Jeremiah 42

¹And alle the princes of werriours neiyiden, and Johannan, the sone of Caree, and Jeconye, the sone of Josie, and the residue comyn puple, fro a litil man `til to a greet man.

²And thei seiden to Jeremye, the profete, Oure preier falle in thi siyt, and preie thou for vs to thi Lord God, for alle these remenauntis; for we ben left a fewe of manye, as thin iyen biholden vs; and thi Lord God telle to vs the weie,

³bi which we schulen go, and the word which we schulen do.

⁴Forsothe Jeremye, the profete, seide to hem, Y haue herd; lo! Y preye to oure Lord God, bi youre wordis; Y schal schewe to you ech word, what euere word the Lord schal answere to me, nether Y schal hide ony thing fro you.

⁵And thei seiden to Jeremye, The Lord be witnesse of treuthe and of feith bitwixe vs; if not bi ech word, in which thi Lord God schal sende thee to vs, so we schulen do, whether it be good ether yuel.

⁶We schulen obeie to the vois of oure Lord God, to whom we senden thee, that it be wel to vs, whanne we han herd the vois of oure Lord God.

⁷Forsothe whanne ten daies weren fillid, the word of the Lord was maad to Jeremye.

⁸And he clepide Johannan, the sone of Caree, and alle the princes of werriours, that weren with hym, and al the puple fro the leste `til to the mooste; and he seide to hem,

⁹The Lord God of Israel seith these thingis, to whom ye senten me, that Y schulde mekeli sette forth youre preyeris in his siyt.

¹⁰If ye resten, and dwellen in this lond, Y schal bilde you, and Y schal not distrie; Y schal plaunte, and Y schal not drawe out; for now Y am plesid on the yuel which Y dide to you.

¹¹Nyle ye drede of the face of the kyng of Babiloyne, whom ye `that ben ferdful, dreden; nyle ye drede hym, seith the Lord, for Y am with you, to make you saaf, and to delyuere fro his hond.

¹²And Y schal yyue mercies to you, and Y schal haue merci on you, and Y schal make you dwelle in youre lond.

¹³Forsothe if ye seien, We schulen not dwelle in this lond, nether we schulen here the vois of oure Lord God, and seie,

¹⁴Nai, but we schulen go to the lond of Egipt, where we schulen not se batel, and schulen not here the noise of trumpe, and we schulen not suffre hungur, and there we schulen dwelle;

¹⁵for this thing, ye remenauntis of Juda, here now the word of the Lord. The Lord of oostis, God of Israel, seith these thingis, If ye setten youre face, for to entre in to Egipt, and if ye entren,

¹⁶to dwelle there, the swerd whiche ye dreden schal take you there in the lond of Egipt, and the hungur for which ye ben angwischid schal cleue to you in Egipt; and there ye schulen die.

¹⁷And alle the men that settiden her face, to entre in to Egipt, and to dwelle there, schulen die bi swerd, and hungur, and pestilence; no man of hem schal dwelle stille, nether schal aschape fro the face of yuel, which Y schal brynge on hem.

¹⁸For why the Lord of oostis, God of Israel, seith these thingis, As my strong veniaunce and myn indignacioun is wellid togidere on the dwelleris of Jerusalem, so myn indignacioun schal be wellid togidere on you, whanne ye han entrid in to Egipt; and ye schulen be in to sweryng, and in to wondring, and in to cursyng, and in to schenschipe; and ye schulen no more se this place.

¹⁹The word of the Lord is on you, ye remenauntis of Juda; nyle ye entre in to Egipt; ye witinge schulen wite, that Y haue witnessid to you to dai;

²⁰for ye han disseyued youre soulis, for ye senten me to youre Lord God, and seiden, Preye thou for vs to oure Lord God, and bi alle thingis what euer thingis oure Lord schal seie to thee, so telle thou to vs, and we schulen do.

²¹And Y telde to you to dai, and ye herden not the vois of youre Lord God, on alle thingis for whiche he sente me to you.

²²Now therfor ye witynge schulen wite, for ye schulen die bi swerd, and hungur, and pestilence, in the place to which ye wolden entre, to dwelle there.

Jeremiah 42

¹Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even unto the greatest, came near,

²And said unto Jeremiah the prophet, Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the Lord thy God, even for all this remnant; (for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us:)

³That the Lord thy God may shew us the way wherein we may walk, and the thing that we may do.

⁴Then Jeremiah the prophet said unto them, I have heard you; behold, I will pray unto the Lord your God according to your words; and it shall come to pass, that whatsoever thing the Lord shall answer you, I will declare it unto you; I will keep nothing back from you.

⁵Then they said to Jeremiah, The Lord be a true and faithful witness between us, if we do not even according to all things for the which the Lord thy God shall send thee to us.

⁶Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God, to whom we send thee; that it may be well with us, when we obey the voice of the Lord our God.

⁷And it came to pass after ten days, that the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah.

⁸Then called he Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces which were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest,

⁹And said unto them, Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, unto whom ye sent me to present your supplication before him;

¹⁰If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up: for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you.

¹¹Be not afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom ye are afraid; be not afraid of him, saith the Lord: for I am with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand.

¹²And I will shew mercies unto you, that he may have mercy upon you, and cause you to return to your own land.

¹³But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, neither obey the voice of the Lord your God,

¹⁴Saying, No; but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor have hunger of bread; and there will we dwell:

¹⁵And now therefore hear the word of the Lord, ye remnant of Judah; Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to sojourn there;

¹⁶Then it shall come to pass, that the sword, which ye feared, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye were afraid, shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there ye shall die.

¹⁷So shall it be with all the men that set their faces to go into Egypt to sojourn there; they shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: and none of them shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring upon them.

¹⁸For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; As mine anger and my fury hath been poured forth upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem; so shall my fury be poured forth upon you, when ye shall enter into Egypt: and ye shall be an execration, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach; and ye shall see this place no more.

¹⁹The Lord hath said concerning you, O ye remnant of Judah; Go ye not into Egypt: know certainly that I have admonished you this day.

²⁰For ye dissembled in your hearts, when ye sent me unto the Lord your God, saying, Pray for us unto the Lord our God; and according unto all that the Lord our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it.

²¹And now I have this day declared it to you; but ye have not obeyed the voice of the Lord your God, nor any thing for the which he hath sent me unto you.

²²Now therefore know certainly that ye shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place whither ye desire to go and to sojourn.