Psalm 101 - A Song of Personal Integrity

The title of the `hundrid and o salm. The preier of a pore man, whanne he was angwishid, and schedde out his speche bifore the Lord.

Lord, here thou my preier; and my crie come to thee.

Turne not awei thi face fro me; in what euere dai Y am troblid, bowe doun thin eere to me. In what euere day Y schal inwardli clepe thee; here thou me swiftli.

For my daies han failid as smoke; and my boonus han dried vp as critouns.

I am smytun as hei, and myn herte dried vp; for Y haue foryete to eete my breed.

Of the vois of my weilyng; my boon cleuede to my fleische.

I am maad lijk a pellican of wildirnesse; Y am maad as a niyt crowe in an hous.

I wakide; and Y am maad as a solitarie sparowe in the roof.

Al dai myn enemyes dispisiden me; and thei that preisiden me sworen ayens me.

For Y eet aschis as breed; and Y meddlide my drinke with weping.

Fro the face of the ire of thin indignacioun; for thou reisinge me hast hurtlid me doun.

Mi daies boweden awei as a schadewe; and Y wexede drie as hei.

But, Lord, thou dwellist with outen ende; and thi memorial in generacioun and in to generacioun.

Lord, thou risinge vp schalt haue merci on Sion; for the tyme `to haue merci therof cometh, for the tyme cometh.

For the stones therof plesiden thi seruauntis; and thei schulen haue merci on the lond therof.

And, Lord, hethen men schulen drede thi name; and alle kingis of erthe schulen drede thi glori.

For the Lord hath bildid Sion; and he schal be seen in his glorie.

He bihelde on the preier of meke men; and he dispiside not the preier of hem.

Be these thingis writun in an othere generacioun; and the puple that schal be maad schal preise the Lord.

For he bihelde fro his hiye hooli place; the Lord lokide fro heuene in to erthe.

For to here the weilingis of feterid men; and for to vnbynde the sones of slayn men.

That thei telle in Sion the name of the Lord; and his preising in Jerusalem.

In gaderinge togidere puplis in to oon; and kingis, that thei serue the Lord.

It answeride to hym in the weie of his vertu; Telle thou to me the fewnesse of my daies.

Ayenclepe thou not me in the myddil of my daies; thi yeris ben in generacioun and in to generacioun.

Lord, thou foundidist the erthe in the bigynnyng; and heuenes ben the werkis of thin hondis.

Tho schulen perische, but thou dwellist perfitli; and alle schulen wexe eelde as a clooth. And thou schalt chaunge hem as an hiling, and tho schulen be chaungid;

but thou art the same thi silf, and thi yeeris schulen not faile.

The sones of thi seruauntis schulen dwelle; and the seed of hem schal be dressid in to the world.