The Purification of Mary

Symeon
Mightfull god, thou vs glad!
That heuen and erthe and all has mayde;
Bryng vs to blys that neuer shall fade,
As thou well may;
And thynk on me that is vnweld-
lo! so I hobyll all on held,
That vnethes may I walk for eld-
Now help, lord, adonay!
Bot yit I meruell, both euyn and morne,
Of old, elders that were beforne,
wheder thay be safe or lorne,
where thay may be;
Abell, noye, and abraham,
Dauid, daniell, and balaam,
And all othere mo by name,
Of sere degre.
I thank the, lord, with good intent,
Of all thy sond thou has me sent,
That thus long tyme my lyfe has lent,
Now many a yere;
ffor all ar past now oonly bot I;
I thank the, lord god almyghty!
ffor so old, know I none, sothly,
Now lyfyng here.
ffor I am old symeon:
So old on lyfe know I none,
That is mayde on flesh and bone,
In all medyll-erd.
No wonder if I go on held:
The feuyrs, the flyx, make me vnweld;
Myn armes, my lymmes, ar stark for eld,
And all gray is my berd.
Myn ees are woren both marke and blynd;
Myn and is short, I want wynd;
Thus has age dystroed my kynd,
And reft myghtis all;
Bot shortly mon I weynd away;
what tyme ne when, I can not say,
ffor it is gone full many a day
Syn dede began to call.
Ther is no warke that I may wyrk,
Bot oneths crall I to the kyrk;
Be I com home I am so irk
That farther may I noght;
Bot settys me downe, and grankys, and gronys,
And lygys and restys my wery bonys,
And all nyght after grankys and goonys,
On slepe tyll I be broght.
Bot neuer the les, the sothe to say,
If I may nather, by nyght ne day,
ffor age nather styr ne play,
Nor make no chere,
yit if I be neuer so old,
I myn full well that prophetys told,
That now ar dede and layde full cold,
Sythen gone many a yere.
Thay sayde that god, full of myght,
Shuld, send his son from heuen bright,
In a madyn for to light,
Commen of dauid kyn;
fflesh and bloode on hyr to take,
And becom man for oure sake,
Our redempcyon for to make,
That slayn were thrugh syn.
Bot, lord, that vs thy grace has hight,
Send me thy sond, both day and nyght,
And graunt me grace of lyfys light,
And let me neuer de,
To thou sich grace to me send,
That I may handyll hym in my hend,
That shall cum oure mys to amend,
And se hym with myn ee.

Primus Angelus
Thou, symeon, drede the noght!
My lord, that thou has long besoght,
ffor thou has rightwys beyn,
Thyn askyng has he grauntyd the,
with outen dede on lyfe to be
To thou thy cryst haue seyn.

Secundus Angelus
Than symeon, harkyn a space!
I bryng the tythyngys of solace;
ffor-thy, ryse vp and gang
To the temple; thou shall fynd thore
Godys son the before,
That thou has yernyd lang.

Symeon
Louyd be my lord, in wyll and thoght,
That his seruant forgettys noght,
when that he seys tyme!
well is me that I shall dre
Tyll I haue sene hym with myn ee,
And no longer hyne.
Louyd be my lord in heuen,
That thus has by his angell steuen
warnyd me of his commyng!
Therfor will I with intent
putt on me my vestment,
In worship of that kyng.
he shalbe welcom vnto me:
That lord shall make vs alle fre,
kyng of all man-kyn;
ffor with his blood he shall vs boroo
Both fro catyfdam & from soroo,
That was slayn thrugh syn.
A, dere god! what may this be?
Oure bellys ryng so solemply,
ffor whom soeuer it is;
Now certys, I can not vnderstand,
Bot if my lord god all weldand
Be commen, that all shall wyse.
This noyse lyghtyns full well myn hart!
Shall I neuer rest, and I haue quart,
Or I com ther onone;
Now well were I and it so were,
ffor sich noyse hard I neuer ere;
Oure bellys ryng by thare oone!

Joseph
Mary, it begynnys to pas,
ffourty dayes syn that thou was
Delyuer of thy son;
To the temple I red we draw,
To clens the, and fulfyll the law,
As oure elders were won.
Therfor, mary, madyn heynd,
Take thi chyld, and let vs weynd
The tempyll vntyll;
And we shall with vs bryng
Thise turtyls two to oure offryng,
The law we will fulfyll.

Mary
Ioseph, that wyll I full well,
That the law euery deyll
Be fulfyllyd in me.
Lord, that all myghtys may,
Gyf vs grace to do this day
That it be pleassyng to the!

Primus Angelus
Thou, symeon, rightwys and trew,
Thou has desyred both old and new,
To haue a sight of cryst ihesu
As prophecy has told!
Oft has thou prayd to haue a sight
Of hym that in a madyn light;
here is that chyld of mekyll myght,
Now has thou that thou wold.

Secundus Angelus
Thou has desyryd it most of all.