Ther Is A Flowr Sprong Of A Tre
Words: Attributed to John Audelay from Balliol MS 354 - The Richard Hill Commonplace Book
Music: Not Stated
Alia cantalena de Sancta Maria.
Source: Roman Dyboski, ed., Songs, Carols, and Other Miscellaneous Poems, From the Balliol MS. 354, Richard Hill's Commonplace Book. Issue 101, Early English Text Society, Extra Series. (London: Published for the Early English Text Society by Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., Ltd., 1907), #10, p. 6.
Ther ys a flowr sprong of a tre,
The rote of it ys called Jesse,
A flowr of pryce,
şer ys non such in paradice.
The flowr is fresshe & fayer be hewe,
Ytt fadis never, but euer ys neve ;
The blessid stoke şat yt on grew.
Ytt was Mary, that bare Jhesu,
A flowr of grace ;
Of all flowers it ys solas. 6
The sede of ytt was Godis sond,
That God hym self sew with his hond,
In Nazareth, that holy lond ;
And a maydyn yt fond, 10
A blessid flowr ;
Yt spryngis neuer but in Mary bowr.
On knees Gabriell that maydyn gret,
The Holy Gost with her he mett,
Betwen them two that flowr was sett
And kept yt ys, for yt was dett,
And kyngis lede 17
To Bedlem, fer yt began to spred.
Whan pat flowr began to spred
And hys blosomys for to woyde,
Ryche & pore of euery lede 21
Marveled how şat rose myght spred,
Till on a day
Herdmen cam şat flowr to asay. 24
Angels cam owt of ther towr
To loke on that fayer flowr,
Hole yt was in his colowr, 27
And hole yt was in his ardowr
How such a flowr myght spryng in mold. 30
Off lylly whit & rose of ryse,
Of prymrose & of flowr delyce,
Off all flowers, in my devyce,
The flowr of Jesse beryth the pryce,
For most of all
To help owr sowles both gre[t] & small. 36
I prayse the flowr of gud Jesse,
Of all the flowers şat euer shall be
Vphold the flowr of gud Jesse, 39
And worship it for ay bewte.
For best of all
şat euer was or euer be shall. 42
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