Isaiah 57

1 A iust man perischith, and noon is, that thenkith in his herte; and men of merci ben gaderid togidere, for noon is that vndurstondith; for whi a iust man is gaderid fro the face of malice.

The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth [it] to heart: and merciful men [are] taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil [to come].

2 Pees come, reste he in his bed, that yede in his dressyng.

He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, [each one] walking [in] his uprightness.

3 But ye, sones of the sekere of fals dyuynyng bi chiteryng of briddys, neiye hidur, the seed of auowtresse, and of an hoore.

But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore.

4 On whom scorneden ye? on whom maden ye greet the mouth, and puttiden out the tunge? Whethir ye ben not cursid sones, a seed of leesyngis?

Against whom do ye sport yourselves? against whom make ye a wide mouth, [and] draw out the tongue? [are] ye not children of transgression, a seed of falsehood,

5 which ben coumfortid in goddis, vndur ech tree ful of bowis, and offren litle children in strondis, vndur hiye stoonys.

Enflaming yourselves with idols under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys under the clifts of the rocks?

6 Thi part is in the partis of the stronde, this is thi part; and to tho thou scheddist out moist offryng, thou offridist sacrifice. Whether Y schal not haue indignacioun on these thingis?

Among the smooth [stones] of the stream [is] thy portion; they, they [are] thy lot: even to them hast thou poured a drink offering, thou hast offered a meat offering. Should I receive comfort in these?

7 Thou puttidist thi bed on an hiy hil and enhaunsid, and thidur thou stiedist to offre sacrifices;

Upon a lofty and high mountain hast thou set thy bed: even thither wentest thou up to offer sacrifice.

8 and thou settidist thi memorial bihynde the dore, and bihynde the post. For bisidis me thou vnhilidist, and tokist auouter; thou alargidist thi bed, and madist a boond of pees with hem; thou louedist the bed of hem with openyd hond,

Behind the doors also and the posts hast thou set up thy remembrance: for thou hast discovered [thyself to another] than me, and art gone up; thou hast enlarged thy bed, and made thee [a covenant] with them; thou lovedst their bed where thou sawest [it].

9 and ournedist thee with kyngis oynement, and thou multipliedist thi pymentis; thou sentist fer thi messangeris, and thou art maad low `til to hellis. (Sheol h7585)

And thou wentest to the king with ointment, and didst increase thy perfumes, and didst send thy messengers far off, and didst debase [thyself even] unto hell. (Sheol h7585)

10 Thou trauelidist in the multitude of thi weie, and seidist not, Y schal reste; thou hast founde the weie of thin hond,

Thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way; [yet] saidst thou not, There is no hope: thou hast found the life of thine hand; therefore thou wast not grieved.

11 therfor thou preiedist not. For what thing dreddist thou bisy, for thou liedist, and thouytist not on me? And thou thouytist not in thin herte, that Y am stille, and as not seynge; and thou hast foryete me.

And of whom hast thou been afraid or feared, that thou hast lied, and hast not remembered me, nor laid [it] to thy heart? have not I held my peace even of old, and thou fearest me not?

12 Y schal telle thi riytfulnesse, and thi werkis schulen not profite to thee.

I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee.

13 Whanne thou schalt crie, thi gaderid tresours delyuere thee; and the wynd schal take awei alle tho, a blast schal do awei hem; but he that hath trist on me, schal enherite the lond, and schal haue in possessioun myn hooli hil.

When thou criest, let thy companies deliver thee; but the wind shall carry them all away; vanity shall take [them: ] but he that putteth his trust in me shall possess the land, and shall inherit my holy mountain;

14 And Y schal seie, Make ye weie, yyue ye iurney, bowe ye fro the path, do ye awei hirtyngis fro the weie of my puple.

And shall say, Cast ye up, cast ye up, prepare the way, take up the stumblingblock out of the way of my people.

15 For the Lord hiy, and enhaunsid, seith these thingis, that dwellith in euerlastyngnesse, and his hooli name in hiy place, and that dwellith in hooli, and with a contrite and meke spirit, that he quykene the spirit of meke men, and quykene the herte of contrit men.

For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name [is] Holy; I dwell in the high and holy [place], with him also [that is] of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

16 For Y schal not stryue with outen ende, nether Y schal be wrooth `til to the ende; for whi a spirit schal go out fro my face, and Y schal make blastis.

For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth: for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls [which] I have made.

17 Y was wrooth for the wickidnesse of his aueryce, and Y smoot hym. Y hidde my face fro thee, and Y hadde indignacioun; and he yede with out stidfast dwellyng, in the weie of his herte.

For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart.

18 Y siy hise weies, and Y helide hym, and Y brouyte hym ayen; and Y yaf coumfortyngis to hym, and to the moreneris of hym.

I have seen his ways, and will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners.

19 Y made the fruyt of lippis pees, pees to hym that is fer, and to hym that is niy, seide the Lord; and Y heelide hym.

I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to [him that is] far off, and to [him that is] near, saith the LORD; and I will heal him.

20 But wickid men ben as the buyling see, that may not reste; and the wawis therof fleten ayen in to defoulyng, and fen.

But the wicked [are] like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.

21 The Lord God seide, Pees is not to wickid men.

[There is] no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.