the Fourth Week of Advent
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Wycliffe Bible
2 Chronicles 35
1 Forsothe Josie made pask to the Lord in Jerusalem, that was offrid in the fourtenthe dai of the firste monethe;2 and he ordeynede prestis in her offices; and he comaundide hem for to mynystre in the hows of the Lord.3 And he spak to the dekenes, at whos techyng al Israel was halewid to the Lord, Sette ye the arke in the seyntuarie of the temple, which Salomon, kyng of Israel, the sone of Dauid, bildide; for ye schulen no more bere it. But now serue `youre Lord God and his puple Israel,4 and make you redi bi youre housis and meynees in the departyngis of ech bi hym silf, as Dauid, king of Israel, comaundide, and Salomon, his sone, discryuede;5 and serue ye in the seyntuarie bi the meynees and cumpenyes of dekenes,6 and be ye halewid, and offre ye pask; also `make redi youre britheren, that thei moun `do bi the wordis, whiche the Lord spak in the hond of Moyses.7 Ferthermore Josie yaf to al the puple, that was foundun there in the solempnytee of pask, lambren, and kidis of the flockis, and of residue scheep `he yaf thritti thousynde, and of oxis thre thousynde; these thingis of al the catel of the kyng.8 And hise duykis offriden tho thingis whiche thei avowiden bi fre wille, as wel to the puple as to prestis and dekenes. Forsothe Elchie, and Zacharie, and Jehiel, princes of the hows of the Lord, yauen to preestis, to make pask in comyn, two thousynde and sixe hundrid scheep, and thre hundrid oxis.9 Forsothe Chononye, and Semei, and Nathanael and hise britheren, also Asabie, Jahiel, and Josabaz, princis of dekenes, yauen to othere dekenes, to make pask, fyue thousynde of scheep, and fyue hundrid oxis.10 And the seruyce was maad redi; and preestis stoden in her office, and dekenes in cumpenyes, bi comaundement of the kyng; and pask was offrid.11 And preestis spreynten her hondis with blood, and dekenes drowen of the skynnes of sacrifices, and departiden tho sacrificis,12 for to yyue bi the housis and meyneis of alle men; and that tho schulden be offrid to the Lord, as it is writun in the book of Moises; and of oxis thei diden in lijk maner.13 And thei rostiden pask on the fier, bi that that is writun in the lawe. Sotheli thei sethiden pesible sacrifices in pannes, and cawdruns, and pottis, and in haste thei deliden to al the puple;14 but thei maden redi aftirward to hem silf, and to prestis; for preestis weren occupied `til to nyyt in the offryng of brent sacrifices and of ynnere fatnessis. Wherfor dekenes maden redi to hem silf and to preestis, the sones of Aaron, `the laste.15 Forsothe syngeris, the sones of Asaph, stoden in her ordre, bi the comaundement of Dauid, and of Asaph, and of Eman, and of Yditum, the profetis of the kyng; but the porteris kepten bi ech yate, so that thei yeden not awei fro the seruice, sotheli in a poynt; wherfor and dekenes, her britheren, maden redi metis to hem.16 Therfor al the religioun of the Lord was fillid riytfuli in that day, that thei maden pask, and offriden brent sacrifices on the auter of the Lord, bi the comaundement of kyng Josie.17 And the sones of Israel, that weren foundun there, maden pask in that tyme, and the solempnite of therf looues seuene daies.18 No pask was lijk this in Israel, fro the daies of Samuel, the prophete; but nethir ony of the kyngis of Israel made pask as Josie dide, to preestis and dekenes, and to al Juda and Israel, that was foundun, and to the dwelleris of Jerusalem.19 This pask was halewid in the eiytenthe yeer of `the rewme of Josie.
20 Aftir that Josie hadde reparelid the temple, Nechao, the kyng of Egipt, stiede to fiyte in Carcamys bisidis Eufrates; and Josie yede forth in to his metyng.21 And he seide bi messangeris sent to hym, Kyng of Juda, what is to me and to thee? Y come not ayens thee to dai, but Y fiyte ayens another hows, to which God bad me go in haste; ceesse thou to do ayens God, which is with me, lest he sle thee.22 Josie nolde turne ayen, but made redi batel ayens hym; and he assentide not to the wordis of Nechao, bi Goddis mouth, but he yede for to fiyte in the feeld of Magedo.23 And there he was woundide of archeris, and seide to hise children, `Lede ye me out of the batel, for Y am woundid greetli.24 Whiche baren hym ouer fro the chare in to an other chare, that suede hym, bi custom of the kyng, and `baren out hym in to Jerusalem; and he diede, and was biried in the sepulcre of hise fadris. And al Juda and Jerusalem biweiliden hym,25 Jeremye moost, of whom alle syngeris and syngeressis `til in to present dai rehersen `lamentaciouns, ether weilyngis, on Josie; and it cam forth as a lawe in Israel, Lo! it is seid writun in Lamentaciouns. 26 Forsothe the residue of wordis of Josie, and of hise mercies, that ben comaundid in the lawe of the Lord, 27 and hise werkis, `the firste and the laste, ben wryten in the book of kyngis of Israel and of Juda.
