Isaiah 49
1 Ilis, here ye, and puplis afer, perseyue ye; the Lord clepide me fro the wombe, he thouyte on my name fro the wombe of my modir.
Hear yee me, O yles, and hearken, yee people from farre. The Lord hath called me from the wombe, and made mention of my name from my mothers bellie.
2 And he hath set my mouth as a scharp swerd, he defendide me in the schadewe of his hond, and settide me as a chosun arowe; he hidde me in his arowe caas,
And hee hath made my mouth like a sharpe sworde: vnder the shadowe of his hande hath he hid mee, and made me a chosen shafte, and hid me in his quiuer,
3 and seide to me, Israel, thou art my seruaunt, for Y schal haue glorie in thee.
And sayd vnto me, Thou art my seruaunt, Israel, for I will be glorious in thee.
4 And Y seide, Y trauelide in veyn, Y wastide my strengthe with out cause, and veynli; therfor my doom is with the Lord, and my werk is with my God.
And I said, I haue labored in vaine: I haue spent my strength in vaine and for nothing: but my iudgement is with the Lord, and my woorke with my God.
5 And now the Lord, formynge me a seruaunt to hym silf fro the wombe, seith these thingis, that Y brynge ayen Jacob to hym. And Israel schal not be gaderid togidere; and Y am glorified in the iyen of the Lord, and my God is maad my strengthe.
And now sayeth the Lord, that formed me from the wombe to be his seruaunt, that I may bring Iaakob againe to him (though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I bee glorious in the eyes of the Lord: and my God shall be my strength)
6 And he seyde, It is litil, that thou be a seruaunt to me, to reise the lynages of Jacob, and to conuerte the drastis of Israel; Y yaf thee in to the liyt of hethene men, that thou be myn helthe `til to the laste part of erthe.
And hee sayde, It is a small thing that thou shouldest be my seruaunt, to raise vp the tribes of Iaakob, and to restore the desolations of Israel: I will also giue thee for a light of the Gentiles, that thou maiest bee my saluation vnto the ende of the worlde.
7 The Lord, ayenbiere of Israel, the hooli therof, seith these thingis to a dispisable soule, and to a folk had in abhomynacioun, to the seruaunt of lordis, Kyngis schulen se, and princes schulen rise togidere, and schulen worschipe, for the Lord, for he is feithful, and for the hooli of Israel, that chees thee.
Thus sayeth the Lord the redeemer of Israel, and his Holie one, to him that is despised in soule, to a nation that is abhorred, to a seruaunt of rulers, Kinges shall see, and arise, and princes shall worship, because of the Lord, that is faithfull: and ye Holy one of Israel, which hath chosen thee.
8 The Lord seith these thingis, In a plesaunt tyme Y herde thee, and in the dai of helthe Y helpide thee; and Y kepte thee, and yaf thee in to a bonde of pees of the puple, that thou schuldist reise the erthe, and haue in possessioun eritagis, `that ben distried;
Thus sayeth the Lord, In an acceptable time haue I heard thee, and in a day of saluation haue I helped thee: and I will preserue thee, and wil giue thee for a couenant of ye people, that thou maiest raise vp the earth, and obtaine the inheritance of the desolate heritages:
9 that thou schuldist seie to hem that ben boundun, Go ye out, and to hem that ben in derknessis, Be ye schewid. Thei schulen be fed on weies, and the lesewis of hem schulen be in alle pleyn thingis.
That thou maiest say to the prisoners, Goe foorth: and to them that are in darkenesse, Shewe your selues: they shall feede in the waies, and their pastures shall bee in all the toppes of the hilles.
10 Thei schulen not hungre, and thei schulen no more thirste, and heete, and the sunne schal not smyte hem; for the merciful doere of hem schal gouerne hem, and schal yyue drynk to hem at the wellis of watris.
They shall not be hungrie, neither shall they be thirstie, neither shall the heat smite them, nor the sunne: for he that hath compassion on them, shall leade them: euen to the springs of waters shall he driue them.
11 And Y schal sette alle myn hillis in to weie, and my pathis schulen be enhaunsid.
And I will make all my mountaines, as a way, and my paths shalbe exalted.
12 Lo! these men schulen come fro fer, and lo! thei schulen come fro the north, and see, and these fro the south lond.
Beholde, these shall come from farre: and loe, these from the North and from the West, and these from the land of Sinim.
13 Heuenes, herie ye, and, thou erthe, make ful out ioie; hillis, synge ye hertli heriyng; for the Lord coumfortide his puple, and schal haue merci on hise pore men.
Reioyce, O heauens: and bee ioyfull, O earth: brast foorth into praise, O mountaines: for God hath comforted his people, and will haue mercie vpon his afflicted.
14 And Syon seide, The Lord hath forsake me, and the Lord hath foryete me.
But Zion saide, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me.
15 Whether a womman may foryete hir yonge child, that sche haue not merci on the sone of hir wombe? thouy sche foryetith, netheles Y schal not foryete thee.
Can a woman forget her childe, and not haue compassion on the sonne of her wombe? though they should forget, yet wil I not forget thee.
16 Lo! Y haue write thee in myn hondis; thi wallis ben euer bifore myn iyen.
Behold, I haue grauen thee vpon the palme of mine hands: thy walles are euer in my sight.
17 The bilderis ben comun; thei that distrien thee, and scateren, schulen go awei fro thee.
Thy builders make haste: thy destroiers and they that made thee waste, are departed from thee.
18 Reise thin iyen in cumpas, and se; alle these men ben gaderid togidere, thei ben comun to thee. Y lyue, seith the Lord, for thou schalt be clothid with alle these as with an ournement, and thou as a spousesse schalt bynde hem to thee.
Lift vp thine eies round about and behold: all these gather themselues together and come to thee: as I liue, sayeth the Lord, thou shalt surely put them all vpon thee as a garment, and girde thy selfe with them like a bride.
19 For whi thi desertis, and thi wildirnessis, and the lond of thi fallyng now schulen be streit for enhabiteris; and thei schulen be dryuun awei fer, that swolewiden thee.
For thy desolations, and thy waste places, and thy land destroied, shall surely be now narow for them that shall dwell in it, and they that did deuoure thee, shalbe farre away.
20 Yit the sones of thi bareynesse schulen seie in thin eeris, The place is streit to me, make thou a space to me for to dwelle.
The children of thy barennesse shall say againe in thine eares, The place is straict for mee: giue place to me that I may dwell.
21 And thou schalt seie in thin herte, Who gendride these sones to me? Y am bareyn, not berynge child; Y am led ouer, and prisoner; and who nurschide these sones? Y am destitute, and aloone; and where weren these?
Then shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten mee these, seeing I am baren and desolate, a captiue and a wanderer to and from? and who hath nourished them? beholde, I was left alone: whence are these?
22 The Lord God seith these thingis, Lo! Y reise myn hond to hethene men, and Y schal enhaunce my signe to puplis; and thei schulen brynge thi sones in armes, and thei schulen bere thi douytris on shuldris.
Thus sayeth the Lord God, Beholde, I will lift vp mine hande to the Gentiles and set vp my stadart to the people, and they shall bring thy sonnes in their armes: and thy daughters shall be caried vpon their shoulders.
23 And kingis shulen be thi nurseris, and quenys shulen be thi nursis; with cheer cast doun in to erthe thei schulen worschipe thee, and thei schulen licke the dust of thi feet; and thou schalt wite, that Y am the Lord, on whom thei schulen not be schent, that abiden hym.
And Kings shalbe thy nourcing fathers, and Queenes shalbe thy nources: they shall worship thee with their faces towarde the earth, and licke vp the dust of thy feete: and thou shalt knowe that I am the Lord: for they shall not be ashamed that waite for me.
24 Whether prey schal be takun awei fro a strong man? ether that that is takun of a stalworthe man, mai be saaf?
Shall the pray be taken from the mightie? or the iust captiuitie deliuered?
25 For the Lord seith these thingis, Sotheli and caitifte schal be takun awey fro the stronge man, and that that is takun awei of a stalworthe man, schal be saued. Forsothe Y schal deme hem, that demyden thee, and Y schal saue thi sones.
But thus sayeth the Lord, euen the captiuitie of the mightie shall be taken away: and the pray of the tyrant shall be deliuered: for I wil contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will saue thy children,
26 And Y schal fede thin enemyes with her fleischis, and thei schulen be greetli fillid with her blood as with must; and eche man schal wite, that Y am the Lord, sauynge thee, and thin ayenbiere, the strong of Jacob.
And will feede them that spoile thee, with their owne flesh, and they shall be drunken with their owne bloode, as with sweete wine: and all flesh shall know that I the Lord am thy sauiour and thy redeemer, the mighty one of Iaakob.
