, sall periss fra that fourme that thai now hafe. for thai sall be chawngid and newid. bot thou dwellis in thi selfe eftire all thynge, as thou was bifor all thynge. and all elde sall as clethynge. that is, as mannys body, that eldis and sall be chawngid in bettere.

28. Et sicut opertorium mutabis eos & mutabuntur: tu autem idem ipse es & anni tui non deficient. ¶ And as couerynge thou sall thaim chaunge and thai sall be chaungid: bot thou ert he the same and thi ȝeris sall noght fayle. ¶ That is, as mannys body thai sall be chaungid in new figure, & last tharin. bot thou ert he the same, that is, all hally vnchaungeabil. and thi lastand|nes is in the life endles. Gastly, erth is less haly men, that has despendynge of erthly godes. heuens ere mare halymen, that ere gifen til contemplacioun hally. and thai sall dye. and be chaungid fra this warld til the ioy of aungels.

29. Filij seruorum tuorum habitabunt: & semen eorum in seculum dirigetur. ¶ Sunnys of thi seruauntis sall won: and the sede of thaim sall in warld be rightid. ¶ That is, the folouers of apostils sall won in thi [S, M. U this,] ȝeris: and thaire sede, that is, thaire froite, sall be rightid til heuen in this life.