Ezekiel 21

1 And the word of the Lord was maad to me,

And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

2 and he seide, Thou, sone of man, sette thi face to Jerusalem, and droppe thou to the seyntuaries, and profesie thou ayens the erthe of Israel.

Son of man, let your face be turned to Jerusalem, let your words be dropped in the direction of her holy place, and be a prophet against the land of Israel;

3 And thou schalt seie to the lond of Israel, The Lord God seith these thingis, Lo! Y to thee, and Y schal caste my swerd out of his schethe, and Y schal sle in thee a iust man and a wickid man.

And say to the land of Israel, These are the words of the Lord: See, I am against you, and I will take my sword out of its cover, cutting off from you the upright and the evil.

4 Forsothe for that that Y haue slayn in thee a iust man and a wickid man, therfor my swerd schal go out of his schethe to ech man, fro the south til to the north;

Because I am going to have the upright and the evil cut off from you, for this cause my sword will go out from its cover against all flesh from the south to the north:

5 that ech man wite, that Y the Lord haue drawe out my swerd fro his schethe, that schal not be clepid ayen.

And all flesh will see that I the Lord have taken my sword out of its cover: and it will never go back.

6 And thou, sone of man, weile in sorewe of leendis, and in bitternessis thou schalt weile bifore hem.

Make sounds of grief, son of man; with body bent and a bitter heart make sounds of grief before their eyes.

7 And whanne thei schulen seie to thee, Whi weilist thou? thou schalt seie, For hering, for it cometh; and ech herte shal faile, and alle hondis schulen be aclumsid, and ech spirit schal be sike, and watris schulen flete doun bi alle knees; lo! it cometh, and it shal be don, seith the Lord God.

And when they say to you, Why are you making sounds of grief? then say, Because of the news, for it is coming: and every heart will become soft, and all hands will be feeble, and every spirit will be burning low, and all knees will be turned to water: see, it is coming and it will be done, says the Lord.

8 And the word of the Lord was maad to me,

And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

9 and he seide, Sone of man, profesie thou; and thou schalt seie, The Lord God seith these thingis, Speke thou, The swerd, the swerd is maad scharp, and is maad briyt;

Son of man, say as a prophet, These are the words of the Lord: Say, A sword, a sword which has been made sharp and polished:

10 it is maad scharp to sle sacrifices; it is maad briyt, that it schyne. Thou that mouest the ceptre of my sone, hast kit doun ech tree.

It has been made sharp to give death; it is polished so that it may be like a thunder-flame: ...

11 And Y yaf it to be forbischid, that it be holdun with hond; this swerd is maad scharp, and this is maad briyt, that it be in the hond of the sleere.

And I have given it to the polisher so that it may be taken in the hand: he has made the sword sharp, he has had it polished, to put it into the hand of him who gives death.

12 Sone of man, crie thou, and yelle, for this swerd is maad in my puple, this in alle the duykis of Israel; thei that fledden ben youun to swerd with my puple. Therfor smite thou on thin hipe, for it is preuyd;

Give loud cries and make sounds of grief, O son of man: for it has come on my people, it has come on all the rulers of Israel: fear of the sword has come on my people: for this cause give signs of grief.

13 and this whanne it hath distried the ceptre, and it schal not be, seith the Lord God.

14 Therfor, sone of man, profesie thou, and smyte thou hond to hond, and the swerd be doublid, and the swerd of sleeris be treblid; this is the swerd of greet sleyng, that schal make hem astonyed,

So then, son of man, be a prophet, and put your hands together with a loud sound, and give two blows with the sword, and even three; it is the sword of those who are wounded, even the sword of the wounded; the great sword which goes round about them.

15 and to faile in herte, and multiplieth fallingis. In alle the yatis of hem Y yaf disturbling of a swerd, scharp and maad briyt to schyne, gird to sleynge.

In order that hearts may become soft, and the number of those who are falling may be increased, I have sent death by the sword against all their doors: you are made like a flame, you are polished for death.

16 Be thou maad scharp, go thou to the riyt side, ether to the left side, whidur euer the desir of thi face is.

Be pointed to the right, to the left, wherever your edge is ordered.

17 Certis and Y schal smyte with hond to hond, and Y schal fille myn indignacioun; Y the Lord spak.

And I will put my hands together with a loud sound, and I will let my wrath have rest: I the Lord have said it.

18 And the word of the Lord was maad to me,

And the word of the Lord came to me again, saying,

19 and he seide, And thou, sone of man, sette to thee twei weies, that the swerd of the king of Babiloyne come; bothe schulen go out of o lond, and bi the hond he schal take coniecting; he schal coniecte in the heed of the weie of the citee,

And you, son of man, have two ways marked out, so that the sword of the king of Babylon may come; let the two of them come out of one land: and let there be a pillar at the top of the road:

20 settinge a weye, that the swerd come to Rabath of the sones of Amon, and to Juda in to Jerusalem moost strong.

Put a pillar at the top of the road for the sword to come to Rabbah in the land of the children of Ammon, and to Judah and to Jerusalem in the middle of her.

21 For the king of Babiloyne stood in the meeting of twey weies, in the heed of twei weies, and souyte dyuynyng, and medlide arowis; he axide idols, and took councel at entrails.

For the king of Babylon took his place at the parting of the ways, at the top of the two roads, to make use of secret arts: shaking the arrows this way and that, he put questions to the images of his gods, he took note of the inner parts of dead beasts.

22 Dyuynyng was maad to his riyt side on Jerusalem, that he sette engyns, that he opene mouth in sleyng, that he reise vois in yelling, that he sette engyns ayens the yatis, that he bere togidere erthe, that he bilde strengthinges.

At his right hand was the fate of Jerusalem, to give orders for destruction, to send up the war-cry, to put engines of war against the doors, lifting up earthworks, building walls.

23 And he shal be as counceling in veyn goddis answer bifor the iyen of hem, and seruynge the reste of sabatis; but he schal haue mynde on wickidnesse, to take.

And this answer given by secret arts will seem false to those who have given their oaths and have let them be broken: but he will keep the memory of evil-doing so that they may be taken.

24 Therfor the Lord God seith these thingis, For that that ye hadden mynde on youre wickidnesse, and schewiden youre trespassyngis, and youre synnes apperiden in alle youre thouytis, forsothe for that that ye hadden mynde, ye schulen be takun bi hond.

For this cause the Lord has said: Because you have made your evil-doing come to mind by the uncovering of your wrongdoing, causing your sins to be seen in all your evil-doings; because you have come to mind, you will be taken in them.

25 But thou, cursid wickid duyk of Israel, whos dai bifor determyned is comun in the tyme of wickidnesse,

And you, O evil one, wounded to death, O ruler of Israel, whose day has come in the time of the last punishment;

26 the Lord God seith these thingis, Do awei the mitre, take awei the coroun; whether it is not this that reiside the meke man, and made low the hiy man?

This is what the Lord has said: Take away the holy head-dress, take off the crown: this will not be again: let that which is low be lifted up, and that which is high be made low.

27 Wickidnesse, wickidnesse, wickidnesse Y schal putte it; and this schal not be doon til he come, whos the doom is, and Y schal bitake to hym.

I will let it be overturned, overturned, overturned: this will not be again till he comes whose right it is; and I will give it to him.

28 And thou, sone of man, profesie, and seie, The Lord God seith these thingis to the sones of Amon, and to the schenschipe of hem; and thou schalt seie, A! thou swerd, A! thou swerd, drawun out to sle, maad briyte, that thou sle and schyne,

And you, son of man, say as a prophet, This is what the Lord has said about the children of Ammon and about their shame: Say, A sword, even a sword let loose, polished for death, to make it shining so that it may be like a flame:

29 whanne veyn thingis weren seien to thee, and leesingis weren dyuynyd, that thou schuldist be youun on the neckis of wickid men woundid, the dai of whiche bifore determyned schal come in the tyme of wickidnesse, turne thou ayen in to thi schethe,

Your vision is to no purpose, your use of secret arts gives a false answer, to put it on the necks of evil-doers who are wounded to death, whose day has come, in the time of the last punishment.

30 in to the place in which thou were maad. Y schal deme thee in the lond of thi birthe,

Go back into your cover. In the place where you were made, in the land from which you were taken, I will be your judge.

31 and Y schal schede out myn indignacioun on thee; in the fier of my strong veniaunce Y schal blowe in thee, and Y schal yyue thee in to the hondis of vnwise men, and makinge deth.

And I will let loose my burning passion on you, breathing out on you the fire of my wrath: and I will give you up into the hands of men like beasts, trained to destruction.

32 Thou schalt be mete to fier, thi blood schal be in the middis of erthe; thou schalt be youun to foryetyng, for Y the Lord spak.

You will be food for the fire; your blood will be drained out in the land; there will be no more memory of you: for I the Lord have said it.