869. the hundred fruit, i. e. fruit brought forth a hundred-fold. Cf. 'dabant fructum, aliud centesimum,' &c.; Matt. xiii. 8. It was usual to liken virginity, widowhood, and matrimony, respectively, to the bringing forth of fruit a hundredfold, sixtyfold and thirtyfold; see P. Plowman, C. xix. 84-90, and note to l. 84; Hali Meidenhad, ed. Cockayne, p. 22; Ayenb. p. 234. 'Centesimus et sexagesimus et tricesimus fructus ... multum differt in numero. Triginta referuntur ad nuptias ... Sexaginta uero ad uiduas ... Porro centesimus numerus ... exprimit uirginitatis coronam'; Hieronymus contra Iouinianum, lib. i; ed. 1524, ii. 18. The Fr. text has: 'Ceus qui gardent virginite ont le centiesme fruit.' But Chaucer, being well acquainted with Jerome's treatise, recognised at once the Latin source; for in MS. Hl. we find the note, 'secundum Ieronimum contra Iouinianum.'
879. 'Him shall God destroy'; 1 Cor. iii. 17.
880. douted, feared. See Gen. xxxix. 8, 9.
884. 'Huanne me brecth the sacrement of spoushod, hit y-ualth otherhuyl desertesoun of eyr, and ualse mariages'; Ayenb. p. 48.
887. gladly, readily; hence, fittingly.
889. 'Iam amplius noli peccare'; John viii. 11.
895. as by the dignitee, i. e. on account of the dignity of their office; see note to 900.
'Satanas transfigurat se,' &c.; 2 Cor. xi. 14.
897-8. From 1 Sam. ii. 12 (in the Vulgate, Liber primus Regum). Belial signifies worthlessness; and hence, lawlessness, or evil. But in the Vulgate version of Judges, xix. 22, the word Belial is explained to mean 'absque iugo'; which in O. French would become 'sans ioug.' Chaucer seems to have met with this explanation, and perhaps misread it as 'sans iuge'; i. e. 'without Iuge.'
900. misterie, i. e. office, duty. As in 895 above, misterie is here short for ministerie, i. e. ministry, office, duty; in fact, the Selden and Lansdowne MSS. actually have the spelling mynysterie. MS. Cm., by a singular error, adds mynystre again, and has the reading: 'kunne not mynystre the mysterie.' Tyrwhitt has wrongly introduced the extra mynystre. Wright copied him; Bell copied Wright; and Morris copied Bell; so that these editions vary from the Harl. MS., which omits it! The question is easily settled. 'The Book' means the Bible; and the Vulgate version (1 Sam. ii. 12, 13) has 'nescientes ... officium sacerdotum ad populum.' Hence conne means 'know.'