The Middle-English Harrowing of hell and Gospel of Nicodemus. Now first ed. from all the known manuscripts, with introduction and glossary, by William Henry Hulme.
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- Title
- The Middle-English Harrowing of hell and Gospel of Nicodemus. Now first ed. from all the known manuscripts, with introduction and glossary, by William Henry Hulme.
- Publication
- London :: Published for the Early English Text Society by Oxford University Press,
- 1907.
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DPLA Rights Statement: No Copyright - United States
- Subject terms
- Jesus Christ -- Descent into hell
- Link to this Item
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http://name.umdl.umich.edu/CME00010
- Cite this Item
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"The Middle-English Harrowing of hell and Gospel of Nicodemus. Now first ed. from all the known manuscripts, with introduction and glossary, by William Henry Hulme." In the digital collection Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/CME00010. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 28, 2025.
Pages
Page 5
[Initial letters of lines always touched with red.] Vntil crist loked þaim vnto, [leaf 36]
as man auȝt to prisouns do;
he liȝted out of his heiȝe tour
Into seynt mari bour; [ 32]
he was born for our misdede
In þis world in pouer wede,
In þis world he suffred dede,
forto deliuer ous fram þe qued; [ 36]
þan ihesu hadde spilt his blod
for our sinnes on þe rode,
he nam him þe riȝt way
vnto helle for soþe to say; [ 40]
þan he com þer þan seyd he,
as y schal now telle þe.
dominus ait.
Hard gates haue y gon [& is the contraction always used for and.] & suffred pines mani on; [ 44] þritti winter & þridde half ȝere haue y wond in lond here; almast is so michel gan seþþen y bicom first man; seþþen haue y fond & wist hot & cold, hunger & þrest; Man haþ don me schame & þouȝ wiþ word, wiþ dede & michel wouȝ;Page 7
þai tok me wiþouten sake, [53. Laing toke.]
þai bond min honden bihinde mi bac,
þai bete me til y ran on blode,
þai dempt me to hong on rode; [ 56]
alle for adams sinne ywis,
þan haue y þoled þis.
adam, þus dere haue y bouȝt,
& þou no louedest me neuer nouȝt; [ 60]
adam, y haue bouȝt ful sare
& y wil suffre it na mare;
to-day y schal bring of pine
adam, þe & alle þine. [ 64]
satanas dixit.
Who is þat ich here þare? [65. Varn. Wo.] y rede þat he spek na mare, for he may so michel do þat he schal comen ous vnto [ 68] forto ben our fere & loke hou we playen here.dominus ait.
Þou may wele wite mi play þat min wil y haue oway; [ 72] wele þou wost wat ich am, More þan þritti winter is gan þat þou hast frained me [75. Laing framed.]Page 9
forto wite what y be; [ 76]
seþþen fondestow neuer nan [77. Laing, foundestow.]
Wiþ me as wiþ anoþer man,
& þou wost wele for þan
þat ich am more þan ani man; [ 80]
þou schalt wite þis ich day
þat y schal haue min oway,
& y schal þe leue here
In sorwe among þine fere. [ 84]
satanas dixit.
Par ma fay! ich hald mine al þat ben hereinne; Wiþ resoun wil y telle þe þat þer ogain may þou nouȝt be, [ 88] þat me bihoueþ haue & hald & wiþouten ende wald; for whoso biggeþ aniþing, It owe to ben his wiþouten lesing; [ 92] [92. Laing Nowe.] adam hungri come me to, manred y made him me to do; [94. y: Laing I.] for an appel þat y ȝaf him [95. y: Laing I.] he is min & al his kin. [ 96]dominus ait.
Satanas, he seyd, it was min, þe appel þat þou ȝaf him, þe appel & þe appeltre, boþe war maked þurch me; [ 100] hou may þou on ani wise of oþer mennes þing mak marchandise?Page 11
seþþen þou bouȝtest him wiþ mine,
Wiþ resoun schuld ichaue him. [ 104]
satanas dixit.
Ihesu, wele y knawe þe, þat ful sore reweþ me; þou art lord ouer al, & euer was & ay be schal; [ 108] heuen & erþe weld þou þe, þe soules in helle lat þou be; lat me haue þat ich halde, [lf. 36, bk.] þat þou hast wele mot þou it wald. [ 112]dominus ait.
Sitte now stille, satanas! þe is fallen amesas. Wenestow þat y dyed for nouȝt? [115. Laing, Wenestou.] Wiþ mi dede was mankin bouȝt; [ 116] þai þat haue serued me, In blis schal þai euer be; þai þat noþing serued me, þai schal in helle be wiþ þe; [ 120] bot þou schalt ben in more pine þan ani oþer þat is þereinne.satanas dixit.
Þer may me no man wers do þan ichaue had hiderto; [ 124] Ich haue hadde so michel wo, þat me no rek whider y go; Ȝif þou bireuest me of mine, y schal bireue þe of þine; [ 128] y schal go fro man to man & bireue þe mani an.[d]ominus ait.
So y schal speke þe wiþ, þat y schal do þe hold griþ; [ 132]Page 13
so fast schal y binde þe,
þat fewe schaltow binim me;
were þou vnbounde among men,
al þou wost binim me hem; [ 136]
þe smale deuels þat er vnstrang,
þai schal among mankin gang,
& al schul þai haue pain
þat wil nouȝt stond hem oȝain. [ 140]
helle ȝates, y com ȝou to,
now ich wil þat ȝe vndo;
whare is he þat ȝateward?
Ich hold him for a coward. [ 144]
Iannator ait.
Ich haue herd wordes hard whi y no may be no steward; y lete hem stond & ren oway, lete hem ȝeme whoso may. [ 148] [148. Laing Let.]dominus ait.
Helle ȝates, here ȝou felle, & seþþen wil ich herwe helle; lucifer, here y þe binde, schaltow neuer heþen winde [ 152] vntil it com domesday. fare þou seþþen whare þou may,Page 15
fare þou seþþen ware þou fare,
no dostow neuer man care. [ 156]
adam dixit.
Welcom, lord god of lond, godes sone & godes sond, welcom, lord, mot þou be, long haues ous þouȝt after þe; [ 160] [160. haues: Varn. (176) haves.] lord, seþþen þou art comen to ous, þou bring ous out of þis hous; lord, þou wost what ich am þou me schope of erþe man, [ 164] & þou me madest formast man, [165. A 2nd me marked for erasure in MS. Laing omits this line.] & þou me clepetest sone, adam; & ȝif ich haue sinnes wrouȝt, ful dere now here ichaue hem bouȝt; whoso sinneþ ani wiȝt, [ 169] þe sinne is more þan þe pliȝt. ȝa, leue lord, godes sone, welcom be þou & worþ come; [ 172] al, lord, þat here be haue ȝerned, lord, after þe; we hope wele of þi coming of our sinnes haue botening. [ 176]eua ait.
Knawe me, lord, ich am eue, adam & ich ware þe so leue, þou ȝaue ous to ȝeme paradis, & we it ȝemed as vnwise [ 180] when we þi comandment forlete, when we of þat appel ete; so long haue we ben herinne,Page 17
þat wele haue we bet our sinne; [ 184]
leue lord, ȝiue ous leue,
adam & his wiif eue,
to fare out of þis foule wike [187. Laing foul.]
Into þe blis of heuenrike. [ 188]
dominus ait.
Adam, y haue ȝouen mi liif for þe & for eue þi wiif; wenestow ichadde ben ded for nouȝt? for mi ded is mankin bouȝt. [leaf 37] [ 192]abraham ait.
Lord crist, ich it am þat þou cleptest abraham; þou schust com to helle pine [195. Laing schult.] forto haue ous, lord, for þin[e]; [ 196] [196. Letters and words in brackets sup∣plied by Laing; a strip torn from leaf in MS.] do astow bihet me, bring me lord to heuen wiþ[þe].dominus dixit.
Abraham, it was wel þat þou seydest, eueri del, [ 200] for mi swete moder wes born & schapen of þi fles.Page 19
dauid dixit.
[This initial is not an L as it should be.] Hord, ich am dauid þe king, þat was born of þine of∣s[pring] also astow me bihet þurch þe lore of þat prophete, [ 206] þou bring ous of þis foule [hous] to þe blis of heuen ycore[n ous]. [ 208] [207-208. hous—ous supplied from Varn.]dominus ait.
Dauid, þou was born of mi[kin] for þi godenes þou art m[in], more for þi godenesse þan for ani sibbenesse. [ 212]Iohannes dixit.
[This initial is not an L as it should be.] Hord crist, ich am Iohan þat þe hof in þe flom Iordan; now a gode while is agon, þat y suffred martirdom; [ 216] þou sentest me þe riȝt way Into helle, for soþ to say, þat þou schust deliuer of hell[e pine] [219. Laing, schult.] þat þou þerin fond, lord, of þi[ne];Page 21
now artow comen forto do
þat þou saidest me vnto.
dominus ait.
Iohan, Iohan, ich it wat þat y sent þe þe gat; [ 224] þou schalt se þat y schal do þat þou seydest me vnto.moyses dixit.
Lord þou ȝaue me al wiþ skil þe lay sinay on þe hil. [ 228]