Esdras is bid to denounce, that assuredly manie euiles wil come to the
world. 9. God wil protect his people, the wicked shal be punished, and
lament their final miseries, God reuenging for the good.
BEHOLD speake into the eares of my people the wordes of prophecie,
which I shal put into thy mouth, sayth our Lord: 2 and see that they be
written in paper, because they be faithful and true. 3 Be not afrayd of
the cogitations against thee, neither let the incredulities truble thee
of them that speake. 4 Because euerie incredulous person shal dye in
his incredulitie. 5 Behold I bring in, sayth our Lord, vpon the whole
earth euils, sword, and famine, and death, and destruction. 6 Because
iniquitie hath fully polluted ouer al the earth, and their hurtful
workes are accomplished. 7 Therefore sayth our Lord: 8 I wil not now
kepe silence of their impieties which they doe irreligiously, neither
wil I beare with those thinges, which they practise vniustly. Behold
the innocent & iust bloud crieth to me, & the soules of the iust crie
continually. 9 Reuenging I wil reuenge them, sayth our Lord, and I wil
take al innocent bloud out of them vnto me. (Apoc 6:10 & 19:2) 10
Behold my people is led to slaughter as a flocke, I wil no more suffer
it to dwel in the land of AEgypt. 11 But I wil bring them forth in a
mightie hand and valiant arme, and wil strike with plague as before,
and wil corrupt al the land thereof. 12 AEgypt shal mourne, and
fundations thereof beaten with plague, and with the chastisement which
God wil bring vpon it. 13 The husbandmen that til the ground shal
mourne, because their seedes shal perish by blasting, and haile, and by
a terible starre. 14 Woe to the world and them that dwel therein. 15
Because the sword is at hand and the destruction of them, and nation
shal rise vp against nation to fight, & sword in their handes. (Matt 24
/ Luke 21) 16 For there shal be instabilitie to men, & growing one
against an other they shal not care for their king, & the princes of
the way of their doinges, in their might. 17 For a man shal desire to
go into the citie & can not. 18 Because of their prides the cities shal
be trubled, the houses raised, the men shal feare. 19 Man shal not
pitie his neighbour, to make their houses nothing worth in the sword,
to spoyle their goodes for famine of bread, & much tribulation. 20
Behold, I cal together sayth God, al the kinges of the earth to feare
me, that are from the Orient, & from the South, from the East, & from
Libanus, to be turned vpon themselues, and to render the thinges that
they haue geuen them. 21 As they doe vntil this day to myne elect, so
wil I doe, and render in their bosome. Thus sayth our Lord God: 22 My
right hand shal not spare sinners, neither shal the sword cease vpon
them that shede innocent bloud vpon the earth. 23 Fire came forth from
his wrath, and hath deuoured the fundations of the earth, and sinners
as it were straw set on fire. 24 Woe to them that sinne, and obserue
not my comandmentes, sayth our Lord. 25 I wil not spare them: depart o
children from the powre. Defile not my sanctification: 26 because the
Lord knoweth al that sinne against him; therefore hath he deliuered
them into death and into slaughter. 27 For now are euils come vpon the
world, and you shal tarrie in them. For God wil not deliuer you,
because you haue sinned against him. 28 Behold an horrible vision, and
the face of it from the east. 29 And the nations of dragons of Arabians
shal come forth in manie chariots, & as a winde the number of them is
caried vpon the earth, so that now al doe feare and tremble, that shal
heare them. 30 the Carmonians madde for anger, and they shal goe forth
as wild boares out of the wood, & they shal come with great power, and
shal stand in fight with them, & they shal waste the portion of the
land of the Assirians. 31 And after these thinges the dragons shal
preuaile mindful of their natiuitie, and conspiring shal turne
themselues in great force to pursue them. 32 These shal be trubled and
hold their peace at their force, and shal turne their fete into flight.
33 And from the territorie of the Assirians the besiegers shal beseige
them, and shal consume one of them, and there shal be feare and
trembling in their armie, and contention against their kinges. 34
Behold cloudes from the east, and from the north vnto the south, and
their face very horrible, ful of wrath and storme. 35 And they shal
beate one against an other, and they shal beate downe manie starres,
and their starre vpon the earth, and bloud shal be from the sword vnto
the bellie. 36 And mans dung vnto the camels litter, and there shal be
much feare, and trembling vpon the earth. 37 And they shal shake that
shal see that wrath, and tremble shal take them: and after these
thinges there shal manie showers be moued: 38 from the south, and the
north: and an other portion from the weast. 39 And the windes from the
east shal reuaile vpon it, and shal shut it vp, and the cloudes which
he raised in wrath, and the starre to make terrour to the east winde,
and the west shal be destroyed. 40 And there shal be exalted great and
mightie cloudes ful of wrath, and a starre to terrifie al the earth,
and the inhabitantes therof, and they shal powre in vpon euerie high,
and eminent place a terrible starre, 41 fire, and haile, and flying
swordes, and manie waters, so that al fildes also shal be filled, and
al riuers with the fulnes of manie waters. 42 And they shal throw downe
cities, and walles, and mountaines, and hilles, and the trees of the
woodes, and the grasse of the medowes, and their corne. 43 And they
shal passe constant vnto Babylon, and shal raise her. (Apoc 18) 44 They
shal come together against her, and shal compasse her, and shal power
out the starre, and al wrath vpon her, and the dust and smoke shal goe
vp euen into heauen, and round about shal lament her. 45 And they that
shal remaine vnder her, shal serue them that terified her. 46 And thou
Asia agreeing into the hope of Babylon, and the glorie of her person,
47 woe be to thee thou wretch, because thou art like to her, and hast
adorned thy daughters in fornication, to please & glorie in thy louers,
which haue desired alwayes to fornicate with thee. 48 Thou hast
imitated the odious in al her workes, and in her inuentions: therefore
sayth God: 49 I wil send in euils vpon thee, widowhood, pouertie, and
famine, and sword, and pestilence, to destroy thy houses by violation,
and death, and glorie of thy vertue. 50 As a flower shal be withered,
when the heate shal rise that is sent forth vpon thee, 51 thou shalt be
weakned as a litle poore soule plaged and chastised of wemen, that the
mightie and the louers may not receiue thee. 52 Wil I be zealous
against thee sayth our Lord, 53 vnles thou hadst slayne myne elect at
al times, exalting the slaughter of the handes, and saying vpon their
death, when thou wast drunken. 54 Adorne the beautie of thy
countenance. 55 The reward of thy fornication is in thy bosome,
therefore thou shalt receiue recompence. 56 As thou shalt doe to my
elect, sayth our Lord, so shal God do to thee, and shal deliuer thee
vnto euil. 57 And thy children shal dye for famine: and thou shalt fal
by the sword, and thy cities shal be destroyed, & al thyne shal fal in
the filde by the sword. 58 And they that are in the mountaines, shal
perish, with famine, and shal eate their owne flesh, & drinke bloud,
for the famine of bread and thirst of waters. 59 Vnhappie by the seas
shalt thou come, and againe thou shalt receuie euils. 60 And in the
passage they shal beate against the idle citie, and shal destroy some
portion of thy land, and shal deface part of thy glorie, againe
returning to Babylon ourethrowen. 61 And being throwen downe thou shalt
be to them for stubble, and they shal be to thee fire: 62 and deuoure
thee, and thy cities, thy land, and thy mountaynes, al thy woodes and
fruitful trees they wil burne with fire. 63 Thy children they shal lead
captiue, & shal haue thy goodes for a praye, and the glorie of thy face
they shal destroy.