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¶ Of a mon Matheu thohte
Tho he the wynyord whrohte,
Ant wrot hit on ys boc.
In marewe men he sohte;
At under, mo he brohte,
Ant nom, ant non forsoc.
At mydday ant at non,
He sende hem thider fol son
To helpen hem with hoc;
Huere foreward wes to fon
So the furmest heuede ydon,
Ase the erst undertoc.
At evesong even neh,
Ydel men yet he seh,
Lomen habbe an honde;
To hem he sayde an heh
That suythe he wes undreh
So ydel forte stonde.
So hit wes bistad
That no mon hem ne bad
Huere lomes to fonde.
Anon he was byrad
To werk that he hem lad;
For nyht, nolde he nout wonde.
Huere hure anyht hue nome,
He that furst ant last come:
A peny brod ant bryht.
This other swore, alle ant some —
That er were come with lome —
That so nes hit nout ryht!
Ant swore somme unsaht
That hem wes werk bytaht
Longe er hit were lyht,
For ryht were that me raht
The mon that al day wraht
The more mede anyht.
Thenne seith he, ywis:
“Why, nath nout uch mon his?
Holdeth nou or pees!
Away, thou art unwis!
Tak al that thin ys,
Ant fare ase foreward wees.
Yef Y may betere beode
To mi latere leode,
To leve nam Y nout lees;
To alle that ever hider eode
To do today my neode,
Ichulle be wraththelees.”
This world me wurcheth wo!
Rooles ase the roo,
Y sike for unsete,
Ant mourne, ase man doh mo,
For doute of foule Fo,
Hou Y my sunne may bete.
This mon that Matheu yef
A peny that wes so bref —
This “frely” folk unfete —
Yet he yyrnden more,
Ant saide he come wel yore,
Ant gonne is love forlete.
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¶ Matthew reflected upon a man
When he worked in the vineyard,
And wrote it in his book.
In the morning he sought workers;
At undern, he brought more,
And hired, and none dismissed.
At midday and at nones,
He sent them thither quickly
To help them with cutting hook;
Their contract was to receive
The same as the first had done,
And as the first received.
At close to evensong,
He saw men remaining idle,
Having tools in hand;
To them he said emphatically
That he was quite unwilling
To see them stand so idly.
Then it was determined
That none had ordered them
To use their tools.
Immediately he resolved
That they should work as he assigned them;
Despite nightfall, he didn’t hesitate.
Their pay at night they accepted,
They who first and last came:
A penny broad and bright.
These others swore, one and all —
They who had come early —
That it wasn’t at all right!
And some unhappy ones swore
That work had been assigned to them
Long before it dawned,
And that it’s proper to give
The one who worked all day
The greater reward at night.
Then he says, indeed:
“Why, doesn’t each have his?
Hold now your peace!
Away, you are foolish!
Take all that is yours,
And behave as was agreed.
If I may offer better terms
To my more recent workers,
Don’t consider me unjust;
To all who ever came here
To serve today my need,
I shall be without anger.”
This world provokes misery in me!
Restless as the roe,
I sigh at the presence of evil,
And grieve, like the man who labored more,
In fear of the foul Devil,
Over how I may atone for my sin.
This man to whom Matthew gave
A penny that was so little —
This unsatisfied “generous” man —
Still he desired more,
And said he had come long before,
And did forfeit his master’s love.
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