wikked men destruyed and disseuered fro þe goode men .
and
þay þat haue wille to wikkednes restreignen here wikked prpos
whan þay seen þe punysshyng and þe chastising of trespasors
465
¶ And ȝit say I more þat right so as a sengle persone synneþ in ta-
king of vengeaunce ;
Right so þe Iugge synneþ if he doo no
vengeaunce on him þat it haþ deserued
¶ For Senec saith þus
¶ he þat maister is he saith good to reproue schrewes
and as
Cassoder saith ¶ A man dredeþ to doon outrage whan he
woot and knoweþ þat it displeseþ to þe Iugges and þe soue-
raynes .
and anoþer saith ¶ The Iugges þat dredeþ to demen
right makeþ schrewes //
470
And seint poul þappostoil saiþ in his
epistil whan he writeþ to þe romayns ¶ The Iugges bere not
þe spere wiþoute cause .
but þay beren it to punysshe þe schre-
wes and mys doers and for to defende wiþ þe goode men .
If ȝe wol take vengeaunce on ȝoure enemyes ȝe schul retour-
ne or haue recours to þe Iugges þat haue þe iurediccioū vpon
hem
and he schal punssche hem as þe lawe axeþ and re-
quireþ
¶ A quod melibeus þis vengeaunce likeþ me no þīg
475
I byþenke me now and take heed how fortune haþ noriss-
sched me fro my childhode and haþ holpe me to passen
many a strayt passage
¶ Now wol I aske her þat sche
scal wiþ goddes help helpe me my schame for to venge
¶ Certes quod prudence if ȝe wil wirche by my counseil .
ȝe schul not assaye fortune by no maner way
ne schul
not lene ne bowe vnto hire after þe word of Senec
¶ For
þinges þat beþ folye and þat beþ in hope of fortune schul
neuer come to good ende
480
¶ And as þe same Senek saiþ
¶ The more cleer and þe more schynynge þat fortune is þe
more brutil and þe sonner brekeþ sche .
so trusteþ nought
in hire For sche is nouȝt stedefast ne stable
¶ For whan þu
wenest or trowest to be most seur of hir help . sche wol fay-
le þe and deceyue þe .
And wher as ȝe say þat fortune
haþ norisshed ȝow fro ȝoure childhode ; /
I say þat in so mo-
chel ȝe schul þe lasse truste in hire and in hire witte
485
¶ For
Senek saith ¶ what man þat is norissched by fortune ;
sche makeþ him to gret a fool
¶ Now siþþe ȝe desire and
axe vengeaunce
and þe vegeaunce þat is doon in hope
of fortune is perilous and vncerteyn