Page:Aelfric's Lives of Saints Vol 1.djvu/341

 in the  Preface,  when  he  translated  Christ's  book

from the  Hebrew  tongue,  and  some  from  the  Greek,

into the  Latin  speech,  in  which  we  learn.

He quoth  that  Luke  said,  even  as  it  is  very  true,

that many  men  began  to  write  the  Gospel

without the  direction  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  of  the  Saviour,

and  according   to   their   own    will    said   even   as   it    seemed    to them,

and on  them  fell  the  curse  which  the  prophet  spake,

'Woe to  them  that  prophesy  out  of  their  own  heart,

and go  after  their  own  spirit,  and  say  that  God  spake

that which  they  say,  and  God  hath  not  sent  them.'

Of such  spake  the  Saviour  also  in  a  certain  place,

'Carefully be  ye  ware  of  false  prophets,

who came  to  you  in  sheeps'  semblance,

and within  they  are  ravening  wolves.

But the  orthodox  church,  which  is  established  in  Christ,

and fastened  in  Him,  even  as  in  a  sure  stone,

receiveth not  the  writings  which  such  heretics

wrote of  themselves  without  truth.

The first  Evangelist,  who  was  chosen  by  God,

[was] named  Matthew,  whom  the  Saviour  chose

from being  a  worldly  taxgatherer  to  be  a  spiritual  Evangelist,

and he  was  one  of  the  twelve  servants  of  God;

he wrote  the  Gospel  first  in  Hebrew,

which is  set  in  order  in  the  first  book.

He wrote  it  in  Hebrew  for  the  Hebrew  people

who in  the  land  of  Judea  believed  in  Christ;

and desired,  by  that  scripture  whereon  they  were  fed,

to confirm  their  faith,  because  he  loved  them;