Page from an emblem book with a vignette of a whale at sea and some verses by Jacob Cats. The verses appear in Dutch, Latin, and French translations. The French verses translate to:
"And even the water has its flame.
What good does it do for a poor lover to worry everyone
Since he feels like he's burning under the deepest waves?
[?] Nothing will do but to float upon the sea
If one can see this burning regardless.
Captive love becomes ossified.
Me, who is accustomed to often pass by the sea to swim,
Do not do so now, only to pay homage to my Sun[?].
Love is a tyrant; it wants the whole heart,
In that way all lovers forget their way of life."
