Isaiah 38
1 About that time, Hezekiah became [very] ill and was close to dying. [So] I went to see him. And I gave him this message: “This is what Yahweh says: ‘You should tell the people in your palace what you want them to do after you die, because you will not recover from this illness. You are going to die’”
In tho daies Esechie was sijk `til to the deth; and Isaie, the profete, the sone of Amos, entride to hym, and seide to hym, The Lord seith these thingis, Dispose thi hous, for thou schalt die, and thou schalt not lyue.
2 Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed this:
And Esechie turnede his face to the wal, and preiede the Lord, and seide, Lord, Y biseche;
3 “Yahweh, do not forget that I have always served you very faithfully, and I have done things that pleased you!” Then Hezekiah [started to] cry loudly.
haue thou mynde, Y biseche, hou Y yede bifore thee in treuthe, and in perfit herte, and Y dide that that was good bifore thin iyen. And Ezechye wept with greet wepyng.
4 [I left his room, but] Yahweh gave me this message:
And the word of the Lord was maad to Isaie, and seide,
5 “Go [back] to Hezekiah and tell him that this is what I, the God to whom your ancestor King David belonged, say: ‘I have heard what you prayed, and I have seen you crying. So listen: I will enable you to live 15 years more.
Go thou, and seie to Ezechye, The Lord God of Dauid, thi fadir, seith these thingis, I haue herd thi preier, and Y siy thi teeris. Lo! Y schal adde on thi daies fiftene yeer;
6 And, I will rescue you and this city from the power [MTY] of the King of Assyria. I will defend this city.
and Y schal delyuere thee and this citee fro the hond of the kyng of Assiriens, and Y schal defende it.
7 And this is what I will do to prove that I will do what I have just now promised. I will cause the shadow of the sun to move ten steps backward on the sundial that was built by King Ahaz.’”
Forsothe this schal be to thee a signe of the Lord, that the Lord schal do this word, which he spak.
8 So the shadow of the sun on the sundial moved backward ten steps.
Lo! Y schal make the schadewe of lynes, bi which it yede doun in the orologie of Achas, in the sunne, to turne ayen backward bi ten lynes. And the sunne turnede ayen bi ten lynes, bi degrees bi whiche it hadde go doun.
9 When King Hezekiah was almost well again, he wrote this:
The scripture of Ezechie, kyng of Juda, whanne he hadde be sijk, and hadde rekyuered of his sikenesse.
10 I thought to myself, “Is it necessary for me to die and go to the place where the dead people are during this time of my life when I am still strong? Is Yahweh going to rob me of the remaining years that I [should live]?” (Sheol h7585)
I seide, in the myddil of my daies Y schal go to the yatis of helle. Y souyte the residue of my yeeris; (Sheol h7585)
11 I said, “I will not see Yahweh [again] in this world where people are alive. I will not see my friends again, or be with others who [now] are alive in this world.
Y seide, Y schal not se the Lord God in the lond of lyueris; Y schal no more biholde a man, and a dwellere of reste.
12 [It is as if] my life has been taken away like [SIM] a tent [whose pegs] have been pulled up by a shepherd and taken away. My time to live has been cut short, like a piece of cloth that a weaver [cuts and] rolls up [after he has finished weaving a cloth].” Suddenly, [it seemed that] my life was ending.
My generacioun is takun awei, and is foldid togidere fro me, as the tabernacle of scheepherdis is foldid togidere. Mi lijf is kit doun as of a webbe; he kittide doun me, the while Y was wouun yit. Fro the morewtid `til to the euentid thou schalt ende me;
13 I waited patiently all during the night, but [my pain was as though] [MET] I was being torn apart by lions. [It seemed that] my life was finished.
Y hopide til to the morewtid; as a lioun, so he al to-brak alle my boonys. Fro the morewtid til to the euentid thou schalt ende me; as the brid of a swalewe, so Y schal crie;
14 [I was delirious, and] I chirped like a swift or a swallow, and moaned like a dove. My eyes became tired looking up [toward heaven] for help. I cried out, Lord, help me, [because] I am distressed!’
Y schal bithenke as a culuer. Myn iyen biholdynge an hiy, ben maad feble. Lord, Y suffre violence, answere thou for me; what schal Y seie,
15 But there was really nothing [RHQ] that I could say and ask him to reply to me, because it was Yahweh who sent this illness. [So now] I will live humbly during my [remaining] years because I am very anguished.
ether what schal answere to me, whanne `I mysilf haue do? Y schal bithenke to thee alle my yeeris, in the bitternisse of my soule.
16 Yahweh, the sufferings (OR, the promises) that you give are good, [because] what you do and what you say bring [new] life and health to us. And you restore/heal me and allow me [to continue] to live!
Lord, if me lyueth so, and the lijf of my spirit is in siche thingis, thou schalt chastise me, and schalt quykene me.
17 Truly, my suffering was good for me; you loved me, and as a result you have rescued me from dying and have also forgiven all my sins.
Lo! my bitternesse is moost bittir in pees; forsothe thou hast delyuered my soule, that it perischide not; thou hast caste awey bihynde thi bak alle my synnes.
18 Dead people [MTY] cannot praise you; they cannot sing to praise you. Those who have descended to their graves cannot confidently expect you to faithfully [do things for them]. (Sheol h7585)
For not helle schal knowleche to thee, nethir deth schal herie thee; thei that goon doun in to the lake, schulen not abide thi treuthe. (Sheol h7585)
19 Only people who are still alive, like I am, can praise you. Fathers tell their children how you are faithful, [and if I remain alive, I will do the same thing].
A lyuynge man, a lyuynge man, he schal knouleche to thee, as and Y to dai; the fadir schal make knowun thi treuthe to sones.
20 [I know that] Yahweh will fully heal me, [so] I will sing to praise him while others praise him playing musical instruments; I will do that every day of my life, in the temple of Yahweh.”
Lord, make thou me saaf, and we schulen synge oure salmes in all the daies of oure lijf in the hous of the Lord.
21 I had [previously] said to Hezekiah’s servants, “Prepare an ointment from [mashed] figs, and spread it on his boil, and then he will recover.” [So they did that, and Hezekiah recovered].
And Ysaie comaundide, that thei schulden take a gobet of figus, and make a plaster on the wounde; and it schulde be heelid.
22 And Hezekiah had [previously] asked, “What will Yahweh do to prove that I will [recover and be able to] go to his temple?”
And Ezechie seide, What signe schal be, that Y schal stie in to the hous of the Lord?
