The Adornment of the Spiritual Marriage

...keep your commandments, O Lord. Yet, from the remembrance of former filth and especially of the offense against God, the person becomes vile in their own eyes; and everything they do, when looked at through the lens of divine majesty, they consider worthless. Thus it happens that through the judgment of humility, daily destroying the old man original: veterem hominem, a biblical concept referring to the sinful, unregenerate nature that must be cast off to live a spiritual life along with his deeds, the person is renewed from day to day by good works, and the eyes of the heart grow young again. By this process, it finally happens that when the cry of divine visitation visitation: a moment of divine presence or intervention in the soul is made—even suddenly and unexpectedly—saying behold, look, there is no difficulty or delay in seeing. This is because the light of grace is not lacking (which carries and reveals the visible object), nor is the healthy eye of a cleansed conscience lacking (which receives the visible form). Furthermore, the rectitude of free will is present, reflecting the eye of the conscience back toward God. Let these remarks, therefore, suffice concerning the word "behold."

¶ ON THE THREEFOLD ADVENT OF CHRIST. Chapter II.

Decorative woodcut initial 'P' featuring intricate foliate and vine scrollwork.
With the eye of the heart finally cleansed, see what you may see: the bridegroom, he says, comes. It should be noted that among the Grammarians The author refers to the rules of Latin grammar where the word venit can mean "he comes" (present tense) or "he came" (perfect tense). In manuscripts and early printing, these were often written identically. this word comes original: venit, when taken by itself, belongs to two tenses: namely, the past and the present. And yet, in this passage, the Lord speaks in a parable about the future, which is made clearly evident by the exclusion of the foolish virgins A reference to the Parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25, where the "bridegroom" arrives in the future for the wedding feast.. For in the present wedding feast Likely referring to the Church on earth, the wicked are admitted alongside the good; indeed, no one is excluded to such an extent that some are even compelled to enter by royal command. But there, in that future state, none shall enter with the bridegroom to the wedding except those who have been prepared. It must be noted, therefore, that a threefold advent advent: from the Latin adventus, meaning "coming" or "arrival," specifically referring to the stages of Christ's appearance to humanity of our bridegroom can be observed here. In the first advent: he was made man for the sake of men. In the second: according to the proportion of hearts...