§ 51. The firste grevance is of wikkede wordes; thilke suffrede Iesu Crist
with-outen grucching, ful paciently, whan the Iewes despysed and repreved
him ful ofte. / Suffre thou therfore paciently; for the wyse man seith: ‘if
thou stryve with a [612] fool, though the fool be wrooth or though he
laughe, algate thou shalt have no reste.’ / That other grevance outward is
to have damage of thy catel. Ther-agayns suffred Crist ful paciently, whan
he was despoyled of al that he hadde in this lyf, and that nas but hise
clothes. /665 The thridde grevance is a man to have harm in his body. That
suffred Crist ful paciently in al his passioun. / The fourthe grevance is
in outrageous labour in werkes. Wherfore I seye, that folk that maken hir
servants to travaillen to grevously, or out of tyme, as on halydayes,
soothly they do greet sinne. / Heer-agayns suffred Crist ful paciently, and
taughte us pacience, whan he bar up-on his blissed shulder the croys, up-on
which he sholde suffren despitous deeth. / Heer may men lerne to be
pacient; for certes, noght only Cristen men been pacient for love of Iesu
Crist, and for guerdoun of the blisful lyf that is perdurable; but certes,
the olde payens, that nevere were Cristene, commendeden and useden the
vertu of pacience. /
668. E. baar. Cm. Ln. cros. 669. Hl. Pt. Ln. guerdoun; E. Cm.
gerdoun; Hn. gerdon. E. p_er_durale.
§ 52. A philosophre up-on a tyme, that wolde have beten his disciple for
his grete trespas, for which he was greetly amoeved, and broghte a yerde to
scourge the child; /670 and whan this child saugh the yerde, he seyde to
his maister, ‘what thenke ye to do?’ ‘I wol bete thee,’ quod the maister,
‘for thy correccion.’ / ‘For sothe,’ quod the child, ‘ye oghten first
correcte youre-self, that han lost al youre pacience for the gilt of a
child.’ / ‘For sothe,’ quod the maister al wepinge, ‘thou seyst sooth; have
thou the yerde, my dere sone, and correcte me for myn inpacience.’ / Of
Pacience comth Obedience, thurgh which a man is obedient to Crist and to
alle hem to whiche he oghte to been obedient in Crist. / And understond wel
that obedience is perfit, whan that a man doth gladly and hastily, with
good herte entierly, al that he sholde do. /675 Obedience generally, is to
perfourne the doctrine of god and of his sovereyns, to whiche him oghte to
ben obeisaunt in alle rightwysnesse. /
670. Hn. scourge; E. scoure with; _rest_ scoure(!). 671. Cm. Hl. to
do; E. do. Pt. Ln. what wil ye do.
=Sequitur de Accidia.=
§ 53. After the sinnes of Envie and of Ire, now wol I speken of the sinne
of Accidie. For Envye blindeth the herte of a man, [613] and Ire troubleth
a man; and Accidie maketh him hevy, thoghtful, and wrawe. / Envye and Ire
maken bitternesse in herte; which bitternesse is moder of Accidie, and
binimeth him the love of alle goodnesse. Thanne is Accidie the anguissh of
a trouble herte; and seint Augustin seith: ‘it is anoy of goodnesse and
Ioye of harm.’ / Certes, this is a dampnable sinne; for it doth wrong to
Iesu Crist, in-as-muche as it binimeth the service that men oghte doon to
Crist with alle diligence, as seith Salomon. / But Accidie dooth no swich
diligence; he dooth alle thing with anoy, and with wrawnesse, slaknesse,
and excusacioun, and with ydelnesse and unlust; for which the book seith:
‘acursed be he that doth the service of god necligently.’ /680 Thanne is
Accidie enemy to everich estaat of man; for certes, the estaat of man is in
three maneres. / Outher it is thestaat of innocence, as was thestaat of
Adam biforn that he fil into sinne; in which estaat he was holden to
wirche, as in heryinge and adouringe of god. / Another estaat is the estaat
of sinful men, in which estaat men been holden to laboure in preyinge to
god for amendement of hir sinnes, and that he wole graunte hem to arysen
out of hir sinnes. / Another estaat is thestaat of grace, in which estaat
he is holden to werkes of penitence; and certes, to alle thise thinges is
Accidie enemy and contrarie. For he loveth no bisinesse at al. / Now
certes, this foule sinne Accidie is eek a ful greet enemy to the lyflode of
the body; for it ne hath no purveaunce agayn temporel necessitee; for it
forsleweth and forsluggeth, and destroyeth alle goodes temporeles by
reccheleesnesse. /685
677. Selden, Pt. Ln. sinnes; _rest_ synne. E. _om._ a _after_ herte
of. E. wrawful; Pt. wrowe; _rest_ wrawe. 678. E. Hl. _om._ a. E.
troubled. 683. E. _om._ the. 685. sinne] E. swyn. E. temporeel
(for temporel).
§ 54. The fourthe thinge is, that Accidie is lyk to hem that been in the
peyne of helle, by-cause of hir slouthe and of hir hevinesse; for they that
been dampned been so bounde, that they ne may neither wel do ne wel thinke.
/ Of Accidie comth first, that a man is anoyed and encombred for to doon
any goodnesse, and maketh that god hath abhominacion of swich Accidie, as
seith seint Iohan. /