§ 18. Of the springinge of sinnes seith seint Paul in this wise: that
‘right as by a man sinne entred first in-to this world, and thurgh that
sinne deeth, right so thilke deeth entred in-to alle men that sinneden.’ /
And this man was Adam, by whom sinne entred in-to this world whan he brak
the comaundement of god. / And therfore, he that first was so mighty that
he sholde not have dyed, bicam swich oon that he moste nedes dye, whether
he wolde or noon; and all his progenie in this world that in thilke man
sinneden. / Loke that in thestaat of innocence, when Adam and Eve naked
weren in paradys, and no-thing ne hadden shame of hir nakednesse, /325 how
that the serpent, that was most wyly of alle othere bestes that god hadde
maked, seyde to the womman: ‘why comaunded god to yow, ye sholde nat eten
of every tree in paradys?’ / The womman answerde: ‘of the fruit,’ quod she,
‘of the trees in paradys we feden us; but soothly, of the fruit of the tree
that is in the middel of paradys, god forbad us for to ete, ne nat touchen
it, lest per-aventure we should dyen.’ / The serpent seyde to the womman:
‘nay, nay, ye shul nat dyen of deeth; for sothe, god woot, that what day
that ye eten ther-of, youre eyen shul opene, and ye shul been as goddes,
knowinge [587] good and harm.’ / The womman thanne saugh that the tree was
good to feding, and fair to the eyen, and delytable to the sighte; she tok
of the fruit of the tree, and eet it, and yaf to hir housbonde, and he eet;
and anoon the eyen of hem bothe openeden. / And whan that they knewe that
they were naked, they sowed of fige-leves a manere of breches to hiden hir
membres. /330 There may ye seen that deedly sinne hath first suggestion of
the feend, as sheweth here by the naddre; and afterward, the delyt of the
flesh, as sheweth here by Eve; and after that, the consentinge of resoun,
as sheweth here by Adam. / For trust wel, thogh so were that the feend
tempted Eve, that is to seyn the flesh, and the flesh hadde delyt in the
beautee of the fruit defended, yet certes, til that resoun, that is to
seyn, Adam, consented to the etinge of the fruit, yet stood he in thestaat
of innocence. / Of thilke Adam toke we thilke sinne original; for of him
fleshly descended be we alle, and engendred of vile and corrupt matere. /
And whan the soule is put in our body, right anon is contract original
sinne; and that, that was erst but only peyne of concupiscence, is
afterward bothe peyne and sinne. / And therfore be we alle born sones of
wratthe and of dampnacion perdurable, if it nere baptesme that we receyven,
which binimeth us the culpe; but for sothe, the peyne dwelleth with us, as
to temptacion, which peyne highte concupiscence. /335 Whan it is wrongfully
disposed or ordeyned in man, it maketh him coveite, by coveitise of flesh,
fleshly sinne, by sighte of hise eyen as to erthely thinges. and coveitise
of hynesse by pryde of herte. /
323. E. Hn. comaundementz; _rest_ comaundement. 324. E. wheither.
325. Pt. þe astate; Ln. þe state; Cm. stat. 327. ne] E. and. 328.
E. _om._ ye _before_ shul. 330. E. Cm. a manere; _rest_ in manere.
335. E. bynyneth; Hn. Pt. Hl. bynymeth.
§ 19. Now as for to speken of the firste coveitise, that is, concupiscence
after the lawe of oure membres, that weren lawe-fulliche y-maked and by
rightful Iugement of god; / I seye, for-as-muche as man is nat obeisaunt to
god, that is his lord, therfore is the flesh to him disobeisaunt thurgh
concupiscence, which yet is cleped norissinge of sinne and occasion of
sinne. / Therfore, al the whyle that a man hath in him the peyne of
concupiscence, it is impossible but he be tempted somtyme, and moeved in
his flesh to sinne. And this thing may nat faille as longe as he liveth; it
may wel wexe feble and faille, by vertu of baptesme and by the grace of god
thurgh penitence; /340 but fully [588] ne shal it nevere quenche, that he
ne shal som tyme be moeved in him-self, but-if he were al refreyded by
siknesse, or by malefice of sorcerie or colde drinkes. / For lo, what seith
seint Paul: ‘the flesh coveiteth agayn the spirit, and the spirit agayn the
flesh; they been so contrarie and so stryven, that a man may nat alwey doon
as he wolde.’ / The same seint Paul, after his grete penaunce in water and
in lond (in water by night and by day, in greet peril and in greet peyne,
in lond, in famine, in thurst, in cold and clothlees, and ones stoned
almost to the deeth) / yet seyde he: ‘allas! I, caytif man, who shal
delivere me fro the prisoun of my caytif body?’ / And seint Ierome, whan he
longe tyme hadde woned in desert, where-as he hadde no companye but of
wilde bestes, where-as he ne hadde no mete but herbes and water to his
drinke, ne no bed but the naked erthe, for which his flesh was blak as an
Ethiopen for hete and ny destroyed for cold, /345 yet seyde he: that ‘the
brenninge of lecherie boiled in al his body.’ / Wherfore I woot wel
sikerly, that they been deceyved that seyn, that they ne be nat tempted in
hir body. / Witnesse on Seint Iame the Apostel, that seith: that ‘every
wight is tempted in his owen concupiscence’: that is to seyn, that everich
of us hath matere and occasion to be tempted of the norissinge of sinne
that is in his body. / And therfore seith Seint Iohn the Evaungelist: ‘if
that we seyn that we beth with-oute sinne, we deceyve us-selve, and trouthe
is nat in us.’ /
338. E. norrissynge. 340. E. fieble; _rest_ feble. 345. E.
Ethiopeen; _rest_ -pen.
§ 20. Now shal ye understonde in what manere that sinne wexeth or encreseth
in man. The firste thing is thilke norissinge of sinne, of which I spak
biforn, thilke fleshly concupiscence. /350 And after that comth the
subieccion of the devel, this is to seyn, the develes bely, with which he
bloweth in man the fyr of fleshly concupiscence. / And after that, a man
bithinketh him whether he wol doon, or no, thilke thing to which he is
tempted. / And thanne, if that a man withstonde and weyve the firste
entysinge of his flesh and of the feend, thanne is it no sinne; and if it
so be that he do nat so, thanne feleth he anon a flambe of delyt. / And
thanne is it good to be war, and kepen him wel, or elles he wol falle anon
in-to consentinge of sinne; and thanne wol he do it, if he may have tyme
and place. / And of this matere seith Moyses by the devel in this manere:
‘the feend seith, I wole [589] chace and pursue the man by wikked
suggestion, and I wole hente him by moevynge or stiringe of sinne. I wol
departe my pryse or my praye by deliberacion, and my lust shal been
accompliced in delyt; I wol drawe my swerd in consentinge:’ /355 for
certes, right as a swerd departeth a thing in two peces, right so
consentinge departeth god fro man: ‘and thanne wol I sleen him with myn
hand in dede of sinne’; thus seith the feend. / For certes, thanne is a man
al deed in soule. And thus is sinne accompliced by temptacion, by delyt,
and by consentinge; and thanne is the sin cleped actuel. /