PREFACE.

Another excessively fatiguing task was the search for passages of the Holy Scripture cited in very great number by the author, who not only gives no reference but often omits to indicate the very name of the sacred book. The difficulty was all the greater as we do not possess a Syriac concordance and Sahdona does not always cite our Peshitta standard Syriac version of the Bible.

Martyrius very often paraphrases a psalm or a chapter of Holy Scripture without indicating it. Sometimes he mixes the passages of one book with those of another without mentioning it. Often the text he cites does not agree with that of the Peshitta. At other times he seems to translate the Vulgate word-for-word, as we have intentionally signaled on page 198, where we read "I have kept the difficult ways" original: "ܐܢܐ ܢܛܪܬ ܐܘܪ̈ܚܬܐ ܥܣ̈ܩܬܐ"; Latin: "Ego custodivi vias duras"; however, in the Peshitta it is written: "I have kept the ways from evil deeds" original: "ܐܢܐ ܢܛܪܬ ܐܘܪ̈ܚܬܐ ܡܢ ܕܘܒܪ̈ܐ ܒܝ̈ܫܐ". On page 275, our author cites this passage: "The righteous is the first accuser of himself" original: "ܙܕܝܩܐ ܒܪ̈ܝܫ ܡ̈ܠܘ̈ܗܝ ܢܦܫܗ ܡܚܝܒ ܠܗ"; Latin: "Justus, prior est accusator sui"; but in the Peshitta we read: "The righteous is the first in his own cause" original: "ܙܕܝܩ ܗܘ ܩܕܡܝܐ ܕܒܕܝܢܗ" (Proverbs 18:17). On page 453, the citation of the sage is found in neither the Peshitta nor the Vulgate; could it be in the Hexapla? The word uklya devourer/consumption is found, according to Payne Smith, in the Hexapla, Proverbs 6:14. This is all we have been able to discover.

In only one part of our manuscript do we find some citations with quotation marks, but since this method is not constant, we have omitted these quotation marks to be consistent, especially since the author's paraphrases are often confused with the sacred text.

We learn at this moment that Schaaf, in his edition of the New Testament, has provided a Syriac concordance of this book.