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

The thridde day herd on mount and pleyn,
Foul, beeste and fyssh, shal tremble in certeyn,
Compleynyng in ther hydous moone
Vp the skyes; this noyse nat maad in veyn,
For what they mene, God shal knowe alloone.

IV

The Fourthe day, the watir and the see
Shal brenne as only flawme light.

The fiffte day, herbe, foul and tree
Shal be bloody dewed to the sight;
And alle foulys for feer shal take ther flight,
As they were echoon of assent
Nouthir Ete nor drynke, but lese strength & myght,
Oonly for feer of Cristes Iugement.

VI

The Sixte day, howsys Oon and alle,
Grete Castellys, tours maad of lym and stoon
Playn with the Erthe to grounde shal doun falle.
Fyry floodys, and watrys euerychoon,
Brennyng as Coolys with flawmys ovir goon.
Sparyng no thyng, tyl al be wast and spent
This Firy flood shal ovir sprede anoon,
And Reche in heyghte face of the firmament.

VII

The Vijte day, stoonys Oon and alle
Alle they to-gidre shal mete sodeynly
On foure partyes shal assondir falle,

119

And in ther hurtlyng noyse dredfully.
And no man shal knowe Opynly
What al thyng menyth, the hyd previte,
Nor enpowne the toknys secrely,
But God alloone, in his hih maieste.

VIII

The Viijte tokne in Ordre ye shal haue,
Folwyng in soth as ye shal vndirstonde,
Ther shal been so gret an erthe-quave
That man nor beeste on ther feet shal stonde.

The ny[n]the day, pleynly as is the stronde,
Shal hyh mounteyns tourne in-to poudir smal,
As men shal seen, bothe fre and bonde,
Bothe hyl and dale of mesour so Egal.

X

The tenthe day, from kavernys & ther kavys
Men shal come out, lyk folk that kan no good,
And renne abrood lyk drounke men þat Ravys,
Or as they weren frentyk, outhir wood,
Dedly pale, and devoyde of blood;
Nat speke a woord Oon vnto anothir,
As witles peple of resoun and of mood,
No queyntaunce maad, brothir vnto brothir.

XI

The xje signe, pleynly to devise,
As it is Remembrid in scripture,
Ded boonys that day shal aryse,
And grisly stonde on ther sepulture,
And shewyn outward a dredful foul figure;
So to stonde al day, with boonys blak and donne;
Of doom abyde the dredful aventure,
Tyl goyng doun of the bloody sonne.

XII

The xije day, mor dredful than is werre,
Ageyns which shal be no Resistence,
Doun from hevene shal fallen euery sterre,
With firy levene and ferful violence,
And beestys alle shal comyn in presence

120

With-Inne a feeld, and of verray drede
Nouthir Ete nor drynke for noon Indigence,
But krye, and howle, and dar hemsilf nat fede.

XIII

The xiij day, men that ben alyve
Shal deye echon, this is wel certeyn,
And aftir that they shal aryse blyve,
With othir bodyes to come to lyve ageyn,

XIV

The xiiije day, ther shal also be seyn
Hevene and erthe, verrayly in dede,
Withoute refute or any maneer geyn,
Conswme and al into asshes dede.

11

The laste [day], accountyd ful fifftene,
As Seyn Jerom pleynly doth devise,
Hevene and erthe al newe shal be sene,
And alle bodyes shal that day aryse;
As this doctour setteth the emprise
Of this mateer, God graunte, as I wisse,
Afor this day that al men been so wyse
Thorugh Cristes passioun, that they may come to bliss.

Explicit.