Read the Bible

¹ And the aungel of the Lord stiede fro Galgala to the place of weperis, and seide, Y ledde you out of Egipt, and Y brouyte you in to the lond, `for which Y swoor to youre fadris, and bihiyte, that Y schulde not make void my couenaunt with you in to with outen ende;

² so oneli that ye schulde not smyte boond of pees with the dwelleris of this lond, and schulden distrie `the auteris of hem; and ye nolden here my vois. Whi diden ye these thingis?

³ Wherfore Y nolde do hem awei fro youre face, that ye haue enemyes, and that `the goddis of hem be to you in to fallyng.

⁴ And whanne the `aungel of the Lord spak these wordis to alle the sones of Israel, thei reisiden her vois, and wepten; and the name of that place was clepid,

⁵ of weperis, ether of teeris; and thei offriden there sacrifices to the Lord.

⁶ Therfor Josue lefte the puple; and the sones of Israel wenten forth, ech man in to his possessioun, that thei schulden gete it.

⁷ And thei serueden the Lord in alle the daies of Josue, and of eldere men that lyueden aftir hym in long tyme, and knewen alle the grete werkis of the Lord, whiche he hadde do with Israel.

⁸ Forsothe Josue, sone of Nun, `seruaunt of the Lord, `was deed of an hundrid yeer and ten;

⁹ and thei birieden hym in the endis of his possessioun, in Thannath of Sare, in the hil of Effraym, at the north coost of the hil Gaas.

¹⁰ And al that generacioun was gaderid to her fadris; and othere men riseden, that knewen not the Lord, and the werkis whiche he `hadde do with Israel.

¹¹ And the sones of Israel diden yuel in the siyt of the Lord, and thei serueden Baalym and Astaroth;

¹² and forsoken the Lord God of her fadris, that ledden hem out of the lond of Egipt; and thei sueden alien goddis, the goddis of puplis, that dwelliden in `the cumpasse of hem, and worschipeden tho goddis, and excitiden the Lord to greet wraththe, and forsoken hym,

¹³ and serueden Baal and Astoroth.

¹⁴ And the Lord was wrooth ayens Israel, and bitook hem in to the hondis of rauyscheris, whiche rauyscheris token hem, and seelden to enemyes, that dwelliden `bi cumpas; and thei myyten not ayenstonde her aduersaries;

¹⁵ but whidir euer thei wolden go, the hond of the Lord was on hem, as he spak and swoor to hem; and thei weren turmentid greetli.

¹⁶ And the Lord reiside iugis, that `delyueriden hem fro the hondis of destrieris, but thei nolden here hem,

¹⁷ and thei diden fornycacioun, `that is, idolatrie, with alien goddis, and worschipiden hem. Soone thei forsoken the weie, bi which `the fadris of hem entriden; and thei herden the `comaundementis of the Lord, and diden alle thingis contrarie.

¹⁸ And whanne the Lord reiside iugis in `the daies of hem, he was bowid bi mercy, and he herde the weilyngis of hem turmentid, and he delyuerede hem fro the sleyng of wasteris.

¹⁹ Sotheli aftir that the iuge was deed, thei turneden ayen, and diden many thingis grettere `in yuel than her fadris diden; and thei sueden alien goddis, and serueden hem, and worschipiden hem; thei leften not her owne fyndyngis, and the hardeste weie `bi which thei weren wont to go.

²⁰ And the strong veniaunce of the Lord was wrooth ayens Israel, and he seide, For this puple hath maad voide my couenaunt which Y couenauntide with her fadris, and dispiside to here my vois; also Y schal not do a wey folkis,

²¹ whiche Josue `lefte, and was deed;

²² that in hem Y asaie Israel, whether thei kepen the weie of the Lord, and goen ther ynne, as her fadris kepten, ether nay.

²³ Therfor the Lord lefte alle these naciouns, and nolde destrie soone, nethir bitook in to the hondis of Josue.