Isaiah 10
1 Wo to them that maken wickid lawis, and thei writynge han wryte vnriytfulnesse, for to oppresse pore men in doom,
Woe to those who enact unjust laws and write unfair decrees.
2 and to do violence to the cause of meke men of my puple; that widewis schulen be the prey of them, and that thei schulden rauysche fadirles children.
They deprive the needy of justice, rob the poor of my people of their rights, plunder widows, and make the fatherless their prey!
3 What schulen ye do in the dai of visitacioun, and of wretchidnesse comynge fro fer? To whos help schulen ye fle? and where schulen ye leeue youre glorie,
What will you do on judgment day when the destruction comes from far away? To whom will you flee for help, and where will you leave your wealth?
4 that ye be not bowid doun vndur boond, and falle not doun with slayn men? On alle these thingis his strong veniaunce is not turned awei, but yit his hond is stretchid forth.
Nothing remains, and you crouch among the prisoners or fall among the killed. In all these things, his anger does not subside; instead, his hand is still stretched out.
5 Wo to Assur, he is the yerde and staf of my strong veniaunce; myn indignacioun is in the hond of them.
Woe to the Assyrian, the club of my anger, the rod by whom I wield my fury!
6 Y schal send hym to a fals folk, and Y schal comaunde to hym ayens the puple of my strong veniaunce; that he take awei the spuylis, and departe prey, and that he sette that puple in to defouling, as the fen of stretis.
I send him against an arrogant nation and against the people who bear my overflowing wrath. I order him to take the spoil, to take the prey, and to trample them like mud in the streets.
7 Forsothe he schal not deme so, and his herte schal not gesse so, but his herte schal be for to al to-breke, and to the sleynge of many folkis.
But this is not what he intends, nor does he think this way. It is in his heart to destroy and eliminate many nations.
8 For he schal seie, Whether my princes ben not kyngis to gidere?
For he says, “Are not all my princes kings?
9 Whether not as Carcamys, so Calanno; and as Arphat, so Emath? whether not as Damask, so Samarie?
Is not Kalno like Carchemish? Is not Hamath like Arpad? Is not Samaria like Damascus?
10 As myn hond foond the rewmes of idol, so and the symylacris of hem of Jerusalem and of Samarie.
As my hand has overcome idolatrous kingdoms, whose carved figures were greater than those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
11 Whether not as Y dide to Samarie, and to the idols therof, so Y schal do to Jerusalem, and to the simylacris therof?
just as I did to Samaria and her worthless idols, will I not also do the same to Jerusalem and to her idols?”
12 And it schal be, whanne the Lord hath fillid alle hise werkis in the hil of Syon and in Jerusalem, Y schal visite on the fruit of the greet doynge herte of the kyng of Assur, and on the glorie of the hiynesse of hise iyen.
When the Lord has finished his work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the speech of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and his prideful looks.
13 For he seide, Y haue do in the strengthe of myn honde, and Y haue understonde in my wisdom; and Y haue take awei the endis of peplis, and Y haue robbid the princes of them, and Y as a myyti man haue drawun doun them that saten an hiy.
For he says, “By my strength and by my wisdom I acted. I have understanding, and I have removed the boundaries of the peoples. I have stolen their treasures, and like a bull I have brought down the inhabitants.
14 And myn hond foond the strengthe of puplis as a nest, and as eirun ben gaderid togidere that ben forsakun, so Y gaderid togidere al erthe; and noon was that mouyde a fethere, and openyde the mouth, and grutchide.
My hand has seized, as from a nest, the wealth of nations, and as one gathers abandoned eggs, I gathered all the earth. None fluttered their wings or opened their mouth or chirped.”
15 Whether an ax schal haue glorie ayens hym that kittith with it? ether a sawe schal be enhaunsid ayens hym of whom it is drawun? as if a yerde is reisid ayens hym that reisith it, and a staf is enhaunsid, which sotheli is a tre.
Will the ax boast about itself against the one who wields it? Will the saw praise itself more than the one who cuts with it? It is as if a rod could lift up those who raise it, or as if a wooden club could lift up a person.
16 For this thing the lordli gouernour, Lord of oostis, schal sende thinnesse in the fatte men of hym, and his glorie kyndlid vndur schal brenne as `the brenning of fier.
Therefore the Lord Yahweh of hosts will send emaciation among his elite warriors; and under his glory there will be kindled a burning like fire.
17 And the liyt of Israel schal be in fier, and the hooli of it in flawme; and the thorn of him and brere schal be kyndlid and deuourid in o dai.
The light of Israel will become a fire, and his Holy One a flame; it will burn and devour his thorns and briers in one day.
18 And the glorie of his forest and of his Carmele schal be wastid, fro the soule `til to fleisch; and he schal be fleynge awei for drede.
Yahweh will consume the glory of his forest and of his fruitful land, both soul and body; it will be like when a sick man's life wastes away.
19 And the relifs of the tree of his forest schulen be noumbrid for fewnesse, and a child schal write hem.
The remnant of the trees of his forest will be so few, that a child could count them.
20 And it schal be in that dai, the remenaunt of Israel, and thei that fledden of the house of Jacob, schal not adde for to triste on hym that smytith hem; but it schal triste on the hooli Lord of Israel, in treuthe.
On that day, the remnant of Israel, the family of Jacob that has escaped, will no longer rely on the one who defeated them, but will indeed depend on Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel.
21 The relifs, Y seie, the relifs of Jacob, schulen be conuertid to the stronge Lord.
A remnant of Jacob will return to the mighty God.
22 Forwhi, Israel, if thi puple is as the grauel of the see, the relifs schulen be turned therof; an endyng maad schort schal make riytfulnesse to be plenteuouse.
For though your people, Israel, are like the sand of the seashore, only a remnant of them will return. Destruction is decreed, as overflowing righteousness demands.
23 For whi the Lord God of oostis schal make an endyng and a breggyng in the myddis of al erthe.
For the Lord Yahweh of hosts, is about to carry out the destruction determined throughout the land.
24 For this thing the Lord God of oostis seith these thingis, My puple, the dwellere of Sion, nyle thou drede of Assur, for he schal smite thee in a yerde, and he schal reise his staf on thee in the weie of Egipt.
Therefore the Lord Yahweh of hosts says, “My people who live in Zion, do not fear the Assyrian. He will strike you with the rod and raise his staff against you, as the Egyptians did.
25 Forwhi yit a litil, and a litil, and myn indignacioun and my strong veniaunce schal be endid on the greet trespas of hem.
Do not fear him, for in a very short time my anger against you will end, and my anger will lead to his destruction.”
26 And the Lord of oostis schal reise a scourge on hym bi the veniaunce of Madian in the stoon of Oreb, and bi his yerde on the see; and he schal reise that yerde in the wei of Egipt.
Then Yahweh of hosts will wield a whip against them, as when he defeated Midian at the rock of Oreb. He will raise his rod over the sea and lift it up as he did in Egypt.
27 And it schal be in that dai, his birthun schal be takun awei fro thi schuldre, and his yok fro thi necke; and the yok schal wexe rotun fro the face of oile.
On that day, his burden is lifted from your shoulder and his yoke from off your neck, and the yoke will be destroyed because of fatness.
28 He schal come in to Aioth, he schal passe in to Magron, at Magynas he schal bitake his vessels to kepyng.
The enemy has come to Aiath and has passed through Migron; at Michmash he has stored his provisions.
29 Thei passiden swiftli, Gabaa is oure seete, Rama was astonyed, Gabaa of Saul fled.
They have crossed over the pass and they lodge at Geba. Ramah trembles and Gibeah of Saul has fled.
30 Thou douytir of Gallym, weile with thi vois; thou Laisa, perseyue, thou pore Anatot.
Cry aloud, daughter of Gallim! Give attention, Laishah! You poor Anathoth!
31 Medemena passide; the dwelleris of Gabyn fledden; be ye coumfortid.
Madmenah is fleeing, and the inhabitants of Gebim run for safety.
32 Yit it is dai, that me stonde in Nobe; he schal dryue his hond on the hil of the douyter of Syon, on the litil hil of Jerusalem.
This very day he will halt at Nob and shake his fist at the mountain of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.
33 Lo! the lordli gouernour, the Lord of oostis, schal breke a potel in drede, and hiy men of stature schulen be kit doun.
Behold, the Lord Yahweh of hosts will lop off the boughs with a terrifying crash; the tallest trees will be cut down, and the lofty will be brought low.
34 And proude men schulen be maade low, and the thicke thingis of the forest schulen be distried bi irun; and the Liban with hiy thingis schal falle doun.
He will chop down the thickets of the forest with an ax, and Lebanon in his majesty will fall.
