commaunde H. BROVGHTON ⧠A request to the Arch. of Cant. to call in a corruption of a late English CoÌ„mentation vpon Daniel dedicated to the right H. Lordes YOVR Grace overseer of all learned matters in our Nation and I hauing a right in thinges of my owne trauel and all our nation as coÌ„temned or deceyued â—aue bene iniuried by a Printer who hath corrupted my â—ommentaries vpon Daniel speciallie in the Ebrew to the â—isgrace of all the worke and of all our studentes In the â—â—brewe verses of Rabbi Sadaias the letters which begin the â—erses wordes commonly fiue in euery rowe besides the â—lphabet letter stand for the Arithmetique how often the â—tter entreated vpon is vsed in the Ebrew tongue and the â—â—ripture textes agree in number where if any one letter â—amisse all the frame of the worke is marred Moreouer 〈◊〉 the Ebrewe textes all Printers and Writers thinke it a â—y grosse part euer to corrupt any Scripture text as the â—wes glorie that in neither Talmud nor any commentarie â—heirs euer any text is corrupted by the citer And they â—e this a common saying That to misse in one letter is â—orruption of the whole worlde Now when Iewes and â—â—ristians see that thinges in Ebrew corrupt ouerthrowâ— that present argument stayning holy Scripture and â—th skill rather of Balams Asse then of learning come â—th in England where men should be learned things â—ered vnto our Honourable Lordes they will thinke veâ— basely of all the Studentes of our nation Those verses a matter of so great importance that a Professour of â—bridge offered an Angell to haue one copye in written â—de and after myne came forth two studentes one of Cambridge an other of Oxforde desired me to put theÌ„ fâ—rth in fayrer and more distinct letters and they would each vndertake copyes to fiue poundes both ten Herevpon I caused M. Fr. Raphelengius the best of Printers to print me a thousand which I haue sent to Englande to make our Diuines readier in great matters Maister Ioseph Scaliger a Gentleman of rare learning and Maister Raphelengius had neuer seene them before I sent them to Leyden Both as good Linguistes as any in the world and learned men to whom I am very much beholding for singular gentlenes in lending me bookes rare and of rare commoditie such as our nation I trowe neuer yet sawe A certen English man here had by my gyft but one copy and was shewed the vse of it of whom I demaunded in sadnes to record it in print what he esteemed of the matter and he sayd that of trueth he would not for twentie poundes bee without the copye and the matter The case standing thus I can not chuse but be grieued to see my Ebrewe studies so defaced a good old worke and a rare monument marred occasioÌ„ offered to haue our natioÌ„ for learning much contemned The certeintie of the holy text in Ebrew is a matter as all called to grace will confesse to be gracious And that rare piece of worke of Sadaias will seeme to all voyde of Papistrie and endued with reason to confirme much the certeintie of Scripture Wherfore proceeding from an enemie for the trueth grounds of faith the corrupting of it should seeme a worke farre from grace Besides these verses of Sadaias a piece of the Ierusalemy Talmud very pleasant and learned with GentlemeÌ„ learned in Ebrew is corrupted in this Printers edition whereas no open aduersarie could so much disgrace as such a corrupter of matters brought about not without great paynes pretending reuerence to the authour I haue felt griefe in this kinde alreadie not a litle by a booke collected from sundry fragmentes by a seruingman and falsely reported to be notes from me As that booke was in printing I did cause the seruingman to shewe your grace of it that the Printer had no authour for his worke and as he tolde me the Printer was bound in fiue hundred poundes not to proceede but by a bribe ventured against his band and vpon complaint answere was returned that the Printer would noyse how he was vndone So against all that I could doe forged ware some stollen from me some from others and more kindes then Labans sheepes coloures were solde deare in London and Sturbridge fayre and still fathered vpon such as most loth it As all trueth should be trueth speciallie in diuinitie it should be so And the befooling of an whole nation should not be counted a light faulte in forging authours by pieuish printers greadie of vnhonest gaynes I was minded neuer to haue printed anie thing But forgers of matters to be as mine which I lothed they forced me to leaue in print the whole veyne of my iudgement in Diuinitie in the booke of Scripture concent That any might knowe myne from forged ware Nowe at my first printing much anger I had When it came furth the great Lord Chauncelour tolde the Queene as he bragged that in no case any countenance might be shewed me thervpon a Noble Earle who had named vnto me a fine recompence of my study hearing of the L. Chauncelours speach altered And I to pay the L. Chauncelour mynded to haue liued in Germanie till I heard the Queenes aunswere That he commended whom he condemned For that the booke was schollerlike all for the States good where to knowe howe to ouerreach others not to doe it argueth a minde bent to quietnes Another gaue out wordes also to the Queene vnlearned and malicious of whom I will yet speake nothing Your Grace I must now commend for much humanitie that tolde one sent in my cause that whatsoeuer you could doe for me you would So that I would acknowledge my friends In trueth my L. touching preferments I was thus minded hitherto that if my worthier in the common estimation stept before me I would reioyce But when two hundreth thousande poundes a yeere is spent by the Church vpon such as can not reade a line of the Bible and I could not liue in Englande vnsollicited still to preach and was commended by the Queene whom I trowe you will not checke I see not why I may not require my recompence as the Realme hath put the Queene in trust to deale and require it with as good a conscience as you may receyue one pennie of your tenantes You gaue me counsell to be toward some Bishop or some Lord as one sayde to whom it should bee tolde The Queene or a Prince should bee the onely Patron for one of my yeares spent in hard studies And the Countesse of Warwicke tolde that the Queene would not for all the prefermentes in the Realme I went out of the Realme In the time of deliberation I pray your Grace that Printers be not allowed to disgrace my studies Your Graces to commaunde H. BROVGHTON What poinctes a syncere translation ought to haue mo theÌ„ yet oure haue 1. care that the holy Ebrew or holie Greeke text bee not disannulled An holy 21.
to speake So for bookes written after the captiuitie past times of bondage where the Samaritanes speach against the Temple-builders is as they spoke it doubtfull Ebrew as We doe not sacrifice or Sacrifice we not there in Loa and Lo the word of the text and margent expound one the oher And againe in Zacharie speaking of Ierusalems destruction womens vsage by souldiers grosse to speake the text telleth the terme to be seene the margent what the holy Spirit would haue read Thus for ciuilitie or facilitie in sense the margent reading is giuen with equall authoritie as the other Moreouer wheras the Prophetes deepe skill that omits the particle Vau that is And in a speach of two members or hath a worde too sharpe for the common sorte in orthography straunge differs in a letter from the vsuall manner the margent hauinge the vsuall sheweth what care the holy Synagogue had that no one syllable should amaze the simple but were all taught from God to couple diligence with easie sense These poinctes some touche euery tounge some onlie Ebrewe grammer where a learned professour would as soone looke to swallowe a camel as to escape blame in vnheedines herein And further off would he be from thinking that Babel caused one letter amisse when Ieremie liued til Ezra was of vnderstaÌ„ding Ezechiel prophecieth vnto thirtie fiue yeares of the captiuitie the exact halfe and Daniel was there all the while the marrowe of Godlines learning witte and wisedome and the wealthiest subiect in the worlde that hee could want no will skill nor abilitie to keepe all scripture which the holy wisdome of God sawe needefull to make vp the body of Ebrewe holy storie Mardochai was next him in time of captiuitie and godlines and an holy Writer as he of equall authoritie in Daniels end of life or aged about 110. yeares he as well with Aggei Zachary Ezra such would haue an eye to the text his soundnesse Wherefore translatours herein fall fouly when they say that Michal is put for Merob or vpon Iude complaine of bookes lost for Enochs speach or Michaels That is a principall poinct to be looked vnto the obseruations wherevpon will lighten eyes to much further sight into Gods worde In this matter the Massorites care should be opened Grammarians of Ebrew sprong from Ezra and long continued who reckoned euerie letter howe often in the holy Ebrewe it came howe ofte wordes of short or full writings were diuersly written where and what strange texts would seeme corruptions to the vnstayed and for Eth and Vau little particles howe often they come together in sort easie to deceyue a copyer without a table of direction such poinctes are a brasen wall to saue froÌ„ doubt of scriptures certeintie and froÌ„ extreeme rashnes that condemne as faultie things of heauenlie synceritie So when we come to translate Achaz king of Israel or Iosaphat king of Israel we should with the Massorites note the strauÌ„genes that Israel is put for Iuda and checke the Rhemist that marking that title in Achaz but not in Iosaphat rageth against the text as though it had bene corrupt and would therevpon drawe vs from Gods worde vnto a Church and to Rome by whose policie Christ was crucified while they runne from mischief to mischief The like care must bee vsed for the newe Testament and more iudgement be cause Christians tooke not the like heede as not being in equall daunger Here we haue committed grosse faultes blaming most learned speaches For example some shalbe brought The holy Ghost in Greeke speaketh thus Iocob dyed in Egypt and the Patriarches they were caried to Sychem And they were put in graue That which Abraham bought for price of mony That from the sonnes of Emor of Sychem Here the Pronowne They the close repetition of the Pronowne That omission of the copulatiue vsuall in Prophetes rare in common speach caused vs to amende the holy text to leaue Iacobs buriall vntold who yet was principal in the narration to say that Abraham was put for Iacob and to falsifie the buying For price of money as though Iacob had bought his plot for money and not for Lambes as the Greeke translation expoundeth Iacobs price Keshita is translated Lambes in the Seuentie whose translation for common wordes the newe Testament checketh not but followeth most exactly infinitely So that we may wel know that Saint Luke writing in Greeke meant the graue that Abraham bought for price of money and that wherein Iacob was buried not that wherein the Patriarkes were buried Whereby there can be no colour that Abraham in the text was put for Iacob but in the whole sentence the Translatours dealing weakened our strength disgraced the grace of holy synceritie That the simple may better vnderstande what I blame you shall haue the translation vsed of vs which marreth the Greeke and the annotations vpon it which condemneth that which God coÌ„mendeth vnto vs. And I hope no man of grace wilbe angrie to haue Scripture cleared nor vexe me any more with graue Fathers If they that blame haue anie grauitie or drop of grace they will wishe all men disgraced rather then one syllable of Gods worde And they who must coÌ„fesse vnskilfulnes shall not doe wel vnlesse they willinglie doe yeeld vnto the trueth and loue the honor of God more then their own and make it plaine vnto the people that the booke which we call the Bible is the Hebrewe for the olde the Greeke for the newe and translations are but so farre as they are true and exact from the originall and without hinderance may and must bee examined by the other yea where they are blamelesse and syncere by the originall their clearenes authoritie must aye be strengthened by the Ebrew Thus the text standeth And Iacob dyed both he and our Fathers and were caried ouer into Sychem layde in the sepulchre that Abraham bought for money of the sonnes of Emor the sonne of Syâ—hem Here appeareth an errour for Abraham seemeth to â—e put in the text in the steede of Iacob for Iacob bought â—he sepulchre of Emor and not Abraham who bought before a fielde of Ephron You see the text and the note which if we all would graunt curraunt then would the papistes earnestlie triumph that we Protestantes confesse the text to be corrupted That will I neuer doe while breadth standeth in my brest I beleeue that I shall soone finde some hundreth thousandes in Englande that wiâ—l no more turne the sword with Stephanas against their owne hart after sight how their case is well if they knew their own good things Saint Stephen speaketh in his most heauenlie oration other wisdome of exact skill yet blamed of great men Vr by him is in Mesopotamia and his deadliest enemie Barbinel doth therein defende him full learnedly but we coÌ„monly seeke qualifications vnartificial whereby a Turke or Iewe would say that we made him but a
AN EPISTLE TO THE LEARNED NOBILITIE OF ENGLAND Touching translating the BIBLE from the original with ancient warrant for euerie worde vnto the full satisfaction of any that be of hart By HVGH BROVGHTON IOHN I. The light shineth in darknes though darknes doeth not comprehend it MIDDELBVRGH By Richard Schilders Printer to the States of Zealande 1597. To all the learned Nobilitie of England HVGH BROVGHTON wisheth all increase of knowledge that they may esteeme the vnderstanding of Gods worde and care for synceritie in it to be the head of wisedome and true Religion in CHRIST WHEREAS many right Honorable from the high to the low of all sortes haue bene desirous greatly and a long time to haue the holy booke of God which for the old Testament is in Ebrew for the new all originally in Greeke to be translated and beautified with all furniture for playnes and ornaments that such as studie it should in no place be snared by the translater but rather in all poinctes might haue at the first layd cleare before them all that studie can affoord It may be thought a good help to the bringing of their desire to passe by ioyning of al effectuallie in executioÌ„ of the worke to shewe what in this paynes may be better done then yet we haue in Englande And as bare shortnes is soonest viewed so matter of large longe high deepe quantitie shalbe brought into speach of no greatnes but narrow short lowe shallowe that the meanest may in good part iudge what ought to be censured The holy text must be honored as sound holy pure hede must be taken that the translater neither flow with lyes nor haue one at all prophecies spoken in doubtfull termes for sad present occasiones must be cleared by sad study and stayd safty of ancient warrant termes of equivocation witty in the speaker for familiar and easy matters must be looked vnto that a translater drawe them not vnto foolish ridiculous senses Constant memorye to translate the same often repeated in the same sort is most nedefull Facility of phrase defended by the new Testament the Septuagint and writers old indifferent for all nations must be had And herein the stately words of the new Testament in Greeke taken froÌ„ the Septuagint may stand profitable in the margent through the old Also where the later repeat the former holy writers therein as it were commenting vpon them that should in all clearnes be expressed and noted These be poinctes of necessitie Some others of ornament in the end of our speach may be consydered Thus all are briefly told once which by enlargement will appeare more pleasant And speach of all shalbe vsed by your honorable pacience First a Translater of the Bible should beware least of his owne head in translation or notes he disanull the text and blame the watchfull eye of Gods providence for not preseruing the writt aright That fault is exceeding great for a man to take vpon him to bee wiser then God and to take his kingly care tardy in trueth of wordes All men will graunt that there is not an idle plant fishe worme foule or beast in nature nor yet starre in the skye but all knowen and looked vnto by Gods care Now wheras all that would be happy are commaunded to thinke day and night on Gods Lawe by the spirit of endles wisedome as learning the Eternall better thence then from the creatioÌ„ we might haue bin sure that the father of light would neuer require that but would also for his part affoorde a lawe voyde of trappe and snare to delight the soules that followe him That matter of necessitie may better bee conceaued by thinges of ornament into which God for vs hath condescended A man would little haue thought that the most High should make Alphabets for vs in his booke But wee nowe may see it done The Psal 25. hath an Alphabet saving for two letters and the Psalme is a generall forme of prayer There the wisest may try whither any wisedome could supply the argument by Ebrewe wordes of sage force The Psal 145. is alike one letter omitted The Psal 34. hath an Alphabet perfect one verse for a glad saying vpon all fit always The Psal 37. hath an Alphabet most exact though many verses seeme to hide it The Psalme 111. conteyneth Gods laude The 112. the Godly mans in most curious sorte for euery member of speach The 119. goeth vppon commendation of the Lawe of life with an eightfold Alphabet and mentioning the worde in sundry names in euery verse what vertues it hath Which sayings coÌ„ming from him that carieth about all things by his mightie worde should assure vs that it was safely kept Salomon in like battell-ray hath commended good Matrones that they teachinge their children from the breastes should giue them the milke of Gods worde And Ieremy at the kingdomes ruine penneth his LameÌ„tations with a watchfull eye very much for phrase vsing froÌ„ Moses Dauid Salomon Esay and all former termes vttered of the destruction which he sawe and felt But his Alphabet is more wonderfull to shewe in mans confusion Gods distinction So the first Cha. hath 22. verses in the 22. letters order The Ch. 2. to stirre our care hath the like with changing place of Pe and Ain two going togither but the later going afore so the fourth Chap. is most exact in the same sorte for Pe and Ain and all the other in due order that by this doubled matter studie should be stirred vp The Chap. 3. hath thrise euery letter in ordâ—â— that by three witnesses Gods looking too his letters might be seene These being matters of ElegaÌ„cy more then bare necessitie shew that no lesse watchfulnes was ouer the wordes of sentences Which thing should moue vs to holde the text vncorrupt Besides a matter of singular great importance commeth hither to be considered the margent readinges of the old testament They are eight hundred fourtie and eight in number And the word in the text was not read but the worde in the margent These greatlie touch all to knowe why so it falleth out that Christians no longer followe Kimchi and Ephody the Iewes whom Barbinel Elias Leuita damne of great iniurie done to Gods holy Maiestie for sayinge that the text was corrupted in Babylon Any may see that no Scribe would twentie two times of negligence write Naar a Gyrle for Naarah the margent terme read for Naar which signified a Boye or Gyrle and for weightie cause was read Naara a Gyrle The filthy towne Zebyim burnt froÌ„ heauen named of the pleasaunt situatioÌ„ the Roes a name of Christ in Salomons songe was read Zeboyim all the foure times that scripture hath it Errour could not fall into such wisedome Likewise when Rabsakes filthy termes are in the text to be seene but clearer in the margent to be read they who say that corruption bred this vrbanity weigh not but cast lottes what
inferiour to any of theirs as D. Trelcatius often confesseth at Leyden And I thinke the BB. reuiued the folowers of the vulgar Latin and the Greeke least our people should bee too much amazed at the first by the great diuersitie But to returne conclude as memorie to marke howe the laâ—er folowe the former for light and delight so a learned â—acilitie is of vnspeakeable force Nowe commeth in the â—eauenth poinct the braue Greke termes either of the Seaâ—entie or of the Apostles better vsage Their marking is of great importaÌ„ce And this should not only be a great help â—o shew still through the margeÌ„t Gods handlingl al his old â—â—ories but a matter of certaintie in difficulties Some here â—â—iding amisse disgrace all For example this may be taken â—aul sayeth We must giue more heede to that which hath bene â—ard least we flowe our common translation hath least at â—lie time we should let them slippe Saint Paul had bene a â—abe if he had thought that all Ierusalems Rabbines could â—â—rget vpoÌ„ what principles Paul disputed or thoght that 〈◊〉 the Rabbines had embracest the rules principles they â—â—â—uld soone forget them Here the Arabiques translate eleâ—â—ntlie Naskitu WE FALL The Syriaque Naebed WE PEâ—â—SH Saint Pauls metaphore was taken from Ieremies laâ—â—ntations 4. in Teth. They are in better case whiche died 〈◊〉 the sword then which died by hunger which flowed 〈◊〉 perced by wanting the fruite of the fielde This trope â—â—lled into the Iewes mynde Sedekias kingdomes fall and â—â—arned of a farre greater which soone fell vpon coÌ„tempt 〈◊〉 this warning Of that Ierusalemy hath a comon treatise 〈◊〉 whole booke vpon this which all Paul warned in one 〈◊〉 terme that might not be turned to a base meaning beâ—â—lling no men of grauitie in any religioÌ„ or reason In this place the bare worde should haue bene kept or an other warranted He that could not come to Saint Pauls reach yet should haue marked how from Pro. 3. his Greke word was takeÌ„ for a froward departing the word two wayes terrible each leading to destruction and both meeting togither would be twise tres-excellent The brightnes of glorie Eb. 1.3 expoundeth Zemach or day-spring Esa 4. to cleare all the Prophets all Paul and the Chaldy vpon Esai 4 a rare place of old Ionat. a Rab of old Simeons age or neare speaking clearly of Christ Now to teach vs that The Syriaque hath Zimcha Esaies When thousands of these come in singular great matters better then commentaries to lighten eyes all togither will make a mountayne of golden learning and haue great force Here a translatour should haue all that the newe testament translated noted in his Ebrew Bible to be plentiful in the vse of that helpe So for this sentence He maketh his Angels spirites and his ministers a flame of fyre not onely the Septuagint and the Apostles but also the Zoar in many places sawe that God spake of the Angels made like windes and flames Wherein the facilitie of the matter should bee warranted for better satisfaction of all by all of indifferent affections In this all translations of learned tongues olde and ancient will much delite and strengthen the Arabique and the Syriaque the Chaldy paraphrastes Onkelos Meturgeman Ierusalemy Ionothan Ioseph the Blind Aquilas the Septuagint Yea the fragmentes of Aquilas Symmachus Theodotion As when Iacob sayth the Scebet shall not depart from Iudah till Shiloh come Aquilas sayth by Scebet in Greke Sceptron he meaneth the tribe He sayd truely Learnedly and to infinite good vse Ierusalemy and Barbinel check vs rightly for Malachy Thus they say For he hateth diuorcements The Eternall is the speaker Here their authoritie is the strongest of all humane for vs against them selues The Babylonian Talmud is no lesse construing Ezra 1. Chron. 3. That Iechonias Assyr in strait prison made Salathiel his sonne here the Talmud for this one poinct is much worth Most pleasant â—re the Prophets words turned by the Apostles as Sechi Maos in Ierem. and Peripsema and Scybala in Saint Paul â—n this sorte all the Greeke Testamentes wordes might be â—rought into euery Bibles table yea and the Ebrew two with one leafe of Grammer introduction whereby a few â—oures would yeeld a methode to iudge and studie as ocâ—asion and leasure serued A Linguist would as easilie perâ—orme this as these his couÌ„trey laÌ„guages And this must be â—olden that Libanus affoarded not more timber trees to â—â—lomons house then the Greeke Septuaginta doeth to the â—ewe Testament and the termes called into question for â—iuinitie being in it are best expounded by it Examples I â—eede none infinite experience of daily striuers shewe eâ—â—ugh And nowe comes the last poinct to comment by â—â—ripture so all Salomons Prouerbes may be set on the fitt â—â—ories so the stories with their Prophecies the Psalmes â—on the lawe the Epistles vpon the Ceremonies much â—â—ch on all The helpe herein would make the newe Teâ—â—â—ment and the former Prophetes as Daniel Esaie and â—h easie before the Reader commeth to them And â—we I haue ended all partes touched in my entrance of â—â—ch Ornamentes aboue these I haue else-where conâ—â—ed into one woorke manie alreadie To conclude â—s I had to say touching translation The rare Honoâ—â—â—le Earle H. Huntingdon many yeares togither vrged my â—â—ll this way whom one Earle of you Nobles of neare â—initie succeeded in willingnes so liberallie towarde â—arges that vpon that according to these eightfold obâ—â—â—uations somewhat if God will shall come to light And one of you Lordes requested me to write a common Epistle to you all that you might so better knowe howe in time to agree for execution of good will this way That request I haue as ye see accomplished And I hope your Noble learning will not expect an inflaming peroration The dignitie of the matter is greater then any Oratour can match And for personnages none be so fitt as your selfes to vrge it Professed Scholers who studie to liue and not liue to studie are commonly being advaunced hinderers of all that passeth the common base course And as my furtherance for honorable wordes workes charges and all tendring hath bene from the Nobilitie from what side the contrarie I will yet see and nothing say so I am free to chuse whom I would honour in this motion Vnder the terme of Nobilitie as we here towards Germanie do I conteyne all the ancient and good Gentry of the land whom all I wish to haue a care portion about the book of life The deliberation should be quick The King of our language hath dealt very royally for his part with a willingnes very readie Yet my great desire was that English Nobilitie might be moued to be at the charges of this trauell And so I leaue the matter to your learned Honorable and Worshipfull consideration From MIDDELBVRGH in Sea-land This 29. of May 1597. Your Honours to