is your father that is in heauen. O Lord this is a blessed lesson to teach men to be meke.MarginaliaMeekenes commended in Ministers.

MarginaliaVicar in earth not tollerable in the pope. But Lord he that clepeth  

himselfe thy vicar on earth he clepeth himselfe father of fathers agaynst thy forbidding. And all those worships thou hast forbad. He approueth them, and maketh them maisters to many, that teach thy people their owne teaching, and leaue thy teaching that is nedefull, and hiden it by quainte gloses from thy lewd people, and feede thy people with sweuens   MarginaliaSweuens, that that is dreames. that they mete, and tales that doth little profit: but much harme to the people. But Lorde, these glosers obiecte that they desire not the state of mastry to be worshipped thereby, but to profit the more to thy people whē they preach thy word. For as they seggē   the people will beleue more the preaching of a maister that hath taken a state of schole, then the preaching of an other man that hath not take the state of maistry.

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MarginaliaMastership and Lordship in Preachers. ¶ Lorde whether it bee any neede that maysters beren witnes to thy teaching that it is true and good? O Lord whether may any maister mowe by his estate of maisterie, that thou hast forboden, drawe any man from his sinne, rather then an other man that is not a maister, ne wole bee none, for it is forboden him in thy Gospell? Lord thou sendest to maysters to preach thy people, and thou knowledgist in the Gospel to thy father that he hath hid his wisedome from wise men and redy men, and shewed it to litle Children. And Lord, maisters of the law hylden thy teaching foly, and seiden that thou wouldest destroy the people with thy teaching. Trulich Lord, so these maisters seggeth  

now: for they haue written many bookes agaynst thy teaching that is truth, & so the prophecie of Ieremy is fulfilled, when he sayth: Truelich the false points maisters of the law hath wrought leasing. And now is the time come that S. Paul speaketh of, where he sayth: time shal come when men shall not susteine wholesome teaching. But they shullen gather to hepe   maisters with hutching eares   , and from trueth they shullen turnen away their hearing, and turnen them to tales that maisters haue marked to showne their maistry and their wisedome.

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¶ And Lord a man shall beleue more a mans workes then hys words, & the dede sheweth well of these maisters that they desiren more maistrie for their own worship than for profit of the people, For when they be maisters, they ne preachen not so oft as they did before. And gif they preachen, commonlich it is before riche men there as they mowen beare worship and also profite of their preaching. But before poore men they preachen but seldem, when they ben maisters: and so by theyr woorkes wee may seene that they ben false glosers.

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MarginaliaFalse glosers. And Lord, me thinketh that who so wole keepen thine hestes him needeth no gloses: but thilke that clepen  

them selfe Christen men, and lyuen agaynst they teaching and thine hestes, needelich they mote glose thine hestes   after their liuing, other els men shulden openlich yknow their hipocrisie and their falshod.

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But Lord, thou sayst that there ys nothing yhid that shall not be shewed some time. And Lord yblessed mote thou be. For somewhat thou shewest vs now of our mischiefes that wee bene fallen in through the wisedomes of maysters, that haue by sleightes ylad vs away from thee and thy teaching, that thou that were thy maister of heauen taught vs for loue, when thou were here some time to heale of our soules, withouten error or heresie. But maisters of worldes wisedome and their founder, haue ydamned it for heresie and for errour.

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O Lord, me thinketh it is a great price thus to reproue thy wise dome and thy teaching. And Lord me thinketh that this Nabugodonosor king of Babilon that thus hath reproued thy teaching and thine hestes  

, and commandeth on all wyse to kepen his hests   : maken thy people hearen him as a God on earth, and maketh thē his thrales   and his seruauntes.

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But Lord: we lewd  

men knowen no God but thee, & we with thine help and thy grace forsaken Nabugodonosor and his lawes. For he is in his proud estate wole haue all men vnder him, and he MarginaliaNele  

Commentary     Close

i.e. 'will not'.

, that is, will not. nele be vnder no man. He ondoth thy lawes that thou ordeynest to ben kept, and maketh his owne lawes as him liketh: and so he maketh him king aboue all other kinges of the earth, and maketh men to worshippen him as a God, and thy great sacrifice he hath ydone away.

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MarginaliaPouertie of Christ not followed. O Lord, here is thy commaundement of meekenes, mischiflich to broke: And thy blessed commaundement of poorenes is also to broken, and yhid from thy people. Lord, Zacharie thy prophet sayth, that thou that shouldest be our king, shouldest bene a poore man, and so thou were: for thou saydest thy selfe Foxes haue dens, and birdes of heauen nestes, and mans sonne hath not where to legge his head on. And thou sadest yblessed ben poore men in spirite for thy kingdome of heauen is therein. And woe to riche men, for they han theyr comfort in this world. MarginaliaCouetise. And thou bad thy disciples to ben ware of all couetise, for thou saydest, in the aboūdance of a mans hauing, ne is not his lyfelode. And so thou teachest that thilke that han more then them needeth to theyr liuing lyuen in couetise. Also thou sayst, but gif a man forsake all things that he oweth, he ne may not bene thy disciple. Lord, thou sayest also that thy worde that is sowne in riche mens hartes, bringethforth no fruite; for riches and the busines of this world maken it withouten fruit.

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O Lord, here bene many blessed teachinges to teach men to bene poore, and loue porenes. But Lord harme is, poore men and poorenes ben yhated, and ryche men ben yloued and honoured. MarginaliaPouertie counted folly. And gif a man be a poore man, men holden him a man without grace, and if a man desireth poorenes, men holden him but a foole. And if a man be a rich man, men clepen him a gratious man, and thilke that ben busy in getting of riches: ben yhold wyse men and ready: but Lord these rich men sayen that it is both leful and needefull to them to gather riches together. For they ne gathereth if for themselfe, but for other men that ben needy, and Lord their woorkes shewen the truth. For if a poore needy man woulde borowen of theyr riches, he nele MarginaliaNele, that is, will not. leane him none of his good, but gif he mow be seker to haue it againe by a certayne day.

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But Lord, thou bede that a man should lend, and not hoping yelding againe of him that he lendeth to: and thy father of heauen wol quite him his mede. And gif a pore aske a rich man any good, the rich man will geue him but a little, and yet it shall be little worth. And Lord me thinketh that here is little loue and charitie, both to God and to our brethren.

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For Lord, thou teachest in thy Gospell, that what men doe to thy seruauntes: they done to thee. A Lord, gif a poore man axe good for thy loue, men geueth him a little of the wurst. MarginaliaGod is serued of the worst. For these rich men ordeinen both bread and ale for Gods men of the wurst that they haue. O Lord, sith all good that men hath commeth of thee: how dare any man geue thee of the wurst, and kepe to himselfe the best? How may suche men say that they gatheren riches for others need, as well as himselfe, sith their workes ben contratrary to their words? And that is no great truth. And be ye seker these goods that rich mē han, they ben gods goods, ytake to your keeping, to loke how he wolen be setten them to the worshipping of God. And Lord, thou sayest in the Gospell, that who so is true in litle, he is true in that thing that is more. And who that is false in a litle thing, who wole taken him toward things of a greater value? MarginaliaA lesson for them that haue goods well to spēd them.And therfore, be ye ware that han gods goods to keep. Spend ye thilke truelich to the worship of God, least ye leesen the blysse of heauen, for the vntrue despending of Gods goods in this world.

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O Lord, these rich men MarginaliaSeggen  

, that is, do say. seggen that they done much for thy loue. For many poore labourers ben yfound by them, that shoulden fare febelich   , ne were not they and their readines: Forsooth me thinketh that poore labourers geueth to these rich men, more then they geuen them agaynward. For the poore men mote gone to his labour in cold and in heate, in wete and dry, and spend hys flesh and his bloud in the richmens works, vpon Gods gound, to finde the rich man in ease, and in liking, and in good fare of meate of drink and of clothing. Here is a great gift of the poore man, for he geueth his owne body. But what geueth the richman hym agayneward? Certes feeble meat, and feeble drinke, and feeble clothing. What euer they seggen suche be their workes, and here is little loue. And whosoeuer looketh well about, all the worlde fareth as we seggē.   And all mē studieth on euery side, how they may wexe rich men. And euerich man almost is ashamed to ben holden a poore man.

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MarginaliaThe pouertie of Christ rightly considered. And Lord, I trow for thou were a poore man, men token litle regarde to thee, and to thy teaching. But Lord thou came to geue vs a new testament of loue, & therefore it was semelich that thou came in poorenes, to prooue who wold loue thee, and kepen thine hestes. For gif thou haddest ycome in forme of a rich man and of a Lord, men wold rather for thy dread then for thy loue, haue ykept thyne hestes. And so Lord now thou might wel ysee which louen thee as the should in keeping thyne hestes.  

For who that loueth thee in thy poorenes and in thy lownes, needes he mote loue thee in thy Lordship and highnesse.

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MarginaliaA poore kyng, and a proud Vicar, howe ioyne these two together. But Lord, the world is turned vpse downe, & men loue poore men but a litlene porenes neither But men be ashamed of poorenes, and therefore Lord, I trow that thou art a poore kingAnd therefore I trow that he that clepeth himselfe thy vicare on earth, hath forsaken poorenes, as he hath do the remnaunt of thy lawe: and is become a rich man and a Lord, & maketh his treasure vpon the earth that thou forbiddest in the Gospell. MarginaliaChrist a seruant vpon earth: the pope a Lord. And for his right and riches he will plete, and fight & curse. MarginaliaThe pope for his right and riches wil pleade fight and curse.And yet Lord, he will segge that he forsaketh all thinges that he oweth, as thy true disciple mete done after thy teaching in the Gospell.

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But Lord thou ne taughtest not a man to forsaken his goodes and plete for them and fight, and curse. And Lord he taketh on him power to asloyle a man of all maner things, but if it be of det. Truely Lord, me thinketh he knoweth litle of charitie. For who that beth in charitie, possesseth thy goodes in common and not in proper at his neighbours nede. And then shall there none of them segge this is mine, but it is Gods that God granteth to vs to spenden it to his worship. And so if any of them boroweth a porcion of those goodes, and dispendeth them to Gods worship: God is apayed  

of this spending, and alloweth him this true doyng: And if God is payed   of that dispēding that is the principal Lord of those goods, how dare anye of his seruauntes axen there of, accountes

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