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 XCI.]

BONUM est confiteri domino: & psallere nomini tuo altissime. ¶ Goed is to shrife til lord; and to synge til thi name thou heghest. ¶ In shire and pesful consciens & in bihaldynge of endles rest. goed is. that is. it is profitabile & delitabil to loue oure lord with thoght and mouth. and to synge, that is, to life right|wisly. til the honur of the god heghest.

2. Ad annunciandum mane misericordiam tuam: & veri|tatem tuam per noctem. ¶ fforto shew at morn thi mercy; and thi sothfastnes bi nyght. ¶ That is, that men be abil to preche thi mercy. when thai fayre well. and thi sothfastnes. that thou right|wisly punyss thaim. when thai ere in wa.

3. In decacordo psalterio: cum cantico in cythara. ¶ In psautery of ten cordys: with sange in the harpe. ¶ Aswhasay, ȝe sall tell godis mercy and his sothfastnes in kepynge of ten comaundments. with sange of swete louynge in the harpe of slagh|tire of fleyssly vicys.

4. Quia delectasti me domine in factura tua: & in operi|bus manuum tuarum exultabo. ¶ ffor thou delytid me in thi makynge: and in werkis of thi hend .i. sall glade. ¶ That is, thou delytid me that we ere made in goed werkis: for fayrhede, boxsumnes, ordaynynge of cause and effecte. is of the. and .i. sall glade in werkis of the. what sa thai ere, whils .i. oyse thaim, or woundirs thaim.

5. Quam magnificata sunt opera tua domine: nimis pro|funde facte sunt cogitaciones tue. ¶ What thi werkis lord ere worshipid; fuldepe ere made thi thoghtis. ¶ That is, what thai ere grete and wondirful in substaunce and shap. for thi thoghtis, in the whilke thou dos rightwisly with ill men. and mercyfully with goed men, ere ful depe. that is, na man may comprehend thaim.

6. Vir insipiens non cognoscet: & stultus non intelliget hec. ¶ Man vnwys sall noght knaw: and the foyle sall noght vndirstand there. ¶ Man vnwise, that lokis ay what he suffirs, noght til the meryt of suffrynge, sall noght knaw that god chastis him here. to make him ayre in heuen. and the foyle, that is gifen til foly of his fleyss, sall noght vndirstand there thyngis that .i. sayd, or that folous.

7. Cum exorti fuerint peccatores sicut fenum: & ap|paruerint omnes qui operantur iniquitatem. ¶ When synful ware born as hay: and all had semyd that werkis wickidnes. ¶ That is, when synful men floryss in erthly godes shortly. and all that wirkis wickidnes, lufand mare the makynge than the makere. semys nobil & riche til the warld. the foule vndirestandis noght that [S. U om.] thai ere heghid.

8. Vt intereant in seculum seculi: tu autem altissimus in eternum domine. ¶ That thai dye in warld of warld; bot thou lord heghest withouten ende. ¶ Aswhasay, here thai lif and waxis as hay. and that is. that thai dye in hell. for god whaim thai wrethid is myghty to punyss thaim withouten end.

9. Quoniam ecce inimici tui domine: quoniam ecce inimici tui peribunt, & dispergentur omnes qui operan|tur iniquitatem. ¶ ffor lo thin enmys lord: for lo thin enmys sall peryss. and scatird sall be all that wirkis wickidnes. ¶ Godis enmys ere all that ligges in dedly syn. and thai ere scatird fra thaire thoght. for thai may noght swa lange lif in thaire lust as thai wene and couayts.

10. Et exaltabitur sicut vnicornis cornu meum: & senectus mea in misericordia vberi. ¶ And heghid sall be as vnycorn my horn; and myn elde in plenteuous mercy. ¶ Thai sall peryss, and the heghnes of my vertu sall be heghid as vnycorn. that is, as he that has all his luf in a god. & myn elde, that is, myn endynge sall be in plenteuous mercy of endles bliss.

11. Et despexit oculus meus inimicos meos: & insurgen|tibus in me malignantibus audiet auris mea. ¶ And my eghe despisyd my enmys: & of rysand in me illwiland here sall myn ere. ¶ That is, .i. vndirstode that all that myght angire me in worde or dede. in this life ware at dispyse. that is. at sett noght be thaire malice. for myn ere sall here in the day of dome the sentens of dampnacioun of thaim that now rises agayns me in ill will.

12. Iustus ut palma florebit: sicut cedrus libani multi|plicabitur. ¶ The rightwis as palme sall floryss: as cedire of liban he sall be multiplyed. ¶ The ill man floryss [S florisches.] as hay that lastis noght. bot the rightwis floryss [S florisches.] as palme. that is, in heuen he is gloryouse. and in erth he suffirs sharp penaunce. as the rote of the palme is sharpe, bot the braunchys ere fayre. as cedire of liban.

he sall be multiplyed. that is, he sall noght dry in hete of temp|tacion, and he sall be incoruptibil and white and heghe in heuen.

13. Plantatus in domo domini: in atrijs domus dei nostri florebunt. ¶ Plantid in hous of lord: in the entres of the hous of oure god thai sall floryss. ¶ That is, thai that ere sett in halykirke in trouth and charite. thai sall floryss in day of generall resurreccioun, risand in fleyss gloryously.

14. Adhuc multiplicabuntur in senecta vberi: & bene pacientes erunt vt annuncient. ¶ ȝit thai sall be multyplyed in plentifous elde: wele suffrand sall thai be that thai shew. ¶ As|whasay, here hafe thai mykil in vertu of gast. bot ȝit thai sall resayfe mykil mare when this life is endid. and .i. whils thai sall be wele suffrand, that thai may baldly [S baldely. U .. aldly.] shew this.

15. Quoniam rectus dominus deus noster: & non est iniquitas in eo. ¶ ffor right lord oure god: & wickidnes is noght in him. ¶ Right he is, chastiand his sunnys [S sones. U synnys.] that he corown thaim eftereward. and na wickidnes is in him when he sparis til ill men here that he dampne thaim in his dome.