Sæl og harðla heilug,
heyr, Máría, várar
bænir, bragna pínu
bót og synda ljótra.
Höll taktu í frið fullan
fljótt miskunnar dróttins
af greypustu glæpa
grandi várar andir.
Sæl og harðla heilug Máría, heyr bænir várar, bót bragna pínu og ljótra synda. Höll miskunnar dróttins, taktu fljótt andir várar af greypustu grandi glæpa í fullan frið.
Blessed and very holy Mary, hear our prayers, remedy for men’s torment and ugly sins. Hall of the mercy of the Lord [= God (= Christ) > = Mary], quickly fetch our souls from the cruellest pain of sins into secure peace.
[5-6] höll miskunnar dróttins ‘hall of the mercy of the Lord [= God (= Christ) > = Mary]’: ‘The mercy of the Lord’ is understood as a kenning for Christ. The figure of Mary as the ‘hall’ (Lat. palatium) of Christ, based on her having ‘housed’ him in her womb, is fairly common in later Christian poetry (e.g. Mgr 28/1, Anon Lil 90/5, Arngr Gd 57/3-4IV; cf. Schottmann 1973, 49 and nn).
case: gen.