Religion

The Lord's Prayer II

by Anonymous (Old English) c. 7th–11th century

Translated by J. Rawson Lumby, Be Domes Dæge (Early English Text Society, 1876) · From Be Domes Dæge, ed. and trans. J. Rawson Lumby (EETS o.s. 65, 1876)

Religion

Pater noster.
Thou art our father, Ruler of all,
King in Glory, therefore we cry to thee:
For mercy we pray, now thou canst most easily
Release our soul, thou before dost send it
Through thy noble hand into the flesh.
But where will it come now,
Unless thou God of Angels again release it:
The soul from sins through thy trusty might?
Qui es in celis.
Thou art in heaven, hope and consolation,
Brightest of joys, to thee bow down,
The host of all thy spirits. With one voice
They cry to Christ; they all thus exclaim,
Holy art Thou, holy, King of heaven's angels,
Our Lord; and Thy judgments are
Right and ample. They extend yea to each,
Each single man, [judgments] for his own works.
Blessed will he be that worketh thy will.
Sanctificetur nomen tuum.
Thy lofty name is so hallowed,
Very famously in many tongues
Two and seventy, as the books tell
That thou God of angels all arrangedst
Of each people, the manners and customs;
These praise thy work in words and deeds,
Through nature they call on and praise Christ
And thy praise they set forth, oh living God,
So thou art honoured through all the world.
Adveniat regnum tuum.
Come now and pity, Ruler of might,
And grant us thy kingdom, righteous judge,
Happiest of homes, and eternal life.
There we shall find peace and love together,
Brightness of eyes and all mirth:
There will be heard thy holy praise,
And thy great might, for consolation to men,
So thou, God of Angels, blessest all.
Fiat voluntas tua.
Let thy will done, as thou art Sovereign,
Eternally revealed, over all the world,
And thou thyself art righteous judge,
Mighty counsellor, over the wide earth:
So is thy high throne, high and grand
Fair and honourable: as thy father wrought
Noble and eternal, where Thou sittest
On thy own right hand. Thou art Son and Father,
Both persons in one; so is thy noble nature
Much magnified: and thou helpest many,
Thou, the might of all kings, thou callest above all,
Thy word of might is heard afar.
When thou thy host joyously makest happy,
Thou givest might and protection to the great army,
And many thousands thank thee,
The host of all angels with one voice.
Sicut in celo.
As in heaven in majesty
The noble and immortal servants of Christ
Pure and elect ever thank thee:
They sing and pray to the righteous God
For mercy and the forgiveness of all people;
Then thou grantest to them, glorious king,
As thou art merciful to all the world.
Let there be to thee thanks and praise for thy goodness.
Thou glory and joy! Thou art praised,
In the kingdom of heaven as mighty sovereign.
Et in terra.
And on earth of all kings
The help and head, holy healer.
Stedfast and righteous, large-hearted lord.
Thou madest for thyself all creatures very good,
And scatteredst them afterwards abroad,
Thou gavest each race its peculiar habits,
And ever thy mercy [thou gavest] over the children of men.
Panem nostrum cotidianum.
So with peace thou sendest our loaf
To thy people daily,
Thou rightly apportionest
Meat to thy men, and to them promisest more
After their departure; the kingdom of thy father,
That was in the beginning fairly prepared,
Happiest of homes, and everlasting life,
If we truth and right always perform.
Da nobis hodie.
Grant us to-day, Lord,
Thy mercy and power, and incline our heart,
Thought and disposition to thy will.
Establish firmly for us in our heart the Holy Ghost within.
And grant us help that we may work thy will.
And that we entrust to thee, glorious king,
Our souls into thine own hand.
Et dimitte nobis debita nostra.
Forgive us our sins, that we be not hereafter ashamed,
Our Lord, when thou in judgment sittest,
And all men rise up
That from woman and from man have been born;
Again the wasted bones with the flesh
Shall become whole again.
There we shall clearly know hereafter
All that we wrought in this world,
Better and worse, both at hand;
And we may not conceal it, because the Lord knows it,
And there as witnesses will be wondrous many
People of heaven, people of earth, and thirdly people of hell.
Then will be terror through all the world,
Then some one will assign to us at that day two conditions,
Either the favour of the Lord, or the service of the devil,
According as we shall have earned either here in life
While our powers were at the best.
Sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris.
And then the living God will deliver for us
Our souls, as we here forgive
To frail men who offend against us.
Et ne nos inducas in temtationem.
And let not evil beguile us
In temptation, [and] destroy and burn
Our souls: though we many sins
Did through our folly day and night,
Idle speech, and wrongful work.
We brake thy commands. We pray thee now,
Almighty God, for mercy and forgiveness;
Let not so miserably thine handy work
At the last day all perish.
Sed libera nos a malo.
But deliver us from evil. We all need
God's forgiveness, we have offended
And sinned much, we thee, the faithful God,
Laud and praise. As thou the Saviour art,
Revealed to quick and dead, as a Royal son,
Noble and eternal, above all things,
Thou in one hand canst easily enfold
All the world. Such is the glorious King.
Amen.
Be it as thou thyself wilt, faithful judge. Amen.
We all laud thee, God of angels,
As thou art honoured, world without end.

MLA

Anonymous (Old English). “The Lord's Prayer II.” Translated by J. Rawson Lumby, Be Domes Dæge. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-old-english/238/.

Chicago

Anonymous (Old English). “The Lord's Prayer II.” Translated by J. Rawson Lumby, Be Domes Dæge. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-old-english/238/.

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