The Byble in Englyshe that is to saye, the content of all the holye scrypture, bothe of the olde and newe Testament, truly translated after the veryte of the Hebrue and Greke textes, by the diligent studye of dyuers excellent lerned [men e]xperte in the fore[saide] tongues.

❧: The Booke of the Prophet Malachy.

¶ A complaynt agaynst Israel and her prestes,

CAPI. I.

THe heuy burthen whi∣che [unspec A] the Lorde sheweth agaynst Israel by Malachy. I haue lo∣ued you / sayeth the Lorde: and yet ye say: wheri hast thou loued vs? was not Esau Iacobs brother, saieth the Lorde? ‡ yet haue I loued Iacob, & hated Esau: yee I haue made his hilles wast, & his heritage a wildernes for dragōs. And though Edom sayde: well / we are destroyed / we wyll go builde vp againe the places, that be wasted yet (sayeth the Lorde of hostes) what they builded, that brake I downe: so that it was called a cursed lande, & a people / whom the [unspec B] Lord hath euer bene angry withal. Youre eyes haue sene it, & ye your selues must con∣fesse, y^t the Lord hath brought y^e lāde of Is∣rael to great honour. ‡ Shulde not a sonne honour his father, & a seruaūt his master? If I be now a father wher is mine honour? If I be the Lord, wher am I feared? sayeth the Lorde of hostes. Now to you prestes y^t despise my name. And if ye say: wherin haue we despised thy name? In this y^t ye offre vn∣clene bred vpō myne aulter. And yf ye wyll saye: wherin haue we offered any vnclene thing vnto y^•? In this that ye say: the aulter [unspec C] of y^e Lord is not to be regarded. If ye offre y^e blynde, is not that euyl? And if ye offre the lame & sycke, is not that euyl? Yee, offre it vnto thy prīce, shal he be cōtent with the / or accept thy persōne, sayeth y^e Lorde of hostes?

And nowe make your prayer before God, that he may haue mercy vpon vs: for suche thiges haue ye done. Shal he regarde your persōnes, thīke ye, saieth y^e Lorde of hostes? Yee, what is he among you y^• wyll do so mu∣che as to shut the dores, or to kindle the fyre [unspec D] vpon myne aulter for naught? I haue no pleasure in you saieth y^e Lord of hostes: ‡ & as for y^e meatoffringe. I wyl not accept it at your hāde. ‡ For from y^e rising vp of y^e sunne vnto the going downe of the same, my name is great amōg y^e Gētiles: yee, in euery place shal their sacryfyte be done, & a clene meat∣offring offred vp vnto my name: for my na∣me is great among y^e Heathē, saith y^e Lorde of hostes. But ye haue vnhalowed it, ī that ye say, y^e aulter of y^e Lord is not to be regar∣ded / & the thīge that is set therupon, not wor¦thy to be eaten. Now say ye: It is but la∣bour and trauayle, & thus haue ye thought scorne at it (saieth the Lorde of hostes (offe∣ring robbery. yee, the lame and the sycke. Ye haue brought me ī a meat offering, shulde I accept it of your hāde, saieth the Lord? Cur∣sed be the dissēbler, which hath in his flocke one y^t is male, & when he maketh a vowe of∣fereth a spotted one vnto y^e Lord. For I am a great kyng (sayeth the lorde of hostes) and my name is fearfull among the Heathen.

¶ Threatenynges agaynste the Prestes beinge seducers of the people.

CAPI. II.

ANd nowe (O ye prestes (this cōmaun∣demente [unspec A] toucheth you: yf ye wyll not heare it, nor regard it / to geue the glory vn∣to my name, saieth the Lorde of hoostes, ‡ I wyll sende a curse vpon you, and wyl curse youre blessynges: yee, curse them wyll I yf ye do not take hede. Beholde, I shall cor∣rupte youre sede, and cast donge in your fa∣ces / euen the donge of your solempne fea∣stes and it shall cleue faste vpon you. And ye shall knowe, that I haue sente this com∣maundement vnto you: that my couenaūt whiche I made with Leui / myghte stande sayeth the Lorde of hostes.

I made a couenaunt of lyfe & peace with [unspec B] him: this I gaue him, that he myght stande in awe of me: and so he dyd feare me, & had my name in reuerence. The lawe of trueth was in his mouth / & there was no wycked∣nesse founde in his lyppes. He walked with me in peace and equyte, and dyd turne ma∣ny one awaye from theyr synnes. For the prestes lyppes shulde be sure knowledge / y^• men may seke the lawe at his mouth / for he is a messaunger of the Lorde of hostes. But as for you, ye are gone clene out of the way, & haue caused the multytude to be offended at the lawe: ye haue broken the couenaūte of Leui, sayeth the Lorde of hoostes. Ther∣fore wyl I also make you to be despysed, and to be of no reputacyon amonge all the peo∣ple: because ye haue not kept my wayes, but haue bene percyall in the lawe.

Haue we not all one father (Hath not one God made vs? why doth euery one of vs thē despyse hys owne brother / & so brea∣ke [unspec C] the couenaunt of our fathers? Now hath Iuda offēded: yee, y^• abhomynacyō is done in Israel & in Ierusalē ‡ for Iuda hath defi led the Sāctuary of y^• Lord, which he loued, and hathe kepte the daughter of a straunge God, But the lorde shal destroy the mā that doth this: (yee, both the master & the scoler) out of the tabernacle of Iacob, with hym y^• offreth vp meatoffring vnto the Lorde of hostes. Now haue ye brought it to th{is} point agayne, that the aulter of the Lord is coue∣red with teres, wepyng & mourning so that I wyll nomore regarde the meat offeringe / nether wil I receaue or accept any thyng at your hādes. And yet ye say: wherfore? Euen because that wher as the Lord made a coue naūt betwixt the and thy wyfe of thy youth, thou hast despysed. Yet is she thyne owne companyon and maryed wyfe.

So dyd not the one / and yet had he an ex / [unspec D] cellent spryte? What dyd then the one? He sought the sede promysed of God. Therfore loke well to your spryte / and let no man de∣spyse the wyfe of his youth. If y^• hatest her put her awaye / saieth y^• Lorde God of Is∣raell and geue her clothynge for the scorne / sayeth the Lorde of hostes. Loke well then to youre sprite, and despise her not. Ye greue the Lorde with youre wordes, & yet ye saye: wherwith all haue we greued him? In this that ye say. All that do euyll are good in the syght of God / and suche please him. Or els where is the God that punysheth?

¶ Of the messaūger of the Lorde Iohn Baptyst••. Of the ••aye of the Lorde, and of Eliah.

CAPI. III.

BEholde / ‡ I wyl sende my messaunger, which shal prepare the way before me: [unspec A] and the Lorde whom ye wolde haue / shall soone come to his temple / yee, euen the mes∣saunger of the couenaunte whome ye long for. Beholde / he commeth / sayeth the Lor∣de of hostes. But who maye abyde the daye of hys commynge? Who shall be able to endure / when he appeareth? For he is lyke a goldsmythes fyre / and lyke wasshers so∣pe. He shall syt hym downe to trye and to clense the syluer / he shall pourge the chyl∣dren of Leui, and puryfy them lyke as golde and syluer: that they maye brynge meat∣offerynges vnto the Lorde in ryghteous∣nesse. Then shall the offeryng of Iuda and Ierusalem be acceptable vnto the Lorde / [unspec B] lyke as from the begynnynge and in the yeares, afore tyme. I wyll come and puny∣she you, and I my selfe wyl be a swyfte wit∣nes agaynst y^• witches, agaynst the aduou∣terers, against false swearers: yee, & agaiste those / that wrongously kepe backe the hyre∣lynges dewtye: whiche vexe the wyddowes and the fatherlesse / and oppresse the straū∣ger and feare not me / sayeth the Lorde of Hostes. For I am the Lorde that chaunge not, & ye (O chyldrē of Iacob) wyl not leaue of ye are gone awaye fro myne ordynaun∣ces / and sens the tyme of your forefathers haue ye not kept them.

Turne you now vnto me / and I wyll turne me vnto you / saieth y^• Lorde of Hostes ye saye. Wherin shall we turne? Shulde a [unspec C] man vse falshede and disceate with God as ye vse falshede and disceate with me? yet ye saye wherin vse we disceat w^t the? In Ty∣thes and heaue offringes. ‡ Therfore are ye cursed with penury, because ye dissēble with me all the sorte of you.

Brynge euery Tithe into my barne, that there maye be meat in myne house: & proue me withall (sayeth the Lorde of hoostes) yf I wyll not open the wyndowes of heauen vnto you / & poure you out a blessynge with plenteousnesse. Yee, I shall reproue the con∣sumer for your sakes, so that he shal not eat vp the frute of your grounde / neither shall the vy••••rde be baren in the folde, saieth the Lorde of hostes: In so much that all people shall saye / that ye be blessed / for ye shall be a pleasaūt lande / saieth the Lorde of hoostes. Ye speake harde wordes against me / sayth the Lorde. And yet ye saye: what haue we spoken agaynst the? ye haue sayde.

It is but loste laboure / to serue God [unspec D] What profyt haue we for kepynge his cō∣maūdementes, & for walkyng hūbly before y^• Lorde of hoostes? Therfore may we say, that the proud are happy / & that they which deale with vngodlynes, are set vp: for they tempte God, & yet escape. But they that feare god, saye thus one to another: y^• Lorde consydereth and heareth it. Yee, it is before him a memory all boke / wryten for suche as feare the Lorde, & remembre his name. And in the day that I wyl make (saieth the Lord of hostes) they shalbe mine owne possession: and I wyll fauoure them / lyke as a man fa¦uoureth hys owne sonne / that doth him ser uy••e. Turne you therfore / and consydre what difference is betwyxte the ryghteous & vngodly: betwixte him that serueth God, and hym that serueth hym not.

CAPI. IIII.

For marcke, the daye commeth that shall

burne as an ouen:and all the proude, yee, & all such as do wyckednesse / shalbe strawe: & the day that is for to come, shal burne them vp (sayeth y^• Lorde of hoostes) so that it shal leaue them nether rote nor braunche.

But vnto you that feare my name / shall that Sonne of ryghteousnesse aryse / and health shalbe vnder hys wynges:ye shal go forth, & multyply as the fat calues. Ye shall treade downe the vngodly: for they shall be lyke the ashes vnder the soles of youre fete in the daye that I shall make / sayeth the Lorde of hoostes.

Remembre the lawe of Moses my ser∣uaunte / which I commytted vnto hym in Oreb for all Israell / with the statutes and ordynaunces. Beholde / I wyl sende you, Elias the prophet:before the commyng of the daye of the greate and fearfull Lor¦de•• He shal turne the hertes of the fa∣thers to their chyldren, & the her∣tes of the chyldren to theyr fa∣thers, y^• I come not & smy∣te the earthe with cur∣synge.

❧: The ende of the prophecy of Malachy: and consequently of al the Prophetes.

Notes

• Gene xxv. c
• ‡

  Rom. ix. d. Iosia▪ 23. a
• ••b••••. ••. a.
• ‡

  Exod. xx. a
• Deu. 32. a.
• Leuit▪ 22. ••. Eze. xliii. c.
• Gene iiii. a
• ‡

  Esaye. i. b. Psa. iiii. ••.
• ‡

  Deut▪ 〈…〉〈…〉▪
• 〈…〉〈…〉▪
• 〈…〉〈…〉▪
• Deut. 〈…〉〈…〉▪
• Eph. iiii. ••.
• 〈…〉〈…〉 vii •• 〈…〉〈…〉▪ c.
• ‡

  ••. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. ix. a ••••ui. xxi. ••▪
• Gene. ii. d.
• P••nt. 24. •• 〈◊〉〈◊〉. iii. ••.
• ‡

  Math. xi. b 〈◊〉〈◊〉. ••▪ ••, Luke▪ vii. c 〈…〉〈…〉. ii••••. •• ••. ••.
• 〈…〉〈…〉. 64. ••
• De••. 〈◊〉〈◊〉▪ •• 4. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. ••.
• ••••••ha••i. ••. ••
• Leuit. 27. d
• ‡

  ••gg••. ••••••. ••▪
• Pro. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. b.
• Io•• xxi. 〈◊〉〈◊〉 P••••••. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. ••.
• ••••••. xxi. ••. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. xii. ••.
• Psa. ••••iii ••▪
• Psalm. i. b.
• Deu. 4. v a
• Mat. xi. ••. xvii. b.
• Luke. ••. ••.