The Book of Chess

I hope that it may benefit
good people for their own good,
who, with a good spirit,
hear it as is fitting.
From where it truly comes,
one might easily say that it is useful.
No good can come to one
who wishes to tell us much
about this chess game original: "schach zabel spil"; "Zabel" is an old term for a board game, derived from the Latin "tabula".
and yet will not notice
any good thing that he should rightly do.
Such people are, alas, common enough,
who neither virtue original: "tugent" nor propriety
willingly hear sung or spoken,
and only focus on mockery and idle talk.
It would be true wickedness—
as is briefly said of those
who speak against God, the sun, and the moon. original: "Die got ne sōne monda sp̄ich"; this likely refers to blasphemers or those who disregard the natural order of the heavens created by God.
It would be a burden and a hardship for them.
They like things that appear good
only when they hear or see that which is hollow.
[Even if they have] good things in their evil minds;
[or] if they have divine love
in their minds, then...
[yet] their heart is unmanly original: "vnmāne"; meaning lacking in noble or "manly" virtues like courage and integrity.,
evil and corrupted;
they are founded upon wickedness.
Lies and evil tales—
with lies they are a danger
to all good people.
That this might be well interpreted betüten original: "betüten"; to signify or explain the hidden, allegorical meaning of a story. for us,
his wisdom has confirmed this before.

When King Nebuchadnezzar
threw the good Daniel
into a pit, in which were sharp
and ravenous lions,
which could devour the people
who were daily thrown in
so that they might be their food—
two sheep and two men each day.
This was rarely neglected;
those who were previously harmed by favor The text implies a corrupt legal system where those out of favor were tossed to the beasts.
and others were quickly [given] to the monster
and torn apart by them.
When Daniel arrived there alone—
how that came to pass, it does not please me
to say here; if you wish to know,
the event followed him
and it stands in the book
written about Daniel.
As I say much here at this time,
I have thought about it
and brought it as an example bÿschaft original: "bÿschaft"; a Middle High German term for a parable, example, or allegorical story used for moral instruction..
I read what it signifies here
from Saint John Chrysostom,
he of the Golden Mouth original: "gulden munde"; a translation of the Greek name "Chrysostomos"..
I wish that I were able
to bring his words into German original: "tütsche" better,
which I read in Latin original: "latine",
than I, alas, am able to do.
For my spring of knowledge
is so modest that one finds
little art within it; [yet] his words are those
which stand written here following.