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 punyshment that euyl people shal haue, which God commaundeth Esdras to shewe vnto them.

CAPI. XV.

BEholde, speake thou in the eares of my [unspec A] people y^• wordes of prophecy whiche I wyll put in thy mouth, saieth the Lorde: and cause thē to be wryten in a letter, for it is the trueth. Feare not the ymaginaciōs agaynst the. Let not the vnfaithfulnes of thē trouble the, that speake against the. For all the vn faythful shall dye in their vnfaythfulnes. Beholde sayeth the Lorde / I wyl bryng pla¦ges vpon the worlde, the swearde / hongre / death and destruccion / for wyckednes hath the vpper hande in all the earthe, and theyr shamefull workes are fulfylled.

Therfore sayeth the Lorde: I wyll holde my tonge nomore vnto theyr wyckednesse / whiche they do so vngodly: nether wyl I suf¦fre thē in the thinges / that they deale wyth all so wyckedly. Beholde * 1.1 the innocente bloude of the troubled crieth vnto me, and y^• soules of the rightuous complayne continu¦ally: and therfore (sayeth the Lorde) I wyl su¦rely auenge, & receyue vnto me all the inno∣cent bloude from amonge them.

* 1.2 Beholde / my people / is led as a flocke of shepe to be slayne / I wyll not suffre them nowe to dwell in Egypte / but wyll brynge thē out with a myghtye hāde and a stretched out arme, and smyte it with plages as afore, and wyll destroye all the lande of it. Egypte shall mourne, and the foundacions of it shal be smytten with the plage and punyshment, that God shall brynge vpon it.

They that tyll the ground••, shal mourne: [unspec B] for theyr sedes shall be destroyed thorow the blastynge and hayle / and an horryble starre. Wo worth the worlde and them that dwell therin / for the swearde and theyr destrucyon draweth nye / and one people shall stande vp to fyght agaynst another / & swerdes in their hādes. For men shalbe vnstedfast, and some shal do vyolence vnto other: they shal not re¦garde theyr kyng and prynces / the wayes of theyr doinges and hādlinges in theyr power A man shall besyre to go into the cyte / & shal not be able. For because of theyr pryde the cyties shalbe brought in feate / the houses shall shake / and men shall be afrayed. A man shall haue no pytie vpon hys neygh∣boure / but one shall prouoke another vnto batayle to spoyle theyr goodes because of the honger of bread, and because of the great trouble.

Beholde, I gather and call together all the Kynges of the earth which are from the [unspec C] vprysyng, from the South, from the East & Lybanus to turne vnto thē, and restore the thinges that they haue geuen them. Lyke as they do yet this daye vnto my chosen, so wyl I do also, and recompense thē in theyr boso∣me. Thus sayeth the Lorde God: My ryght hand shal not spare the synners, & my swerde shall not ••easse ouer them, that shed the inno¦cent bloude vpon earth. The fire is gone out from his wrath, and hath consumed the foū∣dacious of the earth, and the sinners like the strawe that is kyndled. Wo worth them that synne, & kepe not my commaundementes / sayeth the Lorde. I wyll not spare them. Go your way ye chyldren frome vyolence defyle not my Saynctuary: for the Lord knoweth all them that synne agaynst him / and ther∣fore deliuereth he them vnto death & destruc¦cyon. For nowe are the plages come vpon y^• worlde, and ye shall remayne in them. For God shall not delyuer you, because ye haue synned against him.

Beholde, an horryble vysyon commeth [unspec D] from the Easte, where generacions of Dra∣gōs shal come out / and the people of the Ara¦bes with many charettes, and the multitude of them shall be as the wynde vpon earthe / that all they whiche heare them ragynge in theyr wrath, may feare and be afrayed / and as the wylde bores out of the wood, so shall they go out, and with great power shal they come & stande fyghtyng w^t them & shal wast the porcyon of the lande of the Assyrians.

And then shall the Dragons haue the vp∣per hande, not remembryng their byrth, and shall turne aboute swearynge together in greate power, to persecute them. But these shalbe afrayed, & kepe silence at theyr power and shall fle: and one out of the lande of the Assirians shal besege them, & consume one of them / and in theyr hoste shalbe feare & drede, and stryfe among theyr kynges.

Beholde cloudes from the Easte, & from [unspec E] the North vnto the South, and they are ve¦ry horryble to loke vpon, full of wrath and storme. They shall smyte one vpon another and they shal smyte at the great starre vpon earth and theyr starre, and the bloude shalbe from the swerde vnto the bely, and the smoke of man vnto the Camels lytter: And there shalbe great ferefulnesse & tremblyng vpon earthe / and they that se the wrath shall be afrayed / and a tremblynge shall come vpon them.

And then shall there come greate raynes from the South & from the Northe, & parte from the West, and from the stormy wynde from the East, and shall shut thē vp agayne and the cloude which he raysed vp in wrath, and the starre to cause feare towarde y^• East

& west wynde, shalbe destroyed: & the greate cloudes shalbe lyfte vp, & the myghtie clou∣des full of wrathe / and the starre / that they maye make all the earth afrayed and them that dwell therin▪ and that they maye poure out ouer all places an horryble starre / fyre and hayle and flyenge sweardes / and many waters: that all feldes may be full, and al ry¦uers / and they shal breake downe the cyties and walles, moūtaines and hylles / al trees, wood / and the grasse of the medowes / and al their frute. And they shal go stedfast vnto Babylon / and make her afrayed / they shall come to her and besege her / the starre & all wrath shall they poure out vpon her.

Then shall the dust & smoke go vp vnto [unspec G] the heauen, and all they that be aboute her. shal bewayle her: and they that remayne vn¦der her, shal do seruice vnto them that haue put her in feare? And thou Asia y^e comfortest thy selfe also vpō the hope of Babylon / and art a worship of her personne: Wo be vnto the thou wretch / because thou hast made thy selfe lyke vnto her, & hast deckte thy daugh∣ters in whoredome / that they might triūphe and please thy louers, whiche haue alwaye desired to cōmitte whordome with the: thou hast folowed the abhominable cite in all her workes and inuencions.

Therfore sayth God: I wyl sende plages vpō the / wyddowhode, pouerte / hōgre, war¦res / and pestylence / to wast thy houses with destruccion and death, and the glorye of thy power shalbe dryed vp as a floure, whē the heate riseth y^t is sent ouer the: Thou shalt be sycke as a pore wyfe that is plaged & beaten of wemē: so that the myghtie and louer shal not be able to receyue the. Wolde I so hate the sayeth the Lord? If thou haddest not al∣waye slayne my chosen, exaltynge the stroke of thy handes / and sayde ouer theyr death / whē thou wast dronken: set forth the beautie of thy countenaunce.

The reward of thy whoredome shalbe re¦compensed the in thy bosome / therfore shalt tho•• receyue rewarde.

Lyke as thou hast done vnto my chosen (sayeth the Lorde) euē so shall God do vnto [unspec H] the / and shal deliuer the into the plage. Thy chyldren shall dye of honger / and thou shalt fall thorowe the swerde. Thy cyties shalbe broken downe, & all thyne shall perishe with the swerde in the felde. They that be in the mountaynes shall dye of hongre / and eate their owne flesh, & dryncke their owne bloud for very hongre of bred and thyrst of water. Thou vnhappy shalt come thorowe the see. and receyue plages agayne.

In the passage they shall cast downe the slayne cytie, & shall rote out one parte of thy lande, & consume the porcyon of glory. They shall treade the downe lyke stubble, & they shalbe thy fyre & shal consume the: thy cities & thy lande, thy woode & thy frutefull ••rees shal they burne vp w^t the fyre. Thy chyldren shal they cary awaye captiue, & loke what y^• hast, they shall spoyle it, & marre the bewtye of thy face.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Apoc. vi b. and. xix. a.
• * 1.2

  Psal. 44. c. Rom••, •• c 1. Cor. 4. b.