Cambridge University Library MS. DD. 5. 64, III (about 1400) f. 38 a.
<L>uf es lyf þat lastes ay, þar it in Criste es feste,
For wele ne wa it chaunge may, als wryten has men wyseste.
Þe nyght it tournes intil þe day, þi trauel intyll reste;
If þou wil luf þus as I say, þou may be wyth þe beste.
Lufe es thoght wyth grete desyre of a fayre louyng; 5
Lufe I lyken til a fyre þat sloken may na thyng;
Lufe vs clenses of oure syn; luf vs bote sall bryng;
Lufe þe Keynges hert may wyn; lufe of ioy may syng.
Þe settel of lufe es lyft hee, for intil heuen it ranne;
Me thynk in erth it es sle, þat makes men pale and wanne; 10
Þe bede of blysse it gase ful nee, I tel þe as I kanne:
Þof vs thynk þe way be dregh, luf copuls God and manne.
Lufe es hatter þen þe cole; lufe may nane beswyke.
Þe flawme of lufe wha myght it thole, if it war ay ilyke?
Luf vs comfortes, and mase in qwart, and lyftes tyl heuenryke; 15
Luf rauysches Cryste intyl owr hert; I wate na lust it lyke.
Lere to luf, if þou wyl lyfe when þou sall hethen fare;
All þi thoght til Hym þou gyf þat may þe kepe fra kare:
Loke þi hert fra Hym noght twyn, if þou in wandreth ware;
Sa þou may Hym welde and wyn, and luf Hym euermare. 20
Iesu, þat me lyfe hase lent, intil Þi lufe me bryng!
Take til Þe al myne entent, þat Þow be my ȝhernyng.
Wa fra me away war went, and comne war my couaytyng,
If þat my sawle had herd and hent þe sang of Þi louyng.
Þi lufe es ay lastand, fra þat we may it fele; 25
Þarein make me byrnand, þat na thyng gar it kele.
My thoght take into Þi hand, and stabyl it ylk a dele,
Þat I be noght heldand to luf þis worldes wele.
If I lufe any erthly thyng þat payes to my wyll,
And settes my ioy and my lykyng when it may comm me tyll, 30
I mai drede of partyng, þat wyll be hate and yll:
For al my welth es bot wepyng when pyne mi saule sal spyll.
Þe ioy þat men hase sene es lyckend tyl þe haye,
Þat now es fayre and grene, and now wytes awaye.
Swylk es þis worlde, I wene, and bees till Domesdaye, 35
All in trauel and tene, fle þat na man it maye.
If þou luf in all þi thoght, and hate þe fylth of syn,
And gyf Hym þi sawle þat it boght, þat He þe dwell within,
Als Crist þi sawle hase soght, and þerof walde noght blyn,
Sa þou sal to blys be broght, and heuen won within. 40
Þe kynd of luf es þis, þar it es trayst and trew,
To stand styll in stabylnes, and chaunge it for na new.
Þe lyfe þat lufe myght fynd, or euer in hert it knew,
Fra kare it tornes þat kyend, and lendes in myrth and glew.
For now, lufe þow, I rede, Cryste, as I þe tell, 45
And with aungels take þi stede: þat ioy loke þou noght sell!
In erth þow hate, I rede, all þat þi lufe may fell,
For luf es stalworth as þe dede, luf es hard as hell.
Luf es a lyght byrthen; lufe gladdes ȝong and alde;
Lufe es withowten pyne, as lofers hase me talde; 50
Lufe es a gastly wyne, þat makes men bygge and balde;
Of lufe sal he na thyng tyne þat hit in hert will halde.
Lufe es þe swettest thyng þat man in erth hase tane;
Lufe es Goddes derlyng; lufe byndes blode and bane.
In lufe be owre lykyng, I ne wate na better wane, 55
For me and my lufyng lufe makes bath be ane.
Bot fleschly lufe sal fare as dose þe flowre in May,
And lastand be na mare þan ane houre of a day,
And sythen syghe ful sare þar lust, þar pryde, þar play,
When þai er casten in kare til pyne þat lastes ay. 60
When þair bodys lyse in syn, þair sawls mai qwake and drede,
For vp sal ryse al men, and answer for þair dede.
If þai be fonden in syn, als now þair lyfe þai lede,
Þai sal sytt hel within, and myrknes hafe to mede.
Riche men þair hend sal wryng, and wicked werkes sal by 65
In flawme of fyre, bath knyght and keyng, with sorow schamfully.
If þou wil lufe, þan may þou syng til Cryst in melody;
Þe lufe of Hym ouercoms al thyng, þarto þou traiste trewly.
<I> sygh and sob, bath day and nyght, for ane sa fayre of hew!
Þar es na thyng my hert mai light, bot lufe þat es ay new. 70
Wha sa had Hym in his syght, or in his hert Hym knew,
His mournyng turned til ioy ful bryght, his sang intil glew.
In myrth he lyfes, nyght and day, þat lufes þat swete chylde;
It es Iesu, forsoth I say, of al mekest and mylde.
Wreth fra hym walde al away, þof he wer neuer sa wylde, 75
He þat in hert lufed Hym þat day, fra euel He wil hym schylde.
Of Iesu mast lyst me speke, þat al my bale may bete;
Me thynk my hert may al tobreke when I thynk on þat swete;
In lufe lacyd He hase my thoght, þat I sal neuer forgete.
Ful dere me thynk He hase me boght with blodi hende and fete. 80
For luf my hert es bowne to brest, when I þat faire behalde;
Lufe es fair þare it es fest, þat neuer will be calde;
Lufe vs reues þe nyght-rest, in grace it makes vs balde;
Of al warkes luf es þe best, als haly men me talde.
Na wonder gyf I syghand be, and sithen in sorow be sette: 85
Iesu was nayled apon þe tre, and al blody forbette.
To thynk on Hym es grete pyté—how tenderly He grette—
Þis hase He sufferde, man, for þe, if þat þou syn wyll lette.
Þare es na tonge in erth may tell of lufe þe swetnesse.
Þat stedfastly in lufe kan dwell, his ioy es endlesse. 90
God schylde þat he sulde til hell, þat lufes and langand es,
Or euer his enmys sulde hym qwell, or make his luf be lesse.
Iesu es lufe þat lastes ay, til Hym es owre langyng;
Iesu þe nyght turnes to þe day, þe dawyng intil spryng.
Iesu, thynk on vs now and ay, for Þe we halde oure keyng; 95
Iesu, gyf vs grace, as Þou wel may, to luf Þe withowten endyng.
[Foot-note: 45 For now] Forþi _MS. Lambeth 583_.]
[Foot-note: 51 wyne] = wynne _MS._]
[Foot-note: 65 hend] handes _MS., apparently altered from_ hend.]
[Foot-note: 69 I] _so MS. Lambeth 583_.]