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第118章

confessio amantis-第118章

小说: confessio amantis 字数: 每页4000字

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Nou schalt thou drinken al thi fille。〃
And thus onliche of goddes wille;
He which that wolde himselve strange
To Pite; fond mercy so strange;
That he withoute grace is lore。
So may it schewe wel therfore
That crualte hath no good ende;
Bot Pite; hou so that it wende;    3520
Makth that the god is merciable;
If ther be cause resonable
Why that a king schal be pitous。
Bot elles; if he be doubtous
To slen in cause of rihtwisnesse;
It mai be said no Pitousnesse;
Bot it is Pusillamite;
Which every Prince scholde flee。
For if Pite mesure excede;
Kinghode may noght wel procede  3530
To do justice upon the riht:
For it belongeth to a knyht
Als gladly forto fihte as reste;
To sette his liege poeple in reste;
Whan that the werre upon hem falleth;
For thanne he mote; as it befalleth;
Of his knyhthode as a Leon
Be to the poeple a champioun
Withouten eny Pite feigned。
For if manhode be restreigned;  3540
Or be it pes or be it werre;
Justice goth al out of herre;
So that knyhthode is set behinde。
Of Aristotles lore I finde;
A king schal make good visage;
That noman knowe of his corage
Bot al honour and worthinesse:
For if a king schal upon gesse
Withoute verrai cause drede;
He mai be lich to that I rede;  3550
And thogh that it be lich a fable;
Thensample is good and resonable。
As it be olde daies fell;
I rede whilom that an hell
Up in the londes of Archade
A wonder dredful noise made;
For so it fell that ilke day;
This hell on his childinge lay;
And whan the throwes on him come;
His noise lich the day of dome  3560
Was ferfull in a mannes thoght
Of thing which that thei sihe noght;
Bot wel thei herden al aboute
The noise; of which thei were in doute;
As thei that wenden to be lore
Of thing which thanne was unbore。
The nerr this hell was upon chance
To taken his deliverance;
The more unbuxomliche he cride;
And every man was fledd aside;  3570
For drede and lefte his oghne hous:
And ate laste it was a Mous;
The which was bore and to norrice
Betake; and tho thei hield hem nyce;
For thei withoute cause dradde。
Thus if a king his herte ladde
With every thing that he schal hiere;
Fulofte he scholde change his chiere
And upon fantasie drede;
Whan that ther is no cause of drede。  3580
Orace to his Prince tolde;
That him were levere that he wolde
Upon knihthode Achillem suie
In time of werre; thanne eschuie;
So as Tersites dede at Troie。
Achilles al his hole joie
Sette upon Armes forto fihte;
Tersites soghte al that he myhte
Unarmed forto stonde in reste:
Bot of the tuo it was the beste    3590
That Achilles upon the nede
Hath do; wherof his knyhtlihiede
Is yit comended overal。
King Salomon in special
Seith; as ther is a time of pes;
So is a time natheles
Of werre; in which a Prince algate
Schal for the comun riht debate
And for his oghne worschipe eke。
Bot it behoveth noght to seke    3600
Only the werre for worschipe;
Bot to the riht of his lordschipe;
Which he is holde to defende;
Mote every worthi Prince entende。
Betwen the simplesce of Pite
And the folhaste of crualte;
Wher stant the verray hardiesce;
Ther mote a king his herte adresce;
Whanne it is time to forsake;
And whan time is also to take   3610
The dedly werres upon honde;
That he schal for no drede wonde;
If rihtwisnesse be withal。
For god is myhty overal
To forthren every mannes trowthe;
Bot it be thurgh his oghne slowthe;
And namely the kinges nede
It mai noght faile forto spede;
For he stant one for hem alle;
So mote it wel the betre falle  3620
And wel the more god favoureth;
Whan he the comun riht socoureth。
And forto se the sothe in dede;
Behold the bible and thou myht rede
Of grete ensamples manyon;
Wherof that I wol tellen on。
Upon a time as it befell;
Ayein Judee and Irahel
Whan sondri kinges come were
In pourpos to destruie there    3630
The poeple which god kepte tho;…
And stod in thilke daies so;
That Gedeon; which scholde lede
The goddes folk; tok him to rede;
And sende in al the lond aboute;
Til he assembled hath a route
With thritti thousend of defence;
To fihte and make resistence
Ayein the whiche hem wolde assaille:
And natheles that o bataille    3640
Of thre that weren enemys
Was double mor than was al his;
Wherof that Gedeon him dradde;
That he so litel poeple hadde。
Bot he which alle thing mai helpe;
Wher that ther lacketh mannes helpe;
To Gedeon his Angel sente;
And bad; er that he forther wente;
Al openly that he do crie
That every man in his partie    3650
Which wolde after his oghne wille
In his delice abide stille
At hom in eny maner wise;
For pourchas or for covoitise;
For lust of love or lacke of herte;
He scholde noght aboute sterte;
Bot holde him stille at hom in pes:
Wherof upon the morwe he les
Wel twenty thousend men and mo;
The whiche after the cri ben go。   3660
Thus was with him bot only left
The thridde part; and yit god eft
His Angel sende and seide this
To Gedeon: 〃If it so is
That I thin help schal undertake;
Thou schalt yit lasse poeple take;
Be whom mi will is that thou spede。
Forthi tomorwe tak good hiede;
Unto the flod whan ye be come;
What man that hath the water nome  3670
Up in his hond and lapeth so;
To thi part ches out alle tho;
And him which wery is to swinke;
Upon his wombe and lith to drinke;
Forsak and put hem alle aweie。
For I am myhti alle weie;
Wher as me list myn help to schewe
In goode men; thogh thei ben fewe。〃
This Gedeon awaiteth wel;
Upon the morwe and everydel;    3680
As god him bad; riht so he dede。
And thus ther leften in that stede
With him thre hundred and nomo;
The remenant was al ago:
Wherof that Gedeon merveileth;
And therupon with god conseileth;
Pleignende as ferforth as he dar。
And god; which wolde he were war
That he schal spede upon his riht;
Hath bede him go the same nyht  3690
And take a man with him; to hiere
What schal be spoke in his matere
Among the hethen enemis;
So mai he be the more wys;
What afterward him schal befalle。
This Gedeon amonges alle
Phara; to whom he triste most;
Be nyhte tok toward thilke host;
Which logged was in a valleie;
To hiere what thei wolden seie;    3700
Upon his fot and as he ferde;
Tuo Sarazins spekende he herde。
Quod on; 〃Ared mi swevene ariht;
Which I mette in mi slep to nyht。
Me thoghte I sih a barli cake;
Which fro the Hull his weie hath take;
And cam rollende doun at ones;
And as it were for the nones;
Forth in his cours so as it ran;
The kinges tente of Madian;   3710
Of Amalech; of Amoreie;
Of Amon and of Jebuseie;
And many an other tente mo
With gret noise; as me thoghte tho;
It threw to grounde and overcaste;
And al this host so sore agaste
That I awok for pure drede。〃
〃This swevene can I wel arede;〃
Quod thother Sarazin anon:
〃The barli cake is Gedeon;   3720
Which fro the hell doun sodeinly
Schal come and sette such ascry
Upon the kinges and ous bothe;
That it schal to ous alle lothe:
For in such drede he schal ous bringe;
That if we hadden flyht of wynge;
The weie on fote in desespeir
We scholden leve and flen in their;
For ther schal nothing him withstonde。〃
Whan Gedeon hath understonde    3730
This tale; he thonketh god of al;
And priveliche ayein he stal;
So that no lif him hath perceived。
And thanne he hath fulli conceived
That he schal spede; and therupon
The nyht suiende he schop to gon
This multitude to assaile。
Nou schalt thou hiere a gret mervaile;
With what voisdie that he wroghte。
The litel poeple which he broghte;    3740
Was non of hem that he ne hath
A pot of erthe; in which he tath
A lyht brennende in a kressette;
And ech of hem ek a trompette
Bar in his other hond beside;
And thus upon the nyhtes tyde
Duk Gedeon; whan it was derk;
Ordeineth him unto his werk;
And parteth thanne his folk in thre;
And chargeth hem that thei ne fle;    3750
And tawhte hem hou they scholde ascrie
Alle in o vois per compaignie;
And what word ek thei scholden speke;
And hou thei scholde here pottes breke
Echon with other; whan thei herde
That he himselve ferst so ferde;
For whan thei come into the stede;
He bad hem do riht as he dede。
And thus stalkende forth a pas
This noble Duk; whan time was;  3760
His pot tobrak and loude ascride;

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