Exposition of Proverbs 1-3, Author to the reader
Advertiſements for the Reader.
Chriſtian and courteous Reader,
BE pleaſed to obſerve a few things, which may help thee much in the peruſing of this Book.
I. Be not offended that the places cited in it are not ſet down at large, but onelyonly ſome part of the Verſes quoted. For,
1. The Reader may hereby perceive in what words the ſtrength of the proof lies; to wit, in thoſe words he findes here. This I learned of the Jewiſh Rabbins, who uſe not to tranſcribe the whole Verſe cited, but onelyonly thoſe words wherein the ſtrength of the proof is. Indeed the Maſorites do otherwiſe. They ſet down only the beginning of the ſentence, and leave the Reader to ſeck for the word in the text quoted. But this breeds trouble and confuſion.
2. Writing thus conciſely, will make men minde the better what they read.
3. It will make them look into their Bibles for further ſatisfaction.
4. It makes this Book the ſhorter, and ſo the cheaper.
II. Complain not that many things are taken out of other Writers and Commenters. For,
1. Here is no wrong to them. God gave thoſe notions to them, they to us, and why may not we give them to others?
2. No wrong to thee who hath the pith and marrow of forty Tranſlations and Comments in this Book. It would have coſt thee (as it hath done me) much more money to buy them, much more time and labour to read them.
3. Thou wilt finde many things added, that God hath given in to me, that are not in any of them; for all mine and theirs is from him alone, and to him is due all the glory.
III. Object not to me, that for the various ſignifications of the Hebrew words, I borrow much out of the laſt Edition of the Annotations on the Bible, out of the Notes upon Job. For,
1. It cannot be called borrowing, for a man to take his owne, and none of my partners in that great Work went that way but my ſelfe. And having taken much pains there, why ſhould I take more about the ſame words?
2. There I give onelyonly figures for chap. and verſ. So that if the figures be falſe printed (as they are too often) the Reader is to ſeek for the place. Here I ſet down the words alſo, that he cannot miſtake.
3. The figures are here alſo corrected by me in all I make uſe of from thence.
4. Some ſignifications are added in ſome words.
5. Some are left out that were miſtaken.
6. All have not money to buy, nor time to read thoſe large Annotations.
IV. Where thou findeſt other texts in this Book quoted for words, or proofs of doctrines, there look for the like matter. For,
1. No man handles one point fully in one place.
2. God may give a man new matter the ſecond time, not thought of before.
3. I did of purpoſe never look back to thoſe former places, though they lay by me, hoping that God that put me upon it again, would give me ſome other thoughts of it.
V. Quarrel not that ſome places are twice quoted, and ſome things repeated in the Book. For,
1. I may forget what I did before in ſo large a task.
2. All Readers will not read all the Book. So ſome may finde them in one place, ſome in another.
Laſtly, whereas by reaſon of my far diſtance from tke preſſe, many faults have eſcaped, and I have therefore added a Table of the moſt materiall ones that corrupt the ſenſe, I deſire that the Reader would follow the practiſe of a godly and reverend Miniſter in Kent, who reads no Book till he have firſt corrected all the faults in it with his pen, according to the Authors minde expreſſed in the Errata. So ſhalt thou meet with no ſuch rubs in the way, nor puzzle thine owne head to finde another mans meaning. This is all: and ſo commending both thee and the Book to Gods ſpeciall bleſſing, and deſiring if thou get any good by it, thou wouldſt give God the glory, and me thy prayers; I remain
Thine in the Lord, for the furtherance of thy faith, Francis Taylor.