Jeremias 5
1 Run you about in the streets of Jerusalem, and see, and know, and seek in her broad places, if you can find [one], if there is any one that does judgement, and seeks faithfulness; and I will pardon them, says the Lord.
Cumpasse ye the weies of Jerusalem, and loke, and biholde ye, and seke ye in the stretis therof, whether ye fynden a man doynge doom, and sekynge feith; and Y schal be merciful to hem.
2 The Lord lives, they say; do they not therefore swear falsely?
That if also thei seien, The Lord lyueth, yhe, thei schulen swere this falsli.
3 O Lord, your eyes are upon faithfulness: you have scourged them, but they have not grieved; you have consumed them; but they would not receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; and they would not return.
Lord, thin iyen biholden feith; thou hast smyte hem, and thei maden not sorewe; thou hast al tobroke hem, and thei forsoken to take chastisyng; thei maden her faces hardere than a stoon, and nolden turne ayen.
4 Then I said, It may be they are poor; for they are weak, for they know not the way of the Lord, or the judgement of God.
Forsothe Y seide, In hap thei ben pore men, and foolis, that knowen not the weie of the Lord, and the doom of her God.
5 I will go to the rich men, and will speak to them; for they have known the way of the Lord, and the judgement of God: but, behold, with one consent they have broken the yoke, they have burst the bonds.
Therfor Y schal go to the principal men, and Y schal speke to hem; for thei knewen the weie of the Lord, and the doom of her God. And lo! thei han more broke togidere the yok, and han broke boondis.
6 Therefore has a lion out of the forest struck them, and a wolf has destroyed them even to [their] houses, and a leopard has watched against their cities: all that go forth from them shall be hunted: for they have multiplied their ungodliness, they have strengthened themselves in their revoltings.
Therfor a lioun of the wode smoot hem; a wolf at euentid wastide hem, a parde wakynge on the citees of hem. Ech man that goith out of hem, schal be takun; for the trespassyngis of hem ben multiplied, the turnyngis awei of hem ben coumfortid.
7 In what [way] shall I forgive you for these things? Your sons have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods: and I fed them to the full, and they committed adultery, and lodged in harlots' houses.
On what thing mai Y be merciful to thee? Thi sones han forsake me, and sweren bi hem that ben not goddis. Y fillide hem, and thei diden auowtrie, and in the hous of an hoore thei diden letcherie.
8 They became as wanton horses: they neighed each one after his neighbour's wife.
Thei ben maad horsis, and stalouns, louyeris to wymmen; ech man neiyede to the wijf of his neiybore.
9 Shall I not visit for these things? says the Lord: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this.
Whether Y schal not visite on these thingis, seith the Lord, and schal not my soule take veniaunce in siche a folk?
10 Go up upon her battlements, and break [them] down; but make not a full end: leave her buttresses: for they are the Lord's.
Stye ye on the wallis therof, and distrie ye; but nyle ye make an endyng. Do ye awei the siouns therof, for thei ben not seruauntis of the Lord.
11 For the house of Israel have indeed dealt treacherously against me, says the Lord: the house of Juda also
For whi the hous of Israel and the hous of Juda hath trespassid bi trespassyng ayens me, seith the Lord;
12 have lied to their Lord, and they have said, These things are not so; no evils shall come upon us; and we shall not see sword or famine.
thei denyeden the Lord, and seiden, He is not, nether yuel schal come on vs; we schulen not se swerd and hungur.
13 Our prophets became wind, and the word of the Lord was not in them.
The profetis spaken ayens the wynd, and noon answer was in hem; therfor these thingis schulen come to hem.
14 Therefore thus says the Lord Almighty, Because you have spoken this word, behold, I have made my words in your mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.
The Lord God of oostis seith these thingis, For ye spaken this word, lo! Y yyue my wordis in thi mouth in to fier, and this puple in to trees, and it schal deuoure hem.
15 Behold, I [will] bring upon you a nation from far, O house of Israel, says the Lord; a nation the sound of whose language one shall not understand.
Lo! thou hous of Israel, seith the Lord, Y schal brynge on you a folk fro fer; a strong folk, an eeld folk, `a folk whos langage thou schalt not knowe, nether schalt vndurstonde what it spekith.
16 [They are] all mighty men:
The arowe caas therof is as an opyn sepulcre; alle ben stronge men.
17 and they shall devour your harvest, and your bread; and shall devour your sons, and your daughters; and they shall devour your sheep, and your calves, and devour your vineyards, and your fig-plantations, and your olive yards: and they shall utterly destroy your strong cities, wherein you trusted, with the sword.
And it schal ete thi cornes, and it schal deuoure thi breed, thi sones and thi douytris; it schal ete thi flok, and thi droues, it schal ete also thi vyner, and thi fige tre; and it schal al to-breke thi stronge citees bi swerd, in whiche thou hast trist.
18 And it shall come to pass in those days, says the Lord your God, that I will not utterly destroy you.
Netheles in tho daies, seith the Lord, Y schal not make you in to endyng.
19 And it shall come to pass, when you shall say, Therefore has the Lord our God done all these things to us? that you shall say to them, Because you served strange gods in your land, so shall you serve strangers in a land that is not yours.
That if ye seien, Whi hath oure Lord God do alle these thingis to vs? thou schalt seie to hem, As ye forsoken me, and serueden an alien god in youre lond, so ye schulen serue alien goddis in a lond not youre.
20 Proclaim these things to the house of Jacob, and let them be heard in the house of Juda.
Telle ye this to the hous of Jacob, and make ye herd in Juda, and seie ye,
21 Hear you now these things, O foolish and senseless people; who have eyes, and see not; and have ears, and hear not:
Here, thou fonned puple, that hast noon herte; whiche han iyen, and seen not, and eeris, and heren not.
22 will you not be afraid of me? says the Lord; and will you not fear before me, who have set the sand for a bound to the sea, [as] a perpetual ordinance, and it shall not pass it: yes, it shall rage, but not prevail; and its waves shall roar, but not pass over it.
Therfor schulen not ye drede me, seith the Lord, and schulen not ye make sorewe for my face? Whiche haue set grauel a terme, ether ende, to the see, an euerlastynge comaundement, whiche it schal not passe; and the wawis therof schulen be mouyd, and schulen not haue power; and schulen wexe greet, and schulen not passe it.
23 But this people has a disobedient and rebellious heart; and they have turned aside and gone back:
Forsothe an herte vnbileueful and terrynge to wraththe is maad to this puple; thei departiden,
24 and they have not said in their heart, Let us fear now the Lord our God, who gives us the early and latter rain, according to the season of the fulfilment of the ordinance of harvest, and has preserved [it] for us.
and yeden awei, and thei seiden not in her herte, Drede we oure Lord God, that yiueth to vs reyn tymeful, and lateful in his tyme; that kepith to vs the plente of heruest of the yeer.
25 Your transgressions have turned away these things, and your sins have removed good things from you.
Youre wickidnessis diden awei these thingis, and youre synnes forbediden good fro you.
26 For amongst my people were found ungodly men; and they have set snares to destroy men, and have caught [them].
For ther ben foundun in my puple wickid men, settynge tresoun, as fouleres settynge snaris and trappis, to take men.
27 As a snare which has been set is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore have they grown great, and become rich:
As a net, ether a trap, ful of briddis, so the housis of hem ben ful of gile. Therfor thei ben magnefied,
28 and they have transgressed [the rule of] judgement; they have not judged the cause of the orphan, nor have they judged the cause of the widow.
and maad riche, maad fat with ynne, and maad fat with outforth, and thei passiden worst my wordis; thei demyden not a cause of a widewe, thei dressiden not the cause of a fadirles child, and thei demyden not the doom of pore men.
29 Shall I not visit for these things? says the Lord: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Whether Y schal not visite on these thingis, seith the Lord, ether schal not my soule take veniaunce on sich a folk?
30 Shocking and horrible deeds have been done on the land;
Wondur and merueilouse thingis ben maad in the lond;
31 the prophets utter unrighteous prophecies, and the priests have clapped their hands: and my people has loved [to have it] thus: and what will you do for the future.
profetis profesieden leesyng, and prestis ioieden with her hondis, and my puple louyde siche thingis. What therfor schal be don in the laste thing therof?
