Original: A noble temper dost thou show in this;
Modern: You’re showing a noble character in this moment;

Original: And great affections wrestling in thy bosom
Modern: And powerful emotions struggling inside your heart

Original: Doth make an earthquake of nobility.
Modern: Create an earth-shaking display of honor.

Original: O, what a noble combat hast thou fought
Modern: Oh, what an honorable battle you have fought

Original: Between compulsion and a brave respect!
Modern: Between what you’re forced to do and your courageous sense of duty!

Original: Let me wipe off this honourable dew,
Modern: Let me wipe away these honorable tears,

Original: That silverly doth progress on thy cheeks:
Modern: That are flowing like silver down your face:

Original: My heart hath melted at a lady’s tears,
Modern: My heart has been moved by a woman’s tears,

Original: Being an ordinary inundation;
Modern: Which are common enough;

Original: But this effusion of such manly drops,
Modern: But this outpouring of such masculine tears,

Original: This shower, blown up by tempest of the soul,
Modern: This rain, stirred up by a storm in your soul,

Original: Startles mine eyes, and makes me more amazed
Modern: Shocks my eyes and amazes me more

Original: Than had I seen the vaulty top of heaven
Modern: Than if I had seen the arched roof of heaven

Original: Figured quite o’er with burning meteors.
Modern: Completely covered with fiery shooting stars.

Original: Lift up thy brow, renowned Salisbury,
Modern: Raise your head, famous Salisbury,

Original: And with a great heart heave away the storm:
Modern: And with a brave heart push away this storm of emotion:

Original: Commend these waters to those baby eyes
Modern: Leave these tears to those childish eyes

Original: That never saw the giant world enraged;
Modern: That have never seen the massive world in fury;

Original: Nor met with fortune other than at feasts,
Modern: And have only experienced good luck at parties,

Original: Full of warm blood, of mirth, of gossiping.
Modern: Full of passion, joy, and gossip.

Original: Come, come; for thou shalt thrust thy hand as deep
Modern: Come on, come on; for you will reach your hand as deeply

Original: Into the purse of rich prosperity
Modern: Into the wallet of great wealth

Original: As Lewis himself: so, nobles, shall you all,
Modern: As Lewis himself will: and so will all of you nobles,

Original: That knit your sinews to the strength of mine.
Modern: Who join your strength to my power.

Original: And even there, methinks, an angel spake:
Modern: And right then, I think, an angel spoke:

Original: Look, where the holy legate comes apace,
Modern: Look, the holy ambassador is coming quickly,

Original: To give us warrant from the hand of heaven
Modern: To give us authorization from heaven itself

Original: And on our actions set the name of right
Modern: And to label our actions as just

Original: With holy breath.
Modern: With sacred authority.

In Act V, Scene ii of King John, the French and rebel English forces have gathered, and Lewis the Dauphin receives a sealed document — a formal renunciation of allegiance from the English barons who have defected to his cause. Salisbury, speaking on behalf of the rebellious nobles, expresses deep sorrow and reluctance at having been driven to take up arms against their own king and country. He makes clear that their alliance with France is born of necessity rather than desire, and that their grief at the situation is genuine. Lewis responds graciously, welcoming their commitment and pledging his own honor and effort to their shared cause. Pandulph, the papal legate, then arrives and informs Lewis that King John has submitted to the Pope, and therefore the justification for the French invasion — which Pandulph himself had originally sanctioned — has been removed. He urges Lewis to stand down and withdraw his forces.

Lewis, however, refuses to abandon his campaign. He argues that the war has taken on a momentum and justification of its own, beyond the original religious grievance that Pandulph had used to authorize it. He points out that the English barons have their own legitimate grievances, and that he himself has a claim to the English throne through his wife. Lewis firmly dismisses Pandulph’s attempts to halt the invasion, declaring that he intends to press forward regardless of the Pope’s new position. The scene ends with Lewis resolved to continue the fight, and the two sides preparing for the coming military confrontation.

King John opens with King Philip of France supporting Arthur, the young son of John’s deceased brother Geoffrey, as the rightful heir to the English throne. John’s mother, Queen Eleanor, and the French court engage in heated disputes over legitimacy. Meanwhile, the Bastard (Philip Faulconbridge), illegitimate son of Richard the Lionheart, joins John’s cause after being legitimized. War breaks out between England and France, with the strategic town of Angiers caught between the two armies.

The conflict temporarily resolves when John’s niece Blanche marries the French Dauphin Lewis, uniting the two kingdoms. However, Cardinal Pandulph arrives from Rome and excommunicates John for refusing to accept Stephen Langton as Archbishop of Canterbury. The Cardinal persuades France to break the peace and resume war against the excommunicated English king. In the ensuing battle, Arthur is captured by John’s forces.

John orders Hubert to kill the young Arthur, but Hubert cannot bring himself to murder the child and instead hides him. When Arthur later dies attempting to escape from his prison tower, the English nobles believe John has murdered him and defect to join the invading French forces led by the Dauphin. As John faces rebellion from within and invasion from without, he submits to the Pope’s authority to regain legitimacy. However, he falls ill and is poisoned by a monk at Swinstead Abbey.

The Bastard rallies the remaining English forces and discovers that the French nobles plan to kill their English allies after victory. This intelligence helps reconcile the English lords to their king. John dies, and his young son Henry is crowned King Henry III. The Dauphin withdraws his forces, and Cardinal Pandulph negotiates peace. The play concludes with the Bastard delivering a patriotic speech about England’s strength when united against foreign threats.