Obadiah 1

1 Visioun of Abdias. The Lord God seith these thingis to Edom. We herden an heryng of the Lord, and he sente a messanger to hethene men. Rise ye, and togidere rise we ayens hym in to batel.

The vision of Obadiah; what the Lord said about Edom: We have heard a report from the Lord, a messenger has been sent among the nations; Rise up, let us rise against Edom in battle!

2 Lo! Y yaf thee litil in hethene men, thou art ful myche `worthi to be dispisid.

I will make you small among the nations, and despised by all!

3 The pride of thin herte enhaunside thee, dwellynge in crasyngis of stoonys, areisynge thi seete. Whiche seist in thin herte, Who schal drawe me doun in to erthe?

Your proud heart has misled you, you who live in the clefts of the rock, you who build on high your dwelling. You say to yourselves, ‘Who can bring me down to earth?’

4 Thouy thou schalt be reisid as an egle, and thouy thou schalt putte thi nest among sterris, fro thennus Y schal drawe thee doun, seith the Lord.

Though you build high as the eagle, though between the stars you set your nest, from there will I bring you down, says the Lord.

5 If niyt theuys hadden entrid to thee, if outlawis bi niyt, hou schuldist thou haue be stille? whether thei schulden not haue stole thingis ynow to hem? If gadereris of grapis hadden entrid to thee, whether thei schulden haue left nameli clustris to thee?

If thieves had come to you, marauders by night would they not have stolen only as much as they needed? If grape-gatherers had come to you would they not have left some gleanings?

6 Hou souyten thei Esau, serchiden the hid thingis of him?

Descendents of Esau, all your treasures are looted.

7 Til to the termes thei senten out thee; and alle men of thi couenaunt of pees scorneden thee, men of thi pees wexiden stronge ayens thee; thei that schulen ete with thee, schulen put aspies, ether tresouns, vndur thee; ther is no prudence in hym.

To your border they have driven you, all your allies have betrayed you. Your avowed friends have overpowered you, they have set a trap for you. Where is your wisdom now?

8 Whether not in that dai, seith the Lord, Y schal lese the wise men of Idumee, and prudence of the mount of Esau?

The Lord says: On that day, I will destroy the wise of Edom, drive wisdom out of Mount Esau.

9 And thi stronge men schulen drede of myddai, that a man of the hil of Esau perische.

Your warriors will be filled with terror, Teman, none will be left alive on Mount Esau.

10 For sleyng and for wickidnesse ayens thi brother Jacob, confusioun schal hile thee, and thou schalt perische with outen ende.

Because of the violence done to your relatives, the people of Jacob, shame covers you, you are cut off forever.

11 In the dai whanne thou stodist ayens hym, whanne aliens token the oost of hym, and straungeris entriden the yatis of hym, and senten lot on Jerusalem, thou were also as oon of hem.

In the day when you stood aloof, in the day when strangers carried away their wealth, and strangers entered into their gates, and over Jerusalem cast lots, you were as one of those strangers.

12 And thou schalt not dispise in the dai of thi brother, in the dai of his pilgrimage, and thou schalt not be glad on the sones of Juda, in the dai of perdicioun of hem; and thou schalt not magnefie thi mouth in the dai of angwisch,

You should not have gloated over your relatives, in the day of their misfortune. You should not have exulted over the land of Judah in the day of their destruction. You should not have laughed loudly at their distress.

13 nether schalt entre in to the yate of my puple, in the dai of fallyng of hem; and thou schalt not dispise in the yuels of hym, in the dai of his distriyng; and thou schalt not be sent out ayens his oost, in the day of his distriyng;

You should not have entered in at the gate of my people in the day of their disaster. You should not have gloated over their calamity, in the day of their disaster, nor stretched out your hand after their wealth in the day of their disaster,

14 nether thou schalt stonde in the goynges out, that thou sle hem that fledden; and thou schalt not close togidere the residues, ether left men, of hym, in the day of tribulacioun,

nor stood at the crossroads to cut down their fugitives, nor should you have betrayed their refugees in the day of distress.

15 for the dai of the Lord is niy on alle `hethene men. As thou hast doon, it schal be doon to thee; he schal conuerte thi yeldyng in to thin heed.

Near at hand is the Lord’s day for all the nations. As you have done so will it be done to you. Your deeds will come back on your own head.

16 For as ye drunken on myn hooli hil, alle hethene men schulen drynke bisili, and thei schulen drynke, and schulen soupe vp; and thei schulen be as if thei ben not.

As you have drunk upon my holy mountain, so all the nations will drink in turn; They will drink deep and be as though they had not been.

17 And saluacioun schal be in the hil of Sion, and it schal be hooli; and the hous of Jacob schal welde hem whiche weldiden hem.

But on Mount Zion some will escape, it will be again holy, and those of the house of Jacob will again enter into their possessions.

18 And the hous of Jacob schal be fier, and the hous of Joseph schal be flawme, and the hous of Esau schal be stobil; and `thei schulen be kyndlid in hem, and thei schulen deuoure hem; and relifs schulen not be of the hous of Esau, for the Lord spak.

For the house of Jacob will be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, but the house of Esau will become stubble. They will kindle and devour it. Not even one of the house of Esau will escape, for the Lord has spoken.

19 And these that ben at the south, schulen enherite the hil of Esau; and thei that ben in the lowe feeldis, schulen enherite Filistiym; and thei schulen welde the cuntrei of Effraym, and cuntrei of Samarie; and Beniamyn schal welde Galaad.

They will possess the Negeb and Mount Esau, and the Shephelah of the Philistines. They will possess the territory of Ephraim and Samaria, and Benjamin will possess Gilead.

20 And ouerpassyng of this oost of sones of Israel schal welde alle places of Cananeis, til to Sarepta; and the transmygracioun of Jerusalem, that is in Bosphoro, schal welde citees of the south.

The exiles of Israel will possess the land of the Canaanites as far as Zarephath. The captives of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will possess the cities of the Negreb.

21 And sauyours schulen stie in to the hil of Sion, for to deme the hil of Esau, and a rewme schal be to the Lord.

The rescued will come up on Mount Zion to rule Mount Esau, and the kingdom will belong to the Lord.