The second head of the wicked beast is envy, which is the adder that poisons all. Envy is mother to death, for by the envy of the devil came death into the world; it is the sin which most immediately makes man like the devil his father. For the devil hates not but others’ good, and loves not but others’ harm, and so does the envious. The envious man cannot see the good of others, any more than the owl or the bat (can see) the brightness of the sun. The same sin divides chiefly into three boughs. For the same sin envenoms first of all the heart of the envious, and afterwards the mouth, and afterwards the works. The heart of the envious is envenomed and goes astray, so that he cannot see other men’s good without repenting within his heart and judging evilly, and what he sees or what he hears takes it in a bad sense, and of all makes (his) harm, so much (so) that to the heart of the envious [come] venomous thoughts of false judgment, that one cannot tell (them). Afterwards, when the envious hears or sees other men’s ill, whatever it be, either ill of body, as death or sickness, or ill of chance (hap), as poverty or adversity, or spiritual ill, as when he hears that some, that one held good men, are blamed for some vice. At such things he rejoices in his heart. Afterwards, when he sees or hears the good of others, be it good of nature, or good of hap, or good of grace, whereof we have spoken above, then there comes a sorrow to his heart, so that he cannot be at rest, nor make gladness, nor fair pretence. Now, thou canst see that the venomous heart of the envious sins generally in three ways: in false judgments, in wicked gladness, in worse sorrows; he sins also by the mouth. For it behoves that such wine as there is in the tun should run by the tap. And because the heart was full of venom, it behoves that it leap out by the mouth. Then from the mouth of the envious come out three kinds of venomous words, whereof David speaks in the Psalter, ‘The mouth of the envious is full of cursing, and of bitterness, and of treason.’ Of cursing, for the goods of others he defames, and depreciates them as much as he can. Of bitterness, for the ills of others he exaggerates and increases according to his might. Of treason, for all that he sees or hears, he turns it to ill and judges it falsely. Afterwards, the envious has three kinds of venom indeed, as he hath in mouth and in heart; for the nature of the envious is to withdraw and destroy all good by his might, be it little, be it less, be it perfected. He is then of the nature of the basilisk, for no greenness can last before him, either in grass, or in bush, or in tree. Then, according to the Gospel, corn has three states, for it is first as in grass, afterwards in the ear, afterwards is full of fruit and quite ripe. And so there are some that have a good beginning, in order to live well and to profit, and are as in grass; the same the envious takes pains to quench if he can. Others