wordis of þe lawe. And alle þat herden him hadden wounder upon his wisdom and his answeris, and seynge þe ȝouþe of þe childe þei hadden wounder of his dedis. And his moder seide to him, Sone, whi didist þou þus to us? lo, þi fadir and Y boþe sorwynge have souȝt þee. And Crist seide unto hem, Wherto have ȝe souȝt me? ne wisten ȝe not þat Y moste be in þe nedis of my Fadir? And here shulde prelatis lerne first to worshipe þer God, and to serve his Chirche, bifore þat þei bisieden hem aboute worldely werkes. For [So B and C; A has 'And, for,' which gives no sense.] ech man shulde serve God bifore þat he servede oþer þing, for his first entent shulde be to worship God whatever he dide; and þis mut nede be in Crist, for he did al þingis as he shulde. But þei undirstooden not þe word þanne þat Crist spake here to hem. And Crist wente doun wiþ hem fro Jerusalem to Nazareþ, and he was suget unto hem, in þingis þat þei baden him do. And his moder kepte alle þes wordis, berynge hem in her herte. And Jesus profitide in wisdom, in age, and in grace boþe to God and to man.
We shal wite þat oure Jesus, siþ he was þis manhede, and suget to oþer men, and growide [So B; grouyd, C; A has growiþ.] in wexinge and elde, he profitide in kunnynge which þat cam of his wittis; but he had cunnynge of godhede and blesside cunnynge of man, bi which he was in al his tyme yliche wiys and knewe al þing. Here may holy Chirche knowe boþ þe religioun of Crist and partis of þis religioun, as obedience and mekenesse. For Crist was suget to his lesse, and servede hem ful mekely, for Goddis lawe tauȝte him þat þei weren in spirit more þan Crist was bodily. And Goddis reule shulde suffice to men, al if þei cloutiden not newe reulis. For Crist tauȝte perfitli a ful reule for al Cristene men, and it is a foul pryde to cloute our errours to his wisdom, for olde cloiþ cloutid to newe makiþ more hole, as Crist seiþ. And we ben certeyne of oure bileve, þat Crist haþ mesurid his ordre in liȝt|nesse and in fredom more þan oþer men kunnen shape. How shulden blynde foolis after amende þis reule þat Crist haþ ȝovun? And so God enformeþ men of þes pryvat ordres þat þre þingis of her ordres ben ydil and noyous; first þer clouting of þer reule, and siþ þer obedience, and after þer obligacioun to þer
