The Holy Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments, with the Apocryphal books,

CAP. IX.

I haue takun desired epistlis of my man De|siderie, the which, thurȝ a maner bifore kun|nynge of thingis that ben to com, with Danyel is fallun the name of hym, preiynge, that I shulde take to [of I.] the erys of ourne the fyue bokis of Moyses translatid fro Ebrewe speche into [in D.] Latyn tung. Certeyn a perylous werk, open to the berkyngis of backbyters, that seyn [siggen BDEFH.] me to [Om. D.] forgen new thingis for olde into the stranglyng of the seuenti interpretours, so wit as wyn prou|ing; sith Y ful oft haue witnessid me to offre in the tabernacle of God for a liȝt [litel I.] porcoun thingis that I may, ne [no D.] the [Om. B.] richessis [recches B sup. ras. EFHI.] of an othre man to be defowlid with the porenes of othre. The which thing that I shulde dore don [that don E.] , me styryde the studie of Orygen, the which to olde transla|cioun mengide the translacoun of Theodocioun, with astericho, that is, with the signe of a `sterre [asterye AD.] , whan he makith clere the thingis that weren to

litle, and with obelo, that is, with signe [the signe BDEFHI.] of an arow, whan he any wast thing [thingus BDEFHI.] distroieth and scrapith a wey, al his werk markynge [derkyng D.] ; and moost tho [thilk BDEFH.] thingis the whiche the autoryte of the apostlis and of the euangelistis openyde; in the which many thingis we reden of the olde testament, the [Om. H.] whiche ben not had in oure bokis; as is that, "fro Egipt I clepid [calde I.] my sone;" and, "for he [that he I.] shal be clepid [cald I.] Nazare;" and, "men shal [schullen BDEFHI.] seen, in whom thei han pungid;" and, "flodis shal [schullen HI.] flowe of his womb quyk watres;" and, "thingis [thes thingis I.] that nether eiȝe seiȝ, ne eere herde, ne in to the herte of man stiede, that God greithid to hem that hym louen;" and many othre thingis, the whiche desyren propre ordre. Aske we [thou I.] thanne [Om. I.] hem, where thes thingis ben wrytun; and whanne thei mown [mai I.] not seye, of the bokis of Ebrewe brynge we forthe. The first witnes is in Osee, the secounde in Ysaye, the thrid in Zacharye, the ferthe in Pro|uerbis, the fifte as wel in Ysaye; the whiche many men vnknowynge folwen the deceyuyngis of scripturys, whos autor is vnknowun, and setten bifore, Spanyshe songes vpon deed men, or of noresses vpon ther children, autentik bokis. The cause [causes BDEFHI.] of the errour is not myn to expown. Jewis seyn, that it is don with wise counsel, lest [that lest D.] Ptholome herier of o God, also as anentis the Ebrewis shulde of take dowble Godhede; the whiche moost therfor thei diden, for he was knowen [vnknowun A.] to falle into the techyng of Plato. Wherfore wher euere holi wrytt witnessith ony holi thing of the Fadre, and the Sone, and the Holy Goost, or [outher BEFH.] othre wyse thei vndiden, or al|gatis helden ther pees, that thei myȝten do aseth to the kyng, and that thei opened not the priuete of the bileue. And I not who, the first auctour, thurȝ his lesyng maad out seuenti sellis at Alysawndre, in the whiche thei deuydide the same thingis [thinge E.] shulde wryte; sith [since I.] Aresteus, of the same Ptholome chefe counseylour, and keper of bokis, and myche tyme aftir Josaphus, not [no BDEFH. noon I.] suche thinge tolden, but wryten hem, gadrid to

gider in o [one BDEFH.] chirche, to han spokin togider, and not to haue prophecied. It is another to be a prophet, and an other to ben an vndoer of lan|gage; there the spiryt seith bifore thingis that ben to comen, here teching and plente of wordis, thingis that he vndurstondith translateth. But perauenture Tullyus is to be wenyd enblowid with the spirit of retorik, to haue translatid the boke that is seid Economyk of Zenofontes, and the boke that is seid the [Om. BDFHI.] Pictagore of Plato, and the boke that is seid Prothesifontes of Demos|tynes; other the Holi Gost wenyde witnessis of the same bokis othre wise bi the seuenti vn|doers of tungis, othre wise bi the apostlis, that that [Om. DI.] thei helden ther pees, thes han liȝid to ben writun. What thanne? dampne we the olde? nay, but after the studies [studie D.] of the rather [forthere I.] men, in the hous of the Lord we traueilen that that [Om. D.] we may. Thei han [Om. A.] undon scripturis before the coming of Crist; and that that [Om. DF.] thei wisten not, thei han spokin with doutous sentence [sen|tensis BDEFHI.] , we after the passioun and the resurreccoun of hym not oonli profesie, but storye wrytun. Othre weys forsothe thingis seen, other wise thingis herd ben told; that we beter vndirstonden, beter we tellen. Here than, thou enemye, herkyn, thow backbiter; I dampe not, I reprehende not the seuenti, but trustily I putte bifore the apostlis to alle tho [thilk BDEFH.] ; bi the mowthe of these to me Crist sowneth, whom before the prophetis amonge spiritual ȝiftis Y rede sett, amonge the [Om. I.] which the vndoers of tungis holden fulli the last degre. Wherto art thou tourmentid with enuy? what [wherto I.] sterist thow vnwise mennus willis aȝens me? if where Y seme to thee erre [to erre E.] in the [Om. BD.] translating, aske the Ebrewis, conseil the maystrys of dyuerse citees; that thei han of Crist, thi bokis han not. It is another, if the witnessis vsurped of the apostlis after proueden aȝen hem seluen, and the Latyn saumplers [saumples A.] ben more amendid than Grekis, Grekis than Ebrews. But thes aȝenus the en|uyows. Now, ful dere Desidery, I preye thee, for that [Om. EI.] thou hast maad me to vndergon so greet werk [a werk I.] , and to take the bigynnyng of Genesis,

helpe thow with preiers, that I mowe thurȝ the same spyryt, thurȝ which [the wiche I.] the bokis ben wrytun, translaten hem into Latyn sermown.

`Here endith the Prologis [Here endith the prolog of Genesis and other bookis. D. Heere endith the prolog, now bigynneth Genesis. FI. No rubric in BFH. Erased in E.] .