For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered. {rulers: Heb. heads}

Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. {aloud: Heb. with the throat}

Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.

But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take {any} person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.

Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.

The days of visitation are come, the days of recompence are come; Israel shall know {it}: the prophet {is} a fool, the spiritual man {is} mad, for the multitude of thine iniquity, and the great hatred. {spiritual...: Heb. man of the spirit}

{For the Son of man is} as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. {destroyed: Heb. cut off}

And he spake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind? shall they not both fall into the ditch?

Then I came to them of the captivity at Telabib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar, and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days.

I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;

Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids.

Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria: thy nobles shall dwell {in the dust}: thy people is scattered upon the mountains, and no man gathereth {them}. {nobles: or, valiant ones}

{To wit}, the prophets of Israel which prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see visions of peace for her, and {there is} no peace, saith the Lord GOD.

And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied in Baal, and caused my people Israel to err. {folly: or, an absurd thing: Heb. unsavoury}

Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place. {assured...: Heb. peace of truth}

Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion.

Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.

Woe unto you, {ye} blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!

And I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth, that thou shalt be dumb, and shalt not be to them a reprover: for they {are} a rebellious house. {a reprover: Heb. a man reproving}

For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them every one {is} given to covetousness; and from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.

[A Song of degrees for Solomon.] Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh {but} in vain. {for...: or, of Solomon} {that...: Heb. that are builders of it in it}

Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. {destroyed: Heb. cut off}

Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.

And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and {so} that day come upon you unawares.

Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. {aloud: Heb. with the throat}

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, {which} shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence, {make...: or, are the LORD's remembrancers}

Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;

But they also have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble {in} judgment.

These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds {they are} without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;

Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.

Also I set watchmen over you, {saying}, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken.

For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.

Therefore let us not sleep, as {do} others; but let us watch and be sober.

But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which {vail} is done away in Christ.

Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.

Cursed {be} he that maketh the blind to wander out of the way. And all the people shall say, Amen.

Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger.

Thy first father hath sinned, and thy teachers have transgressed against me. {teachers: Heb. interpreters}

Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion.

Therefore will I give their wives unto others, {and} their fields to them that shall inherit {them}: for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness, from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.

For the pastors are become brutish, and have not sought the LORD: therefore they shall not prosper, and all their flocks shall be scattered.

They have wandered {as} blind {men} in the streets, they have polluted themselves with blood, so that men could not touch their garments. {so...: or, in that they could not but touch}

The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up {that which was} broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them.

Her prophets {are} light {and} treacherous persons: her priests have polluted the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law.

Woe unto you, {ye} blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!

Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

And he spake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind? shall they not both fall into the ditch?

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.

All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.

But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.

And art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness,

For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;

Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.

Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?

A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; {of good...: or, modest}

Even of the children of Israel's half, Moses took one portion of fifty, {both} of man and of beast, and gave them unto the Levites, which kept the charge of the tabernacle of the LORD; as the LORD commanded Moses.

For whatsoever man {he be} that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,

Thou shalt not bring the hire of a whore, or the price of a dog, into the house of the LORD thy God for any vow: for even both these {are} abomination unto the LORD thy God.

And he cried, A lion: My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole nights: {he...: or, cried as a lion} {whole...: or, every night}

The watchmen that go about the city found me: {to whom I said}, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth?

But it was {so, that} in the three and twentieth year of king Jehoash the priests had not repaired the breaches of the house. {three...: Heb. twentieth year and third year}

And Hazael said, But what, {is} thy servant a dog, that he should do this great thing? And Elisha answered, The LORD hath shewed me that thou {shalt be} king over Syria.

Who {is} blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger {that} I sent? who {is} blind as {he that is} perfect, and blind as the LORD'S servant?

My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away {on} the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace. {restingplace: Heb. place to lie down in}

And they answered Jesus, and said, We cannot tell. And he said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.

And there stood a watchman on the tower in Jezreel, and he spied the company of Jehu as he came, and said, I see a company. And Joram said, Take an horseman, and send to meet them, and let him say, {Is it} peace?

And they answered and said unto Jesus, We cannot tell. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things.

Whose end {is} destruction, whose God {is their} belly, and {whose} glory {is} in their shame, who mind earthly things.)

But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take {any} person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.

But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken;