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.