TO THE READER.
Latin excedingly: as being marked throughout in a number of places, that such and such wordes or sentences are superfluous. In al which places out vulgar Latin hath no such thing, but is agreable to the Greek which remaineth after the superfluities be taken away. For example, that before mentioned in the end of the Pater noster, hath a marke of superfluitie in the Greeke text thus; and Marc. 6, 11 these wordes, Amen I say to you, it shal be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrhe in the day of iudgement, then for that citie. and Mat. 20, 22. these wordes, And be baptized with the baptisme that I am baptized vvith? Which is also superfluously repeated againe vers. 23. and such like places exceding many: which being noted superfluous in the Greek, and being not in the vulgar Latin, proue the Latin in those places to be better, truer and more sincere then the Greek.
Wherevpon we conclude of these premisses, that it is no derogation to the vulgar Latin text, which we translate, to disagree from the Greek text, wheras it may notwithstanding be not onely as good, but also better. And this the Aduersarie himself, their greatest and latest translatour of the Greek, doth auouch against Erasmus in behalfe of the old vulgar Latin translation, in these notorious wordes: How vnworthely and without cause (saith he) doth Erasmus blame the old Interpreter as dissenting from the Greek? He dissented, I grant, from those Greek copies which he had gotten: but we haue found, not in one place, that the same interpretation which be blameth, is grounded vpon the authoritie of other Greek copies, & those most ancient. Yea in some number of places we haue obserued, that the reading of the Latin text of the old Interpreter, though it agree not sometime with our Greek copies, yet it is much more conuenient, for that it seemeth be folowed some better and truer copie. Thus farre Beza. In which wordes he vnwittingly, but most truely, iustifieth and defendeth the old vulgar Translation against him self and al other cauillers, that accuse the same, because it is not alwaies agreable to the Greek text: Whereas it was translated out of other Greek copies (partly extant, partly not extant at this day) either as good and as auncient, or better and more ancient, such as S. Augustine speaketh of, calling them doctiores & diligentiores, the more learned and diligent Greek copies, whervnto the latin translations that faile in any place, must needes yeald. Li. 2. de doctr. Christ. c. 15.
And if it were not to long to exemplifie and proue this, which would require a treatise by it-self, we could shew by many and most cleere examples throughout the new Testament, these sundrie meanes of iustifying the old translation.
First, if it agree with the Greek text (as cōmonly it doth, & in the greatest places concerning the controuersies of our time, it doth most certainely) so farre the Aduersaries haue not to complaine: vnles they wil complaine of the Greeke also, as they doe Ia. 4. v. 2. and 1 Pet. 3. v. 21. where the vulgar Latin followeth exactly the Greeke text, saying, Occiditis: and, Quod vos similis forme, &c. But Beza in both places correcteth the Greeke text also as false.
2. If it disagree here and there from the Greeke text, it agreeth with an other Greek copie set in the margent, whereof see examples in the foresaid Greek Testaments of Robert Steuens and Crispin throughout: namely 2 Pet. 1, 10. Satagite vt per bona opera certam vestram vocationem faciatis.σπουδάσατε βεβαίαν ὑμῶν τὴν κλῆσιν. and Marc. 8. v. 7. Et ipsos benedixit, εὐλογήσας εἶπεν.
3. If these marginal Greek copies be thought lesse authentical then the Greek text, the Aduersaries them selues tel vs the cōtrarie, who in their translations often folow the marginal copies, and forsake the Greek text: as in the examples aboue mentioned Ro. 11. Apoc. 11. 2 Tim. 2. Iac. 5. &c. it is euident.
4. If al Erasmus Greek copies haue not that which is in the vulgar Latin, Beza had copies which haue it, and those most ancient (as he saith) & better. And if al Bezas copies faile in this point and wil not helpe vs, Gagneie the Frenche Kings Preacher, and he that might command in al the Kings Libraries, he found Greek copies that haue iust according to the vulgar Latin: & that in such place as would seeme otherwise lesse probable as Iac. 3. vers. 5. Ecce quantus ignis quam magnam silum incendit! Behold how much fire what a great wood it kindleth! A man would thinke it must be rather as in the Greek text, A litle fire what a great wood it kindleth! But an approued auncient Greek copie alleaged by Gagneie, hath as it is in the vulgar Latin. And if Gagneis copies also faile sometime, there Beza and Crispin supply Greek copies fully agreable to the vulgar Latin. as op. Iude vers. 5. Scientes semel omnia, quoniam IESVS &c. and vers 19. Segregant semetipsos. likewise 2 Ephes 2.
