the Fourth Week of Advent
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Wycliffe Bible
1 Kings 4
1 `Forsothe kyng Salomon was regnynge on al Israel.2 And these weren the princes which he hadde; Azarie, sone of Sadoch, preest;3 Helioreb, and Haia, sones of Sila, `weren scryueyns; Josophat, sone of Achilud, was chaunseler;4 Banaie, sone of Joiada, was on the oost; forsothe Sadoch and Abiathar weren preestis;5 Azarie, sone of Nathan, was on hem that stoden niy the kyng; Zabul, the sone of Nathan, was preest, `that is, greet and worschipful, a freend of the kyng;6 and Ahiasar was stiward of the hows; and Adonyram, sone of Adda, was on the tributis.7 Forsothe Salomon hadde twelue `prefectis, ether cheef minystrys, on al Israel, that yauen lijflode to the kyng, and to his hows; sotheli bi ech monethe bi it silf in the yeer, ech prefect bi hym silf mynystride necessaries.8 And these ben the names of hem; Benhur, in the hil of Effraym;9 Bendechar, in Macces, and in Salebbym, and in Bethsames, and in Helon, and in Bethanan;10 Beneseth, in Araboth; forsothe Socco, and al the lond of Epher was his;11 Benabidanab, whos was al Neptad, hadde Dortaphaed, `Solomons douyter, to wijf.12 Bena, sone of Achilud, gouernyde Thaneth, and Mageddo, and al Bethsan, which is bisidis Sarthana, vndur Jezrael, fro Bethsan `til to Abelmeula, euene ayens Zelmaan.13 Bengaber in Ramoth of Galaad hadde Anothiair, of the sone of Manasses, in Galaad; he was souereyn in al the cuntrey of Argob, which is in Basan, to sixti greet citees and wallid, that hadden brasun lockis.14 Achymadab, sone of Addo, was souereyn in Manaym;15 Achymaas was in Neptalym, but also he hadde Bachsemath, douyter of Salomon, in wedloc;16 Banaa, sone of Husy, was in Aser, and in Balod;17 Josephat, sone of Pharue, was in Ysachar; Semey, sone of Hela, was in Beniamyn;18 Gaber,19 sone of Sury, was in the lond of Galaad, and in the lond of Seon, kyng of Amorrey, and of Og, kyng of Basan, on alle thingis, that weren in that lond.
20 Juda and Israel weren vnnoumbrable, as the soond of the see in multitude, etynge, and drynkynge, and beynge glad.21 Forsothe Solomon was in his lordschip, and hadde alle rewmes, as fro the flood of the lond of Filisteis `til to the laste part of Egipt, of men offrynge yiftis to hym, and seruynge to hym, in alle the daies of his lijf.22 Forsothe the mete of Salomon was bi ech day, thritti chorus of clene flour of whete, and sixti chorus of mele,23 ten fatte oxis, and twenti oxis of lesewe, and an hundrid wetheris, outakun huntyng of hertys, of geet, and of buglis, and of briddis maad fat.24 For he helde al the cuntrei that was biyende the flood, as fro Caphsa `til to Gasa, and alle the kyngis of tho cuntreis; and he hadde pees bi ech part in cumpas.25 And Juda and Israel dwelliden withouten ony drede, ech man vndur his vyne, and vndur his fige tree, fro Dan `til to Bersabe, in alle the daies of Salomon.26 And Salomon hadde fourty thousynd cratchis of horsis for charis, and twelue thousynde of roode horsis; and the forseid prefectis nurshiden tho horsis.27 But also with greet bisynesse thei yauen necessaries to the boord of kyng Salomon in her tyme;28 also thei brouyten barli, and forage of horsis and werk beestis, in to the place where the king was, `bi ordenaunce to hem.
29 Also God yaf to Salomon wisdom, and prudence ful myche, and largenesse of herte, as the soond which is in the brenke of the see.30 And the wisdom of Solomon passide the wisdom of alle eest men, and Egipcians;31 and he was wisere than alle men; he was wisere than Ethan Esraite, and than Eman, and than Cacal, and than Dorda, the sones of Maol; and he was named among alle folkis bi cumpas.32 And Salomon spak thre thousynde parablis, and hise songis weren fyue thousynde;33 and he disputide of trees fro a cedre which is in the Lyban, `til to the ysope that goith out of the wal; he disputide of werk beestis, and briddis, and crepynge beestis, and fischis.34 And thei camen fro alle puplis to here the wisdom of Salomon, and fro alle kyngis of erthe, that herden his wisdom.
