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¹ Thou virgyn, the douytir Babiloyne, go doun, sitte thou in dust, sitte thou in erthe; a kyngis seete is not to the douyter of Caldeis, for thou schalt no more be clepid soft and tendir.² Take thou a queerne stoon, and grynde thou mele; make thou nakid thi filthe, diskeuere the schuldur, schewe the hippis, passe thou floodis.³ Thi schame schal be schewid, and thi schenschipe schal be seen; Y schal take veniaunce, and no man schal ayenstonde me.⁴ Oure ayen biere, the Lord of oostis is his name, the hooli of Israel.⁵ Douyter of Caldeis, sitte thou, be thou stille, and entre in to derknessis, for thou schalt no more be clepid the ladi of rewmes.⁶ I was wrooth on my puple, Y defoulid myn eritage, and Y yaf hem in thin hond, and thou settidist not mercies to hem; thou madist greuouse the yok greetli on an eld man,

⁷ and thou seidist, With outen ende Y schal be ladi; thou puttidist not these thingis on thin herte, nether thou bithouytist on thi laste thing.⁸ And now, thou delicat, and dwellynge tristili, here these thingis, which seist in thin herte, Y am, and outakun me ther is no more; Y schal not sitte widewe, and Y schal not knowe bareynesse.⁹ These twei thingis, bareynesse and widewhod schulen come to thee sudenli in o dai; alle thingis camen on thee for the multitude of thi witchecraftis, and for the greet hardnesse of thin enchauntours, ether tregetours.¹⁰ And thou haddist trist in thi malice, and seidist, Noon is that seeth me; this thi wisdom and thi kunnyng disseyuede thee; and thou seidist in thin herte,¹¹ Y am, and outakun me ther is noon other. Yuel schal come on thee, and thou schalt not knowe the bigynning therof; and wrecchidnesse schal falle on thee, which thou schalt not mowe clense; wretchidnesse which thou knowist not, schal come on thee sudenly.¹² Stonde thou with thin enchauntours, and with the multitude of thi witchis, in whiche thou trauelidist fro thi yongthe; if in hap thei profiten ony thing to thee, ether if thou maist be maad the strongere.¹³ Thou failidist in the multitude of thi councels; the false dyuynours of heuene stonde, and saue thee, whiche bihelden staris, and noumbriden monethis, that thei schulden telle bi tho thingis to comynge to thee.¹⁴ Lo! thei ben maad as stobil, the fier hath brent hem; thei schulen not delyuere her lijf fro the power of flawme; colis ben not, bi whiche thei schulen be warmed, nether fier, that thei sitte at it.¹⁵ So tho thingis ben maad to thee in whiche euere thou trauelidist; thi marchauntis fro thi yongthe erriden, ech man in his weie; noon is, that schal saue thee.