A Lament over Zion

1O who will geue my heade water ynough, & a well of teares for myne eyes: that I maye wepe night ad daye, for the slaughter of my people?

2Wolde God that I had a cotage some where farre from folke, that I might leaue my people, and go from the: for they be all aduoutrers and a shrenckinge sorte.

3They bede their tuges like bowes, to shute out lies: As for the treuth, they maye nothinge awaye with all in the worlde. For they go from one wickednes to another, and holde nothinge of me, saieth the LORDE.

4Yee one must kepe himself from another, no man maye safely trust his owne brother: for one brother vndermyneth another, & one neghboure begyleth another.

5Yee one dissembleth with another, and they deale with no treuth. They haue practised their tunges to lye, and taken greate paynes to do myschefe.

6They haue set their stole in the myddest of disceate, and (for very dissemblinge falsede) they wil not knowe me, saieth the LORDE.

7Therfore thus saieth the LORDE of hoostes, beholde, I wil melte them and trie the, for what shulde I els do to my people?

8Their tunges are like sharpe arowes, to speake disceate. With their mouth they speake peaceably to their neghboure, but preuely they laye waite for him.

9Shulde I not punysh them for these thinges, saieth the LORDE? Or, shulde I not be auenged of eny soch people, as this?

10Vpon the mountaynes will I take vp a lamentacion and soroufull crie, and a mournynge vpon the fayre playnes of the wildernes: Namely, how they are so brente vp, that no man goeth there enymore: Yee a man shal not heare one beast crie there. Byrdes and catell are all gone from thece.

11I will make Ierusalem also an heape of stones, and a denne of venymous wormes. And I wil make the cities of Iuda so waist, that no man shal dwell therin.

12What man is so wise, as to vnderstonde this? Or to whom hath the LORDE spoken by mouth, that he maye shewe this, and saye: O thou londe, why perishest thou so? Wherfore art thou so brent vp, and like a wildernesse, that no ma goeth thorow? 13Yee the LORDE himself tolde the same vnto them, that forsoke his lawe, and kepte not the thynge that he gaue them in commaundement, nether lyued therafter: 14but folowed the wickednes of their owne hertes, and serued straunge goddes, as their fathers taught them. 15Therfore, thus saieth the LORDE of hoostes, the God of Israel: Beholde, I will fede this people with wormwod, and geue the gall to drynke. 16I will scatre them also amonge the Heithen, whom nether they ner their fathers haue knowne: and I will sende a swearde amonge them, to persecute them, vntill I bringe them to naught.

17Morouer, thus saieth the LORDE of hoostes: loke that ye call for mournynge wyues, and sende for wise women: that they come shortly,

18and singe a mournynge songe of you: that the teares maye fall out of oure eyes, and that oure eye lyddes maye gushe out of water.

19For there is a lamentable noyse herde of Sion: O how are we so sore destroyed? O how are we so piteously confounded? We must forsake oure owne naturall countre, and we are shot out of oure owne lodgiges.

20Yet heare the worde of the LORDE (o ye women). And let youre eares regarde the wordes of his mouth: that ye maye lerne youre doughters to mourne, and that euery one maye teach hir neghbouresse, to make lamentacion.

21Namely thus: Deeth is clymme vp in at oure wyndowes, he is come in to oure houses, to destroye the childe before the dore, & ye yonge man in the strete.

22But tell thou planely, thus saieth ye LORDE: The deed bodies of men shal lye apon ye grounde, as the donge vpon the felde, and as the hay after the mower, and there shalbe no man to take them vp.

23Morouer, thus saieth the LORDE: Let not the wise man reioyse in his wisdome, ner the stronge man in his strength, nether the rich man in his riches: 24But who so wil reioyse, let him reioyse in this, that he vnderstodeth, and knoweth me: for I am the LORDE, which do mercie, equite and rightuousnes vpon earth. Therfore haue I pleasure in soch thinges, saieth ye LORDE.

25Beholde, the tyme cometh (saieth the LORDE) that I wil vyset all them, whose foreskynne is vncircumcised: 26The Egipcians, the Iewes, the Edomites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, and the shauen Madianites, that dwel in the wildernes. For all ye Gentiles are vncircumcised in the flesh, but all the house of Israel, are vncircumcised in the herte.