Who is sufficient to foresee, who to guard against, all future evils? If even things that are forseen often hurt us, how can unforeseen evils otherwise than grievously smite us? But we are men, nothing else are we but frail men, even though by many we are reputed and called angels.
Whom will I trust, O Lord? Whom but You? You are the truth, who deceive not, nor can be deceived. And on the other side, “every man is a liar”,† weak, inconstant, and subject to fall, especially in words. Therefore we must scarcely ever immediately give credit to that which on the face of it seems right.
How wisely have You warned us to beware of men; and that “a man's enemies are the members of his own household”;† and not to believe if one should say, “ ‘Look, here is the Christ!,’ or, 'There He is!’  ”.†
I have been taught by my own hurt, and I would it may make me more cautious, and not more unwise. “Be wary,” says one, “be wary, keep to yourself what I say to you.” And while I keep silence, and think it is secret, he cannot himself keep that which he desired me to keep, but presently betrays both me and himself, and is gone.
From such tales and heedless persons protect me, Lord, that I neither fall into their hands, nor ever commit such things myself. Give the word
