þe Prologe in þe Booc off Prouerbys
To Cromacie and Eliodere, biſhopis, Jerome ſendeþ greeting. Joyne þe epiſtil whom ioyneþ preſþod; ȝhe, þe chartre twynne not, whom þe looue of Criſt knytteþ. Expoſiciouns in Oſee, Amos, Zacharie, and Malachie, þe whiche ȝee aſken, I ſhulde han write, if it hadde ben leeful for ſikneſſe. Ȝee ſenden ſolacys of coſtis, ȝoure notories, and bokis writeres ſuſtenende, þat to ȝou moſt oure wit trauaile. And lo! aſide þe hauntende puple of men diuerſe þingis aſkende, as or euene it be me to trauailen, ȝou hungrende, alſo to oþere, or, in reſoun of ȝyuen þing and taken, to any, ſaue ȝou, I be bounde. And ſo þurȝ long ſikneſſe broſid, leſt fulli þis ȝeer I ſhulde be ſtille, and anent ȝou I were doumb, þe werc of þre daȝis to ȝoure name I ſacride; þe remenyng, þat is, of þe þre volumes of Salomon, Maſloch, þat Ebrues Parablis, þe comun making Prouerbis clepeþ; Coelech, þat Grecli Ecleſiaſten, Latinli a Spekere wee moun ſeyn; Ciraſirym, þat in to oure tunge is turned Song of Songis. It is told and Panareþos, þe boc of Jheſu, ſone of Cirach; and an oþer falſly writen, þat is inwriten þe Wiſdam of Salamon. Of whiche þe raþere I fond Ebru, not Eccleſiaſticum, as anent þe Latynes, but Parablis beforn notid; to whom weren ioyned Ecleſiaſtes and þe Song of Songis; þat he ſhulde euene to þe licneſſe of Salamon, not onli in noumbre of bokis, but alſo in maner of mateeris. Þe ſecounde anent þe Ebrues is neuer no wher, for and þat maner of ſpeche ſauoureþ þe Grekis faire ſpeche; and ſumme of olde writeres afermen þis boc to ben of Jew Filon. As þanne Judiþ, and Tobie, and þe bokis of Macabeis, redeþ hem forſoþe þe chirche, but among þe reuleer ſcripturis reſceyueþ not; ſo and þeſe two volumes rede he to þe edificacioun of þe puple, not to þe autorite of chirche teching to ben confermed. If to any man forſoþe more pleſe þe tranſlacioun of þe ſeuenty remenoures, he haþ it ſum time amended of vs. Ne forſoþe ſo newe þingis wee maken, þat olde þingis wee deſtroȝe. And neuer þe latere, whan moſt diligentli redeþ he, wite he oure writen þingis to ben vnderſtonde, þat ben not coruptid held into þe þridde veſſel, but, anoon from þe preſſe moſt pureli þe veſſel ȝeuen, han kept þeir ſauour.