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 lose and scatter the sheep of my pasture, saith Jehovah.
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.
For concerning the shepherds, the feeders of my people, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel: Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, And have not taken care of them. Behold, I am about to requite you For the evil of your doings, saith Jehovah.
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.
But I will gather the remnant of my flock From all the countries whither I have driven them, And I will bring them back to their folds, And they shall be fruitful and increase.
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, who shall feed them; They shall fear no more, nor be dismayed; Nor shall they be lost, saith Jehovah.
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 coming, saith Jehovah, When I will raise up from David a righteous Branch, And a king shall reign and prosper, And shall maintain justice and equity in the land.
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 his days Judah shall be saved, And Israel shall dwell securely; And this is the name which shall be given him, Jehovah-is-our-salvation.
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;
Therefore, behold, the days shall come, saith Jehovah, When they shall no more say, “As Jehovah liveth Who brought up the children of Israel 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, “As Jehovah liveth Who brought up and led the race of Israel from the north country, And from all the countries whither I had driven them!” And they shall dwell 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;
Concerning the Prophets. My heart is broken within me; All my bones tremble. I am become like a drunken man, Like a man whom wine hath overcome, Because of Jehovah, And because 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 land is full of adulteries; Because of a curse doth the land mourn; The pastures of the waste are dried up; For they run to do evil, And their might is without right.
11 For whi the profete and the prest ben defoulid; and in myn hous, seith the Lord, Y foond the yuel of hem.
Yea, both prophet and priest are profane; Even in my house have I found their wickedness, saith Jehovah.
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.
Therefore shall their way become as slippery places in the dark; They shall be driven on and fall therein; For I will bring evil upon them In the time of their visitation, saith Jehovah.
13 And in the profetis of Samarie Y siy fonnednesse, and thei profesieden in Baal, and disseyueden my puple Israel.
In the prophets of Samaria have I seen folly; They prophesy in the name of Baal, and cause my people Israel to err.
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.
In the prophets of Jerusalem also have I seen a horrible thing; They commit adultery, and walk in falsehood; They strengthen the hands of evil-doers, So that none doth turn from his iniquity. They have all become to me as Sodom, And her inhabitants as 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.
Therefore thus saith Jehovah of hosts concerning the prophets: Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, And give them the water of hemlock to drink; For from the prophets of Jerusalem Hath profaneness gone forth into all the land.
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 saith Jehovah of hosts: Hearken not to the words of the prophets; They lead you to vanity; They utter the vision of their own heart, And not from the mouth of Jehovah.
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 them that despise me they say continually, “Jehovah hath said, Ye shall have peace”; And to every one that walketh after the perverseness of his heart, “No evil shall come upon 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 of them hath stood in the council of Jehovah, And hath seen and heard his word? Who hath listened to 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 a whirlwind from Jehovah goeth forth in fury, Even a rushing whirlwind; Upon the head of the wicked shall it rush.
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 fierce anger of Jehovah shall not turn back, Until he shall have executed, until he shall have accomplished the purpose of his heart. In the latter days ye shall understand it fully.
21 Y sente not the profetis, and thei runnen; Y spak not to hem, and thei profesieden.
I sent not these prophets, yet they ran; I spake not to them, yet they prophesied.
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.
For if they had stood in my council, Then would they have caused my people to hear my words, And would have turned them from their evil way. And from the wickedness of their doings.
23 Gessist thou, whether Y am God of niy, seith the Lord, and not God afer?
Am I a God near at hand, saith Jehovah, And not a God afar off?
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.
Can any one hide himself in secret places, So that I shall not see him? saith Jehovah; Do I nor fill heaven and earth? saith Jehovah.
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 say, Who prophesy falsehood in my name, 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 shall this be In the heart of the prophets, who prophesy falsehood, The prophets of the deceit of 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.
Who think to cause my people to forget my name By the dreams which they relate one to another, As their fathers forgot my name through 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 hath a dream, let him tell a dream; And he that hath my word, let him speak my word truly! What is the chaff to the wheat? saith Jehovah.
29 Whether my wordis ben not as fier brennynge, seith the Lord, and as an hamer al to-brekynge a stoon?
Is not my word like fire, saith Jehovah, And like a hammer, that breaketh the rock in pieces?
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, saith Jehovah, That steal my words one from another.
31 Lo! Y to the profetis, seith the Lord, that taken her tungis, and seien, The Lord seith.
Behold, I am against the prophets, saith Jehovah, That take their tongues and utter oracles.
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 of false dreams, saith Jehovah, Who tell them, and cause my people to err By their lies and their arrogance. I have not sent them, nor commanded them, And they shall not profit this people at all, saith Jehovah.
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;
And when this people, or a prophet, or a priest Shall ask thee, saying, “What is the burden from Jehovah?” Then say thou to them, “What is the burden?” That I will cast you away, saith Jehovah.
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 the prophet, the priest, and the people, Who shall say, “The burden of Jehovah,” I will punish that man and 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?
Thus shall ye speak, one to another: “What hath Jehovah answered?” And, “What hath Jehovah spoken?”
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 of a burden of Jehovah shall ye speak no more; Else shall every man's word be his burden, Because ye pervert the words of the living God, Of Jehovah of hosts, our God.
37 Thou schalt seie these thingis to the profete, What answeride the Lord to thee? and what spak the Lord?
Thus shalt thou say to the prophet: “What hath Jehovah answered thee?” And, “What hath Jehovah 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!
If ye shall say, “The burden of Jehovah,” Then thus saith Jehovah: Because ye say, “The burden of Jehovah,” Although I sent to you and said, Ye shall not say, “The burden of Jehovah,”
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.
Therefore, behold, I will utterly forget you, And I will cast you, and the city which I gave to your fathers, out of my presence;
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 bring upon you an everlasting reproach, And a perpetual shame which shall not be forgotten.
