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| [1]Sones of Beniamyn, be ye coumfortid in the myddil of Jerusalem, and make ye noise with a clarioun in Thecua, and reise ye a baner on Bethecarem; for whi yuel and greet sorewe is seyn fro the north. |
[1]Strengthen yourselves, sons of Benjamin, From the midst of Jerusalem, And in Tekoa blow ye a trumpet, And over Beth-Haccerem lift ye up a flame, For evil hath been seen from the north, And great destruction. |
| [2]Y haue licned the douytir of Sion to a fair womman and delicat. |
[2]The comely and the delicate one I have cut off, The daughter of Zion. |
| [3]Scheepherdis and her flockis schulen come to it; thei han piyt tentis in it in cumpas; ech man schal feede hem, that ben vndur his hond. |
[3]Unto her come do shepherds and their droves, They have stricken tents by her round about, They have fed each [in] his own station. |
| [4]Halewe ye batel on it. Rise ye togidire, and stie we in myddai. Wo to vs, for the dai is bowid doun, for shadewis ben maad lengere in the euentid. |
[4]Sanctify ye against her the battle, Rise, and we go up at noon. Wo to us, for turned hath the day, For stretched out are the shades of evening, |
| [5]Rise ye, and stie we in the niyt, and distry we the housis therof. |
[5]`Rise, and we go up by night, And we destroy her palaces.' |
| [6]For the Lord of oostis seith these thingis, Kitte ye doun the tre therof, and schede ye erthe aboute Jerusalem; this is the citee of visitacioun; al fals caleng is in the myddis therof. |
[6]For thus said Jehovah of Hosts: Cut down her wood, And pour out against Jerusalem a mount, She [is] the city to be inspected, Wholly -- she is oppression in her midst. |
| [7]As a cisterne makith his water coold, so it made his malice coold; wickidnesse and distriyng schal euer be herd ther ynne bifore me, sikenesse and wounde. |
[7]As the digging of a well, is [for] its waters, So she hath digged [for] her wickedness, Violence and spoil is heard in her, Before My face continually [are] sickness and smiting. |
| [8]Jerusalem, be thou tauyt, lest perauenture my soule go awei fro thee; lest perauenture Y sette thee forsakun, a loond vnhabitable. |
[8]Be instructed, O Jerusalem, Lest My soul be alienated from thee, Lest I make thee a desolation, a land not inhabited. |
| [9]The Lord of oostis seith these thingis, Thei schulen gadere til to a racyn, thei schulen gadere the remenauntis of Israel as in a vyner; turne thin hond, as a gaderer of grapis to the bascat. |
[9]Thus said Jehovah of Hosts: They surely glean, as a vine, the remnant of Israel, Put back thy hand, as a gatherer to the baskets. |
| [10]To whom schal Y speke, and to whom schal Y seie witnessing, that he here? Lo! the eeris of hem ben vncircumcidid, and thei moun not here; lo! the word of the Lord is maad to hem in to dispit, and thei schulen not resseiue it. |
[10]To whom do I speak, and testify, and they hear? Lo, their ear [is] uncircumcised, And they are not able to attend. Lo, a word of Jehovah hath been to them for a reproach, They delight not in it. |
| [11]Therfor Y am ful of the strong veniaunce of the Lord, and Y trauelide suffrynge. Schede thou out on a litil child with outforth, and on the counsel of yonge men togidere; for a man with his wijf schal be takun, and an eeld man with him that is ful of daies. |
[11]And with the fury of Jehovah I have been filled, (I have been weary of containing,) To pour [it] on the suckling in the street, And on the assembly of youths together, For even husband with wife are captured, An elder with one full of days, |
| [12]And the housis of hem, the feeldis and wyues togidere, schulen go to othere men; for Y schal stretche forth myn hond on the dwelleris of the lond, seith the Lord. |
[12]And their houses have been turned to others, Fields and wives together, For I stretch out My hand against the inhabitants of the land, An affirmation of Jehovah. |
| [13]For fro the lesse `til to the grettere, alle studien to auerise; and alle doon gile, fro the profete `til to the preest. |
[13]For from their least unto their greatest, Every one is gaining dishonest gain, And from prophet even unto priest, Every one is dealing falsely, |
| [14]And thei heeliden the sorewe of the douyter of my puple with yuel fame, seiynge, Pees, pees, and no pees was. |
[14]And they heal the breach of the daughter of my people slightly, Saying, `Peace, peace!' and there is no peace. |
| [15]Thei ben schent, that diden abhomynacioun; yhe, rathere thei weren not schent bi confusioun, and thei kouden not be aschamed. Wherfor thei schulen falle doun among hem that schulen falle doun; thei schulen falle doun in the tyme of her visitacioun, seith the Lord. |
[15]They were ashamed when they did abomination! Yea, they are not at all ashamed, Yea, blushing they have not known, Therefore they do fall among those falling, In the time I have inspected them, They stumble, said Jehovah. |
| [16]The Lord seith these thingis, Stonde ye on weies, and se ye, and axe ye of elde pathis, which is the good weie; and go ye ther ynne, and ye schulen fynde refreischyng to youre soulis. And thei seiden, We schulen not go. |
[16]Thus said Jehovah: Stand ye by the ways and see, and ask for paths of old, Where [is] this -- the good way? and go ye in it, And find rest for yourselves. And they say, `We do not go.' |
| [17]And Y ordeynede aspieris on you, and Y seide, Here ye the vois of a trumpe. And thei seiden, We schulen not here. |
[17]And I have raised up for you watchmen, Attend ye to the voice of the trumpet. And they say, `We do not attend.' |
| [18]Therfor, hethene men, here ye, and, thou congregacioun, knowe, hou grete thingis Y schal do to hem. |
[18]Therefore hear, O nations, and know, O company, That which [is] upon them. |
| [19]Thou erthe, here, lo! Y schal brynge yuels on this puple, the fruit of her thouytis; for thei herden not my wordis, and castiden awei my lawe. |
[19]Hear, O earth, lo, I am bringing evil on this people, The fruit of their devices, For to My words they gave no attention, And My law -- they kick against it. |
| [20]Wherto bryngen ye to me encense fro Saba, and a tre of spicerie smellynge swetli fro a fer lond? Youre brent sacrifices ben not acceptid, and youre slayn sacrifices plesiden not me. |
[20]Why [is] this to Me? frankincense from Sheba cometh, And the sweet cane from a land afar off, Your burnt-offerings [are] not for acceptance, And your sacrifices have not been sweet to Me. |
| [21]Therfor the Lord God seith these thingis, Lo! Y schal yyue fallyngis in to this puple, and fadris and sones togidere, a neiybore and kynesman, schulen falle in hem, and schulen perische. |
[21]Therefore thus said Jehovah: Lo, I do give to this people stumbling blocks, And stumbled against them have fathers and sons together, The neighbour and his friend do perish. |
| [22]The Lord God seith these thingis, Lo! a puple cometh fro the lond of the north, and a greet folk schal rise togidere fro the endis of erthe. |
[22]Thus said Jehovah: Lo, a people hath come from a north country, And a great nation is stirred up from the sides of the earth. |
| [23]It schal take an arowe and scheld; it is cruel, and schal not haue merci; the vois therof schal sowne as the see, and thei maad redi as a man to batel schulen stie on horsis ayens thee, thou douyter of Sion. |
[23]Bow and javelin they take hold of, Fierce it [is], and they have no mercy, Their voice as a sea doth sound, And on horses they ride, set in array as a man of war, Against thee, O daughter of Zion. |
| [24]We herden the fame therof, oure hondis ben `a clumsid; tribulacioun hath take vs, sorewis han take vs as a womman trauelinge of child. |
[24]`We have heard its sound, feeble have been our hands, Distress hath seized us, pain as of a travailing woman. |
| [25]Nyle ye go out to the feeldis, and go ye not in the weie, for the swerd of the enemye, drede in cumpas. |
[25]Go not forth to the field, And in the way walk not, For a sword hath the enemy, fear [is] round about. |
| [26]The douytir of my puple, be thou gird with heire, and be thou spreynt togidere with aische; make to thee mourenyng of oon aloone gendrid sone, a bitter weilyng, for whi a wastere schal come sodenli on you. |
[26]O daughter of My people, Gird on sackcloth, and roll thyself in ashes, The mourning of an only one make for thee, A lamentation most bitter, For suddenly come doth the spoiler against us. |
| [27]I yaf thee a strong preuere in my puple, and thou schalt knowe, and preue the weie of hem. |
[27]A watch-tower I have given thee, Among My people a fortress, And thou knowest, and hast tried their way. |
| [28]Alle these princis bowynge awei, goynge gilefuli, ben metal and irun; alle ben corrupt. |
[28]All of them are turned aside by apostates, Walking slanderously -- brass and iron, All of them are corrupters. |
| [29]The belu failide, leed is waastid in the fier, the wellere wellide in veyn; for the malices of hem ben not wastid. |
[29]The bellows have been burnt, By fire hath the lead been consumed, In vain hath a refiner refined, And the wicked have not been drawn away. |
| [30]Clepe ye hem repreuable siluer, for the Lord hath cast hem awei. |
[30]`Silver rejected,' they have called to them, For Jehovah hath kicked against them! |