Scottish Text Society publications > Old series > Historie of Scotland > Volume 1, 1888

THE FYFTE BUKE.
269
The Roman Jmpire at this tyme, was diuidet into tua
partes : the * Easte parte of thir tua, in gouerne«g fell
to Chairles the Magne, eftir mony wicht and worthie
actes. Was lykwyse, in thir dayes a counsel of thrie
5 hunder and fiftie Bischopis haldne at Nice against the
secte of Jmagebrekens, thair name Jconoclastse, from
Jeon, quhilke in greke is namet ane Jmage in Scot/s:
This t Counsel is called the counsell of Nice; quhair
manifestlie was prouen, and co#firmet be rasounis maist
10 cleir, euident and sure, the vsse of Jmages to be cleine
of all sup^rstitione. And that na man throuch scruple
of conscience doubte heirof, the fathiris of this Counsel,
in thir few and notable wordes, con/prehendet (//) as
followis in latin: and than in Scotfs.
1 ^ + Hanc videas, sed mente colas, quod cernis in ipsa,
Nam Deus est, quod imago docet, sed non Dens ipsa.
The Jmage teiches, quha is God,
Quhilk man behaulde suld outwardlie,
And ken thairby Rycht, Euin, and Odd;
20 Man, God sulde Worschipe inwardlie.
Jn thir dayes, that notable Historiographour deacone
Paul, Wrote the notable actes of king Desiderie &
thame of Lumbardie, to quhilke he eiket viii buikes of
Eutropius his historic, quhair, of the Scotis Natioune he
25 speikes mekle. Afor this tyme, the Jnglishis historic
wryteris makes mentione of mony kingis of Britannic.
Bot because, afoir the Romanis cam in Britannic, few
notable actes of thair kingis ar put in memorie, bot
qn Britannic was gouerned be ye Romane Proconsules,
30 thaireftir, in sevin Regiment/s, deuydet be the Saxonis,
Jnsafar, that a certane and sure ordour of kingis coulde
no1 weil be collected, quhill quhen Egbert had dan-
* L. “ occidentalis ”—western.
f This sentence is not in L. It was the second Council of Nice.
J Look on this (image) but let your mind worship that which you
distinguish in it. For it points out that which is God, but it is not
God itself.
The Jmpire
diuidet.
The decreit
of the Coun¬
sel of Nice
aneut the
J mages.