< Isaiah 65 >

1 Thei souyten me, that axiden not bifore; thei that souyten not me, founden me. Y seide, Lo! Y, lo! Y, to hethene men that knewen not me, and that clepiden not mi name to help.
I have been ready to give an answer to those who did not make prayer to me; I have been offering myself to those who were not searching for me; I said, Here am I, here am I, to a nation which gave no respect to my name.
2 I stretchide forth myn hondis al dai to a puple vnbileueful, that goith in a weie not good, aftir her thouytis.
All day my hands have been stretched out to an uncontrolled people, who go in an evil way, after the purposes of their hearts;
3 It is a puple that stirith me to wrathfulnesse, euere bifore my face; whiche offren in gardyns, and maken sacrifice on tiel stoonys;
A people who make me angry every day, making offerings in gardens, and burning perfumes on bricks.
4 whiche dwellen in sepulcris, and slepen in the templis of idols; whiche eten swynes fleisch, and vnhooli iwisch is in the vessels of hem;
Who are seated in the resting-places of the dead, and by night are in the secret places; who take pig's flesh for food, and have the liquid of disgusting things in their vessels.
5 whiche seien to an hethene man, Go thou awei fro me, neiy thou not to me, for thou art vncleene; these schulen be smoke in my stronge veniaunce, fier brennynge al dai.
Who say, Keep away, do not come near me, for fear that I make you holy: these are a smoke in my nose, a fire burning all day.
6 Lo! it is writun bifore me; Y schal not be stille, but Y schal yelde, and Y schal quyte in to the bosum of hem youre wickidnessis,
See, it is recorded before me, says the Lord: I will not keep back my hand, till I have sent punishment,
7 and the wickidnessis of youre fadris togidere, seith the Lord, whiche maden sacrifice on mounteyns, and diden schenschipe to me on litle hillis; and Y schal mete ayen the firste werk of hem in her bosum.
For their sins and the sins of their fathers, who were burning perfumes on the mountains, and saying evil things against me on the hills: so I will take the measure of their sins, and will send the punishment for them into their breast.
8 The Lord seith thes thingis, As if a grape be foundun in a clustre, and it be seid, Distrie thou not it, for it is blessyng; so Y schal do for my seruantis, that Y leese not al.
This is the word of the Lord: As the new wine is seen in the grapes, and they say, Do not send destruction on it, for a blessing is in it: so will I do for my servants, in order that I may not put an end to them all.
9 And Y schal lede out of Jacob seed, and of Juda a man hauynge in possessioun myn hooli hillis; and my chosun men schulen enherite it, and my seruauntis schulen dwelle there.
And I will take a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah one who will have my mountains for a heritage: and the people I have taken to be mine will have it for themselves, and my servants will have their resting-place there.
10 And the feeldi places schulen be into floodis of flockis, and the valei of Achar in to a restyng place of droues of neet, to my puple that souyten me.
And Sharon will be a grass-land for the flocks, and the valley of Achor a resting-place for the herds: for my people whose hearts have been turned back to me.
11 And Y schal noumbre you in swerd, that forsoken the Lord, that foryaten myn hooli hil, whiche setten a boord to fortune, and maken sacrifice theronne,
But as for you who have given up the Lord, who have no care for my holy mountain, who get ready a table for Chance, and make offerings of mixed wine to Fate;
12 and alle ye schulen falle bi sleyng; for that that Y clepide, and ye answeriden not; Y spak, and ye herden not; and ye diden yuel bifor myn iyen, and ye chesiden tho thingis whiche Y nolde.
Your fate will be the sword, and you will all go down to death: because when my voice came to you, you made no answer; you did not give ear to my word; but you did what was evil in my eyes, desiring what was not pleasing to me.
13 For these thingis, the Lord God seith these thingis, Lo! my seruauntis schulen ete, and ye schulen haue hungur; lo! my seruauntis schulen drynke, and ye schulen be thirsti;
For this cause says the Lord God, My servants will have food, but you will be in need of food: my servants will have drink, but you will be dry: my servants will have joy, but you will be shamed:
14 lo! my seruauntis schulen be glad, and ye schulen be aschamed; lo! my seruauntis schulen herie, for the ful ioie of herte, and ye schulen crie, for the sorewe of herte, and ye schulen yelle, for desolacioun of spirit.
My servants will make songs in the joy of their hearts, but you will be crying for sorrow, and making sounds of grief from a broken spirit.
15 And ye schulen leeue youre name in to an ooth to my chosun men; and the Lord God schal sle thee, and he schal clepe hise seruauntis bi another name.
And your name will become a curse to my people, and the Lord God will put you to death, and give his servants another name:
16 In which he that is blessid on erthe, schal be blessid in God amen; and he that swerith in erthe, shal swere in God feithfuli; for the formere angwischis ben youun to foryetyng, and for tho ben hid fro youre iyen.
So that he who is requesting a blessing will make use of the name of the true God, and he who takes an oath will do so by the true God; because the past troubles are gone out of mind, and because they are covered from my eyes.
17 For lo! Y make newe heuenes and a newe erthe, and the formere thingis schulen not be in mynde, and schulen not stie on the herte.
For see, I am making a new heaven and a new earth: and the past things will be gone completely out of mind.
18 But ye schulen haue ioie, and make ful out ioiyng til in to with outen ende, in these thingis whiche Y make; for lo! Y make Jerusalem ful out ioiynge, and the puple therof ioie.
But men will be glad and have joy for ever in what I am making; for I am making Jerusalem a delight, and her people a joy.
19 And Y schal make ful out ioiyng in Jerusalem, and Y schal haue ioie in my puple; and the vois of weping and the vois of cry schal no more be herd ther ynne.
And I will be glad over Jerusalem, and have joy in my people: and the voice of weeping will no longer be sounding in her, or the voice of grief.
20 A yong child of daies schal no more be there, and an eld man that fillith not hise daies; for whi a child of an hundrid yeer schal die, and a synnere of an hundrid yeer schal be cursid.
No longer will there be there a child whose days are cut short, or an old man whose days have not come to their full measure: for the young man at his death will be a hundred years old, and he whose life is shorter than a hundred years will seem as one cursed.
21 And thei schulen bilde housis, and schulen enhabite hem, and thei schulen plaunte vynes, and schulen ete the fruytis of tho.
And they will be building houses and living in them; planting vine-gardens and getting the fruit of them.
22 Thei schulen not bilde housis, and an othir schal enhabite hem, thei schulen not plaunte, and an othir schal ete; for whi the daies of my puple schulen be after the daies of the tree, and the werkis of
They will no longer be building for the use of others, or planting for others to have the fruit: for the days of my people will be like the days of a tree, and my loved ones will have joy in full measure in the work of their hands.
23 her hondis schulen be elde to my chosun men. Thei schulen not trauele in veyn, nether thei schulen gendre in disturblyng; for it is the seed of hem that ben blessid of the Lord, and the cosyns of hem ben with hem.
Their work will not be for nothing, and they will not give birth to children for destruction; for they are a seed to whom the Lord has given his blessing, and their offspring will be with them.
24 And it schal be, bifor that thei crien, Y schal here; yit while thei speken, Y schal here.
And before they make their request I will give an answer, and while they are still making prayer to me, I will give ear.
25 A wolf and a lomb schulen be fed togidere, and a lioun and an oxe schulen ete stree, and to a serpent dust schal be his breed; thei schulen not anoie, nether schulen sle, in al myn hooli hil, seith the Lord.
The wolf and the lamb will take their food together, and the lion will make a meal of grass like the ox: but dust will be the snake's food. There will be no cause of pain or destruction in all my holy mountain, says the Lord.

< Isaiah 65 >