Chapter 2
whereupon there issues a ravishing perfume from his inwards, by which other kinds of fish are beguiled. With lively motions they swim to where the sweet odor comes forth, and there enter in, a heedless host, until the wide gorge is full; then, in one instant, he snaps his fierce jaws together about the swarming prey.
Thus it is with any one who, in this fleeting time, full oft neglects to take heed to his life, and allows himself to be enticed by sweet fragrance, a lying lure, so that he becomes hostile to the King of glory by reason of his sins. The accursed one will, when they die, throw wide the doors of hell to those who, in their folly, have wrought the treacherous delights of the body, contrary to the wise guidance of the soul. When the deceiver, skilful in wrongdoing, hath brought into that fastness,
* * * * *
æt þām [_ā_]dwylme, þā þe him on cleofiað, gyltum gehrodene, and ǣr georne his 75 in hira līfdagum lārum hȳrdon, þonne he þā grimman gōman bihlemmeð, æfter feorhcwale, fæste tōgædre, helle hlinduru. Nāgon hwyrft nē swice, ūtsīþ ǣfre, þā [_þe_] þǣr in cumað, 80 þon mā þe þā fiscas, faraðlācende, of þæs hwæles fenge hweorfan mōtan. Forþon is eallinga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . dryhtna Dryhtne, and ā dēoflum wiðsace 85 wordum and weorcum, þæt wē Wuldorcyning gesēon mōton. Uton ā sibbe tō him, on þās hwīlnan tīd, hǣlu sēcan, þæt wē mid swā lēofne in lofe mōtan tō wīdan feore wuldres nēotan.
* * * * *
With evil craft has led those erring ones Who cleave to him, sore laden with their sins, Those who in earthly life have hearkened well To his instruction, after death close shut He snaps those woful jaws, the gates of hell. Whoever enters there has no relief, Nor may he any more escape his doom And thence depart, than can the swimming fish Elude the monster. Therefore it is [best And[1]] altogether [right for each of us To serve and honor God,[1]] the Lord of lords, And always in our every word and deed To combat devils, that we may at last Behold the King of glory. In this time Of transitory things, then, let us seek Peace and salvation from him, that we may Rejoice for ever in so dear a Lord, And praise his glory everlastingly.
[Footnote 1: Conjecturally supplied.]
* * * * *
the lake of fire, those that cleave to him and are laden with guilt, such as had eagerly followed his teachings in the days of their life, he then, after their death, snaps tight together his fierce jaws, the gates of hell. They who enter there have neither relief nor escape, no means of flight, any more than the fishes that swim the sea can escape from the clutch of the monster.
Therefore is it by all means [best for every one of us to serve[1]] the Lord of lords, and strive against devils with words and works, that so we may come to behold the King of glory. Let us ever, now in this fleeting time, seek from him grace and salvation, that so with the Beloved we may in worship enjoy the bliss of heaven for evermore.
[Footnote 1: Conjecturally supplied.]
* * * * *
III
THE PARTRIDGE[1]
Hȳrde ic secgan gēn bi sumum fugle wundorlīcne[2]. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . fǣger þæt word þe gecwæð wuldres Ealdor: 5 'In swā hwylce tiid swā gē mid trēowe tō mē on hyge hweorfað, and gē hellfirena sweartra geswīcað, swā ic symle tō ēow mid siblufan sōna gecyrre þurh milde mōd; gē bēoð mē siþþan
[Footnote 1: The partridge (like the cuckoo) broods the eggs of other birds. When they are hatched and grown, they fly off to their true parents. So men may turn from the devil, who has wrongfully gained possession of them, to their heavenly Father, who will receive them as his children.]
[Footnote 2: Gap in the manuscript, probably of considerable length.]
* * * * *
About another creature have I heard A wondrous [tale.] [There is] a bird [men call The partridge. Strange is she, unlike all birds In field or wood who brood upon their eggs, Hatching their young. The partridge lays no eggs, Nor builds a dwelling; but instead, she steals The well-wrought nests of others. There she sits, Warming a stranger brood, until at last The eggs are hatched. But when the stolen chicks Are fledged, they straightway fly away to seek Their proper kin, and leave the partridge there Forsaken. In such wise the devil works To steal the souls of those whose youthful minds Or foolish hearts in vain resist his wiles. But when they reach maturer age, they see They are true children of the Lord of lords. Then they desert the lying fiend, and seek Their rightful Father, who with open arms Receives them, as he long since promised them.[1]] Fair is that word the Lord of glory spoke: 'In such time as you turn with faithful hearts To me, and put away your hellish sins, Abominable to me, then will I turn To you in love for ever, for my heart Is mild and gracious. Thenceforth you shall be
[Footnote 1: Conjecturally supplied, on the basis of other versions.]
* * * * *
So, too, I have heard tell a wondrous [tale[1]] about a certain bird.[2] ... fair the word[3] spoken by the King of glory: 'At whatsoever time ye turn to me with faith in your soul, and forsake the black iniquities of hell, I will turn straightway to you with love, in the gentleness of my heart; and thenceforth ye shall be reckoned to
[Footnote 1: Conjecturally supplied.]
[Footnote 2: Gap in the manuscript, probably of considerable length.]
[Footnote 3: Cf. 2 Cor. 6.17,18; Isa. 55.7; Heb. 2.10,11.]
* * * * *
10 torhte, tīrēadge, talade and rīmde, beorhte gebrōþor on bearna stǣl.' Uton wē þȳ geornor Gode ōliccan, firene fēogan, friþes earnian, duguðe tō Dryhtne, þenden ūs dæg scīne, 15 þæt swā æþelne eardwīca cyst in wuldres wlite wunian mōtan. Finit.
* * * * *
Refulgent, glorious, numbered with the host Of heaven, and, instead of children, called Bright brethren of the Lord.' Let us by this Be taught to please God better, hating sin, And strive to earn salvation from the Lord, His full deliverance, so long as day Shall shine upon us, that we may at last Inhabit heavenly mansions, nobler far Than earthly dwellings, gloriously bright.
Finit.
* * * * *
me as glorious and renowned, as my illustrious brethren, yea, in the place of children.'
Let us therefore propitiate God with all zeal, abhor evil, and gain forgiveness and salvation from the Lord while for us the day still shines, so that thus we may, in glorious beauty, inhabit a dwelling excellent beyond compare. Finit.
End of Project Gutenberg's The Old English Physiologus, by Albert S. Cook