fol. 80v (cont.)I
Passus xvus
Passus xvusxv[j]usquintus decimus[sextus] decimus . de visione vt supra .

Now faire falle ȝow quod I þo  for ȝoure faire schewynge .
For haukynes loue þe actif man  euere I schal ȝow louye .
Ac yet I am in a were  what charite is to mene .
R.16.4KD.16.4
¶ It is a ful trie tre quod he  treutheR.16.4: This is an alpha variant. Beta reads trewly. to telle .
Mercy is þe more þere-of  þe mydel stok is reuthe .
Þe leues ben lele wordes  þe lawe of holy cherche .
Þe blosmes beth buxum speche  and benigne lokynge .
R.16.8KD.16.8
Pacience hatte þe puir tre  and pore symple of herte .
And so þoruȝ god and gode men  groweth þe fruit charite .
fol. 81rI
Agite penitenciam
¶ I wolde trauaile quod I þis tre to se  twenty hundreth mile . .R.16.10: In the right margin, close to the text, an early reader has added a gloss: Agite penitenciam.
And to haue my fille of þat fruit  forsake alle other soule .
R.16.12KD.16.12
Lord quod I if any wiȝt wite  whoder-outR.16.12: R's whoder is a unique form among the B manuscripts (which mainly attest whider) but is well-attested as a western form of that adverb (LALME, dot map 576). R's þat is probably an alpha form since F's altered b-verse also attests its presence at approximately the same position but beta shows no evidence of its presence. þatR.16.12: Beta omits þat. it groweth .
¶ It groweth in a gardyn quod he  þat god made hym-selue .
Amyddes mannes body  þe more is of þat stokke .
Herte hatte þe erber  þat it inne groweth 
R.16.16KD.16.16
And liberum arbitrium  hath þe londe to ferme .
AndR.16.17: And is an alpha variant unattested by beta witnesses. vnder peres þe plowman  to piken it and to weden it .
Peres þe plowman quod I þo  and al for puir ioye .
Þat I herde nempne his name  anon I swowned after .
R.16.20KD.16.20
And lay longe in a loue dreme  and atte þe last me þouȝte .
Þat peres þe plowman  alle þe place me schewede .
And bad me toten on þe tre  on top and on rote .
With thre piles was it vnder-piȝt  I parceyued it sone .
R.16.24KD.16.24
Peres quod IR.16.24: R's omission of the second I in this a-verse (immediately following the first one) is shared only with M. preye þe  whi stonden þise piles here .
¶ For wyndes wiltow wit quod he  to kepenR.16.25: R's non-alliterating stave-word is an alpha variant; in place of kepen, beta reads witen. it fram fallynge .
Cum ceciderit iustus non collidetur quia dominus supponit . manum . suam .
And in blowynge tyme abit þe floures  but if þis piles helpe .
R.16.28KD.16.27-28
Þe werld is a wikked wynde  and crepeth amonge þe leues .R.16.28: Here alpha compressed two Bx lines into one, merging the a-verse of KD16.27 with the b-verse of KD16.28. The missing b-verse and following a-verse, as witnessed in beta, reads:
to hem þat willen treuthe
Coueityse cometh of þat wynde
.
The C version also attests the authenticity of these verses omitted by alpha.
And forfret neiȝ þe fruit  þoruȝ many faire siȝtes .
AndR.16.30: R's And is unique among the B manuscripts but agrees with Cx; beta begins the line with Þanne while F omits both and shows a radically different version of the line. with þe furst pile  I palle hym doun  þat is potencia dei patris .
¶ Þe flesch is a fel wynd  and in flourynge tyme .
R.16.32KD.16.32
Þoruȝ likynge and lustus  so loude he gynneth blowe .
Þat it norescheth nyce siȝtes  and some-tyme wordes .
And wikked werkes þere-of  wormes of synne .
And for-biteth þe blosmes  riȝt to þe bare leues .
R.16.36KD.16.36
¶ Þanne sette I to þe secunde pil  sapiencia dei patris .
Þat is þe passion and þe powere  of oure prince ihesu .
WithR.16.38: With is an alpha variant; beta reads Þorw. preyeres and þoruȝ penaunces  & godes passion in mynde .
I saue it til I se it ripen  and somme-del I-fruited .
R.16.40KD.16.40
And þanne fondeth fendeR.16.40: R uniquely omits þe before fende. Cx agrees on this reading with the B majority.  my fruite to destruie .
With alle þe wiles þat he can  and waggeth þe rote .
And casteth vp to þe crop  vnkende neyȝbores .
m ijus
fol. 81vI
Bagbiteres brewe-chesteR.16.43: R's brewe-cheste is unique; F shows & boosteris &; beta copies diverge, with CrWHm reading breke þe cheste while LCGOC2YB have breke-cheste(s).  brauleres and chideres .
R.16.44KD.16.44
And leith a ladder þere-to  of lesynges aren þe ronges .
And feccheth awey my floures sum-tyme  byfore bothe myn eyes
Ac liberum arbitrium  letteth hemR.16.46: Most other B witnesses have the singular form here, correctly since the antecedent is the fende of R16.40. Cr2-3 and Hm agree with R's plural form. sum-tyme .
Þat is liu-tenant to loken it wel  by leue of my-selue .
R.16.48KD.16.47α
Videatis qui peccat in spiritum sanctum nunquam remittetur . &cetera .
Hoc est idem qui peccat per liberum arbitrium non repugnat .
Ac whatR.16.50: Alpha's what seems an obvious error (cf. beta's whan). þe fende and þe flesche  forth with þe worlde .
Manasen byhynde me  my fruit forto feche .
R.16.52KD.16.50
Þanne liberum arbitrium  laccheth þe thridde planke .R.16.52: The phrase thridde planke is from alpha (with L agreeing on thridde). The majority beta phrase is firste plante.
And palleth a-downe þe pouke  priuelicheR.16.53: For alpha's priueliche, beta reads purelich. þoruȝ grace .
And helpe of þe holy goste  and þus haue I þe maystrie .
¶ Now faire falle ȝow peres quod I  so faire ȝe descreuen .
R.16.56KD.16.54
Þe power of þis postes  and here propre miȝte .
Ac I haue thouȝtes a thraue  of þis thre piles .
In what wode þei woxen  and where þat þei growed .
For alle ar thei a-liche longe  non lasse þan other .
R.16.60KD.16.58
And to my mynde as me thenketh  on one more þei growed .
AndR.16.61: R uniquely omits of after And. o gretnesse  and grene of greyne þei semen .
¶ Þat is sothe seideR.16.62: For alpha's seide, also supported by L, most beta manuscripts read quod. peres  soR.16.62: Only G shares with R in the omission of it after so; F uniquely transposes the phrase: it may so. may be-falle .
I schal telle þe as tyt  what þis tre hatte .
R.16.64KD.16.62
Þe grounde þere it groweth  godnesse it hiȝte .
And I haue tolde þe what hiȝte þe tre  þe trinite it meneth .
And egreliche he loked on me  and þerefor I spared .
To asken hym anymore þere-of  & bad hym ful faire .
R.16.68KD.16.66
To descreue þe fruit  þat so faire hangeth .
¶ Here now by-nethe quod he þo  If I nede hadde .
Matrimonie I may nym  a moyst fruit with-alle .
Þanne continence is nere þe crop : as caylewey bastarde .
R.16.72KD.16.70
Þanne bereth þe crop kende fruit  and clennest of alle .
Maydenhode angeles peres  and rathest wol be ripe .
And swete with-oute swelynge  soure worth it neuere .
In priedeR.16.75: Here the R scribe made a colossal mistake, misconstruing his exemplar's I prayed, the Bx reading, as In pride. His corrector notices the mistake and alters the noun with a supralinear <e>, but he overlooks the need to correct the initial preposition, so that the "corrected" reading is still nonsense. peres to pulle a-doune  an appel & he wolde .
fol. 82rI
R.16.76KD.16.74
And suffre me to assay  what sauoure it hadde .
And peres caste to þe crop  and þanne comsed it to crie .
AR.16.78: R's A (= ModE "He"), though unique, agrees with Cx; F has & anoon while beta reads And. wagged wedew-hod  and hit wepte after .
And whanne heR.16.79: For alpha's he (presumably original), beta manuscripts read it. meued matrimonie  it made a foule noyse .
R.16.80KD.16.78
ÞatR.16.80: R uniquely omits I before hadde. hadde reuthe whan peres rusedR.16.80: R's rused is unique but more closely akin to F's rusched than to beta's rogged.  it gradde so reufulliche .
For euer as þei dropped adoune  þe deuel was redy .
And gadered hem alle to-gyderes  bothe grete and smale .
Adam and abraham  and Isaie þe prophete .
R.16.84KD.16.82
Sampson and samuel  and seint Iohan þe baptiste .
Bare hem forth baldely  no-body hem lette .R.16.85: Beta has letted, but Cx agrees with alpha's reading.
And made of holy men his horde  in lymbo inferni .
Þere is dernesseR.16.87: dernesse, "darkness." Cf. R's form with C manuscript P's deornesse and also note the spelling dernesse in manuscript A at C20.104. For loss within consonant clusters, cf. also R.18.121: where sofly appears for "softly." and drede  and þe deuel maister .
R.16.88KD.16.86
And peres for puir tene  þat o pyl he lauȝte .
And hitte after hym  happe how it miȝte .
Filius by þe faderesR.16.90: RF are here joined by Cr (and agree with Cx); beta reads fader. wille  and frenesse of spiritus sancti .
To go robbe þat rageman  & reuendreuenR.16.91: R's reuend is an error for beta's reue (cf. F's be-reve). The Cx reading, albeit in a revised line, agrees with beta's. þe fruit fro hym .
R.16.92KD.16.90
¶ And þanne spake spiritus sanctus  in gabrielR.16.92: This form is unique to R; the other B manuscripts read Gabrieles. The C manuscripts attest both forms (P2TH2Gc agreeing with R), but Cx clearly supports the F/beta reading. mouthe .R.16.92: In the right margin opposite this text line, there were two lines of a gloss, now erased, apparently in the same hand as a number of others, including one on 94r.
To a mayde þat hiȝt marie  a meke thynge with-alle .
Þat on ihesus a iustice sone  moste iouken in here chaumbre .
Til plenitudo temporistyme I-comeR.16.95: Alpha's reading probably was identical to R's tyme I-come rather than to F's tyme come it; beta reads fully comen. R's version agrees with Cx. were .
R.16.96KD.16.94
Þat peres fruit flourede  and fel to be ripe .
And þanne schulde ihesus iuste þer-fore  & byR.16.97: For R's & by (supported by most C copies), the other B manuscripts read bi. iugement of armes .
Whether schulde fonde þe fruit  þe fende or hym-sulue .
¶ Þe mayde mildliche þo  þe messagere graunted .
R.16.100KD.16.98
And seyde hendely to hym  lo me his hande-maiden .
Forto worchen his wille  with-outen any synne .
Ecce ancilla domini fiat michi &cetera .
And in þe wombe of þat wenche  was he fourty wekes .
R.16.104KD.16.101
Til he wex a faunt þoruȝ hire flesche  & of fyȝtynge coude .
To haue yfouȝte with þe fende  ar ful tyme come .
And peres þe plowman parseyued þeR.16.106: R's þe is a unique addition to this phrase as witnessed by beta (parceyued plenere tyme). F has its own unique wording at this point, parseyuede in þat plener tyme. plener tyme .
And lered hym leche-craft  his lif forto saue .
R.16.108KD.16.105
Þat þouȝ he were wonded with his enemy  to warschen hym-selue .
And ded hym assaye his surgerye  on hem þat sike were .
Til he was parfite practisour  if any perel fulle .
m iijus
fol. 82vI
And souȝt oute þe sike  and synful bothe .
R.16.112KD.16.110, 108
And saluede sike and synful  bothe blynde & crokede .
R.16.113: R uniquely omits And at the head of this line. The C version here confirms the accuracy of the majority B reading. Comune wommen conuerted  and to gode turned .
Non est sanis opus mediciR.16.114: R's medici is a unique reading; some copies (LWHmCBmBoF) have medicus; others (CrMO) show medico; G reads medicine. sed male habentibusR.16.114: The phrase male habentibus is an alpha variant; beta probably read in &c. &cetera .
Bothe meseles and mute  and in þe meneson blody .
R.16.116KD.16.112
Ofte he heled suche  he ne helde it for no maystrie .
Saue þo he leched lazar  þat hadde I-leye in graue .
Quatriduanus quelt  quik dede hym walke .
Ac as he made þatR.16.119: In place of alpha's þat, beta reads þe. maistrie  mestus cepit esse .
R.16.120KD.16.116
And wepte water with his eyes  þere seyȝen it manye .
Somme þat þe siȝte seye  seyde þat tyme .
Þat he was leche of lif  and lorde of heye heuene .
Iewes Iangeled þere-aȝeyne  þatR.16.123: For R's unique þat, F reads þo þat; beta reads and. iuged lawes .
R.16.124KD.16.120
And seyde he wrouȝte þoruȝ wicche-crafte  & wit þe deueles miȝte .
Demonium habes . &cetera .
¶ Þanne ar ȝe cherles quod ihesusR.16.126: R's reading is unique; cf. F's crist and beta's ich / I.  and ȝoure childre bothe .
And sathan ȝoure saueoure  ȝow-selue now ȝe witnessen .
R.16.128KD.16.123
For I haue saued ȝow-selueR.16.128: Beta adds, at the end of the a-verse seith cryst. F agrees with R in omitting the phrase.  and ȝoure sones after .
Ȝoure bodies ȝoure bestes  and blynde men holpen .
And fedde ȝow with fisches  and with fyue loues .
And left basketes ful of broke mete  bere awey ho-so wolde .
R.16.132KD.16.127
And mysseyde þe iewes manliche  & manased hem to bete .
And knocked on hem with a corde  and cast a-doun here stalles .
Þat in cherche chaffaredden  or chaunged any mone .
And seyde it in siȝt of hem alle  so þat alle herden .
R.16.136KD.16.131
I schal ouer-torne þis temple  and adoun throwe .
And in thre dayes after  edifye it newe .
And make it as muche other more  in alle maner poyntes .
As euer it was and as wide  where-fore I hote ȝow .
R.16.140KD.16.135
Of preyeres and of parfitnesse  þis place þat ȝe callen .
Domus mea domus oracionis vocabitur .
Enuye and euel wil  arenR.16.142: R's aren is unique but outweighs the consensus of F and the beta copies (which have was) on account of the latter's defective alliteration. A majority of C manuscripts (= ern, preterite of rennen) also support this reading. See Kane and Donaldson, p. 186, for discussion of the forms. in þe iewes .
Þei casten & contreueden  to kullen hym whan þei miȝte .
R.16.144KD.16.138
Vche day after other  þeire tyme þei awaited .
Til it byfel on a friday  a liteR.16.145: R's lite is unique; most other B manuscripts read litel, supported by Cx. Cr1-2 show little. be-fore pasche .
Þe thoresday be-fore  þere he made his cene .R.16.146: In place of alpha's cene, beta reads maundee.
fol. 83rI
Sittande at þe sopere  andR.16.147: For R's and, F reads hym-selue and beta has he. seide þise wordes .
R.16.148KD.16.142
I am solde þoruȝ summeR.16.148: This is an alpha variant; beta reads the non-alliterating one in place of summe. of ȝow  he schal þe tyme rewe .
Þat euerR.16.149: R uniquely omits he after euer. his saueour solde  for siluer or elles .
¶ Iudas ianglede þere-aȝeyne  ac ihesus hym tolde .
It was hym-self sothely  and seyde tu dicis .R.16.151: In the right margin opposite this line and extending down five lines to R16.156, there is an erased gloss, apparently in the same hand as the long, erased note on 94r.
R.16.152KD.16.146
Þanne wente forth þat wikked man  & with þe iewes mette
And tolde hem a tokne how  to knowe with ihesus .
ÞeR.16.154: Þe is an alpha reading; beta has And. whiche tokne to þis day  to muche is vsed .
Þat is kyssynge and faire contenaunce  & vnkende wille .
R.16.156KD.16.150
And so was with Iudas þo  þat ihesus bitraied .
Aue rabi quod þat ribaude  and riȝt to hym he ȝodeR.16.157: R's ȝode is unique in form but not in sense; the beta manuscripts have ȝede while F shows wente. .
And kest hym to ben cauȝt þer-by  and kulde þoruȝR.16.158: Alpha's þoruȝ is replaced in beta by of. þe iewes .
¶ Þanne Ihesus to Iudas  and to þe iewes seyde .
R.16.160KD.16.154
Falsnesse ichR.16.160: R's ich is unique in form but not in sense; the other B manuscripts (as well as those of the C version) have I or y. fynde  in þi faire speche .
And gile in þi glade chere  and galle is in þi lauȝynge .
Þow schalt be myrour to manye  men to deseyue .
Ac þe wors and þe wikkednesse  schal worth vpon þi-selue .
R.16.164KD.16.157α
Necesse est vt veniant scandala .
Ve homini illi per quem scandalum venit .
Þouȝ I be treson be take  andR.16.166: R's and is unique; cf. beta's at and F's & þorgh. ȝoure owene wille .
Suffreth my postlesR.16.167: Only L joins R in this clipped form; all other B manuscripts have Apostles. R and L are also alone in reading the possessive as my where the other copies have myn. The C manuscripts are divided on this phrase, with most of the X family supporting LR and most of the P family agreeing with the beta majority. in pays  and in pees gange .
R.16.168KD.16.160
InR.16.168: Beta reads On. a thorsday in thesternesse  þus was he taken .
Thoruȝ Iudas and iewes  ihesus was his name .
Þat on þe friday folwynge  for mankende sake .
Iusted in ierusalem  a ioye to vs alle .
R.16.172KD.16.164
On cros vpon caluarie  criste toke þe bataile .
Aȝeynes deth and þe deuel  destruyde þere beireR.16.173: According to OED2, s. v. bo (a. and pron.) and both (a. and adv.), R's unique form beire is a genitive plural form of bo (= "both"). So R's phrase, þere beire miȝtes, means the powers of both of them. Beta has bother(es) while F rewrites the line. miȝtes .
Deyede and deth for-dede  and day of nyȝt made .
¶ And I awaked þerewith  and wiped myn eyesR.16.175: Beta's form is eyghen. .
R.16.176KD.16.168
And after peres þe plowman  pried and stared
Estward and westwarde  I waited after faste .
And ȝede forth as an Ideot  in contre to a-spie .
After peres þe plowman  many a place I souȝte .
R.16.180KD.16.172
And þan mette I with a man  a mydlenten soneday .
m iiijus
fol. 83vI
As hoer as an hauȝthorne  and abraham he hiȝte .
I frayned hym furste  from whennes he come .
John Sympson In the left margin, between these two verse paragraphs, a sixteenth-century signature (apparently a pen trial) has been mostly erased.
And of whennes he were  and whider þat he thouȝte .
R.16.184KD.16.176
¶ I am feith quod þat freke  it falleth nauȝt meR.16.184: F transposes this phrase as falleþ me nowht; beta omits me. In a revised line, the prevalent C reading agrees with R's (though a minority of C witnesses read the phrase in F's order). to lye .
And of abrahames hous  an heraude of armes .
I seke after a segge  þat I seiȝ ones .
A ful bolde bachelere  I knewe hym by his blasen .
R.16.188KD.16.180
¶ What bereth þat buyrn quod I þo  so blisse þe be-tyde .
¶ Thre ledes in on lith  non lenger þan other .
Of on muchele and miȝt  in mesure and in lenthe .
Þat on doth alle doth  and vchR.16.191: R's vch is unique in form but not in sense; OED2, s. v. each (a., quasi-pron.), lists it as a viable form from twelfth-fifteenth century Most other B manuscripts have ech(e). doth by his one .
R.16.192KD.16.184
Þe firste hath miȝt and mageste  makere of alle thynge .
Pater is his propre name  a persone by hym-selue .
Þe secunde of þat sire is  sothfastnesse filius .
Wardan of þat wit hatR.16.195: R's hat is unique in form among the B manuscripts, but not in sense; OED2, s. v. have, lists it as a viable fifteenth century form for the 3rd sing. pres. of have. Most other B manuscripts read hath.  was euer with-outen gynnynge .
R.16.196KD.16.188
Þe thridde hat þe holy goste  a persone by hym-seluen .
Þat alle þe liȝt of þe lifR.16.197: The syntactic confusion in this a-verse began in alpha, which omitted the verb (cf. F's Þat al þe lyght & þe lyf). Beta witnesses read the full line as Þe liȝte of alle þat lyf hath a londe & a watre.  a londe and a watere .
Confortoure of creatoures  of hym cometh alle blisse .
So thre bylongeth for a lorde  þat lordschipe claymeth .
R.16.200KD.16.192
Miȝt and a mene toR.16.200: After to, R omits the verb knowe. This line was already metrically defective in Bx, which appears to have read as beta does: Myȝte and a mene to knowe his owne myȝte. Assuming this shape for Bx, R's only additional deficit is the aforementioned loss, which probably occurred in alpha. Cf. F's version of the line: Myght & eek a meyne to his myght owiþ. The C version of this line also seems metrically defective: Miȝte and a mene to se his owne myhte. his owene miȝte .
Of hym-selueR.16.201: R's hym-selue is an alpha variant; cf. beta's hym. and of his seruant  and what soffret hemR.16.201: The phrase soffret hem is an alpha variant; beta reads þei suffre. Both alpha variants in this line are authenticated by their presence in Cx. bothe .
So god þat gynnynge hadde nereR.16.202: R's nere is a unique form; the other manuscripts readneure.  but þo hym gode thouȝte .
Sent forth his sone  as for seruant þat tyme .
R.16.204KD.16.196
To ocupien hym here  til issue were spronge .
Þat is childurne of charite  and holy cherche þe moder .
Patriarkes and prophetes  and apostles were þe barnes .R.16.206: Beta has chyldren in place of RF's barnes, and Cx agrees with beta's reading.
And crist and cristendom  and alleR.16.207: Beta omits alle, as does the P family of C manuscripts; but the X family of C manuscripts agrees with RF, including the word. cristene holy cherche .
R.16.208KD.16.200
In menynge þat man moste  inR.16.208: This is an alpha variant (also attested in Cr); the other beta copies read on. o god byleue .
And þere hym lyked and louede  in thre persones hym schewed .
And þat it may be so & soth  man-hode it scheweth .
Wedlok and widewehode  with virginite I-nempned .
R.16.212KD.16.204
In tokenynge of þe trinite  was take out of o manR.16.212: R's o man and beta's a man are both enumerative and semantically identical, emphasizing that all three states of grace emanate from "one man," while F seems to miss the point, reading mankynde. .
Adam oure aller fader  eue was of hym-selue .
S oppR.16.214: At the bottom margin of fol. 83v, near the gutter, in a brown secretary hand, there is a pen trial: S opp.
And þe isue þat þei hadde  it was of hem bothe .
fol. 84rI
John Sympson Smithe John        John Sympson
William Joh
Jhon
Sympson Across the top margin of fol. 84r, all of the pen trials appear to be in the same hand, but the different shades of ink and variations in cut of the stylus suggest that they were executed at different times.
And eyther is otheres ioye  in thre sondri persones .
R.16.216KD.16.208
And in heuene and here one singulere name .
And þatR.16.217: For alpha's þat, beta reads þus. is man-kende  or manhode  of matrimonie spronge .R.16.217: In the extreme right margin there is some scribbling that appears to be a continuation of the pen trials higher on the page, with the writer continuing to practice the capital <S> of Sympson.
And bi-tokeneth þe trinite  and trewe byleue :
¶ Miȝte is inR.16.219: Beta omits in. matrimonie  þat multiplieth þe erthe .
R.16.220KD.16.212
And bitokeneth treweli  telle if I durste .
He þat first formed alle  þe fader of heuene .
Þe sone if I it durste say  resembleth wel þe widewe .
Deus meus deus meus vt quid me dereliquisti .R.16.223: For R's me dereliquisti, the other B copies show a reversal: dereliquisti me.
R.16.224KD.16.215
Þat is creatour wax creature  to knowe what was bothe .
NotaR.16.225: To the right of the nota, there is a symbol resembling a modern script capital <E>.
As widewe with-oute wedloke  was neuere ȝet I-seye .
Ne naR.16.226: R's Ne is a unique addition to the text of Bx. more miȝte god be man  but if he moder hadde .
So widewe with-oute wedloke  may nouȝt wel stande .
R.16.228KD.16.219
Ne matrimonie with-oute moylere  is nauȝt muche to preyse .
Maledictus homo qui non reliquit semen in israel &cetera .
Þus in thre persones  is parfitliche puirR.16.230: R's puir is unique (beta omits it while F reads þorghȝ); nevertheless, the metrical requirements of the line indicate that puir is authentic. manhode .
Þat is man and his make  & moillere hereR.16.231: L agrees with RF, though the other beta copies omit here. childerne .
R.16.232KD.16.222
And is nouȝt but gendre of o generacioun  bi-for ihesu crist in heuene .
So is þe fader forth with þe sone  and fre wil of bothe .
Spiritus procedens a patre et filio 
Which is þe holy gost of al  and al is but o god .
R.16.236KD.16.225
Þus in a somer I hym seyȝ  as I sat in my porche .
I ros vp and reuerenced hym  and riȝt faire hym grette .
knak
¶ Thre men to my syȝte  I made wel at ese .R.16.238: In the right margin, an early reader has written knak vertically, beginning here and extending upwards in the margin to a spot opposite R16.237.
Wesche here fete in[a]n[d] wiped hesR.16.239: R's hes is unique but is not a careless error. According to OED2, s. v. his, hise (pers. pron., 3rd sing. fem. acc.), this form is a twelfth-fourteenth century variant of the 3rd person sing. accus., his(e), which is equivalent to standard ME hem. MED, s. v. netheren (v.) and God, cites an example from the thirteenth-century Vices and Virtues (Bute hie hem seluen neðerien..scal goddalmihtin hes forliesen — BL Stowe 34).  and afterwarde þei eten .
R.16.240KD.16.229
Calues flesche and cake brede  and knewen what I thouȝte .
Ful trewe toknesse bitwene vs is  to telle whan me liketh .R.16.241: Someone after the R scribe had finished his work has partially erased the <h> of liketh, but its remains are still visible and recognizable.
Furste he fonded me  if I loued bettere .
Hym or Isaac myn ayr  þe whiche he hiȝt me kulle .
R.16.244KD.16.233
He wist my wille bi hym  aR.16.244: A, "he." wol me it a-lowe .
I am ful siker in soule there  of and my sone bothe .
Wyll ND
I circumcised my sone  sith for his sake . In the right margin, there is a pen trial (in a black secretary hand): Wyll ND . It is written vertically upwards from a point below the last text line to a point in the right margin opposite R16.246.
My-sulue and my mayneR.16.247: R's mayne is unique in form but not meaning; MED, s. v. meine, attests its viability as a spelling of meine for the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries. F has meyghne. The beta manuscripts show a variety of spellings, with a majority reading meyne(e). The C form is identical to R's.  and al þat male were .
R.16.248KD.16.237
Bledden blode for þat lordes loue  & hope to blisse þe tyme .
My affiance and my fayR.16.249: R's fay is unique in form but not meaning; MED, s. v. feith, attests its viability as a spelling variant of feiþ for the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries. The C form, however, is identical to that of the B majority.  is ferme in þis bileue .
fol. 84vI
For hym-sulue be-hiȝt to me  and to myn issue bothe .
Londe and lordschipe  and lif withouten ende .
R.16.252KD.16.241
To me and to myn issue  more ȝet he me graunted .
Mercy for oure mysdedes  as many tyme as we asken .
Quam olim abrahe promisisti et semini eius .
And sitthe he sent me to seye  I schulde do sacrifice .
R.16.256KD.16.244
And done hym worschpeworsch[i]pe with brede  and with wyne bothe . In the left margin opposite these lines, there are traces of an erased pen trial, apparently a signature, running vertically downwards and encroaching slightly, at the bottom, into the text area.
And called me þe fote of his feith  his folke for to saue .
And defende hem fro þe fende  folke þat on me leuedR.16.258: Kane and Donaldson read R here as lened. .
Þus haue I ben his heraud  here and in helle .
R.16.260KD.16.248
And conforted many a careful  þat after his commynge waiten .
And þus I seke hym he sayde  for I herde seyn late .
Of a buyrnR.16.262: Beta reads barne. þat baptised hym  Iohan baptist was his name .
Þat to patriarkes and to prophetes  and to other peple in derkenesse .
R.16.264KD.16.252
Seyde þat he seydeR.16.264: Beta has seigh. here  þat schal sauen hem alle .R.16.264: Beta's version of the b-verse is þat sholde saue vs alle. R's schal is shared with CF and hem with F alone. The Cx version of this entire line is substantively identical to that of beta.
Ecce agnus dei &cetera .
¶ I hadde wonder of his wordes  and of his wide clothes .
AndR.16.267: In place of alpha's And, beta reads For, which is also the reading of Cx. In his bosom he bare a thynge&R.16.267: Beta omits &. Cx agrees with alpha. þat he blessed euere .
R.16.268KD.16.255
And I loked on his lappe  a laȝar lay þere-Inne .R.16.268: Immediately following the last word of this line, there is an indecipherable, tiny note written in a later hand, accompanied by a small vertical bar.
Amonges patriarkes and prophetes  pleyedeR.16.269: R's use of the preterite is unique in the B tradition (a few copies of C attest a preterite here); most beta copies have pleyinge (which is also the reading of Cx); but cf. F's pleyende and L's pleyande. These forms of the present participle suggest that R's mistake may have amounted to nothing more than overlooking a nasal bar in his copytext. to-gyderes .
¶ What a-waitest þow quod he  & what wildestowR.16.270: The other B copies show woldestow, which is also the reading of a majority of C witnesses (primarily among the P family). Many X family witnesses read wost thow. haue .
¶ I wolde wite quod I þo  what is in ȝoure lappe .
R.16.272KD.16.259
¶ Lo quod he and lete me se  lorde mercy I seyde .
Þis is a present of muche pris  what prince schal it haue .
¶ It is a preciose present quod he  ac þe pouke it hath atached .
And me þere-with quod þat weyeR.16.275: Weye, "person, being, man." Beta has man.  may no wed vs quite .
R.16.276KD.16.263
Ne no buyrn ben oure boruȝ  ne brynge vs fram his daungere .R.16.276: Alpha omits the following line attested by beta manuscripts (and in a slightly revised form by the C version):
Oute of þe poukes pondfolde no meynprise may vs fecche.
Til he come þat I carpe of  crist is his name .
Þat schal deliuere vs sum day  out of þe deueles power .
And bettere wed for vs legge  þan we ben al worthi .
R.16.280KD.16.268
Þat is lif for lif  or ligge þus euere
Lollynge in my lappe  til suche a lorde vs feche .
fol. 85rI
¶ Allas thouȝte I þo  þat is a longe a-bydynge . These three lines are from alpha. They are judged by Kane-Donaldson as well as by Schmidt to be spurious. Kane-Donaldson hypothesize loss of the authentic lines through similarity of line heads (KD16.270 = Allas I; KD16.274 = I). This rationale seems unlikely and also depends on the assumption that alpha later noticed the loss and generated the spurious lines as a replacement. In reality, the alpha version of these lines was probably deliberate, motivated by censorship of material deemed to be theologically dangerous (in beta, sin is said to be able to hinder the might of God's mercy). Beta (as well as the C version, in a slightly revised form) reads:
Allas I seyde þat synne so longe shal lette
Þe myȝte of goddes mercy þat myȝt vs alle amende
I wepte for his wordes with þat sawe I an other
Rapelich renne forth þe riȝte waye went
.
The last of these four lines was omitted by alpha. The text of alpha is not entirely clear, since R differs significantly from F, which reads as follows:
Allas þowhte y þoo þat is a long a-bydynge
& oon on foote sewede hym for he softely wente
& he be-took hym þe targe as tyȝt trewly to me it telle
.
And sued hym for he softe ȝede .
R.16.284KD.16.270.3
Þat he toek vs as tit  ac trewly to telle .
I afrayned hym furste  fram whennes he come .
What he hiȝte and whider he wolde  and whithlicheR.16.286: R's form here, whithliche, is unique in the B tradition but is identical with the spelling found in Cx. Though the form is not semantically distinctive, its occurrence in R is phonologically of interest and is likely a relict. he tolde .
MED