DEUS Ego sum alpha et omega. principium et finis My name is known, God and king. My work for to make, now will I wend In myself rests my ruling, It has no beginning nor end, 5 And all that ever shall have being Are closed in my mind. When it is made to my joy I may it save, I may it destroy After my pleasure. 10 So great of might my power be All things shall be made by me I am one God in persons three Knit in one substance sure. I am the true Trinity 15 Here walking here alone. Three persons, myself I see Locked in me, God alone. Of power the father I be My son with me has begun, 20 My spirit is grace in majesty Who wields wealth up in heaven's throne One God in three I am called, I am father of might My son keeps the right 25 My spirit has the light And grace withall. Myself never did beginning take And endless I am through my own might Now will I begin my work to make. 30 First, I make heaven with stars of light In mirth and joy evermore to wake. In heaven I make Angels full bright My servants to be, and for my sake With mirth and melody worship my might 35 I make them in my bliss Angels in heaven ever more shall be In light full clear coloured they be With mirth and song to worship me Of joy they may not miss. 40
Here the angels sing, in heaven, part of the Te Deum: "Tibi omnes angeli tibi celi et universe potestates Tibi cherubim et seraphim incessabili voce proclamant Sanctus Sanctus Sanctus Dominus deus sabaoth."
LUCIFER To whose worship sing you this song? To worship God or reverance me? Unless you worship me, you do me wrong For I am the worthiest that ever may be. ANGELI BONI We worship God of might most strong 45 Who has formed both us and thee We may never worship him too long For he is most worthy of majesty. On our knees to God we fall Our lord to worship we 50 And in no wise honour we thee A greater lord may none never be Than he that made us all. LUCIFER A worthier lord, forthsooth, am I And worthier than he ever will I be. 55 In evidence that I am more worthy, I will go sit where God should be! Above sun and moon and stars in the sky. I am now set as you may see. Now, worship me as the most mighty And for your lord honour now me, 60 Sitting in my seat. ANGELI MALI God's might we forsake And for a more worthy God we thee take. Thee to worship, honour we make And fall down at your feet. 65 DEUS Thou, Lucifer, for thy great pride I bid thee fall from heaven to hell And all those that choose your side In my bliss never more to dwell. At my commandment now down you slide 70 With mirth and joy never more to mell. In mischief and menace ever shall you abide In bitter burning and fire so fell. In pain that ever shall bite! LUCIFER At thy bidding thy will I work 75 And pass from joy to pain smart Now I am a devil full dark That was an angel bright. Now to hell the way I take In endless pain that ever shall bite. 80 For fear of fire a fart I crack! Hell's dungeon is all my sight DEUS Now heaven is made for the angels' sake The first day and the first night. The second day the water I make 85 The welkin, also, full fair and bright. The third day I part water from earth. Trees and every growing thing Both herbs and flowers of sweet smelling The third day are made by my working. 90 Now make I the day that shall be the fourth. Sun and moon and stars also The fourth day, I make the same. The fifth day, worm and fish that swim and go, Birds and beasts, both wild and tame. 95 The sixth day my work I do And make the man Adam by name. In earthly paradise without any woe I grant thee dwelling lest thou do blame. Flesh of thy flesh and bone of thy bone, 100 Adam, here is thy wife and mate. Both fish and fowls that swim around To each of them, a name thou take. Both tree and fruit and beasts, each one, Red and white, both blue and green. 105 Thou give them names, thou alone. Herbs and grass, beets and bran. Thy wife thou give a name also Look that you not cease Your fruit to increase 110 That there be excess, My worship for to do. Now come forth, Adam, to paradise, There shalt thou have all manner of things, Both flesh and fish and fruit of price 115 All shall be obedient to thy bidding. Here are peppers, peonies and sweet licorice. Take them all at thy liking Both apples and pears and choice rice. But touch not this tree of Knowing. 120 All things, save this, for thee are wrought. Here are all things that should thee please, All ready made unto thine ease. Eat not this fruit, me not displease, For then thou dyest, thou escapest not. 125 Now have I made all things of nought, Heaven and earth, fowl and beast. To all things that my hand has wrought I grant my blessing that ever shall last. My way to heaven is ready sought. 130 Of working I will the seventh day rest. And all my creatures that be about My blessing you have both east and west. Of working the seventh day you cease. And all those that cease of labouring here 135 The seventh day, without fear, And worship me in good manner They shall in heaven have endless peace. Adam, go forth. Be prince in this place. To heaven now I speed my way. 140 Look thou well thy wits to chase And govern thy spirit as I thee say. ADAM Holy father, blessed thou be For I may walk in wealth enow. I find dates in great plenty 145 And many fine fruits fill every bow. All this wealth is given to me And to my wife, with whom I go. I have no need to touch yon tree Against my lord's will. To work now. 150 I am a good gardener. Every fruit of the right name I may gather with glee and game. To break that bond, I were to blame That my lord bad me keep here. 155 EVE We may be both blithe and glad Our lord's commandment to fulfill. With fine fruit be we fair fed. Wonder sweet and never one ill. Every tree with fruit is spread 160 Of them to take as pleases us till. Our wits were unstable, we would be bad To do ought against our lord's will In any wise. In this garden I will go see 165 All the flowers of fair beauty And taste the fruits of great plenty That be in Paradise. SERPENT Hail, fair wife and comely dame! This fruit to eat, I thee council. 170 Take the apple and eat the same. This fruit is best, as I thee tell. EVE That apple to eat I were to blame. From joy our lord would us expell. We should die, and be put out with shame, 175 In joy of paradise never more to dwell. God himself thus said What day of that fruit we ate, With these words God did us threat, That we should die, our lives to let. 180 Therefore I am afraid. SERPENT Of this apple, if you will bite, Even as God is, so shall you be-- Wise and knowing -- as I you plight. Like unto God in all degree. 185 Sun and moon and stars bright, Fish and fowl, on land and sea, At your bidding both day and night All things shall in your power be. You shall be God's peer. 190 Take this apple in thine hand. Bite thereof I thee demand. And take another to thine husband Thereof thou have no fear. EVE As wise as God is in his great brain 195 And a fellow in knowledge fain would I be. SERPENT Eat this apple and for certain That I am true, soon shalt thou see. EVE To my husband with heart full glad This apple I bear, as thou biddest me. 200 This fruit to eat, I shall him persuade. So wise as God is, if we may be, And God's peer of might. To my husband I walk my way And of this apple I shall assay 205 To make him to eat, if I may, And of this fruit to bite.
Here Eve returns to Adam, her husband, and says to him,
My seemly spouse and good husband Listen to me, sir, I you pray. Take this fair apple into you hand 210 Thereof a morsel bite and assay To eat this apple that I have found. God's fellow to be always-- All his wisdom to understand And God's peer to be for aye. 215 All things for to make Both fish and fowl, sea and sand, Bird and beast, water and land. This apple thou take out of my hand. A bite thereof thou take. 220 ADAM I dare not touch thy hand for dread Of our lord God omnipotent. If I should work as thou hast said Of God our maker, I should be shent. If that we do this sinful deed, 225 We shall be dead, by God's judgment. Out of thy hand with hasty speed Cast that apple, this instant For fear of God's threat. EVE Of this apple, if thou wilt bite, 230 God's peer thou shalt be on height So wise, so cunning, I thee plight, This fruit if thou wilt eat. ADAM If we it eat, ourselves we kill, As God us told, we should be dead! 235 To eat that fruit and my life to spill I dare not do as thou hast said. EVE A fair angel thus did me tell To eat that apple take you no dread So cunning as God on heaven's hill 240 Thou shalt soon be and stand in his stead. Therefore this fruit thou eat. ADAM Of God's wisdom for to learn And in cunning to be his peer From thy hand I take it here 245 And shall soon taste this meat.
Here Adam shall eat the apple. Adam says thus,
Alas, alas for this false deed, My fleshly friend, my foe I find. Shameful sin from us proceeds. I see us naked before and behind! 250 Our lord's word we would not dread. Therefore we be now caitiffs unkind. Our poor privities to hide Some fig leaves fain would I find To cover our sin and grief. 255 Woman lay this leaf on thy privity And with this leaf, I shall hide me Great shame it is us naked to see Our lord God thus to grieve. EVE Alas that ever that speech was spoken 260 That the false angel said unto me. Alas our maker's bidding is broken For I have touched his own dear tree. Our fleshly eyes now all are open Naked, for sin, ourselves we see. 265 That sorry apple that we have eaten To death has brought my spouse and me. Right grievous is our sin. Of much shame now do we know. Alas that ever this apple did grow! 270 To dreadful death now must we go, In pain forever to pine. DEUS Adam that with my hands I made, Where art thou now? What hast thou wrought? ADAM Ah, lord, for sin our flowers do fade. 275 I hear thy voice, but I see thee nought. DEUS Adam, why hast thou sinned so soon, Thus hastily to break my boon. I made thee master under the moon. Truly, of every tree, 280 One tree I kept for my own. Life and death therein were known. Thy sin from life now has thee thrown. From death thou may not flee. ADAM Lord, I have done against thy will, 285 But I meant not myself to spill! The mate thou gave me, me to fulfil, She brought me to this pass. It was her counsel and her reed. She bade me do this same deed. 290 I walk as a worm without any weed, I have no clothes, alas. DEUS Woman, thou art this man's wife. Why hast thou caused your own strife? Now you fall from your fair life, 295 And are judged, now, to die. Unwise woman, tell me why You have done this foolish folly When I made you a great lady In paradise safe to lie? 300 EVE Lord when you went from this place, A worm with an angel's face He said we would be full of grace If that the fruit we ate. I did his bidding! Alas, alas. 305 Now we are bound in death's tight grasp. I suppose that it was Sathanas. To dwell in pain now is our fate. DEUS Thou worm with thy wiles so sick Thy false fables, they are so thick! 310 Why hast thou put death's dark prick In Adam and his wife? Through you, my laws they both have broken. They suffer woe through words you have spoken. In Hell's lodgings you shall be locked 315 And never more have life. DIABOLUS I shall thee tell wherefore and why I did them all this villainy. I am full of great envy, Of wrath and of wicked hate 320 That man should dwell above the sky Where at one time have dwelled I. And now am I cast to Hell's sty Straight out from heaven's gate. DEUS Adam, because the apple thou didst eat, 325 Against the bidding that I set, Go till thy food with toil and sweat Until thy life's end. Go naked, hungry and barefoot. Eat herbs and grass and root. 330 There is no help, have no doubt, As a wretch in the world you must wend. Woman, you began all this sinning And bade him break my bidding. Therefore, thou shalt be underling 335 And to man's bidding bend. What he biddeth thee, do thou that thing And bear thy children with great groaning In danger and thy death dreading Unto thy life's end. 340 Thou wicked worm, full of pride, Foul envy sit by thy side! Upon thy gut thou shalt glide And as a wicked worm also Till a maiden in middle earth be born. 345 Thou fiend, I warn thee here before. Through her thy head shall be all torn. On thy womb away thou go. DIABOLUS At thy bidding, foul I fall. I creep home to my stinking stall. 350 Hell pit and heaven's hall Shall do thy bidding boon. I fall down here a foul freak. For this fall I begin to quake. With a fart my breach I break. 355 My sorrow comes full soon. DEUS For the sins that you have done Out of my bliss you shall be gone In earthly labour to live in woe, And sorrow shall you taste. 360 For your sin and misdoing An angel with a sword burning Out of this joy shall you bring Your wealth away is passed.
Here God withdraws and an angel seraphim with a flaming sword drives Adam and Eve out of paradise
SERAPHIM Ye wretches unkind and right unwise 365 Out of this joy hye you in haste. With flaming sword from paradise To pain I beat you, of care to taste. Your mirth is turned to carefull sighs, Your wealth with sin is now all waste 370 For your false deeds and sinful ways This bliss I tear you from, right fast. Here may you come no more Till a child of a maid be born And upon the cross be rent and torn 375 To save all that you have lorn Your wealth to be restored. EVE Alas, alas and well away That ever I touched that dreadful tree I wend as a wretch in wilderness way. 380 In black bushes my bower shall be. In paradise is plenty of play, Fair fruits in right great plenty. The gates be shut with God's key. My husband is lost because of me 385 Beloved spouse, now have you found That we stumble o'er stalk and stone. My wits away from me are gone Twist on to my neck bone With the hardness of thy hand. 390 ADAM Wife, thy wit is not worth a rush! Dear woman turn thy thoughts. I will not slay the flesh of my flesh For from my flesh, thy flesh was wrought. Our luck was hard, our wits foolish, 400 When to paradise we were brought. My weeping shall break out afresh Our sin a long sorrow now has bought. Never again repeat your tale, For if I should slay my wife 405 I would slay myself without a knife And so in hell to live my life In woe my tears to wail. But let us walk forth into the land With right great labour our food to find 410 With delving and digging with my hand Our bliss to care and pain confined. Wife, to spinning now must thou turn thy hand Our naked bodies in clothes to wind Till some comfort God shall send 415 With grace to relieve our carefull minds. Now come, go we hence now my wife. EVE Alas that ever we wrought this sin. Our bodily sustenance for to win You must delve and I must spin, 420 In care to lead our lives.
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