The Psalter of the Blessed Virgin Mary by St Bonaventure : Psalm 84

St Bonaventure Receiving the Banner of St Sepulchre
from the Madonna, by Francesco Solimena (1710). The 
Cathedral of San Paolo in Aversa, Italy. Public domain.

The following posts present the text of The Psalter of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Its authorship is generally attributed to St Bonaventure (1221-15 July 1274) who studied at the University of Paris where in 1243 he joined the Franciscan Order. In 1254, he was made a Master of Theology and took over the leadership of the Franciscan School in Paris. Bonaventure was officially confirmed as seventh Minister General of the Franciscans in 1257. He later wrote a life of St Francis and has been called the second founder of the Order. Appointed Cardinal the year before his death in 1274, he was canonised in 1482 and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1588 with the title of Seraphic Doctor.

I offer this annotated presentation of St Bonaventure’s Psalter as a small gift to our gentle Queen and Mother in gratitude for her many graces and favours, praying for her continued help and protection for the author and his family.

This presentation of St Bonaventure’s Marian Psalms will include: an English translation based upon that of Sr Mary Emmanuel O.S.B. in the 1932 edition published by Herder; the Latin text as published in the Psalterium B. Virginis Mariæ of 1679; the text of the Douay-Rheims Psalms; with footnotes and occasional notes translated from Fillion’s Bible (1900 edition).

Reminder: I began posting an annotated and illustrated version of St Bonaventure's Life of St Francis on the 4th October (his feast day) this year, the 800th anniversary of his death in 1226. To read these posts, please click on our sister blog:

St Bonaventure’s Life of St Francis

Psalm 84

“Think of her in goodness: and seek her in simplicity of heart.”
The Sistine Madonna, by Raphael (1512-13). Dresden State 
Art Collections. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

1. O Lady, thou hast blessed thy house: thou hast consecrated thy dwelling[1].

2. She is fair[2] among the daughters of Jerusalem[3]: whose memory is in benediction[4].

3. The holy angels have proclaimed her blessed[5]: glorify her, ye Virtues and Dominations[6].

4. Ye peoples and nations, seek out her prudence[7]: and search out the treasures of her mercy.

5. Think of her in goodness: and seek her in simplicity of heart[8].

Glory be to the Father etc.

1. Benedixisti, Domine, domum tuam: consecrasti habitationem tuam.

2. Hæc est speciosa inter filias Hierusalem: cujus memoria est in benedictione.

3. Beatissimam prædicaverunt illam Angeli sancti: glorificate illam, Virtutes et Dominationes.

4. Populi gentium, exquirite prudentiam ejus: et investigate thesauros misericordiæ illius.

5. Sentite de illa in bonitate: et in simplicitate cordis exquirite illam.

Gloria Patri, etc.

Footnotes

[1] Cf. “Lord, thou hast blessed thy land”: Davidic Ps. LXXXIV, 2.

[2] Cf. Esther, type of the Blessed Virgin Mary I her beauty: “For she was exceeding fair, and her incredible beauty made her appear agreeable and amiable in the eyes of all”: Esther ii, 15; cf. also: “Thou art all fair, O my love, and there is not a spot in thee.” Cant. iv, 7.

[3] Cf. “I adjure you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and the harts of the, fields, that you stir not up, nor make the beloved to awake, till she please.” Cant. ii, 7.(one of seven references to the “daughters of Jerusalem”in the Canticle of Canticles).

[4] Cf. “Moses was beloved of God, and men: whose memory is in benediction”: Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) xlv, 1.

[5] “blessed”: Cf. Luke i, 28 & 48.

[6] For the Angelic orders of Virtues and Dominations, see Aquinas ST.I.Q108.A5.

[7] Cf. “Wisdom is glorious, and never fadeth away, and is easily seen by them that love her, and is found by them that seek her.” Wisdom vi, 13.

[8] Cf. “Sentite de Domino in bonitate, et in simplicitate cordis quaerite illum / Think of the Lord in goodness, and seek him in simplicity of heart.” Wisdom i, 1.

Davidic Psalm LXXXIV

1 Unto the end, for the sons of Core, a psalm.

2 Lord, thou hast blessed thy land: thou hast turned away the captivity of Jacob.  3 Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people: thou hast covered all their sins.  4 Thou hast mitigated all thy anger: thou hast turned away from the wrath of thy indignation.

5 Convert us, O God our saviour: and turn off thy anger from us. 6 Wilt thou be angry with us for ever: or wilt thou extend thy wrath from generation to generation?  7 Thou wilt turn, O God, and bring us to life: and thy people shall rejoice in thee.  8 Shew us, O Lord, thy mercy; and grant us thy salvation.

9 I will hear what the Lord God will speak in me: for he will speak peace unto his people: And unto his saints: and unto them that are converted to the heart.  10 Surely his salvation is near to them that fear him: that glory may dwell in our land. 11 Mercy and truth have met each other: justice and peace have kissed.  12 Truth is sprung out of the earth: and justice hath looked down from heaven.  13 For the Lord will give goodness: and our earth shall yield her fruit.  14 Justice shall walk before him: and shall set his steps in the way.

Notes

A prayer to obtain the complete restoration of Israel.

The title: 1: “Unto the end”: see Ps. IV, 1 and note.

“for the sons of Core”: see Ps. XLI, 1 and note.

God recently granted the Israelites a very great favour by putting an end to the painful sufferings they were enduring. Nevertheless, their problems did not entirely cease; accordingly, they implore the Lord to complete His work of grace and to restore His beloved nation to its initial prosperity. the poet sees as by a prophetic anticipation, his prayer mercifully granted.

The common feeling amongst exegetes is that this psalm was composed sometime after the end of the Babylonian captivity. The edict issued by Cyrus had allowed the return of the Jews in exile to Palestine and thousands had profited by this permission which they had been awaiting impatiently and which was an immense blessing from Heaven; but there still remained much to do in order to restore the theocratic state. It is to hasten this happy achievement that the pious son of Core addresses to the Lord this beautiful and fervent prayer in the name of the whole people.

Structure: the sun may be divided into three parts :

1. an act of thanksgiving for the favours already granted : versus 2-4 ;

2. a prayer asking for the complete restoration of the nation: verses 5-8;

3. a prophetic description of the future prosperity of Israel: verses 9-14.

The third part has frequently been applied by the Fathers to our Lord Jesus Christ.

5: “Convert us”: A Hebraism for : “Restore us.” others translate it as: “Come back to us.” 

10-11: In a charming allegory, the poet names the benefits which make a people truly happy. Glory, withdrawn far away, is once more established in the country. Grace strolls along the streets of Jerusalem and there encounters Fidelity, in the way that two Guardian Angels might meet. Justice and Peace, these two inseparable sisters, embrace and kiss each other. Mercy: God’s goodness, totally free. Truth: His fidelity to His promises. Justice: His justice now satisfied and appeased. The application of these promises to the work of Christ is not difficult to see.

12-14: There is a spiritual sense here which opens up for us the most beautiful messianic horizons, with an allusion to the two natures of the Messiah and His miraculous birth. When Jesus Christ appeared in the world, He sprang out of the earth as a pure gift from heaven; He left the bosom of his Father and was born from the virginal womb of Mary. “He came full of grace and truth and we have seen his glory.” Cf. John i, 14.

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

He that hearkeneth to me, shall not be confounded: and they that work by me shall not sin. They that explain me shall have life everlasting. Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) xxiv. 30-31.