Read the Bible

¹ Then answered Eliphas the Themanite, and sayde:² Shulde a wyse man geue soch an answere (as it were one that spake in the wynde) and fyll his stomacke with anger?³ Thou reprouest wt wordes, that are nothinge wroth: and speakest the thinges, which can do no good.⁴ As for shame, thou hast set it asyde, els woldest thou not make so many wordes before God:⁵ but thy wickednesse teacheth thy mouth, and so thou hast chosen the a craftie tonge.⁶ Thine owne mouth condemneth the, and not I: yee thine owne lippes shappe the an answere.⁷ Art thou the first man, that euer was borne? Or, wast thou made before the hylles?⁸ hast thou herde the secrete councell of God, that all wy?dome is to litle for ye?⁹ What knowest thou, yt we knowe not? What vnderstondest thou, but we can the same?¹⁰ With vs are olde and aged men, yee soch as haue lyued longer then thy forefathers.¹¹ Dost thou nomore regarde the comforte of God? but thy wicked wordes wil not suffre the.¹² Why doth thine herte make the so proude? Why stondest thou so greatly in thine owne conceate? Where vnto loke thine eyes,¹³ yt thy mynde is so puft vp agaynst God & lettest soch wordes go out of thy mouth?¹⁴ What is man, that he shulde be vncleane? what hath he (which is borne of a woman) wherby he might be knowne to be rightuous?¹⁵ Beholde, he hath founde vnfaithfulnesse amoge his owne sanctes: yee the very heauens are vnclene in his sight.¹⁶ How moch more then an abhominable and vyle ma, which dryncketh wickednesse like water?

¹⁷ I will tell the, heare me: I wil shewe the a thinge, that I knowe:¹⁸ which wyse men haue tolde, & hath not bene hyd from their fathers:¹⁹ vnto whom only the londe was geuen, that no straunger shulde come amonge them.²⁰ The vngodly despayreth all the dayes of his life, & the nombre of a tyrauntes yeares is vnknowne.²¹ A fearfull sounde is euer in his eares, & when it is peace, yet feareth he destruccion:²² He beleueth neuer to be delyuered out of darcknesse, the swearde is allwaye before his eyes.²³ When he goeth forth to get his lyuinge, he thinketh planely, that the daye of darcknesse is at honde.²⁴ Sorow and carefulnesse make him afrayed, & copasse him rounde aboute, like as it were a kinge with his hoost redy to the battayll.²⁵ For he hath stretched out his honde agaynst God, & armed himself agaynst ye Allmightie.²⁶ He runneth proudly vpon him, & with a stiff necke fighteth he agaynst him:²⁷ where as he couereth his face with fatnesse, and maketh his body well lykynge.²⁸ Therfore shall his dwellynge be in desolate cities, & in houses which no ma inhabiteth, but are become heapes of stones.²⁹ He shall not be rich, nether shall his substaunce continue, ner encrease vpon earth.³⁰ He shal neuer come out of darcknesse, the flame shal drye vp his braunches, with ye blast of the mouth of God shal he be take awaie.³¹ He wil nether applye himself to faithfulnes ner treuth, so sore is he disceaued wt vanite.³² He shall perish, afore his tyme be worne out, and his honde shal not be grene.³³ He shalbe pluckte of as an vntymely grape from ye vyne, and shal let his floure fall, as the olyue doth.³⁴ For the congregacion of Ypocrites is vnfrutefull, & the fyre shal consume the houses of soch, as are gredy to receaue giftes.³⁵ He conceaueth trauayle, he beareth myschefe, & his body bryngeth forth disceate.