A Compendious Bulk of Godly Psalms and Spiritual Songs, Psalms and ballads · Part 1 – Part 6
¶Quare fremuerunt gentes. Psal. ij.
QVHAT is the caus, O God omnipotent
That all Natiounis commouit ar sa soir,
The Kingis and the pepill with ane consent,
Resistis the thy power and thy gloir
Thay stryue againe thy Law ay moir and moir,
And contrair Christ thy son… quhome yu hes send,
T… saif all man that will on him depend.
Thay will not be reformit from thair Sin,
Bot will remaine blindit in Ignorance,
And will not thoill to luke thy law within
Bot castis it away with greit greuance,
Thy counsell thay refuse and gouernance,
And following thair awin hartis consait,
Euerie man drawis a sindrie gait.
Bot thow O God in heuin into thy King▪
Thow makis all thair counsels euerie one,
Quhat thay intend, that sall thay neuer bring.
To finall end, for thy wisdome allone
Thair pregnant wittis sall scorne, and anone
In thy greit Ire, thow sall them sair reprufe,
And from thy face thow sall them swyith remufe
For God hes set a Captaine stark and wicht,
Christis a win Sone, God and man naturall,
On Mont Sion to reule it iust and richt,
That is to say, his Kirk Uniuersall,
To teiche his fatheris word Celestiall,
His godly wil and plesure for to schaw,
Instructing all the warld into his law.
God said to him, thow art my Sone and air,
I the begat for euer and this day,
Thy deid purchest victorie preclair,
Syne from the deid, thow rais to King for ay,
My chosin in the▪ sall not cum to decay,
Quha trewlie traistis in thy godlie name,
Sall neuer die, Eternallie I plane.
My Sone I will the geue all Nationnis,
In heritage, and put thame in thy cure:
To reule thame with thy ministratiounis,
And preif thame with the Croce at thy plesure,
To purge thair fleshlie iust, and mak thame …ure
And for to rais thair myndis spirituall,
To pryse thy name now and perpetuall.
Heirfoir Kingis and rewlaris now be war,
Aduert till Goddis word and Discipline.
Ressaif his sone aboue all thing prefar,
His Godlie word, and keip weill his doctrine,
Leir him to dreid, and traist in till him syne,
Quhilk is the trew wirship and rychteousnes
That God requyris of mankynd mair and les.
Ressaif thairfoir his sweit correctioun,
That he na mair with ȝow offendit be.
Befoir your eine with trew affectioun,
And in ȝour hart ȝe haif him Iden…lie.
Obey his Law, for quhen greuit is he,
Than quha dar his Iust Iugement abyde
Blissit ar they, quhilk on him dois confyde,
FINIS.
¶Saluum me fac. Psal. xj.
SAIF vsus gude Lord, and succour send,
For perisit is halynes:
And treuth away from men is wend,
And fled fra thame is faithfulnes,
Dissait amang thame sa is sawin,
The veritie may nocht be knawin.
Thair tungis ar full of feinȝernes.
Thair leing tungis, o Lord, cut out,
That speikis in to thy comtemptioun:
And sayis in all place round about,
Our tungis hes ane exemptioun,
Euin as we pleis, our lippis may lie,
For we hauehave all authoritie
Nane hes of vsus dominioun.
Bot God hes said, and will it keip,
I will ryse vp incontinent,
For the opprest that sair dois weip,
And murning of the indigent.
The pure that vexit is so soir,
I will them saue, and them restoir,
Fra wickit toungis teichement.
And Goddis word and promit,
Is trewar, cleirar, and mair pure,
Then siluer, seuin tymes purifyit,
Sen that thow art in word sa sure
Thow saue vsus from sic sort of men,
And fra the doctrine that they ken,
Eternally on vsus tak cure.
Quhen Hypo…rites ar principall,
And hiest in authoritie:
On force the pepill follow sall
Thair falset and Hypocrisie
The pepill follow mon on neid,
Thir Prelatis and thair wi…kit deid
Baith blindit from the veritie.
FINIS.
¶Vsquequo Domine. Psal. xxij. with the tune of Exaudi Deus orationem meam.
O LORD how lang for euer wil thow forȝet
And hyde thy face frame, or ȝit how lang
Sall I reheirs thy counsell in my hart
Quhen sall my hart ceis of this sorie sang,
O Lord behald help me, and licht my …ine,
That suddand sleip of deid do me na teine.
Or ellis quhen my enemeis seis my fall,
We did preuaill, sone will thay say on me
And gif thay se me be thame brocht in thrall,
Thay will reioyce into thair tyrannie
Bot I in God hes hope and traist to se
His godly help than …all I louelove the Lord
Quhilk did me saue fra them that had me schord.
FINIS.
¶ Domine quis habitabit? Psal. xxiiij.
O LORD quha sall in heuin dwell with the
In thy tirumphāt, throne and Tabernakil
Or quha sall on thy haly hill sa hie
Mak residence, and hauehave his Habitakill,
The Innocent that is ane spectakill
Of haly lyfe and conuersatioun
And iust in all his operatioun.
And he quhilk on the treuth hes all his thoch…,
And with his toung the same for till furthschaw
And quhais toung his Nichtbour novis nocht
And hurtis nane be boist, nor ȝit be blaw
And thocht his Nic…bouris faute or vice be knaw
He scornis not: bot dois till his brother
As that he wald till him did ony vther.
He that hes in na reputatioun
The wickit men, in nurisching thair vice:
With flatterie, and adulatioun,
And all gude men he haldis into pryse,
And thay that dreidis God he countis wise
Quhat euer he sweir to ony man or say
His promeis he will keip without delay.
Na Occour will he vse intill his lane,
Bot frely with his Nichtbour len and borrow
Contrair the iust, rewaird he will tak nane
Bot him defend from syte, schame and sorrow
This will he do at midnicht and at morrow
Quhat euer he be that weill obseruis this.
Sall neuer perishe, but ring in heuinis blis.
FINIS.
¶ Dominus regit me. Psal. xxiij.
THE Lord God is my Pastor gude,
Aboundantly me for to feid
Then how can I be destitute
Of ony gude thing in my neid.
He feidis me in feildis fair,
To Riueris sweit, pure and preclair.
He dryuis me but ony dreid.
My saull and lyfe he dois refresche,
And me conuoyis in the way
Of his iustice and richteousnes
And me defendis from decay,
Not for my warkis verteousnes,
Bot for his name sa glorious
Preseruis me baith nicht and day.
And thocht I wauer, or ga will,
Or am in danger for to die.
Na dreid of deid sall cum me till,
Nor feir of cruell tyrannie.
Becaus that thow art me besyde,
To gouerne me and be my gyde,
From all mischeif and miserie.
Thy staffe quhair of I stand greit awe,
And thy scheip huke me for to fang,
Thay nurture me my fautes to kn…w
Quhen fra the hie way I ga wrang
Thairfoir my Spreit is blyith and glaid
Quhen on my flesche thy scurge is laid,
In the richt way to gar me gang.
And thow a…e Tabill …ois prouyde,
Befoir me, full of all belyte
Contrair to my persewaris pryde,
To thair displeasure and dispyte.
Thow hes anointed weill my heid
And full my coupe thow hes maid,
With mony diches of delyte.
Thy gudnes and beningtie
Let euer be with me thairfoir
And quhill I liue vntill I die,
Thow lay them vp with me in stoir
That I may hauehave my dwelling place
Into thy hous befoir thy face,
To ring with the for euer moir.
FINIS.
¶ Exultate iusti in Domino. Psal. xxxiij.
ȜE Richteous reioyce and louelove the Lord
Iust men to thank thair God dois weil accord
Play on ȝour Lute, & sweitly to it sing
Tak Harpe in hand with mony lustie string
Tyrle on the ten stringit Instrument,
And prais ȝour God with hart and hail intent
Sing na auld thing the quhilk is abrogate
Bot sing sum new plesand perfite ballat
Blaw vp Organis with glaid and heuinly sound
Ioyfull in hart, quhilk all the skyis resound
For Goddis word is treuth and veritie,
And dois all his deidis faithfullie
The Lord lufis iustice and richteousnes,
And all the eird is full of his gudnes
The be…innis hie wer creat be the Lord,
Thair ornamentis wer dressit be his word
He hei…is vp the water is lyke ane hill▪
Syne …urnis them in deip quhen that he will,
Dreid ȝe the Lord, all dwelleris on the ground,
And wirschip him all hauehave ye warld sa roun…,
Quhat God decretis is done incontinent.
All Creature obeyis his commandement.
The Counsellis of the wickit and deuyse
He perturbis, appeirand euer sa wyse,
He scornis all thair Consolationn,
And wickit pepillis Imaginatioun,
Bot his counsell sall left perpetuall,
And sall indure till generations all.
Full happy is the pepill maist and leist.
Quhilk in yair God▪ & Lord hes all yair trai…
And quhome that God do cheis before all aige,
Thame to posseid in proper heritage.
The Lord lukis furth of his heuinlie sait,
And persauis all men of euerilk stait,
From his tryumphant throne he dois beholde
All Natiounis, and dwellaris on the molde,
For he allone did creat all thair hartis,
And he allone dois knaw all thair warkis,
The King is not saif, be his greit armie,
Nor Iyand saif be strenth of his bodie.
The bardit hors in neid sall men dissaif,
And mony thousand hors may na man saif.
The eyis of the Lord thay do aduert
To them that dreidis him with all thair har…
Traisting his godly help with patience.
To …ai…thair lyfe in tyme of pestilence.
And in the tyme of derth them for to feid.
And be thair only help in all thair neid:
Thairfoir my Saull in God put thy beleif,
Our strenth and targe to saif vsus fra mischeif.
Our hart salbe into the Lord ioyous.
Sen we traist in thy Name maist glorious
Assist vsus (O Lord) for thy gudnes
Euin as we traist in thy greit gentilnes.
FINIS.