How that Pryde was Peyned in Helle

Capitulo Secundo

These Sathanas thenne caughten this old and casten hir vnder their fete, defoulyng and tredynge hyr, seynge in this wise: `Thou hast a grete bely ful of wynd, forbolned and forblowen. Right is that thou be troden vnder oure feet, and defowled euer withouten ende.' Lucifer thenne began to collen and hasted hym to hyr, settynge hym self vpon hyr hede.

`I wylle', quod he, `herafter haue none other chayre. But here wylle I sytte, defyling the as moch as I can. For wel I remembre of the grete damage that thou hast done to me. Ryght thus', quod he, `lete drawe al this fowle mysfaryng filthes with horned hedes and bolned belyes that ben so ful of wynde, swollen and forblowen. Here they shalle ben forfaren and defiled vnder youre feet, and al enbracyd with brennyng brondes, that woo they shall betyde.'

Ryght soo was it doo withoute ony taryeng, and cast vnder the fete of these fowle fendes, fortroden and defiled. Somme of these I knewe wonder wel, for I had sene them before, namely thre there were, of whiche I merueyled gretely, for they had ben in the^a world of wonder^b lowely beryng, & as to my semyng gouerned them self ful sadly. Thenne^c asked of myn angel the cause of theyr dampnacion, sith they hadden so moche colour of goodnesse.

`These', quod myn angel, `haue ben feyned religyous ypocrites with theyr desguysed clothes, that hadden the lombes skynne vp on them self by semynge withoute. But within forth they were rauysshynge wolues of fyers and proude herte. They were in the world wonder lowely & of sad semblaunt, but al that they dyden was only to be preysed and holde good men. Thou sawest their bodyes in the world whiche they wore outward to thyn eyen by sygnes withouten. Now byhold and see whiche they were within, for thou shalt sene tormentes ynowe with whiche they ben peyned.

So were they thenne al taken to geders and cast in to the fire, where they were with grete cheynes pesteled and beten, so that the very fowle smoke passed oute fro them of ryght vnthrifty smell that stanke aboute fer in euery side. Thus were they brente and beten and defyled, that wonder was to see. Ther was none ther that passed forth by, that he ne defyled them with his two feet.