And he ſulde ben man migti,
And of him kumen folc frigti; 984
Hagar returns,
and Ishmael is
born.
Ghe wente agen, and bar ðat child,
And abra_m_ wurð wið hire milde.
Abram was then
fourscore and six
years old.
lxxx. gere and ſexe mo
Hadde ab_ra_m on hiſ elde ðo, 988
And .xiii. ger ðor after told,
When Abram
was ninety-nine
years old God
changed his name
to Abraham.
ix. and nigneti[137] ger he waſ old,
[Fol. 20.]
Q_u_uanne him cam bode in ſunder run,
fro gode of circumcicioun. 992
His name ðo wurð a lettre mor,
Hiſ wiueſ leſſe ðan it waſ or,
for ðo wurd abram abraham,
Sarai's name is
also changed to
Sarah.
And ſarray ſarra bi-cam; 996
And al ðat eu_er_e ðe lou_er_ed bad,
dede abraham redi and rad.
Circumcision is
instituted.
He him ſelf wurð ðanne circu_m_ciſ,
And yſmael hiſ ſune iwiſ; 1000
And of iſ hird eu_er_ilc wapman
wurð circu_m_ciſ, al-so he it bi-gan,
Whoso bore not
this mark upon
him was to be cut
off from God's
folk.
Q_u_uo ne bar ðanne iſ merk him on
fro godes folc ſulde he be don. 1004
Afterwards in the
dale of Mamre
Abraham saw
figures three,
seemly messengers
from God.
Siðen, in ðe dale of mambre,
ſag abraha_m_ figures ðre,
Sondes ſemlike kumen fro gode;
Abraha_m_ he broghten wel bliðe bode. 1008
Abraha_m_ he[m] ran wel ſwiðe agon,
Abraham entertains
the angels.
And of ðe ðre he wurðede ðe ton,
ðe god him dede in herte ſen,
ðe waſ wurði wurðed to ben; 1012
He set before
them calves flesh,
bread and flour
and butter.
bred, kalueſ fleiſ, and flures bred,
And buttere, hem ðo sondes bed;
What he offered
with a free heart
his guests took
in charity,
for ðat he bad wið herte fre,
He it nomen in charite; 1016
[Fol. 20b.]
though it was but
as a drop of water
in a fire.
So malt ðat mete in hem to nogt,
So a watreſ drope in a fier brogt.
[137] _read_ nigenti