Isaiah 56
1 The Lord seith these thingis, Kepe ye doom, and do ye riytfulnesse, for whi myn helthe is niy, that it come, and my riytfulnesse, that it be schewid.
Yahweh says [to all the people of Judah], “Do the things that are fair and just, because I will soon come to rescue [DOU] you.
2 Blessid is the man, that doith this, and the sone of man, that schal take this; kepynge the sabat, that he defoule not it, kepynge hise hondis, that he do not ony yuel.
I will bless those who faithfully obey my laws about the Sabbath/rest days. I will bless those who (keep sacred/honor) my Sabbath/rest days, and who do not do any work on those days, and who refrain from [MTY] doing anything that is evil.
3 And seie not the sone of a comelyng, that cleueth faste to the Lord, seiynge, Bi departyng the Lord schal departe me fro his puple; and a geldyng, ether a chast man, seie not, Lo! Y am a drie tree.
And foreigners who have believed in me should not say, ‘Yahweh will surely not allow me to belong to his people.’ And eunuchs should not say, ‘[Because I am unable to have children, I cannot belong to Yahweh]; I am like [MET] a tree that has completely withered.’
4 For the Lord seith these thingis to geldingis, that kepen my sabatis, and chesen what thingis Y wolde, and holden my boond of pees.
They should not say that, because [I], Yahweh, say this to the eunuchs who obey my laws about the Sabbath, and who choose to do the things that please me, and who obey all [the other laws of] the agreement that I [made with the Israeli people]:
5 Y schal yyue to hem a place in myn hous, and in my wallis, and the beste name of sones and douytris; Y schal yyue to hem a name euerlastynge, that schal not perische.
I will cause to be put inside the walls of my temple a monument [DOU] to them; because of that monument, they will be honored more than they would have if they had children; they will be honored forever.
6 And Y schal brynge in to blis the sones of a comelyng, that cleuen faste to the Lord, that thei worschipe hym, and loue his name, that thei be to hym in to seruauntis; ech man kepynge the sabat, that he defoule it not, and holdynge my boond of pees;
I will also bless those who are not Israelis, who (join themselves to/believe in) me, and who serve me and worship and love me, and who obey my laws about the Sabbath, and who faithfully obey [all the other laws of] the agreement that I [made with the Israeli people].
7 Y schal brynge hem in to myn hooli hil, and Y schal make hem glad in the hous of my preier; her brent sacrifices and her slayn sacrifices schulen plese me on my auter; for whi myn hous schal be clepid an hous of preier to alle puplis,
I will bring them to my sacred hill [in Jerusalem], I will cause them to be [very] joyful in my temple where people pray to me, and I will accept the sacrifices that they completely burn [on my altar] and other sacrifices that they offer. I will do those things for them because I want my temple to be a building where people of all nations pray to me.
8 seith the Lord God, that gaderith togidere the scaterid men of Israel. Yit Y schal gadere togidere to hym alle the gaderid men therof.
[I], Yahweh, the Lord, the one who will bring back the people of Israel who have been (forced to go/exiled) to other countries, say this: 'I will bring [from other countries] many more people to join those Israelis whom I have brought back.'”
9 Alle beestis of the feeld, come ye to deuoure, alle beestis of the forest.
“You [surrounding nations have armies that are like] [MET] animals in the forest; come and attack/destroy [Israel]!
10 Alle the biholderis therof ben blinde, alle thei knewen not; doumbe doggis, that moun not berke, seynge veyn thingis, slepynge, and louynge dremes;
The Israeli leaders [should be like] watchdogs to protect the people, but [it is as though] they are blind. They are stupid. They are all [like] [MET] dogs that cannot bark. [Good watchdogs bark when strangers approach], [but the Israeli leaders do not warn the people that their enemies are coming]. Instead, they just want to lie down and sleep and dream.
11 and moost vnschamefast doggis knewen not fulnesse. Tho scheepherdis knewen not vndurstondyng; alle thei bowyden in to her weie, ech man to his aueryce, fro the hiyeste `til to the laste.
[And they are like] greedy dogs; they never get all that they want. They are [supposed to lead the people, like good] shepherds [lead their flocks], but they are ignorant, and they each do whatever they want to do.
12 Come ye, take we wyn, and be we fillid of drunkenesse; and it schal be as to dai, so and to morewe, and myche more.
They say to each other, ‘Come, let’s go and get some wine and [other] alcoholic/strong drinks, and let’s become drunk! And tomorrow we will enjoy drinking even more!’”
