I wol you tell a litel Tale in profe

To knitte up all this fefte and make an ende;
And Jefu for his grace wit me fende

To fhewen you the way in this viage
Of hilke parfit glorious pilgrimage
"That hight Jerufalem celeftial:
And if ye vouchefauf anon I fhal

17360

Beginne upon my Tale, for which I pray

'Tell your avis; I can no better fay.

17365

But natheles this meditation

I put it ay under correction

Of clerkes, for I am not textuel:

I take but the fentence, trusteth me wel:

'Therfore I make a proteftation

17370

That I wol ftanden to correction.

Upon this word we han affented fone; For as us femed it was for to don,

To enden in fom vertuous fentence,
And for to yeve him space and audience,
And hade our Hofte he fulde to him fay
That alle we to tell Kis Tale him pray.

17375

Our Hofe had the wordes for us alle:

Sire Preeft, quod he, now faire you befalle;

perly enough applied to the metre ufcd in the Ormulum, (See the Fay, 'c. n. 52,] but no work of Chaucer in any fuch metre, without rhyme, has come within my obfervation.

. 17378. Bid the wordes] This is a French phrafe: it is applied to the Speaker of the Commons in Rot. Parl. 51, E. III. 1. 87.; Monf. Thomas de Hungerford, Chivaler, qi annit starcles purles Communes d'Angleterre en ceft Parle"ment,"

Say what you lift, and we fhul gladly here.
And with that word he faid in this manere;
Telleth, quod he, your meditatioun,
But hafteth you, the fonne wol adoun:
Beth fructuous, and that in litel space,
And to do wel God fende you his grace.

17380

17585

THE PERSONES TALE. OUR fwete Lord God of heven, that no man wel perish, but wol that we comen all to the knowleching of him, and to the blisful lif that is pardurable, amonefteth us by the prophet Jeremie, that fayth in this wife, Stondeth upon the wayes, and seeth and axeth of the olde pathes, that is to fay, of olde fentences, which is the good way, and walketh in that way, and ye fhul finde refreshing for your foules. Many ben the wayes fpirituel that leden folk to our Lord Jefu Crift and to the regne of glory, of which wayes ther is a ful noble way, and wel covenable, which may not faille to man ne to woman that thurgh finne hath mifgon fro the right way of Jerufalem celeftial, and this way is cleped Penance, of which man shuld gladly herken and enqueren with all his herte, to wete what is penance, and whennes it is cleped penance, and how many maneres ben of actions or werkings of penance, and how

The Perfones Tale] Jerem. vi. ; “ State fuper vias, et videte, "et interrogate de femitis antiquis, quæ fit via bona, et ambu"late in eâ: et invenietis refrigerium animabus veftris." Urry.

many fpices ther ben of penance, and which thinges apnerteiuen and behoven to penance, and which thinges diftroublen penance.

Seint Ambrofe fayth that penance is the plaining of man for the gilt that he hath don, and no more to do any thing for which him ought to plaine: and fom do&our fayth, Penance is the waymenting of man that forweth for his finne, and peineth himfelf for he hath mildon. Penance with certain circumftances is veray repentance of man, that holdeth himfelf in forwe and other peine for his giltes; and for he shal be veray penitent he fhal firft bewailen the finnes that he hath don, and fedfatly purpofen in his herte to have fhrift of mouth, and to don fatisfa&tion, and never to don thing for which him ought more to bewayle or complaine, and to continue in good werkes, or elles his repentance may not availe: for, as Seint Ifidor fayth, He is a japer and a gabber, and not very repentant, that eftfones doth thing for which him oweth to repent. Weping, and not for to stint to do finne, may not availe. But natheles men fhuld hope that at every time that man falleth, be it never so oft, that he may arise thurgh penance, if he have grace; but certain it is gret doute; for, as faith Seint Gregorie, Unnethes arifeth he out of finne that is charged with the charge of evil ufage: and therfore repentant folk, that stint for to finne, and forlete finne or that finne forlete hem*, holy chirche

* forlete finne or that finne forlete bem] The fame thought

holdeth hem fiker of hir falvation: and he that finneth and veraily repenteth him in his last day holy chirche yet hopeth his salvation, by the grete mercy of our Lord Jefu Crift, for his repentance: but take ye the fiker and certain way.

And now fith I have declared you what thing is pe nance, now ye fhul understond that ther ben three actions of penance. The first is, that a man be baptifed after that he hath finned. Seint Auguftine fayth, But he be penitent for his old finful lif he may not beginne the newe clene lif; for certes if he be baptised without penitence of his old gilt he receiveth the marke of baptifme, but not the grace ne the remiffion of his finnes til he have very repentance. Another defaute is, that men don dedly finne after that they have received baptifme. The thridde defaute is, that men fall in venial finties after hir baptisme fro day to day: therof fayth Seint Augustin that penance of good and humble folk is the penance of every day.

The fpices of penance ben three. That on of hem is folempne, another is commune, and the thridde privee. Thilke penance that is folempne is in two maneres, as to be put out of holy chirche in lenton, for flaughter of children, and swiche maner thing: another is whan a man hath finned openly, of which finne the fame is openly spoken in the contree, and

occurs, by way of precept, at the end of The Doctour's Tale, Ver. 12220.;

For faketh finne or finne you forfake,

than holy chirche by jugement diftreyneth him for to do open penance: commun penance is that preeftes enjoinen men in certain cas, as for to go paraventure naked on pilgrimage or bare foot: privee penance is thilke that men don all day for privee finnes, of which we fhrive us prively, and receive privee penance.

Now fhalt thou understond what is behoveful and neceffary to every parfit penance; and this stont on three thinges, contrition of herte, confession of mouth, and fatisfaction; for which fayth Seint John Chrisoftome, Penance diftreineth a man to accept benignely every peine that him is enjoined with contrition of herte, and fhrift of mouth, with fatisfaction,and werking of all maner humilitee. And this is fruitful penance ayenft tho three thinges in which we wrathen our Lord Jefu Crift; this is to fay, by delit in thinking, by rechelesneffe in fpeking, and by wicked finful werking: and ayenft thise wicked giltes is penance, that may be likened unto a tree.

The rote of this tree is contrition, that hideth him in the herte of him that is veray repentant, right as the rote of the tree hideth him in the erthe. Of this rote of contrition fpringeth a falke that bereth branches and leves of confeflion, and fruit of fatisfaction; of which Crift fayth in his Gospell, Doth ye digne fruit of penitence, for by this fruit mow men understonde and knowe this tree, and not by the rote that is hid in the herte of man, ne by the branches, ne the leves of