rōhte ic hwæðer ic wēre, gyf ic ne lyfde? Oððe hwæt rōhte ic þæs lȳfes, gyf ic nāwiht nyste?
G. Nū ic gehȳre þæt þū lufast æall þæt ðū lufast for ðām þrīm ðingum, and ic ongyte ǣac hwilce[1] þāra þrēora ðinga þū swīðost lufast. Đū lufast þæt þæt þū sī forðām ðū woldest libban, and forðām þū woldest [2]libban þe þū woldest witan. Þī ic ongyte þæt ðū lufast þone wīsdōm ofer æalle ōðre þing. Þæt, mē ðincð[3], sēo ðīn hēhste good and ǣac þīn God.
A. Sōð ðū mē sægest. Hwæt is se hēhsta wȳsdōm æalles būton þæt hēhste good? Oððe hwæt[4] is þæt hēhste good būton þæt ǣlc man on þisse wurlde swā miclum lufað God[5] swā hē wīsdōm lufað,—sam hē hine miclum lufige, sam hē hine lytlum lufige, sam hē hine mydlinga lufige? Be þām dǣle hē lufað God þe hē wīsdom lufað.
G. Genōh rihte þū hyt hæfst ongytan. Ac ic wolde þæt wit fēngen eft þider wit ǣr wēron. Nū þū wāst þæt þū eart, and ēac wōst þæt ðū leofest, and wāst þæt ðū hwæthwugu wāst, þēah ðū swā micel nyte swā ðū woldest; and fēorðæ ðing þæt ðū woldest ǣac witan, þæt is, þæt ðū[6] woldest witan hweðer þā ðrēo þing æalle ǣce wēron ðe nēron; oððe hweðer heora ēnig ǣce wēræ; oððe, gyf hēo æallu ǣce wǣren, hweðer heora ēnig æfter disse weоrlde on ðām ǣcan lyfe āwðer dide werse oððe wanede.
A. Æalle mȳne giornesse ðū hæfst[7] ongyten swīðe rihte.
G. Ymbe hwæt twǣost þū nū? Hū nū ne wēre ðū ǣr geðafa þæt God wēre ǣce and ælmihtih, and hæfde twā gescēadwīssa[8] and ǣca gesceaftea gesceapena swā-swā wē ǣr sǣdon: þæt sint engelas and manna sāula, ðām hē hæfð forgifen ǣca gyfa? Đā gyfa hī ne ðurfon nǣfre
the remainder consult Augustine's Soliloquies, Bk. II, Epistle 147 (De Videndo Deo), and City of God; Gregory the Great's Dialogues and Morals; and Jerome's Commentary on Luke and the Vulgate. All may be found in Migne's Patrologia Latina, but for exact references and Comments see the Notes. For Alfred's intimation of his sources, consult p. 1, l. 19, of the text.
