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¹ The righteous perisheth, and no man considereth it in heart: and mercifull men are taken away, and no man vnderstandeth that the righteous is taken away from the euill to come.² Peace shall come: they shall rest in their beds, euery one that walketh before him.

³ But you witches children, come hither, the seede of the adulterer and of the whore.⁴ On whome haue ye iested? vpon whome haue ye gaped and thrust out your tongue? are not ye rebellious children, and a false seede?⁵ Inflamed with idoles vnder euery greene tree? and sacrificing the children in the valleys vnder the tops of the rocks?⁶ Thy portion is in the smooth stones of the riuer: they, they are thy lot: euen to them hast thou powred a drinke offering: thou hast offered a sacrifice. Should I delite in these?⁷ Thou hast made thy bed vpon a very hie mountaine: thou wentest vp thither, euen thither wentest thou to offer sacrifice.⁸ Behinde the doores also and postes hast thou set vp thy remembrance: for thou hast discouered thy selfe to another then me, and wentest vp, and diddest enlarge thy bed, and make a couenant betweene thee & them, and louedst their bed in euery place where thou sawest it.⁹ Thou wentest to the Kings with oyle, and diddest increase thine oyntments and sende thy messengers farre off, and diddest humble thy selfe vnto hell.¹⁰ Thou weariedst thy selfe in thy manifolde iourneys, yet saydest thou not, There is no hope: thou hast found life by thine hand, therefore thou wast not grieued.¹¹ And whome diddest thou reuerence or feare, seeing thou hast lyed vnto me, and hast not remembred me, neither set thy minde thereon? is it not because I holde my peace, & that of long time? therefore thou fearest not me.¹² I will declare thy righteousnes and thy workes, and they shall not profite thee.

¹³ When thou cryest, let them that thou hast gathered together deliuer thee: but the winde shal take them all away: vanitie shal pull them away: but he that trusteth in me, shall inherite the lande, and shall possesse mine holy Mountaine.¹⁴ And he shall say, Cast vp, cast vp: prepare the way: take vp the stumbling blocks out of the way of my people.¹⁵ For thus sayth he that is hie and excellent, he that inhabiteth the eternitie, whose Name is the Holy one, I dwell in the high and holy place: with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirite to reuiue the spirite of the humble, and to giue life to them that are of a contrite heart.¹⁶ For I will not contende for euer, neither will I be alwayes wroth, for the spirite should fayle before me: and I haue made the breath.

¹⁷ For his wicked couetousnesse I am angry with him, and haue smitten him: I hid mee and was angry, yet he went away, and turned after the way of his owne heart.¹⁸ I haue seene his wayes, and wil heale him: I wil leade him also, & restore comfort vnto him, and to those that lament him.¹⁹ I create the fruite of the lips, to be peace: peace vnto them that are farre off, and to them that are neere, sayth the Lorde: for I will heale him.²⁰ But the wicked are like the raging sea, that can not rest, whose waters cast vp myre and dirt.²¹ There is no peace, sayth my God, to the wicked.