< Numbers 19 >

1 And the Lord spak to Moises and to Aaron,
Yahweh said to Aaron and Moses/me,
2 and seide, This is the religioun of sacrifice, which the Lord ordeynede. Comaunde thou to the sones of Israel, that thei brynge to thee a reed cow of hool age, in which is no wem, nether sche hath bore yok.
“I am now giving to you another regulation. Tell the Israeli people to bring to you one reddish-brown cow that has no defects. It must be an animal that (has never been/no one has ever) used for plowing ground.
3 And ye schulen bitake hir to Eleazar, preest, which schal offre `the cow, led out of the tentis, in the siyt of alle men.
Give it to Eleazar, the priest. He must take it outside the camp and slaughter it [and drain the blood in a basin].
4 And he schal dippe his fyngur in the blood therof, and schal sprynge seuene sithis ayens the yatis of the tabernacle.
He must dip one of his fingers in the blood and sprinkle some of it seven times [on the ground] near the Sacred Tent.
5 And he schal brenne that cow, while alle men sien; and he schal yyue as wel the skyn and fleischis therof as the blood and dung to flawme.
Then, while Eleazar watches, the cow must be burned completely—its hide, its meat, [the rest of] its blood, and even its dung.
6 Also the preest schal `sende a tre of cedre, and ysope, and reed threed died twies, into the flawme that deuourith the cow.
Eliezer then must take a stick of cedar wood, a stalk of [a plant named] hyssop, and some scarlet/red yarn, and throw them into the fire where the cow is burning.
7 And thanne at the laste, whanne hise clothis `and bodi ben waischun, he schal entre in to the tentis, and he schal be defoulid `til to euentid.
“Then the priest must wash his clothes and bathe. After doing that, he may return to the camp. But he will be unfit for doing any sacred work until that evening.
8 But also he that brente the cow, schal waische hise clothis, and bodi, and he schal be vncleene `til to euentid.
The man who burns the cow must also wash his clothes and bathe, and he will also be unacceptable to me until that evening.
9 Forsothe a cleene man schal gadere the aischis of the cow, and schal schede out tho with out the tentis, in a place moost cleene, that tho be to the multitude of the sones of Israel in to keping, and in to watir of spryngyng; for the cow is brent for synne.
“Then someone who has not become unacceptable to me must gather up the ashes of the cow and put them in a (sacred place/place that is acceptable to me) outside the camp. The ashes must be kept there for the people of Israel to [use when they] mix it with water for the ritual to remove the guilt of sin.
10 And whanne he that bar the aischis of the cow, hath waische hise clothis, he schal be vncleene `til to euentid. And the sones of Israel, and comelyngis that dwellen among hem, schulen haue this hooli bi euerlastynge lawe.
The man who gathers up the ashes of the cow must [also] wash his clothes, and he [also] will be unfit to do any more sacred work until that evening. That is a regulation that will never be changed. It must be obeyed by you Israeli people and by any foreigners who live among you.
11 He that touchith a deed bodi of man, and is vncleene for this bi seuene daies,
“All those who touch a corpse will be unacceptable to me for seven days.
12 schal be spreynt of this watir in the thridde, and in the seuenthe dai; and so he schal be clensid. If he is not spreynt in the thridde dai, he schal not mow be clensid in the seuenthe dai.
On the third day and on the seventh day [after touching a corpse], in order to become acceptable to me again, [they must have sprinkled on them] some of that water for removing the guilt of their sin. If they do not do that on both of those days, they will continue to be unacceptable to me.
13 Ech that touchith the deed bodi bi it silf of mannus soule, and is not spreynt with this medlyng, defoulith the `tabernacle of the Lord, and he schal perische fro Israel; for he is not spreynt with the wateris of clensyng, he schal be vncleene, and his filthe schal dwelle on hym.
All those who touch a corpse, and do not perform in the correct way the ritual to become acceptable to me again, defile Yahweh’s Sacred Tent. They will no longer be permitted to live among the Israeli people. The water to remove the guilt of sin was not sprinkled on them, so they continue to be unacceptable to me.
14 This is the lawe of a man that dieth in the tabernacle; alle that entren in to his tente, and alle vessels that ben there, schulen be defoulid bi seuene daies.
“There is another ritual that must be performed when someone dies inside a tent. All those who were inside that tent when that person died or who enter that tent will be unacceptable to me for seven days.
15 A vessel that hath not an hilyng, nethir a byndyng aboue, schal be vncleene.
Any jars that are inside that tent that are not covered are not permitted to be used.
16 If ony man touchith the deed bodi of man slayn in the feeld, ether deed bi hym silf, ether a boon, ether the sepulcre `of hym, he schal be vncleene bi seuene daies.
If someone who is out in a field touches the corpse of someone who was murdered, or who died from natural causes, or if someone touches a bone from some human or touches a grave, that person will be unacceptable to me for seven days.
17 And thei schulen take `of the aischis of the brennyng, and of the synne, and thei schulen sende quyk watris in to a vessel on tho aischis;
“For someone like that to become acceptable to me again, some of the ashes from [the cow] that was burned must be taken and put in a jar. Then some fresh water must be poured over the ashes.
18 in whiche whanne `a cleene man hath dippid ysope, he schal spreynge therof the tente, and al the purtenaunce of howshold, and men defoulid bi sich defoulyng.
Then someone who is still acceptable to me must take a stalk of [a plant named] hyssop and dip it into the water. Then that person must sprinkle some of the water on the tent where that person died, on the things that are in the tent, and on the people who were in the tent. He must also sprinkle some of that water on any person who touched a human bone or who touched a person who died, or who touched a grave.
19 And in this maner a cleene man schal clense an vncleene, in the thridde and in the seuenthe dai; and he schal be clensid in the seuenthe dai. And he schal waische hym silf, and hise clothis, and he schal be vncleene `til to euentid.
On the third day and on the seventh day after that, the person who is acceptable to me must sprinkle some of that water on those who have become unacceptable to me. On the seventh day, the people who are performing that ritual to become acceptable to me again must wash their clothes and bathe. If they do that, on that evening they will become acceptable to me again.
20 If ony man is not clensid bi this custom, the soule of hym schal perische fro the myddis of the chirche; for he defoulith the `seyntuarie of the Lord, and is not spreynt with the watir of clensyng.
“If those who have become unacceptable to me do not become acceptable to me again by doing this, they will no longer be permitted to live among the Israeli people, because they have defiled my Sacred Tent. They did not sprinkle on themselves the water that removes the guilt of their sins, so they remain unacceptable to me.
21 This comaundement schal be a lawful thing euerlastynge. Also he that schal sprenge the watris schal waische his clothis; ech man that touchith the watris of clensyng, schal be vncleene `til to euentid.
That is a law for the Israeli people that will never be changed. Those who sprinkle that water on themselves must then wash their clothes. And anyone who touches that water which removes guilt for sins will remain unacceptable to God until that evening.
22 What euer thing an vncleene man touchith, he schal make it vncleene; and a soule that touchith ony of these thingis `defoulid so, schal be vncleene `til to euentid.
“If someone touches a thing or a person that has become unacceptable to me, that person will remain unacceptable to me until that evening.”

< Numbers 19 >