29 An mill tonguethe leauenof allour mi- po the third ferie; a good ,the fumofall our good. r Deuills you fhall finde but one onely that was dumbe ; theyare all ofthem exceeding great talkers,flatterers,and lyers : Andthat they inight prate the more, they talkein diners tongues, not onely inthat which is their owne naturall Lan- guage, butallo in Latine,in Greeke,&c. Saint Ambref bath noted it, That the Deuills downefail tooke it'sbeginning from his talking ; Dicebat enim in corde file,afcendam in Celum,Fer he faidin has heart, Iwillafcendvpinto Heauen : Andour deftruEtion began with the conuerfation that heehad withEue. Iulign the Apo- ftata makes a jeaft ofit, That aSerpent fhould fpeake : WhichSaint ciril chofe rather to proue by the teftimonies ofPhylofophers& Poets, thanby Scripture, becaufe this blafphemous wretchgauemorecredit to them, than to the Word of God. Homer fayth,That Kips his Horfefpake vnro him,forewarning himof his death.Perphyritufaith,that Caucafies fpake;& that Pythagoras palling by,it fa- luted him withaSallie Pythagora. Phylofiratus faith, That Apelloniuscomming to theGymnofephifia, anElme (vnder whole fhadebeing wearie he fate him downe) fpakevnto him,aad toldhim, That hewas valewelcome. And Siginiuc repot- teth ofIupiters Bull, That hefpake like a man. IftheDeuill thencan fpeakeby Horfes,byBulls, byTrees, and the like, hee may as well fpeake by a Serpent; And why notby that Serpent morethanany other,thatwas to be theinftrument toouerthrow all Mankind e Secondly, Out ofmany placesofholy Scripture,obferuations of the Saints of God , and out ofthe opinionsofmany learned Doctors, Phylofophers, and Poets, in fauor of this point,two manifeft truths areproued toarife from hence, and haue-theirfirftbeginnings. The one, That an euill tongue is theleauenofall our ill. Theother,That a good tongue is the fumme ofall our good. The firft, Experience at euerie turne teacheth it vnto vs. Whofe are thofe blafphemies againft God and his holy Saints , butof a facrilegious tongue e Whole thofe inconfiderate iniuries, but ofa rat]) andvnaduifed tongue e Whole thofe infamies anddetra&ions, but ofabackbiting tongue e Whole , thofe dif- honeft words and lafciuious Songs, but of afilthie tongue e Whofe, thofe low- ings ofdifcordamongft brethren,thofe diffoluingsofmarriages,thofe blottings ofmens goodnames,thofe foylingsofyour Clergies Coat,your Priefts Surpli- ces, yourB:Mops Rotchefs, your Widowesdecent dreffing,your Maidens mo- dest attyre,but of adurtie flabbering tongue e Saint Hierome faith,That the De- uill left lobs lipsvntoucht,hopingthat with themhe-would hauecurled God,as he promifed to himfelfe before hand Stretch out thy handand touch butbile bones lab.z.s. andhisfefh,and thenfeeif hewillnot 61aíheme thee to thyface. Saint Amhrofe faith, PlaQamfoamflentie vieit, Hefubduedhispain byJilence. And the (elfe fame father faith, That ifEue hadnot fpokenwith the Serpent, or ifThee had but eaten the Apple,&had faid nothing theroftoAdam,we had not come to that fogreat mi- ferieand misfortunewhereintowefel.TheDeuill did not defire tomakeElie fo mucha Glutton, as a Pratler : her talkingwith Adamdid vndoe vsall. S. lames qualifies both these tongues. The one he termesa fire, that burnsand confumes all that comes init'sway; and to be theonely maine caufeof all mifchiefe. Ofthcother he faith, That man isperfec7 that ofends not inhis tongue. In our, Booke De Amore,we haueawhole Chaptertouching this ill, and thisgood.But how is it poflible, that the Deuill should leekto fauour the ill,anddisfauorthe good e Saint Auvuflineanfweres this inone word ; Thisman hauingbeene here- toforeagreat talker, the Deuil! madehim dumbe, left by confefling his faults, he
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