O death, where is thy
struggle
?
Augustine - Exposition on the Psalms - v1
-- beasts, whose memories we solemnize ?
And since men thus treated them, did they not rejoice over them ?
How then
can either the Christian People say,
O Lord, for Thou hast taken me up, and hast not made mine enemies to rejoice over me ?
6. We shall understand this, if we look first to the title of
the Psalm. This is, To the end, a Psalm of the canticle of
the dedication of the house, of David himself. In this title
lies all the expectation, and the whole mystery of the solution
of this difficulty. The house will sometime be dedicated, univer- which is now in building. For now the house, that is, the "r^Inen". Church, is in building : hereafter it will be dedicated. In tum. the dedication will appear the glory of the Christian People,
which is now hidden. Now let our enemies rage, let them humble us, let them do, not whatever they wish, but whatever
they are permitted to do from above. For we must not set
down whatever we have suffered from our enemies to our
enemies, and not to the Lord our God. Seeing that by His
Own example the Mediator hath shewn, when from above
He permitteth men to injure, that not the will to injure is
given from above, but the power. For every evil man hath
in himself the will to injure ; but the ability to injure is not
in his power. That he hath the will, he is at once guilty :
that he hath the power, by the hidden dispensation of God's providence it is permitted him against one for punishment, against another it is permitted for his trial, against another it
is permitted for his crown. For punishment: as the aAAo'puXoi, Judges that is, foreigners were permitted to take captive the people
of Israel, because they sinned against God. But for trial (Philis- permission was given to the devil against Job: Job was tried, J0b2,3. the devil was put to confusion. But for a crown has per mission been given to persecutors against Martyrs: the
Martyrs have been slain, their persecutors fancied they had
/ will magnify Thee,
in the open sight of men unreally, the others were in secret truly crowned. Therefore against whom permission given, matter of the hidden of God's providence but the will to injure man's own, for he does not forthwith slay whom he would.
conquered they triumphed dispensation
is
:
a
is
is
:
13' J,
2'22 All that enemies can do is by God's permission.
Psalm 7. Accordingly the Lord Himself, the Judge of quick and Exp. ii. dead, standing before a human judge, affording us a pattern of humility and patience, not conquered, but exhibiting to
the soldier an example for fighting, when the judge was Johnl9, threatening, andIswelling with pride, and saying, Knowest
have power to release, and to slay Thee ? took away the pride of the boaster, and giving back as it were the breathing by which his swelling might go down, answered, Thou couldest have no power against Me, except it were given thee from above. Job too, (now the devil has
slain his children, the devil has taken away all his substance,) Joh l, what did he say too ? The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; as it hath pleased the Lord, so hath it been
done ; blessed be the name of the Lord. Let not the enemy triumph, because he hath done it : I know, saith he, by Whom permission hath been given him : to the devil let there be assigned the will to injure, to my Lord the power of proving. Even under his bodily sores, his wife, who was left, comes up to him, like Eve, the devil's helper, not her husband's comforter, tempts him, and among many re-
Job 2,9. proaches says, Speak some word against God, and die. And that Adam on the dunghill was more guarded than Adam in Paradise. For Adam in Paradise consented to the woman, that he should be sent out of Paradise : Adam on the dunghill rejected the woman, that he should be admitted into Paradise. What then does that Adam on the dunghill, travailing with immortality within, without overspread with worms, what says he to the
,0"
What ? If we hare received good at the hand of the Lord, shall we not bear with evil ? Here again too he acknowledged in himself the hand of the Lord, because the devil had smitten him : for he did not attend to who smote, but Who permitted. For even the devil himself called the same power, which he wished to be given him, the hand of
the Lord. For accusing that just man, to whom the Lord
Thou not that
Job 2, woman ? Thou hast spoken as one of the foolish women.
bare testimony, he says to God, Doth Job fear the Lord for
Joh l ,
~ ' nought? Hast not Thou made a hedge about him, and
about his house, and about all that he hath on every side ? Thou hast blessed the works of his hands, and his substance
Christ's People, now troubled, shall triumph at His coming, 223
is increased in the land. So great goods hast Thou given Ver.
-- Thine hand, and touch all that he hath, and verily he will
bless Thee to Thy face ! What is, Put forth Thine hand,
when he wished himself to put it forth ? But because he
could not put forth his own hand, he called this very power,
which he received of God, the hand of God.
8. What follows then, Brethren, because the enemies have
done so great things against Christians, and have exulted, and rejoiced over them ? But when will it appear, that they have not really rejoiced over them ? When they shall be confounded, and these shall rejoice at the coming of the Lord our God, when He shall come bearing retribution in His hand, damnation to the ungodly, a kingdom to the righteous, fellowship with the devil to the unrighteous,
with Christ to the faithful. When, I say, He
shall shew this, when the righteous shall stand in great boldness, (I speak from the Scriptures : you remember the lesson from the book of Wisdom : Then shall the righteous Wisd. 5, stand in great boldness against them that have afflicted
them but they repenting and groaning for anguish of spirit
shall say among themselves, What hath pride profited us?
or what good hath the vaunting of riches done us For all
those things are passed away like a shadow. And what will
they say of the righteous . How are they reckoned among
the children of God, and their lot is among the saints! )
then will the dedication of the house be, which now being
built in tribulation then will that People rightly say, will
exalt Thee, Lord, for Thou hast taken me up, and hast
not made mine enemies to rejoice over me. These words
then will be verified in the People of God, the People that
now in straitness, now in tribulation with so great temptations, so great offences, so great persecution, so great pressure. These torments of soul he doth not feel in the
Church, who maketh no progress, for he thinks all peace
but let him begin to make progress, and then he will see
in what pressure he for when the blade had increased, Mat. 13, and had brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
And he that increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow. Let Eccies. him make progress, and he will see where he let there be
fruit, and tares will appear. It true saying of the
him, and therefore doth he honour Thee. But put forth
fellowship
is a
is :
is is I
'
9'. 5J
is ;
:
is
:
0
;
?
?
224 Patient waiting.
What to build on Christ, the Foundation.
Psalm Apostle, and cannot be destroyed from the beginning unto ? *ff the end : Yea, and all, saith he, that will live godly in
2Tl^T3, Christ suffer persecution. But malignant men and seducers 12,18. 't<<KB worse and worse, themselves deceived, and deceiving
Ps. 27, others. And whence are those words of the Psalm, Wait on U' the Lord, quit thyself like a man, and let thine heart be
yea, wait on the Lord? It were not enough once, Wait on the Lord, if it were not repeated : unless haply he might wait two days, three days, four days, and the pressure and tribulation still remain, and therefore he added,
Quit thyself like a man : and again, let thine heart be strengthened. And because it will be so from the beginning even to the end, what the sentence has in the beginning, the same it has at the end, Yea, wait on the Lord. These
things which press upon thee will pass away, and He will come, on Whom thou waitest, and wipe away thy sweat: He will dry the tear, thou shalt weep no more. But now
Joh 7, l. we must groan in tribulations, as Job saith, Is not man's life
upon earth a trial ?
9. Nevertheless, Brethren, before the day of the dedication
of the house come, let us consider that our Head hath
already been dedicated : already hath the dedication of the house taken place in the Head, as the dedication of the
strengthened,
The Head is above, the foundation below : we not perhaps have spoken amiss in saying that Christ is the foundation ; He is rather the top. He hath ascended into heaven, He sitteth at the right Hand of the " Father. " But I think we have made no mistake. For
l Cor. 3, the Apostle hath said, For other foundation can no man lay
II" 12'
than that is laid, which is Christ Jesus. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones. They who live godly, who honour and praise God, who are
in tribulations, who long for their country, these build gold, silver, precious stones : but they who still love the things of this world, and are involved in earthly business, and are given up to certain bonds and affections of the flesh, to their homes, wives, possessions ; and yet are Christians, so that their heart doth not withdraw from Christ, and that they place nothing before Christ, as in building nothing is placed before the foundation ; these indeed build wood, hay, stubble : but what hath he gone on
foundation. may
patient
Earthly affections, hay. Christ both Head and Foundation.
to say ? The fire shall try every man's work of what sort it Ver.
is. The fire of tribulation and of trial.
many martyrs here, but in the end it trieth all the human i3. ? r" ' race. Martyrs have been found, who possessed these worldly
goods. How many rich men and senators have suffered?
Yet some of them did build wood, hay, stubble, in their ib. 12. affection for carnal and worldly cares: but still, because they
had Christ for a foundation upon which they built, the hay
was burnt, and they were left on the foundation. So saith
the Apostle, Ifany man's work abide, he shall receive a reward, and shall lose nothing ; because what he loved, this
shall he find. What then hath the fire of tribulation
done
for them ? if If abide, ib. 15.
It hath tried them. any man's work
he shall receive a reward : any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss : but he himself shall be saved ; yet so as by fire. But it is one thing not to be injured by the fire, another thing to be saved through the fire. And whence? Because of the foundation. Let not then the foundation withdraw from thine heart. Lay not the found ation upon hay, that is, lay not hay before the foundation,
This fire has tried -
225
that the hay should have the first place in thine heart and Christ the second : but if now it must needs be that there be hay there, at least let Christ have the first place there, and the hay the second.
10. Christ then is the Foundation. As I said, our Head hath been dedicated, the Head is Itself the Foundation. But a foundation is usually below, and a head above. May you, holy brethren, understand my words : peradventure I
shall explain this in the Name of Christ. Weights are of two kinds. For a weight is a certain force in any substance, struggling as it were to gain its proper place : this is a weight. You carry a stone in your hand, you bear the pressure of its weight, it presses down your hand, because it seeks its proper place. And would you know what it seeks? Withdraw your hand, it comes to the ground, it rests on the earth, it has arrived where it tended, it has found its proper
That weight, therefore, was, as it were, spontaneous motion, without life, without sensation. There are other things, which seek their place upwards. For if you pour water upon oil, by its own weight it goes to the bottom.
Q.
place.
226 The Church, tending upward, hath herfoundation above.
Psalm For it seeks its proper place, it seeks to be duly ordered ; for Exp. ll. water aoove oil is out of its order. Until it arrives then at its proper order, there is a restless motion, till it occupies its
On the other hand, let out oil under water ; as, for instance, if a vessel of oil fall into water, into the deep, into the sea, and be broken, the oil does not rest
below. As the water poured upon oil, by its weight towards the bottom seeks its proper place ; so oil poured out under water by its weight seeks its proper place towards the top. If then this be so, brethren, whither does fire and water tend ? Fire is borne upwards, it seeks its proper place ; and water seeks its proper place by its own weight. Stone seeks the bottom, and the wood, and the pillars, and the earth, wherewith these houses are built : they are then of that kind of substances, which, by their own weight, are borne down wards. It is clear then, that they receive their foundation down below, because they are by their own weight borne downwards ; and except there is something to sustain the whole falls, because the whole tends towards the earth. With things then that have downward tendency, the foundation laid below but the Church of God which laid below tendeth towards heaven. Our foundation there fore hath been laid there, even our Lord Jesus Christ sitting at the right Hand of the Father. If then ye have understood, holy brethren, how that our Foundation hath been already dedicated, let us shortly listen to, and run through, the Psalm.
11. will exalt Thee, Lord, for Thou hast taken Me up, and hast not made Mine enemies to rejoice over Me. What enemies The Jews In the dedication of the foundation let us understand the very dedication of the future house: for what now said in the person of the Foundation, will then be said in the person of the whole house. What enemies then The Jews, or the devil and his angels rather, who retired in confusion after the Lord's resurrection The prince of death grieved at the victory over death And Thou hast not made Mine enemies to rejoice over Me because could not be kept in hell.
12. Ver. 2. Lord, My God, have cried unto Thee, and Thou hast healed Me. The Lord prayed in the mount
proper place.
; O:?
I I
is ?
:
? is
O ?
/
a
it, is
Man healed by Christ's Wounding. Life in God's will. 227 before His Passion, He healed Him. Healed Whom ? Him, V">>-
B ft
will then be ours to declare, the exaltation now is Christ's. ? ! ? 18. Ver. 3. O Lord, Thou hast brought back My Soulu
from hell. This needs no explanation. Thou hast saved Me from them that go down into the pit. Who are they that go down into the pit ? All sinners who sink into the deep. For the pit is the depth of this world. What is this depth of the world ? The abounding of wantonness, and wickedness. They then who immerse themselves in lusts, and earthly desires, go down into the pit. Such persecuted Christ. But what doth He say ? Thou hast saved Me from them that go down into the pit.
14. Ver. 4. Sing to the Lord, O ye saints of His. Since your Head hath risen, all ye other members hope for that, which ye see in the Head : all ye other members hope for that, which ye have believed in the Head. It is a true and ancient proverb, Where the head is, there are the other members. Christ hath ascended into heaven, whither we are about to follow. He hath not remained in hell, He hath risen again, He dieth no more: when we too shall have risen again, we shall die no more. Having then these promises, Sing to the Lord, O ye saints of His; and make confession of the remembrance of His holiness. What is, Make confession of the remembrance? For ye had forgotten Him, but He hath not forgotten you.
15. Ver. 5. For in His indignation is wrath, and life in Gen' 2.
Who was never sick, the Word God, the Word the Divinity?
No, but He bore the death of flesh, He bore thy wound,
being about to heal thee of thy wound. And the flesh was healed. When ? When He rose again. Listen to the Apostle, see the true healing: Death, saith he, hath been swallowed up in Victory. O death, where is thy sting ? l Cor.
O death, where is thy struggle ? Therefore that exaltation 05. ' '<<.
In the day that ye shall eat, ye shall surely die. They touched, they died, having been dismissed from Paradise, for in His indignation is wrath : but not without hope, for there is life in His will. What is in His will ? Not in our strength, not
in our merits : but because He willed He hath saved us not because we were worthy. For of what the sinner
Q2
His will. Wrath in indignation against the sinner :
it, is
;
228 God's light rising and setting. Three days of the world.
Psalm worthy, but of punishment ? He hath given life. And if He ExpIf hath given life to the ungodly, what doth He reserve for the
faithful ?
16. In the evening weeping will tarry. Fear not, for that
he had said to us, Sing'; and here is groaning: in singing exultation, in prayer groaning. Groan for things present, sing for things to come ; pray for what is here, sing for what is hoped. In the evening weeping will tarry. What is, In the evening weeping will tarry? It is evening, when the sun
sets. The sun hath set on man, that is, That Light of
Righteousness, the presence of God. Hence when Adam Gen. 3, was expelled, what is said in the book of Genesis ? When God walked in Paradise, He walked in the evening. The sinner had now hid himself in the wood, he was unwilling to see the Face of God, at Which he had been wont to rejoice. The Sun of Righteousness had set on him, he did not rejoice at the presence of God. Thence began all this mortal life. In the evening weeping will tarry. Ye will long be in
weeping, race of man ; for ye will be born of Adam: and so ithascome topass: wetooareofAdam,andasmanyas have begotten children, and shall beget them, are of Adam, of whom they too themselves were born. In the evening weeping will tarry; and exultation in the morning. When That Light shall have begun to rise on the faithful, which had set on sinners. For therefore too did the Lord Jesus Christ rise from the tomb in the morning, that what He hath dedicated in the foundation, the same He might promise to
the house. In our Lord it was evening, when He was buried ; and morning when He rose again on the third day : thou too wast buried in the evening in Paradise, and hast risen again on the third day. How on the third day ? thou consider the course of the world, there is one day before the Law, another under the Law, a third under grace.
What on that third day thy Head shewed, the same is on the third day of the world shewn in thee. When ? In the morning we must hope, we must rejoice ; but now we must endure, and groan. I
17. Ver. 6. But
moved/or ever. In what abundance, hath man said, I shall
said in my abundance,
? Oxf. Mm. add ' both here is exultation. '
shall not be
I
If
God withdrew from man's pride, returns to him humbled. 229
not be moved for ever? We understand, Brethren, the Vek. character of man in his humiliation. Who hath abundance ft, O-- here? Not one. What is man's abundance? Care, calamity.
But the rich have abundance ? The more they have, the
more they want: they are wasted by longings, torn by desires, racked by fears, waste away with sorrow : where is their abundance? There was abundance, when man was settled in Paradise, when nothing was wanting to him, when
he enjoyed God; but he said,
shall not be moved
I Ishall not be moved
How did he say,
heard with satisfaction the words, Eat, and ye shall be as Gen. 3,
gods : whereas God said, In the day that ye eat thereof, ye ^ 2 17.
Inib. 3,4.
18. But since the Lord had said truly, that He would take away from the proud, what He had given to the humble, when He created him ; the Psalmist proceeds, and says, (ver. 7. ) O Lord, in Thy will Thou hast afforded strength unto my beauty: that is, since I was not good and strong of myself, but was both fair and strong of Thee, to my beauty Tbou hadst afforded strength, of Thine own will, wherewith Thou hadst made me. And that Thou mightest shew me, that I was thisIfrom Thy will, Tliou lurnedst away Thy Face from
shall surely die; and the devil, Ye shall not surely die. believing then him who thus persuaded him, he said, /shall not be moved for ever.
for for
ever. ever ? When he
became troubled. He turned away then His Face from him, whom He sent forth out of Paradise. Placed now
me, and
here, let him cry out and say, To Thee, O Lord, will I
cry, pray. In Paradise thou didst not cry out, but didst praise ; thou didst not weep, but didst rejoice : having been put without, weep now, and cry. He draweth
and to my God will I
nigh to him troubled, Who deserted him when proud. For God James
resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.
Foundation HIimself. (Ver. 9. ) What profit is there in My
down to corruption ? What then doth He pray for ? That He may rise again. For if I shall go down, saith He, to corruption, if My Flesh shall be so corrupted, as other men's, so as to rise at the last, to what purpose have I shed My Blood ? For if I rise not now, 1 shall shew forth
'
To Thee, 0 Lord, will I
19. What follows now is in the Person of the Lord, of our
blood, whilst
go
(Ver. 8. ) cry, and unto my God will Ipray.
230 Christ, clothed in sackcloth ofmortality, did away sin.
Psalm to none, I shall gain none: but that I may shew forth to any Exp. lf. Thy marvels, Thy praises, life eternal, let My Flesh rise again, let It not go into corruption. For if It shall go so, as other men's, what profit is there in My Blood ? Shall dust
confess unto Thee, or shew forth Thy truth? Confession is twofold, either of sin, or of praise. When it is ill with us, let us in tribulation confess our sins ; when it is well with us, let us in the exultation of righteousness confess praise unto God : but without confession let us never be.
20. Ver. 10. The Lord hath heard, and had mercy on Me. How? Remember the dedication of the house. He hath heard, and had mercy. The Lord hath become My Helper.
21. Listen now to the resurrection itself! (Ver. 11. ) Thou hast turned My mourning into joy to Me, Thou hast rent off My sackcloth, and girded Me with gladness. What is sackcloth ? Mortality. Sackcloth is made of goats and kids,
Mat. 25,and goats and kids are set among sinners. The Lord took 'namerofrom our condition1 the sackcloth only, He assumed not
that of which sackcloth is the desert. That of which sack cloth is the desert, is sin : the sackcloth is mortality. For thee He assumed mortality, Who had no desert of death. For he hath desert of death, who sins ; but He Who sinned not, deserved not the sackcloth. In another place He Him- self saith, But when they troIubled Me, I clothed Myself with
hair-cloth. What is this,
I opposed to My persecutors that, which I have from the hair-cloth. That they might think Him a man, He hid Himself from the eyes of the persecutors, because the perse- cutors were not worthy to see Him, clothed* with hair-
' but as cloth. Therefore, Thou hast put off My sackcloth, and
Ps. 35,
2Ben.
clothed Myself with hair-cloth?
clothed. '
girded Me with gladness.
I 22. Ver. 12. That My glory should sing unto Thee, and
should not be As it is in the Head, so in the pricked.
body. What should not be pricked? should die no more. For He was pricked, when He hung on the Cross, He was smitten with spear. Our Head therefore saith, that should not be pricked, should die no more. But we, what do we say because of the dedication of the house That our conscience should not prick us with the goads of our sins. For all will be remitted, and we shall then be free.
?
I
I
a
is, /
1
His Redeemed, freed from sin, shall confess in praise. 231
That My glory, saith He, should sing to Thee, not My Ver. humiliation. If our's, Christ's too, for we are the body of------ Christ. How? Because although Christ sitteth in heaven,
/
meat. He is both there, and here : there in Himself, here 35.
He will say to some,
was an
hungred,
and
ye gave Me Mat. 28,
in us. What thIen doth He say ? That My glory should sing
to Thee, and
sigheth unto Thee, my glory shall sing to Thee. Now at
should not be humiliation pricked. My
I will
the end: O Lord, my God,
What is, / will confess unto Thee for ever? I will praise Thee for ever, for we have said that there is a confession in praises also, and not only in sins. Confess then now what thou hast done against God, and thou shalt confess what God shall have done to thee. What hast thou done ? Sins. What hath God done? On confessing thine iniquity He remitteth thy sins, that afterwards confessing unto Him His praises for ever thou shouldest not be pricked with sin.
To the end, a Psalm of David himself, an ecstasy.
1. To the end a Psalm of David Himself, the Mediator strong of hand in persecutions. For the word ecstasy, which is added to the title, signifies a transport of the mind, which is produced either by a panic, or by some revelation. But in this Psalm the panic of the people of God troubled by the persecution of all the heathen, and by the failing of faith throughout the world, is principally seen. But first the Mediator Himself speaks : then the People redeemed by His Blood gives thanks : at last in trouble it speaks at length, which is what belongs to the ecstasy; but the Person of the Prophet himself is twice interposed, near the end, and at the end. I
2. Ver. 1. In Thee, O Lord, have
trusted, let Me not be
confess
unto Thee
for ever.
PSALM XXXI.
FIRST EXPOSITION.
Lat. XXX.
232 Christ asks immediate Resurrection. Release from fear.
Psalm put to confusion for ever. In Thee, O Lord, have I trusted, Exp. I. let Me never be confounded, whilst they shall insult Me as -- one like other men. In Thy righteousness rescue Me, and deliver Me. And in Thy righteousness rescue Me from the
pit of death, and deliver Me out of their company.
3. Ver. 2. Bend down Thine ear unto Me. Hear Me in My humiliation, nigh at hand unto Me. Make haste to deliver Me. Defer not to the end of the world, as with all who believe on Me, My separation from sinners. Be unto
Me a God Who protecteth Me. Be unto Me God, and Protector. And a house of refuge, that Thou mayest save Me. And as a house, wherein taking refuge I may be saved.
4. Ver. 3. For Thou art My strength, and My refuge. For Thou art unto Me My strength to bear My persecutors, and My refuge to escape them. And for Thy Name's sake
Thou shalt be My guide, and shalt nourish Me. And that by Me Thou mayest be known to all the Gentiles, I will in all things follow Thy will ; and, by assembling, by degrees, Saints unto Me, Thou shalt fulfil My body, and My perfect stature.
5. Ver. 4. Thou shalt bring Me out of this trap, which they have hidden for Me. Thou shalt bring Me out of these snares, which they have hidden for Me. For Thou art My
6. Ver. 5.
can either the Christian People say,
O Lord, for Thou hast taken me up, and hast not made mine enemies to rejoice over me ?
6. We shall understand this, if we look first to the title of
the Psalm. This is, To the end, a Psalm of the canticle of
the dedication of the house, of David himself. In this title
lies all the expectation, and the whole mystery of the solution
of this difficulty. The house will sometime be dedicated, univer- which is now in building. For now the house, that is, the "r^Inen". Church, is in building : hereafter it will be dedicated. In tum. the dedication will appear the glory of the Christian People,
which is now hidden. Now let our enemies rage, let them humble us, let them do, not whatever they wish, but whatever
they are permitted to do from above. For we must not set
down whatever we have suffered from our enemies to our
enemies, and not to the Lord our God. Seeing that by His
Own example the Mediator hath shewn, when from above
He permitteth men to injure, that not the will to injure is
given from above, but the power. For every evil man hath
in himself the will to injure ; but the ability to injure is not
in his power. That he hath the will, he is at once guilty :
that he hath the power, by the hidden dispensation of God's providence it is permitted him against one for punishment, against another it is permitted for his trial, against another it
is permitted for his crown. For punishment: as the aAAo'puXoi, Judges that is, foreigners were permitted to take captive the people
of Israel, because they sinned against God. But for trial (Philis- permission was given to the devil against Job: Job was tried, J0b2,3. the devil was put to confusion. But for a crown has per mission been given to persecutors against Martyrs: the
Martyrs have been slain, their persecutors fancied they had
/ will magnify Thee,
in the open sight of men unreally, the others were in secret truly crowned. Therefore against whom permission given, matter of the hidden of God's providence but the will to injure man's own, for he does not forthwith slay whom he would.
conquered they triumphed dispensation
is
:
a
is
is
:
13' J,
2'22 All that enemies can do is by God's permission.
Psalm 7. Accordingly the Lord Himself, the Judge of quick and Exp. ii. dead, standing before a human judge, affording us a pattern of humility and patience, not conquered, but exhibiting to
the soldier an example for fighting, when the judge was Johnl9, threatening, andIswelling with pride, and saying, Knowest
have power to release, and to slay Thee ? took away the pride of the boaster, and giving back as it were the breathing by which his swelling might go down, answered, Thou couldest have no power against Me, except it were given thee from above. Job too, (now the devil has
slain his children, the devil has taken away all his substance,) Joh l, what did he say too ? The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; as it hath pleased the Lord, so hath it been
done ; blessed be the name of the Lord. Let not the enemy triumph, because he hath done it : I know, saith he, by Whom permission hath been given him : to the devil let there be assigned the will to injure, to my Lord the power of proving. Even under his bodily sores, his wife, who was left, comes up to him, like Eve, the devil's helper, not her husband's comforter, tempts him, and among many re-
Job 2,9. proaches says, Speak some word against God, and die. And that Adam on the dunghill was more guarded than Adam in Paradise. For Adam in Paradise consented to the woman, that he should be sent out of Paradise : Adam on the dunghill rejected the woman, that he should be admitted into Paradise. What then does that Adam on the dunghill, travailing with immortality within, without overspread with worms, what says he to the
,0"
What ? If we hare received good at the hand of the Lord, shall we not bear with evil ? Here again too he acknowledged in himself the hand of the Lord, because the devil had smitten him : for he did not attend to who smote, but Who permitted. For even the devil himself called the same power, which he wished to be given him, the hand of
the Lord. For accusing that just man, to whom the Lord
Thou not that
Job 2, woman ? Thou hast spoken as one of the foolish women.
bare testimony, he says to God, Doth Job fear the Lord for
Joh l ,
~ ' nought? Hast not Thou made a hedge about him, and
about his house, and about all that he hath on every side ? Thou hast blessed the works of his hands, and his substance
Christ's People, now troubled, shall triumph at His coming, 223
is increased in the land. So great goods hast Thou given Ver.
-- Thine hand, and touch all that he hath, and verily he will
bless Thee to Thy face ! What is, Put forth Thine hand,
when he wished himself to put it forth ? But because he
could not put forth his own hand, he called this very power,
which he received of God, the hand of God.
8. What follows then, Brethren, because the enemies have
done so great things against Christians, and have exulted, and rejoiced over them ? But when will it appear, that they have not really rejoiced over them ? When they shall be confounded, and these shall rejoice at the coming of the Lord our God, when He shall come bearing retribution in His hand, damnation to the ungodly, a kingdom to the righteous, fellowship with the devil to the unrighteous,
with Christ to the faithful. When, I say, He
shall shew this, when the righteous shall stand in great boldness, (I speak from the Scriptures : you remember the lesson from the book of Wisdom : Then shall the righteous Wisd. 5, stand in great boldness against them that have afflicted
them but they repenting and groaning for anguish of spirit
shall say among themselves, What hath pride profited us?
or what good hath the vaunting of riches done us For all
those things are passed away like a shadow. And what will
they say of the righteous . How are they reckoned among
the children of God, and their lot is among the saints! )
then will the dedication of the house be, which now being
built in tribulation then will that People rightly say, will
exalt Thee, Lord, for Thou hast taken me up, and hast
not made mine enemies to rejoice over me. These words
then will be verified in the People of God, the People that
now in straitness, now in tribulation with so great temptations, so great offences, so great persecution, so great pressure. These torments of soul he doth not feel in the
Church, who maketh no progress, for he thinks all peace
but let him begin to make progress, and then he will see
in what pressure he for when the blade had increased, Mat. 13, and had brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
And he that increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow. Let Eccies. him make progress, and he will see where he let there be
fruit, and tares will appear. It true saying of the
him, and therefore doth he honour Thee. But put forth
fellowship
is a
is :
is is I
'
9'. 5J
is ;
:
is
:
0
;
?
?
224 Patient waiting.
What to build on Christ, the Foundation.
Psalm Apostle, and cannot be destroyed from the beginning unto ? *ff the end : Yea, and all, saith he, that will live godly in
2Tl^T3, Christ suffer persecution. But malignant men and seducers 12,18. 't<<KB worse and worse, themselves deceived, and deceiving
Ps. 27, others. And whence are those words of the Psalm, Wait on U' the Lord, quit thyself like a man, and let thine heart be
yea, wait on the Lord? It were not enough once, Wait on the Lord, if it were not repeated : unless haply he might wait two days, three days, four days, and the pressure and tribulation still remain, and therefore he added,
Quit thyself like a man : and again, let thine heart be strengthened. And because it will be so from the beginning even to the end, what the sentence has in the beginning, the same it has at the end, Yea, wait on the Lord. These
things which press upon thee will pass away, and He will come, on Whom thou waitest, and wipe away thy sweat: He will dry the tear, thou shalt weep no more. But now
Joh 7, l. we must groan in tribulations, as Job saith, Is not man's life
upon earth a trial ?
9. Nevertheless, Brethren, before the day of the dedication
of the house come, let us consider that our Head hath
already been dedicated : already hath the dedication of the house taken place in the Head, as the dedication of the
strengthened,
The Head is above, the foundation below : we not perhaps have spoken amiss in saying that Christ is the foundation ; He is rather the top. He hath ascended into heaven, He sitteth at the right Hand of the " Father. " But I think we have made no mistake. For
l Cor. 3, the Apostle hath said, For other foundation can no man lay
II" 12'
than that is laid, which is Christ Jesus. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones. They who live godly, who honour and praise God, who are
in tribulations, who long for their country, these build gold, silver, precious stones : but they who still love the things of this world, and are involved in earthly business, and are given up to certain bonds and affections of the flesh, to their homes, wives, possessions ; and yet are Christians, so that their heart doth not withdraw from Christ, and that they place nothing before Christ, as in building nothing is placed before the foundation ; these indeed build wood, hay, stubble : but what hath he gone on
foundation. may
patient
Earthly affections, hay. Christ both Head and Foundation.
to say ? The fire shall try every man's work of what sort it Ver.
is. The fire of tribulation and of trial.
many martyrs here, but in the end it trieth all the human i3. ? r" ' race. Martyrs have been found, who possessed these worldly
goods. How many rich men and senators have suffered?
Yet some of them did build wood, hay, stubble, in their ib. 12. affection for carnal and worldly cares: but still, because they
had Christ for a foundation upon which they built, the hay
was burnt, and they were left on the foundation. So saith
the Apostle, Ifany man's work abide, he shall receive a reward, and shall lose nothing ; because what he loved, this
shall he find. What then hath the fire of tribulation
done
for them ? if If abide, ib. 15.
It hath tried them. any man's work
he shall receive a reward : any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss : but he himself shall be saved ; yet so as by fire. But it is one thing not to be injured by the fire, another thing to be saved through the fire. And whence? Because of the foundation. Let not then the foundation withdraw from thine heart. Lay not the found ation upon hay, that is, lay not hay before the foundation,
This fire has tried -
225
that the hay should have the first place in thine heart and Christ the second : but if now it must needs be that there be hay there, at least let Christ have the first place there, and the hay the second.
10. Christ then is the Foundation. As I said, our Head hath been dedicated, the Head is Itself the Foundation. But a foundation is usually below, and a head above. May you, holy brethren, understand my words : peradventure I
shall explain this in the Name of Christ. Weights are of two kinds. For a weight is a certain force in any substance, struggling as it were to gain its proper place : this is a weight. You carry a stone in your hand, you bear the pressure of its weight, it presses down your hand, because it seeks its proper place. And would you know what it seeks? Withdraw your hand, it comes to the ground, it rests on the earth, it has arrived where it tended, it has found its proper
That weight, therefore, was, as it were, spontaneous motion, without life, without sensation. There are other things, which seek their place upwards. For if you pour water upon oil, by its own weight it goes to the bottom.
Q.
place.
226 The Church, tending upward, hath herfoundation above.
Psalm For it seeks its proper place, it seeks to be duly ordered ; for Exp. ll. water aoove oil is out of its order. Until it arrives then at its proper order, there is a restless motion, till it occupies its
On the other hand, let out oil under water ; as, for instance, if a vessel of oil fall into water, into the deep, into the sea, and be broken, the oil does not rest
below. As the water poured upon oil, by its weight towards the bottom seeks its proper place ; so oil poured out under water by its weight seeks its proper place towards the top. If then this be so, brethren, whither does fire and water tend ? Fire is borne upwards, it seeks its proper place ; and water seeks its proper place by its own weight. Stone seeks the bottom, and the wood, and the pillars, and the earth, wherewith these houses are built : they are then of that kind of substances, which, by their own weight, are borne down wards. It is clear then, that they receive their foundation down below, because they are by their own weight borne downwards ; and except there is something to sustain the whole falls, because the whole tends towards the earth. With things then that have downward tendency, the foundation laid below but the Church of God which laid below tendeth towards heaven. Our foundation there fore hath been laid there, even our Lord Jesus Christ sitting at the right Hand of the Father. If then ye have understood, holy brethren, how that our Foundation hath been already dedicated, let us shortly listen to, and run through, the Psalm.
11. will exalt Thee, Lord, for Thou hast taken Me up, and hast not made Mine enemies to rejoice over Me. What enemies The Jews In the dedication of the foundation let us understand the very dedication of the future house: for what now said in the person of the Foundation, will then be said in the person of the whole house. What enemies then The Jews, or the devil and his angels rather, who retired in confusion after the Lord's resurrection The prince of death grieved at the victory over death And Thou hast not made Mine enemies to rejoice over Me because could not be kept in hell.
12. Ver. 2. Lord, My God, have cried unto Thee, and Thou hast healed Me. The Lord prayed in the mount
proper place.
; O:?
I I
is ?
:
? is
O ?
/
a
it, is
Man healed by Christ's Wounding. Life in God's will. 227 before His Passion, He healed Him. Healed Whom ? Him, V">>-
B ft
will then be ours to declare, the exaltation now is Christ's. ? ! ? 18. Ver. 3. O Lord, Thou hast brought back My Soulu
from hell. This needs no explanation. Thou hast saved Me from them that go down into the pit. Who are they that go down into the pit ? All sinners who sink into the deep. For the pit is the depth of this world. What is this depth of the world ? The abounding of wantonness, and wickedness. They then who immerse themselves in lusts, and earthly desires, go down into the pit. Such persecuted Christ. But what doth He say ? Thou hast saved Me from them that go down into the pit.
14. Ver. 4. Sing to the Lord, O ye saints of His. Since your Head hath risen, all ye other members hope for that, which ye see in the Head : all ye other members hope for that, which ye have believed in the Head. It is a true and ancient proverb, Where the head is, there are the other members. Christ hath ascended into heaven, whither we are about to follow. He hath not remained in hell, He hath risen again, He dieth no more: when we too shall have risen again, we shall die no more. Having then these promises, Sing to the Lord, O ye saints of His; and make confession of the remembrance of His holiness. What is, Make confession of the remembrance? For ye had forgotten Him, but He hath not forgotten you.
15. Ver. 5. For in His indignation is wrath, and life in Gen' 2.
Who was never sick, the Word God, the Word the Divinity?
No, but He bore the death of flesh, He bore thy wound,
being about to heal thee of thy wound. And the flesh was healed. When ? When He rose again. Listen to the Apostle, see the true healing: Death, saith he, hath been swallowed up in Victory. O death, where is thy sting ? l Cor.
O death, where is thy struggle ? Therefore that exaltation 05. ' '<<.
In the day that ye shall eat, ye shall surely die. They touched, they died, having been dismissed from Paradise, for in His indignation is wrath : but not without hope, for there is life in His will. What is in His will ? Not in our strength, not
in our merits : but because He willed He hath saved us not because we were worthy. For of what the sinner
Q2
His will. Wrath in indignation against the sinner :
it, is
;
228 God's light rising and setting. Three days of the world.
Psalm worthy, but of punishment ? He hath given life. And if He ExpIf hath given life to the ungodly, what doth He reserve for the
faithful ?
16. In the evening weeping will tarry. Fear not, for that
he had said to us, Sing'; and here is groaning: in singing exultation, in prayer groaning. Groan for things present, sing for things to come ; pray for what is here, sing for what is hoped. In the evening weeping will tarry. What is, In the evening weeping will tarry? It is evening, when the sun
sets. The sun hath set on man, that is, That Light of
Righteousness, the presence of God. Hence when Adam Gen. 3, was expelled, what is said in the book of Genesis ? When God walked in Paradise, He walked in the evening. The sinner had now hid himself in the wood, he was unwilling to see the Face of God, at Which he had been wont to rejoice. The Sun of Righteousness had set on him, he did not rejoice at the presence of God. Thence began all this mortal life. In the evening weeping will tarry. Ye will long be in
weeping, race of man ; for ye will be born of Adam: and so ithascome topass: wetooareofAdam,andasmanyas have begotten children, and shall beget them, are of Adam, of whom they too themselves were born. In the evening weeping will tarry; and exultation in the morning. When That Light shall have begun to rise on the faithful, which had set on sinners. For therefore too did the Lord Jesus Christ rise from the tomb in the morning, that what He hath dedicated in the foundation, the same He might promise to
the house. In our Lord it was evening, when He was buried ; and morning when He rose again on the third day : thou too wast buried in the evening in Paradise, and hast risen again on the third day. How on the third day ? thou consider the course of the world, there is one day before the Law, another under the Law, a third under grace.
What on that third day thy Head shewed, the same is on the third day of the world shewn in thee. When ? In the morning we must hope, we must rejoice ; but now we must endure, and groan. I
17. Ver. 6. But
moved/or ever. In what abundance, hath man said, I shall
said in my abundance,
? Oxf. Mm. add ' both here is exultation. '
shall not be
I
If
God withdrew from man's pride, returns to him humbled. 229
not be moved for ever? We understand, Brethren, the Vek. character of man in his humiliation. Who hath abundance ft, O-- here? Not one. What is man's abundance? Care, calamity.
But the rich have abundance ? The more they have, the
more they want: they are wasted by longings, torn by desires, racked by fears, waste away with sorrow : where is their abundance? There was abundance, when man was settled in Paradise, when nothing was wanting to him, when
he enjoyed God; but he said,
shall not be moved
I Ishall not be moved
How did he say,
heard with satisfaction the words, Eat, and ye shall be as Gen. 3,
gods : whereas God said, In the day that ye eat thereof, ye ^ 2 17.
Inib. 3,4.
18. But since the Lord had said truly, that He would take away from the proud, what He had given to the humble, when He created him ; the Psalmist proceeds, and says, (ver. 7. ) O Lord, in Thy will Thou hast afforded strength unto my beauty: that is, since I was not good and strong of myself, but was both fair and strong of Thee, to my beauty Tbou hadst afforded strength, of Thine own will, wherewith Thou hadst made me. And that Thou mightest shew me, that I was thisIfrom Thy will, Tliou lurnedst away Thy Face from
shall surely die; and the devil, Ye shall not surely die. believing then him who thus persuaded him, he said, /shall not be moved for ever.
for for
ever. ever ? When he
became troubled. He turned away then His Face from him, whom He sent forth out of Paradise. Placed now
me, and
here, let him cry out and say, To Thee, O Lord, will I
cry, pray. In Paradise thou didst not cry out, but didst praise ; thou didst not weep, but didst rejoice : having been put without, weep now, and cry. He draweth
and to my God will I
nigh to him troubled, Who deserted him when proud. For God James
resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.
Foundation HIimself. (Ver. 9. ) What profit is there in My
down to corruption ? What then doth He pray for ? That He may rise again. For if I shall go down, saith He, to corruption, if My Flesh shall be so corrupted, as other men's, so as to rise at the last, to what purpose have I shed My Blood ? For if I rise not now, 1 shall shew forth
'
To Thee, 0 Lord, will I
19. What follows now is in the Person of the Lord, of our
blood, whilst
go
(Ver. 8. ) cry, and unto my God will Ipray.
230 Christ, clothed in sackcloth ofmortality, did away sin.
Psalm to none, I shall gain none: but that I may shew forth to any Exp. lf. Thy marvels, Thy praises, life eternal, let My Flesh rise again, let It not go into corruption. For if It shall go so, as other men's, what profit is there in My Blood ? Shall dust
confess unto Thee, or shew forth Thy truth? Confession is twofold, either of sin, or of praise. When it is ill with us, let us in tribulation confess our sins ; when it is well with us, let us in the exultation of righteousness confess praise unto God : but without confession let us never be.
20. Ver. 10. The Lord hath heard, and had mercy on Me. How? Remember the dedication of the house. He hath heard, and had mercy. The Lord hath become My Helper.
21. Listen now to the resurrection itself! (Ver. 11. ) Thou hast turned My mourning into joy to Me, Thou hast rent off My sackcloth, and girded Me with gladness. What is sackcloth ? Mortality. Sackcloth is made of goats and kids,
Mat. 25,and goats and kids are set among sinners. The Lord took 'namerofrom our condition1 the sackcloth only, He assumed not
that of which sackcloth is the desert. That of which sack cloth is the desert, is sin : the sackcloth is mortality. For thee He assumed mortality, Who had no desert of death. For he hath desert of death, who sins ; but He Who sinned not, deserved not the sackcloth. In another place He Him- self saith, But when they troIubled Me, I clothed Myself with
hair-cloth. What is this,
I opposed to My persecutors that, which I have from the hair-cloth. That they might think Him a man, He hid Himself from the eyes of the persecutors, because the perse- cutors were not worthy to see Him, clothed* with hair-
' but as cloth. Therefore, Thou hast put off My sackcloth, and
Ps. 35,
2Ben.
clothed Myself with hair-cloth?
clothed. '
girded Me with gladness.
I 22. Ver. 12. That My glory should sing unto Thee, and
should not be As it is in the Head, so in the pricked.
body. What should not be pricked? should die no more. For He was pricked, when He hung on the Cross, He was smitten with spear. Our Head therefore saith, that should not be pricked, should die no more. But we, what do we say because of the dedication of the house That our conscience should not prick us with the goads of our sins. For all will be remitted, and we shall then be free.
?
I
I
a
is, /
1
His Redeemed, freed from sin, shall confess in praise. 231
That My glory, saith He, should sing to Thee, not My Ver. humiliation. If our's, Christ's too, for we are the body of------ Christ. How? Because although Christ sitteth in heaven,
/
meat. He is both there, and here : there in Himself, here 35.
He will say to some,
was an
hungred,
and
ye gave Me Mat. 28,
in us. What thIen doth He say ? That My glory should sing
to Thee, and
sigheth unto Thee, my glory shall sing to Thee. Now at
should not be humiliation pricked. My
I will
the end: O Lord, my God,
What is, / will confess unto Thee for ever? I will praise Thee for ever, for we have said that there is a confession in praises also, and not only in sins. Confess then now what thou hast done against God, and thou shalt confess what God shall have done to thee. What hast thou done ? Sins. What hath God done? On confessing thine iniquity He remitteth thy sins, that afterwards confessing unto Him His praises for ever thou shouldest not be pricked with sin.
To the end, a Psalm of David himself, an ecstasy.
1. To the end a Psalm of David Himself, the Mediator strong of hand in persecutions. For the word ecstasy, which is added to the title, signifies a transport of the mind, which is produced either by a panic, or by some revelation. But in this Psalm the panic of the people of God troubled by the persecution of all the heathen, and by the failing of faith throughout the world, is principally seen. But first the Mediator Himself speaks : then the People redeemed by His Blood gives thanks : at last in trouble it speaks at length, which is what belongs to the ecstasy; but the Person of the Prophet himself is twice interposed, near the end, and at the end. I
2. Ver. 1. In Thee, O Lord, have
trusted, let Me not be
confess
unto Thee
for ever.
PSALM XXXI.
FIRST EXPOSITION.
Lat. XXX.
232 Christ asks immediate Resurrection. Release from fear.
Psalm put to confusion for ever. In Thee, O Lord, have I trusted, Exp. I. let Me never be confounded, whilst they shall insult Me as -- one like other men. In Thy righteousness rescue Me, and deliver Me. And in Thy righteousness rescue Me from the
pit of death, and deliver Me out of their company.
3. Ver. 2. Bend down Thine ear unto Me. Hear Me in My humiliation, nigh at hand unto Me. Make haste to deliver Me. Defer not to the end of the world, as with all who believe on Me, My separation from sinners. Be unto
Me a God Who protecteth Me. Be unto Me God, and Protector. And a house of refuge, that Thou mayest save Me. And as a house, wherein taking refuge I may be saved.
4. Ver. 3. For Thou art My strength, and My refuge. For Thou art unto Me My strength to bear My persecutors, and My refuge to escape them. And for Thy Name's sake
Thou shalt be My guide, and shalt nourish Me. And that by Me Thou mayest be known to all the Gentiles, I will in all things follow Thy will ; and, by assembling, by degrees, Saints unto Me, Thou shalt fulfil My body, and My perfect stature.
5. Ver. 4. Thou shalt bring Me out of this trap, which they have hidden for Me. Thou shalt bring Me out of these snares, which they have hidden for Me. For Thou art My
6. Ver. 5.
