2 Chronicles 13

1 Yn the eiytenthe yeer of kyng Jeroboam Abia regnede on Juda;

In the eighteenth year of king Jerobo'am became Abiyah king over Judah.

2 he regnede thre yeer in Jerusalem; and the name of hise modir was Mychaie, the douyter of Vriel of Gabaa. And batel was bitwixe Abia and Jeroboam.

Three years he reigned in Jerusalem: and his mother's name was Michayahu the daughter of Uriel of Gib'ah. And there was war between Abiyah and Jerobo'am.

3 And whanne Abia hadde bigunne batel, and hadde most chyualrouse men, and four hundrid thousynde of chosun men, Jeroboam arayede ayenward the scheltroun with eiyte hundrid thousynde of men, and thei weren chosun men and most stronge to batels.

And Abiyah joined the battle with an army of valiant men of war, even of four hundred thousand chosen men: Jerobo'am also set the battle in array against him with eight hundred thousand chosen men, being mighty men of valor.

4 Therfor Abia stood on the hil Semeron, that was in Effraym, and seide, Here thou, Jeroboam and al Israel;

And Abiyah stood up above mount Zemarayim, which is in the mountain of Ephraim, and said, Hear me, O Jerobo'am, and all Israel;

5 whether ye knowen not, that the Lord God of Israel yaf to Dauid the rewme on Israel with outen ende, to hym and to hise sones in to the couenaunt of salt, `that is, stidefast and stable?

Ought ye not to know that the Lord the God of Israel hath given the kingdom over Israel to David for eternity, yea, to him and to his sons by a covenant of salts?

6 And Jeroboam, the sone of Nabath, the seruaunt of Salomon, sone of Dauid, roos, and rebellide ayens his lord.

But there rose up Jerobo'am the son of Nebat, the servant of Solomon the son of David, and rebelled against his lord.

7 And most veyn men and the sones of Belial weren gaderid to hym, and thei hadden myyt ayens Roboam, the sone of Salomon. Certis Roboam was buystuouse, `ether fonne, and of feerdful herte, and myyte not ayenstonde hem.

And there were gathered unto him idle men, worthless persons, and put themselves in violent resistance against Rehobo'am the son of Solomon: while Rehobo'am was young and tender hearted, and could not sustain himself before them.

8 Now therfor ye seien, that ye moun ayenstonde the rewme of the Lord, which he holdith in possessioun bi the sones of Dauid; and ye han a greet multitude of puple, and goldun caluys, whiche Jeroboam made in to goddis to you.

And now ye think to sustain yourselves before the kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David; and ye are a great multitude; and with you are golden calves, which Jerobo'am hath made for you as gods.

9 And ye han caste a wei the preestis of the Lord, the sones of Aaron, and dekenes, and ye han maad preestis to you, as alle the puplis of londis han preestis; who euer cometh and halewith his hond in a bole, in oxis, and in seuene wetheris, anoon he is maad preest of hem that ben not goddis.

Have ye not cast out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and have made yourselves priests like the people of the [various] lands? so that whosoever cometh to consecrate himself with a young bullock and seven rams can become a priest to things that are no gods?

10 But oure Lord is God, whom we forsaken not; and preestis of the sones of Aaron mynystren to the Lord, and dekenes ben in her ordre;

But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and the priests, who minister unto the Lord, are the sons of Aaron; and the Levites are at their [appointed] work;

11 and thei offren brent sacrifices to the Lord bi ech dai in the morewtid and euentid, and encense maad bi comaundementis of the lawe; and loues ben set forth in a moost clene boord; and at vs is the goldun candilstik and his lanterne, that it be teendid euere at euentid; forsothe we kepen the comaundementis of our God, whom ye han forsake.

And they burn unto the Lord burnt-offerings every morning and every evening and incense of sweet spices; and the rows of the show-bread [do they place] upon the pure table; and there is the candlestick of gold with its lamps, to light the same every evening; for we keep the charge of the Lord our God, while ye have truly forsaken him.

12 Therfor God is duyk in oure oost, and hise preestis, that trumpen and sownen ayens you; nyle ye, sones of Israel, fiyte ayens the Lord God of youre fadris, for it spedith not to you.

And, behold, with us at our head, is the [true] God, with his priests with trumpets for blowing the alarm, to sound an alarm against you. O children of Israel, do not fight against the Lord the God of your fathers; for ye will not prosper.

13 While he spak these thingis, Jeroboam made redi tresouns bihynde; and whanne he stood euene ayens the enemyes, he cumpasside with his oost Juda vnwitynge.

But Jerobo'am caused an ambush to come around behind them: so they themselves were before Judah, and the ambush was behind them.

14 And Juda bihelde, and siy batel neiy euene ayens, and bihynde the bak; and he criede to the Lord, and preestis bigunnen for to trumpe.

And when Judah turned round, behold, they had the battle before and behind: and they cried unto the Lord, and the priests blew with the trumpets.

15 And alle the men of Juda crieden, and, lo! while thei crieden, God made aferd Jeroboam and al Israel, that stood euen ayens Juda and Abia.

And then gave the men of Judah a shout: and it came to pass, as the men of Judah shouted, that God struck down Jerobo'am and all Israel before Abiyah and Judah.

16 And the men of Israel fledden fro Juda, and God bitook hem in to the hondis of men of Juda.

And the children of Israel fled from before Judah, and God gave them up into their hand.

17 Therfor Abia and his puple smoot hem with a greet wounde, and there felden doun of hem fyue hundrid thousynde of stronge men woundid.

And Abiyah and his people smote them with a great defeat, and there fell down slain of Israel five hundred thousand chosen men.

18 And the sones of Israel weren maad lowe in that tyme, and the sones of Juda weren coumfortid ful greetli, for thei hadden hopid in the Lord God of her fadris.

Thus were the children of Israel humbled at that time: and the children of Judah became powerful, because they relied upon the Lord the God of their fathers.

19 Forsothe Abia pursuede Jeroboam fleynge, and took hise cytees, Bethel and hise vilagis, and Jesana with hise vilagis, and Ephron and hise vilagis;

And Abiyah made pursuit after Jerobo'am, and captured cities from him, Bethel with its villages, and Jeshanah with its villages, and 'Ephrayin with its villages.

20 and Jeroboam miyte no more ayenstonde in the daies of Abia, whom the Lord smoot, and he was deed.

And Jerobo'am did not recover strength again in the days of Abiyahu: and the Lord struck him, and he died.

21 Therfor Abia, whanne his empire was coumforted, took fourtene wyues, and he gendride two and twenti sones, and sixtene douytris.

But Abiyahu became strong, and he took himself fourteen wives, and begat twenty and two sons, and sixteen daughters.

22 The residue of wordis of Abia and of his weyes and werkis, ben writun ful diligentli in the book of Abdo, the profete.

And the rest of the acts of Abiyah, and his ways, and his speeches, are written in the writing of the prophet 'Iddo.