Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 1: Texts
General
Selections from Early Middle English, 1130-1250. Part 1: Texts
English literature -- Middle English, 1100-1500
++Ðe culuer haueð costes gode. 650
alle wes ogen to hauen in mode.
seuene costes in hire kinde.
alle it ogen to ben us minde.
ge ne haueð in hire no{n} galle.
simple ⁊ softe be we alle. 655
ge ne liueð nogt bi lagt.
Ilc robbinge do we of {h}ac.
ðe wirm ge leteð ⁊ liueð bi ðe sed.
of cristes lore we haue ned.
wið oðre briddes ge doð as moder. 660
so og ur ilk to don wið oðer.
woning ⁊ groning if{}lic hire song.
bimene we us. we hauen don wrong.
In wat{er} ge is wis of heuekes come.
⁊ we in boke wið deules nome. 665
In hole of ston ge makeð hire nest.
In cristes milce ure hope is best.
[Linenotes:
656. _bilagt_ MS. || 657. _hac_] _bac_ MS. || 661. Before
_ilk_ a letter erased: _l_ corr. out of _h_.]
XXII. GENESIS AND EXODUS
[[MS description from Notes volume:
“Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, 444, former mark R 11; on vellum,
186 × 116 mm., in one hand of the end of thirteenth or of the beginning
of the fourteenth century.”]]
JOSEPH AND HIS BRETHREN
xii. ger or ysaac was dead. [f. 37v
Jacobes sunes deden un{}red.
++FOr sextene ger ioseph was old.
Q{u}ane he was in{}to egipte sold.
He was iacobes gunkeste sune. 5
Brictest of was{tm}e and of witt{er} wune.
If he sag hise breðere mis{}faren.
His fader he it gan vn{}hillen ⁊ baren.
He wulde ðat he sulde hem ten.
ðat he wel ðewed sulde ben. 10
for{}ði wexem wið [him] gret nið.
And hate for it in ille lið.
ðo wex her hertes niðful ⁊ bold.
Q{u}anne he hem adde is dremes told.
ðat is handful stod rigt up soren. 15
And here it leigen alle he{m} bi{}foren.
And sunne ⁊ mone ⁊ sterres .xi^e.
Wurðeden hi{m} wið frigti luue.
ðo seide his fader hu mai ðis sen.
ðat ðu salt ðus wurðed ben. 20
ðat ðine breðere and ic ⁊ she.
ðat ðe bar sulen luten ðe. |
ðus he chidden hem bi{}twen. [f. 38r
ðoge ðhogte iacob siðe it sulde ben.
Hise breðere kepten at sichem. 25
Hirdnesse ⁊ iacob to sen hem.
sente ioseph to dalen ebron.
And he was redi his wil to don.
Jn sichem feld ne fond e he{m} nogt.
Jn dotaym he fond hem sogt. 30
He knewen hi{m} fro feren kumen.
Hate hem on ros i{n} herte numen.
Swilc nið ⁊ hate ros hem on.
He redden alle him for{}to slon.
Nai q{u}ad ruben slo we hi{m} nogt. 35
Oðer sinne may ben wrogt.
Q{u}at so him drempte ðor q{u}iles he slep.
Jn ðis {c}isternesse old and dep.
Get wurð e worpen naked and cold.
Q{u}at{}so his dremes owen a{}wold. 40
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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