Psalm 9 — I will confess to you, O Lord

^9:1^ Unto the end, for the hidden things of the Son. A psalm for David. ^9:2^ I will confess to you, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will relate all your wonders.

^9:3^ I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing to your name, O Most High.

^9:4^ When my enemy will be turned back they will be weakened and perish before your face.

^9:5^ For you have maintained my judgment and my cause; you have sat on the throne, who judge justice.

^9:6^ You have rebuked the gentiles, and the wicked one has perished; you have blotted out their name forever and ever.

^9:7a^ The swords of the enemy have failed in the end and their cities you have destroyed.

^9:7b^ Their memory has perished with a noise. ^9:8^ But the Lord remains forever. He has prepared his throne in judgment, ^9:9^ And he shall judge the world in equity; he shall judge the people in justice. ^9:10^ And the Lord is become a refuge for the poor, a helper in due time in tribulation.

^9:11^ And let them trust in you who know your name, for you have not forsaken those who seek you, O Lord. ^9:12^ Sing to the Lord, who dwells in Zion; declare his ways among the gentiles. ^9:13^ For requiring their blood he has remembered them; he has not forgotten the cry of the poor.

^9:14^ Have mercy on me, O Lord; see my humiliation which I suffer from my enemies. ^9:15a^ You who lift me up from the gates of death,

^9:15b^ that I may declare all your praises in the gates of the daughter of Zion.

^9:16^ I will rejoice in your salvation. The gentiles have stuck fast in the destruction which they have prepared. Their foot has been taken in the very snare which they hid.^9:17^ The Lord shall be known when he executes judgments; the sinner has been caught in the works of his own hands.

^9:18^ The wicked shall be turned to hell, all the nations that forget God. ^9:19^ For the poor man shall not be forgotten to the end; the patience of the poor shall not perish forever.

^9:20^ Arise, O Lord, let not man be strengthened; let the gentiles be judged in your sight. ^9:21^ Appoint, O Lord, a lawgiver over them that the gentiles may know themselves to be but men.

^[10]:1^ Why, O Lord, have you retired afar off? Why do you slight us in our wants, in the time of trouble? (Following the Latin Vulgate, Thomas’s numbering of the Psalms corresponds with the Septuagint rather than the Masoretic numbering of the Psalms.) ^[10]:2^ While the wicked man is proud, the poor one is set on fire; they are caught in the counsels which they devise.

^[10]:3^ For the sinner is praised in the desires of his soul and the unjust man is blessed. ^[10]:4^ The sinner has provoked the Lord; according to the multitude of his wrath he will not seek him.

^[10]:5a^ God is not before his eyes; his ways are filthy at all times.

^[10]:5b^ Your judgments are removed from his sight; he shall rule over all his enemies. ^[10]:6^ For he has said in his heart, “I shall not be moved from generation to generation, and shall be without evil.”

^[10]:7^ His mouth is full of cursing, and of bitterness, and of deceit; under his tongue are labor and sorrow.

^[10]:8^ He sits in ambush with the rich in private places that he may kill the innocent. ^[10]:9a^ His eyes are upon the poor man; he lies in wait in secret like a lion in his den.

^[10]:9b^ He lies in ambush that he may catch the poor man, to catch the poor, while he draws him to him.

^[10]:10^ In his net he will bring him down; he will crouch and fall, when he shall have power over the poor. ^[10]:11^ For he has said in his heart, “God has forgotten, he has turned away his face not to see to the end.”

^[10]:12^ Arise, O Lord God, let your hand be exalted; forget not the poor. ^[10]:13^ Why has the wicked provoked God? For he has said in his heart, “He will not require it.”

^[10]:14a^ You see it, for you consider labor and sorrow, that you may deliver them into your hands.

^[10]:14b^ To you is the poor man left; you will be a helper to the orphan.

^[10]:15^ Break the arm of the sinner and of the malignant; his sin shall be sought, and shall not be found. ^[10]:16^ The Lord shall reign to eternity, yea, forever and ever; you gentiles shall perish from his land.

^[10]:17^ The Lord has heard the desire of the poor: your ear has heard the preparation of their heart ^[10]:18^ to judge for the fatherless and for the humble, that man may no more presume to magnify himself upon earth.

57. In the psalm above, he gave thanks for the favors bestowed upon the whole human race;

now in this psalm he gives thanks specially for the favor bestowed on himself in the destruction of his enemies.

And this is shown by the title according to Jerome, which is a song of David for the victor in the death of his son. And this refers to the history of 2 Samuel 18 and 19, when, after Absalom’s death, he retakes the kingdom, and for this favor he wrote this psalm.

But in our text the title of the psalm is more hidden. Unto the end, for the hidden things of the son, a psalm of David. The hidden things of the son refers to the death of the son, since through it he was hidden from all eyes.

According to the mystery it refers to Christ, who is called the Son antonomastically, since he is the natural son of God the Father. If the son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed (John 8:36). He is also the son principally promised to David. Son of David, have mercy on me (Luke 18:38).

For the hidden things of the son, that is, the things of Christ that are hidden.

There are two comings of the Son of God. (Cf. Augustine, Expositions on the Psalms 9.1 (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, 38:58).)

The first was hidden in that his divinity and his glory were hidden in the weakness of his flesh. Truly you are a hidden God (Isa 45:15).

The second will be manifest. They shall see the Son of Man coming in a cloud, with great power and majesty (Luke 21:27).

There are also two judgments of Christ.

One is hidden, and this is in the disposition of the world in which he allows the good to suffer persecution from the evil. Your judgments are a great deep (Ps 35:7).

Likewise the other will be manifest at the end. Until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts (1 Cor 4:5). This treats the hidden judgment according to which the good suffer affliction from the evil. I expected good things, and evils are come upon me: I waited for light, and darkness broke out (Job 30:26). And the whole is referred to here since he gives thanks for deliverance from his enemies.

This psalm is divided into two parts.

The first lays out thanksgiving;

the second, the reason for thanksgiving: when my enemy will be turned back.

Thanks is given in three ways: in heart, in words, and in deed.

It is given in words in two ways: by praising and by preaching.

By praising, since he says, I will confess to you.

Now, there are three kinds of confession:

namely, that of faith—confession is made unto salvation (Rom 10:10). I said I will confess (Ps 31:5);

that of sins: confess your sins to one another (Jas 5:16);

and that of praise: give glory to him in the sight of all who live (Tob 12:6).

And this is the sort of confession referred to here. I will confess to you, O Lord, that is, I will give thanks, or I will praise you. I will praise the name of my God with a song (Ps 68:31).

This confession is in the heart: man sees those things that appear, but the Lord beholds the heart (1 Sam 16:7).

On the contrary: this people honors me with their lips but their heart is far from me (Mark 7:6; Isa 29:13).

But he says, with my whole heart, since God is greater than our heart (1 John 3:20). And so, however much we praise him according to our ability, it is less than he himself is. You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart (Deut 6:5). Therefore, he who does not give his whole heart to God, but desires to hold some other thing alongside him, loses him. For the bed is straightened, so that one must fall out, and a short covering cannot cover both (Isa 28:20). Therefore, he praises him with his whole heart who will accept nothing contrary to God but directs everything to him in act and habit. It is honorable to confess (that is, by proclaiming) the works of God (Tob 12:7).

I will relate by praising and proclaiming to others because God gives favors to be communicated to others. Go and announce how great things God has done to you (Luke 8:39). And so he says, I will relate all your wonders.

But there is a reason why he says wonders: because the works of God are wonders. You are the God who does wonders (Ps 76:15).

But why does he say all? This seems impossible. Who does great things and unsearchable things and wonders without number (Job 5:9). Therefore, why does he say all?

It should be said that all means according to genus, either that all the things that are related are wonders, or all because the intention of the one relating should not stop at anything but go as far as it is able. Hilary in his book On the Trinity says, he who piously pursues infinite things, even if he never arrives, becomes expert in going forward. (Hillary, De Trinitate 2 (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, 62:48).) Glorify the Lord as much as you can, for he will yet far exceed, and his magnificence is wonderful; and, has not God made the saints to declare all his wonderful works? (Sir 43:32; 42:17).

58. I will be glad. Here he gives thanks in the heart.

Some, such as sinners, tell others about their good things and rejoice in themselves, like the Pharisee who said, O God, I give you thanks that I am not as the rest of men (Luke 18:11).

But this speaker always rejoices in God. In every gift show a cheerful countenance and sanctify your tithes with joy (Sir 35:11).

I will be glad, interiorly in my heart, and rejoice in you, bursting forth into exterior praise. But I will rejoice in the Lord, and I will exult in God my Jesus (Hab 3:18).

I will sing. Here he gives thanks in deed, for to sing is manual labor, and through this a good work is understood, since all our works should end in the glory of God. So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven (Matt 5:16). I shall sing to my God as long as I shall be (Ps 145:2).

But he adds, to your name, O Most High, as if to say, “God does not benefit from what I will confess and I will sing to you, since his name is Most High, but we benefit.” My prayer shall be turned into my bosom (Ps 34:13). And if you do justly, which shall you give him, or what shall he receive from your hand? (Job 35:7). What does it profit God if you are just? Or what do you give him if your way is unspotted? (Job 22:3).

59. When my enemy. Here he describes the matter for thanksgiving:

first, in particular for himself;

second, in general: the wicked shall be turned to hell.

He makes three points about the first.

First, he describes what was done;

second, he praises the authority of the one acting: the Lord remains forever;

third, he adds the fruits: let them trust in you.

In regard to the first, he describes two things: what took place and the justice of what took place. This latter is described with, for you have maintained my judgment.

What took place is the destruction of the enemy, about which he says three things:

since if anyone is destroyed, first he fails in what he intends to do. In regard to this he says, when my enemy will be turned back (add “in this”) I will confess to you, that is, I will give thanks to God. The enemy is turned back when he fails to do what he intended. Let them be turned back and blush for shame who desire evils for me (Ps 69:4).

Second, his power is weakened, and in regard to this he says, they will be weakened, namely, in their power. The Lord is with me as a strong warrior; therefore those who persecute me shall fall, and shall be weak (Jer 20:11).

Third, they perish, and so he says, they will perish, either by ending their impiety, and this happens before your face, that is, by your knowledge, or your condemnation.

Or they will perish by your vindicating and sentencing their evil.

Or they will perish before your face, since they will not be able to see you.

According to another translation of Isaiah 26:10, let the impious be taken away so that he will not see the glory of God.

60. Here he describes the justice of what took place, first on his own part when he says, for you have maintained.

Sometimes, although someone has justice on his side, he nevertheless does not have a judge to bring it about. Sometimes he has a judge, but neither a witness or an advocate.

But this man who has justice on his side has found a judge, and so he says, for you have maintained my judgment, that is, you have given judgment, and my cause, that is, my witness. I am the judge and the witness, says the Lord (Jer 29:23). For God is the judge and the witness: as judge, he gives judgment; insofar as he is witness, he defends causes.

Second, he describes the justice of what took place on the part of the judge, and he says that the authority to judge is from God: you have sat on the throne, which is the judge’s seat, that is, you have the royal power to destroy evil. The king who sits upon the throne . . . scatters away all evil (Prov 20:8).

Again, you have a love of justice; and so he says, who judge justice. But you, O Lord of Sabaoth, who judge justly (Jer 11:20). The Lord is just and has loved justice (Ps 10:8). I, who speak justice, and am a defender to save (Isa 63:1).

Or, if this is applied to Christ: for you have maintained my judgment and my cause. Christ was judged and had a cause. Your cause has been judged as that of the wicked (Job 36:17). But it was his own cause because he came through it into his glory.

You have sat, namely, God the Father, on the throne, that is, the soul of Christ.

Or Christ sits at the right hand of God the Father—adapt the other aspects as you want.

61. You have rebuked. Above, the psalmist showed the judgment made on his part—since the judgment owed to him was given in this—and on the part of the judge. Here he shows the judgment or justice done for him on the part of those punished.

And first, he describes the justice in itself.

Second, he explains it, at the swords of the enemy have failed.

The Lord, when punishing evil persons, does three things in them, in order.

First, he does not immediately proceed to the final punishment, but first reproves them;

second, he punishes them, unless they have been corrected;

third, he eliminates them.

In regard to the first, he says, you have rebuked, through preachers. Show my people their wicked doings, and the house of Jacob their sins (Isa 58:1). Reprove, entreat, rebuke in all patience and doctrine (2 Tim 4:2).

Likewise, through tribulations. He rebukes also by sorrow in the bed, and he makes his bones wither (Job 33:19), and in regard to this he says, the wicked—either Absalom or the devil—has perished. Because no one understands, they shall perish forever (Job 4:20). You have rebuked the gentiles, those who have been deceived. The wicked one, stirring up, has perished since the whole multitude rebelled; but it was not destroyed because it was seduced.

In regard to the third, he says, you have blotted out their name because the wicked strive to multiply, but they will not be found forever.

On the contrary: the name of Judah is remembered.

It must be said that men do not intend to make their name great through evil, but through good, but the name of Judah remains as evil. The name of the wicked shall rot (Prov 10:7).

Jerome says that someone unknown could burn a temple so as to be remembered, and, just so, the name of evil people remains as evil.

62. The swords of the enemy have failed. Here he explains how they perished, and he makes two points.

First, he gives the reason why they perished;

and second, he gives the way they perished: their memory has perished.

The reason why they perished: the enemy perished when he desired to make a name for himself.

Indeed, sometimes some people make a name for themselves by their military prowess and wars. So: these are the mighty men of old, men of renown (Gen 6:4).

Sometimes by building a city: building a city shall establish a name, but a blameless wife shall be counted above this (Sir 40:19). Thus the name of Romulus was made famous by Rome.

But the Lord has destroyed both. The swords, namely the blades, of the enemy, namely, of the man, have failed in the end. He has broken the powers of bows, the shield, the sword, and the battle (Ps 75:4). Your land is desolate, your cities are burnt with fire (Isa 1:7). Here the enemy is the devil in particular: an enemy has done this (Matt 13:28). His swords are temptations. His cities are evil counsels, which he uses to pervert the good.

63. Their memory has perished. Here, he describes the way in which he has perished, explaining it in two ways:

Has perished, that is, their memory and their clamor perish together. The evil make clamor by shattering kingdoms; they destroy cities. They are all delivered to death to the lowest parts of the earth, in the midst of the children of men, with those who go down into the pit (Ezek 31:14).

Or: of the wicked, as when a wicked man is destroyed, but not without great tumult, since he has to suffer some tribulation, as is clear in Matthew 9, when the devil came out shouting and tearing to pieces.

Jerome’s text has, their memory perished with the wicked, since they did nothing good by which a good memory of them would remain. For he came in vain, and goes to darkness, and his name shall be wholly forgotten (Eccl 6:4–5).

But the Lord remains forever. Here he describes the authority of the one accomplishing this, and he mentions six conditions of God’s judgment.

First, it is not momentary but eternal. Others’ powers have a short life, and so the psalmist says, the Lord remains forever. (Jerome has, the Lord sits as a judge.)

He also says that, unlike others, he is always prompt. So he says, he has prepared his throne in judgment, that is, he is prepared. The Lord stands up to judge; he stands to judge the people (Isa 3:13).

Also, he says that it is universal: he shall judge the world, and not only the Jews. Far be it from you, Lord, . . . to slay the just with the wicked (Gen 18:25).

Fourth, that it is just, so he says, in equity; he shall judge the people in justice.

He mentions two things, equity and justice, since justice implies carrying out those things which are just in themselves, yet which are not just in every case, since rules and measures concern contingent things and cannot be adapted to every particular situation, but will leave a gap in some case, just as there are certain rules and measures and conclusions which do not apply in some case for some reason. Now, the application of these universal principles to particulars belongs to equity. Jerome says, he will judge the people in equity, since equity, which in a way restricts and regulates justice, is for particular situations.

Fifth, he says God’s judgment is full of mercy. This is evidenced by the person to whom mercy is shown—think of it as if you were doing it for a poor person: when you make a dinner or a supper, do not call your friends, nor your kinsmen, nor your neighbors who are rich (Luke 14:12). I have wept for him who was afflicted, and my soul had compassion on the poor (Job 30:25). And so he says, the Lord is become a refuge for the poor, that is, the oppressed. Relieve the oppressed, judge for the fatherless, defend the widow (Isa 1:17). Judge for the needy and fatherless; do justice to the humble and the poor (Ps 81:3), and this is where they truly have justice. Do not judge unjustly; respect not the person of the poor, nor honor the countenance of the mighty (Lev 19:15).

Likewise, his mercy is evidenced from the time, since the time when people are in need is the time when his mercy is received. The mercy of God is beautiful in the time of affliction, as a cloud of rain in the time of drought (Sir 35:26). And so he says, a helper in time in tribulation, and adds, in due time, since in the time of tribulation, men are converted to God, and then mercy should be preached to them.

And these qualities can be explained in relation to Christ. The Lord remains eternally, since Jesus Christ, yesterday, and today (Heb 13:8). He has prepared judgment, since he sits on his throne judging, and he shall judge the world in equity. He put on justice as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation upon his head (Isa 59:17).

64. And let them trust in you. Above, the psalmist described the deed for which he gave thanks and the authority of one acting; here he describes the fruit of the deed.

And he does this first in regard to others,

second, in regard to himself: have mercy on me, O Lord; see my humiliation.

First, he describes the threefold fruit in regard to others.

First is knowledge of, or trust in, the name of the Lord.

The second is the spiritual joy of those who love him: sing to the Lord.

The third is the declaration of his name: declare his ways.

He presents these fruits through the mode of exhortation, and regarding this he makes three points.

First, he leads us to hope.

Second, he describes the kind of people for whom it is appropriate to hope.

And third, he shows why.

Therefore, he says, let them trust in you. You who fear the Lord, hope in him (Sir 2:9).

But whence does hope come? Because they know your name. For hope arises from two things:

that he is powerful: since the Lord is his name (Ps 67:5);

and that he wills good since he is preeminently good: none is good but God alone (Luke 18:19).

And this name is, in particular, Jesus. For he shall save his people from their sins (Matt 1:21). In the name of Jesus every knee should bow (Phil 2:10).

And why? For he is found by those who tempt him not: and he shows himself to those who have faith in him (Wis 1:2), namely, those who seek him

first, with a good intention, since the evil do not find him: you shall seek me and shall not find me (John 7:34);

and, second, where he is, because he was not among their kinsfolk and acquaintances (Luke 2:44). Neither is it found in the land of those who live in delights (Job 28:13).

Third, he proposes the second fruit, namely joy. Sing to the Lord, who dwells in Zion. The Lord is said to dwell in in a place in an incorporeal way. David placed the ark in Zion in 2 Samuel 6:2, but according to the reality, he dwells in the Church. Zion means “mirror,” and we see eternal things mirrored in the Church. Therefore, we should sing praise to it—that is, we should rejoice in heart and word and works for the blessings given.

Third, he proposes the third fruit: declare. As every man has received grace, ministering the same one to another (1 Pet 4:10).

And so he first proposes what they should declare. Gregory: he gathers the plentiful fruits of his preaching, who sows the seeds of good works. (Gregory the Great, Moralia, sive expositio in Iob 6.35 (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, 143:324).) Among the gentiles, that is, among those living like gentiles (that is, among sinners). Meeting the thirsty bring him water (Isa 21:14). His ways, that is, his care or concern for the salvation of the human race. I think thoughts of peace (Jer 29:11).

Second, he explains this eagerness: for requiring their blood he has remembered them. One does not forget to do what one is eager and diligent about doing, and God is eager for the salvation of mankind and so does not forget it.

Two things cause forgetfulness:

namely, death: I am forgotten as one dead from the heart (Ps 30:13),

and poverty: the brethren of a poor man hate him (Prov 19:7). Why, O Lord, do you not judge (Rev 6:10).

But surely God does not forget the dead? For requiring their blood, namely, that of those who seek you, even if it should happen that they are killed; and he does this by judging.

Or, he will “seek” the blood of his saints by restoring it in the resurrection. Behold how they are numbered among the children of God (Wis 5:5).

Now, he has remembered means not that he has forgotten, but that, because of a delay, it seems as though he has forgotten.

Likewise, he does not forget the poor and the little: he has not forgotten the cry of the poor. The poor man cried, either in danger or in prayer, and the Lord heard him (Ps 33:7). Their cry has entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth (Jas 5:4). He has neither slighted nor despised the supplication of the poor man (Ps 21:25). I have seen the affliction of my people in Egypt, and I have come down to free them (Exod 3:7–8).

65. Have mercy on me. Here he describes the fruit in regard to himself.

And first, he remembers the favor.

Second, he describes its fruit, at that I may declare.

The favor is double:

one is in the future,

the other already possessed: you who lift me up.

Regarding the first, he first describes the mercy;

second, the motivation for mercy.

The future favor is mercy. Have mercy on me*. *The earth is full of the mercy of the Lord (Ps 32:5).

The motivation for it is God’s consideration. See, that is, consider, my humiliation. This humiliation is not a virtue, as this is: if I was not humbly minded (Ps 130:2), but it is the state of being downcast. So Jerome has, the affliction of my enemies, since they are afflicting me.

Or in another way: see my humiliation, that is, take note of it, because God gives grace to the humble (Jas 4:6). But he can consider this by considering the enemies, who are proud and evil.

Next, he confesses the favor which he already has: you who lift me up, as if to say, “You have raised me up from such great danger, in which I could not continue lest I die.” For death has come up through our windows, it has entered into our houses to destroy the children from without (Jer 9:21).

Now, spiritually, the gates of death are the heretics: the gates of hell shall not prevail against it (Matt 16:18). And they are man’s senses: death has come up through our windows (Jer 9:21); hatred of the word of God: their soul abhorred all manner of food and they drew nigh even to the gates of death (Ps 106:18); and temptations and vices: you lead down to the gates of death, and bring back (Wis 16:13). He, therefore, who is freed from these says, you lift me up, that is, you have freed me from the gates of death.

66. Afterwards, when he says, that I may declare, he describes the fruit, but in reverse order:

first, declaration;

second, rejoicing: I will rejoice;

third, knowledge: the Lord shall be known.

I say that you have been merciful, and I ask that you be merciful, and so I may declare all your praises. In ancient times court was held at the gates, and so he says, in the gates of the daughter of Zion, that is, Jerusalem, because it was built on the mountain called Zion; as if to say, “Among the multitude of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, I shall declare all your praises,” not that he can express all your praises, but every type of praise.

Further, the gates of the daughter of Zion are said to be the doctors of the Church. I will make your gates of graven stones; . . . all your children shall be taught of the Lord (Isa 54:12–13).

Likewise, they are gates of justice: this is the gate of the Lord; the just shall enter into it (Ps 117:20).

They are also good thoughts: the bolts of your gates (Ps 147:2). Therefore, in these gates I will announce your praises.

67. I will rejoice. He described one fruit, namely the preaching of the divine praise; here he describes a second: spiritual joy from God.

And first, he describes his rejoicing;

second, the occasion for his rejoicing: the gentiles have stuck fast in the destruction which they have prepared.

Therefore, he says, that I may declare all your praises. But these are sterile if they are in the mouth in such a way that it is not in the heart. To our God be joyful praise (Ps 146:1), and so he adds, I will rejoice in your salvation, not in the world or the flesh but in your salvation, by which you exalt me. Or in Christ the Savior: I will joy in God my Jesus (Hab 3:18). I have joyed in your salvation (1 Sam 2:1).

The occasion for rejoicing is the destruction of the enemies who persecute the holy ones. And they persecute the holy ones in two ways:

first, by violence,

and second, by deceit.

Therefore, in regard to the first, he says, the gentiles have stuck fast; they have been killed by that killing which they prepared for others, and so he says, stuck fast—or, according to Jerome, submerged, since that which is stuck is held down with violence. And those who seemed to kill others with violence are held down violently. Their paths have become crooked to them (Isa 59:8). Let their sword enter into their own heart (Ps 36:15).

Or spiritually, someone is submerged to destruction when he commits a sin, since from it he enters eternal punishment and is damned, and in these works they are stuck fast by habit. He has thrust he feet into a net and walks in its meshes (Job 18:8).

In regard to the second, he says, their foot has been taken in the very snare. Hunters lay snares for birds and animals; just so, those who act treacherously. They prepared a snare for my feet (Ps 56:7).

And he says, they hid, since, just as fowlers literally hide snares, so they deceitfully prepare the poison of seduction through the words of peace which they speak. In the way in which I walked, they have hidden a snare (Ps 141:4).

The third fruit is the perception of the divine majesty.

Their foot has been taken, that is, their evil affections. The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up, his sin is hidden (Hos 13:12), of those who are inclined only to evil.

And these have hidden a snare, but in vain, since the Lord shall be known.

And through what? Since the sinner has been caught in the works of his own hands. Sometimes someone like Pharaoh does not know God in prosperity, but does in adversity. Fill their faces with shame (Ps 82:17), and so he says, he executes judgments.

Now, that these are the judgments of God, he adds below: in the works. It is the property of the divine wisdom that it orders all things sweetly (Wis 8:1). And it does this by making things in such a way that, by their proper forms, they tend to their proper ends. So through those things in which sinners think to offend, they fall into punishment. Who catches the wise in their craftiness (Job 5:13). And so he says, his own iniquities catch the wicked, and he is fast bound with the ropes of his own sins (Prov 5:22). His own counsel shall cast him down headlong (Job 18:7).

Also, the Lord shall be known here by the saints. For, fleeing the snare, a net is spread in vain before the eyes of those who have wings (Prov 1:17). Here the gloss says, he who has his eyes always on heaven will easily evade snares on the earth. (Glossa Interlinearis, at Proverbs 1:7.) Jerome: each one carries cords, bonds and instruments of torment from which he will suffer evils, and sinners shall be caught by the hidden judgment of God in the traps which they have hidden, and the just shall evade them. (Pseudo-Jerome, Breviarium in Psalmos (Patrologia Latina [Migne], vol. 26).)

68. The wicked shall be turned to hell. Above, the psalmist described the judgment of God in regard to his enemies; here, he describes it in regard to the whole human race, and in regard to the evils which are done everywhere by sinners.

And he makes two points regarding this.

First, he announces the judgment of God against the evil.

Second, he describes the progress of the evil: why, O Lord?

Regarding the first of these, he makes two points.

First, he announces the punishment of sins.

Second, he explains the divine judgment punishing: arise, O Lord.

About the first of these, he makes three points.

First, he announces the chosen punishment.

Second, he describes the reason for the punishment on the part of sinners: all the nations that forget God.

Third, he describes it on the part of the just: for the poor man shall not be forgotten to the end.

Therefore, he says, they shall be turned to hell.

This petition can be understood in two ways.

In one way, it is about the punishment of the evil in this present life through death.

In another way, about their future eternal punishment.

And so he says, the wicked shall be turned to hell, that is, they shall be punished.

But surely this should not be prayed for? It must be said that the prophet speaks here in the mode of prophecy and not of petition, or that he is conforming himself to the divine will. They shall go into the lower parts of the earth (Ps 62:10). Yet you shall be brought down to hell, that is, the depths of the pit (Isa 14:15).

Or by hell is meant a stubbornness of the mind in sinning. A sinner is in hell even while alive when he remains obstinate. God delivered them up to a reprobate mind (Rom 1:28), as if to say, “They are cast down in this life.” Therefore, the punishment is to be turned to hell, as is said.

The reason for this punishment is forgetfulness of God; for he who recedes from one end disposes himself to tend towards the other.

The two ends of man are hell and the enjoyment of God: the wicked shall be turned to hell, namely, those sinners who forget the commandments of God and his favors. They forgot his benefits and his wonders that he had shown them (Ps 77:11). You have forsaken the God who begot you, and have forgotten the Lord who created you (Deut 32:18).

On the part of the just, there is another reason, which asks for vindication against sinners. Now there are two things in the just which require vindication,

namely, their temporal state of being cast down,

and their spiritual virtue.

In regard to the first, he says, for the poor man shall not be forgotten to the end. Vile things happen to the scorned: their words are forgotten, but the just are not forgotten by God. Has God not chosen the poor in this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which God has promised to those who love him? (Jas 2:5). Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matt 5:3). Therefore, although they seem to have been forgotten, this is not so to the end, that is, ultimately. For a small moment have I forsaken you, but with great mercies will I gather you; . . . with everlasting kindness have I had mercy on you (Isa 54:7–8). For when he remembers, then he will punish the oppressors. God will not forget to show mercy, nor will he in his anger shut up his mercies (Ps 76:10).

In regard to the second, the spiritual virtue of the just, he says, the patience of the poor. Or, according to Jerome, their hope. For when they endure oppression and poverty patiently, they merit vindication through their patience. Nor will the hope of the poor perish forever, since the good that they hope for will follow. Or forever means eternal life.

But surely there is no patience in the fatherland? It should be said that it is not there in its essence but in its fruit, unlike charity and justice, which are there in their essence. (Cf. ST I-II, q. 67, aa. 1, 6.)

69. Afterwards, when he says, arise, he declares the divine judgment, and he makes three points concerning this.

First, he stirs up the judge.

Second, he begs for judgment.

Third, he describes the fruit of judgment.

He says that the poor man is not forgotten forever, so he speaks as though he is one of the poor: I ask that you do not delay reward forever, but arise.

And he makes three points regarding this.

First, he rejects a perverse or human judgment. For let man, acting humanly, oppressing without reason, not be strengthened, that is, let him not be able to accomplish what he wishes to do. When the wicked shall bear rule, the people shall mourn (Prov 29:2).

Second, he asks for the judgment of another: let the gentiles be judged, not according to human will, but in your sight, that is, by your judgment, as if to say, “I appeal to you.” I stand at Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be judged (Acts 25:10). Judge me, O Lord (Ps 25:1).

Third, he asks for a helper: appoint a lawgiver, that is, your son. The Lord is our lawgiver (Isa 33:22). Or, appoint a punisher according to your law, for punishment is brought to bear under the law.

Jerome has, put terror upon them. Another translation has, send bitterness to them. The gloss says, let not man, that is, the Antichrist, be strengthened; let them be judged, that is, punished. (Peter Lombard, Magna glossatura (Patrologia Latina [Migne], 191:138).)

This is the fruit of judgment, because they recognize they are men: that the gentiles may know themselves to be but men, fragile, sinners, and mortal. He gives vexation to the intellect (Isa 28:19). So Alexander, when he was beaten, realized that he was not the son of Jove but mortal, as he himself said to his troops. (Plutarch, Alexander 9.)

70. Here, he describes the progress of the wicked.

And first, he lays out the cause of their wickedness.

Second, he describes their wickedness, at his mouth is full of cursing.

Third, he implores the divine help against it, at arise, O Lord God.

The cause of their wickedness is twofold:

a permissive cause,

and an inducing cause. The second is where he says, for the sinner is praised.

He makes three points about the permissive cause.

First, he describes the divine concealment, which seems to be a cause for the evil of acting in an evil way. For because sentence is not speedily pronounced against the evil, the children of men commit evils without any fear (Eccl 8:11). And so he adds, why, O Lord, have you retired afar off from us, insofar as you do not punish those afflicting us, and seem to slight us in our wants, that is, at the time at which you should bring help.

Or in our wants, that is, it is opportune that you do this, since by it the saints advance to merit eternal life.

Second, he puts down the effect of his concealment: while the wicked man is proud.

And he describes two effects upon evil persons.

There is pride because they are not immediately punished by God. And so he says, the wicked man is proud, in his powers.

The poor one is set on fire, that is, he is afflicted.

Or he is set on fire spiritually when he considers the pride of the wicked and their sins. The zeal of your house has eaten me up (Ps 68:10).

The third (This is actually the second effect of the divine concealment upon the evil.) effect is that they are caught in the counsels which they devise, since their counsels will destroy them in the end. His own iniquities catch the wicked, and he is fast bound with the ropes of his own sins (Prov 5:22).

71. For the sinner is praised. Here he puts down three causes that induce one to sin.

The first is adulation.

The second is contempt of God, at for he has said in his heart.

The third is presumption, at God has forgotten.

He makes three points about this adulation.

First, he describes his adulation;

second, its effect;

third, the divine mercy.

Now, according to the gloss, sinners are praised on account of two types of sin, namely, for carnal concupiscence among one another and for injustice against neighbors, and so they are proud. (Peter Lombard, Magna glossatura (Patrologia Latina [Migne], 191:138–39.)

But according to Jerome: for he is praised, and so he has provoked by what he desires, in regard to concupiscence, and the unjust in regard to injustice against his neighbor. (Pseudo-Jerome, Breviarium in Psalmos (Patrologia Latina [Migne], vol. 26).)

Jerome’s text has, the avaricious man. Another text has, the plunderer. Woe to you who call good evil (Isa 5:20), for so it happens.

The sinner has provoked the Lord, that is, he has stirred him up to wrath.

Jerome has all of this as one sentence, and another begins at the sinner according to the multitude. But it is possible to read it, according to the multitude of his wrath he will not seek him, either because he punishes less than is deserved or because, in the greatness of his wrath, he does not punish right away, so that he may punish more severely in the future.

Or, according their wrath, namely that of the sinner, he, God, will not seek the sin.

72. God is not before his eyes. Above, the psalmist described some causes of the malice of the wicked, one of which was permissive, since God retired afar off, and the second was encouraging, namely, a flattering tongue.

Here he sets down other motivating causes, namely the intrinsic causes, which are two:

namely, contempt of God,

and individual presumption. He talks about the second when he says, he has said in his heart.

He makes two points about the first.

First, he notes down that he does not think about God.

Second, that he does not fear his judgments: your judgments are removed.

Regarding the first, he lays out two things:

first, his turning away from God, or his contempt of him,

and, second, the effects of this ignoring: his ways are filthy.

Therefore, he says, God is not before his eyes. Jerome has, in his thoughts, because he does not think about him at all, and he continues this thought: the sinner will not seek God, since he is not in his sight, that is, in his intention or thought. They have said to God, “Depart from us, we desire not the knowledge of your ways” (Job 21:14).

The effect is that his ways are filthy, that is, vile, at all times. The ways of the sinner are thoughts or desires. Wisdom will not enter into a malicious soul, nor dwell in a body subject to sins (Wis 1:4). And they are said to become filthy through sin or likeness to the sinners of earlier times.

This can be said allegorically about the Antichrist but morally about sinners, since because God is not in their intention they turn to temporal things, in which the soul becomes filthy insofar as it is mixed up in those things which are lower than the soul. But the soul mingled with God, who is better than the soul, is not made filthy but purified. Her filthiness is on her feet, and she has not remembered her end (Lam 1:9). Let their way become dark and slippery and let the angel of the Lord pursue them (Ps 34:6). They have forsaken me, the fountain of living water, and have digged to themselves cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water (Jer 2:13).

Jerome has, his ways are in travail, because sinners propose to do many things: “Soul, you have much goods laid up for many years . . . eat . . . make good cheer.” But God said to him, “You fool, this night do they require your soul of you” (Luke 12:19–20).

He has conceived sorrow and brought forth iniquity (Ps 7:15). In clinging to temporal things he does not hold fast to one, since it is not sufficient, and for this reason he thinks of many things.

73. Your judgments are removed. Here he describes how they despise the divine judgment.

And first, he describes the cause.

Second, he shows its effect, at he shall rule over all his enemies.

Your judgments, that is, your favors, are removed from his sight, that is from his mind and memory, and so he will not fear, since he does not think about them. Evil men think not on judgment (Prov 28:5). But those who seek God pay attention to everything. They turned away their eyes that they might not look to heaven (Dan 13:9).

But Jerome’s text has, convolutedly, they will despise all their enemies, as though to say they do not believe the judgments of God.

And he shall rule; add, “in his heart.”

Or, sometimes the evil do rule over their enemies by the permission of God. (Cf. ST I, q. 19, a. 12, resp.) And this is the reason why they do not know the divine judgments. He shall triumph over kings, . . . the wicked prevails against the just, therefore wrong judgment goes forth (Hab 1:10, 4).

Another cause is presumption about themselves. And they presume two things:

first, stability: he has said in his heart, “I shall not be moved from generation to generation,” that is, my dominion shall not pass from one nation to another, nor will I inflict many evils.

I shall not be moved, that is, I shall not lose prosperity. You have made your yoke exceedingly heavy, and you have said, “I shall be a lady for ever” (Isa 47:6–7).

Jerome has, and he said, “Forever I will go from generation to generations without evil,” that is, I will never suffer evil. I sit a queen and am not a widow (Rev 18:7).

And the gloss explaining Luke 3 says that the sinner, desiring to perpetuate his name, will not achieve it through celebrity and fame.

Without evil, that is, I will not do evil.

Or, I shall not be moved, that is, I will not come to the possession of homes without evil, violence, and injustice. And so the Antichrist will act, according to the gloss. (Peter Lombard, Magna glossatura (Patrologia Latina [Migne], 191:140).)

Or, I the Antichrist, shall not be moved, that is, I am restless, from generation to generation, without evil, namely, I will act in accord with what is allowed.

74. His mouth is full of cursing. Here he describes the advance of the wicked.

And first, in the heart, which has already been spoken about.

Second, in word.

Third, in deed: he sits in ambush.

He puts down two things about the first:

first, the sin of the mouth, which is committed in three ways.

Sometimes it is done by speaking ill of God or neighbor, which is to break forth in blasphemy. They have blasphemed the Holy One of Israel (Isa 1:4). And sometimes they only partly speak ill, when they are held back by fear.

Sometimes, by breaking forth in insults, and this is the mouth full of bitterness. According to the gloss, bitter words and threats. (Peter Lombard, Magna glossatura (Patrologia Latina [Migne], 191:140).) Let all bitterness, and anger, and blasphemy, and clamor be put away from you (Eph 4:31).

Sometimes it is committed by deceiving, and this is **full of deceit. Neither railers nor extortioners shall possess the kingdom of God (1 Cor 6:10). Lest any root of bitterness springing up do hinder, and by it many be defiled (Heb 12:15).

Second, he describes the root of the heart, under his tongue, that is, the work lies hidden in the interior of hearts.

The gloss says, that is, iniquity. (Peter Lombard, Magna glossatura (Patrologia Latina [Migne], 191:140).) For he plans to accomplish the iniquity at which he labors. They have labored to commit iniquity (Jer 9:5). For when evil shall be sweet in his mouth, he will hide it under his tongue (Job 20:12).

Or, labor, since he thinks to bring labor and sorrow on others; sorrow, that is, disaster following from his labor. The lips of a man have spoken lies, and your tongue utters lies and iniquity (Isa 59:3).

75. Here he shows the advance of the evil in regard to the body, and he makes two points about this.

He sets down, first, their advance;

second, the end of the advance: in his net.

Regarding the first, he does three things.

First, he describes those with whom he waits in ambush: with the rich;

second, against whom: that he may kill the innocent;

third, how he lies in ambush: he lies in wait in secret.

Therefore, he says that the evil, not satisfied with speech, labor to accomplish mischief, so he sits in ambush, thinking how to harm others.

He lies in secret, because of his deceit. Many are the snares of the deceitful (Sir 11:31).

With the rich, that is, as advisers. The wild ass is the lion’s prey in the desert; so also the poor are devoured by the rich (Sir 13:23).

Jerome has, near the entrance way, that is, his own room.

Against whom does he show himself to be? Certainly against the innocent: that he may kill the innocent, bodily or spiritually. The innocent and just person you shall not put to death (Exod 23:7).

And he is against the poor: his eyes are upon the poor man. Why do you consume my people, and grind the faces of the poor? (Isa 3:15).

The gloss has, the Antichrist will take counsel with the rich against the poor.

Jerome has, his eye is on the strong, since the poor are strong not in temporal things, but in spiritual. My enemy has beheld me with terrible eyes (Job 16:10).

76. He lies in wait. Here, he describes three ways of lying in ambush.

And first he gives an image: like a lion in his den, namely, as the evil princes oppress the poor. As a roaring lion, and a hungry bear, so is a wicked prince over the poor people (Prov 28:15).

Second is the manner of lying in wait: he lies in ambush that he may catch. The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood (Prov 12:6).

Or: he lies in wait that he may catch the poor man, that is, the goods of the poor through violence and fraud.

He adds the mode of snatching: while he draws, by luring with promises or violence or fraud. She drew him away with the flattery of her lips (Prov 7:21).

77. In his net he will bring him down. Here he describes two things:

first, what his attempt achieves;

second, the cause: for he has said.

For according to the sinner’s intention, his attempt achieves the downfall of the poor: in his net; but, according to the plan of God, it achieves first his loss of power, thus: he will crouch. For it happens that those who are warlike in the beginning afterwards are diverted to pleasures, and so, having been made emasculated, are cast out. And so the Philosopher says that those preserving their dominion should not nourish their children delicately. (Cf. Aristotle, Politics 7.17, 1336a.) You did bow yourself to women (Sir 47:21). They have all gone aside (Ps 13:3).

It will lead, second, to a complete fall. Exaltation before a fall (Prov 16:18), since being lifted up is the sign of a fall.

The gloss explains this passage as being about the Antichrist.

Jerome has it differently: when he attracts him to his snare, he crushes and subdues him and attacks him powerfully with his strength.

A lion first strikes down a captured animal.

Second, he subdues it.

Third, he crouches over it. For the reason is the false security which he has conceived.

First, it is about the past, since God has forgotten, that is, the sinner.

On the contrary: say not in your heart, “I shall be hidden from God, and who shall remember me from on high?” (Sir 16:16). The Most High will not remember my sins. And he understands not that his eye sees all things (Sir 23:26–27).

Second, it is about the future. He has turned away his face not to see to the end. The clouds are his cover (Job 22:14).

78. Arise, O Lord God. Above, the psalmist carefully followed the order of human iniquity; here, as though impelled by zeal and crying out, he begs for divine help against evil of this kind.

And first, he begs for help.

Second, he brings forward prayers and examples of being heard: forget not.

Third, he predicts that he will be heard: break the arm.

And he asks for one thing and presupposes another.

He asks that he rise up: arise. The Lord seems to sleep when he allows the good to be afflicted. He rises up when he frees them. Arise, arise, put on your strength, O Zion (Isa 52:1).

He supposes the divine power: let your hand be exalted in power. And he speaks using the image of an angry person who strikes, desiring to strike down the enemy who lifts his hand against him. Lift up your hand over the strange nations, that they may see your power (Sir 36:3). Let your hand be exalted, and let them not see. Let the envious people see, and be confounded (Isa 26:11).

He puts down the reasons: forget not the poor.

And notice that because this psalm was written against sinners persecuting the just, it always describes both the malice of the sinner and the affliction of the just.

Therefore, he describes the reasons first.

Second, he shows them to be effective: you see it.

And he puts down two reasons:

one on the part of the just,

and another on the part of the evil: why has he provoked?

Therefore, he says, let it be exalted, since what the wicked say—that you have forgotten the poor—sometimes seems to be true. Can a woman forget her infant, so as not to have pity on the son of her womb? and if she should forget, yet will not I forget you (Isa 49:15). Let my tongue cleave to my jaws, if I do not remember you (Ps 136:6).

The other reason is on the part of the evil, who sin more gravely if they are not punished. For because sentence is not speedily pronounced against the evil, the children of men commit evils without any fear (Eccl 8:11).

And so he says, why, as if to say, “The wicked have provoked God by sinning because they do not believe that they will be punished by him.” He walks about the poles of heaven, and he does not consider our things. And you say, “What does God know?” and he judges as though through a mist (Job 22:14, 13). God has forsaken the earth (Ezek 8:12).

79. You see it. He strengthens the reasons.

First, the second, saying, for you alone see the labor which the evil inflict on the good, so that from it you may deliver, that is, in the future, them into your hands, that is, of your justice, you who have them now in the hands of your power and now do not exercise your justice. Sinners are ignorant of this, since the way in which your providence works is unknown to them. When he sees iniquity, does he not consider it? (Job 11:11). With him is strength and wisdom; he knows both the deceiver, and he who is deceived. He brings counselors to a foolish end, and judges to insensibility (Job 12:16–17). How incomprehensible are his judgments (Rom 11:13).

Or, into your hands could mean “of your sons.” Knowing that the Father had given him all things into his hands (John 13:3).

Or, according to Augustine, this verse was spoken by the wicked, who has said in his heart, “He—that is, God—will not require it.” (Augustine, Expositions on the Psalms 9.30 (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, 38:72).)

And again, he said, for you see labor. Sometimes a prelate sees the guilt of someone under him, and fearing the labor, or even being himself punished by the one punished, does not punish him; and so he says, the wicked has said, “O God, you do not punish, since labor and sorrow do not pursue you.” But the first reading is better.

80. To you. Here he confirms the first reason, as if to say, “You should not forget, since to you is the poor man left, so he looks to you for help against him.” Rejoice, and give praise together, O you deserts of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted his people (Isa 52:9). Those who have nothing in the world but God alone look for their help only from God. But as we know not what to do, we can only turn our eyes to God (2 Chr 20:12). But he speaks particularly, for men in this world often defend themselves through riches. Those who trust in their own strength, and glory in the multitude of their riches (Ps 48:7). And sometimes through relatives and friends and defenders, but those who do not have these are left to God. (Cf. ST I-II, q. 69, a. 3; II-II, q. 188, a. 7.) And so he says, to you is the poor man left. He shall deliver the poor out of his distress (Job 36:15). I wept heretofore for him who was afflicted, and my soul had compassion on the poor (Job 30:25). We are become orphans without a father (Lam 5:3). I am become as a man without help (Ps 87:5). And if this is true of the one who is poor in the necessities of life, how much more is it true of the one who is poor in spirit. And this is in regard to the first.

In regard to the second, he says, you will be a helper to the orphan, who does not have a defender. Who is the father of orphans, and the judge of widows (Ps 67:6). For my father and my mother have left me, but the Lord has taken me up (Ps 26:10).

81. Break the arm. Here he announces his being heard,

first, in regard to sinners;

second, in regard to the poor, at the Lord has heard the desire of the poor.

He makes two points regarding the first.

First, he announces the end of the power of evil people, by which they were doing evil.

Second, he announces the end of the evil people themselves.

In regard to the first, he says, break the arm of the sinner who sins against God. The Lord has broken the staff of the wicked, the rod of the rulers that struck the people (Isa 14:5–6). And of the malignant who sins against his neighbor. The arms of the wicked shall be broken in pieces (Ps 36:17). From the wicked, their light shall be taken away, and their arms shall be broken (Job 38:15).

But, sometimes it happens that a tyrant does evil, and although he is swallowed up, he perdures in his evil deeds. But this is not so here, since his sin shall be sought, and shall not be found, that is, the work of his sin itself passes away but not its guilt, so the punishment of the sinner remains.

Or: his sin shall be sought, and shall not be found in the world. Today he is lifted up, and tomorrow he shall not be found (1 Macc 2:63). Sometimes God allows people to sin because of the good which he will bring forth from it, as the suffering or patience of the martyrs comes through the anger of the tyrant. (Cf. ST I, q. 22, a. 2, ad 2.) And so a place for the evil is found on earth, but in heaven sin will not be found to have any use.

But how will this happen?

Since the kingdom of God cannot be taken away, the evil shall be purged from it: the Lord shall reign to eternity, which encompasses all ages, yea, forever and ever, that is, eternally.

Or unto the age which follows this age. His power is an everlasting power that shall not be taken away, and his kingdom and you evil ones shall perish from the land of the living (Dan 7:14). Like the dust, which the wind drives from the face of the earth (Ps 1:4). I have seen the wicked highly exalted and lifted up like the cedars of Lebanon, and I passed by, and lo, he was not, and I sought him and his place was not found (Ps 36:35—36).

82. The Lord has heard the desire. Here, he predicts that the poor will be heard, and he puts down three things.

First, the hearing, at the desire.

Second, in what he heard them, at to judge.

Third, with what fruit, at that man may no more presume.

Regarding the first, he shows that the poor are heard effectively, since God gives them what they desire. To the just their desire shall be given (Prov 10:24). Sometimes, they are heard in their particular desires, as the saints are heard in regard to those things which they most desire. Likewise, he has heard the preparation, quickly. Before they call, I will hear (Isa 65:24). He has called to me; I will hear him (Ps 90:15).

Now, he has heard them in this, that he judges for the fatherless since he was fatherless. He shall judge the poor with justice, and shall reprove with equity for the meek of the earth (Isa 11:4), namely, the humble. He is called humble who does not rely on his own virtue. They have not judged the judgment of the poor (Jer 5:28). He gives judgment to the poor (Job 36:6).

And with what fruit? That man, having been frightened, may no more presume. This is not good, since it is pride. If I was not humbly minded, but exalted my soul. As a child that is weaned (Ps 130:2). Also, we will magnify our tongue (Ps 11:5).