Read the Bible

¹ Aftir the deeth of Josue the sones of Israel counseliden the Lord, and seiden, Who schal stie bifor vs ayens Cananei, and schal be duik of the batel?

² And the Lord seide, Judas schal stie; lo! Y haue youe the lond in to hise hondis.

³ And Juda seide to Symeon, his brother, Stie thou with me in my lot, and fiyte thou ayens Cananei, that Y go with thee in thi lot.

⁴ And Symeon yede with hym; and Judas stiede. And the Lord bitook Cananey and Feresei in to `the hondis of hem, and thei killiden in Besech ten thousynde of men.

⁵ And thei founden Adonybozech in Besech, and thei fouyten ayens hym, and smytiden Cananei, and Feresey.

⁶ Forsothe Adonybozech fledde, whom thei pursueden, and token, and kittiden the endis of hise hondis and feet.

⁷ And Adonybozech seide, Seuenti kyngis, whanne the endis of hondis and feet weren kit awey, gaderiden relifs of metis vndur my bord; as Y dide, so God hath yolde to me. And thei brouyten hym in to Jerusalem, and there he diede.

⁸ Therfor the sones of Juda fouyten ayens Jerusalem, and token it, and smytiden bi the scharpnesse of swerd, and bitoken al the cytee to brennyng.

⁹ And aftirward thei yeden doun, and fouyten ayens Cananey, that dwellide in the hilli places, and at the south, in `feeldi places.

¹⁰ And Judas yede ayens Cananei, that dwellide in Ebron, whos name was bi eld tyme Cariatharbe; and Judas killide Sisay, and Achyman, and Tholmai.

¹¹ And fro thennus he yede forth, and yede to the dwelleris of Dabir, whos eld name was Cariathsepher, that is, the citee of lettris.

¹² And Caleph seide, Y schal yyue Axa, my douyter, wijf to hym that schal smyte Cariathsepher, and schal waste it.

¹³ And whanne Othonyel, sone of Seneth, the lesse brother of Caleph, hadde take it, Caleph yaf Axa, his douyter, wijf to hym.

¹⁴ And hir hosebonde stiride hir, goynge in the weie, that sche schulde axe of hir fadir a feeld; and whanne sche hadde siyid, sittynge on the asse, Caleph seide to hir, What hast thou?

¹⁵ And sche answeride, Yiue thou blessyng to me, for thou hast youe a drye lond to me; yyue thou also a moyst lond with watris. And Caleph yaf to hir the moist lond aboue, and the moist lond bynethe.

¹⁶ Forsothe the sones of Cyney, `alye of Moyses, stieden fro the citee of palmes with the sones of Juda, in to the desert of his lot, which desert is at the south of Arath; and dwelliden with hym.

¹⁷ Sotheli Judas yede with Symeon, his brother; and thei smytiden togidere Cananei, that dwellide in Sephar, and killiden hym; and the name of that citee was clepid Horma, that is, cursyng, `ether perfit distriyng, for thilke citee was distried outerly.

¹⁸ And Judas took Gaza with hise coostis, and Ascolon, and Accaron with hise termes.

¹⁹ And the Lord was with Judas, and he `hadde in possessioun the hilli places; and he myyte not do awey the dwelleris of the valei, for thei weren plenteuouse in `yrun charis, scharpe as sithis.

²⁰ And `the sones of Israel yauen Ebron to Caleph, as Moises hadde seid, which Caleph dide awei for it thre sones of Enach.

²¹ Forsothe the sones of Beniamyn diden not awei Jebusei, the dwellere of Jerusalem; and Jebusei dwellide with the sones of Beniamyn in Jerusalem `til in to present dai.

²² Also the hows of Joseph stiede in to Bethel, and the Lord was with hem.

²³ For whanne thei bisegiden the citee, that was clepid Lusa bifore,

²⁴ thei sien a man goynge out of the citee, and thei seiden to hym, Schewe thou to vs the entrynge of the cytee, and we schulen do mercy with thee.

²⁵ And whanne he hadde schewid to hem, thei smytiden the citee bi scharpnes of swerd; sotheli thei delyueriden that man and al his kynrede.

²⁶ And he was delyuerede, and yede in to the lond of Sethym, and bildide there a citee, and clepid it Luzam; which is clepid so til in to present dai.

²⁷ Also Manasses dide not awei Bethsan and Thanael with her townes, and the dwelleris of Endor, and Geblaam and Magedo with her townes; and Cananei bigan to dwelle with hem.

²⁸ Sotheli after that Israel was coumfortid, he made hem tributaries, `ethir to paye tribute, and nolde do awey hem.

²⁹ Sotheli Effraym killide not Cananei that dwellyde in Gaser, but dwellide with hym.

³⁰ Zabulon dide not awey the dwelleris of Cethron, and of Naalon; but Cananei dwellide in the myddis of hym, and was maad tributarie to him.

³¹ Also Aser dide not awey the dwelleris of Acho, and of Sidon, of Alab, and of Azazib, and of Alba, and Aphech, and of Aloa, and of Pha, and of Roob; and he dwellide in the myddis of Cananey,

³² dwellere of that lond, and killide not hym.

³³ Neptalym dide not awei the dwelleris of Bethsames, and of Bethanach; and he dwellide among Cananey, dwellere of the lond; and Bethsamytis and Bethanytis weren tributarie to hym.

³⁴ And Ammorrey helde streit the sones of Dan in the hil, and yaf not place to hem to go doun to pleynere places;

³⁵ and he dwellide in the hil of Hares, `which is interpretid, Witnessyng, in Hailon, and in Salabym. And the hond of the hows of Joseph was maad heuy, and he was maad tributarie to hym.

³⁶ And the terme of Ammorrei was fro the stiyng of Scorpioun, and the stoon, and hiyere places.