University of Virginia Library


84

HYMNS TO GOD THE FATHER, CREATOR.

53. The Pater Noster

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Univ. of Edinburgh MS. Laing 149

Almychty god, our fader of hewyne abuf,
blyssyt be þi name with ws allowit alway,
come mot þi kynrik til al þat can þe luf,
done be þi wil in erd as in hewyne ay;
Oure dayly bred þu gyf til ws to day;
forgyf oure dettis as we our dettowris men;
lat nocht temp ws mare na we suffer may,
bot fra al ewil deliuer ws, amen.

54. Our Father, Have Pity on Me

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Cambridge Univ. MS. Add. 5943

Pater noster, most of myȝt,
Þat al þys world hast wrot,
help me, synful wrechyd wyȝt,
for synne þat I perysche nowt.
Pater noster, haue pety on me,
and helpe me synne for to flee
and euer to worch þy wylle.
Pater noster, yblessyd mote þu be,
ffor þyn sone þat deyd on tre,
help me, wreeche, þat y ne spylle.

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55. Salvum me fac, Domine

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MS. Ashmole 189 (Sum. Catal. No. 6777)

Fadyr & sone & holy gost,
Grete god in trinite,
As þu art lord of myȝtis most,
Saluum me fac, domine.
Fadyr of heuyne, mercy of my gost!
Swete god, þu rew one me!
Vanite we bene, well þu wost,
Saluum me fac, domine.
In vanite we lyve yne
That mene call ryalte,
To þe, lord god, hyt ys All synne—
Saluum me fac, domine.
Graunt vs, lord, þy blysse to wynne,
The fendis temptynge euer to fle.
In holy lyuynge, þu stabyl me yn—
Saluum me fac, domine.
My flesche, þu lerne me to chaste
and worly lofe put fro me;
In my endyng att þe last,
Saluum me fac, domine.
A domysday, whene I shall a-peyre
In þat dome þy face to see,
Put a-wey fro me All fere,
Saluum me fac, domine.

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56. God Guides All Things

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MS. Hatton 2 (Sum. Catal. No. 4130)

God is a substaunce foreuer dureable,
Eterne, omnipotent, mercifull & iuste,
Which gideth all thinges in order conuenable—
A god in whome eche man ought to truste,
Who for praire geue grace to mortifie eche lust,
In whose feare & loue all that shall here endure
Shall after this life of better life be sure.
Per me, gulielmum molleum manu propria.

57. God Governs for the Best

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Henry E. Huntington Library, MS. HM 501

Blessid god, souereyn goodnesse,
mercy to me, thy synfull creature!
though fre wyll be graunted me at largess[e],
Ȝett this freell body, of wrechid natur[e],
That my slepy soule hath vndir cure
is so asayled with sotell treson
þat fre will is often venquessched, & resone.
whi woldest [þu], lord, mankynd make
the worthiest Creature of all this werkes?
nouȝt to dampn hym ne to forsake,
but for þu lovist hym, as witness clerkis.
þu knowist my ȝerus, dayes and werkis,
what I haue done, now do, or schall—
my hert, my wyll, my purpose and all.

87

then, good lord, wilt þu Constren
my wykked wil fro wrong gouernance.
I am bridelid, þu holdist the reyne—
then rule me, lord, at thi ordenaunce.
thy wyll, good lord, be don & þi plesance,
þat after thi wyll euer be my wyll,
& my will after þi wyll, & þat is skyll.
for thu wilt euery mannes sauacioun;
for no thing in this worldis space
is half so dere in reputacioun
as mannes soule, before thi face.
then wilt þu, goodly, graunt vs grace
So to do her to yeve the enchesoun
for to save vs by mercy & resoun.
than mercy, lord, my savioure,
of al my synnes & wickidnesse,
from my begynyng in-to this oure,
Ȝet oones mercy! I ask for-yeveness,
not of deserving, lord, but of þi godness.
graunt me schrift of mouþ, gret repentaunce,
satisfaccioun, and perseueraunce
of al angers and aduersite,
losse of frindes and worldly richesse,
hunger, thurst, myscheff or pouerte,
labour, travell, bodely sekenesse,
wrong defamacioun or gret distresse,
sklaunder, repreff or vylonye,
dispyt, perell or wicked Company,
of perell on see, water or lond,
hurtes, fallis, or wrong in-presonyng
for wreth or Envy falsly borne on hond,
of stryvis, scornes, fals bakbyting,

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sorow of hert, pensyfnes, wrong demyng,
and of al oþer dissese or stryff
þat I haue had seþ I had first lyff.
I thanke þe, lord, with al my hoole entent,
with hert, soule and good effeccioun,
lord goromercy, of all þat þu hast sent
as for my merit & my Correccioun;
for I trust hool with out Susspeccioun
al is for the best seþ I was borne,
as þi wyll is, as I haue seyd aforne.
for bettur is to ly seke in my bed
then, hoole, to be drenched in the see;
& better wer þat my fingger bled
þen in foly stryff fully slayn to be;
and better wer al aduersite
in þis world þat eny tong can tell
then, after þis Ioye, for to go to hell.
this, lord god, of this disposisscioun
is thi will don, for þi will is best.
þat litell dissese is remyssioun
of gret disseses be-forne kest,
for after werr comyth pes & rest,
and often, for þe gretter aduerssite,
after-ward the gretter prossperite,
wher ellis in pride our herttis wold rise,
and oft forffet thi graciouse wyll.
me þerfor, lord, I pray the Chastice,
but sle me not, lord, þouȝ þu haue skyll,
Seþ I am submyt hooly to thi wyll,

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kneling for mercy be-fore thi face.
for body and soule I ask thi grace,
that al sorowes and trybelacion
þat I haue suffred her be-fore
mot suffice, lord, for my savacioun.
[bu]t now I pray þe, ho, lorde, no more
[bu]t þat thu wilt my soule restore
[to] verrey pes and cherite,
[to] love þe, lord, for þu lovust me.
[lo]rd, after [as] it is nessesary
[for] al Cristen in þis world found—
[fo]r my frend, for my aduerssary—
[a]fter as I love, and am I-bound
so to do, in this worldis ground,
[th]ey may haue grace, þour wyll of the,
[as] best may avayle to euery degre,
[f]or body & soule, under thy law;
[th]at euery bad purpose & wicked entent
[ha]ue not his Course but be with-drawe,
[&] euery good hert, þat well haþ ment
[a]fter thi Chirch & þi Comaundement,
[In] word & werk well to spede,
[&] in Charite so forth to procede
that, with oone hert in love & vnyte,
[a]fter this schort worldly passage,
[t]hrough þi passcioun þat is mene & mot be,
[that] we may Come to þat heritage,
wher we may be-hold thi bryȝt visag[e],
with angellis & senttis synggung in kynd,
‘scs, scs, scs, lord god with-out ynd.’