The Bible (Old and New Testaments)

Therfor Noe yede out, and hise sones, and his wijf, and the wyues of hise sones with hym;

but also alle lyuynge beestis, and werk beestis, and `reptils that crepen on erthe, bi her kynde, yeden out of the schip.

Forsothe Noe bildide an auter to the Lord, and he took of alle clene beestis and briddis, and offride brent sacrifices on the auter.

And the Lord sauerede the odour of swetnesse, and seide to hym, Y schal no more curse the erthe for men, for the wit and thouyt of mannus herte ben redi in to yuel fro yong wexynge age; therfor Y schal no more smyte ech lyuynge soule as Y dide;

in alle the daies of erthe, seed and ripe corn, coold and heete, somer and wyntir, nyyt and dai, shulen not reste.

And God blisside Noe and hise sones, and seide to hem, Encreesse ye, and be ye multiplied, and fille ye the erthe;

and youre drede and tremblyng be on alle vnresonable beestis of erthe, and on alle briddis of heuene, with alle thingis that ben moued in erthe; alle fischis of the see ben youun to youre hond.

And al thing which is moued and lyueth schal be to you in to mete; Y have youe to you alle thingis as greene wortis,

outakun that ye schulen not ete fleisch with blood,

for Y schal seke the blood of youre lyues of the hoond of alle vnresonable beestis and of the hoond of man, of the hoond of man and of hys brother Y schal seke the lijf of man.

Who euere schedith out mannus blood, his blood schal be sched; for man is maad to the ymage of God.

Forsothe encreesse ye, and be ye multiplied, and entre ye on erthe, and fille ye it, Also the Lord seide thes thingis to Noe,

and to his sones with him, Lo!

Y schal make my couenaunt with you, and with your seed after you,

and to ech lyuynge soule which is with you, as wel in briddis as in werk beestis and smale beestis of erthe, and to alle thingis that yeden out of the schip, and to alle vnresonable beestis of erthe.

Y schal make my couenaunt with you, and ech fleisch schal no more be slayn of the watris of the greet flood, nethir the greet flood distriynge al erthe schal be more.

And God seide, This is the signe of boond of pees, which Y yyue bitwixe me and you, and to ech lyuynge soule which is with you, in to euerlastynge generaciouns.

Y schal sette my bowe in the cloudis, and it schal be a signe of boond of pees bitwixe me and erthe;

and whanne Y schal hile heuene with cloudis, my bowe schal appere in the cloudis,

and Y schal haue mynde of my boond of pees which Y made with you, and with ech soule lyuynge, that nurschith fleisch; and the watris of the greet flood schulen no more be to do awey al fleish.

And my bowe schal be in the cloudis, and Y schal se it, and Y schal haue mynde of euerlastynge boond of pees, which is maad bitwixe God and man, and ech soul lyuynge of al fleisch which is on erthe.

And God seide to Noe, This schal be a signe of boond of pees, which Y made bitwixe me and ech fleisch on erthe.

Therfore thei that yeden out of the schip weren Noe, Sem, Cham, and Japheth; forsothe Cham, thilke is the fadir of Chanaan.

These thre weren the sones of Noe, and al the kynde of men was sowun of hem on al erthe.

And Noe, an erthe tiliere, bigan to tile the erthe, and he plauntide a viner,

and he drank wyn, and was drunkun; and he was nakid, and lay in his tabernacle.

And whanne Cham, the fadir of Chanaan, hadde seien this thing, that is, that the schameful membris of his fadir weren maad nakid, he telde to hise tweye britheren with out forth.

And sotheli Sem and Jafeth puttiden a mentil on her schuldris, and thei yeden bacward, and hileden the schameful membris of her fadir, and her faces weren turned awei, and thei sien not the priuy membris of her fadir.

And forsothe Noe wakide of the wyn, and whanne he hadde lerned what thingis his lesse sone hadde do to hym,

he seide, Cursid be the child Canaan, he schal be seruaunt of seruauntis to hise britheren.

And Noe seide, Blessid be the Lord God of Sem,

and Chanaan be the seruaunt to Sem; God alarge Jafeth, and dwelle in the tabernaclis of Sem, and Chanaan be seruaunt of hym.

Forsothe Noe lyuede aftir the greet flood thre hundrid and fifti yeer;

and alle the daies of hym weren fillid nyn hundrid and fifty yeer, and he was deed.

These ben the generaciouns of the sones of Noe, Sem, Cham, and Jafeth. And sones weren borun to hem aftir the greet flood.

The sones of Jafeth weren Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Jauan, and Tubal, and Mosoth, and Thiras.

Forsothe the sones of Gomer weren Asseneth, and Rifath, and Thogorma.

Forsothe the sones of Jauan weren Helisa, and Tharsis, Cethym, and Dodanym;

of these sones the ylis of hethen men weren departid in her cuntrees, ech bi his langage and meynees, in hise naciouns.

Sotheli the sones of Cham weren Thus, and Mesraym, and Futh, and Chanaan.

Forsothe the sones of Thus weren Saba, and Euila, and Sabatha, and Regma, and Sabatacha. The sones of Regma weren Saba, and Dadan.

Forsothe Thus gendride Nemroth; he bigan to be myyti in erthe,

and he was a strong huntere of men bifore the Lord; of hym a prouerbe yede out, as Nemroth, a strong huntere bifore the Lord.

Sotheli the bigynnyng of his rewme was Babiloyne, and Arach, and Archad, and Thalamye, in the lond of Sennaar.

Assur yede out of that lond, and bildide Nynyue, `and stretis of the citee,

and Chale, and Resen bitwixe Nynyue and Chale; this is a greet citee.

And sotheli Mesraym gendride Ludym, and Anamym, and Laabym, Neptuym, and Ferrusym, and Cesluym;

of which the Filisteis and Capturym camen forth.

Forsothe Chanaan gendride Sidon, his firste gendride sone, Ethei, and Jebusei,

Ceney, and Aradie, Samarites, and Amathei; and puplis of Chananeis weren sowun abrood bi these men.

And the termes of Chanaan weren maad to men comynge fro Sidon to Gerara, til to Gasa, til thou entre in to Sodom and Gomore, and Adama, and Seboyne, til to Lesa.

These weren the sones of Cham, in her kynredis, and langagis, and generaciouns, and londis, and folkis.

Also of Sem weren borun the fadris of alle the sones of Heber, and Japhet was the more brother.

The sones of Sem weren Elam, and Assur, and Arfaxath, and Lud, and Aram.

The sones of Aram weren Vs, and Hul, and Gether, and Mes.

And sotheli Arfaxath gendride Sale, of whom Heber was borun.

And twei sones weren borun to Heber, the name to o sone was Faleg, for the lond was departid in hise daies; and the name of his brothir was Jectan.

And thilke Jectan gendride Elmodad, and Salech,

and Asamoth, Jare, and Adhuram, and Vsal,

and Deda, and Ebal, and Abymahel, Saba, and Ofir, and Euila, and Jobab;

alle these weren the sones of Jectan.

And the habitacioun of hem was maad fro Messa, as `me goith til to Sefar, an hil of the eest.

These ben the sones of Sem, bi kynredis, and langagis, and cuntrees, in her folkis.

These ben the meynees of Noe, bi her puplis and naciouns; folkis in erthe weren departid of these aftir the greet flood.

Forsothe the lond was of o langage, and of the same speche.

And whanne thei yeden forth fro the eest, thei fonden a feeld in the lond of Sennaar, and dwelliden ther ynne.

And oon seide to his neiybore, Come ye, and make we tiel stonys, and bake we tho with fier; and thei hadden tiel for stonus, and pitche for morter;

and seiden, Come ye, and make we to vs a citee and tour, whos hiynesse stretche `til to heuene; and make we solempne oure name bifor that we be departid in to alle londis.

Forsothe the Lord cam down to se the citee and tour, which the sones of Adam bildiden.

And he seide, Lo! the puple is oon, and o langage is to alle, and thei han bigunne to make this, nethir thei schulen ceesse of her thouytis, til thei fillen tho in werk; therfor come ye, go we doun,

and scheende we there the tunge of hem, that ech man here not the voys of his neiybore.

And so the Lord departide hem fro that place in to alle londis; and thei cessiden to bielde a cytee.

And therfor the name therof was clepid Babel, for the langage of al erthe was confoundide there; and fro thennus the Lord scaterede hem on the face of alle cuntrees.

These ben the generaciouns of Sem. Sem was of an hundrid yeer whanne he gendride Arfaxath, twey yeer aftir the greet flood.

And Sem lyuede aftir that he gendride Arfaxath fyue hundrid yeer, and gendride sones and douytris.

Forsothe Arfaxath lyuede fyue and thretti yeer, and gendride Sale;

and Arfaxath lyuede aftir that he gendride Sale thre hundride and thre yeer, and gendride sones and douytris.

Also Sale lyuede thretti yeer, and gendride Heber;

and Sale lyuede after that he gendride Heber foure hundrid and thre yeer, and gendride sones and douytris.

Sotheli Heber lyuede foure and thretti yeer, and gendride Falech;

and Heber lyuede aftir that he gendride Falech foure hundrid and thretti yeer, and gendride sones and douytris.

Also Falech lyuede thretti yeer, and gendride Reu;

and Falech lyuede aftir that he gendride Reu two hundrid and nyne yeer, and gendride sones and douytris.

And Reu lyuede two and thretti yeer, and gendride Saruch;

and Reu lyuede aftir that he gendride Saruch two hundrid and seuene yeer, and gendride sones and douytris.

Sotheli Saruch lyuede thretti yeer, and gendride Nachor;

and Saruch lyuede aftir that he gendride Nacor two hundrid yeer, and gendride sones and douytris.

Forsothe Nachor lyuede nyne and twenti yeer, and gendride Thare;

and Nachor lyuede after that he gendride Thare an hundrid and nynetene yeer, and gendride sones and douytris.

And Thare lyuede seuenti yeer, and gendride Abram, and Nachor, and Aran.

Sotheli these ben the generaciouns of Thare. Thare gendride Abram, Nachor, and Aran. Forsothe Aran gendride Loth;

and Aran diede bifore Thare, his fadir, in the lond of his natiuite, in Vr of Caldeis.

Forsothe Abram and Nachor weddiden wyues; the name of the wijf of Abram was Saray, and the name of the wiif of Nachor was Melcha, the douyter of Aran, fadir of Melcha and fadir of Jescha.

Sotheli Saray was bareyn, and hadde no children.

And so Thare took Abram, his sone, and Loth, the sone of Aran his sone, and Saray, his douyter in lawe, the wijf of Abram, his sone, and ledde hem out of Vr of Caldeis, that thei schulen go in to the lond of Chanaan; and thei camen `til to Aran, and dwelliden there.

And the daies of Thare weren maad two hundrid yeer and fyue, and he was deed in Aran.

Forsothe the Lord seide to Abram, Go thou out of thi lond, and of thi kynrede, and of the hous of thi fadir, and come thou in to the lond which Y schal schewe to thee;

and Y schal make thee in to a greet folk, and Y schal blisse thee, and Y schal magnyfie thi name, and thou schalt be blessid;

Y schal blesse hem that blessen thee, and Y schal curse hem that cursen thee; and alle kynredis of erthe schulen be blessid in thee.

And so Abram yede out, as the Lord comaundide hym, and Loth yede with hym. Abram was of `thre scoor yeer and fiftene whanne he yede out of Aran.