BOOK nus being made a Bishop, and Medwine allowed a public IV. teacher. Who, for the eloquence and knowledg they had vita Archi- in the holy Scriptures, repaired home again to King Lucius; episc. Dubritii. et in J. Capgrav. Rom. xv. What is done in this trans Cranmer's and by their holy preachings, Lucius, and the noble men of the whole Britanie, received their Baptism, &c. Thus far in the story. And yet may it bee true that Will. of Malmsburie writeth, that Phaganus and Deravianus were sent after, as coadjutors, with these learned men, to the preaching of the Gospel, which was never extinguished in Britanie from Joseph of Arimathea his time; as to S. Austin, the first Bishop of Canterbury, they do openly avouch. Now therefore knowing and believing with S. Paul, Quod quæcunque præscripta sunt, ad nostram doctrinam præscripta sunt, ut per patientiam et consolationem Scripturarum spem habeamus: Whatsoever is afore written, is written before for our instruction, that wee through the patience and comfort of Scriptures might have hope; the only surety to our faith and conscience is to stick to the Scriptures. Wherupon while this eternal word of God bee our rock and ankor to stick to, wee wil have patience with al the vain inventions of men, who labour so highly to magnify their tongues, to exalt themselves above al that is God. Wee wil take comfort by the holy Scriptures against the maledictions of the adversaries, and doubt not to nourish our hope continually therwith; so to live and dy in this comfortable hope, and doubt not to pertain to the elect number of Christ's Church, how far soever wee bee excommunicated out of the synagogue of such, who suppose themselves to bee the universal lords of al the world, lords of our faith and consciences at pleasure. Finally, to commend further unto thee, good reader, the cause in part before entreated, it shalbee the less needful, havlation. ing so nigh followed that learned Preface, which sometime was set out by the diligence of that godly Father, Thomas Cranmer, late Bishop in the sea of Canterbury; which hee caused to bee prefixed before the translation of the Bible, that was then set out. And for that the copies thereof be so wasted, Preface. that very many churches do want their convenient Bibles, BOOK it was thought good to some wel disposed men, to recognize the same Bible again into this form as it is now come out, verned. IV. And let al men remember in themself, how error and ignorance is created with our nature. Let fraile man confess Eccles. xi. with that great Wise Man, that the cogitations and inventions of mortal men be very weak, and our opinions soon deceived. For the body, so subject to corruption, doth oppress Sap. ix. the soul, that it cannot aspire so high as of duty it ought. Men we be all, and that which we know is not the thousandth part of that we know not. Wherupon, saith S. Austin, "otherwise to judge then the truth is, this temptation De Doctrin. "riseth of the frailty of man. A man so to love and stick "to his own judgment, or to envy his brothers, to the peril "of dissolving the Christian communion, or to the peril of "schism and of heresie, this is diabolical presumption. But "so to judge in every matter, as the truth is, this belongeth "onely to the angelical perfection." Notwithstanding, good Christian. BOOK reader, thou mayst be well assured nothing to be done in IV. this translation, either of malice or wilful meaning in altering of Scrip the text, either by putting more or less to the same, as of purpose to bring in any private judgment by falsification of The Papists the words, as some certain men hath been overbold so to do, corrupters little regarding the Majesty of God his Scripture; but so to ture. make it serve to their corrupt error. As in alledging the sentence of S. Paul to the Romans, the sixth, one certain writer, to prove his satisfaction, was bold to turn the word of Hosius in sanctificationem into the word of satisfactionem, thus; Sicut exhibeamus antea membra nostra servire immunditiæ et dei, de Sa- iniquitati, ad iniquitatem; ita deinceps exhibeamus membra nitentiæ. nostra servire justitia, in satisfactionem: that is, "As we Idem Hosi- ❝ have given our members to uncleannes, from iniquity to et Oratione. " iniquity, even so from henceforth let us give our members Confessione Cathol. Fi cram. Pœ us de Spe Censurers of its trans lation. "to serve righteousnes into satisfaction." Where the true word is, into sanctification. Even so likewise for the advan tage of his cause, to prove that men may have in their prayer faith upon saints, corruptly alledgeth S. Paul's text, ad Philemonem, thus: Fidem quam habes in Domino Jesu, et in omnes sanctos: leaving out the word charitatem, which would have rightly been distributed unto omnes sanctos; as fidem unto in Domino Jesu. Where the text is, Audiens charitatem tuam, et fidem quam habes in Domino Jesu, et in omnes sanctos, &c. It were too long to bring in many examples, as may be openly found in some mens writings in these days, who would be counted the chief pillars of the Catholic faith, or to note how corruptly they of purpose abuse the text to the commodity of their cause. What manner of translation may men think to look for at their hands, if they should translate the Scriptures, to the comfort of God's elect, which they never did, nor bee not like to purpose it; but bee rather studious onely to seek quarrels in other mens wel-doings, to pick fault where none is : and where any is escaped through humane negligence, there to cry out with their tragical exclamations, but in no wise to amend by the spirit of charity and lenity that which might be more aptly set. Whereupon, for fraile man (compassed IV. himself with infirmity) it is most reasonable, not to be too BOOK severe in condemning his brothers knowledg or diligence, where he doth erre, not of malice, but of simplicity, and especially in handling these so divine books, so profound in sense, so far passing our natural understanding. And with charity it standeth the reader not to be offended with the diversity of translators, nor with the ambiguity of translations : for as S. Austin doth witnes, " By God's providence it is De Doctrin. "brought about, that the holy Scriptures, which be the salves lib. 8. "for every mans sore, tho' at the first they came from one cap. 5. “language, and thereby might have been spred to the whole "world; now, by diversity of many languages, the trans"lators should spred the salvation that is contained in them "to all nations, by such words of utterance as the reader "might perceive the mind of the translator: and so conse"quently to come to the knowledg of God his will and ple 66 Christian. sure and tho' many rash readers be deceived in the ob"scurities and ambiguities of their translations, while they "take one thing for another, and while they use much la"bour to extricate themselves out of the obscurities of the "same; yet I think, saith he, this is not wrought without 136 "the providence of God, both to tame the proud arrogancy "of man by his such labour of searching, and also to keep "his mind from loathsomness and contempt, where if the "Scriptures universally were too easy, he would less regard "them. And tho', saith he, in the primitive Church the "late interpreters which did translate the Scriptures, be "innumerable, yet wrought this rather an help, then an "impediment to the readers, if they be not too negligent: "for, saith he, divers translations have made many times "the harder and darker sentences the more open and "plain." So that of congruence no offence can justly be taken for this new labour, nothing prejudicing any other mans judgment by this doing: nor yet hereby professing this to be so absolute a translation, as that hereafter might follow no other that might see that, which as yet was not understanded. In this point it is convenient to consider the judgment IV. BOOK that John, once Bishop of Rochester, was in, who thus wrote: "It is not unknown, but that many things have been more Articulo 17.6 diligently discussed, and more clearly understanded by "the witts of these latter dayes, as wel concerning the Gos contr. Luth. A prayer for the readers of Psalm cxix. 66 66 66 pels, as other Scriptures, then in old time they were. The cause wherof is, saith he, for that to the old men the ice 66 was not broken, or for that their age was not sufficient "exquisitely to expend the whole mayn sea of the Scrip"tures: or els, for that in this large field of the Scriptures, 66 a man may gather some ears untouched after the harvestmen, how diligent soever they were. For there be, saith "he, in the Gospels very many dark places, which without "all doubt to the posterity shall be made much more open. "For why should we despair herein, seeing the Gospel, "writeth he, was delivered to this intent, that it might be "utterly understanded by us, yea, to the very inch? "Wherefore, for as much as Christ sheweth no less love to "his Church now, than hitherto he hath done, the aucthori"tie wherof is as yet no whit diminished; and forasmuch as that Holy Spirit, and perpetual keeper and gardian "of the same Church, whose gifts and graces do flow as "continually and as abundantly as from the beginning; "who can doubt, but that such things as remain yet un"known in the Gospel, shall be hereafter made open to the "latter wits of our posterity, to their clear understanding?" Thus far this writer. 66 Onely good readers let us oft call upon the Holy Spirit of God, our heavenly Father, by the mediation of our Lord Scripture. and Saviour, with the words of the octonary Psalm of David, who did so importunatly crave of God to have the understanding of his laws and testament. Let us humbly on our knees pray to Almighty God, with that wise King Solomon in his very words, saying thus : Sap. ix. "O God of my fathers, and Lord of mercies, thou that "hast made al things with thy word, and didst ordain man "through thy wisdome, that he should have dominion over "thy creatures which thou hast made, and that he should "order the world according to holiness and righteousness, |