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¹ The preier of Abacuk, the profete, for vnkunnynge men. Lord, Y herde thin heryng, and Y dredde;² Lord, it is thi werk, in the myddil of yeeris quykene thou it. In the middil of yeeris thou schalt make knowun; whanne thou schalt be wrooth, thou schalt haue mynde of mercy.

³ God schal come fro the south, and the hooli fro the mount of Faran. The glorie of hym kyueride heuenes, and the erthe is ful of his heriyng.⁴ The schynyng of hym schal be as liyt; hornes in hondis of hym.⁵ There the strengthe of hym was hid, deth schal go bifore his face; the deuel schal go out bifore hise feet.⁶ He stood, and mat the erthe; he bihelde, and vnboond folkis, and hillis of the world weren al to-brokun; the litle hillis of the world weren bowid doun, of the weies of his euerlastyngnesse.⁷ For wickidnesse Y saiy the tentis of Ethiope, the skynnes of the lond of Madian schulen be troblid.⁸ Lord, whether in floodis thou art wrooth, ether in floodis is thi strong veniaunce, ether in the see is thin indignacioun? Which shalt stie on thin horsis; and thi foure horsid cartis is saluacioun.⁹ Thou reisynge schalt reise thi bouwe, othis to lynagis whiche thou hast spoke; thou schalt departe the floodis of erthe.¹⁰ Watris saien thee, and hillis sorewiden, the goter of watris passide; depnesse yaf his vois, hiynesse reiside hise hondis.¹¹ The sunne and moone stoden in her dwellyng place; in the liyt of thin arowis thei schulen go, in the schynyng of thi spere glisnynge.¹² In gnastyng thou schalt defoule erthe, and in strong veniaunce thou schalt astonye folkis.¹³ Thou art gon out in to helthe of thi puple, in to helthe with thi crist; thou hast smyte the heed of the hous of the vnpitouse man, thou hast maad nakid the foundement til to the necke.¹⁴ Thou cursidist the ceptris, ether powers, of hym, the heed of hise fiyteris, to men comynge as whirlewynde for to scatere me; the ioiyng withoutforth of hem, as of hym that deuourith a pore man in hidlis.¹⁵ Thou madist a weie in the see to thin horsis, in clei of many watris.

¹⁶ Y herde, and my wombe is troblid togidere; my lippis trembliden togidere of the vois. Rot entre in my boonys, and sprenge vndur me; that Y reste ayen in the dai of tribulacioun, and Y schal stie vp to oure puple gird togidere.¹⁷ For the fige tre schal not floure, and buriownyng schal not be in vynyerdis; the werk of olyue tre schal lie, and feeldis schulen not brynge mete; a scheep schal be kit awei fro the fold, and droue schal not be in cratchis.¹⁸ Forsothe Y schal haue ioye in the Lord, and Y schal make ioie with outforth in God my Jhesu.¹⁹ God the Lord is my strengthe, and he schal putte my feet as of hertis; and on myn hiye thingis, the ouercomere schal lede forth me, syngynge in salmes.