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¹ I seie treuthe in Crist Jhesu, Y lye not, for my conscience berith witnessyng to me in the Hooli Goost,² for greet heuynesse is to me, and contynuel sorewe to my herte.³ For Y my silf desiride to be departid fro Crist for my britheren, that ben my cosyns aftir the fleisch, that ben men of Israel;⁴ whos is adopcioun of sones, and glorie, and testament, and yyuyng of the lawe, and seruyce, and biheestis;⁵ whos ben the fadris, and of which is Crist after the fleisch, that is God aboue alle thingis, blessid in to worldis.

⁶ Amen. But not that the word of God hath falle doun. For not alle that ben of Israel, these ben Israelitis.⁷ Nethir thei that ben seed of Abraham, `alle ben sonys; but in Ysaac the seed schal be clepid to thee;⁸ that is to seie, not thei that ben sones of the fleisch, ben sones of God, but thei that ben sones of biheeste ben demed in the seed.⁹ For whi this is the word of biheest, Aftir this tyme Y schal come, and a sone schal be to Sare.¹⁰ And not oneli sche, but also Rebecca hadde twey sones of o liggyng bi of Ysaac, oure fadir.¹¹ And whanne thei weren not yit borun, nether hadden don ony thing of good ether of yuel, that the purpos of God schulde dwelle bi eleccioun,¹² not of werkis, but of God clepynge, it was seid to hym,¹³ that the more schulde serue the lesse, as it is writun, Y louede Jacob, but Y hatide Esau.

¹⁴ What therfor schulen we seie? Whether wickidnesse be anentis God?¹⁵ God forbede. For he seith to Moyses, Y schal haue merci on whom Y haue merci; and Y schal yyue merci on whom Y schal haue merci.¹⁶ Therfor it is not nether of man willynge, nethir rennynge, but of God hauynge mercy.¹⁷ And the scripture seith to Farao, For to this thing Y haue stirid thee, that Y schewe in thee my vertu, and that my name be teld in al erthe.¹⁸ Therfor of whom God wole, he hath merci; and whom he wole, he endurith.¹⁹ Thanne seist thou to me, What is souyt yit? for who withstondith his wille?²⁰ O! man, who art thou, that answerist to God? Whether a maad thing seith to hym that made it, What hast thou maad me so?²¹ Whether a potter of cley hath not power to make of the same gobet o vessel in to honour, an othere in to dispit?²² That if God willynge to schewe his wraththe, and to make his power knowun, hath suffrid in greet pacience vessels of wraththe able in to deth,²³ to schewe the riytchessis of his glorie in to vessels of merci, whiche he made redi in to glorie.²⁴ Whiche also he clepide not oneli of Jewis, but also of hethene men, as he seith in Osee,

²⁵ Y schal clepe not my puple my puple, and not my loued my louyd, and not getynge mercy getynge merci;²⁶ and it schal be in the place, where it is seid to hem, Not ye my puple, there thei schulen be clepid the sones of `God lyuynge.²⁷ But Isaye crieth for Israel, If the noumbre of Israel schal be as grauel of the see, the relifs schulen be maad saaf.²⁸ Forsothe a word makynge an ende, and abreggynge in equyte, for the Lord schal make a word breggid on al the erthe.²⁹ And as Ysaye bifor seide, But God of oostis hadde left to vs seed, we hadden be maad as Sodom, and we hadden be lijk as Gommor.

³⁰ Therfor what schulen we seie? That hethene men that sueden not riytwisnesse, han gete riytwisnesse, yhe, the riytwisnesse that is of feith.³¹ But Israel suynge the lawe of riytwisnesse, cam not parfitli in to the lawe of riytwisnesse.³² Whi? For not of feith, but as of werkys. And thei spurneden ayens the stoon of offencioun,³³ as it is writun, Lo! Y putte a stoon of offensioun in Syon, and a stoon of sclaundre; and ech that schal bileue `in it, schal not be confoundid.