What nedeth it of King Anthiochus 3765
To telle his hye royal magestee,
His hye pryde, his werkes venimous?
For swich another was ther noon as he.
Rede which that he was in Machabee,
And rede the proude wordes that he seyde, 3770
And why he fil fro heigh prosperitee, (591)
And in an hil how wrechedly he deyde.
Fortune him hadde enhaunced so in pryde
That verraily he wende he mighte attayne
Unto the sterres, upon every syde, 3775
And in balance weyen ech montayne,
And alle the flodes of the see restrayne.
And goddes peple hadde he most in hate,
Hem wolde he sleen in torment and in payne,
Wening that god ne mighte his pryde abate. 3780
3777. Cm. flodys; _rest_ floodes. 3778. E. Hn. moost.
[263: T. 14509-14540.]
And for that Nichanor and Thimothee (601)
Of Iewes weren venquisshed mightily,
Unto the Iewes swich an hate hadde he
That he bad greithe his char ful hastily,
And swoor, and seyde, ful despitously, 3785
Unto Ierusalem he wolde eft-sone,
To wreken his ire on it ful cruelly;
But of his purpos he was let ful sone.
3784. E. greithen; Hn. greithe; Cm. ordeyne. E. Hn. chaar; Cm. char.
God for his manace him so sore smoot
With invisible wounde, ay incurable, 3790
That in his guttes carf it so and boot (611)
That his peynes weren importable.
And certeinly, the wreche was resonable,
For many a mannes guttes dide he peyne;
But from his purpos cursed and dampnable 3795
For al his smert he wolde him nat restreyne;
But bad anon apparaillen his host,
And sodeynly, er he of it was war,
God daunted al his pryde and al his bost.
For he so sore fil out of his char, 3800
That it his limes and his skin to-tar, (621)
So that he neither mighte go ne ryde,
But in a chayer men aboute him bar,
Al for-brused, bothe bak and syde.
3797, 9. E. hoost, boost. 3801. E. lemes; Hn. Cp. Hl. lymes; Cm.
lymys; Ln. limes.
The wreche of god him smoot so cruelly 3805
That thurgh his body wikked wormes crepte;
And ther-with-al he stank so horribly,
That noon of al his meynee that him kepte,
Whether so he wook or elles slepte,
Ne mighte noght for stink of him endure. 3810
In this meschief he wayled and eek wepte, (631)
And knew god lord of every creature.
3807. E. _om._ so; E. horriblely. 3809. E. Hn. Cm. so; Pt. Hl. that;
Cp. Ln. so that. 3810. E. Hn. for; _rest_ the.
[264: T. 14541-14572.]
To al his host and to him-self also
Ful wlatsom was the stink of his careyne;
No man ne mighte him bere to ne fro. 3815
And in this stink and this horrible peyne
He starf ful wrecchedly in a monteyne.
Thus hath this robbour and this homicyde,
That many a man made to wepe and pleyne,
Swich guerdon as bilongeth unto pryde. 3820