Jeremiah 34

1 The word that was maad of the Lord to Jeremye, whanne Nabugodonosor, kyng of Babiloyne, and al his oost, and alle the rewmes of erthe, that weren vndur the power of his hond, and alle puplis fouyten ayens Jerusalem, and ayens alle citees therof; and he seide,

The word that came to Jeremias from the Lord, (when Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the earth, that were under the power of his hand, and all the people fought against Jerusalem and against all the cities thereof, ) saying:

2 The Lord God of Israel seith these thingis, Go thou, and speke to Sedechie, kyng of Juda; and thou schalt seie to hym, The Lord seith these thingis, Lo! Y schal bitake this citee in to the hond of the kyng of Babiloyne, and he schal brenne it bi fier.

Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel: Go, and speak to Sedecias king of Juda, and say to him: Thus saith the Lord: Behold I will deliver this city into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.

3 And thou schalt not ascape fro his hond, but thou schalt be takun bi takyng, and thou schalt be bitakun in to his hond; and thin iyen schulen se the iyen of the kyng of Babiloyne, and his mouth schal speke with thi mouth, and thou schalt entre in to Babiloyne.

And thou shalt not escape out of his hand: but thou shalt surely be taken, and thou shalt be delivered into his hand: and thy eyes shall see the eyes of the king of Babylon, and his mouth shall speak with thy mouth, and thou shalt go to Babylon.

4 Netheles Sedechie, the kyng of Juda, here thou the word of the Lord; the Lord seith these thingis to thee, Thou schalt not die bi swerd,

Yet hear the word of the Lord, O Sedecias king of Juda: Thus saith the Lord to thee: Thou shalt not die by the sword.

5 but thou schalt die in pees, and bi the brennyngis of thi fadris, the formere kyngis that weren bifore thee, so thei schulen brenne thee, and thei schulen biweile thee, Wo! lord; for Y spak a word, seith the Lord.

But thou shalt die in peace, and according to the burnings of thy fathers, the former kings that were before thee, so shall they burn thee: and they shall mourn for thee, saying: Alas, Lord: for I have spoken the word, saith the Lord.

6 And Jeremye, the profete, spak to Sedechie, kyng of Juda, alle these wordis in Jerusalem.

And Jeremias the prophet spoke all these words to Sedecias the king of Juda in Jerusalem.

7 And the oost of the kyng of Babiloyne fauyt ayens Jerusalem, and ayens alle the citees of Juda, that weren left; ayens Lachis, and ayens Azecha; for whi these strong citees weren left of the citees of Juda.

And the army of the king of Babylon fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Juda that were left, against Lachis, and against Azecha: for these remained of the cities of Juda, fenced cities.

8 The word that was maad of the Lord to Jeremye, aftir that kyng Sedechie smoot boond of pees with al the puple in Jerusalem,

The word that came to Jeremias from the Lord, after that king Sedecias had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem making a proclamation:

9 and prechide, that ech man schulde delyuere his seruaunt, and ech man his handmaide, an Ebreu man and an Ebru womman fre, and that thei schulden not be lordis of hem, that is, in a Jew, and her brothir.

That every man should let his manservant, and every man his maidservant, being a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, go free: and that they should not lord it over them, to wit, over the Jews their brethren.

10 Therfor alle the princes and al the puple herden, whiche maden couenaunt, that thei schulden delyuere ech man his seruaunt, and ech man his handmaide fre, and schulde no more be lordis of hem; therfor thei herden, and delyueriden;

And all the princes, and all the people who entered into the covenant, heard that every man should let his manservant, and every man his maidservant go free, and should no more have dominion over them: and they obeyed, and let them go free.

11 and thei weren turned aftirward, and drowen ayen her seruauntis, and handmaidis, whiche thei hadden left fre, and thei maden suget in to seruauntis, and in to seruauntessis.

But afterwards they turned: and brought back again their servants and their handmaids, whom they had let go free, and brought them into subjection as menservants and maidservants.

12 And the word of the Lord was maad of the Lord to Jeremye, and seide,

And the word of the Lord came to Jeremias from the Lord, saying:

13 The Lord God of Israel seith these thingis, Y smoot a boond of pees with youre fadris, in the dai in which Y ledde hem out of the lond of Egipt, out of the hous of seruage; and Y seide, Whanne seuene yeeris ben fillid,

Thus saith the Lord the God of Israel: I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, saying:

14 ech man delyuere his brother, an Ebreu man, which is seeld to hym, and he schal serue thee sixe yeer, and thou schalt delyuere hym fro thee; and youre fadris herden not me, nether bowiden her eere.

At the end of seven years, let ye go every man his brother being a Hebrew, who hath been sold to thee, so he shall serve thee six years: and thou shalt let him go free from thee: and your fathers did not hearken to me, nor did they incline their ear.

15 And ye ben conuertid to dai, and ye diden that, that is riytful bifore myn iyen, that ye precheden ech man fredom to his frend, and ye maden couenaunt in my siyt, in the hous wherynne my name is clepid to help on that fredom.

And you turned today, and did that which was right in my eyes, in proclaiming liberty every one to his brother: and you made a covenant in my sight, in the house upon which my name is invocated.

16 And ye turneden ayen, and defouliden my name, and ye brouyten ayen ech man his seruaunt, and ech man his handmaide, whiche ye delyueriden, that thei schulden be fre, and of her owne power; and ye maden hem suget, that thei be seruauntis and haundmaidis to you.

And you are fallen back, and have defiled my name: and you have brought back again every man his manservant, and every man his maidservant, whom you had let go free, and set at liberty: and you have brought them into subjection to be your servants and handmaids.

17 Therfor the Lord seith thes thingis, Ye herden not me, that ye prechiden fredom, ech man to his brothir, and ech man to his freend; lo! Y preeche to you fredom, seith the Lord, and to swerd, and to hungur, and to pestilence, and Y schal yyue you in to stiryng to alle rewmes of erthe.

Therefore thus saith the Lord: You have not hearkened to me, in proclaiming liberty every man to his brother and every man to his friend: behold I proclaim a liberty for you, saith the Lord, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine: and I will cause you to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth.

18 And Y schal yyue the men, that breken my boond of pees, and kepten not the wordis of boond of pees, to whiche thei assentiden in my siyt, and kepten not the calf, which thei kittiden in to twei partis; and the princes of Juda,

And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, and have not performed the words of the covenant which they agreed to in my presence, when they cut the calf in two and passed between the parts thereof:

19 and the princes of Jerusalem, and the onest seruauntis, and preestis yeden bytwixe the partyngis therof, and al the puple of the lond, that yeden bitwixe the departyngis of the calf;

The princes of Juda, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land that passed between the parts of the calf:

20 and Y schal yyue hem in to the hond of her enemyes, and in to the hond of hem that seken her lijf; and the deed careyn of hem schal be in to mete to the volatilis of the eir, and to the beestis of erthe.

And I will give them into the hands of their enemies, and into the hands of them that seek their life: and their dead bodies shall be for meat to the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the earth.

21 And Y schal yyue Sedechie, the kyng of Juda, and hise princes, in to the hond of her enemyes, and in to the hond of hem that seken her lijf, and in to the hond of the oostis of the kyng of Babiloyne, that yeden awei fro you.

And Sedecias the king of Juda, and his princes, I will give into the hands of their enemies, and into the hands of them that seek their lives, and into the hands of the armies of the king of Babylon, which are gone from you.

22 Lo! Y comaunde, seith the Lord, and Y schal brynge hem ayen in to this citee, and thei schulen fiyte ayens it, and schulen take it, and schulen brenne it with fier; and Y schal yyue the citees of Juda in to wildirnesse, for ther is no dwellere.

Behold I will command, saith the Lord, and I will bring them again to this city, and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire: and I will make the cities of Juda a desolation, without an inhabitant.