Prolicionycion [sic]

¶ Capitulum quartum

TIberius was augustus stepsone. and wedded his doughter and bigā to regne in the moneth of september in the which moneth Augustus was dede and tiberius regned thre and twē∣ty yere and somwhat of dayes Eutropius This first gouer¦ned the empyre with grete sobrenesse So that whan somme men counseylled hym to take grete tribute of prouynces and londes He answerde and sayd it falleth for a good shepherde to shere his sheepe and not for to swolewe them / this was first wyse and re∣dy ynow and gracious in Armes ¶A man of grete cunnynge of letture and of castyng euer awaytynge and aspyeynge and what he nold / he made hit as though he wold ¶To them that he loued he made it as though he were wrothe And to them that he hated he semed goodly / he wold y••ue better answer and coun∣seyl sodenly and withoute auisemente / than with grete auisement He sent•• for somme kynges and made them come to hym by fla¦teryng•• and sente them neuer agayn ¶ This was called Tiberi¦us nere· but mynstrals callyd hym a faier name Tiberius mero for he was ofte wyne dronke ¶ Also this by cause of somme lettres that pilat sente hym wolde haue be worshipped as god al myghty / But the Senatours sayd nay / and therfore he exyled many of the elder men and chees hym counseyllours and lefte vnnethe tweyne of them in good heele eer be were Emperoure / he was wyse and redy in Armes ¶But afterward he werryd by messagers ¶Pol libro te••cio capitulo quarto ¶He was gre∣••••ly to blame in many of his dedes but ayenst chydyng he was s••ydfaste and sayde that mennes tonges and hertes sholde be 〈◊〉〈◊〉 in the cyte ¶Iosephu•• This was stydfast in all his dedes. So that vnnethe that he wolde chaunge procuratours that he hadde

made ones in prouynces and in londes ¶ Me axed why that he dyde soo· he answerd and sayd that in that doynge he spared the peple for euer the lasse tyme quoth he procurators haue lo••dship ouer the people they ben the more greuous And preued that by ensample of one that was wounded and sette i•• the sonne and wold not doo awaye the flyes that sate on his woundes / thanne come one of his frendes and droue away the flyes for he w••n••e that the seke man myght not suffre for feble ¶ Thou hast doone euil quoth the s••ke man for the flyes that thou hast dryue away were ful and therfore they ete wel the lasse / But nowe comen hongry flyes and wole byte ful soore / So newe officers greuē wors the peple that is vnder them / Ysid li / 6 / ca. 16 / Me s••yth that in tiberius tyme a craftis man had fonde vp a crafte of t••m∣pryng of glas to make the glas towy now to bende and wynde and to reche out with strokes of hamers / the emperour brake som of his glas / and he amended it agayne and bende it and bowyd it as it were tyn / than themperour lerned of this craftes man that ther was none other man alyue that so coude tempre glas And bad smyte of the craftis mānes hede / for yf that craft were knowen / gold and other precious metal shold be of no prys Ouidius naso the poete dyed in the ylond pontus besides the sar¦mat••s and the gothes the fourth yere of his exylynge ¶ This made fyrste a booke of the crafte of loue and made the romaynes wroth with him for he made yonglynges to loue wyues to moche Therfor he sayd in his boo•• de ponto / naso not wyse ynow techith sleyght•• of loue crafte / ylle pryse of loore. therfore than had the mayster / Me sayth that atte last ouidius laye by the empryce & therfor he was exyled / that yere pilatus was made Iugge in the Iewry of his byrth & of his lyuyng. me redeth many wondres ffor a kyng that hete tirus gate a sone on one pila a milwardes douht that hete atus & the sone had a name made of the name of his moder pila & the name of his graūt••ir atus-& so he was cal∣led pylatus / this pylat was sente to his fader in his iiij yere of age· his fader had a sone by her y^t was his rightful wif / y^t which sone & pilat were of one age. but this lauful sone had maistrye of pilatus in euery place▪ & stryf / therfor pilatus was wroth & slew his own broder. therfor the king that was his fader 〈◊〉〈◊〉 p••••a¦tus to rome to lye there to plegge for tribute y^t he shold euy yere pay to y^e romains / also the same time y^e kinges sone of f••aū••e lay in plegge at rome & pilat{us} slewe hym for he had ofte 〈◊〉〈◊〉

in playes and in stryf▪ ¶ Therfor the romaynes demed that pylatus was profitable to the empyre to hastyse frowarde men & sterne and sente hym in to the ylond of pontus to be Iugge to chastyse men that were there / that wold with good wylle ouer them no Iugge receyue nother suffre amonge them / But that shrew pylatus chastysed them with punysshyng with manaces and with fayer byhestes therfor he had a name of that ylond & was callyd poncius pilatus / Herodes Antippas had ioye of his wykkednesse and sente messagers and giftes and drowe him to hym and made him prynce vnderr hym in the Iewry But pilatus atte last gadred moche money and wente to Rome vn∣wetyng herodes for to receyue the offyce of tiberius / that he helde of herodes And by cause therof they were enemyes herodes and pilatus to the tyme of cristes passion whan pilatus sente Ihesus clothyd in whyte to herodes That tyme tiberius cesar that was the emperour had an harde sekenesse and herde telle that at Ieru¦salem was a leche that heled seke men only with a wor••e Ther for tiberius sente one volucianus to herodes / that he sholde sende hym that leche Pilatus had xiij dayes auisement to geue his answer / for Ihs was afore honde nayled to the crosse The forseid volucianus toke a queyntaūce and knowlech̄ of a nobel womā that heet veronica So that he brought her to Rome to the empe¦rour with her lynen clothe in the whiche clothe she had the printe and the lykenes of our lordes face ¶ The emperour beheelde this clothe and was hool anone. whan themperour wyst that py¦latus had dampned crist / pylatus was take by amaundement of the empe••our & brought to rome byfore thēperour & had / on him cristes owne kyrtel that was withoute semes & was callid tuni¦ca īcōsutilis & pilatus was brought in this aray afore thēperour ones efte & the iij tyme. but no worde might be said y^t him shold greue while he had on that cloth / but atte last by goddes wyll & coūseyl of sōme cristē mē that kyrtill was take of hym & than he was put in prison and there· he slow him self with his own hāde Of pylatus deth loke within in gayus last yere· Petr{us} / That ty∣me were thre sectes of iewes in the Iewry seuered & departed frō the comyn lyuyng of other men ¶ The sectes were Phariseis saduceyes and essayes that heete Assideyes also the phariseies wered & vsid hard clothing & scarsite of mete & of drin¦ke. they determined moyses lawe by her ordenaunce & statutes. They bare scrowes in her forheede & in her lyfte armes & callyd

the scrowes philaterna In the scrowes were the teen commaun∣dementes wrete in mynde of the lawe Also they had large hē¦mes / bounde with thornes that prycked them as they w••nte in theyr weye They withsayd neuer theyr souereyns Also they hoped in a rysynge of bodyes from deth to lyue / the saduceyes denyed the arysing of bodyes from dethe to lyfe & sayd that they noon aungels were / they trowyd that the soules dyed with the bodyes· They heelde only moyses fyue bookes And for they we∣re to cruel and not compeynable amonge them self / they callyd them self saduceyes that is rightful / the esseyes lyued wel nygh in al poyntes as men of relygyon and forsoke wedlok. but it we¦re fulselde· for they trowyd that noo woman was trewe to her husbond· her clothis were clene alwey they had no certayne cyte afore the sonne rysyng / they spak no thyng that was vnlauful they worshipped the sonne whan he dyde aryse / they spak not at theyr mete. they hated othes as it were for swerynge / they toke noman to theyr secte but by the essay of one yere if they toke ony of her cyte with synne / they putte hym awaye for to ete gras as beestes doen in penaunce to his lyues ende / though ten of them sate to geders none of them wold speke a worde withoute l••ue of the nyne / they wolde not spete in the myddel of the company•• nother in the right side ¶They helde the saturday soo holy that they wold that day dresse no mete nother tende fire nother sette a vessel oute of one place to another / ¶ And also they wolde not cacke in the saturday Iosephus libro secundo ¶Other da∣yes they wolde dygge the erthe withoute thwytel / and make hem a pytt and let fal here clothis about them and hele al about whan they wold cacke for me sholde wene that they dyde wrong to the sonne beme and whan they had cacked they wold fyl the pytte agayne with the same erthe that they had digged vp of the same pyt / these leued longest of al men for they lyued stars¦ly and dede noo surfeet of mete and of drynke / They trowyd that al the soules were made atte begynnynge and put in bodyes whan it were tyme And somme of them wolde telle what was to come for they forsoke flesshely lykyn ge as it were an euyl do∣yng And despysed ryches ¶Here lond and what they had was comyn amonge them alle / ¶ They bargayned not among them but· euery had frely of other what hym neded they rought not of none oynementes /

They chaunged neuer hosen and shoon nother clothyng but whā they were y tore other spente / they helde hospytalyte / they hadde one maner mete / they prayd afore mete and after / In her hous was neuer herde crye nother noyse None of them shold not ge∣ue withoute ordenaunce of the comyn spencis / they helde al theyr lawes strenger thā ony other he that sholde be receyued to abyde among them / after his yere of essaye he shold swere to kepe faith to god / rightwysenesse to men and obedyence to princes And yf it happed hym somtyme to be aboue and ouer other he shold not mysuse his power and his myght in damage and wrong of sub¦gettes but he shold chastyse lyers with al his myght / To here dome sholde come no lasse than an honderd persones the dome of hem shold stonde stydfast and not be chaunged