Job 39
1 Have you knowledge of the rock-goats? or do you see the roes giving birth to their young?
Whethir thou knowist the tyme of birthe of wielde geet in stoonys, ethir hast thou aspied hyndis bryngynge forth calues?
2 Is the number of their months fixed by you? or is the time when they give birth ordered by you?
Hast thou noumbrid the monethis of her conseyuyng, and hast thou knowe the tyme of her caluyng?
3 They are bent down, they give birth to their young, they let loose the fruit of their body.
Tho ben bowid to the calf, and caluen; and senden out roryngis.
4 Their young ones are strong, living in the open country; they go out and do not come back again.
Her calues ben departid, and goen to pasture; tho goen out, and turnen not ayen to `tho hyndis.
5 Who has let the ass of the fields go free? or made loose the bands of the loud-voiced beast?
Who let go the wielde asse fre, and who loside the boondis of hym?
6 To whom I have given the waste land for a heritage, and the salt land as a living-place.
To whom Y haue youe an hows in wildirnesse, and the tabernacles of hym in the lond of saltnesse.
7 He makes sport of the noise of the town; the voice of the driver does not come to his ears;
He dispisith the multitude of citee; he herith not the cry of an axere.
8 He goes looking for his grass-lands in the mountains, searching out every green thing.
He lokith aboute the hillis of his lesewe, and he sekith alle greene thingis.
9 Will the ox of the mountains be your servant? or is his night's resting-place by your food-store?
Whether an vnycorn schal wilne serue thee, ethir schal dwelle at thi cratche?
10 Will he be pulling your plough with cords, turning up the valleys after you?
Whether thou schalt bynde the vnicorn with thi chayne, for to ere, ethir schal he breke the clottis of valeis aftir thee?
11 Will you put your faith in him, because his strength is great? will you give the fruit of your work into his care?
Whether thou schalt haue trist in his grete strengthe, and schalt thou leeue to hym thi traueils?
12 Will you be looking for him to come back, and get in your seed to the crushing-floor?
Whether thou schalt bileue to hym, that he schal yelde seed to thee, and schal gadere togidere thi cornfloor?
13 Is the wing of the ostrich feeble, or is it because she has no feathers,
The fethere of an ostriche is lijk the fetheris of a gerfawcun, and of an hauk;
14 That she puts her eggs on the earth, warming them in the dust,
which ostrige forsakith hise eirun in the erthe, in hap thou schalt make tho hoot in the dust.
15 Without a thought that they may be crushed by the foot, and broken by the beasts of the field?
He foryetith, that a foot tredith tho, ethir that a beeste of the feeld al tobrekith tho.
16 She is cruel to her young ones, as if they were not hers; her work is to no purpose; she has no fear.
He is maad hard to hise briddis, as if thei ben not hise; he traueilide in veyn, while no drede constreynede.
17 For God has taken wisdom from her mind, and given her no measure of knowledge.
For God hath priued hym fro wisdom, and `yaf not vnderstondyng to hym.
18 When she is shaking her wings on high, she makes sport of the horse and of him who is seated on him.
Whanne tyme is, he reisith the wengis an hiy; he scorneth the hors, and his ridere.
19 Do you give strength to the horse? is it by your hand that his neck is clothed with power?
Whether thou schalt yyue strengthe to an hors, ether schal yyue neiyng `aboute his necke?
20 Is it through you that he is shaking like a locust, in the pride of his loud-sounding breath?
Whether thou schalt reyse hym as locustis? The glorie of hise nosethirlis is drede.
21 He is stamping with joy in the valley; he makes sport of fear.
He diggith erthe with the foot, he `fulli ioieth booldli; he goith ayens armed men.
22 In his strength he goes out against the arms of war, turning not away from the sword.
He dispisith ferdfulnesse, and he yyueth not stide to swerd.
23 The bow is sounding against him; he sees the shining point of spear and arrow.
An arowe caas schal sowne on hym; a spere and scheeld schal florische.
24 Shaking with passion, he is biting the earth; he is not able to keep quiet at the sound of the horn;
He is hoot, and gnastith, and swolewith the erthe; and he arettith not that the crie of the trumpe sowneth.
25 When it comes to his ears he says, Aha! He is smelling the fight from far off, and hearing the thunder of the captains, and the war-cries.
Whanne he herith a clarioun, he `seith, Joie! he smellith batel afer; the excityng of duykis, and the yellyng of the oost.
26 Is it through your knowledge that the hawk takes his flight, stretching out his wings to the south?
Whether an hauk spredinge abrood hise wyngis to the south, bigynneth to haue fetheris bi thi wisdom?
27 Or is it by your orders that the eagle goes up, and makes his resting-place on high?
Whether an egle schal be reisid at thi comaundement, and schal sette his nest in hiy places?
28 On the rock is his house, and on the mountain-top his strong place.
He dwellith in stoonys, and he dwellith in flyntis brokun bifor, and in rochis, to whiche `me may not neiye.
29 From there he is watching for food; his eye sees it far off.
Fro thennus he biholdith mete, and hise iyen loken fro fer.
30 His young have blood for their drink, and where the dead bodies are, there is he to be seen.
Hise briddis souken blood, and where euere a careyn is, anoon he is present.
