University of Virginia Library

IT fel þat in a tyme paule
prechit furth þe heile of sawle,
and for to here hym wes sik prese,
þat fawt of rowme gret þar wes.
for-þi, a man clymit on hycht
to her hym, at patroclas hecht,
and till his word tuk sik kepe,
till he wes Irk and fel one slepe;
and slepand sa he deit þare,
quham for mony mad grete care.
and to nero þis patroclas
sa luffit, and sa speciale wes,
þat of þe cowp he seruit hym ay.
ȝet þan, quhen nero hard say
þat his seruand sa wes dede,
ane wthire he tuk in his stede.
bot paule gert bringe hym son þar,
and raisit hym befor al þat war þar,
and to nero send hym ine hy,
þat for his dede wes rycht aungry.
and, quhene he schaw hym þat wes dede
stand before hym in þat stede,
he dred, and sad: “liffis þu?”
and he sad: “nero, I luff now.”
“and quha has gert þe luf?” and he
sad: “Ihesu criste of nazaree,
of all þis warld lord a[nd] syre.”
and nero þane in gret Ire
sad: “sall he reinge and sa weld all?”
quod patroclas: “ȝey, þat he sall.”
þane nero hym in gret Ire strak,
“and serwis þu þat kinge, I wat!”
“ȝa,” sad he, “þat kinge serwe I,
þat raisit me sa mychtyly.”
þan fyfe of his maste prewe men
reprewit nero, sayand þane:
“to strik þis man, sir, ȝe misdo,
þat suthfastly spekis ȝow to;
fore to þat ilke mychty kinge
we sall serwe in-till al thinge.”
and quhene nero þat has hard,
as wod of wit nere he ferd,
and þame, he had in affeccione
maste, he gerte þare presone;
and besyly gert sek all þai,
þat cristine fath before can ta,
and torment þame with panyss sere.
þan with vthir paule can apere,
bundyn, to quham nero can say:
“and þu man of cristine fay,
þat þis bundyn is brocht me till
as mychty kinge, agane þi will,
and callis þe seruand to þat kinge,
þat may þe helpe ine alkine thinge,
my knychtis þu drawis fra me
falsly to þi trewtht and þe?”
and he sad: “nocht anerly
goddis knychtis fra þe draw I,
bot of all þe warld hale
I draw; fore to þame myn kinge sal
gyf sic reward þat ma nocht cese,
and sal exclude all wrechitnese.
and he [þe] same sall do to þe,
gywe þu to hym will subiet be.
for he is Iuge of sa gret mycht,
þat of all thinge he sall do rycht,
and of þis warld þe figur hale,
quhen [he] sall deme, vndo he sall
throw fyre.” And quhen paule sad sa,
Nero of wit ner cuth ga,
quhene he harde þis warld be fyre
suld losit be. Þane in gret Ire
all cristine, þat [in] pressone ware,
he gert bringe furth, & brin rycht þare.
and paule, as for hurte maieste,
syne eftir bad hedit suld be.
þe folk of rowme, þat saw swa
he gerte but resone sa mony sla,
Raisit in hym sedicione,
and wald have brokyn his palace done.
þane þe leile folk be-gan to cry:
“nero, mesure þi gret foly,
and sla na man fore-owt sake,
þat fore þe realme defens suld mak!”

Nero, þat was þan sum part rade,
couertly to his men he bad
þat nane suld noy crist[i]ne mare,
till he forthyre awisit ware,
and þane leit paule a quhill ga.
bot eftir sone þai can hym ta,
and hyme to nero browcht in hy.
and quhene he saw hym, he can cry:
“belyve! ger do þis wik away,
and hed hym but mare delay,
þat changis men owt of þare wit,
and gerris þam fra þar lordis flit,
wifis and concubins alswa
till his ryte takis ser men fra,
and changis menis wit, at þai
wat nocht quhat þai [do] na say.”
þane sad paule: “nero, wit þu
þat schorte tyme I sall tholl now,
bot lestely I sall luf sine
with my lord Ihesu withowtyn fyne.”
þan Nero bad “hed hym in hy,
þat he kene me mare mychty,
þat hym ma sla, þan is his kinge,
quham of he makis sic awantinge!
and eftir sone sal we se,
gyf he but end sall liffand be.”
þane sad paule: “to mak þe wyse,
quhene myn hewid of strekine is
befor þine eyne, þu sal [me] se,
and kene þat I quhyk sall be;
fore myn lord is kinge of lyfe,
and nocht of ded na ȝete of stryfe.”

to thre knychttis þane wes he tawcht,
þat hym to sla son has lacht,
þe quhilkis ledand hym þe way,
praide hym ȝarne he wald þam sa[y],
quha wes þe kinge he luffit sa,
for quham he dred nocht ded to ta.
þane paule þam prechit be þe way
of criste, his kinge, gret nobillay,
of his gret Ioy, and of his ryk,
þat euire lestis in to lyk,
and of þe panis fers and fell,
þat þai sall hawe þat ar in hell.
and þis he has þai knychttis taucht,
and þai all thre oure treutht laucht.
þane þai prait, he wald ga
quhare sa hym leste, and pas þam fra.
bot he sad: “I will nocht tak flicht;
for I am cristis lauchtful knycht,
þat eftire þis lyfe transitore
euire-lestand lyfe is me before.
and for takine ȝe sall trew
þe thinge I say till ȝow now:
lele men sall cum, quhen I am slane,
and ber myn corse away with þame.
and takis tent quhare þai it lay,
and besyd it to morne ȝe se may
twa men stannand besyd it prayand,
titum and lucam, god lowand;
and at þame spere but mare
þe cause quhy I gert ȝou cum þare,
and þai sall baptis ȝow, and mak
habile cristis kinrik to tak.”
and as þai furth farand ware,
nero send twa knychttis to spere,
gywe ȝet wes sa slane sanct paule,
quham to conuert he paynyt hym all;
bot þai till hym sad: “quhene we
haf þe slane and liffand se,
full trewly þane sall we trew
In hym, quham of þu prechis now;
bot sped þe now, and tak þi med
þat þu has servit fore ill dede!”
and as þai led hym furth þe gat,
he met, in hostientis ȝete,
a woman þat gret dule can may,
and till hyre name had p[l]ancilla,
þat of gud lyfe wes and clene,
and to petir printeis had bene,
to quham gretand paule can mele:
“fare well, dowchtir of lestand hele!
lene [me] þi curch to heile me,
till þat myn hewid of strikin be,
and þu sall haf it in schort space.”
þane schow lent it, at drery wase.
þe baser sad, schow wes vode,
þat lente to hym a clath sa gud,
þat wes sa slichty a creatour.
þane þai hym led furth in þat houre
to þe place of his passione,
quhare he one kneis set rycht downe,
and to þe est his handis vphelde,
and prait to hym at all can welde.
In þat sted, gretand rycht sare,
tuk leife [he] at his brethir þare,
and with þe querch [he] hid his face;
and sone wes hedit in þat place.
and quhen þe hewid strickine wes away,
in ebrow clerly cane it say
of Ihesu criste, þat all mycht here,
þat in þat place stud far or nere.
and of his hals firste milk out ran,
þe knychtis clathis þat smyttit þan;
and syne rede blud, and in þe ayr
wes clernes sene grete and fare;
and of þe cors com swet sawoure,
þat lestit langare þane ane howr.
and with his handis in his blud
he wet þe querch þat wes gud,
and It, be grete merakill and mycht,
wnpersawit of manis sicht,
gaff it a-gane to p[l]ancilla.
and as þe basare hame cane ga,
at hym besily cane schow spere,
quhare he lewit hire master dere.
quod he: “in þe wale of comptone,
I haf hym lefte beowt þe towne,
and his face with þi wempill bundyn,
I tel þe wel, he sall be fundyn.”
quod schow: “it is nocht sa.”
þane of hir bosum can scho ta
þe bludy clath, and schew to hym,
and sad: “at þe ȝat now com þai In,
petir and paule, in clathis schenand,
far cronis one þar hew[d]is berand,
and paule myn querche gaf to me
all bludy, as þu now ma se.”
þane for þis ferly mony ane
Richt þane þe cristine treutht has tane.
and quhene nero þis herd had,
he wex sone abaysit and rad,
and with wismen þare-of had spek,
and with his othire frendis eke.
In-to his chawmer maste prewe,
wele closit, quhare sic spek suld be,
paule apperit to nero cesare,
and sad sic wordis in þat sithar:
“be-hald and se, I am nocht dede,
bot lestand lyf in hewine I led.
and, waful wrech, I sa þe now,
þat lestand ded de sall þu,
for cristis folk þat þu has slane
full cruelly and put to pane.”
and þar-with wanyste he away,
and lewit nero in sic effray,
þat he of wit ner can gay.
bot his frendis consalit hym swa,
þat he deliuerit patroclas
Out of presone, and barnabas
And mony othire losit he
out of presone, and mad þam fre.
þe knychttis, þat can hym conway
to de, quhen þat he tuk þe way,
callit longynus and cestus,
and þar thred fer, maiestus,
one þe morne weil ayrly
com to þe grawe, quhare he suld ly;
and luk and tytum þare þai fand
deuotly at þar prayer stand,
and paule in myddis of þe twa.
and luk and titus war fleit sa,
þai sad knychtis fra þat þai
saw cum, þai war bowne to fle away.
and þe knychttis sad þame ful rath:
“abidis! we will do ȝow na schath;
for we cum nocht to do ȝow ill;
bot to be baptist at ȝoure will,
as paule bad vs þat gerte ws trew,
þe quhilk we saw her with ȝou now.”
and quhen þat lucas and titus
had herde þe knychttis sa þam þus,
þai turnyt agane with Ioyfull fare,
and þane baptiste þe knychttis þare.