Venantius Fortunatus (570-609) wrote the hymn quoted below. I will comment on each verse. The English translation used here can be found in the Lutheran Book of Worship.
Vexilla Regis prodeunt;
fulget Crucis mysterium,
quo carne carnis conditor
suspensus est patibulo.
The royal banners forward go;
The cross shines forth in mystic glow
Where he, by whom our flesh was made,
In that same flesh our ransom paid.
The first verse brings us to the cross of Christ and our Lord’s victory there. It was to Queen Radegunda that Emperor Justin II of the Eastern Roman Empire sent a relic of True Cross. Fortunatus wrote this hymn to accompany the conveying of the relic to the church. In the first verse it is stated that he who created us paid the price to ransom us from evil–ours and Satan’s.
Quo vulneratus insuper
mucrone diro lanceae,
ut nos lavaret crimine,
manavit uda et sanguine.
Where deep for us the spear was dyed,
Life’s torrent rushing from his side,
To wash us in the precious flood
Where flowed the water and the blood.
The reference here is to a passage in John where a Roman soldier pierces Jesus’ side from which came blood and water. The blood and water may have symbolic significance. In John water symbolizes the Spirit. The blood, of course, refers to Christ’s lifegiving death. “To wash us in the precious flood” is one example of the symbolic nature of the hymn. Here we have a further statement of the meaning of the cross for the human race.
Impleta sunt quae concinit
David fideli carmine,
dicendo nationibus:
regnavit a ligno Deus.
Fulfilled is all that David told
In true prophetic song of old,
That God the nations’ king should be
And reign in triumph from the tree.
David foresaw the coming of the Messiah as expressed in the Psalms. God is king of all the nations, not only Israel. Both Jews and Gentiles participate in the kingdom. Christ wins victory over sin, death, and the power of the devil through the cross that is described here as the tree. The Proper Preface for Passiontide in the Holy Eucharist reads, “It is indeed right and salutary that we should at all times and in all places offer thanks and praise to you, O Lord, holy Father, through Christ our Lord; who on the tree of the cross gave salvation to all, that where death began, there life might be restored, and that he, who by a tree once overcame, might by a tree be overcome . . . ” Death began in Eden at the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; it was by the tree of the cross that life was restored. Satan is the one who overcame Adam and Eve, while the cross overcame Satan. Jesus truly reigns as king. ASsGod is the king of Israel, so he is king of all the world.
Abor decora et fulgida,
ornata Regis purpura,
electa digno stipite
tam sancta membra tangere.
O tree of beauty, tree most fair,
Ordained those holy limbs to bear:
Gone is your shame, each crimsoned bough
Proclaims the King of glory now.
The symbol of the tree continues in this verse. The cross bore Jesus whose suffering, sacrifice, and death represent victory, not shame. The cruel instrument of death becomes a beautiful thing through Christ’s death. Our Lord’s act of sacrifice proclaims Him as King of glory, not a convicted criminal. To call the cross a “tree of beauty” is an irony that indicates Christ’s victory rather than shame being the last word.
Beata, cuius brachiis
pretium pependit saeculi:
statera facta corporis,
praedam tulitque tartari.
Blest tree, whose chosen branches bore
The wealth that did the world restore,
The price of humankind to pay
And spoil the spoiler of his prey.
The tree of the cross is not only fair, but also blest–blest because through Christ death we are saved from sin, death, and the power of the devil. The branch is chosen, because God elected on Calvary to complete his redemptive work. Christ’s death is described as wealth. The sacrifice of the cross is viewed as a payment of ransom for humankind. The spoiler is the devil who is spoiled of his prey (humankind). It is a great image and play on words in this English translation.
Te, fons salutis Trinitas,
collaudet omnis spiritus:
quos per Crucis mysterium
salvas, fove per saecula. Amen
To you, eternal Three in One,
Our songs shall rise in unison;
Those whom you ransom and restore
Preserve and govern evermore. (The source of this verse is unknown).
In a direct address to God, the Three in One, we sing our song, and we ask that we who are ransomed by the cross be governed and preserved through this redemptive act of Christ.
The day of the Feast of the Exultation of the Cross is celebrated in Lutheran circles as Holy Cross Day. It hearkens back to Justin’s gift to Radagunda who became the prioress of a monastery.
The event of the donation of the cross and the hymn written for the occasion helps us remember that when we defend and witness to the faith, we are proclaiming the cross and the victory thereon won, as testified to by Christ’s resurrection from the dead.
Michael G. Tavella
September 26, 2024
