No More Learning

er so? e for ? at a wy? t sitte? by-forn.

[Sidenote: So that although the cause of truth arises from the
sitting, there is a common necessity in both. ]

and ? us al 4488
? ou? ? {a}t ? e cause of so? e come? of [? e] syttyng. and
nat of ? e trewe oppiniou{n}. Algates ? itte is ? er comune
necessite in ? at oon {and} in ? at o? er.

[Sidenote: Thus may we reason concerning Providence and future
events. ]

? ? us shewe? it
? {a}t I may make semblable skils of ? e p{ur}ueau{n}ce of god 4492
{and} of ? inges to come.

[Sidenote: For allowing things are foreseen because they are to
happen, and that they do not befall because they are foreseen, it
is necessary that future events should be foreseen of God, or if
foreseen that they should happen; and this alone is sufficient to
destroy all idea of _free-will_. ]

? For al ? ou? for ? at ? at ? inges
ben to comen. ? er-fore ben ? ei p{ur}ueid. nat certys for
? ei ben p{ur}ueid. ? er-fore ne bytide ? ei nat. ? it na? eles
byhoue? it by necessite ? at ei? er ? e ? inges to comen 4496
ben yp{ur}ueied of god. or ellys ? at ? e ? inges ? at ben
p{ur}ueied of god bitiden [. s. ] by necessite. ? And ? is [[pg 156]]
? ing oonly suffise? I-nou? to distroien ? e fredome of
oure arbitre. ? at is to seyn of oure fre wille

[Sidenote: But it is preposterous to make the happening of
temporal things the cause of eternal prescience, which we do in
imagining that God foresees future events because they are to
happen. ]

? But now 4500
[certes] shewe? it wel how fer fro ? e so? e {and} how vp
so dou{n} is ? is ? ing ? at we seyn ? at ? e bytidinge of
temp{or}el ? inges is ? e cause of ? e eterne p{re}science.
? But forto wenen ? at god p{ur}uei? [the] ? inges to comen. 4504
for ? ei ben to comen. what o? er ? ing is it but forto
wene ? at ? ilke ? inges ? at bitiden som tyme ben causes
of ? ilke souereyne p{ur}ueaunce ? at is i{n} god.

[Sidenote: And, moreover, when I know that anything exists, it is
necessary for my belief that it should be. ]

? And
her-to I adde ? itte ? is ? ing ? at ry? t as whan ? at I woot 4508
? at o ? ing is it byhoue? by necessite ? at ? ilke self ? ing be.

[Sidenote: So also when I know that an event shall come to pass,
it must needs happen. ]

{and} eke ? at whan I haue knowe ? at any ? i{n}ge shal
bitiden so byhoue? it by necessite ? {a}t ? ilk[e] same
? ing bytide.

[Sidenote: The event, therefore, of a thing foreseen must befall. ]

so folwe? it ? an ? at ? e bytydynge of ? e 4512
? inge Iwist by-forn ne may nat ben eschewed.

[Sidenote: Lastly, if a person judge a thing to be different to
what it is--this is not knowledge, but a false opinion of it, and
far from the true knowledge. ]

? And
at ? e last[e] yif ? at any wy? t wene a ? ing to ben o? er
weyes ? an it is. it nys nat oonly vnscience. but it is deceiuable
oppiniou{n} ful diuerse {and} fer fro ? e so? e of 4516
science.

[Linenotes:
4437 _harde_--hard
4445 _ha? _--MS. ha? {e}
4446 _whiche_--which
4450 _wille_--wil
_whiche_--which ? {a}t
4451 _ha? _--MS. ha? e
4453 _stedfast_--stydefast
4454-55 _? inge_--thing
4455 _on_--of
4456 _? ilk_--thilke
4458 _whiche_--which
4459 _knot_--knotte
4461 _come_--comyn
_ha? _--MS. ha? e
4464 _hyd_--MS. hydde, C. hidde
4466 [_nat_]--from C.
4467-8 [_but----yporueyid_]--from C.
4471 _? inges_--thing
4477 _ha? _--MS. ha? e
4480-82 _so? e_--soth
4486 _so? e_--sooth
4487 _so? e_--soth
4488 _so? e_--sooth
4489 _so? e come? _--sooth comth
[_? e_]--from C.
4490 _comune_--MS. comme, C. comune
4493 _come_--comyn
4494 _to_--omitted
4494-95 _purueid_--MS. p{ur}ueide, C. p{ur}ueyid
4498 [_. s. _]--from C.
4499 _fredome_--freedom
4500 _wille_--wil
4501 [_certes_]--from C.
4504 _puruei? _--MS. p{ur}uei? e
[_the_]--from C.
4506 _bitiden_--bytydden
_som tyme_--whilom
4509 _o_--a
_self_--selue
4510 _? inge_--thing
4511 _? ilk[e]_--thilke
4513 _? inge_--thing
4514 _last[e]_--laste
4515 _nys_--is]

[Headnote:
FREEDOM OF THE HUMAN WILL. ]

[Sidenote: If, therefore, a thing be so to happen that the event
of it is neither necessary nor certain, how can any one foresee
what is to happen? ]

? wher-fore yif any ? ing be so to comen so ? at
? e bytydynge of it ne be nat certeyne ne necessarie.
? who may weten [byforn] ? {a}t ? ilke ? ing is to come.
[Sidenote: For as pure knowledge has no element in it of
falsehood, so what is comprehended by true knowledge cannot be
otherwise than as comprehended. ]

? For ry? t as science ne may nat be medelyd wi? falsnesse. 4520
as who sei? ? at yif I woot a ? ing. it ne may nat
be fals ? at I ne woot it. ? Ry? t so ? ilk ? ing ? at
is conceyued by science ne may [nat] ben noon
o? {er} weyes ? an [as] it is conceiued.

[Sidenote: Hence it is that true knowledge cannot err, because
everything must precisely be what true knowledge perceives it to
be. ]

For ? at is ? e cause 4524
whi ? at science wa{n}ti? lesynge. as who sei? . whi ? at
witynge ne receyue? nat lesynge of ? at it woot. ? For
it byhoue? by necessite ? at euery ? i{n}ge [be] ry? t as science
co{m}p{re}hendi? it to be.

[Sidenote: What follows, then? How does God foreknow these
uncertain contingencies? ]

what shal I ? an sein. ? In 4528
whiche man{er}e knowe? god byforn ? e ? inges to comen.
? yif ? ei ne be nat certeyne. [[pg 157]]

[Sidenote: For if he thinks that a thing will inevitably happen,
which possibly may not, he is deceived--but this is sheer
blasphemy. ]

? For yif ? at he deme
? at ? ei ben to comen vneschewably.

[Sidenote: [* fol. 35 _b_. ]]

{and} so may be ? at
it is possible ? at ? ei ne shulle{n} *nat comen. god is 4532
desseiued. but nat only to trowen ? at god is desseiued.
but for to speke it wi? mou? e it is a felonous sy{n}ne.

[Sidenote: But if God discerns that just as things are to come
they shall come; if he knows that they may or may not come, what
sort of prescience is this, which comprehends nothing certain,
nothing invariable? ]

? But yif ? at god woot ? at ry? t so as ? inges ben to
comen. so shulle ? ei comen. so ? at he wit[e] egaly. as 4536
who sei? indifferently ? at ? inges mowen ben don or
ellys nat don. what is ? ilke p{re}science ? at ne comp{re}hendi?
no certeyne ? inge ne stable.

[Sidenote: Or how does divine prescience differ from human
opinion, if He hath an uncertain judgment of things, whereof the
events are uncertain and unfixed? ]

or ellys what difference
is ? er bytwixe ? e p{re}science. {and} ? ilke iape-wor? i 4540
dyuynynge of Tiresie ? e diuino{ur} ? at seide. ? Al ? at
I seie q{uo}d he ey? er it shal be. or ellys it ne shal nat
be. Or ellis how moche is wor? e ? e diuyne p{re}science
more ? an ? e oppiniou{n} of mankynde yif so be ? at it 4544
deme? ? e ? inges vncerteyne as me{n} don. of ? e whiche
domes of men ? e bytydynge nis nat certeyne.

[Sidenote: But if there can be no uncertainty in his knowledge,
who is the source of all certainty; the event of all things which
he foreknows must be fixed and inevitable. ]

? But
yif so be ? {a}t noon vncerteyne ? inge may ben in hym
? at is ry? t certeyne welle of alle ? inges. ? a{n} is ? e 4548
bytydynge certeyne of ? ilke ? inges whiche he ha? wist
byforn fermely to come{n}.

[Sidenote: Whence it follows that men have no freedom in their
designs and actions; because the Divine Mind, endowed with an
infallible foresight, constrains and binds them to a certain
event. ]

For whiche it folwe? ? at ? e
fredom of ? e co{n}seils {and} of ? e werkes of mankynde nis
non syn ? at ? e ? ou? t of god see? alle ? inges w{i}t{h} outen 4552
erro{ur} of falsnesse bynde? {and} co{n}streini? hem to a
bitidynge by necessite. and yif [this] ? i{n}g be on-is
grau{n}tid {and} receyued. ? at is to seyn. ? at ? er nis no
fre wille. ? an shewe? it wel how gret distrucc{i}ou{n} {and} 4556
how grete damages ? er folwen of ? inges of mankynde.

[Linenotes:
4518 _it_--hit
4519 [_byforn_]--from C.
4522 _fals_--false
4523 [_nat_]--from C.
_ben_--MS. by, C. ben
4524 _? an [as] it is_--MS. ? an it is be
4527 [_be_]--from C.
4529 _whiche_--which
4534 _mou? e_--Mowth
4536 _shulle_--shullyn
_wit[e]_--wite
4538 _don_--MS. done, C. y-doon
4543 _moche_--mochel
_wor? e_--worth
4549 _ha? _--MS. ha? e
4550 _whiche_--which
4551 _mankynde_--man-kynd
4554 [_this_]--from C.
4555 _grauntid_--ygraunted]

[Headnote:
FATE UNDER THE CONTROL OF PROVIDENCE. ]

? For in ydel ben ? er ? an p{ur}posed and byhy? t medes
of goode folk. {and} peynes to badde folk. syn ? at no
moeuynge of free corage uoluntarie ne ha? nat deserued 4560
hem. ? at is to seyn nei? er mede nor peyne.

[Sidenote: Rewards and punishments now deemed just and equitable,
will be considered most unjust, when, it is allowed, that mankind
are not prompted by any will of their own, to either virtue or
vice, but in all their actions are impelled by a fatal necessity. ]

? And it
sholde seme ? an ? at ? ilke ? inge is al? er worste whiche
? at is nowe demed. for al? {er} moste iuste {and} moste [[pg 158]]
ry? tful. ? at is to seyn ? at shrewes ben punyssed. or 4564
ellys ? {a}t good[e] folk ben ygerdoned.