CAP. I.
1 Poul, seruaunt of Jhesu Crist, clepid
apostle, departid into the euangelie of
God;
2 `the which he bihi&yogh;t bifore by his
prophetis in hooly scripturis of his sone,
3
`the which is maad `to him of the seed
of Dauith aftir the fleisch,
4 the which is
predestynat, `or bifore ordeyned bi grace,
the sone of God in vertu, aftir the spirit
of halewyng of the a&yogh;eyn rysynge of deed
men,
5 of Jhesu Crist oure Lord, by whom
we han resseyued grace and apostilhed,
`or stat of apostle, to obeische to the feith
in alle folkis for his name,
6 in which
and &yogh;e ben clepid of Jhesu Crist,
7 to alle
that ben at Rome, the louede of God, clepid
hooly, grace to &yogh;ou, and pees of God oure
fadir, and of the Lord Jhesu Crist.
8 Firste
sothely I do thankyngis to my God, by
Jhesu Crist, for alle &yogh;ou, for &yogh;our feith is
schewid in al the world.
9 Forsoth God is
a witnesse to me, to whom I serue in my
spirit,
10 in the gospel of his sone, for with
outen ceessinge I make mynde of &yogh;ou
euermore in my preieris, if by ony
maner aftirward sumtyme I haue esy,
`or spedy, weie in the wille of God of
comynge to &yogh;ou.
11 Forsothe I desyre for
to se &yogh;ou, that I &yogh;yue to &yogh;ou sum thing of
spiritual grace, to &yogh;ou to be confermyd,
that is to seie,
12 to be comfortid to gidere
in &yogh;ou, by that feith that is to gidere &yogh;oure
and myn, `or of ech to othir.
13 Sothly,
britheren, I nyle &yogh;ou for to vnknowe,
that ofte I purposide for to come to &yogh;ou,
and I am forbodyn til &yogh;it, that I haue
sum fruyt in &yogh;ou, as and in othere folkis.
-- --
14 To Grekis and barbaryns, `or hethene
men, to wyse men and vnwyse men, I
am dettour,
15 so that that is in me is redy
for to euangelyse and to &yogh;ou that ben at
Rome.
16 Forsoth I schame not the gospel,
for it is the vertu of God in to helthe to
ech man bileuynge, to the Jew first, and
to the Greek.
17 Sothely the ri&yogh;twysnesse
of God is shewid in it, of feith in to feith,
as it is writun, Forsothe a iust man lyueth
of feith.
18 Forsothe the wraththe of
God is schewid fro heuene vpon al vnpite
and vnri&yogh;twisnesse of tho men, that withholden,
`or holden a bac, the treuthe of
God in vnri&yogh;twysnesse.
19 For that that is
knowyn of God, is schewid, `or maad
opyn, to hem, forsothe God schewide
to hem.
20 `For the inuysible thingis of
hym, of the creature `of the world, by
tho thingis that ben maad, `vndirstondyn,
ben biholdun, and the euerlasting vertu
of him and the godhede, so that thei ben
vnexcusable.
21 For whanne thei hadden
knowe God, thei glorifieden not as God,
`or diden thankyngis; but thei vanyscheden
in her thou&yogh;tis, and the vnwyse herte
of hem is derkid, `or maad derk.
22 Sothli thei seyinge hem selue for to
be wyse men, ben maad foolis.
23 And thei
chaungiden the glorie of God vncorruptible,
that `may not deie, ne be peirid, in
to the lyknesse `of an ymage of coruptible
man, and of briddis, and of foure
footide beestis, and of serpentis.
24 For
which thing God bytook hem in to the
desyris of her herte, in to vnclennesse,
that thei ponysche with wrongis, `or dispitis,
her bodies in hem silf.
25 The whiche
men chaungiden the treuthe of God in to
leesyng, and herieden and serueden to a
creature rathere than to the creatour,
-- --
`that is, maker of nou&yogh;t, that is blessid
in to worldis, `or with outen ende. Amen,
`or so be it.
26 Therfore God bitook hem
in to passiouns of yuel fame, `or schenschip.
Forwhi the wymmen of hem
chaungiden the kyndely vss in to that
vss that is a&yogh;ens kynde.
27 Also forsoth
and the mawlis, `or men, the kyndeli
vss of womman forsakyn, brennyden in
her desyris to gidere, mawlis in to mawlis
worchinge filthhede, and receyuynge in
hem silf the `mede, or hyre, that byhofte
of her errour.
28 And as thei proueden not
for to haue God in knowinge, God bitook
hem in to a reprouable witt, that thei do
tho thingis that acoorden not, `or bysemen
not;
29 hem fulfillid with al wickidnesse,
malice, fornycacioun, couetyse, weywardnesse,
ful of enuye, mansleynge, stryf,
gyle, yuel will, `priuey bacbyteris, `or
soweris of discord,
30 detractouris, `or opyn
bacbyteris, hateful to God, wrongly dispyseris
`of othere men, proude, hy&yogh;e ouermesure,
fynderis of yuele thingis, not
obeischinge to `fadir and modir,
31 vnwyse,
vncouenable in berynge with oute forth,
with outen affeccioun, `or loue, withouten
bond of pees, withouten mercy.
32 The
whiche whanne thei hadden knowen the
ri&yogh;twisnesse of God, vndirstoden not, for
thei that don suche thingis ben worthi the
deeth, not oonly thei that don tho thingis,
but also thei that consenten to men doynge.
Wycliffe (Early) [1850], THE HOLY BIBLE, CONTAINING THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS, WITH THE APOCRYPHAL BOOKS, IN THE EARLIEST ENGLISH VERSIONS MADE FROM THE LATIN VULGATE BY JOHN WYCLIFFE AND HIS FOLLOWERS: Edited by THE REV. JOSIAH FORSHALL, F.R.S. etc. Late Fellow of Exeter College, and SIR FREDERIC MADDEN, K.H. F.R.S. etc. Keeper of the MSS. in the British Museum (OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS, OXFORD) [word count] [B02010].
