Zephaniah 3
1 Wo! thou citee, terrere to wraththe, and bouyt ayen a culuer.
Sorrow to her who is uncontrolled and unclean, the cruel town!
2 It herde not the vois of the Lord, and resseyuede not techyng, ether chastisyng; it tristenyde not in the Lord, it neiyide not to her God.
She gave no attention to the voice, she had no use for teaching, she put no faith in the Lord, she did not come near to her God.
3 Princes therof in myddil therof weren as liouns rorynge; iugis therof weren wolues, in the euentid thei leften not in to morewe.
Her rulers are like loud-voiced lions in her; her judges are wolves of the evening, crushing up the bones before the morning.
4 Profetis therof weren woode, vnfeithful men; prestis therof defouliden hooli thing, thei diden vniustli ayens the lawe.
Her prophets are good-for-nothing persons, full of deceit: her priests have made the holy place unclean and have gone violently against the law.
5 The Lord iust in the myddil therof, schal not do wickidnesse; erli, erli he schal yyue his dom in liyt, and it schal not be hid; forsothe the wickid puple knew not confusioun.
The Lord in her is upright; he will not do evil; every morning he lets his righteousness be seen, he is unchanging; but the evil-doer has no sense of shame.
6 Y loste folkis, and the corneris of hem ben distried; Y made the weies of hem desert, while there is not that schal passe. The citees of hem ben desolat, for a man is not left, nether ony dwellere.
I have had the nations cut off, their towers are broken down; I have made their streets a waste so that no one goes through them: destruction has overtaken their towns, so that there is no man living in them.
7 Y seide, Netheles thou schalt drede me, thou schalt resseyue techyng; and the dwellyng place therof schal not perische, for alle thingis in whiche Y visitide it; netheles ful eerli thei risynge han corrupt alle her thouytis.
I said, Certainly you will go in fear of me, and come under my training, so that whatever I may send on her may not be cut off before her eyes: but they got up early and made all their works evil.
8 Wherfor abide thou me, seith the Lord, in the dai of my rysyng ayen in to comynge. For my doom is, that Y gadere folkis, and Y schal gadere rewmes; and Y schal schede out on hem myn indignacioun, and al wraththe of my strong veniaunce; for in fier of my feruour al erthe schal be deuourid.
For this reason, go on waiting for me, says the Lord, till the day when I come up as a witness: for my purpose is to send for the nations and to get the kingdoms together, so that I may let loose on them my passion, even all my burning wrath: for all the earth will be burned up in the fire of my bitter passion.
9 For thanne Y schal yelde to puplis a chosun lippe, that alle clepe inwardli in the name of the Lord, and serue to hym with o schuldre.
For then I will give the people a clean language, so that they may all make prayer to the Lord and be his servants with one mind.
10 Ouer the floodis of Ethiopie, fro thens my bisecheris, the sones of my scaterid men, schulen brynge yifte to me.
From over the rivers of Ethiopia, and from the sides of the north, they will come to me with an offering.
11 In that day thou schalt not be confoundid on alle thi fyndyngis, in whiche thou trespassidist ayens me; for thanne Y schal take awei fro the myddil of thee grete spekeris of thi pride, and thou schalt no more put to, for to be enhaunsid in myn hooli hil.
In that day you will have no shame on account of all the things in which you did evil against me: for then I will take away from among you those who were lifted up in pride, and you will no longer be lifted up with pride in my holy mountain.
12 And Y schal leeue in the myddil of thee a pore puple and nedi; and thei schulen hope in the name of the Lord.
But I will still have among you a quiet and poor people, and they will put their faith in the name of the Lord.
13 The relifs of Israel schulen not do wickidnesse, nether schulen speke leesyng, and a gileful tunge schal not be foundun in the mouth of hem; for thei schulen be fed, and schulen reste, and ther schal not be that schal make aferd.
The rest of Israel will do no evil and say no false words; the tongue of deceit will not be seen in their mouth: for they will take their food and their rest, and no one will be a cause of fear to them.
14 These thingis seith the Lord, Douyter of Sion, herie thou hertli, synge thou, Israel; be thou glad, and make thou ioie withoutforth in al thin herte, thou douyter of Jerusalem.
Make melody, O daughter of Zion; give a loud cry, O Israel; be glad and let your heart be full of joy, O daughter of Jerusalem.
15 The Lord hath take a wei thi dom, hath turned a wey thin enemyes; the kyng of Israel the Lord is in myddil of thee, thou schalt no more drede yuel.
The Lord has taken away those who were judging you, he has sent your haters far away: the King of Israel, even the Lord, is among you: you will have no more fear of evil.
16 In that dai it schal be seid, Jerusalem, nyle thou drede; Sion, thin hondis be not clumsid.
In that day it will be said to Jerusalem, Have no fear: O Zion, let not your hands be feeble.
17 Thi Lord God is strong in the myddil of thee, he schal saue; he schal make ioie on thee in gladnesse, he schal be stille in thi louyng, he schal make ioie withoutforth on thee in heriyng.
The Lord your God is among you, as a strong saviour: he will be glad over you with joy, he will make his love new again, he will make a song of joy over you as in the time of a holy feast.
18 Y schal gadere the foolis, ether veyn men, that wenten awei fro the lawe, for thei weren of thee, that thou haue no more schenschipe on hem.
I will take away your troubles, lifting up your shame from off you.
19 Lo! Y schal sle alle men that turmentiden thee in that tyme, and Y schal saue him that haltith, and Y schal gadere hir that was cast out; and Y schal putte hem in to heriyng, and in to name in ech lond of confusioun of hem, in that tyme in which Y schal brynge you,
See, at that time I will put an end to all who have been troubling you: I will give salvation to her whose steps are uncertain, and get together her who has been sent in flight; and I will make them a cause of praise and an honoured name in all the earth, when I let their fate be changed.
20 and in the tyme in which Y schal gadre you. For Y schal yyue you in to name, and in to heriyng to alle puplis of erthe, whanne Y schal conuerte youre caitifte bifore youre iyen, seith the Lord.
At that time I will make you come in, at that time I will get you together: for I will make you a name and a praise among all the peoples of the earth when I let your fate be changed before your eyes, says the Lord.
