1   Who shal touche pich, shal be defoulid of it; and who shal comunen to the proude man, shal clothin pride. 2   Berthen vp on hym he taketh, that comuneth to the honestere than hymself; and to the richere than thou, thou shalt not ben felawe. 3   What shal comune the caudron to the pot? whan forsothe thei shuln hurtle themself, it shal ben to-broken. 4   The riche man vnri&yogh;twisly dide, and shal gnaste; the pore man forsothe hurt shal holde his pes. 5   If thou shul &yogh;yue, he shal take thee; and if thou haue not, he shal forsake thee. 6   If thou haue, he shal lyue with thee, and auoide thee out; and he shal not sorewen vpon thee. 7   If thou were necessarie to hym, he shal bigile thee; and vnder la&yogh;hende hope he shal &yogh;yue, tellende to thee alle goodes; and shal seyn, What nede is to thee? 8   And he shal confounde thee in his metes, to the tyme he neentishe thee twies or thries, and in the laste he shal scorne thee; aftirward seende he shal forsake thee, and hys hed moue to thee. 9   Be thou mekid to God, and abid his hondis. 10   Tac heed, lest desceyued in folie thou be mekid. 11   Wile thou not be meeke in thi wisdam, and lest lowid in to folie thou be lad aside. 12   Clepid to of the my&yogh;tyere, go awey; of that forsothe more he shal clepe thee to. 13   Be thou not `to gredi, lest thou be put a&yogh;een; and be thou not fer fro hym, lest thou go in to for&yogh;eting. 14   Ne withholde thou of euene to speken with hym, and trowe thou not to the manye wrdis of hym; forsothe of myche speche he shal tempte thee, and vnder la&yogh;hende the vnmylde inwit of hym shal aske thee

of thin hid thingus. 15   And he shal `to gedir kepe thi wrdis, and not sparen fro malice, and fro bondis. 16   War to thee, and tac heed bisili to thin heering; for with thy turnyng vpsodoun thou gost. 17   Heerende forsothe tho thingus, as in sweuenes see, and thou shalt waken. 18   In al thi lif looue God, and inwardli clep hym in thin helthe. 19   Eche beste looueth lic to hym; so and eche man the nexte to hym. 20   Eche flesh to his lijch shal be ioyned, and eche man to his lic shal be felashepid. 21   As a wlf shal comune to a lomb otherwhile, so a synnere to a ri&yogh;twis. 22   What comunycacioun to an hoeli man at a dogge? or what good parti to a riche man at a pore? 23   Hunting of a leoun an asse in wildernesse; so pore men ben the leswe of riche men. 24   And as abhominacioun to a proud man is meknesse, so and cursing of the riche is the pore. 25   The riche man stirid is confermed of his frendis; the meeke forsothe, whan he shal falle, shal be put out also fro knowen. 26   To the riche desceyued manye ben rekureres; he spac proudli, and thei iustefieden hym. 27   The meeke is desceyued, ferthermor and vndirnomyn; he spac felendely, `or wisely, weel, and ther is not &yogh;oue to hym a place. 28   The riche spac, and alle heelden ther pes; and the wrd of hym vnto the cloudys thei shul bern. 29   The pore spac, and thei seyn, Who is this? and if he schal offende, thei shul turne hym vp so doun. 30   Good is substaunce, to whom is not synne in concience; and most wicke is porenes in the mouth of the vnpitous. 31   The herte of a man chaungeth the face of hym, or in good or in euel. 32   The step of a good herte, and a good face, hard thou shalt fynde, and with trauaile.

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