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skaldic

Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages

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Anon Lil 22VII/1 — það ‘that’

Veitt er líf, það er varð, er mátti;
veitt er líf, það er Ádám neitti;
sú miskunn á settum tíma
sendiz fram af guðdóms hendi,
ljós í heim að lifanda kæmi;
lifandi víst og kvaldar andir
tæki burt ór djöfla díki;
dýrð einglanna slíku stýrði.

Veitt er líf, það er varð, er mátti; veitt er líf, það er Ádám neitti; sú miskunn sendiz fram á settum tíma af hendi guðdóms, að lifanda ljós kæmi í heim; tæki burt víst lifandi og kvaldar andir ór djöfla díki. Dýrð einglanna stýrði slíku.

Life is given, that which came into being when it had to; life is given, that which Adam refused; that mercy was sent forth at the appointed time from the hand of the Godhead, so that a living light might come into the world; it would take away truly living and tormented souls from the devils’ pit; the glory of angels controlled such [a thing].

readings

[1] það: því 720a VIII, 622

notes

[1] það er varð, er mátti ‘that which came into being when it had to’: Eiríkur Magnússon’s glossary (1870, 115) suggests ‘a life which came when it might, i.e. in fit season’. Another possible translation is ‘that which became what it had to become’. Skj B and Skald choose to read the third er of l. 1 as ok ‘and’ (so 99a, 713, 705ˣ and 4892), producing the cl. þat er varð ok mátti ‘[life] which was and could be [given]’. Skj B translates Det liv er givet, som måtte og kunde gives ‘That life is given, which had to be and could be given’.

grammar

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