Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
Moses, contemplating Canaan from Nebo, dies, is buried, is mourned; Joshua succeeds him: but no prophet like Moses succeeds him afterward.
Vulgate Text: Deuteronomy 34:1-12
1. Moses therefore went up from the plains of Moab upon Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah over against Jericho: and the Lord showed him all the land of Gilead as far as Dan, 2. and all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah to the farthest sea, 3. and the south part, and the breadth of the plain of Jericho the city of palm trees as far as Zoar. 4. And the Lord said to him: This is the land for which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying: I will give it to your seed. You have seen it with your eyes, and you shall not pass over to it. 5. And Moses the servant of the Lord died there, in the land of Moab, at the command of the Lord: 6. and He buried him in the valley of the land of Moab over against Peor: and no man has known his sepulcher to this present day. 7. Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor were his teeth moved. 8. And the children of Israel mourned for him in the plains of Moab thirty days: and the days of mourning for those weeping for Moses were completed. 9. And Joshua the son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands upon him. And the children of Israel obeyed him, and did as the Lord commanded Moses. 10. And there arose no more a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, 11. in all the signs and wonders which He sent through him, to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to his whole land, 12. and all the mighty hand and the great wonders which Moses did before all Israel.
Verse 2: To the Farthest Sea
2. TO THE FARTHEST SEA, that is, to the western sea, namely the Mediterranean, which was the western boundary of the holy land.
Verse 5: Moses the Servant of the Lord Died
5. AND MOSES THE SERVANT OF THE LORD DIED THERE. Josephus describes the death of Moses thus, in book 4 of Antiquities, last chapter: "The senate alone, and the High Priest Eleazar, and the commander Joshua led Moses to Mount Abarim; on that mountain where he stood, he dismissed the senate; and when after mutual embraces he was bidding his last farewell to Eleazar and Joshua, while still speaking he was surrounded by a sudden cloud and carried away into a certain valley; but in the sacred books he wrote that he had died, fearing lest on account of his excellent virtue they would proclaim that he had been taken up by God." In a similar manner, when the bishops were leading St. Epiphanius from the city of Constantinople to the ship, he said to them: "This city and the court of the Emperor and the action and drama of this life I leave to you: but I am going away, hastening to pass over into another city," as Nicephorus reports, book 13, chapter 13.
Concerning Moses, Josephus continues: "The whole time of his life was one hundred and twenty years, of which he spent a third part in command, less one month; and he died in the last month of the year, on the first day of the month, which is called Dystrus by the Macedonians, and Adar by us," and corresponds roughly to the Romans' February.
The Hebrews, however, in the Seder Olam, whom Andreas Masius follows in his commentary on Joshua 1, hold that Moses was born on the 7th day of the twelfth month, which is called Adar, and that he died on the same day after 120 years.
But I say that Moses died at the beginning of Adar, namely on the third or fourth day of Adar. That this is so is proved as follows: for 36 days elapsed from the death of Moses to the crossing of the Hebrews through the Jordan into Canaan; but this crossing happened on the tenth day of the first month of the following year, as is clear from Joshua 4, verse 19; now count back 36 days from the tenth day of the first month, and you will arrive at the fourth day of the last month of the preceding year. Moreover, that precisely 36 days elapsed here is proved thus: for the Hebrews mourned the death of Moses for 30 days; when these were completed, Joshua sent scouts into Jericho, who lay hidden in the mountain for three days: when they returned, Joshua moved the camp to the Jordan, where he waited three days, and the next day he crossed the Jordan with his people. Now add three and three days to 30, and you will have 36, which is what we are looking for. So Torniellus.
It is remarkable that in the Roman Martyrology the day of Moses is assigned as the fourth of September: for although in the common year it is September, yet in the sacred year (which Scripture uses) Adar, that is, February, is the last month.
Note what Josephus says about Moses: "He wrote that he had died;" for so he himself, Philo, and some others think. But it is more true, as I have said elsewhere, that these things were written not by Moses, but by Joshua, or by someone else; for this is plainly implied by what is said in verse 6: "And no man has known his sepulcher to this present day;" whence the Hebrews hold that this whole chapter 34 was written by Joshua, with whom Abulensis agrees, who only excepts the first four verses of the chapter: for he thinks these were written by Moses, just about to ascend Mount Nebo, and the rest by Joshua.
Note: Concerning the death of Moses there were various opinions among the ancients. First, some thought that he was not yet dead, but was translated, so that he might return with Enoch and Elijah against the Antichrist; so Hilary thought, Canon 20 on Matthew, John Arboreus, and book 11 of his Theosophy, chapter 11, Catharinus on Genesis chapter 3.
They proved this both from the fact that his tomb was not found, and from Apocalypse 11:6, where John, speaking of the two witnesses of Christ who will be at the time of the Antichrist, adds: "These have power to turn waters into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague;" by which words Moses seems to be signified: for he himself turned waters into blood and struck Egypt with every plague, Exodus 7 and following.
St. Jerome seems to teach the same opinion in his commentary on Amos 9, and Gregory of Nyssa in his Life of Moses, at the end, and St. Ambrose, book 1 On Cain and Abel, chapter 2; and this opinion is attributed to St. Ambrose by Viegas on Apocalypse 11, and Suarez, Part 3, Question 45, article 3; for there St. Ambrose seems to assert that Moses did not truly die, but was only said to have died by the word of the Lord: because he was translated by the Lord's command, like Elijah.
These Fathers, however, are excused by others on the ground that they speak mystically: for St. Jerome says that Moses ascended into heaven, that is, into a heavenly and most perfect life and holiness; for in death he was most holy, and displayed admirable zeal and spirit, as is clear from Deuteronomy. In the same way Gregory of Nyssa can be explained: St. Ambrose, however, seems to play allegorically in his usual manner, and to mean only that Moses was a type of Christ rising immediately from death, and that the death of Moses is narrated in Scripture in such a way that he seems not so much to have died as to have been translated and made immortal. First, in that it is narrated that he did not die from a failure of strength; secondly, that he was snatched away from men; thirdly, that his tomb is unknown. For from these things he could seem to men to have been translated rather than to have died; for that Ambrose does not deny that Moses truly died is gathered from the fact that in the same place he expressly teaches that Moses will rise again.
But whatever the mind of these Fathers may be, I say that this opinion is erroneous, and indeed it is a matter of faith that Moses died. This is clear from chapter 32, verse 49: "You shall be gathered to your peoples, as Aaron died;" and here expressly: "And Moses died there;" and shortly after: "And He buried him in the valley." To Apocalypse 11, I respond that there is no mention of Moses there; but his wonders are only alluded to, in that Enoch and Elijah will do things similar to what Moses did.
Secondly, others think that Moses indeed died, but immediately rose again, and therefore no one knew his tomb. So Rabbi Samuel of Morocco, in his book On the Coming of the Messiah, chapter 13. Gagnaeus in chapter 11 of the Apocalypse nearly approaches this opinion, who teaches that Moses indeed died, but will rise again and come to do battle with the Antichrist. The same (which is remarkable) is the opinion of Maldonatus on Matthew 17. But this opinion is improbable and rash, as being without solid foundation, and contrary to the common opinion of the Fathers, who teach that not Moses, but Enoch and Elijah will come against the Antichrist.
Thirdly, others thought that Moses died, but rose again at the transfiguration of Christ, on Mount Tabor. So St. Jerome seems to think in his commentary on Matthew 17, and the author of On the Wonders of Sacred Scripture (a book falsely attributed to St. Augustine), book 3, chapter 10. But this too is improbable; for it is certain that Christ was the first of all, and before all
to have risen to immortal life: for hence Christ is called by the Apostle "the First-fruits of those who sleep," and "the First-born of the dead." If you say that Moses rose again, but died again, I respond: It would have been far harder and more bitter for Moses to die after resurrection than not to rise at all. Furthermore, it is quite probable that Moses rose shortly after Christ, together with the patriarch Jacob, Joseph, and other ancient Saints (of whom Matthew 27:52 speaks): therefore he did not rise at the transfiguration, but only appeared there in an assumed body, as angels appear: so Lyranus and Abulensis teach on Matthew 17, St. Thomas, Part 3, Question 45, article 3, reply 2, and others. For if other patriarchs rose with Christ, then much more so Moses, who was the lawgiver and leader of the people, and the express type of Christ.
MOSES THE SERVANT OF THE LORD. This is the eulogy and as it were the sepulchral title of Moses, which encompasses all the rest. "Servant" therefore means the same as ambassador, leader, lawgiver, prophet "of the Lord." It is a great dignity to be the servant of the Lord of lords. Hear Ambrose, book On Paradise, 14: "Religious servitude subject to the word of God is much better than the freedom of the world." Hear Philo, book On the Cherubim: "To serve God is the greatest glory, not only greater than freedom, but more precious than riches, and principality, and all things that mortals admire." Hence St. Paul glories in being a servant of Christ. Hence St. Agatha said to the tyrant: "Much more precious, she said, is Christian humility and servitude than the wealth and pride of kings," namely, "to serve God is to reign." And as St. Ambrose says: "It is a dignity to be the servant of a powerful one." Let us therefore say with Cassiodorus: "To serve You, O Lord, is nobler than to seize the kingdoms of the world; rightly so, since from servants we are made sons, from the impious just, from captives we are set free." Alexander the Great said to a commander of his soldiers, who was also named Alexander: "Do things worthy of your name, worthy of Alexander;" and let us too do things worthy of so great a name, worthy of a servant of God.
AT THE COMMAND OF THE LORD. In Hebrew, at the mouth of the Lord, that is, as Vatablus says, at the word of the Lord, or by the decision of the Lord. Our Vulgate translates most aptly, at the command of the Lord. God had commanded him, chapter 32, verse 49, saying: "Go up into this mountain Abarim, etc., and die on the mountain." There God pronounced the sentence of death upon Moses, that he should die on this mountain: here He executes it. God therefore, just as He first gave the soul to Moses, so here He claims it back from him and separates it from the body. Hence we read nothing here about a disease of Moses; on the contrary, it is said in verse 7 that up to the last he was so healthy and strong that his eyes were not dim nor his teeth moved; God therefore took his soul from him. Hence the Septuagint and the Chaldean translate: Moses died by the word of the Lord: for the word and command of God is efficacious, so that if He says to anyone: Die, that person immediately dies by the force of His command. Certain followers of novel interpretations explain 'at the mouth of the Lord' as, 'in the kiss of the Lord,' as if to say: Just as a mother is accustomed to place a sleeping infant from her bosom into a little bed by pressing mouth to mouth: so God placed Moses, like a sleeping infant, by a kiss and embrace, in the bosom of Abraham as in a little bed; so Viegas on Apocalypse 14, Commentary 2, section 3. This is elegant and pious rather than genuine. For in Hebrew, 'the mouth of the Lord' signifies nothing other than the word and command of the Lord, as the Septuagint, St. Jerome, the Chaldean, Vatablus, Oleaster, and all the interpreters explain.
Verse 6: He Buried Him in the Valley
AND HE BURIED HIM IN THE VALLEY. Therefore Moses did not bury himself, as certain Rabbis claim; nor did Joshua, as St. Ephrem says; but God buried him by the ministry of angels, while the devil resisted in vain. Hence St. Jude in his epistle says: "When Michael the archangel, disputing with the devil, contended about the body of Moses, he dared not bring against him a judgment of blasphemy (to revile him, to reproach him); but said: The Lord rebuke you."
Where Oecumenius writes thus: "Michael is said to have rendered his service in burying Moses; the devil could not endure this, but brought an accusation that Moses was unworthy of burial, because he had killed an Egyptian and buried him in the sand: and therefore he would not allow him to obtain an honorable burial; but when in this controversy Michael had occasion to curse the devil on account of his impudence, he did not do so, but only said this against him: May God rebuke you, O devil." Others bring other reasons for this altercation, which our Serarius reviews at length in his commentary on the Epistle of Jude.
There once existed a book entitled: The Ascension of Moses, namely his ascent of Mount Nebo, in which the conversations of Moses, about to die, with God, and his burial, dug by the hands of angels in a hidden place, and also the dispute of Michael and the devil are recounted; from which Origen, book 3 of On Principles, chapter 2, and Clement, book 6 of the Stromata, think that St. Jude received these things; where from the same source he reports that Moses was seen by Joshua and by Caleb, when he was taken up in glory, among angels.
But St. Athanasius in his Synopsis of Sacred Scripture rejects this Ascension of Moses, together with another writing entitled the Testament of Moses, among the apocrypha.
IN THE VALLEY OF THE LAND OF MOAB, OVER AGAINST PEOR. From this and from verse 5 it is clear that Moses died on Mount Nebo, but that his body was from there translated by angels and buried in the valley of Moab, that is, which borders Moab, but is in the lot of the tribe of Gad, or rather of Reuben.
OVER AGAINST PEOR. Serarius, in his commentary on the Epistle of St. Jude, holds not improbably that one of the reasons for the devil's altercation with Michael was that the devil was worshipped at Peor, and therefore he could not endure that the body of so holy a man as Moses was should be placed next to him, and he feared that by Moses,
or from that place he would be driven out, or be forced to fall silent. The moral reason was that in this valley the Hebrews had worshipped Peor, or Priapus, by fornicating with the girls of Moab, Numbers 25:1, so that God might apply an apt medicine to this wound, He willed Moses to be buried there, so that by the memory of death and the presence of the burial, they might be called away from the allurements and pleasures of the flesh. For nothing so lulls and extinguishes these as the inspection or consideration of death and a corpse. Thus a certain holy man in the Lives of the Fathers, tempted by love of a young woman, by occupying himself with inspecting and smelling the corpse and worms of that woman, now dead, completely mortified this temptation. For the same reason we read that others dwelt in tombs.
AND NO MAN HAS KNOWN HIS SEPULCHER. Why? I respond first, because in honor of so great a man it was fitting that he be buried not by men, but by angels, in a place unknown to men. So Epiphanius, Heresy 9, Oecumenius on the Epistle of Jude, Abulensis here, Question 3, and Philo, who says that Moses was buried in so wonderful a tomb that no man was ever worthy to behold it.
Secondly, lest the Hebrews should worship his body, as being that of their leader and lawgiver, as a deity or something divine. So Theodoret, Procopius here, and Chrysostom, Homily 1 on Matthew. Especially, because it is very credible that the body of Moses, although dead, still preserved the splendor and beauty of face which it had before, as has happened to many of the Saints, says Bellarmine, book 2 On the Relics of the Saints, chapter 4. And that this was the principal reason for the altercation of Michael with the devil, namely that the devil wanted the body and tomb of Moses to be open and known to the Jews, while Michael did not want this, lest it be for them an occasion of idolatry, is commonly taught by both ancient and more recent interpreters of the Epistle of St. Jude. For the Jews were then prone to idolatry: whence there was then great danger of it, such as does not exist among Christians when they venerate the relics of the Saints: therefore heretics wrongly twist this against relics. Add that God here honored the relics of Moses, when He hid them from men, and willed that they be decently treated and buried only through angels; and so by His example He taught us how much we ought to venerate the Saints and their relics.
Thus also St. Anthony, about to die, commanded his disciples: "Let no one, he said, carry my remains to Egypt, lest the body be preserved with empty honor, and the rites which, as you know, I condemned be observed even around me; for it is for this reason especially that I have returned here, so that no one besides you may know the place of my tomb. I trust in the Lord that at the necessary time of the resurrection this poor body will rise uncorrupted. The disciples therefore wrapped the body as he had instructed, and covered it with earth: and no one to this day, except them, knows where it was laid," says St. Athanasius.
It is probable, as Josephus teaches, that Moses, accompanied by Joshua, Eleazar, and other chief men, ascended Nebo; and there before them, as Cajetan says, or before some of them, he died; then his body, while they watched, was carried by angels through the air and translated into the valley of Moab, and buried there, although these onlookers could not discern or mark the particular place in the valley where he was buried, as is said here: thus far Cajetan. Moses was 120 years old when he died: Moses therefore died in the year of the world 2493, in the year 836 after the flood, and in the year 1456 before Christ.
Romulus wished to imitate this carrying away of Moses, or at least the Romans invented a similar story about him; for he either was killed by the senators or disappeared from sight. Whence Julius Proculus, a Roman patrician, invented the story that Romulus had appeared to him, and when asked what had happened to him, had answered: "It seemed good to the gods, O Julius, from whom I came, that I should be with men for a time, and found a city whose empire and glory would be the greatest, and then again inhabit heaven: farewell, and tell the Romans that if they cultivate temperance and fortitude, they will surpass all mortals in power. And I, the god Quirinus, will be propitious to you," as Plutarch reports in his Life of Romulus. Likewise Apollonius of Tyana, a magician and impostor of the world, sending away his disciple David to the Emperor Nerva, so that he would not be a witness of his final end, met a hidden death in the year of Christ 99, so that he might be believed to have been translated immortal to heaven: the witness is Philostratus in his Life. These men were as it were apes of Moses, just as the devil is the ape of God.
Verse 7: His Eye Was Not Dim
7. HIS EYE WAS NOT DIM, as the eyes of old men usually are.
NOR WERE HIS TEETH MOVED, as in old men the teeth, even the molars, usually become loose and fall out: for this is what Ecclesiastes writes about the miseries of old age, last chapter, verse 3: "When the keepers of the house shall tremble," namely sight and the other senses, "and the strong men shall stagger," namely the legs, "and the grinders shall be idle (namely the teeth) in small number." In place of 'nor were his teeth moved,' the Septuagint translates, 'nor were his lips corrupted'; the Chaldean, 'nor was the splendor of the glory of his face changed': where he plainly means that the horns of light always remained on Moses, which Bellarmine cited shortly before also holds: on which matter I spoke at Exodus 34:29. Vatablus translates, his jaw had not failed at all, or his vigor had not withered; so also Cajetan, as if to say: his face and body were always full of life; for old age is usually dry. Hence it is clear that Moses did not die from a failure of strength, or from disease; but only by the command and will of God: for he ascended the mountain in full health, and there immediately died, God dissolving him and separating his soul from the body and leading it to the Limbo of the Fathers.
This vigor and strength came to Moses, says Abulensis, from his familiarity and presence with God: because he stayed and conversed with God twice for forty days on Sinai, and then he did not eat or drink, sustained by the presence of God alone. And from this he had horns, that is, rays of light, on his face: from this also he had enduring strength in all his limbs; so that in the year in which he died, he went to war against two kings, namely Og and Sihon, Numbers 21 and 22. His voice also did not fail him: for with a very loud and stentorian voice, which could be heard by the whole people, he promulgated the entire Deuteronomy with great spirit to the Hebrews, shortly before his death. Add, however, that his sober diet and the tranquility of his soul, arising from the meekness of Moses, also contributed to this. For, as Hippocrates says, τά ἄχολα μακρόβια, animals that lack bile are long-lived, and healthy and strong into great age; for which reason deer above other animals endure long-lived and strong. Whence the School of Salerno:
If you wish to keep yourself safe, if you wish to make yourself healthy, remove heavy cares, believe that anger is profane.
Thus St. Bernard, although sickly, on account of the peace and tranquility of his soul, surpassed his sixtieth year, and when dying said to his followers: "I commend three things to you, which in the course I have run, as much as I could, I observed: first, I trusted my own judgment less than another's; secondly, when injured, I did not seek revenge against the one who injured me; thirdly, I wished to give scandal to no one: and if ever I fell into it, I settled it as best I could;" whence the couplet:
I disturbed no one, I reconciled the quarrelsome, when injured I endured, and I did not please myself.
Likewise St. Anthony, as St. Athanasius testifies, with always a cheerful spirit and countenance, lived to his 105th year, persisting to the end in the same tenor and rigor of abstinence and penance, "nor did he ever make any concession to age on account of weakness. But rather, maintaining the constancy of his resolve, he neither changed his garment, nor washed his feet, nor pursued softer food: and the keenness of his eyes, and the number of his teeth, although they seemed somewhat worn by age; and also his gait, and the firmness of his whole body, he so preserved even contrary to the laws of nature by the grace of his merits, that his flesh appeared more cheerful than washed bodies which were pampered by baths and luxuries." And again: "He had finished his words, and as his disciples kissed him, stretching out his feet a little, he looked upon death with joy, so that from the cheerfulness of his countenance the presence of the holy angels, who had descended to bear away his soul, could be recognized." Thus far St. Athanasius.
Likewise St. Abraham the hermit, as St. Ephrem testifies in his Life, chapter 18, although he macerated himself with constant fasts, vigils, tears, and penances, was vigorous in old age until death. "His appearance, says St. Ephrem, was like an unfading flower; and in his face the purity of his soul was recognized. But also his whole little body, as if he had done nothing, appeared healthy and strong, inasmuch as he enjoyed divine grace in all things, and possessed the delight of spiritual joy. For at the hour of his falling asleep, his face appeared so most splendid, as if he had in no way spent the time of his life in abstinence; and indeed in all fifty years of his abstinence, he did not change the hairshirt with which he was clothed."
Verses 8-9: Mourning and Joshua's Succession
8. AND THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL MOURNED FOR HIM THIRTY DAYS. Hence also among Christians the thirty-day commemorations of the dead are observed, as I said at Numbers 20:29.
9. MOSES HAD LAID HIS HANDS UPON HIM, as if to say: Through the imposition of Moses' hands, Joshua had received the Holy Spirit, says Vatablus. See what was said at Numbers 27:18.
Verses 10-12: No Prophet Like Moses
10 and 11. AND THERE AROSE NO MORE A PROPHET IN ISRAEL (like Moses, namely, so that he would be so familiar with God and so worker of wonders) WHOM THE LORD KNEW FACE TO FACE, (likewise similar to him), IN ALL THE SIGNS AND WONDERS WHICH HE SENT THROUGH HIM (giving him, namely, the power and authority) TO DO THEM. It could be more clearly translated with Vatablus and Cajetan: for which, or on account of which the Lord had sent him, to do, etc. In these things therefore Moses surpassed all the Prophets, namely in wonders and in familiarity with God; which does not preclude, however, that to some other Prophet more and greater mysteries may have been revealed. For thus David is commonly called the greatest of the Prophets, says Abulensis. Of Christ there is no doubt that He was more excellent than Moses: but Christ was not so much a Prophet as a new and illustrious inspector and lawgiver of the Gospel.
Tropologically. Thus St. Ephrem in his Encomium of St. Basil compares him to Moses and the other Prophets, if he does not prefer him, saying: "O faithful Basil, like Abel you were accepted, like Noah you were saved, like Abraham you were called a friend of God, like Isaac you were offered as a victim to God; like Jacob you bravely endured temptations: and like Joseph, you were magnificently glorified: like Moses, you drowned the later Pharaoh with the rod of the cross, cutting through the sea of sufferings: like Aaron, you were the supreme priest of the Lord: like Joshua the son of Nun, you put enemies to flight: like Phinehas the zealot, you were held worthy of grace: like Isaiah, you were cleansed with spiritual fire: like Ezekiel, you beheld Him who sits upon the Cherubim: like Daniel, you stopped the mouths of lions: and like the three youths, you rightly trampled the flame of your adversaries. Like Peter you preached, like Paul you taught, like Thomas you confessed the Son of God who suffered: like Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, you discoursed on divine things: like the Apostles you instructed the wicked, you converted the impious, and you were pleasing to God: pray for me, who am utterly wretched, and recall me by your intercessions, O father."
12. AND ALL THE MIGHTY HAND, that is, and all the mighty, powerful, and magnificent works, I say, God sent, that is, gave, to Moses, when He stirred him up and strengthened him to accomplish them. In the Hebrew the connection is clearer; for it has 'and in all the mighty hand,' which is aptly connected with what preceded, 'in all the signs and wonders.'
AND GREAT WONDERS. In Hebrew, and all the great terror. He says great terror, according to Vatablus, on account of the things done in the Red Sea; and terror, on account of the law which the Lord gave on Mount Sinai with so many terrifying portents, to which add other terrors, such as the swallowing up of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, the burning of 250 nobles, Numbers 16:35, the slaughter of the fornicators, Numbers 25, and others.
O long, O profound, O abysmal, O eternal ETERNITY! Moses lived, and now lives blessed and glorious with God forever; so let us also live. Our soul is eternal, it will live forever, either blessedly or wretchedly. Live for Eternity; strive, suffer for Eternity. Here you cast the die, the irrevocable die of Eternity. O dear Eternity, eternal truth, true charity, my God and my all, open our eyes, remove from us the stupor of men, that we may know what Eternity is, how immense, how happy or wretched it is. You created us for Yourself, You created us for Eternity, because You are Eternity; You willed, You commanded, You decreed to make us sharers of Your Eternity. For perpetual light shall shine upon Your saints, O Lord, and an Eternity of times. Grant that we may spend this moment of time piously and holily, that in it we may apply ourselves to Eternity, labor for Eternity, suffer and fight for Eternity, and that we may cry out the same to all, and save as many souls as we can from perishing forever. Hear, O Christians; hear, O Pagans; hear, O Belgium; let the world hear: No security is great enough where ETERNITY is at stake.
Blessed are they who dwell in Your house, O Lord, in the Eternal mountains: for ever and ever they shall praise You.