Jeremiah 23

1 Wo to the scheepherdis, that scateren and to-drawen the floc of my lesewe, seith the Lord.

“Woe to the shepherds who scatter and tear apart the sheep of my pasture, says the Lord.

2 Therfor the Lord God of Israel seith these thingis to the scheepherdis, that feeden my puple, Ye han scaterid my floc, and han cast hem out, and han not visitid hem; lo! Y schal visite on you the malice of youre studies, seith the Lord.

Because of this, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to the shepherds who pasture my people: You have scattered my flock, and you have driven them away, and you have not visited them. Behold, I will visit upon you because of your evil pursuits, says the Lord.

3 And Y schal gadere togidere the remenauntis of my floc fro alle londis, to whiche Y schal caste hem out thidur; and Y schal turne hem to her feeldis, and thei schulen encreesse, and schulen be multiplied.

And I will gather together the remnant of my flock from the entire earth, from the places to which I had cast them out. And I will return them to their own fields. And they will increase and be multiplied.

4 And Y schal reise schepherdis on hem, and thei schulen feede hem; thei schulen no more drede, and schulen not be aferd; and noon schal be souyt of the noumbre seith the Lord.

And I will raise up shepherds over them, and they will pasture them. They will no longer dread, and they will no longer fear. And no one among their number will be seeking more, says the Lord.

5 Lo! daies comen, seith the Lord, and Y schal reise a iust buriownyng to Dauid; and he schal regne a kyng, and he schal be wijs, and he schal make doom and riytfulnesse in erthe.

Behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will raise up to David a righteous branch. And a king will reign, and he will be wise. And he will exercise judgment and justice upon the earth.

6 In tho daies Juda schal be sauid, and Israel schal dwelle tristili; and this is the name which thei schulen clepe hym, The Lord oure riytful.

In those days, Judah will be saved, and Israel will live in confidence. And this is the name that they will call him: ‘The Lord, our Just One.’

7 For this thing lo! daies comen, seith the Lord, and thei schulen no more seie, The Lord lyueth, that ledde the sones of Israel out of the lond of Egipt;

Because of this, behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when they will no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives, who led the sons of Israel away from the land of Egypt,’

8 but, The Lord lyueth, that ledde out, and brouyte the seed of the hous of Israel fro the lond of the north, and fro alle londis to whiche Y hadde cast hem out thidur; and thei schulen dwelle in her lond.

but instead, ‘As the Lord lives, who led away and brought back the offspring of the house of Israel from the land of the north and from the entire earth,’ from the places to which I had cast them out. And they will live in their own land.”

9 To the prophetis; Myn herte is contrit in the myddis of me, alle my boonys trembliden togidere; Y am maad as a man drunkun, and as a man weet of wyn, of the face of the Lord, and of the face of the hooli wordis of hym;

To the prophets: “My heart is crushed within me. All my bones are trembling. I have become like an inebriated man, and like a man maddened by wine, before the face of the Lord, and before the face of his holy words.

10 for the lond is fillid with auowteris. For the erthe mourenede of the face of cursyng; the feeldis of desert ben maad drie, the cours of hem is maad yuel, and her strengthe is vnlijk.

For the earth is full of adulterers! And the earth has mourned before the face of evil talk. The plains of the desert have dried up, and their course has become hazardous, and their firmness has become uneven.”

11 For whi the profete and the prest ben defoulid; and in myn hous, seith the Lord, Y foond the yuel of hem.

“For both the prophet and the priest have become polluted, and I have found their wickedness within my own house, says the Lord.

12 Therfor the weie of hem schal be as slidur in derknessis, for thei schulen be hurtlid, and schulen falle doun therynne; for Y schal bringe on hem yuels, the yeer of visitacioun of hem, seith the Lord.

For this reason, their way will be like a slippery path in the dark. For they will be impelled forward, and they will fall in it. For I will bring evils over them, in the year of their visitation, says the Lord.

13 And in the profetis of Samarie Y siy fonnednesse, and thei profesieden in Baal, and disseyueden my puple Israel.

And I have seen the foolishness of the prophets of Samaria. They have prophesied in Baal, and they have deceived my people Israel.

14 And in the profetis of Jerusalem Y siy licnesse, auoutrie, and the weie of leesyng; and thei confortiden the hondis of the worste men, that ech man schulde not conuerte fro his malice; alle thei ben maad as Sodom to me, and alle the dwellers therof `ben maad as Gommorre.

And in the prophets of Jerusalem, I have seen the likeness of adulterers and the path of falsehood. And they have strengthened the hands of the wicked, so that each one would not convert from his malice. They have all become to me like Sodom, and its inhabitants have become like Gomorrah.”

15 Therfor the Lord of oostis seith these thingis to the prophetis, Lo! Y schal feed hem with wermod, and Y schal yyue drynke to hem with galle; for whi defoulyng is goen out of the profetis of Jerusalem on al the lond.

Because of this, thus says the Lord of hosts to the prophets: “Behold, I will feed them absinthe, and I will give them gall to drink. For from the prophets of Jerusalem corruption has gone forth over the entire earth.”

16 The Lord of oostis seith these thingis, Nyle ye here the wordis of profetis, that profesien to you, and disseyuen you; thei speken the visioun of her herte, not of the mouth of the Lord.

Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Do not choose to listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you and deceive you. They speak a vision from their own heart, and not from the mouth of the Lord.

17 Thei seien to hem that blasfemen me, The Lord spak, Pees schal be to you; and thei seiden to ech man that goith in the schrewidnesse of his herte, Yuel schal not come on you.

To those who blaspheme me, they say: ‘The Lord has said: You shall have peace.’ And to everyone who walks in the depravity of his own heart, they have said: ‘No evil will overwhelm you.’”

18 For whi who is present in the councel of the Lord, and siy, and herde his word? who bihelde, and herde the word of hym?

For who has been present in the counsel of the Lord, and who has seen and heard his word? Who has considered his word and heard it?

19 Lo! the whirlewynd of the Lordis indignacioun schal go out, and tempest brekynge schal come on the heed of wickid men.

Behold, the whirlwind of the Lord’s indignation will go forth, and a tempest will break out; it will overwhelm the head of the impious.

20 The strong veniaunce of the Lord schal not turne ayen, til that he do, and til that he fille the thouyt of his herte. In the laste daies ye schulen vndurstonde the councel of hym.

The fury of the Lord will not return until it succeeds, and until it completes the plan of his heart. In the last days, you will understand this counsel.

21 Y sente not the profetis, and thei runnen; Y spak not to hem, and thei profesieden.

“I did not send these prophets, yet they hurry forward. I was not speaking to them, yet they were prophesying.

22 If thei hadden stonde in my councel, and hadde maad knowun my wordis to my puple, forsothe Y hadde turned hem awei fro her yuel weie, and fro her worste thouytis.

If they had stood in my counsel, and if I had made my words known to my people, certainly I would have turned them away from their evil ways and from their most wicked plans.

23 Gessist thou, whether Y am God of niy, seith the Lord, and not God afer?

Do you not realize that I am a God close by, says the Lord, and not a God far away?

24 A man schal not be priuy in hid places, and Y schal not se hym, seith the Lord. Whether Y fille not heuene and erthe? seith the Lord.

If a man is hidden in concealed places, do I not see him, says the Lord? Do I not fill up heaven and earth, says the Lord?

25 Y herde what thingis the profetis seiden, profesiynge a leesyng in my name, and seiynge, Y dremede dremes.

I have heard what the prophets have said, prophesying falsehoods in my name, and also saying: ‘I have dreamed! I have dreamed!’

26 Hou longe is this thing in the herte of profetis, profesiynge a leesyng, and profesiynge the disseite of her herte?

How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who predict what is false, and who prophesy deceptions from their own heart?

27 Whiche wolen make, that my puple foryete my name for the dremes of hem, which ech man tellith to his neiybore, as the fadris of hem foryaten my name for Baal.

They want to cause my people to forget my name, by means of their dreams, which each of them describes to his neighbor, just as their fathers forgot my name for the sake of Baal.

28 A profete that hath a dreme, telle a dreem; and he that hath my word, speke verili my word. What is with chaffis to the wheete? seith the Lord.

The prophet who has had a dream, let him describe the dream. And he who receives my word, let him speak my word in truth. For what has the chaff to do with the wheat, says the Lord?

29 Whether my wordis ben not as fier brennynge, seith the Lord, and as an hamer al to-brekynge a stoon?

Are not my words like a fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer crushing rock?

30 Therfor lo! Y am redi to the profetis, seith the Lord, that stelen my wordis, ech man fro his neiybore.

Therefore, behold: I am against the prophets, says the Lord, who steal my words, each one from his neighbor.

31 Lo! Y to the profetis, seith the Lord, that taken her tungis, and seien, The Lord seith.

Behold, I am against the prophets, says the Lord, who take up their tongues and say: ‘The Lord says it.’

32 Lo! Y to the profetis, dremynge a leesyng, seith the Lord; which telden tho, and disseyueden my puple in her leesyng, and in her myraclis, whanne Y hadde not sente hem, nether hadde comaundide to hem; whiche profitiden no thing to this puple, seith the Lord.

Behold, I am against the prophets, who dream what is false, says the Lord; who explain and so seduce my people with their falsehoods and with their miracles, though I did not send them, nor did I command them. They have offered nothing beneficial to this people, says the Lord.

33 Therfor if this puple, ether profete, ether prest, axith thee, and seith, What is the birthun of the Lord? thou schalt seie to hem, Ye ben the birthun, for Y schal caste you awei, seith the Lord;

Therefore, if this people, or a prophet, or a priest questions you, saying, ‘What is the burden of the Lord?’ you shall say to them, ‘You are the burden. And certainly I will cast you away, says the Lord.’

34 and a profete, and a prest, and the puple, that seith, The birthun of the Lord, Y schal visite on that man, and on his hous.

And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people who say, ‘The burden of the Lord!’ I will visit upon that man and upon his house.

35 Ye schulen seie these thingis, ech man to his neiybore, and to his brother, What answeride the Lord? and what spak the Lord?

And then you will speak in this way, each one to his neighbor and to his brother: ‘What has the Lord answered? And what has the Lord said?’

36 For the birthun of the Lord schal no more be remembrid, and the word of ech man schal be birthun to hym; and ye han peruertid the wordis of lyuynge God, of the Lord of oostis, youre God.

And the burden of the Lord will no longer be called to mind. For each one’s own word will be a burden. For you have perverted the words of the living God, of the Lord of hosts, our God.

37 Thou schalt seie these thingis to the profete, What answeride the Lord to thee? and what spak the Lord?

And then you will speak in this way to the prophet: ‘What has the Lord answered you? And what has the Lord spoken?’

38 Forsothe if ye seien, The birthin of the Lord, for this thing the Lord seith these thingis, For ye seiden this word, The birthun of the Lord, and Y sente to you, and Y seide, Nyle ye seie, The birthun of the Lord; therfor lo!

But if you say, ‘The burden of the Lord!’ then because of this, thus says the Lord: Since you have spoken this word, ‘The burden of the Lord!’ though I sent to you telling you not to say: ‘The burden of the Lord,’

39 Y schal take you awei, and schal bere, and Y schal forsake you, and the citee which Y yaf to you, and to youre fadris, fro my face.

because of this, behold, I will take you away, like a burden, and I will forsake you, as well as the city that I gave to you and to your fathers, before my face.

40 And Y schal yyue you in to euerlastynge schenschipe, and in to euerlastynge sclaundir, that schal neuere be doon awei bi foryetyng.

And I will give you over to an everlasting reproach and an eternal disgrace, which shall never be wiped away into oblivion.”