Jeremiah 6
1 Sones of Beniamyn, be ye coumfortid in the myddil of Jerusalem, and make ye noise with a clarioun in Thecua, and reise ye a baner on Bethecarem; for whi yuel and greet sorewe is seyn fro the north.
Go in flight out of Jerusalem, so that you may be safe, you children of Benjamin, and let the horn be sounded in Tekoa, and the flag be lifted up on Beth-haccherem: for evil is looking out from the north, and a great destruction.
2 Y haue licned the douytir of Sion to a fair womman and delicat.
The fair and delicate one, the daughter of Zion, will be cut off by my hand.
3 Scheepherdis and her flockis schulen come to it; thei han piyt tentis in it in cumpas; ech man schal feede hem, that ben vndur his hond.
Keepers of sheep with their flocks will come to her; they will put up their tents round her; everyone will get food in his place.
4 Halewe ye batel on it. Rise ye togidire, and stie we in myddai. Wo to vs, for the dai is bowid doun, for shadewis ben maad lengere in the euentid.
Make war ready against her; up! let us go up when the sun is high. Sorrow is ours! for the day is turned and the shades of evening are stretched out.
5 Rise ye, and stie we in the niyt, and distry we the housis therof.
Up! let us go up by night, and send destruction on her great houses.
6 For the Lord of oostis seith these thingis, Kitte ye doun the tre therof, and schede ye erthe aboute Jerusalem; this is the citee of visitacioun; al fals caleng is in the myddis therof.
For this is what the Lord of armies has said: Let trees be cut down and an earthwork be placed against Jerusalem: sorrow on the false town! inside her there is nothing but cruel ways.
7 As a cisterne makith his water coold, so it made his malice coold; wickidnesse and distriyng schal euer be herd ther ynne bifore me, sikenesse and wounde.
As the spring keeps its waters cold, so she keeps her evil in her: the sound of cruel and violent behaviour is in her; before me at all times are disease and wounds.
8 Jerusalem, be thou tauyt, lest perauenture my soule go awei fro thee; lest perauenture Y sette thee forsakun, a loond vnhabitable.
Undergo teaching, O Jerusalem, or my soul will be turned away from you, and I will make you a waste, an unpeopled land.
9 The Lord of oostis seith these thingis, Thei schulen gadere til to a racyn, thei schulen gadere the remenauntis of Israel as in a vyner; turne thin hond, as a gaderer of grapis to the bascat.
This is what the Lord of armies has said: Everything will be taken from the rest of Israel as the last grapes are taken from the vine; let your hand be turned to the small branches, like one pulling off grapes.
10 To whom schal Y speke, and to whom schal Y seie witnessing, that he here? Lo! the eeris of hem ben vncircumcidid, and thei moun not here; lo! the word of the Lord is maad to hem in to dispit, and thei schulen not resseiue it.
To whom am I to give word, witnessing so that they may take note? see, their ears are stopped, and they are not able to give attention: see, the word of the Lord has been a cause of shame to them, they have no delight in it.
11 Therfor Y am ful of the strong veniaunce of the Lord, and Y trauelide suffrynge. Schede thou out on a litil child with outforth, and on the counsel of yonge men togidere; for a man with his wijf schal be takun, and an eeld man with him that is ful of daies.
For this reason I am full of the wrath of the Lord, I am tired of keeping it in: may it be let loose on the children in the street, and on the band of the young men together: for even the husband with his wife will be taken, the old man with him who is full of days.
12 And the housis of hem, the feeldis and wyues togidere, schulen go to othere men; for Y schal stretche forth myn hond on the dwelleris of the lond, seith the Lord.
And their houses will be handed over to others, their fields and their wives together: for my hand will be stretched out against the people of the land, says the Lord.
13 For fro the lesse `til to the grettere, alle studien to auerise; and alle doon gile, fro the profete `til to the preest.
For from the least of them even to the greatest, everyone is given up to getting money; from the prophet even to the priest, everyone is working deceit.
14 And thei heeliden the sorewe of the douyter of my puple with yuel fame, seiynge, Pees, pees, and no pees was.
And they have made little of the wounds of my people, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
15 Thei ben schent, that diden abhomynacioun; yhe, rathere thei weren not schent bi confusioun, and thei kouden not be aschamed. Wherfor thei schulen falle doun among hem that schulen falle doun; thei schulen falle doun in the tyme of her visitacioun, seith the Lord.
Let them be put to shame because they have done disgusting things. They had no shame, they were not able to become red with shame: so they will come down with those who are falling: when my punishment comes on them, they will be made low, says the Lord.
16 The Lord seith these thingis, Stonde ye on weies, and se ye, and axe ye of elde pathis, which is the good weie; and go ye ther ynne, and ye schulen fynde refreischyng to youre soulis. And thei seiden, We schulen not go.
This is what the Lord has said: Take your place looking out on the ways; make search for the old roads, saying, Where is the good way? and go in it that you may have rest for your souls. But they said, We will not go in it.
17 And Y ordeynede aspieris on you, and Y seide, Here ye the vois of a trumpe. And thei seiden, We schulen not here.
And I put watchmen over you, saying, Give attention to the sound of the horn; but they said, We will not give attention.
18 Therfor, hethene men, here ye, and, thou congregacioun, knowe, hou grete thingis Y schal do to hem.
So then, give ear, you nations, and ...
19 Thou erthe, here, lo! Y schal brynge yuels on this puple, the fruit of her thouytis; for thei herden not my wordis, and castiden awei my lawe.
Give ear, O earth: see, I will make evil come on this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not given attention to my words, and they would have nothing to do with my law.
20 Wherto bryngen ye to me encense fro Saba, and a tre of spicerie smellynge swetli fro a fer lond? Youre brent sacrifices ben not acceptid, and youre slayn sacrifices plesiden not me.
To what purpose does sweet perfume come to me from Sheba, and spices from a far country? your burned offerings give me no pleasure, your offerings of beasts are not pleasing to me.
21 Therfor the Lord God seith these thingis, Lo! Y schal yyue fallyngis in to this puple, and fadris and sones togidere, a neiybore and kynesman, schulen falle in hem, and schulen perische.
For this reason the Lord has said, See, I will put stones in the way of this people: and the fathers and the sons together will go falling over them; the neighbour and his friend will come to destruction.
22 The Lord God seith these thingis, Lo! a puple cometh fro the lond of the north, and a greet folk schal rise togidere fro the endis of erthe.
The Lord has said, See, a people is coming from the north country, a great nation will be put in motion from the inmost parts of the earth.
23 It schal take an arowe and scheld; it is cruel, and schal not haue merci; the vois therof schal sowne as the see, and thei maad redi as a man to batel schulen stie on horsis ayens thee, thou douyter of Sion.
Bows and spears are in their hands; they are cruel and have no mercy; their voice is like the thunder of the sea, and they go on horses; everyone in his place like men going to the fight, against you, O daughter of Zion.
24 We herden the fame therof, oure hondis ben `a clumsid; tribulacioun hath take vs, sorewis han take vs as a womman trauelinge of child.
The news of it has come to our ears; our hands have become feeble: trouble has come on us and pain, like the pain of a woman in childbirth.
25 Nyle ye go out to the feeldis, and go ye not in the weie, for the swerd of the enemye, drede in cumpas.
Go not out into the field or by the way; for there is the sword of the attacker, and fear on every side.
26 The douytir of my puple, be thou gird with heire, and be thou spreynt togidere with aische; make to thee mourenyng of oon aloone gendrid sone, a bitter weilyng, for whi a wastere schal come sodenli on you.
O daughter of my people, put on haircloth, rolling yourself in the dust: give yourself to sorrow, as for an only son, with most bitter cries of grief; for he who makes waste will come on us suddenly.
27 I yaf thee a strong preuere in my puple, and thou schalt knowe, and preue the weie of hem.
I have made you a tester among my people, so that you may have knowledge of their way and put it to the test.
28 Alle these princis bowynge awei, goynge gilefuli, ben metal and irun; alle ben corrupt.
All of them are turned away, going about with false stories; they are brass and iron: they are all workers of deceit.
29 The belu failide, leed is waastid in the fier, the wellere wellide in veyn; for the malices of hem ben not wastid.
The blower is blowing strongly, the lead is burned away in the fire: they go on heating the metal to no purpose, for the evil-doers are not taken away.
30 Clepe ye hem repreuable siluer, for the Lord hath cast hem awei.
They will be named waste silver, because the Lord has given them up.
