þis world for þey moten dye & leeue it. & petre was pore aftir crist, & alle þe apostlis but scarioth, for he wolde be riche & haue in propre, & þis brouȝt hym to double deþ. but þe fend haþ blyndid men, boþe clerkis & lordis, in þe chirche þat þey bileuen þe contrarye; & þis defaute in bileue reuersiþ cristenmennus lif, & lettiþ hem to sue crist. for þe fend coueytiþ myche to quenche bileue in þe chirche, for þis is þe firste vertu & ground of cristis religioun. & for þe pope is holdun moost & nexst viker of iesu crist, þerfore þe fend in þe pope haþ gederid many worldly poyntis [page 25b] boþe of lordchip & worldly lif, & castiþ to disseyue þe chirche by hym. For manye taken as bileue þat he may not do amys, but what þing þat he grauntiþ or seiþ crist mut conferme it; & bi þis cautel of þe fend ben many men dampnyd to helle. & ground of al þis disseyt is lesing contrarye to treuþe; for as þe fend disseyuede eue bi lesing þat she shulde not dye, whanne god hadde seyd þat she shulde dye what day þat she eet of þe appul, so þe fend disseyueþ þe chirche bi oon as opyn lesing, þat crist was heere worldly lord moost hye of alle oþere, & so shulde his viker be þat is clepid þe pope of rome. but whanne crist was temptid heere he seyde: "go, satanas." to teche alle cristenmen hou þat crist wolde be pore; & ȝit þer ben fewe men þat wolen defende þis bileue, for anticrist haþ many clerkis þat maken it derk bi many weyes.
Capitulum 2m.
it were to wite ouer hou god shewiþ loue to his chirche bi dyuysioun of þes popis þat is nou late fallun. oure bileue techiþ bi poul þat alle þingis fallen to good [Rom. viii. [28.]] to goddis children þat dreden hym, & þus shulden cris|tenmen take hem. þe firste bok of goddis lawe telliþ hou god manaasside þe fend: "y shal putte enemyte," seiþ god, [[Gen. iii. 15.]] "bitwixe þee & womman, & bitwixe þy seed & heere seed, & she shal al to-squatte þyn heed." & so taken summen þat
