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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A11406	Babilon, a part of the Seconde vveeke of Guillaume de Saluste seigneur du Bartas, with the commentarie, and marginall notes of S.G.S. Englished by William L'Isle; Seconde sepmaine. Day 2. Part 2. English	Du Bartas, Guillaume de Salluste, seigneur, 1544-1590.; Lisle, William, 1579?-1637.; Goulart, Simon, 1543-1628.	1595 (1595)	STC 21662; ESTC S110840	52,878	76

God but Noe with many liuely and forcible arguments withstandeth him meanewhile the flood is abated the Arch staied the Rauen and the Doue are sent foorth Noe commeth out of the Arch the measure and burden whereof is in a few words plainly prooued Then this good Patriarch hauing sacrificed receiueth diuers lawes and promises of God especially that there shall be neuer more any vniuersall flood for token whereof the Rainbow is ordained then Noe betaketh himselfe to till the earth planteth a vine is droonke with the wine thereof and sléepeth on the ground in a shamefull maner Cham maketh a iest of it but Sem and Iaphet couer modestly the shame of their father who now awakened out of his dronkennes and much grieued thereat curseth Cham his posteritie 2. BABILON so the Poet endeth his first booke And to make way to the life of Nimrod he beginneth the second with consideration of the peoples happines that are gouerned by good wise princes and the bad estate of such as are slaues to tyrants beseeching God to withhold from vs such confusions as he liuely painteth out in the discouering of Nimrods policies who from his childhood setteth himselfe a worke to get the soueraigntie ouer men sheweth his naturall bent among his play-fellowes and for that behoofe spareth not his owne bodie he beginneth to deale with wilde beastes and mastereth some particulars by reason whereof he winneth the peoples harts and is made gouernour then he laieth himselfe open and to maintaine his tyrannie putteth into the peoples heads to build a towne and a mightie tower to withstand the force of another Deluge This obtaineth so good liking with the people that they presently set themselues on worke But the Lord prouoked to anger with their bold attempt confoundeth the language of the builders so as they are constrained to let all alone not vnderstanding one another by reason of their different speech the roote of many inconueniences whose contrarie commodities are declared and so the Poet falleth into discourse of the beginning of toongs and of th' aduantage that herein mankind hath aboue all other creatures and proueth by many reasons that the Hebrue toong is the most ancient that it continued by descent from Adam vnto Nimrod and remained last in the familie of Heber Concerning other toongs parted as they are sundrie waies mention is made of their alterations as also of their force and vigour much relying vpon vse which hath brought the Hebrue Greeke and Latine into request Here the Poet breathing awhile casteth into a new treatise where he faineth a vision and in the same the dwelling place and image of Eloquence represented vnto him and about this image the toongs Hebrue Greeke Latine Italian Arabian Dutch Spanish English and French togither with the names of certaine personages that in some one of them haue excelled and after due reuerence done vnto them he closeth vp his vision and booke withall Then in his third booke 3. Colonies taking againe in hand the astonished builders of Babel after he hath giuen a reason why God would not haue them stay in the plaine of Sennaar he leadeth the children of Sem towards the east of Cham to the south of Iaphet to the north and west but he chooseth rather to stay himselfe than enter into the dark corners of Antiquitie shewing how much they deceiue themselues and others who venter too far that way then describeth he the diuers remooues of sundrie nations as of the Bretons Lumbards Alans and Vandals reckoneth the causes why they shifted their abode and baulking the vnknowen iourneyes of some nations treateth of the voyages of certaine warlike people chiefly of the Gothes Lumbards and Gaules There againe staying he saith to be short that the posteritie of Noes thrée children peopled the world not all at once but by little and little and as it were yéere after yéere with increase of children which also was th' occasion why the first Monarchie was planted in Assyria néere to the plaine of Sennaar rather than elsewhere in any countrey not so soone inhabited so the Hebrues and other neighbour peoples haue had the Arts riches and ornaments of delight before those of the north and west knew what the world meant Herupon is noted first how Sem in the east then how Iaphet in the west and lastly how C ham in the south replenished the world with people it rested that he should speake of the new world discouered in our time concerning the same he sheweth how so huge a countrey was first inhabited why not so soone as other parts of the world and whereby it appéereth to haue bin yet a long time possessed he propoundeth here certaine of his owne coniectures touching the processe of this new worlds inhabitants nameth diuers parts and reckoneth vp certaine wonders thereof then answereth fitly to this obiection How it could be that Noe and his children should haue so much increased and there taketh occasion to intreat of the wonderfull works of God in the diuers temper and complexion of nations shewing how the northren differ from the southren people and euen those of Europe among themselues especially the French Dutch Italian and Spanish Further he sheweth why God would haue the children of Noe be so disparkled ouer the face of the earth which is compared vnto a great citie where men haue much to do one with another then refuteth he the godlesse crew prouing to their confusion that whatsoeuer they suppose created in vaine and to serue to no vse standeth vs oftentimes in greatest stead as witnes the wildernes the mountaines and the sea But now being wéerie as it were with so long sailing he landeth in France singeth swéetly the praise therof cōcluding that it wanteth nothing saue only a sound peace which he craueth at the hands of him that is able to giue it 4. Colonnies In the beginning of the fourth and last booke he calleth on God againe being to enter into discourse of a new matter hautie and very hard to handle to wit the Mathematikes and the better to performe his drift he supposeth Phaleg to haue found two ancient pillers and to aske of his father Heber what they meane whereunto Heber answereth and openeth the doore of one of them and sheweth his sonne foure images there inclosed the first of them is Arithmetike set out in hir proper attire with numbers the second is Geometrie with hir tooles works and excellent crafts particularly set downe the third is Astronomie holding in hir right hand the Earth-globe whereon the land the sea and the ten circles of heauen are painted and in hir left hand the sphere of heauen bedecked with figures and images noting forth all the principall stars that are séene betwixt the two Poles In this place is yéelded a reason of the names that are giuen to the twelue signes of the Zodiacke and Heber himselfe is made to hold opinion that the chiefe stars of the globe which

in vaine Each one the more he striues the lesse appeeres his paine Another excellent comparison declaring how neither counsell art force diligence nor multitude is able to resist God And shortly as the men that altogither stood To build in channell deepe of some great rau'ning flood High arches of a bridge marking from hils descend A hundred sudden streames and now far to extend The mountaine-hating waues leaue off without aduise Scudding some here some there their goodly enterprise Right so these Architects feeling the stormie smart Of Gods displeasure rise had neither strength nor hart But there they left their worke and with hands malcontent Rules mallets plummets lines all down the Towre they sent 4. Now he enthroned is This is the exposition of the words mighty hunter before the Lord to wit that Nimrod Chams nephew did proudly lift himselfe vp against God and man His buildings and the beginning of his raigne could not haue béene such without offring violence to the peace and libertie of diuers families ouer whom he bare rule and there is no shew to the contrarie but that by diuers practises from time to time he got the soueraigntie The holy Scripture oftentimes by the names of hunters and chasers meaneth Gods enimies and the persecutors of his church Psalme 91. 124. Ezech. 32. Lamentations 3. The seauentie Interpreters translate th' Hebrue text after this maner This Nimrod began to be a Gyant on the earth and a huntesman or leader of houndes before the Lorde God By the hounds of Nimrod may be vnderstood his guardes and the fauorers of his tyrannie Moses calleth him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Gibor tsaid that is lusty strong or great and mightie chaser Which noteth not onely the stature and height of bodie but also might and authoritie ioyned with violence in all those that want the feare of God Now although Moses in the 11. Chapter of Genesis where he speaketh of the citie towre of Babel make no mention of Nimrod yet hath the Poet aptly gathered out of the chapter aforegoing that Nimrod was the author and promoter of those buildings in as much as Babel is called the beginning of his raigne who could not any waies raigne without some habitations for himselfe and his subiects and considering that Moses in the selfe same place affirmeth that the cities founded by Nimrod were in the countrey of Sennaar and that in the 12. verse of the 11. chapter he saith that these builders of Babel dwelt on a plaine in the countrey of Sennaar by good reason the inuention and beginning thereof is héere ascribed to Nimrod who by this meanes sought to set his state on foote Also this Monarchie of Babylon was one of the first and with it that of Niniuie as may be gathered out of the wordes of Moses But the more particular discourse of these matters and diuerse other questions concerning Nimrod and his outrages require a larger commentarie 5. Like as the Vulcan weake The Poet saith that as a small deale of fire let fall by some shepheards among the drie leaues of a great forest setting it selfe and hatching as it were the heate awhile at length with helpe of the winde groweth to so great a flame that it taketh the whole forest and leaueth not a Driad that is not a trée in his proper or naturall barke So the words first vttered by Nimrod the blowne with the bellowes of his mynions fauorites set so the harts of the people on fire that he soon obtained his purpose This is it that Moses noteth in the 11. chap. of Gen. the 3. and 4. vers They saide one to another the chiefe men hauing put it in their heads Come let vs make bricke and burne it well in the fire so had they bricke instéed of stone and slime had they in steade of morter Then said they go let vs build vs a citie and a tower whose top may reach vnto the heauens that we may get vs a name least we be scattered vpon the whole earth The Poet in his verse discourseth vpon this deuise It is thought that this proud building was begun about a hundred and fiftie yéeres after the flood The good patriarch Noe that liued yet long time after saw his posteritie confounded and scattered for so it was the Lords will to exercise the patient faith of his seruant to whom in recompence he shewed the effect of his blessings in the familie of Sem where still remained the Hebrue toong togither with the doctrine and discipline of the true church Now out of this historie of Moses touching the building of the towne and the confusion of the builders is sprong as it séemeth the fabulous discourse of the Poets set downe by Quid in his first booke of Metamorphosis touching the Gyants that heaped hils one vpon another to scale heauen and dispossesse Iupiter of his throne Thus hath Satan endeuoured to falsifie the truth of sacred histories Well this arrogant building sheweth vs how vaine are the imaginations of worldly men namely to set at naught the true renowme of heauenly life and séeke after the false on earth Carnall men haue no care at all to worship and reuerence the name of the true God they regarde onely to be accounted of themselues and so to write their names in the dust Against th' attempts of the men of Babel and all their successors let vs oppose these sentences the 18. and 21. of Prouerbs The name of the Lord is a strong towre thither shall the iust repaire and be exalted There is no wisedome nor vnderstanding nor force can preuaile against the Lord and that which is written Psal the 127. Except the Lord do buylde the house the builders labour but in vaine 6. God seeing this Moses in the 5. and 6. verses of the 11. chapter saith Then the Lord came downe to sée the citie and Towre which the sonnes of men had built And the Lorde saide Behold the people is one and they all haue one language and this they begin to do neither can they now be stopped from whatsoeuer they haue imagined to do come on let vs go downe and there confound their language that they vnderstand not one another Then he addeth the execution of the sentence saying So the Lorde scattered them from thence vpon all the earth and they left off to build the citie Therefore the name of it was called Babel bicause the Lord did there confounde the language of all the earth and scattered them from thence ouer all the world God that is all in all neuer changeth his place he goeth neither vpwarde nor downwarde but the Scripture saith he goeth downe then whē he worketh any thing on earth which falling out beyond and against the ordinarie course of nature witnesseth his particular presence Vnder these few words of Moses a many things are to be considered chiefly he noteth the great sinnes of the builders in that he bringeth in the Lord iudge of the

whole world vouchsaufing to bow downe his eies particularly vpon that foolish people For it is not without cause that the great God of heauen and earth shoulde arise from his throne and if I durst so say leaue the palace of his glorie to come and view the durt-dawbers or morter-makers By this manner of spéech Moses sheweth and giueth vs to vnderstand that long time before these Babylonians had built in their harts most woonderfull high and stately towers and that long ago they had bak'd in the fire of their concupiscence some maruellous brickes to wit they had much counsailed one with an other and discoursed of meanes to get renowme and found no better way to attaine their purpose than to raise a tower vp to the heauens to rauish with astonishment all those that shoulde beholde it So Moses saith that this pride and frowarde selfe-trust deserued a gréeuous punishment but as God is parfaitly iust so layeth he vpon the builders a chastisement proportionable vnto their offence 7. Thus had he said and straight In God it is all one to will and to do And further he sendeth not lightning winde nor tempest against the tower but contenteth himself to strike the proud and puffed vp braines of the builders and so the building founded vpon their follie was ouerthrowne by their foolish iangling that God mingled with their language and the vain-glorious masons in stéed of their imagined renowme haue gottē themselues euerlasting shame Who would haue thought that God had had so readie such kinde of rods to punish mankinde withall But let the Reader consider whether the world at this day be not full of Babel-towers Marke what a number of men do in euery kind of vocation Sith I do not take vpon me but to write bare Annotations I leaue it to the Readers consideration who may sée now more then euer that the world continueth the building of Babel that is men madly gainset their owne wisedome and power against the wisedome and power of God who treading as it were with woollen féete and stealing on softly is able with an arme of Iron to surprise and seize vpon these builders and turne by diuers means their vaine purposes and weake endeuours to naught The Poet hath vsed many verie fit comparisons to represent the confusion of these workmen The first is taken from that which we sée fall out in a great rabblement of Pesants ouerruled by the Launce or Mace of Bacchus that is such as haue the Wine in their heads and are dronken for among such people is commonly heard a strange confused noise iangling as the Churhales and Wakes and other such passe-times do now and then declare The second is taken from the chirping of Birdes in voice and song diuers The third from Masons constrained by the sodaine rage of a land-flood to leaue off the begun worke of a Bridge And héere is a liuely description of Gods iudgements togither with their degrées and consequences namely in the confusion of vnderstandings first then of spéech and lastly of the whole company which being vnable longer to continue was quickly so scattered that as Moses saith they ceassed to builde the Citie The harmes that men suffer by the confusion of speech O proud rebellion O traiterous impietie Marke in what maner sort by thy speeches varietie God hath thee punished alas that pleasant toong That holy bond of townes of anger bridle strong Strong glue of amitie once one now doth wayfare In hundred riuers drie this gould so richly rare Wroth-taming charming-care men-drawing hart-intāgling Both colour waight and sound hath lost by mingle-mangling This gift corrupted is and from the North to South Babels confused fall sounds yet in eu'ry mouth The cold Finlanders once might visit Africans The Spanish Indians th' English Americans Without interpreters but now the compas small That doth our cities bound our language bounds withall And if we from our home but ne're so little went Dombe should we be and rest of reasons instrument Or if we speake at least vnto our neybour nations T is by a borrow'd toong or by strange animations Without schoole without paines sucking our mothers brest We might haue learn'd the tong that all mens minds exprest And after seu'n yeeres old vpon small glistring sand Begun to draw with skill the shape of sea and land To part and multiplie and so from skill to skill We might haue climbed soone the ridge of that high hill Where Arts perfection in signe of their victorie Crowneth hir Fauorites with euerlasting glorie Now infants we alwaies soone as we learne to sound The Latine Hebrue Greeke are going to the ground We learne but prittle-prattle and for the deepe inseeing Of natures secresies and of that onely Being That makes all things to be we labour neuer staying Well to decline a Verbe or find some prety saying Of letters and syllabs to way the quantitie Old knowing naught without masters auctoritie Who teach vs how to read and put into our pawes Some little Chriscrosrow in stead of ciuill lawes And for Hippocrates and for that holy wrighting Where God himselfe reueales to Readers there delighting 8. O proud rebellion A fine description of euils ensuing this confusion of spéech First the acquaintance of all mankinde togither the knot and loue-bond of nations is so loosened and broke that scarre is there founde any remedie for it some of them not thinking on or not at all caring for others Secondly that onely one language which decked and embellished the acquaintance and fellowship of men that kept them in peace and temper such as it was that made them all well appaide that mooued each one to his dutie was much regarded of all hath lost all this by this change and in a word hath neither shew nor grace of a language insomuch as euen at this day the fall of the Tower of Babel is heard from North to South from East to West That is to say in the diuerse languages of so many nations we may obserue almost nothing else but a kinde of chattering and confused sounde neither fit nor comely nor expressing at all the nature of things At least one people so iudgeth of anothers toong For I pray you what pleasure taketh a Frenchman to heare a Moscouite or a Mexican speake And euen the toongs that we vnderstand and speake as we thinke reasonable well what are they vnto vs in respect of our mother toong or the principall toongs Thirdly whereas the nations dwelling farthest asunder might easily haue come togither béen acquainted and traffiked one with another Now a man is no sooner gone out of his owne doores but he hath much adoo to vnderstand those that he méeteth withall and if he set foote in any far country he néedeth interpretours or must haue spent a long time before to learne the toong or else must speake by signes or alwaies hold his peace and liue like a domb creature Fourthly to amplifie further this

books or Cantoes of stately verse a poeme the best of all Italians entituled Gierusalemme liberata all the graces and riches of the Gréekes and Latines are there gathered togither and wrought into it after the best maner so graue so short so learned so comely so liuely so stately as if it were the worke of another Virgil. There are also Printed at Ferrara thrée volumes of his works containing other kindes of verse and all sorts of fine inuentions a Comedie a Tragedie diuers Dialogues and discourses in prose all are woorth reading and all make good the iudgement that our Poet hath giuen of the Authour 27. The language Arabike This language is comen of the Hebrue among other learned mens bookes that haue made this toong of account we haue the works of Aben Roïs that is the sonne of kings for Ben signifieth a sonne in Hebrue and the Arabians adde to the beginning this preposition A and somtime Al. This Aben Roïs is the same that we commonly call Auerroës the Commentar a very excellent Philosopher He hath commented vpon most of Aristotle and is translated into Latine printed at Venice the worke doth shew the déepe reach and subtill braine of the man Auicen was a great Philosopher and Physition as his writings also declare Gesner saith Auerroës was of Cordway and Auicen of Seuill and so I thinke but it appéereth by their works that they were both Arabians and professed the superstition of Mahomet As for Eldebag Iohannes Leo writeth of him in the fift booke of his description of Affrike This poet borne at Malaga in Grenade of great name thorough all the parts of Buggie and Thunes was very eloquent in the Arabian toong and wonderfull sharpe in railing on those that did him hurt he made the men of Tebesse féele it in a Satyre he wrote against them the effect whereof is this that Nature knowing the Tebessians should be men of little worth and very swine woulde make no good thing growe about their citie but nuts The last to wit Ibnu-farid the French Commentar knoweth not what he was and I can not learne 28. The Dutch For the Dutch or Almaine toong he setteth vs downe Mychaell Beuther who very well hath translated the Latine Commentaries of Sleidan the next is Luther borne at Islebe as learned and eloquent a man as any was among the Diuines and Preachers of Germanie as all will confesse that haue read his works in Dutch he Preached and read Diuinitie the space of many yéeres at Wytteberg in Saxony Then Gasper Peucer sonne in law to Phillip Melancthon an excellent Philosopher Mathematician and Phisition as his works declare And lastly Peter Beutrick Counseller to Duke Iohn Casimer and chiefe dealer for him with diuers Princes lately deceased I could name you many more but I content my selfe as the Poet hath done with these foure 29. Then Gueuare The bookes of Anthony de Gueuare du Boscan de Grenade de Gracylace haue béene for the most part translated into Latine Italian and French but they are far better in their Castilian which is the most pure Dialect of the Spanish toong and wherein the men of learning and good nourriture are woont ordinarily to write and speake And these foure the Poet hath chosen for the most eloquent writers in this toong yet nothing foredéeming diuers others that haue written well both in verse and prose as namely Osias whom but for his old Dialect he iudgeth as good an author as the other 30. The speech of English For ornament of the English toong he nameth sir Thomas Moore and sir Nicholas Bacon both Lord Chauncellors the first of them was very learned in the Arts and toongs the second excéeding well séene in the common lawes of England and both very eloquent in their mother language As for sir Philip Sidney he deserueth no lesse commendation than the Poet hath giuen him Chaucer deserueth the like commendation here that Osias did among the Spanish Auctors 31. But what new Sunne is this He maketh a digression in praise of the Quéene of England who the space of seuen and thirtie yéeres hath gouerned hir Realme in great prosperitie so as during the troubles and ouerthrowes of other kingdomes about hir hir selfe and hir people haue béene preserued from infinite dangers This famous Quéene hath also the toongs héere mentioned by the Poet very parfit and at this day by the singular grace of God she is accounted the pretious pearle of the North and very fortunate in all the wars she taketh in hand hir happie successe and victories are euery way so memorable that they deserue to be written in a large historie and reuerenced of all posteritie 32. But what are these of Fraunce Clement Marot worthie to be admired for his time in regard of the ignorance and barbarisme that raigned in Europe many yéeres before him hath led the Muses ouer the Alpes and araied them after the French fashion as witnesseth among other his works the translation of nine and fortie Psalmes of Dauid a worke that will continue in account as long as Yea and Nay are spoken euen to the worlds end Indéede he wanteth that Art and those fine deuises that some later writers haue but euen in this want these imperfections he hath done woonderous well sheweth in his naturall vaine that if he had sist he could haue béene excellent yea in some points and places he hath so done alreadie as the best of them all could haue done no better For translations we haue Iacques Amiot who hath turned into French the Ethiopian Historie of Heliodorus seuen bookes of Diodorus Siculus and all Plutarch wherein he hath laboured to very good purpose and with happie successe I would to God he had set his hand also to Thucidides Xenophon and Seneca his stile is pure and naturall not affected not forced right good and true French Blase Viginere hath also translated manie bookes as the Polonian historie a part of Liuie Caesar Chalcondylas Philostratus thrée Dialogs of Friendship and the Psalmes in frée verse all which I haue read ouer and againe yet doe I prefer Amiot before him Indéede I finde in Viginere a very ready stile and matter well chosen but the other I know not how me thinks hath a better carriage of himselfe The Seiour de Vaupriuas in his French Librarie saith of all the foster-children of the Muses that were bred in Fraunce Viginere hath so written that as well for learning as for eloquence of spéech he hath preuented all that shall come after him and as it were shut the gate against them Sée what a commendation héere is I leaue the Reader to iudge of our opinions Our Poet staieth in doubt but I haue béene bould to go further I trust without any great offence in this consisteth not the good or bad state of Fraunce Concerning Poets he nameth Peter Ronsard who hath made himselfe rich with Gréeke and Latine spoiles as his Treatises of Loue his diuers Poemes his Odes Elegies and Hymnes doe witnes wherein a man may reade all sort of verses and all kinde of matter sometimes in a lowe stile sometimes in a meane sometimes in a loftie stile For which cause the Poet calleth him Great Ronsard I will note héere a notable spéech of his after our Poets first Wéeke was come foorth in print being asked his opinion of the worke he answered alluding to the title Mounseiur du Bartas hath done more in one wéeke than I haue done in all my life time As for Philip de Mornay Lord of Plessie Marly his learned worke of the truth of Christian religion honoured thus by the true title and written in good French with liuely reasons there gathered togither mooueth and draweth to his purpose that is to acknowledge the truth all that read it with a hart desirous of peace and good The like may be said of his Discourse of life and death of his Treatise of the Church his Meditations and some Epistles and Demonstrations of his For all his writings are strengthened with arguments inductions and proofes inuincible and all in a stile with grauitie swéetnes mixed well knit and well sounding and easie enough to those that are neuer so little acquainted with it The Poet hauing so liuely represented his Vision endeth his discourse of Eloquence and hir most renowmed fauourers in euery language and so shutteth vp his sixt Booke Which is the second of the second day of his second Wéeke FINIS