A newe Treatyse deuyded in thre [arties

Firste a man shulde drede death in his herte
For the paynes of death, that be full smerte
That is the last, and also the ende
When the soule from the body shall wende
A sorowfull departynge is that for to tell
For they loue togyther, euermore to dwell
And none of them, wolde from other go
So moche loue, is bytwene them two
And the sadder that two be togyther in loue
As a man and his wyfe, throughe God aboue
The more sorowe, and the longer mournynge
Shall be bytwene them, at theyr departynge
But the body and the soule, with the lyfe
Loueth more togyther, than doth man and wyfe
And whyther that they gone, in good way or euyll
Euer togyther they wolde be styll
But there is encheason, as men may se
Why that they wolde euer togyther be
For encheason that God, throughe his myght and wyt
That body and soule, fyrste togyther knyt
Another is, for that one may nothynge do
But yf that other, wyll helpe therto
The thyrde is, for they shall togyther come
Before our Lorde God, to theyr dome
The fourth encheason is, when they come there
Togyther they shall dwell, without any where
Therfore the more is theyr payne and care
When that one shall from that other fare
And this departynge, may be called death
That flyeth aboute, as doth a mannes breath
Throughe all landes, both farre and nere
And spareth nothynge, for any powere

For prayer ne gyfte, that any man may gyue
Where that death cōmeth, he suffreth no man to lyue
For he ne spareth neyther hye ne lowe
That he ne reueth theyr lyfe in a lytell throwe
So death hath no mercye of no wyght
As saynt Bernarde wytnesseth full ryght.

Non miserietur in opie nec reueretur diuiciis nec sapientie, nec moribus, nec etati.

He sayeth that death of pouert no mercye taketh
Neyther to ryche men, rewarde he hath
Neyther to wysdome, that men can shewe
Neyther to olde men, for theyr dayes be fewe
Death wyll haue neyther reuerence nor fauour
Neyther frendshyp of kynge, ne Emperour
Neyther of bysshop, ne yet of prelate
Neyther of other, what soeuer they be of state
Therfore saynt Bernarde, sayth thus in his wrytynge
For euery man shulde drede deathes cōmynge.

Mortem esse cōmunem, cunctis scito viuentibus.

Understande thou he sayth, that death is
To all cōmon, both to more and lesse
And thus shall death vysyte euery man
And yet what he is, no man dyscerne can
But the payne of death, that all shall fele
As telleth a Phylosopher to vs full well.

He lykeneth a mannes lyfe vnto a tre
That were waxynge, yf it myght be
Through a mans hert, wt rotes to sprynge
And in euery place, a braunche growynge
And the crop at ye mouth, out come myght
And to eche a ioynte, a roote were dyght
And euery vayne, that is in a mannes body

Had a rote fastened full harde therby
And to euery fynger, and toes also
Were a rote from the tre growynge therto
That in eche lymbe, that is in euery syde
The rotes of the tre, shulde theron betyde
If that tre were so sore pulled out
That the rotes shulde aryse all aboute
Than shulde the rotes, the ioyntes strayne
And eche bone, and synewe also with vayne
Than a more payne, can no man cast
Than this we[illeg.]as longe as it myght last
And yet the payne of death is holde more
And harder in his tyme, than this wore
Therfore euery man before as it is sayde
May greatly drede, the harde deathes brayde
But the moste drede is then all within
If a mannes soule be in deedly synne
And therfore the Prophete, sayth thus in his boke
And warneth vs echone therto to loke.

O mors quoth amara memoria tua homini iniusto.

O thou bytter death, and dredefull sayth he
Full grysely thynge it is for to thynke on the
And namely to that man, that is full of synne
Wherfore his conscyence, is greued within
Therfore me thynketh a man is nat sly
That maketh nat hym to death redy
For so certayne in earth, is no maner man
That his endynge day, forsoth tell can
Neyther the tyme of death, can nat loke
And so saynt Bernarde sayeth in this boke.

Quid in rebus humanis certius est morte Quid incertius hora mortis inuenietur.

He sureth, what is to a man more certayne
Than is death, that is so sodayne
And what is also more vncertayne thynge
Than is the tyme of deathes cōmynge
Therfore saynt Austyne, the holy man
Sayeth thus in his boke, as I proue can.

Nescis qua hora veniat mors ideo sēper vigila vt cū venerit te patū inueniat & tēpus illius forte nescis vt sēp ideo cēs peratus.

Man thou knowest nat sayeth he
What tyme deathes cōmynge shall be
Therfore wake as thou haddest euer knowynge
The tyde and tyme of deathes cōmynge
That death fynde the when he shall come
All redy to God and buxome
For thou shuldest nat, perchaunce knowe
The cōmynge of death, to holde the lawe
And in thy conscyence, to make the yare
For when death cōmeth, he wyll nat spare
Than behoueth vs our lyfe so to cast
As euery day of our lyfe, were the last
And euery day vs aredy to make
As we shulde eche day, the death take
And nat abyde, tyll death vs vysyte
For? saynt Austyne in his boke thus doth wryte.

Latet nobis vltimus dies vt obseruerentur bene ceteri dico Raro enim perantur remedia, cum mortis venerūt pericula.

The last day of man here sayeth he
For all other dayes, better kept shulde be
For men ordeyneth remedye to late
When perylles of death standeth at the gate
And in the same state, that he is than
He shall be demed when he is gone

Therfore euery man, for drede of lettynge
Shulde nat abyde, deathes cōmynge
But make hym redy, or he death fele
And than after kepe hym selfe wele
For when death is to the gate come
Than to late hath he his warnynge nome
For death from a man, his mynde byreueth
And no kyndely wyt in hym byleueth
For than shall he fynde suche payne and drede
That he shall thynke vpon no mysdede
But in this payne, and in nothynge elles
As the holy man, saynt Austyne telles.

Timor mortis totam vitam sibi vendicat vt de peccatis tunc libeat cogitare. &c.

Drede of death he sayeth, when he assayleth a man
Chaungeth the soule, and maketh the body wan
So hym luste than to haue no thought
Of the synnes, that he hath here ywrought
Therfore euery man amende hym here
Or death come and sende his messengere
And yf a man wyll before beware
Than of all synnes, death shall fynde hym bare
His messenger, well may be called syckenes
That goeth before, and bryngeth hym indystres
For syckenes ofte tymes, pyneth a man so
That for great syckenes his mynde is go
For than may he thynke, vpon nothynge elles
But vpon the payne, that vpon hym dwelles
But when death cōmeth to hym soone afterwarde
Than paynes shall he fele, that be more harde
For than shall he be set in suche drede
So that of hym selfe, he taketh lytell hede

And that is reason, for he wolde nought
Whyles that he myght, haue God in thought
Therfore he shall then lese clene his mynde
And thus we may in saynt Austyne fynde.

Hac animaduersione percuititor peccator vt moriens obliuiscatur sui qui dum viueret oblitus est dei sui.

The synfull man he sayeth, as it is wryte
With the payne of death, shall be ysmyte
That for the payne, that in hym shall fall
Forgetteth hym selfe, when he hence shall
For whyle that he lyued, at his owne wyll
He forgate God, and his hestes wolde nat fyll
And also synnefull men, haue here no grace
To haue repentaunce, neyther tyme ne space
Thus shall he dye, and so lese heauen blysse
And be put in to payne, without any lysse
For they be vnkynde, and to God vncurtayes
Therfore saynt Dauid, in the Psalter thus sayes.

Uos autem sicut homines moriemini, & sicut [illeg.] de principibus cadetis.

And sayeth thus to men, ye shall dye all
And as on of the prynces ye shall fall
That is ye shall dye in the same manere
As all men dyed in this worlde here
And as the gostes, that fell from heauen
And were put to hell, with an horryble steuen
Therfore to euery man, it were wysdome
To amende hym of synnes, or death come
And haue God in mynde, whyle his lyfe is
As the Prophete cōmaundeth, and sayeth this.

Memento creatoris tui antequā veniat tempus visitationis tue.

Thynke man he sayeth, and haue in thought
Hym that made the fyrste of nought
Whyle thou lyuest, and or thy tyme be
When God with death, wyll vysyte the
For death clene mannes mynde breketh
And therfore saynt Dauid to God thus speaketh.

Domine non est in morte qui memor sit tui.

Lorde he sayth, that man alyue is nought
That in tyme of death, hath nat the in thought
But men may vnderstande therby
The death of soule, throughe synne namely
For the man that of God myndeles is
It semeth in soule, that he deade is
For God vysyteth vs by euery maner way
Where that the tokens of death fele we may
For yf we coulde vs well vnderstonde
The tokens of death, eche day doth vs fonde
Wherfore me thynketh, all that here semeth
Is more deade than alyue, as wyse men demeth
For the boke telleth, and wytnesseth before
That a man anone as he is bore
Begynneth towarde his death to drawe
And with dyuerse euylles, often is gnawe
As angers and syckenes, that falleth all day
The whiche deathes throwes, call we may
And in other wayes, and perylles many one
That oft greueth men, in flesshe and in bone
Than is our byrth here but abydynge
A bodely death, that is our endynge
For the longer, that a man waxeth olde
The more may this lyfe death be colde
Than semeth our lyfe here nothynge elles

But as it were death as the boke telles
And to that other lyfe, come we nought
Tyll death this lyfe, to ende hath brought
But when death of our lyfe, hath made an ende
Than knowe we nought, whyther for to wende
Whyther that we shall to well other to wo
But certes to that one we shall go
And to good men, than death is the way
To the ioy of heauen, that lasteth ay
And to the wycked men, that passeth that entre
In the payne of hell, they shall euer be
Therfore saynt Dauid the holy prophete
Thus speaketh to God, with wordes swete.

Qui evaltas me de portis mortis vt [illeg.] laudes tuas.

Lorde almyghty God, forsoth thou arte he
That from the gates of death, hast take me
So that I may tell passynge all thynges
The great multytude of thy praysynges
In the holy gates of thy doughter Syon
That gate as Clarckes telleth, that can theron
Is holy Churche, that God fyrste cheace
Throughe the whiche, men cōmeth to the gate of peace
And by the gates of death, as we may se
The bytter death of hell, vnderstande may be
From that same place, God kepe vs nyght and day
And graunt vs his loue, as he well may
Therfore we shulde hym serue, and his wyll worche
In the trewe beleue of holy Churche
So that we may, than afterwarde wende
To the cytie of peace, that hath none ende
But all men that shall to that place come
Hence shall wende throughe death all and some

But that death to them is nothynge euyll
That lyueth here in earth after Goddes wyll
And in suche holy lyfe stedfastly dwelleth
As saynt Austyne the holy man, in a boke telleth.

Mala mors illi putanda non est, quem in vita sua boni actus processerunt.

He sayeth men shulde nat, to them euyll death wene
That in good dedes, wolde his lyfe mene
For nothynge maketh a man so hye of boste
As euyll dedes that foloweth the death moste
For all be deedly, that synne wyll do
And therfore saynt Austyne, sayeth thus therto.

Non potest male mori qui bene viverit & viv bene moritur qui male viverit.

He sayeth, he may no euyll death haue
That lyueth on earth throughe Goddes lawe
But vnneth may men by any reason
Dye in good death, that leadeth his lyfe in treason
But that man, that hateth this lyfes lykynge
Dare neuer drede of deathes cōmynge
For after his death here, no payne hym deres
As Caton wytnesseth in this verse.

Non metuit mortem qui sit contempnere vitam.

He sayeth, he that can this lyfe despyse
Shall nat drede death, in no maner wyse
For so dyd martyres, that theyr death sought
For after this worlde, nothynge they wrought
And also holy men, wylled to death be dyght
To dwell in heauen, with God almyght
As the bokes of theyr lyues, telleth to vs
For so dyd an holy man, that sayeth thus.

Cupio dissolui & esse cum christo.

I couet he sayeth, hence for to wende
Out of this lyfe, and be with Chryste without ende
For holy men, thought here this lyfe
Was nothynge els, but sorowe and stryfe
Therfore they coueyted, the ende of theyr day
As sayeth an holy man, as I tell may.

Melius est dies mortis quoth dies natiuitatis.

He sayeth, better is the day of death alone
Than the day of byrth, that is full of mone
For a good man dyeth, for to go vnto rest
Theyr lyfe is endeles, and ioy alther mest
When the soule from the body shall begon
As in Apocalyps, wytnesseth saynt Iohn̄.

Beati mortui qui in domino moriuntur.

Blessyd be all they, in dede and in worde
That dyeth here in earth, in the honour of our lorde
For all that men seth in good lyfe ende
They dye with God, and to hym shall wende
Into the ioy of heauen, that is on hyghe
Well is hym that throughe death, that stede may nyghe
And doubteles, thoughe holy men dyed here wele
Yet the paynes of death they shall fele
But when they shall, a newe lyfe wynne
When the body and soule, departeth atwynne
Somedele they shall than haue drede
Throughe mankynde, and throughe manhede
Syth that Chryste dred death in his passyon
Throughe kynde of his flesche, as it was reason
Than ought a man both lesse and more,
The bytter paynes of death, drede full sore.

University of Virginia Library

Of the fyrste encheason why men dredeth death.