Exclamación IX
The Thirst for Divine Mercy
The author appeals to Christ's promise of living water for those burning with the destructive fires of worldly desire.
O compassionate and loving Lord of my soul! You also say, "Come to me, all you who are thirsty, and I will give you something to drink."✦ How can anyone help being desperately thirsty when they're burning in the living flames of desire for these wretched things of the earth? They desperately need water so that the fire doesn't consume them completely. I know, my Lord, that in your goodness you'll give it to them; you yourself say so, and your words cannot fail. But if they've grown so used to living in this fire—if they've been raised in it—that they no longer feel it and, in their confusion, can't even recognize how desperately they need help, what remedy is there, my God? You came into the world to remedy desperate needs like these. Begin, Lord; it's in the hardest cases that your compassion must be revealed.
Intercession for the Blind
A plea for God to seek out those who are so accustomed to their own misery that they no longer recognize their need for salvation.
Look, my God, at how much ground your enemies are gaining. Have mercy on those who have no pity for themselves; since their misery has left them unwilling to come to you, go to them yourself, my God. I ask this of you on their behalf, and I know that when they come to understand, return to their senses, and begin to taste your goodness, these dead will rise again.1
The Two Fires
The author contrasts the destructive fires of the world with the purifying fire of God's love, seeking refuge in the living springs of Christ's wounds.
O Life, you who give life to everyone! Don't deny me this sweetest water that you promise to those who desire it. I desire it, Lord, and I ask for it, and I come to you. Don't hide yourself from me, Lord, for you know my need and know that you are the true medicine for the soul wounded by you.23 O Lord, how many kinds of fire there are in this life! How right it is, then, to live with fear! Some consume the soul; others purify it so that it may live forever, rejoicing in you! O living springs flowing from the wounds of my God, how abundantly you will pour out forever to sustain us, and how safely anyone who seeks nourishment from this divine drink will travel through the dangers of this miserable life!4
Read the original Latin
—¡Oh piadoso y amoroso Señor de mi alma! También decís Vos: Venid a mí todos los que tenéis sed, que yo os daré a beber. Pues ¿cómo puede dejar de tener gran sed el que se está ardiendo en vivas llamas en las codicias de estas cosas miserables de la tierra? Hay grandísima necesidad de agua para que en ella no se acabe de consumir. Ya sé yo, Señor mío, de vuestra bondad que se lo daréis; Vos mismo lo decís; no pueden faltar vuestras palabras. Pues si de acostumbrados a vivir en este fuego y de criados en él, ya no lo sienten ni atinan de desatinados a ver su gran necesidad, ¿qué remedio, Dios mío? Vos vinisteis al mundo para remediar tan grandes necesidades como estas. Comenzad, Señor; en las cosas más dificultosas se ha de mostrar vuestra piedad.
Mirad, Dios mío, que van ganando mucho vuestros enemigos. Habed piedad de los que no la tienen de sí; ya que su desventura los tiene puestos en estado que no quieren venir a Vos, venid Vos a ellos, Dios mío. Yo os lo pido en su nombre, y sé que, como se entiendan y tornen en sí, y comiencen a gustar de Vos, resucitarán estos muertos.
—¡Oh Vida, que la dais a todos! No me neguéis a mí esta agua dulcísima que prometéis a los que la quieren. Yo la quiero, Señor, y la pido, y vengo a Vos. No os escondáis, Señor, de mí, pues sabéis mi necesidad y que es verdadera medicina del alma llagada por Vos. ¡Oh Señor, qué de maneras de fuegos hay en esta vida! ¡Oh, con cuánta razón se ha de vivir con temor! ¡Unos consumen el alma, otros la purifican para que viva para siempre gozando de Vos! ¡Oh fuentes vivas de las llagas de mi Dios, cómo manaréis siempre con gran abundancia para nuestro mantenimiento y qué seguro irá por los peligros de esta miserable vida el que procurare sustentarse de este divino licor!
Scripture echoes
- ↩John.7.37 — On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, saying, 'If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.'
Notes
- 1 ↩Literally, “begin to taste of you”; rendered as “taste your goodness” to preserve the devotional image in natural English.
- 2 ↩The implied subject of “is the true medicine” is grammatically unstated; the context most plausibly points to the Lord, though the promised water may also be understood.
- 3 ↩The wound is presented devotionally as one inflicted by God, likely the wound of divine love.
- 4 ↩Spanish “divino licor” means a divine liquid or drink here; the phrase continues the image of life-giving water flowing from Christ's wounds.
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