that had it biseged / and wolde it al destroye
¶ Abigail delyu
erede
Nabal hire housbonde fro Dauyd the kyng
/ that wolde han
slayn h
ī / & apaised the Ire of the kyng
/ by hire wyt
/ and by
hire good co
ūseillyng
Cross in dry point in the left margin.ODR
¶ Hester by hire coūseil / enhaunced gretly
the peeple of god / in the regne / of Assureus the kyng /
And þe same
bountee in good coūseillyng / of many a good wōman / moun men
telle
135
¶ And more ouer / whan that oure lord / had creat Adam oure
forme fader / he seide in this wyse /
It is nat good / to be a man
allone / make we to hī an helpe / semblable to hī self /
heere moū
ȝe se / that if that wōmen weren nat goode / & here coūseil good &
profitable /
oure lord god of heuene / wolde neither han wrougħt
hē / ne called hē helpe of man / but rathere cōfusioū of man /
&
there seide oones a Clerk in two vers / what is bettre than gold ;
Iaspre / what is bettre than Iaspre ; wysdom /
140
Corrected from: <nothing> && what is bettre than
wysdom ; wōman / And what is bettre than good wōman ; no þīg /
And sire / by manye of othere resons / moun ȝe sen / þt many wō-
men ben goode / & here coūseil good & profitable
¶ And þerfore Sire
If ȝe wole troste to my coūseil / I shal restore ȝow ȝoure dougħter
hool & soūd /
& I wol don to ȝow so muche / that ȝe shuln haue
honore in this cause
¶ whan Melibe had herd the wordes of
his wyf Pudence / he seide thus /
145
I se wel / that the word of Sa-
lamon is sotħ / he seitħ þt wordes þt ben spoken discretly by
ordynaūce / ben honycombes / for they ȝeuen swetnesse to the
soule / & holsumnesse to the body /
And wyf / by cause of thyne
swete wordes / & eke for I haue assaied / & preeued thy grete sa-
pience / & thy gret trouthe / I wol gouerne me by thy counseil / in
alle thyng
¶ Now sire qd Dame Prudence / & syn ȝe vouche
saf / to be gouerned by my coūseil / I wol enforme ȝow / how ȝe shuln
gouerne ȝoure self / in chesyng of ȝoure coūseillours /
ȝe shulñ
first in alle ȝour werkes / mekely byseken / to the heigħ god / that
he wol be ȝoure coūseillour /
And shapetħ ȝow to swicħ entente
that he ȝeue ȝow coūseil & comfort / as taugħte Tobye his sone
150
At alle tymes / þu shalt blisse god / & preye hī to dresse thyne
weyes / & loke þt alle thyne coūseils / ben in hī for euere moore //
¶ Seynt Iame eke seitħ / If any of ȝow haue nede of Sapience
axe it of god /
and afterward / thāne shuln ȝe take coūseil / in ȝour
self / and examyne wel ȝour thougħtes / of swicħ thynges / as
ȝow thynketħ / that is best for ȝour profyt /
And thāne shuln ȝe
dryue fro ȝoure herte / thre thynges / þt ben contarious to good
counseil /
that is to seyn ; Ire / Coueitise / & hastynesse
155
¶ First
he that axetħ coūseil of hī self / certes he muste ben wt outen
Ire / for manye causes /
the firste is this / he þt hatħ gret Ire / and
wrathe in hī self / he wenetħ alwey / þt he may do thyng / þt he