Corpus of Electronic Texts Edition
Anglo-Irish poems of the Middle Ages: The Kildare Poems (Author: [unknown])
Poem 6
Fifteen Signs before Judgment
{MS fol 20r}
- 1] The grace of Jesu fulle of mighte,
Throgh prier of Ure swete Leuedi,
Mote a-mang vs nuthe alighte,
And euer vs yem and saui.
- 5] Man and woman, thou aghtist take gome,
This world is ending how hit ssal be,
The wondres that sal com be-for the Dome,
That yung and old hit sal ise.
- 9] The fiftene tokingis Ichul you telle,
As us techith Ysaie.
The Holi Gost him taght ful welle,
And he hit prechid for profecie. {MS fol 20v}
- 13] Hit is iwrit in Holi Boke,
As clerkis hit mow se and rede,
That no thing no man mai loke
That is so grisful forto drede.
- 17] Thar nis aliue so siful man
If he ther-of wold tak kepe,
And he wold thench apan
That nold wel sore in hert wepe.
- 21] Godmen, takith non gome
Of tokninges that commith bi-for,
The children with-in the moder wome
Wel sore sul dute and drede ther-for.
- 25] With-in the moder wom hi sul grede
Vp Jesu Criste euer to crie:
'Louerde Crist thou red vs rede
And of vs thou hab mercie!'
- 29] 'We wold, Louerd, that we ner
In world icom forto bene,
And vnbeyet of ure fader wer,
That al thing nou sal suffri tene.'
- 33] The first tokning sal be thusse,
Al for soth we sul hit see,
And that other sal be wors,
For soth ye mou wel liue me.
- 37] The sterris that thou sest so bright,
In heuen aboue that sit so fast,
For man is sin sal yiue no light,
Ac sal adun to erthe be cast.
- 41] As fair and bright as thou seest ham,
Hi worth becom as blak as cole
And be of hiwe durke and wan,
For man is sin hi sul thole. {MS fol 21r}
- 45] Ther nis aliue so stidfast man
That ther-of ne sal agrise,
Him to hide he ne can
No whoder to fle, in none wise,
- 49] Bot as bestis that wer wode,
A-ye othir to erne her and thare
Forthi hi ne sul can no gode,
See no lond hi ne sal spare.
- 53] Than the dede up sal arise
Up har biriles forto sitte,
Of thilk dai hi sul agrise,
And lok as bestis that cun no witte.
- 57] The thrid dai than amorow,
Grisful hit sal be to loke,
Of moch weping and of sorow,
As we fint in Holi Boke.
- 61] The sone that schinith so bright
Thilk dai thou salt ise,
Wel grene and wan sal be is light,
And that for dred so hit sal be.
- 65] Abute the time of middai
He worth as blak as the cole.
We mov sigge wailawai!
Moch is the pine that we sul thole.
- 69] The ferth dai that silf son
Worth as rede as hit wer fire,
For ferd of domethat he sold come
Bi-for Jesus the heigh Sire.
- 73] The fifte tokning that sal be-fal,
That allirkin maner beste
Wel fore hi sul quak with-al,
Wil that ilk dai sal lest.
- 77] Towar heuen be-hold sul hi,
With har mund and with har thoght,
Of Jesu Crist merci to cri,
Thogh that hi ne mou spek right noght.
- 81] Alas, Louerd, wat sul we tak,
We that abbith sin i-wroght?
Night and dai we aght sore quake,
Whan we it sold thench in ure thoght.
- 85] The sixte dai ne lef Ich noght
Wan thes montis and thes hille
Al for soth hit wurth ibroght
Thes depe dalis forto fille.
- 89] Ther nis castel no ture none,
That euer was no be salle,
Imakid was of lime and ston,
That ne sal adun to falle;
- 93] No no tre in erth so fast,
Mid al har rotis so fast ipight,
That ne sal adun to berst,
Thilk silue dai, er hit be night.
- 97] The sefthe dai hit sal grow a-ye,
Har crop adun, har rote an hei.
Such wondris we sul ise,
For God is wreth that sit an hei.
- 101] The tren sul bledea wonder thing
The thing that bodi no flesse nath non,
For dred of the heuen King,
Vnkundlich thing ded sal don.
- 105] Than sal dei bothe pouer and rich,
Ne sal than ther with-stond no thing.
Al we sul ben ilich,
Bothe knight and barun, erl and king. {MS fol 21v}
- 109] Ne sal ther help castel no ture,
Palfrei, chasur no no stede,
No for al is moch honur,
That he ne worth wel sone dede.
- 113] The eight dai so is dotus,
And that ful wel thou salt se.
Ful of tene and angus
Al this dai so sal be.
- 117] Al the see sel draw ifere
As a walle to stond up-right,
And al thos wateris that beth here
Sal cri merci up God almight.
- 121] The fissis that beth ther-in iwroght
The see so hard sal ham to-drive,
That he wol wene in her thoght
That God of heuen nis noght aliue.
- 125] Than the see sal draw a-ye
Into the stid ther hit was,
And euch uerisse watir than sal be
Becom to is owin plas.
- 129] The ninthe tokin sal be thus:
The wonderis that worth thilk dai
Ouer al that other sal deuers.
Wate hit is Ich yow tel mai.
- 133] The holi man tellith, Seint Austin,
That the skeis so sal spec than,
Wan al thing so sal hab fine,
In steuen as hit wer man.
- 137] Hi sul grede lude with-al
In nois of man up God to cri,
As heuen and erthe sold to-fal:
God and man, nouth merci!
- 141] 'Louerd, merci of might!
Nouth is al ur time ispend,
For sinful man is ein sight,
Ne let us neuer ben ischend.'
- 145] Ther nis no seint in heuen abow
In al God is ferred
That ther-of ne sal amoue,
And of thilk tokin be aferd.
- 149] Thus vs tellith Seint Ieronime,
And Seint Gregori al-so,
That than sal quake Seraphin
And Cherubin that beth angles two.
- 153] Ther nis in heuen angil, iwis,
That to other sal hab spech,
So sore hi worth adrad, iwis,
Of Jesus Crist is gremful wreche.
- 157] Al the fendis that beth in hel
With grete din hi wol com than,
Har mone thou salt hire ful wel,
Hou hi sul cri to God and man.
- 161] O, man and womman, thou take hede,
Hou the fentis sul men har mone!
Wel aghtist the fair to lede,
Wile thou art in this wreche wone.
- 165] Vp Jesus Crist hi sul cri
With such a steuen of pine and wo:
'Louerd, yif vs ur herbergi,
A-ye to helle let us neuer go!'
- 169] The ellefthe dai fure windis sul rise,
And the rainbow than sal fal,
That al the fentis sal of agris
And be ifesed into helle.
- 173] For wolny, nulni, hi sul fle,
And that in-to the pine of helle,
Maugrei ham ther hi mot be,
With duble pine therin to dwel.
- 177] The tuelfte dai the fure elemens sul cri
Al in one heigh steuene:
'Merci, Jesus, fiz Mari,
As thou ert God and King of heuene!'