Psalm 114: Latin Learning Hints Part B

Once again a post designed to aid those using this psalm series to learn or brush up their Latin - others can skip quickly past!

Grammar - the subjunctive mood

If you’ve been following the Simplicissimus introduction to Latin course (to download the materials see the link in the side bar on Latin resources) on a one unit a week basis since I started this psalm series (or have done some fast catching up), you should be up to Unit 6, which introduces the subjunctive mood.

There aren’t actually any examples of the present subjunctive in Psalm 114, but in the last post I gave the alternative formulation of the concluding verse from Psalm 55, which does use the subjunctive:

ut pláceam (second conjugation) coram Deo in lúmine vivéntium, or ‘so that I may please in the sight of God, in the light of the living’.

You might also recall the last verse of another psalm we have looked at in this series, Psalm 22:

Et ut inhábitem (first conjugation) in domo Dómini, in longitúdinem diérum = And that I may dwell in the house of the Lord unto length of days.

Vocabulary – the body

Psalm 114, like many of the psalms, makes reference to a number of body parts, so it might be helpful to bring together a number of the key words used in the psalms to refer (anthropomorphically) to God, to enemies, or to the speaker:

corpus –oris n body (doesn't actually occur in the pslams, but used in the Mass and NT in many places)
caro, carnis, f flesh; man, mankind; the body; every living being

caput, itis, n. the head,

Ps 3: et exáltans caput meum = and the lifter up of my head.
Ps 22: Impinguásti in óleo caput meum – You have anointed my head with oil

facies, ei, f. face, countenance, appearance; presence.
vultus, us, m., the face, countenance;

erubesco, riibui, ere 3, to redden or blush with shame, to feel ashamed

tempus, oris, n. the temples of the head

oculus, i, m the eye.
lacryma, ae, f, a tear

Ps 114: óculos meos a lácrimis – my eyes from tears

palpebra, ae, f. the eyelid..
(video, videre - to see)
auris, is, f the ear.

guttur, is, n., the throat
vox, vocis, f., the voice of a person, or, the sound of an instrument, thunder.
(audio, audire, to hear)

Ps 3: Voce mea ad Dóminum clamávi – I have cried to the Lord with my voice
Ps 114: vocem oratiónis meæ = the voice of my prayer

labium, ii, n., a lip.

lingua, ae, f., the tongue;

dens, dentis, m. a tooth

Ps 3: dentes peccatórum contrivísti = You have broken the teeth of sinners

maxilla, ae, f. the jawbone, the jaw.

barba, ae, f, the beard

cor, cordis, n., the heart, regarded as the seat of the faculties, feelings, emotions, passions; the mind, the soul.

dexter, tera, terum; the right hand.

manus, us, f., hand

pes, pedis, m. the foot

Ps 114: pedes meos a lapsu = my feet from falling

lumbus, i, m.t the loin; pi. the loins, the reins

Vocabulary listing for Psalm 114

And here is the full vocabulary list for Psalm 114 in alphabetical order, based mainly on Britt’s Dictionary of the Psalter:

a, ab, from, by
anima ae f soul
auris, is, f. the ear.
benefacio, feci, factum, ere 3, to do well; to do good to, to deal kindly with, to deal bountifully
circumdo, dedi, datum, are, to surround, beset, encompass with a hostile intent; to gather round
converto, verti, versum, ere 3, to turn, change, alter; refresh; bring back; convert, turn from sin;
custodio, ivi or ii, itum, ire to guard, watch, keep;to maintain, to hold steadfastly.
de about, concerning, down from
deprecatio, ois, f prayer, supplication, entreaty
dies, ei, m. and fem. a day, the natural day
diligo, lexi, lectum, ere 3 to love;to flatter, make pretence of loving.
dolor, oris, m. , pain whether of body or of mind, grief, sorrow, affliction.
dominus i m, lord
ego, mei, I, me
eripio, ripui, reptum, ere 3 to snatch away, to rescue, deliver
et, and
exaudio, ivi, Itum, ire, to hear, hearken to, listen to, give heed to; to regard, answer.
humilio, avi, atum, are to humble, bring low.
in+ablative, in, on
inclino, avi, atum, are, to bend, incline
infernus, i, m. Sheol; the nether world, the underworld, the grave, the kingdom of the dead,
invenio, veni, ventum, ire, to find
invoco, avi, atum, are, to invoke, call upon (God); to put trust in
justus, a, um Of God: just; Of men: as a subst., a just man, the just.
lacryma, ae, f, a tear.
lapsus, us, m. slipping, a fall; a moral fall.
libero, avi, atum, are to free, set free, deliver
meus, a, um my, mine
misereor, sertus sum, eri 2 to pity, have mercy on.
misericors, cordis merciful, abounding in mercy.
mors, mortis, f., death
nomen, nominis, n name
noster, nostra, nostrum, our, ours
oculus, i, the eye..
oratio, onis, f. prayer, supplication
parvulus, a, um , small, little; children, little ones, the simple, the guileless,
periculum, i, n., peril, danger.
pes, pedis, m. the foot
placeo, ui, itum, ere 2, to please, be well pleasing to
quia, conj. for, because, that. truly, surely, indeed;
quoniam, conj., for, because, since, seeing that, whereas.
regio, onis, f, land, country.
requies, ei, f., rest; a resting-place.
tribulatio, onis, f. , trouble, distress, anguish, affliction, tribulation
tu, tui, you
vivus, a, um alive, living.
vox, vocis, f., the voice of a person, or, the sound of an instrument, thunder

Psalm 114/9: The land of the living

Today I want to conclude this verse by verse look at Psalm 114 verse with a quick look at the last two verses:

Quia erípuit ánimam meam de morte: óculos meos a lácrimis, pedes meos a lapsu.
For he has delivered my soul from death: my eyes from tears, my feet from falling.

Placébo Dómino in regióne vivórum.
I will please the Lord in the land of the living.

In fact these two verses are almost identical in sentiment to Psalm 55:13, which says:

Quóniam eripuísti ánimam meam de morte, et pedes meos de lapsu: ut pláceam coram Deo in lúmine vivéntium
Because you have delivered my soul from death, my feet from falling: that I may please in the sight of God, in the light of the living.

Looking at the Latin

Quia erípuit =for he has freed/rescued

In Psalm 114 the verb is in the third person; in Psalm 55, the second - Quóniam eripuísti = For you have freed

ánimam meam de morte = my soul from death

óculos meos a lácrimis = my eyes from tears [omitted in Ps 55]

One can perhaps see an allusion to this phrase in Revelation 21:4, where the description of heaven includes “ he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away."

pedes meos a lapsu = my feet from falling

Psalm 55 changes the preposition to de, but not meaning

Placébo Dómino = I will be pleasing to the Lord

The Masoretic Hebrew Text , followed by the neo-Vulgate here has ‘I will walk in the presence of the Lord’ – but the two expressions are equivalent. The idea of walking in God’s ways is used fairly frequently this way (see Psalm 1 for example). In Psalm 55, a third structure is used, a purpose clause (ut +subjunctive), to suggest that God freed him in order that he can please him: ut pláceam coram Deo, or ‘that I may please in the sight/presence of God’

in regióne vivórum=in the land of the living

The land of the living stands in contrast to Sheol/hell, the kingdom of the dead. In this context it can mean either earth or heaven. Psalm 55 changes this to ‘in the light of the living’.

Key words:

eripio, ripui, reptum, ere 3 to snatch away, to rescue, deliver
mors, mortis, f, death
oculus, i, the eye..
lacryma, ae, f, a tear.
pes, pedis, m. the foot
lapsus, us, m. slipping, a fall; a moral fall.
placeo, ui, itum, ere 2, to please, be well pleasing to
regio, onis, f, land, country.
vivus, a, um alive, living.

Death of the body and death of the soul

St Robert Bellarmine’s commentary on Psalm 55 provides a nice summation of the multiple levels of meaning of these verses: ‘you have delivered my soul from death’, he explains, refers firstly to God saving the psalmist from the death of the body in this world on many occasions; ‘my feet from falling’, he sees as preserving him from falling into sin in the face of temptations, that is from death of the soul.

He concludes:

"That I may please in the sight of God, in the light of the living;" in the light of this life, which those who are dead enjoy not; and in the light of grace, which infidels and sinners have not; that I may, at length, come to the light of eternal glory enjoyed by those who alone, and properly speaking, can be classed among the living. These words are applicable to Christ, who, by his Resurrection, was delivered from the death of the body, without any possibility of his ever again being subject to it, or to any suffering, and lives and reigns on the right hand of the Father, "in the light of the living." Amen.

In this light, we can understand St John Chrysostom’s explanation that the verse means that death is something to be welcomed if we are in a state of grace, not feared:

“…What to others seems deserving of tears merits prayer in his view, and what to others is deserving of joy and satisfaction merits groaning in his view. Is it not deserving of groaning to be in a foreign country and dispatched far from our homeland? Is it not deserving of joy to put in at a tranquil haven and be admitted to the city on high whence pain, distress and groaning have fled? And how does this affect me, a sinner, you say? Do you see that it is not death that is the cause of grief, but a bad conscience? So stop being a sinner, and death will be something desirable for you.”

Psalm 114

Diléxi, quóniam exáudiet dóminus vocem oratiónis meæ.

2 Quia inclinávit aurem suam mihi: et in diébus meis invocábo.
3 Circumdedérunt me dolóres mortis:  et perícula inférni invenérunt me.
4 Tribulatiónem et dolórem invéni: et nomen Dómini invocávi.
5O Dómine, líbera ánimam meam:  miséricors Dóminus, et justus, et Deus noster miserétur.
6 Custódiens párvulos Dóminus: humiliátus sum, et liberávit me.
7 Convértere, ánima mea, in réquiem tuam: quia Dóminus benefécit tibi.
8 Quia erípuit ánimam meam de morte: óculos meos a lácrimis, pedes meos a lapsu.
9 Placébo Dómino in regióne vivórum.

Psalm 114/8 - Accept your eternal reward

Today’s verse of Psalm 114 points to the end of the struggle to live this earthly life, and tells the dying soul that it is now alright to look for deliverance and relief in heaven. It is:

Convértere, ánima mea, in réquiem tuam: quia Dóminus benefécit tibi.
Turn, O my soul, into your rest: for the Lord has been bountiful to you.

St John Chrysostom tells us that:

“The literal meaning has to do with an awesome liberation, some kind of relief and deliverance. If you were to take it in an anagogical sense, however, you would be able to speak of departure from this life as redemption, and call it rest. It is, in fact, release from all unexpected troubles, and he is subject no longer to uncertainty, a victim of insecurity, having now taken his departure with solid hope.”

Looking at the Latin

Convértere = turn/return/turn again (imperative)

converto, verti, versum, ere 3, to turn, change, alter, bring back; quicken, refresh; bring back; convert, turn from sin;

ánima mea = my soul

in réquiem tuam = to your rest

requies, ei, f., rest; a resting-place.

Turning the soul to its rest can be taken as meaning either literally, acceptance that the end of this life has come, or more generally turning away from the death of the soul that comes from sin. Cassiodorus, for example, suggests that

“The soul which is alienated from the Lord should sing this in company with the prophet; the sheep which had wandered and had merited a return to the pens, borne on the shoulders of the Protector, should also sing it. So should the son who was dead and has come to life again, who had been lost and was found. So should the devoted people who have been redeemed by His precious blood, and have through the Lord's generosity gained the attainment of the rest for which they longed. So the prophet urges his soul to turn to the Lord, from whom come to him both peaceful rest and the removal of sins.”

quia Dóminus benefécit tibi = for the Lord has dealt kindly with/dealt bountifully with/rewarded with you

benefacio, feci, factum, ere 3, to do well; to do good to, to deal kindly with, to deal bountifully

The reward spoken of can take two forms: God’s delivering him from heath through healing of his illnesses; or the reward of heaven.

I have fought the good fight…

St Basil comments:

“The brave contestant applies to himself the consoling words, very much like to Paul, when he says: 'I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith. For the rest, there is laid up for me a crown of justice. These things the prophet also says to himself: Since you have fulfilled sufficiently the course of this life, turn henceforth into thy rest, 'for the Lord has been bountiful to thee.' For, eternal rest lies before those who have struggled through the present life observant of the laws, a rest not given in payment for a debt owed for their works, but provided as a grace of the munificent God for those who have hoped in Him. Then, before he describes the good things there, telling in detail the escape from the troubles of the world, he gives thanks for them to the Liberator of souls, who has delivered him from the varied and inexorable slavery of the passions.”

Psalm 114

Diléxi, quóniam exáudiet dóminus vocem oratiónis meæ.
Quia inclinávit aurem suam mihi: et in diébus meis invocábo.
Circumdedérunt me dolóres mortis: et perícula inférni invenérunt me.
Tribulatiónem et dolórem invéni: et nomen Dómini invocávi.
O Dómine, líbera ánimam meam: miséricors Dóminus, et justus, et Deus noster miserétur.
Custódiens párvulos Dóminus: humiliátus sum, et liberávit me.
Convértere, ánima mea, in réquiem tuam: quia Dóminus benefécit tibi.
Quia erípuit ánimam meam de morte: óculos meos a lácrimis, pedes meos a lapsu.
Placébo Dómino in regióne vivórum.

And please do continue on to the final part of this mini-series.

Psalm 114/7 - Towards a truly adult faith!

Today’s verse of Psalm 114 (116) calls to mind the Gospel injunction that ‘unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven’ (Mt 18:3).  Here it is:

Custódiens párvulos Dóminus: humiliátus sum, et liberávit me.
The Lord is the keeper of little ones: I was humbled, and he delivered me.

Looking at the Latin

Custódiens párvulos Dóminus = the Lord keeping/protecting/guarding the little ones/children/the guileless/simple = the Lord is the keeper of little ones = The Lord protects/keeps little ones

Brenton’s translation from the Septuagint makes this “The Lord preserves the simple”; the Collegeville translation is “The Lord protecteth little ones”.

humiliátus sum = I was humbled/brought low

et liberávit me = and he has freed/delivered me

Note that the neo-Vulgate changes this last phrase to use ‘salvum facere’ – to save, or preserve from harm. I’m not entirely sure that I see what this adds but…

Key words:

custodio, ivi or li, itum, ire to guard, watch, keep; to maintain, to hold steadfastly.
parvulus, a, um , small, little. Of age: little, youthful, young. children, little ones, the simple, the guileless,
humilio, avi, atum, are to humble, bring low.
libero, avi, atum, are to free, set free, deliver

An adult faith and becoming like little children

All too often these days we hear of the need for Catholics to develop an “adult faith”, which seems to be code for a supposed right of dissent from the Church’s teachings. Yet in reality, a truly adult faith is the exact reverse of this: a truly adult faith is sufficiently robust to accept the ‘hard sayings’ of the faith with docility; it is one that is fed on the meat of orthodoxy, not the sour milk of modernist-liberalism.

And this verse stands as a reminder of the path to such an adult faith: we must be humble, so that we realize our total dependence on God, and shed the illusion that we can control our lives and our world. St John Chrysostom comments:

“…'It is good for me that you brought me low so that I might learn your right judgements’. The grounds for thanks here are twofold: he allowed him to fall into danger, and he did not abandon him once fallen. Each is in some fashion a kind of favor, and the former not less than the latter but even greater, strange to say: while one rescued him from danger, the other imbued his soul with sounder values.”

Similarly, St Augustine gives the image of the father correcting a son, and the surgeon:

“For how should not The Lord, who keeps little ones, scourge those whom, when of mature age, He seeks to be heirs; for what son is he whom the father chastens not? Hebrews 12:6-7 : I was in misery, and He helped me. He helped me, because I was in misery; for the pain which the physician causes by his knife is not penal, but salutary.”

Only once we have been through this process of purification through hardship can we accept the means God uses to free us from the delusions, false doctrines, and temptations that surround us. As St Basil the Great comments:

“When I was turned and became as a little child and received the kingdom of heaven as a child and through innocence brought myself down to the humility of children, the Lord, the keeper of little ones, since I was humbled, he delivered me.”

Psalm 114

Diléxi, quóniam exáudiet dóminus vocem oratiónis meæ.
I have loved, because the Lord will hear the voice of my prayer.
Quia inclinávit aurem suam mihi: et in diébus meis invocábo.
Because he has inclined his ear unto me: and in my days I will call upon him.
Circumdedérunt me dolóres mortis: et perícula inférni invenérunt me.
The sorrows of death have compassed me: and the perils of hell have found me.
Tribulatiónem et dolórem invéni: et nomen Dómini invocávi.
I met with trouble and sorrow: And I called upon the name of the Lord.
O Dómine, líbera ánimam meam: miséricors Dóminus, et justus, et Deus noster miserétur.
O Lord, deliver my soul. The Lord is merciful and just, and our God shows mercy.
Custódiens párvulos Dóminus: humiliátus sum, et liberávit me.
The Lord is the keeper of little ones: I was humbled, and he delivered me.
Convértere, ánima mea, in réquiem tuam: quia Dóminus benefécit tibi.
Quia erípuit ánimam meam de morte: óculos meos a lácrimis, pedes meos a lapsu.
Placébo Dómino in regióne vivórum.

You can find the next part in this series on Psalm 114 here.

Psalm 114/6: On God's mercy

Continuing our look at Psalm 114 (116), here is today’s verse:

O Dómine, líbera ánimam meam: miséricors Dóminus, et justus, et Deus noster miserétur.
O Lord, deliver my soul. The Lord is merciful and just, and our God shows mercy.

Today’s verse, St Robert Bellarmine suggests, is a call to repentance:

To show what good hope he had in God, he assigns a reason for having had such hope, because "The Lord is merciful and just, and our God showeth mercy;" the Lord is merciful, because he goes before sinners, and inspires them with the idea of penance and prayer, "For he first loved us," as the apostle says. He is also just, for he lets no one go unchastised, as St. Paul says, "He scourgeth every son whom he receiveth," and he pardons those who do not pardon themselves, and not only forgives their sins, but makes them his heirs.

Phrase by phrase:

O Dómine = O Lord

líbera ánimam meam = free/deliver (imperative) my soul

miséricors Dóminus et justus =the Lord is merciful and just

et Deus noster miserétur = and our God has pity (note the deponent)

The Revised Standard Version translates the verse as "O LORD, I beseech thee, save my life!" Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; our God is merciful.

Key vocab:

libero, avi, atum, are to free, set free, deliver
misericors, cordis merciful, abounding in mercy.
justus, a, um just
misereor, sertus sum, eri 2 to pity, have mercy on.

God’s mercy

The concept of God’s mercy dealt with by this verse is a rich one. St Basil the Great comments:

“Everywhere Scripture joins justice with the mercy of God, teaching us, that neither the mercy of God is without judgment nor His judgment without mercy. Even while He pities, He measures out His mercies judiciously to the worthy; and while judging, He brings forth the judgment, having regard to our weakness, repaying us with kindness rather than with equal reciprocal measurement…Mercy is an emotion experienced toward those who have been reduced beyond their desert, and which arises in those sympathetically disposed. We pity the man who has fallen from great riches into the uttermost poverty, him who has been overthrown from the peak of vigor of body to extreme weakness, him who gloried in the beauty and grace of body and who has been destroyed by most shameful passions. Though we at one time were held in glory, living in paradise, yet, we have become inglorious and humble because of our banishment; 'our God showeth mercy’ seeing what sort of men we have become from what we were. For this reason He summoned Adam with a voice of mercy, saying: 'Adam, where are you?' He who knows all things was not seeking to be informed, but He wished to perceive what sort he had become from what he had been. 'Where are you?' instead of 'to what sort of a ruin have you descended from so great a height?'

Psalm 114

Diléxi, quóniam exáudiet dóminus vocem oratiónis meæ.
Quia inclinávit aurem suam mihi: et in diébus meis invocábo.
Circumdedérunt me dolóres mortis: et perícula inférni invenérunt me.
Tribulatiónem et dolórem invéni: et nomen Dómini invocávi.
O Dómine, líbera ánimam meam: miséricors Dóminus, et justus, et Deus noster miserétur.
Custódiens párvulos Dóminus: humiliátus sum, et liberávit me.
Convértere, ánima mea, in réquiem tuam: quia Dóminus benefécit tibi.
Quia erípuit ánimam meam de morte: óculos meos a lácrimis, pedes meos a lapsu.
Placébo Dómino in regióne vivórum.

You can find notes on the next verse here.

Psalm 114/5: When shipwrecked, call for help...

Joseph Vernet 1763

Continuing on with this study of Psalm 114 (116), the first psalm of Vespers in the Office of the Dead (and otherwise said at Monday Vespers), here is the complete psalm again with today’s verse highlighted:

Diléxi, quóniam exáudiet dóminus vocem oratiónis meæ.
I have loved, because the Lord will hear the voice of my prayer.

Quia inclinávit aurem suam mihi: et in diébus meis invocábo.
Because he has inclined his ear unto me: and in my days I will call upon him.

Circumdedérunt me dolóres mortis: et perícula inférni invenérunt me.
The sorrows of death have compassed me: and the perils of hell have found me.

Tribulatiónem et dolórem invéni: et nomen Dómini invocávi.
O Dómine, líbera ánimam meam: miséricors Dóminus, et justus, et Deus noster miserétur.
Custódiens párvulos Dóminus: humiliátus sum, et liberávit me.
Convértere, ánima mea, in réquiem tuam: quia Dóminus benefécit tibi.
Quia erípuit ánimam meam de morte: óculos meos a lácrimis, pedes meos a lapsu.
Placébo Dómino in regióne vivórum.

Looking at the Latin

The Douay-Rheims translates ‘Tribulatiónem et dolórem invéni: et nomen Dómini invocávi’ as 'I met with trouble and sorrow: And I called upon the name of the Lord'.

Breaking down the Latin:

Tribulatiónem =anguish/trouble/distress (accusative)

et dolórem =and sorrow

invéni = I have found

et nomen Dómini = and the name of the Lord

invocávi = I have invoked

A slightly looser translation from the Revised Standard Version makes it ‘I suffered distress and anguish: then I called upon the name of the Lord’.

Here is the key vocab:

tribulatio, onis, /. , trouble, distress, anguish, affliction, tribulation
dolor, oris, m. , pain whether of body or of mind, grief, sorrow, affliction, sin
invenio, veni, ventum, ire, to find
invoco, avi, atum, are, to invoke, call upon (God); to put trust in
nomen, mis, n. name

In suffering and trouble we should flee to God

St John Chrysostom uses this verse to offer a brief sermon on why God allows us to be subject to distress at times in order to encourage us to look for him, and on the right dispositions needs to have our prayers heard:

“Now, what he means is this: For me it sufficed for freedom from the encircling evils to call on God. Why, then, does it often occur that we call and are not freed from problems? Because we do not call as we ought call. I mean, for proof that he is always ready to provide, listen to what he says in the Gospels: "Surely there is no one of you who, if their son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?

Now, if you, wicked as you are, know how to give good gifts to those who ask you, much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those asking him." Do you see how great is his goodness, when our wickedness is brought to light in comparison with it? Since, then, our Lord is like that, let us have recourse to him and call upon him alone as our helper, and we shall find him ready to save.

After all, if those who fall victim to shipwreck and cling to a plank immediately call upon people at a distance and persuade them to treat them with humanity, though admittedly having nothing in common with them but simply apprised of their calamity, much more will the loving God, whose goodness is natural to him, rescue those in trouble if only they are prepared to have recourse to him and call upon him with a sincere intention, forsaking human hopes.

Accordingly, whenever you fall into some unexpected trouble, do not despair, but at once lift your spirits, and direct your journey to that storm-free haven, that unassailable tower, help from God. This was the reason, you see, that he allowed you to fall victim, that you might call upon him. But that is particularly the time for most people to become despondent and lose their customary reverence, when they should do the opposite: it is because he loves us deeply that he allows us to suffer distress, so that we may be united to him more diligently. For mothers, too, induce their recalcitrant children to fly to their arms by frightening them with various masks, not wanting to cause them pain, but devising these means of encouraging their approach. God, too, in like manner, always anxious to unite us with himself, like some ardent lover - or, rather, being more ardent than any lover - allows you to be brought to such states of need so as to be exercised constantly in prayer, constantly call on him and be concerned with his affairs by letting go of the others.” (St John Chrysostom Commentary on the Psalms Volume 2,  trans Robert Charles Hill, Holy Cross Orthodox Press, MA 1998, pp94).

You can find notes on the next verse here

Psalms verse by verse - Psalm 114/4 - The pains of death

Today at look at verse 3 of Psalm 114 (116), which tells us that the speaker is in peril of his life, suffering from the pain of dying.

Here are the verses we have looked at so far, plus today’s:

1. Diléxi, quóniam exáudiet Dóminus vocem oratiónis meæ.
I have loved, because the Lord will hear the voice of my prayer.

2. Quia inclinávit aurem suam mihi: et in diébus meis invocábo.
Because he has inclined his ear unto me: and in my days I will call upon him.

3. Circumdedérunt me dolóres mortis: et perícula inférni invenérunt me.
The sorrows of death have compassed me: and the perils of hell have found me

The sentiments are very similar to those of Psalm 17:5-7, which says:

The sorrows of death surrounded me: and the torrents of iniquity troubled me.
The sorrows of hell encompassed me: and the snares of death prevented me
In my affliction I called upon the Lord, and I cried to my God

Phrase by phrase

First a look at the Latin:

circumdedérunt me = They have surround/compass me

dolóres mortis = the pains/sorrows of death

The neo-Vulgate changes this to 'the cords of death’ (funes mortis), giving the image of someone being pulled down to hell.

et perícula inférni = the perils/dangers of hell

Again the neo-Vulgate makes a change here, from pericula (dangers or perils) to angustia (want, scarcity or distress).

invenérunt me = they have found me/seized upon me/overtaken me

In other words, ‘The sorrows of death have surrounded me: and the dangers of hell have found me’. Perhaps the most vivid translation of this verse remains that of Coverdale:

“The snares of death compassed me round about, and the pains of hell got hold upon me.”

Here are the key words used in the verse:

circumdo, dedi, datum, are, to surround, beset, encompass with a hostile intent; to gather round
dolor, oris, m. , pain whether of body or of mind, grief, sorrow, affliction. Sin
mors, mortis, f., death
periculum, i, n., peril, danger.
infernus, i, m. hell, the nether world, the underworld, the grave, the kingdom of the dead,
invenio, veni, ventum, ire, to find

Death is not easy!

These days, many people feel that the best kind of death happens suddenly, quietly in our sleep. Indeed, we do our best to avoid pain of any kind, if necessary drugging someone to death to avoid the realities of death. This verse, though, does not shirk from seeing some nobility in suffering, as St Basil the Great points out:

“…the name of these pains to those which besiege the animal in the division of soul and body at death. He says that he has suffered nothing moderately, but that he has been tried even to the sorrows of death and has arrived at the peril of the descent into hell. Now, did he endure only these things for which he is exalted, or did he endure these things frequently and unwillingly? Nothing that is forced is praiseworthy. But, look at the nobility of nature of the athlete. When 'the sorrows of death compassed me, and the perils of hell found me’ I was so far from succumbing to these trials that I willingly proposed to myself even much greater trials than these.”

The dangers of death though, are not just physical but even more importantly, spiritual as St Robert Bellarmine argues:

“He now tells us on what his prayers turned; on the dangers and temptations in regard of his eternal salvation, the only subject worth the notice of a soul that truly loves God…When he says, then "The sorrows of death have compassed me," he means, I am tormented with such dreadful temptations that I am compelled to cry out with the apostle, "Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" He explains it more fully, when he adds, "The perils of hell have found me," for it is through fear of that peril the greatest of all perils, that those near death conceive the greatest fear and alarm. In the Hebrew the expression is, "The narrow ways of hell," giving us the idea of one walking on the edge of a precipice, in danger every moment of falling, and of being dashed to pieces, unless they tread with the greatest care and caution; and such is the way of salvation, difficult and narrow, so that they who walk without extreme caution run every risk of being precipitated into hell.”

Psalm 114

Diléxi, quóniam exáudiet dóminus vocem oratiónis meæ.
Quia inclinávit aurem suam mihi: et in diébus meis invocábo.
Circumdedérunt me dolóres mortis: et perícula inférni invenérunt me.
Tribulatiónem et dolórem invéni: et nomen Dómini invocávi.
O Dómine, líbera ánimam meam: miséricors Dóminus, et justus, et Deus noster miserétur.
Custódiens párvulos Dóminus: humiliátus sum, et liberávit me.
Convértere, ánima mea, in réquiem tuam: quia Dóminus benefécit tibi.
Quia erípuit ánimam meam de morte: óculos meos a lácrimis, pedes meos a lapsu.
Placébo Dómino in regióne vivórum.

This mini-series on Psalm 114 continues here.