Help needed with a Middle English quotation

Hey there. Lately I've been reading some Child's ballads while having no formal knowledge of Middle English grammar. Luckily, I seem to be able to understand the gist of the texts as it is. However, as I was reading ballad #121 (Robin Hood and the Potter), I stumbled over this passage: "Now schall y wet and thow be god, and polle het op to they nere". Robert W. Waltz in his book modernizes the phrase as such: "Now shall I know if you be good: and pull it up to your ear". One thing remains unclear to me. Middle English spelling for the word "ear" is "ere" alright, but where did the "n" in "nere" come from? Could it have been a part of pronoun "thine" or "theyn" as in the source? Or is it perhaps a random consonant added to facilitate the recitation of the ballad? Those are my best guesses, even though they seem rather weak to me. I would really appreciate an educated explanation here.