1   And it so came to passe, that when my sonne went into his chaumber, he fell downe and dyed:

2   Then ouerthrewe we all the lightes, and all my neyghbours rose vp to comfort me, then toke I my rest vnto the seconde day at nyght.

3   And when they had all left of to comfort me, that I shoulde be quiet: then I rose vp by nyght and fled, and am come hyther into this fielde as thou seest:

4   And am purposed not to returne into the citie, but to remayne here, and neither to eate nor drinke, but continually to mourne, and to fast, vntyll I dye.

5   Then let I my meditation and thoughtes fal that I was in, and spake to her in displeasure, saying:

6   Thou foolish woman aboue al other,

seest thou not our heauines and mourning, and what happeneth vnto vs?

7   Howe Sion our mother is all wofull ∧ sory, and howe she is cleane brought downe and mourneth extremely?

8   Seyng we be all nowe in heauines, ∧ make our mone, for we all be sorowfull: art thou so heauie for one sonne?

9   Demaunde the earth, and she shall tell thee that it is she whiche ought [by reason] to mourne for the fall of so manye that growe vpon her.

10   For from the beginning all men are borne of her, and other shall come: and beholde, they walke almost all into destruction, aud the multitude of them shalbe rooted out.

11   Who shoulde then [by reason] make more mourning, then she that hath lost so great a multitude, and not thou whiche art sory, but for one?

12   But if thou wouldest say vnto me, My mourning is not like the mourning of the earth, for I haue lost the fruite of my ^note body, whiche I brought foorth with heauines, and bare with sorowes:

13   But the earth is according to the maner of the earth, and the present multitude goeth agayne into her ^note as it is come to passe: C   

14   Then say I vnto thee, Like as thou hast borne with trauayle and sorowe, euen so the earth also from the beginning geueth her fruite vnto man, euen to him that laboured her.

15   And therefore withholde thy sorowe and heauines by thy self, ^note ∧ looke what happeneth vnto thee, beare it ^note strongly.

16   For if thou iudgest the marke and ende of God to be righteous and good, and receauest his counsell in time, thou shalt be commended therin.

17   Go thy way then into the citie to thy husbande.

18   And she sayde vnto me, That wyll I not do: I wyll not go into the citie, but here wyll I dye.

19   So I communed more with her, and sayde:

20   Do not so, but be counselled, and folow me: for howe many fauls hath Sion? Be of good comfort because of the sorowe of Hierusalem.

21   For thou seest that our sanctuarie is layde waste, our aulter broken, our temple destroyed, D   

22   Our playing of instrumentes is layde downe, and songues art put to scilence, our myrth is vanished away, the light of our candelsticke is quenched, the arke of our couenaunt is taken from vs, all our holy thinges are defiled, and the name that is called vpon ouer vs is almost dishonoured: our chyldren are put to shame, our priestes are brent, our Leuites are caryed away into captiuitie, our virgins are defiled, and our wyues rauished, our righteous men spoyled, and our chyldren destroyed, our young men are brought in bondage, and our strong worthyes are become weake:

23   And Sion our seale, which is the greatest of al, is loosed vp from her worship: for she is deliuered into the handes of them that hate vs.

24   And therfore shake of thy great heauinesse, and put away the multitude of sorowes, that the mightie may be mercyfull vnto thee, and that the highest may geue thee rest and ease from thy labour and trauayle.

25   And when I was talkyng with her, her face and beautie shined sodainely, and her countenaunce glistered, so that I was afraide of her, and mused what it might be.

26   And immediatly she caste out a great voyce, very fearefull, so that the earth shoke at the noyse of the woman.

27   And I looked, and beholde the woman appeared vnto me no more: but there was a citie buylded, ∧ a place was shewed from the ground ∧ foundation: Then was I afraide, and cryed with a loude voyce, and sayde. E   

28   Where is Uriel the angell, ^note whiche came to me at the first? For he hath caused me to come in many considerations and hye thoughtes, and myne ende is turned to corruption, and my prayer to rebuke.

29   And as I was speaking these wordes, he came vnto me, and looked vpon me:

30   And lo, I lay as one that had ben dead, and myne vnderstanding was altred: and he toke me by the right hande and comforted me, and set me vpon my feete, and sayde vnto me,

31   What ayleth thee? and why is thyne vnderstanding vexed, and the vnderstanding of thy heart? and wherefore art thou sory?

32   And I sayde: Because thou hast forsaken me, and I haue done according

vnto thy wordes, I went into the field, and there haue I seene thinges, and see that I am not able to expresse.

33   He sayde vnto me: Stande vp and be manly, ∧ I shall geue thee exhortation.

34   Then sayde I: Speake on to me my Lorde, forsake me not, lest I dye thorowe my rashnesse:

35   For I haue seene that I knewe not, and heare that I do not knowe.

36   Or is my vnderstanding deceaued, or doth my soule dreame?

37   Nowe therefore I beseche thee, that thou wylt shewe thy seruaunt of this wonder. F   

38   He aunswered me then and sayde: Heare me, and I shall enfourme thee and tell thee wherfore thou art afraide: for the hyest hath opened many secrete thinges vnto thee.

39   He hath seene that thy ^note way is right, for that thou takest sorowe continually for thy people, and makest great lamentation for Sion.

40   And therefore vnderstande the vision which thou sawest a litle whyle ago, after this maner.

41   Thou sawest a woman mourning, and thou begannest to comfort her.

42   Neuerthelesse, nowe seest thou the likenes of the wom&abar; no more, but there appeared vnto thee a citie buylded:

43   And where she tolde thee of the fall of her sonne, so is this the solution of it.

44   This woman whom thou sawest, is Sion: and where as she tolde thee, euen she whom thou seest nowe as a citie buylded.

45   And as touching that she sayde vnto thee, that she hath ben thirtie yeres vnfruitefull and baren, those are the thirtie yeres wherein there was no offering made in her.

46   But after thirtie yeres Solomon builded the citie, and offred offeringes: and then bare the baren a sonne.

47   And where as she tolde thee that she nourished hym with labour, that was the dwelling in Hierusalem.

48   But where as she tolde thee that her sonne dyed, as his chaunce was, when she came into her chaumber, that is the fall that is come to Hierusalem.

49   And beholde, when thou sawest her like one that mourned for her sonne, and begannest to comfort her: of these things whiche haue chaunced, these are to be opened vnto thee. G   

50   For nowe the most hyghest seeth that thou art sory in thy minde, and suffrest from thy whole heart for her, and so hath he shewed thee her clearenesse, and the fayrenesse of her beautie.

51   And therefore I bad thee remayne in the fielde, where no house was builded.

52   For I knewe that the highest would shewe this vnto thee:

53   Therfore I commaunded thee to go into the fielde, where no foundation nor buylding is.

54   For in the place where the highest beginneth to shewe his citie, there can no mans buylding be able to stande.

55   And therefore feare not, and let not thyne heart be afraide: but go thy way in, and see the beautie and greatnes of the buylding, as much as thyne eyes be able to see:

56   And then shalt thou heare as muche as thyne eares may comprehende.

57   For thou art blessed aboue many other, and art called with the highest, as the fewe.

58   But to morowe at night thou shalt remayne here:

59   And so shall the highest shewe thee visions of the hye thinges, which he wyll do vnto them that dwell vpon earth in the last dayes. So I slept þe; same night ∧ another, like as he commaunded me.

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