the others were
allowed to escape
alive.
And leten ðe oðre to liue gon,
of hem ben tudered manigon.
Noah besought
God that he
would no more
send such destruction
upon
mankind.
Often he [bad] wid[114] frigti bede,
ðat ſwiulc wreche ſo god ðo dede 632
Ne ſulde more on werlde cumen,
Q_u_at wreche ſo ðor wurðe numen.
God granted his
request, and
shewed him the
rain-bow as a
token of His love.
God gat it a token of luuen,
Taunede him in ðe wa[l]kene a-buuen 636
The rain-bow is
called red and
blue.
Rein-bowe, men cleped[115] reed and blo;
The blue denotes
the water that
drowned all flesh.
ðe blo tokeneð de[116] wat_er_es wo,
ðat iſ wið-uten and is gon;
The red betokeneth
the destruction
of the world
by fire.
ðe rede wid-innen[117] toknet on 640
wreche ðat ſal get wurðen ſent,
wan al ðis werld wurðe brent;
And al-ſo hege ðe lowe ſal gon,
So ðe flod flet de dunes on; 644
fowerti ger or domeſ-dai,
ðiſ token no man ne ſen mai.
From Noah and
his three sons all
mankind have
come.
Of[118] noe ſiðen an iſ ðre ſunen,
ben boren alle ðe in werlde wunen, 648
Before his death
his family were
widely spread.
And or he waſ on werlde led,
His kinde waſ wel wide ſpred;
Al it iſ writen ic tellen mai
Of his kin bi hiſ liue dai; 652
[Fol. 13b.]
They numbered,
excluding women
and children,
24,000 stalworth
men.
vten childre and vten wi_m_men,
wel fowre and .xx. ðhuſent men
woren ſtalwurði boren bi tale,
wið-uten wif-kin and childre ſmale; 656
.ix. hundred ger and fifti told,
or or he ſtarf, noe waſ old.
Nimrod had
dread of water,
so he advised his
followers to make
a tower high and
strong.
Nembrot gat hiſe feres red,
for ðat he hadde of water dred, 660
To maken a tur, wel heg & ſtrong,
Of tigel and ter, for water-gong;
Seventy-two men
were employed
about it.
Twelwe and ſexti men woren ðor-to,
[114] _read_ wið
[115] _read_ clepeð
[116] _read_ ðe
[117] _read_ wið-innen.
[118] Oſ MS.