Jerusalem’s Unfaithfulness

1Agayne the word of the Lorde came vnto me, saying: 2Thou sonne of man, shewe Hierusale their abhominations, 3And say, Thus saith the Lorde God vnto Hierusalem: thy habitation and kinred is of the lande of Chanaan, thy father was an Amorite, thy mother an Hittite. 4In the day of thy byrth when thou wast borne, the string of thy nauell was not cut of, thou wast not bathed in water to make thee cleane, thou wast not salted with salt, nor swadled in cloutes. 5No eye pitied thee to do any of these thinges for thee, for to haue compassion vpon thee: but thou wast vtterly cast out vpon the fielde in contempt of thy person in the day of thy byrth.

6Then came I by thee, and sawe thee defiled in thyne owne blood, and I said vnto thee when thou wast in thy blood, liue: euen when thou wast in thy blood, I sayde vnto thee, liue. 7I caused thee to multiplie as the bud of the fielde, thou art growen vp, and waxen great, thou hast gotten a marueylous pleasaunt beautie, thy brestes are fashioned, thy heere is goodly growen, whereas thou wast naked & bare.

8Nowe when I went by thee and looked vpon thee, beholde, thy tyme was come, yea euen the time to woo thee: then spread I my clothes ouer thee to couer thy dishonestie, yea I made an othe vnto thee, and contracted my selfe with thee (saith the Lorde God) and so thou becamest myne owne. 9Then washed I thee with water, and purged thy blood from thee, and I annointed thee with oyle. 10I clothed thee with broidred worke, and shod thee with badgers skin, and I gyrded thee about with fine linnen, and couered thee with silke. 11I decked thee with costly apparell, I put braselets vpon thy hands, a chayne about thy necke. 12And I put a frontlet vpon thy face, and eareringes vpon thyne eares, and a beautifull crowne vpon thyne head. 13Thus wast thou deckt with golde and siluer, and thy rayment was of fine linnen, and of silke, and of broidred worke: thou didst eate fine floure, honye and oyle, marueylous beautifull wast thou, and thou dydst luckyly prosper into a kingdome. 14And thy name was spread among the heathen for thy beautie: for it was perfite through thy beautie whiche I put vpon thee, saith the Lorde God.

15But thou hast put thy confidence in thyne owne beautie, and played the harlot because of thy renowne, and hast powred out thy fornications with euery one that went by, thou wast his. 16Thou didst take thy garmentes, and deckt thy hye places with diuers colours, and played the harlot thervpon, they come not, and it shall not be. 17The goodly iewels whiche I gaue thee of mine owne golde and siluer, hast thou taken and made thee mens images therof, and committed whordome with them. 18Thy broidred garmentes hast thou taken, and deckt them therewith: myne oyle and incense hast thou set before them. 19My meate whiche I gaue thee, as fine floure, oyle and hony to feede the withall, that hast thou set before them for a sweete sauour: and thus it was saith the Lorde God. 20Thou hast taken thyne owne sonnes and daughters whom thou hast begotten vnto me, and these hast thou offred vp vnto them to be deuoured: is this but a small whordome of thyne? 21And thou hast slayne my chyldren, and deliuered them, to cause them to passe through the fire for them. 22And yet in all thyne abhominations and whordomes, thou hast not remembred the dayes of thy youth, howe naked and bare thou wast at that tyme, and wast defiled in thyne owne blood.

23After all these thy wickednesses, (wo wo vnto thee, saith the Lorde God.) 24Thou hast buylt vnto thee an hye place, and hast made thee an hye place in euery streete. 25Thou hast buylt thyne hye plate at euery head of the way, thou hast made thy beautie to be abhorred, thou hast opened thy feete to euery one that came by, and multiplied thy whoredome. 26Thou hast committed fornication with the Egyptians, thy neighbours whiche were great in fleshe, and thus hast thou increased thyne whordome to anger me. 27Beholde, I did stretche out my hand ouer thee, and dyd minishe thy store of foode, and deliuered thee ouer into the wylles of them that hate thee, euen the daughters of the Philistines, which are ashamed of thyne abhominable wayes. 28Thou hast plaied the whore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast insatiable: yea thou hast I say with them played the harlot, and yet hadst thou not inough. 29Thus hast thou furthermore multiplied thy fornication from the lande of Chanaan vnto the Chaldees, and yet thou wast not satisfied herewith.

30Howe weake is thyne heart saith the Lorde God, seeing thou doest all these workes of a presumptuous whorishe woman? 31Buylding thy hye places at the head of euery way, and makest thy hye places in euery streete: thou hast not ben as another whore that holdeth scorne of a rewarde. 32But as a wyfe that breaketh wedlocke, and taketh other in steede of her husbande. 33Giftes are geuen to all other whores: but thou geuest rewardes vnto all thy louers, & rewardest them to come vnto thee on euery side for thy fornication. 34It is come to passe with thee in thy whoredomes contrary to the vse of other women, yea there hath no suche fornication ben committed after thee: seeing that thou geuest gyftes vnto other, and no rewarde is geuen thee, therfore thou art contrary.

Judgment on Jerusalem

35Therefore heare the worde of the Lorde, O thou harlot. 36Thus saith the Lorde God, Because thou hast powred out thy brasse, and discouered thy filthynes thorowe thy fornications with thy louers, and with all the idols of thyne abhominations, and in the blood of thy chyldren whom thou hast geuen them: 37Beholde therefore, I wyll gather together all thy louers with whom thou hast taken pleasure, yea and all them whom thou hast loued, and euery one that thou hatest: I wyll I say gather them together rounde about against thee, and wil discouer thy shame before them, that they may see all thy filthynesse. 38Moreouer, I wyll iudge thee as a breaker of wedlocke and a murtherer, and recompence thee thyne owne blood in wrath and gelousie. 39I wyll geue thee ouer into their handes, and they shal destroy thy hie place, and breake downe thy hye places, they shall strip thee also out of thy clothes: thy farre iewels shall they take from thee, and so leaue thee naked and bare. 40Yea they shall bryng a company vpon thee, whiche shall stone thee with stones, and thrust thee through with their swordes, 41They shall burne vp thy houses with fire, and punishe thee in the sight of many women: thus wyll I make thee ceasse from playing the harlot, so that thou shalt geue out no more rewardes. 42So wyll I make my wrath towarde thee to rest, and my ielousie shall depart from thee, and I will ceasse, and be angry no more. 43Seing thou remembrest not the dayes of thy youth, but hast fretted me in all these thinges: beholde therfore, I wyll bryng thyne owne wayes vpon thy head saith the Lord God, so that thou shalt not commit any more mischiefe vpon all thyne abhominations.

44Beholde, all they that vse common prouerbes, shall vse this prouerbe also against thee, saying: Such a mother, such a daughter. 45Thou art euen thy mothers owne daughter, that hath cast of her husband and her chyldren: yea thou art the sister of thy sisters, which forsoke their husbandes & their chyldren: your mother is an Hittito, & your father an Amorite. 46Thyne eldest sister is Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell vpon thy left hande: but thy younger sister that dwelleth on thy right hande is Sodoma and her daughters. 47Yet hast thou not walked after their wayes, nor done after their abhominations, as a litle and a litle: but in all thy wayes thou hast ben more corrupt then they. 48As truely as I liue, saith the Lorde God, Sodoma thy sister with her daughters, haue not done as thou hast done and thy daughters. 49Behold, the sinnes of thy sister Sodoma were these: Pryde, fulnesse of meate, and aboundaunce of idlenesse, these thinges had she and her daughters: besides that, they strengthed not the hande of the poore and needie. 50But they were hautie, and committed abhomination before me, therefore I toke them away as I sawe good. 51Neither hath Samaria done halfe of thy sinnes, yea thou hast exceeded them in thyne abhominations, and hast iustified thy sisters in all thyne abhominations whiche thou hast done. 52Therfore thou which didst condemne thy sister, beare thyne owne shame: for thyne owne offences that thou hast comitted more abhominable then they dyd, which in deede are more righteous then thou art, be thou I say ashamed, and beare the shamefull rebuke, seeing that thou hast iustified thy sisters.

53Therfore I wyll bryng agayne their captiuitie, the captiuitie of Sodom and her daughters, & the captiuitie of Samaria and her daughters, and the captiuitie of thy captiuities among them, 54That thou mayest take thyne owne confusion vpon thee, and be ashamed of all that thou hast done, in that thou hast comforted them. 55And thy sister Sodom and her daughters shall returne to their former state, Samaria also and her daughters shall returne to their former state, when thou and thy daughters shall returne to your former state. 56For thy sister Sodom was not heard of by thy report in the day of thy pryde, 57Before thy wickednesse was discouered, according to the tyme of the reproche of the daughters of Aram, and of all the daughters of the Philistines rounde about her, whiche depise thee on all sides. 58Thou hast borne thy wickednesse and thyne abhomination, saith the Lorde.

The Covenant Remembered

59For thus saith the Lorde God, I might by right deale with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the othe in breaking the couenaunt:

60Neuerthelesse, I wyll remember my couenaunt with thee in the daies of thy youth, and I wyll establishe vnto thee an euerlasting couenaunt. 61Then shalt thou remember thy wayes, and be ashamed when thou shalt receaue thy sisters, both thy elder and thy younger: and I wyll geue them vnto thee for daughters, but not by thy couenaunt. 62And I wyll establishe my couenaunt with thee, that thou mayest know that I am the Lorde. 63That thou mayest thinke vpon it, and be ashamed, and neuer open thy mouth any more for shame of thy selfe, when I am pacified towarde thee for all that thou hast done, saith the Lorde God.