CHAPTER 4
1 And in the last days, the hill of the house of the Lord shall be made ready in the top of [the] hills, and shall be high over small hills. And peoples shall flow to him, (And in the last days, the hill of the House of the Lord shall be made to be above the tops of all the other hills, and shall be high over all the small hills. And the peoples, or the nations, shall flow to it,)
2 and many peoples shall hasten, and shall say, Come ye, ascend we to the hill of the Lord, and to the house of God of Jacob; and he shall teach us of his ways, and we shall go in his paths. For the law shall go out from Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem; (yea, many people shall hasten there, and shall say, Come ye, go we up to the hill of the Lord, and to the House of the God of Jacob, or Come ye, let us go up the hill of the Lord, to the House of the God of Jacob; and he shall teach us his ways, and we shall go on his paths. For the Law shall go out from Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem;)
3 and he shall deem betwixt many peoples, and shall chastise strong folks till into far. And they shall beat together their swords into shares*, and their spears into pickaxes; folk shall not take sword against folk, and they shall no more learn to fight. (and he shall judge between many peoples, and shall chastise, or shall discipline, strong nations afar off. And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pickaxes; yea, nation shall not take up sword against nation, and they shall no more prepare for battle.)
4 And a man shall sit under his vineyard, and under his fig tree; and there shall not be that shall make afeared (or and there shall be no one and nothing that shall make him afraid), for the mouth of the Lord of hosts spake.
5 For all peoples shall go, each man in the name of his Lord God; but we shall walk in the name of our Lord God into the world, and over. (For all peoples go forth, each person in the name of their god; but we shall walk in the name of the Lord our God, forever and ever.)
6 In that day, saith the Lord, I shall gather the halting, and I shall gather her that I casted away, and whom I tormented I shall strengthen. (On that day, saith the Lord, I shall gather together the halt, or the lame, and those whom I have cast away, and I shall strengthen those whom I tormented.)
7 And I shall put the halting into remnants, and her that travailed in[to] a strong folk. And the Lord shall reign (up)on them in the hill of Zion, from this time now and till into without end. (And I shall make the halt into a remnant, and those who laboured, or who struggled, into a strong nation. And the Lord shall reign over them on Mount Zion, from this time now until forever.)
8 And thou, dark tower of the flock of the daughter of Zion, unto thee he shall come, and the first power shall come, the realm of the daughter of Jerusalem. (And thou, dark tower of the flock of the daughter of Zion, it shall come unto thee, yea, the former power shall come unto the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.)
9 Now why art thou drawn together with mourning? whether a king is not to thee, either thy counsellor perished? for sorrow hath taken thee as a woman travailing of child. (Now why art thou altogether drawn with mourning? is there not a king for thee, or hath thy counsellor perished? hath sorrow taken thee like a woman with child in labour, or giving birth?)
10 Thou daughter of Zion, make sorrow, and haste, as a woman travailing of child; for now thou shalt go out of the city, and shalt dwell in the country, and shalt come unto Babylon; there thou shalt be delivered, there the Lord shall again-buy thee, from the hand of thine enemies. (O daughter of Zion, make sorrow, and make haste, like a woman with child in labour; for now thou shalt go out of the city, and shalt live in the open country, and shalt come to Babylon; there thou shalt be saved, there the Lord shall rescue thee, from the hands of thy enemies.)
11 And now many folks be gathered on thee, which say, Be it stoned, and our eye behold into Zion. (And now many nations be gathered against thee, who say, Let it be stoned, and brought down unto ruins, and then we shall look upon Zion.)
12 Forsooth they knew not the thoughts of the Lord, and understood not the counsel of him, for he gathered them as the hay of the field. (But they did not know the Lord’s thoughts, and did not understand his counsel,or his advice, for he gathered them like the hay of the field.)
13 Rise thou, and thresh, daughter of Zion, for I shall put thine horn of iron, and I shall put thy nails brazen; and thou shalt lose, either waste, many peoples, and shalt slay to the Lord (for an offering) the ravens of them, and the strength of them to the Lord of all earth. (Rise thou, and thresh, O daughter of Zion, for I shall make thy horns out of iron, and thy hooves out of bronze; and thou shalt destroy, or shalt waste, many peoples, or many nations, and shalt offer their stolen goods, or their spoils, to the Lord, yea, their wealth to the Lord of all the earth.)
* CHAPTER 4:3 In other writings, John Wycliffe renders this word in this verse as ‘plowghschares’ (‘ploughshares’/‘plowshares’).