The Holy Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments, with the Apocryphal books,

CAP. XLIV.

[verse 1] And now here thou, Jacob, my ser|uaunt, and Irael, whom I ches. [verse 2] These thingus seith the Lord, makende and foormende thee fro the woombe, thin helpere, Wile thou not [Om. C pr. m.] drede, my ser|uaunt Jacob, and thou most riȝt, whom I ches. [verse 3] I shal heelden out forsothe [Om. A.] wa|tris vp on the threstende, and flowingus vp on the drie; I shall heelden out my spirit vp on thi sed, and my blessing vp on thi stoc. [verse 4] And buriowne thei shuln among erbes, as withies, `or salewis [Om. CE pr. m.] , bisyde the syde flowende watris. [verse 5] This shal seyn, Of the Lord I am, and he shal inwardly clepen in the name of Jacob; and this shal write with his hond to the Lord, and in the name of Irael he shal be licned to. [verse 6] These thingus seith the Lord, king of Irael, and his aȝeen biere, Lord of ostes, I the firste and I the [Om. A.] laste, and with oute me is not God. [verse 7] Who lic of me? clepe he, and telle, and the ordre ex|poune to me, sithen I ordeynede the olde puple; thingus to come, and that ben to come, telle he to them. [verse 8] Wileth not dreden, ne beth [ben A. beth not K.] disturbid; fro thennus to heeren thee I made, and tolde; ȝee ben my wit|nesses. Whether is God withoute me, and a foormere, whom I haue not knowe [moued E pr. m.] ? [verse 9] The foormeres of the mawmet alle noȝt ben, and the most loued thingus of them shul not profiten to them; thei witnesses of hem ben, for thei seen not, ne vnder|stonde, that thei be confoundid. [verse 10] Who

foormede God, and a grauen thing ȝetede, to no thing profitable? [verse 11] Lo! alle his parc|eneres shul be confoundid; the forgeres forsothe ben of men. Thei shuln come to|gidere, alle thei shul stonde, and inwardli dreden, and ben confoundid togidere. [verse 12] The yren smyth with the file wroȝte; in coles, and in hameres foormede it, and wroȝte in the arm of his strengthe. He shal hungren, and failen; he shal not drinke water, and [Om. A.] he shal waxe weri. [verse 13] The crafti man tree werkere straȝte out the reule, and foormede it in a grauyng iren; he maade it in corneres, and in a cumpas turnede it abouten; and made an ymage of a man, as a fair man wonende in hous. [verse 14] He heeȝ doun the cedris, and toc the kesteyn tree, and the oek, that hadde stonde among the trees of the wilde wode; he plauntede the pyne tree, that [verse 15] with rein [the reyn A.] he nurshede, and made is to men in to fyr. He toc of hem, and is chaufed, and brende vp, and booc loeues; of the remnaunt forsothe he wroȝte a [Om. E pr. m.] god, and honourede, and made grauen thing, and is bowid biforn it. [verse 16] The myd|del of it he brende with fyr, and of his myddel, flesh he sethede, and eet; he sethede potage, and is fild; `and is chaufid [Om. C pr. m.] , and seide, Vah [vath EK.] , `or weel [Om. C et E pr. m.] , I am hat; Y [and I E pr. m.] saȝ the fyr. [verse 17] The remnaunt forsothe of it a [Om. E pr. m.] god he made, and a grauen thing to hym; he is bowid biforn it, and honour|eth [he honoureth K.] it, and inwardli besecheth, seiende, Delyuere me, for my god thou art. [verse 18] They knewen not, ne vnderstoden, forsothe thei forȝeeten, lest ther eȝen seeȝen, and lest thei vnderstoden in ther herte. [verse 19] Thei be|thenken not in ther mynde, ne knowen, ne felen, that thei sey, The myddel of it I brende with fyr, and I book [bakide AGHK.] vp on his coles loeues, and seth flesh, and eet; and of his remnaunt a maumet I shal make, biforn the stoc the tree I shal kutte. [verse 20] His part is askus; the vnwise herte shal ho|nouren

it, and yt shal not delyuere his soule, ne seyn, A strong lesyng is [Om. E pr. m.] in my riȝthond. [verse 21] Haue mynde of these, Jacob and Irael, for my seruaunt thou art; I foormede thee, my seruaunt thou art, Irael; thou shalt not forȝete me. [verse 22] I dide awei as a cloude thi wickednesses [wickenesses E.] , and as a litil cloude thi synnes; turne aȝeen to me, for I aȝeen boȝte thee. [verse 23] Ȝee he|uenus, preiseth, for mercy dide the Lord; inwardli ioȝeth, ȝee vtmostus [vttermostis AGHK.] of the [Om. AEGK.] erthe; aȝensouneth, ȝee hillis, preising; the wilde wode, and eche tree of it; for the Lord aȝeen boȝte Jacob, and Irael shal glorien. [verse 24] These thingus seith the Lord, thin aȝeen|biere, and thi foormere of the wombe, I am the Lord, doende alle thingus, strecch|ende out heuenus alone, stablende the [Om. AEGH.] [verse 25] erthe, and no man with me; voide mak|ende tocnes of deuynoures, and the deuel sacrifyeres in to wodnesse turnende; al|turnende wyse men bacward, the kun|nyng [verse 26] of them folie makende; rerende the wrd of his seruaunt, and the counseil of his messageres fulfillende; that sey, Jerusalem, thou shalt be dwellid; and to the cites of Juda, Ȝee shul ben bild vp, [verse 27] and his desertes I shal rere; that sey to the depthe, Be thou desolat, and thi [verse 28] flodys I shal make drie; that sey to Ciro, My shepperde thou art, and al my wil thou shalt fulfille; that sey to Jeru|salem, Thou shalt be bild vp; and to the temple, Thou shalt be foundid.