“Have mercy on me, O God, according to the greatness of your mercy: not according to the mercy of humans, which is small, but according to your mercy which is great, which is beyond measure, which is beyond comprehension, which surpasses all sins to an immense degree: according to that great mercy of yours, by which you “so loved the world that you gave your only begotten Son” (John 3:16). What greater mercy could there be? What greater charity? Who then can despair? Who not have confidence? God became man and was crucified for us. Have mercy on me then, O God, according to this great mercy of yours by which you handed over for us your Son, by which you took away the sins of the world through Him, by which you enlightened all men through His cross, by which you restored through Him “the things which are in heaven & which are on earth” (Eph 1:10). Wash me, O Lord, in His blood, enlighten me in His humility, restore me in His resurrection. Have mercy on me, O God, not according to your little mercy, for your mercy is little when you lift men from their bodily miseries but great when you forgive sins and you lift up men through your grace above the heights of the earth. So have mercy on me, O God, according to this great mercy of yours, that you turn me towards you, so that you blot out my sins, so that you justify me through your grace…
This is my first desire. My sins are my greatest tribulation: from it all the rest of my tribulation comes forth. Take away my sins, Lord, & I am free from all tribulation, for tribulation & anguish come from the fountain of the heart: for all sadness grows out of love…
Your grace is your justice, Lord; & grace would not be grace if it were given because of merits. Therefore deliver me from my sins not in my justice but in your justice, or certainly deliver me in your justice, that is, in your Son, who alone among humans is found just…
Do not attribute it to my rashness, O Lord, if I desire to teach transgressors your paths. It is not I, the transgressor in disrepute and in chains, who desires to teach transgressors, but I to who you have given back the joy of your salvation. If you strengthen me with a willing Spirit, if you set me free, then will I teach transgressors your ways. This is not something difficult for you, who can raise up children of Abraham from stones. Neither can my sins stand in your way if you want to do this; indeed, “where sin abounds, grace also abounds even more” (Rom. 5:20)…
Tell me: who raised your heart from the ground up to God? Who led you to pray? Who caused sorrow over your sins & tears? Who gave you hope? Who left you happy during prayer & after it? Who strengthened you daily in your holy determination? Was it not the Lord, who brings about everything in all beings?...
O God, give me a spirit that loves you, a supreme spirit that adores you (Ps. 51:10).”
- Girolamo Savonarola, Prison Meditations on Psalms 51 & 31
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