for a season and afterwardes restoring them to health saith thus his flesh is made fresh as in his childhood your translator hath altered the wordes and the sense in this sorte his flesh is consumed with punishments Consumpta est earo eiusà supplicits Such faultes as these which are indeede grosse and great faultes in translating the scriptures is your translation of this booke replenished withall I haue not laboured to note euerie particular fault for that had bene a busines too tedious But of manie I haue picked out certaine whereby the reader maie conceiue what to iudge aright of your wholl translation Now let vs come to the booke of Psalmes which of all bookes of scripture is in your translation most corrupted so as I maie truelie affirme that in some one shorte Psalme in latine moe may be founde then you shall euer finde in the Hebrew text of all the bookes of the Bible Which came to passe by this meanes for that in S. Ieromes daies the other bookes in the latine translation were corrected according to the Hebrewe but this booke onely although it needde as much correction as any other The booke of Psalmes in the latine vulgar translation moste corrupt yet because it was in the corruptions thereof so generallie vsed as it could not be chaunged without much trouble and offense in the Church was not dealt withall by S. Ierome but suffered to remaine as it was and to carie still about with it those manifolde greeuous sores which shoulde with diligence in time haue bene cured This being by the best of your owne side confessed it is a wonder that Genebrard your Hebrew Doctor of Paris would labour so much with all his wit and cunning to make some agreement betwene your translation the text wherin as he hath taken verie greate paines so hath he shewed himselfe in manie places altogether ridiculous in deuising such seelie shifts as he is enforced for some shew of consente in the meaning howsoeuer the wordes sound most diuerslie And when he hath searched all the corners of his heade for reasonable expositions yet is he faine oftentimes to giue ouer and let the wordes quietlie passe without his construction If I should gather and set downe in particulare discouerie the corruptions of this booke this onelie worke would be a volume of greater quantitie then is the Psalter it selfe Therefore as hetherto I haue done so wil I proceed to take a litle of much and in certaine euident examples of sundrie places set before the readers eyes how vnworthie your translation of this booke is to be called by the name of so worthie a scripture In the second Psalme a text that concerneth our sauiour Christ as notablie as anie almost in the olde Testament psal 2.12 is shamefullie peruerted in your translation For where the Prophet Dauid exhorteth al to kisse the sonne Naâ—heku-bar that is to submit themselues to Iesus Christ and his gospell setting forth in these wordes a plaine testimonie of his Godhead and distincte person your translation saith no more in this place but onelie thus Apprehendite disciplinam Apprehend discipline which though it be a good admonition yet is it farre short of the true sense and excellent doctrine therein contained And this maie be an argument of great weight to prooue that the Iewes are not honestly dealt withall by you in that you accuse them to haue corrupted the Hebrewe text for malice against our Sauiour Christ For if they had bene mooued indeed with such a diuelish intention would they haue suffered this text to haue stoode in such sinceritie especiallie hauing so great opportunitie to change the words as was offered vnto them by the Greeke and latine translations In the 3. Psalme the Prophet saith psal 3.8 Thou hast smitten all mine enemies vpon the cheeke boneâ— your translation hath thus Lechi thou haste smitten all those that are mine enemies without a cause Sine cansa Howbeit Genebrarde stoutlie defendeth your translation in this place and obiecteth ignoraunce to those that reprooue it Let all your Hebricians be iudges and let Iohn Isaac a Iewe and a learned Iewe in that tongue answere Genebrarde If this had bene so cleare a case as Genebrarde maketh it could Isaac with a number more as Vatablus Pagnine Tremellius all as good Hebricians as Genebrarde no disgrace to him haue bene ignorant thereof In the fourth Psalme psalm 4.3 being but a verie short one your translation hath three euident faultes which cannot by anie shift be excused reasonablie First there is how long will ye be of a heauie heart Vsque quo graui â—orde in stead of these wordes how long will ye turne my glorie into shame for this to be the true reading euen your Genebrard was compelled to acknowledge and therfore he deuiseth and imagineth what the Septuagints perhaps followed And about this place Lindâ—â—e hath kept a sturre if he might by anie meanes saue the credit of your translation But Isaac his master in the hebrew tongue hath sufficientlie taken him vp for his dealing herein v. 8 Againe there is a word in your translation added to the text in the 8. verse Olei as Genebrard confesseth saying it was done by the 70. interpreters propheticallie which yet he cannot prooue and we wil not graunt Comâ—ungimini for silete And before in the 5. verse is one word put for an other to some change of the sense In the 12. Psalme Psal 12.6 being according to your editions the 11. which difference in numbring continueth to the end almoste and this maie fuffice to haue bene once remembred where the Prophet bringeth in the Lord speaking I will vp and sett him at libertie though he laie a snare for him these wordes are thus translated in your latine Psalter I will deale boldlie in him Fiducialiter again in â—o of which wordes Genebrard himselfe cannot deuise a conuenient interpretation and therefore he wandreth vp and downe and vanisheth awaie in the mist of his owne conceite In the fourteenth Psalme your latine translation hath three wholl verses together moe psal 14. then are to be found either in the Hebrewe or Greeke and are taken out of Saint Paul in the third to the Romanes being gathered by him out of seuerall places of the scriptures Hier. in promoe 10. Esâ—i as Saint Ierome hath noted But some in former times more hastie then wel aduised seeing the Apostle alledge so long a sentence together thought the same was written in some place of the olde Testament as it was by the Apostle recited and finding it no where supplied it in this place because of some wordes which the Apostle there hath rehearsed out of this Psalme And thus much do your owne men confesse euen Genebrard him selfe testifying that in the Hebrew now extant nothing is wanting If then nothing wanteth as he confesseth is it not a plaine case that these three
against murtherers that he whoe sheddeth the blood of man his blood shal be shedde by man these laste words by man establishing the Magistrats authoritie Baadam are not expressed in your traslation This to be a fault of great importance anie man may easilie vnderstand To proceede a litle further in this firste booke of holie scripture and to discouer some moe grosse corruptions of your latin translation therein committed for I may not stand to note euerie petie fault in the 36. Gen. 36.24 Chap. v. 24. the Prophet writeth that Ana the sonne of Zibeon found mules in the wildernes but your translator telleth vs he found warme waters Haijemim aquas calidas and so by his great cunning hath turned mules into water It maie be said there is great likenes between the wordes in Hebrew which I graunt to be so But this dischargeth not the translation from a faulte And howsoeuer those words are like yet from whence did your translator fetch his other worde Warme For though we suppose the word may signifie water yet to cal it warme water is more then can be warranted In the 41. Chap. v. 54. there passed in the former editions of your translation a notablefault Gen. 41.54 which yet of late for verie shame hath bene amended by Hentenius of Louaine For where the Prophet speaking of the generall famine that was ouer all countries saith that in all the land of Egypt was breade your bookes cleane contrarie to the text and storie reade that the famine also was in all Egypt And thus hath it gone maine hundred yeares in your Latine Bibles Nowe at length you haue bene content to acknowledge a fault in this place and whie not as well also in others wherein as euident faults may be found as this And seeing you can be brought to acknowledgement of some corruptions in your latine Bibles by like reason you maie be induced also to confesse moe faults where moe faults may be founde as there maie full many throughout your whole translation In the 49. of Genes v. 22. Gen. 49.22 Iacob compareth Ioseph his sonne to a fruitfull bough by the well side which wordes in your latine translation are otherwise set downe thus and he is comelie to beholde If you saie that in the sense is no difference yet you make no sufficient answere bhalei bhaijn Et decorus aspectu forasmuch as translating the text of scripture we must retaine the verie words as well as we may and not take libertie of leauing the wordes because we thinke we swarue not from the sense For the wordes may haue some other or farther meaning then we suppose euen in such places as seeme to be most easie And if you impute this as a fault to vs in translating why may not we likewise blame your translator for the same who hath so much offended therein But let vs go on In the 24. verse of this Chap. Iacob saith of Ioseph that his armes were strengthned in your translation it is as contrarie as may be that they were weakned or loosed Againe in the end of this Chapter a wholl verse together is omitted by your tranflators The purchase of the field and the caue that is therein of the children of Heth of which wordes not one is found in your translation and so where the Chapter contained 33. verses your translation hath 32. Tell vs by what reason it was lawful for the author of your translation to put so much our of the text or for you to allow him in so doing It were a worke of great labour and length to go through euerie book of scripture in this order and therfore it shal be for our purpose sufficient of infinite faultes that might be noted booke by booke Chapter by Chapter verse by verse to discouer onelie certaine as they come to my hand such as by reading and conference euerie one may obserue In Exodus the. 15 Chapter 19. verse your translator hath committed a double faulte first in translating a word second in pointing amisse The Prophet saith that Pharoes Horse went with his Charet and Horsemen into the Sea Sus Parbho And so is it in the Septuagintes translation truelie according to the Hebrew veritie But thus it standeth in your translation The Horseman went in Inâ—ressus est eques c. Pharoe with his Charets and Horsemen agreeing neither with Greeke nor Hebrew nor the right sense In the 21. of Exodus 3. verse Exod. 21.3 a law is set downe for hebrew seruants that they should be released of their seruice at the end of six yeares and then is further added in what sorte they should be sent awaie namelie that if the seruant bring with him nothing but his owne bodie Begappo that is if he come alone as the 70. haue interpreted the text hauing no wife then he should go out himselfe alone and not his wife with him as is in the verse following expressed Your translator hath misconstrued the law and marred the sense in turning the hebrew thus Cum quali veste intrauerit cum taliexeat with what manner of garment he entred with such let him go out And so also in the 10. verse following where God commaundeth that if one hath betrothed his maid to his sonne and after take him another wife he shall not diminish the foode of the former your translator hath made aother law for this that he shall prouide a mariage for the maide-seruant Prouidebit puellae nuptias which is vtterlie from the meaning of the law And in the seauenth verse of this Chapter before he hath also mistaken a plaine lawe concerning maide seruants wherein God forbiddeth to send them awaie after their yeares were out haehhabadim as the menseruants are sent away but your translator saith she shall not goe out as the maide seruants are accustomed to goe out Sicut ancillae exere consueuerunt then which nothing almoste can be deuised more contrarie to the Lawe in the. 24. Chapter 11. verse the Prophet speaking of the chosen men of Israel that went vp into the mount and sawe the Lord saith that God laid not his hand vpon them which thing he noteth for a speciall rememberaunce that althouh they sawe God yet because they presumed not but obeied the commaundement of God therefore â—o harme befel vnto them This in your translation is otherwise reported in these wordes Neither laid he his hand vpon them of the children of Isaell that had gone backe a farre of Qui procul recesserant Who seeeth not a manifest difference betweene the true text and this translation In Leuiticus Chap. 4. v. 8. Leuit. 4.8 Where is commaunded that the Priest shall take awaie all the fat of the bullocke that is offered for sinne your translator hath thus mistranslated the wordes and the fat of the calfe he shall offer for sinne Et adipem vituli offeret pro peccato and
so partelie by vntrue translation and partelie by misplasing of the wordes hath whollie corrupted the text In the 7. Chapter v. 19. Leuit. 7.19 the flesh that toucheth any vncleane thing is forbidden to be eaten and must be burnt with fire Then immediatelie it followeth thus in your translation the vncleane shal eat therof Iramundus Mundus of late for the vnclean in your reformed editions is put cleane So your translations affirme that either the vncleane or cleane shall eate of the flesh which god commaunded to be burnt and none to eate therof an euident corruption by râ—ason of a worde omitted in all your vulgare translations both olde and newe In the booke of Numbers Chapter 4. verse 46. Num. 4.46 your translation hath whome Moses and Aaron made by name Fecit Paekad in stead of this whome Moses and Aaron numbred In the margent indeed of your latter corrected editions there standeth the word to be reckoned Recenseri for no other purpose I think but to be a witnes of corruption against your translations For if that word must be supplied and if you see and confesse your selues so much as apprereth in that you print it in the margent why might you not wel receiue it into the text it selfe If it haue anie right to stand in the margent more right hath it to be admitted into the text In Deuteronomie Chapter 4. verse 33. is a like fault to this Deut. 4.33 but something worse in your latine translations Moses saith did euer people heare the voice of God speaking out of the middes of a fire as thou hast heard and liued Vajechi Et vidisti Et vixisti your translations all haue thus As thou hast heard and seene In some copies you haue giuen vs a marginall correction but that is not much truer then the corruption of the text saue that this speaketh of liuing and the other of seing So in the. 15. Chap. 10. v. in stead of these words God shal blesse thee in all thy workes Mahbaseca your translation hath God shal blesse thee at al times first taking time In omni tempore for workes then leuing out the affix thine In the. 33. Chap. 10. v. a worde of waightie and necessarie force is omitted by your translator in declaring the office of the Leuites which especiallie consisted in teaching the people the lawe of God and so saith the true text joru They shall teach Iacob thy iudgements Israel thy Law But in your latine bookes the worde that signifieth to teach which was moste to be respected and whereupon dependeth that which followeth is both in the text and margent of your translations wanting and thus stand the wordes They haue kepte thy worde and obserued thy couenant thy iudgments O Iacob and thy law O Israell Now I appeale to the conscience of all the learned whether this be not a notorious deprauing of Gods worde where it is prescribed that the Leuites should teach Iacob and Israell the iudgements and law of God to leaue out the worde whereby they were charged to teach and whereas the dutie of teaching Iacob Gods iudgements and Israell his lawe was laid vpon them to make therof an other sense so much repugnant that they haue obserued the iudgements of Iacob and the lawe of Israell Iudicia tua ô Iacob legem tuam ô Israel Ios 11.19 Harde it were for any man in translating so fewe wordes to make so many faultes In the booke of Iosue Chap. 11. v. 19. the holie ghost hath noted that not one Citie of all the land of Canaan made peace with the children of Israel hishlimah excepting those Hiuites that dwelt in Gibeon But your translation telleth an other tale as contrarie to this as can be tolde that there was not a Citie Quae se non tâ—ae deret which did not yeald it selfe to the children of Israel An other reading in your margent of late hath bene deuised and that neither agreeing in trueth with the text as by comparing the same together any man may perceiue In the booke of Iudges Chap. 15. v. 14. When the Philistines met Samson being bound Iud. 15.14 the scripture recordeth that the spirit of the Lord comming vpon him the cordes that were vpon his armes becam as flax that is burnt with fire Your translator in steade of flaxe hath put woode Ligna Odorem and for the heate of the fire or some such like worde he putteth the smell of the fire And yet that woode is so easilie consumed with the onelie smell of fire I thinke you wil not say for maintenance of your translation against the originall text What then remaineth but to confesse as needes you must that here hath beene and is a foule corruption In the 1. of Samuel Chap. 9. v. 25. these wordes are added to the text 1. Sam. 9.25 Strauitque Saul in solario dormiuit And Saul spred vpon the top of the house and slept there being nothing in the text either of spredding or sleeping or anie such matter If therfore you wl be tryed by either hebrew or Chaldee or sundrie exemplares of your latine translation you shall confesse a corruption in this place so in deed you do but will not yet amend it How be it better were it not to acknowledge a fault then acknowledging one still to retaine the same And in the 19. Chap. 24. v. the scripture telleth that Saull put of his cloathes prophecied before Samuel and fel downe naked all that daie and night So hath the Hebrewe so the Greeke and so your owne Masters confesse it should be Which notwithstanding as it were in open and presumptuous maintenance of your corruptions against the sinceritie of the text in your bookes you read thus Cociuit and he songe naked This came to passe by negligence in the writer mistaking one letter for another But why will ye not be brought in this cleare light of knowledge whereby such grosse faults are easilie espied to amend your bookes to remoue the fault to restore the right word to his place you see belike what daunger might ensue of mending anie thing if once you should beginne you wist not how to make an end and therefore you are determined to sturre nothing for feare you bring downe all vpon your heades In the second of Samuell Chap. 6. v. 12. a number of wordes are added together in your translation 2. Sam. 6.12 more then can be found in the true text that Dauid hearing how Obed edom had bene wonderfullie blessed by keeping the arke in his house Dixitque Dauid ibo reducam arcaÌ„ cum bene dictione in domum meam said I will goe and bring back the arke with a blessing into my house These wordes may seeme to be fitte for the place it may be supposed that so Dauid either spake or thought But what of that may
corruption the cause therof yet keepe they stil the same so certaine cleare a corruption in their Bibles vse it in their Offices Breuiaries euen those that were corrected and printed last by the Popes commaundement In like manner and by like occasion hath bene committed a fault in the 84. Psalme psal 84.12 wherein your translation hath these words in all your bookes olde and new without any correction Quia misericord veritatem diligit Deut. Because God loueth mercie and trueth And are not these good words who can say otherwise the wordes in deede are good and godlie but the translation is nought For this should the translation of that text haue bene The Lord God is our sunne and shield as Genebrarde and your owne men cannot denie In the 88. Psalme Dauid saith shall the deade arise and praise thee But your translation is ridiculous shall the Phisicians raise vp turning deade into Phisicians Aut mâ—dici suscitabunt and rising into raising Here Genebrarde to mend al that is amisse hath inuented a new sense thus shall the Phisicianes raise vp that is the deade that they may praise thee Phisicians are apointed to saue aliue if they can not to raise the dead for if one be dead it is to late to call the Phisician I maruell he was not ashamed to make so lewde a glosse In the 92. Psalme your translation hath plentifull mercie psal 92.11 Misericâ—rd vber◠〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for fresh oile which errour did grow by mistaking a Greeke worde that signifieth mercie for an other that signifieth oile because they are something like in certaine cases In the 132. Psalme the Lord saith psal 132.15 I will plentfullie blesse hir vitailes in your translation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vitailes is turned into widowe and thus is it reade I will blesse her widowe This Genebrarde cannot denie to be a fault and sheweth how it came by mistaking a word and not looking to the originall veritie Yet for all this your bookes are not corrected but still you keepe and vse such witles and palpable faultes in your Bibles you reade you sing you preach these and manie moe the like corruptions for the true word of God and text of scrpiture you see these things and wil not for all that be brought to reforme them What can we saie or thinke of you but that you are set and resolute to do amisse It is a wearines to wade any further therefore I will for this booke content my selfe with these examples and proofes of notable corruption therein committed by your translator whosoeuer he was And because I haue bene alreadie something long I will be shorter in that which followeth and as it were but glaine one by one where I might take vp wholl handfulls together The booke of Prouerbes hath not escaped the foul hands of such corruptors rather then translators as by manie places of the same maie too plainelie be perceiued Prou. C. 4. in fine In the latter end of the fourth Chap. a great manie of wordes together are added to the text as is acknowledged by the aduersaries them-selues In the sixt Chapter the vulgar translation hath Thou hast fixed downe thy soule with the straunger Whereas it should be thus c. 6.1 thou hast shaken handes with the straunger And after the 11. vers a wholl sentence is thrust into the text which ought to haue no place therein Again in the 26. verse of his Chapter where Salomon saith that by reason of a harlot a man is brought to a morsell of bread the wordes of your translation are these the price of an harlot is scarcelie the worth of one loafe Pretium scorti est vix vnius panis c. 7.1 no doubte wiselie and cunninglie translated In the 7. Chapter after the end of the first verse is an other addition of a wholl sentence and so also is there in the end of the 9. Chap. C. 9. in fine And in other places sundrie moe not onelie of wordes but of whol verses and sentences which cannot anie waies be otherwise accounted then a thing vnlawfull in Gods word and by no meanes to be defended In the 12. Chap. your translation hath Prou. 12.29 he that neglecteth a losse for a friend is a iust man A wise saying perhaps But Salomons sentence in this place is farre otherwise The iust man is more excellent then his neighbour In the 16. Chap. a true waight and balance saith the wise man are of the Lord prou 16.11 and then immediatlie it foloweth And all the stones or weightes of the bagge are his workes sacculi these last words are thus translated in your bookes And all the stones of the world are his workes seculi by a small change of the bagge into the world This you will saie was the writers fault and not the translators Verelie so I thinke for no tâ—anslator of anie skill could be so much deceiued in the Hebrew word But why then keepe you this corruption still in the text of scripture why will you not amend a fault so foule and so sensible that it may be felt with the finger And thus hath it gone in your bookes of manie hundred yeares as may appeere by Beda other latine writers in their commentaries v. 3 And in the same Chapter before where Salomon exhorteth vs to cast or commit our workes vnto the Lord Deuolue Reuela in your translation we are bid to reueale our workes vnto the Lord. In the 20. Chapter your vulgare translations haue corrupted and falsified a text diuersely Prou. 20.25 Some copies read thus It is ruine to a man to call downe the saintes others to note the saintes others deuocare denotare deuotare deuorare to vowe the saints others to deuour the saints And this last commeth neerest to the truth for Salomon saith indeed It is a mans ruine to deuoure a holie or sanctified thing Kodesh prou 30.33 In the latter end of the 30. Chapter whereas Salomon saith he that presseth or churneth milke bringeth forth butter so to presse and force wrath causeth strife your translator hath tolde vs a pretie tale in this sorte He that presseth stronglie the pappes to draw forth milke he bringeth forth butter which thinge yet I beleeue was neuer seene But such absurdities in your translation must be borne withal In the last Chap. among the other praises of a worthy and excellent woman that is one prou 31.19 that shee putteth hir hand to the wherle for which your translation saith Ad fortia shee putteth hir hand to valiant things Such as these be there many faultes in your translation of this booke which might in all translations deserue reproofe and require correction but moste of all in the holie scriptures of almightie God In the booke of the Preacher Salomon saith
conscience tolde you that if you opposed your selfe against this trueth therein should you offer iniurie to your Pope and Pope-catholike brethren whome the same so specially doth concerne You saie I know not what Antichrist is Contrae Sander pa. 6. in principio against whome I write and that sometime I make Antichrist to be the wholl Catholike and vniuersall Church wherof the Pope is head which to be a pregnant vntrueth he that looketh one the place may see Haue I saied the Pope is head of the Chatholike vniuersall Church or the Catholike vniuersall Church is Antichrist what will you be ashamed hereafter to write that in the first entrance write thus vntruelie without shame and yet hauing your selfe auouched so notorious an vntruth you dare make mention of Lucians true historie which booke as may seeme you haue not onelie read ouer with diligence and delight but also translated into English propounded vnto your selfe as worthie of your imitaion For to giue you that praise that of due belongeth vnto you Lucian if he liued could hardlie coyne more passing vntruthes or scoffe more kindelie at Christ and his gospell then you haue done A greater reason was he saith for that he abhorred to deale with heretiks pag. 5. who passe al other in pride and ignorance and of all heretikes he maketh vs of England to be the worst Indeede true it is that heretikes for the most part are obstinate past amendment therefore a great wearines vexation of minde is it to maintaine contentions and disputes with them whereof in the end small profit doth redound But this complaint of hereticall wilfulnes nothing toucheth vs who by Gods grace are far from al kinde of heresie and hold no other doctrine then that which the Prophets and Apostles and Iesus Christ him selfe haue taught vs which is plainly contained in the bookes of canonicall scripture from which if labouring to disswade vs you cannot preuaile no maruell is it And in defending the same we are content to be esteemed of you contentious proude ignorant and as you list We are not so much in loue of your society nor seeke your fauour and commendation so greatlie that we will ioine in vnitie with you against the Lord his trueth and Church If you thinke we are proud tell vs wherein our pride consisteth If in that we will not yeald vnto you nor giue ouer maintenance of the Gospell pardon vs Master Rainolds modestie in the Lord is an excellent vertue but the modestie that betraieth the trueth of God is accursed Other pride I doubt not we are as cleare from as your selfe or anie of your fellowes And for ignorance we may thinke it was some spice of pride in you to obiect it vnto vs who for anie thing that appeereth haue no cause to brag of such knowledge or to chalenge more to your selfe then you may safely graunt to an other For tell vs what learning is wherein it consisteth and howe it maie be gotten Vnles you haue some speciall meanes and as it were some secret waie to attaine vnto it which others haue not I see not why we should thinke that you haue gotten a greater measure of learning and wisdome then others who haue vsed as great indeauour as your selfe And what the matter should be I know not that you are sodenlie become so learned and that we haue lost all learning But were you as learned as euer anie was or could be your learning shall not be hable to hurte the cause that we defend your learning shall in the end deceiue you and you that now boaste of your knowledge shall then be ashamed of your ignorance To knowe Christ out of his worde is true knowledge sound learning and perfect wisdome Certaine examples you rehearse of our ignorant assertions onelie thereby to make our cause seeme odious to the simple but the reasons of our assertions you pretermit which is your common sleight continuallie to tell your readers that such and such opinions we holde and not to shew the maner nor to remember or answere our reasons Wherein I desire the reader to consider how vntruelie Master Rainolds hath charged me with a wicked heresie that in this man he maie beholde the conscience of a Papist He setteth downe for one of my sayings that Christ is not begotten of the substance of his father a slaunder moste manifest in a matter of greatest moment I haue not writen thus no I neuer thought thus I abhorre with my hart all such blasphemy against the Person of our sauiour Christ But in the meane time what hath this slaunderer deserued Let the reader equallie iudge betweene him and me and by triall hereof esteeme more indifferentlie of the rest of his malice Now the greatest cause of all that made him so loth pag. 7. was he saith because he found in our doctrine no staie or certentie which yet if it were true should haue ministred vnto him greater will and courage forsomuch as the doctrine that standeth vpon no certaine staie is easilie disprooued and ouerthrowen But in trueth Master Rainolds perceiuing our doctrine to be grounded vpon the foundation of the Prophets and Apostles which maie not be remooued and knowing we will not yeald to mens doctrines and inuentions whatsoeuer differing from the holie scriptures but rest our selues whollie vpon the written word of God I thinke he was indeede somewhat discouraged as great cause was he should being sure his engines could not preuaile against the same And what greater steadfastnes in religion can be required then to holde Gods word which we professe to be the ground whereon we build our faith If you can shewe wherein we swarue from it we will not refuse your instruction But saie not nowe we are vnstaied when as you knowe we relie our selues whollie vpon the worde vnles you will denie Gods word to be a certaine rule and staie of doctrine We plant not our religion in mans iudgement vncertentie of Traditions in vaine ceremonies and deuises as you doe but in matters of faith and religion we depend vpon God whoe in the scriptures of the olde and new Testament hath deliuered to his Church one certaine vniforme and perfect doctrine to which we adde nothing from which we take nothing awaie in which we settle and ground our selues But let vs heare how Master Rainolds can prooue that the Protestants haue no certaine faith For this he hath propounded to himselfe to declare especiallie in this preface And I desire the godlie readers to marke his proofes which shall be I trust to their comfort and confirmation in the truth First he obiecteth diuersitie of iudgement amongst vs Pag. 9. concerning the Princes supremacie in matters Ecclesiasticall wherein is no such difference as he pretendeth if he listed rightlie to vnderstand the case The title of supreme head of the Church hath bene misliked by diuerse godlie and learned men and of right and properlie it onelie belongeth
then the argument to be so sure and necessarie that is drawen from authoritie of a martyr will you graunt this reason to be inuincible A marttr hath saide it therefore it is true what say you then of Cyprian the martyr of Iustinus the martyr of Irenaeus the martyr who notwitstanding their blessed martyrdome are knowne to haue maintained opinions against the trueth If martyrs then may haue their errours how may the testimonie of martyrs be alwaies irrefragable you see good readers how pithie a disputer this man doth shewe him-selfe to be If his loose rhetorike helped him not a litle better then his logike he were in verie weake and miserable case Lastlie concerning wholl Churches reformed pag. 32. what can you Master Rainolds conclude against vs In matter of discipline greate difference heretofore hath bene amongst the Churches East and West Greeke and Latine If then some such be in our reformed Churches can you thereof truelie gather that therefore they are not the Churches of Christ Tell vs what you meane if you haue any trueth or certaintie in your meaning Next Master R. reckeneth vp sundrie Popes that are amongst the Protestants in stead of one true Pope pag. 33. which I know not whereto it serueth but onelie to shewe that the protestants haue so great detestation of the Pope and his tyrannie that they cannot endure in anie professour of the Gospell anie small shadowe of such Lordelines as the Pope vsurpeth ouer the Church Your true Pope whereof you speake is as much as a true Antichrist of whome the scriptures haue foretolde The name the person the authoritie all Protestants abhorre and accurse to the prince of darknes from whence it came Againe he is in hand with generall Councels and saith it is impossible pag. 34. that euer we should once imagine how anie Councell amongest vs should be gathered His methode is according to his matter confused and disordered leaping and iumping from one pointe to another like a wilde bucke vpon the mountaines Although we haue not a Pope as you haue yet by Gods grace generall Councels maie wee haue if Christian princes that professe the gospell will iointlie take vpon them the care thereof And generall Councels haue bene assembled and helde many hundred yeares before your Pope by such a name was euer knowne or heard of in the world and so may they againe both Christianlie and generallie be held allthough your Pope with all his proude cleargie were returned from whence they came That hitherto no such Christian Councels haue bene gathered it maie be imputed to the generall troubles in all Christian countries and to the aduersaries that haue bene raised vp by your Pope and his Cardinall satrapes to hinder as much as in them laie all meanes whereby a Christian generall Councell might be gathered Howbeit if a generall Councell cannot be procured to be celebrated with quietnes there is no doubt notwithstanding but that the Lordes cause maie without it daylie more and more preuaile as it hath done heretofore in times moste persecutions To the section that followeth containing onelie a recapitulation of these former discourses pag. 34. c. I haue no nede to make any further answere Your complainte against vs for refusing all grounds of disputation pag. 38. how vaine and vntrue it is hath bene shewed The onelie true and certaine grounde of religion and of all disputation about the same which is the authoritie of God reuealed vnto vs in his holie worde we imbrace we holde we rest vpon it which forsomuch as you haue fullie tried to be against you so that you cannot thereby approoue one article of your popish faith nor disprooue anie doctrine that we maintaine against you therfore desperation driueth you indeede to refuse this grounde as insufficient and to seeke other grounds of which we haue noe warrant in Gods worde And although it please you for this cause to raile at vs and saie we are worse then the heretikes of olde time yet we know that rhe auncient godlie fathers in confuting all heretikes vsed onelie arguments drawen out of the scriptures and plainelie taught that by no other weapons an heretike can be put to flight I knowe they charge them oftentimes with the iudgement of Churches successions of Bishops determination of Councels name of Catholikes not as though this were a necessarie conuiction of it selfe but thereby the rather to induce them to beleeue the doctrine to be true which they see from the first planting thereof in the Church to haue remained Your case is nothing like seeing you haue onely the bare title without the thing and as it were the emptie casket without the treasure But for so much as you accuse â—s for casting awaie the grounds of Diuinitie I desire euerie Christian man to weigh with himselfe what ground it is wheron al your religion and Church standeth First the scripture must not be scripture in any other sense then as the Pope will expound it so that the scripture being the meaning of the scripture and the meaning of the scripture being the Popes exposition hereof it followeth that the scripture is nothing els but the Popes interpretation So likewise in Traditions Doctors Councels Churches if any thing dissent from the Popes vnderstanding and determination it is reiected abolished condemned and finally all faith all religion all Diuinitie of Papists is onelie the Popes sacred will and pleasure Now then this being their owne certaine resolution I would gladlie be enformed how by the same a man may be assured of any faith it being further also agreed and confessed among themselues that the Pope maie fall into heresie Then who seeth not that their ground being shaken their staie failing all that is builded and vpholden thereon is clean ouerthrowne If they saie the Pope falling into heresy forthwith ceaseth to be a Pope I demaund whoe they are that must iudge the Popes cause and giue sentence against him And if the Pope be obstinate and teaching heresie and therewith infecting the world will notwithstanding stoutly stand in defense of his doctrine and will keepe his chaire what shift haue you then or what can you doe against him seing he is your Pope your head your author and founder of all your faith Thus a man going with you along and comming to the end of all findeth no staie but must wander still as in an endles Labyrinth wherein he shall at last languish and perish euerlastingly That you wish we would be content to yealde to the verie scriptures themselues pag. 40. doubt you not Master Rainolds thereof but we are most redie to yealde vnto them if ye would be as willing the controuersy might haue thereby and by other good meanes an end But your conscience telleth you scripture will not serue you and therfore in a word you deny the wholl bodie of the scriptures Thinke not good reader that herein I haue spoken rashly without reason I know what I
you more substantially prooued For my part I thinke not and so do the best Hebricians that I haue read both protestants papists The text in the hebrew is easie enough and yealdeth a true and godlie sense Your last example Gen. 3. v. 15. prooueth no error in the Hebrew but onelie in your latine translation The Hebrewe in all the copies olde and new vnles one wilfullie corrupted by Guido Fabricius hath one reading whereby a comfortable promisse is set forth that the womans seed shal bruse the serpents head your translation containeth grosse impiety blasphemie referring that moste excellent worke to the woman which onelie appertaineth to the seed of the woman About this you saie the Protestants keepe a sturre And cause I thinke M.R. is angry with vs for making sturr about the chiefe promises of our redemption Such regarde haue the papists either of their owne or of our saluation wherefore some sturre should be kepte vnles it be no matter if whatsoeuer belongeth vnto our sauiour Christ were applied to the blessed virgine his mother as in this place moste horriblie and in the Psalmes alreadie hath bene notoriouslie performed by you in token of your great loue to our Ladie but small regarde of our Lorde That we haue charged the Apostle with anie error is a bolde manifest vntruth Pag. 324. Betweene the Apostles citation 1. Cor. 2. v. 9. the Prophet Esayes authoritie Chap. 64. v. 4. there is some diuersity in one word The Prophet hath expectanti ipsum to him that waiteth for him the Apostle diligentib ipsum 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to them that loue him Which diuersitie came not through ouersight or error in the Apostle but either that the Apostle followed the common reading of the Greeke or as his manner for the moste part is did take the sense not tying himself to the words For they that loue God are such only such as waite for him and this waiting for god ariseth of the loue of God You think the Apostle Prophet in these words declared the vnspeakeable ioyes of heauen which are prepared for the children of God and therefore you frame an argumente against iustification by faith Proude blasphemies vttered by M.R. against Gods word which you in your accustomed spirit of blasphemie call our mathematicall solifidian fansie because the Apostle writeth that God hath prepared so great things for those that loue him By the things which the eie hath not seene the eare not heard the heart not conceiued is meant the doctrine and mysteries of the gospell which the Lord hath reueiled to such as waite for him or loue him And to let you expound the wordes according to your owne sense doth this make any thing against the doctrine of iustification by faith onelie that God prepareth euerlasting inexplicable ioies for those that loue him For whome should they be prepared but for such as indeed loue him But is our loue worthie that rewarde Is it giuen to such as loue him in respect and for the merit of their loue This must you prooue if you will refell our doctrine in this behalfe But this was no matter to be handled in this place It was a poore glance and did no harme Here M.R. bringeth in a troupe of authorities together pag. 326. c. to prooue that false which I haue said and all true that he saith long sentences are translated out of Castalion D. Humfraie Pelicane and Munster wherby howsoeuer it fareth with his cause the volume of his booke is well increased For whereto serue these testimonies alledged That through negligence or ignorance of the writers printers some faultes may be found in the Hebrew Bibles I thinke there be none that wil denie but what makeh al this to purpose seeing there be a thousand times moe such faults in your translations then can be found in the fountaines your long speaches and discourses either in other mens words or in your owne when they come to scanning are short enough and therefore may in a short answere be discharged Your comparison of Iewes and Protestants in rayling at the Pope and Romane Church I passe ouer Two examples Master Rainolds willeth me to consider pag. 332. One the greate diuersitie of reading That in the text is such diuersity I deny The Iewes may perhaps in their Commentaries be of diuerse opinions touching the reading but in the text litle or no diuersitie shall you finde in so much that Ioannes Isaac affirmeth Lib. 2 pag. 69. there is soe great consent and agreement in the Bibles that no booke of the bible can be shewed written with the hand of a Iewe which either hath any thing that others want or wanteth any thing that others haue This may plainelie argue an exceading care to keepe their Bibles from all manner of corruption althoughe this that he writeth may almoste seeme incredible An other experiment is that the Hebrewe printes want something now which certainelie was in the first originals Example hereof you bring the psalme 144. Which being made according to the Hebrew Alphabete as diuerse other are one verse is wanting wholly therein the 14. in number which should beginne with Nun. What cause there was of omitting this Acrostiche I will not take vpon me to vnderstand It is not of later times corrupted seeing the Chaldee hath not that verse And as it is now in the Hebrewe so was it in Saint Ieromes time and before when the Hebrewe Bibles were accounted most pure and yet then in the Latine psalter a verse was supplied So that howsoeuer the matter stande this prooueth not the translation to be of greater puritie and credit then the fountaine Cause there was doubtles why the Prophet left out the order of the letter but whether such as the Rabbines and Talmudâ—sts haue deuised I cannot affirme The like example haue you in the. 36. Psalme of your edition which being made after the same manner of the Hebrew Alphabet you haue not in it the letter Am. Reasons thereof are alledged both by Iewes and learned Papists but the place for all that they thinke not to be corrupted as you peraduenture will rashlie pronounce As for that in the Greeke and Latine of this Psalme there is a verse answerable the first word whereof in Hebrew beginneth with Nun Nasman Fidelis Dominus c. this prooueth not the fountaine to be corrupte or vnperfecte but the Septuagintes finding no verse for the letter Nun and thinking perhaps there was some want repeated the. 17. verse following the first onely being changed For this verse supplied by them and the other following is al one excepting onely the first worde It seemeth not that the Prophet was altogeather so curious to keepe the order of letters that if any be wanting in a Psalme of that kinde we ought therefore to suspecte corruption in the Hebrew In the Psalme 25. no verse beginneth with Vau and two beginne with Resh
the vulgare translation corruptions of all sorts great plentie yea almoste innumerable therefore that your argument against the fountaines is absurd Infinite notorious corruptions in the vulgar latine translation authorized by the Tridentine assem blie and moste vnreasonable to condemne them because of some faultes imagined whereas you approue a latine edition ten times worse then you can once with shew of trueth suspect them to be In the first Chapter of Genesis v. 30. certaine wordes are wanting in your vulgar Edition Gen. 1. v. 30. which are not onelie in all Hebrewe bookes but in the Greeke translation aso which is by manie hundred yeares far more ancient then the latine and therfore if your latine wil be tried by the verdit of these two witnesses it shal be conuicted of manifest corruption For where the Prophet Moses plainlie writeth that as the Lord had giuen to man for his meat euerie herbe and tree that yeeldeth fruite so he had also prouided â—uerâ—e greene herbe to be meat for the beasts birds Col jerck â—â—eseb creeping things these words so materiall and necessarie are in your latine bookes no where to be found How can you thinke to excuse this from corruption In the second Chap. v. 8. Gen. 2.8 the scripture saith both in the hebrew and greeke text that God had planted a garden in the East Mikkedent and so is it vnderstood of the learned writers that the garden wherein Adam for a time remained was sited in the east but your translator maketh the Prophet to speake otherwise A Principio that the Lord God had planted a garden of pleasure from the beginning Is this kinde of translating to be allowed in the word of God I thinke none of sounde iudgement good conscience will so esteeme In the thirde of Genes v. 15. a Capitall and intollerable corruption hath beene committed and still is continued and maintained by you in the wordes Gen. 3.15 wherein the Lord made vnto man the first promise of that redemption which should be wrought by our Sauiour Christ and in which the summe of the Gospell and all hope of our saluation is contained that the seede of the woman should bruise the head of the Serpent For thus speaketh the Lord to the Serpent Hâ—â— I will put enmitie betweene thee and the woman and betweene thy seed and her seede He shall bruise thy head and thou shalt bruise his heele Thus hath the Prophet Moses reported the wordes of almightie God and so haue the seuentie interpreters translated them according to the Hebrew originall veritie Which notwithstanding in steede of He shall bruise thine heade 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 your latine translation hath Shee shall bruise thine head Ipsae and this Shee is meant the blessed virgine A foule a daungerous a damnable corruption thus defended and expounded Yea the verie enemies them selues that haue neuer so litle conscience and feare of God doe confesse that it ought to be redde otherwise then it is in your latine translation seeing it disagreeth from the Hebrewe and some auncient copies also of the vulgar latine edition haue ipse Andrad lib. 4. Defens Trid. and not ipsa Yet howsoeuer not onlie the Hebrew and Greeke texts lead vs to the true meaning of Gods promise made to mankinde in Iesus Christ yea and further some copies of the vulgar translation agree therewith neuertheles the Church of Rome that you may the better perceiue whose Church it is not regarding al this embraceth alloweth maintaineth the euident corruption as as you may finde not onelie in the Latine bookes of the vulgare edition reformed according to the Tridentine Councels appointment but also in the Catechisme set forth by authoritie of the same Councell Catechis Trident in artic Et in Iesum Christum and in the bookes of sundrie Papists that haue willinglie soulde them selues to loue and defend all Antichristes doctrine In the margent of your Bibles is printed for a fashion the true reading howbeit this not onelie excuseth nothing your willfull maintenance of detestable corruption but may rather make the same appeere more odious to all the faithfull For if you can set the true worde in the margent why might you not receiue it also into the text but onelie for that you are determined alreadie to be ashamed of nothing that may any waies bring aduantage to your corruptions though it be to the certaine euerlasting damnation of your soules And what goâ—lie man shall patientlie indure this blasphemie in your English transalation of the olde testament when it commeth forth where our comforte and hope hath bene that he who is the womans seed our blessed Lord and sauiour Christ should bruise the serpents head now we must turne it another waie and say thus she shal bruise the serpents heade If still you will speake in defense of this corruption you shal but barke against heauen it is too manifest too hainous too impudent In the fourth of Genes v. 8. Genes 4.8 your latine translation hath these wordes Let vs goe forth â—â—â—odiamur 〈…〉 in Hebr. question which are not in the Hebrew text nor yet in the Chaldee paraphrast S. Ierome hath giuen a note vpon them that they are superfluous and ought to be remoued And in the 15. verse of this Chapter one Hebrew word â—aken that signifieth wherefore or doubtles is vntruelie rendred by your translator thus Nequaquâ—â—â—ra fieâ—â— it shall not be so For the Lord said not that none should kill Kain but that whosoeuer killed him he should be punished seuen fold It maie not be graunted to anie translator of scripture thus to thrust in words at his pleasure whereby the sense is manifestlie changed In the sixt Chapter and 5. verse Gen. 6.5 where the Lord complaineth of mans corrupte nature and saith that the verie frame of the thoughts of his hart is onelie euill alwaies your translatour hath left out two words of great moment frame and onely jetsee rak and so like wise in the eight Chapter following verse 21. Gen. 8.21 where againe the Lord setteth forth the wickednes of mans corrupt nature and saith that the imagination of mans hart is euill raâ—â— your translator of his owne head hath put into the text a pretie word and soe maketh God to speake otherwise then he spake In malaâ— proua that it is prone to euill Who seeth not that by this worde is diminished that corruption and sinfulness whereof almightie God accuseth mankinde and wherewith he declareth mans hart to be replenished from his infancie This translation liketh you well because it doth not so fullie bewraie the infection of originall sinne as the true text of scripture doth therefore not so plainlie confuteth your heresie of freewill in man to please God before he be regenerate In the 9. Gen. 9.6 Chap. 6. verse where God ordaineth an euerlasting law
we therefore conuaie thus cunninglie into the text of scripture whatsoeuer we imagine fitlie to agree therewith The Hebrew hath no such saying nor the Chaldee nor yet the Greeke it is therefore a manifest corruption of your translator In the first of Kinges 1. Reg. 2.28 the 2. Chap. 28. vers your translator hath notablie falsified the text in putting Salomon once for Ioab and againe by and by for Absolom telling the storie thus And a messenger came to Salomon that Ioab had declined after Adonia and had not declined after Salomon Which is an absurd translation hauing no coherence with the storie and plainlie striuing against the text For thus the words should haue bene translated There came tydinges to Ioab for Ioab had declined after Adonia but had not declined after Absolom He that looketh on the place shall streight espie a foull fault in your translation In the 22. Chap. 26. verse of this booke Filium Amelech Ioas is called by your translator the sonne of Amelech for the Kings sonne by taking the word that signifieth in Hebrewe a King Hammelech for the proper name of a man The booke of Iob is a pretious parte of holie scripture as it hath bene alwaies esteemed in the Church of God and therfore great pitie is it to see the same so miserablie mangled by your translator as any of skill may perceiue it to be if he list to take a litle paines in conferring the true fountaine your translation together In the 1. Chap. v. 21. these words are added to the text Iob. 1.21 As it pleased the Lord so is it come to passe A godlie saying who can denie but that may not excuse your bookes from corruption vnles it can be shewed to be a part of the text which I am sure it cannot In the 3. Chapter and last verse the holy man saith Iob. 3.26 I had no peace I had no quietnes I had no rest yet trouble is come meaning that he liued in continual awe of God looked narroulie to al his waies fearing lest at any time he should prouoke the Lord to bring vpon him some greeuous iudgement and that now notwithstanding this endeuour care trouble miserie was fallen vpon him But your translator hath made him speake otherwise Haue I not dissembled haue I not kept silence Nonne dissimulauâ— c. haue I not bene quiet This translation accordeth not with the wordes and much lesse with the sense In the fift Chap. 5. verse Eliphaz saith Iob. 5. that the hungrie shal eate vp the haruest of the vngodlie and take it from amonge the thornes but in your translation he saith ipsum rapiâ—t armatus the armed man shall take him awaie which is an other thing though it be a true thing And in the verse that followeth v. 6 whereas Eliphaz saith that affliction and miserie commeth not out of the dust your translator hath put an other speach in his mouth Nihil in terâ—â— sine causa fit Nothing is done vpon the earth without a cause Againe in the. 7. verse he saith v. 7 Man is borne to trauaile euen as the sparkes flie vpwarde your translator saith Man is borne to labour and the birde to flie anis ad volatum turning the sparkes which the Hebrewe termeth the sonnes of the coles into a birde In the. 6. Chap. 1. v. Iob wisheth that his griefe were perfectlie weighed Iob. 6.1 your translator hath added hereto wordes of his owne applying a speach to Iob which whether he would acknowledge may well be douted I would my sinnes were waighed wherby I haue deserued wrath v. 16 In the. 16. verse of this Chapter Iob compareth his friends whoe had forsaken him to brookes that passe swiftlie awaie which brookes he saith are blackishe with yce and wherein the snow is hidde Of these wordes your translator hath framed a proper sentence or prouerbe They that feare the yce the snow shal fall vpon them Qui timent pruinaÌ„ â—rruet super eos nix Iob. 9.12 In the 9. Chapter he shewing at large the wonderfull and omnipotent power of God saith in the 12. verse If he take any thing by violence awaie who shall make him restore it againe The author of your translation not marking well the wordes hath turned them thus Si repente ininterroget quis respondebit If he aske suddenlie who shall answere him And in the. 13. Chap. 4. verse where Iob calleth his friends Phisitions of no value your translator nameth them Cultores peruersorum dogmatum Iob. 14.4 embracers of peruerse doctrines In the 4. verse of the. 14. Chap. Iob saith who can bring a cleane thing out of filthines not one your translation hath these wordes who can make a cleane thing that is conceiued of vncleane seed is it not thou whoe art alone In the 31. Chap. of this booke 19. v. he saith Iob. 31.19 Si despexi pretereuntem eô quôd non habuerit indumentum If I haue seene any perish for want of clothing c. which to be the true reading is confessed by your owne Masters and prooued by the Hebrew text But your translation maketh Iob thus to speake If I haue despised him that passed by for because hee had no garment Which wordes carie with them an other sense then the former wil admit And though in your last editions some of your reformers haue in stead of him that passed by placed in the text him that perished yet this salue hath not made the wounde wholl For first you keepe still the worde despising in steade of seeing and further that your vulgare translation ought not to be corrected in that other word as of late it hath bene by whose authoritie and iudgement soeuer may be knowne by Aquinas and Saint Gregorie and many moe whoe in their commentaries vpon this booke haue sett downe the wordes in such sorte as I haue rehearsed out of your translation If this be a fault as you haue graunted in correcting it in some parte then haue your latine Bibles beene faultie this thousand yeares together and if you may now by comparing your vulgare latine with the Hebrew reforme this corruption though it be of so long continuance whie may you not as well in all other places where your translation doth plainely disagree from the Hebrew as it doth in a thousand fyle it and make it as euen as you can with the Authenticall text In the 33. v. 6. Elihu saith to Iob Iob. 33.6 for that he had wished to haue God answere him beholde I wil be according to thy word for God This to be the true meaning the wordes do shew themselues and therfore it was a maruel that your translator would turne them thus Ecce mesicut te fecit Deus Behold euen me hath God made as thee And in the 25. v. where Elihu declaring how God dealeth with his children in punishing them
verses ought not to haue anie roome in that Psalme and therfore that your Psalter hath in this place more then it should haue which I thinke we maie trulie and properlie call a corruption In the 34. Psalme the Prophet saith psal 34.8 that the Angell of the Lord doth pitch his tentes about them that feare him Choneh in your translation thus we read The Angel of the Lord shall send round about those that feare him Immittet in circuitu that is saith Genebrard his help and defense Well holpen doubtles Where the text is so plaine to make such a simple translation as this which without supplying some necessarie worde can haue no shew of good sense I know not how it maie be excused from a fault So in the 37. Psalme where the Prophet teacheth that we ought not to be vnmeasurablie greeued or disquieted at the prosperitie of the wicked and exhorteth vs to trust in the Lord Psal 37.3 Pascere side pasceris in diuitiis eius and to feede that is to liue by faith your translation saith thus Trust in the Lord c. and thou shalt be fed with his riches In the 51. Psalme thus speaketh the prophet in his owne tongue psalm 51.8 behold thou louesl trueth in the raines that is inwardlie in the affections and hast made me to vnderstand wisdome in secrete but your translator hath geuen vs an other sense Behold thou hast loued trueth the vncertaine and secret things of thy wisdome hast thou made manifest vnto me If the first be a true sense as it is the second must be reputed as it deserueth In the 62. psal 62.5 Psalme the Prophet speaking of his enemies deuising to ouerthrow him if they might saith They take counsell onelie how to cast him downe from his dignitie their delighte is in lies This construction agreeeth well this sense is plaine Now compare here with your translation and you shall see that it is most fond and disorderlie thus it standeth Veruntamen pretium meâ—â—â— cogitauerunt repellereâ—â—â—curri in sitt Notwithstanding they haue thought to put back my price I haue runne in thirst Is not this a proper kinde of translation yet something of late hath it beene corrected in one word but nothing at all amended in the sense I haue runned they saie should be changed into they haue runned 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 wherin they graunt their latine translator was greatlie deceaued in translating the greeke word I haue runned for they haue runned and yet the hebrew word signifieth neither of both But as they acknowledge a fault in this word so when it is thus mended by them how much neerer are they to the right sense verelie no thing or but little and Genebrard though he make a poore sense of the wordes yet how his sense agreeth with the hebrew text he cannot declare Againe in the 9. verse of this Psalme the Prophet saith Trust in him euermore â—ecol hheth hham O people your translation hath an other reading thus Trust in him all the congregation of the people Omnis congregatio popul wherein is a manifest diuersitie The hebrew no man dare saie to be corrupt then it followeth that the greeke translator deceiued the latine and was deceiued himselfe In the 65. Psalme Psal 65.14 the last verse in stead of these wordes The pastures are clad with sheepe Induti sunt arâ—â—tes ouium The vulgare translation hath thus The Rammes of the sheepe are clad And because this is something obscure and vnperfecte therefore Genebrarde expoundeth the matter and telleth wherewith these Rammes are clade forsooth with store of fine and white wooll Yet in the text is no mention either of Rammes or wooll In the 68. Psalme the 7. verse the Prophet reckneth this amonge the praises of the Lord that he maketh such as are alone and solitarie to haue a familie wherein to dwell Your translation speaketh after an other sorte that he maketh those that be of one behauiour to dwell together in a howse Vnius â—oris This verelie was not the Prophets meaning And then it followeth in the Prophets owne wordes But the rebels he causeth to dwell in a drie or thirstie place which wordes in your vulgare Psalters are vnto wardlie translated thus Similiter eos qâ—iexasperant qui habitant in sepulchris Likewise those which exasperate which dwell in graues And yet hath Genebrade taken some paines here to frame a sense in some reasonable construction in this wise Those that exasperate and prouoke God by their sinnes and dwell in the graues of death God bringeth them forth by his mercifull and mightie hand Here we haue a sense indeede such as it is but a sense contrarie to the true manifest wordes of the Prophet For Dauid declareth how god will punnish his rebels by setting them in a drie place Genebrarde by his exposition hath made the Prophet to promis deliuerance vnto them from destruction Againe in this Psalme v. 14. Dauid saith though ye haue lien among the pots c. Your translation hath Pater â—â—diâ—s â—â—res in the middest of the clergie or of the lots And what should this meane forsooth Genebrarde saith by Lots is vnderstood extreame distresse and daunger as when the lots are cast vpon a mans life He hath deserued doubtles greate thankes for his paines especiallie seeing him-selfe confesseth that this place hath tormented all interpreters and that vpon the same as vpon a gibbet haue the wits of all hanged Now hath Genebrarde taken awaie the gibbet and released his friends from cruell vexation and that by chaunging without anie great trouble pots into lots In the 73. Psalme Dauid declaring the greate prosperitie of the wicked Psal 73.4 saith in the 4. v. that there are no bandes in their death or vntill their death and that their strenghth is lustie Looke now vpon this translation of yours Non est respectus morti eoruÌ„ firmamentum in plaga â—â—rum There is no respecte to their death and there is strength in their sore and tell vs how it accordeth with the text The wordes are diuerse the sense is changed and therefore the corruption cannot be excused In the 74. psal 74. â— Psalme the Prophet complaining of the wicked saith they haue burnt all the synagogues of God which text in your translation is straungelie altered and corrupted in this manner Let vs make all the festiuall daies of God to cease Quiescere faciamus omnes dies festos Dei Them-selues confesse the place is not faithfullie translated by reason that the Greeke worde was vtterlie mistaken of their translator For where in the Greeke it was translated thus Let vs burne the latine translator not looking so narrowlie to his copie as he ought 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 tooke one letter for an other so hath giuen vs another word an other sense And notwithstanding they acknowledge both the
make such things as are spoken in some respecte seeme to be vttered without exception as in this place and many others may be seene Your assertions are now to be examined by which you labour to strengthen the Remish slaunder of corruption against the Greeke testament Pag. 363. Three in number haue you brought of no importaunce as shall appeere so that we may easilie thinke they are indeed your owne The first is the difference of our Greeke copies now M. Rai argumēts against the newe testamente in Greeke confuted from the olde It may perhaps I graunt be prooued that in the Greeke copies of the new testament some diuersitie may be founde So was there much greater difference in the latine translations as your selfe cannot deny Then what maketh this for the latine translation against the Greeke fountaine if you say the latine was corrected I answere it was indede corrected but according to the Greeke and the Greeke nowe remaineth still which maie be prooued to be not onelie as pure as the latine but purer by many degrees For what reason haue you to saie that the latine translation euer since the correction hath bene preserued faithfullie without corruption but the Greeke text it selfe after which it was corrected became forthwith distayned and replenished with grosse corruptions Our Greeke testament for the moste parte and in a manner euerie where agreeth fullie with that copie which the auncient Greeke Church vsed and which therefore vndoubtedlie was the true originall Greeke text of the newe testament And as the olde latine Church reformed her translations according to the copies vsed in the Greek Churches so shall it neuer be prooued but that the same Greeke copies haue continued still as free from corruption as the latine translations haue wherefore the difference of our Greeke copies nowe from some olde maketh nothing against the puritie and authoritie of our Greeke Testament vnles you can shewe by euident proofe that the Greeke Testament nowe extant differeth from that which the Greeke Churches in times past generallie vsed Some difference there might be I denie not in such infinite multitude of copies But what then is no copie now therefore to be alowed Maie we not also shewe the like difference betwene these latter editions of your latine translation and some other of elder time you knowe we can and it is by your owne writers confessed acknowledged Is this then a learned obseruation is this a good conclusion is this a sound reason against the greek testament such arguments runne for currant at Rhemes where popish blindnes raigneth but being a litle opened and laid forth in the light are by and by espied to be naught Of this difference twoe examples you alledge the former is the story of the adulterous woman in the eight of S. Iohn which although some Greeke copies haue wanted as apeereth by the Syriake interpreter by Chrysostom by Nonnus by Ierome yet others of as great authoritie had it So this difference is not through later corruption nor prooueth no more that the Greeke testament nowe is to be reiected then it was in S. Chrysostomes daies And furthermore this storie being in your vulgare translation what can you deuise against the Greeke more then the latine The Greeke and latine agreeing how is the Greeke more corrupt then the Latine The other is in the Epistle to the Ephesians Chap. 3. verse 14. Wherein Saint Ierome saith certaine wordes were added in the latine Domini nostri Iesu Christi not being in the Greeke But that herein Saint Ierome was deceiued appeereth by S. Chrystome who readeth the wordes in the Greeke as you may see in his Greeke commentaries And by this one example we may further note what diligence Saint Ierome vsed some time in correcting the latine according to the Greeke that denieth wordes to be in the Greeke which yet are found in Saint Chrysostomes copies and manie moe Your second obseruation is of rashe additions which haue bene made in the Greeke text Pag. 365. If this be an argument of anie force against the testament in Greeke it must haue much more weight against your common translation which is so full of additions both in the old testament as I haue shewed and also in the new as hath bene faithfullie declared by others Your examples are but twoe the one in Saint Iohns Gospell Chap. 8. vers 59. It may indeede appeere that those last words of the verse passing through the midst of them and so departed haue bene added But this corruption may be espied and corrected by auncient copies and so in this respecte no cause to reiecte or disallowe the wholl text in Greeke The other is the conclusion of the Lordes prayer For thine is the kingdome the power and the glorie for euer and euer Amen This peece as you call it your latine hath not our Greeke copies haue That some had it not in times past I confesse that others had it is plaine by the Syriake translator if you suspecte our copy of corruption why may not weas probably suspecte the same of yours and we haue as iust cause to be offended with you for omitting this as you with vs for so glorious singing and saying of it The third obseruation is pa 3. 67. that the Greeke testaments oftentimes omit that which they should not Examples in Luc. Chap. 1. v. 35. and Chapter 17. v. 36. For the first you might haue found that in many greeke copies now extant and vsed the wordes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of thee are not omitted and that hath Beza noted and therefore supplyed those wordes in the greeke of the last Geneuian edition Your reproche of Anabaptisme is ridiculous The same maie be answered of the second For that 3 6. verse of Luc. 17. is extant in sundrie greeke editions as well as in your latine translation But what maketh all this to purpose Conclude hereof an argument if you can that therfore the greeke testament is more corrupted then the latine What a pitifull syllogisme will this be that must seuerallie of these places be concluded that therfore the greeke testament is more corrupt then the latine vulgar edition because the latine is in some places not so faulty as some Greeke copies either are or haue bene supposed to be Your last and principall reason pag. 371. c. why your Latine translator ought to be preferred before all other toucheth not the cause in hand as your owne wordes doe witnesse The controuesie is not which translation is best and moste to be preferred but whether this latine edition of your translator whosoeuer he were be worthely of your Church preferred before the originall fountaine Admit he was indued with such qualities as are moste requisite in faithfull translators of scripture in respect thereof deserueth greater creditte then the rest doth it therefore followe Master Rainolds that we must preferre him before the writers of holie scripture themselues was he of sounder religion
haue you more for the one then the other But your seconde reason is more absurde wherein you professe that although you had the true originals yet could you not make in these daies a better translation Wherefore could you not the thinge is not harde if you had simple and willing mindes But now may we see by this your protestation that whatsoeuer you speake against the corruption of the originall bookes in respecte where of you will seeme to preferre your common translation before them yet although you had as true originals as euer were or could be wished notwitstanding you woulde still make more account of your translation then of them That wherefoeuer we find faulte with your translation some one of our owne brethren standeth with you in defense of your translation is vntrue I haue shewed examples enowe of grosse and manifest corruptions in the translation of the olde testament which none our brethren as you call them euer went about to excuse Valla Erasmus Beza haue noted manie in your translation of the newe althoug I graunt that both Erasmus doth instlie reprooue Valla and Beza hath worthelie reprooued Erasmus in some places of their reprehensions And so maie it fall out to those that take paines in correcting a booke ful of corruptions as your latine translation is sometime to finde a fault where none is the latter corrector to dissent from the former Your Tridentine decree which you commend being set forth by so manie excellent godlie learned men as you saie were impietie to compare all the scattered synagogues of Lutherans with them hath bene tried and examined by more godlie and learned men then euer were in that synagogue assembled wherein neither godlines nor learning but Antichristian tyrannie preuailed One example I alledged of corruption in your latine Testament pag. 391. c. and that I might haue gathered manie moe is euident by that which hath bene declared before In the 1. Cor. 15. v. 54. these wordes are wanting in your translation when this corruptible hath put on incorruption which yet are found in all greeke copies now extant and were not onelie in the olde greeke testaments as appeereth by S. Chrysostome but also euen in the auncient latine translations thereof and that by your owne coâ—â—ession Hereunto you make long and friuolous answeres by distinctions of points First you saie there is no losse of anie parte of doctrine for the same thing is set downe in the next lines before A proper reason which giueth libertie to scrape out of the scriptures whatsoeuer is in other places repeated Secondlie you adde that some reason you haue to thinke that percel repeated not to be of the text As good haue you to thinke that these wordes when this mortall shall put on immortalitie are not of the text seing they are sett downe in the lines immediatlie going before Thirdlie that it was in some greeke copies as you reade Perhaps so but what then seing doubtles the moste and best read it other wise Fourthlie you thinke more reason to correct Chrysostome by Ierome then Ierome by Chrysostome Yet maie it seeme otherwise to indifferent men that Chrysostome and the Church of Constantinople had as true copies and as great varictie of bookes as Ierome could haue anie For where should Ierome seeke for true and faithfull copies of the new Testament but in the Greeke Church and in which more then in that and whoe liker to haue the truest then Chrysostome I think therefore no man of discretion can otherwise iudge but that it is much more likelie S. Chrysostomes reading to be true then S. Ieromes if they diffent especiallie other latine translations agreing wiht that text which S. Chrysostome followed And Saint Hierome manie times in his Epistles and treatisies reprehendeth the common latine reading The vulgare translation of the new testament reprooued indiuerse places by S. Ierome euen the same that is nowe currant in your latine testaments Whereby maie appeere that the same was not in his iugdement euerie where so entire as you affirme That Saint Chrysostome maketh against vs and approoueth your reading I wonder with what face you could auouch Let anie man read S. Chrysostome in Greeke and if he finde not the text in him set down as our Greeke testaments reade it both in the first and second place I am content to yeald the wholl to Master Rainolds And so likewise readeth Oecumenius this place I graunt S. Ambrose hath it onelie in the first place yet other latine fathers reade it according to the veritie of the Greeke as your selfe confesse which as much as I maintaine Fiftlie you thinke it enough for defense of your translation that the same wordes are added in the margent which is but a poore shift when you haue thrust the text of scripture out of his due and proper seate to giue it some roome in a corner And yet your English translation hath discharged it of that place also and wipte it cleane awaie both out of text and margent That not here onelie pag. 399. c. but in other manifolde places also you keepe the errors of the latine translation contrarie to the trueth of the Greeke copies is a thing that hath bene plentifullie prooued by manie and therefore to saie so was no bragge Aria Montanus how good a priest soeuer he be doubtles is not of your iudgement concerning the Hebrewe and greeke originals of scripture and therefore cannot alowe that wicked decree of the Tridentine Councell wherein the corrupt translation is confirmed and established for the Canonical word of God by general consent commaundement the true originall Canon of scriptures being there reiected and disgraced Now then whether in this and such other respects I had not iust cause to call you 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 iniurious to the Bible I referre to the iudgement of all godlie and wise readers For what greater iniurie or contumelie can be offered to the holie Bible then not onelie to approoue a translation that is full of corruptions in all partes thereof for the authenticall Bible and word of god but also to cast away the originall Bible it selfe as corrupte and to giue no further credit vnto it then it agreeth with your translation And therefore that you malitiouslie auouch of vs that we haue no Bibles maie moste truelie be saide of you that you haue willinglie refused the fountaines of Gods moste pure and blessed word and haue not amongst you in publike regarde and authoritie the true Bibles indeed which you haue wickedlie both contemned and condemned Your repetitions to the end of this Chapter full of outragious vntruthes and slaunders require no answere in this place you haue bene fullie answered before and the wholl world can testifie to Gods glorie and your confusion that not one tittle of Gods worde and scriptures is by vs denied CHAP. 14. Wherin Master R. laboreth to prooue that it is the verie waie to Atheisme and infidelitie