180

[70a]

thi blysful sone so nere to fynde,
in his p(re)sens to lede my lyff.
Alas! ffor joy I qwedyr and qwake.
Alas! what hap now was this!
A! mercy! mercy! my jentyl make,
mercy! I haue seyd al amys.

All that I haue seyd here I forsake:

185 gour swete feet now lete me kys.

190

195

200

205

Maria: Nay, lett be my fete, not tho ge take,
my mowthe ge may kys, i-wys,

and welcom onto me.

Joseph Gramercy, myn owyn swete wyff,
gramercy, myn hert, my love, my lyff;
shal I nevyr more make suche stryff
betwyx me and the.

A mary, mary, wel thu be!
and blyssyd be the frewte in the,
goddys sone of myght!

now good wyff, full of pyte,

as be not evyl payd with me,
thow that thu haue good ryght,
as for my wronge in syght

to wyte the with any synne.
had thu not be a vertuous wy[ght]
god wold not a be the withinne.

I knowlage I haue don amys,
I was nevyr wurthy, i-wys,

ffor to be thin husbonde;
I shal amende aftere thys,
ryght as thin owyn wyl is

to serve the at foot and hande.

179 presens] psens MS 201 wyght] wythe MS

181] MS has full form this 206] MS has full form thys

and thi chylde bothe to vndyrstonde,

to wurchep hym with good affecion;
and therfore telle me, and nothynge whonde,
the holy matere of gour concepcion.

Maria: At zoure owyn wyll, as ze bydde me,—
ther cam an aunge, hyght Gabryell,
and gret me ffayr, and seyd ave,
and ferthermore to me gan tell
God shulde be borne of my bode,
the ffendys powste for to felle,
thorwe the holy gost, as I wel se;
thus god in me wyl byde and dwelle.

Joseph: Now I thank god with spech and spelle
that euer, mary, I was weddyd to the.

Maria: it was the werk of god, as I gow telle, now blyssyd be that lord, so purveyd for me!

MS

214] MS has full form ther

222] MS has full form the.

217 shulde] shulde shulde

210

[70b]

215

220

[71a]

[PLAY] 13. [THE VISITATION.]

Maria: Butt, husbond of oo thynge I pray gow most

mekely,

I haue knowyng that oure cosyn Elyzabeth with childe is,

that it plese gow to go to here hastyly,

If owught we my[ght] comforte here it were to me

blys.

5 Joseph: A! goddys sake! is she with childe? sche! than wole here husbond, zakarye, be mery.

10

15

20

In Montana they dwelle, fer hens, so mot [I] the,
In the cety of Juda, I knowe it veryly;

It is hens, I trowe, myles two and ffyfty;

we are lyke to be wery or we come at that same.
I wole with a good wyl, blyssyd wyff mary:
now go we forthe than in goddys name.

Maria: Go[od] husbond, thow it be to gow peyne,
this jurny, I pray zow, let us go fast,

ffor I am schamfast of the pepyl to be seyne,
and namely of men, therof I am agast.

pylgrymages and helpynges wolde be go in hast;
the more the body is peynyd the more is the mede.

say ze zour devocionys and I shal myn i-cast,

now in this jurny god mote us spede!

Joseph Amen! Amen! and evyrmore!

lo, wyff, lo! how starkly I go before.

4 myght] myth MS
they, than, this

19 i-cast] reast H
cca MS

et sic t(ra)nsient c(ir)ca placeam.

6, 7, 12, 14] MS has full forms than,

7 mot I] moty MS 13 good] goth MS after 22 transient] tĥsient MS circa]

[Scene 2]

Contemplacion: Sovereynes, vndyrstondyth that kynge

davyd here

ordeyned ffoure and twenty prestys of grett devocion,
in the temple of god, aftere here let apere,
thei weryd clepyd summi sacerdotes, for here min-

istracion,

and on was prynce of prestys, havynge d(omi)nacyon;

amonge whiche was an old prest clepyd zakarye, and he had an old woman to his wyff, of holy conversacion,

[71b]

25

whiche hy[ght] Elizabeth, that nevyr had childe, 3o verylye.

In hese mynistracion, the howre of incense, the aungel gabryel apperyd hym to;

that hese wyff shulde conseyve he gaff hym in-
telligence;

hese juge, hese vnwurthynes and age not belevyd so.
The plage of dompnesse his lippis lappyd, lo!
thei wenten hom and his wyff was conseyvenge.
this concepcion gabryel tolde oure lady to,
and in soth sone aftere that sage sche was sekynge,
and of here tweyners metyng

here gynnyth the proces.

now god be oure begynnynge,

and of my tonge I wole ses.

35

40

27 dominacyon] dñacyon MS

30 hyght] hyth MS

31, 32, 35, 36, 37, 39] MS has full forms: the, the, the, thei, this, and

[Scene 3]

45

Joseph A! A! wyf, in feyth I am wery,

therfore I wole sytt downe and rest me ryght here.

lo! wyff, here is the hous of zakarye,

wole ze I clepe Elyzabeth to zow to apere?

[72a] Maria: Nay, husbond, and it plese gow I shal go ner. now the blyssyd trynite be in this hous!

50

55

60

A! cosyn Elizabeth, swete modyr, what cher ?

ze grow grett. A my god, how ge be gracyous! Elizabeth: Anon as I herd of gow this holy gretynge, mekest mayden and the modyr of god, mary, be your breth the holy gost us was inspyrynge, that the childe in my body enjoyd gretly,

and turnyd down on his knes to oure god rev-
erently,

whom ge bere in zour body, this veryly I ken.
ffulfyllyd with the holy gost thus lowde I cry:
blyssyd be thu amonge all women,

and blyssyd be the frute of thi wombe also,

thu wurthyest virgyne and wyff that evyr was wrought, how is it that the modyr of god me shulde come to, that wrecche of all wrecchis, a whyght wers than

nought?

and thu art blyssyd that belevyd veryly in thi thought

that the wurde of god shulde profyte in the; 65 but how this blyssydnes abought was brought I can not thynk nyn say how it myght be.

Maria: To the preysynge of god, cosyn, this seyd must be:

Whan I sat in my lytyl hous, onto god praynge,

44, 47, 59] MS has full forms therefore, and, and