"This text was told yow, To ben y-war, er ye taughte, That ye were swiche as ye seye, So salve with othere; For Goddes word wolde noght be lost, For that wercheth evere; 6170 If it availled noght the commune, It myghte availle yowselve.
"Ac it semeth now soothly To the worldes sighte, That Goddes word wercheth noght On lered ne on lewed, But in swich a manere As Marc meneth in the gospel: _Dum cæcus ducit cæcum, ambo in foveam cadunt._ 6180
"Lewed men may likne yow thus, That the beem lith in youre eighen; And the festu is fallen For youre defaute, In alle maner men, Thorugh mansede preestes. The Bible bereth witnesse That the folk of Israel Bittre a-boughte the giltes Of two badde preestes, 6190 Offyn and Fynes, For hir coveitise, _Archa Dei_ mys-happed, And Ely brak his nekke.
"For-thi ye corectours claweth heron. And corecteth first yowselve { 191} And thanne mowe ye safly seye, As David made in the Sauter, _Existimasti inique quod ero tui similis, arguam te, et statuam 6200 contra faciem tuam._
"And thanne shul burel clerkes ben abasshed To blame yow or to greve, And carpen noght as thei carpe now, Ne calle yow doumbe houndes. _Canes non valentes latrare._ And drede to wrathe yow in any word, Youre werkmanshipe to lette, And be prester at youre preiere, Than for a pound of nobles. 6210 And al for youre holynesse, Have ye this in herte.
"In scole there is scorn, But if a clerk wol lerne, And gret love and likyng, For ech of hem loveth oother.
"Ac now is Religion a rydere, A romere aboute, A ledere of love-dayes, And a lond-buggere, 6220 A prikere on a palfrey Fro manere to manere, An heepe of houndes at his ers As he a lord were. And but if his knave knele That shal his coppe brynge, He loureth on hym, and asketh hym Who taughte hym curteisie.
"Litel hadde lordes to doon, { 192} To gyve lond from hire heires 6230 To religiouse, that han no routhe, Though it reyne on hir auters.
"In many places ther thei ben persons, By hemself at ese Of the povere have thei no pité; And that is hir charité. Ac thei leten hem as lordes Hire londes lyen so brode.
"Ac ther shal come a kyng, And confesse yow religiouses, 6240 And bete yow as the Bible telleth For brekynge of youre rule; And amende monyals, Monkes and chanons, And puten to hir penaunce _Ad pristinum statum ire_; And barons with erles beten hem, Thorugh _Beatus-virres_ techyng, That hir barnes claymen And blame yow foule. 6250 _Hi in curribus et hi in equis ipsi obligati sunt, etc._