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Suche a day ye schul have the Concepcyon of oure Lady, the whech day Holy Chyrch makuth mensyon of the concepcyon of hure for thre specyal poyntes: for hure fadur holynes, for hure modur goodnes, and for hure oune chesen mekenes. Heo hadde a fadur that was kallud Joachym, that was of such holynes that, when he was fyftene yere old, he departed his good in thre partyes: on to wydewes and faderles chyldren and othur that weren pore and nedful; that othur part to ham that servet God day and nyght in the temple; the thryd part he kepte to his houshold. And when he was twenty yere old, for the gret gudnes that he herde and knewe by Seynt Anne, he weddet hure, and weron yfere twenty yere. The whech tyme, Anne never dysplesyd hym, by nyght ne by day, for the grete gentelnes that was with hure. But thagh they were bothe good and holy, God gaf ham no frut of hure body; but were bareyn bothe. Wherfore they maden a vow to Godde, yef He wold gev hem a chyld, they wold offren hyt in the temple, that shulden serve God day and nyght.     Then upon a day as Joachym with hys nexbores yod to the temple to don hys offryng, the byschop, that hette Ysacar, rebukud hym opunlych and sayde, "Joachim," quod he, "hyt falluth not to thee, that art bareyn, for to offren in com- pany with othur that God hath geve frut in Israel." Then was Joachym so aschomot with thus rebuk that he went hom wepyng, and privyly tok hys schapardes with his schep, and yod forth in fer contré among hulles, and purposed hym to have lyved there all his lyf-dayes, and never eft have seyn Anne, hys wyf.     Then was Anne sory, and prayed to God and sayde thus, "Lord, that me ys woo, for I am bareyn and may have no fryt, and now more: myn hosbond ys gon fro me, I wot never wydur. Lord, have mercy of me!"     Then, as scho prayed thus, an angel com to hure, and conford hure, and sayde, "Anne, be of good conford. Thou schal han a chyld such was never non lyk ne never schal bee." Then was Anne aferd of thys angel word and of the syght of hym, and lay al daye in hure prayeres, as heo hadde be ded. Then went this same angel to Joachym, and sayde the same word, and bad hym taken a lombe and offren hit to God in sacryfyce. And so dude. And when he hadde so ydon, fro mydday tyl evensong he lay upon the erthe in his preyeres, thonkyng God with al hys myght. Then, on the morwen, as the angel bad, he yode homward a softe pas with his schep.     And when he com nygh hom, the angel com to Anne, and bad hure go to the gate that was kalled the Gyldon Gate, and abydon hure husbond there. Then was heo glad, and toke hure maydenes wyth hire, and yode thydur, and mette there with Joachym, hure husbond, and sayde, "Lord, I thonk thee heyly, for I was a wydewe and now I am a wyf; I was baren and now I schal have a chyld; I was in woo and wepyng, and now I schal ben in joye and lykyng."     And so conseyvet oure Lady. And when heo was boren, heo was kalled Marya as the angel bad byfore. Then aftur heo was wenet, they broghton hure to the temple, and laften hure among othur maydenes to serve God day and nyght. Then was heo so meke among alle othur vyrgines in al hure dowyng, that othur virgines kalled hure quene of maydenes, so that yet heo ys the mekest seynt in Heven, and most redy ys to helpe alle that kalle to hure in nede.     [Narracio.] I rede that ther was a lord that hade a peny-reve, the whech hadde gedred his lordes rent, and yode to beren hit to hym. Then were thefys set for hym in a wode that he most nedus goo thorgh. But when he come into the wode, he bythoght hym that he hadde not sayde oure Lady Sauter that he was woned to say uche day. Then anon he kneled dount, and bygan to say. Than anon com oure Lady lyke a fayre mayden, and set a garlon on hys hed; and at uch "Ave," heo sette a ros in the garlond that schon as bryght as a sterre. So by that he hadde sayde, the garlon was so bryght, that alle the wode schon therof. Thus when he hadde don, he cussed the erthe and yode his way.     Thenne weren the thefus redy, and broghton hym to here mayster that had seyen alle thys doyng. Then sayde the theff to hym, "I wot that thou art soch a lordus servant, and hast hys money with thee. But telle me what woman that was, that set this garlon on thy hed."     "For soth," he sayde, "I sagh no woman, ne have no garlond that I know. But for I hadde forgeton to say oure Lady Sauter and was adred of yow, I kneled adoun and sayde hit, prayng to hure to helpe me at my nede."     Then sayde the theff, "For hyre love, now go thy way, and pray hure for us." And so yede hys way saf and sounde by sokur of oure Lady.     [Narracio.] But now schul ye heren how thus fest was furst yfonden. Ther was in Englon a kyng was kalled Wylyam Conquerour; he sende the abbat of Ramesey to the kyng of Denmark on messager. But when he was in the see, ther come a darknes upon hym and suche a tempest with that, he and alle that weren with hym wende to have be spyllyd anon. Than uch mon prayed bysyly to dyverse seyntes of Heven, to helpe and sokur ham in hure grete nede. Then as the abbot prayed devowtly to God, ther come to hym a fayre mon and sayde to hym thus, "Yef thou wolt halwe the Concepcyon of oure Lady, that ys the secunde day aftur Seynt Nycholas Day, heo wol sokur thee and alle that ben with thee in thus nede."     "Syre," he sayde, "with ful good wyll, and thou woldest telle me what schal be the servyse of this fest."     Then sayde he, "The same that ys in hure Nativité, save turne the nativité into concepcyon."     "Ful gladly," sayde he, "schal thus be don." And then anon the tempest sesed, and the wedur clered. He went forth and dude his message, and cam ageyn to spede wel in al hys doyng. And when he hadde told the kyng of thus vysyon, the kyng mad to prechen hyt alle the reme. And so was halwyt in Holy Chyrch.     [Narracio.] Also ther was a seculer chanon that went over a watur to have don advowtry. As he was in a bot, he bygan to saye Matenes of oure Lady. Whyl he sayed Invitaterium, "Ave Maria," the devel cast hym doun and drouned hym and hadde hym to peyne. Than oure Lady cam and sayde, "Why have ye tak this mon?" They sayde he was in here servyse. Oure Lady sayde, "Nay, he was in myn houres," and anon restoret hym to lyve and bed he schulde no more don avoutri and also halwe hure concepcyon. And so he dede and was a ful good mon aftur.     [Narracio.] Also I rede that ther was a clerk that was wonot every day to say Matenes and servyse of oure Lady. Hyt fel that by consel of hys frendes he schulde han a wyf, and when he schulde be weddet he hadde a mynde that he hadde not sayde the servyse of oure Lady that day, and he made alle that ther were to gon out of the chyrch. And when they were gon he kneled and sayde hys servyse tyl he com to the antyme, "Quam pulcra es et quam decora." Then oure Lady appered to hym and sayde, "Whyl thou sayst that I am fayre and onest, why wyl thou leve me and taken anothur?" Then anon he sayde, "Lady, what wol thou that I do?" Heo sayde, "And thou wolt leve thy flesly wyf and serve my Sone and me, I wyl be thy spose and thou schal have with my Sone a crowne in kyngdom of Heven. And also that thou wol worschep the Concepcyon of me."