THE COVENTRY MYSTERIES. PROLOGUE. _Primus vexillator._ Now gracyous God, groundyd of alle goodnesse, As thi grete glorie nevyr begynnyng had, So thou socour and save alle tho that sytt and sese, And lystenyth to oure talkyng with sylens stylle and sad, ffor we purpose us pertly stylle in this prese, The pepyl to plese with pleys ful glad. Now lystenyth us, lovely, bothe more and lesse, Gentyllys and ȝemanry of goodly lyff lad, This tyde. We xal ȝou shewe, as that we kan, How that this werd ffyrst began, And how God made bothe molde and man, Iff that ȝe wyl abyde. _Secundus vexillator._ In the ffyrst pagent, we thenke to play How God dede make, thorowe his owyn myth, Hevyn so clere upon the fyrst day, And therin he sett angelle fful bryth. Than angelle with songe, this is no nay, Xal worchep God, as it is ryth; But Lucyfer, that angelle so gay, In suche pompe than is he pyth, And set in so grete pride, That Goddys sete he gynnyth to take, Hese lordys pere hymself to make, But than he ffallyth a ffend ful blake, ffrom hevyn in helle to a[bide.] _Tertius vexillator._ In the secunde pagent by Godys myth, We thenke to shewe and pley, be-dene, In the other sex days, by opyn syth, What thenge was wrought ther xal be sene; How best was made and foule of flyth, And last was man made, as I wene; Of mannys o ryb, as I ȝow plyth, Was woman wrougth mannys make to bene, And put in paradyse. Ther were floures bothe blew and blake, Of alle frutes thei myth ther take, Saff frute of cunnyng thei xulde forsake, And towche it in no wyse. The serpent toke Eve an appyl to byte, And Eve toke Adam a mursel of the same, Whan thei had do thus aȝens the rewle of ryte, Than was oure Lord wrothe and grevyd al with grame. Oure Lord gan appose them of ther grete delyte, Bothe to askuse hem of that synful blame, And than Almyghty God, ffor that gret dyspite, Assygned hem grevous peyn, as ȝe xal se in game, In dede, Seraphyn, an angelle gay, With brennyng swerd, this is verray, From paradise bete hem away, In Bybyl as we rede. _Primus vexillator._ We purpose to shewe in the thryd pagent, The story of Caym and of hese brother Abelle, Of here tythynges now be we bent In this pagent the trewthe to telle. How the tythyng of Abel with feyr was brent, And accept to God, yf ȝe wyl dwelle, We purpose to shewe, as we have ment, And how he was kyllyd of his brother so felle; And than How Caym was cursyd in al degré, Of Godys owyn mowthe, ther xal ȝe se, Of trewe tythyng this may wel be, Exaw[m]ple to every man. _Secundus vexillator._