When they him not found, they turned to Jerusalem, him seeking.

[4.] The Lord’s Prayer.—The same plan of comparison may be applied to the different versions of the Lord’s Prayer that have come down to us; and it will be seen from this comparison that the greatest changes have taken place in the grammar, and especially in that part of the grammar which contains the inflexions.

[THE LORD’S PRAYER.]
1130.1250.1380.1526.
Reign of Stephen. Reign of Henry III. Wycliffe’s Version. Tyndale’s Version.
Fader ure, þe art on heofone.Fadir ur, that es in hevene,Our Fadir, that art in hevenys,Our Father which art in heaven;
Sy gebletsod name þin,Halud thi nam to nevene;Halewid be thi name;Halowed be thy name;
Cume þin rike.Thou do as thi rich rike;Thi kingdom come to;Let thy kingdom come;
Si þin wil swa swa on heofone and on eorþan.Thi will on erd be wrought, eek as it is wrought in heven ay.Be thi wil done in erthe, as in hevene.Thy will be fulfilled as well in earth as it is in heven.
Breod ure degwamlich geof us to daeg.Ur ilk day brede give us to day.Give to us this day oure breed ovir othir substaunce,Geve us this day ur dayly bred,
And forgeof us ageltes ura swa swa we forgeofen agiltendum urum.Forgive thou all us dettes urs, als we forgive till ur detturs.And forgive to us our dettis, as we forgiven to oure dettouris.And forgeve us oure dettes as we forgeve ur detters.
And ne led us on costunge.And lede us not into temptacioun;And ledde us in na fandung.And leade us not into temptation,
Ac alys us fram yfele. Swa beo hit.But sculd us fra ivel thing. Amen.But delyvere us from yvel. Amen.But delyver us from evyll. For thyne is the kyngdom, and the power, and the glorye, for ever. Amen.

It will be observed that Wycliffe’s version contains five Romance terms—substaunce, dettis, dettouris, temptacioun, and delyvere.

[5.] Oldest English and Early English.—The following is a short passage from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, under date 1137: first, in the Anglo-Saxon form; second, in Early English, or—as it has sometimes been called—Broken Saxon;

third, in modern English. The breaking-down of the grammar becomes still more strikingly evident from this close juxtaposition.

(i)HíswenctonÞáwreccanmenn
(ii)Híswenctenthewreccemen
(iii)Theyswinked (harassed)thewretchedmen
(i)Þaes landesmidcastel-weorcum.
(ii)Of-the-landmidcastel-weorces.
(iii)Of the landwithcastle-works.
(i)ÐaÞácastelaswaerongemacod,
(ii)Thathecastleswarenmaked,
(iii)Whenthecastlesweremade,