Jeremiah 18

1 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

The word that was maad of the Lord to Jeremye,

2 Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words.

and seide, Rise thou, and go doun in to the hous of a pottere, and there thou schalt here my wordis.

3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.

And Y yede doun in to the hous of a pottere, and lo! he made a werk on a wheel.

4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make it.

And the vessel was distried, which he made of clei with hise hondis; and he turnede it, and made it another vessel, as it pleside in hise iyen to make.

5 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

And the word of the Lord was maad to me,

6 O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in my hand, O house of Israel.

and he seide, Whether as this pottere doith, Y mai not do to you, the hous of Israel? seith the Lord. Lo! as cley is in the hond of a pottere, so ye, the hous of Israel, ben in myn hond.

7 At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it;

Sudenli Y schal speke ayens a folk, and ayens a rewme, that Y drawe out, and distrie, and leese it.

8 If that nation, against which I have pronounced, shall turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do to them.

If thilke folk doith penaunce of his yuel, which Y spak ayens it, also Y schal do penaunce on the yuel, which Y thouyte to do to it.

9 And at what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it;

And Y schal speke sudenli of a folk, and of a rewme, that Y bilde, and plaunte it.

10 If it shall do evil in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good, with which I said I would benefit them.

If it doith yuel bifore myn iyen, that it here not my vois, Y schal do penaunce on the good which Y spak, that Y schulde do to it.

11 Now therefore come, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I frame evil against you, and devise a plot against you: return ye now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good.

Now therfor seie thou to a man of Juda, and to the dwellere of Jerusalem, and seie, The Lord seith these thingis, Lo! Y make yuel ayens you, and Y thenke a thouyte ayens you; ech man turne ayen fro his yuel weie, and dresse ye youre weies and youre studies.

12 And they said, There is no hope: but we will walk after our own devices, and we will every one do the imagination of his evil heart.

Whiche seiden, We han dispeirid, for we schulen go after oure thouytis, and we schulen do ech man the schrewidnesse of his yuel herte.

13 Therefore thus saith the LORD; Ask ye now among the heathen, who hath heard such things: the virgin of Israel hath done a very horrible thing.

Therfor the Lord seith these thingis, Axe ye hethene men, who herde siche orible thingis, whiche the virgyn of Israel hath do greetli?

14 Will a man leave the snow of Lebanon which cometh from the rock of the field? or shall the cold flowing waters that come from another place be forsaken?

Whether snow of the Liban schal fail fro the stoon of the feeld? ether coolde watris brekynge out, and fletynge doun moun be takun awei?

15 Because my people hath forgotten me, they have burned incense to vanity, and they have caused them to stumble in their ways from the ancient paths, to walk in paths, in a way not cast up;

For my puple hath foryete me, and offriden sacrifices in veyn, and snaperiden in her weies, and in the pathis of the world, that thei yeden bi tho in a weie not trodun;

16 To make their land desolate, and a perpetual hissing; every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shake his head.

that the lond of hem schulde be in to desolacioun, and in to an hissyng euerlastinge; for whi ech that passith bi it, schal be astonyed, and schal moue his heed.

17 I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity.

As a brennynge wynd Y schal scatere hem bifor the enemy; Y schal schewe to hem the bak and not the face, in the dai of the perdicioun of hem.

18 Then said they, Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us smite him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.

And thei seiden, Come ye, and thenke we thouytis ayens Jeremye; for whi the lawe schal not perische fro a preest, nether councel schal perische fro a wijs man, nether word schal perische fro a profete; come ye, and smyte we hym with tunge, and take we noon heede to alle the wordis of hym.

19 Give heed to me, O LORD, and hearken to the voice of them that contend with me.

Lord, yyue thou tent to me, and here thou the vois of myn aduersaries.

20 Shall evil be recompensed for good? for they have dug a pit for my soul. Remember that I stood before thee to speak good for them, and to turn away thy wrath from them.

Whether yuel is yoldun for good, for thei han diggid a pit to my soule; haue thou mynde, that Y stoode in thi siyt, to speke good for hem, and to turne awei thin indignacioun fro hem.

21 Therefore deliver their children to the famine, and pour out their blood by the force of the sword; and let their wives be bereaved of their children, and be widows; and let their men be put to death; let their young men be slain by the sword in battle.

Therfor yyue thou the sones of hem in to hungur, and lede forth hem in to the hondis of swerd; the wyues of hem be maad with out children, and be maad widewis, and the hosebondis of hem be slayn bi deth; the yonge men of hem be persid togidere bi swerd in batel.

22 Let a cry be heard from their houses, when thou shalt bring a troop suddenly upon them: for they have dug a pit to take me, and hid snares for my feet.

Cry be herd of the housis of hem, for thou schalt bringe sudenli a theef on hem; for thei diggiden a pit to take me, and hidden snaris to my feet.

23 Yet, LORD, thou knowest all their counsel against me to slay me: forgive not their iniquity, neither blot out their sin from thy sight, but let them be overthrown before thee; deal thus with them in the time of thy anger.

But thou, Lord, knowist al the councel of hem ayens me in to deth; do thou not merci to the wickidnesse of hem, and the synne of hem be not doon awei fro thi face; be thei maad fallynge doun in thi siyt, in the tyme of thi stronge veniaunce; vse thou hem to othir thing than thei weren ordeyned.