The York Cycle, Play 23 The Transfiguration Coriours 001 Jesus. Petir myne awne discipill dere, 002 And James and John my cosyns two, 003 Takis hartely hede, for yoe schall here 004 Ŝat I wille telle vnto no moo. 005 And als yoe schall see sightis seere 006 Whilke none schall see bot yoe alsoo, 007 Therfore comes forth with me in fere, 008 For to yoone mountayne will I goo. 009 Ther schall yoe see a sight 010 Whilk yoe haue yoerned lange. 011 Peter. My lorde, we are full light 012 And glad with the to gange. 013 Jesus. Longe haue yoe coveyte for to kenne 014 My fadir, for I sette hym before, 015 And wele yoe wote whilke tyme and when 016 In Galylégangand we were. 017 `Shewe vs thy fadir'-thus saide yoe then- 018 `Ŝat suffice us withouten moré 019 I saide to yoou and to all men 020 `Who seis me seis my fadyr thoré 021 Such wordis to yoou I spakke 022 In trewthe to make yoou bolde; 023 3e cowde noght vndyrtake 024 The talez that I yoou tolde. 025 Anodir tyme, for to encresse 026 3oure trouthe and worldly yoou to wys, 027 I saide `Quem dicunt homines 028 Esse filium hominis?' 029 I askid yoow wham the pepill chase 030 To be mannys sone, withouten mys. 031 3e aunswered and saide `Sum Moyses,' 032 And sum, saide than `Hely it is', 033 And sum saide `John Baptist'. 034 Ŝan more I enquered you yoitt, 035 I askid yoiff yoe ought wiste 036 Who I was, by youre witte. 037 Ŝou aunswered, Petir, for thy prowe, 038 And saide that I was Crist, God sonne, 039 Bot of thyselffe that had noght thowe, 040 My fadir hadde that grace begonne. 041 Ŝerfore bese bolde and biddis now 042 To tyme yoe haue my fadir fonne. 043 Jacobus. Lord, to thy byddyng will we bowe 044 Full buxumly, as we are bonne. 045 John. Lorde, we will wirke thy will 046 Allway with trewe entent, 047 We love God lowde and stille 048 Ŝat vs this layne has lente. 049 Peter. Full glad and blithe awe vs to be, 050 And thanke oure maistir mekill of mayne 051 Ŝat sais we schall the sightis see, 052 The whiche non othir schall see certayne. 053 Jacobus. He talde vs of his fadir free, 054 Of that fare wolde we be full fayne. 055 John. All that he hyghte vs holde will hee, 056 Therfore we will no forther frayne, 057 But as he fouchesaffe 058 So sall we vndirstande. 059 Peter. Beholde, her we nowe haue 060 In hast som new tythande. 061 Helyas. Lord God, I loue the lastandly 062 And highly, botht with harte and hande, 063 Ŝat me, thy poure prophett Hely, 064 Has steuened in this stede to stande. 065 In Paradise wonnand am I 066 Ay sen I lefte this erthely lande; 067 I come Cristis name to clarifie 068 As God his fadir me has ordand, 069 And for to bere witnesse 070 In worde to man and wyffe, 071 Ŝat this his owne sone is 072 And lord of lastand liff. 073 Moyses. Lord God that of all welth is wele, 074 With wille and witte we wirschippe the, 075 Ŝat vnto me, Moyses, wolde tell 076 Ŝis grete poynte of thy pryuyté 077 And hendly hente me oute of hell 078 Ŝis solempne syght for I schuld see, 079 Whan thy dere darlynges that thore dwell 080 Hase noght thy grace in swilk degree. 081 Oure forme-fadyrs full fayne 082 Wolde se this solempne sight, 083 Ŝat in this place thus pleyne 084 Is mustered thurgh thi myght. 085 Peter. Brethir, whateuere yoone brightnes be? 086 Swilk burdis beforne was neuere sene. 087 It marres my myght, I may not see, 088 So selcouth thyng was neuere sene. 089 Jacobus. What it will worthe that wote noyot wee; 090 How wayke I waxe yoe will not wene. 091 Are was ther one, now is ther thre, 092 Methynke oure maistir is betwene. 093 John. That oure maistir is thare 094 Ŝat may we trewly trowe, 095 He was full fayre before 096 But neuere als he is nowe. 097 Peter. His clothyng is as white as snowe, 098 His face schynes as the sonne; 099 To speke with hym I haue grete awe, 100 Swilk faire before was neuere fune. 101 Jacobus. Ŝe tothir two fayne wolde I knawe 102 And witte what werke tham hedir has wonne. 103 John. I rede we aske tham all on rowe 104 And grope tham how this game is begonne. 105 Peter. My bredir, if that yoe come be 106 To make clere Cristis name, 107 Telles here till vs thre, 108 For we seke to the same. 109 Elias. Itt is Goddis will that we yoou wys 110 Of his werkis, as is worthy. 111 I haue my place in Paradise, 112 Ennok my brodyr me by. 113 Als messenger withouten mys 114 Am I called to this company, 115 To witnesse that Goddis sone is this, 116 Euyn with hym mette and allmyghty. 117 To dede we wer noght dight, 118 But quyk schall we come 119 With Antecrist for to fyght, 120 Beffore the day of dome. 121 Moyses. Frendis, if that yoe frayne my name, 122 Moyses than may yoe rede by rawe. 123 Two thousand yoere aftir Adam 124 Ŝan gaffe God vnto me his lawe, 125 And sythen in helle has bene oure hame, 126 Allas, Adams kynne, this schall yoe knawe. 127 Vnto Crist come, this is the same 128 Ŝat vs schall fro that dongeoun drawe. 129 He schall brynge tham to blys 130 Ŝat nowe in bale are bonne. 131 This myrthe we may not mys, 132 For this same is Goddis sonne. 133 Jesus. My dere discipils, drede yoou noyot, 134 I am yooure souerayne certenly. 135 This wondir-werke that here is wrought 136 Is of my fadir almyghty. 137 Ŝire both are hydir brought- 138 Ŝe tone Moyses, the todir Ely- 139 And for youre sake thus are thei sought 140 To saie yoou, his sone am I. 141 So schall bothe heuen and helle 142 Be demers of this dede, 143 And yoe in erth schall tell 144 My name wher itt is nede. 145 Peter. A, loued be thou euere my lord Jesus 146 Ŝat all this solempne sight has sent, 147 Ŝat fouchest saffe to schew the thus 148 So that thi myghtis may be kende. 149 Here is full faire dwellyng for vs, 150 A lykand place in for to lende. 151 A, lord, late vs no forther trus, 152 For we will make with herte and hende 153 A taburnakill vnto the 154 Belyue, and thou will bide; 155 One schall to Moyses be 156 And to Ely the thirde. 157 Jacobus. 3a, wittirly, that were wele done, 158 But vs awe noght swilk case to craue. 159 Ŝam thare but saie and haue it sone, 160 Such seruice and he fouchesaffe. 161 He hetis his men both morne and none 162 Ŝare herber high in heuen to haue, 163 Therfore is beste we bide hys bone; 164 Who othir reedis, rudely thei raue. 165 John. Such sonde as he will sende 166 May mende all oure mischeue, 167 And where hym lykis to lende, 168 We will lende, with his leue. 169 Pater. 3e febill of faithe, folke affraied, 170 Beis noyot aferde for vs in feere. 171 I am yooure God that gudly grayde 172 Both erthe and eyre with clowdes clere. 173 Ŝis is my sone, as yoe haue saide, 174 As he has schewed by sygnes sere. 175 Of all his werkis I am wele paied, 176 Therfore till hym takis hede and here. 177 Where he is, thare am I, 178 He is myne and I am his, 179 Who trowis this stedfastly 180 Shall byde in endles blisse. 181 Jesus. Petir, pees be vnto the, 182 And to yoou also James and John. 183 Rise vppe and tellis me what yoe see, 184 And beis no more so wille of wone. 185 Peter. A, lorde, what may this meruayle be, 186 Whedir is this glorious gleme al gone? 187 We saugh here pleynly persones thre 188 And nowe is oure lorde lefte allone. 189 Ŝis meruayle movis my mynde 190 And makis my flessh affrayed. 191 Jacobus. Ŝis brightnes made me blynde, 192 I bode neuere swilke a brayde. 193 John. Lorde God oure maker almyghty, 194 Ŝis mater euermore be ment, 195 We saw two bodis stande hym by 196 And saide his fadir had thame sent. 197 Peter. There come a clowde of the skye 198 Lyght als the lemys on thame lent, 199 And now fares all as fantasye 200 For wote noyot we how thai are wente. 201 Jacobus. Ŝat clowde cloumsed vs clene 202 Ŝat come schynand so clere, 203 Such syght was never sene, 204 To seke all sydis seere. 205 John. Nay, nay, that noys noyed vs more 206 Ŝat here was herde so hydously. 207 Jesus. Frendis, be noght afferde therfore, 208 I schall yoou saye encheson why: 209 My fadir wiste how that yoe were 210 In yooure faith fayland, and forthy 211 He come to witnesse ay-where, 212 And saide that his sone am I. 213 And also in this stede 214 To witnesse the same, 215 A quyk man and a dede 216 Come to make clere my name. 217 Peter. A, lord, why latest thou vs noyot see 218 Thy fadirs face in his fayrenes? 219 Jesus. Petir, thou askis over-grete degree, 220 That grace may noyot be graunted the, I gesse. 221 In his Godhed so high is he 222 As all yooure prophetis names expresse, 223 Ŝat langar of lyffe schall he noght be 224 Ŝat seys his Godhede as it is. 225 Here haue yoe sene in sight 226 Poyntes of his priuité 227 Als mekill als erthely wighte 228 May suffre in erthe to see. 229 And therfore wende we nowe agayne 230 To oure meyné and mende ther chere. 231 Jacobus. Oure felaws ful faste wil vs frayne 232 How we haue faren, al in feere. 233 Jesus. Ŝis visioun lely loke yoe layne, 234 Vnto no leffand lede itt lere 235 Tille tyme mannys sone haue suffered payne 236 And resen fro dede; kens it than clere. 237 For all that trowis that thyng 238 Of my fadir and me, 239 Thay schall haue his blessing 240 And myne, so motte it be.