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 destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture—this is Yahweh's declaration.”
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.
Therefore Yahweh, the God of Israel, says this concerning the shepherds who are shepherding his people, “You have scattered my flock and have driven them away. You have not cared for them. So I am about to punish you for the evil you have done—this is Yahweh's declaration.
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.
I myself will gather the remnant of my flock from all of the lands where I have driven them, and I will return them to a grazing place, where they will 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.
Then I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them so they will no longer fear or be shattered. None of them will go missing—this is Yahweh's declaration.
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.
See, the days are coming—this is Yahweh's declaration—when I will raise up for David a righteous branch. He will reign as king; he will act wisely and cause justice and righteousness 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 will be rescued, and Israel will live in security. Then this is the name by which he will be called: Yahweh is our righteousness.
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 see, days are coming—this is Yahweh's declaration—when they will no longer say, 'As Yahweh lives, who brought the people of Israel up 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.
Instead they will say, 'As Yahweh lives, who brought up and who led back the descendants of the house of Israel from the northern land and all the lands where they had been driven.' Then 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;
Regarding the prophets, my heart is broken in me, and all of my bones tremble. I have become like a drunk man, like a man whom wine has overpowered, because of Yahweh and 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 adulterers. Because of these the land is dried up. The meadows in the wilderness dry up. These prophets' paths are wicked; their power is not used in a right manner.
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 prophets and the priests are polluted. I even found their wickedness in my house!—this is Yahweh's declaration—
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 their way will be like a slippery place in the darkness. They will be pushed down. They will fall in it. For I will send disaster against them in the year of their punishment—this is Yahweh's declaration.
13 And in the profetis of Samarie Y siy fonnednesse, and thei profesieden in Baal, and disseyueden my puple Israel.
For I have seen the prophets in Samaria doing what is repulsive: They prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel astray.
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.
Among the prophets in Jerusalem I have seen horrible things: They commit adultery and walk in deceit. They strengthen the hands of evildoers; no one turns back from his evildoing. All of them have become like Sodom to me and its inhabitants 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.
Therefore Yahweh of hosts says this concerning the prophets, “Look, I am about to make them eat wormwood and drink poisonous water, for pollution has gone out from the prophets of Jerusalem to 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.
Yahweh of hosts says this, “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They have deluded you! They are announcing visions from their own minds, not from Yahweh's mouth.
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.
They are constantly saying to those who dishonor me, 'Yahweh declares there will be peace for you.' For everyone walking in the stubbornness of his own heart says, 'Disaster will not 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?
Yet who has stood in Yahweh's council meeting? Who sees and hears his word? Who pays attention to his word and listens?
19 Lo! the whirlewynd of the Lordis indignacioun schal go out, and tempest brekynge schal come on the heed of wickid men.
See, there is a storm coming from Yahweh! His fury is going out, and a tempest is whirling about. It is whirling around the heads of the wicked.
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.
Yahweh's wrath will not return until it has carried out and brought into being his heart's intentions. In the final days, you will understand it.
21 Y sente not the profetis, and thei runnen; Y spak not to hem, and thei profesieden.
I did not send out these prophets. They just appeared. I did not proclaim anything to them, but they have still 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 meeting, they would have caused my people to hear my word; they would have caused them to turn from their wicked words and corrupt practices.
23 Gessist thou, whether Y am God of niy, seith the Lord, and not God afer?
Am I only a God nearby—this is Yahweh's declaration—and not also 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.
Can anyone hide in a secret place so I cannot see him?—this is Yahweh's declaration— and do I not fill the heavens and the earth?—this is Yahweh's declaration.
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, those who were prophesying deceit in my name. They said, 'I had a dream! I had a dream!'
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 go on, prophets who prophesy lies from their minds, and who prophesy from the deceit in their hearts?
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 are planning on making my people forget my name with the dreams that they report, each one to his neighbor, just as their ancestors forgot my name in favor of Baal's name.
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 a dream, let him report the dream. But the one to whom I have declared something, let him declare my word truthfully. What does straw have to do with grain?—this is Yahweh's declaration—
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?—this is Yahweh's declaration—and like a hammer that shatters a rock into pieces?
30 Therfor lo! Y am redi to the profetis, seith the Lord, that stelen my wordis, ech man fro his neiybore.
So see, I am against the prophets—this is Yahweh's declaration—anyone who steals words from another person and says they come from me.
31 Lo! Y to the profetis, seith the Lord, that taken her tungis, and seien, The Lord seith.
See, I am against the prophets—this is Yahweh's declaration—who use their tongues to prophesy proclamations.
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.
See, I am against the prophets who dream deceitfully—this is Yahweh's declaration—and then proclaim them and in this way mislead my people with their deceit and boasting. I am against them, for I have not sent them out nor given them commands. So they will certainly not help this people—this is Yahweh's declaration.
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;
When these people, or a prophet, or a priest asks you, 'What is the burden of Yahweh?' you will say to them, 'You are the burden, and I will cast you off'—this is Yahweh's declaration.
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.
As for the prophets, priests, and people who are saying, 'This is the burden of Yahweh' 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?
You continue to say, each person to his neighbor and each man to his brother, 'What did Yahweh answer?' and 'What did Yahweh declare?'
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.
But you must no longer talk about the 'burden of Yahweh,' for the burden is every man's own word, and you have perverted the words of the living God, Yahweh of hosts, our God.
37 Thou schalt seie these thingis to the profete, What answeride the Lord to thee? and what spak the Lord?
This is what you will say to the prophet, 'What answer did Yahweh give you? or 'What did Yahweh say?'
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 Yahweh', this is what Yahweh says: 'Because you have said these words, 'The burden of Yahweh,' when I sent to you, saying, 'You will not say, “The burden of Yahweh,”'
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 am about to pick you up and throw you away from me, along with the city that I gave you and your ancestors.
40 And Y schal yyue you in to euerlastynge schenschipe, and in to euerlastynge sclaundir, that schal neuere be doon awei bi foryetyng.
Then I will put everlasting shame and insult on you that will not be forgotten.'”
