Saturday, April 11, 2009

Misericordiæ Domini

The first Lesson of Matins for Holy Saturday (from Lamentations iii, 22-30) shews us what hope the Just Man - Christ - had in God His Father, even in the midst of His Passion, for He knew as God, and also as Man, the Divine plan for man's salvation asked of Him to be a willing victim, that God's justice be vindicated before the face of all the earth, and thus His unimaginable mercy revealed; the whole chapter bears meditation, but here is the Douay of the passage set down for Tenebræ this day:

Heth. The mercies of the Lord that we are not consumed: because his commiserations have not failed.
Heth. They are new every morning, great is thy faithfulness.
Heth. The Lord is my portion, said my soul: therefore will I wait for him.
Teth. The Lord is good to them that hope in him, to the soul that seeketh him.
Teth. It is good to wait with silence for the salvation of God.
Teth. It is good for a man, when he hath borne the yoke from his youth.
Jod. He shall sit solitary, and hold his peace: because he hath taken it up upon himself.
Jod. He shall put his mouth in the dust, if so be there may be hope.
Jod. He shall give his cheek to him that striketh him, he shall be filled with reproaches.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord, thy God.

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