fol. 80v (cont.)I
Passus
xvus
Passus
xvusxv[j]usquintus
decimus[sextus] decimus . de
visione vt supra . —
—
R.16.4KD.16.4
¶ It is a ful trie tre quod he treutheR.16.4:
This is an alpha variant. Beta reads trewly. to telle .
fol. 81rI
Agite
penitenciam
¶ I wolde trauaile quod I þis tre to se
twenty hundreth mile . .R.16.10: In the right margin, close to the text, an early reader has
added a gloss: Agite
penitenciam.
R.16.12KD.16.12
Lord quod I if any wiȝt wite
whoder-outR.16.12: R's whoder is a unique
form among the B manuscripts (which mainly attest whider) but is well-attested as a western form of that adverb (LALME, dot map 576). R's þat is probably an alpha form since F's
altered b-verse also attests its presence at approximately the same position but beta shows
no evidence of its presence.
þatR.16.12:
Beta omits þat. it groweth .
AndR.16.17:
And is an alpha variant unattested by beta witnesses. vnder peres
þe plowman to piken it and to weden it .
R.16.24KD.16.24
Peres quod IR.16.24: R's omission of the second I in this a-verse (immediately following the first one) is shared only with M.
preye þe whi stonden þise piles here .
¶ For wyndes wiltow wit quod he to kepenR.16.25:
R's non-alliterating stave-word is an alpha variant; in place of kepen,
beta reads witen. it fram fallynge .
R.16.28KD.16.27-28
Þe werld is a wikked wynde and crepeth amonge þe leues
.R.16.28:
Here alpha compressed two Bx lines into one, merging the a-verse of
KD16.27 with the b-verse of KD16.28. The missing b-verse and following a-verse, as witnessed
in beta, reads:
to hem þat willen treuthe
Coueityse cometh of þat wynde.
The C version also attests the authenticity of these verses omitted by alpha.
to hem þat willen treuthe
Coueityse cometh of þat wynde.
The C version also attests the authenticity of these verses omitted by alpha.
AndR.16.30:
R's And is unique among the B manuscripts but agrees
with Cx; beta begins the line with Þanne while F
omits both and shows a radically different version of the line. with þe furst pile
I palle hym doun þat is potencia dei patris .
WithR.16.38:
With is an alpha variant; beta reads Þorw.
preyeres and þoruȝ penaunces & godes passion in mynde .
R.16.40KD.16.40
And þanne fondeth fendeR.16.40:
R uniquely omits þe before fende. Cx agrees on this reading with the B majority. my
fruite to destruie .
m ijus
fol. 81vI
Bagbiteres brewe-chesteR.16.43: R's brewe-cheste is
unique; F shows & boosteris &; beta copies diverge, with CrWHm
reading breke þe cheste while LCGOC2YB have breke-cheste(s). brauleres and chideres .
Ac liberum
arbitrium letteth hemR.16.46: Most other B witnesses have the singular form here, correctly since the antecedent is
the fende of R16.40. Cr2-3 and Hm agree with R's
plural form. sum-tyme .
Ac whatR.16.50:
Alpha's what seems an obvious error (cf. beta's whan). þe fende and þe flesche forth with þe worlde .
R.16.52KD.16.50
Þanne liberum
arbitrium laccheth þe thridde
planke .R.16.52: The phrase thridde planke is from alpha (with L agreeing
on thridde). The majority beta phrase is firste
plante.
And palleth a-downe þe pouke
priuelicheR.16.53:
For alpha's priueliche, beta reads purelich.
þoruȝ grace .
¶ In priedeR.16.75:
Here the R scribe made a colossal mistake, misconstruing his exemplar's I
prayed, the Bx reading, as In pride. His
corrector notices the mistake and alters the noun with a supralinear <e>, but he
overlooks the need to correct the initial preposition, so that the "corrected" reading is
still nonsense. peres to pulle a-doune an
appel & he wolde .
fol. 82rI
AR.16.78:
R's A (= ModE "He"), though unique, agrees with Cx; F
has & anoon while beta reads And. wagged
wedew-hod and hit wepte after .
And whanne heR.16.79:
For alpha's he (presumably original), beta manuscripts read it. meued matrimonie it made a foule noyse .
Bare hem forth baldely no-body hem lette .R.16.85: Beta has letted, but Cx agrees with
alpha's reading.
Filius by þe faderesR.16.90:
RF are here joined by Cr (and agree with Cx); beta reads fader. wille and frenesse of spiritus sancti .
To go robbe þat rageman & reuendreuenR.16.91:
R's reuend is an error for beta's reue (cf. F's be-reve). The Cx reading, albeit in a revised line,
agrees with beta's. þe fruit fro hym .
R.16.92KD.16.90
¶ And þanne spake spiritus
sanctus in gabrielR.16.92:
This form is unique to R; the other B manuscripts read Gabrieles. The C manuscripts attest both forms (P2TH2Gc agreeing with R), but Cx clearly
supports the F/beta reading. mouthe .R.16.92: In the right margin opposite this text line,
there were two lines of a gloss, now erased, apparently in the same hand as a number of
others, including one on 94r.
Til plenitudo temporis tyme
I-comeR.16.95:
Alpha's reading probably was identical to R's tyme I-come rather than to F's tyme come it; beta reads fully comen. R's version agrees with Cx. were
.
And þanne schulde ihesus iuste þer-fore & byR.16.97: For R's & by (supported by most C
copies), the other B manuscripts read bi.
iugement of armes .
And peres þe plowman parseyued þeR.16.106: R's þe is a unique addition to this phrase as witnessed
by beta (parceyued plenere tyme). F has its own unique wording at this
point, parseyuede in þat plener tyme. plener
tyme .
m iijus
fol. 82vI
R.16.113: R
uniquely omits And at the head of this line. The C
version here confirms the accuracy of the majority B reading.
Comune wommen conuerted and to gode
turned .
Iewes Iangeled þere-aȝeyne þatR.16.123: For R's unique þat, F reads þo þat;
beta reads and. iuged lawes .
¶ Þanne ar ȝe cherles quod ihesusR.16.126: R's reading is unique; cf. F's crist and beta's ich / I. and ȝoure
childre bothe .
R.16.128KD.16.123
For I haue saued ȝow-selueR.16.128: Beta adds, at the end of the a-verse seith cryst. F
agrees with R in omitting the phrase. and ȝoure sones
after .
Enuye and euel wil arenR.16.142: R's aren is unique but outweighs the consensus of F and
the beta copies (which have was) on account of the latter's defective
alliteration. A majority of C manuscripts (= ern,
preterite of rennen) also support this reading. See Kane and Donaldson, p.
186, for discussion of the forms. in þe iewes .
Til it byfel on a friday a liteR.16.145: R's lite is unique; most other B
manuscripts read litel, supported by Cx. Cr1-2 show
little. be-fore pasche .
Þe thoresday be-fore þere
he made his cene .R.16.146: In place of alpha's cene, beta reads maundee.
fol. 83rI
Sittande at þe sopere andR.16.147: For R's and, F reads hym-selue and beta has he. seide þise
wordes .
R.16.148KD.16.142
I am solde þoruȝ summeR.16.148: This is an alpha variant; beta reads the non-alliterating one in place of summe. of ȝow he schal þe tyme
rewe .
It was hym-self sothely
and seyde tu dicis .R.16.151: In the right margin
opposite this line and extending down five lines to R16.156, there is an erased gloss,
apparently in the same hand as the long, erased note on 94r.
Aue rabi quod þat ribaude and riȝt
to hym he ȝodeR.16.157: R's ȝode is unique in form but not in sense; the
beta manuscripts have ȝede while F shows wente. .
And kest hym to ben cauȝt þer-by and kulde þoruȝR.16.158: Alpha's þoruȝ is replaced in beta by of. þe iewes .
R.16.160KD.16.154
Falsnesse ichR.16.160: R's ich is unique in form
but not in sense; the other B manuscripts (as well as those of the C version) have I or y. fynde
in þi faire speche .
Þouȝ I be treson be take andR.16.166: R's and is unique; cf. beta's at and
F's & þorgh. ȝoure owene wille .
Suffreth my postlesR.16.167: Only L joins R in this clipped form; all
other B manuscripts have Apostles. R and L are also
alone in reading the possessive as my where the other copies have myn. The C manuscripts are divided on this phrase, with
most of the X family supporting LR and most of the P family agreeing with the beta
majority. in pays and in pees gange .
Aȝeynes deth and þe deuel destruyde þere
beireR.16.173: According to OED2, s. v.
bo (a. and pron.) and both (a. and adv.), R's unique
form beire is a genitive plural form of bo (= "both").
So R's phrase, þere beire miȝtes, means the powers of
both of them. Beta has bother(es) while F rewrites the line.
miȝtes .
R.16.184KD.16.176
¶ I am feith quod þat freke it falleth
nauȝt meR.16.184: F transposes this phrase as falleþ me nowht; beta omits
me. In a revised line, the prevalent C reading
agrees with R's (though a minority of C witnesses read the phrase in F's
order). to lye .
Þat on doth alle doth and vchR.16.191: R's vch is unique in form but not in sense; OED2, s. v.
each (a., quasi-pron.), lists it as a viable form from twelfth-fifteenth
century Most other B manuscripts have ech(e).
doth by his one .
Wardan of þat wit hatR.16.195: R's hat is unique in form among the B manuscripts, but not in sense; OED2, s. v.
have, lists it as a viable fifteenth century form for the 3rd sing. pres.
of have. Most other B manuscripts read hath. was euer with-outen
gynnynge .
Þat alle þe liȝt of þe lifR.16.197: The syntactic confusion in this a-verse began in alpha, which omitted the
verb (cf. F's Þat al þe lyght & þe lyf). Beta witnesses read the full
line as Þe liȝte of alle þat lyf hath a londe & a watre.
a londe and a watere .
R.16.200KD.16.192
Miȝt and a mene toR.16.200: After to, R omits the verb knowe. This
line was already metrically defective in Bx, which appears to have read
as beta does: Myȝte and a mene to knowe his owne myȝte. Assuming
this shape for Bx, R's only additional deficit is the aforementioned
loss, which probably occurred in alpha. Cf. F's version of the line: Myght
& eek a meyne to his myght owiþ. The C version of this line
also seems metrically defective: Miȝte and a mene to se his owne
myhte. his owene miȝte .
So god þat gynnynge hadde nereR.16.202: R's nere is a unique form; the other manuscripts readneure. but þo hym gode thouȝte .
Patriarkes and prophetes and apostles
were þe barnes .R.16.206: Beta has chyldren in place of RF's barnes, and Cx agrees with beta's reading.
And crist and cristendom and alleR.16.207: Beta omits alle, as does the P family of C manuscripts; but the X family of C manuscripts agrees with RF,
including the word. cristene holy cherche .
R.16.208KD.16.200
In menynge þat man moste inR.16.208: This is an alpha variant (also attested in Cr); the other beta copies read
on. o god byleue .
R.16.212KD.16.204
In tokenynge of þe trinite was take out
of o manR.16.212: R's o man and beta's a man are both
enumerative and semantically identical, emphasizing that all three states of grace emanate
from "one man," while F seems to miss the point, reading mankynde.
.
S oppR.16.214: At the bottom margin of fol. 83v, near the gutter, in a brown secretary
hand, there is a pen trial: S opp.
fol. 84rI
John Sympson Smithe John John Sympson
William Joh
William Joh
And þatR.16.217: For alpha's þat, beta reads þus. is man-kende or manhode of
matrimonie spronge .R.16.217: In the extreme right margin there is some scribbling that
appears to be a continuation of the pen trials higher on the page, with the writer continuing
to practice the capital <S> of Sympson.
Deus meus deus meus vt quid
me dereliquisti .R.16.223: For R's me dereliquisti, the other B copies show a reversal: dereliquisti
me.
NotaR.16.225: To the right of the
nota, there is a symbol resembling a modern script capital <E>.
Ne naR.16.226: R's Ne is a unique addition to the text of Bx. more miȝte god be man but if he moder hadde .
Þus in thre persones is
parfitliche puirR.16.230: R's puir is unique (beta omits it while F reads þorghȝ); nevertheless, the metrical requirements of the line indicate
that puir is authentic. manhode .
Þat is man and his make & moillere
hereR.16.231: L agrees with RF, though the other beta copies omit here. childerne .
knak
¶ Thre men to my syȝte I made wel at ese .R.16.238: In
the right margin, an early reader has written knak vertically, beginning here and extending upwards in the margin to a spot
opposite R16.237.
Wesche here fete in[a]n[d] wiped hesR.16.239: R's hes is unique but is not a careless error. According
to OED2, s. v.
his, hise (pers. pron., 3rd sing. fem. acc.), this form is a
twelfth-fourteenth century variant of the 3rd person sing. accus., his(e),
which is equivalent to standard ME hem. MED, s. v.
netheren (v.) and God, cites an example from the
thirteenth-century Vices and Virtues (Bute hie hem seluen
neðerien..scal goddalmihtin hes forliesen — BL Stowe 34). and
afterwarde þei eten .
Ful trewe toknesse bitwene vs is to telle whan me
liketh .R.16.241: Someone after the R scribe had finished his
work has partially erased the <h> of liketh, but its remains are
still visible and recognizable.
Wyll ND
My-sulue and my mayneR.16.247: R's mayne is unique in form but not meaning; MED, s.
v.
meine, attests its viability as a spelling of meine for
the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries. F has meyghne. The beta manuscripts
show a variety of spellings, with a majority reading meyne(e). The C form is identical to R's. and al þat male
were .
My affiance and my fayR.16.249: R's fay is unique in form
but not meaning; MED, s. v.
feith, attests its viability as a spelling variant of feiþ for the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries. The C form, however,
is identical to that of the B majority. is ferme in þis
bileue .
fol. 84vI
And defende hem fro þe fende folke þat on me leuedR.16.258: Kane and Donaldson read R here as lened. .
R.16.268KD.16.255
And I loked on his lappe a laȝar lay
þere-Inne .R.16.268: Immediately following
the last word of this line, there is an indecipherable, tiny note written in a later hand,
accompanied by a small vertical bar.
Amonges patriarkes and prophetes pleyedeR.16.269: R's use of the preterite is unique in the B tradition
(a few copies of C attest a preterite here); most beta copies have pleyinge (which is also the reading of Cx); but cf. F's
pleyende and L's pleyande. These forms of the present
participle suggest that R's mistake may have amounted to nothing more than overlooking a
nasal bar in his copytext. to-gyderes .
¶ What a-waitest þow
quod he & what wildestowR.16.270: The other B copies show woldestow,
which is also the reading of a majority of C witnesses (primarily among
the P family). Many X family witnesses read wost thow. haue .
And me þere-with
quod þat weyeR.16.275:
Weye, "person, being, man." Beta has man.
may no wed vs quite .
R.16.276KD.16.263
Ne no buyrn ben oure boruȝ ne
brynge vs fram his daungere .R.16.276: Alpha omits the
following line attested by beta manuscripts (and in a slightly revised form by the C version):
Oute of þe poukes pondfolde no meynprise may vs fecche.
Oute of þe poukes pondfolde no meynprise may vs fecche.
fol. 85rI
¶ Allas thouȝte I þo þat is a longe a-bydynge . These three lines are from alpha. They are judged by
Kane-Donaldson as well as by Schmidt to be spurious. Kane-Donaldson hypothesize loss of the
authentic lines through similarity of line heads (KD16.270 = Allas I;
KD16.274 = I). This rationale seems unlikely and also depends on the
assumption that alpha later noticed the loss and generated the spurious lines as a
replacement. In reality, the alpha version of these lines was probably deliberate, motivated
by censorship of material deemed to be theologically dangerous (in beta, sin is said to be
able to hinder the might of God's mercy). Beta (as well as the C
version, in a slightly revised form) reads:
Allas I seyde þat synne so longe shal lette
Þe myȝte of goddes mercy þat myȝt vs alle amende
I wepte for his wordes with þat sawe I an other
Rapelich renne forth þe riȝte waye went.
The last of these four lines was omitted by alpha. The text of alpha is not entirely clear, since R differs significantly from F, which reads as follows:
Allas þowhte y þoo þat is a long a-bydynge
& oon on foote sewede hym for he softely wente
& he be-took hym þe targe as tyȝt trewly to me it telle.
Allas I seyde þat synne so longe shal lette
Þe myȝte of goddes mercy þat myȝt vs alle amende
I wepte for his wordes with þat sawe I an other
Rapelich renne forth þe riȝte waye went.
The last of these four lines was omitted by alpha. The text of alpha is not entirely clear, since R differs significantly from F, which reads as follows:
Allas þowhte y þoo þat is a long a-bydynge
& oon on foote sewede hym for he softely wente
& he be-took hym þe targe as tyȝt trewly to me it telle.
What he hiȝte and whider he wolde and whithlicheR.16.286: R's form here, whithliche, is unique in the B tradition but is
identical with the spelling found in Cx. Though the form is not
semantically distinctive, its occurrence in R is phonologically of interest and is likely a
relict. he tolde .