wente over þe water of peynes of þis worlde, and wente not oonli into hevene, þat is propre citee of Crist, but into Nazareþ, in which Crist dide þis miracle. But boþe men and aungels offred to Crist mankynde, þat was smyten in palesie; for pro|pirte of þis yvel palasie is a sikenesse groundid in synewis of a man, þe which sinowis ben unstable to move a man as þei shulden; and moistnes of þes senewis þat ben wrappid in moist þing is a cause of þis yvel, as philosophris seyen. Shaking in þe palesie is unstabilnesse of bileve; for eche article of þe trouþe shulde have a synowe for to lede it, and al þes articlis shulde come of Crist, þat is heed of holy Chirche. And, for þes þat offriden þis man ben o persone wiþ him, þerefore biddiþ þe gospel wel, þat Cristis sone shulde truste in him, and Crist forȝeveþ him first his synne of untreuþe þat he was inne, for untreuþe is þe first synne þat comeþ unto man, and it fel not to þis lord to ȝyve but a greet ȝyfte, siþ ech ȝyfte þat man ȝyveþ shulde answer to þe ȝyver. But scribis þat knowen not Cristis godhede seien þat Crist blasfemed in þis, for al oonli God may forȝyve synnes; but Crist techiþ þat he is God bi þe werkes þat he doiþ, for it is yliche [ilich, B; eliche, C.] liȝt to do miraclis bi himsilf, and to forȝyve synnes, for noon but God may do þes þingis. And herfore Crist helide mankynde of his goostly palesie, and put bileve in oþir men þat Crist hadde power to do þus, and þus wente mankynde, þat God hadde ordeyned unto blisse, fro error of his olde synne into þe hous of Cristis Chirche.
But here men douten of þe letter, wher prelatis may forȝyve synne, and it semeþ þat þei may, for preestis may assoile of synne, and it is al oon to assoile men of synne and to forȝyve þe same synne. And it semeþ þat preestis mai not forȝyve synnes unto men, for þere is noo synne here but ȝif it be offence of God; but no man mai forȝeve þis but ȝif it be God him silfe. And so it semeþ þat oure prelatis may not here forȝyve synne. Soþ it is þat men mai here forȝyve trespas done to hem, and remitte mannis iniurie as much as in hem is, but not remitte uttirly synne done aȝens God. Here it is nede to undirstonde how preestis assoilen men of synne, and how preestis forȝyven synne,
