University of Virginia Library

Iacob.
Help me lord, adonay,
And hald me in the right way
To mesopotameam;
ffor I cam neuer or now where I am;
I cam neuer here in this contre;
lord of heuen, thou help me!
ffor I haue maide me, in this strete,
sore bonys & warkand feete.
The son is downe, what is best?
her purpose I all nyght to rest;
Vnder my hede this ston shal ly;
A nyghtis rest take will I.

Deus.
Iacob, iacob, thi god I am;
[Deus appears above.]
Of thi forfader abraham,
And of thi fader Isaac;
I shall the blys for thare sake.
This land that thou slepys in,
I shall the gif, and thi kyn;
I shall thi seede multyply,
As thyk as powder on erth may ly.
The kynd of the shall sprede wide,
ffrom eest to west on euery syde,
ffrom the south vnto the north;
All that I say, I shall forth;
And all the folkis of thyne ofspryng,
shal be blyssyd of thy blyssyng.
Iacob, haue thou no kyns drede!
I shall the clethe, I shall the fede.
Whartfull shall I make thi gate;
I shal the help erly and late;
And all in qwart shall I bryng the
home agane to thi countre.
I shall not fayll, be thou bold,
Bot I shall do as I haue told.

hic vigilet.
Iacob.
A! lord! what may this mene?
what haue I herd in slepe, and sene?
That god leynyd hym to a stegh,
And spake to me, it is no leghe;
And now is here none othere gate,
bot godis howse and heuens yate.
lord, how dredfull is this stede!
ther I layde downe my hede,
In godis lovyng I rayse this stone,
And oyll will I putt theron.
lord of heuen, that all wote,
here to the I make a hote:
If thou gif me mete and foode,
And close to body, as I behoued,
And bryng me home to kyth and kyn,
by the way that I walk in,
without skathe and in quarte,
I promyse to the, with stedfast hart,
As thou art lord and god myne,
And I Iacob, thi trew hyne,
This stone I rayse in sygne to day
shall I hold holy kyrk for ay;
And of all that newes me
rightwys tend shall I gif the.
hic egrediatur iacob de aran in terram natiuitatis sue.
A, my fader, god of heuen,
that saide to me, thrugh thi steven,
when I in aran was dwelland,
that I shuld turne agane to land
Ther I was both fed and borne,
warnyd thou me, lord, beforne,
As I went toward aran
with my staff, and passyd Iordan:
And now I com agane to kyth,
with two ostes of men me with.
Thou hete me, lord, to do well with me,
to multyplye my seede as sand of see;
Thou saue me, lord, thrugh vertew,
ffrom veniance of Esaw,
That he slo not, for old greme,
these moders with thare barne teme.

Rachell.
Oure anguysh, sir, is many fold,
syn that oure messyngere vs told
That Esaw wold you slo,
with foure hundreth men and mo.

Iacob.
ffor soth, rachell, I haue hym sent
of many beestis sere present.
May tyde he will oure giftis take,
And right so shall his wrath slake.
where ar oure thyngis, ar thay past Iordan?

Lya.
Go and look, sir, as ye can.

hic scrutetur superlectile, & luctetur angelus cum eo.
Deus.
The day spryngis; now lett me go.

Iacob.
Nay, nay, I will not so,
Bot thou blys me or thou gang:
If I may, I shall hold the lang.

Deus.
In tokynyng that thou spekis with me,
I shall toche now thi thee,
That halt shall thou euermore,
bot thou shall fele no sore;
What is thy name, thou me tell?

Iacob.
Iacob.

Deus.
nay, bot Israell;
syn thou to me sich strengthe may kythe,
to men of erth thou must be stythe.

Iacob.
what is thy name?

Deus.
whi askis thou it?
‘wonderfull,’ if thou wil wyt.

Iacob.
A, blys me, lord!

Deus.
I shall the blys,
And be to the full propyce,
And gyf the my blyssyng for ay,
As lord and he that all may.
I shall grayth thi gate,
And full well ordeyn thi state;
when thou has drede, thynk on me,
And thou shal full well saynyd be,
And look thou trow well my sayes;
And farewell now, the day dayes.

Iacob.
Now haue I a new name, israell;
this place shall [hight] fanuell,
ffor I haue seyn in this place,
god of heuen face to face.

Rachell.
Iacob, lo we haue tythand
that Esaw is here at hand.

hic diuidit turmas in tres partes.
Iacob.
Rachell, stand thou in the last eschele,
ffor I wold thou were sauyd wele;
Call Ioseph and beniamin,
And let theym not fro the twyn.
If it be so that Esaw
vs before all-to-hew,
Ye that ar here the last
Ye may be sauyd if ye fle fast.

& vadat iacob osculand Esaw; venit iacob, flectit genua exorando deum, & leuando, occurrit illi Esaw in amplexibus.
Iacob.
I pray the, lord, as thou me het,
thou saue me and my gete.

Esaw.
welcom brother, to kyn and kyth,
thi wife and childre that comes the with.
how has thou faren in far land?
tell me now som good tythand.

Iacob.
Well, my brother Esaw,
If that thi men no bale me brew.

dicit seruis suis.
Esaw.
wemo! felows, hold youre hend,
ye se that I and he ar frend,
And frenship here will we fulfill,
syn that it is godis will.

Iacob.
God yeld you, brothere, that it so is
that thou thi hyne so wold kys.

Esaw.
Nay, Iacob, my dere brothere,
I shall the tell all anothere;
Thou art my lord thrugh destyny;
go we togeder both thou and I,
To my fader and his wife,
that lofys the, brother, as thare lyfe.