Chapter XXIV
"Our Lord looked to His wounded Side, and saw, rejoicing. . . . Lo! how I loved you
THEN with a glad cheer our Lord looked to His Side and saw, rejoicing. With His sweet looking He led forth the understanding of His creature by the same wound into His Side within. And then he shewed a fair, delectable place, and large enough for all mankind that shall be saved to rest in peace and in love. And with it He brought to mind His precious blood and precious water which he let pour all out for love. And with the sweet seeing He shewed His blessed heart even cloven in two.
And with this sweet enjoying, He shewed to my understanding, in part, the blessed Godhead, stirring then the poor soul to understand, as it may be said, that is, to think on, the endless Love that was without beginning, and is, and shall be ever. And with this our good Lord said blissfully: Lo, how that I loved you, as if He had said: My darling, behold and see your Lord, your God that is your Maker and thine endless joy, see what satisfying and bliss I have in your salvation; and for my love rejoice you with me.
And also, for more understanding, this blessed word was said: Lo, how I loved you! Behold and see that I loved you so much before I died for you that I would die for you; and now I have died for you and suffered willingly that which I may. And now is all my bitter pain and all my hard travail turned to endless joy and bliss to me and to you. How should it now be that you shouldst anything pray that pleases me but that I should gladly grant it you? For my pleasing is your holiness and thine endless joy and bliss with me.
This is the understanding, simply as I can say it, of this blessed word: Lo, how I loved you. This shewed our good Lord for to make us glad and merry.
THE ELEVENTH REVELATION
CHAPTER XXV
"I knew well that you wouldst see my blessed Mother. . . ."
"Wilt you see in her how you are loved?"
AND with this same cheer of mirth and joy our good Lord looked down on the right side and brought to my mind where our Lady stood in the time of His Passion; and said: Wilt you see her? And in this sweet word it was as if He had said: I knew well that you wouldst see my blessed Mother: for, after myself, she is the highest joy that I might shew you, and most pleasure and worship to me; and most she is desired to be seen of my blessed creatures. And for the high, marvellous, singular love that He has to this sweet Maiden, His blessed Mother, our Lady Saint Mary, He shewed her highly rejoicing, as by the meaning of these sweet words; as if He said: Wilt you see how I love her, that you might joy with me in the love that I have in her and she in me?
And also (to more understanding this sweet word) our Lord speaks to all mankind that shall be saved, as it were all to one person, as if He said: Wilt you see in her how you are loved? For your love I made her so high, so noble and so worthy; and this pleases me, and so will I that it does you. For after Himself she is the most blissful sight.
But hereof am I not learned to long to see her bodily presence while I am here, but the virtues of her blessed soul: her truth, her wisdom, her charity; whereby I may learn to know myself and reverently fear my God. And when our good Lord had shewed this and said this word: Wilt you see her? I answered and said: Yea, good Lord, I thank You; yea, good Lord, if it be Your will. Often I prayed this, and I thought to have seen her in bodily presence, but I saw her not so. And Jesus in that word shewed me spiritual sight of her: right as I had seen her before little and simple, so He shewed her then high and noble and glorious, and pleasing to Him above all creatures.
And He wills that it be known; that so all those that please them in Him should please them in her, and in the pleasure that He has in her and she in Him. And, to more understanding, He shewed this example: As if a man love a creature singularly, above all creatures, he wills to make all creatures to love and to have pleasure in that creature that he loves so greatly. And in this word that Jesus said: Wilt you see her? I thought it was the most pleasing word that He might have given me of her, with that spiritual Shewing that He gave me of her. For our Lord shewed me nothing in special but our Lady Saint Mary; and her He shewed three times. The first was as she was with Child; the second was as she was in her sorrows under the Cross; the third is as she is now in pleasing, worship, and joy.
THE TWELFTH REVELATION