¶ Secretes maye not be opened. The lawe of God must be taught. A doughter. A woman. God knoweth all thynges / ye euen the secretes of the he••••e.
CAPI. XLII.
REhearse not a thynge twyse, and dys∣close [unspec A] not the wordes / that thou haste herde in secrete. Be shamefast and well ma∣nered in dede / so shall euery man fauour the. Of these thynges be not thou ashamed / and accepte no personne to offende. Namely, of these thynges be not ashamed: Of the lawe of God / of the couenaunt, of iudgement: to brynge the vngodly from his vngodlynesse vnto ryghtuousnes / & to make hym a good man: to deale faithfully with thy neyghbour and companyon: to destrybute the herytage vnto thy frendes: to be diligent to kepe true measure and weyght: to be content / whether thou gettest muche or lytle / to deale truelye with temporall gooddes / in byinge and sel∣lynge: to bryng vp chyldren with dilygence: to correcte an euell seruaunte: to kepe that thine is frō an euel wyfe, to set a locke where many handes are, what thou delyuerest and geuest out to kepe / to tell it, and to weye it: to wryte vp all thy out geuynge and recey∣uynge: to enfourme the vnlearned and vn∣wyse. Of the aged / that are iudged of the yonge. Yf thou be dylygente in these thyn∣ges, truely thou shalte be learned and wyse and accepted of all men.
The doughter maketh y• father to watch se¦cretly: [unspec B] & ye carefulnes yt he hath for her taketh away his slepe: yee in ye youth, leest she shulde ouergrow hī: And whē she hath an husband: lest she shuld be hated: lest she shulde be defy∣led or rauyshed in her vyrginite, or gotten wt chylde in her fathers house: Or (when she cō¦meth to y• man) leest she behaue her selfe not right or cōtynue vnfruteful. * 1.1 If thy daugh¦ter be wāton, kepe her straytly, leest she cau∣se thyne enemyes to laugh y• to scorne, & the holy cytie to geue the an euell reporte, & so y• be fayne to heare thy shame of euery man, & be confoūded before all y• people. * 1.2 Beholde not euery bodyes beautye, & haue not much dwellynge amonge wemen. For lyke as the worme and moth cometh out of clothynge, so doth wyckednesse of women.* 1.3
It is better to be with an euell man, then [unspec C] with a frendely wyfe y• putteth one to shame and rebuke. I wyl remember the workes of the lorde, & declare the thyng yt I haue sene. In the wordes of the Lorde are his workes The Sunne ouerloketh all thynges with his shyne / and all his workes are full of the clerenes therof. Hath not the lord brought to passe that his sayntes shulde tell out all hys wunderous workes / whiche the almyghtie Lorde hath stably shed? All thynges endure in his glory. He seketh out the ground of the depe and the hert of men, and he knoweth all theyr ymaginacion & wysdome. For the Lord [unspec D] knoweth all scyence, and he loketh into y• to∣ken of the tyme. He declareth the thynges that are past and for to come: and discloseth thynges that are secrete. * 1.4 No thought maye escape hym / neyther maye any worde be hyd from hym. He hath garnyshed the hye excel∣lent workes of his wysdome, & he is frō euer¦lastyng to euerlastyng. Unto hym maye no∣thynge be added neyther can he be mynished he hath no nede also of any mans councel. O how amiable are al his work{is}, & as a sparke to loke vpon? They lyue all / and endure