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Trewthte herde telle hereof ant to Perus sente
To taken ys teme ant telyen erthe,
Ant purchased hym a pardoun a pena et a culpa
For hym ant for hys ayres for eremore aftur,
Ant bad hym halden hym at hom ant heryen ys leyes.
Ant alle that hym hulpe to herye or to sowe
Or eny manere mestere that myght Perus helpe,
Part of that pardoun the pope hath ygraunted.
Kingus and knyghtus that kepen holy kyrke
Ant ryghtfulliche in rewmes reuleth the peple
Han pardoun thorw purgatorye to passe ful sone,
In paradys wyth patriarchus to pleyen thereaftur.
Bischopus yblessed that bothe lawes conuthe
Locun on that one lawe, leren men that othur,
Ant bereth hem bothe on here bak as here baner scheweth,
Prechen here parsonus the perelus of synne,
How that schabbed schep schal here wolle saue,
Han pardoun myt the apostlus wen they passe hennes
Ant at the day of dome at hey deys sytte.
Marchauns in the margyne haued mony yerus,
But no pena et a culpa the pope nolde hem graunte;
For they helde nat here halydayus as holy chyrche wolde,
Ant for they swore by here sowle ac so most God hem helpe
Ayeynes clene conscience here catel to selle.
Ac under ys secrete sel Trewthe sente hem a lettre,
That they scholde bygge baldely wat hem beste licud,
Ant sillen hit sennus ayeyn ant sauen here wynnygus,
Ant maken mesoun-deux theremyt myseyse men to help,
Wyked weyus wyghtliche to amende,
Ant beten brugus aboute that tobroke were,
Maryen maydones or maken hem nonnus;
Pore wydewus that wylned be wedded no more,
Fynden hem fode for lordus loue of heuene;
Sette scoleres to scole or to som skynus crafte;
Releuen religioun ant renten hem bettre.
“Y schal sende yow mysilf seynt Miel myn angel
That no deuel schal yow dere, deye wan ye schulle,
That he ne schal sende youre soule saf into heuene
Ant byfor the face of my fadur fourme youre sete.
Huserye ant auarice ant hothus Y defende,
Ant that no gyle go wyth yow but the graythe trewthe.”
Thenne were marchauns mery, mony wopen for ioye
Ant yeuen Wylle for thys wrytyng wollen clothus;
For he coped thus here clause, couth hym gret mede.

Men of lawe haued lest for letred they ben alle,
Ant so seyth the sawter ant Sapience bothe:
Super innocentem munera non accipies: a regibus et principibus erit merces eorum,
“Of prynces ant prelatus youre pencyoun schal aryse,
Ac of no pore peple no peneworth schal ye take.
Ac that speneth ys speche ant speketh for the pore
That ys innocent ant nedy ant no man apeyreth,
Conforteth hym in that cas, coueyteth nat ys godus,
But for oure lordus loue lawe for hym schewith,
Schal no deul at ys deth day dere hym a myte
That he ne worth sicurly saf, ant so the sawter wyttnesseth.
Ac to bygge water ne wynde ne wyt ys the thridde
Wolde nere holy writ, God wot the sothe.
Thise thre for thralles ben throw among vs alle
To waxen ant to wanyen were that God licuth.
His pardoun in purgatorye ful petit ys, Y trowe,
That mercedem for ys motyng of mene men resseyueth.
Ye legystres ant lawyares, lye Yc now, trow ye?
Ye, sennes ye seth thus yowsylf, seweth ye the beste.”
Alle lybbeynge laborerus that lyueden by here handus,
That trewlyche token ant trewlyche wonnen
Ant lyueden in loue in lawe for here lowe hert,
Hadden the same absolucioun that sent was Perus.
Beggaueres ne byddares ne but nat in the bulle
But yt be in the bak half wythouten, by hemsilue,
But yf here suggestioun be soth wen they schal begge.
For at that begget or byt, but yf he nede haue,
He ys fals wyth the fend ant defrauduth the nedy,
Ant eke gyleth the gyuer ageynes ys wille.
Thus they leuen nat ne no lawe kepen;
Were they haue haly watur or haly bred, habbeth they no ward,
Ant eke vnschryuen schrewus thyl schyrthorsday at eue.
They wedde none wommen that they wyth dele,
But as wilde bestus wyth wehe worthen vp togyderes
Ant bryngeth forth barnes that bastardus ben holde.
Or ys bak or ys boon a brekth in ys youthe
Ant goth ant fayteth thenne wyth here fauntus for eueremore aftur.
There ar mo mysschape amongus hem, ho so tacuth hede,
Thenne of alle othur manere men that on thys molde wandreth.
Tho that leden thus here lyf mowen lothy the tyme
That euere war they men wroȝt, wen they schulle hennes fare.
Ac holde men ant hore that helples ben of strengthe,
Ant wommen wyth childe that wyrche ne mowe,
Blynde men ant bedereden ant broken in here membris,
That tacut this mischef meklyche han as myche pardoun
As Perkyn the plowman ant yut a poynt more:
[For] loue of here lownesse oure lord hem hath graunted
Here penaunce ant here purgatorye vpon thys puyr erthe.

“Pers,” quad a prest tho, “þi pardoun most I rede,
For I wil construe eche clause and kennyt the on Englysche.”
And Pers at his preyȝer the pardoun vnfoldede:
Et qui bona egerunt in vitam eternam, qui vero mala in ingnem eternum.
In to lynis it lay and not a letter more,
And was wretyn rith thus in wytten ‘e’sse of Trewthe.
“Peter,” quad the prest tho, “I can no pardoun fynde
But do wyl and haue wyl and God schal haue þi soule,
And do euyl and haue euyl, hope thow non oder
That after thi deth day to helle schalt thow wende.”
And Pers for pure tene pulled yt asunder and seyde
“Si ambulauero in medio vmbre mortis non timebo mala, quoniam tu mecum es.
I schal sesin of my sowyng and swynke not so harde,
Ne aboutyn my lyflode so besi be no more.
Off preyȝerys and penauns my plow schal ben hereafter,
And belouryn þat I below, or my lyflode fayle.
Þe prophete his payn ehte in penaunce and wepyng
Be þat the sawter vs seyth, so dede many othir:
Fuerunt michi lacrime mee panes die ac nocte.
That louyth God lely, his liflode is wel mete,
And but yf Luk lye, he lernyt vs anothir be foulys, þat we ne scholde
To besy be aboute to make the wombe joye:
Ne solliciti sitis, he seyth in his gospel,
And schewyth be exsaunple vsself for to wysse.
The foulys in the firmament, who fynt hem in wynter?
Qwan the frost fresyth, fode hem behouyth;
Haue þei no fode to go to, but God fynth hem alle.”
“Qwat,” quad þe prest to Perkyn, “Petyr, so me thynkyt,
Thow art lettryth a lytil. Who lernede the on boke?”
“Abstinence the abysse myn a b c me tawthe,
And Concience cam afterward and kennyd me bettyr.”
“Were þou a prest,” quad he, “thow mytist preche wan þe lykede:
Quoniam literaturam non cognoui þat myth be thi teme.”
“Lewyd lorel,” quad he, “lytil lokyst þou the bybil:
Ecce derisores et iurgia cum eis ne crescant.
On Salaman sawis lityl þou beholdyst.”
The prest and Perkyn eythir aposid othir,
And thorow here wordis I wok and waytede aboute,
And saw þe sonne euen south syttyn þat tyme,
Meteles and moneles on Maluerne hillys.
Musyng on þis mater a meyle wey I ȝede;
Many tyme þis metelis hath mad me to stodye
And for Pers lif plowman, petowsly in herte,
For þat I say slepyng, if it so be myth.
Ac Catoun construith nay and canonystris bothe
And seyn be hemself sompnia ne cures.
Ac for þe bible berith wytt[ne]s, wan Danyel þe prophete
Demyd the dremys of a kyng onys
That Nabugodonosor nemyn þis clerkys—
Danyel seyde, “Sere kyng, thi sweuene is to mene
That vnkouþe kyngis schul come þi kyngdome to cleyme;
Among lowere lordis thi londis schul be departid.”
As Danyel demyd in dede fel it after:
Þe kyng lees his lordschepe and lasse men it hadde.
And Iosep met merueylously how þe mone and þe sonne
And the eleuene sterris halsede him alle.
“Beau filx,” quad his fader, “for defaut we schulle,
I myself and my sonys, seke þe for nede.”
It befel as his fader seyde in Pharaoes tyme
Þat Iosep was justise Egipt to kepe—
Al þis makyt me mychil on metels to þinke
Many tymis at mydnyth wan I scholde slepe,
On Pers the plowman and qweche a pardoun he hadde
And how þe prest inproued it al be pure resoun;
And demyd þat dowel indulgense passyd,
Byenalys and trionalys and bischopis letteris.
Dowel at þe day of doom ys dyngneleche vnderfongid;
He passith al þe pardoun of seynt Peteris schirche.
Now hat þe pope power pardoun to graunt
The peple wythouten penaunce to passe to ioy.
This is a leef of beleue as letterid men techith:
Quodcumque ligaueris super terram etc.
And I beleue lely, oure lord forbede ellys,
Þat pardoun and penaunce and preyeris togydere
Mowe saue soulys þat haue synnyd seuene sethis dedly.
Ac to trostyn on trionalys, trewly me thinkyth,
Is not so seker for þe soule, sertys, as is dowel.
Therefore I rede ȝou lordis þat riche ben on erthe,
Vpon trust on ȝoure tresour trionalis to haue,
Be ȝe neuer þe balder to breke þe ten hestis.
And namely ȝe maystris, meyris and jugis,
That haue þe welthe of þis werd, for wise men be holden,
Forto purchase pardoun and þe popis bullys,
At þe dredful day of doom wan dede schul arisyn
And comyn alle tofore Crist acountis to ȝelde,
How þu laddist þi lyf and his lawis keptest,
Qwat þou dost day be day þe doom wil reherse.
Of a pokeful of pardoun ne no prouincialis letteris,
Thow þou be fondyn in fraternite among þe foure ordres
And haue indulgence dobblefold, but Dowel helpe
I nolde ȝif for ȝoure pardoun o pies hele.
Þerfor I counsel al cristin to crien God mercy,
And Mary his moder be mene betwene,
Þat God ȝif vs grace or we gon hennys
Swech werkys to werke wil we ben here
And after oure deth day dowel reherse
At þe doom þet we deden al as he vs bad and tawthe.
And þat it so mote be to God preye we alle,
To vs and alle cristin God leue it so beffalle.