the Fourth Week of Advent
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Myles Coverdale Bible
1 Kings 22
1 And there passed ouer thre yeares, that there was no warre betwene the Sirians & Israel.2 But in the thirde yeare wente Iosaphat the kynge of Iuda downe to the kynge of Israel.3 And the kynge of Israel sayde vnto his seruauntes: Knowe ye not yt Ramoth in Gilead is oures? and we syt styll, and take it not out of the hande of the kynge of Syria.4 And he sayde vnto Iosaphat: Wilt thou go with me to the battaill vnto Ramoth in Gilead? Iosaphat sayde vnto the kynge of Israel: I wyll be as thou my people as thy people, and my horses as thy horses.5 And Iosaphat sayde vnto ye kynge of Israel: Axe this daye at the worde of the LORDE.6 Then the kynge of Israel gathered the prophetes aboute a foure hundreth men, and sayde vnto them: Shal I go vnto Ramoth in Gilead to fighte, or shal I let it alone? They sayde: Go vp, ye LORDE shal delyuer it in to ye kinges hande.7 But Iosaphat sayde: Is there not one prophet here more of ye LORDE, that we maye axe at him?8 The kinge of Israel saide vnto Iosaphat Here is yet a man, one Micheas the sonne of Iemla, at whom we maye axe of the LORDE: but I hate him, for he prophecieth me no good, but euell. Iosaphat sayde: Let not the kynge saye so.9 Then called the kynge of Israel a chamberlayne, and sayde: Brynge hither soone Micheas the sonne of Iemla.10 As for the kynge of Israel and Iosaphat ye kinge of Iuda, they sat ether of them vpon his seate, arayed in their garmentes in the place at ye dore of the porte of Samaria, and all ye prophetes prophecied before the.11 And Sedechias the sonne of Cnaena had made him hornes of yron, and sayde: Thus sayeth the LORDE: With these shalt thou pu?she at ye Syrians, tyll thou brynge them to naughte12 And all the prophetes prophecied likewyse, and sayde: Go vp vnto Ramoth in Gilead, thou shalt prospere right well, & the LORDE shal delyuer it in to the kynges hande.13 And the messaunger that wente to call Micheas sayde vnto him: Beholde, The wordes of ye prophetes are with one acorde good before the kynge, let thy worde therfore be as their worde, and speake thou good also.14 Micheas sayde: As truly as the LORDE liueth, loke what the LORDE sayeth vnto me, yt wyl I speake.
15 And whan he came to the kynge, the kynge sayde vnto him: Micheas, shal we go vnto Ramoth in Gilead to fight or shall we let it alone? He sayde vnto him: Yee, go vp, thou shalt prospere righte well, the LORDE shall geue it in to the kynges hande.16 But the kynge sayde vnto him agayne: I charge ye that thou saye no other thinge vnto me but the trueth, in the name of ye LORDE.17 He sayde: I sawe all Israel scatred abrode vpon the mountaynes, as the shepe that haue no shepherde. And the LORDE saide: Haue these no lorde? Let euery one turne home agayne in peace.18 Then sayde ye kinge of Israel vnto Iosaphat: Tolde not I ye that he wolde prophecye me no good, but euell?19 He sayde: Heare now therfore the worde of the LORDE: I sawe the LORDE syt vpon his seate, and all the hoost of heauen stodinge by him at his righte hande & at his lefte.20 And the LORDE saide: Who wil disceaue Achab to go vp, & fall at Ramoth in Gilead. And one sayde this, another that.21 Then wete there forth a sprete, & stode before the LORDE, and sayde: I wyl disceaue him.22 The LORDE sayde vnto him: Wherwith? He sayde vnto him: I wyll go forth, and be a false sprete in the mouth of all his prophetes. He saide: Thou shalt disceaue him, and shalt be able: go forth and do so.23 Beholde now, the LORDE hath geue a false sprete in ye mouth of all these yi prophetes, and the LORDE hath spoken euell ouer the.24 Then stepte forth Sedechias the sonne of Cnaena, and smote Micheas vpon the cheke, and sayde: What, is the sprete of the LORDE departed fro me, to speake with the?25 Micheas sayde: Beholde, thou shalt se it in yt daye, whan thou shalt go fro one chamber to another to hyde the.26 The kynge of Israel sayde: Take Micheas, and let him remayne with Amon the ruler of the cite, and with Ioas the kynges sonne,27 and saye: Thus sayeth the kynge: Put this man in preson, and fede him with bred and water of trouble, tyll I come agayne in peace.28 Micheas sayde: Yf thou commest agayne in peace, then hath not the LORDE spoken thorow me. And he sayde: herken to all ye people.
29 So the kynge of Israel and Iosaphat ye kynge of Iuda wente vp vnto Ramoth in Gilead.30 And the kynge of Israel sayde vnto Iosaphat: Chaunge thy clothes, and come in to ye battayll in thine araie. The kinge of Israel chaunged his clothes also, and wete in to the battayll.31 But the kynge of Siria commaunded the rulers of his charettes (of whom there were two and thirtie) and saide: Ye shal fight nether agaynst small ner greate, but onely agaynst the kynge of Israel.32 And whan the rulers of the charettes sawe Iosaphat, they thought it had bene the kynge of Israel, and fell vpon him with fightinge. But Iosaphat cried.33 So whan the rulers of the charettes sawe that it was not ye kinge of Israel, they turned back fro him.34 A certayne man bended his bowe harde, and shott the kynge of Israel betwene the mawe and ye longes. And he sayde vnto his charetman: Turne thine hade, and cary me out of the hoost, for I am wounded.35 And ye battayll was sore the same daie. And the kinge stode vpo his charet, agaynst the Syrias and dyed in the eueninge, and the bloude ranne from the wounde in to the myddes of the charet.36 And whan the Sonne wente downe there was a proclamacion made in the hoost, and sayde: Euery one gett him in to his cite, and to his countre.37 Thus the kynge dyed, and was broughte vnto Samaria, and they buryed him in Samaria.38 And whan they wa?shed the charett in the pole of Samaria, ye dogges licked his bloude (but the harlottes wa?shed him) acordinge to the worde of ye LORDE which he spake.39 What more there is to saye of Achab, & all yt he dyd, and of the Yuery house which he buylded, beholde, it is wrytten in the Cronicles of the kynges of Israel.40 So Achab slepte with his fathers, and his sonne Ahasia was kynge in his steade.
41 And Iosaphat the sonne of Asa was kynge ouer Iuda in the fourth yeare of Achab kynge of Israel,42 and was fyue and thirtie yeare olde whan he was made kynge and raigned fyue and twentye yeare at Ierusale. His mothers name was Asuba ye doughter of Silhi,43 and he walked in all the waye of his father Asa, & departed not there from And he dyd that which was right in ye sighte of the LORDE, yet put he not awaye ye hie places, and ye people offred and brent incese yet vpon the hye places,44 and he had peace with the kynge of Israel.45 What more there is to saye of Iosaphat and the mighte that he exercised, and how he fought, beholde, it is wrytten in the Cronicles of the kynges of Iuda.46 He put out of the londe also the whoremongers that yet were lefte, which remayned ouer in the tyme of his father Asa.47 And at that tyme there were no kynges in Edom.48 And Iosaphat had caused to make shippes vpon the See, which shulde go to fetch golde in Ophir, but they wente not: for they were broken at Ezeon Gaber.49 At that tyme sayde Ahasia the sonne of Achab vnto Iosaphat: Let my seruauntes passe with thy seruauntes in the shippes. But Iosaphat wolde not.50 And Iosaphat slepte with his fathers, and was buried in ye cite of Dauid. And Ioram his sonne was kynge in his steade.51 Ahasia the sonne off Achab was kynge ouer Israel at Samaria in ye seuententh yeare of Iosaphat kige of Iuda, & reigned ouer Israel two yeares,52 & dyd yt which was euell in ye sight of the LORDE, and walked in the waye of his father and of his mother, & in the waie of Ieroboam ye sonne of Nebat, which made Israel for to synne.53 And serued Baal, and worshipped him, and displeased the LORDE God of Israel, eue as his father dyd.