Sermons on the Song of Songs67 Sermon LXVII
Sermon LXVII
Google am His. Simple words they are, but how sweetly they sound! And this we shall treat of farther in the sequel.
2. She commences by love, and goes on to speak of Her Beloved, showing thus that she knows no other than He. It is clear of whom she speaks; not so clear to whom she is speaking. For it is not permitted to us to suppose that He is present, or that she is conversing with Him. This appears plainly from her calling to Him immediately afterwards, as if He were at a distance, to return to her: Turn, my Beloved. From this we are drawn to believe that, after having brought to a close what He had been saying to her, He had again, according to His custom, absented Himself from her, and that she continues, nevertheless, speaking of Him, who is never absent from her mind. Thus, in fact it is; and He continues to be upon her lips who did not depart, and never does depart, from her heart. That which is upon her lips comes forth from her heart, for of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh (Luke vi. 45). Therefore she speaks of her Beloved as one truly loved and truly deserving to be loved, inasmuch as she loves much. We know, then, of whom she speaks, but with whom we know not; nor can I conjecture, unless it be with her maidens, who cannot be absent from their mother when the Bridegroom has departed. But we shall better suppose, as I think, that she is speaking to herself, not to any other person; especially as her words seem abrupt and unconnected with what has been spoken before; plainly insufficient to be intelligible to an auditor, which in a conversation is the object intended. My Beloved she says, is mine, and I am His. Nothing more? Then the discourse hangs suspended; or, rather, it is not suspended, but falls. Anyone who listens is held in suspense; he is not instructed, but is waiting to be so.
3. What, then, is the signification of her words: My Beloved is mine, and I am His? We do not comprehend what she says, because we do not feel what she feels. O holy soul, what is thy Beloved to thee, and what art thou to Him? What is, I pray thee, that mysterious gift which is reciprocally made each to the other, by Him and by thee, with so much kindness and familiarity? For thee is He, and for Him thou art. But is He to thee that which thou art to Him, or does He stand in some other relation to thee? If thou speakest for us, and for our understanding, speak forth clearly thy thought. How long dost thou hold our minds in suspense? Or is thy secret to be, according to the saying of the Prophet, for thyself? (Is. xxiv. 16). It is thus: the affection has spoken, not the understanding, and therefore what is said is scarcely understood. For what end, then, is this spoken? For no end at all, except it be that the Bride, having been vehemently affected, and filled with extreme joy and delight, by the long desired interview with her Beloved, when it has come to an end she is neither able to refrain altogether from speaking, nor yet, when she speaks, to express her feelings fully. Nor did she speak thus by way of expressing them, but in order not to be 4. Recall to your mind the wording of this marriage song, from its beginning to this point, and see if, in the interviews and conversations of the Bridegroom with the Bride, He has ever addressed her with the same indulgent kindness as here, or ever held so many or so cheering discourses with her. What wonder, then, when her wishes have been satisfied to the full, that a burst of joy should come from her, rather than words? Or if she makes use of words, that they should burst forth without premeditation or studied completeness? For the Bride judges it not robbery to apply to herself the words of the Psalmist: My heart hath uttered a good word (Ps. xlv. i), since it is with the same Spirit that she is filled. My Beloved is mine, and I am His. There is no prayer in the saying, and there is no conclusion drawn from it What then? it is an outburst of feeling. In such an utterance what connection of sentiments, what solemnity of phrases do you seek? What laws or rules do you impose upon your own? It does not admit of your control, it does not wait for your careful and exact expression, it does not submit to your time, nor consult your convenience at all. It bursts forth of its own accord from within, without your will and even without your knowledge, forcibly rather than by choice. And it yields sometimes a good odour, sometimes a bad, according to the different qualities of the natures whence it arises. For a good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things; and an evil man evil things (Matt xii. 35). The Bride of my Lord is a vase of good treasure, and sweet is the odour which comes from her.
5. I give thanks to Thee, O Lord Jesus, that Thou hast deigned to admit me at least to perceive that odour so sweet. Yea, Lord, so let me be admitted, even as the dogs, though of such small account, are allowed to eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table (Matt. xv. 27). This utterance of the feelings of Thy beloved is to me, I confess it, very agreeable; and of her fulness I receive, however little it be, with gratitude. The memorial of Thy abounding sweetness arises in me, and I am suffused with I know not what ineffable perfume of Thy love and condescension, so to speak, in those few words of hers: My Beloved is wine, and I am His. Let her, as it is fitting, eat and drink in Thy Presence, and rejoice exceedingly at the sight of Thee; yea, let her be transported out of herself for Thy sake, that for our sakes she may have full self-possession. Let her, then, be abundantly satisfied with the good things of Thy house, and let her drink of the river of Thy pleasures; but let there be for me, Thy poor servant, I entreat, at least a slight.odour of those good things, breathed forth from the bosom of her fulness. The thought of Moses was uttered to my benefit, and from his words I gather the sweetness and greatness of the idea of creative power: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth (Gen. i. i). Isaiah also exhales the most sweet odour of mercy and redemption when he thus speaks: He hath poured out His Soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors; and He bare the sin of many; and made intercession for the transgressors (Is. liii. 12), that they should not perish. And what odour equals in sweetness that of mercy? Good also is the utterance from the mouth of Jeremiah; and from that of David, when he said: My heart is inditing a good matter (Ps. xlv. 1). They were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and by their utterance replenished all things with His goodness. Do you ask for the utterance of Jeremiah? I have not forgotten it, I was preparing to give it to you. // is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord (Lam. iii. 26). That is his, I do not mistake; inhale its sweetness, the fragrance it brings of Him who recompenses righteousness, which excels the most exquisite perfume. He wills me, if I suffer for righteousness* sake, to await a recompense hereafter, and that I should not receive one at present, because the salutary wages of righteousness is from the Lord, not from the world. If it tarry, says the Prophet, wait for it (Hab. ii. 3). Therefore I will do what he exhorts me; I will wait for the Lord my Saviour.
6. But I am a sinner, and a long road still is before me to traverse, because salvation is far from sinners. Yet I will not murmur, and in the meantime I shall be consoled by the fragrance of it. The righteous shall rejoice in the Lord, having tasted and known that of which I perceive the fragrance afar off. That which the righteous has in full view, he who is a sinner expects and waits for, and it is 1 Odore, Horst adds vel dolore; but this is wanting in the MSS. and earliest editions.
7. Was not David righteous also when he said: I waited patiently for the Lord? (Ps. xl. 1). He is the fourth of those of whom I have said that they had longed for the Lord with all their heart (Ps. cxix. 131), whom I had almost passed over; but it is not advisable so to do. He opened his mouth and panted; then, when filled [with the consolations of the Lord], he not only poured out his heart in thankfulness, but sang for joy. O good Lord Jesus, how great is the fragrance and the sweetness which he has caused me to feel and experience in those utterances and songs, filled with that oil of gladness with which God, Thy God, hath anointed Thee above Thy fellows, from that myrrh and aloes and cassia out of the ivory palaces wherewith Thy garments are fragrant, because the daughters of kings have perfumed them in Thy honour and for Thy delight! (Ps. xlv. 8-10). O that Thou wouldest honour me so far as that I might meet that great prophet, Thy friend, in that day of solemn gladness, when he shall come forth from Thy chamber, singing his sacred marriage-hymn with the psaltery and joyful harp, overwhelmed with delights, steeped in perfumes of a sweetness beyond words, and diffusing them on every side! In that day, I have said, but rather in that hour; and perhaps it is not even an hour, but in that half-hour, according to that saying of the Scripture: There was silence in Heaven about the space of half an hour (Rev. viii. 1); therefore in that hour my mouth will be filled with gladness and my tongue with joy, when I shall feel the fragrance, I do not say of each Psalm, but of each verse of every Psalm, a fragrance far exceeding that of the most precious perfumes. What can be more fragrant than the utterances of St. John, who brings to me the solemn sweetness of the Eternal Generation and Divinity of the Word? What can I say of those of St. Paul, which 8. My Beloved is mine, and I am His. There can be no doubt that in this passage is apparent the flame of an ardent and reciprocal love of two persons, one for the other; while in this love appears also the supreme felicity of the one and the marvellous condescension of the other. For it is not an attachment and union between two persons who are of equal condition. Now, who could venture to lay claim to the full knowledge of what [the Church glories in having received in this prerogative of love, and in having repaid it in turn by an affection so great, if not she, who by her eminent purity and holiness of body and of mind, has been found worthy to have experience in her own self of a fortune so exalted? It is in the sphere of the affections that this takes place, nor is it attained to by the reason, but by conformity of spirit. But how few there are who aie enabled to say: We all with open face, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Cor. iii. 18).
9. But that what we read here may be brought in some degree under the grasp of the intellect I leave to the Bride her unique secret, to which it is not permitted to us to draw near, especially while we are so imperfect; and I propose to you something at once more easily understood, and of a more ordinary character, so that those who are as children in understanding may be able to grasp the sense and the relation of the words used by the Bride. To me, then, it seems that it will suffice for our dense and, as it were, popular apprehension if in saying My Beloved is mine we understand 'gives His thought and attention,' so that the sense will be: ' My Beloved gives His thought and attention to me, and I to Him.' Nor am I the first or the only one to suggest this sense, for the Psalmist has said before me: waited patiently for the Lord, and He inclined unto me and heard my cry (Ps. xl. 1). You see here that the Lord gave attention to the Psalmist; you see also the patient waiting of the Psalmist for the Lord. For he who waits gives attention to him for whom he waits. The sense, then, of the Psalmist's words is the same 10. But in this the Bride has spoken more accurately, inasmuch as she does not put forward any merit of her own, but begins with the benefit she has received, and thus acknowledges that she has been prevented by the grace of her Beloved. She has well done in expressing herself thus. For who hath first given to Him and it shall be recompensed unto him again? (Rom. xi. 35). Hear also what St. John thought on this subject Herein is love, he says in his Epistle, not that we loved God, but that He loved us (1 John iv. 10). Though the Psalmist has not spoken of preventing grace, he has not denied, or been silent upon, following grace. But listen to his declaration upon that point in plainer terms in another place: Thy mercy (he was speaking to the Lord) will follow me all the days of my life (Ps. xxiii. 6, Douay). Hear also his declaration as to preventing grace; it is no less plain and unmistakable: My God, His mercy shall prevent me (Ps. lix. 10, Douay); and again to the Lord: Let Thy tender mercies speedily prevent us, for we are brought very low (Ps. lxxix. 8). It is with much beauty that the Bride a little farther on (if I do not mistake) uses again the same words, but not placing them in the same order; for she follows the order of the Psalmist, and speaks thus: am my Beloved's, and my Beloved is mine (Cant vi. 3). Why does she express herself thus? It is to show that she is more full of graces when she attributes all to grace, and ascribes to the Lord the beginning and the end of them all. Otherwise, how could she be full of grace if there were in her anything which was not of grace? There is no room for grace to enter where merit has already taken its place. That full acknowledgment, then, of grace is itself a mark of the fulness of grace in her who makes it. For if there were in her anything which came from the soul as from itself, to whatever extent that existed, it must of necessity take the place of grace. Whatsoever you impute to merit you take away from grace. I will not have merit, because it excludes grace. I shrink from all that is of me that I may be my own: unless, perhaps, that is especially mine which makes me to be my own. Grace restores me to myself freely justified, and thus delivered from the slavery of sin. For where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (2 Cor. iii. 17).
11. O Synagogue, Bride insensate, which, despising the righteousness of God—that is, the grace of thy Bridegroom—and desiring to set up a righteousness of thy own, hast not submitted thyself to the righteousness of God! For this reason that unhappy one was repudiated, and is now no longer the Bride; which title belongs to the Church, to whom it is said: will betroth thee unto Ate in 1 St. Bernard refers here to merit which does not come from grace, but which takes place above it and excludes it. Compare Sermon LXVIIL, jr. 6, and in S. Augustine, Ep. 105; ' Of Grace and Free Will,' cc. 6-8; 4 Confessions,' Bk. ix., c. 13; Enchiridion, c. 107, etc.
12. She, then, who is truly the Bride recognises these things, and confesses that she has received each kind of grace; that which is first, and is preventing grace; and that also which comes afterwards, to follow and to render perfect. Therefore she says now, My Beloved is mine, and I am His, attributing the beginning of the work of grace to her Beloved. But afterwards she says also: am my Beloved's, and my Beloved is mine; and thus attributes to Him the ending and consummation of it also.
Let us now see, then, what is the meaning of those words she speaks, My Beloved is mine. If we are to understand with them gives attention to, as I have already suggested, and as the Psalmist says, waited patiently for the Lord, and He inclined unto me, I find that the words contain somewhat of no small interest and importance. But it is a subject worthy of our closest attention, and not to be entered upon to wearied ears and minds. If you please, it shall be deferred for a little while, and the sermon of to-morrow shall be commenced with it. Only let me ask you to pray, in the meantime, that I may be preserved from the encroachments of pressing cares, by the grace and mercy of Him who is the Bridegroom of the Church, Jesus Christ our Lord, who is above all, God blessed for ever. Amen.
1. Dilectus meus mihi, et ego illi. Hactenus verba sponsi. Adsit ipse, ut digne ad gloriam ipsius et nostram ipsorum salutem, sponsae ejus possimus investigare sermones. Neque enim tales sunt, qui a nobis considerari et discuti, prout dignum fuerit, valeant, nisi ipse fuerit dux verbi. Sunt enim quam suaves ad gratiam, tam fecundi ad sensus, tam etiam profundi ad mysteria. Cui similabo eos? Uni interim alicui epularum, quae triplici quadam emineat gratia; deliciosa ad saporem, solida ad nutrimentum, efficax ad medicinam. Sic, inquam, sic singulus quisque sponsae sermo, et ex eo quod suaviter sonat, affectum mulcet; et de sensuum ubertate mentem impinguat et nutrit; et de altitudine mysteriorum, dum intellectum quo plus exercet, plus terret, miro modo tumorem sanat inflantis scientiae. Etenim si unus quispiam ex his forte, qui sibi scioli videntur, curiosius sese dederit scrutinio horum, cum viderit ingenii sui succumbere vires, et redigi in captivitatem omnem intellectum persenserit, nonne humiliatus ad illam vocem compelletur, ut dicat: Mirabilis facta est scientia tua ex me, confortata est, et non potero ad eam? Et nunc quidem principium verborum ejus quantae suavitatis insigne praefert? Nam vide quale principium dederit. Dilectus, inquit, meus mihi, et ego illi. Simplex vox videtur, quoniam suaviter sonat; sed de hoc videbitur postea.
2. Nunc vero a dilectione incipit, de dilecto prosequitur, nihil aliud se scire indicans nisi dilectum. Patet de quo sermo: cum quo non ita. Non enim ut cum ipso eodem fuerit sentire permittitur, cum ipse jam non adfuerit. Neque id dubium: nempe mox eum revocare videtur, et quasi post tergum clamare: Revertere, inquiens, dilecte mi. Unde adducimur non aliud sane conjicere, nisi quod finitis verbis suis ille iterum suo more se absentaverit, et illa remanserit nihilominus de eo loquens, qui nunquam absens est sibi. Ita est: in ore retinuit, qui non recedebat a corde, nec quando recedebat. Quod de ore exit, de corde venit et ex abundantia cordis os loquitur. Ergo loquitur de dilecto, ut vere dilecta et vere diligenda, quoniam diligit multum. Quaerimus cum quo: nam de quo, novimus. Et non occurrit, nisi forte cum adolescentulis, quae a matre abesse non possunt, ubi discesserit sponsus. Sed melius, ut opinor, sentimus secum potius, et non cum altero sic locutam, praesertim quod trunca et minus continens inveniatur ipsa locutio, insufficiens plane ad dandam intelligentiam auditori, ob quam vel maxime invicem loquimur. Dilectus meus mihi, inquit, et ego illi. Non plus? Pendet oratio; imo non pendet, sed deficit. Suspenditur auditor, neceruditur, sed erigitur.
3. Quid est hoc quod dicit, ille mihi, et ego illi? Nescimus quid loquitur, quia non sentimus quod sentit. O sancta anima, quid tuus ille tibi, quid tu illi? Quaenam, quaeso, haec inter vos tam familiariter favorabiliterque discurrens exhibitio, et redhibitio? Tibi ille, tuque vicissim illi. Sed quid? Id ipsum ei tu, quod tibi ille, an aliud? Si nobis, si ad nostram loqueris intelligentiam, evidenter quod sentis edicito, Quousque animas nostras tollis? An secundum prophetam secretum tuum tibi? Ita est: affectus locutus est, non intellectus, et ideo non ad intellectum. Ad quid ergo? Ad nihil, nisi quod mirabiliter delectata, et affecta vehementer ad desideratos affatus, finem illo faciente nec tacere omnino quivit, nec tamen quod sensit exprimere. Neque enim ut exprimeret sic locuta est, sed ne taceret. Ex abundantia cordis os locutum est, sed non pro abundantia. Habent suas voces affectus, per quas se, etiam cum nolunt, produnt: timor, verbi causa, meticulosas, dolor gemebundas, amor jucundas. Nunquid dolentium planctus, moerentiumve singultus vel gemitus, percussorum, itemque paventium subitas et efferatas clamitationes, seu etiam saturatorum ructus, aut usus creat, aut ratio excitat, aut deliberatio ordinat, aut praemeditatio format? Ejusmodi certum est, non nutu prodire animi, sed erumpere motu. Sic flagrans ac vehemens amor, praesertim divinus, cum se intra se cohibere non valet, non attendit, quo ordine, qua lege, quave serie seu paucitate verborum ebulliat, dummodo ex hoc nullum sui sentiat detrimentum. Interdum nec verba requirit, interdum nec voces omnino ullas, solis ad hoc contentus suspiriis. Inde est quod sponsa sancto amore flagrans, idque incredibili modo, sane pro captanda quantulacunque evaporatione ardoris quem patitur, non considerat quid, qualiter eloquatur: sed quidquid in buccam venerit, amore urgente non enuntiat, sed eructat. Quidni eructet sic refecta, et sic repleta?
4. Revolve textum epithalamii hujus ab ipso exordio usque huc, et vide si tanta uspiam illi, quanta hac vice in cunctis visitationibus et allocutionibus sponsi copia ejus indulta fuerit; et si unquam ex ore ipsius, non modo tam multos, sed et tam jucundos sermones acceperit. Quae ergo repleverat in bonis desiderium suum, quid mirum si ructum potius quam verbum fecit? Et si verbum fecisse tibi videtur, eructatum puta et non subornatum aut praeordinatum. Nec enim sponsa rapinam arbitratur sibi aptare Prophetae dictum: Eructavit cor meum verbum, quippe eodem repleta spiritu. Dilectus meus mihi, et ego illi. Nihil consequentiae habet, deest orationi. Quid inde? Ructus est. Quid tu in ructu quaeris orationum juncturas, solemnia dictionum? Quas tu tuo ructui leges imponis vel regulas? Non recipit tuam moderationem, non a te compositionem exspectat, non commoditatem, non opportunitatem requirit. Per se ex intimis, non modo cum non vis, sed et cum nescis, erumpit, evulsus potius quam emissus. Tamen odorem portat ructus, quandoque bonum, quandoque malum, pro vasorum, e quibus ascendit, contrariis qualitatibus. Denique bonus homo de bono thesauro suo profert bonum, et malus malum. Bonum vas sponsa Domini mei, et bonus mihi odor ex illa.
5. Gratias ago tibi, Domine Jesu, qui me dignatus es admittere saltem ad odorandum. Ita, Domine, nam et catelli edunt de micis quae cadunt de mensa dominorum suorum. Mihi, fateor, bene redolet ructus dilectae tuae, et de plenitudine ejus, quamvis modicum quid, gratanter accipio. Memoriam abundantiae suavitatis tuae eructat mihi, et nescio quid ineffabile tuae dignationis et amoris odoratus sum in voce ista: Dilectus meus mihi, et ego illi. Ipsa, ut dignum est, epuletur et exsultet in conspectu tuo, et delectetur in laetitia: verumtamen sic tibi excedat, ut sobria sit nobis. Ipsa ergo repleatur in bonis domus tuae, et torrente voluptatis tuae potetur: sed, quaeso, perveniat ad me pauperem vel tenuis odor eructante illa, cum satiata fuerit. Bene mihi eructavit Moyses, et bonus odor in ructu ejus, creantis potentiae: In principio, inquit, creavit Deus coelum et terram. Bene Isaias: nam suavissimum redimentis misericordiae odorem dedit, ita eructans: Tradidit in mortem animam suam, et cum sceleratis reputatus est, et ipse peccata multorum tulit, et pro transgressoribus rogavit, ut non perirent. Quid aeque misericordiam redolet? Bonus quoque ex ore Jeremiae ructus; bonus ex David, qui ait: Eructavit cor meum terbum bonum. Repleti sunt omnes Spiritu sancto, et eructantes omnia impleverunt bonitate. Ructum Jeremiae requiritis? Non sum oblitus, jam parabam illum. Bonum est praestolari cum silentio salutare Domini. Ejus est, non fallor; admovete naribus; balsamum vincit suavitas remunerantis justitiae, quam importat. Patientem pro justitia vult me exspectare mercedem in posterum, non recipere in praesenti, quod justitiae merces, salutare, non saeculi, sed Domini sit. Si moram fecit, inquit, exspecta eum; et ne murmuraveris, quoniam bonum est cum silentio exspectare. Ergo faciam quod hortatur; exspectabo Dominum Salvatorem meum.
6. Sed peccator sum, et adhuc mihi grandis restat via, quia longe a peccatoribus salus. Non murmurabo tamen: in odore interim consolabor me. Laetabitur justus in Domino, gustu experiens quod ego sentio odoratu. Quem spectat justus, peccator exspectat; et exspectatio odoratio est. Nam exspectatio, ait, creaturae revelationem filiorum Dei exspectat. Porro spectare gustare est, et videre quoniam suavis est Dominus. An potius justus qui exspectat et qui jam tenet, beatus? Denique exspectatio justorum laetitia. Nam peccator nihil exspectat. Et inde peccator, quod bonis praesentibus non modo detentus, sed et contentus, nihil in futurum exspectat, surdus ad vocem illam: Exspecta me, dicit Dominus, in die resurrectionis meae in futurum. Et ideo justus erat Simeon, quia exspectabat et odorabat jam Christum in spiritu, quem necdum in carne adorabat. Et beatus in exspectatione sua, quia per odorem exspectationis pervenit ad gustum contemplationis. Denique ait: Et viderunt oculi mei salutare tuum. Justus quoque Abraham, qui et ipse exspectavit ut videret diem Domini, et non est confusus ab exspectatione sua; nam vidit et gavisus est. Justi apostoli cum audiebant: Et vos similes hominibus exspectantibus dominum suum.
7. Quidni justus et David, quando aiebat: Exspectans exspectavi Dominum? Ipse est quartus de numero praenominatorum ructatorum meorum, quem pene praeterieram. Non expedit quidem. Iste os suum aperuit et attraxit spiritum, et saturatus non modo eructavit, sed et cantavit. Jesu bone! quantam meis naribus et auribus iste infudit suavitatem in ructu et cantu suo de oleo laetitiae quo unxit te Deus, Deus tuus, prae consortibus tuis: ex myrrha, et gutta, et casia a vestimentis tuis, a domibus eburneis, ex quibus delectaverunt te filiae regum in honore tuo! Utinam me digneris occursu tanti vatis et amici tui in die solemnitatis et laetitiae, quando egredietur de thalamo tuo, epithalamium suum canens in psalterio jucundo cum cithara, affluens deliciis, respersus et respergens universa istiusmodi pulvere pigmentario! In illa die, vel potius in illa hora: nam bora est si quando est, et fortassis ne hora quidem, sed horae dimidium, juxta illud Scripturae: Factum est silentium in coelo quasi media hora: ergo in illa hora replebitur gaudio os meum, et lingua mea exsultatione, dum singulos, non dico psalmos, sed versus singulos sentiam ructus, et quidem odoriferos super omnia aromata. Quid Joannis ructu fragrantius, qui Verbi mihi redolet aeternitatem, generationem, divinitatem? Quid de Pauli ructibus loquar, quanta orbem suavitate repleverint? Denique Christi bonus odor erat in omni loco. Verba certe ineffabilia etsi non profert ut audiam, offert tamen ut cupiam, et libeat odorare quae audire non licet. Nescio enim quo pacto quo plus latent, plus placent, et avidius inhiamus negatis. Sed jam adverte apud sponsam similem rem: quomodo instar Pauli, in praesenti capitulo, et secretum non aperit, nec praeterit tamen intactum, aliquid quasi olfactui nostro indulgens, quod gustui forte interim non competere judicarit, sive propter indignitatem nostram, sive propter incapacitatem.
8. Dilectus meus mihi, et ego illi. Quod non est dubium, duorum quidem hoc loco amor mutuus flagrat; sed in amore summa unius profecto felicitas, alterius mira dignatio. Neque enim inter pares est consensio seu complexio haec. Caeterum quid ista ex hac praerogativa amoris glorietur impensum sibi repensumque vicissim a se, quis se liquido nosse praesumat, nisi qui praecipua puritate mentis et corporis sanctitate, in semetipso meruerit tale aliquid experiri? Res est in affectibus; nec ratione ad eam pertingitur, sed conformitate. Quam pauci vero qui dicant: Nos autem revelata facie speculantes gloriam Domini, in eamdem imaginem transformamur de claritate in claritatem, tanquam a Domini Spiritu.
9. Verum ut sub aliqua qualicunque intelligentiae forma quod legitur, redigatur: salvo quidem sponsae suo singulari secreto, ad quod interim non datur accedere, praesertim talibus quales nos sumus; apponendum sane aliquid nobis, eo accomodatius ad communem sensum, quo usitatius, quod et verbis consequentiam et intellectum det parvulis. Et mihi quidem videtur satis esse ad nostram grossam et quodammodo popularem intelligentiam, si dicendo: Dilectus meus mihi, subaudiamus: Intendit; ut sit sensus: Dilectus meus intendit mihi, et ego illi. Quanquam tamen nec solus ego id senserim, nec primus, cum Propheta ante me dixerit: Exspectans exspectavi Dominum, et intendit mihi. Habes aperte intentionem Domini ad Prophetam: habes et Prophetae ad Dominum in eo quod ait: Exspectans exspectavi. Nam qui exspectat intendit, et exspectare intendere est. Idem omnino sensus, eadem pene verba apud Prophetam quae apud sponsam; sed a Propheta transposita. Prius siquidem is quod illa posterius posuit, et e converso.
10. Caeterum sponsa rectius locuta est, et non praetendens meritum, sed praemittens beneficium, et se praeventam dilecti gratia confitens. Recte omnino. Nam quis prior dedit illi et retribuetur ei? Denique audi Joannem, quid in Epistola sua super hoc senserit. In hoc est charitas, inquit, non quasi nos dilexerimus Deum, sed ipse prior dilexit nos. Propheta tamen gratiae praeventionem etsi tacuit, non negavit subsecutionem: plane non tacuit. Sed accipe et alio loco certiorem de re ista ipsius confessionem. Et misericordia tua, inquit (Domino loquebatur), subsequetur me omnibus diebus vitae meae. Audi et de praeventione identidem ipsius non minus certam manifestamve scientiam. Deus meus, inquit, misericordia ejus praeveniet me; item ad Dominum: Cito, ait, anticipent nos misericordiae tuae, quia pauperes facti sumus nimis. Pulchre sponsa posterius, ni fallor, haec eadem verba non eodem ordine ponit, sed sequitur et ipsa Prophetae ordinem, loquens hoc modo: Ego dilecto meo, et dilectus meus mihi. Cur ita? Nempe ut tunc magis gratia plenam se probet, cum totum gratiae dederit, et primas scilicet illi partes ascribens, et ultimas. Alioquin quomodo gratia plena, si quid habuerit, quod non sit ex gratia? Non est quo gratia intret, ubi jam meritum occupavit. Ergo jam plena confessio gratiae, ipsius gratiae plenitudinem signat in anima confitentis. Nam si quid de proprio inest, in quantum est, gratiam cedere illi necesse est. Deest gratiae, quidquid meritis deputas. Nolo meritum, quod gratiam excludat. Horreo quidquid de meo est, ut sim meus, nisi quod illud magis forsitan meum est, quod me meum facit. Gratia reddit me mihi justificatum gratis, et sic liberatum a servitute peccati. Denique ubi spiritus, ibi libertas.
11. O fatuam sponsam Synagogam, quae contemnens Dei justitiam, id est gratiam sponsi sui, et suam volens constituere, justitiae Dei non est subjecta! Ob hoc misera repudiata est, et jam non est sponsa, sed Ecclesia, cui dicitur: Desponsavi te mihi in fide; desponsavi te mihi in judicio et justitia; desponsavi te mihi in misericordia et miserationibus. Nec tu me elegisti, sed ego elegi te; nec ut te eligerem, tua inveni merita, sed praeveni. Ita ergo in fide desponsavi te mihi, et non in operibus legis; desponsavique in justitia, sed justitia quae est ex fide, non ex lege. Restat ut judices judicium rectum inter me et te, judicium in quo te desponsavi, ubi constat intervenisse non tuum meritum, sed meum placitum. Hoc est autem judicium ut tua merita non extollas, non praeferas opera legis, non jactes pondus diei et aestus, quae magis in fide et in justitia quae est ex fide, nec non in misericordia et miserationibus nosceris desponsata.
12. Quae vere sponsa est, agnoscit ista, et utramque gratiam confitetur: primo quidem, eam quae prima est, qua et praeventa est; postea vero, et subsequentem. Ait itaque nunc: Dilectus meus mihi, et ego illi; principium dilecto tribuens. In consequentibus: Ego, inquit, dilecto meo, et dilectus meus mihi; consummationem illi aeque concedens. Nunc jam videamus quid dicat: Dilectus meus mihi. Si enim hoc recipitur ut subaudiamus, intendit, sicut jam diximus, et sicut Propheta ait: Exspectans exspectavi Dominum, et intendit mihi: ego in verbo isto sentio nescio quid non plane exiguum, nec mediocris praerogativae. Sed non est ingerenda fatigatis auribus et mentibus res omni alacritate digna. Si non gravat, differatur, et non in longum; crastinus inde incipiat sermo. Tantum orate, ut ab irruentibus occupationibus interim custodiat nos gratia et misericordia sponsi Ecclesiae Jesu Christi Domini nostri, qui est super omnia Deus benedictus in saecula. Amen.