Isaiah 29

1 Ah altar, altar of the citie that Dauid dwelt in: adde yere vnto yere: let them kill lambs.

Wo! Ariel, Ariel, the citee which Dauid ouercam; yeer is addid to yeer, solempnytees ben passyd.

2 But I wil bring the altar into distresse, and there shalbe heauines and sorowe, and it shall be vnto me like an altar.

And Y schal cumpasse Ariel, and it schal be soreuful and morenynge; and Jerusalem schal be to me as Ariel.

3 And I wil besiege thee as a circle, and fight against thee on a mount, and will cast vp ramparts against thee.

And Y schal cumpasse as a round trendil in thi cumpasse, and Y schal caste erthe ayens thee, and Y schal sette engynes in to thi bisegyng.

4 So shalt thou be humbled, and shalt speake out of the ground, and thy speach shalbe as out of the dust: thy voyce also shall be out of the ground like him that hath a spirite of diuination, and thy talking shall whisper out of the dust.

Thou schalt be maad low, thou schalt speke of erthe, and thi speche schal be herd fro the erthe; and thi vois schal be as the vois of a deed man reisid bi coniuring, and thi speche schal ofte grutche of the erthe.

5 Moreouer, the multitude of thy strangers shalbe like small dust, and the multitude of strong men shalbe as chaffe that passeth away, and it shall be in a moment, euen suddenly.

And the multitude of hem that wyndewen thee, schal be as thynne dust; and the multitude of hem that hadden the maistrie ayens thee, schal be as a deed sparcle passynge.

6 Thou shalt be visited of the Lord of hostes with thunder, and shaking, and a great noyse, a whirlewinde, and a tempest, and a flame of a deuouring fire.

And it schal be sudenli, anoon it schal be visitid of the Lord of oostis, in thundur, and in mouyng of the erthe, and in greet vois of whirlwynd, and of tempest, and of flawme of fier deuowrynge.

7 And the multitude of all the nations that fight against the altar, shalbe as a dreame or vision by night: euen all they that make the warre against it, and strong holdes against it, and lay siege vnto it.

And the multitude of alle folkis that fouyten ayens Ariel schal be as the dreem of a nyytis visioun; and alle men that fouyten, and bisegiden, and hadden the maistrie ayens it.

8 And it shalbe like as an hungry man dreameth, and beholde, he eateth: and when he awaketh, his soule is emptie: or like as a thirsty man dreameth, and loe, he is drinking, and when he awaketh, beholde, he is faint, and his soule longeth: so shall the multitude of all nations be that fight against mount Zion.

And as an hungry man dremyth, and etith, but whanne he is awakid, his soule is voide; and as a thirsti man dremeth, and drynkith, and after that he is awakid, he is weri, and thirstith yit, and his soule is voide, so schal be the multitude of alle folkis, that fouyten ayens the hil of Sion.

9 Stay your selues, and wonder: they are blinde, and make you blinde: they are drunken but not with wine: they stagger, but not by strong drinke.

Be ye astonyed, and wondre; wake ye, and douyte ye; be ye drunken, and not of wyn; be ye moued, and not with drunkenesse.

10 For the Lord hath couered you with a spirite of slumber, and hath shut vp your eyes: the Prophets, and your chiefe Seers hath he couered.

For the Lord hath meddlid to you the spirit of sleep; he schal close youre iyen, and schal hile youre profetis, and princes that sien visiouns.

11 And the vision of them all is become vnto you, as the wordes of a booke that is sealed vp, which they deliuer to one that can reade, saying, Reade this, I pray thee. Then shall he say, I can not: for it is sealed.

And the visioun of alle profetis schal be to you as the wordis of a book aseelid; which whanne thei schulen yyue to hym that kan lettris, thei schulen seie, Rede thou this book; and he schal answere, Y may not, for it is aseelid.

12 And the booke is giuen vnto him that can not reade, saying, Reade this, I pray thee. And he shall say, I can not reade.

And the book schal be youun to him that kan not lettris, and it schal be seid to hym, Rede thou; and he schal answere, Y kan no lettris.

13 Therefore the Lord sayd, Because this people come neere vnto me with their mouth, and honour me with their lips, but haue remooued their heart farre from me, and their feare toward me was taught by the precept of men,

And the Lord seide, For that this puple neiyeth with her mouth, and glorifieth me with her lippis, but her herte is fer fro me; and thei dredden me for the comaundement and techyngis of men, therfor lo!

14 Therefore behold, I wil againe doe a marueilous worke in this people, euen a marueilous worke, and a wonder: for the wisdome of their wise men shall perish, and the vnderstanding of their prudent men shalbe hid.

Y schal adde, that Y make wondryng to this puple, in a greet myracle and wondurful; for whi wisdom schal perische fro wise men therof, and the vndurstondyng of prudent men therof schal be hid.

15 Wo vnto them that seeke deepe to hide their counsell from the Lord: for their workes are in darkenes, and they say, Who seeth vs? and who knoweth vs?

Wo to you that ben hiye of herte, that ye hide counsel fro the Lord; the werkis of whiche ben in derknessis, and thei seien, Who seeth vs, and who knowith vs?

16 Your turning of deuises shall it not be esteemed as the potters clay? for shall the worke say of him that made it, Hee made me not? or the thing formed, say of him that facioned it, He had none vnderstanding?

This thouyt of you is weiward, as if cley thenke ayens a pottere, and the werk seie to his makere, Thou madist not me; and a thing `that is maad, seie to his makere, Thou vndurstondist not.

17 Is it not yet but a litle while, and Lebanon shall be turned into Carmel? and Carmel shall be counted as a forest?

Whether not yit in a litil time and schort the Liban schal be turned in to Chermel, and Chermel schal be arettid in to the forest?

18 And in that day shall the deafe heare the wordes of the booke, and the eyes of the blinde shall see out of obscuritie, and out of darkenesse.

And in that dai deef men schulen here the wordis of the book, and the iyen of blynde men schulen se fro derknessis and myisty;

19 The meeke in the Lord shall receiue ioye againe, and the poore men shall reioyce in the holy one of Israel.

and mylde men schulen encreesse gladnesse in the Lord, and pore men schulen make ful out ioie in the hooli of Israel.

20 For the cruel man shall cease, and the scornefull shalbe consumed: and all that hasted to iniquitie, shalbe cut off:

For he that hadde the maistrie, failide, and the scornere is endid, and alle thei ben kit doun that walkiden on wickidnesse;

21 Which made a man to sinne in ye worde, and tooke him in a snare: which reproued them in the gate, and made the iust to fall without cause.

whiche maden men to do synne in word, and disseyueden a repreuere in the yate, and bowiden awey in veyn fro a iust man.

22 Therefore thus sayth the Lord vnto the house of Iaakob, euen hee that redeemed Abraham, Iaakob shall not now be confounded, neither now shall his face be pale.

For this thing the Lord, that ayen bouyte Abraham, seith these thingis to the hous of Jacob, Jacob schal not be confoundid now, nether now his cheer schal be aschamed; but whanne he schal se hise sones,

23 But when he seeth his children, the worke of mine hands, in the mids of him, they shall sanctifie my Name, and sanctifie the holy one of Iaakob, and shall feare the God of Israel.

the werkis of myn hondis, halewynge my name in the myddis of hym. And thei schulen halewe the hooli of Jacob, and thei schulen preche God of Israel;

24 Then they that erred in spirit, shall haue vnderstanding, and they that murmured, shall learne doctrine.

and thei that erren in spirit, schulen knowe vndurstondyng, and idil men schulen lerne the lawe.