Isaiah 38

1 In tho daies Esechie was sijk `til to the deth; and Isaie, the profete, the sone of Amos, entride to hym, and seide to hym, The Lord seith these thingis, Dispose thi hous, for thou schalt die, and thou schalt not lyue.

In those days Hezekiah became mortally ill. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz came to him and said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Put your house in order, for you are about to die; you will not recover.’”

2 And Esechie turnede his face to the wal, and preiede the Lord, and seide, Lord, Y biseche;

Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD,

3 haue thou mynde, Y biseche, hou Y yede bifore thee in treuthe, and in perfit herte, and Y dide that that was good bifore thin iyen. And Ezechye wept with greet wepyng.

saying, “Please, O LORD, remember how I have walked before You faithfully and with wholehearted devotion; I have done what was good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

4 And the word of the Lord was maad to Isaie, and seide,

And the word of the LORD came to Isaiah, saying,

5 Go thou, and seie to Ezechye, The Lord God of Dauid, thi fadir, seith these thingis, I haue herd thi preier, and Y siy thi teeris. Lo! Y schal adde on thi daies fiftene yeer;

“Go and tell Hezekiah that this is what the LORD, the God of your father David, says: ‘I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add fifteen years to your life.

6 and Y schal delyuere thee and this citee fro the hond of the kyng of Assiriens, and Y schal defende it.

And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city.

7 Forsothe this schal be to thee a signe of the Lord, that the Lord schal do this word, which he spak.

This will be a sign to you from the LORD that He will do what He has promised:

8 Lo! Y schal make the schadewe of lynes, bi which it yede doun in the orologie of Achas, in the sunne, to turne ayen backward bi ten lynes. And the sunne turnede ayen bi ten lynes, bi degrees bi whiche it hadde go doun.

I will make the sun’s shadow that falls on the stairway of Ahaz go back ten steps.’” So the sunlight went back the ten steps it had descended.

9 The scripture of Ezechie, kyng of Juda, whanne he hadde be sijk, and hadde rekyuered of his sikenesse.

This is a writing by Hezekiah king of Judah after his illness and recovery:

10 I seide, in the myddil of my daies Y schal go to the yatis of helle. Y souyte the residue of my yeeris; (Sheol h7585)

I said, “In the prime of my life I must go through the gates of Sheol and be deprived of the remainder of my years.” (Sheol h7585)

11 Y seide, Y schal not se the Lord God in the lond of lyueris; Y schal no more biholde a man, and a dwellere of reste.

I said, “I will never again see the LORD, even the LORD, in the land of the living; I will no longer look on mankind with those who dwell in this world.

12 My generacioun is takun awei, and is foldid togidere fro me, as the tabernacle of scheepherdis is foldid togidere. Mi lijf is kit doun as of a webbe; he kittide doun me, the while Y was wouun yit. Fro the morewtid `til to the euentid thou schalt ende me;

My dwelling has been picked up and removed from me like a shepherd’s tent. I have rolled up my life like a weaver; He cuts me off from the loom; from day until night You make an end of me.

13 Y hopide til to the morewtid; as a lioun, so he al to-brak alle my boonys. Fro the morewtid til to the euentid thou schalt ende me; as the brid of a swalewe, so Y schal crie;

I composed myself until the morning. Like a lion He breaks all my bones; from day until night You make an end of me.

14 Y schal bithenke as a culuer. Myn iyen biholdynge an hiy, ben maad feble. Lord, Y suffre violence, answere thou for me; what schal Y seie,

I chirp like a swallow or crane; I moan like a dove. My eyes grow weak as I look upward. O Lord, I am oppressed; be my security.”

15 ether what schal answere to me, whanne `I mysilf haue do? Y schal bithenke to thee alle my yeeris, in the bitternisse of my soule.

What can I say? He has spoken to me, and He Himself has done this. I will walk slowly all my years because of the anguish of my soul.

16 Lord, if me lyueth so, and the lijf of my spirit is in siche thingis, thou schalt chastise me, and schalt quykene me.

O Lord, by such things men live, and in all of them my spirit finds life. You have restored me to health and have let me live.

17 Lo! my bitternesse is moost bittir in pees; forsothe thou hast delyuered my soule, that it perischide not; thou hast caste awey bihynde thi bak alle my synnes.

Surely for my own welfare I had such great anguish; but Your love has delivered me from the pit of oblivion, for You have cast all my sins behind Your back.

18 For not helle schal knowleche to thee, nethir deth schal herie thee; thei that goon doun in to the lake, schulen not abide thi treuthe. (Sheol h7585)

For Sheol cannot thank You; Death cannot praise You. Those who descend to the Pit cannot hope for Your faithfulness. (Sheol h7585)

19 A lyuynge man, a lyuynge man, he schal knouleche to thee, as and Y to dai; the fadir schal make knowun thi treuthe to sones.

The living, only the living, can thank You, as I do today; fathers will tell their children about Your faithfulness.

20 Lord, make thou me saaf, and we schulen synge oure salmes in all the daies of oure lijf in the hous of the Lord.

The LORD will save me; we will play songs on stringed instruments all the days of our lives in the house of the LORD.

21 And Ysaie comaundide, that thei schulden take a gobet of figus, and make a plaster on the wounde; and it schulde be heelid.

Now Isaiah had said, “Prepare a lump of pressed figs and apply it to the boil, and he will recover.”

22 And Ezechie seide, What signe schal be, that Y schal stie in to the hous of the Lord?

And Hezekiah had asked, “What will be the sign that I will go up to the house of the LORD?”