read and reaðe - The latter of these words is for reðe, as it is written in 165. The same collocation in the Bi Manna Wyrdum of the Exeter MS., line 46; read reðe gled.

ræsct - written ræscet (165), from ræscetan.

The more usual form of efesteð is efsteð.

heora heortan...syn scyldigra - For the construction compare Goodwin's Life of St. Guthlac, 22: wæs sum his scipes-man þæs foresprecenan Aðelbaldes. There was one his boatman (viz.) the afore-mentioned Athelbald's.

horxlice for horsclice - An early example of the tendency which at the present day vulgarizes ask int ax, though curiously enough the original acsian had previously suffered metathesis to come into modern ask.

æniman - would be better written divisim, æni man. The g of ænig disappeared, but it did not on that account form a compound with the following noun, though here written so.

arnum - The adjective aren = honourable, meritorious, does not occur elsewhere, but it is regularly formed from ar, as fyren from fyr. The syncopation of the dative plural is like fyrnum teagum. Grein, Cr. 733, and Panth. 60, and gefæstnode fyrnum clommum, Andreas, 1380. Thus, be arnum gewyrhtum = meritis of the latin text.

MS. weran

gehende - (prep.) is constructed with a dative case. The earlier expression was at handum.

MS. sone

yrnð - by syncope for yrneð.

The constructionn is þurh ealle breost-gehyda. Breost-gehyda being the genitive plural governed by ealle, which is in the accusative after þurh. Gehyda for gehygda.

stænt, written stent in line 124, another instance of the fondness of the scribe of for the vowel æ. Cf. supra, line 154

astifad - cf. supra, line 156

glæd - adjective used adverbially.

leofian - is not nearly so common as libban.

galnes or galnys - an unusual word.

Perhaps þær is an error for þæm, in which case the sense would be, "thou urgest thyself to that luxury".

gælsa - is almost as unusual a word as galnes. But it occurs below, line 237.

Forthas for forhtast - But it has been allowed to stand, because in the later language the second personal pronoun coming after its verb was attached to it, and the last letter of the verb elided, so forhtasþu may be intentional. Cf. Chaucer's frequent seystow and artow. But it may only be a clerical error, and no indication of the later usage.

fyrene for fyrenne - masculine accusative singular

Here we either have a corrupt passage or the construction is most puzzling. ondræd is the imperative, and the sentence is =ondræd þu þe sylfum, i.e. dread thou for thyself. The writer seems to have considered the preceding interrogation equal to an imperative sentence, "Wilt thou not fear," equivalent to "Be thou afraid," and then to have followed it up by a direct imperative. For such an indicative (though not interrogative) sentence used for an imperative, cf. Ps. cxviii. 31: ne wylt þu me gescyndan = do not confound me.

MS. unstence

unstenc - is not found elsewhere, but as the original signifation of stenc, and of its derivative verb, was fragrance, pleasant odour, unstenc is a natural compound to signify the contrary thereof.

Forhwi - is a literal representation of the cur in the Latin text, but the translator does not seem to have known that cur might be rendered because, otherwise he would have written here for þy.

fyrgende - evidently intended to translate the present participle luxurians, must be from a verb fyrgan, of a kindred signification with the verbs firenian and fyrenan, but such verb does not occur elsewhere.

MS. scyndam

scyndan - This, which is the slightest possible alteration of the MS., makes the verb an infinitive, and governed by gewiteð (236). But it might be altered and a simpler construction obtained by reading scyndað, the plural verb being justified by the expression ælc gælsa. A like construction with the infinitive slincan occurs in the next two lines.

MS. leofes

lað - may either be an adjective, as translated, or a noun = an object of loathing or offence.

þeostra - i.q. þteostru.

genipð - This verb does not occur elsewhere, but its meaning is sufficiently evident from its noun.

MS. hean gerinnað

heah gehrineð - This emendation seems to most nearly approach the Latin text, collocat Altithrono. heofon-setle must be dative, and hean could not be taken with it.

læt - for the more usual lædeð. The same part of the verb is spelt let in line 294.

Of the last word in this line, drut, I can offer no explanation, and have therefore written brut, which may have been written as a form of bryd. This is however very uncertain. Could drut be a contraction for deorut?