B208. Si in viridi ligno, quid in arido?

Argumentatio Christi est a maiori ad minus praedicentis mulieribus Hierosolymitanis de sua nece dolentibus venturum tempus, cum a Romanis Iudaeorum regnum delebitur, et tunc maioris causa luctus est quam ob suum interitum (vulgatior est historia quam ut hoc loco sit referenda) et ne illud difficle factu videretur, exemplo sui docuit. Quippe se arbori fructiferae, Iudaeos vero inutili ac putridi assimulavit, inquiens,^a Si in viridi ligno haec faciunt, in arido quid fiet? Hoc est, si Iudaei me, qui instar virentis arboris bonos fructus fero, supplicio afficiunt, quid fiet in arido, id est, quid illi velut iam aridae arbores incendii patientur? Hac proverbiali allegoria uti solemus quoties volumus significare ex eventu difficilioris rei quippiam mox facilius esse futurum.

[If they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?

Christ used an argument a maiori ad minus in speaking to the women of Jerusalem who were grieving over His approaching death, predicting a coming time when the kingdom of the Jews would be destroyed by the Romans, which would then be a cause of greater lamentation than His death (the story is too well known to require repetition here). Lest this seem difficult to achieve, He explained it using Himself as an example, comparing Himself to a fruitful tree and the Jews to a useless, rotten one, saying, If they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry? which is as if He said, if the Jews visit punishment on Me, Who bear fruit like a green tree, what shall be done to a dry one, that is, how will they suffer burning like dry trees? We are accustomed to resort to this proverbial allegory whenever we wish to indicate that something harsher can soon result from some action.]

a) Luke 23:31

B209. Superbia eorum qui te oderint ascendit semper

Superbia eorum qui te oderint ascendit semper.^a In iugiter invidos, in desinenter malevolos hoc prophetae Asaph carmen scienter accommodabitur. Tracta metaphora ab arboribus quae quam diu vivunt semper crescunt. Quapropter recte Salomon admonet, Non credas inimico in aeternum. Et Seneca,^c inimicum quamvis humilem docti est timere.

[The tumult of those that rise up against thee increaseth continually

The tumult of those that rise up against thee increaseth continually. This verse of the prophet Asaph can knowledgably be applied to those who are constantly envious and perpetually malevolent. The metaphor is taken from trees, which continue to grow as long as they are alive. For which reason Solomon rightly advises, Never trust thine enemy, and Seneca, it is the mark of an experienced man to fear even a lowly enemy.]

a) Psalm 73:23 (K. J. V. 74:23) b) Ecclesiasticus 12:10 c) Publilius Syrus, Sententiae I255

B210. Abyssus abyssum invocat

Abyssus Graeca vox Latine voraginem sonat. Et quia vorago immensae est altitudinis, hinc apparet in psalmo lxj^a utrunque instrumentum, interpretatore Hieronymo,^b non ineleganter propter profunditatem intelligentiae abyssum appellari. Verum secus non nemo sentiens de Babylonica captivitate eo in loco agi mavult. Ut enim barathrum continenter vorando circum vicina loca pedetentim desidente terra admodum cavernosa reddit, sic calamitas quae subegit Iudaeos Babylonem in exilium demigrare alteram illis mox in captivitate afflictionem invexit. Unde vulgo receptum proverbium, abyssus abyssum invocat, hoc est unum incommodum invitat alterum, et calamitas calamitatem parit. Et illud etiam nunc tristissimum. Malum nunquam incomitatum venit seu ingruit. Est et huius alius usus, ubi aliquis sceleratus ut vitiorum vorago alterius scelerati auxilium implorat. Est item alius, cum error errorem, et obscuritas obscuritatem sequitur. In hanc sententiam usurpatur ab eodem divo Hieronymo^c in prooemio libri secundi commentariorum in Zachariam.

[Deep calleth unto deep

An abyss is a Greek word for a whirlpool. And since a whirlpool is immensely deep, it appears that in Psalm 41, as Jerome suggests, either Testament is not inelegantly called an abyss because of the profundity of its thought. But some people disagree and prefer to think that here the Babylonian captivity is meant. For just as an abyss gradually eats away the surrounding land with its continual erosion and renders it hollow, so the calamity which compelled the Jews to migrate to Babylonian exile soon involved them in the second calamity of affliction. Hence the proverb deep calleth unto deep is popularly understood as meaning that one trouble invites another, and that calamity begets calamity. Such is very common. For no evil ever comes along or brew up without being accompanied by another. There is another use for this proverb as well, when one rascal, being a whirlpool of crimes, begs the assistance of another villain. And there is another, when error follows upon error, and obscurity upon obscurity. It is used in this sense by the same St. Jerome in the proem of Book II of his commentaries on Zachariah.]

a) Psalm 41:8 (K. J. V. 42:8) b) St. Jerome, Commentaries on Jonah I (vol.25.410, col. 1135B Migne) c) St. Jerome, Commentaries on Zacaharia II (vol. 25.824, col. 1453 Migne)

B211. Ait latro ad latronem

Ait latro ad latronem. Dici solitum est ubi sermo rixosus incidit inter duos crimine pares, seu cum alter alterum paris delicti reprehendit. Facta allusio ad illos duos latrones quos cum Iesu crucifixos fuisse Lucas^a testatur. Isti enim ambo scelesti primo blasphemarunt, sed postea signorum magnitudine alter exterritus in Iesum credidit, et alterum adhuc blasphemare non cessantem pie coarguit.

[One thief is speaking to another

One thief is speaking to another. This is used when a heated quarrel arises between to equally guilty men, when one chides the other for a crime they have equally committed. The allusion is to those two thieves whom Luke tells where crucified together with Jesus. For at first they both blasphemed Him, but after a while one of them was terrified by signs of His greatness and believed in Jesus, and piously reprehended the other for not ceasing his blasphemy.]

a) Luke 23:32 - 43

B212. Facti sunt amici Herodes et Pilatus

Pilatus, Tiberio principe, Iudaeae praefectus inimicitias gerens cum Herode magni Herodis filio Galilaeae tetrarcha, nactus occasionem ineundi ab eo gratiam, per scelus remisit Iesum captivum ad illum eo quod audivisset percupidum esse sanctitatem tanti prophetae experiendi. Ex qua re secuta est inter eos reconciliatio. Autor Lucas.^a Hinc igitur vulgo factum proverbium ut quoties cuiuspiam flagitii interventu initur inter aliquos amicitia, seu potius amor et benevolentia conciliatur, vel ex inimicis amici fiunt, perbelle de eis dicamus facti sunt amici Herodes et Pilatus.

[Pilate and Herod were made friends together

During the reign of Tiberius, Pilate, the Prefect of Judea, was at odds with Herod, the son of Herod the Great and Tetrarch of Galilee. Taking this opportunity to gain his good graces, he criminally sent the captive Jesus to him, because he had heard Herod was very eager to test the sanctity of so great a prophet. Because of his deed, there ensued a reconciliation between them. Luke tells the story. Hence, therefore, was created a proverb, so that as often as friendship, or rather affection and good-will, is created between some men by the intervention of some crime, or if they are transformed from enemies into friends, we can excellently say of them Pilate and Herod were made friends together.]

a) Luke 23.6 - 12

B213. Ille Herodis vestem induit

Ille Herodis vestem induere proverbio dicitur qui ob temeritatem, superbiam, insolentiam, novo ac miserando exitio perit, sumpta allusione ab Herode eius nominis tertio. Siquidem primus Herodes fuit, quo regnante Christus est natus, secundus eius filius, qui Galilaeae tetrarcha extitit et Ioannem Baptistima occidit, hoc vero tertius, de quo sermo est, filius Aristoboli magnis Herodis filii, quem Caius Caesar, Herode tetrarcha in exilium acto, regem Iudaeae fecerat., etiam si Iosephus eum Agrippam semper appellat, quod forte Herodi non nomen sed cognomen illi fuit. Is itaque anno regni tertio Caesaream profectus, et dum spectaculum in honorem Caesaris aedebat, in theatrum venit oriente sole, stola argento contexta vestitus, quae solaribus radiis percussa tantum subito splendoris emittebat ut intuentium acies mirifice perstringeret. Quod illi miraculo vertentes regem ceu deum adorare incoeperunt. Sed id Herodi, quia fieri non renuit, malo fuit. Quippe protinus ab angelo (ut in Actis Apostolorum extat) percussus et quinto post die consumptus a vermibus expiravit, clamitans ac ad circumstes dicens, et ego vester deus vitam sic mutare compellor, autor Iosephus. Proinde videant illi quibus superba vestium mutatio ac humi iacentium adulationes magnopere cordi sunt, quantum sibi ob haec in singulas horas immineat periculi.

[He has donned Herod’s garment

He has donned Herod’s garment is proverbially said of him who has died by a novel piteous death because of his rashness, pride, and insolence. The allusion is to Herod, the third of that name. For Herod I reigned at the time of Christ’s birth, the second Herod was tetrarch of Galilee and put John the Baptist to death, and this third one of whom I speak was the son of Aristobulus, son of Herod the Great, whom Caligula made king of Judea after banishing Herod the tetrarch, even if Josephus always calls him Agrippa, perhaps because Herod was his nickname and not his actual name. In any event, in the third year of his reign he went to Caesarea, and while giving games in honor of Caesar, he came to the theater at sunrise wearing a robe of woven silver. When this was stricken by the sun’s rays, it shone so brightly that it dazzled the eyes of the beholders. Regarding this as a miracle, they began to worship their king as a god. But, since he refused to allow this, this turned out badly for Herod. For (as is said in the Acts of the Apostles)^b he was visited by an angel and died five days thereafter, eaten up by worms, saying and I, your god, am thus compelled to quit tis life, as Joseph tells. So let those who so greatly delight in the proud changing of garments and the adulation of prostrate men see how much danger hangs over them each and every hour.]

a) Josphus, Jewish Antiquities XIX.viii.2 § 345 - 50 b) Acts 12:1 - 23

B214. Ille Uriae literas perfert

Literas Uriae vulgato iam adagio illi deferre perhibentur, qui commendatitias esse credit, quae contra se scriptae sint, sicut fecit Urias Etthaeus. David enim rex captus amore Bersabeae (ut in secundo Regnorum libro legitur),^a remisit Uriam eius virum ad exercitum, datis literis ad Ioab belli ducem, velut in illius commendationem, quibus mandabat ut quoquo modo hominem e medio tollere, ita ut fecit. Nam congressus cum hostibus Uriam in prima acie collocavit, ubi pugnando interiit. Qua re cognita, rex Bersabeam sibi matrimonio iunxit, ex qua mox Salomonem suscepit.

[He carries a letter to Uriah

That man is proverbially said to carry a letter to Uriah, who fancies he is carrying a letter of commendation when it is actually written against him, as did Uriah the Hittite. King David was smitten with love for Bathsheba (as we read in 2 Kings) and sent her husband Uriah back to the army with a letter to its captain Joab, as if to commend him, commanding Joab to kill him, which he did. For in a battle against the enemy he stationed Uriah in the van, where he died in the fight. Learning of this, the king married Bathsheba, on whom he soon fathered Solomon.]

a) the story is actually told at 2 Samuel 11

B215. Et tu ex illis es

Et tu ex illis es. Puta si forte de facinorosis hominibus sermo haberetur, et quispiam illos defendere conaretur, recte in eum proverbium iam increbuit, et tu ex illis es, eiusdem collegii, eiusdem notae, eiusdem farinae, eiusdem sectae. Tractum ab illa divi Petri negatione, cum a circumstantibus dictum est, vere et tu ex illis es, id est discipulis Iesu, quam rem ei vitio dederunt. Unde hodie in malam semper partem eiusmodi adagione utimur.

[Surely thou also art one of them

Surely thou also art one of them.^a If, for example, evildoers are under discussion and someone seeks to defend him, this proverb rightly applies to him, Surely thou also art one of them, you belong to the same association, the same breed, the same kind, the same tribe. This is derived from St. Peter’s denial, when, on the basis of circumstantial evidence, it was said surely thou also art one of them, i. e. one of Jesus’ disciples, for which they blamed him. Hence today we always use this proverb in a bad sense.]

a) Matthew 26:73, Mark 14:68

B216. Amice, ad quod venisti?

Amice, ad quod venisti? Sic Iesus notavit Iudam proditione, per antiphrasim amicum appellans. Quadrabit in eum qui minime amicus per speciem benevolentiae insidias alicui intendit.

[Friend, wherefore art thou come?

Friend, wherefore art thou come?^a Thus Jesus accused Judas of betrayal, ironically calling him a friend. This applies to a man who is anything but friendly, and under a show of good will sets a snare for someone.]

a) Matthew 26:50

B217. Dominus dedit, dominus abstulit^a

Cum Iob viro iusto cuncta prosperarentur, illa ipsa Deo accepte referebat, dicens, dominus dedit. Ediverso cum pessime caderent, eidem gratias agebat, inquiens dominus abstulit, ac si fateretur dominum gratuito contulisse beneficia et eadem iuste revocasse ab se, quippe qui nihil meritus esset. Quo nempe exemplo iam vice proverbii ab omnibus concelebrato monemur ut si quid sub manus successerit, neutiquam illud ceu arrogantes nostrae industriae, sed divinae bonitati tribuamus. Sin vero casu quopiam ea subito felicitate ceciderimus, putemus id esse factum ex divina iustitia, ita nostris poscentibus commissis. Atque sic convenit et praestat, dicente eodem Iob,^b Si bona suscepimus de manu domini, mala quare non sustineamus? Et alibi,^c Beatus homo, qui corripitur a domino, id quod suus obiter recensebit locus.

[The Lord giveth, the Lord taketh away

When all things went prosperously for Job, that just man, he credited them to God, saying the Lord giveth. On the other hand, when they went badly, he thanked Him, saying the Lord taketh away. Thus he acknowledged that the Lord had freely conferred His benefits and justly taken them away, since he was undeserving. By this example, now famous to all men as a proverb, we are advised that, if what we have in hand succeeds, we should not, in the manner of arrogant men, attribute it to our own industry, but rather to divine goodness. But if we suffer some sudden downfall and suddenly lapse from our happiness, we should think this is has been done as an act of divine justice, required by our wrongdoing. For such as best. As this same Job says, Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? And elsewhere, Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth, a saying that will be discussed in its own place.]

a) Job 1:21 b) Job 2:10 c) Job 5:17

B218. Facite amicos de mammona iniquitatis

Malus oeconomus cum dispensationis rationem reddere cogeretur (uti est apud Lucam)^a et victum manibus quaerere nollet, ac erubesceret emendicare, conciliat sibi amicos de mammona iniquitatis, quo ab illis deinceps mutuo iuveretur, ubi eo ministerio privatus esset. eEst audem mammona vox Syriaca singularis numeri et masculini generis, significatque divitias malo modo partitas. Hinc itaque in proverbium abiit, Facite vobis amicos de Mammona iniquitatis, cum praecipitur ut de male acquisitis detur eleemosyna, utpote quae peccatum levat, aut in eos apte accommodabitur qui de alieno sibi parant amicos unde vel illud est,

[Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness

When the bad steward was forced to given accounting of his stewardship (as is told in Luke) and refused to earn his livelihood with his hands yet blushed to beg, he gained friends of the mammon of unrighteousness, so that he would be helped by them in return after he had been stripped of his position. Mammon is a word of the Syriac language, a masculine singular noun meaning ill-gotten gains. Hence arose a proverb, make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness when the precept is given that alms should be given out of ill-gotten gains so as to lessen the guilt, or is fitly applied those who make themselves friends with other men’s money. From this parable we also have the following proverb,]

a) Luke 16:1 - 9 (the quote is from v. 9)

B219. Fodere non valeo, mendicare erubesco

De valde anxiis circa victum passim in ore vulgi est,^a fodere non valeo, mendicare erubesco. Etenim perdifficle admodum est capere consilium quomodo vivas si laborare nequeas et mendicabulo circumforaneo cibum quaerere pudeat.

[I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed

There is a popular saying on everyone’s lips concerning those very anxious about their livelihood, I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed. For it is most difficult to devise a way to live, if you cannot labor and are ashamed to go about the marketplace begging for your bread.

a) Luke 16:3

B220. Martha, Martha, sollicita es

Martha, Martha, sollicita es et turbaris circa plura.^a De iis quorum sedulitas admotum arguta est, et qui frustra in re parum gravi tumultuant, proverbialiter ac concinne refertur. Sumptum ab illa Christi increpatione in Martham sororem Mariae Magdalenae, quae in eius adventu potius circa curam corporis quam ad contemplandam tanti hospitis divinitatem distrahehabatur. Quot hodie huius mulierculae studium naviter aemulantes mundanis sollicitudinibus plus nimio obruuntur! Quippe quibus longe maiori curae est, quonam pacto hominibus quam Deo placeant.

[Martha, Martha, thou art careful

Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things. This said as a neat proverb about those whose anxiety is very great and who are pointlessly troubled about a matter that is not at all series. It is taken from Christ’s rebuke to Martha, the sister of Mary Magdalene, who at His arrival was more concern about the care of His bodily needs than the contemplation of such a great guest’s divinity. How many men nowadays imitate the zeal of this silly little woman in becoming excessively overwhelmed by mundane concerns! For they are much more concerned about pleasing men than pleasing God.]

Luke 10:41

B221. Ecce audivimus eam in Ephrata, invenimus in campis sylvae

Oraculo ab initio extiterunt quibus contabat Christum in Bethleem, quae et Ephrata, teste Hieronymo,^a dicta est esse oriturum. Hic igitur primum de ecclesia auditum est, quae †tñ† in gentibus inventa est ceu propagata et iam in validum corpus adulta. Utrunque Propheta^b psalmo cxxx altero fore praedixerat canens, Ecce audivimus eiam in Ephrata, invenimus eam in campis sylvae, id est, in gentibus, quae prius diaboli erant cubilia, nunc autem campi Deum colentes fructiferi. Cum igitur prophetae carmen varietatem prae se ferat, quod una res uno in loco denunciaretur, et alibi quaerenda esset, idcirco non intempestiviter in proverbium cessit quo decenter utemur cum voluerimus significare aliquid non convenire, non consentire, hoc est, nec caput nec pedes habere. Sed aptius homini haerebit qui modo ait, modo negat, et ad rogatum non respondens nunc de summis, nunc de minimis loquitur, ac semper ut inconstans de una re in alium sermonem vertit, ita ut neque ipse uspiam consistat neque eius verba certi aliquid adportent. Habent Itali consimile proverbium de re incerta et vana, Pisis te vidi et Lucae offendi. Sunt enim duae inter se vicinae civitates adeo ut facile quispiam possit apud Pisanos aliquid promittere et deinde se Lucam proripere, ubi non teneatur violatae fidei. Atque adeo ut mores illarum gentium est allusum, quod forsitan sint inter eas, qui imponere optime norint.

[Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah, we found it in the fields of the wood

From the beginning, there existed those who were convinced by an oracle that Christ would be born at Bethlehem, which, according to Jerome, was also called Ephratah. This has been interpreted as referring to the Church, which was founded and propagated among the Gentiles and now has grown into a mighty body. Both things were predicted by the Prophet, when he sang in Psalm 131 that this would come to pass: Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah, we found it in the fields of the wood, i. e., among the gentiles, a place that was beforehand the haunt of the devil, but now fruitful and God-worshiping fields. And so, since this verse of the Prophet express variety, since something is announced as being in one place but must be sought for in another, it has not inappropriately turned into a proverb we may fitly use when we want to indicate that something does not cohere or agree, i. e., that it lacks head and feet. But it will better apply to a man who now says yes and now says no, and, not responding to a question, now speaks of the highest matters and now of the lowest, always changing his discourse from one subject to another, as being an inconstant man, so much so that he never agrees with himself and his words express nothing definite. The Italians have a similar proverb about something uncertain and vain, I saw you at Pisa and met you at Lucca. For these are two cities, standing so close together that a man may easily promise something at Pisa and then dash off to Lucca, where he will not be convicted of having broken his word. And so there is an allusion to the manners of those nations, since perhaps there are those among them who have a very good idea how to impose on their victims.]

a) St. Jerome, Epistola lxiv.8 b) Psalm 131:6 (K. J. V. 132:6)

B222. Novissimus error peior priore

Novissimus error peior priore proverbiliater dicitur cum malefactum novo maleficio, et secelus scelere cumulatur, velut factitatum est a Iudaeis, qui non contenti dedisse Christum neci, etiam conabantur eius corpus occultare, arbitrantes futurum errorem peiorem priore, si discipuli essent illud suffurati, ac postea nunciassent plebi eum resurrexisse a mortuis. Quod illis tamen invitis divinitus est factum.

[The last error shall be worse than the first

The last error shall be worse than the first.^a This is said as a proverb when a new misdeed is piled atop misdeed, a new crime atop crime, as was done by the Jews, who, not content to have killed Christ, also attempted to conceal His body, thinking that the last error would be worse than the first, should the disciples steal it and afterwards announce to the people that He had risen from death. Which was done, even if it was not to their liking.]

a) Matthew 27:64

B223. Dimitte mortuos sepelire mortuos suos

Dimitte mortuos sepelire mortuos suos.^a Evangelica parabola mortuos designat qui nihil spirituale redolent. Mortui igitur sepelire mortuos proverbialiter dici possunt qui non credunt, et aliorum infidelium curam gerunt. Cuiusmodi sunt qui vitiis simul addicti sese foedo vitae commertio invicem corrumpunt.

[Let the dead bury their dead

Let the dead bury their dead. This Gospel parable indicates men who have nothing spiritual about themselves. Thus let the dead bury their dead can proverbially be said of those who do not believe, and have a concern for other non-believers. Such are those who, equally addicted to vices, corrupt each other with the foul intercourse of their lives.]

a) Matthew 8:22

B224. Quod facis, fac citius

Quod facis, fac citius. Haec salvatoris minantis magis quam hortantis assertio est in Iudam proditorem, hoc est in diabolum, cuius membrum ille erat, quasi dicentis Idcirco fac citius ut ipse per passionem meam celerius vincaris, quod hactenus fecisti, ut homines, neglecto creatore, idola colerent. Unde in adagium abiit quo quis commodum utitur cum minitanti similis contemptim adversarium instigat, ut quam pessime potest faciat. Consimile est illud Iob,^b Verumtamen quod coepistis explete.

[That thou doest, do quickly

That thou doest, do quickly.^a This was our Saviors statement to the traitor Judas, said as a threat rather than an encouragement. Or rather it was said to the devil, whose limb Judas was, as if Jesus were saying, So act quickly so that you will be defeated by My passion all the sooner. Continue doing what you have, I mean that you inspire men to neglect their Creator and worship idols. Hence this has turned into an adjective that one can conveniently use when, as if issuing a threat, one contemptuously urges his adversary on to do his worst. Very similar is that statement of Job, And complete that you have begun.]

a) John 13:27 b) Job 6:28

B225. Vox populi, vox Dei

Vox populi, vox Dei.^a In vulgarem ob id iactatum est sermonem quod populus interdum aliquid temere ac intempestiviter fundere soleat, quid perinde quasi divinasset evenit. Cuiusmodi vaticinium fuit illud populi Iudaici supplicium Christi affectantis, cum repente exclamavit,^b sanguis eius super nos et super filios nostros. Id quod imprecationis plane contigit, et usque nunc durat. Nam haud ita multo post digno impietatis pretio (ut Egesippus ait)^c persolventes fere omnes cum patria periere. Unde est cunctis seculis observatum, non usquequaque vanum evadere quicquid fuerit vulgi rumore iactatum, perinde Deus in mortalium ora quasi ante immittat, quod brevi sit futurum.

[The voice of the people is the voice of God

The voice of the people is the voice of God. This is commonly said because sometimes the people utter something rash and hasty which later turns out to be true, as if the people has been prophetic. A prophecy of this kind was that thing said by the Jewish people crying out for Jesus’ punishment, when they suddenly exclaimed, His blood be on us, and on our children. For this curse clearly turned out to be true, and endures down to this day. For not much later, as Hegesippus says, they paid the due price for their impiety and nearly all of them died along with their nation. Hence it has been observed in all ages that whatever is said by popular rumor does not always turn out to be untrue, as if God places words in mortals’ mouths which soon come to pass.]

a) not a Scriptural quote: this saying is encountered in such Medieval writers as Alcuin and William of Malmesbury b) Matthew 27:25c) St. Hegesippus, Hypomnemata fragment p. 211.17 Routh

B226. Homo ad laborem nascitur

Homo ad laborem nascitur et avis ad volatum.^a Sententia est Iob proverbialis ac humanae servitutis certum symbolum. Siquidem hinc apparet perinde hominis proprium esse laborare ac avis volitare. Quod qui facere recusaverit, dubio procul quod hominis est non praestabit, et per hoc temere contra placitum Dei nitetur, dicentis ad hominem primum parentem,^b in sudor vultus vesceris pane tuo. Conveniet autem in desides et socordes, qui quodlibet mallent pati quam aliqua uti industria aut manibus victum quaerere.

[Man is born unto trouble

Man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward. This proverbial statement belongs to Job and is a sure symbol of human servitude. For from it it becomes evident that it is Man’s natural condition to suffer trouble, just as sparks fly. If someone refuses to do this, without doubt he is not performing the office of a man, and thus is rashly striving against God’s plan, since God said to his first father, in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread. And it will apply to the idle and slothful, who would prefer to suffer anything at all rather than earn a livelihood by their industry or handiwork.]

a) Job 5:7 b) Genesis 3:19

B227. Bonum est viro, cum portavit iugum ab adulescentia sua

Bonum est viro, cum portavit iugum ab adulescntia sua. Carmen Hieremiae prophetae iam olim ascitum in proverbium, quo liquet plurimum salutare esse si quis a puero sese assuefecerit perferendis laboribus. Nimirum ea aetas suapte natura admodum lasciva ac in voluptates prona. Nisi bonis quam primum artibus exerceatur, haud dubie reliquam aetatem deteriorem faciet.

[It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth

It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth.^a This verse of the prophet Jeremiah has long ago been adopted as a proverb, by which it is made clear that it is very salubrious if a man is accustomed to enduring labor from boyhood. For that age is wanton by nature and prone to pleasure-seeking. Unless as soon as possible he is exercised in goodly arts, this will undoubtedly make the remainder of his life worse.]

a) Lamentations 3:27

B228. Iugum meum suave est, et onus meum leve^a

Hoc salvatoris scitum passim instar adagii usurpatur, cum institutum aliquod et salutare ac non difficile servatu significatur. Quippe Christiana lex Mosaicam alioque intolerabilem corrigens, animorum in primis affectus coercet. Quod facere principio est oneri, postea vero suavitatem, id est commodum, adfert. Deducta metaphora a iuvencis qui iugo domantur.

[My yoke is easy, and my burden is light

This pronouncement of our Savior is commonly used as an adage, when it is indicated that some rule is both salubrious and easy to observe. For Christian law corrects the intolerable Law of Moses, and is particularly devoted to restraining the impulses of the mind. At first this is burdensome to do, but afterwards it brings easiness, by which I mean advantage. The metaphor is taken from bulls, who are governed by a yoke.]

a) Matthew 11:30

B229. Bonum est nos hic esse

Bonum est nos hic esse, si vis, faciamus hic tria tabernacula.^a Petri apostoli verba sunt imprudenter credentis iam ad locum pervenisse se beatudinis, quod Christum transformatum vidisset, quae adagii vice vulgus in ore habet ubi vult significare certo in loco partam esse quietem vitaeque felicitatem.

[It it good for us to be here

It is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles. These are the words of the apostle Peter, wrongly imagining he had now come to a place of blessedness, because he had seen Christ transformed, which the common folk keep on their lips as a proverb, when they want to indicate that they have gained peace and a happy life in some particular place.]

a) Matthew 17:4, Luke 9:33

B230. Animae esurienti etiam amara dulcia videntur

Animae esurienti etiam amara dulcia videntur est a Iob^a proverbialiter dictitatum de bonae frugi ac sobriis hominibus, quibus quatenus nusquam sine fame edunt, nec sine siti bibunt, etiam viliora cibaria sapiunt, gratioraque fiunt. Rursus ediverso bifariam referri potest aut in luxuriosos voracesque qui, quoniam famem semper ac sitem anteveniunt, omnia fastidiunt praeter delicatiora, utputa ganeata edula. Aut in assuetos malis quippe qui minora incommoda pro commodis ferunt. Adstipulatur huic sententiae Salomon^b dicens, Anima saturata calcat favum. Anima esuriens etiam amarum pro dulci sumet.

[To the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet

To the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet is proverbially said by Job, concerning upright men who never eat save when they are hungry, and never drink when not thirsty, for whom even cheap foods are flavorsome and all the more welcome. Again, it can be taken in two ways, either against wanton gourmands for whom, since they always anticipate their hunger and thirst, hold everything in contempt other than delicacies, the food of gluttons. Or it can be applied to men accustomed to hardships, who regard minor inconveniences as conveniences. Solomon subscribes to this opinion, saying, The full soul loatheth an honey-comb; but to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.]

a) not in Job b) Proverbs 27:7

B231. Requiesce, comede, bibe, epulare

Christus apud Lucam parabolam ponit de eo qui sibi soli tantum se natum arbitrans nihil alicui impartiebatur, et quia bonis abundabat, statuit indulgere per omnia genio, cum ecce subito e medio tollitur. Atque sic spe frustratus inani aliis fruendas reliquit opes. Quo quidem documento simul vetamur rebus partis abuti, simul nobis vitae spatium longius polliceri. Caeterum titulus iste egregius, requiesce, comede, bibe, epulare,^a iam passim vulgi sermone proverbialis effectus recte quadrabit in quosdam quos modis omnibus adeo delectat et capit, ut inter eos et belluas vivendo parum omnino intersit.

a) Luke 12:19

[Take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry

In Luke, Christ provides a parable a man who, thinking he was born for himself alone, shared nothing with anyone else. And since he abounded in good things, he decided to cater to himself in everything. Then behold, he died. And, thus baffled in his vain hope, he left his wealth for others to enjoy. By this example we are forbidden to abuse the goods we have gained, while promising ourselves a long life. And this egregious slogan, take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry, now turned into a popular proverb, will properly pertain to certain men whom it so delights and captivates in every way that there is very little between their manner of life and that of the beasts.]

B232. De ore tuo te iudico, serve nequam

Refertur a Luca^a evangelista parabola de decem minis datis a quodam nobili viro servis, qui cum illis mercaturae operam darent. Quorum unus ut ignavior ac rei familiaris negligentior minime est negociatus, satis lucri se fecisse reatus si minam acceptam reddere domino posset, ut qui veritus esset, eius severitatem si eam (ut negociando fit) perdidisset. Quamobrem immemor officii dum huiusmodi timorem imprudens excusat, se peccasse fatetur, inquiens, Domine, ecce mina tua quam habui respositam in sudario. Timui enim te, quia homo austerus est, et dominus ad eum dicit, De ore tuo te iudico, serve nequam &c. Hinc in proverbium fluxit in eum qui temere loquendo aliquid molens fudit quod sibi mox vitio ac noxae merito vertatur. Potest nihilo invenustius et in eum quadrare qui alicuius criminis alterum eiusdem damnat, poenamque illi irrogandam pronunciat, quam ipse cum primis meruisset, cui recte a iudice dicetur, de ore tuo te iudico. Tale iudicium fecit David interrogatus a Nathan qua poena efficiendus foret dives ovium, qui unicam ovem a paupere abstulisset, nihil attendens quod aeque semetipsum condemnaret, quia Bersabeam rapuisset. Nota est historia in secundo Regnorum. Illud insuper monebo, mna in literis evangelicis legi, quam nos minam interposita i litera vocamus, et nummum esse libralem, pendereque drachmas Atticas centum. At servus ille inutilis qui negociari noluit eos refert Christianos qui doctrinam non exercent, nihilve docendo operant, et denique nullas Deo lucrifaciunt minas. Cuiusmodi sunt episcopi reliquique sacerdotes in quos propterea quod in ecclesia nihil doceant, iam illud vulgatum est.

[Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant

Luke tells the parable of the ten pounds given to his servants by a certain noble gentleman, who were supposed to trade with them. One of the servants, being lazier and more negligent of his master’s property, engaged in to trade, thinking he would have turned a sufficient profit if he could return to his master the mina he had been given, since he feared his wrath if he were to lose the money (as can happen in trading). And so, heedless of his duty, when imprudently excused his fear, he admitted he had done wrong, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a napkin: For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man. And his master said to him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant &c. This has been transformed into a proverb, said about the man who, in rashly trying to say something blabs out something else which is soon rightly held against him as a fault. With no less elegance it can be made to fit the man who damns someone else for a crime of which he is equally guilty, and for which he especially deserves punishment, to whom a judge can rightly say I judge thee out of thine own mouth. Such a pronouncement was made by David, asked by Nathan what penalty he would inflict on a man who was rich in sheep, who stole a single sheep from a pauper, little realizing that he was condemning himself for having stolen Bathsheba. This story is well known from Second Kings. I will also advise that mna (“pound”) should be read in the Gospels, which we call a mina with the insertion of an i, a costly coin, the equivalent of a hundred Attic drachmas. And that useless servant who refused to trade represents Christians who do not apply their doctrine, who do nothing by way of teaching, who, in short, earn no pounds for God. Of this ilk are bishops and other clergymen, against whom it is common to use this proverb because they teach nothing in the Church.]

a) Luke 19:15 - 22 b) 2 Samuel 12:1 - 14

B233. Canes muti

Canes muti.^a Columella^b trifarium canum genera dividit. Unum villaticum, quid villam et quae iuncta sunt villae custodit, et debet conspectu terrere et vasti esse latratus atque sonori. Alterum pastorale, quod domi stabulum observat, foris pecora pascentia. Tertium venaticum. Probantur canes qui in exteros excandescunt. Si bene tecum reputes, non aliud officii onus sacerdotibus incubit. Debent enim custodire templum Dei, quod sumus nos,. Item prae se ferre gravitatem atque severitatem, qua a male faciendo cunctos deterreant, et libera voce vitia reprehendere, ac ita invigilare ut nulla labes per civitatem Dei possit pervadere. St si qu ut ignavi his rebus indormiverint aut aliquo laboraverint morbo, hoc est crimine, ita ut in delinquentes non ausi fuerint hiare, neque exteros, id est inimicos fidei, ritu canum impugnare, in eos hoc Esaiae prophetae recte aptabitur, canes muti non valentes latrare. Atque generatim in omnes accommodare potest qui cum pro re loqui debeant, metu aut gratia victi tacent.

[Dumb dogs

Dumb dogs. Columella divides dogs into three kinds. One is the house dog, which protects the household and all connected with it, which ought to look fierce and bark loudly. The second is the shepherd dog, which keeps watch over the barn at home and the grazing sheep in the field. The third is the hunting hound. Dogs which flare up at strangers gain our approval. And, if you think about it, no other duty is incumbent on our clergy. For they should guard God’s temple, which is ourselves. Likewise they should exhibit gravity and severity so as to deter all men from evildoing, loudly reprehend vices, and be sufficiently vigilant that no sin can invade the City of God. But if some of them are idlers who fall asleep over these matters or suffer from some disease, I mean some sin, so that they do not dare rail against the delinquent or savage strangers, i. e. enemies of the faith, in a dog-like manner, then this saying of the prophet will rightly apply to them, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark. And this proverb has a general applicability to all men who, when they should speak up in behalf of something, keep their silence, overcome by fear or favor.]

a) Isaiah 56:10 b) Columella, De Re Rustica VII.xii.3

B234. Filius abortivus

Abortivus ecclesiae filius iam proverbialiter is dicitur qui non rite ad id ordinis pervenit, ceu est partus qui intempestiviter aeditur. Respexit ad illud apostolus Paulus^a cum ad Corinthios scripsit, postremo autem omnium tamquam abortivo Christus visus est et mihi. Vide Pauli summissionem. Assimulavit se abortivo, quod ad cognitionem fidei nullo suo merito nec sua sponte venisset, ac extra ordinem in apostolorum collegium ascitus fuisset. Bone Deus, quot hodie abortivos filios nutrit ecclesia, nulla ex parte Paulum referentes? Utpote qui ad eiusmodi decora occupanda malo modo sibi ianuam patefecere. Sed dii meliora.

[One born out of time due

A son of the Church is called “abortive” who did not enter that order, but is like an unseasonable birth. The apostle Paul resorted to this when he wrote to the Corinthians, And last of all Christ was seen of me also, as of one born out of time due. Behold Paul’s humility. He compared himself to a man born out of time, because he came to his understanding of the faith, not by his own merit nor of his own will, but was extraordinarily taken into the company of the possibility. Good God, how many men born out of time the Church harbors nowadays, men who in no wise resemble Paul? For in some evil way they opened the door to their appropriation of such glories. Gods give us better!]

a) 1 Corinthians 14:8 (K. J. V. 15:8)

B235. Canis revertitur ad vomitum

Canis, animal voracissimum, cum cibi onere premitur, solet illum eiicere per vomitum. Quo etiam medicamento sui purgandi causa uti, iuvante ad id herba quadam quam edit. Sed velut insatiabilis, cum vorando ad vomitum saepe revertat, quo levatus fuerat rursus oneratur. Hinc natum proverbium in eos qui noxam iterant. Meminerunt huius Salomon^a et divus Petrus epistola secunda.

[The dog is turned to his own vomit again

When the dog, an animal most devoted to eating, is oppressed by the burden of what it is eaten, it is accustomed to expel that by vomiting. To aid this, as a kind of purgative medicine, it eats a certain grass. But, as if it is insatiable, after it has frequently returned to eat its own vomit, it becomes engorged once more with that of which it had been relieved. Hence has arisen a proverb used for those who repeat their misdeeds. Solomon quotes this, as also does St. Peter in his second epistle.]

a) Proverbs 26:11, 2 Peter 2:22

B236. Sus lota in volutabro coeni

Eiusdem prope sensus est de eo qui haud vitiorum insolens ad flagitia ab se antea expiata redit, et dum rursus oblectatur illis perinde turpior fit ac sus cum in luto lavat multo redditur sordidior. Refertur et hoc a divo Petro^a in epistolis suis.

[The sow that was washed has returned to her wallowing in the mire

This is of about the same meaning, concerning the man who, not unaccustomed to voices, shamelessly returns to the outrages which he has formerly renounced, and, while delighting in them once more, becomes more disgraceful, just as a pig which wallows in the mud becomes all the filthier. This too is quoted by St. Peter in his epistles.]

a) 2 Peter 2:22

B237. Hic perierat et inventus est

Hic mortuus est et revixit, perierat et inventus est.^a Ex parabola evangelica dicitur de eo qui repente comparet iam ante pro perdito habitus, facta allusione ad illum filium decoctorem qui inopia adactus ex insperato domum rediit, seque patri nihil tale suspicanti restituit.

[He was lost, and is found

For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. This is quoted from the Gospel parable concerning a man who suddenly appears after being given up for lost. The allusion is to that prodigal son who, compelled by poverty, unexpectedly came home and returned himself to his father, expecting nothing of the kind.]

a) Luke 15:24

B238. Amice, ascende superius

Documentum modestiae ex praecepto salvatoris in adagium iam olim graphice transpositum, dicentis,^a Cum invitatus fueris ad nuptias non discumbas in promo loco, ne forte honoratior te sit invitatus ab illo, et veniens is qui te et illum vocabit, dicat tibi, da huic locum, et tunc incipias cum rubore novissimum locum tenere. Sed cum vocatus fueris, uade recumbe in novissimo loco, ut cum venerit qiu te invitat, dicat tibi, amice, ascende superius. Tunc erit tibi gloria coram simul discumbentibus. Sic constat usu venire ut quo quisque est minus ambitiosus, hoc plus consequatur honoris.

[Friend, go up higher

An example of modesty was once given in a parable of our Savior, when he said, When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, gup up higher; then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee. Thus it shows that comes about that, the less ambitious a man his, the more honor he gains.]

a) Luke 14:8 - 10

B239. A Nazareth potest aliquid boni esse?

Philippus apostolus, cognita Christi divinitati, Nathanaeili fratri retulit (ut apud Ioannem^a extat) se demum invenisse quem prophetae futurum praedixissent a Nazareth oppido Gallilaeae. At ille ut divinae scripturae peritior ironice respondit, a Nazareth potest aliquid boni esse?^a Quod perinde est ac si dixisset nihil magni fore quod a Nazareth ortum haberet, utpote non ignarus oraculi quo liquido liquebat futurum ut Christus in Bethleem nasceretur atque dein in Nazareth nutriretur. Unde factum ut quoties volumus significare nihil modis omnibus laudabile aut admiratione dignum ab aliquo loco proficisci posse, per ironiam, vice proverbii, scienter dicamus a Nazareth potest aliquid boni esse?

[Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?

As John tells us, he apostle Philip, recognizing Christ’s divinity, told his brother Nathaniel that he had finally found the One of Whom the Prophet had prophesied, a man of Nazareth, a town of Galilee. But he, being more learned in Scripture, gave the ironic reply can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Which is as if he had said nothing important would come out of Nazareth, since he was not unaware of the prophecy that the Christ was destined to be born in Bethlehem, and then raised in Nazareth. Hence it has come about that whenever we wish to indicae that nothing in any respect praiseworthy or admirable can come from some place, we may ironically and with art say as a proverb, can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?]

a) John 1:46

B240. Cecinimus vobis et non saltastis

Cecinimus vobis et non saltastis. Lamentati sumus vobis et non planxistis.^a Videtur fuisse haec cantilena quam pueri in foro cum aequalibus canere inter ludendum solebant. Usus est hac allegoria Christus ad ostendendum quantum Iudaicus populus mali propositi esset pertinax. Quippe qui neque eo hortante ad laeticiam, hic est ad bene agendum (ea enim sola res est quae mox plurimum voluptatis adfert) neque invitante Ioanne Baptista ad luctum, id est ad poenitendum, excitari potuerit. Etiamsi isti duo affectus, partim harmoniis partim miseratione mutua, solent plurimum commoveri. Hinc igitur cantio in proverbium iam olim versa est, quo in homines omnino inhumanissimos uti scienter possumus, quando nolunt neque gaudere (ut ait apostolus)^b cum gaudentibus neque flere cum fletibus.

[We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced

We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented. This appears to be a song sung by children as they sported with their playmates in the market-place. Christ used it as an allegory show how greatly the Jewish people clung to their bad intention. For at His urging they could neither be roused to rejoicing, i. e. to doing well (this is the single thing that soon brings much joy) nor at the invitation of John the Baptist could they be brought to grieving, i. e. to repentance. For men are wont to be moved the most by these two emotions, partly inspired by harmonies and partly by misery. Hence this song was once turned into a proverb, which we may artfully apply to men who are the most inhumane, since they refuse (as the Apostle says) to rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.]

a) Matthew 11:17 b) Romans 12:15

B241. Qui habet aures audiendi audiat

Qui habet aures audiendi audiat.^a Color est Christi concionantis rhetoricus vulgo iam passim in adagionem versus. Et perinde est ac si dicatur, Audiat qui ad audiendum habet aures, id est attendat, sileat, animadvertat, ille cuius inter est, quia concio ut silentium, ita aures attentas postulat.

[He that hath ears to hear, let him hear

He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. This is a rhetorical turn of phrase Christ used in His preaching, how turned into a common adage. It is as if He were to say, Let him who can hear with his ears listen, i. e., let him who has an interest pay attention, keep silent, and be heedful, for, just as a sermon requires silence, so it demands attentive ears.]

a) Matthew 11:15, etc.

B242. Finxit se longius ire

Finxit se longius ire.^a Hoc evangelicum dictum in proverbii consuetudinem iampridem venit in eum qui de industria connivet ad aliquid, valdeque dissimulat quod minime se clam est.

[And he made as if he would have gone further

And he made as if he would have gone further. This Gospel saying has long since been put to use as a proverb for a man who deliberately conspires to do something, and strives to dissimulate something which he can scarcely manage to conceal.]

a) Luke 24:28

B243. Pretium sanguinis

Pretium sangiunis iam passim proverbialiter vulgus appellat quod pro quopiam insigni facinore perpetrato datur, velut Paulo mox recipienti perniciem allaturum.^b Id quod Iudae proditori contigit, unde haec allusio petita est. Histora apud Matthaeum capite xxvij extat longe notissima, quae provebii occasionem dedit, uta ut supervacaneum sit eam hoc loco referre.

[The price of blood

The price of blood is nowadays used as a proverb everywhere, it is what the common people that which is paid for any flagrant crime, such as the man who received money and was bent on quickly visiting destruction on Paul. This what befell the traitor Judas, from whence this allusion derives. The story which gave rise to this proverb, told at Matthew chapter 28, is so well known that it would be superfluous to tell it here.]

a) Matthew 27:6 and 27:9 b) evidently an allusion to one of the conspiracies to assassinate Paul reported in the Book of Acts

B244. Lucerna corporis est oculus

Lucerna corporis tui est oculus tuus.^a Oculus pars corporis pretiosissima, qui lucis usu (ut ait Plinius)^b vitam distinguit a morte, reliqua membra ita dirigit ut per se quoqeue suum multo melius officium faciat, item animi indicia praefert, dicente Cicerone^c De Oratore, Oculi sunt quorum intentione, tum remissione, tum coniectu, tum hilaritate motus animorum significamus. Sed hic totum illud ad mentem transfertur, quae instar lucernae ardentis omnis illustrat sensus, qui sine ea perinde obnubilantur atque corpus sine oculi lumine totum versatur in tenebris inutileque manet. Hac proinde proverbiali metaphora monemur debere nos habere mentem puram et bene uti corporis sensibus ac corpus ipsum ita exercere ut ne videamur illud more caecorum per devia, hoc est per vitia, ad turpitudinem aliquam ducere.

[The light of the body is the eye

 The light of the body is the eye. The eye is the most precious part of the body, which by its enjoyment of the light (as Pliny says) distinguishes life from death, and so directs the rest of the members that each one of them performs its office the better. As Cicero says in De Oratore, It is by the stare or relaxation, the focus, and the sparkle of the eye that we express our emotions. But here this is all said about the mind, which, like a burning lamp, illuminates all the senses, which in its absence are darkened, just like a body without eyesight is plunged in darkness and remains useless. So by this proverbial metaphor we are advised to keep a pure mind and make good use of our bodily senses, and to employ the body itself so that we do not seem to resemble blind men in leading it down trackless paths, i. e. by the way of the vices, to some disgrace.]

a) Matthew 6:22, Luke 11:34 b) Pliny, N. H. XI.cxlviii.7 c) Cicero, De Oratore III.ccxxii.5

B245. Novum vinum non est mittendum in utres veteres

Quam dispar sit evangelicum dogma commiscere Iudaico, quamve necesse sit, ut prius per fidem renascatur quam novae doctrinae praecepta queat imbibere, Christus duplici rerum exemplo docet, inquiens,^a Nemo autem immitt commissuram pannio rudis in vestimentum vetus. Tollit enim plenitudinem eius a vestimento et peior scissura fit. Neque mittunt vinum novum in utres veteres. Quioque rumpunter utres, et vinum effunditur, et utres pereunt. Erit igitur locus huic proverbiali figurae perappositus, cum voluerimus significare aliis alias res, aluidve studium pro aetate vel dignitate minime convenire.

[Men do not put new wine into old bottles.

Using a double comparison, Christ show how incongruous it is to mix Gospel doctrine with Jewish, but how necessary it is, so that Jewish faith may be reborn through faith before it can imbibe the precepts of His new teaching, saying, No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse. Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish. There will be a very appropriate opportunity to use this proverbial figure, when we wish to indicate that certain things or some pursuit does not suit someone’s age or dignity.]

a) Matthew 9:16 - 17, Mark 2:21 - 22, Luke 5:36 - 37

B246. Lux in tenebris lucet

Lux olim vera Christus fuit, qui tenebricoso orbi tempestiviter illuxit. Hinc factum ut quispiam proverbialiter dici possit lucere in tenebris, cum locum obscurum, patriam non celebrem, colit, ubi sua virtus velut inter rudiores imperitioresque nihil splendoris referat.

[The light shineth in darkness^a

Once the true light was Christ, who shone His light on a dark world in a timely way. Hence it has come about that anyone can proverbially be said to shine in the darkness, when he inhabits an obscure place or a homeland that is not well known, where his virtue confers no splendor, since he lives among backward and ignorant folk.]

a) John 1:5

B247. Qualis pater, talis filius

Qualis pater, talis filius. Ex Athanasii^a symbolo desumptum, et hodie passim vulgo accomodatur, ubi quorundam similitudo morum notatur, atque id plurimum in malam partem capitur. Etiamsi potest bonae frugi hominibus apte competere, cum vita unius bona cum alterius vita consentit.

[Such as the Father is, such is the Son

Such as the Father is, such is the Son. This taken from the Athanasian Creed, and today is popularly used whenever a similarity of manners between father and son is observed, and is usually taken in bad part. But it can also be appropriately applied to upright men, when the one’s good life resembles the other’s.]

a) Athanasian Creed 7

B248. Qui videt me videt et patrem meum

 Quod crebro filius sit patris imago, hoc ex evangelio^a probatur, quid nunc in cotidianum sermonem vulgo tractum est, cum quis velit significare non degenerare se a parentibus, dicat, qui videt me videt et patrem meum, etsi illud ad divinitatem Dei refertur.

[He that seeth me seeth my father

Since a son is frequently the image of his father, this proverb is taken from the Gospel and introduced into everyday speech. When one wishes to indicate that he has not degenerated from parents, he may say he that seeth me seeth my father, even if this statement refers to God’s divinity.]

a) John 12:45

B249. Tanto tempore vobiscum sum et non cognovistis me?

Si qui voluerit coarguere amicos et familiares stulticiae, quod non norint se, id est, suam ignorarint scientiam, seu mores, recte dicet, tanto tempore vobiscum sum et non cognovistis me?

[Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me?

If a man wishes to rebuke his friends and familiars of folly for not recognizing him, i. e. for being unaware of his learning or manners, he may properly say, have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me?^a]

John 14:9

B250. Tu es magister in Israel et haec ignoras?

Huc vel illud spectat, Tu es magister in Israel et haec ignoras?^a cum quis ea quae suae in primis professionis sunt minime tenet. Istiusmodi imperitiae Nicodemus a Christo est reprehensus, quod praeceptor esset apud Iudaeos et nesciret quid mysterii inesset in lege, quippe quae aliud nihil erat quam Christiani dogmatis futuri symbolum.

[Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?

That proverb, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? applies to a man who has no grasp of the most important things of his profession. Nicodemus is criticized by Christ for this kind of ignorance, because he was a teacher among the Jews and did not understand the mystery within the Law, since it was nothing else than a foreshadowing of future Christian doctrine.]

a) John 3:10

B251. Tu solus peregrinus es in Hierusalem?

Tu solus peregrinus es in Hierusalem?^a De eo proverbialiter dictum qui ita stultus est ut etiam manifesta et publica ignoret. Quando illum qui alienam peragrat patriam facile fugere potest, si quid in ea vel publicitus actum fuerit. Evangelica historia apud Lucam longe notissima et.

[Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem?

Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem? is proverbially said concerning a man who is stupid that he is ignorant of even things that are manifest and public knowledge. For these things can escape a man traveling in a foreign nation, and even of the things openly transacted there. The Gospel story in Luke is very well known.]

a) Luke 24:18

B252. Propheta es tu?

Propheta es tu? in eum usurpare solemus qui nobis facta nostra occultiora ac si ea prius novisset extemplo refert. Vel qui aliquid futurum auguratur quod mox evenit, ut plane divinare videatur. Sumptum ab eo quod mulier Samaratana apud Ioannem^a salvatori divinanti dixit, Domine, video quia prophta es tu.

[Are you a prophet?

We habitually say are you a prophet? to a man who suddenly blabs our secret deeds as if he had known about them in advance, or who forecasts so fuure event which soon occurs, so that he seems to be a diviner. This is taken from what the Samaritan woman said to our Savior in John,^a when he was prophecying: Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet.]

a) John 4:19

B253. Spiritus ubi vult spirat

Spiritus ubi vult spirat.^a Iam hoc evangelicum dictum loco adagii passim iactatur cum notatur eo favorem hominis efficacius se inclinare quo voluntas ducit. Exempli gratia, si quis negaret amico aliquid roganti posse se praestare, et is vellet innuere illum posse, si vellet, recte diceret spiritus ubi vult spirat, hoc est, si adesset voluntas, faveres. Facta translatio a vento, qui est invisibilis, caeterum efficax. Ita Christus rei invisibilis similitudine spiritualem docet generationem.

[The wind bloweth where it listeth

The wind bloweth where it listeth. Nowadays this Gospel saying is used everywhere as a proverb when it is observed that a man’s favor is more prone to incline where his will directs it. For example, if somebody refuses something to a friend when he ask for it, and the friend desires to indicate that he could if he wished, he could properly say the wind bloweth where it listeth, i. e., you could favor me, if you were willing The metaphor is taken from the wind, which is invisible and yet has its effect. Thus Christ taught about spiritual birth, by comparing it something unseen.]

a) John 3:8

B254. Quod natum est ex carne caro est

Quod natum est ex carne caro est.^a Quadrabit cum volumus innuere perdifficle esse (ut ait divus Hieronymus)^b carnem non in sensum hominis irruere, hoc est, carnem non obedire ventri ac caeteris corporis voluptatibus inservire, quando ita titillat caro.

[That which is born of the flesh is flesh

That which is born of the flesh is flesh. This is appropriate when we want to indicate that, as St. Jerome says, it is very difficult for flesh not to overwhelm a man’s senses, i. e., for the flesh not to obey the belly and serve the other pleasures of the body, since flesh tickles us so.]

a) John 3:6 b) St. Jerome, Epistle xviii.5

B255. Quod natum est ex spiritu spiritus est

Contra illud est, quod natum est ex spiritu spiritus est.^a Et eius usus peropportunus erit quoties significare volumus debere nos ipsos animi virtutibus duntaxat exercere.

[That which born of the Spirit is spirit

Contrary to this is that that which is born of the Spirit is spirit, which will come in handy whenever we wish to indicate that we ourselves are exercised only in the virtues of the mind.]

a) John 3:6

B256. Non ad mensuram dat Deus spiritum^a

Et hoc in proverbium vertitur, quod uti licebit cum volumus significare hunc plus sapere quam illum, id est, dona Dei largiter bene multis, non item omnibus dari. Cuiusmodi sunt animorum dotes quas Paulus refert, alii quidem per spiritum datur sermo sapientiae, alii sermo scientiae, secundum eundum spiritum &c.

[God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto them

This too is turned into a proverb, which we may use when we wish to indicate that this man is wiser than that one, i. e. that God is generous in giving gifts to many, but not to all. Such are the endowments of the mind of which Paul speaks, others are given the speech of wisdom by the Spirit, others the speech of knowledge according to that same Spirit, and so forth.]

a) John 3:34

B257. Qui habet sponsam, sponsus est

Qui habet sponsam, sponsus est^a potest accomodare in hunc sensum: cui negocium aliquod officii est, is officum faciat necesse est. Ita sponso onus curandi connubii.

[He that hath the bride is the bridegroom

He that hath the bride is the bridegroom can be employed in this sense: it is necessary he who has charge of a certain duty must perform that duty. Thus is it the burden of caring for a marriage falls on the bridegroom.]

a) John 3:29

B258. Mulier cum parit tristitiam habet

Mulier cum parit tristitam habet.^a Erit locus huic sententiae perappositus cum innuemus aliquod opus esse laboriosum sed mox perfectum iucundum atque utile futurum. Sic mulier, nato iam puero, omnis immemor doloris gaudet et delectatur fructu ventris sui.

[A woman when she is in travil hath sorrow

A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow. There is a most appropriate occasion for this statement when we state that some work is troublesome, but that when complete it will be pleasant and useful. Thus when a woman’s babe is born, she forgets her pain, rejoices, and delights in the fruit of her womb.]

a) John 36:26

B259. Labores manuum tuarum manducabis

Labores manuum tuarum manducabis.^a Hoc scienter usurpamus quoties volumus edocere quempiam nequaquam frustra in re aliqua laboraturum, nec item sine labore victurum. Desumptum est e psalmo cxxvij.

[For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands

For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands. We knowledgeably use this whenever we want to say that somebody is not going to work in vain, and likewise that without laboring he will not eat. It is taken from Psalm 127.

a) Psalm 127:2 (K. J. V. 128:2)

B260. Arcta est via quae ducit ad vitam

Consentit cum superiore illud evangelicum,^a arcta est via quae ducit at vitam. Ut enim ad vitam agendam, exercendum est corpus, ita ad beatudinem consequendam modis omnibus animus a voluptatibus abducendus est. Quod haud dubie factu difficile videtur. Unde Vergilius^b de litera Pythagorae, qui per formam Y utramque viam bonam et malam ostendit, inquit,

Nam via virtutus dextrum petit ardua callem,
Difficilemque aditum primum spectantibus offert,
Sed requiem praebet fessis in vertice summo.

Id quod salvator pollicetur hanc viam aggredientibus dicens,^c intrate per angustam portam, quoniam angusta est porta et arcta via quae ducit ad vitam (subaudias) aeternam. Sic laboriose per has Dei vias inceditur. Hac autem proverbiali metaphora salubriter vetamur voluptates sequi atque duros vitae subterfugere labores, qui nobis omnino salutem parituri sunt.

[Narrow is the way which leadeth unto life

This Gospel saying is in agreement with the preceding, narrow is the way which leadeth unto life. For just as we must exercise our body in order to lead our life, the mind is to be kept away from all manners of pleasure if we are to gain blessedness. Hence Vergil wrote about the Pythagorean letter Y, which by its shape shows both ways, the good and the bad, and said, For the steep way of virtue, to the right, offers the viewer a difficult approach up a mountainside, but at the top it provides the weary with rest. And without doubt this seems difficult. This is what our savior promises those who take this road, saying, enter ye in at the straight gate, since the gate is narrow, and narrow the road that leads to life (you must understand this to mean eternal life). Thus one laboriously makes one’s way by these roads of God. And by this proverbial metaphor we are forbidden to chase after pleasures and shirk the hard labors of life, which are exclusively destined to provide us with salvation.]

a) Matthew 7:14 b) lines from Anthologia Latina epigram C632 (II.98 Reise), attributed to Vergil in the Middle Ages c) Matthew 7:13, Luke 13:24

B261. Spatiosa est via quae ducit ad perditionem

Spatiosa et via quae ducit ad perditionem,^a via errantium haec et et viatorem praecipitans, dicente Vergilio,^b

Molle ostentat ter via lata, sed ultima meta
Praecipitat captos, volvitque per ardua saxa.

Hinc igitur discimus quam facile sit a vitiis pessundari. Unde idem Maro utiliter admonet,

Quisquis enim duros casus virtutis amore
Vicerit, ille sibi laudemque decusque parabit.
At qui desidiam luxumque sequetur inertem,
Dum fugit oppositos incauta mente labores,
Turpis, inops simul et miserabile transigit aevum.

[Broad is the way that leadeth to perdition

Broad is the way that leadeth to perdition. this is the road of those who have fallen in error, and it is a road that casts the traveler down headlong. As Vergil says, The broad way shows a pleasant journey, but at the end it hurls down the trapped traveler among rough rocks. Hence we learn how easy is to be ruined by vices. Hence the same Vergil usefully advises us, For whoever has conquered hardship from his love of virtue will be rewarded with praise and honour. But he who follows a life of idle decadence, thoughtlessly shunning labors, will spend eternity disgraced, helpless and miserable.]

a) Matthew 7:13 b) more lines from the same Anthologia Latina epigram, here and below

B262. Iter impiorum peribit

Iter impiorum peribit. Hoc propheticum dictum instar proverbii passim in ore vulgi est, cum vult significare quempiam scelestum hominem esse male periturum, aut eius res male omnino casuras.

[The way of the ungodly shall perish

The way of the ungodly shall perish.^a This prophetic utterance is on everyone’s lips as a proverb, when someone wants to say that some rascal is bound to die an ill death, or that his affairs will go to ruin.]

a) Psalm 1:6

B263. In cathedra pestilentiae sedet

Ille doctor in cathedra pestilentiae, hoc est ipse pestilens homo, ut sit continens pro contento, sedere proverbio dicebatur, qui malam docebat doctrinam, quae velut morbus quidam per hominum pectora pervadebat. Sed proverbialius in eos accommodari potest qui cum ex officio aliis bono debeant esse exemplo, male vivendo sunt impedimento cur minus bene agant.

[He sitteth in the seat of pestilence^a

This is a professor said to occupy the chair of pestilence, i. e. that pestilent man (to regard him as the container rather than the contents), who teaches evil doctrine which is like a disease pervading men’s hearts. But it can be proverbially applied to those who occupy an office in which they ought to set a good example to others, but by their misspent lives are a hinderance to others living properly.]

a) Psalm 1:1

B264. Ecclesia malignantium

Ecclesia malignantium.^a Dicitur coetus eiusmodi pestilentis doctrinae hominum, qui sine modo dirum virus effundentes mortalium animos maxime corrumpunt. Congruet in sectam aliquam pseudoprophetarum haeresim disseminantium. Tractatum ex oraculo David dicentis, Non sedi cum concilio vanitatis, et cum iniqua gerentibus non introibo. O divi ecclesiam malignantium (subaudias) Iudaeorum.

[The congregation of evildoers

The congregation of evildoers. This is what they call a company of men who share the same pestilential doctrine, who unstintingly spew forth their dire virus and greatly corrupt men’s minds. It will apply to some sect of false prophets who spread heresy. It is taken from David’s prophecy, where he says, I have not sat with vain persons, neither will I go with dissemblers. I have hated the congregation of evil doers, by which you should understand the Jews.]

a) Psalm 25:5 (K. J. V. 26:5)

B265. Opprobrium hominum

Opprobrium hominum. Et hoc adagii formam habet, et in eum haerebit qui nihil est nihilque habet in se quod hominem redoleat, ita ut denique cunctis sit dehonestamento, quod homo appelletur, ceu infamiae non insolens atque in nulla laude versatus. In eum item apte conveniet qui ob aliquod perpetratum scelus suae genti, suae patriae est in perpetuum probro. Caeterum propheta David salvatorem vocat opprobrium hominum et abiectionem plebis,^a quod non aversaturus esset supplicium crucis, quo tunc nihil erat aspernabilius, et a Iudaeis publicitus habendus contemptui.

[A reproach of men

A reproach of men. This too has the look of an adage, and will apply to the man who is nothing and has nothing about him that smacks of a man, so that he is a source of embarrassment to all men for being called a man, unacquainted with no manner of infamy and enjoying no praise. Likewise it will aptly suit the man who is in perpetual disgrace in his nation for having perpetrated a crime against his people. But the prophet David calls our Savior a reproach of men, and despised of the people, because He was not averse to the punishment of the cross, than which nothing was more disgraceful in His day, and held in public contempt by the Jews.]

a) Psalm 21:7 (K. J. V. 22:6)

B266. Fex vel amurca hominum

Eadem figura proverbiali quis fex aut amurca vel (adsit reverentia verbo) merda hominum vocitari potest, quod nullo perinde inter homines habeatur numero, nihilque illo neglectius sit, ac fex, quae cuiuscunque rei est excrementum, et amurca olei sordes floccifiant, utpote quae nulli rei nisi spurcidae usui esse queant. Ad id allusit Paulus^a ad Corinthios de se ac aliis apostolis scribens, Useque ad hanc horam et esurimus et sitimus, et nudi sumus, et colaphis caedimur, et instabiles sumus, et laboramus operantes manibus nostris, male audientes benedicimus, persecutionem patimur et sustinemus, blasphemamur et obsecramus, tanquam purgamenta huius mundi facti sumus, omnium peripsema &c. Peripsema Graece est reiectamentum quodam, velut apud nos pulvis pedum et quisquiliae et amurca atque fex. Non nemo hoc loquendi schemate hodie etiam urbaniter passim utitur.

[Dregs or lees of men

By this same proverbial figure someone can be called dregs, lees, or (begging the reader’s pardon) shit of men, because he is in no way to be accounted a man and nothing is more worthy of being neglected. For dregs are the offscourings of anything at all, and lees are the sediment of olive oil, about which men do not care a fig since it is of no use for anything but nastiness. Paul alludes to this in writing to the Corinthians concerning himself and the other apostles, Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace; And labour, working with our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it: Being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day. Peripsema (“offscouring”) is a Greek word for that which is rejected, such as we call the dust of one’s feet, trash, dregs, lees, and dregs. And even today some people make urbane use of this manner of speaking.]

a) 1 Corinthians 3:33 - 35 (K. J. V. 4:11 - 13)

B267. Ad quid perditio haec?

Ad quid perditio haec? Iam in adagionis consuetudinem venit, cum significatur sumptus fieri magnos, caeterum minime necessarios. Allusum est ad Iudae proditoris facinus, qui ita iudicarat unguentum perditum iri, quod bona mulier in caput salvatoris effudisset.

[To what purpose is this waste?

To what purpose is this waste?^a This has come to be used as an adage when one says that an expense is great but unnecessary. It alludes to the sin of Judas, who thought that the unguent was going to be wasted because the good woman had anointed our Savior’s head with it.]

a) Matthew 26:8

B268. Capillus de capite vestro non peribit

Solet illud evangelicum verbum, capillus de capite vestro non peribit,^a recte usurpari quoties quis vult innuere aliquos bene agentes nihil inde damni esse facturos. Nam si nec pilus quidem qui deciduus ac villissima hominis pars est, perire potest illis qui Deo inserviunt, eo minus corporis vel animae detrimentum sentient. Sic praeceptor hortatus est suos discipulos ad perferendas afflictiones, eos consolans spe praemiorum.

[But there shall not an hair of your head perish

That Gospel saying, but there shall not an hair of your head perish, can properly be used as often as someone wants to indicate that certain men doing well are not going to suffer any harm. For if not even a hair, prone to fall and the least important part of a man, cannot perish when it belongs to those who serve God, even less will they experience any harm to body or soul. Thus our Savior exhorted his disciples to bear afflictions, consoling them with the hope of rewards.]

a) Luke 21:18

B269. Unus passer non cadet super terram sine patre vestro

Unus passer non cadet super terram sine patre vestro.^a Proverbialis allegoria providentiam Dei arguit, si etiam pusilla avis absque eius nutu non possit perire. Rem hanc inculcavit salvator discipulorum auribus, quo probe scirent soli Deo cuncta esse curae, cui omnia sua illi demandare deberent.

[One sparrow shall not fall on the ground without your Father

One sparrow shall not fall on the ground without your Father. This proverbial allegory demonstrates God’s providence, if even a tiny bird cannot die without His will. Our Savior drummed this into His disciples’ ears so they would be aware that everything is the concern of God alone, to Whom everything should be entrusted.]

a) Matthew 10:29

B270. Capilli capitis vestri omnes numerati sunt

Eodem pertinet illud, vestri etiam capilli capitis omnes numerati sunt.^a Ita liquet omnia nostra patere Deo. Unde monemur pro comperto habere nihil non spectatore Deo nos agere.

[The very hairs of your head are all numbered

To the same end is that proverb, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Thus is it is clear that all our affairs are evident to God, and we are advised to be assured that we do nothing unobserved by Him.]

a) Matthew 10:30, Luke 12:7

B271. Praedicare in tectis

Praedicare super tecta^a ille proverbialiter dicetur qui in apertum profert quod secretius erat. Tractum a concionatoribus, qui in pulpitis palam loquuntur, vel a praeconibus qui magistratuum mandata vel aliquid simile apud populum in aliquo loco eminenti voce promulgare solent. Respexit ad illud Christus discipulus suis dicens, Quod in aurem auditis, praedicate super tecta, id est, mysterium novae fidei publicitus declarate.

[To preach upon the housetops

That to preach upon the housetops is proverbially said about a man who openly reveals something that had been a secret. It is taken from preachers who speak publicly from their pulpits, or from criers who customarily stand on prominent places, using their loud voices to publish magistrates’ decrees or something of the kind. Christ resorted to it in saying his disciples, that which ye have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops.]

a) Matthew 10:27, Luke 12:3

B272. Excutere pulverem pedum

Excutite pulverem de pedibus vestris.^a Hoc evangelicum aenigma bifariam capi solet. Est enim indicium confecti itineris, quod proprium est viatorum, qui si multus fuerit in calceis pulvis ex itinere, ante urbis ingressum excutiunt. In hanc sententiam igitur videtur Christus apostolos admonuisse inquiens, Et quicunque non receperit vos, neque audierit sermones vestros, exeuntes foras de domo vel civitate excutite pulverem de pedibus vestris. Haec praeceptor. Illud itaque voluit testimonium laboris esse, quo constaret praedicationem evangelicam ad eos usque populos pervenisse. Item et exprobatio impietatis esse potest, ut discipuli ne pulveris quidem aliquid ex ea terra secum velle ferre testificarentur, quae evangelium sprevisset. Proinde quoties volumus proverbiali figura innuere quempiam perficere inceptum iter, vel nec tantillum quidem mercedis ob susceptem laborem accipere, commodum dicimus illum excutere pulverem pedum.

[To shake the very dust from your feet

Shake the very dust from your feet. This Gospel puzzle is traditionally understood in two ways. For it is a sign of a complete journey. For it is normal for travelers, if they have accumulated much dust on their shoes from their trip, to shake it off before entering a city. According to this view, therefore, Christ appears to have advised His apostles, And whosoever will not receive you, when ye go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet. Thus our Teacher. For thus He wished evidence to be demonstrated of the effort which it cost to have come to those people to preach the Gospel. Likewise this could be a reproach of their impiety, so that his disciples might attest they did not want to take away even so much as any dust from that land which had rejected the Gospel. And so, as often as we wish to use a proverbial figure of speech to indicate somebody has completed his journey, or that he has not received one iota of reward for his efforts, we conveniently say he is shaking the very dust from his feet.]

a) Luke 9:5

B273. Socii passionum, socii et consolationis

Sicut socii passionum, sic et consolationis.^a Hanc Pauli sententiam ex iustitiae penetralibus depromptam vulgus hodie in ore passim habent, cum designat aliquos esse debere participes praemii, in quo acquirendo una cum aliis laboraverint.

[As ye are partakers of the sufferings, so shall ye be also of the consolation

As ye are partakers of the sufferings, so shall ye be also of the consolation. This saying of Paul, taken from the inner recesses of justice, is nowadays a popular phrase on men’s lips, since it states that men ought to share the reward which they toiled to acquire along with others.]

a) 2 Corinthians 1:7

B274. Et mea omnia tua sunt

Et mea omnia tua sunt^a perinde est ac si amico dicas, utere me, omniaque tibi de me pollicere. Ita hoc dictum passim iactatur.

[And all mine are thine

And all mine are thine is so much as to say to a friend, use me, promise yourself all that I possess. Thus this statement is widely quoted.

a) John 17:10 (so too the following proverb)

B275. Et mea omnia tua sunt, et tua mea sunt

Et mea omnia tua sunt, et tua mea sunt. Ut illud superius evangelicum verbum, alterius amici benevolentiam attestatur, sic hoc utriusque mutuum amorem declarat, quando ita inter illos omnia communia sunt, ut alter alteri vicissim confidat.

[And all mine are thine, and thine are mine

And all mine are thine, and thine are mine. Just as the preceding Gospel proverb attests the good will of one friend for another, so this one declares the mutual love of them both, since all they have is common to both, so that each can rely upon the other.]

B276. Non inveni tantam fidem in Israel^a

Dici solutum est de eo qui praeter spem a quopiam reperitur fidelis. Alluditur ad illum centurionem alienigenam qui Christi divinitatem ita probe intellexit ut solo illius nutu filium suum paralyticum sanari posse crediderit. Quamobrem salvator testatus est ne in Iudaea quidem, id est in aliquo Iudaeorum, invenisse se tantum fidei.

[I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel

This is customarily said of a man who someone has discovered to be unexpectedly faithful. It alludes to that foreign centurion who so well understood Christ’s divinity that he believed his palsied son could be healed by His will alone. Wherefore our Savior attested that he could not find such great in Judea, i. e. in any Jew.]

a) Matthew 8:10

B277. Dico huic vade et vadit, et fac hoc et facit

Et illud eiusdem centurionis dictum loco adagii circumfertur, cum absoluta cuiuspiam potestas significatur. Dico huic vade et vadit, et fac hoc et facit. ^a

[I say to this man, Go, and he goeth, and Do this, and he doeth it

Another saying by this same centurion circulates as an adage, when we speak of somebody’s absolute authority, I say to this man, Go, and he goeth, and Do this, and he doeth it.]

a) Matthew 8:9, Luke 7:8

B278. Ipse dixit, et facta sunt

In eandem sententiam et illud psalmo cxlviij usurpari licebit,^a Ipse dixit, et facta sunt. Item vel Esaiae^b oraculum faciet ad rem, Et dabo clavem dominus David et aperiet, et non erit qui claudat, et claudet, et non erit qui aperiat. Verum utrunque ad vim potestatis solius Dei refertur a prophetis.

[For he spake, and it was done

To the same effect, one can also use that verse of psalm clxviii, for he spake, and it was done. Equally to the point is this utterance of Isaiah, And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. Both statements are used by the prophets to indicate that the power of authority is vested only in God.]

a) Psalm 148:9 (K. J. V. 149:9) b) Isaiah 22:22

B279. Ventilabrum in manu illius

Ventilabrum in manu illius.^a Proverbialis metaphora a ventilatoribus frugum sumpta, nihil a sensu superioris dissonat, et illi competit in cuius manu id est, in potestate purgare provinciam, purgare civitates maleficiis. Est enim ventilabrum, teste Columella,^b instrumentum quo aliquid ventilatur, hoc est in ventum iacitur, veluti fruges cum in area purgantur.

[Whose fan is in his hand

Whose fan is in his hand. This is a proverbial metaphor taken from grain-fans, and is in no wise dissonant with the preceding one: it pertains to Him in Whose hand is vested the power to purge a province and its cities of evildoers. For, according to Columella, this fan is an instrument with which something is ventilated, i. e. thrown in the air, like wheat when it is being purged on a threshing-floor.]

a) Matthew 3:12, Luke 3:17 b) Columella, De re Rustica II.x.14 (cf. Varro, De Lingua Latina V.cxxxix.1)

B280. Sagittae in manu potentis

Sagittae in manu potentis.^a In eum, qui quando vult, laedere potest. Sumptum e psalmo cxxvj, et a sagittariis facta translatio, qui tum tetenderit arcum iamiam percussuri sunt.

[Arrows in the hand of a mighty man

Arrows in the hand of a mighty man. This is said of a man who can work harm when he wishes. It is taken from Psalm 126, and the metaphor is taken from arrows, which, when he stretches his bow, are just about to strike their mark.]

a) Psalm 126:4 (K. J. V. 127:4)

B281. Sagittae potentis acutae

Sagittae potentis acutae.^a De eo qui funditus perdere hominem potest, utpote qui si feriat, lethale inferat vulnus cum acutas habeat sagittas. Peculiariter de regibus dictiatur, quibus ad nocendum bene longae sunt manus, testificante versiculo, An nescis longas regibus esse manus?^b

[Sharp arrows of the mighty

Sharp arrows of the mighty. This is said of whom who can utterly destroy a man, since, if he strikes him, he inflicts a deadly wound, since he has sharp arrows. It is said particularly about kings, who have long arms for working harm. As the line attests, don’t you know that kings have long arms?

a) Psalm 119:4 (K. J. V.120:4) b) Ovid, Heroides xvii.166

B282. Inimici hominis domestici eius

Inimici hominis domestici eius. Congruet in familiares inimicos, quibus nihil nobis pernitiosius esse potest. quando illi ut clancularii hostes non facile caventur. Simile huic est illud quod supra posuimus, Totidem nobis hostes esse quod servos.^b

[A man’s enemies are the men of his own house

A man’s enemies are the men of his own house.^a This applies to unfriendly members of one’s household, and for us nothing can be more harmful, inasmuch as one cannot easily be one’s guard against secret themes. Similar to this that which I have cited above, we have as many enemies as we do servants.]

a) Micah 7:6 b) Macrobius, Saturnalia I.xi.13

B283. Iudas non dormit

Iudas non dormit. Vulgo passim iactatur in eum qui alicui mortem vel fraudem machinatur. Ed ad id alluditur^a quod Iusas Iscariotes dum alii discipuli prae tristitia dormiebant, cum Iudaeis agebat quomodo latenter suo praeceptori Iesu manus intentarentur.

[Judas does not sleep.

Judas does not sleep. This proverb is widely applied to the man who contrives someone else’s death or deception. It alludes to the fact that, while the other disciples slept in their sadness, Judas Iscariot was dealing with the Jews how they might conceal themselves and lay hands on his teacher Jesus.]

a) Matthew 13:1 etc., Mark 14:43 etc., Luke 22:47 etc.

B284. Reddere pro bono malum

Reddere pro bono malum, vel pro malo bonum. Primum, quod inhumanissimum est, ex Geneseos^a historia desumptum, ubi capite xliij minister Ioseph fratribus eius inquit, Quare reddidistis malum pro bono? Et a Hieremia^b usurpatur, capite xviij. Alterum ex praecepto salvatoris^c est dicentis, Benefacite iis qui oderunt vos. Nec item malum pro malo reddendum, dicente Seneca,^d Nunquam scelus scelere vindicandum est. Eiusmodi elocutiones passim proverbiales apud autores reperiuntur.

[To reward evil for good

To reward evil for good, or good for evil. The first of these, which is highly unkind, is taken from the story in Genesis, where in chapter 43 the minister Joseph asks his brothers, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? And it is used at Jeremiah, chapter 18. The other is from a precept of our Savior, where he says, Do good to them that hate you. Nor is evil to be repaid with evil. As Seneca says, Crime is never to be avenged with crime. Proverbial expressions such as this are commonly found in writers.]

a) Genesis 43:4 b) Jeremiah 18:20 c) Matthew 5:44, Luke 6:27 d) Publilius Syrus, Sententiae N18

B285. Quid gloriaris in malitia, qui potens es in iniquitate?

Quid gloriaris in malitia, qui potens es in iniquitate?^a Initium est psalmi 51 vulgo sermone in proverbium iam olim versum in eum, qui abutens potestate sua iactat malefacta atque illis delectatur. Quid impudentissimorum hominum proprium est.

[Why boastest thou thyself in mischief, o mighty man?

Why boastest thou thyself in mischief, o mighty man? This is the beginning of Psalm li, and in everyday discourse it has long since been used against the man who, abusing this power, boasts of his malfeasances and delights in them. This is the characteristic of the most bold-faced of men.]

a) Psalm 51:1 (K. J. V. 52:1)

B286. Reges eos in virga ferrea

Reges eos in virga ferrea,^a vel visitabo in virga ferrea iniquitates eorum.^b Iam pene in adagii consuetudinem venit, ut quoties quis velit innuere se acriter vindicaturum commissa quorundam, dicat, vistabo in virga ferrea peccata eorum, vel regam illos in virga ferrea, hoc est, duriter dominabor. A domitore iumentorum facta translatio, qui solet ferociora animalia ferrato verbere coercere vel tardiora urgere.

[You shall rule them with a rod of iron,

You shall rule them with a rod of iron, or I shall visit their iniquities with a rod of iron. By now this is all but grown into a traditional adage, so that whenever someone wants to say he intends sharply to punish some men’s malfeasances, he may say, I shall visit their sins with a rod of iron, or I shall rule them with a rod of iron. This is a metaphor taken from a driver of cattle, who habitually uses an iron rod to beat his more recalcitrant beasts and prod along his slower ones.]

a) Psalm 2:9

B287. Inebriabo sagittas meas sanguine

Inebriabo sagittas meas sanguine, et gladius meus devorabit carnes.^a Ex cantico Mosis hyperbole proverbialis ad ostendendam magnam vim vindictae et caedis saevitudinem. Sed proverbialior sit si cum ironia misceatur. Exempli gratia, si aliquis nebulo minetur cuipiam crucem vel necem, tum apte in eum dicere possumus, Hic inebriabit sagittas suas sanguine et gladius eius devorabit carnes.

[I will make mine arrows drunk with blood

I will make mine arrows drunk with blood, and my sword shall devour flesh. This is proverbial hyperbole from Moses’ song, meant to show the great power of vengeance and the savagery of killing. But it is more proverbial when used with an admixture of irony. For example, if some clown threatens somebody with torture or death, then we can appropriately say about him, This fellow will make his arrows drunk with blood, and his sword shall devour flesh.]

a) Deuteronomy 32:42

B288. Crucifige, crucifige

Crucifige, crucifige.^a Hic funesta populi Iudaici conclamatio et in proverbium venit, cum quis publicitus ad mortem petitiur, vel cum a quopiam iudicium praecipitanter fieri innititur, qui prius condemnet quam causam rei cognoscat. Id quod ipsi Iudaei petentes Christum ad supplicum fieri rogitabant, ita ut ab impio iudice et impetrarunt. Hieronymus in proemio i libri Commentariorum in Esaiam consimiliter vice proverbii usurpat.

[Crucify him, cruficy him.

Crucify him, crucify him. This deadly exclamation of the Jewish people has also become a proverb, when a man is publicly singled out for killing, or when it is said that somebody is passing hasty judgment and passing sentence before hearing the case. This is what the Jews did in asking for Christ’s punishment, which they did to the point that they obtained this from an impious judge. In the proem to Book I of his Commentaries on Isaiah likewise uses this proverbially]

a) Mark 15:15 b) St. Jerome Commentary on Isaiah I proem (vol. 24.18 col. oo32C Migne)

B289. Quae procedunt de labiis meis non faciam irrita

Quae procedunt de labiis meis non faciam irrita.^a De eo qui verax est et modis omnibus quae promittit servat, hoc est, non improbat, non vanefacit. Desumptum est e psalmo lxxxviij.

[I will not alter the thing that is gone out of my lips

I will not alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. This can be said of him who is truthful and stands by his promises in all ways, i. e., he does not reject them or indulge in vainglory. It is taken from Psalm 88.]

a) Psalm 88:34 (K. J. V. 89:34)

B290. Os habent et non loquentur

Os habent et non loquentur, oculos havent et non videbunt.^a De magnopere silentiosis et stupidis, qui ceu imagines nihil moventur. Vel in eos quadrabit qui consulto pro tempore et loco tacent conniventve.

[They have mouths, but they speak not

They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not. This is said about the silent and the stupid, who are as unmoving as statues. Or it will fit those who deliberately keep silent or shut their eyes to fit the needs of the time and place.]

a) Psalm 113:13 [K. J. V. 115:5)

B291. Ego cibum habeo manducare, quem vos nescitis

Ego cibum habeo manducare, quem vos nescitis.^a Hoc salvatoris responsum speciem adagii prae se fert, quo uti licebit quoties quis vult significare suum negocium non nosci, id est, longe aliud esse atque vulgo existimatur. Consimile illud Esaiae^a est, Non enim cogitationes meae cogitationes vestrae, neque viae vestrae viae meae, dicit dominus. Porro ita accidit Christo, qui cum de Samaritanorum conversione ageret, ad cibum capiendum a discipulis invitabatur, perinde quasi (ut poscit natura) in primis non deberet curam corporis negligere, quam ille tamen minimi faciebat.

[I have meat to eat that ye know not of

I have meat to eat that ye know not of. This reply of our Savior has the appearance of a proverb, which one can use whenever he wants to indicate that his business is unknown, i. e., that it is far different than is commonly imagined. Resembling it is this statement of Isaiah, My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. Furthermore, this happened to Christ when, as He was working for the conversion of the Samaritans, he was invited to a meal by His disciples, just as if (as nature demands) He should not neglect the care of his body, which, however, He scarcely valued.]

a) John 4:32 b) Isaiah 55:9

B292. Pastor bonus animam suam dat pro ovibus

Pastor bonus animam suam dat pro ovibus.^a Hinc princeps, hinc pontifex officii memor reddi potest, cum pro tutela populi, pro tuenda ecclesia, non modo res sed vitam exponere debeat. Cuius rei prior documentum dedit ipse salvator, qui pro salute omnium mortem obiit. Potest generatim ad omnes referri qui alicuius rei curam habent, non idcirco tamen ut vitam posthabeant, sed ut modis omnibus suum officium faciant.

[The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep

The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. A prince or a prelate can be reminded by these words, since he should give not only his goods but also his life for the protection of his people and the defence of his Church. Our Savior did so first, when He died for the salvation of all men. This can be applied generally to all those in a position of responsibility, not that they should value their lives more cheaply than it, but that they should do their duty in all ways.]

a) John 10:11

B293. Anima pro anima, oculus pro oculo

Anima pro anima, oculus pro oculo, dens pro dente.^a De poena talionis a Mose introducta est dictum, quam Christus sustulit et nunc in proverbii consuetudinem venit, cum quis vult innuere se vicem redditurum offendendi se. Aliter par pari referre dicitur.

[A life for a life, an eye for an eye

A life for a life, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. Moses’ law of retaliation is quoted as a dictum, which Christ abolished. Now it has become a traditional proverb when one wishes to signify that he will repay the man who offended him. Otherwise we say tit for tat.]

a) Matthew 5:39

B294. Hic daemonium habet, ille vorax homo est

Hic daemonium habet, ille vorax homo est.^a In eum apte dicetur cui satisfacere perdifficle est, utpote qui nihil satis probat, nihil aequi bonique facit, hoc est rem hanc in malam partem, illam neutiquam in bonam capit. Hoc genere morbi laborabant cum primis Iudaei, quos salvator coarguit inquiens, Venit enim Ioannis neque manducans neque bibens, et dicunt damonium habert. Venit filius hominis (de se loquitur) manducans et bibens, et dicunt ecce homo vorax et potator vini.

[He hath a devil. Behold a man gluttonous

He hath a devil. Behold a man gluttonous. This will appropriately be said of a man whom it is very hard to satisfy, being a man who is never happy, who never sets a good value on anything, i. e., who takes everything in bad part, and never in good. The Jews particularly suffer from this kind of disease, whom our Savior rebuked, saying, John came neither eating and drinking, and they say, He hath a devil. The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous and a winebibber.

a) Matthew 11:18 - 19

B295. Dum tempus habemus, operemur bonum

Dum tempus habemus, operemur bonum erga omnes, maxime vergo ergo domesticos fidei.^a Istud apostoli dictum veluti proverbialiter vulgus passim in ore habet, quo praecipitur nobis continenter esse bene agendum, atque de omnibus, praesertim religiosis viris, benemerendum, dum tempus habemus, hoc est, dum per tempus licet.

[As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men

As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. This saying of the Apostle is said everywhere as a proverb, and by it we are instructed that we must constantly do good and show charity towards all men, especially religious men, while we have opportunity, i. e. while the time allows.]

a) Galatians 6:10

B296. Nisi dominus custodierit civitatem, frustra vigilat qui custodit eam

Nisi dominus custodierit civitatem, frustra vigilat qui custodit eam.^a Iam vulgo invaluit consuetudo ut hoc Salomonis canticum proverbii usurpemus, cum volumus innuere opem humanam sine divina non valere.

[Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain

Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. Now the habit has become ingrained that we use this verse of Solomon [sic] as a proverb when we want to say that human power has no strength without divine aid.]

a) Psalm 126:1 (K. J. V. 127:1)

B297. Lavi manus

Lavi manus ille proverbialiter dicit qui vult significare non immiscere se cuipiam negicio gerendo, ac per hoc diluere, hoc est, cavere omnem culpam quam incurrere posset. Tractum est a more purgandi apud veteres, qui per aquam purgationem faciebant (prout in nostro De Rerum Inventoribus^a opere docuimus). Ad illud respexit Pilatus,^b cum accepta aqua lavit manus coram populo dicens, Innocens ego sum a sanguine huius iusti. Unde propheta,^c Lavabo inter innocentes manus meas.

[To wash one’s hands

To wash one’s hands is proverbially said by someone who wishes to indicate he is not involved in some transaction, and for this reason is washing himself, i. e., he is on guard against all guilt he might incur. It is taken from a manner of cleansing oneself among the ancients, who purified themselves by means of water (as I have exerted myself to show in my De Rerum Inventoribus). Pilate had respect for this custom when he took water and washed his hands in public, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person. Hence the Prophet said, I will wash mine hands in innocency.

a) Polydore Vergil, De Inventoribus Rerum V.x p. 371 Weiss-Pérez b) Matthew 27:24 c) Psalm 25:6 (K. J. V. 26:6)

B298. Ab Herode ad Pilatum

Ab Herode ad Pilatum scomma est valde proverbiale in corruptos magistratus. Si quis enim suae rei procurans a iudice iniquo ad iniquiorem remittatur, vel ab uno auxilium petens ad alterum ire iubeatur quo sic ludificetur, recte dicet, ab Herode ad Pilatum (subaudias) remittor. Et ad id respicitur quod ad eum modum Herodes et Pilatus Christum collussissent.

[From Herod to Pilate

From Herod to Pilate is a very proverbial jape against corrupt magistrates. For if a man is defending his own interest is sent by an unjust judge to a yet more unjust one, or if he seeks help from one and is bidden go to another so that a mockery can be made of him, he may rightly say I am being sent (as you must understand) from Herod to Pilate. This refers to the way in which Herod and Pilate conspired against Christ.]

B299. In generatione una deleatur nomen eius

In generatione una deleatur nomen eius.^a Proverbialis modus imprecandi infortunium alicui homini malo, et e psalmo cviij desumptus est, ubi propheta praedixit fore ut post unam aetatem, hoc est lxij annum (eo enim ferme temporis spatio, ut ait Hieronymus, venit perfecta aetas) quam salvator esset cruci affixus, Hierosolyma a Romanis deleretur. Vere ita usu cotidie venit ut pravi patris filii perraro boni evadant vel diu prosperent.

[In the generation following let their name be blotted out

In the generation following let their name be blotted out. This is a proverbial way of calling down a curse on some bad man, taken from Psalm 108, where the Prophet foretells that a single generation (which is 62 years, for in about that space of time, Jerome tells us, a lifetime is completed) after our Savior was nailed to the cross, Jerusalem would be sacked by the Romans. But nowadays it is used to indicate that the sons of a bad father very rarely prove to be good men or long prosper.]

a) Psalm 108:13 (K. J. V. 109:13)

B300. Corvus nuncius

Corvus nuncius. De eo qui aliquo terrarum missus non revertitur. Allusum est ad corvum illum quem legimus Noe^a misisse visum an uspiam terra appareret quae diluvio obruebatur, qui minime rediit.

[A messenger raven

A messenger raven. This is said of a man who is sent anywhere in the world and does not come back. The allusion is to the raven which we read Noah sent forth to see if any land had emerged after being overwhelmed by the Flood, which did not return.]

a) cf. Genesis 8:7

B301. Columba nuncia

Columba nuncia. Non minus proverbialiter dici potest columbia nuncia, qui ad eum celeriter revertit a quo missus ad aliquem locum ferat, prout fecerat columba quae post corvum arca exierat. Vulgatissima est historia in Geneseos libro.^a Potest item illi dici columba nuncia qui felicem adportat nuntia, facta allusione ad id quod soleat hoc innoxium animal spiritus sancti speciem repraesentare.

[A messenger dove

A messenger dove. One can no less proverbially say a messenger dove of a man who speedily returns to the man by whom he was sent someplace, as did the dove who left the ark after the raven. The story in the Book of Genesis is very well known. Likewise this a messenger dove cand be said of the bearer of glad tidings, with reference to the fact that this harmless animal is used to represent the appearance of the Holy Spirit.]

a) Genesis 8:8

B302. Ecce agnus Dei

Ecce agnus Dei.^a Metaphora proverbialis de longe innocentissimo homine, qui sua animi simplicitate non absimilis sit agno animali pro natura et aetate minime astuto. Ea quoque ratione in sacris literis quis leo appellatur quod fortis et asper sit, sit item serpens, draco, aquila, turtur, passer, quia eiusmodi animalium mores vel naturam parte ex aliqua oleat. Atque inde proverbiale schema et ad inanimata transfertur, et quis dicitur oliva, lilium, rosa, vitis, flos, arbor, fons, flumen, mare, lapis, et generatim homo cuilibet rei cuius ipse vim sapiat assimilari proverbialiter potest. Id quod passim faciunt prophetae, ita salvator a Ioanne Baptista vocitatur agnus Dei, quod homo sine peccato pro peccatis nostris immolandus esset, velut ille paschalis agnus quem Iudaei quotannis in memoriam adeptae olim libertatis mactabant. Non latet historia in libro Exode, capite xij.

[Behold the lamb of God

Behold the lamb of god. This is a proverbial metaphor about by far the most innocent of men, who in his simplicity is not unlike a lamb, the least clever of animals in accordance with its nature and its age. And in accordance with the same logic, in Scripture a man may be called a lion for being brave and rough, and likewise a serpent, a snake, an eagle, a dove, or a sparrow, for in some way resembling the manners or nature of such animals. And by proverbial figures of speech men are compared to inanimate things, so somebody is called an olive, a lily, a rose, a vine, a flower, a tree, a fountain, a river, an ocean, a stone, and, speaking generally, a man can proverbially be compared to anything in whose quality he participates. This the prophets do constantly, and our Savior is called the lamb of God by John the Baptist, because He was a man without sin who was sacrificed for our sins, like that paschal lamb which the Jews yearly slew in memory of the freedom they had gained. The story in Exodus 12 is not unfamiliar.]

a) John 1:28 and 1:35

B303. Ab Aquilone pandetur omne malum

Ab Aquilone pandetur omne malum.^a Carmen est Hieremiae prophetae, quo futurum edocuit ut duae reliquae tribus Iuda et Beniamin, in qua Hierosolyma sita erat, a Babyloniis caperentur, quia decem aliae iam in servitutem assertae erant. Quod verum esse testatur divus Hieronymus^b de Hieremia ita scribens, Hic vaticinari exorsus est puer, et captivitatim urbis atque Iudae non solum spiritu sed et oculis carnis intuitus est. Iam decem tribus Israel Assyrii in Medos transtulerunt, iam terras earum coloni gentium possidebant. Unde in Iuda tantum et Beniamin prophetavit, et quia Hierosolyma Babylonios ab aestiva et solstitiali orientis plaga habet, unde ventus Aquilo, quem Graeci Boream vocant, venit. Ideo ab Aquilone ait pandetur omne malum, sive (uti Hieronymus legit) aperientur seu exardescent mala super omnes habitatores terrae. Est et Esaias^c huiusmodi loquendi schemate usus: Ab Aquilone enim fumus venit, et non est qui effugiat agmen eius. Hoc scriptum leges in calce capitis xiiij. Atque propterea quod populi Aquilonares, uti sunt Hyperborei, Sarmatae, Scythae, ac plerique alii ad Boream vergentes, feris moribus praediti, habentur cum primis facinorosi, quia (ut idem Hieronymus^d ait) Aquilo ventus durissimus durissima habitatorum suorum corda facit. Hinc factum ut boreales omnes minus boni minusve iusti vulgo censeantur, et dictum prophetae iam olim in malam partem versum in proverbium cesserit, qui passim utuntur cum volunt eiusmodi populorum mores notare atque graphice carpere.

[Out of the north all evil shall break forth.

Out of the north all evil shall break forth. This verse belongs to Jeremiah the prophet, who taught that is was destined that the two remaining tribes, Judah and Benjamin, in the territory of whom Jerusalem was located, would be taken by the Babylonians, since the other ten had already been enslaved. That this was true was asserted by St. Jerome, writing thus about Jeremiah: He began to prophesied as a boy, and saw the captivity and of Judah not only with his spirit, but also with his bodily eyes. The Assyrians had already exiled ten tribes of Israel to live among the Medes, and now gentile colonists were in possession of their lands. This is why he only prophesied concerning Judah and Benjamin, and Jerusalem had the Babylonians to its north. And hence he said out of the north all evil shall break forth, or (as Jerome read) be opened up or blaze forth over all the dwellers of the land. And Isaiah used this kind of figure of speech: There shall come from the north a smoke, and none shall be alone in his appointed time. You may read this written at the end of chapter 14. And because the northern peoples, as are the Hyperboreans, Sarmatians, Scythians, and numerous others living in the north, are endowed with savage manners, they are regarded as particularly outrageous, because (as the same Jerome says) the north wind is the harsh and greatly hardens the hearts of those who live there. In result, all northerners are commonly regarded as less good and less just, and nowadays the prophet’s utterance, taken in bad part, has become proverbial, and it is commonly used when people want to rail at the manners of such peoples and criticize them colorfully.]

a) Jeremiah 1:14 b) St. Jerome, prologue to Jeremiah (vol. 28. col. 0847 Migne) c) Isaiah 14:31 d) St. Jerome, Commentaries on Isaiah VI (vol. 24.252 col. o220C Migne)

B304. Ultra octoginta annos labor et dolor

Psalmo lxxxix^a tristis humanae vitae exitus pulcherrime describitur, ubi legimus si autem in potentatibus octoginta anni et amplius eorum labor et dolor. Quae sententia ceu verissima ac valde salutaris non utique intempestiviter locum fecit proverbio in eos qui diutius vivere cupiunt. Porro si illis qui robusto sunt corpore, qui hic potentatus vocantur, ultra eam aetatem vivere, pro supplicio est, quando tunc facto agmine subeunt morbi, quid apparebit in debilioribus? Quamvis raro inveneris septuagenarium vel octogenarium et sanum. Id quod Syra anus id aetatis apud Plautum^b onus vocitat inquiens, Nequeo mecastor, tantum hoc oneris est quod fero, annos octoginta et quatuor. Quapropter eiusmodi sententia iam quondam in adagium vulgo recepta est, quo monemur non appetere ad illam pervenire infirmam atque effoetam aetatem, quae vitio non temere vacat. Unde poeta,^c

Optima quaeque dies miseris mortalibus aevi
Prima fugit, subeunt morbi tristisque senectus,
Et labor, et durae rapit inclementia mortis.

Refert tamen Plinius^d complures centum ac ducentos et amplius annos corpore et integris viribus vixisse. Sed quotus nunc quisque est qui tam longam vivat aetatem? Et (uti inquit Salomon) laudabimus eum.

[If they be fourscore years, is their strength labour and sorrow

In Psalm 89 the sad ending of human life is very finely expressed, where we read, if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow. Being very true and quite salubrious, this saying does not inappropriately create room for a proverb regarding those who desire to live longer. Furthermore, if they are of sound body, which is called strength here, and live beyond that age, as they pray, what host of diseases do they confront, and what will befall the weaker? Rarely will you find a septuagenarian or octogenarian who is in good health This is what Syra in Plautus, an old woman of that age, calls a burden, saying, I cannot to this, by Castor, such is the burden I bear, being eighty-four. Therefore this kind of statement has become a popular adage, by which we are warned to not to seek to arrive at that infirm and worn-out age, which by no means is free of its fault. Hence the poet says, For us poor mortals, the best day of our lives is the first to flee, and are replaced by diseases and sad old age, and suffering, and the harshness of cruel death snatches us away. Pliny, however, say that plenty of people have lived to be 100, 200 or more, while remaining sound of body and in possession of their faculties. But how many live such a long life these days? And if there be any such, then (as Solomon says) we will praise him.]

a) Psalm 89:10 (K. J. V. 90:10) b) Plautus, Mercator 672 c) Vergil, Georgics III.88 d) Pliny has a lengthy passage on longevity beginning at N. H. VII.cliii.1

B305. Audiens sapiens sapientior erit

Sunt apud Hebraeos adagia innumerabilia sparsim sacris literis inserta, sed in primis Salomonis symbola instar oraculorum celebrata, ita ut nullum prope illorum sit quin paulatim in communem sermonem deductum cesserit in proverbium. Quapropter non gravabimur quempiam superioribus adiungere, ac allegorias eruendo docere in quot usus concinne queant accommodari. Atqui illud iure optimo primum tenebit locum,^a audiens sapiens sapientior erit. Sapientia enim, cunctis philosophis diffinitoribus, divinarum est atque humanarum rerum scientia, quam nemo unquam assecutus est nisi multis operam dedit praeceptoribus. Quandoquidem omnes sciunt omnia, at non singuli omnia. Ita igitur fit ut oporteat plures audire si velimus plura discere, et id citra cuiuscumque personae discrimen nobis faciendum est. Sic ut dominus utile consilium servi, omnino non debeat despicere. Atque ita quis suopte ingenio non insipiens per haec fieri in dies singulos sapientior potest. Unde monemur ne efferamur animo propter scientiam aliquam, neque arbitremur sat unquam scire, dicente eodem Salomone,^b ne innitaris prudentiae tuae, neque sis sapiens apud temetipsum, Expedit igitur semper usque ad extremum vitae diem etiam a quovis addiscere.

[A wise man will hear, and will increas his e learning

Among the Hebrews there were countless adages scattered throughout their Scripture, but particularly the utterances of Solomon, which were revered as oracles, so much so that scarcely any of them did not gradually invade common speech and become a proverb. For this reason to add another to the preceding, and by discussing these allegories show to what purposes they can appropriately be put. But by rights this particular one holds first place, a wise man will hear, and will increase his learning. For, as all the philosophers define it, wisdom is the understanding of things both divine and human, which no man has acquired save by heeding many preceptors. For all men understand all things, but individual men do not. Thus we must study under many instructors if we wish to learn much, and make trial of each of them. And (just as a master should not scorn the useful counsel of a servant), we should not wholly despise what they have to say. And thus a man not unwise by his nature can thereby grow wiser daily. Hence we are warned not to wax over-proud about some kind of knowledge, nor ever to imagine our understanding is good enough. As the same Solomon says, lean not unto thine own understanding. And so it behooves us always to be learning something from somebody or other, until our dying day.]

a) Proverbs 1:5 b) ib. 3:5

B306. Plus valet bonum nomen quam divitiae multae

Plus valet bonum nomen quam divitiae multae. Benefactorum praemium uberrimum est nominis existimatio, quod tanti aestimatur, ut qui illud amiserit nihil mox videatur habere quod perdere queat, utpote sine quo nec imperator recte imperare, nec senator consulere, nec miles miliare, nec mercator negociari, nec denique quisquam honeste vivere potest. Vide igitur quam sit unicuique insudandum quo sibi bonam comparet opinionem, quae, assertore Seneca, homini tutior est pecunia.^a Caeterum nos hac proverbiali sententia tam ad bene agendum maxime incitamur quam a male agendo plurimum deterremur.

[A good name is worth more than much wealth

A good name is worth more than much wealth. The richest reward of good deeds is an esteemed name, which is valued so highly that, should a man lose it, soon he will seem to have nothing left to lose. For without it, an emperor cannot rule, a senator cannot offer advice, a soldier cannot campaign, a merchant cannot trade, nor can anyone live an honorable life. So see how every man must strive to create a good opinion of himself, which as Seneca asserts, is safer than money for a man. And furthermore, this proverbial sentiment does more to encourage us to do good than it discourages us from doing bad.]

a) Publilius Syrus, Sententiae B63

B307. Diligite iustitiam qui iudicatis terram

Diligite iustitiam qui iudicatis terram.^a Recti iustique titulus est in regiae aulae, in cubiculi parietibus, in sella, in solio, in foro, in tribunali circumscribendus, ut quocunque princeps, praetor, ac quisquis est iudex, se verterint, illum ob oculos habeant perituri haud dubie si mandatum violaverint.

[Love righteousness, ye that be judges of the earth

Love righteousness, ye that be judges of the earth. This is a definition of the upright and the just, that ought to be inscribed in the royal court, on chamber walls, on the magistrate’s chair, on the throne, in the courtroom, and on the tribunal, so that wherever the sovereign, the Lord Mayor, or whoever sits in judgment turn themselves, he would will it before their eyes that without doubt they are doomed if they violate their mandate.]

a) Wisdom of Solomon 1:1

B308. Potentes potenter tormenta patientur

Potentes potenter tormenta patientur.^a De iniquis orbis rectoribus dicitur, quorum ruina ingentem mortalium numerum ad Tartarum ducit. Heu quam multi decipientur qui hodie in gratiam potentium fas omne abrumpunt, quasi arbitrantes etiam apud iustum iudicem magnae olim hominum potestatis rationem omnino esse habendam.

a) Wisdom of Solomon 1:1

[A sore trial shall come upon the mighty

A sore trial shall come upon the mighty.^a This is said concerning this world’s unrighteous rulers, whose downfall damns a great number of mortals to Hell. Alas, how many will be deceived who today are violating all right to gain the good graces of the mighty, as if under the impression that even in the presence of our just Judge any account at all will be taken of the great power of men.]

a) Wisdom of Solomon 6:7

B309. Septies in die cadit iustus

Septies in die cadit iustus.^a Dices quomodo erit iustus si cecederit? Erit inquam iustus, qui per fragilitatem naturae praevaricatus fuerit, et resurgit statim poenitendo. Sunt enim leviora quaedam peccata, sine quibus nec iustorum quisquam esse potest, quippe quae per oblivionem, per ignorantiam, per sermonem, per cogitantiam, per imbecillitatem carnis, vel inviti vel volentes, cotidie incurrimus, dicento divo Ioanne,^b Si dixerimus peccatum non habemus, ipsi nos seducimus. Et tamen iustus resurgit quia iustus est, nec iustitiae eius officit casus humanae fragilitatis. At impius se ceciderit, quia inhaeret malo quod facit, non datur ut resurgat. Notatur autem per hoc humanum esse peccare, et locum veniae poenitenti apud Deum non deesse.

[A just man falleth seven times a day

A just man falleth seven times a day. How can he be just if he falls, you say? He will be just, I tell you, if he has spoken a falsehood because of his frail nature, and rises up again thanks to repentance. For some sins are lighter, without which not any just man can exist, for we commit these daily willy-nilly, either out of forgetfulness, ignorance, our speech, our thought, or the weakness of the flesh. As St. John says, if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves. And yet the just man rises up again, because he is just, nor does his fall of human frailty stand in the way of his justice. But if an unjust man falls, because he perseveres in his wrong doing he will not be allowed to rise up again. By this proverb it is indicated that it is human to err, and that God is not lacking in forgiveness for the penitent.]

a) Proverbs 24:16 b) 1 John 1:8

B310. Mors et vita in manibus linguae

Mors et vita in manibus linguae.^a Magna vis linguae, ut secum vitam et bella manu letumque ferat. Porro nihil in homine melius lingua nihilve lingua peius. Si enim bene loquatur, plurimum semper adfert utilitatis; sin male dicat, plurimum invehit damni. Quamobrem divus Iacobus^b apostolus non incongrue illam gubernaculo navis assimilat, quod cum pars sit minima, tota tamen navem vel servat vel perdit. Unde propheta^c non iniuria a Deo postulat, Pone custodiam ori meo. Et Seneca,^d Tene semper vocis ac silentii temperamentum. Hinc docemur debere nos linguam ut frugiferum membrum bene exercere, ac e diverso ceu pestiferum in primis compescere, cum praesertim scimus (velut monet Iesus)^e de omni ocioso verbo quod locuti fuerimus, reddituri rationem in die iudicii.

[Death and life are in the power of the tongue

Death and life are in the power of the tongue. Great is the power of the tongue, as it may bring on life, wars, and death. In a man there is nothing better than the tongue, and nothing worse. For if he speaks well, it confers great benefit; if badly, it brings on great loss. For this reason St. James the apostle was not absurd in comparing it to the helm of a ship: for although it is the least part, it either saves or destroys the whole vessel. Hence the Prophet did not do wrong in asking from God, Set a watch before my mouth. And Seneca said, Always keep a good mixture of voice and silence. Hence we are taught that we ought to ply our tongue as a profit-bringing organ, and especially to restrain it as a bringer of plague, particularly since we know (as Jesus teaches) that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof on the day of judgment.]

a) Proverbs 18:21 b) James 3:5 c) Psalm 140:3 (K. J. V. 141:3) d) Publilius Syrus, Sententiae S628 e) Matthew 12:36

B311. Frustra iacitur rete ante oculos pennatorum

Frustra iacitur rete ante oculos pennatorum.^a Adagium ex eo natum videtur quod qui aucupantur aut retia tendunt aut iaciunt. Hoc autem in terrestibus, illud vero in sublimibus capiendis avibus, et praecipue coturnicibus, fit. Solet enim canis ad id optime doctus, cum coturnicem errando viderit, in vestigio consistere soloque intuitu avem pavefactam remorari, interim assiduo caudae motu significans praedam adesse. Quo conspecto, auceps pedetentim accedens rete superiacit atque sic praeda potitur. Verum si avis retiam semel viderit, nec quicquam expectet ut eam tegat, vel sua sponte in illam incidat. Quae res dubio procul locum proverbio fecit perappositum, quo uti licet ubi quis aggreditur rem captu difficile aut bene oculatos et prudentes viros conatur aucupantium more fallere decipulis.

[In vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird

In vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. This adage appears to be taken from those birders who spread or cast nets. The one is done for birds on the ground, the other for those on the wing, and particularly for quail. For when a well trained hunting dog sees a quail in its wanderings, it stops in its tracks and holds the terrified bird still by its stare alone, meanwhile showing that quarry is present by the busy wagging of its tail. Seeing this, the birder creeps up and throws a net over it, and so gains his prize. And if the bird once catches sight of the net, not anticipating that it will cover him, it will fly into it of its own volition. This is something which, beyond all doubt, provides a very appropriate opportunity for a proverb, which one may use when somebody attempts something hard to achieve or attempts, in the manner of birders, to deceive keen-sighted and prudent men with his little deceptions.]

a) Proberbs 1:17

B312. Vae soli

Vae soli.^a Est nempe vita iucundior si non solus agas, sed cum lepidis amicis consuetudinem habeas. At contra ille vitam vivit tristem cui propinquorum amicorumve est paucitas, qui aut peregrinus aut hospes in aliena civitate agit, et neminem habet qui opituletur. In hunc igitur adagium quadrabit, quo perdiscere licet, quantum habeat boni amicorum contubernium, et commune solatium, quando alterius calamitas alterius auxilio levatur, et ut curae domesticae diminuuntur, sic gaudium semper augetur.

[Woe to him that is alone

Woe to him that is alone. Life is more pleasant if you do not live it by yourself, but keep company with agreeable friends. On the contrary, he who has a scarcity of kinsmen or friends lives a gloomy life, as does he who lives as a stranger and guest in a foreign city and has nobody to aid him. Therefore this adage befits him, and from it we can learn the worth of the society of friends and its mutual solace, since one man can help another in his calamity, and, as his domestic cares are lessened, his happiness can always be increased.]

a) Ecclesiastes 4:10

B313. Funiculus triplex non facile rumpitur

Eiusdem generis est illud, Funiculus triplex non facile rumpitur.^a Sensum huius proverbii perbelle declarat memorabile commentum Canguistae Tartarorum regis, quod eiusmodi est: Is enim moriens duodecim filiis regnum reliquit, quos cum prius ad concordiam hortaretur, iussit ut duodecim sagittas quisque suam in unun conferrent, fascemque ex his facerent. Inde singuli in orbem experiri iussi sunt possentne fascem frangere. Verum cum res ab omnibus frustra tentata est, Tam firmum, inquit, erit vestrum imperium, filii, si in eo tuendo concordes eritis, contra fragile et hostium iniuriae obnoxium, soluto animorum consensu, ceu si fasciculus iste aut casu aut consilio solvatur, infirma erit sagittarum quaelibet, ac cuique vestrum facile friabilis. Ad hunc modum funiculis triplici filo confectus non potest rumpi, at si resolvatur quodlibet filum frangere nequaquam difficile est. Hac autem proverbiali similitudine haud quidem inepta perspicue patet res hominum concordia augeri, auctas discordia labefactari.

[A three-fold cord is not quickly broken

Of the same kind is that a three-fold cord is not quickly broken. The sense of this proverb neatly expresses the observation of king Ghengis of the Tartars, which was of the following kind. On his deathbed he left his kingdom to his twelve sons. Having urged them to live in concord, he bade each one fetch twelve arrows and gather them into a bundle. Then he told each one in turn to try whether he could break his bundle. When they had all tried and failed, he said to them, Your government will be just as firm, my sons, if you are harmonious in protecting it. On the other hand, it will be fragile and exposed to enemy harm if you have a falling-out, just like, if this bundle is disrupted by any chance or counsel, any of its arrows will be weak, and easily broken by any of you. In this same way, a cord composed of three strands cannot be broken, but if it is unravelled, any single one of its threads is not to hard to break. By this proverbial comparison, which is by no means a clumsy one, it is very obvious that human affairs are enhanced by men’s concord, but weakened when their discord arises.]

a) Ecclesiastices 4:12

B314. Vae terrae cuius rex puer est

Vae terrae cuius rex puer est, et principes tui mane comedunt.^a Hic reprobatur iuvenis principatus et luxuriosi iudices damnantur, quod in altero per aetatem sit infirma sapientia, in aliis matura aetas deliciis enervetur. Econtrario iudices illi probantur sui suis commoditatibus etiam necessariis publica negotia praeferunt, et ille commendatur princeps qui ita vitam suam instituit ut aliis possit documento esse, et ob id de pouli tantum commodo cogitans, ne digitum quidem a legibus discedat. Ista a puero per aetatem praestari minime possunt, unde necesse est ut ei sint vicarii. Et ii cum privatum quoque negotium suum plurimum gerant, plus calamitatis quam salutis saepenumero solent populo adferre. Hinc igitur proverbium fluxit in eam regionem quae ob imprudentiam principis plectitur, vel in ipsos principes qui diu pueri sunt, quos Seneca^b perquam eleganter pupillos trigenarios aut quadragenarios vocat, utpote cui curas omnes tutoribus demandantes nullas officii partes perimplent, unde milia regno oboriuntur incommodorum. Quod omnino non fieret si rex ipse respiceret, quippe qui solo intuito (ut idem Salomon^c perhibet) dissipat omne malum. Atque sic sapientissimus princeps unicum est populi stabilimentum. Caeterum proverbium ad cunctos locorum praepositos accommodari recte potest, quorum officium desiderentur non absque populi ac reipublicae iactura.

[Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child

Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child, and thy princes eat in the morning! Here the young prince is chided and wanton judges are condemned, because in the one wisdom is infirm because of his is youth, and in the others maturity is enervated by wallowing in delights. On the other hand, those judges are applauded who place public business ahead of even their necessary self-advantage, and that prince is commended who so regulates his life that he does not deviate from the laws by even the breadth of a finger. These things can scarcely be done by a child, so it is necessary that he have regents to govern in his stead. And inasmuch as such men for the most part manage their private business, very often they are prone to visit more calamity than prosperity on the people. Hence, therefore, this proverb has been devised to apply to a region which is harmed by the imprudence of its prince, or to those princes themselves who are childish for a long time, those whom Seneca most elegantly called children of thirty or forty years, who relegate all concerns to their tutors and perform no part of their duties, the source of a thousand inconveniences for a kingdom. This would entirely cease to occur if the king himself were to recover his wits, for by his glance alone (as Solomon says) he scattereth away all evil with his eyes. And thus the very wise prince is the unique bulwark of his people. But this proverb can fitly be applied to all those who occupy positions of office, whose duty cannot be neglected without damage to their people and commonwealth.]

a) Ecclesiastices 10:16 b) Seneca, Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium xxv.1.4 c) Proverbs 20:8

B315. Facies hominis facies leonis

Commiscebimus cum superiore tempistiver hoc Ezechielis^a verbum, Facies hominis facies leonis.^a Cum enim princeps solo aspectu (sicut proxime est demonstratum) mala expellat, inde sane apparet quanta vis insit in hominis facie, quae perinde cunctis animantibus formidabilis est ac reliquae animantes ad leonis occursum maxime pavent. Ex quo prophetae dictum in adagium exiit, quo significatur multum valere ac urgere apud quemlibet hominis praesentia. Unde illud Davidicum,^b Vultus autem domini super facientes mala, ut perdat de terra memoriam eorum.

[The face of a man, and the face of a lion

It is timely for me to associate with the preceding this verse of Ezechiel, the face of a man, and the face of a lion. For since (as has just been shown) a sovereign can banish evils by his countenance alone, it is evident how much power exists in a man’s face, which is as fearsome to all living things as is an encounter with a lion to the other animals. Hence the prophet’s saying has become an adage, by which is signified that a man’s presence has much power and force with anyone. Hence that saying of David, The face of the Lord is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.]

a) Ezechiel 1:10 b) Psalm 33:16 (K. J. V. 34:

B316. Sapientia hominis lucet in vultu

Facies homini tantam (veluti alibi diximus) data omnem in se formae dignitatem continet, estque plurimum sapientiae aut stultitiae certissima index. Unde adagium ortum sapientia hominis lucet in vultu,^a hoc est in facie. Nam vultus pro voluntate in facie variatur. Conveniet in eos qui sui sensus gravitatem vel levitatem in ipso frontispicio praemonstrant.

[A man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine

As I have said above, the face given Man has in itself much dignity of beauty, and is often the surest index of his wisdom or folly. Hence has arisen an adage, a man’s wisdom maketh his face to shine. For a man’s expression of face changes in accordance with his will. This will fit those men who display the gravity or lightness of their senses on their brows.]

a) Ecclesiastes 8:1

B317. Doctrina sua noscitur vir

Doctrina sua noscitur vir.^aQuia nimirum si recta docuerit, et illa ipse cum primis servarerit, non dubium est quin doctrinae suae rite respondebit, ac pro iusto censebitur. Contra si prava suggesserit, pravus merito malusque habebitur, quando a coenoso fonte nunquam pura manat aqua.

[A man shall be commended according to his wisdom

A man shall be commended according to his wisdom. For if a man has taught aright, and has conspicuously followed his own teaching, there is no question but that he will fitly correspond to his teaching and will be adjudged a just man. On the contrary, if he urges depraved things, he will justly be deemed depraved and evil, since pure water never flows from a muddy stream.]

a) Proverbs 12:8

B318. Fugit impius, nemine persequente

Fugit impius, nemine persequentur^a suetum est de eo dici quem scelerum conscientia mordet, facitque ut censurae metuens in publico non audeat versari, vel mutet patriam. Verum hoc oraculum est de minime forti in fide, qui etiam si nullus persecutor insistat, eam sua sponte deserit, utpote qui multis addictus vitiis se infideli similem reddit.

[The wicked flee when no man pursueth

The wicked flee when no man pursueth is customarily said of the man who is gnawed by consciousness of his crimes, which make him fear censure so that he does not dare appear in public, or goes to another land. But this utterance was made concerning a man of little strength in the faith who, even if oppressed by no persecutor, freely abandons it. For, being addicted to many vices, he makes himself like to an infidel.]

a) Proverbs 28:1

B319. Cervus ad sagittam properat

Cervus ad sagittam properat^a recte competet impio fugienti, qui dum fuga salutem quaerit, urgente fato, in supplicium aliquando incidit. Sed et unicuique congruet qui nesciens it se perditum aut dolo ducitur in interitum. Tractum a more venandi. Solent enim venatores abdere sagittarios in ferarum saltus, atque mox cervos in primis ac damas canibus et clamore agitare, qui in diversum fugientes et plerumque in ipsos sagittarios recta properantes, ab eis configuntur. In hanc quoque sententiam Salomon^b alibi ait, Avis festinat ad laqueum, et nescit quod de periculo animae suae agatur.

[The stag rushes towards the arrow

The stag rushes towards the arrow is suitable for an impious runaway who, while seeking safety in flight, finally encounters his punishment. But it will fit any man who goes to his destruction unawares or is led to his downfall by trickery. It is taken from a method of hunting. For hunters are wont to hide archers in the forests of their quarry and use hounds and shouting to drive doe and most especially stags, who flee in various directions. Some make straight for the archers and are shot by them. In this same vein Solomon elsewhere says, as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not it is for his life.]

a) This proverb (also found in such collections as Johann Jakob Grynaeus’ much later Adagia, nr. 213) is not biblical, although Polydore appears to have attributed it to Solomon b) Proverbs 7:23

B320. Melior est mors quam vita amara

Melior est mors quam vita amara.^a Est melior mors, utpote quam natura loco remedii unici omnium humanarum calamitatum adinvenit. Et illud tamen non tam mori quam finire mori est, quoniam toties morimur quoties angimur, vexamur, et laboramus. Quippe dum ita afficimur, omnis decor formae labascit, vires languescunt, sensus item hebescunt. Ediverso iucunditas cordis vita censetur, quod ea sola mentem securam corpusque vitalius reddat. Utrumque alibi idem Salomon^b testatur inquiens, Animus gaudens aetatem floridam facit, spiritus tristis exiccat ossa. Unde discere licet quantum conducat vitam degere laetam.

[Death is better than a bitter life

Death is better than a bitter life. Death is better, since nature has created it as the unique remedy for all human woes. And it is not so much dying as an end to dying, inasmuch as we die as often as we are tormented, are troubled, and suffer. For when we are thus affected, all comeliness of appearance withers, our strength fails, and likewise our senses grow dim. On the other hand, a joyful heart is deemed to be life, because it alone makes the mind carefree and enlivens the body. Elsewhere Solomon attests to both these things, saying, A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. From this we can learn how important it is to live a happy life.]

a) Ecclesiasticus 30:17 b) Proverbs 17:22

B321. Qui altam facit domum, quaerit suam ruinam

Ut aedificia altior magis fulminibus, imbribus, ac ventis exposita sunt, quae de coelo aut tacta aut corrosa vel continenter quassata citius corruunt, sic summa potestas gravissimis casibus impendio est obnoxia. Unde natum proverbium, qui altam facit domum, quaerit suam ruinam^a in valde ambitiosos, superbos ac cupidos, quibus nihil sat est nisi quod sit immodicum, qui supra vires alta petentes dum sine modo ad honorum aut opum fastigia tendunt, multo magis alterius sortis icitibus hominumque odiis patent. Quo fit ut saepe vel medio cursu procumbant vel e summo repente decidant. Quam casum si multi secum reputarent qui in altum cotidie extolluntur, sua fortassis vela vento (ut Horatius^b ait) nimium secundo turgida mature cotraherent, atque sic sapienter se extra sortis aleam in tutum reciperent.

[He that maketh his house high, seeketh falling

Just as loftier houses are more exposed to bouts of lightning, rain, and wind, and when stricken, or eroded, or continually shaken they are quicker to collapse, thus supreme power is exposed to the gravest reversals. Hence has arisen the proverb, he that maketh his house high, seeketh falling, concerning the highly ambitious, the proud, and the greedy, for whom nothing but too much is enough, and, while they strive beyond their strength after high things, limitlessly grasping for the pinnacles of honor and wealth, they are exposed far more to the buffets of fortune and the hatred of men. Hence it happens that they either collapse in mid-course or suddenly fall from on high. If many men would think about the calamities daily suffered from those who have been lifted up, perhaps (as Horace says) they would quickly furl their sails, too bellied by a favorable wind, and wisely betake themselves to a place of safety, removed from the dice-game of fortune.]

a) Proverbs 17:16 b)Horace, Odes II.x.23f.

B322. Servantem mandata servant

Servantem mandata servant^acompetit iis quibus Christus^b dicit, Qui ergo solverit unum de mandatis minimis et docuerit sic homines, minimus vocabitur in regno coelorum. Quo autem fecerit et docuerit, hic magnus vocabitur in regno coelorum. Et denique omnibus congruit, ui fideliter mandata peragunt.

[Mandates preserve the man who observes them

[Mandates preserve the man who observes them applies to those of whom Christ says, Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven; but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

a) Not biblical; I have not encountered this elsewhere b) Matthew 5:19

B323. Melior est vicinus iuxta quam frater procul

Melior est vicinus iuxta quam frater procul.^a Dicitur de eo qui non nomine sed factis censetur amicus. Ille enim vere frater et proximus est qui iuvat. Unde praesens propitius dicitur. Vergilius, ^a

Nec tam praesentes alibi cognocere divos.

Quid enim propinquitas prodest si nihl opituletur? Quam proptera cuiusvis liberalitas etiam exigua merito exuperat si praesto sit. Id quod salvator in parabola vulnerati a latronibus significantius edocuit, quia solus quidam Samaritanus illius curam habuerit, homo quamvis alienigena.

[Better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off

Better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off. This is said of a man who is considered a friend, not in words, but in deeds. For he who helps is truly a brother and a neighbor. Hence he who is present is said to be propitious. As Vergil says, I could not find gods so ready to help me. For what is the profit of kinship, if it supplies no help? For this reason, the kindness of somebody, even if it be slight, is best if it is ready at hand. Our Savior taught this in His parable about the man wounded by robbers,^c since it was the Samaritan alone who had a care for him, foreigner though he was.]

a) Proverbs 27:10 b)Vergil, Eclogue i:41 c) Luke 10:25 - 37

B324 Argento obediunt omnia

Argento obediunt omnia.^a Hunc titulum non parum multi scriptum gerunt in corde, quibus nihil pecunia charius honestiusve est. O quot seculo nostro mortales ea bellua (etsi inanimata est) subegit falsos fieri! Conveniet in eos qui venales habent animas, et nihil pulchrius ducunt quam vocari utcunque divites.

[Everything obeys money

Everything obeys money. No small number of men bear this slogan engraved on their hearts, since for them nothing is dearer or more honorable than money. How many men of our age has this beast (inanimate though it is) made to be false! The proverb will apply to those who have their souls for sale, and thinking nothing fairer than to be called wealthy, no matter how they acquire it.]

a) This proverb, used in this form by St. Jerome in chapter x of his commentary on Ecclesiastes (vol. 23..400 col. 1099B Migne), and by Polydore, Anglica Historia X.vi, appears in the form pecuniae oboedient omnia (Ecclesiastes 10:19).

B325. Ne declines neque ad sinistram neque ad dextram

Ne declines neque ad sinistram neque ad dextram.^a Unde quam recte sit incedendum, si cupias pervenire ad summum bonum. Quando si de recta via paululum declinaveris, non interest utrum ad dexteram vadas an ad sinistram, cum iter iam amiseris. Quippe qui ad sinistram flectit iter, quae ad malum ducit, stulticiae famulatur. Qui vero ad dextram se vertit, quae licet bene bona sit, is est qui nimium sibi placet et assumit. Congruet proverbium in nostros potissimum fraterculos, quorum alii remissioris vitae, alii multo arctioris sunt, ita ut inter eos nusquam medium sit. Atque sic docet in medio consistere virtutem.

[Turn not to the right hand nor to the left

Turn not to the right hand nor to the left. You should travel as straight as possible, if you desire to arrive at the supreme good. For if you swerve aside even a little, it does not matter whether you go to the left or to the right, since you have now lost your way. For he who turns to the left, which leads to evil, has folly for a companion. But he who turns to the right, even if this is a good thing, he is too pleased with himself and takes on air. This proverb very well suits our friars, some of whom live too lax a live, and others are over-severe, so that there is no midway between them. And thus this proverb teaches that virtue exists in the mean.]

a) Proverbs 4:27 (also Joshua 1:7)

B326. Qui nimium emungit elicit sanguinem

Qui nimium emungit elicit sanguinem.^a De hoc proverbio alibi transeunter meminimus, sed quia non planum fecimus quid significaret, hic proinde ponere libuit. In eos dici solitum est qui omnia sine modo agunt, veluti facit pastor ille qui, non contentus lacte, ubera nimium premendo laedit. Sic accidit circa divina. qui enim plus quam debeant in sacris literis ingeniosi sunt, saepe in humanum intellectum cadunt, hoc est in haeresim trahuntur. Sed speciatim in tyrannos quadrabit, qui novas cotidie exigendae pecuniae rationes ineundo, populum miserabiliter opprimunt.

[The wringing of the nose brings forth blood

The wringing of the nose brings forth blood. I have mentioned this proverb elsewhere in passing, but since I did not explain its meaning, I have chosen to do so here. It is commonly said concerning them who do everything in excess, as does that shepherd who, not content with milk, harms the udder by squeezing it too tightly. This occurs concerning divine things, when men who are over-ingenious in interpreting Scripture, and often exhibit their human fallibility, i. e. they are lured into heresy. But it particularly pertains to tyrants who, by daily inventing new devices for extracting money, wretchedly oppress their people.]

a) Proverbs 30:33

B327. Qui parcit virgae odit filium

Qui parcit virgae odit filium.^a Congruit cum illo quod est apud comicum poetam,^b Deteriores omnes sumus licentia. Ille enim pater perdit filium, ille praeceptor discipulum, ille dominus servum, qui ei nimium indulgat. Iuxta hanc sententiam et illud est,^c Qui delicate nutrit servum, postea sentiet eum contumacem. Sunt igitur castigandi filii, discipuli, ac servi, et delinquentes pundiendi, dum praesertim docilis est aetas.

[He that spareth his rod hateth his son

He that spareth his rod hateth his son. This agrees with that which we find in the comic poet, licence makes us all worst. For the father destroys the son, the teacher his pupil, the master his servant, who indulges him excessively. Similar to that sentiment is this, He that delicately bringeth up his servant shall have him recalcitrant. Sons, pupils, and servants therefore require chastisement, and punishment when they are delinquent, especially at a young age when they are capable of instruction.]

a) Proverbs 13:24 b) Terence, Heauton Timoroumenos 483 c) Proverbs 29:21

B328. Responsio mollis frangit iram

Responsio mollis frangit iram, at contra durus sermo suscitat furorem.^a Per hoc apparet non esse resultandum in increpantem, neque irascentem irritandum, sed dulci blandoque sermone utrique respondendum.

[A soft answer turneth away wrath

A soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger. Thanks to this proverb it becomes clear we should not lash back at someone who rails against us, nor grow wrathful at a man who provoes ut, but rather that we should reply to both with sweet and pleasant words.]

a) Proverbs 15:1

B329. Fovea profunda meretrix

Fovea profunda meretrix.^a Ex hac proverbiali metaphora liquido liquet in hanc foveam cadentibus nullam superesse spem emergendi, cum tam sit alta vorago. Quo certe nihil verius dici poterat. Mille etiam habet artes meretrix quibus fallat amantem, detineatque perpetuo donec eum bonis omnibus exuerit, adeo novit dulci inficere veneno. Proinde haec fovea cavenda est in quam qui inciderint audias, quam suaviter torqueatur, dicente, qui olim in ea forsitan periit:^b

Nil amor est alud nisi tristis et egra voluptas.
Nil nisi dulce malum, nil nisi triste bonum.
Diminuit famam, factis melioribus obstat.
Exiguo magnas tempore perdit opes.

[A whore is a deep ditch

A whore is a deep ditch. From this proverbial metaphor it is transparently clear that there is no hope of getting out for those who fall into this ditch, since it is such a deep whirlpool. And nothing truer can be said. For a harlot has a thousand artifices for deceiving a lover, and clinging to him constantly until she has drained him of all his goods, and she knows how to infect with her sweet poison. Hear how this ditch is to be avoided, in which those who have fallen are sweetly tormented, as expressed by a man who perhaps perished in it himself: Love is nothing but a sick, sad pleasure, nothing but a sweet evil, nothing but a dire good. It lessens your reputation and stands in the way of your doing better deeds. In a small time it destroys great wealth.]

a) Proverbs 23:27 b) a poem by Gregorius Typhernus (Gregorio Tifernas), quoted in somewhat different form by Helius Eobanus Hessus, De Amantium Infoelicitate(Erfuhrt, 1508) sig. B4^r

B330. In pigritiis humiliabitur contignatio

In pigritiis humiliabitur contignatio.^a Dicitur in praepositos ecclesiae, qui per socordiam culmen domus Dei concidere patiuntur. Potest commodum trahi in quoscunque qui sua negligentia tantum detrimenti reipublicae afferunt, quantum domus ruinae accipit si contignatio, id est ipsa trabium ac tignorum textura, per incuriam inquilini resolvatur.

[By much slothfulness the building decayeth

By much slothfulness the building decayeth. This is said against those who rule the Church, who in their idleness allow the roof of God’s house to collapse. It can be applied to advantage to anyone who visit just as great harm on the commonwealth by their negligence, as a house suffers damage if its roof, i. e. the structure of its roof-beams and tile-work, is broken by the negligence of the homeowner.]

a) Ecclesiastes 10:18

B331. In risu faciunt panem et vinum

In risu faciunt panem et vinum, et epulantur viventes.^a Facere panem et vinum illi dicuntur qui loquuntur quidem in ecclesia et docent, sed ea docent quae populum audire delectet, ut peccatores palpent in vitio et strepitus concitent audientium. Quippe quando in ecclesia lascivit concionator et multitudini beatitudinem pollicetur, nonne panem facere et vinum ad laetitiam viventium miscere videtur? Quadrabit in omnes qui servientes auribus ad gratiam non ad fidem docent, scribunt, aut loquuntur.

[A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry

A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry. They are said to do this, who speak and teach in the church, indeed, but teach those things the congregation delights to here, to comfort sinners amidst their vice and raise a cheer from their hearers. For whenever a preacher plays the wanton in a church and promises the multitude blessedness, is he not feasting with laughter and making merry with wine? This will fit all men who spare their audience’s ears and teach, write or speak to gain favor rather than to tell the truth.]

a) Ecclesiastes 10:19

B332. Homo sapiens tacebit usque ad tempus

Homo sapiens tacebit usque ad tempus.^a Proverbio dici solet de eo qui patienter fert omnia donec occasionem nactus par pari, hoc est alterum tantum referre poterit illi a quo iniuriam acceperat. Nam saepenumero morae vel iniuriae impatientibus maiora mox oboriuntur incommoda.

[A wise man will hold his peace till he see opportunity

A wise man will hold his peace till he see opportunity. This is wont to be said proverbially of a man who patiently tolerates everything until he gains the opportunity to pay tit for tat, i. e. to retaliate against the person from whom he received the injury. For often yet greater troubles arise for those who are impatient of delay or insult.]

a) Ecclesiastes 20:7

B333. Ha, ha, ha, domine Deus, ecce nescio loqui

Huc vel illud Hieremiae^a carmen pertinere videtur, Ha, ha, ha, domine Deus, ecce nescio loqui, quia puer ego sum. Cum huic admodum iuveni divinitus foret prophetandi munus demandatum, in admirationem adductus clamavit dicens, Ha, ha, ha, quae admirantis est interiectio. Atque sic detestatus est officium quod pro aetate facere non posset. Verum iam apud vulgus in proverbium vertitur, quoties quis vult significare se consulto tacere vel non audere loqui, ceu id temporis facere non permittatur.

[Ah, ah, ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak

To this seems pertinent that verse of Jeremiah, Ah, ah, ah, Lord God! I cannot speak: for I am a child. When the divine gift was given to him while still very young, he was astonished, saying ah, ah, ah, which is an interjection of an amazed person. And thus he expressed his hatred of a duty which he was too young to perform. But it has been turned into a popular proverb, whenever one wants to indicate that he is keeping silent deliberately and does not dare speak, as if the time does not allow him to do that.]

a) Jeremiah 1:6

B334. Ferrum ferro acuitur

Ferrum ferro acuitur^a proverbiali figura dicitur de illis qui mutuo sibi consulunt, mutuoque consilio sapientiores evadunt. Ita cum ferrum ferro teritur, utriusque acies redditur acutior.

[Iron sharpeneth iron

Iron sharpeneth iron is a proverbial image said of those who mutually consult for each other’s welfare, and by their mutual consultation are made wiser. Thus when iron is whetted agains iron, both the edges are made keener.]

a) Proverbs 27:17

B335. Qui festinat ditescere non erit innocens

Qui festinat ditescere non erit innocens.^a Recte in eum torquetur qui ambit augere opes, et unde congerat nihil pensi habet. Nam impossible pene est opes parare et manus simul a rapinis abstinere. Unde monemur parvo contenti esse, quando sine maleficio ditescere minime licet.

[He that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent

He that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent. This is rightly applied to the man who is ambitious to increase his wealth, without caring a fig about where he acquires it. For it is all but impossible to amass wealth while keeping one’s hands free of plunder. Hence we admonished to be content with a little, since it is impossible to grow wealthy without doing wrong.]

a) Proverbs 28:20

B336. Leo est foris, leaena est in itineribus

Ignavus nihil non ignave agit, quippe qui non modo non vult laborare, sed ne foras prodeat, vana semper pericula excusat, scilicet (ut in proverbio est) leo est foris, leana est in itineribus. Sum occidendus, surgunt venti, tempus est pluvium.^a Sic pigrat domi, sic torpescit, sic demum sub asella manus abscondit, mox in egestate periturus. Conveniet adagium in desidiosos, imbelles, effoeminatosque homines, quibus desidiae cordi et iuvat indulgere choreis et Veneri atque adeo Baccho.

[A lion is outside, there is a lioness in the streets, I am bound to be killed, the winds are blowing up, the weather is rainy

The slothful man does nothing that is not slothful, for he not only refuses to exert himself, but will not even go outdoors, always offering dangers as his excuse, for instance (as the proverb has it), a lion is outside, there is a lioness in the streets, I am bound to be killed, the winds are blowing up, the weather is rainy. Thus he remains idle at home, thus he is torpid and hides his hands in his armpits, destined soon to die in poverty. This adage befits men who are lazy, helpless effeminates, to whom idleness is pleasing, and who like to indulge in dancing, Venus, and Bacchus.]

a) somebody’s embroidery on Proverbs 22:13

B337. Occasiones quaerit qui vult recedere ab amico

Occasiones quaerit vul vult recedere ab amico.^a Vide quanta vis sit nominis amicitiae, ut etiam simulatum amicum pudeat violatae utcunque benevolentiae (nam vera necessitudo nunquam seiungitur) quando qui pro amico semel est habitus non audet omnino illud sacrosanctum foedus palam prius eludere quam habeat quod excusare possit, posteaquam eluserit. Hinc ortum adagium in eum qui specie honesti suas queremonia subdole accommodat ad ius amicitiae solvendum violendumque.

[He who seeks to abandon a friend looks for opportunities

He who seeks to abandon a friend looks for opportunities. Observe the power of friendship’s name, so that even a false friend is ashamed to violate its benevolence in any way (for true need is never separated from it) For once he is taken to be a friend, he does not dare openly violate that sacrosanct pledge of trust until he has a means of excusing himself after having abandoning him. Hence has arisen an adage against the man who gives his complaint a show of honesty in order to break and violate the law of friendship.]

a) Proverbs 18:1

B338. Omnia tempus habent

Omnia tempus habent.^a Admonet uniuscuiusque rei agendae observandum esse tempus, ut per tempus omnia fiant. Siquidem in qualibet arte, praesertim in agricultura, permagni interest quo tempore hoc vel illud cures. Etenim ut per tempus nata optima sunt, ita quae post tempus nascuntur fore vitiosa atque inutilia existunt, teste Varro.^b

[To every thing there is a season

To every thing there is a season. This advises us that the time for doing anything at all must be observed, so that everything might be done in a timely matter. For in any art, and especially in agriculture, it makes a great difference at what time you attend to one thing or another. For, just as things done in a timely way are excellent, things done over-late are faulty and useless, as Varro tells us.

a) Ecclesiastes 3:1 b) Varro, Res Rusticae II.vii.7

B339. Noli esse iustus multum

Noli esse iustus multum.^a Non convenit ut per omnia iustitia servetur, cum necesse sit non parvum multa condonare aetati, et identidem nonnihil humanae infirmitati ignoscere. Unde fit ut nemo absque peccato sit. Quamobrem non immerito apud philosophos^b virtutes in meditullio positae sunt, et omne quod nimum est, sive summum sive imum sit, vitio datur. Coaptabitur adagium illi iudici qui ad minima etiam delicta connivere nescit. Quod (ut superius retulimus) summum dicitur ius, et pro summa accipitur iniuria. Sed inverecunde religiosos recte etiam congruet, qui scrupulosa cura minima quaeque religionis momenta examinare volunt.

[Be not righteous overmuch

Be not righteous overmuch. It is not suitable that justice be observed in all things, since there is no small necessity to pardon much for youth, and likewise to be no little forgiving towards human frailty. Hence it comes about that no man is free of sin. For this reason, among the philosophers the virtues reside in the Mean, and everything excessive, by being either too much or too little, is accounted a vice. This adage will befit that judge who does not know how to wink at even the slightest misdeeds. For (as I have reported above) extreme law is the greatest injustice. But this will also rightly pertain to those men who are unabashedly religion, who in their scrupulous attention want to scrutinize even the smallest details of their religion.]

a) Ecclesiastes 7:17 (K. J. V. 17:16) b) the allusion is of course to Aristotle’s doctrine of the Mean, expressed in the Nichomachean Ethics

B340. Tria difficilia

Tria cognitu difficilia.^a Iactatur et hoc proverbialiter aenigmatis vice. Primum difficillimum est nosse quo volitans perventura sit aquila, hoc est, vafricies insidiantis inimici. Alterum depraehendere itionem colubri, qui recte assimilatur diabolus, qui eis quos super petram fidei viderit fundatos non desinit laqueum ponere. Tertium quorsum cursus navis ferat. Hic quartum cohaeret, in quem scilicet virum evasurus sit adulescens. Nam apte navis designat levitatem puerorum, qui circumferuntur omni vento doctrinae. Hinc licet discere quam facillime humanum possit falli iudicium, quamque utilissimum sit cura futurorum omissa, rebus duntaxat praesentibus (etsi momento horae ipsae quoque mutantur) ceu certioribus fidere.

[There be three things which are too wonderful for me

Three things that are too wonderful for me. This too is proverbially tossed about as a riddle. The first difficult thing is to know the way of an eagle in the ear, i.e. the schemes of a treacherous enemy. The second is the way of a serpent, to whom is rightly compared the devil, who unceasingly sets his snare for those he sees planted on the rock of faith. The third is the way of a ship in the midst of the sea. Attached this is a fourth, to know what kind man a youth is destined to become. For the ship is a fit designation for boys’ fickleness, because they are blown about by every wind of doctrine. Here we can learn how easily human judgment can be deceived and how useful it is to abandon our concern for future things, and to place our trust only in present ones (albeit these too change in the course of an hour), as being more certain.]

a) Proverbs 30:18

B341. Super tribus sceleribus Damasci et super quatuor non convertam

Aenigma proverbiale apud Amos^a prophetam, quo uti licebit cum significabitur quempiam qui deliquisset non esse venia dignum, ex quo quod peccanti non poenitieat. Porro primum est scelus male cogitasse. Alterum huic cogitantiae annuisse animo. Tertium aedidisse meditatum scelus. Quartum vero non poenituisse aediti facinoris. Unde dominus ait, Non convertam Damascum super quatuor, quod scilicet noluerit petere veniam, sed plagis afficiam avertamque ab eo faciem meam. Quod plane fecit, quando Syria, cuius Damascus est primaria civitas, haud multo post est a Caldaeis devicta. Caeterum hinc salubriter ediscitur semper patere apud Deum veniae ianuam veniam roganti, e contrario clausam esse quipertinacissimo studio in suo persistit commisio. Id quod obstinatae faciunt haeretici, in quos praecipue propheticum aenigma competet.

[For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof

This proverbial riddle is found in the prophet Amos, which may be used when it is to be indicated that some delinquent is unworthy of forgiveness, because he is unrepentant. The first crime is to have evilly thought of a crime. The second is to have given mental assent to this thought. The third is to have committed a premeditated crime. And the fourth is not to have repented for the crime, once committed. Hence the Lord says, for four I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have refused to beg for forgiveness, but will visit it with blows and turn away My face from it. Which He clearly did, for Syria (of which Damascus is the chief city‚ was conquered by the Chaldaeans not long thereafter. And from this we learn the wholesome lesson that with God the door of forgiveness always lies open for the penitent, but is closed to the man who in his very stubborn zeal persists in his foul act. This is what heretics mulishly to, and this prophetic riddle applies especially to them.]

a) Amos 1:3

B342. Audientes non audiunt

Audientes non audiunt.^a Hoc Esaiae vaticinium (etsi aliis verbis ab eo effertur) quod a Christo apud Matthaeum citatur, iampridem in proverbii consuetudinem venit, in quos qui quod non placet callenter dissimulant et si forte per literas officii admoneantur, non admittentes monita, gnaviter negant eas accepisse, ut ne culpam incurrant. Quadrabit vel in eos qui urgente (ut ita dicam) fato non attendunt si quid indicetur quod ad suam faciat salutem. Id quod Iulius Caesar fecit. Is enim, teste Tranquillo,^b paulo ante caedem ab aurupice Spurina, a Calphurnia uxore monitus ut periculum caveret, non solum rem modice curavit, verumetiam omni religione spreta in curiam se contulit, ubi loci est crudeliter occisus. In hanc sententiam prophetae carmen est accipiendum. Nam misericordia Dei (prout attestatur divus Hieronymus^c hunc disserens locum) factum est ut Iudaei audientes non audirent, quo reliqui omnes salvarentur populi dicentibus Paulo et Barnaba^d ad ipsos Iudaeos, Vobis opertebat primum loqui verbum Dei, sed quoniam repulistis illud et indignos vos iudicastis, ecce convertimur ad gentes. Nota est historia in Actis Apostolorum. Huc spectat vel illud Symeonis^e oraculum: Ecce hic positus est in ruinam et in resurrectionem multorum. Quando illis non videntibus salvatorem, nos videmus, et illis cadentibus nos resurgimus. At vulgo adagium ita quoque effertur, mercatoris aures habent, quod mercator qui multis semper debet, cum a creditoribus pecunia petitur non facile praestet aures.

[Hearing they do not hear

Hearing they do not hear. This utterance of Isaiah (even if expressed in different words), said by Christ as cited by Matthew, has long since become a traditional proverb, sed of those who pretend to be deaf to that which they do not like. And if they chance to be put on written notice concerning their duty, they do not heed these admonitions, and stoutly deny they received them, so as not to incur guilt. This will apply those who, if I may put this way, do not heed that which is told them concerning their salvation, should death be imminent. This was what Julius Caesar did. For Suetonius tells us that a little before his murder he warned by soothsayer Spurina and by his wife Calpurnia that he should beware of danger, but he not only paid small heed to the matter but, scorning religion, betook himself to the Senate house, where he was cruelly slain. This is the sense in which the prophet’s verse should be taken. For in accordance with God’s mercy, as St. Jerome attests in expounding this passage, it came about that the Jews heard but did not hear that by which all the other people might be saved, although Paul and Barnabas told the Jews themselves, It was necessary that the Word of god should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. The story in the Acts of the Apostles is well known. To this pertains that prophetic utterance of Simeon, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel. For they do not see the Savior, but we see Him, and when they fall, we rise.) There is also a popular adage, they have the ears of a merchant. For a merchant who is always in debt to many does not readily lend an ear when he is dunned by his creditor.]

a) Matthew 13:13, Luke 9.10 (cf. Isaiah 6:9 - 10) b) Suetonius, Julius Caesar lxxxi.4 c) St. Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah (vol. 25.113 col. 0102A Migne) d) Acts 13:46 e) Luke 2:34

B343. Benedictiones mutat in maledictiones

Qui dono Dei bonum sortitur ingenium, corpus habet validum, divitias accumulat magnas, nomen non exiguum est adeptus, et se deinde vitiis dederit, sanitate abusus fuerit in libidinem, divitias verterit in luxuriam, ac bonam famam sordida vita deturpaverit, hic proverbialiter dicetur benedictiones mutare in maledictiones. Siquidem haec omnia denique ei malo erunt, dicente domino apud Malachiam,^a Et maledicam benedictionibus vestris, id est, interpretatore Hieronymo,^b his quae nunc benedictionibus meis possidetis. Ad sacerdotes sermo habetur. Vide quid immineat mali illis qui animi, corporis, fortunae et ecclesiae abutuntur bonis.

[He changes blessings into curses

He who has been allotted God’s gift of good wit, has a sturdy body, accumulates great wealth, and has gained no small name, but then has then surrendered himself to vices, squandered his good health in lust, devoted his wealth to luxury, and debased his good reputation by leading a sordid life, he will proverbially be said to change his blessings into curses. For all these things will then exist to his detriment. As the Lord says in Malachi, I will curse your blessings, i. e., as Jerome interprets it, these blessings of Mine you now possess. This caution is addressed to the clergy. See what evil threatens them who abuse the good things of their mind, body, fortune, and Church.]

a) Malachi 2:2 b) St. Jerome, Commentary on Malachi (vol. 25.954 col. 1553B Migne)

B344. Argentum versum est in scoriam

Argentum versum est in scoriam.^a Proverbialis metaphora apud Esaiam inde deducta, quod si argentum ac caetera metalla nimium excoquatur, facile in scoriam, hoc est in purgamenta et sordes, vertuntur. Ea uti licebit cum innuemus negocium quippiam male cecidisse, vel omnem conatum evasisse vanum. Sed figura venustior fiet in eum qui ab ineunte aetate se bonis studiis imbuerat, verum postremo, sensim mutato vitae instituto, seipsum dederit luxui atque inertiae corrumpendum. Id quod, teste propheta, fecit civitas Sion, quae a principio iustitiam et doctrinam coluit, quae argento assimilantur in psalmo,^b Eloquia domini, eloquia casta, argentum igne examinatum. At ad ultimum in sordes peccatorum est versa, dicente vel Ezechiele,^c Et factum est verbum domini ad me dicentis, fili hominis, versa est mihi domus Israel in scoriam.

[Thy silver is become dross

Thy silver is become dross. This is a proverbial metaphor taken from Isaiah, for if silver and other metals are over-heated, they easily change into dross, i. e. into offscourings and slag. We may use it when we indicate that some business has gone amiss, or that all our efforts have proved to be in vain. But the figure will be more elegant when applied to the man who has been steeped in goodly studies from his youth, but in the end, after his way of life as gradually altered, he has allowed himself to be corrupted by luxury and idleness. This is what the city of ion did according to the prophet, for at first it adored justice and learning, for which reason it is compared to silver in the psalm, The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth. But in the end it turned into the filth of sinfulness, as Ezechiel says, And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, the house of Israel is to me become dross; all they are bras, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are even the dross of silver.]

a) Isaiah 1:22 b) Psalm 11:7 (K. J. V.12:6) c) Ezechiel 22:17 - 18

B345. Qui seminat ventum turbinem metet

Qui seminat ventum turbinem metet.^a Refertur ab Osee propheta, et concinne in eum aptabitur qui sibi malum accersit, hoc est, turbas facit quibus mox opprimatur. Et ad id illuditur quod turbo venti genus maximas excitet tempestates. Apud Iob^b itidem extat, Seminant dolores et metunt eos. Caeterum Osee per hoc proverbiale schema innuit idola colentes nihil fructus recepturos, quia mala sevissent semina, hoc est, inservissent diabolo. Ab agricolis sumpta metaphora.

[He who has sown the wind shall reap the whirlwind

He who has sown the wind shall reap the whirlwind. This is quoted by the prophet Hosea, and will neatly apply to him who brings down evil on himself, i. e. , who makes troubles by which he is quickly oppressed. It alludes to the fact that the whirlwind is the kind of wind which arouses the greatest storm. Likewise in Job stands the verse they that sow wickedness, reap the same. By this proverbial figure of speech Hosea means those who worship idols and reap no fruit, since they have sown evil seeds, i. e., they have become servants to the devil. This metaphor is taken from farmers.]

a) Hosea 8:7 b) Job 4:8

B346. Venerunt dies visitationis

Idem Osea^a volens significare Israel meritas luisse poenas ait, venerunt dies visitationes tuae. Appellat, teste Hieronymo^b visitationem flagella et supplicia. Quod a praesidibus tractum videtur, qui cum visitant provincias, solent depraehendere flagitiorum factores atque punire. Est et Micheas^a eo usus dicendi scommati, inquiens ad Samariam sive Hierusalem, visitatio tua venit, hoc est, captivitas tua, quando ab Assyriis capta est. Quoties igitur volemus innuere propter peccata hominum mala ingruisse terras, haud inepte dicemus, venerunt dies visitationis. Vel in eum scienter efferri potest qui ad ultimum dat scelerum poenas.

[The days of visitation are come

The same Hosea, wanting to indicate that Israel has suffered its deserved punishments, says, the days of visitation are come. As Jerome shows, by visitation he means scourgings and punishments. This appears to be what is done by governors when they visit provinces and are wont to apprehend and punish malefactors. It is used also used as a reproach by Micah, saying either to Samaria or Jerusalem, thy visitation cometh, i. e., your captivity, since it was taken by the Assyrians. And so whenever we want to say that evils have befallen the lands because of men’s sins, we will not be wrong in saying the days of visitation are come. Or it can be appropriately be spoken of the man who finally pays for his crimes.]

a) Hosea 9:7 b) St. Jerome, Commentary on Hosea (vol 25.95 col. 0894A Migne) c) Micah 7:4

B347. Beatus homo qui corripitur a domino

Beatus homo qui corripitur a domino.^a Symbolum Iob vulgo celebre in eum qui malorum insuetus nescit quicquam patienter ferre adversi, quamvis illud sit ad expiandam culpam immisum, dicente domino,^b Visitabo in virga iniquitates eorum et in verberibus peccata eorum. Misericordiam autem meam non dispergam ab eis. Qui igitur amatur corripitur, qui negligitur suis peccatis dimittitur et beatus esse non potest, id est mereri clementiam divinam ex severitate per hunc modum ortam. Usurpatur loco adagii ab apostolo Paulo^c ad Hebraeos, et ante eum a Salomone^d dicente, quem diligit dominus corripit. Hodie nemo non in ore frequenter habet, cum vult consolari moerentem quapiam calamitate affectum.

[Happy is the man whom God correcteth

Happy is the man whom God correcteth. This is a famous saying of Job concerning the man who, being unaccustomed to evils, does not know how to suffer any adversity, even when sent to cleanse him of his sin. For the Lord says, Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless My lovingkindness will I not utterly take from them. Thus He corrects those Whom He loves, but him He neglects He leaves to his sins, and he cannot be blessed, i. e. he cannot earn divine mercy because of the severity that has thus arisen. This passage is used as an adage by the apostle Paul in writing to the Hebrews, and before him by Solomon, saying whom the Lord loveth He correcteth. Today everybody frequently has this on his lips, when he wants to console somebody who is glum for having suffered any kind of misfortune.]

a) Job 5:17 b) Psalm 88:33 - 34 (K. J. V. 89:32 - 33) c) Hebrews 12:7 d) Proverbs 3:12

B348. Vexatio dat intellectum aditui

Fortuna (ut ait Seneca)^a quem nimium fovet stultum facit, quippe qui ceu malorum expers sit audacior, nec credit posse laedi. Quo fit ut felicitate praesentium rerum captus neminem quamvis bene monentem velit audire, nihilve iam socors effectus de altera sorte cogitare, nihil denique consuetis voluptatibus et otio adimere, sic ut, omnis officii oblitus, pecudum more vitam transigat. At tactus aliquo malo ad se repente redit, errata agnoscit, cupit ignaviam sarcire industria, ac ita ad postremum sapere addiscit. Huc igitur pertinet illa Esaiae^{b .}proverbialis sententia, Sola vexatio intellectum dabit auditui. Vide proinde quam expediat ut quandoque vexemur cum res nimium secundae nos stolidos faciant, imo perdant. Nam si diuturniores fuerint, ita imparatos nos reddent, ut vel pusilla tempestas absorbere mox quiverit. Item in eiusmodi fatuos qui malunt experiri quam cavere malum solet vel illud vulgo iam tritum iactari, qui matris monita neglexerit, ille novercae verbera sentiet, facta allusione ad id, quod mater filium amanter monet, contra noverca iure vel iniuria in privignum semper saevit.

[It shall be a vexation only to understand the report

As Seneca says, fortune makes stupid whomever she greatly favors, since, being unfamiliar with misfortunes, he becomes bolder and does not imagine he can be harms. So it comes about that, captivated by the felicity of his present estate, he is unwilling to hear no man’s advice, no matter how good. He is made so slothful that he is unwilling to imagine fortune running against him, to subtract from his customary pleasures and leisure, and, forgetful of his every duty, lives his life like a beast. But if he is touched by some evil he suddenly comes back to himself, acknowledges his errors, desires to make amends for his laziness with industry, and thus in the end he learns to be wise. To this, therefore, Isaiah’s proverbial pronouncement is relevant, It shall be a vexation only to understand the report. So see how useful it is to be troubled on occasion, since excessive prosperity makes us stupid, and indeed destroys of it. For if it were to continue too long, even a trifling storm could quickly consume us. Likewise that proverb, now very common, is wont to be said against those fools who would prefer to experience evil than to guard against it, he who neglects his mother’s warnings will feel his step-mother’s blows. The allusion is to the fact that a mother lovingly warns her son, whereas, rightly or wrongly, a step-mother is always savage against her step-son.]

a) Publilius Syrus, Sententiae F173 b) Isaiah 28:19

B349. Expedit ut mola asinaria alligetur ad collum eius

Expedit ut mola asinaria alligetur ad collum eius.^a Modus est comminandi et iam proverbialis, cum quis ab aliquo facinore perpetrando deterretur. Et ad id alluditur, quod apud veteres Iudaeos, uti perhibet Hieronymus,^b maiorum crimum rei ligato ad collum saxo in profundum demergebantur. Quadrabit item cum innuemus cuipiam expedire prius perire quam postremo male perire. In hanc sentiam usurpatur a salvatore apud Matthaeum Usurpatur et ab eodem Hieronymo^c vice proverbii in Ezechielem libro commentariorum xj. Mola vero asinaria dicta, quia ab asinis volveretur, ceu ingens saxum hoc loco ponitur ut nullam pereuntibus spem evadendi superesse intelligatur.

[It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck

It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck. This is a manner of threat, now become proverbial, used when a man is being discouraged from the commission of some crime. It alludes to the fact that (as Jerome says) among the ancient Hebrews those guilty of serious crimes had stones tied to their neck and were thrown into deep water. This proverb will be appropriate when we indicate that it is better for a man to die now, rather than suffer an ill death in the future. This is the sense in which our Savior uses it in Matthew. It is also used proverbially by the same Jerome in Book XI of his Commentaries on Ezechiel, a millstone is called a donkey’s stone because it is turned by donkeys, and a great stone is mentioned here, so that the prophet’s hearers will understand that there will be hope of escape for those that perish.]

a) Matthew 18:6, Mark 9:41 b) St. Jerome, Commentaries on Matthew III (vol. 26.138, col. 0129B Migne) c) St. Jerome, Commentaries on Exechiel XI (vol. 25.410 col. 0330B Migne)

B350. Configitur mihi spina

Qum quispiam peccati conscientia torquebitur, qua nullum in vita est maius tormentum, recte ac proverbialiter cum propheta David^a dicet, configitur mihi spina.^a Ex ea translatio ducta, quod spina gravius pungat si in viscere lateat. Unde in quemcunque accommodari decenter potest qui secretis percruciatur doloris stimulis.

[The thorn is piercing

When a man is tormented by the conscience of sin, and nothing in life is greater torture, he may rightly and proverbially join the prophet David in saying, the thorn is piercing. The figure of speech is taken is taken from the fact that a thorn pierces you more gravely if it is lodged in your gut. Hence it can fitly be accommodated to any man who is troubled by the secret pricks of pain.]

a} Psalm 31:4 (K. J. V. 32:4)

B351. Offendiculum ponere

Offendiculum ponere est aliqua plaga reddere peccantem memorem deliciti ad hoc, ut poeniteat. Prodest enim cuivis, et praesertim iusto, intelligere culpam qua velut conscientiae tormento mox urgeatur et abstineat. Tractum a pedum offensionibus. Nam si viator offendo pede noverit viam non esse planam, cautius incedet ne rursus offendat. Rexpexit ad hoc dominus apud Ezechielem,^a cum vellet revocare iustum ad se dicens, Ponam offendiculum coram eo, id est (ut Theodotio^b intepretatur) tormentum quo cruciatus purgetur. Unde apostolus^c ad Corinthios ait, Ideo infirmantur multi apud vos, et dormiunt multi. Offendiculum autem dicitur id quod ponitur ut quis incurrat in illud. Si quando igitur curabimus ut quispiam agnoscat errata et cognita emendet, proverbialiter ac eleganter dicemur offendiculum ponere. Id quod facit pater adversus filium et praeceptor adversus discipulum quo sese corrigant. At apud vulgus in malam quoque partem capi solet, in eum qui alteri imponere studet, iuxta illud Mosaicum,^d nec coram caeco pones offendiculum.

[To lay a stumblingblock

To lay a stumblingblock is to inflict any blow to make a sinner mindful of his offence for the purpose of rendering him penitent. For it benefits any man, and particularly a just man, to understand his fault, by which, as if by a torment to his conscience, he will quickly be vexed and refrain. This image is taken from a stumbling of the feet. For if a wayfarer learns by stumbling that his road is not flat, he will walk with greater caution lest he trip again. The Lord used this this phrase in Ezechiel, when He wanted to recall a just man to Himself, saying, I lay a stumblingblock before him, i. e. (as Theodotius interprets it), a torment by which he will be tortured and purged. Hence the Apostle says to the Corinthians, For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. That which is set so a man will trip over it is called a stumblingblock. And so when we make it our concern that somebody may acknowledge his mistakes and correct them when he has understood them, we proverbially and elegantly say we are laying a stumblingblock. This is what a father does for his son and a teacher for his pupil, so they may amend their ways. But, as popularly used, this can be taken in bad part and used against the man who strives to impose on someone else, according to that injunction of Moses, thou shalt not put a stumblingblock before the blind.]

a) Ezechiel 3:20 b) Theodotius, as cited by St. Jerome, Commentary on Ezechiel I (vol. 25.34, col. 0040C Migne) c) 1 Corinthians 10:30 (K. J. V. xxxd) Leviticus 19:14

B352. Caecus parietem palpat

Caecus parietem palpat.^a Est Esaiae carmen, quo uti licebit cum voluerimus notare cuiuspiam negligentiam ac incuriam, quod improspicienter cuncta agat, velut ille praecipue facit qui sacram lectitat scripturam, sed in ea quid contineatur non attendit, ritu caeci, qui parietem quidem attingit, caeterum qualis sit minime videt, unde allegoria orta est longe proverbialissima.

[We grope for the wall like the blind

This is a verse of Isaiah, which we may use when we wish to accuse somebody of carelessness and neglect for doing everything without foresight, as he does in particular who keeps reading holy Scripture but does not heed what is contained in it, in the manner of a blind man who touches a wall but does not see what it is like. Hence has arisen this highly proverbial allegory.]

a) Isaiah 59:10

B353. Periit fides

Periit fides.^a Versiculus Hieremiae prophetae nullius non hodie in ore est, cum tempora aut hominum mores damnantur. Quale Vergilianum^b illud, Nusquam tuta fides.

[Truth is perished

Truth is perished. There is no man nowadays who does not have this verse of the prophet Jeremiah on his lips when he would condemn the times or men’s manners. It is like that line of Vergil, nowhere is good faith safe.

a) Jeremiah 7:28 b) Vergil, Aeneid IV.373

B354. Dolus in dolo est

Non abhorret ab hoc vel illud eiusdem prophetae,^a dolus in dolo est. Quod tempestiver faciet cum significabitur res nostras in singulos dies peius habere, ac mortalium maliciam indesinenter augeri.

[One scheme is concealed in another

Not contrary to that one is this saying of the same prophet, one scheme is concealed in another. This will be appropriate when we indicate our affairs are growing worse by the day, and the malice of mankind is ceaselessly growing.]

a) Not a quote from Jeremiah (Polydore may have been thinking of 5:27, sic domus eorum plenae dolo, or because this proverb is quoted by St. Jerome in his commentary on Jeremiah VIII.ix.6., as it also is by St. Ambrose in his commentary on Tobit xii.42).

B355. Haec sunt initia dolorum

Cum quaepiam res modice bona, alicuius magni mali indicium facere dicetur, applicabitur illud evangelicum, haec omnia initia sunt dolorum.^a Ita Christus apostolos admonuit per quaedam signa de pseudoprophetarum adventu.

[These are the beginning of our sorrows

When something moderately good is said to serve as a sign of some great evil, that Gospel saying will apply, all these things are the beginnings of our sorrows. This Christ warned His disciples of certain signs of the appearance of false prophets.]

a) Matthew 24:8 (cf. Mark 13:8)

B356. Segregare oves ab haedis

Quispiam proverbiali figura dicitur segregare oves ab haedis^a qui domum, civitatem, provinciam sceleratis hominibus purgatam reddit. Ad illud alluditur, quod ovis animal sit simplex et utile, haedus vero petulcum ac libidinosum, quod apud Iudaeos ob id pro peccato semper offerebatur. Unde ut huic recte peccator, sic illi innocens assimilatur. A pastore metaphora sumpta, qua Christus utitur dicens, Cum venerit filius hominis, congrebantur ante eum omnes gentes et separabit eos abinvicem, sicut pastor segregat oves ab haedis.

[To divide his sheep from the goats

By this proverbial image a man is said to divide his sheep from the goats, who purges his household, his city, or his province of rascals. It alludes to this, because the sheep is a simple and useful beast, whereas a goat butts and is lustful, and so for this reason always served as an atonement-offering among the Jews. Hence the sinner is rightly compared to a goat, and the innocent man to a sheep. The metaphor is taken from a shepherd, and Christ uses it, saying, When the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory; and before Him shall be gathered all nations: and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats.] startme

a) Matthew 25:32

B357. Multi sunt vocati, pauci vero electi

Multi sunt vocati, pauci vero electi.^a Solet et hoc salvatoris symbolum instar adagii passim iactari, cum significatur paucis admodum mortalibus contingere doctrinam, sapientiam, honores, opes, ac caetera quae homines mirantur et felicitatem praedicant. Et a militum delectu deductum videtur, in quo ex magno hominum numero non nisi pauci, id est praestantissimi quique, eliguntur. Caeterum sensus mysticus est, multos Iudaeorum ad fidem complectendam esse invitatos, at paucos credidisse. Citatur proverbii nomine a divo Hieronymo^b in Ezechielem capite xxxj et passim a Chrystostomo et divo Ambrosio.

[Many are called, but few are chosen

This utterance of our Savior is a popular proverb, when it is stated that very few men possess learning, wisdom, honors, wealth, and the other things which men admire and call happiness. It appears to be a metaphor taken from a military level, in which out of a large number of men only a very few, and those the most excellent, are chosen. But it has a mystical sense: many of the Jews were invited to embrace the faith, but few believed. This is cited as a proverb by St. Jerome in his commentary on Ezechiel 31 and frequently by Chrysostom and St. Ambrose.]

a) Matthew 22:14 b) St. Jerome, Commentaries on Ezechiel IX ( vol. 25.350 col. o284B Migne)

B358. Duo in agro, unus assumetur, unus reliquetur

Duo in agro, unus assumetur, unus reliquetur.^a Hoc proverbiali schema ab agricolis motum, quod dum sementem iuxta facientes, unus et evangelicae doctrinae cultor uberiores fructus recipiet, alter velut haereseos seminator non item. Quadrabit cum significabitur inter pares non absque causa aliquid apparere discriminis, et aeque laborantes non esse eiusdem praetii participes.

[Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left

Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. This proverbial image is taken from farmers who are both sowing One, who heeds Gospel doctrine, will receive fatter crops, but not so the other, being a sower of heresy. This proverb will be appropriate when it is indicated that there is some difference between equals, not without good reason, and two men who toil equally do not gain the same reward.]

a) Luke 17:36

B359. Novissimi primi et primi novissimi

Quid quod vel illud eiusdem praeceptoris nostri oraculum iam proverbio locum dedit, Novissimi primi et primi novissimi?^a Quo uti licebit, si quando innuemus novos homines, id est loco haud claro natos, magistratus in civitate supremos, summos honores, summum denique imperium assecutos, contra nobilitatem et eos qui rempublicam antea gessissent in ordinem esse redactos, nulliusque autoritatis iam habitos. At haec operariorum parabola congruit ad ostendendum esse venturum tempus cum gentilies aliquoties fide praestarent Iudaeos, qui Deo populus vocabantur.

[Many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first

What of the fact that also this utterance of this same Teacher has now yielded a proverb, Many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first? We may use this whenever we indicate that so-called “new men,” i. e. men of undistinguished birth, have gained the supreme magistrates, highest honors, and supreme government in their state, whereas the nobility and those who had governed the commonwealth in the past are reduced to the ordinary ranks, and are now not held in any esteem. The parable of the workmen agrees with this in showing a time will come when the gentiles sometimes surpass the Jews in faith, those who used to be called God’s people.]

a) Matthew 19:30, 20:16, Mark 10:31

B360. Paxillus infractus est

Paxillus infractus est. Metaphora proverbialis tracta e palis, ad quos vites adiunguntur, illisque sustentur, qui si frangantur vel aliquo pacto cadant, vites ipsae iaceant, simulque fructus pereat necesse est. Conveniet in eum qui munere quopiam precario fungitur et confestim praesidio patrocinioque illo destitutus ea authoritate exuitur, ac instar vitis amissis sustentaculis, humi deiectus marcescit. Videant proinde qui tali gaudent aura quam tenui filo pendeant quamvi sibi metito gressu sit incendendum, quando alterius nutu atque renutu aut stant aut cadunt. Est in hanc sententiam ea usus Esaias^a inquiens, Auferetur paxillus, qui fixus fuerat in loco fideli, et frangetur, et cadet, et peribit quod pependerat in eo. Est autem paxillus diminutivum a palo, si Prisciano^b credimus, si vero aliis, a paxillo derivatur palus. Caeterum propheta hoc loco paxillum appellat Christum, idque Hieronymus^c luculenter planum facit prope finem septimi libri commentariorum in eundem Esaiam capite xxij.

[The nail is unbroken

The nail is unbroken. This proverbial metaphor is taken from the stakes to which vines are attached and held up by them: if they are broken or somehow fall down, the vines fall down as well, and it is necessary that their fruit perish with them. It will have an application to the man who occupies some precarious position and, suddenly destitute of his protection and patronage, is stripped of his authority and withers away after being cast down to the ground, like a vine that has lost its props. Let those men who rejoice in such high places appreciate by what a thin thread they hang and what careful steps they must take, since they either stand or fall according to someone else’s pleasure or displeasure. Isaiah used this image to make this point, saying, In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off. Paxillus (“nail”) is a diminutive of palus (“stake”), if we can trust Priscian; if we are to believe others palus is a derivative of paxillus. And in this passage the prophet calls Christ a nail, as Jerome makes this thoroughly clear towards his commentary on Isaiah, chapter 22.]

a) Isaiah 22:25 b) Priscian, Institutiones Grammaticae III.vi c) St. Jerome, Commentary on Matthew V (vol. 24.225 col. 0199D Migne)

B361. Fermentum in farina absconditum

Fermentum in farinae satis tribus absconditum.^a Aenigma hoc evangelicum divus Hieronymus in commentario suo in Matthaeum cum primis solvere conatus, tandem ad mysterium trinitatis referri voluit, ut ecclesia per fermentum, id est ifidem, induxerit mortales ad unitatem scilicet patris et filii et spiritus sancti credendum. Satum vero cuius hic fit mentio est mensurae genus sesquimodium capiens. At allegoria proverbialis esse videtur, et dici potest de eo qui astu atque cura hominum studiis in rem suam tractis, civitatis aut regionis imperium occupaturus videtur. Vel de homine pestilente (quando fermentum in malam quoque partem capi solet, iuxta illud cavete a fermento Pharisaeorum^a) qui suis malis moribus et artibus sensim sit familiam, clerum, populum denique totum corrupturus more fermenti, quod quamvis paulum, totam tamen farinam afficit in suamque trahit substantiam.

[Leaven hidden in meal

Leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal. St. Jerome, in his Commentary on Matthew, was among the first who attempted to solve this Gospel riddle, concluding that it was a reference to the Trinity, so that by means of leavening (i. e., faith) the Church has induced mortals to believe in the unity of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. The measure spoken here of a kind of measure with a capacity of one and a half pecks. But this appears to be a proverbial allegory, and can be referred to a man who has employed cleverness and attention to curry favor and appears bound to obtain the government in his city or region. Or of a pestilential fellow (since “leavening” can also be taken in bad part, as in that beware of the leaven of the Pharisees), who, thanks to his bad manners and evil arts, gradually begins to corrupt his family, the clergy, and in sum his entire people in the manner of leaven, which, no matter how little, nonetheless affects all the meal and makes it assume its own substance.]

a) Matthew 13:33 b) St. Jerome, Commentary on Matthew II (vol. 26.93, col.0091A Migne) a) Matthew 16:6, Mark 8:15, Luke 12:1

B362. Concepit dolorem, peperit iniquitatem

Concepit dolorem, peperit iniquitatem. Carmen est David^a prophetae psalmo vij, quod adagii faciem prae se fert, et de eo dici potest qui meditatum scelus aedit, qui nihil boni animo concipiens male auguratur, utque malis moribus imbutus neque dicit nec facit quod virtutis quicquam redoleat, qui denique livore plenus intus dolet et foris dolos ac fraudes cunctis intentat. Refertur itidem ab Esaia^bcapite lix in eos qui Antichristi praestolantur adventum. Facta translatio a muliere vel qualibet animante quae concipit et parit.

[He travaileth with iniquity, and hath conceived mischief

He travaileth with iniquity, and hath conceived mischief. This is a verse of the prophet David in Psalm 7, which wears the look of an adage, and can be said of the man who commits a premeditated crime; who, conceiving nothing good in his mind, bodes ill; and, as a man steeped in evil ways, neither says or does anything redolent of virtue; who, full of envy, grieves inwardly and outwardly contrives schemes and deceptions against all men. The same is said in chapter 59 of Isaiah, directed against those who would hasten the advent of the Antichrist. This metaphor is taken from a woman, or the female of any species, who conceives and gives birth.]

a) Psalm 7:14 b) Isaiah 59:1 - 8

B363. Prophetat de corde suo

Prophetat de corde suo proverbialiter quis dicitur cum ex sua sententia, hoc est voluntate vel desiderio, boni aliquid aut mali ominatur fore. Id quod plurimum faciunt pseudoprophetae qui nullo afflati divinitus spiritu, quibus bene volunt prospera, illis vero quos odio insectantur, adversa praedicunt, ut sic hominum auribus inserviant ac suae ipsorum malevolentiae satisfaciant. Recensetur ab Exechiel^a capite xiij in eiusmodi impostores.

[He prophesies out of his own heart

He prophesies out of his own heart is something a man can proverbially be said to do when he forecasts that something good or bad will occur in accordance with his own view, i. e., as he wishes or desires. This is mostly done by false prophets who, inspired by no divine spirit, predict prosperity for those they like and adversity for those they hate, so that in this way they may please their hearers and satisfy their own malevolence. This is repeated by Ezechiel in chapter 13, when he speaks of impostors of that ilk.]

a) Ezechiel 13:2 and 13:17

B364. Consuere pulvillos sub cubito

Qui ocio vacanti delicias facit et instrumenta libidinis adportat, ac male agenti opitulatur blanditurque, hic vulgato iam olim proverbio dicitur pulvillos consuere sub cubito. Ad hoc quippe sub cubito pulvillus aut cervical sub capite iacentis ponitur, ut molliter quiescatur. Quo fit ut ea quiete titillante carnem turpe mox facile ferveat Veneris opus. Usurpatur ab Ezechiele^a dicente, Vae his qui consuunt pulvillos sub omni cubito manus, et faciunt cervicalia sub capite universae aetatis ad capiendas animas. Atque sensu adagii a divo Gregorio^b in Moralibus multo luculentius explicatur, qui inquit, Quisquis ergo male agentibus adulatur, pulvillum sub cubito vel cervical sub capite iacentis ponit, ut qui corripi ex culpa debuerat in ea fultus laudibus molliter quiescat. Et Hieronymus^c ait, Voluptatum libidinisque doctores merito dicuntur consuere pulvillos &c. Item in eum recte aptabitur qui sese socordiae atque luxui dat, rebus suis alte indormiturus. At propheta eam doctrinam qualis Epicureorum erat hoc loco damnat, quae per hunc modum mortalibus damno semper existit.

[To sew pillows to armholes

He who makes delightful things for an idler and purveys him with instruments of his lust, helping and flattering him in his evildoing, is by a now-common proverb said to sew pillows to armholes. It is taken from this, that a pillow is placed under the arm or a bolster beneath the head of a lying man that he may softly take his ease. The result is that when the flesh is tickled by this repose, the work of Venus is soon easily set ablaze. This proverb is used by Ezechiel, saying, Woe to the women that sew pillows to armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls. The meaning of this adage is much better illuminated by St. Gregory in his Moralia, where says, So whoever adores evildoers and places a pillow under their arms or bolsters beneath their necks as they lie, so that he who ought to be dragged upright for his sin is supported in this and softly reposes, supported by praises. And Jerome says, Professors of pleasures and lust are justly called sowers of pillows &c. Likewise this will be properly applied to the man who surrenders himself to sloth and luxury, sleeping deeply over his affairs. But in this place the prophet condemns that doctrine such as the Epicureans had, because in this way ruin always lies in wait for mortals.]

a) Ezechiel 13:18 b) St. Gregory, Moralia XVIII.iv (vol. 76.559 col. 0042A Migne) c) St. Jerome, Commentaries on Ezechiel IV (vol. 25.130, col. 0115A Migne)

B365. Cibus sine sale

Cibus sine sale.^a Dici solet cum quippiam fit aut dicitur quod caret gratia, quod non magnopere probatur, velut inops, inane, ieiunum ac neutiquam exactum, cum perinde nihil omnino utilitatis, nihil momenti insit, ac est cibus insipidus et minime gratus si non condiatur sale. Refertur ab Aquila^b in interpretamento capitis xiij eiusdem prophetae.

[Unsalted food

Unsalted food. This is commonly said when something is, or is said to be, lacking in grace, or when something is not especially liked, for being useless, without point, jejune, and carelessly done, so it is of no use at all and quite unimportant, just as food is tasteless and unwelcome if unsalted. This is said by Aquila in his interpretation of chapter 13 of this same prophet.]

a) Ezechiel 16:4 b) Aquila as cited by St. Jerome in Book IV of his Commentary on Ezechiel (25.127 col. o122D Migne)

B366. Linire parietem luto

Ab hoc haud multum abludit illum ex eodem propheta,^a Linire parietem luto absque paleis. Quemadmodum enim luteus paries nihil habet roboris nisi obfirmetur paleis, quae luto admistae tenacius stringunt, sic illi frustra laborant qui una duntaxat virtute non item aliis nituntur. Exempli gratia, quispiam victus continentiam colit at animum corruptum habet, is nimirum nihil agit, quippe qui hoc intrinsecus peius habet quo extrinsecus speciem virtutis prae se ferre impendio studet. Hinc proverbium increbuit in fallaces, in vaniloquos, qui hoc pacto decipiunt operamque ludunt. Et in hanc sententiam ab Ezechiele capite praenotato torquetur in eos qui Hebraeis vana promittebant dicente,^b Vae prophetis insipientibus, qui nihil vident, et subdit Deceperunt populum meum dicentes pax, et non est pax. et ipse aedificabat parietem, illi autem liniebant eum luto absque paleis. sed aptius congruet nostris haereticis qui dogmatum suorum virtutem falsitate praedicant.

[To daub a wall

Not very different from this is another verse from the same prophet, to daub a wall with untempered mortar. For a mud wall has no strength unless it is strengthened by straw, which, when added to the mixture, binds it. Thus those men strive in vain who rely on a single virtue with no support from the others. For example, a man who practices continence in his diet but has a corrupt mind is worse within than the show of virtue he strives to exhibit, to his own cost. Hence this proverb has arisen against deceivers, and vain talkers, who deceive in this way and waste their effort. And in this sense it is used against those who promised vain things to the Hebrews in the aforementioned chapter of Ezechiel, where he says, Woe unto the foolish prophets, that have seen nothing, and They have seduced My people, saying, Peace; and re was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered mortar. But this will more fitly apply to our heretics who preach the virtue of their dogmas with falsity.]

a) Ezechiel 13:10 b) ib. 13:3

B367. Caro et sanguis revelavit

Caro et sanguis revelavit.^a Iam in tritum vulgi sermone proverbium cessit, quo hodie nullus non utitur vum vult taxare quempiam qui plus cognatione quam pietati tribuit. Sed speciatum in eos sacerdotes passim dictitatur, qui sibi genere propinquos magnis undecunque congestis referciunt opibus, item illis honores, sacerdotia, principatus in primis deferunt, nihil pensi habentes quam interim bona ecclesiae dilapident, quamve parum suae ipsorum dignitati consulant, cum carnis et sanguinis amore ducti non attendant utrum priusque dent <quam> appeareat in eiusmodi suis propinquis symbolum aliquod bonae indolis, quamobrem parte ex aliqua videantur ideonei ut iure prae illis alios forte longe probissimos praeterire debeant. Quod nempe malum, cum rem ecclesiasticam iampridem labefactare incoepisset, unus postremo extitit Romanus pontifex qui exemplum aedidit quo illud averteretur. Fuit ille Clemens quartus qui, teste Platina,^b bonis ecclesiae recte dispensandis intentus, nepotem qui sibi tres praebendas quas vocant comparaverat increpavit, duasque ex illis relinquere subegit. Et cum amici instarent ut nepoti substantiam augeret potius quam minuetur, respondit, ego per omnia Deo optimo maximo, non carni aut sanguini debeo obtemperare, putoque nequaquam esse dignum Romanae sede, qui plus cognationi quam Christo dat. Utinam vox haec tandem aliquando in quorundam pontificum nostrorum pectus alte descendat, nec caro et sanguis diutius revelent! Potest vel apte adagium in eos competere qui extrinsecus tantum aut bene aut male vivendi (ut ait Cicero^c ad Luceium) rationes habent, hoc est nihil spirituale sapiunt, sed ex bonis externis pendentes carnis et sanguinis, id est corporis duntaxat voluptatibus impense vacant. Caeterum verba salvatoris ad Petrum,^d Beatus es, Simon Bariona, quia caro et sanguis non relevavit tibi, sed pater meus qui in caelis est. Eo pertinent ut doceat se ei non per hominum doctrinam sed per divinam gratiam revelatum esse filium Dei. Patet historia apud Matthaeum capite decimosexto.

[Flesh and blood hath revealed

Flesh and blood hath revealed. Now this grown into a well-known popular proverb, which nowadays everybody uses when he wants to chide someone for relying on kinship rather than piety. But it is mostly said against those priests who heap their kinsmen with wealth scraped together from all sources, and likewise confer particularly on them honors, priesthoods, and principalities, meanwhile without a care in the world about how they are plundering the goods of the Church, how little they are consulting for their own dignity when, induced by love for their own flesh and blood, they fail to consider whether they should give these things before any evidence of good character appears in their relatives, so that in some respect they might appear suitable to be given over other men who are, perhaps, very qualified. When the Church had already begun to be undermined by this evil, at length one Pope of Rome came along who gave an example how it should be averted. This was Clement IV, who, according to Platina, was bent on properly administering the Church and so rebuked a nephew who possessed three so-called prebendaries, and compelled him to resign two of them. And when his friends pressed him to increase his nephew’s estate rather than subtract from it, he replied, By God Almighty, in everything I do I am not obliged to oblige my flesh and blood. And in my opinion he who gives more to kinship than to Christ is unworthy of the See of Bar-Jona. Would that this saying would strike deep into the hearts of certain of our prelates, and they would no longer reveal their flesh and blood! This adage is also applicable to those who only think of the worldly considerations of living well or badly (as Cicero says to Luceius), i. e., those who have no spiritual wisdom, but rather value external goods and are unremittingly devoted to the pleasures of flesh and blood, i. e. to those of the body. But our Savior’s words to Peter were, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. The import of these words was that He was teaching He was revealed to be the Son of God, not by means of human teaching, but by God’s grace. The story is available for the reading at Matthew, chapter 16.]

a) Matthew 16:17 b) Bartholomaeus de Platina Sacchi (1421 - 1481), Historia de vitis ac gestis Pontificum Romanorum (1479) c) Cicero, Epistulae ad Familiares V.xiii.1 d) Matthew 16:17

B368. Omnes quae sua sunt quaerunt

 Omnes quae sua sunt quaerunt, non quae Christi Iesu.^a Huc et Paulina hyperbole spectat, quae iam olim in adagii consuetudinem venit in eos principes, in provinciarum praesides, ecclesiarumque praepositos, ac in cuncts magistratus quo suorum negociorum gerentes commoditatumque hiantes nihil quod suarum partium sit magnopere agunt. Verum peculiater in quosdam sacerdotes effertur, qui cum maxime omnium debeant ovium Christi curam sibi demandatam habere, illud tamen minime omnium facientes populum non docent, parum obsequii divinis rebus praestant, et denique tantum quaerunt quae sua ipsorum sunt. Quorum numerus cum iam inde ab initio non exiguus esse coepisset, idcirco apostolus ad Philippenses id vitii omnibus assignavit, hoc est bonae hominum parti, quae suae invigilaret causae at Christiani gregis curae penitus indormiret. Sed quod diceret Paulus, si videret etiam nunc episcopos et sacerdotes alios impigre sacerdotiorum proventus capere, quibus laute victitant et pauxillum vicissim ex officio praestare? Haud dubie simul cum Hieremia^b vociferaretur, Omnes avaritiae student, a propheta usque ad sacerdotum. Ad hoc vel illud facit,

[All seek their own

All seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s. This Pauline hyperbole makes the same point is that old age it has yield, traditionally applied to those princes, provincial governors, and senior clergy of the Church who in conducting their own business and gaping after advantage pay no great attention to playing their assigned parts. But it is especially said against certain priests who, when most of all they should have a care for Christ’s sheep entrusted to them, pay small attention to that and fail to teach the people, show little deference to divine things, and only seek that which their own. And since their number has not been small since the very beginning of the Church, in writing to the Philippians the Apostle cast blame on them all, i. e. a good part of those churchmen, who were wide awake for their own cause but wholly asleep when it came to the care of the Christian flock. But what would have Paul said, if he had seen our modern bishops and priests busily appropriating the revenues of other churchly offices, on which they live elegant lives, while doing precious little in their offices. Undoubtedly he would have joined with Jeremiah in exclaiming, from the prophet until the priest every one dealeth falsely. The same point is also made by the next proverb.]

a) Philippians 2:21 b) Jeremiah 6:13

B369. Pastores pascunt semetipsos

Pastoris officium est alere cum primis oves et earum habere curam, quo foetus possint in singulos annos aedere grandiores. At vero si suaeipsius utilitati incumbens lac assidue exprimat, lanam continenter vellat, non pascit hic gregem, quem aperte corrupit, sed seipsum, atque ita pastoris officium minime facit. In eiusmodi igitur corruptores pessima avaritiae exempla aedentes, Ezechiel^a clamat dicens, Nunquid pascunt pastores semetipsos? Quod sane scomma in adagium exiit in eos omnes de quibus meminimus, qui (uti apud David^b extat) devorant plaebem ut escam panis. Ad quos ipse dominus dicit,^c Ecce ego ipse requiram gregem meum de manu eorum, ultra non pascant gregem meum. Atque haec erit poena malorum praesidium haudquaquam parva, cum cedere possessione tam magnae fortunae et sarcire damna cogendi sint.

[The shepherds that do feed themselves

The shepherd’s chief duty is to nourish his sheep and have a care for them, so that they might produce greater annual offspring. But if he is preoccupied with concern for his own welfare and anxiously squeezes out the milk, continually shears the wool, and fails to feed a flock he is obviously ruining, while intent on feeding himself, he is failing in his responsibility. And so Ezechiel exclaims against those corrupters who set the worst examples of avarice, Should the shepherds feed themselves. This reproach became an adage, used against all of those I have mentioned who, as David has it, eat up the people as they eat bread. To whom the Lord Himself says, I will require My flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock. And this will be the punishment of those evil guardians, and no small one will it be, when they are compelled to yield up their possession of such a great fortune and be compelled to make restitution.]

a) Ezechiel 34:2 b) this is actually Psalm 12:4 (K. J. V. 13:4) c) Ezechiel 34:10

B370. Omnia munda mundis

Omnia munda mundis.^a Sententia Paulina ad Titum longe proverbialissima, qua significatur hominem bonae frugi haud quicquam immundi vel inquinati admittere, quod eius mens et conscientia admodum casta sit. Conveniet eis qui nullius rei contagio se corruptum iri sinent. Verum apostolus per haec prohibet Iudaicas fabulas. Putabant enim Iudaei inter cibos esse differentiam, ut alii mundi, alii immundi essent. Id a nobis observari modis omnibus non vult, docens nihil abiiciendum esse quod cum gratiarum actione sumatur, quia in Christum credentibus nulla non bona esse creatura.

[Unto the pure all things are pure

Unto the pure all things are pure. Paul’s statement to Titus is very proverbial indeed, and it indicates that an upright man admits nothing impure or unclean, because his mind and conscience are exceedingly chaste. This will apply to those who allow themselves to be corrupted by the contagion of nothing. But by these words the Apostle forbids Jewish fables. For the Jews imagined there was a difference between foods, so that some are clean and others unclean. He wants us to entirely disregard this, teaching that nothing is to be rejected which can be consumed by an act of grace, since for those who believe in Christ no creature is not good.]

a) Titus 1:15

B371. Non sum missus nisi ad oves perditas domus Israel

Sunt qui provinciam aliquam obtinentes frequenter in ore habeant illud Christi responsum mulieri Cananaeae datum, Non sum missus nisi ad oves perditas (sic citatur a Hieronymo libro decimo commentariorum in Esaiam) domus Israel,^a cum velint indicare sibi limitatum esse officium ac suum non esse negocium extra provinciam quicquam curare. Ita salvator docuit venisse in mundum ut Iudaeis praecipue fidem praedicaret, et deinde alios, id quod fecit, quando ad Samaritanos se contulit, quando discipulos iussit ire in mundum universum et praedicare evangelium omni creaturae. Hoc utinam tam esset in multorum animis quam est in ore! Dubio procul concordius nobiscum ageretur. Sunt enim complures ubique gentium mortales ob id minus omnino hospitales, qui sive nunquam patrii soli limitibus pedem extulerint, sive humani (ut ita dicam) generis manefestarii osores natura existant, qui reliquos homines contemptui habeant, eosve sugillent propterea quod alienigenae sint, identidem (sicut diximus) proverbii titulo insulse citantes, Non sum missus nisi ad oves perditas domus Israel. Qui nempe quam inhumaniter faciant ex eo colligere licet, quod quam proprium est hominis amare hominem, tam alienum habere odio, quando idcirco videtur natura sua divisisse bona, ut per ea humanum compularet ac servaret societatem. Quippe cum omnis terra (uti poeta^b ait) non omnia ferre possit, necesse est ut alii aliis triticum, vinum, oleum, mel, aromata, item aurum, argentum, ferrum, plumbum, stannum, sericum, linum, vellera, et id genus innumerabilia ad usum vitae necessaria impartiant. Porro quotus est quisque populus qui ut his omnibus rebus non abundat, sic non maxime indigeat? Haec igitur commoda ultro citroque ab hominibus ad homines deportantur, simul ut mortalium commercia concilientur, simul ut vita non utique unius duntaxat rei indiga passim honestius degatur. Quapropter Plato^c in quinto De Legibus perspicue docet bonum reipublicae statum rerum omnium communicatione constare. Et item ad Architam Tarintinum^d nullum nostrum sibi soli natum esse probat, modis omnibus volens ut invicem sublevemus, cum nemo homo tantus sit qui sibiipsi sufficiat, nec cuiquam uno, vel in illa felici Arabia nato, ea omnia domi crescant quibus alitur, quibus tegitur, quibus iuvatur, quibus ornatur, quibus denique molliter fovetur. Haec non agnoscit ingratus vel stultus, dum etiam his eisdem aut utitur aut fruitur. Sed inter Christianos in primis Platonicum placitum haud dubie est rite servandum. Qui cum sint, teste divo Augustino, unius civitatis Dei cives, quis quaeso inter eos alienus censeri debet? Quis non civis a cive odio potest haberi? Quae terra non suo alumno inhospita esse queit? Ecquis Christianum Christianus iure praeteribit, iure insectabitur, iure abominabitur, execrabiturque, cum ipse Christus omnes promiscue in se credentes suos appellet fratres (ut apud Matthaeum^e cap xij extat)? Sed dicet aliquis hic importunae plaebis tantum (nam nobilitas ubique gentium sese humanitati obviam praebet) error est, et propterea peius peccant qui eiusmodi docent inhospitalitatem, docent autem permulti etiam in pulpitis, semper memores Christum non venisse nisi ad oves perditas domus Israel. Proinde in hos recte quadrabit illud quod paulo superius recensuimus, caro et sanguis relevavit. In pulpitis inquam evangelicae doctrinae magistri concionando factiones disseminant, dissidia quaerunt. O importunum os, quis tibi dedit id veneni quod effunderes? Non ille profecto qui dixit,^f Nolite cogitare quomodo aut quod loquaminur, dabitur enim vobis in illa hora quid loquamini, utpote qui ita iussit: praedicare evaneglium. Hoc nempe est quod (uti inquit Eusebius^g) aeterna atque incorruptibilia bona cunctis hominibus annunciat, item non caecas et caducas huius saeculi divitias, nec ad brevem hanc calamitosamque vitam, nec instabilia corporis commoda, sed animarum quae intellectualis substantiae sunt, summam propriamque nobis adfert felicitatem. Et illi tamen ut a vulgo gratiam ineant, ut a civibus hospitalius recipiantur, omisso evangelio, ad rem domesticam veniunt. Hic pietatis ac benevolentiae praetextu deplorant temporum calamitatem, dolent divitias minui, argumentis docent ea mala inde proficisci quod novi recentes (quemadmodum in psalmo^h refertur) veniant, hoc est, homines alienigenae, eorumque bona spolient. Ad hunc modum bonum populum ad odium sollicitant, ad seditiones incitant. Dolent inquam divitias minui, quarum partem hoc pacto graphice captant. Verum quorsum opes Christianis cumulare desudant, cum salvator dicat,ⁱ divitem difficulter ingredi in regnum Dei, imo facilius camelum per formen acus transire quam divitem intrare in regnum coelorum. Ita zizanorum seminatores st sycophantae pessimi e medio mortalium commercia benevolentiam, mutuam charitatem tollere pertinacissimo studio nituntur, dum ad personas respectum habent. Id quod, teste apostolo,^j tantum abest ut Deo sit gratum ut etiam ab initio crescentis ecclesiae Petrum per nocturnam visionem admonuerit ne contaretur Cornelium centurionem cum comitibus, hominem quamvis gentilem, ac per hoc alienigenam in fidelium coetum admittere. Quam quidem rem ipse apostolus Petrus attestatur,^k inquiens ad illos, Vos scitis quomodo abominatum sit viro Iudaeo coniungi aut accedere ad alienigenam. Sed mihi ostendit Deus ne quem communem aut immundum dicerem hominem, et reliqua. Haec in Actis extant, capite x. Et Iudaei quoque ad salvatorum aiunt,^l Non enim respicis personam hominum. Quae si eiusmodi egregii doctores aliquando secum reputarent, procul dubio puderet sese ex eo loco unde doctrinam populus expectat serere semina belli (hinc enim saepius bella esse orta constat) contra praeceptum domini apud Zachariam^m dicentis, Et viduam et pupillum et advenam et pauperem nolite calumniari. Quod apud cunctas fere gentes recte servatur. Sic ut turpe sit iis qui mutuum humanitatis, imo pietatis, officium praestare negant, vel nolunt apud se alienis itidem hospitium patere etsi inde nullum omnino facturi sunt damnum. Advena enim si pauperior fuerit, tibi serviat necesse erit; sin dives, velit nolit tibi aliquid impertiet. Caeterum utrum expediat necne, ut Itali ad Anglos et Angli ad Italos, vel Hispani ad Gallos et Galli ad Hispanos commeant, nimirum illud non concionatorum aut ignavae plebis, sed bonorum reipublicae principum est decernere. Proinde tu, Christiana progenies, hos magistros in cathedra pestilentiae (prout prophetaⁿ canit) sedentes devita, simulque ausculta apostoli^o consilium ad Romanos scribentis, Obsecro autem vos, fratres, ut observetis eos qui dissensiones et offendicula praeter doctrinam quam vos didicistis faciunt, et declinate ab illis. Huiusmodi enim Christo domino nostro non serviunt, sed suo ventri, et per dulces sermones et benedicentiam seducunt corda simplicium. Sed iam proverbium planum faciamus. Christus missus est ad oves perditas domus Israel, hoc est, teste Hieronymo,^p ad salvandos ante omnes Iudaeos, ac deinde caeteros. Quare nos manifeste monemur, iuxta etiam Platonis sententiam, primum debere patriae ac parentibus, dein amicis, ac postremo cunctis, ad id vel Paulo^q suo nos exemplo hortante, qui ait, et Graecis et barbaris, et sapientibus et insipientibus, debitor sum. Deducta metaphora a pastore, qui amissas oves anxie quaeritat, et inventas ad gregem, ut in tutum, confestim deducit.

[I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel

Those obtaining some office frequently have on their lips this reply given by Christ to the woman of Canaan, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel (thus it is quoted by Jerome in Book X of his Commentaries on Isaiah), when they want to indicate that their duty is limited and that they have no responsibility for caring for anything outside the scope of their office. Thus our Savior taught that He was come into the world particularly to preach the faith to the Jews, and then to others, as He did inasmuch as he went to the Samaritans, and when He commanded his disciples to travel throughout the world and preach the Gospel to all creation. Would that this were in many men’s minds, as it is in their mouths! Beyond doubt, they would deal with us in a more harmonious manner. For there are many mortals everywhere who for this reason are hospitable, who never set foot outside their native soil, or who (if I can put it thus) are enemies of the human race by nature. They hold the rest of humanity in contempt and sneer at them for being foreigners, and likewise (as I have indicated) ineptly cite these words, I am not sent but unto the lost house of Israel as a proverb. One can gather how inhumanely they comport themselves from this, that it is the characteristic of Man to love his fellow man, and so alien to hate him, inasmuch as nature appears to have shared out its goods in such way as to combine and preserve human society. For, since all lands cannot (as the Poet says) produce all things, it is necessary that some supply others with grain, wine, oil, honey, spices, and likewise gold, silver, iron, lead, tin, silk, linen, wool, and countless other necessities of life. For what people is there which abounds in all these things, and so lacks for nothing? These staples are therefore exchanged back and forth from men to men, both so that human trade may be established, and at the same time so life will not be lacking in any one of these things and so may be lived more honorably everywhere. For this reason Plato teaches in Book V of his Laws insightfully teaches that the good state of a republic is based on the sharing of all things. And likewise he writes to Archytas of Tarentum that none of is born for himself alone, wishing that in all possible ways we help each other, since no man is capable of self-sufficiency, nor does everything for a single man, even if he be born in Arabia Felix, which is necessary to feed, house, clothe, ornament him and provide him with a life of ease. The ingrate and the fool fail to appreciate these things, while at the same time using and enjoying them. But among Christians especially this Platonic injunction must be duly observed: since they are (as Augustine says) the citizens of a single City of God, who, pray tell, is to be deemed a foreigner? Who can be hated by a citizen for his lack of citizenship? What land can be unwelcoming to a man for not being a native son? Can a Christian rightfully ignore a Christian, rightfully attack him, loathe and curse him, when Christ indiscriminately called all those who believed in Himself brothers (as is said at Matthew 12)? But someone will say that this the error of the rude common folk (for all over the world the nobility shows itself to be hospitable), and therefore they sin all the worst who teach such inhospitality, and many do indeed teach it from the pulpit, ever-mindful that Christ did not come but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Furthermore, this saying will rightly agree with that proverb which I have discussed a little above, flesh and blood hath revealed. In preaching from their very pulpits, I tell you, these masters of Gospel learning create factions and promote dissent. Oh you bold fellow, who supplied you with the poison you are spewing forth. Certainly not He who said, Take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak, since He bade them preach the Gospel. And this, as Eusebius says, is an announcement of eternal and incorruptible good things for all men, not the blind and transitory goods of this world. These are for this brief and careworn life, not for the shifting uses of the body, these are substances belonging to souls and the mind, and this is something that brings us a supreme blessedness that is truly our own. Nevertheless, in order to curry favor with the common folk and to be given a hospitable reception by their fellow citizens, they ignore the Gospel and address themselves to their domestic situation. Here, under the guise of piety and good, they deplore the trouble of the times, they grieve that wealth is being diminished, they allege proofs to show that these evils have their origin in newcomers (as is said in the psalm), i. e. to foreign-born men, and they despoil them of their goods. In this way they foment hatred in a good people, and provoke seditions. They grieve that wealth is being diminished, I say, and for a part of this they manifestly yearn. But why should Christians struggle to amass wealth, when our Savior says, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. Thus these sowers of tares and evil sycophants zealously strive to remove benevolence and mutual charity from human intercourse, while they have respect for persons. Which is something, as the apostle bears witness, that was so far from being pleasing to God that in the time of the Church’s first beginning he warned Peter in a vision in the night not to oppose the centurion’s Cornelius joining his comrades, gentile though was, and thus to admit a foreign-born man into the company of the faithful. And the apostle Peter himself attests to this thing, saying to them, Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean, &c. These things are found chapter 10 of Acts. And the Jews likewise said to our Savior, thou regardest not the person of men. If these fine doctors would think a little about these things, without doubt they would be ashamed to be sowing the seeds of war from that place from which the congregation expects to receive instruction (for it is agreed that wars often start for this arise), contrary to the precept of the Lord in Zachariah, where he says, And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor. This is properly observed in nearly all nations. Hence it ought to be a disgrace for those who refuse to perform their mutual duty of humanity, and indeed of piety, or who refuse to afford hospitality to the strangers among them, even though it would cost them nothing at all. For if the stranger is somewhat poor, it will be necessary for him to serve you; if he is wealthy, he will be profitable to you, willy-nilly. And furthermore, whether or not it is expedient for Italians to frequent England, or Englishmen Italy, or for Spaniards to visit France or Frenchmen Spain, this is not something to be decided by preachers or the base commons, but the good princes of commonwealths. And so you, men of Christian stock, ought to shun these teachers sitting in the seat of the scornful (as the Prophet sings), while at the same time heeding the advice given by the Apostle in writing to the Romans, Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For men of this kind are not servants of Christ our Lord, but rather of their own bellies, and by their sweet discourse and fine manner of speaking seduce the hearts of the simple. But now let me explain the proverb plainly, Christ was sent unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel, which means (as Jerome attests) first and foremost for the salvation of the Jews, and then of all others. And so we receive the clear admonition, in accordance with that saying of Plato, that we owe ourselves, first, to our nation and our parents, then to our friends, and finally to all men. Paul uses himself as an example of this to encourage us, saying, I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise. The metaphor is taken from a shepherd who anxiously seeks after his lost sheep, and immediately returns them to the flock, as to a place of safety.

a) Matthew 15:24 (quoted by St. Jerome, Commentaries on Isaiah X (vol. 24.428 col. 0359D Migne) b) Vergil, Eclogue iv.39 c) Plato, Laws V p. 736C Stephanus d) Plato, Epistle ix p. 358A Stephanus (cf. A204) e) Matthew 12:50 f) Matthew 10:19 g) Eusebius, Commentaria in Psalmos (vol. 23.1009 line 53 Migne) h) evidently a reference to Psalm 93:6 (K. J. V. 94:6) i) Matthew 19:24, Mark 10:25, Luke 18:25 j) Acts 10:3ff. k) Acts 10:28 l) Matthew 22.16 m) Zachariah 7:10 n) Psalm 1:1 o) Romans 16:17 p) St. Jerome, Commentaries on Isaiah II (vol. 24.82, col. 0086B Migne) q) Romans 1:14

B372. Gallina congregat pullos suos sub alas

Gallina congregat pullos suos sub alas.^a Haec proverbialis allegoria facile nobis modum diligendi iuvandique nostros ante alios praescribit. Debemus parentibus cum primis (sicut supra diximus) ut in pietate illis respondeamus. Quod bruta animalia praestare minime norunt praeter ciconias, quae, autore Aeliano^b, parentum senectutem nutriunt. Allegoria faciet ad ostendendum vim pietatis ac benevolentiae cuiuspiam erga suos. In quam sententiam usurpatur a Christo dicente, Hierusalem quoties volui congregare filios quos, quemadmodum gallina congregat pullos suos sub alas, et noluisti? Nam ita gallina fovet et tuetur pullicenos suos adversus milviorum rapacitatem.

[As a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings

This proverbial allegory easily prescribes for us the means of loving and caring for our own, before all others. As I said above, we are obliged to repay the piety of our parents in particular. This is something none of the brute beasts understand how to do except for storks, which according to Aelian support their parents in their old age. This allegory will serve to show the power of piety and benevolence of any man towards his own. In this sense it is used by Christ, saying, O Jerusalem, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! For thus the chicken cherishes and protects her chicks against the rapacity of kites.]

a) Matthew 23:37 b) Aelian, De Natura Animalium X.xvi p. 148 Jacobs

B373. Pullus de nido avolat

Iam ille qui opus aliquod pavide aggreditur ac errabundus quid agat prae timore nescit, proverbio dicitur pullus de nido avolare. Translatio a pullis facta, qui cum primum nido exeunt, trepiduli atque hic atque illuc volitantes circumstrepunt. Utitur ea Esaias^a capite xvj cum vaticanatur de fuga Moabitarum, ed est Arabum, qui ab Assyriis et Babyloniis postea devastati sunt, et ait, Et erit Moab sicut avis fugiens et pulli de nido avolantes. Conveniet vel apte in fugientem, qui tremebundus quorsum tendat minime sibi constat, et in quencunque super quavis re allucinantem.

[A bird cast out of the nest

Nowadays a man who undertakes some work fearfully and clumsily, who for fear does not know what he should do, is proverbially called a bird cast out of the nest. The metaphor is derived from fledglings, who, when they first leave the nest, are terrified and squawk as they fly to and from. This is used by Isaiah, chapter 15, where he prophesies of the flight of the Moabite (i. e., Arabian) women, who were afterwards wasted by the Assyrians and Babylonians. He says, For it shall be, that, as a wandering bird cast out of the next, so the daughters of Moab shall be at the ford of Arnon. Or this will suit a runaway who is frightened and knows not where to go, and also any man who is deluded concerning any matter.]

a) Isaiah 16:2

B374. Granum frumenti mortuum multum affert fructum

Allegoria proverbialis apud evangelistam Ioannem^a qua Christus docuit se proprio sanguine esse inter omnes gentes propagaturum fidem, more grani frumentacei, quod ubi terra est conditum, multum adfert fructus. Id quod naviter factum est. Nam apostoli in nomine Iesu crucifixi passim postmodum miracula aedentes totem fere orbem ad fidem traxere. Erit itaque usus allegoriae perappositus, si quando significabimus cuiuspiam interitum saluti esse multis, quemadmodum apud Livium^b legimus P. Decimos patrem et filium duas nobiles per mortem peperisse victorias suis Romanis. Pater enim bello Latino consul, collega Manlio Torquato, positis apud Veserim fluvium castris, cum utrique consuli immolando obvenisset, eos futuros victores, quorum dux in praelio cecidisset, inclinante parte Romanorum, sese diis manibus devovens hostibus obiecit ac victoriam suis reliquit. P. Decius filius patris secutus exemplum itidem fecit in eo bello quod Galli, Samnites, et Umbri cum Tuscis adversus Romanos gesserunt. Sed ne alienis innitamur exemplis, granum illud frumenti post salvatorem apostoli sanctique martyres fuere, quod terrae demandatum nobis fructum vitae attulit. Conveniet praetera, cum ob mortem tyranni, libertas alicui civitati reddita fuerit, cum item cuipiam morte suorum aliorumve haereditas ampla venerit, aut aliquis honos obtigerit. Verum festivius in avarum aptabitur, utpote qui vivus nulli prodest, ac defunctus multum emolumenti multis (res mire certe) adportat, partitis scilicet inter gaudentes haeredes opibus, quibus ille demens uti nescivit. Et demum ad omnia generatim applicari commode potest, si quando ex corruptione unius alterum mox gignigtur, ut in primis de phoenice Plinius^c refert, quam iam senescentem tradit surculis thuris casiaeque nidum replere odoribus, ac superemori ex eiusque cinere aliam nasci.

[A grain of wheat, if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit

By this proverbial allegory preserved by John the Evangelist Christ taught that He was going to propagate the faith among all nations by the shedding of His own blood, in the manner of a seed of corn which, buried in the ground, produces forth much fruit. And this certainly came to pass. For in the name of the crucified Jesus the apostles afterwards performed miracles everywhere and brought nearly the whole world to the faith. This allegory may therefore be used most fitly, if we ever signify that the death of any single man is the salvation of many, in the way that (as we read in Livy) did when the Publii Decii procured two noble victories for their Romans by their death. For in the Latin War the father, who was a consul, and his colleague Manlius Torquatus encamped alongside the river Veseri, and in making sacrifice it was revealed to them that the victory would go to those whose commander fell in battle. So when the Romans were failing, he consecrated himself to the gods of the Underworld, hurled himself on the enemy, and bequeathed the victory to his side. Following his father’s example, his son Publius Decius did the same in the war waged by the Gauls, Samnites, Umbrians and Etruscans against the Romans. But, so as not to rely on other men’s examples, after our Savior, this grain of corn was the apostles and holy martyrs, who left us the crop of salvation planted in the soil. This proverb will also be suitable when liberty is restored to any nation by the death of a tyrant, and likewise when a large inheritance comes to a man by the death of his kinsmen or others, or somebody gains honors. But it can be more wittily applied to a miser, who, being of no use to anybody in life, confers profit on many by his death (surely a wonderful things), I mean when the wealth is shared out among his happy heirs which he in his folly did not understand how to use. And finally, it has a general application whenever one thing is born from the corruption of another, as particularly Pliny relates about the phoenix: he says that when it is now in its old age, he lines his nest with the fragrant branches of myrrh and cassia and dies atop of it, and from his remains another is born.]

a) John 12:24 b) for the death in battle of P. Decimus Mus see Livy VIII.ix.6ff.. and that of his like-named son see Livy IX.lxvi.24 - 29 c) Pliny, N. H. x.iv.5

B375. Somniat sitiens et bibit

Cum quispiam magna sibi frustra pollicetur, eaque iamiam ex desyderio manu capere videtur, ita ut si a quopiam consilii non ignaro illudatur, non animadvertat modo, sed sic palpatus tum maxime in spem quasi certam potiundi veniens sibi placeat et blandiatur (veluti faciunt qui amant vel ambiunt) in eum illud Esaiae^anon infacete iactabitur, somniat sitiens et bibit. Nam perinde cupidus, impense in eo quod cupit, die noctuque versando vane delectatur et gaudet, atque siticulosus facile somniat bibere, et ut hic mox experrectus nihil se bibisse comparit, sic ille spebus quas animo ingentes conceperat frustratus discedit. At illud eitam psalmo lxxij^b alluditur, velut somnium surgentium, quod autem soleant ea nobis per somnium occurre, quae desyderamus, id attestur cum primis Aristoteles.^c

[An hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth

When a man promises himself great things in vain, and in his desire seems to have them almost in his grasp, so much so that if he is mocked by somebody who is aware of his intention, he is not only unheeding, but feels encouraged and is in high hopes of gaining his great work, so that he is pleased with himself and flatters himself (as lovers do, and those who are ambitious), that saying of Isaiah will not without wit be said of him, an hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eatheth. For constantly greedy, and thinking of the object of his desire day and night, he vainly takes delight and rejoices, just as a thirsty man dreams he is drinking. But just as he soon wakens and discovers he has had nothing to drink, so that one goes away baffled concerning the great hopes he had conceived in his mind. This is is also alluded to in Psalm 73, As a dream when one awaketh. And Aristotle in particular attests this happens to us in our dreams concerning what we desire.]

a) Isaiah 29:8 b) Psalm 72:20 (K. J. V. 73:20) c) Aristotle, De insomniis p. 460^b5 Bekker

B376. Comedes et non saturaberis

Apud Micheam^a dominus Samariam metropolim decem tribuum, quae eo prophetante ab Assyriis capta est, arguit idolatriae et sumpta metaphora ab iis qui levissimis cibis minimeque nutrientibus vescuntur, ait, Comedes et non saturaberis. Ita significat eam inter edendum, id est inter legendum sacram scripturam, esse passuram veritatis inopiam, hoc est, non intellecturam quid ad suam fecerit salutem. Quadrabit in hominem avaritia inexplebili, vel in eum qui rebus illis intentissima cura vacat, unde nihil futurum sit utilitatis.

[Thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied

In Micah, the Lord rebukes Samaria, the capital of ten tribes, which was taken by the Assyrians in the time when he was a prophet. He accuses it of idolatry, using a metaphor taken from those who live on the most trifling food that supplies no nourishment, saying, thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied. Thus he signifies that while eating, i. e., while reading holy Scripture, Samaria is bound to suffer a dearth of truth, i. e. that it will not understand what is necessary for its security. This will befit a man of insatiable greed, or one who, intent on such matters, is careless and so will be of no use.]

a) Micah 6:14

B377. Seminabis et non metes

Eiusdem prophetae^a versiculus vulgo celebris, Seminabis et non metes. Calcabis olivam et non ungeris oleo. In eum, qui aliquid molitur quod non sibi sed aliis in rem est futurum. Quemadmodum facit agricola, unde est mota translatio, qui fruges seminat quas alii mox colligunt.

[Thou shalt sow, but thou shalt not reap

There is another famous verse of this same prophet, Thou shalt sow, but thou shalt not reap; thou shalt tread the olives, but shalt not anoint thee with oil. This is said of a man who undertakes something destined to be of use for others, but not himself. This is what a farmer does (and this is the source of the imagery), who sows crops, which others soon reap.]

a) Micah 6:15

B378. Telas aranearum texere

Telas aranearum texere dicitur, qui sine modo laborat et modice proficit, ceu rei minimi momenti vacans ritu araneae, quae ut muscam capiat telas anxie texit, ita tamen tenues uti etiam levissimo venti flatu frangantur. Usurpato loco proverbii ab Esaia^a capite lix, dicente, Conceperunt laborem et pepereunt iniquitatem, et ova aspidum ruperunt, et telas araneae texuerunt.

[To weave the spider’s web

To weave the spider’s web is said of the man who works unstintingly and profits only a little, or who devotes his time to a matter of small import, in the manner of a spider, which busily weaves webs to catch a fly, but ones so frail that they are broken by even the smallest puff of air. This is used as a proverb by Isaiah in chapter 59, where he says, They conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity. They hatch cockatrice eggs, and weave the spider’s web.]

a) Isaiah 59:4 - 5

B379. Expectavimus pacem et ecce turbatio

Cum aliquid nobis inopinato contigeret, quod tamen aberat ut timeremus ut etiam in spem cuiuspiam boni assequendi venerimus, conveniet illud Hieremiae,^a Expectavimus pacem et ecce turbatio. Et ante eum idem ab Esaia^b refertur, Expectavimus lucem et ecce tenebrae. Et Iob,^c Expectabam bona, venerunt mihi mala.

[We looked for peace, and behold trouble!

When something befalls us unexpectedly, at a time when we were so far from being fearful that we were even in the hope of gaining something good, this saying of Jeremiah will be appropriate, We looked for peace, and behold trouble! And the same thing was said before him by Isaiah, We wait for light, but behold obscurity. And also by Job, When I looked for good, then evil came unto me.]

a) Jeremiah 14:19 b) Isaiah 59:9 c) Job 30:26

B380. Cibus alienis dentibus molitus nauseolus est

Divus Hieronymus^a in prooemo libri septimi commentariorum in Ezechielem usurpat elegans adagium, cibus alienis dentibus molitus nauseolus est, quo docet caligantibus iam oculis senectute sibi perinvito opus esse lectore, qui voce referat quod e codicibus Graecis sit hauriendum. Congruet quoties quis aliena opera parum grata uti cogetur. Translatio a nutriculis petita, quae solent cibum ab se mansum ori infantium admovere, 1uod sane grandioribus nauseam facile movet. Vel eis recte aptabitur quos omnino pudet aliena mutuari scripta, uti faciunt qui suum experiri volunt ingenium, ceu sibi tantum fidentes praeterea nemini.

[Food chewed by another’s teeth make one nauseous

In the proem of Book VII of his Commentaries on Ezechiel, St. Jerome uses an elegant adage, food chewed on by another’s teeth make one nauseous, with which he remarks that, since his eyes have grown dim by old age, he most unwillingly is obliged to have an amanuensis to read out what he needs. from Greek manuscripts. This proverb will be suitable when ever a man us compelled to rely on the unwelcome help of others. The image is taken from nurses, who are wont to feed babes with pre-chewed food. Which indeed can easily nauseate older children. Or it can properly be applied those who are embarrassed to have to rely on other men’s writings, as happens to those who want to put their own talent to the test, as if they trust themselves and nobody else.]

a) St. Jerome, Commentaries on Ezechiel VII. proem (vol. 25.240 col. 0199C Migne)

B381. Non vos estis qui loquimini

Huic illud adversatur, Non vos estis qui loquimini.^a Quod proverbialiter accommodabimus cum innuerimus quosdam imperitiores non sua sed aliena, veluti ab aliis bene instructos, non incallidius referre. Ita salvator discipulos imbuit dicens, Non vos estis qui loquimini, sed spiritus patris vestri qui loquitur in vobis. Unde propheta Asapha^b psalmo lxxx, Aperi os tuum et implebo illud.

[For it is not ye that speak

Contrary to the preceding is this, For it is not ye that speak. We will apply this proverbially when we indicated that certain ignorant men speak, not without skill, words that are not theirs but rather those of another, as if well-schooled by them. Thus our Savior instructed His disciples, saying, for it is not yet that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. Hence in Psalm 8- the prophet Asaph says, open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.]

a) Matthew 10:23 (K. J. V. 10:20) b) Psalm 80:11 (K. J. V. 81:10)

B382. Loquuntur variis linguis

Coeperunt loqui variis linguis.^a Audio hoc quod in Actis refertur, de subita apostolorum linguarum varietate post acceptum superne spiritum, a vulgo instar adagii passim dictitari, cum vult significare quospiam sententia desistere nec stare conventis, sed huc aut illuc more vacuarum navium levitate vacillare, hoc est modo dicere, modo negare. Et ex eo fit allusio quod qui alias callent linguas facile personam variare possit, ut qui uspiam Italio sermone aliquid promittant, et alibi Gallicis verbis illud ipsum negent, vel simpliciter ad verba referri potest quae, si diversa sint, nihil certi adfirmant.

[To speak with other tongues

They began to speak with other tongues. I hear this, which is said in the Book of Acts, concerning the sudden variety of the Apostles’ languages after they had received the Holy Spirit from above, used everywhere as an adage, when a man wants to indicate that some men have changed their minds or are not keeping their word, but rather are wandering to and fro in the manner of unladen ships bobbing about, i. e., now they affirm, now they deny. And from this there is a reference to the fact that those skilled in different languages can adopt different personalities, as a man who promised something while speaking Italian can refuse the very same thing at another time in French. Or it can simply refer to words which, being various, affirm nothing for sure.]

a) Acts 2:4

B383. Gladii in vomeres conflantur

Proverbiali figura Esaias^a demonstrans futurum ut bellandi studium sub adventum Christi in pacem demum verteretur, id quod principe Augusto evenit, inquit, et conflabunt gladios suos in vomeres et lanceas suas in falces. Est enim placidae quietis indicium, si agricolae ex gladiis vomeres quibus proscenditur terra conficiant, arvoque colendo tantum vacent. Nos eadem figura scienter utimur cum significabimus discordiam concordia, et bellum pace mutari. E contrario illud Iohelis^b facit, Concidite aratra vestra in gladios, et ligones vestros in lanceas, cum pacem excluderit bellum.

[They shall beat their swords into plowshares

By this proverbial figure of speech Isaiah, showing that it was foredoomed that the zeal for war should be turned into peace by Christ’s advent, as occurred under the Emperor Augustus, said, and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks. For it is a sign of tranquil peace if farmers make plowshares out of swords in order to furrow the earth, and are free to tend the land. We use this same figure knowledgably when we indicate that discord has transformed into concord and war has been exchanged for peace. That saying of Joel is the opposite, Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears, when war has ruled out peace.]

a) Isaiah 2:4 b) Joel 3:10

B384. Habitat lupus cum agno

Habitat lupus cum agno.^a Hyperbole non sine adagii nomine citanda, qua uti licebit si quando innuemus quosdam male copulatos, ut alter innocentissimus alter nocentissimus sit. Accomodatur ab eodem propheta ad pacem et concordiam ecclesiae futuram. In quam nos quoque sententiam recte usurpare quimus,

[And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb

And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb. This hyperbole, which does not lack its reputation as an adage, may be used by us when indicate that certain men are ill-matched, the one the most innocent and the other the most harmful. This was used by the prophet to describe the future peace and concord of the Church. To the same end, we may also rightly use the following.]

a) Isaiah 11:6

B385. Efficiamini sicut pueri

Efficiamini sicut pueri.^a Conveniet eis quos hortamur ad innocentiam et simplicitatem, qua pueritiae prima aetas est praedata. Eo stratagemate usus est Christus ut discipulos animi modestiam doceret. Statuit enim, teste evangelio, parvulum in medo eorum et dixit, Amen dico vobis, nisi conversi fueritis et efficiamini sicut parvuli, non intrabitis in regnum coelorum. Ita puerum id aetatis ceu innocentiae exemplar demonstravit (quia, ut ait Cicero,^b ea multo magis movent quae vidimus quam quae audimus) quo ad imitandum facilius inducerentur.

[You become as little children

You become as little children. This will apply to those we urge to innocence and simplicity, things with which early age is endowed. Christ used this strategy to teach His disciples modesty of mind. For, as the Gospel attests, he stood a little child in their midst, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. He showed them a child of that age as an example of innocence (since, as Cicero says, we are much more moved by what we see than what we hear), so they would be easier induced to imitate it.]

a) Matthew 18:3 b) Cicero, De Finibus V.ii.4

B386. Qui ambulat in tenebris nescit quo vadat

Qui eo audaciae vel caecitatis potius devenit ut negocium aliquod non dubitanter aggrediatur quod minime noscit gerere, vel id artis profiteri audeat cuius sit penitus ignarus, hic ambulare in tenebris ac nescire quo vadat^a proverbiali figura recte dicitur. Est ea usus Christus cum significaret Iudaeos allucinari quod se non nossent. Et a viatoribus petita esse videtur translatio, qui facile aberrant si dum luna silet noctu iter habeant.

[He that walketh in darness knoweth not whither he goeth

He that has arrived at that pitch of daring and blindness that he unhesitatingly applies himself to some business which he has no idea how to perform, or dares profess that art of which he is wholly ignorant, is rightly said by a proverbial figure to walk in darkness and know not whither he goeth. Christ used it to signify that the Jews were deluded because they did not recognize Himself. This metaphor appears to be taken from wayfarers, who easily go astray if they travel on a moonless night.]

a) John 12:35

B387. Stilo ferreo scribere

Qui quod ait mutare non vult, stilo ferro scribere proverbialiter dici potest, quod literae quae scalpello ferro inciduntur non facile deleantur. Refertur a Hieremia^a capite xvij et ante eum a Iob.^b

[To write with a pen of iron

He who does not want to change what he says can proverbially be said to write with a pen of iron, since letters engraved with an iron chisel are not easily erased. This is quoted by Jeremiah, chapter 17, and by Job before him.]

a) Jeremiah 17:1 b) Job 19:24

B388. Tuba canit ante se

In eum qui ad ostentationem cuncta faciet recte dicitur, tuba canit ante se. Quod a Christo^a in hypocritas est usurpatum, quippe quos plus spectator delectaret quam benefacti conscientia. Sumpta metaphora ab ovantibus vel triumphantibus, ante quos tuba cani solet ut eorum gloria longe omnibus notissima fiat.

[He sounds a trumpet before him

He sounds a trumpet before him can properly be said of the man who does everything for ostentation’s sake. It was used by Christ against those hypocrites who take greater pleasure in being seen than in the awareness of doing good. The metaphor is taken from those who celebrate triumphs, who are customarily preceded by triumphs, so that their glory will be all the more known to one and all.]

a) Matthew 6:2

B389. Calamum quassatum sive fractum conterit, vel linum fumigans extinguit

Adagium fuit apud Hebraeos de eo qui tantum aberat ut miserum hominem humi quasi iacentem brevi moriturum sublevaret, ut etiam insultaret illique manus intentaret, non sine tamen sua ipsius suggillatione et saevitiae nota, unde non esset habitura victoria laudem. Ex eo ducta figura, quod calamum iam confractum tam facile sit conterere quam scintillam in lino, id est, in fune (ut fit) vel in quovis fomento servatam extinguere. Contra non minus proverbiali quis dicitur calamum quassatum non conterere, et linum fumigans non extinguere, cum mitis, mansuetus, et placabilis sit qui neminem laedare sed cunctos sine discrimine fovere velit. Id quod fecit Christus, cui adagium in primis competit. Peccatoribus enim, qui instar fractorum calamorum iamiam in ignem aeternum coniiciendi erant, manum clementer porrexit, veniam dedit, et modicam fidem velut ignis scintillam in mortalium pectoribus micandem adauxit, non autem extinxit. Utrunque Esaias^a eiusmodi proverbio usus, futurum expressi dicens, Calamum quassatum non contereret, et linum fumigans non extinguet. Refertur itidem a Matthaeo evangelista capite x.

[He is breaking a bruised reed, or quenching a smoking flax

The Hebrews had an adage about a man who was so far from helping a poor man lying on the ground moribund, that he would even insult and lay hands on the man, not however without great discredit to himself and without being branded for savagery, so that his victory brings no praise. From this is derived a figure of speech, it is as easy to break a bruised reed as to quench fire in a flax, i. e. itis preserved in a cord (such as people use) or in any kind of tinder. On the contrary, a man is said not to break a bruised reed and not to quench a smoking flax, who is mild, gentle, and easily appeased, and who wishes to harm no man, but to help all men without exception. This is what Christ did, to Whom the adage particularly applies. For He mercifully held out His hand to sinners, who, like broken reeds, were about to be cast into the fire, and He caused to grow the modicum of faith which lay like a spark of fire in mortal hearts, rather than quenching it. Isaiah mentioned both these things in a proverb of this kind, saying, A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench. It is also referred to by the evangelist Matthew in his tenth chapter.]

x) Isaiah 42:3

B390. Torris de igne erutus

Torris de igne erutus.^a De eo dici solitum qui perdiu in aliquo versatus malo tandem e periculo vitae eriptur, velut torris cum semiustus de igne extrahitur. Est enim torris lignum ignitum. Refertur adagium a Zacharia propheta, qui Iesum sacerdotem a Cyro Persarum rege cum Zerobabel duce e captivitate Babylonica in Iudaeam missum torrem de igne erutum appellat, quod non esset Babylonio igne consumptus, nec flamma vitiorum attactus.

[A brand plucked out of the fire

A brand plucked out of the fire. This is customarily said of the man who, having long existed in some evil, is at length rescued from that peril to his life, as a half-burned brand is plucked out of the fire. A brand is a burning piece of wood. The adage is taken from the prophet Zachariah, who calls Joshua the priest, who was freed from his Babylonian captivity together with his commander Zerobabel, a brand plucked out of the fire, because he was neither consumed by the fire of Babylon, nor touched by the flame of the vices.]

a) Zachariah 3:2

B391. Nolite solliciti esse in crastinum

Nolite solliciti esse in crastinum.^a Fuerit hoc evangelicum symbolum usui cum significabitur non esse anxie habendam rerum futurarum cura, quando unusquisque nescius est utrum crastinum visurus sit diem necne.

[Take therefore no thought for the tomorrow

Take therefore no thought for the tomorrow. This Gospel quotation can prove useful when we want to indicate that one should not be anxious about future things, since each man of us has no idea whether he will see tomorrow or not.]

a) Matthew 6:34

B392. Vir desyderiorum

Si quempiam viderimus studio quaerere quid si futurum cras, atque inde vaticanari, non illepide eum appellabimus virum desyderiorum. Ita cognominatus est propheta Daniel,^a quod precum instantia (ut ait Hieronymus^b) et afflictione corporis, ieiuniorumque duricia cupisset scire ventura, ac Dei secreta cognoscere.

[A man of desires

If we see a man desiring to ascertain what will happen tomorrow and prophecy, not without wit we will call him a man of desires, for such is what the prophet Daniel was called. For, as Jerome says, by the insistency of his prayers and the affliction of his body and his hard fasting, he desired to learn the future and understand God’s secrets.]

a) Daniel 9:23, 10:11, 10:19 b) St. Jerome, Commentary on Daniel (vol. 25.698, col. 0555A Migne)

B393. Veniens veniet et non tardabit

Cum significabimus boni aliquid modis omnibus futurum, nec desperandum si tardius expectatione nostra videatur id extrahi, commodum illud prophetae Habacuc^a iam vulgi sermoni tritissimum de Christi adventu oraculum usurpabimus, Veniens veniet et non tardabit.

[It will surely come, it will not tarry

When we indicate that some good will beyond all doubt come, and that we should not despair if it seems to be drawn out longer than we expected, we can use this handy saying of the prophet Habakkuk, that has become very familiar in everyday discourse as a prophecy of Christ’s coming, it will surely come, it will not tarry.]

a) Habakkuk 2:3

B394. Nunquid aufertur laqueus de terra antequam quid ceperit?

Nunquid aufertur laqueus de terra antequam quod coeperit?^a Ex Amos est proverbialis allegoria, qua tempestiviter utermur si quando innuemus a quopiam incoepto non esse desistendum absque lucro.

[Shall one take up a snare from the earth, and have taken nothing at all?

Shall one take up a snare from the earth, and have taken nothing at all? This proverbial allegory comes from Amos, which we may appropriately use when we indicate that we should not break off some endeavor without having turned a profit.]

a) Amos 3:5

B395. Plenus sum

Ubi quispiam taedio affectus iam fastidire omnia, vel ex aliquo dicto factove offensus stomachari coeperit, recte ac proverbialiter dicet, plenus sum. Mota est metaphora ab quo qui cibo potuque refertus nec cibaria quidem vult intueri. Ea dominus apud Esaiam^a est usus dicens, plenus sum. Ita significavit se respuere Iudaeorum caeremonias, per quas illi etsi milli flagitiis contaminati satis Deo facere putabant.

[I am full

When a man is so overcome by tedium that he begins to loathe everything, or takes offense at some deed or act, he may properly and proverbially say I am full. The metaphor is taken from the condition of a man who is so sated with food and drink he does not even wish to look at a meal. The Lord uses this in Isaiah, saying, I am full. Thus He indicates that He rejects the ceremonies of the Jews, by which, albeit tainted by a thousand crimes, they imagined they were satisfying God.]

a) Isaiah 1.11

B396. Zelus domus tuae comedit me

Zelus domus tuae comedit me.^a Ita propheta psalmo lxviij proverbiali figura expressit negocium salvatori datum, qui zelo, id est amore condendae ecclesiae, passus est crudelem mortem. Conveniet quoties quis voluerit significare negocium quippiam maxime sibi esse curae. Sed peculiarius competet sacerdoti cui nihil prius esse debet quam curare et pascere oves dominicas, ac cultum religionis per omnia ad unguem servare. Inde facta translatio, quod amor sit semper plenus curae, quae urit et mordet, atque sic animum quodammodo comest.

[The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up

The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up. Thus in Psalm 68 uses this proverbial figure to express the task assigned our Savior, Who out of His zeal, i. e. His love for founding His Church, suffered a cruel death. It will also be suitable whenever a man wishes to indicate his great concern for some business. But it more particularly suits a priest, for whom nothing should be more important than to care for the Lord’s flocks, because love should always be full of a concern which burns one and gnaws at him, and thus, in a sense, eats up his mind.]

a) Psalm 68:10 (K. J. V. 69:9)

B397. Serra gloriatur contra trahentem

Si quis per se nihil valens laudem eius rei quam alieno auxilio confecisset conabitur sibi soli vendicare, quadrabit in eum illud Esaiae^a prophetae, Nunquid gloriabitur securis contra eum qui secat in ea, aut exaltabitur ferra contra eum a quo trahitur?

[The saw magnifieth itself against him who shaketh it

If a man, having no ability of his own, attempts to claim all the praise for himself for something he did with another man’s help, this verse of the prophet Isaiah will apply to him, Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? Or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it?

a) Isaiah 10:15

B398. Torcular calcavi solus

Contrarium huic illud ex eodem propheta^a est, torcular calcavi solus. De eo dici solet qui aliquod egregium facinus caeterum laboriosum nullis adminiculis sed propriis viribus fecit. Id quod praestitit salvator noster qui solus torcular crucis unde nostra manavit salus calcavit. Sumpta metaphora ab iis qui in lacu uvas praemunt pedibus. Est autem torcular seu torculum locus in quo uvae calcatae praemuntur, sive instrumentum quo praemuntur et continens pro contento id est pro uva, ponitur a propheta. Usurpat et Hieremias^b hoc loquendi schema, torcular calcavit dominus virgini filiae Iuda. Ita poenas et tormenta explicuit quibus affecta est Hierusalem a Babyloniis.

[I have trodden the winepress alone

Contrary to this is a saying from the same prophet, I have trodden the winepress alone. This is customarily said of a person who has done some notable deed without any help, by his own exertions. This is what was done by our Savior, Who trod the winepress of the cross alone, from whence our salvation has come. The metaphor is taken from those who tread grapes with their feet. The winepress is the place in which this is done, or the instrument with which it is pressed, and thus the container is used to represent the contents, i. e., it is used by the prophet to designate the grapes. Jeremiah too uses this figure of speech, the Lord hath trodden the virgin, the daughter of Judah, as in a winepress, thus expressing the punishments and torments which Jerusalem suffered at the hands of the Babylonians.]

a) Isaiah 63:2 b) Lamentations 1:15

B399. Pellem pro pelle, et cuncta quae habet homo dabit pro anima sua

Omnibus aeque animantibus vita adeo dulcis est ut pro ea tuenda vi quadam naturali ultro digladientur ac reliqua omnia posthabeant. Vermiculus enim modice irritatus statim remordet. Serpens impendente periculo caput velut arcem vitae occulit, neglecta caetera corporis parte. Nos in mille discrimina vitae ob vitam cotidie ruimus, et ut pugnando ne letale accipiamus vulnus, venienti ictu manum vel totum brachium subito obiicimus. Huc igitur pertinet illa apud Iob^aproverbialis figura, Pellem pro pelle, et cuncta quae habet homo dabit pro anima sua. Qua uti licebit cum significabitur salutis causa nullum reformidandum periculum, nihilve tam charum quin sit eius rei gratia sponte perfundendum, velut pellis pro pelle, id est, vita pro vita, saepe iuxta proverbium, ad aleam exponitur, ut ad poenam talionis videatur allusum.

[Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life

For all living things alike, life is so sweet that they fight to defend with a certain innate force, and value everything else less than it. For a worm, even moderately provoked, will bite back. When danger threatens, a snake will hide its head, as if it were the citadel of its life, to the neglect of the rest of its body. We daily expose ourselves to a thousand mortal risks for our live’s sake, and while fighting, lest we receive a fatal wound, we suddenly hold up a hand or even an entire arm to ward off the blow. To this pertains that proverbial figure of speech in Job, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. This we may use when we indicate that no danger is to be shirked for the sake of our safety, and nothing so dear that it would not be freely sacrificed for its sake, as a skin is risked for a skin, i. e. a life for a life, as the proverb has it, so that it appears to be an allusion to the lex talionis.]

a) Job 2:4

B400. Vae ei qui multiplicat non sua

Fuit apud Hebraeos, teste Habacuc^a propheta, proverbium, vae ei qui multiplicat non sua in anxie et per fas atque nefas congerentes divitias utpote ex alieno rapientes. Id fecit ante omnes Nabuchodonosor Babylonius rex, qui omnia bona Hierusalem spoliavit, quibus postea ceu male partis Persae potiti sunt. Ita aliis, quod aliis ademerant, postremo congregavit, iuxta illud prophetae^b oraculum, thesuarizat, et ignorat cui congregabit ea. At adagium vel ex eo natum videtur, quod quicquid aut dari aut auferri potest neque meum neque tuum (sicut tradit Cicero^c) dici debeat, atque idcirco bona fortunae iure nuncupantur, non autem hominis, cuius tantum bona censentur quae spiritualia sunt, hoc est animi, quia auferri nequeunt. Utrunque salvator apud Lucam^d demonstrat dicens ad discipulos, Si in alieno non fuistis fideles, quod vestrum est (subaudias bona spiritualia) quis dabit vobis? Quoties proinde libuerit graphice quempiam notare, quod augendis divitiis brevi perituris ceu male acquisitis frustra invigilet, ac in rem spiritualem nihil incumbat, apposite dicemus, Vae ei qui multiplicat non sua.

[Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his

As Habakkuk attests, the Hebrews had a proverb, woe to him that increaseth that which is not his, used against men who busily increased their riches by hook and by crook, as if stealing it from others. This was done, above all, by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who despoiled all the gods of Jerusalem, which the Persians later confiscated as being ill-gotten gains. Hence in the end he amassed for other men that he had stolen from others, according to that statement of the Prophet, he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them. This adage seems to have arisen from the fact that whatever can be given or taken away should be said to be neither mine nor thine (as Cicero says), and therefore by rights ought to be called goods of fortune, not of Man. For to Man belong only the goods which belong to the spirit, i. e., to the mind, since they cannot be taken away. Our Savior shows both these thing in Luke, when He says to His disciples, And if ye have not been faithful to that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own? And so whenever one wants to criticize a man colorfully because he is vigilant in vain in increasing a wealth destined soon to perish or ill-gotten, while paying no heed to spirituality, we can fitly say, woe to him that increaseth that which is not his!]

a) Habakkuk 2:6 b) Psalm 38:7 (K. J. V. 39:6) c) Cicero, Paradoxa Stoicorum IV.xxix.1 d) Luke 16:12

B401. Domos luteas habitamus

Apud Iob^a corpora nostra proverbiali metaphora domus luteae appellantur, quod revera non nisi lutum sint. Si enim rem recte expendemus, iam satis constabit primum parentem e terra sumpsisse corpus, et nobis illud tradidisse, quod et terrae cotidie reddimus. Quapropter ipsa terra communis omnium parens antiquitati habita est. Hoc igitur lutum spiritus noster colit. Unde metaphora deducta est, quae generatim cunctis mortalibus documento esse debet ne superbia efferantur, cum tam bruto elemento se circundatos esse noverint.

[We dwell in houses of clay

By a proverbial metaphor, in Job our bodies are called houses of clay, since in truth they are nothing but mud. For if we consider the thing aright, we will agree that our first farther took his body from the earth and bequeathed it to us, and daily we return it to the earth. For this reason, in olden days the earth was regarded as the common mother of us all. So our spirit inhabits this mud. Hence the metaphor, which ought to be a proof to all men in general that they should not become elated by pride, since they realize they are inclosed by such a brutish element.]

a) Job 4:19

B402. Non rugit onager cum herbam habet

Cum volemus carpere quempiam, utputa virum alias popularem, non reclamare ad aliquod facinus vel novum institutum, propterea quod id ei lucro sit, aut reticere de commodo aliorum dum suo inservit, illud ex eodem Iob^a usurpabmus, Non rugit onager dum herbam habet. Est enim onager ferus asinus qui rudere non cessat si pabulo careat, unde petita est allusio.

[Doth the wild ass bray when he hath grass?

When we wish to chide somebody, for example a man otherwise popular, for not objecting to some crime or innovation because it is profitable to himself, or for keeping quiet about other men serving their own advantage because he is likewise serving his, we may use that saying from the same Book of Job, Doth the wild ass bray when he hath grass? For the wild donkey is an animal which does not cease its braying if it lacks food, and this is the metaphor’s allusion.]

a) Job 6:5

B403. Malum bonum et bonum malum dicere

Si notabis quempiam dare verba auribus mali hominis propter potentiam, et bono detrahere propter inopiam, recte intorqueberis in eum hoc Esaiae^a carmen, Vae, qui dicunt malo, bonus es, et bono, malus es, seu (ut alii legunt) vae qui dicitis malum bonum et bonum malum, ponentes tenebras lucem et lucem tenebras, ponentes amarum in dulce et dulce in amarum. Et Salomon,^b Qui iudicat iustum iniustum et iniustum iustum, abominabilis est uterque apud Deum.

[To call evil good, and good evil

If you criticize a man for flattering the ears of a bad man because of his power, and slandering a good man because of his helplessness, you can properly apply this verse of Isaiah to him, Woe to those who say “you are a good man” to a bad one, and “you are a bad man” to a good one, or (as some read), Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter. And Solomon says, He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abominations to the Lord.]

a) Isaiah 5:20 b) Proverbs 17:15

B404. Factus sum illis in parabolam

Salvator noster Christus quo diligentius semper studuit Iudaeos mirac’’ulorum beneficiorumve magnitudine in officio pietatis continere,. hoc maiori est ab illis ludibrio habitus dicentibus,^a Vah qui destruis templum Dei et in triduo illud aedificas. Salve temetipsum, si filius Dei es, descende de cruce. Alii vero aiebant,^b Ecce quomodo amabat eum? Non poterat hic qui apperuit oculos caeci nati facere ut hic non moreretur? Et id genus plura convitia in eum iactabant. Sic ut eiusmodi illusiones in proverbium, id est in commune omnium verbum abiverint, dicente ipso domino apud prophetam, factum sum illis in parabolam.^c Quadrabit in qum qui passim ludibrio habetur, vel alicuius publicitus inustus infamiae cauterio apud vulgus notatur, ita ut de eo fabula iam orta late spargatur. Ante prophetam usurpavit hunc loquendi modum Iob^d dicens, Posuit me quasi in proverbium vulgi. Et in Deuteronomio,^e et eris perditus in proverbium.

[I became a proverb to them

The more diligently our Savior strove to contain the Jews in their office of piety by His miracles and good works, as He always did, the more He was mocked by them, saying, Ah, thou that destroyed the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself, and come down from the cross. But others said, Behold how He loved him! could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died? And they hurled more such insults against him. And such mockeries have become a proverb, i. e. a saying common to everybody, with the Lord himself saying in the Prophet, I became a proverb to them. This will be fitting for the man jeered at everywhere, or is notorious with the common people for having been publicly branded with some mark of infamy, in such a way that report of him has become widespread. Job used this manner of speaking before the Prophet, saying, He hath made me also a byword of the people. And it is written in Deuteronomy, And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword.]

a) Matthew 27:40, Mark 15:29 - 30 b) John 11:36 - 37c) Psalm 68:12 (K. J. V. 69:11) d) Job 17:6 e) Deuteronomy 28:37

B405. Pallium breve utrunque operire non potest

Coangustatum est stratum, ita ut alter decidat, et pallium breve, utrunque operire non potest.^a Metaphora proverbialis sumpta a marito pudico uxorem adulteram increpante, ac arguente thorum coniugalem non posse duos capere viros, qua usus est propheta Esaias in eam sententiam in qua apostolus ad Corinthios^b dicit, Non potestis calicem domini bibere et calicem daemoniorum. Et alibi,^c Quae participatio iusticiae cum iniquitate? ut doceret oportere Hierusalem abiicere idola, si vellet dominicis complexibus copulari. At nos eandem usurpabimus cum innuerimus unam rem non sufficere duobus.

[The covering is shorter than that they can both wrap themselves in it

The bed is narrower than that another can lie in it, and the covering is shorter than that they can both wrap themselves in it. This is a metaphor taken from a chaste husband rebuking an adulterous wife, and pointing out that their marriage-bed cannot admit two men, and it is used by the prophet Isaiah in the same way that the Apostle said to the Corinthians, Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils. And elsewhere, what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? to teach that Jerusalem must abjure idols if it wished to enjoy the Lord’s embrace. And we will use the same metaphor when we indicate that one thing does not suffice for two people.]

a) Isaiah 28:20 b) 1 Corinthians 9:20 (K. J. V. 10:21) c) 2 Corinthians 6:14

B406 Lucerna sub modio

Egregia virtus si dissimuletur, ita ut nihil ex eas splendoris aut utilitatis appareat, decenter ac proverbialiter dicetur, lucerna subter modio, quod lumen ita occultatum perinde sit ac si extinguatur. Quod fit, si quando lucerna cooperiatur modio, quod est mensurae genus. Est ea metaphora usus salvator apud Matthaeum capite v.^a Virtus autem merito lucernae assimulatur, quod ea quis soleat reliquis mortalibus praelucere, hoc est antelucere, ne in vitiorum tenebras incidant.

[A candle under a bushel

If outstanding virtue is concealed so that no of its splendor or usefulness is visible, it can fittingly and pr0verbially be says, his candle is under a bushel, because when light is us hidden, it is as good as extinguished. This happens whenever a candle is hidden underneath a bushel (which is a measure). Our Savior used this metaphor in Matthew, chapter 5. And virtue is deservedly likened to a candle, because by it a man is wont to outshine other mortals, less they stumble into the darkness of the vices.]

a) Matthew 5:15

B407. Lucerna super candelabrum

Contra hoc illud pugnat, lucerna super candelabrum.^a Haerebit ei cuius virtus procul eminet et ex ipso oris habitu non aliter perspicitur atque lucernae ardentis super candelabrum positae, procul flamma relucet. Vel in eum concinne accommodabitur qui (ut Horatius^b ait) quod venale habet ostendit, id est, sua omnia velut gloriabundus ostentat. Id quod praecipue faciunt mulieres, quibus quicquid est ornamenti parum gratum existit, si occultetur.

[A candle on a candlestick

Contrary to this is a candle on a candlestick. This will apply to him whose virtue shines from afar and is seen in the countenance of his face, no different than the flame of a candle burning upon a candlestick. Or him may neatly be applied that which Horace says, he shows what he has for sale, that is he displays his all, as if glorying in it. This is exspecially done by women, who take no pleasure in whatever ornaments they own, if those are kept hidden.]

a) Matthew 5:15, Mark 4:21, Luke 8:16 b) Horace, Sermones I.ii.84

B408. Thesaurus in agro absconditus

Thesaurus in agro absconditus.^a Parabola a Christo usurpata quae designatur cognitionem Dei supremem esse thesaurum, et illum abditum in agro, id est in penetralibus sacrae scripturae, quam qui probe verterit, thesaurum vitae aeternae haud dubie inveniet, ac in eo, cunctis posthabitis rebus, recte acquiescet. Caeterum audio passim a vulgo hanc parabolam citari proverbii nomine, si quando vult innuere virtutem non esse cuiquam obviam, nec cuivis eam facile contingere, sed ceu rem multo labore comparandam esse absconditam in agro, hoc est, in multa bonorum lectione. Item et alius est usus. Dicitur thesaurus absconditus in agro cum significatur optimum quod est hominis non apparere, sed in penitiore animi sede latere. Unde illud salvatoris,^b beati mundo corde, beati pauperes spiritu. Pretiosa quippe res est integrum habere animum, quo tamen velut in adyto pectoris clauso nihil perspici est difficilius.

[Treasure hid in a field

Treasure hid in a field. This is a parable used by Christ to indicate that knowledge of God is our supreme treasure, and it is hidden in a field, i. e. in the inner recesses of Holy Scripture, and if a person reads this will, he will undoubtedly discover the treasure of life eternal and find his rest in it, ignoring all other things. But I hear this parable constantly used by the common folk when they want to indicate that virtue is not immediately available to any man, nor does it easily befall anyone, but rather that it is like something hidden in a field which can only be acquired with much effort, i. e. in much reading of good things. Likewise it has another use. It is called a treasure hid in a field when it is indicated that the best part of a man is not obvious, but it is hidden deep in his mind. Hence that saying of our Savior, blessed are the pure of heart, blessed are the poor in spirit. For it is a precious thing to have an untainted mind, but nothing is harder to perceive when it is shut up in the inner recesses of the heart.]

a) Matthew 13:44 b) Matthew 5:8 and 5:3

B409. Negociator margaritas quaerit

Simile est regnum coelorum homini negaciatori quaerenti bonas margaritas.^a Alia est evangelica parabola, et in primis apostolo Paulo competit. Is enim negociaturus inter gentes, iuxta istud savatoris verbum, diu quaesivit bonos uniones, id est, omnia novit veteris legis mysteria, at ubi offendit unionem illum pretiosum, hoc est evangelicum dogma, illud tenuit et observavit, Mosaicis placitis prorsum reiectis. Hinc hodie quispiam vulgo dicitur uniones quaerere qui singularem aliquam artem singularemque doctrinam indipisci nititur, ad quam via non sit brevis aut vicina. Potest vel in eum simpliciter retorqueri qui, more margaritiferas cochleas quaeritantium, immodicis semper inhiat opibus summosve ambit honores, qui metaphora non inepta ac eleganter queunt uniones appellari, si illis bono modo adeptis non abutimur.

[A merchant man seeking goodly pearls

The kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls. This is another Gospel parable, and has special application to the apostle Paul. For he, intent on dealing with the gentiles, as our Savior’s saying has it, long sought goodly pearls, i. e., he learned all the mysteries of the old Law, but when he came across that precious pearl, I mean the teaching of the Gospel, he clung to it and observed it, wholly rejecting the ordinances of Moses. Hence a man is nowadays said to seek after pearls, when he strives to master some particular art or science, to which the path is neither short nor ready at hand. Or it can simply be applied to a man who, in the manner of those who rifle through oysters, is always lusting after immoderate wealth or ambitious for the highest honors, which by this not inelegant metaphor can be called pearls — if we acquire them honestly and do not abuse them.]

a) Matthew 13:45

B410. Fici cadunt in os comedentis

Fici cadunt in os comedentis. Absimilis est superiori haec proverbialis figura, qua Nahum^a propheta utitur. Quantum enim ibi industriae et diligentiae, tantum hic ignaviae, caeterum plus felicitatis. Et de eo concinne dici potest cui res relicta, non parta labore, est, veluti sunt illi quibus magnae veniunt haereditates. Vel in eum perbelle conveniet quem notamus ob copiam rerum ignavissimam ducere vitam, ut cui perinde cibus qua suasi sponte in os labitur. Et ad illud alludit, quod si quis concussa ficu hiatu oris cadentes ficos excipiat, nihil est quod laboret e terra colligere.

[Figs fall into the mouth of the eater

Figs fall into the mouth of the eater. This is different from the preceding proverbial image, and is used by the prophet Nahum. For in the former, happiness is proportionate to industry and diligence, but here it accompanies sloth. It can neatly be said a man who comes across something left to him, not gained by his effort, as happens to those who receive great inheritances. Or it will very appropriately suit a person we criticise for living a most idle existence because of his abundance, just as if food freely dropped into his mouth. And it alludes to the fact that, if one were to shake a fig tree and catch its dropping fruit with his open mouth, he would have no need to exert himself picking them up from the ground.]

a) Nahum 3:12

B411. Vinum potantem decipit

Vinum potantem decipit. Versus Habacuc^a prophetae proverbialis in eum qui ebrietate laborat. Dum enim quis aviditer bibit, latenter capit, sic ut postquam surrexerit atque pes atque caput nequaquam suum faciant officium, ac demum ab ea delectatione quam bibendo habuerat repente in furorem aut somnium conversa, reddatur belluae persimilis. Ac istud est ebrietatis monstrum, ut quis ex homine protinus brutum fiat animal. Potest vel in quoscunque commodum aptari qui voluptatibus submergunt, utpote quae tum mortales maxime perdunt, cum maxime oblectant.

[He transgesseth by wine

He transgesseth by wine. This verse of the prophet Habakkuk is proverbial for him who suffers from drunkenness. For when a man drinks with avidity it secretly overcomes him, so much so that when he stands up neither his feet nor his head perform their offices, and finally, the pleasure he took in drinking is suddenly turned into fury or sleep, and he becomes quite like a brute. And such is the monstrosity of drunkenness, that a man is soon turned into a beast. Or this can be used with advantage to describe any men who become plunged in pleasures, which destroy mortals the most when they most delight them.]

a) Habakkuk 2:5

B412. Sicut mater, ita et filia eius

Sicut mater, ita et filia eius.^a Vetus fuit apud Hebraeos adagium et ab Ezechiele citatur. Ecce omnis qui dicit vulgo proverbium in te (de Hierusalem loquitur) assumet illud dicens, sicut mater, ita et filia eius. Hoc etiam vulgo sic dictatur, Qui nascitur ex gallina scalpit. Sensus non discrepat ab eo, quod alio loco ex Athanasii symbolo^b recensuimus, Qualis pater, talis filius. Nam impudicam matrem non rarenter solet filia imitari. Aptabitur commode illis quorum mores germani sunt.

[As is the mother, so is the daughter

As is the mother, so is the daughter. This is an old Hebrew adage cited by Exechiel, speaking of Jerusalem: Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying, As is the mother, so is the other. It is also said, that born from a chicken also scratches. The sense does not disagree with that we say when we recited the Athanasian Creed, Such as the Father is, such is the Son. For a daughter not infrequently copies her shameless mother. This can conveniently be applied to those whose manners are similar.]

a) Ezechiel 16:44 b) Athanasian Creed 7

B413. Spinae se invicem complectuntur

Spinae se invicem complectuntur.^a Scomma proverbiale apud Nahum prophetam in haereticos, id est in malos homines qui veluti spinae semper pungunt, hoc est nocent, et alius ad alium more spinarum adhaerescunt, seque invicem defensistant. Id quod indicat illud Iuvenalis,^b Magna inter molles concordia.

[They be folden together as thorns

They be folden together as thorns. This is a proverbial jape against heretics in Nathum, i. e., against bad men who always prick (I mean work harm) like thorns, and stick together as do thorns, defending each other. This is also indicated by Juvenal’s the great concord that obtains between degenerates.]

a) Nahum 1:10 b) Juvenal, Satire ii.47

B414. Impius praevalet adversus iustum

Ita usu venit ut in iudicio magis divitis peccatum quam pauperis innocentia defendatur, cum plures semper sequantur munera quam iustitiam. Unde malus per hunc modum facile iniuriam facit bono. Hinc proinde Habacuc^a carmen, impius praevalet adversus iustum, iam olim in adagium abiit, quod nunc nemo non in ore frequenter habet, cum videt iustum virum perperam laedi atque malorum oppressione everti.

[The wicked doth compass about the righteous

It is commonly the case that in a courtroom the wealthy man’s wrongdoing is better defended than pauper’s innocence, since more always cleave to profits than justice, and in this way the bad man easily harms the good man. Hence that verse of Habakkuk, The wicked doth compass about the righteous, has long since passed into an adage, which nowadays nobody does not have on his lips, when he sees a just man wrongly harmed and overthrown by the oppression of the wicked.]

a) Habakkuk 1:4

B415. Expande rete

Eum qui rem aggreditur ut ex ea lucrum faciat, aut quempiam dolis petit ut in turba aliqua intricet seu spoliet perdatve, apte dicemus expandere rete, a piscatoribus sumpta metaphora. Usurpata ab Ezechiel,^a apud quem dominus ait, Expandam super eum (de Pharaone intelligit) rete meum, ut eum scilicet puniat. Respexit et ad illud Osee^b propheta cum de malis sacerdotibus dixit, Quoniam laqueus facti estis speculationi, et rete expansum super Thabor.

[Spread out your net

We aptly say that he who undertakes something to turn a profit, or seeks by his wiles to put a man in trouble or to rob and destroy him, is spreading out his net, a metaphor taken from fishermen. This is used by Ezechiel, in whom the Lord says, I shall spread out my net over thee (he is speaking of God’s punishment of Pharaoh). The prophet Hosea refers to it in speaking of bad priests, ye have been a snare on Mizpah, and a net spread upon Tabor.]

a) Ezechiel 32:3 b) Hosea 5:1

B416. Ad fabulas convertuntur

Ad fabulas convertuntur. Dici consuevit de iis qui facile pervertuntur, et mox mali propositi tenaces, ne bene monentes audiant, de industria fabulas interponunt, de quibus apostolus^a ad Timotheum scribit, A veritate quidem aures avertent, ad fabulas vero convertuntur. Sed in eos aptius haerebit quibus levitas innata est, ita ut si quid extra iocum dicatur, serio non accpiant, sed in iocum vertant, in cachinnos resolvantur, dicteria dicant, ut nihil plane cum eis grave sit agendum.

[They are turned unto fables

This is customarily said about those who are easily perverted and quickly adopt bad doctrines. Lest they heed those giving them sound advice, they purposely adopt fables. Of them the Apostle writes to Timothy, And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But this will be more appropriately applied to those whose light-mindedness is innate, so that, if something is said that is not in jest, they do not take it seriously but make it into a joke, dissolve in laughter, and utter witticisms, with the result that they think nothing need be done in earnest.]

a) 2 Timothy 4:4

B417. Fatuus fatua loquetur

Fatuus fatua loquetur. Esaiae^a oraculum cognatum superiori, quo expressit futuruam Pharisaeorum fatuitatem, qui dementer Christum fraude petebant, cui omnia nuda apertaque erant. Nos autem eo veluti valde proverbiale monemur a stulto nil nisi stultitiam expectare. Usurpatur loco proverbii a divo Hieronymo^b in epistola ad Euagrium.

[The vile person will speak villainy

The vile person will speak villainy. This utterance of Isaiah is akin to the preceding, in which he expresses the future foolishness of the Pharisees, who attacked Christ by stealth, although everything was clear and evident to Him. And we are proverbially warned to expect nothing but foolishness from a fool. This proverb is used by St. Jerome in his letter to Euagrius.]

a) Isaiah 32:6b) Jerome quotes this proverb in two of his epistles, li.6 and cxlvi.1

B418. Scriba doctus profert de thesauro suo nova et vetera

Parabola scribae docti a salvatore introducta docet quos apostolica sagena, de qua supra est facta mentio, debeat capere ad sacerdotium gerendum. Ait enim, Omnis scriba doctus in regno coelorum simul est patrifamilias, qui profert de thesauro suo nova et vetera.^a Ut enim paterfamilias vetulis ac novis fructibus familiam pascit, ita futurum dicit ut apostoli sui nova et veteri doctrina, quam bene imbiberant, populum imbuant, hoc est praedicent evangelium, illudque prophetarum testimoniis corroboeent. Unde parabola iam proverbialis passim facta indicat episcopos caeterosque sacerdotes debere veteris ac novis instrumenti esse scientes, quando illi soli sunt scribae quibus hoc munus scribendi, id est docendi, obeundum sit. Vae propterea illis qui e thesauro suo nihil nisi nummos, nisi delitias, nisi voluptates, nisi nugas depromere queant, omnis scilicet doctrinae ignari. Unde illud,

[A scribe which is instructed bringeth forth out of his treasure things old and new

The parable of the learned scribe told by our Savior teaches what men the apostolic net (mentioned above) should catch to serve as priests. For He says, Every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things both old and new. For just as a householder feeds his family with food both old and new, so He says that in the future His apostles will imbue the people with the old and new teachings they have imbibed, that is, that they will preach the Gospel and confirm it by the testimonies of the prophets. Hence we now have a proverb in general circulation which indicates that bishops and other clergy must be knowledgeable in the Old and New Testaments, since they are the only scribes who are to do this work of writing, i. e. of teaching. So woe to those who out of their treasury can take nothing but money, delights, pleasures, and trash, being wholly ignorant of doctrine. Hence the following proverb,]

a) Matthew 13:52

B419. Bonus homo de bono thesauro profert bona

Bonus homo de bono thesauro profert bona.^a Sententia huius allegoriae non abhorret a superiore. Equidem ut doctus doctrinam redolet, sic bonus bonitatem sapit. Refertur a Christo, cui de se tanquam de tertia persona loquitur, qui cum maxime bonus sit, maxime omnium cunctis bene vult. Erit usus si quando significabimus probum virum non posse improbe facere quicquam. Deducta allegoria ex eo quod in corde sit animi sedes, eiusque virtutes ac vitia illo contineantur, et velut quis thesaurum in interiore domus parte recondere solet, ita natura cor ceu totius corporis thesaurum intra viscera penitus reposuerit, unde bona veluti e quodam penetrali iugiter expromantur.

[A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things

A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things. The sense of this allegory is not inconsistent from the previous one. For just as a learned man smacks of learning, thus a good man is marked by goodness. This is told of Christ, speaking of Himself as if in the third person, since He is the most good of all, he is the best disposed of all towards all men. This proverb will be useful if ever we indicate that an upright man can never do anything dishonest. The allegory is taken from the fact that the heart is the seat of the mind, and its virtues and vices are contained therein, and so, just as one’s treasury is an inner part of his house where he is wont to store things, so the heart is like the treasury of the entire body, lying as it does deep within one’s bowels, from which good things can be produced in abundance, as from an inner room.]

a) Matthew 12:33 (K. J. V. 12:35)

B420. Malus homo de malo thesauro profert mala

Adversum hoc stat illud, Malus homo de malo thesauro profert mala.^a Est dictum in diabolum, qui diversum a salvatore studium habet. Nam ut hic mortales omnes ducit ad virtutes, ita ille ad vitia trahit dirum continenter ex se venenum depromens. Quadrabit in hominem pessimum, a quo nihil boni proficisci possit.

[An evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things

The opposite of this is An evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. This is said against the devil, whose aim is contrary to that of our Savior. For just as He leads all mortals to the virtues, he drags them to the vices, constantly spewing his venom. This proverb will apply to the worst kind of man, from whom no good thing can come.]

a) Matthew 12:33 (K. J. V. 12:35)

B421. Spiritus immundus revertitur in domum unde exuit

Spiritus immundus revertitur in domum unde exuit.^a Dici solitum ubi fraudes et doli malo sunt autori, in eiusque caput recidunt. Ita contigit Iudaeis, qui volentes perdere Iesum, inciderunt in manus diaboli. Verum hic de haereticis agitur. Recedit enim ab eis diabolus dum in fide manent, revertitur ad eos cum ab ecclesia deficiunt.

[An unclean spirit returns into the house from whence it came out

An unclean spirit returns into the house from whence it came out. This is customarily said when wiles and deceits prove to be evil for their author and rebound against his own person. Thus befell the Jews who fell into the clutches of the devil when they wanted to destroy Jesus. But here we are dealing with heretics. For the devil leaves them while they remain in the faith, but returns to them when they defect from the Church.]

a) cf. Matthew 12:45 (K. J. V. 12:43) and Mark 11:26

B422. Qui non est mecum contra me est

Qui non est mecum contra me est.^a Proverbialis sententia qua diaboli studium notatur, qui cum Deo esse noluit. Unde quantum salvator mortalium animas lucrifacere cupit, tantum ille perdere ardet. Hodie vero solet quis ea uti cum vult quempiam clancularium significare inimicum, quod illum qui tecum non consentit merito tibi adversari iudices. Et ad civium seditionem allusum videtur, in qua solet alius ad alium ire ducem, ac cum eo stare, id quod in civili Romanorum bello contigit cum, civitate bifariam divisa, pars una civium Pompei, altera Caesaris partes sit secuta.

[He that is not with Me is against Me

[He that is not with Me is against Me. This is a proverbial sentiment by which the devil is branded, since he refused to be with God. Hence he yearned to destroy mortals’ souls just as much as our Savior desired to profit them. But nowadays a man is wont to use this when he wishes to indicate somebody is a secret enemy, since you can justly conclude someone is opposed to you if he is not in agreement with you. And it appears to allude to civic sedition, in which different men follow different leaders and stand by them, as happened in the Roman Civil War when the nation was split in to, and one party of its citizens followed Pompey, and the other Caesar.]

a) Matthew 12:30, Luke 11:23

B423. Qui non congregat mecum, spargit

Ab hoc non admodum abludit illa evangelica metaphora, Qui non congregat mecum, dispergit.^a Conveniet in eum qui, neglecto bonorum commercio, nihil commodi praestat, sed ut inutilis sibi et aliis damno est. Vel in eum cui aliud ab altero quopiam vitae institutum est, ut quo hic magis aliquid in unum congerat, ille impendio spargat. In hanc sententiam refertur a Christo apud Matthaeum, qui quantopere studebat fideles in suam religionem aggregare, tantopere diabolus illos disgregare conabatur. Tracta est translatio a pastoribus, quod qui appente vespera oves cogunt, bene servent, qui vero per spatium agunt et non reducunt ad caulam, facile perdant.

[He that gathereth not with Me scattereth abroad

Not very different from that is the Gospel metaphor, He that gathereth not with Me scattereth abroad. This will apply to the man who, having neglected the company of good men, does nothing advantageously, but rather, being useless to himself, is harmful to others. Or to the man who differs from another in his way of life that, the more the one assembles something, he scatters it, to their loss. In this sense it is used by Christ in Matthew, to show that, the more He strove to gather the faithful into one religion, the more the devil sought to separate them. The metaphor is taken from shepherds who collect their sheep at nightfall to carefully preserve them, whereas those who let them stray and do not bring them back to the fold easily lose them.]

a) Matthew 12:30

B424. Lutum contra figulum cogitat

Ubi quis conatur illum laedere qui in se vitae ac necis ius habet, quadrabit illud ex Esaia,^a lutum contra figulum cogitat. Nam figulus pro suo arbitratu lutum terit et versat.

[Shall the work say of him that made it?

When someone attempts to harm the man who has poser of life and death over himself, that saying of Isaiah will apply, shall the work say of him that made it? For potter turns and shapes the clay as he chooses.]

a) Isaiah 29:16

B425. Non sum medicus

Non sum medicus.^a Ex eodem propheta est, et speciem proverbii prae se fert. Si quis enim rogatus fuerit auxilium et, velut impotens aut eius artis cuius ope opitulandum esset imperitus, illud ferre nequiverit, commodum respondebit, non sum medicus. Et ad id alluditur, quod medicus soleat cunctis corporis morbis aeque mederi.

[I will not be an healer

I will not be an healer. This is from the same prophet, and wears the look of a proverb. For if a man should be asked for help and, being powerless or unskilled in that art needed to provide assistance, and so cannot supply it, he can conveniently reply, I will not be an healer. It alludes to the fact that a healer is wont to tend to all the maladies of the body.]

a) Isaiah 3:7

B426. Num et Saul inter prophetas?

Saul Iudaeorum rex cum audivisset David, quem capitaliter insectabatur, contulisse se ad Samuelem in Ramatha, misit alios super aliis lictores qui eum caperent. Verum illi cum adpropinquassent, Dei numine repente afflati una cum aliis prophetis qui eo loci aderant, aderant autem multi, vaticinari coeperunt. Sic ut Saul, de ea re certior factus, tantum abesset ut miraculo moveretur a destinatove facinore desisteret, uti etiam maiore percitus ira eo quam primum ire pergeret, cum ecce tibi et ipse divino imbutus spiritu subito prophetavit. Historia id facti noscere volentibus haud clamesse potest, in primo enim Regum libro^a in uno vel altero loco tangitur. Fuit ea res cunctis iuxta admiratione, ut homo minime mundus divinitus vaticaneretur. Hinc itaque exivit in proverbium, Num et Saul inter prophetas (subaudias receptus vel adnumerandus est)? Quippe post haud malos ob id exuit mores. Aptabitur commode in eum qui doctiusculus ilico effectus grandia ex tempore blaterare incoeperit. Vel in quemlibet qui, cuiuspiam artis vix degustatis principiis, proterviter perinde quasi peritissimus iactabit scientiam. Vel in eum non infacete torquebitur qui sanctulus statim apparebit, at paulo post sese ad pristinos revocabit mores.

[Is Saul also among the prophets?

When Saul, king of the Jews, had heard that David, whom he was pursuing with an intent to kill, had betaken himself to Samuel in Ramatha, he sent one company of soldiers after another to seize him. But when they drew near, they were suddenly filled with God’s Spirit and began to prophesy together with the other prophets were there (and those were many). Learning of this thing, Saul was so far from being moved by this miracle and desisting from his intended crime that he was even more wrathful and decided to go there as soon as he could. And lo, he also was filled with the divine spirit and suddenly prophesied. This event is scarcely hidden from those who want to learn of it, for it is handled in a couple of places in 1 Kings. This was a matter of wonder for all men, that an unclean man could prophesy by divine inspiration. Hence it has become proverbial, Is Saul also among the prophets? (you must supply, is taken or is numbered), and with good results. For it will come handy to apply to someone who, having acquired the slightest bit of education, immediately begins to babble and extemporize with grandiosity. Or in anyone who, having imbibed the ABC’s of some art, boldly boasts of his knowledge as though he were most thoroughly trained. Or it will not go amiss when use for someone who for a moment appears a little bit pious, but a little later goes back to his old ways.]

a) i. e., 1 Samuel 10:11

B427. Percussit Saul mille et David decem milia

Cum David singulari certamine (uti in praenotato libro extat) superasset Goliath Philistinorum fortissimum, eiusque caput velut certum adeptae victoriae signum Hierusalem reportaret, quacumque iter habebat muliurum in primis chorus cum symphoniacis obviam ei fiebat ceu triumpanti dulciter cantillans, Percussit Saul mille et Dvid decem milia.^a Est ad illud allusum, quod quamquam rex ipse Saul paulo ante Philistinorum exercitum, bene multis illorum interfectis, profligaverat, attamen quia casus Goliath ita suos consternavit ut raptim fugam fecerunt, cum praesertim nemo homo in ea gente par Goliath iam superesset, plus omnino nominis accessisset David. Quae quidem cantilena velut virtutis nobile praeconium iam olim apud omnes gentes in proverbium abiit, quo uti licet cum volumus quempiam ab aliquod insigne facinus ad coelum laudibus ferre. Ita enim fit gratius quod non sine comparatione commendatur. Nihil item minus proverbiale erit, si cum ironia in vane gloriosum hominem iactabitur.

[Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands

When (as is told in the aforesaid Book) David had overcome Goliath, the strongest of the Philistines, in single combat, and was bringing his head back to Jerusalem as a sure proof of his victory, wherever he went choirs of women in particular came out to meet him, singing and dancing and greeting him in his triumph by singing, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands. They were alluding to the fact that, although a little earlier Saul had routed a Philistine army and killed a goodly number of them, nevertheless, since Goliath’s fall had thrown his fellow countrymen into such consternation that they took to their heels, particularly since Goliath’s equal no longer survived in that nation, David had gained the greater Glory. And, as if it were a noble announcement of virtue, this song has become proverbial in all nations, which we may use when wish to praise someone to high heaven for some outstanding accomplishment. It is all the more welcome because he is commended not without some implied comparison. Likewise, it is no less proverbial when sarcastically applied to some boaster.]

a) 1 Samuel 18:7

B428. Vox sanguinis clamat de terra

Vox sanguinis clamat de terra. Metaphora proverbialis ex eo deducta, quod effusus cruor animum intuentis moveat ad ulciscendum mortem occisi. Qui locus appositus erit, cum innuetur quippiam nefarium scelus esse dignum vindicta. Ad hoc pertinet illud Geneseos^a ad Cayn a domino dictum, Vox sanguinis fratruis tui clamat ad me de terra.

[The voice of blood crieth fron the ground

The voice of blood crieth from the ground. This proverbial metaphor is taken from the fact that spilt blood moves the beholder’s mind to avenge the death of the slain man. This is an appropriate passage when we say that some unspeakable crime is worthy of revenge. To this pertains that verse in Genesis spoken to Cain by the Lord, The voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto Me from the ground.]

a) Genesis 4:10

B429. Sine sanguinis effusione non fit remissio

Ubi graphice significabimus non esse condonandam noxiam sine noxa, hoc est culpam sine poena, recte usurpabimus illud apostoli ad Hebraeos,^a sine sanguinis effusione non fit remissio. Quod affine est superiori, et eos praesides tempestiviter admonet, qui de capitalibus criminibus nullum supplicium sumentes tantum ex usu suo peccantes mulctant, unde illi mox audaciores effecti facile maleficia iterant in multorum perniciem. Vel eos ipsos qui talia aedunt scelera ante omnes deterrere debet, quando per hoc iam satis certum habent non leviter se commissa flagitia expiaturos. At Paulus eo in loco agit de more purgandorum peccatorum apud Hebraios, qui significabat futurum ut Christus suo proprio sanguine nostra aliquando redimeret peccata.

[Without shedding of blood is no remission

When we graphically indicate that harm is not to be atoned without harm, i. e., that crime is not to go unpunished, we can rightly use that statement of the Apostle to the Hebrews, without shedding of blood is no remission. This is akin to the previous proverb, and comes as a timely reminder to those judges who sit on capital cases and take no punishment save for imposing fines for their own advantage, that the murderers will become emboldened and multiply their felonies to the destruction of many. But those who commit such crimes need to be deterred above all others, since in this way they will know for sure that the are not to pay lightly for their misdeeds. But in this passage Paul is dealing with the Hebrews’ means of expiation, and indicating that in the future Christ will someday redeem our sins with His own blood.]

a) Hebrews 9:22

B430. Ab impiis egredietur impietas

Ab impiis egredietur impietas.^a Proverbium est Hebraeorum, quo significatur malum hominem plurimum a malo, ita volente iustitia, punitum iri. Quod hodie vulgo ad hunc quoque modum dictitatur, Tonsor novit tondere tonsorem, id quod accidit, cum parracida parricidam necat, fur spoliat furem, sacrilegus sacrilegum mactat, superbus superbum deprimit. Hac de causa David, ut homo minime impurus, temperavit a caede Saul dicens, Ulciscatur dominus me ex te, manus autem mea non sit in te, sicut et in proverbio antiquo dicitur, ab impiis egredietur impietas (potuit enim regem in spelunca, ut in primo Regnorum traditur,^b interficere). Sed istud non adagium modo, verumetiam oraculum dixerim, quia cotidie usu ita venit ut homines improbi mutuo sese mucrone conficiant. Quocirca minus interdum mirandum est si quispiam, cuius nullum insigne crimen patet, crudeliter iuguletur. Nam tale quid ipse fortasse antea perpetrarat, unde sibi vices per hunc modum redduntur. Atque ita impietas ab impiis proficiscitur.

[Wickedness proceedeth from the wicked

Wickedness proceedeth from the wicked. This is a Hebrew proverb indicating that often a bad man is destined to be punished by another bad one, in accordance with the will of justice. Which today is also expressed in this way, a barber knows how to administer a haircut to another barber. This is what happens when a parricide murders a parricide, a thief robs a thief, a sacrilegious man befouls a sacrilege, a haughty man snoots a haughty man. For this reason David, being by no means an impure man, restrained Saul from committing murder by saying, The Lord judge between me and thee, and the Lord avenge me of three, but mine hand shall not be upon you. As saith the proverb of the ancients, Wickedness proceedeth from the wicked (he could have killed the king in the cave, as is told in 1 Kings). But I would call this not just an adage, but also a prophecy, since today we have come to such a pass that villains are stabbing each other to death. So it is sometimes no surprise, if someone who has committed no obvious great felony, is done in cruelly. For himself has perhaps done something similar in the past, so that in this way he is being given his requital. And thus wickedness proceedeth from the wicked.]

a) 1 Samuel 24:14 (K. J. V. 24:13) b) i. e., 1 Samuel 24:3 - 7

B431. Adulterinae plantae non dabunt radices altas

Adulterinae plantae non dabunt radices altas.^a Ex Sapientiae libro est, ubi perperam scrioptum leges spuria vitulamina.^b Sumpta allegoria ab arboribus adulterinis, hoc est ab iis quae iam silvestres effectae sunt, quarum plantaria vel nunquam bonos faciunt fructus, vel male radicata cito arescunt. Cui locus apposite erit, cum significabimus malum genus hominum haud diuturnum fore. Sed in nothos, id est ex uxore non legitima natos, aptius accommodabitur, qui aut rarenter boni evadunt aut eorum progenies cito deficit, dicente eadem Sapientia,^c ab iniquo thoro semen exterminabitur.

[They shall not take deep rooting from bastard slips

They shall not take deep rooting from bastard slips. This is from the Book of Wisdom, where you will find the wrong reading spuria vitulamina. The allegory is taken from bastard trees, i. e. from those which have now been let run wild, whose branches either never bear wholesome fruit, or which quickly wither from having been ill-rooted. This will have a fitting place when we use it to indicate that a bad breed of men will not be enduring. But it is more suitable for bastards, i. e., sons not born of legitimate mothers, who either rarely turn out to be good men, or their line soon runs out. As this same Wisdom says, the seed of an unrighteous bed shall be rooted out.]

a) Wisdom 4:4 b) a reading retained by modern editors c) Wisdom 3:16

B432. Nemroth robustus venator

Cum libebit taxare quempiam virum fortem at flagitiosum maleficumve, quod rapina vivat, quod opprimat quoscunque possit tyrannorum more, veteri proverbio appellabimus Nemroth (seu Nembroth) robustum venatorem, facta allusione ad Nemroth nepotem Noe. Is enim homo perdita audacia praedatus, neglecto Deo (uti prodit Iosephus^a) coelum ipsum penetrare est nixus, erecta illa altissima turri eo loco quo postea Babylon condita est. De qua re nos in primo De Rerum Inventoribus^b abunde meminimus. Et venator nuncupatus est quod regnandi cupiditate actus venatoris ritu cunctos sine discrimine bonis spoliare suoque parere imperio subigitur conatus esset. Unde de eo nata est apud Hebraeos paroemia, Nemroth robustus venator. Quae in Geneseos^c libro refertur capite x.

[Nimrod the mighty hunter

When one wants to chide some sturdy villain or criminal for living by theft, oppressing whoever he can in the manner of a tyrant, we can call him Nimrod the mighty hunter (the name is also given as Nemroth or Nembroth), making an allusion to Noah’s descendant Nimrod. As Josephus tells the story, he was a man endowed with bold daring, who scorned God and attempted to storm the very heaven, by setting up a lofty tower in that place where Babylon was later built. I have written about him in my De Inventoribus Rerum. He was called a hunter because, driven by his lust for power, like a hunter he indiscriminately sought to rob all men of their goods and compel them to obey his government. Hence arose the proverb, Nimrod the mighty hunter, mentioned in chapter 10 of the Book of Genesis.]

a) Josephus, Jewish Antiquities I.iv.2 and I.vi.2 b) Polydore forgets himsef: the proper reference is De Inventoribus Rerum III.ix p. 212 Weiss-Pérezc) Genesis 10:8 - 9

B433. Quomodo cessavit exactor, quievit tributum?

Nabuchodonosor rex Babylonius cum devictis Iudaeis tum ceteris quibus imperabat populis ingens tributum imposuit, illudque exigebat crudeliter. Verum, eo vita defuncto, Iudaei in primis eiusmodi onere paulatim sublevati sunt. Cuius rei admiratione moti ac gaudio exultantes coeperunt loco proverbii tractare, Quomodo cessavit exactor, quievit tributum?^a Quod ab Esaia recensetur. Congruet quoties innuemus, sublato tyranno vel quovis pestilente homine velut malorum capite, populum esse oppressione liberatum.

[How hath the oppressor ceased; the golden city ceased!

When King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had levied a great tribute on the Jews and the other peoples he governed, he extracted it cruelly. But after his death, the Jews in particular were somewhat relieved of this kind of burden. Marveling at this thing and rejoicing, they began to employ a proverb, How hath the oppressor ceased; the golden city ceased!, which is repeated by Isaiah. It is appropriate as often as we indicate that, after a tyrant or some pestilential man responsible for our ills has been removed, our people is freed of oppression.]

a) Isaiah 14:4

B434. Laqueus contritus est et nos liberati sumus

Facit vel ad hoc ille eiusdem farinae versiculus psalmi cxxiij^a iam olim vulgo celebris, Laqueus contritus est et nos liberati sumus. Nam si laqueus qui feris aut avibus tenditur infractus sit, dubium non est quin ipsae ferae iamiam periculum evaserint. Ita avari principes novis cotidie promulgatis quaestuariis legibus populum illaqueare student, ut qui parum illis aberraverint graviter mulctentur.

[The snare is broken, and we are escaped

Another proverb of the same stamp is a verse of Psalm 123, now in popular circulation, The snare is broken, and we are escaped. For if a snare set for beasts or birds is broken, there is no doubt that the quarry have already escaped their peril. Thus greedy sovereigns strive to ensnare their people by daily promulgating new laws designed to increase their revenue, so that those who even slightly transgress such laws may be heavily fined.]

a) Psalm 123:7 (K. J. V. 124:7)

B435. Iudicet dominus inter me et te

Quoties quis voluerit significare se haud tantum sibi assumere ut statuat utrum ius secum potius faciat an cum adversario, atque minus acceptae iniuriae vindictam cupere, sed Deo cuncta mandare, qui pro suo arbitruatu et iudicet et tribuat, recte illud Davidicum in Saul regem dictum usurpabit, iudicet dominus inter me et te. Extat in libro Regum primo.^a

[The Lord judge between me and thee

As often as one wants to indicate that he does not dare presume whether the law supports himself or his adversary, and that he has no desire to avenge the injury he has received, but rather that he leaves everything to God to judge and appoint according to His will, he will properly use that dictum used by David against Saul, the Lord judge between me and thee. This is found in 1 Kings.]

a) i. e., 1 Samuel 24:13

B436. Canem mortuum vel pulicem unum persequeris

Canem mortuum vel pulicem unum persequeris.^a Idem David hac proverbiali figura arguit Saul saevitiae, simulque docuit non esse honori principi humilem oppugnare hominem et sese prae magnitudine regiae maiestatis, cani mortuo quem ne canes quidem tangunt, et uni pulici quem vel pedibus incautum crebro terimus, pro animi modestia assimilavit. Conveniet si quando innuemus turpe esse potenti ac valenti viro insultare infirmum, vel diviti debacchari in pauperem.

[Thou dost pursue after a dead dog, after a flea

Thou dost pursue after a dead dog, after a flea. Likewise David uses this proverbial figure to accuse Saul of savagery, and at the same time teaches that it ill accords with a prince’s dignity to attack a humble man, in the modesty of his mind likening himself i(n comparison with royal majesty) to a dead dog whom not even dogs would touch, and to a single flea such as we crush underfoot unawares. This will be suitable if we ever imply that it is base for a strong and powerful man to abuse a lowly one, or for a rich man to rage against a pauper.]

a) 1 Samuel 24:14

B437. Offeras primum pacem^a

Praescriptum militare apud Hebraeos erat, ut bellando cum ad aliquod oppidum oppugnandum adirent, illi quam primum pacem offerent, ne iniusta movere arma viderentur. Id postea (ut aiunt) in proverbium cessit, cuius Ioab, qui dux fuit belli principe David, ab Abelina muliere admonitus abstinuit ab obsidione Abelae civitatis, tantum potitus capite Sibae adversarii, qui in eam se cum armatorum receperat. Historia gestae rei libro Regnorum secundo^b extat. Ab hoc autem adagio possunt nonnulli principes Christiani exemplum modestiae clementiaeve facile mutuari, qui ob minimum delictum, ne dicam ob cupiditatem explendae avaritiae, crudelitatis, ac libidinis regnandi, non pacem sed ignem civitatibus offerunt, et ante omnia cives ad caedem, universa bona ad praedam, mulieres ad stuprum sibi suisve militibus tam inhumanissime quam inportunissime constituunt. Istiusmodi perniciosa ac feralia edicta, tempestate etiam nostra, veluti trophaea aliquot nostri Christiani orbis civitates non utiquam incelebres et et videre miserabiliterque sensere.

[You must first proclaim peace

Among the Hebrews it was a military rule that whenever they set siege to some town with an eye to storming it, they would first offer it peace, lest they appear to be waging war unjustly. Afterwards, they say, this became proverbial, and David’s general Joab was reminded of this by a matron of Abel and abstained from his siege of that city after he had gained possession of the head of his adversary Sheba, who had taken refuge therein with his armed band. The story is found in 2 Kings. And certain Christian kings can learn from this adage an example of modesty and mercy, kings who for the slightest offence, not to mention because of their craving to satisfy their greed, cruelty, and lust for power, offer fire rather than peace, and before all else most savagely and importunately consign to themselves or their soldiers townsmen to slaughter, all their goods to plunder, and their womenfolk to be debauched. Even in our time some cities of our Christian world, and no mean ones at that, have witnessed and wretchedly experienced such ruinous and bestial edicts.]

a) Deuteronomy 20:10 b) i. e., 2 Samuel 20:6 - 22

B438. Venite in Esebon et aedificetur civitas Seon

Venite in Esebon, aedificetur et construatur civitas Seon.^a Adagium Hebraeis tritissimum de eo loco qui patebat inimicorum iniuriis, qui saepe dirutus a novis possessoribus rursum aedificabatur. Cuiusmodi sunt oppida in alicuius provinciae confinio sita, quae modo unius, modo alterius ditionis fiunt, prout sors belli fert. Refertur adagium et origo in haec verba in Numeris:^b Urbs Esebon fuit Seon regis Amorei, qui pugnavit contra regem Moab et tulit omnem terram quae ditionios illius fuerat usque Arnon. Idcirco dicitur proverbio, Venite in Esebon, aedificetur et construatur vicitas Seon et reliqua. Seon enim Amoreorum rex, sumpto bello adversus Moabitas, civitatem Esebon pene funditus evertit, quam deinde iure belli partam rursus condidit suis Amoreis in Moabitarum suggillationem passim canentibus, Venite &c. Hanc urbem postea Israel ipsis Amoreis ademit (ut inibi proditur).

[Come into Heshbon, let the city of Sihon be built and prepared

Come into Heshbon, let the city of Sihon be built and prepared. This is a well-worn adage of the Hebrews about that place which law exposed to the insults of its enemies, and which was often destroyed but rebuilt by its new owners. Such is the way of towns in some territory which now and then change hands, as the fortune of war dictates. This adage and its origin is explained in Numbers: For Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who had fought against the former king of Moab, and taken all his land out of his hands, even unto Arnon. Wherefore they that speak in proverbs say, Come into Heshbon, let the city of Sihon be built and prepared &c. For Sihon, king of the Amorites, waged war against the Moabites and almost razed the city of Heshbon to its very foundations. Then, having acquired it by the right of war, he founded it anew for the benefit of his Moabites, who kept singing as a mockery of the Moabites, Come &c. Afterwards Israel took it from the Amorites themselves, is is recounted in Numbers.]

a) Numbers 21:27 b) ib. 26

B439. Mercenarius praestolatur finem operis sui

Cum notabimus quempiam non animadvertere quid eum deceat, quidve ex officio facere debeat, sed lucro tantum suo esse intentum, ad illudque gnaviter invigilare, proverbialiter dicimus,^a mercenarius praestolatur finem operis sui, quoniam mercenarius, finito opere, tum demum laboris mercedem recipit, quo nihil aliud expectat. Et in hanc sententiam refertur a Iob. Vel alius erit usus, cum significabimus aliquem spe praemii non sentire laborem, ac per hoc illi tempus cito labi. Ad hoc rexpexit Esaias^b dicens, quoniam haec dicit dominus quasi in anno mercenarii. Ita ostendit omnem gloriam Caedar brevi casuram.

[The hireling looketh for the reward of his work

When we brand somebody for not appreciating what befits him, or what he should do in connection with his office, and for only being intent on profit and keeping a vigilant eye out for this, we say the hireling looketh for the reward of his work, since when a hireling’s work is through he finally receives his pay, and looks for nothing more. The proverb is used in this way by Job. But there is another use, when we observe that someone is unaware of the effort he is expending because of his hope for reward, and for this reason that the time passes quickly for him. This is what Isaiah had in mind when he said, With in a year, according to the years of an hireling. Thus he shows that all the glory of Kedar will soon fail.]

a) Job 7:2 b) Isaiah 21:16

B440. Si non fuerint saturati, et murmurabunt

Quid quod ille prophetae versus e psalmo lxviij,^a si non fuerint saturati, et murmurabunt passim hodie vice proverbii vulgo iactatur in homines gulosos, quibus ventris farciendi cura praecipua est, quippe canum ritu coenas ac prandia et illa quidem opipara hostiatim^b quaeritant, et si usque ad vomitum forte non fuerint saturati, per trivia ipsis convivatoribus proterviter detrahent, perinde quasi praetio edissent. Hinc proinde scitus conviva tot discat tales cavere ventres ad consumendas tantum fruges omnino natos, quibus quod datur male collocatur, et quod non datur aliis benemeritis usui ese potest. At propheta inibi de iis sermonem habet, qui iuxta literam circuncisione carnali et pecudum nece sacrificando nitebantur, qui licet nihil propterea mererentur, attamen murmurabant adversus Deum quod ob illas ceremonias, etsi nudas vanasque, nullo afficerentur coelesti praemio.

[They grudge if they be not satisfied

That verse of the Prophet taken from Psalm 58, they grudge if they be not satisfied, which today is a proverb commonly used against gluttons whose principal care in life is to stuff their bellies, for they go door to door in search of meals and banquets, and lavish ones at that, and if ever they are not glutted to the point of vomiting, they stand at street corners shamefully snatching food from banqueteers, just as if it were theirs by right of purchase. Hence the experienced host must learn to beware of such bellies, born only for the consumption of so much produce, for what is given to them is ill-bestowed, and what is not given them could be used by others who are more deserving. But here the Prophet is speaking of those who follow the letter of the law regarding bodily circumcision and the sacrificing of animals: for, although they have earned no merit thereby, they nevertheless nurse a grudge against God because they are accorded no heavenly reward for those ceremonies, vain and threadbare though they are.]

a) Psalm 58:16 (K. J. V. 59:15) b) i. e., ostiatim

B441. Vita hominis militia est

Vita hominis militia est. Symbolum proverbiale ex Iob,^a quo ille vitam humanam graphice pinxit, cuius profecto neminem unquam meminisse pigebit. Quemadmodum enim in bello nihil tutum, nihil ab insidiis vacuum, ac quietis nihil, interdum famis interdum sitis aliquoties frigoris aliquoties aestus vi maxima urgente, omnia insuper vulnerum plena, caedis et mortis, timor continuus, pugna perpetua, parum laetitiae, parum securitatis, quando ipsius belli eventu incertius non est aliud quicquam, unde fit ut victor a victo crebro vincatur, et victoria plurimum cruentosa. Ita humana vita nunquam periculorum, nunquam laborum expers, semper alterius sortis timens, semper animi pendens, sollicita, anxia, misera, caduca, mille obnoxis malis, modo laeta, modo tristis, modo sana, modo aegra, nunc cum animi affectibus, nunc cum corporis voluptatibus conflictatur, nunc cum invisibilibus dimicat adversariis, dicente apostolo^b ad Ephesos, Non est nobis collucttio adversus sanguinem et carnem, sed adversus principatus, adversus potestates, adversus mundi rectores tgenebrarum harum, adversus spiritualia nequitiae in coelestibus &c. Item rerum omnium indiga, inconstans, quae necque copia satiatur nec inopiae est patiens, sic ut mediocritatis modis omnibus nunquam sit particeps, et ad postremum suiipsius exitus penitus ignara. Haec igitur militaris vita est quam vivimus, cui ante finem belli triumphare non permittitur, ut illud indicat,

[Are not his days also like the days of a soldier?

Are not his days also like the days of a soldier? This proverbial statement comes from Job, where he graphically represents human life in a way that nobody will ever regret keeping in mind. For, inasmuch as in war nothing is safe and free from ambushes, and there is never any rest, and sometimes you are greatly vexed by hunger, sometimes by thirst, and occasionally by cold, occasionally by heat, and furthermore everything is rife with wounds, killing and death, fear is constant, battles are perpetual, happiness is rare, safety rare, and nothing is more uncertain than war’s outcome, since the victor is frequently beaten by the vanquished, and victory is often a bloody one. In the same way, human life is never free of dangers, never lacking in suffering, always fearful of a reversal of fortune, always suspenseful of mind, careworn, anxious, miserable, frail, exposed to a thousand evils, now happy and now sad, now healthy and now sick, now fighting against the emotions of the mind and now against the pleasures of the body, now engaged in combat with unseen enemies. As the Apostle said to the Ephesians, We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high place. Likewise our life is in need of all things, shifting, and is satisfied by no abundance and intolerant of want, so much so that in all ways it never has any share of the Golden Mean, and, lastly, it is wholly ignorant of its end. Hence this is a soldier’s life that we live. For it is not allowed a soldier to triumph before the war is ended, as is shown by the next proverb.]

a) Job 7:1 b) Ephesians 6:12

B442. Qui perseveraverit usque ad finem, hic salvus erit

Qui persevaverit usque ad finem, hic salvus erit.^a Istud salvatoris oraculum hodie passim proverbii vice nullius nostrum in ore non est, cum vult innuere debere unumquemque omnibus horis esse bonitatis amantem, atque ne digitum quidem a recto discedere, et quicquid adversi contingat, illud magno sustinere animo, quo ultimus dies qui de omnibus haud perperam iudicat reddere praemium laborum iure queat optimo. Quippe (ut divus ait Hieronymus^b) non coepisse sed perfecisse virtutis est, quoniam nobis ante exitum vitae cuncta sunt incerta. Quod propheta Ezechiel^c perspicue demonstrat inquiens, Iustitia iusti non liberabit eum, in quacunque die peccaverit, et impietas impii non nocebit ei, un quacunque die conversus fuerit ab impietate sua. Proinde usque a finem iuxta dominicum consilium pugnandum est inter eiusmodi mutabiles rerum vices, quas proxime praestrinximus, ac illud sedulo studendum ut in officio integritatis continenter maneamus, cum mortalium nemo antea (ut dictum est) dici queat beatus. Quamobrem Christus ad hunc modum est hortatus suos apostolos ad perferendas afflictiones quas erant ab infidelibus passuri, quae illis postremo certam peperere salutem.

[He that endureth to the end shall be saved

He that endureth to the end shall be saved. Nowadays there is nobody who does not have this utterance of our Savior on his lips, used as a proverb when he wishes to say that each and every one of us should be a lover of goodness at all times and not swerve even a finger’s breath from rightenousness. Whatever reversal we may suffer, we must endure it with a great mind, so that by excellent right that final day on which unerring judgment is pronounced on all of us will be able to give us the reward for our labors. For (as St. Jerome says) it is the part of virtue to have brought this to perfection, not just to have begun it, inasmuch as everything is uncertain for us before we depart this life. With great insight, the prophet Ezechiel said, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression: as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness. And so, in accordance with our Lord’s counsel, we must carry on the struggle amidst these shifting changes of affairs I have touched on above, and we must constantly strive foro this, that we continually cling to our duty of uprightness, since, as the saying goes, before that end no man can be called blessed. For which reason, in this way Christ exhorted His apostles to bear the afflictions they were doomed to suffer at the hands of infidels, for these would create a sure salvation for them.]

a) Matthew 10:22 b) St. Jerome, Epistle cxlviii.30 c) Ezechiel 33:12

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