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👈The Tears of St Peter (1587-1596)
El Greco (Domḗnikos Theotokópoulos) 1541-1614
Museo Soumaya at Plaza Carso, Mexico.
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O hateful fire (ah! that I euer saw it)!
Too hard my hart was frozen for thy force;
Farre hotter flames it did require to thaw it, [255]
Thy hell-resembling heate did freeze it worse.
O that I rather had congeal'd to yse,
Then bought thy warmth at such a damning price!
What a hateful fire this turned out to be; and how I wish I had never set eyes on it. My heart had turned cold and hard; it was too frozen to be warmed by this fire’s heat. It would need far hotter flames to melt my heart; in fact, the heat from the fire in the court was like the heat of hellfire, and only froze my heart even more.
How I wish I had been turned into a block of ice rather purchasing warmth at such a price, the price of my own soul’s damnation.
Note. The relevant Gospel texts include the following:
And Peter followed him from afar off, even into the court of the high priest; and he sat with the servants at the fire, and warmed himself. [Mark xiv. 54]
And apprehending him, they led him to the high priest's house. But Peter followed afar off. And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were sitting about it, Peter was in the midst of them. [Luke xxii. 54-5]
Now the servants and ministers stood at a fire of coals, because it was cold, and warmed themselves. And with them was Peter also, standing, and warming himself. [John xviii. 18]
257. congeal’d. Congeal. To convert, by freezing, from a fluid or soft to a solid and rigid state, as water into ice; to freeze. 1577 R. Willes & R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Hist. Trauayle W. & E. Indies f. 231 Enforced there to ende his lyfe for colde, congealed and frosen to death.
yse. Ice. 1590 H. Swinburne Briefe Treat. Test. & Willes Epil. The authour therefore in aduenturing to breake the yse to make the passage easie for his countrymen, failing sometimes of the fourd, and falling into the pit, may seeme worthie to be pitied.
258. Then. Than.
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O wakefull bird! proclaimer of the day,
Whose pearcing note doth daunt the lion's rage; [260]
Thy crowing did myselfe to me bewray,
My frights and brutish heates it did asswage:
But O in this alone, vnhappy cocke,
That thou to count my foyles wert made the clocke!
Thou bird that stayest awake while others sleep, proclaiming the dawn of a new day; thy piercing call doth subdue the raging lion. Thy crowing was like an accusing voice that revealed to me just what I had done. It allayed my fears and calmed my heated feelings.
But oh, ill-fated bird, that thou wert made to sound as a clock, tolling the hours of my betrayals.
Note. The relevant Gospel texts include the following:
Now when Peter was in the court below, there cometh one of the maidservants of the high priest. And when she had seen Peter warming himself, looking on him she saith: Thou also wast with Jesus of Nazareth. But he denied, saying: I neither know nor understand what thou sayest. And he went forth before the court; and the cock crew. And again a maidservant seeing him, began to say to the standers by: This is one of them. But he denied again. And after a while they that stood by said again to Peter: Surely thou art one of them; for thou art also a Galilean. But he began to curse and to swear, saying; I know not this man of whom you speak. And immediately the cock crew again. And Peter remembered the word that Jesus had said unto him: Before the cock crow twice, thou shalt thrice deny me. [Mark xiv. 66-72]
259. wakefull. Keeping awake, esp. while others sleep, not yielding to sleep. Consider Christ’s word to Peter in the Garden of Gethsemane:
And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping. And he saith to Peter: Simon, sleepest thou? couldst thou not watch one hour? Watch ye, and pray that you enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. And going away again, he prayed, saying the same words. And when he returned, he found them again asleep, (for their eyes were heavy,) and they knew not what to answer him. And he cometh the third time, and saith to them: Sleep ye now, and take your rest. It is enough: the hour is come: behold the Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of sinners. [Mark xiv. 37-41]The cock’s crowing heralded a new day for Peter’s conscience, causing him to ffeel contrition for his betrayal:And Peter remembered the word of Jesus which he had said: Before the cock crow, thou wilt deny me thrice. And going forth, he wept bitterly. [Matt. xxvi. 75]
260. daunt. To overcome, subdue, vanquish. To bring into subjection, subdue, tame; To abate the courage of, discourage, dispirit; to put in awe, abash; to overcome with fear, intimidate, cause to quail. 1612 Bp. J. Hall Contempl. I. ii. vi. 222 True Christian fortitude..may be ouerborne, but it cannot be daunted.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) i. ii. 198 Thinke you, a little dinne can daunt mine eares?
the lion’s rage. St Peter was later to write:
Be sober and watch: because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, goeth about seeking whom he may devour. [1 Pet. v. 8]
261. bewray. To accuse, malign, speak evil of. To expose (a person), by divulging his secrets, or telling something that one knows to his discredit or harm. Hence passing into, To expose or reveal. 1587 A. Fleming et al. Holinshed's Chron. (new ed.) III. Contin. 1321/2 That who so would bewraie the dooers thereof, should haue fortie crownes for their labour.
262. brutish. in want of control over the appetites and passions: passionate, sensual, furious.
heates. Heat. Intensity or great warmth of feeling; fervour, ardour, animation, vehemence, eagerness, excitement. 1565 J. Jewel Def. Apol. Churche Eng. (1611) 238 Amplifications, or heats of speech, the better to stirre vp, and to enflame the minds of the Hearers.
asswage. Assuage. To soften, mitigate, calm, appease, allay (angry or excited feelings). a1535 T. More Hist. Richard III in Wks. (1557) 35/2 The displeasure of those that bare him grudge..was well asswaged.
263. unhappy. Unfortunate, unlucky, ill-fated. Of things: Associated with, bringing about or causing, misfortune or mishap; disastrous.
264. foyles. Foil. A repulse, defeat in an onset or enterprise; a baffling check. 1573 G. Harvey Let.-bk. (1884) 13 Considering what a foul shame and foil it had alreddi bene unto me.
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O bird! the iust rebuker of my crime,
The faithfull waker of my sleeping feares,
Be now the daily clocke to strike the time,
When stinted eyes shall pay their taske of teares;
Vpbraide mine eares with thine accusing crowe,
To make me rew that first it made me knowe.
Let me now address thee, oh bird : thy cockcrow is a just rebuke for my crime; thou hast been faithful and now thou dost rouse me from the fears that overtook me when my conscience was asleep. Thou shalt become for me an alarm clock that warns when the time has come for my emotionless eyes to pay their debt with tears. Upbraid and reprove me with thy rousing accusation which makes me regret bitterly that which it first made known to me.
268. stinted. Stint. Of a thing: To cease moving, to come to a stop. Of a stream, blood: To cease flowing.
Taske. Task. A fixed payment to a king, lord, or feudal superior; an impost, tax; tribute.
269. upbraid. To reproach, reprove, censure (a person, etc.). 1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream iv. i. 49 I did vpbraid her, and fall out with her.
270. rew. Rue. intransitive. To feel sorrow or grief, especially because of a personal circumstance or event; to lament. 1548 Hall's Vnion: Richard III f. xxxiijv I remembred an olde prouerbe.., that often ruithe the realme, where chyldren rule, and woman gouerne.
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Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
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