IV. Ecco el re forte – aprite quelle porte!
The King of Glory Approaches
The triumphant Christ commands the gates of hell to open, revealing His identity as the Lord of glory who has conquered death.
Here is the mighty king—open those gates! Prince of hell, don't resist: He is the heavenly King who comes with great power. Pay Him reverence—lift the gates away. Who is this mighty one coming with such a victory? He is the mighty Lord; he is the Lord of glory. He has won the victory; he has conquered death.1
The Restoration of the Heavenly Court
Christ gathers the saints, patriarchs, and innocents to fill the heavenly court, having redeemed humanity through His sacrifice on the cross.
He has won the war that has already lasted many years, and he made the earth tremble to free us from our troubles; he wants to fill the seats to restore his court.✦2 And he wants the ancient father and his company; Abel, his true friend; let Noah set out on the road; let Moses not linger here: Come to the great court. O Abraham, patriarch, follow the great Lord; the promise hasn't failed—the Redeemer has come. Let the great singer come to make the court worthy.34 O John the Baptist, come on now, without delay; don't lose sight of those up in the eternal choir—and Simeon with them—form the escort behind you.5 O little innocents, go on ahead of everyone. Now be content with the wounds you received; O gems, o pearls, adore the court.6 You have reached the kingdom you’ve longed for so long, since on the holy wood I was put to death and torn apart, and I have redeemed the whole human race.✦7
Read the original Latin
Ecco el re forte - aprite quelle porte!
O principe infernale, Non fate resistenza: Egli è il re celestiale, Che vien con gran potenza: Fategli riverenza Levate via le porte.
Chi è questo potente, Che vien con tal vittoria? Egli è ’l signor possente, Egli è ’l signor di gloria. Auto à la vittoria, Egli à vinto la morte.
Egli à vinto la guerra, Durata già molt’ anni, E fe’ tremar la terra Per cavarci d’ affanni, Riempier vuol gli scanni Per ristorar suo corte.
E’ vuole el padre antico E la sua compagnia; Abel vero suo amico, Noè si metta in via, Moisè qui non istia: Venite alla gran corte.
O Abraam patriarca, Seguite il gran Signore; La promessa non varca, Venuto è il Redentore; Vengane il gran cantore A far degna la corte.
O Giovanni Battista, Or su, sanza dimoro, Non perdere di vista Su nell’ eterno coro E Simïon con loro Drieto a sè fa la scorte.
O parvoli innocenti, Innanzi a tutti gite, Or siate voi contenti Delle aute ferite; O gemme, o margarite, Adorate la corte.
Venuti siete al regno Tanto desiderato, Poi che nel santo legno I’ fu’ morto e straziato E ò ricomperato Tutta l’ umana sorte.
Scripture echoes
- ↩Matt.27.51 — And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth shook, and the rocks were split.
- ↩Mark.10.45;1Tim.2.6;Gal.3.13 — For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. 1Tim.2.6 — who gave himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at its proper time. Gal.3.13 — Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree."
Notes
- 1 ↩Renaissance line 'Auto à la vittoria' reads as poetic inversion 'Avuto ha la vittoria' (he has obtained/won the victory); 'à' = ha. Rendered as 'has won the victory' to match the parallel 'Egli à vinto la morte' and the next stanza's 'Egli à vinto la guerra'.
- 2 ↩scanni: seats/thrones—likely the empty places in the heavenly court (fallen-angel / redeemed-elect tradition), not ordinary benches.
- 3 ↩Varcare can mean to cross, pass over, or pass away. Here it is taken as ‘has not failed / has not gone unfulfilled,’ with the next line as the ground: the Redeemer has come. An alternative is ‘the promise has not passed by’ (unkept).
- 4 ↩In this summons of the patriarchs to the heavenly court, ‘the great singer’ is almost certainly David the psalmist, called next after Abraham’s line of promise.
- 5 ↩Drieto a sè fa la scorte: John is the imperative addressee, so the escort is rendered as his action (bring/form the escort after yourself). Alternative parse: Simeon forms the escort behind himself with the choir.
- 6 ↩aute is taken as avute ('received/suffered'): delle aute ferite = with/for the wounds you received (Holy Innocents' martyrdom).
- 7 ↩«umana sorte» can mean human lot/destiny or humankind as a whole; rendered as “the whole human race” for the redemptive claim.
Sacred Narratives (Storie Sacre) and Laude of Lucrezia Tornabuoni de' Medici companion
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