The eighth Revelation is of the last petiuous peynes of Christe deyeng, and discoloryng of His face and dreyeng of flesh. Sixteenth chapter.

After this, Christ showed a part of His Passion near His dying. I saw His sweet face as it was dry and bloodless with pale dying, and then more pale, dead, and languishing, and then it turned more dead into blue, and then more brownish-blue, as the flesh turned more deeply dead. For His Passion showed itself to me most properly in His blessed face, and especially in His lips. There I saw these four colors—those that before had been fresh, ruddy, and pleasing to my sight.¹ This was a grievous change to see, this deep dying; and also the nose shrank and dried, to my sight, and the sweet body was brown and black, all turned out of the fair, lively color of Himself into dry dying.²³ For at that same time when our Lord and blessed Savior died upon the Cross, it was a dry, harsh wind and extremely cold, as it seemed to me.⁴ And when the precious blood that could pass from it had been bled out of the sweet body, yet there remained a moisture in the sweet flesh of Christ, as it was shown. Bloodlessness and pain, drying him from within, and the wind and cold blowing from outside, came together in Christ's sweet body. And these four—two from outside and two from within—dried Christ's flesh over time.⁵ And though this pain was bitter and sharp, it lasted a very long time, as I saw, and painfully dried up all the living spirits of Christ's flesh.⁶ Thus I saw the sweet flesh die, part by part, drying with astonishing pains. And as long as any spirit had life in Christ's flesh, so long He suffered pain. This long torment seemed to me as if He had been dead for seven nights, dying at the very point of passing away, suffering the final pain. And then I said: it seemed to me as if He had been dead for seven nights—meaning that the sweet body was so discolored, so dry, so shriveled, so deathlike, and so piteous, as if He had been dead for seven nights, continually dying.⁷ And it seemed to me that the dying of Christ's flesh was the greatest pain, and the last, of His Passion.

Read the original Middle English

After this Criste shewid a partie of His passion nere His deyeng. I saw His swete face as it was drye and blodeles with pale deyeng, and sithen more pale, dede, langoring, and than turnid more dede into blew, and sithen more browne blew, as the flesh turnyd more depe dede. For His passion shewid to me most propirly in His blissid face, and namly in His lippis. There I saw these four colowres, tho that were aforn freshe, redy, and likyng to my sigte. This was a swemful chonge to sene, this depe deyeng, and also the nose clange and dryed, to my sigte, and the swete body was brown and blak, al turnyd oute of faire lifely colowr of Hymselfe on to drye deyeng. For that same tyme that our Lord and blissid Savior deyid upon the Rode, it was a dry, harre wynde and wonder colde, as to my sigte. And what tyme the pretious blode was bled oute of the swete body that migte passe therfro, yet there dwellid a moysture in the swete flesh of Criste, as it was shewyd.

Blodeleshede and peyne dryden within and blowyng of wynde and cold commyng fro withouten metten togeder in the swete body of Criste. And these four, tweyn withouten and tweyn within, dryden the fleshe of Criste be process of tyme. And thow this peyne was bitter and sharpe, it was full longe lestyng as to my sighte and peynfully dreyden up all the lively spirits of Crists fleshe. Thus I saw the swete fleshe dey, in semyng be party after party, dryande with mervelous peynys. And as longe as any spirit had life in Crists fleshe, so longe sufferid He peyne. This longe pynyng semyd to me as if He had bene seven night ded deyand at the poynt of outpassing awey, sufferand the last peyne. And than I said, it semyd to me as if He had bene seven night dede, it menyth that the swete body was so discoloryd, so drye, so clongen, so dedely, and so peteuous as He had be seven night dede, continuly deyand. And methowte the deyeng of Crists flesh was the most peyne, and the last, of His passion.

Notes

1 ↩Rendered as 'ruddy' (healthy redness) rather than 'ready', given the color contrast with the later dying hues.
2 ↩ME swemful = full of grief/distress; rendered 'grievous' for natural modern weight without archaic 'woeful'.
3 ↩From clingen: shriveled/shrank together; rendered 'shrank' to match the drying nose.
4 ↩Taken as 'harsh/keen' of wind; fits the cold drying cause developed in the next section.
5 ↩The four are the causes named in s1: bloodlessness and pain within; wind and cold from outside.
6 ↩"lively spirits" (lively spirits) keeps Julian's medieval physiological sense: the vital spirits thought to animate the flesh, not ghostly spirits.
7 ↩"clongen" rendered "shriveled": dried flesh drawn tight/clung in, matching the chapter's clinging/drying imagery (cf. nose that "clange and dryed").

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