birth
appears 6 times in 5 song(s)
111
Mary, daughter of your son (Virgin of marvels)
Mary, daughter of your son,
Mother of Jesus and our Mother,
Virgin, Virgin of marvels.
Mary, you are the creature
who gave birth to the Creator,
you are the servant who conceived the Lord.
Mary, daughter of your son…
Mary, formed from earth,
you are the glorious image,
the glorious image of heaven.
Mary, daughter of your son…
Mary, lowliest of women
yet you are high beyond all others,
you are the daughter of God,
and yet you are his Mother,
you are the daughter of God,
and yet you are his Mother,
Virgin, Virgin of marvels.
Mary, daughter of your son…
214
Eli, Eli, lama, sabachthani
Elí, Elí, lamá sabachtháni?
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
How far I feel you from my lamentation;
I call on you by day and you do not answer,
I call by night and there is no rest for me.
Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?…
Yet you are the Holy One,
you dwell in the praises of my people;
in you my fathers have hoped,
they hoped in you and you have freed them;
they cried to you and they were saved,
they hoped in you and did not remain disappointed.
Then me? Why don’t you help me?
Perhaps I am not a man? Look, I am a worm!
Disgraced among men! Rejection of my people!
All those who see me curl their lips,
they mock me, shake their heads and say:
"He trusted in the Lord,
let him rescue him if he loves him so much."
Yes, you love me, yes, you cherish me!
You drew me out of my mother’s womb,
at my birth you picked me up,
from my mother’s womb you have been my God,
when I was being born I entrusted myself to you.
Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?…
Do not be far from me;
look! anguish is near and no one helps me.
Many bullocks surround me,
bulls of Bashan besiege me,
against me they open wide their mouths,
like a lion raging and roaring.
I am dirty water which is thrown away,
all my bones are racked;
my heart is like wax,
melting away within my bosom;
dry as a pot-shard is my palate,
my tongue is stuck to my throat,
you have thrown me in the dust of death.
Eli…
A pack of dogs surrounds me,
a gang of evildoers besieges me;
they have pierced my hands and my feet,
I can count all my bones.
They stare at me, they observe me,
they divide my garments among them,
and for my clothes they cast lots.
But you, Lord, do not stay far away! –
my strength, my strength, run to my help!
Save me from the sword,
from the claws of the dogs, save my life,
save me, save me from the mouth of the lion,
and from the horns of the bulls!
Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?…
I will announce your name to my brothers,
I will praise you in the midst of the assembly:
I will say: Praise the Lord you who fear him,
sing to the Lord, descendants of Jacob!
let the race of Israel give him glory;
because he was not disgusted with this poor man,
the only one who was not scandalised at me.
He did not despise this wretched man,
he did not hide his face from him,
but at his cry for help he answered him,
at his cry he heard him.
Eli…
Now I know that the poor will be saved,
that everyone who looks for you will find you,
that their hearts, their hearts will live,
will live forever, will live eternally.
All the ends of the earth will return to the Lord,
all the families of nations shall bow down before him.
Because the kingdom, the kingdom is the Lord’s;
he is the ruler of all the nations,
all those who prosper on the earth will bow down before him,
to him will bow all those who go down to the dust.
And I, I will live, will live for him,
my descendants shall serve him.
The Lord will be spoken of to the coming generations,
they will announce to them what he has done for me;
to the people yet to be born they will say: "Behold the work of the Lord."
272
How bitter are the waters, Mary
The Virgin Mary was betrothed to Joseph
when, before they came to live together,
she was found to be with child
through the Holy Spirit.
And Joseph, who was just,
did not want to repudiate her.
He decided to send her away in secret.
How bitter are the waters, Mary!
She-lamb of God, humble lamb,
you, who don’t resist evil,
Mother of Jesus and our Mother,
pray for us, pray for us!
And Mary gave birth to her son,
swaddled him and put him in a manger
because there was no room for them at the inn.
How bitter are the waters, Mary!
She-lamb of God…
Then Joseph woke up,
took with him the child and his mother,
and in the night fled to Egypt
because Herod was looking for the child
to kill him.
How bitter are the waters, Mary!
She-lamb of God…
A cry is heard in Ramah: "ay, ay, ay, ay, ay, ay"
– a cry and a great lamentation:
it is Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be consoled
because they are no more.
How bitter are the waters, Mary!
She-lamb of God…
And the angel of the Lord said to Joseph in Egypt:
"Get up and take with you the child and his mother
and go back to the land of Israel;
because from Egypt I have called my son."
She-lamb of God…
275
Who is she rising from the desert,
who is she rising from the desert,
leaning on her beloved, on her beloved,
leaning on her beloved?
Under the apple tree I awakened you,
there where your mother conceived you,
there where your mother gave birth to you,
there where your mother gave birth to you.
Who is she rising from the desert,
who is she rising from the desert,
leaning on her beloved, on her beloved,
leaning on her beloved?
Set me as a seal on your heart,
as a tattoo upon your arm,
because love is as strong as death,
a flame coming from the Lord,
and the waters cannot quench it.
To give all the wealth
of the house for love,
would be to despise it.
Who is she rising from the desert,
who is she rising from the desert,
leaning on her beloved, on her beloved,
leaning on her beloved?
277
Ode of Solomon, XXIV (The baptism of the L.)
The dove hovered over the head of the Lord
and sang psalms above him.
and the Lord revealed his designs of love,
works of art ineffable, for every man.
The chasms opened up
and dreadful cries were heard –
like women giving birth,
but the Lord dispelled the darkness
with his piercing look.
The dove hovered over the head of the Lord
and sang psalms above him.
and the Lord revealed his designs of love,
works of art ineffable, for every man.
The designs were foiled
and the angels of heaven were weeping,
the designs for all those
who did not follow his truth.
Because the Lord has shown his way
and has showered his grace
on all those who follow him;
he has given them power
to be adorned with his holiness.
The dove hovered over the head of the Lord
and sang psalms above him.
and the Lord revealed his designs of love,
works of art ineffable, for every man.