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On the Ruin of Britain

St Gildas, tr. Williams, 1899

But although this one example, with its impregnable confirmation, should be fully …

But although this one example, with its impregnable confirmation¹, should be fully sufficient to amend the wicked, nevertheless, in order that in the mouth of many witnesses the whole wickedness of Britain may be established, let us pass on to the rest.

What happened to David when he numbered the people, the prophet Gad saying unto him: Thus saith the Lord: The choice of three things is given thee; choose the one thou wilt, that I may do it unto thee; either famine shall befall thee seven years, or thou shalt flee from thine enemies three months and they pursue thee, or there shall be a pestilence in thy land three days? Being hard pressed by such a condition, and willing rather to fall into the hands of God, the merciful, than into the hands of men, he is humbled by the slaughter of 70,000 of his people. Had he not, moved by apostolic love, chosen to die for his countrymen, so that the plague should not touch them, as he said: It is I that have sinned, I the shepherd have done unrighteously; those that are sheep, what sin have they committed f let thy hand, I pray, be turned against me and against my father’s house: had he not done this, he would have made expiation for his heedless pride of heart by his own death.

For what says the Scripture in a later part respecting his son? Solomon, it tells us, did that which was not pleasing in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord as his father. .... The Lord said unto him, forasmuch as thou hast had this with thee, and hast not kept my covenant and my precepts which I have given thee, I will break asunder and divide thy kingdom and give it to thy servant.

Notes

Adstipulator. The meaning of the word appears to be stronger than the classical, “one who joins another in a stipulation,” and trop, “one who assents to or agrees with,” Cic. Ac., ii, 21, 67. It occurs again c. 43: Accipite veracem publicumque adstipulatorum, and the verb, c. 106: lectiones illas quae . . . . adstipulentur benedictione. A passage which conveys a meaning almost identical with the present occurs in c. 93: Hoc unum testimonium ad confutandos impudentes quosque abunde sufficere posset. Sed ut evidentioribus adhuc adstipulationibus . . . . verbis Christi comprobetur. . . . A phrase of Salvian’s may also be quoted: pax . . . . spe innitur et fide adstipulante firmatur (Ad Eccles., ii, 59). In all these there runs the idea of warrant or authoritative sanction. In Ducange we have the word as meaning one who holds the position of trustee or guardian. As used by Augustine in the following words, Nec Cataphryges nec Novatiani nec divertissimus eorum adstipulator Tertullianus (Aug., De bono viduit., 7), it seems to imply “champion” or “supporter.”