The Vision and Creed of Piers Ploughman, Volume 2

Name: The Vision and Creed of Piers Ploughman, Volume 2
Author: Langland, William

Langland, William

Christian pilgrims and pilgrimages -- Poetry

Bothe meseles and mute,
  And in the menyson blody,
  Ofte heeled swiche,
  He ne held it for no maistrie,
  Save tho he leched Lazar
  That hadde y-leye in grave,
  _Quatriduanus_ quelt,                                  11030
  Quyk dide hym walke.
  Ac as he made the maistrie,
  _Moestus coepit esse_,
  And wepte water with hise eighen,
  Ther seighen it manye.
  Some that the sighte seighen,
  Seiden that tyme
  That he was leche of lif,
  And lord of heigh hevene.
  Jewes jangled ther ayein,                              11040
  And juggede lawes
  And seide he wroghte thorugh wichecraft,
  And with the develes myghte.
  _Dæmonium habet, etc._

    Thanne, "are ye cherles," quod ich,
  "And youre children bothe,
  And Sathan youre saveour,
  Ye self now ye witnessen."
  "For I have saved yow self," seith Crist,
  "And youre sones after,                                11050
  Youre bodies, youre beestes,
  {338}
  And blynde men holpen
  And fed yow with two fisshes
  And with fyve loves,
  And lefte baskettesful of broke mete,
  Bere awey who so wolde."
  And mys-seide the Jewes manliche
  And manaced hem to bete,
  And knokked on hem with a corde,
  And caste a-doun hir stalles                           11060
  That in chirche chaffareden,
  Or chaungeden any moneie,
  And seide it in sighte of hem alle,
  So that alle herden:--

    "I shal overturne this temple,
  And a-doun throwe it,
  And in thre daies after
  Edifie it new,
  And maken it as muche outher moore
  In alle manere poyntes                                 11070
  As evere it was, and as wid;
  Wherfore I hote yow,
  Of preieres and of perfitnesse
  This place that ye callen."
  _Domus mea domus orationis vocabitur._                     =

    Envye and yvel wil
  Was in the Jewes;
  Thei casten and contreveden
  To kulle hym whan thei myghte,                         11080
  Eche day after oother
  Hir tyme thei awaiteden;
  Til it bifel on a Friday
  A litel bifore Pasqe,
  The Thursday bifore
  {339}
  There he made his maundee,
  Sittynge at the soper
  He seide thise wordes,
  "I am sold thorugh oon of yow,
  He shal the tyme rewe,                                 11090
  That evere he his Saveour solde,
  For silver or ellis."

    Judas jangled ther ayein;
  Ac Jhesus hym tolde,
  It was hymself soothly,
  And seide _tu dicis_.

    Thanne wente forth that wikked man,
  And with the Jewes mette,
  And tolde hem a tokne
  How to knowe with Jhesus,                              11100
  And which tokne to this day
  To muche is y-used,
  That is kissynge and fair countenaunce,
  And unkynde wille.
  And so was with Judas tho,
  That Jhesus bitrayed:
  "_Ave, raby_," quod that ribaud,
  And right to hym he yede,
  And kiste hym, to be caught therby,
  And kulled of the Jewes.                               11110

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

The Vision and Creed of Piers Ploughman, Volume 2

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