William Dunbar. 1465-1520?
20. On the Nativity of Christ
1 min to read
352 words

RORATE coeli desuper!   Hevins, distil your balmy schouris! For now is risen the bricht day-ster,   Fro the rose Mary, flour of flouris:   The cleir Sone, quhom no cloud devouris, Surmounting Phebus in the Est,   Is cumin of his hevinly touris:     Et nobis Puer natus est.

Archangellis, angellis, and dompnationis,   Tronis, potestatis, and marteiris seir, And all ye hevinly operationis,   Ster, planeit, firmament, and spheir,   Fire, erd, air, and water cleir, To Him gife loving, most and lest,   That come in to so meik maneir;     Et nobis Puer natus est.

Synnaris be glad, and penance do,   And thank your Maker hairtfully; For he that ye micht nocht come to   To you is cumin full humbly   Your soulis with his blood to buy And loose you of the fiendis arrest—   And only of his own mercy;     Pro nobis Puer natus est.

All clergy do to him inclyne,   And bow unto that bairn benyng, And do your observance divyne   To him that is of kingis King:   Encense his altar, read and sing In holy kirk, with mind degest,   Him honouring attour all thing     Qui nobis Puer natus est.

Celestial foulis in the air,   Sing with your nottis upon hicht, In firthis and in forrestis fair   Be myrthful now at all your mycht;   For passit is your dully nicht, Aurora has the cloudis perst,   The Sone is risen with glaidsum licht,     Et nobis Puer natus est.

Now spring up flouris fra the rute,   Revert you upward naturaly, In honour of the blissit frute   That raiss up fro the rose Mary;   Lay out your levis lustily, Fro deid take life now at the lest   In wirschip of that Prince worthy     Qui nobis Puer natus est.

Sing, hevin imperial, most of hicht!   Regions of air mak armony! All fish in flud and fowl of flicht   Be mirthful and mak melody!   All Gloria in excelsis cry! Heaven, erd, se, man, bird, and best,—   He that is crownit abone the sky     Pro nobis Puer natus est!

schouris] showers. cumin] come, entered. seir] various. erd] earth. lest] least. synnaris] sinners. benyng] benign. attour] over, above. perst] pierced. raiss] rose. best] beast.

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William Dunbar. 1465-1520?
21. Lament for the Makers
2 mins to read
618 words
Return to The Oxford Book of English Verse, 1250–1900






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