A godly and learned exposition vppon the Prouerbes of Solomon: written in French by Maister Michael Cope, minister of the woorde of God, at Geneua: and translated into English, by M.O.

2 The tongue of the wise vseth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fooles babbleth out foolishnesse.

Wee al naturally doe desire knowledge, and to vnderstande how wee ought to gouerne and rule, that wee may gaine therby, & auoid losse: and it greeueth vs to bee ignorant, except wee be children in wit, or blockishe and dul. Wee doe greatly praise them which are cunning to handle their matters wel, and which are careful and dili∣gent to take heede that they haue no hinderance nor losse: and con∣trarily, wee blame them which haue no regarde to their businesse, and wee esteeme them negligent. Nowe if wee bee thus affecti∣oned to worldly things and temporal gouernment, by a more strong reason, must wee bee earnest to learne to guide and gouerne our soules, for to preserue them from danger, not temporal (as are the worldlings, which know no other life, but this temporal, very care∣ful to do this:) but to auoide eternal destruction, and to be alwaies in felicitie and ioy. The knowledge which is necessary thereto, is not found in al: for it is not common to al, but only to them which are instructed & taught of God. Dauid doth so affirme it, The Lord * 1.1 is good & iust. And therefore hee praieth, Make mee to know thy wayes, O Lorde. Also the promises that GOD maketh, doe shewe that the true knowledge commeth from him. And yet notwithstanding, GOD who is our teacher, dwelleth in the light that none can attaine vnto. For this cause hee ordereth the Instrumentes and Organes, by the which hee will teache vs, and of whome wee must learne knowledge. Solomon doth signifie it, whē he saith, The tongue of the wise vseth knowledge aright, &c.

If thē we wil learn knowledge, & learne how we must guide & go∣uerne our soules for to preserue them from destruction, we must aske of God that he woulde raise vp for vs wise men, not worldly & car∣nal, but such as was Noe, Abraham, Moyses, the Prophets & Apo∣stles: and that he would frame and order their tongue, in such wise that they may pronoūce, as they ought, the pure word, which is the sound & healthful knowledge, without the which al other sciences & knowledges are but darknes & ignorāce, & the way of destructiō damnatiō. And we must pray and him that he would draw vs neere vnto thē, & to heare them with al the desire of our heart, & that by such meanes he woulde accomplish in vs his promise. If wee cleaue vnto other, seing they are vnlike, euen mere contrary, to wit, fooles, * 1.2 we shal learne nothing but follie. For the mouth of fooles bableth out foolishnesse. Nowe when follie is set against knowledge, which is very profitable, as we haue heard: it followeth rightly that frō the mouth of fooles, we cā receiue nothing but hurt, the which we can∣not auoid, except we be very discrete for to preserue ourselues. For on what side soeuer wee turne vs, wee meete with fooles, who be∣cause of the great multitude where with the world is ful, & because also of their great glistering, and faire shew of holines & wisedome, & of their credite & authoritie doe draw vs vnto them, & doe be∣witch vs with their follie, & doe leade vs vnto destruction with thē, except we be very quicke to discerne betweene knowledge and foo∣lishnes. We haue tried it beeing vnder the yoake of Antichrist of Rome. Wherfore when the Lord giueth wisdome, we must come to heare it, beseeching him to make vs too vnderstande the way of his * 1.3 commandementes. Againe, Lorde teach me the way of thy statutes. And albeit that Solomon here maketh no mentiō but of the tongue and of the mouth: yet he excludeth not the other members. For as we haue hearde, a discrete man worketh by knowledge, but a foole openeth follie. There hee speaketh rather of the tongue then of other members: for it is the same that expresseth best what is in * 1.4 the hearre of man, and is more easily and lightly imparted vntoo a great multitude then by the other members. The tonge is of so greate excellencie, that the Scripture calleth glory, and S. Iames * 1.5 saieth, that the tongue woorketh greate thinges, though it be but a little member.

But if it be giuen to goodnes, it commeth not of it selfe: for the tongue is a fire, euen a worlde of wickednes. Therefore it requireth to be guided and ruled by some other thing then it selfe, that is to say, by wisedome. S. Iames doeth signifie it, when he asketh, Who∣soeuer is wise and discreet amongst you? let him shew by good con¦uersation of his workes in meekenesse of wisedome.

Solomon also saieth not simply, The tongue vseth know∣ledge aright: but the tongue of the wise: In them is knowledge, and with them it is founde. Therefore no man wil attribute knowledge, * 1.6 nor the vse thereof to himselfe, vnlesse he be wise, not before men, but before God, which giueth him witnesse by his Spirite. Let vs note further, that if knowledge be not so much vsed as it ought to be, that it is for want of wisedome. But foolishnesse aboundeth, be∣cause that the number of fooles (as hath bene saide) is so great, and can not suffer that the tongue of the wise shoulde vse knowledge rightly. In Turkie no man wil suffer Iesus Christ to bee preached, that hee might be knowne to be our Sauiour with God his Father: as it is necessarie thereby to obteine life. In Poperie, some mention * 1.7 shalbe made of Iesus Christ, and yet no man wil heare Saint Paule which hath rightly vsed knowledge, and hath saide, I esteemed not * 1.8 to knowe any thing among you, saue Iesus Christ, and him crucifi∣ed. But they preferre an heape of trifles before Iesus Christ, who of God is made vnto vs wisdome. As touching the countries where the Gospel is purely preached, yet are they not cleane purged of * 1.9 fooles. For we shal finde many which cannot abide vs to reprehend, to confute, to threaten them which liue slanderously and dissolute∣ly: and yet we must not so doe, if we wil rightly preach the Gospel, wherein is conteined repentance, vnto the which, for to exhort and bring the people, it is necessarie to crie out against vice and sinne, and to terrifie the consciences of those which are giuen to liue wicked∣ly. For to vse knowledge rightly, we must preache one onely Iesus Christ, and repentance, and remission of sinnes in his name. * 1.10

Notes

• * 1.1

  Psa. 25. 8. Psa. 32. 8. Esay. 2. 3. & 48. 17. & 54. 13. Iere. 31. 33. 34.
• * 1.2

  Eze. 36. 27.
• * 1.3

  Pro. 2. 6. Psa. 119. 27. 33.
• * 1.4

  Pro. 13. 16.
• * 1.5

  Psal. 16. 9. Ia. 3. 5. 6. 13.
• * 1.6

  Pro. 10. 13. 14.
• * 1.7

  Iohn. 17. 3.
• * 1.8

  1. Cor. 2. 2.
• * 1.9

  2. Cor. 1. 30.
• * 1.10

  Luke. 34. 17.