Beatrice La Farge (ed.) 2007, ‘Níkulás Bergsson, Jónsdrápa postula 1’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, p. 67.
Unni allra manna
alskýrr ok mey dýrri
heilagr Kristr ins hæsta
hreinlífis þér einum.
Valði heims ok hǫlða
hauksnjallr konungr allrar
sér til sýslu stjóra
sárvæginn þik frægjan.
Alskýrr heilagr Kristr unni þér einum allra manna ok dýrri mey ins hæsta hreinlífis. {Hauksnjallr konungr heims ok hǫlða, sárvæginn}, valði þik frægjan sér til stjóra allrar sýslu.
Completely pure [and] holy Christ granted to you alone of all men and to the precious maiden the highest degree of chastity. {Courageous as a hawk the king of the world and men, merciful to sin[ners]} [= God], chose you, famous one, for himself as steward of all business.
Mss: 649a(46r) (Jón4)
Readings: [1] allra: ‘all[...]a’ 649a
Editions: Skj AI, 560, Skj BI, 546, Skald I, 265; Jón4 1874, 509, Bugge 1874, 932, Lange 1958a, 78.
Context: See Introduction.
Notes: [All]: The statement that S. John is second to Mary alone in purity is the highest form of praise, since Mary is the Virgin Mother of God. S. John was considered to be a virgin (Kirschbaum et al. 1968-76, VII, 112, 114), in contrast to the other Apostles, who were held to be married men. — [1] allra ‘of all’: Earlier eds read <r> without comment, but the letter is now no longer visible. — [8] sárvæginn ‘merciful to sin[ners]’: Finnur Jónsson (Skj B) interprets this cpd as ‘merciful to wounds’ or ‘merciful to the wounded’ and regards sár (noun ‘wound’ or adj. ‘wounded’) as a metaphorical expression for ‘sin’ or ‘sinners’ (LP: sárvæginn).
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