[6-text p 323]
The heighe god / forbad sweryng at al [¶ Nolite omnino Iurare]
Witnesse on Mathew / but in special
Of sweryng seith the hooly Ieremye [¶ Ieremie .4o. ‖. Iurabis in veri|tate in Iudicio & Iusticia]
Thou shalt seye sooth thyne othes and nat lye
Line 636
And swere in doom / and eek in rightwisnesse [folio 144a]
But ydel sweryng is a cursednesse
Bihoold and se / that in the firste table
Of heighe goddes heestes honurable
Line 640
Hou / that the seconde heeste / of hym / is this
Take nat my name / in ydel or amys
Lo rather he forbedeth swich sweryng
Than homycide / or any cursed thyng
Line 644
I seye / that as by ordre / thus it stondeth
This knowen / that hise heestes vnderstondeth
How þat / the seconde heeste of god is that
And forther ouer / I wol thee telle al plat
Line 648
That vengeance / shal nat parten from his hous
That of hise othes / is to outrageous
By goddes precious herte / and by his nayles
And by the blood of Crist that is in Hayles
Line 652
Seuene is my chaunce / and thyn is cynk and treye
By goddes Armes / if thou falsly pleye
This daggere / shal thurgh-out thyn herte go
This fruyt cometh / of the bicched bones two
Line 656
fforsweryng Ire / falsnesse / Homycide
Now for the loue of Crist þat for vs dyde
Lete youre othes / bothe grete and smale
But sires / now wol I telle forth my tale
Line 660
THise Riotours thre / of whiche I telle
Longe erst er prime rong of any belle
Were set hem / in a Tauerne to drynke
And as they sat they herde a belle clynke
Line 664
Biforn a cors / was caried / to his graue
That oon of hem / gan callen to his knaue
Go bet quod he / and axe redily
What cors is this / þat passeth heer forby
Line 668
