761 discourse i: the bath in the garden things stand firm, thus fall on His face? Why? Our sins crushed and overwhelmed Him (as Isaiah foretold). “And the LORD has laid on [H]im the iniquity of us all.” Vatable,3 translating from the Hebrew, says, “And God made the sin of us all fall upon [H]im” (Is 53:6).4 Our iniquities, like a very numerous and powerful army, attacked our Lord praying in the garden, and crushed Him to the ground. And so, the holy interpreter of the prophet, Ferrer,5 rightly addresses every one of us here: “Christian, consider closely how your sins and mine prove to be a part of that army, which rushed upon Christ.”6 3. Therefore, when we hear that Jesus declared war against the almost infinite legion of our sins, should we expect something other than blood? Ah! Truly, the bloody sweat flows, not only from His red forehead, but it flows from nearly the whole Body of our Atlas, bent down under the weight of the guilt of the whole world! For, as St. Luke records, “And there appeared to [H]im an angel from heaven, strengthening [H]im” (Lk 22:43). The ancient world was at one time astounded to look upon or hear about a statue of Hercules bathed with sweat. Who among us, witnessing so much, such excellent sweat, could refrain from tears, hearing that dark red streams flowed from the limbs of the true GodMan and beholding this with the eyes of a devout mind? In truth, I have such great compassion for You, O so good and so sweet Jesus, for this battle taken up against our sins was so intense for You that this shower of Your Blood was so abundantly drawn out from Your Divine Body. But even so, I rejoice within my heart, and I am glad with the whole human race, that in the solitude of Gethsemane, Your Blood sprang forth to become a bath, in which we may be washed from our filth […]. 3 Cf. Anon., Vatable, François († 1547), EI XXXIV, 1032. 4 Cf. Is 53:6 in Biblia Utriusque Testamenti, cum adnotationibus Francisci Vatabli, Oliva Rob. Stephani 1557, p. 211. 5 This is probably St. Vincent Ferrer († 1419). Cf. Bertucci, Sadoc M., Vincenzo Ferrer, santo: BS XII, 1168-1176. 6 This text was not able to be found in the sermons of St. Vincent.
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