Hverr eggjar þik, harri
heiptarstrangr, at ganga
(opt reynir þú) þínum
(þunn stôl) á bak môlum?
Fastorðr skyli fyrða
fengsæll vesa þengill;
hœfir heit at rjúfa,
hjaldrmǫgnuðr, þér aldri.
Hverr eggjar þik, heiptarstrangr harri, at ganga á bak môlum þínum? Opt reynir þú þunn stôl. Fengsæll þengill fyrða skyli vesa fastorðr; aldri hœfir þér at rjúfa heit, hjaldrmǫgnuðr.
Who urges you, vengeful lord, to go back on your promises? Frequently you test slender swords. A prosperous prince of the people must be true to his word; it is never proper for you to break your pledges, battle-increaser [WARRIOR].
[3, 4] opt reynir þú þunn stôl ‘frequently you test slender swords’: The main variant readings opt rýðr þegnum þínum ‘often you redden slender swords for your followers’ (so 325XI 3, Flat), opt rýðr þegnum þýðum ‘often you redden slender swords for your cheerful followers’ (so H, Hr)’ are possible but less preferable from a metrical point of view. The Flat, 325XI 3 variant lacks internal rhyme and, in the H-Hr version, in which þýðum ‘cheerful’ clearly represents an attempt to restore internal rhyme, the first rhyme falls on an unstressed syllable (rýðr ‘redden’) (see also Louis-Jensen 1977, 152-5). The presence of the word þegn ‘follower’ in H, Hr, 325XI 3 and Flat could have been influenced by its occurrence in the two preceding sts and in the following st.