God appeareth in a bush, 6. reuealing some thinges to be published, and
some thinges to be hid. 10. As the world waxeth old, al thinges become
worse. 27. The people of Israel are vngratful. 32. Al shal be iudged in
the Resurrection according to their deedes.
AND it came to passe the third day, and I sate vnder an oke. 2 And
behold a voice came forth against me out of a bush, and sayd: Esdras,
Esdras: and I sayd: Loe here I am Lord. And I arose vpon my feete. And
he sayd to me: 3 Reueling I was reueled vpon the bush, and spake to
Moyses, when the people serued in AEgypt, (Ex 3) 4 and I sent him, and
brought my people out of AEgypt, and brought him vpon mount Sina, &
held him with me manie dayes. 5 And I told him manie meruelous thinges,
& shewed him the secrets of times, and the end: and I commanded him,
saying: 6 These wordes thou shalt publish abroade, and these thou shalt
hyde. 7 And now to thee I say: 8 The signes which I haue shewed, and
the dreames which thou hast sene, and the interpretations which thou
hast sene, lay them vp in thy hart. 9 For thou shalt be receiued of al,
thou shalt be conuerted the residue with thy counsel, and with the like
to thee, til the times be finished: 10 Because the world hath lost his
youth, and the times draw nere to waxe old. 11 For the world is diuided
by twelue partes, & the tenth part, & half of the tenth part are
passed: 12 and there remaineth hereafter the half of the tenth part. 13
Now therefore dispose thy house, and correct thy people, & comfort the
humble of them, & forsake now corruption, 14 and put from thee mortal
cogitations, and cast from thee humane burdens, and doe from thee now
infirme nature, & lay at one side cogitations most trublesome to thee,
& make speedie transmigration from these times, 15 for the euiles which
thou hast sene to haue chanced now, worse then these wil they doe
againe: (Matt 24 / 1 John 2) 16 for looke how much the world shal
become weake by age, so much shal euiles be multiplied vpon the
inhabitants. 17 For truth hath remoued it self farther of, and lying
hath approched, for now the vision which thou sawest, hasteneth to
come. 18 And I answered, and sayd before thee o Lord: 19 For behold I
wil goe, as thou hast commanded me, & wil rebuke the people that now
is. But them that shal yet be born, who shal admonish? 20 The world
therfore is set in darknes, and they that dwel in it without light. 21
Because thy law is burnt, therefore no man knowth the workes that haue
bene done by thee, or that shal begin. 22 For if I haue found grace
with thee, send the Holie Ghost to me, & I wil write al that hath bene
done in the world from the beginning, the thinges that were written in
thy law, that men may finde the pathe: and they that wil liue in the
later times, may liue. 23 And he answered me, and sayd: Goe gather
together the people, and thou shalt say to them, that they seeke thee
not for fourtie dayes. 24 And doe thou prepare thee manie tables of
boxe, & take with thee Sarea, Dabria, Salemia, Echanus, and Asiel,
these fiue which are readie to write sweeftly. 25 And come hither, & I
wil light in thy hart a candle of vnderstanding, which shal not be put
out til the things be finished, which thou shalt begine to write. 26
And then some thinges thou shalt open to the perfect, some thou shalt
deliuer secretly to the wyse. For to morrow this houre thou shalt
begine to write. 27 And I went as he commanded me, & gathered together
al the people, and sayd: 28 Heare Israel these wordes: 29 Our fathers
were pilgrimes from the beginning in AEgypt, and were deliuered from
thence. (Gen 47) 30 And they receiued the law of life, which they kept
not, which you also after them haue transgressed: (Deut 4 / Acts 7) 31
and the land was geuen you by lotte, and the land of Sion, and your
fathers, and you haue done iniquitie, and haue not kept the wayes which
the Highest commanded you. 32 And whereas he is a iust iudge, he hath
taken from you in time that which he had geuen. 33 And now you are
here, and your brethren are among you. 34 If then you wil rule ouer
your sense, & instruct your hart, you shal be preserued aliue, and
after death shal obtaine mercie. 35 For the iudgement shal come after
death, when we shal returne to lyfe againe: and then the names of the
iust shal appeare, and the dedes of the impious shal be shewed. 36 Let
no man therfore come to me now, nor aske for me vntil fourtie dayes. 37
And I tooke the fiue men, as he commandede me, and we went forth into
the field, and taried there. 38 And I was come to the morrow, & behold
as voice called me, saying: Esdras open thy mouth, and drinke that
which I wil geue thee to drinke. (Ezech 3) 39 And I opened my mouth, &
behold a ful cuppe was brought me, this was ful as it were with water:
but the colour therof like as fire. 40 And I tooke it, and dranke; and
when I had drunken of it, my hart was tormented with vnderstanding, and
wisdome grewe into my brest. For my spirit was kept by memorie. 41 And
my mouth was opened, and was shut no more. 42 The Highest gaue
vnderstanding vnto the fiue men, and they wrote excesses of the night
which were spoken, which they knewe not. 43 And at night they did eate
breade, but I spake by day, & by night held not my peace. 44 And there
were written in the fourtie dayes two hundred foure bookes. 45 And it
came to passe when they had ended the fourtie daies, the Highest spake,
saying: 46 The former thinges which thou hast written, set abrode, and
let the worthie and vnworthiereade: but the last seuentie bookes thou
shalt keepe, that thou mayest deliuer them to the wyse of thy people.
47 For in these is the vaine of vnderstanding, and the fountaine of
wisdome, and the streame of knowledge. and I did soe.