The Hebrew Prophets

Come to Beth-el, and transgresse: to Gilgal, and multiplie transgression, and bring your sacrifices in the morning, and your tithes after three yeres.

And offer a thankesgiuing of leauen, publish and proclaime the free offrings: for this liketh you, O ye children of Israel, saith the Lord God.

And therefore haue I giuen you cleannes of teeth in all your cities, and scarcenesse of bread in all your places, yet haue ye not returned vnto me, saith the Lord.

And also I haue withholden the raine from you, when there were yet three moneths to the haruest, and I caused it to raine vpon one citie, and haue not caused it to raine vpon another citie: one piece was rained vpon, and the piece whereupon it rained not, withered.

So two or three cities wandred vnto one citie to drinke water, but they were not satisfied: yet haue ye not returned vnto me, saith the Lord.

I haue smitten you with blasting, and mildewe: your great gardens and your vineyardes, and your figtrees, and your oliue trees did the palmer worme deuoure: yet haue ye not returned vnto me, saith the Lord.

Pestilence haue I sent among you, after the maner of Egypt: your yong men haue I slaine with the sworde, and haue taken away your horses: and I haue made the stinke of your tentes to come vp euen into your nostrels: yet haue yee not returned vnto me, saith the Lord.

I haue ouerthrowe you, as God ouerthrew Sodom and Gomorah: and ye were as a firebrand pluckt out of the burning: yet haue ye not returned vnto me, saith the Lord.

Therefore, thus wil I do vnto thee, O Israel: and because I wil doe this vnto thee, prepare to meete thy God, O Israel.

For lo, he that formeth the mountaines, and createth the winde, and declareth vnto man what is his thought: which maketh the morning darkenesse, and walketh vpon the hie places of the earth, the Lord God of hostes is his Name.

Heare ye this worde, which I lift vp vpon you, euen a lamentation of the house of Israel.

The virgine Israel is fallen, and shall no more rise: shee is left vpon her lande, and there is none to raise her vp.

For thus saith ye Lord God, The citie which went out by a thousand, shall leaue an hundreth: and that which went forth by an hundreth, shall leaue ten to the house of Israel.

For thus saith the Lord vnto the house of Israel, Seeke ye me, and ye shall liue.

But seeke not Beth-el, nor enter into Gilgal, and go not to Beer-sheba: for Gilgal shall goe into captiuitie, and Beth-el shall come to nought.

Seeke the Lord, and yee shall liue, least he breake out like fire in the house of Ioseph and deuoure it, and there be none to quench it in Beth-el.

They turne iudgement to wormewood, and leaue off righteousnes in the earth.

He maketh Pleiades, and Orion, and he turneth the shadowe of death into the morning, and he maketh the day darke as night: he calleth the waters of the sea, and powreth them out vpon the open earth: the Lord is his Name.

He strengtheneth the destroyer against the mightie: and the destroyer shall come against the fortresse.

They haue hated him, that rebuked in the gate: and they abhorred him that speaketh vprightly.

Forasmuch then as your treading is vpon the poore, and yee take from him burdens of wheate, ye haue built houses of hewen stone, but ye shall not dwel in them: ye haue plated pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drinke wine of them.

For I know your manifold transgressions, and your mightie sinnes: they afflict the iust, they take rewards, and they oppresse the poore in ye gate.

Therefore the prudent shall keepe silence in that time, for it is an euill time.

Seeke good and not euil, that ye may liue: and the Lord God of hostes shalbe with you, as you haue spoken.

Hate the euil, and loue the good, and establish iudgement in the gate: it may bee that the Lord God of hostes will be mercifull vnto the remnant of Ioseph.