CVIII.
[1]
God, mi loof ne lete þou!
For þat mouth of sinful nou
And mouth of swikel, þat does mis,
Ouer me open it is.
2
Þai spake againe me with tunge swikel,
And with wordes ofe hatred mikel
Vmgafe þai me witerli,
And ouerwonnen me selwilli.
3
Als þai me loued, me bakbate þai;
And .i. sothlike badde night and dai.
4
And þai set againes me for godes wa,
And hatereden for mi louerede swa.
5
Set ouer him sinful in land;
Þe deule on his righthalues stand.
6
When he es demed, fordone outga he;
And his bede in sinne it be.
7
Fone be þe daies ofe him,
And his bischeoprike þate other nim.
8
[His sones be faderlesse þar lif,
And a widw be his wife].
9
Drecchand his sones be outborne awai,
And thigge mote þai night and dai,
Outekaste be þai for euermare
Fra þar woningstedes þat ware.
10
Ransake mote gaueler his aghte;
And outen reue him swinke and maghte.
11
Nane be him helper þat him knew;
Ne be, þat his stepchilder rew.
12
[Þe sones of him in were be ai;
In o strende his name be don awai].
13
In minde turne þe wickednesse
Of his fadres mare and lesse
In sight of lauerd; and sinne na dai
Ofe his moder be done awai.
14
Again louerd ai be þai swa,
And forworth fra land þe minde ofe þa:
For þat noght es he witerli
Mined forto do merci;
15
And filiyhed helples and thiggand,
And stungen with herte, to quelle in land.
16
And he loued malloc dai and nighte:
And come sal it on him to lighte;
And blissinge wald he noght swa,
And ferred sal it be him fra.
17
And malloc he cled als wede—
And als watre it inyhede
In his inwardes al at anes,
And als oyle in his banes.
18
Be [it] to him als schroude with whilke hiled he is,
And als girdel þat ai gird es mis.
19
Þis mote be þe werke of þa
Þate bacbite me ate lauerd swa,
And þat spekes iuels ma
Again mi saule to do it wa.
20
And þou, lauerd, do with me for-þi
For þi name, for soft es þi merci.
21
Lese me, for poure and nedful am .i.,
And mi herte es dreued with-inne me, sothli.
22
Als schadw when heldes, fornomen .i. am,
And forschaken als gressop, with gram.
23
Mi knees vnfeste for fast ere þa;
And mi flesche es manged, for oyle swa.
24
And .i. am made vpbraidinge til am ai;
Þai sagh me, and þaire heuedes stired þai.
25
Helpe me, lauerd mi god, and me
Make saufe, for þe merci ofe þe.
26
And wit þai þate þi hand þis yhite,
And þou, lauerd, maked ite.
27
Þai sal werye him, and blis saltou.
Þas þate in me rises nou,
Schente mote þai be, nighte and dai;
Þi hine sothlike faine sal ai.
28
Kled mote þai be als, þe same
Þate bacbite me, ai with schame,
And hiled be þai mare and lesse
Als twifold kloth with þaire schendnesse.
29
To lauerd in mi mouth sal i. schriue,
And in mid of fele loofe him mi liue:
30
Þat on righthalues of poure es standand,
Þat he saufe make mi saule fra filiyhand.
