The Minor Poems of John Lydgate :: :: University of Virginia Library

Another charge was vpon me leyd,
Among psalmys to fynde a cleer sentence,
Why De Profundus specyally ys seyd
For crystyn sowlys, with devout reuerence,
Of fervent love, and benyvolence,
Seid as folk passe by ther sepulturys,
Though yt so be I haue noon Elloquence
In hooly wryt, I shall seke out ffygurys

3

Vnto purpos set in lytyll space,
Nat konnyngly, but affter my symplesse,—
To symple folk god sent doun his grace
Them preferrith, & fortherith for meeknesse,—
Vndyr whos support I shal my stile dresse
Onto thys psalme, rehersed here to-fforn,
With ffygurys, wych I schall Expresse,
Voyde the chaff, & gadryn out the corn.

4

Ground of thys psalme, tytyl & orygynall,
Vnto purpos a ffygure ful palpable,
Jonas whylom devouryd with a whaall,
Made hys clamour, pytous & lamentable,
To hym that ys of myght Incomperable,
Wich hath power & domynacyoun
On lond and se, and ys moost mercyable
To here þe compleyntys for soulys in prysoun.

5

Austyn, Ierom, accordyng bothe in Oon
Vpon thys psalme, as maad ys mencyoun,

Whan Abackuk, of ffull yore agoon,
Broughte potage in to Babyloun,
Wher Danyell lay ffeteryd in prysoun,
Affter figure, this mater to Conveye,
How almesse-dede and vysytacyoun
Gretly avaylleth to sowlys whan they deye.

6

Thys psalme in viij Dauyd doth devyde,
A morall fygure of viij blyssidnessys,
Wich that our lord of grace doth provyde
To shewe his mercy ageyn ther wikkidnesses,
By massys songe, suffragiis, and almesseys;
His passioun cheef do helpe at suych a nede,
Ageyn the compleynt of ther peynful dystressys,
His blood most vayleth that he did blede.

7

By auctoryte to fynde out dyverse groundys,
Set on vertu the ffundacyoun,
Why in especyall this psalme De Profundys
Ys seid for sowlys for ther purgacyoun;
Jonas remembryd, and Danyell in prysoun,
And Sely Joseph, cast in a deep systerne;
Thynk how Jesu from the Infernal doungeoun
Brought many sowlys to lyf that ys Eterne.

8

Sampson, of strengthe whilome most souereyn,
Brake the gatys of Gaza the Cyte
And bar hem vp onto an hih mounteyn.
Language of Judiht made hir to go ffre,
Of Betulya saued the Cyte,
Whan she gat of Olofferne vyctorye.

Thus devout prayeris, seid with humylyte,
Delyuereth sowlys out of purgatorye.

9

The thre childryn delyuered were also
With devout syngyng of Benedycyte,
Danyel, Mysaeel, and Abdenagago
Fro flawmy feer wente at lyberte;
On ther was seyn appere among hem thre,
Them to preserve fro daunger and damage,
Tookene the masse seid of the Trynyte
Of synful sowlys the torment doth asswage.

10

Dyuerse massis remembred been also
Of our lady, with other massys tweyne,
Of the Hooly Goost ageyn the mortal wo
In purgatorie, whan they morne & pleyne;
Eek hooly churche of costom doth ordeyne
In especyall the masse of Requiem,
Synguler reffuge to brynge hem out of peyne,
To forthe ther way toward Jerusalem.

11

Prestys profite to sowlys with syngyng,
Thorugh al þe world lasteth ther auctorite,
Almesse-dede is a notable thyng,
And lettryd folk loweer of degre
With Deprofundus, placebo, and dirige,
Our ladys sauhter, seid with devocyoun,
In chirche yerdis, of what estat they be,
Whan for sowlys they go processioun.

Fiant (?) aures tue intendentes in vocem deprecacionis mee.

Lat our prayer been this in sentence
On-to that lord which ys moost of myght,
O cryst Ihesu, yiff benyngne audyence
To our requeste of mercy more than riht;
On us synnerys cast doun thy gracious sight,
That our prayer thyn erys may atteyne,
Thylke sowlys that brenne day and nyght
In purgatorye to relesse ther peyne.

Si iniquitates obseruaueris domine domine quis sustinebit.

Yif thow them punisshe, lord, as they dysserve,
With-outyn pite, tempryd thy Rygour,
Ther wikkednessis yif thow do Observe,
Tabyde thy doom yt were to hard a schour,
Thy bloody woundys schall stille doun lycour,
Staunche ther peynes, doolfull, sharpe, and kene;
For but they ffounde in thy mercy ffavour,
Lord who is he, that myghte the bronte sustene?

Quia apud te propiciacio est et propter legem tuam sustinui te domine.

Pyte, mercy, haue ther cheef dwellyng place
Above the hevenly sterryd mansyoun,
Our advocatys to plete affore thy fface,
Cleymyng a tytle be thyn hooly passioun,
Surest patent ffor ther Redempcyoun,
Other sauffcondit seyn on no party,
Cros best standard to patyse ther raunsown,
Right of thy lawe to modyfie with mercy.

Sustiniut anima mea in uerbo eius sperauit anima mea in domino.

In thy woord, lord, my sowle doth abyde,
Born vp with hoope and ffeithful attendaunce,
This is my trust all wanhoope set asyde
Hooll in thy passioun abyt myn affyaunce,
Fyx as an anker stable in hys creaunce,
Remevable nouther ffer nor neer,
As thow lyst assigne me my penaunce,
With hope tascende aboue the sterris cleer.

A custodia matutina usque ad noctem speret Israel in domino.

Fro the custodye of the morwe gray
Toward Aurora with hir pale lyght,
Whan Lucyfer at droukyng of the day
Bryngeth Kalendis to glade with our sight,
From phebus vprist to sprede his bemys bright,
Fresshest ffygure off Consolacyoun,
Hoope of Israell tendure tyl yt be nyght,
Grownd take of Crystys glad resureccyoun.

17

This is to seyne as Cryst Iesu a-roos
On Esterne morwe by record of scripture,
The stoon vp lefft, though it afforn was cloos,
Whos glorious rysyng doth our feith assure,
That affter deth, out of our sepulture,
To lyff Eternal, that we schall a-ryse,
Cleyme be his passioun and mercy to recure
Favour to fynde, or than he do Iustyse.

Quia apud dominum misericordia et copiosa apud eum redempcio.

This mater groundid Dauit doth recorde,
Kyng and prophete of moost auctoryte,
Affore thy fface abyt myserycorde,
With hir ij sustryn, pacyence and pyte,
To put vp our bylle of mercy ful plente,
Enclosed above for our Redempcyoun,
With bloody dropis shad on the roode tre,
At Paradys gate to haue ingressioun.

Et ipse redimet Israel ex omnibus inqiuitaliis iniquitatibus eius.

The same lord most souereyn & most good
Of Israel hath bought al the wykkydnessis,
Our raunsom payed with his hooly blood,
Sowlys to brynge as prisoneris fro distressis,
Feith, hoope, & charyte, prayer & almessis,
Thy meek suffraunce geyn feer of purgatorie,
Maugre the malys of Infernal dirknessis
Schal them conveie in-to thy regne of glorie.

[_]

[Added from Harley 2255, leaf 43 back.]

[Quid Cirus quid Esdras quid Machabeus in compartione ad dominum iesum qui nos redimet sanguine suo proprio super lignum.

By myhty Cirus kyng of Perce and Mede
God brouht israel out of Captyuyte,

And by Esdras, his book who so list rede,
Renewyd ageyn Ierusaleem the Cite,
And Eek in wourthy Iudas Machabe
God list shewe gret conquest and victorye;
Tryvmphe of Iesu doon on the Roode tre
Delyverith soulys out of purgatorye.

Conclusio final.

Off this processe to make no delayes
Breeffly complied of humble true entent,
Late charchyd in myn oold dayes
By William Curteys,

[_]

Abbas de Bury

which gaf comaundement
That I shulde graunte myn assent
Of that kyndrede make a memorial,
With De Profundis whan so that it be sent
At his chirche to hang it on the wal.

Explicit quod lydgate.]