Job 20

¹ Whi to-rende Y my fleischis with my teeth, and bere my lijf in myn hondis? ² Yhe, thouy God sleeth me, Y schal hope in hym; netheles Y schal preue my weies in his siyt. ³ And he schal be my sauyour; for whi ech ypocrite schal not come in his siyt. ⁴ Here ye my word, and perseyue ye with eeris derke and harde figuratif spechis. ⁵ Yf Y schal be demed, Y woot that Y schal be foundun iust. ⁶ Who is he that is demed with me? Come he; whi am Y stille, and am wastid? ⁷ Do thou not to me twei thingis oneli; and thanne Y schal not be hid fro thi face. ⁸ Make thin hond fer fro me; and thi drede make not me aferd. ⁹ Clepe thou me, and Y schal answere thee; ethir certis Y schal speke, and thou schalt answere me. ¹⁰ Hou grete synnes and wickidnessis haue Y? Schewe thou to me my felonyes, and trespassis. ¹¹ Whi hidist thou thi face, and demest me thin enemy? ¹² Thou schewist thi myyt ayens a leef, which is rauyschid with the wynd; and thou pursuest drye stobil. ¹³ For thou writist bitternessis ayens me; and wolt waste me with the synnes of my yong wexynge age. ¹⁴ Thou hast set my foot in a stok, and thou hast kept alle my pathis; and thou hast biholde the steppis of my feet. ¹⁵ And Y schal be wastid as rot, and as a cloth, which is etun of a mouyte. ¹⁷ A man is borun of a womman, and lyueth schort tyme, and is fillid with many wretchidnessis. ¹⁸ Which goith out, and is defoulid as a flour; and fleeth as schadewe, and dwellith neuere perfitli in the same staat. ¹⁹ And gessist thou it worthi to opene thin iyen on siche a man; and to brynge hym in to doom with thee? ²⁰ Who may make a man clene conseyued of vnclene seed? Whether not thou, which art aloone? ²¹ The daies of man ben schorte, the noumbre of his monethis is at thee; thou hast set, ethir ordeyned, hise termes, whiche moun not be passid. ²² Therfor go thou awey fro hym a litil, that is, bi withdrawyng of bodili lijf, that he haue reste; til the meede coueitid come, and his dai is as the dai of an hirid man. 23 A tree hath hope, if it is kit doun; and eft it wexith greene, and hise braunches spreden forth. 24 If the roote therof is eeld in the erthe, and the stok therof is nyy deed in dust; 25 it schal buriowne at the odour of watir, and it schal make heer, as whanne it was plauntid first. 26 But whanne a man is deed, and maad nakid, and wastid; Y preye, where is he? 27 As if watris goen awei fro the see, and a ryuer maad voide wexe drie, 28 so a man, whanne he hath slept, that is, deed, he schal not rise ayen, til heuene be brokun, `that is, be maad newe; he schal not wake, nether he schal ryse togidere fro his sleep. ²⁹ Who yiueth this to me, that thou defende me in helle, and that thou hide me, til thi greet veniaunce passe; and thou sette to me a tyme, in which thou haue mynde on me?