Jeremiah 3
1 It is seid comunli, If a man forsakith his wijf, and sche go awei fro hym, and be weddid to an othere hosebonde, whether he schal turne ayen more to hir? whether thilke womman schal not be defoulid, and maad vncleene? Forsothe thou hast do fornycacioun with many loueris; netheles turne thou ayen to me, `seith the Lord, and Y schal resseyue thee.
They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man’s, will he return unto her again? will not that land be greatly polluted? But thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith Jehovah.
2 Reise thin iyen in to streiyt, and se, where thou art not cast doun. Thou hast setun in weies, abidynge hem as a theef in wildirnesse, and thou hast defoulid the erthe in thi fornicaciouns and in thi malices.
Lift up thine eyes unto the bare heights, and see; where hast thou not been lain with? By the ways hast thou sat for them, as an Arabian in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness.
3 Wherfor the dropis of reynes weren forbodun, and no late reyn was. The forhed of a womman hoore is maad to thee; thou noldist be aschamed.
Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; yet thou hadst a harlot’s forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed.
4 Nameli fro this tyme forth clepe thou me, Thou art my fadir, the ledere of my virginyte.
Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My Father, thou art the guide of my youth?
5 Whether thou schalt be wrooth with outen ende, ether schalt contynue in to the ende? Lo! thou hast spoke, and hast do yuels, and thou were myyti. And for wordis of penaunce thou blasfemydist bi wordis of pride; and thou fillidist thin yuel thouyt, and schewidist thi strengthe ayens thi hosebonde, that thou maist do that thing that thou tretidist bi word.
Will he retain [his anger] for ever? will he keep it to the end? Behold, thou hast spoken and hast done evil things, and hast had thy way.
6 And the Lord seide to me, in the daies of Josie, the kyng, Whether thou hast seyn what thing the aduersarie, Israel, hath do? Sche yede to hir silf on ech hiy hil, and vndur ech tre ful of boowis, and dide fornycacioun there.
Moreover Jehovah said unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.
7 And Y seide, whanne sche hadde do alle these thingis, Turne thou ayen to me; and sche turnede not ayen. And hir sistir, Juda, brekere of the lawe,
And I said after she had done all these things, She will return unto me; but she returned not: and her treacherous sister Judah saw it.
8 siy, that for the aduersarie, Israel, dide auowtrie, Y hadde left hir, and Y hadde youe to hir a libel of forsakyng; and Juda, hir sistir, brekere of the lawe, dredde not, but also sche yede, and dide fornycacioun.
And I saw, when, for this very cause that backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a bill of divorcement, yet treacherous Judah her sister feared not; but she also went and played the harlot.
9 And bi liytnesse of hir fornicacioun sche defoulide the erthe, and dide auowtrie with a stoon, and with a tree.
And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that the land was polluted, and she committed adultery with stones and with stocks.
10 And in alle these thingis hir sistir, Juda, brekere of the lawe, turnede not ayen to me, in al hir herte, but in a leesyng, seith the Lord God.
And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not returned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith Jehovah.
11 And the Lord seide to me, The aduersarie, Israel, hath iustified hir soule, in comparisoun of Juda, brekere of the lawe.
And Jehovah said unto me, Backsliding Israel hath showed herself more righteous than treacherous Judah.
12 Go thou, and crye these wordis ayens the north; and thou schalt seie, Thou aduersarie, Israel, turne ayen, seith the Lord, and Y schal not turne awei my face fro you; for Y am hooli, seith the Lord, and Y schal not be wrooth with outen ende.
Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith Jehovah; I will not look in anger upon you; for I am merciful, saith Jehovah, I will not keep [anger] for ever.
13 Netheles knowe thou thi wickidnesse; for thou hast trespassid ayens thi Lord God, and thou hast spred abrood thi weies to aliens vndur ech tre ful of bowis; and thou herdist not my vois, seith the Lord.
Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against Jehovah thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith Jehovah.
14 Be ye conuertid, sones, turnynge ayen, seith the Lord, for Y am youre hosebonde; and Y schal take you oon of a citee, and tweyne of a kynrede, and Y schal lede you in to Sion;
Return, O backsliding children, saith Jehovah; for I am a husband unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion.
15 and Y schal yyue to you scheepherdis after myn herte, and thei schulen feede you with kunnyng and teching.
And I will give you shepherds according to my heart, who shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.
16 And whanne ye schulen be multiplied, and encreesse in the lond, in tho daies, seith the Lord, thei schulen no more seie, The arke of testament of the Lord; nether it schal stie on the herte, nether thei schulen thenke on it, nether it schal be visitid, nether it schal be ferthere.
And it shall come to pass, when ye are multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith Jehovah, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of Jehovah; neither shall it come to mind; neither shall they remember it; neither shall they miss it; neither shall it be made any more.
17 In that tyme thei schulen clepe Jerusalem The seete of the Lord, and alle hethene men schulen be gaderid togidere to it, in the name of the Lord, in Jerusalem; and thei schulen not go aftir the schrewidnesse of her worste herte.
At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart.
18 In tho daies the hous of Juda schal go to the hous of Israel; and thei schulen come togidere fro the lond of the north to the lond which Y yaf to youre fadris.
In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I gave for an inheritance unto your fathers.
19 Forsothe Y seide, Hou schal Y sette thee among sones, and schal yyue to thee a desirable lond, a ful cleer eritage of the oostis of hethene men? And Y seide, Thou schalt clepe me fadir, and thou schalt not ceesse to entre aftir me.
But I said, How I will put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of the nations! and I said, Ye shall call me My Father, and shall not turn away from following me.
20 But as if a womman dispisith hir louyere, so the hous of Israel dispiside me, seith the Lord.
Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, saith Jehovah.
21 A vois is herd in weies, the weping and yellyng of the sones of Israel; for thei maden wickid her weie, thei foryaten her Lord God.
A voice is heard upon the bare heights, the weeping [and] the supplications of the children of Israel; because they have perverted their way, they have forgotten Jehovah their God.
22 Be ye conuertid, sones, turnynge ayen, and Y schal heele youre turnyngis awei. Lo! we comen to thee; for thou art oure Lord God.
Return, ye backsliding children, I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we are come unto thee; for thou art Jehovah our God.
23 Verili litil hillis weren lieris, the multitude of mounteyns was fals; verili in oure Lord God is the helthe of Israel.
Truly in vain is [the help that is looked for] from the hills, the tumult on the mountains: truly in Jehovah our God is the salvation of Israel.
24 Schenschipe eete the trauel of oure fadris, fro oure yongthe; schenschipe eet the flockis of hem, and the droues of hem, the sones of hem, and the douytris of hem.
But the shameful thing hath devoured the labor of our fathers from our youth, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.
25 We schulen slepe in oure schenschipe, and oure sclaundir schal hile vs; for we synneden to oure Lord God, bothe we and oure fadris, fro oure yongthe `til to this dai; and we herden not the vois of oure Lord God.
Let us lie down in our shame, and let our confusion cover us; for we have sinned against Jehovah our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even unto this day; and we have not obeyed the voice of Jehovah our God.
