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 decreeing decrees of iniquity, And writers who have prescribed perverseness.

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.

To turn aside from judgment the poor, And to take violently away the judgment Of the afflicted of My people, That widows may be their prey, That the fatherless they may spoil.

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,

And what do ye at a day of inspection? And at desolation? — from afar it cometh. Near whom do ye flee for help? And where do ye leave your honour?

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.

Without Me it hath bowed down In the place of a bound one, And in the place of the slain they fall. With all this not turned back hath His anger, And still His hand is 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] Asshur, a rod of Mine anger, And a staff in their hand [is] Mine indignation.

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.

Against a profane nation I send him, And concerning a people of My wrath I charge him, To spoil spoil, and to seize prey, And to make it a treading-place as the clay of out places.

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.

And he — he thinketh not so, And his heart reckoneth not so, For — to destroy [is] in his heart, And to cut off nations not a few.

8 For he schal seie, Whether my princes ben not kyngis to gidere?

For he saith, 'Are not my princes altogether kings?

9 Whether not as Carcamys, so Calanno; and as Arphat, so Emath? whether not as Damask, so Samarie?

Is not Calno as Carchemish? Is not Hamath as Arpad? Is not Samaria as Damascus?

10 As myn hond foond the rewmes of idol, so and the symylacris of hem of Jerusalem and of Samarie.

As my hand hath got to the kingdoms of a worthless thing, and their graven images, [Greater] than Jerusalem and than 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?

Do I not — as I have done to Samaria, And to her worthless things, So do to Jerusalem and to her grievous things?

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.

And it hath come to pass, When the Lord doth fulfil all His work In mount Zion and in Jerusalem, I see concerning the fruit of the greatness Of the heart of the king of Asshur. And concerning the glory of the height of his eyes.

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 hath said, 'By the power of my hand I have wrought, And by my wisdom, for I have been intelligent, And I remove borders of the peoples, And their chief ones I have spoiled, And I put down as a mighty one 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.

And my hand as to a nest Getteth to the wealth of the peoples, And as a gathering of forsaken eggs All the earth I — I have gathered, And there hath not been one moving wing, Or opening mouth, or whispering.'

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.

— Doth the axe glorify itself Against him who is hewing with it? Doth the saw magnify itself Against him who is shaking it? As a rod waving those lifting it up! As a staff lifting up that which is not wood!

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 doth the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, Send among his fat ones leanness, And under his honour He kindleth a burning As the burning of a 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.

And the light of Israel hath been for a fire, And his Holy One for a flame, And it hath burned, and devoured his thorn And his brier 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.

And the honour of his forest, and his fruitful field, From soul even unto flesh He doth consume, And it hath been as the fainting of a standard-bearer.

19 And the relifs of the tree of his forest schulen be noumbrid for fewnesse, and a child schal write hem.

And the rest of the trees of his forest [are] few, And a youth doth write 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.

And it hath come to pass, in that day, The remnant of Israel, And the escaped of the house of Jacob, Do not add any more to lean on its smiter, And have leant on Jehovah, The Holy One of Israel, in truth.

21 The relifs, Y seie, the relifs of Jacob, schulen be conuertid to the stronge Lord.

A remnant returneth — a remnant of Jacob, Unto 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 thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, A remnant doth return of it, A consumption determined, Overflowing [with] righteousness.

23 For whi the Lord God of oostis schal make an endyng and a breggyng in the myddis of al erthe.

For a consumption that is determined, The Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, Is making in the midst of all 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, thus said the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, 'Be not afraid, my people, inhabiting Zion, because of Asshur, With a rod he doth smite thee, And his staff lifteth up against thee, in the way of Egypt.

25 Forwhi yit a litil, and a litil, and myn indignacioun and my strong veniaunce schal be endid on the greet trespas of hem.

For yet a very little, And the indignation hath been completed, And Mine anger by their wearing out.

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.

And awaking for him is Jehovah of Hosts, A scourge like the smiting of Midian at the rock Oreb, And his rod [is] over the sea, And he hath lifted it in the way of 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.

And it hath come to pass, in that day, Turned is his burden from off thy shoulder, And his yoke from off thy neck, And destroyed hath been the yoke, because of prosperity.

28 He schal come in to Aioth, he schal passe in to Magron, at Magynas he schal bitake his vessels to kepyng.

He hath come in against Aiath, He hath passed over into Migron, At Michmash he looketh after his vessels.

29 Thei passiden swiftli, Gabaa is oure seete, Rama was astonyed, Gabaa of Saul fled.

They have gone over the passage, Geba they have made a lodging place, Trembled hath Rama, Gibeah of Saul fled.

30 Thou douytir of Gallym, weile with thi vois; thou Laisa, perseyue, thou pore Anatot.

Cry aloud [with] thy voice, daughter of Gallim, Give attention, Laish! answer her, Anathoth.

31 Medemena passide; the dwelleris of Gabyn fledden; be ye coumfortid.

Fled away hath Madmenah, The inhabitants of the high places have hardened themselves.

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.

Yet to-day in Nob to remain, Wave its hand doth the mount 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.

Lo, the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, Is lopping a branch with violence, And the high of stature are cut down, And the lofty are become 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.

And He hath gone round the thickets of the forest with iron, And Lebanon by a mighty one falleth!