Read the Bible

¹ And he spak to the princes of the lynagis of the sones of Israel, This is the word, which the Lord comaundide, If ony of men makith a vowe to the Lord,² ethir byndith hym silf bi an ooth, he schal not make voide his word, but he schal fille al thing which he bihiyte.

³ If a womman which is in the hows of hir fadir, and is yit in the age of a damysel, ⁴ `that is, not yit weddid, avowith ony thing, ethir byndith hir silf bi an ooth, `if the fadir knowith the avow, which sche bihiyte, and the ooth bi which sche boond hir soule, and he is stille, sche schal be gilti of the ooth, that is, boundun bi the ooth; what euer thing sche bihiyte and swoor, sche schall fille in werk.⁵ Forsothe if the fadir ayenseide anoon as he herde, bothe the vowis and `oothis of hir schulen be voide, and sche schal not be holdun boundun to the biheeste, for the fadir ayenseide.<sup>6</sup> If sche hath an hosebonde, and avowith ony thing, and a word goynge out of hir mouth onys byndith hir soule with an ooth,<sup>7</sup> in what dai the hosebonde herith, and ayenseith not, sche schal be gilti `of avow; sche schal yelde, what euer thing sche bihiyte.⁸ But if the hosebonde herith, and anoon ayenseith, and makith void alle hir biheestis, and wordis bi whiche sche boond hir soule, the Lord schal be merciful to hir.⁹ A widewe, and a womman forsakun of hir hosebonde, schulen yelde, what euer thing thei avowen.¹⁰ Whanne a wijf in `the hous of hir hosebonde byndith hir silf bi a vow and an ooth,<sup>11</sup> if the hosebonde herith, and is stille and ayenseith not the biheest, sche schal yelde, what euer thing sche bihiyte.<sup>12</sup> Sotheli if the hosebonde ayenseide anoon, sche schal not be holdun gilti of biheest, for the hosebonde ayenseide, and the Lord schal be merciful to hir.<sup>13</sup> If sche avowith, and byndith hir silf bi an ooth, that sche turmente hir soule bi fastyng, ethir bi abstynence of othere thingis, it schal be in the doom of the hosebonde, that sche do, ether do not.<sup>14</sup> That if the hosebonde herith, and is stille, and delaieth the sentence in the tother dai, sche schal yelde what euer thing sche avowide and bihiyte, for he was stille, anoon as he herde.<sup>15</sup> Forsothe if the hosebonde ayenseide aftir that he wiste, he schal bere his wickidnesse. <sup>16</sup> These ben the lawis, which the Lord ordeynede to Moyses bitwixe the hosebonde and the wijf, bitwixe the fadir and the douytir, which is yit in the age of a damysel, `that is, not yit maried, `ether which dwellith in `the hows of the fadir.