The Purification of Mary

Symeon
Mightfull god, thou vs glad!1
That heuen and erthe and all has mayde;2
Bryng vs to blys that neuer shall fade,3
As thou well may;4
And thynk on me that is vnweld-5
lo! so I hobyll all on held,6
That vnethes may I walk for eld-7
Now help, lord, adonay!8
Bot yit I meruell, both euyn and morne,9
Of old, elders that were beforne,10
wheder thay be safe or lorne,11
where thay may be;12
Abell, noye, and abraham,13
Dauid, daniell, and balaam,14
And all othere mo by name,15
Of sere degre.16
I thank the, lord, with good intent,17
Of all thy sond thou has me sent,18
That thus long tyme my lyfe has lent,19
Now many a yere;20
ffor all ar past now oonly bot I;21
I thank the, lord god almyghty!22
ffor so old, know I none, sothly,23
Now lyfyng here.24
ffor I am old symeon:25
So old on lyfe know I none,26
That is mayde on flesh and bone,27
In all medyll-erd.28
No wonder if I go on held:29
The feuyrs, the flyx, make me vnweld;30
Myn armes, my lymmes, ar stark for eld,31
And all gray is my berd.32
Myn ees are woren both marke and blynd;33
Myn and is short, I want wynd;34
Thus has age dystroed my kynd,35
And reft myghtis all;36
Bot shortly mon I weynd away;37
what tyme ne when, I can not say,38
ffor it is gone full many a day39
Syn dede began to call.40
Ther is no warke that I may wyrk,41
Bot oneths crall I to the kyrk;42
Be I com home I am so irk43
That farther may I noght;44
Bot settys me downe, and grankys, and gronys,45
And lygys and restys my wery bonys,46
And all nyght after grankys and goonys,47
On slepe tyll I be broght.48
Bot neuer the les, the sothe to say,49
If I may nather, by nyght ne day,50
ffor age nather styr ne play,51
Nor make no chere,52
yit if I be neuer so old,53
I myn full well that prophetys told,54
That now ar dede and layde full cold,55
Sythen gone many a yere.56
Thay sayde that god, full of myght,57
Shuld, send his son from heuen bright,58
In a madyn for to light,59
Commen of dauid kyn;60
fflesh and bloode on hyr to take,61
And becom man for oure sake,62
Our redempcyon for to make,63
That slayn were thrugh syn.64
Bot, lord, that vs thy grace has hight,65
Send me thy sond, both day and nyght,66
And graunt me grace of lyfys light,67
And let me neuer de,68
To thou sich grace to me send,69
That I may handyll hym in my hend,70
That shall cum oure mys to amend,71
And se hym with myn ee.72
Primus Angelus
Thou, symeon, drede the noght!73
My lord, that thou has long besoght,74
ffor thou has rightwys beyn,75
Thyn askyng has he grauntyd the,76
with outen dede on lyfe to be77
To thou thy cryst haue seyn.78
Secundus Angelus
Than symeon, harkyn a space!79
I bryng the tythyngys of solace;80
ffor-thy, ryse vp and gang81
To the temple; thou shall fynd thore82
Godys son the before,83
That thou has yernyd lang.84
Symeon
Louyd be my lord, in wyll and thoght,85
That his seruant forgettys noght,86
when that he seys tyme!87
well is me that I shall dre88
Tyll I haue sene hym with myn ee,89
And no longer hyne.90
Louyd be my lord in heuen,91
That thus has by his angell steuen92
warnyd me of his commyng!93
Therfor will I with intent94
putt on me my vestment,95
In worship of that kyng.96
he shalbe welcom vnto me:97
That lord shall make vs alle fre,98
kyng of all man-kyn;99
ffor with his blood he shall vs boroo100
Both fro catyfdam & from soroo,101
That was slayn thrugh syn.102
A, dere god! what may this be?103
Oure bellys ryng so solemply,104
ffor whom soeuer it is;105
Now certys, I can not vnderstand,106
Bot if my lord god all weldand107
Be commen, that all shall wyse.108
This noyse lyghtyns full well myn hart!109
Shall I neuer rest, and I haue quart,110
Or I com ther onone;111
Now well were I and it so were,112
ffor sich noyse hard I neuer ere;113
Oure bellys ryng by thare oone!114
Joseph
Mary, it begynnys to pas,115
ffourty dayes syn that thou was116
Delyuer of thy son;117
To the temple I red we draw,118
To clens the, and fulfyll the law,119
As oure elders were won.120
Therfor, mary, madyn heynd,121
Take thi chyld, and let vs weynd122
The tempyll vntyll;123
And we shall with vs bryng124
Thise turtyls two to oure offryng,125
The law we will fulfyll.126
Mary
Ioseph, that wyll I full well,127
That the law euery deyll128
Be fulfyllyd in me.129
Lord, that all myghtys may,130
Gyf vs grace to do this day131
That it be pleassyng to the!132
Primus Angelus
Thou, symeon, rightwys and trew,133
Thou has desyred both old and new,134
To haue a sight of cryst ihesu135
As prophecy has told!136
Oft has thou prayd to haue a sight137
Of hym that in a madyn light;138
here is that chyld of mekyll myght,139
Now has thou that thou wold.140
Secundus Angelus
Thou has desyryd it most of all.141


2022 Jan 21  20:05:23