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¹ Forsothe Eliphat Themanytes answeride, and seide,² Whether a wise man schal answere, as spekynge ayens the wynd, and schal fille his stomac with brennyng, `that is, ire?³ For thou repreuest hym bi wordis, which is not lijk thee, and thou spekist that, that spedith not to thee.⁴ As myche as is in thee, thou hast avoidid drede; and thou hast take awey preyeris bifor God.⁵ For wickidnesse hath tauyt thi mouth, and thou suest the tunge of blasfemeris.⁶ Thi tunge, and not Y, schal condempne thee, and thi lippis schulen answere thee.⁷ Whether thou art borun the firste man, and art formed bifor alle little hillis?⁸ Whether thou herdist the counsel of God, and his wisdom is lower than thou?⁹ What thing knowist thou, whiche we knowen not? What thing vndurstondist thou, whiche we witen not?¹⁰ Bothe wise men and elde, myche eldre than thi fadris, ben among vs.¹¹ Whether it is greet, that God coumforte thee? But thi schrewid wordis forbeden this.¹² What reisith thin herte thee, and thou as thenkynge grete thingis hast iyen astonyed?¹³ What bolneth thi spirit ayens God, that thou brynge forth of thi mouth siche wordis?¹⁴ What is a man, that he be with out wem, and that he borun of a womman appere iust?¹⁵ Lo! noon among hise seyntis is vnchaungable, and heuenes ben not cleene in his siyt.¹⁶ How myche more a man abhomynable and vnprofitable, that drynkith wickidnesse as water?

¹⁷ I schal schewe to thee, here thou me; Y schal telle to thee that, that Y siy.¹⁸ Wise men knoulechen, and hiden not her fadris.¹⁹ To whiche aloone the erthe is youun, and an alien schal not passe bi hem.²⁰ A wickid man is proud in alle hise daies; and the noumbre of hise yeeris and of his tirauntrie is vncerteyn.²¹ The sown of drede is euere in hise eeris, and whanne pees is, he supposith euere tresouns.²² He bileueth not that he may turne ayen fro derknessis to liyt; and biholdith aboute on ech side a swerd.²³ Whanne he stirith hym to seke breed, he woot, that the dai of derknessis is maad redi in his hond.²⁴ Tribulacioun schal make hym aferd, and angwisch schal cumpas hym, as a kyng which is maad redi to batel.²⁵ For he helde forth his hond ayens God, and he was maad strong ayens Almyyti God.²⁶ He ran with neck reisid ayens God, and he was armed with fat nol.²⁷ Fatnesse, that is, pride `comyng forth of temporal aboundaunce, hilide his face, `that is, the knowyng of vndurstondyng, and outward fatnesse hangith doun of his sidis.²⁸ He schal dwelle in desolat citees, and in deseert, `ethir forsakun, housis, that ben turned in to biriels.²⁹ He schal not be maad riche, nether his catel schal dwelle stidefastli; nether he schal sende his roote in the erthe,³⁰ nether he schal go awei fro derknessis. Flawme schal make drie hise braunchis, and he schal be takun a wey bi the spirit of his mouth.³¹ Bileue he not veynli disseyued bi errour, that he schal be ayenbouyt bi ony prijs.³² Bifor that hise daies ben fillid, he schal perische, and hise hondis schulen wexe drye;³³ he schal be hirt as a vyne in the firste flour of his grape, and as an olyue tre castinge awei his flour.³⁴ For the gaderyng togidere of an ipocrite is bareyn, and fier schal deuoure the tabernaclis of hem, that taken yiftis wilfuli.³⁵ He conseyuede sorewe, and childide wickidnesse, and his wombe makith redi tretcheries.