Micah 7
1 Wo to me, for Y am maad as he that gaderith in heruest rasyns of grapis; there is no clustre for to ete; my soule desiride figis ripe bifore othere.
I am very miserable/frustrated! I am like [SIM] someone who is hungry, [who searches for fruit to pick] after all the fruit had been picked and who finds no grapes or figs to eat.
2 The hooli perischide fro erthe, and riytful is not in men; alle aspien, ether setten tresoun, in blood, a man huntith his brother to deth.
[All] the godly people have disappeared from this land; there is not one of them left. [The people who are left] are all murderers [MTY]; [it is as though] everyone is eager to kill his fellow countryman.
3 The yuel of her hondis thei seien good; the prince axith, and the domesman is in yeldyng; and a greet man spak the desir of his soule, and thei sturbliden togidere it.
They [all] use both hands to do what is evil. [Government] officials and judges [all] ask for bribes. Important people tell others what they want, and they plot/scheme together [about how to get it done].
4 He that is best in hem, is as a paluyre; and he that is riytful, is as a thorn of hegge. The dai of thi biholdyng, thi visityng cometh, now schal be distriyng of hem.
[Even] the best people are [as worthless] [SIM] as briers; the people [who are considered by others to be] [IRO] the most honest are worse than clumps of thornbushes. But, [Yahweh] will soon judge them; now is the time that he will punish people, a time when they will be [very] confused [because of being defeated].
5 Nyle ye bileue to a frend, and nyle ye truste in a duyk; fro hir that slepith in thi bosum, kepe thou closyngis of thi mouth.
[So], do not trust anyone! Do not trust [even] a friend; [even] be careful what you say to your wife whom you love!
6 For the sone doith wrong to the fadir, and the douyter schal rise ayens hir modir, and the wijf of the sone ayens the modir of hir hosebonde; the enemyes of a man ben the homeli, ether houshold meynee, of hym.
Boys will despise their fathers, and girls will defy their mothers. Women will defy their mothers-in-law. Your enemies will be those who live in your own houses.
7 Forsothe Y schal biholde to the Lord, Y schal abide God my sauyour; the Lord my God schal here me.
As for me, I wait for Yahweh [to help me]. I confidently expect that God, my Savior, will answer me [when I pray].
8 Thou, myn enemye, be not glad on me, for Y felle doun, Y schal rise; whanne Y sitte in derknessis, the Lord is my liyt.
You who are our enemies, do not gloat/rejoice about [what has happened to] us, [because even] if we have experienced disasters, [those disasters will end and] we will be restored. [Even] if [it is as though] we are sitting in the darkness, Yahweh will be our light.
9 Y schal bere wraththe of the Lord, for Y haue synned to hym, til he deme my cause, and make my doom; he schal lede out me in to liyt, Y schal se riytwisnesse of hym.
We must be patient while Yahweh punishes us because we have sinned against him. But later, [it will be as though] he will go to court and defend us, and he will make sure that the judge makes a right decision about us. [It will be as though] he will bring us out into the light, and we will see it when he rescues us.
10 And myn enemye schal biholde me, and sche schal be hilid with confusioun, which seith to me, Where is thi Lord God? Myn iyen schulen se hir, now sche schal be in to defoulyng, as clei of stretis.
Our enemies will [also] see that, and they will be disgraced because they [ridiculed us], saying “Why is [RHQ] Yahweh, that God of yours, [not helping you]?” But with our own eyes we will see them when they are defeated; we will see them trampled like [SIM] mud in the streets.
11 Dai schal come, that thi wallis be bildid; in that dai lawe schal be maad afer.
[You people of Israel, ] at that time your cities will be rebuilt, and your territory will become larger.
12 In that dai and Assur schal come til to thee, and `til to stronge citees, and fro stronge citees til to flood; and to see fro see, and to hil fro hil.
[People from many countries will come to honor you]: people from Assyria and from [near] the [Euphrates] River [in the east] and from Egypt [in the south], from distant seas, and from many mountains.
13 And erthe schal be in to desolacioun for her dwelleris, and for fruyt of the thouytis of hem.
But [the other countries on] the earth will become desolate because of the [evil] things that their people have done.
14 Fede thou thi puple in thi yerde, the floc of thin eritage, that dwellen aloone in wielde wode; in the myddil of Carmel thei schulen be fed of Basan and of Galaad,
Yahweh, protect your people like [MET] [a shepherd protects his sheep] by using his walking stick; lead your people [MET] whom you have chosen to belong to you. [Even though some of them] live by themselves in a forest, give them the fertile pastureland in the Bashan and Gilead [regions] that they possessed long ago.
15 bi elde daies, bi daies of thi goyng out of the lond of Egipt. Y schal schewe to hym wondurful thingis;
[Yahweh says/replies], “[Yes], I will perform miracles for you like the miracles that I performed when I rescued your [ancestors] from [being slaves in] Egypt.”
16 hethene men schulen se, and thei schulen be confoundid on al her strengthe; thei schulen putte hondis on her mouth, the eris of hem schulen be deef;
[People from many] nations will see [what Yahweh does for you], and they will be ashamed because they do not have any power. They will put their hands over their mouths and their ears [because they will be very amazed because of what Yahweh does], [and they will not be able to say anything or hear anything].
17 thei schulen licke dust as a serpent; as crepynge thingis of erthe thei schulen be disturblid of her housis; thei schulen not desire oure Lord God, and thei schulen drede thee.
[Being very humiliated, ] they will crawl on the ground [MTY] like [SIM] snakes. They will come out of their homes trembling, and stand revering Yahweh our God. They will be very afraid of him, and will tremble in front of him.
18 God, who is lijk thee, that doist awei wickidnesse, and berist ouer the synne of relifs of thin eritage? He shal no more sende in his stronge veniaunce, for he is willynge merci; he schal turne ayen,
[Yahweh], there is no [RHQ] God like you; you forgive the sins [DOU] that were committed by the people who have survived, the people who belong to you. You do not remain angry forever; you are very happy [to show us] that you faithfully love [us].
19 and haue merci on vs. He schal put doun oure wickidnessis, and schal caste fer in to depnesse of the see alle oure synnes.
You will again act kindly/compassionately toward us. You will get rid of [the scroll on which you have written] the sins that we have committed [as though you were] trampling it under your feet or throwing it into the deep ocean.
20 Thou schalt yyue treuthe to Jacob, merci to Abraham, whiche thou sworist to oure fadris fro elde daies.
You will show that you faithfully [do what you promised for us] and faithfully love us, just like you solemnly promised long ago to our ancestors Abraham and Jacob that you would do.
