¹ A iust man perischith, and noon is, that thenkith in his herte; and men of merci ben gaderid togidere, for noon is that vndurstondith; for whi a iust man is gaderid fro the face of malice.

² Pees come, reste he in his bed, that yede in his dressyng.

³ But ye, sones of the sekere of fals dyuynyng bi chiteryng of briddys, neiye hidur, the seed of auowtresse, and of an hoore.

⁴ On whom scorneden ye? on whom maden ye greet the mouth, and puttiden out the tunge? Whethir ye ben not cursid sones, a seed of leesyngis?

⁵ which ben coumfortid in goddis, vndur ech tree ful of bowis, and offren litle children in strondis, vndur hiye stoonys.

⁶ Thi part is in the partis of the stronde, this is thi part; and to tho thou scheddist out moist offryng, thou offridist sacrifice. Whether Y schal not haue indignacioun on these thingis?

⁷ Thou puttidist thi bed on an hiy hil and enhaunsid, and thidur thou stiedist to offre sacrifices;

⁸ and thou settidist thi memorial bihynde the dore, and bihynde the post. For bisidis me thou vnhilidist, and tokist auouter; thou alargidist thi bed, and madist a boond of pees with hem; thou louedist the bed of hem with openyd hond,

⁹ and ournedist thee with kyngis oynement, and thou multipliedist thi pymentis; thou sentist fer thi messangeris, and thou art maad low `til to hellis.

¹⁰ Thou trauelidist in the multitude of thi weie, and seidist not, Y schal reste; thou hast founde the weie of thin hond,

¹¹ therfor thou preiedist not. For what thing dreddist thou bisy, for thou liedist, and thouytist not on me? And thou thouytist not in thin herte, that Y am stille, and as not seynge; and thou hast foryete me.

¹² Y schal telle thi riytfulnesse, and thi werkis schulen not profite to thee.

¹³ Whanne thou schalt crie, thi gaderid tresours delyuere thee; and the wynd schal take awei alle tho, a blast schal do awei hem; but he that hath trist on me, schal enherite the lond, and schal haue in possessioun myn hooli hil.

¹⁴ And Y schal seie, Make ye weie, yyue ye iurney, bowe ye fro the path, do ye awei hirtyngis fro the weie of my puple.

¹⁵ For the Lord hiy, and enhaunsid, seith these thingis, that dwellith in euerlastyngnesse, and his hooli name in hiy place, and that dwellith in hooli, and with a contrite and meke spirit, that he quykene the spirit of meke men, and quykene the herte of contrit men.

¹⁶ For Y schal not stryue with outen ende, nether Y schal be wrooth `til to the ende; for whi a spirit schal go out fro my face, and Y schal make blastis.

¹⁷ Y was wrooth for the wickidnesse of his aueryce, and Y smoot hym. Y hidde my face fro thee, and Y hadde indignacioun; and he yede with out stidfast dwellyng, in the weie of his herte.

¹⁸ Y siy hise weies, and Y helide hym, and Y brouyte hym ayen; and Y yaf coumfortyngis to hym, and to the moreneris of hym.

¹⁹ Y made the fruyt of lippis pees, pees to hym that is fer, and to hym that is niy, seide the Lord; and Y heelide hym.

²⁰ But wickid men ben as the buyling see, that may not reste; and the wawis therof fleten ayen in to defoulyng, and fen.

²¹ The Lord God seide, Pees is not to wickid men.