< Isaiah 50 >
1 Thus saith the Lord: What is this bill of the divorce of your mother, with which I have put her away? or who is my creditor, to whom I sold you: behold you are sold for your iniquities, and for your wicked deeds have I put your mother away.
The Lord seith these thingis, What is this book of forsakyng of youre modir, bi which Y lefte her? ether who is he, to whom Y owe, to whom Y seeld you? For lo! ye ben seeld for youre wickidnessis, and for youre grete trespassis Y lefte youre modir.
2 Because I came, and there was not a man: I called, and there was none that would hear. Is my hand shortened and become little, that I cannot redeem? or is there no strength in me to deliver? Behold at my rebuke I will make the sea a desert, I will turn the rivers into dry land: the fishes shall rot for want of water, and shall die for thirst.
For Y cam, and no man was; Y clepide, and noon was that herde. Whether myn hond is abreggid, and maad litil, that Y mai not ayenbie? ether vertu is not in me for to delyuere? Lo! in my blamyng Y schal make the see forsakun, `ether desert, Y schal sette floodis in the drie place; fischis without watir schulen wexe rotun, and schulen dye for thirst.
3 I will clothe the heavens with darkness, and will make sackcloth their covering.
Y schal clothe heuenes with derknessis, and Y schal sette a sak the hilyng of tho.
4 The Lord hath given me a learned tongue, that I should know how to uphold by word him that is weary: he wakeneth in the morning, in the morning he wakeneth my ear, that I may hear him as a master.
The Lord yaf to me a lerned tunge, that Y kunne susteyne hym bi word that failide; erli the fadir reisith, erli he reisith an eere to me, that Y here as a maister.
5 The Lord God hath opened my ear, and I do not resist: I have not gone back.
The Lord God openede an eere to me; forsothe Y ayenseie not, Y yede not abak.
6 I have given my body to the strikers, and my cheeks to them that plucked them: I have not turned away my face from them that rebuked me, and spit upon me.
I yaf my bodi to smyteris, and my chekis to pulleris; Y turnede not a wei my face fro men blamynge, and spetynge on me.
7 The Lord God is my helper, therefore am I not confounded: therefore have I set my face as a most hard rock, and I know that I shall not be confounded.
The Lord God is myn helpere, and therfor Y am not schent; therfor Y haue set my face as a stoon maad hard, and Y woot that Y schal not be schent.
8 He is near that justifieth me, who will contend with me? let us stand together, who is my adversary? let him come near to me.
He is niy, that iustifieth me; who ayenseith me? stonde we togidere. Who is myn aduersarie? neiye he to me.
9 Behold the Lord God is my helper: who is he that shall condemn me? Lo, they shall all be destroyed as a garment, the moth shall eat them up.
Lo! the Lord God is myn helpere; who therfor is he that condempneth me? Lo! alle schulen be defoulid as a cloth, and a mouyte schal ete hem.
10 Who is there among you that feareth the Lord, that heareth the voice of his servant, that hath walked in darkness, and hath no light? let him hope in the name of the Lord, and lean upon his God.
Who of you dredith the Lord, and herith the vois of his seruaunt? Who yede in dercnessis and liyt is not to hym, hope he in the name of the Lord, and triste he on his God.
11 Behold all you that kindle a fire, encompassed with dames, walk in the light of your fire, and in the dames which you have kindled: this is done to you by my hand, you shall sleep in sorrows.
Lo! alle ye kyndlynge fier, and gird with flawmes, go in the liyt of youre fier, and in the flawmes whiche ye han kyndlid to you. This is maad of myn hond to you, ye schulen slepe in sorewis.