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¹ For lo, the Lorde God of hoastes doth take away from Hierusalem and Iuda all maner of stay, all stay of meate and drynke,² The captayne and the souldiour, the iudge and the prophete, the prudent and the aged man,³ The captayne of fiftie & the honorable, the senatour, the cunnyng artificer, and the eloquent oratour.⁴ And I shall geue children to be their princes, and babes shall rule ouer them.⁵ And the people shall eche one of them violently oppresse another, and euery one agaynst his neyghbour: The boy shall presume agaynst the elder, and the person of lowe degree agaynst the honorable.⁶ Yea one shall take a friende of his owne kinrede by the bosome, and say: thou hast clothyng, thou shalt be our head, and stay this ruine with thy hande.⁷ Then shall he sweare and say, I can not helpe you: there is neither meate nor clothyng in my house, make me no ruler of the people.⁸ For Hierusalem and Iuda must decay: because that both their wordes and counsayles are agaynst the Lorde to prouoke the presence of his maiestie to anger.

⁹ Their very countenaunce bewrayeth the, yea they declare their owne sinnes [themselues] as Sodome, they hide it not: Wo be to their owne soules, for they haue rewarded euyll vnto them selues.¹⁰ Say to the ryghteous that it shall go well with them: for they shall eate the fruite of their owne studies.¹¹ [But] wo be vnto the wicked, for it shalbe euyll with hym: for he shalbe rewarded after his owne workes.¹² Children are extortioners of my people, and women rule ouer them: O my people, thy leaders deceaue thee, and corrupt the way of thy footsteppes.¹³ The Lorde is here to commune of the matter, & standeth to iudge the people.¹⁴ The Lorde shall enter into iudgement with the elders and princes of his people, [and shall say to them:] It is ye that haue burnt vp my vineyarde, the spoyle of the poore is in your houses.¹⁵ What meane ye that ye bray [as in a morter] my people, and grinde the faces of the poore? saith the Lorde God of hoastes.

¹⁶ Moreouer the Lord hath said, seing the daughters of Sion are waxen proude, & walke with stretched foorth neckes, and wanton lokes, goyng and trippyng nicely, and tinckelyng with their feete:¹⁷ Therfore shall the Lorde shaue the heades of the daughters of Sion, and shall discouer their filthinesse.¹⁸ In that day shall the Lord take away the gorgiousnesse of the attire about their feete, & the caules, and the rounde tires [after the fashion of the moone.]¹⁹ The sweete perfumes, and the bracelettes, and the mufflers,²⁰ The bonnettes, and the sloppes, and the head bandes, and the tablettes, and the earynges,²¹ And rynges, and nose iewels:²² The costly apparell, and the vayles, and the wimples, & the crispyng pinnes,²³ And the glasses, and the fine linnen, and the hoodes, and the lawnes.²⁴ And in steade of good smell there shalbe stincke, and in steade of their girdle a rent, and for well set heere there shalbe baldnesse, in steade of a stomacher a sacke cloth, & [sunne] burnyng for beautie.²⁵ Thy men shal perishe with the sword, and thy valiaunt souldiours in the battayle [O Hierusalem.]²⁶ And her gates shall mourne and bewayle: and she deyng desolate, shall syt vpon the grounde.