Jeremiah 12
1 Righteous [art] Thou, O Jehovah, When I plead towards thee, Only, judgments do I speak with Thee, Wherefore did the way of the wicked prosper? At rest have been all treacherous dealers.
Forsothe, Lord, thou art iust; if Y dispute with thee, netheles Y schal speke iust thingis to thee. Whi hath the weie of wickid men prosperite? It is wel to alle men that breken the lawe, and doen wickidli?
2 Thou hast planted them, yea, they have taken root, They go on, yea, they have made fruit, Near [art] Thou in their mouth, And far off from their reins.
Thou hast plauntid hem, and thei senten roote; thei encreessen, and maken fruyt; thou art niy to the mouth of hem, and fer fro the reynes of hem.
3 And Thou, O Jehovah, Thou hast known me, Thou seest me, and hast tried my heart with Thee, Draw them away as sheep to slaughter, And separate them for a day of slaughter.
And thou, Lord, hast knowe me, thou hast seyn me, and hast preued myn herte with thee. Gadere thou hem togidere as a flok to slayn sacrifice, and halewe thou hem in the dai of sleyng.
4 Till when doth the earth mourn, And the herb of the whole field wither? For the wickedness of those dwelling in it, Consumed have been beast and fowl, Because they said, 'He doth not see our latter end.'
Hou long schal the erthe mourne, and ech eerbe of the feeld schal be dried, for the malice of hem that dwellen ther ynne? A beeste is wastid, and a brid, for thei seiden, The Lord schal not se oure laste thingis.
5 For — with footmen thou hast run, And they weary thee, And how dost thou fret thyself with horses! Even in the land of peace, [In which] thou art confident — And how dost thou in the rising of Jordan!
If thou trauelist rennynge with foot men, hou schalt thou mow stryue with horsis? but whanne thou art sikur in the lond of pees, what schalt thou do in the pride of Jordan?
6 For even thy brethren and the house of thy father, Even they dealt treacherously against thee, Even they — they called after thee fully, Trust not in them, when they speak to thee good things.
For whi bothe thi britheren and the hous of thi fadir, yhe, thei fouyten ayens thee, and crieden with ful vois aftir thee; bileue thou not to hem, whanne thei speken goodis to thee.
7 I have forsaken My house, I have left Mine inheritance, I have given the beloved of My soul Into the hand of her enemies.
I haue left myn hous, Y haue forsake myn eritage; Y yaf my loued soule in to the hondis of enemyes therof.
8 Mine inheritance hath been to Me as a lion in a forest, She gave forth against Me with her voice, Therefore I have hated her.
Myn eritage is maad as a lioun in the wode to me; it yaf vois ayens me, therfor Y hate it.
9 A speckled fowl [is] Mine inheritance to Me? Is the fowl round about against her? Come, assemble, every beast of the field, Come ye for food.
Whether myn eritage is a brid of dyuerse colours to me? whether it is a brid died thorou out? Alle beestis of the feeld, come ye, be ye gaderid togidere; haste ye for to deuoure.
10 Many shepherds did destroy My vineyard, They have trodden down My portion, They have made My desirable portion Become a wilderness — a desolation.
Many scheepherdis distrieden my vyner, defouliden my part, yauen my desirable porcioun in to desert of wildirnesse;
11 He hath made it become a desolation, The desolation hath mourned unto Me, Desolated hath been all the land, But there is no one laying it to heart.
thei settiden it in to scateryng, and it mourenyde on me; al the lond is desolat bi desolacioun, for noon is that ayenthenkith in herte.
12 On all high places in the plain have spoilers come in, For the sword of Jehovah is consuming, From the end of the land even unto the end of the land, There is no peace to any flesh.
Alle distrieris of the lond camen on alle the weies of desert, for the swerd of the Lord schal deuoure fro the laste part of the lond `til to the laste part therof; no pees is to al fleisch.
13 They sowed wheat, and have thorns reaped, They have become sick — they profit not, And they have been ashamed of your increases, Because of the fierceness of the anger of Jehovah.
Thei sowiden wheete, and repiden thornes; thei token erytage, and it schal not profite to hem. Ye schulen be schent of youre fruytis, for the wraththe of the stronge veniaunce of the Lord.
14 Thus said Jehovah concerning all my evil neighbours, who are striking against the inheritance that I caused my people — Israel — to inherit: 'Lo, I am plucking them from off their ground, And the house of Judah I pluck out of their midst.
The Lord seith these thingis ayens alle my worst neiyboris, that touchen the eritage which Y departide to my puple Israel, Lo! Y schal drawe hem out of her lond, and Y schal drawe the hous of Juda out of the myddis of hem.
15 And it hath been, after My plucking them out, I turn back, and have pitied them, And I have brought them back, Each to his inheritance, and each to his land.
And whanne Y schal drawe out thilke Jewis, Y schal conuerte, and haue merci on hem; and Y schal lede hem ayen, a man to his eritage, and a man in to his lond.
16 And it hath come to pass, If they learn well the ways of My people, To swear by My name, 'Jehovah liveth,' As they taught My people to swear by Baal, Then they have been built up in the midst of My people.
And it schal be, if thei `that ben tauyt lernen the weies of my puple, that thei swere in my name, The Lord lyueth, as thei tauyten my puple to swere in Baal, thei schulen be bildid in the myddis of my puple.
17 And if they do not hearken, Then I have plucked up that nation, Plucking up and destroying, An affirmation of Jehovah!'
That if thei heren not, Y schal drawe out that folk by drawyng out and perdicioun, seith the Lord.
