David) I purposed fermely to shrive me, and thou Lord relesedest my sinne. And right so as contrition availeth not without sad purpos of shrift and satisfaction, right so litel worth is shrift or satisfaction withouten contrition. And moreover contrition destroyeth the prison of helle, and maketh weke and feble all the strengthes of the Devils, and restoreth the yeftes of the holy gost, and of all good vertues, and it clenseth the soule of sinne, and delivereth it fro the peine of helle, and fro the compagnie of the Devil, and fro the servage of sinne, and restoreth it to all goodes spirituel, and to the compagnie and communion of holy chirche. And furtherover it maketh him, that whilom was sone of ire, to be the sone of grace and all these thinges ben preved by holy writ.

And therfore he that wold set his entent to thise thinges, he were ful wise for sothly he ne shuld have than in all his lif corage to sinne, but yeve his herte and body to the service of Jesu Crist, and therof do him homage. For certes our Lord Jesu Crist hath spared us so benignely in our folies, that if he ne had pitee on mannes soule, a sory song might we alle singe.

Explicit prima pars penitentiæ; et incipit pars

secunda.

The second part of penitence is confession, and that is signe of contrition. Now shul ye understonde what is confession; and whether it ought nedes to be don or non: and which thinges ben covenable to veray confession.

First shalt thou understande, that confession is veray shewing of sinnes to the preest; this is to saie veray, for he must confesse him of all the conditions that belongen to his sinne, as ferforth as he can all must be sayd, and nothing excused, ne hid, ne forwrapped; and not avaunt him of his good werkes. Also it is necessarie to understande whennes that sinnes springen, and how they encresen, and which they ben.

Of springing of sinnes saith Seint Poule in this wise: that right as by on man sinne entred first into this world, and thurgh sinne deth, right so deth entreth into alle men that sinnen: and this man was Adam, by whom sinne entred into this world, whan he brake the commandement of God. And therfore he that first was so mighty, that he ne shuld have died, became swiche on that he must nedes die, whether he wold or no; and all his progenie in this world, that in thilke maner sinnen, dien. Loke that in the estat of innocence, whan Adam and Eve weren naked in paradise, and no thing ne hadden shame of hir nakednesse, how that the serpent, that was most wily of all other bestes that God had made, sayd to the woman: why commanded God you, that ye shuld not ete of every tree in Paradise? The woman answered of the fruit, sayd she, of the trees of Paradise we feden us, but of the fruit of the tree that is in the middel of Paradise God forbode us for to eten, ne to touche it, lest we shuld die. The serpent sayd to the woman: nay, nay, ye shul not dien of deth; for soth God wote, that what day that ye ete therof your eyen shul open, and ye shul be as goddes, knowing good and harme. The woman saw that the tree was good to feding, and faire to the eyen, and delectable to the sight; she toke of the fruit of the tree and did ete, and yave

to hire husbond, and he ete; and anon the eyen of hem both opened: and whan they knewe that they were naked, they sowed of a fig-tree leves in maner of breches, to hiden hir members. Here mow ye seen, that dedly sinne hath first suggestion of the fende, as sheweth here by the adder; and afterward the delit of the flesh, as sheweth here by Eve; and after that the consenting of reson, as sheweth by Adam. For trust wel, though so it were, that the fende tempted Eve, that is to say, the flesh, and the flesh had delit in the beautee of the fruit defended, yet certes til that reson, that is to say, Adam, consented to the eting of the fruit, yet stode he in the state of innocence. Of thilke Adam toke we thilke sinne original; from him fleshly discended be we all, and engendred of vile and corrupt mater: and whan the soule is put in our bodies, right anon is contract original sinne; and that, that was erst but only peine of concupiscence, is afterward both peine and sinne : and therfore we ben all yborne sones of wrath, and of dampnation perdurable, if ne were Baptisme that we receive, which benimeth us the culpe: but forsoth the peine dwelleth with us as to temptation, which peine hight concupiscence. This concupiscence, whan it is wrongfully disposed or ordeined in man, it maketh him coveit, by coveitise of flesh, fleshly sinne by sight of his eyen, as to erthly thinges, and also coveitise of highnesse by pride of herte.

For lo,

Now as to speke of the first coveitise, that is concupiscence, after the lawe of our membres, that were lawfully ymaked, and by rightful jugement of God, I say, for as moche as a man is not obeisant to God, that is his Lord, therfore is his herte to him disobeisant thurgh concupiscence, which is called nourishing of sinne, and occasion of sinne. Therfore, all the while that a man hath within him the peine of concupiscence, it is impossible, but he be tempted somtime, and moved in his flesh to sinne. And this thing may not faile, as long as he liveth. It may wel waxe feble by vertue of Baptisme, and by the grace of God thurgh penitence; but fully ne shal it never quenche, that he ne shal somtime be meved in himselfe, but if he were refreined by sikenesse, or malefice of sorcerie, or cold drinkes. what sayth Seint Poule? the flesh coveiteth ayenst the spirit, and the spirit ayenst the flesh they ben so contrarie and so striven, that a man may not alway do as he wold. The same Seint Poule, after his gret penance, in water and in lond; in water by night and by day, in gret peril, and in gret peine; in lond, in grete famine and thurst, cold and clothles, and ones stoned almost to deth; yet sayd he, alas! I caitif man, who shal deliver me fro the prison of my caitif body? And Seint Jerom, whan he long time had dwelled in desert, wheras he had no compagnie but of wilde bestes; wher as he had no mete but herbes, and water to his drinke, ne no bed but the naked erth, wherfore his flesh was black, as an Ethiopian, for hete, and nie destroyed for cold: yet sayd he, that the brenning of lecherie boiled in all his body. Wher fore I wot wel sikerly that they be deceived that say, they be not tempted in hir bodies. Witnesse Seint James that said, that every wight is tempted in his owen conscience; that is to say, that eche of us hath mater and occasion to be tempted of the norishing of sinne, that is in his body. And

therfore sayth Seint John the Evangelist: if we say that we ben without sinne, we deceive ourself, and truth is not in us.

Now shul ye understonde, in what maner sinne wexeth and encreseth in man. The first thing is that nourishing of sinne, of which I spake before, that is concupiscence and after that cometh suggestion of the divel, this is to say, the divels belous, with which he bloweth in man the fire of concupiscence and after that a man bethinketh him, whether he wol do or no that thing to which he is tempted. And than if a man withstond and weive the first entising of his flesh, and of the fend, than it is no sinne and if so be he do not, than feleth he anon a flame of delit, and than it is good to beware and kepe him wel, or elles he wol fall anon to consenting of sinne, and than wol he do it, if he may have time and place. And of this mater sayth Moyses by the devil, in this maner: the fend sayth, I wol chace and pursue man by wicked suggestion, and I wol hent him by meving and stirring of sinne, and I wol depart my pris, or my prey, by deliberation, and my lust shal be accomplised in delit; I wol draw my swerd in consenting: (for certes, right as a swerd departeth a thing in two peces, right so consenting departeth God fro man) and than wol I sle him with my hond in dede of sinne. Thus sayth the fend; for certes, than is a man al ded in soule; and thus is sinne accomplised, by temptation, by delit, and by consenting: and than is the sinne actuel.

Forsoth sinne is in two maners, either it is venial, or dedly sinne. Sothly, whan a man loveth any creature more than Jesu Crist our creatour, than it is dedly sinne and venial sinne it is, if a man love Jesu Crist lesse than him ought. Forsoth the dede of this venial sinne is ful perilous, for it amenuseth the love that man shuld have to God, more and more. And therfore if a man charge himself with many swiche venial sinnes, certes, but if so be that he somtime discharge him of hem by shrift, they may wel lightly amenuse in him all the love that he hath to Jesu Crist and in this wise skippeth venial sinne into dedly sinne. For certes, the more that a man chargeth his soule with venial sinnes, the more he is enclined to fall into dedly sinne. And therfore let us not be negligent to discharge us of venial sinnes. For the proverbe sayth, that many smal maken a gret. And herken this ensample: A gret wawe of the see cometh somtime with so gret a violence, that it drencheth the ship: and the same harme do somtime the smal dropes of water, that enteren thurgh a litel crevis in the thurrok, and in the botom of the ship, if men ben so negligent, that they discharge hem not by time. And therfore although ther be difference betwix thise two canses of drenching, algates the ship is dreint. Right so fareth it somtime of dedly sinne, and of anoious venial sinnes, whan they multiplie in man so gretly, that thilke worldly thinges that he loveth, thurgh which he sinneth venially, is as gret in his herte as the love of God, or more: and therfore the love of every thing that is not beset in God, ne don principally for Goddes sake, although that a man love it lesse than God, yet is it venial sinne; and dedly sinne is, whan the love of any thing weigheth in the herte of man, as moche as the love of God, or more. Dedly sinne, as sayth Seint Augustine, is, whan a man tourneth his

herte fro God, whiche that is veray soveraine bountee, that may not chaunge, and yeveth his herte to thing that may chaunge and flitte: and certes, that is every thing save God of heven. For soth is, that if a man yeve his love, which that he oweth to God with all his herte, unto a creature, certes, as moche of his love as he yeveth to the same creature, so moche he bereveth fro God, and therfore doth he sinne: for he, that is dettour to God, ne yeldeth not to God all his dette, that is to sayn, all the love of his herte.

Now sith man understondeth generally, which is venial sinne, than is it covenable to tell specially or sinnes, whiche that many a man peraventure demeth hem no sinnes, and shriveth him not of the same, and yet natheles they be sinnes sothly, as thise clerkes writen; this is to say, at every tyme that man eteth and drinketh more than sufficeth to the sustenance of his body, in certain he doth sinne; eke whan he speketli more than it nedeth, he doth sinne; eke whan he herkeneth not benignely the complaint of the poure; eke whan he is in hele of body, and wol not fast whan other folk fast, without cause resonable; eke whan he slepeth more than nedeth, or whan he cometh by that encheson to late to chirche, or to other werkes of charitee; eke whan he useth his wif withouten soveraine desire of engendrure, to the honour of God, or for the entent to yeld his wif his dette of his body; eke whan he wol not visite the sike, or the prisoner, if he may; eke if he love wif or child, or other worldly thing, more than reson requireth; eke if he flater or blandise more than him ought for any necessitee; eke if he amenuse or withdrawe the almesse of the poure; eke if he apparaile his mete more deliciously than nede is, or ete it to hastily by likerousnesse; eke if he talke vanitees in the chirche, or at Goddes service, or that he be a taler of idle wordes of foly or vilanie, for he shal yeld accomptes of it at the day of dome; eke whan he behighteth or assureth to don thinges that he may not perfourme; eke whan that he by lightnesse of foly missayeth or scorneth his neighbour; eke whan he hath ony wicked suspecion of thing, ther he ne wote of it no sothfastnesse : thise thinges and mo withouten nombre be sinnes, as sayth Seint Augustine. Now shul ye understonde, that al be it so that non erthly man may eschewe al venial sinnes, yet may he refreine him, by the brenning love that he hath to our Lord Jesu Crist, and by prayer and confession, and other good werkes, so that it shal but litel grieve. For as sayth Seint Augustine; if a man love God in swiche maner, that all that ever he doth is in the love of God, or for the love of God veraily, for he brenneth in the love of God, loke how moche that o drope of water, which falleth into a fourneis ful of fire, anoieth or greveth the brenning of the fire, in like maner anoieth or greveth a venial sinne unto that man, whiche is stedfast and parfite in the love of our Saviour Jesu Crist. Furthermore, men may also refreine and put away venial sinne, by receiving worthily the precious body of Jesu Crist; by receiving eke of holy water; by almes dede; by general confession of Confiteor at Masse, and at prime, and at complin, and by blessing of Bishoppes and Preestes, and by other good werkes.

De septem peccatis mortalibus.

Now it is behovely to tellen whiche ben dedly sinnes, that is to say, chiefetaines of sinnes; for as moche as all they ren in o lees, but in divers maners. Now ben they cleped chiefetaines, for as moche as they be chiefe, and of hem springen all

other sinnes. The rote of thise sinnes than is

pride, the general rote of all harmes. For of this rote springen certain braunches as ire, envie, accidie or slouthe, avarice or coveitise, (to commun understonding) glotonie, and lecherie : and eche of thise chief sinnes hath his braunches

and his twigges, as shal be declared in hir chapitres folowing.

De superbia.

And though so be, that no man knoweth utterly the nombre of the twigges, and of the harmes that comen of pride, yet wol I shew a partie of hem, as ye shul understond. Ther is inobedience, avaunting, ipocrisie, despit, arrogance, impudence, swelling of herte, insolence, elation, impatience, strif, contumacie, presumption, irreverence, pertinacie, vaine glorie, and many other twigges that I cannot declare. Inobedient is he that disobeyeth for despit to the commandements of God, and to his soveraines, and to his gostly fader. Avauntour, is he that bosteth of the harme or of the bountee that he hath don. Ipocrite, is he that hideth to shew him swiche as he is, and sheweth him to seme swiche as he is not. Despitous, is he that hath disdain of his neighebour, that is to sayn, of his even Cristen, or hath despit to do that him ought to do. Arrogant, is he that thinketh that he hath those bountees in him, that he hath not, or weneth that he shulde have hem by his deserving, or elles that demeth that he be that he is not. Impudent, is he that for his pride hath no shame of his sinnes. Swelling of herte, is whan man rejoyceth him of harme that he hath don. Insolent, is he that despiseth in his jugement all other folk, as in regarde of his value, of his conning, of his speking, and of his bering. Elation, is whan he ne may neither suffre to have maister ne felawe. Impatient, is he that wol not be taught, ne undernome of his vice, and by strif werrieth truth wetingly, and defendeth his foly. Contumar, is he that thurgh his indignation is ayenst every auctoritee or power of hem that ben his soveraines. Presumption, is whan a man undertaketh an emprise that him ought not to do, or elles that he may not do, and this is called surquidrie. Irreverence, is whan man doth not honour ther as him ought to do, and waiteth to be reverenced. Pertinacie, is whan man defendeth his foly, and trusteth to moche in his owen wit. Vaine-glorie, is for to have pompe, and delit in his temporel highnesse, and glorye him in his worldly estate. Jangling, is whan man speketh to moche before folk, and clappeth as a mille, and taketh no kepe what he sayth.

And yet ther is a privee spice of pride, that waiteth first to be salewed, or he wol salew, all be he lesse worthy than that other is; and eke he waiteth to sit, or to go above him in the way, or kisse the pax, or ben encensed, or gon to offring before his neighbour, and swiche semblable thinges, ayenst his duetee peraventure, but that

he hath his herte and his entente, in swiche a proude desire, to be magnified and honoured beforn the peple.

Now ben ther two maner of prides; that on of hem is within the herte of a man, and that other is without. Of swiche sothly thise foresayd thinges, and mo than I have sayd, apperteinen to pride, that is within the herte of man; and ther be other spices of pride that ben withouten: but natheles, that on of thise spices of pride is signe of that other, right as the gay levesell at the Taverne is signe of the win that is in the celler. And this is in many thinges: as in speche and certes, if ther had ben no siune in clothing, Crist contenance, and outragious array of clothing for wold not so sone have noted and spoken of the clothing of thilke rich man in the gospel. And, as Seint Gregory sayth, that precious clothing is culpable for the derthe of it, and for his softnesse, and for his strangenesse and disguising, and for the superfluitee, or for the inordinate scantnesse of it, alas! may not a man see as in our daies, the sinneful costlewe array of clothing, and namely in to moche superfluitee, or elles in to disordinate scantnesse ?

As to the firste sinne in superfluitee of clothing, whiche that maketh it so dere, to the harme of the peple, not only the coste of the enbrouding, the disguising, endenting, or barring, ounding, paling, winding, or bending, and semblable wast of cloth in vanitee; but ther is also the costlewe furring in hir gounes, so moche pounsoning of chesel to maken holes, so moche dagging of sheres, with the superfluitee in length of the foresaide gounes, trailing in the dong and in the myre, on hors and eke on foot, as wel of man as of woman, that all thilke trailing is veraly (as in effect) wasted, consumed, thredbare, and rotten with dong, rather than it is yeven to the poure, to gret damage of the foresayd poure folk, and that in sondry wise: this is to sayn, the more that cloth is wasted, the more must it cost to the poure peple for the scarcenesse; and furtherover, if so be that they wolden yeve swiche pounsoned and dagged clothing to the poure peple, it is not convenient to were for hir estate, ne suffisant to bote hir necessitee, to kepe hem fro the distemperance of the firmament. Upon that other side, to speke of the horrible disordinat scantnesse of clothing, as ben thise cutted sloppes or hanselines, that thurgh hir shortenesse cover not the shameful membres of man, to wicked entente; alas ! som of hem shewen the bosse and the shape of the horrible swollen membres, that semen like to the maladie of Hernia, in the wrapping of hir hosen, and cke the buttokkes of hem behinde, that faren as it were the hinder part of a she ape in the ful of the mone. And moreover the wretched swollen membres that they shew thurgh dis guising, in departing of hir hosen in white and rede, semeth that half hir shameful privee membres were flaine. And if so be that they departe hir hosen in other colours, as is white and blewe, or white and blake, or blake and rede, and so forth; than semeth it, as by variance of colour, that the half part of hir privee membres ben corrupt by the fire of Seint Anthonie, or by cancre, or other swiche mischance. Of the hinder part of hir buttokkes it is ful horrible for to see, for certes in that partie of hir body ther as they

purgen hir stinking ordure, that foule partie shewe they to the peple proudely in despite of honestee, whiche honestee that Jesu Crist and his frendes observed to shewe in hir lif. Now as to the outrageous array of women, God wote, that though the visages of som of hem semen ful chaste and debonaire, yet notifien they, in hir array of attire, likerousnesse and pride. I say not that honestee in clothing of man or woman is uncovenable, but certes the superfluitee or disordinat scarcitee of clothing is reprevable. Also the sinne of ornament, or of apparaile, is in thinges that apperteine to riding, as in to many delicat hors, that ben holden for delit, that ben so faire, fatte, and costlewe; and also in many a vicious knave, that is susteined because of hem ; in curious harneis, as in sadles, cropers, peitrels, and bridles, covered with precious cloth and rich, barred and plated of gold and silver. For which God sayth by Zacharie the Prophet, I wol confounde the riders of swiche hors. These folke taken litel regard of the riding of Goddes sone of heven, and of his harneis, whan he rode upon the asse, and had non other harneis but the poure clothes of his disciples, ne we rede not that ever he rode on ony other beste. I speke this for the sinne of superfluitee, and not for honestee, whan reson it requireth. And moreover, certes pride is gretly notified in holding of gret meinie, whan they ben of litel profite or of right no profite, and namely whan that meinie is felonous and damageous to the peple by hardinesse of high lordeship, or by way of office; for certes, swiche lordes sell than hir lordeship to the Devil of helle, whan they susteine the wickednesse of hir meinie. Or elles, whan thise folk of low degree, as they that holden hostelries, susteinen thefte of hir hostellers, and that is in many maner of deceites : thilke maner of folk ben the flies that folowen the hony, or elles the houndes that folowen the caraine. Swiche foresayde folk stranglen spirituelly hir lordeshipes; for which thus saith David the Prophet; wicked deth mot come unto thilke lordeshipes, and God yeve that they mot descend into helle, all doun; for in hir houses is iniquitee and shrewednesse, and not God of heven. And certes, but if they don amendement, right as God yave his benison to Laban by the service of Jacob, and to Pharao by the service of Joseph, right so God wol yeve his malison to swiche lordeshipes as susteine the wickednesse of hir servants, but they come to amendement. Pride of the table appereth eke ful oft; for certes riche men be cleped to festes, and poure folk be put away and rebuked; and also in excesse of divers metes and drinkes, and namely swiche maner bake metes and dishe metes brenning of wilde fire, and peinted and castelled with paper, and semblable wast, so that it is abusion to thinke. And eke in to gret preciousnesse of vessell, and curiositee of minstralcie, by which a man is stirred more to the delites of luxurie, if so be that he sette his herte the lesse upon oure Lord Jesu Crist, it is a sinne; and certainely the delites might ben so gret in this cas, that a man might lightly fall by hem into dedly sinne. The spices that sourden of pride, sothly whan they sourden of malice imagined, avised, and forecaste, or elles of usage, ben dedly sinnes, it is no doute. And whan they sourden by freeltee unavised sodenly, and sodenly

withdraw again, al be they grevous sinnes, I gesse that they be not dedly. Now might men aske, wherof that pride sourdeth and springeth. I say that somtime it springeth of the goodes of nature, somtime of the goodes of fortune, and somtime of the goodes of grace. Certes the goodes of nature stonden only in the goodes of the body, or of the soule. Certes, the goodes of the body ben hele of body, strength, delivernesse, beautee, gentrie, franchise; the goodes of nature of the soule ben good wit, sharpe understonding, subtil engine, vertue naturel, good memorie: goodes of fortune ben riches, high degrees of lordshipes, and preisinges of the peple: goodes of grace ben science, power to suffre spirituel travaile, benignitee, vertuous contemplation, withstonding of temptation, and semblable thinges of which foresayd goodes, certes it is a gret folie, a man to priden him in ony of hem all. Now as for to speke of goodes of nature, God wote that somtime we have hem in nature as moche to our damage as to our profite. As for to speke of hele of body, trewely it passeth ful lightly, and also it is ful ofte encheson of sikenesse of the soule for God wote, the flesh is a gret enemy to the soule and therfore the more that the body is hole, the more be we in peril to falle. Eke for to priden him in his strength of body, it is a grete folie for certes the flesh coveiteth ayenst the spirite and ever the more strong that the flesh is, the sorier may the soule be: and over all, this strength of body, and worldly hardinesse, causeth ful oft to many man peril and mischance. Also to have pride of gentrie is right gret folie : for oft time the gentrie of the body benimeth the gentrie of the soule and also we ben all of o fader and of o moder: and all we ben of o nature rotten and corrupt, both riche and poure. Forsoth o maner gentrie is for to preise, that appareilleth mannes corage with vertues and moralitees, and maketh him Cristes child; for trusteth wel, that over what man that sinne hath maistrie, he is a veray cherl to sinne.

Now ben ther general signes of gentilnesse; as eschewing of vice and ribaudrie, and servage of sinne, in word, and in werk and contenance, and using vertue, as courtesie, and clenenesse, and to be liberal; that is to say, large by mesure; for thilke that passeth mesure, is folie and sinne. Another is to remember him of bountee, that he of other folk hath received. Another is to be benigne to his subgettes; wherfore saith Seneke; ther is nothing more covenable to a man of high estate, than debonairtee and pitee: and therfore thise flies that men clepen bees, whan they make hir king, they chesen on that hath no pricke, wherwith he may sting. Another is, man to have a noble herte and a diligent, to atteine to high vertuous thinges. Now certes, a man to priden him in the goodes of grace, is eke an outrageous folie: for thilke yeftes of grace that shuld have tourned him to goodnesse, and to medicine, tourneth him to venime and confusion, as sayth Seint Gregorie. Certes also, who so prideth him in the goodnesse of fortune, he is a gret fool: for somtime is a man a gret lord by the morwe, that is a caitife and a wretch or it be night and somtime the richesse of a man is cause of his deth: and somtime the delites of a man ben cause of grevous maladie, thurgh which he dieth. Certes, the commendation of the peple is ful false and brotel for to trust; this