Psalm 103 (Vulgate 102)

Part 1

The souPs inward act of blessing Qod. whose Head is in Heaven, individually exhort his own soul, and say unto it, Bless the Lord, O my soul. He listeneth, he obeyeth, he doth this, he is persuaded of it, not from our gift, but from His Whom our soul blesseth. For this Psalm undertakes to shew us wherefore our soul blesseth the Lord, as if the soul had replied unto it, Wherefore sayest thou unto me, Blesj the Lord? Let us therefore hear, let our soul itself hear, let it weigh all the causes which arouse it, that it may not be slothful in blessing the Lord; and let it consider whether what is said to it be just, Bless the Lord, 0 my soul: let it consider whether it ought to bless any thing beside the Lord. Bless, it saith, the Lord, O my soul I

•2. It repeateth this, and saith more expressly what it had said, Bless the Lord, O my soul I and all that is within me, His holy Name. I suppose that he speaketh not of what is within the body; I do not suppose him to mean this, that our lungs and liver, and so forth, are to burst forth into the voice of blessing of the Lord. There are lungs in our breast indeed, like a kind of bellows, which send forth successive breathings, which breathing forth of the air inhaled is pressed out into voice and sound, when the words are articulated; nor can any utterance sound forth from our mouth, but what the pressed lungs have given vent to; but this is not the meaning here; all this relateth to the ears of men. God hath ears: the heart also hath a voice. A man speaketh to the things within him, that they may bless God, and saith unto them, all that is within me bless His holy Name I Dost thou ask the meaning of what is within thee? Thy soul itself. In saying then, all that is within me, bless His holy Name, it only repeateth the above, Bless the Lord, O my soul: for the word Bless, is understood. Cry out with thy voice, if there be a man to hear; hush thy voice, when there is no man to hear thee; there is never wanting one to hear all that is within thee. Blessing therefore hath already been uttered from our mouth, when we were chanting these very words: Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, His holy Name. We sung as much as sufficed for the time, and were then silent: ought our hearts within us to be silent to the blessing of the Lord? Let the sound of our voices bless Him at intervals, alternately, let the voice of our hearts be perpetual. When thou comest to church to recite a hymn, thy voice soundeth forth the praises of God: thou hast sung as far as thou couldest, thou hast left the church; let thy soul sound the praises of God. Thou art engaged in thy daily work: let thy soul praise God. Thou art taking food; see what the Apostle saith: Whether ye eat or drink, do all j0 y[ory qf God. I venture to say; when thou* sleepest, let thy soul praise the Lord. Let not thoughts of crime arouse thee, let not the contrivances of thieving arouse thee, let not arranged plans of corrupt dealing arouse thee. Thy innocence even when thou art sleeping is the voice of thy soul. Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, His holy Name.

3. Ver. 2. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His rewards. Bless, he saith, the Lord, O my soul. What is, thy soul? all that is within thee. Bless the Lord, O my soul. The repetition giveth force to the exhortation. But that thou mayest ever bless God, forget not all His rewards. If thou dost forget, thou wilt be silent. But the rewards of the Lord cannot be before thine eyes unless thy sins are before thine eyes. Let not delight in past sin be before thine eyes, but let the condemnation of sin be before thine eyes: condemnation from thee, forgiveness from God. For thus God rewardeth thee, so that thou mayest say, How shall I reward the Lord for all His rewards unto me? This it was that the martyrs considering, (whose memory we are this day celebrating,) and all the saints who have despised this life, and as ye have heard in the Epistle of St. John, laid their lives for the brethren, which is the perfection of l°ve> even as our Lord saith: Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends: this the holy martyrs, then, considering, despised their lives here, that they might find them there, following our Lord's words when He said, He that loveth his life, shall lose it; and he that loseth his life for My sake, shall keep it unto life eternal. For they wished to pay their reward: who? and what reward? and unto whom? Men paid the reward of their ministry to God even unto death. What paid they that He had not given them? what gave they that they received not? He therefore truly rewardeth, Who alone giveth; but Who hath rewarded us good for evil. 37 He rewardeth not our sins; for other rewards than those which were due have been paid us. Forget not, he saith, all His rewards: not awards, but rewards1. For something e^se was due, and what was not due hath been paid. Whence also these words: What, he asketh, shall I reward the ^^r^utTfor all His rewards unto me? He saith not, His awards, but His rewmrds. Thou hast rewarded good with evil: He rewardeth evil with good. How hast thou, O man, rewarded thy God with evil for good? Thou who hast once been a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious, hast rewarded blasphemies. For what good things? First: because thou art: but a stone also is. Next, because thou livest: but a brute also liveth. What reward wilt thou give the Lord, for His having created thee above all the cattle; and above all the fowls of the air, in His image and likeness? Seek not how to reward Him: give back unto Him His own image: He requireth no more; He demandeth His own coin. But thou instead of giving thanks, instead of humility, of obedience, of religious worship, that is, instead of all these good things which thou didst owe to thy God, for the good things which thou hast received, which I have described, hast rewarded blasphemies. What then doth He? Confess: I forgive thee. I also reward: but not as thou hast rewarded: thou hast rewarded evil for good: I reward good for evil.

4. Think thou, soul, of all the rewards of God, in thinking over all thy wicked deeds: for as many as are thy sins, so many are His rewards of good. And what present, what offering, what sacrifice, canst thou ever tender unto Him? If thou dost not forget His rewards, He is pleased with this sacrifice: Bless the Lord, O my soul. " The sacrifice of**- praise honoureth Me:99 "Offer unto God the sacrifice of praise, and pay thy vows to the Most Highest" God vvisheth Himself to be praised: and this, that thou mayest profit, not that He may be exalted. It is not possible that thou canst reward Him; and what He requireth, He requireth not for Himself, but for thee; thee it shall profit, for thee it is reserved. He loveth not that from thee which may honour Him, but which may lead thee to Him. For this reason the martyrs sought, and failed in a manner in discovering, and said, How can I reward the Lord* for all His?* rewards unto me? and they found no reward that they could give, except this: / will receive the cup of salvation, and call upon the Name of the Lord. What wilt thou reward the Lord with? For thou wast reflecting, and couldest not find: I will receive the cup of salvation. What? hath not the Lord Himself given the cup of salvation? Reward Him from thine own, if thou canst. I w%uld say, No, do it not; reward Him not from thine own; God doth not will to be rewarded from thine own. If thou rewardest Him from thine own, thou rewardest sin. For all that thou hast thou hast from Him: sins only thou hast of thine own. He doth not wish to be rewarded from thine, He doth will from His own. Just as, if thou shouldest bring to a husbandman, from the land which he hath sown, an ear of wheat, thou hast rewarded him from the husbandman's own produce; if thorns, that hast offered him of thine own. Reward truth, in truth praise the Lord: if thou shalt choose to reward Him from thine own, thou wilt lie. He who speaketh a lie, speaketh of his own. If he who speaketh a lie, speaketh of his own: so he who speaketh truth, speaketh of the Lord's. But what is to receive the cup of salvation, but to imitate the Passion of our Lord? This did the Martyrs. This He said to the proud, and those who were seeking exalted seats, and who were avoiding the vale of lamentation, who wished to sit, one at the right hand, the other at the left. What then said He? Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of? Now therefore the Martyr ready for the holy offering saith, / will receive the cup of salvation: I will receive the cup of Christ, I will drink of our Lord's Passion, Beware that thou fail not. But, / will call upon the Name of the Lord. They then who failed, called not upon the Lord; they presumed in their own strength. Do thou so return, as remembering that thou art returning what thou hast received. So then let thy soul bless the Lord, as not to forget all His rewards.

5. Ver. 3 — 5. Hear ye all His rewards. Who forgiveth all thy sin: Who healeth all thine infirmities; Who saveth thy life from corruption; Who crowneth thee with mercy and lovingkindness. Who satisfieih thy mouth with good things, making thee young and lusty as an eagle. Behold His rewards. What, save punishment, was due unto the sinner? What was due to the blasphemer, but the hell of burning fire? He gave not these rewards: that thou mayest not shudder with dread: and without love fear Him. Forget not all His good rewards; and now change, lest thou experience His — what shall I say? Evil rewards? if just, not evil. To thee evil, therefore: but with respect to God, what thou sufferest is not evil: for if just, it is good; but to thee, who sufferest, these things are evil. Thou dost not wish that those things, which in God are just, should be evil unto thee? Let not thy wickedness be evil in the sight of God. For He hath not ceased to call thee, or neglected to strengthen thee when called, or ceased to perfect thee when strengthened, or neglected to crown thee when perfected. What sayest thou?. That thou art a sinner? Turn again, and receive these His rewards: He forgiveth all thy sin. After the remission of thy sins thou bearest a body that is infirm: there must needs be some carnal desires to tickle thee, and to suggesfto thee illicit delights; they come in consequence of thy infirmity. For as yet thou bearest flesh that is weak: death hath not as yet been swallowed up in victory: not as yet hath this corruptible put on incorruption: as yet even after remission of sins the soul herself is shaken by certain passions; still is she amid the dangers of temptation, still is she pleased with certain suggestions; with some she is not pleased, and sometimes she consenteth unto some of those with which she is pleased: she is taken. This is infirmity: but He healeth all thine infirmities. All thine infirmities shall be healed: fear not. They are great, thou wilt say: but the Physician is greater. No infirmity cometh before the Almighty Physician as incurable: only suffer thou thyself to be healed: repel not His hands; He knoweth how to deal with thee. Be not only pleased when He cherisheth thee, but also bear with Him when He useth the knife: bear the pain of the remedy, reflecting on thy future health. For consider, my brethren, in these bodily infirmities how much men bear, that after living for a few days they may die, and these few, days of uncertainty. For many after they have borne great pains when they were under the physician's knife, have either died under the physician's hands, or, some fresh attack coming on, have sunk beneath it. If they believed death so near them, would they endure those great pains? Thou dost not endure in uncertainty: He Who promised thee health, cannot be deceived. The physician is often deceived: and promiseth health in the human body. Why is he deceived? Because he is not healing his own creature* God made thy body, God made thy goul. He knoweth how to restore what He hath made, He knoweth how to fashion again what He hath already fashioned: do thou only be patient beneath the Physician's hands: for He hateth one who rejects His hands. This doth not happen with the hands of a human physician. Men choose to be bound, and to suffer the operation; ready to admit certain pain for uncertain recovery, a high price. God both surely, and without charge, healeth thee, whom He created. Bear then His hands, O soul, who blessest Him, not forgetful of His rewards: for He healeth all thine infirmities.

6. Who redeemeth thy life from corruption. He healeth all thine infirmities, because He saveth thy life frdm corrupBehold, the body which is corrupted, weigheth doum the soul. The soul then hath life in a corruptible body. What sort of life? It suffereth burdens, it beareth weights. How great obstacles are there to thinking of God Himself, as it is right that men should think of God, as if interrupting us from the necessity of human corruption? how many influences recall us, how many interrupt, how many withdraw the mind when fixed on high? what a crowd of illusions, what tribes of suggestions? All this in the human heart, as it were, teemeth with the worms of human corruption. We have set forth the greatness of the disease, let us also praise the Physician. Shall not He then heal thee, Who made thee such as to be in health, hadst thou chosen to keep the law of health which thou hadst received? Did He not arrange and enjoin to thee what thou shouldest and what thou shouldest not touch, in order to retain health? Thou wouldest not hear to retain thy health, therefore in order to recover it. By thine infirmity hast experienced how justly He had thus ordered. last then, let man who kept not the Law when he was keep it now he hath had experience of it. How The willing healed. Maris perpetual sickness. 41 great is that hardness, which not even experience teacheth? Shall not He then heal thee, Who created thee such as that thou shouldest never feel sickness, hadst thou chosen to keep His commandments? Shall not He heal thee Who made the Angels, and Who will make thee equal with the Angels when thou art restored? Shall not He heal one who was create^ in His own image — He Who made Heaven and earth? He will heal thee: but thou must wish to be healed. He indeed healeth all the infirm, whomsoever; but He healeth no man against his will. What can be more happy than thou, who canst hold thy health as it were in thine own hands, that is, in thine own free-will? If thou didst wish for some exalted honour in this world; if thou wast ambitious of a duchy, a proconsulate, a prefecture; couldest thou at once have as thou wast desirous? would power be in attendance upon thy first wish? Many wish to attain these things, but cannot: and if they could, of what use is honour to the sick? For who is not sick in this life? who doth not drag on tedious infirmity? To be born here in a mortal body, is to begin to be sick. Our wants are supported by daily medicines, the means of restoration for all wants are daily medicines. Would not hunger cause thy death, unless thou didst apply what would cure it? would not thirst destroy thee, unless thou didst by drinking satisfy it for a season, though not for ever? For thirst will return in a short interval, though checked. We therefore by these means of healing do assuage the troubles of our distempered state. Thou wast wearied with standing, by sitting down thou art refreshed; the very act of sitting is the cure of thy fatigue: by this very remedy thou art in turn fatigued; thou canst not long sit. Whenever one cause of fatigue is counteracted, a fresh one is created. Why then, infirm as thou art, dost thou long for these things? First think of thine own health. Sometimes a man is stricken in his own house, on his bed, with a more than usually manifest disorder; although this disorder too, which men dislike to contemplate, be plain; yet each man may be attacked with that sickness for which human physicians are sought, and may gasp with fever in his bed; perhaps he may wish to consider of his domestic affairs, to make some order or disposition relating to his estate or his house; at once he is recalled from such cares by the anxiety of his friends, plainly expressed around him, and he is advised to dismiss these subjects, and first to take thought for his health* This then is addressed unto thee, and to all men: if thou art not sick, think of other things: if thy very infirmity prove thee sick, first take heed of thy health. Christ is t]jy health: think therefore of Christ. Receive the cup of His saving Health, Who healeth all thine infirmities; if thou shalt choose, thou shalt gain this Health. When thou hast sought for honours and wealth, thou wilt not gain them at once, though thou wishest: this is even more precious, and it followeth thy will. He Who healeth all thine infirmities: and Who redeemeth thy life from corruption. There shall all thine infirmity be healed, when this corruptible shall put on incorruption. For thy life hath been redeemed from corruption: rest secure now: the contract of good faith hath been entered upon; no man deceives, no man circumvents, no man oppresses, thy Redeemer. He hath here made a barter, He hath already paid the price, He hath poured forth His blood. The only Son of God, I say, hath shed His blood for us: O soul, raise thyself, thou art of so great price. He redeemeth thy life from corruption. He hath shewn by His example, what He hath promised in the reward. He died for our transgressions, and rose again for our justification. Let the members hope for that which hath been shewn in the Head. Will He not heal those members of His own, whose Head He raised into heaven? Therefore, He redeemeth thy life from corruption.

7. Who crowneth thee with mercy and loving kindness. Thou hadst perhaps begun to be in a manner proud, when thou didst hear the words, He crowneth thee. I am then great, I have then wrestled. By whose strength? By thine, but supplied by Him. For thou dost strive, it is clear, and therefore thou shalt be crowned, because thou wilt conquer: but see Who conquered first, Who hath made thee a conqueror, even though in the second place. / have overcome the world. He said: he of good cheer. And whence are we of good cheer, if He hath overcome the world? as if we overcame it? Surely for this reason we rejoice, because God crowns His own gifts. Victory over death. 43 we ourselves have overcome it. We who were overcome in ourselves, have in Him overcome. He crowneth thee, because He is crowning His own gifts, not thy deservings. I laboured more abundantly than they all, said the Apostle; but see what he addeth: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. And after all his toils he hopeth for the crown* itself, and saith, / have fought a good JtghtyW\m. I have finished my course / have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up far me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that day. Why? Because / have fought a good fight. Wherefore? Because / have finished my course. Wherefore? Because / have kept the faith. How hast thou fought? By what power hast thou kept the faith? Yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. It is then by His mercy that thou art crowned; in nothing be proud; ever praise the Lord; forget not all His rewards. It is a reward when thou, a sinner and an ungodly man, hast been called, that thou mayest be justified. It is a reward, when thou art raised up and guided, that thou mayest not fall. It is a reward, when strength is given thee, that thou mayest persevere unto the end. It is a reward, that even that flesh of thine by which thou wast oppressed riseth again, and that not even a hair of thy head perisheth. It is a reward, that after thy resurrection thou art crowned. It is a reward, that thou mayest praise God Himself for evermore without ceasing. Forget not all His rewards, if thou dost wish that thy soul may praise the Lord, Who crowneth thee with mercy and lovingkindness.

8. And what shall I do when crowned? Lo, I was supported while I was striving; I shall be crowned when the fight is finished; there will be no longer any remaining suggestion or corruption of the enemy with which to strive. For in this life we are ever striving with this corruption; but wrhat is written? The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. After the destruction of death thou shalt fear no enemy: thenceforward death is swallowed up in victory. Then therefore will be the victory, then the crown. After the battle, then, I shall be crowned; after the crown, what shall I do? He Who satisfieth thy longing with good things. For at present thou nearest of good, and dost pant for it: thou nearest of good, and sighest for it: and even whenever thou sinnest, it is perhaps because thou art mistaken in the eagerness of thy choice of good; and in this thou art liable to condemnation, that thou nearest not the good counsel of God, as to what ought to be spurned, and what to be chosen; in that perhaps thou neglectest to learn, if thou wast deceived in thy choice of good. Wherever thou sin-nest, thou art as it were seeking for a good, longing for refreshment. These objects of thy search are good; but unto thee they will be evil, if He by Whom they were made good be forsaken. Seek thy own good, O soul. For one thing is good to one creature, another to another, and all creatures have a certain good of their own, to the completeness and perfection of their nature. There is a difference as to what is essential to each imperfect thing, in order that may be made perfect; seek for thy own good. There is none good but One, that is, God* The highest good is thy good. What then is wanting unto him to whom the highest good is good? For there are inferior goods, which are. good to different creatures respectively. What, brethren, is good unto the cattle, save to fill the belly, to prevent want, to sleep, to indulge themselves, to exist, to be in health, to propagate? This is good to them: and within certain bounds it hath an allotted measure of good, granted by God, the Creator of all things. Dost thou seek such a good as this? God giveth also this: but do not pursue it alone. Canst thou, a coheir of Christ, rejoice in fellowship with cattle? Raise thy hope to the good of all goods. He will be thy good, by Whom thou in thy kind hast been made good, and by Whom all things in their kind were made good. For God made all things very good. If therefore we say that That good, which is God, is very good, it hath already been said of the creation: God made every thing very good. What therefore is that good whereof it is said, There is none good hut One, that is, God? Do we say that it is very good? We call to mind that this is said of the whole creation, God made all things very good. What then are we to say? Our words are wanting, but not our feeling. Let us remember the Psalm lately treated of: we cannot

Joy beyond utterance. Youth renewed as the Eagle's. 45 express our feeling; let us shout1 for joy. God is good. What sort of good, who can say? Lo, we cannot say, and we are not allowed to be silent. If then we cannot say, and for our joy are not able to be silent; let us neither speak, nor be silent. What then are we to do, neither speaking, nor silent? Let us shout for joy. Jubilate unto the God of our saltation. Jubilate unto God, every land. What meaneth, Jubilate? Utter the ineffable accents of your joy, and let your delight burst forth before Him. And what will this burst be after the full feast, if even now after slight refreshment the soul is so much affected? what will it be, when it shall be done after our redemption from all corruption, as is said in this Psalm, He shall satisfy thy longing with good things?

9. And as if thou didst ask, when doth He satisfy us? for at present I am not satisfied; whatever I turn myself unto, becometh vile when gained, although it incited me when desired; when I despise all those things after attaining them, which I love only when I have them not, what good thing will satisfy me? The praise of God? Even by this, while the corrupt body weigheth it down, and its earthly abode overpowers the reflecting mind, the soul, not satisfied, is not perfected; other pleasures attached to my wants, and arising from corruption, turn me aside from it. When shall my longing be satisfied with good things? when, dost thou ask? Tfiy youth shall be renewed as the eagle's. Dost thou then ask when thy soul is to be satisfied with good things? When thy youth shall be restored. And he addeth, as an eagle's. Something here lieth hidden; what however is said of the eagle, we will not pass* over silently, since it is not foreign to our purpose to understand it. Let this only be impressed upon our hearts, that it is not said without cause by the Holy Spirit, Thy youth shall be renewed as the eagle9 s. For it hath intimated unto us a sort of resurrection. And indeed the youth of the eagle is restored, but not into immortality, for a similitude hath been given, as far as it could be drawn from a thing mortal to signify a thing immortal, not to demonstrate it. The eagle is said, after it becometh overpowered with bodily age, to be incapable of taking food from the immoderate length of its beak, which is always increasing. For after the upper part of its beak, which forms a crook above the lower part, hath increased from old age to an immoderate length, the length of this increase will not allow of its opening its mouth, so as to form any interval between the lower beak and the crook above. For unless there be such an opening, it hath no power of biting like a forceps, by which to shey off what it may put within its jaws. The upper part therefore increasing, and being too far hooked over, it cannot open its mouth, and take any food. This old age doth to it, it is weighed down with the infirmity of age, and becometh too weak from want of power to eat; two causes of infirmity assaulting it, old age, and want. By a natural device, therefore, in order in some measure to restore its youth, the eagle is said to dash and strike against a rock the upper lip of its beak, by the too great increase of which the opening for eating is closed: and by thus rubbing it against the rock, it breaketh off the weight of its old beak, which impeded its taking food. It cometh to its food, and every thing is restored: it will be after its old age like a young eagle; the vigour of all its limbs returneth, the lustre of its plumage, the guidance of its wings, it flieth aloft as before, a sort of resurrection taketh place in it. For this is the object of the similitude, like that of the Moon, which after waning and being apparently intercepted, again is renewed, and becometh full; and signifieth to us the resurrection; but when it is full it doth not remain so; again it waneth, that the signification may never cease. Thus also what hath here been said of the eagle: the eagle is not restored unto immortality, but we are unto eternal life; but the similitude is derived from hence, that the rock taketh away from us what hindereth us. Presume not therefore on thy strength: the firmness of the rock rubbeth off thy old age: for that Rock was Christ. In Christ our youth shall be restored like that of the eagle. For we have grown old among our enemies, in the well-known words of the Psalm, I have grown old amid all mine enemies. How have we grown old? By our mortal flesh, by that flesh of grass: and therefore, My heart is smitten down, and withered like grass, so that I forget to eat my bread. 1 have forgotten, he saith, to eat my bread. Old God will have us ask the good He gives. age hath increased, it hath closed the mouth, let it be rubbed away by the rock.

10. Thus also in this Psalm which we are now concerned with, when he had said, He satisjieth thy mouth with good things, the soul seemeth to reply, I will not be satisfied with things perishable, with things temporal; let Him give me something^everlasting: let Him grant me His Wisdom, His Word: let Him give me God with God, and Himself God the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. I stand as a beggar before His door, He whom I call upon sleepeth not, let Him give^ me Three Loaves. Remember the Gospel: behold what it is to know the words of God; they who have read them are moved. For ye remember that a person in want came to the house of his friend, and begged of him three loaves. And he, it is said, while in bed answered him, saying, The door is now shut; and my children are with me^^eii, in bed. He through persevering entreaty, extorted by importunity what he could not of his own deserts. But God is willing to give: but He giveth not except to him who asketh, that He may not give to him who receiveth not. He wants not to be aroused by thine importunity. For when thou pray est, thou art not troublesome as to one who sleepeth. Behold, He that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. Once hath Christ slept, that from His side a wife might be created: He slept on the Cross, it is clear. For He died, so that He said, I have laid me down and slept. But shall not he who sleepeth also rise? ForP«»4i, this reason it is said, I rose tip again, for the Lord sustained me. But what doth the Apostle say? Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death shall have no more dominion over Him. He therefore doth not sleep: beware lest thy faith sleep. Let then the soul that longeth to be satisfied with some exalted, ineffable good, to which it rather shouteth for joy, and for which it rather shouteth, than uttereth any description; for it already wisheth, it already perceiveth somewhat thereof: it seeth that it is hindered by the weighing down of the body, that it cannot be satisfied in this life; let it answer, and say, What sayest thou to me? Shall my longing be satisfied with good things? I know that good of His which I am to desire, I know what is enough for me, I see this in Philip: Shew us, he said, the Father, and it sufficeih us. He seemingly longed for the Father alone: our Lord shewed that three loaves were to be desired: He Who is one loaf shewed him this, saying, Have 'I been so long time with you, and hast thou not known the Father, Philip? He that hath seen Me, hath seen the Father. He promised also the Holy Ghost: iVhom the Father, He said, will send in My Name; and again He saith, Whom I will send you jrom the Father: His own gift coequal with Himself. I know what I long for: but when shall I be satisfied with it? Lo, now my thoughts are of the Trinity, in such wise as I can about the Trinity, I hardly dare to perceive any thing even darkly in a looking-glass; when shall I be satisfied? Thy youth shall be renewed as an eagle's. r Thou art not satisfied at present, because thy soul is not fit for that great and solid food; for when thy beak is closed, it is not fit for it. Old age hath closed thy mouth, for this reason is the Rock given, where, oldness rubbed off, thy youth may be restored as that of an eagle; that thou mayest be able to eat thy bread, Him Who saith, / am the living bread, Who came down from ueaven% Thy youth shall be renewed as an eagle's: then shalt thou be satisfied with good things.

11. Ver. 6. The Lord eooecuteth mercy and judgment for all them that are oppressed with wrong. He doth so now, brethren, before we come to our restoration like that of the eagle, before we are satisfied with good things. For what here, what in this pilgrimage, what in this life? are we forsaken? No. The Lord executeth mercy. Now see how He executeth mercy, not leaving us in the desert, not leaving us in the wilderness, until we reach our country: He executeth mercy; but unto whom? Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy, ye have heard lately, brethren, while the Gospel was being read. Let not therefore any man imagine, that the mercy of God will light upon him, if he is unmerciful himself. But hear what is the measure of mercy, lest perhaps it be only towards a friend, and not towards an enemy. It is said, Love your enemies. Thou dost wish to be satisfied with the good things of God; let mercy be satisfied within thee. Full mercy, this is perfect Vengeance just in God, not in sinners. mercy; it is this which loveth, which loveth him even who hateth herself. But what shall I do? thou sayest. If I begin to love mine enemy, shall I receive injuries, and bear injuries, and shall not I seek redress, when the laws protect me? It is right for thee to redress thyself; it is allowed, that it is just: see whether thou hast nothing to redress within thygelf, and redress it. For thou speakest thus, shall I not then redress myself? as if God were restraining the justice of redress, and not extinguishing the pride of him who redresseth. Or was not that adulterous woman worthy of being stoned? or if she were stoned, would an act -of injustice have been done? If it were unjust, the commandment was unjust; but the Law commanded it, God commanded it. Yet, O ye avengers, see whether ye be not sinners. An adulterous woman is brought forward to be stoned according to the Law, but she is brought before the Lawgiver Himself. Thou who bringest her forth, dost rage against her: see who thou art who art cruel, and against whom thou art cruel; if sinner against sinner, be cruel no more, first confess; if thou a sinner dost rage against a sinner, leave her; He knowetb what to think of her, what to judge, how to spare, how to heal. Art thou angry according to the Law? He Who made the Law, which causeth thy rage, knoweth better what to do. Our Lord, at the time she was brought before Him, bending His Head, began writing on the earth. When He bent Himself down upon the earth, He then wrote on the earth: before He bent upon the earth, He wrote not on the earth, but on stone. The earth was now something fertile, ready to bring forth from the Lord's letters. On the stone He had written the Law, intimating the hardness of the Jews: He wrote on the earth, signifying the productiveness of Christians. Then they who were leading the adulteress came, like raging waves against a rock: but they were dashed to pieces by His answer. For He said to them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. And again bending His head, He began writing on the ground. And now each man, when he asked his own conscience, came not forward. It was not a weak adulterous woman, but their own adulterate conscience, that drove them back. They wished to punish, to judge; they came to the Rock, their judges were overthrown by the Rock. ' 12. Ttte Lord doeth mercies: but unto whom? Blessed merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Be merciful unto all men. What mercy art thou to shew to the righteous? Only in his bodily wants; if they are not supported by thee, they will not be abandoned by God. What therefore thou dost, profiteth thyself more. Thou givest to a beggar when passing by and asking alms: thou seekest also a righteous man unto whom thou mayest give, through whom thou may est be received into eternal tabernacles; since he that receivelh a righteous man in the name of a righteous man, receiveth a righteous man's reward. A beggar seeketh thee: do thou look for a righteous man. For of one thing it is said, Give to every man that asketh of thee: and of another, u Let almsgiving toil in thy hand, until thou find a righteous t0 whom thou mayest give. And if after a long time he be not found; seek long: thou wilt find." But what wilt thou give? is not more given thee? If we have sown unto you, saith the Apostle, spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things? Thence also is the passage which we have already expounded by our Lord's permission, that the earth bringeth forth gras3 for cattle, that is, carnal things for those who thresh the wheat: for, thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ow that treadeth out the corn. Whence we have exhorted you to be in this matter diligent, cautious, sober; that ye think your works your treasures. But do we, brethren, say this, that these works may be done towards ourselves? I think that although from weak men, this exhortation may be nevertheless made in the name of the Lord, and Apostolic; but it is profitable unto you, as the Apostle saith, Not because I desire a gift, but that I desire fruit that may abound to your account. What alms then wilt thou give to the righteous? The widow did not feed him, the crow fed him; because He Who made the °r0W fed him: Elias> 1 mean. There is therefore no deficiency in what God giveth to His own: do thou see what thou art buying, when thou mayest buy, and at what price? For thou art buying the kingdom of heaven: and there is no time for buying, except in this life. Remark also, at how Do good to sinners, but reward not sin. low a price thou buyest. Its value to thee is that of all that thou canst ever possess.

12. Execute mercy to1 the wicked, not as being wicked, Do not receive the wicked, in so far forth as he is wicked: that?188- is, do not receive him as if from inclination towards and love for his iniquity. For it is forbidden to give unto a sinner, and to receive sinners. Yet how is this, Give unto every man that asketh of thee? and this, if thine enemy hunger, feed him? This is seemingly contradictory: but it is opened to those who knock in the name of Christ, and will be clear unto those who seek. Help not a sinner: and, give not /oEccius. the ungodly; and yet, give unto every man that asketh of12' thee. But it is a sinner who asketh of me. Give, not as unto a sinner. When dost thou give as unto a sinner? When that which maketh him a sinner, pleaseth thee so that thou givest*. Attend for a short space, beloved, until this matter, which is very useful to understand, be unfolded by illustrations. He said this, If any man be hungry, if thou^koa hast whence to give, give; if thou seest that thou oughtestest to give in order to his support, give. Let not the bowels of mercy become sluggish within thee, because a sinner meeteth thee: the sinner who meeteth thee is a man. When 1 say, the sinner who meeteth thee is a man, I mention two names; these two names are not superfluous: two names, one that he is a man, another that he is a sinner; that he is a man, is the work of God: that he is a sinner, is the work of the man: give unto the work of God, give not to that of man. Yet how, thou askest, dost thou forbid me to give to the work of the man? what is to give to the man's work? To give to the sinner in consideration of his sin, because he pleaseth thee by his sin. And who will do this, sayest thou? Who will do this? Would that no man would, would that few only, would that it were not in public! Let those who give to a man, who fights with wild beasts, tell me why they give? Why doth he give to this man? He loveth that in him, in which consists his greatest sin; this he feedeth, this he clotheth in him, wickedness itself, made public by all witnessing it. Why doth the man give, who giveth to actors, or to charioteers, or to courtesans? Do not these very persons give to human beings? But it is not the nature of God's work that they attend to, but the iniquity of the human work. Dost thou wish to see what thou art honouring in the man who encounters beasts, when thou clothest him? Suppose it is said unto thee: Become like him: thou lovest him, thou rejoicest in him, thou art seemingly glad to strip thyself, and to clothe him; take it not as an insult, if it be saiA to thee % May thy sons be such as this man! This is an insult, thou sayest. Why an insult, save because that is wickedness? Why an insult, unless because that is infamy? When therefore thou givest, thou givest to infamy, not to bravery. As then he who giveth to the fighter of beasts, giveth not to the man, but to a most infamous profession; for if he were only a man, and not a fighter of beasts, thou wouldest not give; thou honourest in him vice, not nature: so on the other hand, if thou give to the righteous, if thou give to the prophet, if thou give to the disciple of Christ any thing of which he is in want, without thinking that he is Christ's disciple, that he is God's minister, that he is God's steward; but art thinking in that case of some temporal advantage, for instance, that when perchance he shall be needful to thy cause, he may be bought for thee, because thou hast given him something; thou hast no more given to the righteous, if thou hast thus given, than he gave to the man, when he gave to the beast-fighter. The matter, then, most beloved, is quite open to us, and I conceive, that although it was obscure, it is now clear. It was to this that the Lord bound thee, when He said, He who hath received the righteous man. That were enough. -But as the righteous may be received with another intention, when it is imagined that he may be profitable for some temporal purpose, perhaps to supply thy greedy desires, perhaps to assist in the circumvention or oppression of another man; thou perhaps receivest him, because thou art seeking some such service from him: He denied thee the reward of the righteous man, except with this addition. For He saith, He who receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous manb: that is, receiving him in consideration of his righteousness: and, * such may thy daughters be!: Revenge, not discipline, forbidden. he who receiveth a prophet; and not simply receiveth a prophet, but, in the name of a prophet: honouring in him his being a prophet: lastly, whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these least ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple; that is, because he is Christ's disciple, because he is a steward of the Mystery: Verily I say unto you, he sjiall in no wise lose his reward: as therefore4,1" thou understandest, he who receiveth a righteous man in MeMat.10, name of a righteous man, shall receive a righteous man's40'41' reward; so understand, he who receiveth a sinner in the name of a sinner shall lose his reward.

13. Therefore, brethren, exercise mercy. There is no other bond of charity, there is no other vehicle to lead us out of this life into that country: extend your love even unto your enemies: be without apprehension. For this reason came Christ, to Whom so long before it had been said, Out of the mouth of very babes and sucklings hast thou perfected praise, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger: where some copies read, " defender:" but "avenger" is the truer reading. The Lord wished to still the avenger, that is, him who would avenge himself, so that such an one's sins should not be remitted him. What then, sayest thou? Shall discipline sleep? Shall all punishment be removed? It shall not. For what wilt thou do with a profligate son? Wilt thou not chastise, wilt thou not scourge him? Wilt thou curb thy very servant, if thou shalt see him living ill, with some punishment, yea with strokes? Be it so, be it so: God alloweth it: indeed He blameth, if it be not done; but do it in the temper of affection, not in that of revenge. But when thou shalt have suffered from the injuries of some of the more powerful, where thou hast neither power of correcting them by discipline, nor even perhaps of admonishing and counselling: bear, bear fearlessly: hear the Gospel that hath just been read, Blessed shall ye be when men shallMztt.5, persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my name's sake. And He added there for whose sake, lest the revilings thou bearest be not of thine own deserving, not for the sake of God's righteousness. For a man is not righteous because he is reviled: but he who being righteous is unjustly reviled; and if he be unjustly reviled, a reward is given unto him. On this account therefore be merciful without fear, extend love even unto thine enemies: punish those who chance to belong to thy government, restrain them with affection, with charity, in regard to their eternal salvation; lest while thou sparest the flesh, the soul perish. Do this: and though thou have to endure manyc, over whom thou canst not exercise discipline, because thou hast no lawful authority over them; bear their injuries; be without apprehension. For the Lord executeth mercy and judgment unto all them that are oppressed with wrong. Thus will He shew mercy unto thee if thou shalt have been merciful: thou shalt be merciful, without the injuries thou suflerest losing their punishment; To Me belongeth vengeance, / will repay, saith the Lord.

14. Ver. 7. He made His ways known unto Moses. What ways of His hath He made known to Moses? Why is Moses here chosen? By Moses understand all the righteous, all saints: He hath mentioned one, let all be understood. Nevertheless, by Moses was the Law given, and the very delivery of the Law hath somewhat obscure. For the Law was given with this view, that the sick might be convinced of his infirmity, and pray for the physician. This is the hidden way of God. Thou hadst long ago heard, Who healeth all thine infirmities. Their infirmities were as yet hidden in the sick, the five books were given to Moses: the pool was surrounded by five porches; he brought forth the sick, that they might lie there, that they might be made known, not that they might be healed. The five porches discovered, but healed not, the sick; the pool healed when one descended, and this when it was disturbed: the disturbance of the pool was in our Lord's Passion. For when He came, and was unknown, when it was said by some, He is Christ; by others, He is not Christ; He is righteous, He is a sinner; He is a master, He is a seducer: He disturbed the water, that is, the people; and in the whole of that disturbance of the water one was healed, because in the Lord's Passion unity is healed. He who shall be without the pale of unity, although he shall lie in the porches, cannot be healed: although he holdeth the Law, he reacheth not salvation. Since therefore this is a mystery there, he teacheth that the Law was given that sinners might be convinced of their sin, and call upon the Physician in order to receive grace. How was he convinced, whom the Apostle Paul represented by himself, in the words, O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? For through the commandment there had been shewn to him a kind of strife within himself, whereof he saith, I see another law in my members warring against the taw of my mindy and bringing me into captivity under the law of sin which is in my members. He acknowledged himself in misery, in groaning, in strife and contention; he himself not agreeing with himself, at variance with himself, recoiling from himself: and what saith he, wishing for peace, true peace, peace above? O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? The grace qf23—5- God through our Lord Jesus Christ: for where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. Whence did sin abound? The Law entered in, that sin might abound. But why did sin abound when the Law entered in? Because men would not confess themselves sinners; when the Law was given them, they became also transgressors: for none is a transgressor, but he who hath transgressed the Law. The Apostle himself saith this: for where no law is, there there is noib.4,15. transgression. Sin therefore abounded, that grace might still more abound. Therefore, as I had begun to say, because this is a great mystery in the Law, that it was given with this view, that by the increase of sin, the proud might be humbled, the humbled might confess, the confessing might be healed; these are the hidden ways, which He made known to Moses, through whom He gave the Law, by which sin should abound, that grace might more abound. God did not this in cruelty but with the design of healing. For sometimes a man seemeth to himself well, when he is really ill; and since he is ill without being aware, he seeketh not a physician; the disease is increased, the trouble is augmented, the physician is sought, and the whole is healed. He hath made His ways known unto Moses: His good pleasure unto the children of Israel. To all the children of Israel? To the true children of Israel; yea, to all the children of Israel. For the treacherous, the insidious, the hypocrites, are not children of Israel. And who are the children of Israel? " Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is tw guile"

He hath made known His good pleasure unto thf children of Israel.

16. Ver. 8. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy: long-suffering, and of great mercy. Why so long-suffering? Why so great in mercy? Men sin and live; sins are added on, life continueth: men blaspheme daily, and He maketh His sun to rise over the good and the wicked. On all sides He calleth to amendment, on all sides He calleth to repentance, He calleth by the blessings of creation, He calleth by giving time for life, He calleth through the reader, He calleth through the preacher, He calleth through the innermost thought by the rod of correction, He calleth by the mercy of consolation: He is long-suffering, and of great mercy. But take heed lest by ill using the length of God's mercy, thou treasure up for thyself, as the Apostle saith, in the day of wrath. For this the Apostle saith: or despisest thou the riches of His goodness, and forbearance, and long-suffering; not knowing that the patience of God leadeth thee to repentance? Because He spareth thee, dost thou imagine that thou pleasest Hira? These things hast thou done, He saith, and I held my tongue, and thou thoughtest of iniquity that I am even such a one as thyself Sins please Me not, but with long-suffering I seek good deeds. If I were to punish sinners, I should not find confessors. God therefore by His long-suffering in sparing leadeth thee to repentance: but whilst thou daily sayest, This day is over, and thus will I be to-morrow also, for to-morrow will not be my last day; and so on the third day; then suddenly His anger cometh. Brother, defer not to turn unto the Lord. For some there are who prepare to turn, and yet put it off, and in them crieth out the raven's voice, « Cras! Cras1!" The raven which was sent from the ark, never returned. God seeketh not procrastination in the raven's Y°ice> but confession in the wailing of the dove* The dove, when sent forth, returned. How long, To-morrow! To-morrow!? Look to thy last morrow: since thou knowest not what is thy last morrow, let it suffice that thou hast lived up to this day a sinner. Thou hast heard, often thou art wont to hear, thou hast heard to-day also; daily thou nearest, and daily thou amendest not. But thou, after thy hardness and impenitent heart, treasurest up unto thyself6'6' wrath against the day of wrath, and revelation of the righteous judgment of God: who will render to every man according to his deeds. Let not God seem to thee in such wise merciful as to forego justice. The Lord is merciful, and a shewer of mercy, I hear, and I rejoice: so thou sayest. Hear and rejoice; he hath added further, long-suffering, and of great mercy: and at the end, and true. At the former words thou rejoicest: at the latter tremble. He is long-suffering and merciful, so as also to be true. When thou shalt have treasured up unto thyself wrath in the day of wrath, shalt thou not find Him just, whom thou hast despised when merciful?

17. Ver. 9. He will not alway be chiding: neither keepeth He His anger for ever. Since it is in consequence of His anger that we live in the scourges and corruption1 of mortality: we have this in punishment for the first sin. My?£*8r'_ brethren, we ought not only to consider how we may avoid His future threats, but also His present wrath; for this is His wrath, of which the Apostle calleth himself and us sons, when he saith, We were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. It is therefore in consequence of His auger2'3, that man is a pilgrim here, that he toileth. Is it not through His anger, my brethren, that in the sweat of thy face and in toil thou shalt eat bread, and the earth shall bear thorns19'20' and thistles unto thee? This was said to our forefathers. Or if our life is different from this; if thou canst, turn unto some pleasure, where thou mayest not feel thorns. Choose what thou hast wished, whether thou art covetous or luxurious; to name these two alone; add a third passion, that of ambition; how great thorns are there in the desire of honours? in the luxury of lusts how great thorns? in the ardour of covetousness how great thorns? What troubles are there in base loves? What terrible anxieties here in this life? I omit hell. Beware lest thou even now become hell unto thyself. The whole of this, my brethren, is the result of His anger: and when thou hast turned thyself unto works of righteousness, thou canst not but toil upon earth; and toil endeth not before life endeth. We must toil on the way, that we may rejoice in our country.. He therefore consoleth by His promises thy toil, thy labours, thj troubles, saying to thee, He will not alway be chiding: neither will He keep His anger for ever.

18. Ver. 10, 11. He hath not dealt with us according to our sins. Thanks unto God, because He hath vouchsafed this. We have not received what we were deserving of: He hath not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our icickedn esses. For as the height of heaven above the earth, so hath the Lord confirmed His mercy toward them that fear Him. The Lord hath confirmed His mercy toward them that fear Him, so great — as what? — as the height of heaven above the earth. What hath he said? If the heaven can ever cease to protect the earth it covereth, at some time God may cease to protect them who fear Him. Observe the heaven: every where on every side it covereth the earth, nor is there any part of the earth not covered by the heaven. Men sin beneath heaven: they do all evil deeds beneath the heaven; yet they are covered by the heaven. Thence is light for the eyes, thence air, thence breath, thence rain upon the earth for the sake of its fruits, thence all mercy from heaven. Take away the aid of heaven from the earth: it will fail at once. As then the protection of heaven abideth upon the earth, so doth the Lord's protection abide upon them that fear Him, Thou fearest God, His protection is above thee. But perhaps thou art scourged, and conceivest that God hath forsaken thee. God hath forsaken theed, if the protection of heaven hath forsaken the earth: for as the height of heaven above the earth, so hath the Lord confirmed His mercy toward them that fear Him.

19. What then hath He done? He hath not rewarded us according to our sins.

Ver. 12. Look, how wide the east is from the west; so far Sins put far away. Mercy in chastisement. 59 hath He set our sins from us. According to the height of the heaven above the earth, hath the Lord confirmed His mercy towards them that fear Him. I have said wherefore: for our protection. How so? How wide the east is from the west, so far hath He set our sins from m. They who know the Sacraments know this; nevertheless, I only say what all may hear.# When sin is remitted, thy sins fall, thy grace riseth; thy sins are as it were on the decline, thy grace which freeth thee on the rise. Truth springeth from the earth. What meaneth this? Thy grace is born, thy sins11, fall, thou art in a certain manner made new. Thou shouldest look to the rising, and turn away from the settinge. Turn away from thy sins, turn unto the grace of God; when thy sins fall, thou risest and profitest. But the part of heaven which riseth, again falleth. Illustrations can not be drawn in exact analogy from all topics: but the subjects themselves may be paralleled with those which they are used to illustrate: as he said of the eagle, as of the moon, so also here. One region of the heaven falleth, another riseth: but the region which is now rising will set after twelve hours. Not like this is the grace which riseth unto us: both our sins fall for ever, and grace abideth for ever.

20. Ver. 13. But why hath He set our sins as far as the east is from the west, so far from us, so that while our sins fall, our grace riseth? Why, do ye conceive? Yea, like as a father pitieth his own children, even so hath the Lord had mercy on them that fear Him. Let Him be as angry as He shall will, He is our Father. But He hath scourged us, and afflicted us, and bruised us: He is our Father. Son, if thou bewailest, wail beneath thy Father; do not so with indignation,. do not so with the puffing up of pride. What thou sufferest, whence thou mournest, it is medicine, not punishment; it is thy chastening, not thy condemnation. Do not refuse the scourge, if thou dost not wish to be refused thy heritage: do not think of what punishment thou sufferest in the scourge, but what place thou hast in the Testament. Yea, like as a father pitieth his own children, even so is the Lord merciful unto them that fear Him. Baptism, and then, turned away to the

21. Ver. 14. For He knoweth our forming1: that is, our infirmity. He knoweth what He hath created, how it hath fallen, how it may be repaired, how it may be adopted, how it may be enriched. Behold, we are made of clay: The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord heaven. He sent even His own Son, Him Who was made the second man, Him Who was God before^all things. For He was second in His coming, first in His returning: He died after many, He arose before all. He knoweth our What forming? Ourselves. Why sayest thou that He knoweth? Because He hath pitied. Remember that we are but dust. Addressing God Himself, he saith, Remember, as if God could forget: He perceiveth, He knoweth in such a manner that He cannot forget. But what meaneth, Remember? Let thy mercy continue towards us. Thou knowest our forming; forget not our forming, lest we forget thy grace. Remember that we are but dust.

22. Ver. 15. Man, his days are but as grass. Let man consider what he is; let not man be proud. His days are but as grass. Why is the grass proud, that is now flourishing, and in a very short space dried up? Why is the grass proud that flourisheth only for a brief season, until the sun be hot? It is then good for us that His mercy be upon us, and from grass make gold. For, Alan, his days are but as grass: for he flourisheth as a flower of the field. The whole splendour of the human race; honour, powers, riches, pride, threats, is the flower of the grass. That house flourisheth, and that family is great, that family flourisheth; and how many flourish, and how many years do they live! Many years to thee, are but a short season unto God. God doth not count, as thou dost. Compared with the length and long life of ages, all the flower of any house is as the flower of the field. All the beauty of the year hardly lasteth for the year. Whatever there flourisheth, whatever there is warmed with heat, whatever there is beautiful, lasteth not; nay, it cannot exist for one whole year. In how brief a season do flowers pass away, and these are the beauty of the herbs! This which is so very beautiful, this quickly falleth. All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness of man is as the flower of the field. The grass withereih, the The Word made like to us, to give us hope. 61 flower fadeth; but the Word of the Lord standeth for ever. Inasmuch then as He knoweth as a father our forming, that we are but grass, and can only flourish for a time; He sent unto us His Word* and His Word, which abideth for evermore, He hath made a brother unto the grass which abideth not for evermore: He hath made His Only-Begotten by nature, th§ only One born of His own Substance, brother unto so many adopted brethren. Wonder not that thou shalt be a sharer of His Eternity; He became Himself first a sharer of thy grass. Will He Who assumed from thee what was lowly, deny unto thee what is exalted in respect of thee? Man then, as far as pertaineth unto man, his days are but as grass: as a flower of the field so shall he flourish.

23. Ver. 16. The wind shall go over on it, it shall not be; and the place thereof shall know it no more. As it were a kind of destruction; as it were a kind of perishing. Behold he who puffeth himself up. Behold he who dwelleth with pride. Behold he who lifteth himself up. The wind shall go over him, he shall not be: and his place shall know him no more. See them daily dying; and this will be all, this will be their end. For he is not speaking of grass, but of that for whose sake even the Word became grass. For thou art man, and on thy account the Word became man. All flesh is grass: and the Word was made flesh. How great then is the hope of the grass, since the Word hath been made flesh? That which abideth for evermore, hath not disdained to assume grass, that the grass might not despair of itself.

24. Ver. 17. In thy reflections therefore on thyself, think of thy low estate, think of thy dust: be not lifted up: if thou art any thing better, thou wilt be so by His Grace, thou wilt be so by His mercy. For hear what followeth: but the mercy of the Lord endureth for ever and ever upon them that fear Him. Ye who fear not Him, will be grass, and in grass, and in torment with the grass: for the flesh shall arise unto the torment. Let those who fear Him rejoice, because His mercy is upon them.

25. Ver. 18. And His righteousness upon children's children. He speaketh of reward, upon children's children* How many servants of God are there who have not children, how much less children's children? But He calleth our works our children; the reward of our works, our children's children. His righteousness upon children's children; even upon such as keep His covenant. Let men beware that all may not conceive what is here said to belong to themselves: let them choose, while they have the choice. Upon such as keep His covenant: and keep in memory His commandments to do them. Thou wast already disposed to flatter thyself, and perhaps to recite to me the Psalter, which I have not by heart, or from memory to say over the whole Law. Clearly -thou art better in point of memory than I, better than any righteous man who doth not know the Law word for word: but see that thou keep the commandments. But how shouldest thou keep them? Not by memory, but by life. Such as keep in memory His commandments: not, to recite them; but, to do them. And now perhaps each man's soul is disturbed. Who remembereth all the commandments of God? who remembereth all the writings of God? Lo, I wish not only to hold them in my memory, but also to do them in my works: but who remembereth all? Fear not: He burdeneth thee not: on two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets. But I wish to keep all the Law in my mind. Keep it, if thou canst, when and how thou canst. Whatever page thou shalt have enquired of, will answer thee this; whatever thou hasty keep: keep charity: the end of the commandment is charity- Think not of the multitude of boughs, hold the root, and the whole tree is in thee. And upon such as keep in memory His commandments to do them.

26. Ver. 19. The Lord hath prepared His throne in heaven. Who but Christ hath prepared His throne in heaven? He Who descended and ascended, He Who died, and rose from the dead, He Who lifted up to heaven the manhood He had assumed, hath Himself prepared His throne in heaven. The throne is the seat of the Judge: observe therefore ye who hear, that He hath prepared His throne in heaven. Let each man do what he wisheth on earth, the sin will not be unpunished, righteousness will not be fruitless; since the Lord, Who was mocked before the We must bless God in deed as well as in word. throne of a man His judge, hath prepared His throne in heaven. The Lord hath prepared His throne in heaven: and His kingdom shall rule over all. The kingdom is the Lord's, and He shall be the Governor among the people. And His kingdom shall rule over all.

27. Ver. 20. Bless ye the Lord, ye Angels of Hi's, ye that are mighty in strength: ye that fulfil His word. By the word of God, then, thou art not righteous, nor faithful, unless when thou dost it. Ye that are mighty in strength, ye that fulfil His commandment, and hearken unto the voice of His words.

28. Ver. 21. Bless ye the Lord, all ye His hosts: ye servants of His that do His pleasure. All ye angels, all ye that are mighty in strength: ye that do His word: all ye His hosts, ye servants of His that do His pleasure, do ye, ye bless the Lord. For all they who live wickedly, though their tongues be silent, by their lips do curse the Lord. What doth it profit if thy tongue singeth a hymn, while thy life breatheth sacrilege? By living ill thou hast set many tongues to blasphemy. Thy tongue is given to the hymn, the tongues of those who behold thee, to blasphemy. If then thou dost wish to bless the Lord, do His word, do His will. Build upon the rock, build not upon the sand. To hear and not to do, is to build upon the sand: to hear and to do, is to build upon a rock: neither to hear, nor to do, is not to build at all. If thou buildest on the sand, thou buildest ruin: if thou buildest nothing, exposed to rain, rivers, winds, thou wilt be hurried away before thou hast24"27' gained thy footing. We must not therefore loiter, but build; nor build so, that a ruin be built; but we must build upon a rock, that temptation may not overwhelm us. If it be thus with thee, bless the Lord; if it be not thus, flatter not thy tongue; question thy life, let it answer thee. Thou findest out the evil that is in thee: groan, confess; thy confession must be a blessing of God; but let thy changed state persevere in blessing Him.

29. Ver. 22. Bless ye the Lord, all ye works of His, in all places of His dominion. Therefore in every place. Let Him not be blessed where He ruleth not: in all places of His dominion. Let no man perchance say; I cannot praise the Lord in the East, because He hath departed unto the West; or, I cannot praise Him in the West, because He is in the East. For neither from the east9 nor from the west, nor yet from the desert hills. And why? God is the Judge. He is every where, in such wise that every where He may be praised: He is in such wise on every side, that we may be joyful in Him on every side: He is in^such wise blessed on every side, that on every side we may live well. Bless ye the Lord, all ye works of His. For when in a good life thou hast begun to bless the Lord, His works bless Him, not thy deservings. For through thee and in wor^et^ as ^e Apostle saith: Work out your 'own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God which worketh in you. That thou mightest not extol thyself, then, because thou dost fulfil His word, because thou dost fulfil His will, He chose thou shouldest be humbled, by looking back to His grace, whence thou hast gained this. In every place of His dominion: bless thou the Lord, O my soul! The last verse is the same as the first: blessing is at the head of the Psalm, blessing at the end; from blessing we set out, to blessing let us return, in blessing let us reign f.

Part 2

Three days since, if ye deign to remember it, ye were abundantly refreshed: but since even after so long a discourse ye left me very anxious to hear more, I think ye ought not, holy brethren, to be defrauded of what is due to you on this day: so that this will be only what is due to you, the former will be your gain. The Psalm which has been read, almost wholly consists of figures and of mysteries, and hath need not only of mine, but of your diligent attention; Love seeks to see mysteries in GooVs works. although even all that is said, may be taken literally in a religious sense. For although all the works of God are not enumerated, yet many are, and they are known to all who look upon them, who know even from these things which are made and seen, to behold in the mind His invisible things. For we see an ample fabric of the world consisting of heaven and earth, and of all the things which in them are; and from the magnitude and beauty of this fabric, we already love even though we as yet see not the inestimable magnitude and beauty of Him Who made it. For He, Who cannot as yet be seen in the purity of our heart, hath not ceased to place His works before our eyes, that seeing what we are able, we may love Him Whom we are not able to see, that by the merit of that love we may at length be enabled to see. Yet in all of what is said, a spiritual meaning must also be sought for, to discover which your longings in Christ's Name will help us; by which as it were with invisible hands ye knock at an invisible door, that it may be invisibly opened unto you, and ye may enter invisibly, and invisibly be healed.

2. Ver, 1. Bless the Lord, O my soul, therefore, let us all say. Let us all address our own soul: because the soul of all of us by one faith is one soul; and all of us who believe in Christ, through the unity of His body, are one man. Let our soul praise the Lord for so great blessings of His, for so numerous and so great gifts of His graces, which gifts we discover in considering this Psalm, and shaking off the. cloud of carnal thought, as far as we can with mind aroused; and as far as we can with uplifted gaze, and as far as we can with the eye of our heart pure, as far as this life hindereth not, as far as desires of things present engage us not, as far as worldly lust blindeth us not. Thus eager then, we are about to hear those great, joyful, beautiful, desirable gifts of His, so full of delight and happiness; which he who had conceived this Psalm already saw in mind, and in the exultation of that sight burst forth in the words, Bless the Lord, O my soul.

3. O Lord my God, Thou art become exceeding glorious. Behold the glorious things which he is about to describe; in which glorious things He only is to be praised Who is the Author of all glorious things. Thou art clothed with con*' fession and honour. O Lord my God, Who art become exceeding glorious, whence hast Thou become exceeding glorious? Art Thou not always great, art Thou not always glorious? Art Thou in aught imperfect, that Thou mayest increase? Art Thou failing, so that at some time Thou mayest decrease? But because Thou art what Thou art, and truly art, Thou hast spoken Thy Name to Thy servant Moses, 1 am That I am: Thou art indeed great, and Thy greatness is eternal, neither beginning nor ending; neither doth it begin from the beginning of time, nor doth it run out at the end of time, nor doth it suffer any thing in the interval: for Thy greatness is unchangeable. How then art Thou become exceeding glorious? Another Psalm teacheth us: for it saith, Thy knowledge hath been made wonderful from me. If it be rightly said, Thy knowledge hath been made wonder- ful from me; it is rightly said, Thou art become exceeding glorious, 0 Lord God, from me. But this also must be further enquired into. Is my God made glorious through me? Through me then He becomes great. Our daily prayer for our salvation teacheth us also somewhat. Hallowed be Thy Name: each day we ask, each day we beg, that this may be. Suppose some one were to ask us, why is it that ye ask that God's Name may be hallowed? is it then at some times not hallowed, so that it may now be hallowed? and yet unless we wished this to happen, we should not beg that it might happen. For thanksgiving is different from prayer: we give thanks for what already doth exist: we pray that what is not, may be. What then meaneth, Hallowed be Thy Name? and we understand the words here, O Lord my God, Thou art become exceeding glorious. This is the meaning of, Hallowed be Thy Name. May Thy Name be hallowed among men. For Thy Name is ever hallowed, but unto some unclean ones Thy Name is' not yet hallowed. For the Apostle saith, Unto the pure all things are pure, but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure. If nothing is pure to the defiled and unbelieving, I seek the reason: but, he addeth, even their mind and conscience is defiled. If nothing is pure unto them, neither is God: unless indeed ye imagine that God seemeth pure unto those The change is in our conception of Him. 67 who daily blaspheme Him. If He be pure, let Him please them; if He pleaseth them, let Him be praised: but if He is blasphemed, He displeaseth them; and if He displeaseth them, how can He who displeaseth thee be pure unto thee? Why then do we pray, Hallowed be Thy Name? That unto those men who through their unbelief hold not as yet God's Name hsjlowed, it may become hallowed, unto whom He is not as yet holy, Who by Himself, and in Himself, and in His own saints, is holy. We pray for the human race, for the whole world, for all nations, who daily sit and dispute that God is not righteous, and that God judgeth not righteously; that sometime they may amend themselves, and bring a righteous heart unto His righteousness; and thus, cleaving unto Him, made straight by Him Who is straight, may no longer blame Him, but He who is righteous may please them, become righteous themselves; since, Truly GW1**-?31- is loving unto Israel: but unto such as are of a right heart. When therefore the Psalmist, that is, we ourselves, the body, the limbs of Christ, saw how great gifts God had bestowed upon the human race, he who before thought not of any God, or of a false one, or of God as not so great, when he saw Him in His works; O Lord my God, he said, Thou art become exceeding glorious; that is, I who did not as yet understand Thee, understand Thee now to be great. Ever great, even when hidden; but unto me now (made manifest as)1 great, when Thou hast appeared. Through me therefore Thou hast become exceeding glorious: as Thy1*8' knowledge hath been made wonderful from me; for it hath been made to be admired through me. I wonder at it now that I am turned towards it; but it, although I am not turned, although after conversion I again turn away, abideth whole. But I am now become great in it, and having been made whole in it when I was incomplete before, wonder at what I knew not; not that since I learnt, it hath lately become great, but that I am become great since I learnt it. Now hear wherein God seemeth to have become exceeding glorious, Who is ever glorious; for He hath become exceeding glorious in His works towards us.

4. Thou hast clothed thyself with confession and honour. Before honour he hath set confession, honour is in beauty. Thou seekest beauty: thou art seeking a good thing* But wherefore seekest thou beauty, O soul? That thy Betrothed may love thee; for thou displeasest him by thy deformity. For what is He like? Fairer than the sons of men. Thou who art deformed dost wish to kiss Him Who is beautiful; but thou heedest not that thou thyself art full of iniquities. And full of grace are Thy lips. For thus it is saioj of Him: Fairer than the sons of men: full of grace are Thy lips; for which the maidens love Thee. There is then one who is beautiful and fairer than the sons of men; although a son of man, yet fairer than the sons of men. Dost thou wish to please Him, O human soul, O thou one in many? Let us hear of the Church, that they had one heart and one soul unto God; the Psalm addresseth the Church. Dost thou wish to please Him? Thou canst not, as long as thou art deformed: what wilt thou do that thou may est be beautiful? First let thy deformity displease thee, and then thou wilt deserve beauty from Him, unto Whom it is thy wish to be pleasing by thy beauty. For He. who fashioned thee, shall fashion thee anew. Heed therefore first who thou art, that thou mayest not dare in thy deformity to seek the kisses of the beautiful. Looking upon what, thou askest, shall I see myself? He hath set before thee a mirror in His Scriptures: it is read to thee. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. A mirror hath been set before thee in this verse, see if thou art what it saith; if as yet thou art not, groan that thou mayest be. The mirror will disclose unto thee thy face: as thou wilt not find a flatterer in the mirror, so flatter not thyself. This brightness sheweth thee the very thing that thou art: see what thou art: if it displease thee, seek that thou mayest not be such. For if while thou art deformed thou art displeasing to thyself, thou already dost please the beautiful. What then? Since thy deformity displeaseth thee, thou beginnest with confession unto Him; as it is elsewhere said, Begin with confession unto the Lord. First accuse thy deformity: for the deformity of. the soul cometh of sins, of iniquities. Begin to praise Him by accusing thine own deformity, by thy confession thou beginnest to be adorned: who adorning thee, save He who is fairer than the sons of men? Christ loved His Church first., then gave her beauty. 69

5. But that He might render her beautiful, I venture to assert, He loved her when deformed. What meaneth this, He loved her when deformed? For Christ died for the ungodly. What a life doth He keep for thee when justified,6. Who gave thee when ungodly His own death? Lo, He, beautiful and fairer than the sons of men, because He is preeminently righteous above the sons of men, since He came to the deformed, to render her beautiful, (I will say this also, since 1 find it in Scripture,) He became Himself deformed. Not to me listen ye in this, lest I may have rashly slipped iuto this expression. For as I had said, He loved her even when deformed; and this I had not said as it were agreeably to some that love Him, unless testimony bore me out; I said also what the Apostle said: dost thou wish to know that He loved her even when deformed? Christ died for the ungodly; so also, how shall I prove what 1 just now asserted, that He became Himself deformed, that He might come unto her who was deformed; since the divine voice hath already spoken of Him as fairer than the sons of men? But again, I find in this very divine voice the words, We have seen^**'53> Him: He had no form or comeliness. Fairer than the sons of men; we have seen Him: He hath no form or comeliness. He said not, we have.not seen, and therefore we knew not whether He had form or comeliness: behold, " we have seen Him, and He had no form or comeliness." Where then did he, who said, He was fairer than the sons of men, see Him? and where did he, who said, He hath no form or comeliness, see Him? Hear where he, who spoke of Him as fairer than the sons of men, saw Him. Being in the form of God, He thought it not robbery to be equal with God. Justly fairer than the sons of men, because equal with God: behold, O man, understand, and acknowledge where he, who said, " Fairer than the sons of men," saw Him. For he answered us, Dost thou ask where I saw Him? " In the form of God." And by what means hast thou seen Him in the form of God? How hast thou seen Him in the form of God? Because the invisible things of Him are under stood^m% by the things that are made. Very well: I understand, I recognise Whom thou hast seen, and in what form, where, and by what means. Whom hast thou seen? Our Betrothed. jn what form? Fairer than the sons of men. Where hast thou seen Him? When in the form of God. By what means? His invisible things are understood by the things that are made. Let us see what another prophet also, but not another spirit, (for they do not disagree with one another,) saith of Him. One hath displayed Him unto us, "fairer than the sons of men:" let the other also display Him in his own words; " We have seen Him: He hath no form or comeliness." One Apostle Paul connects both prophets; one chapter of Paul gives testimony to either prophet. There I find Him Who was " fairer than the sons of men:" Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God. Here he speaketh of Him as another also saw Him, " having no form or comeliness:" for He made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross. Justly they saw Him, and He bad not form or comeliness. Justly before the Cross they wagged their heads, asking, Is this all the Son of God1? If He be the Son of God, let Him come down from the Cross. But He had not form or comeliness. Even so> O ye whom He pleaseth not, because He had no form or comeliness! O ye who wagged your heads before the Cross, and who fixed not your head upon that Head which hung upon the Cross! The head of those who mocked Him wags deservedly, until He Himself who was insulted becometh their head. Lo, He resumeth beauty and great beauty. Behold, what thou sayest is less than what He hath achieved. Thou sayest, If He be the Son of God, let Him come down from the Cross: behold, He hath not come down from the Cross, but hath arisen from the tomb.

6\ Therefore, O soul, thou canst not be beautiful, unless thou hast confessed thy deformity to Him Who is evermore beautiful, but was for thy sake for a season not beautiful: and in such a manner not beautiful for a season in the form of a servant, as never to have abandoned that beauty which is in the form of God. Thou, therefore, O Church, hast beauty. It is said unto thee also in the Song of Songs, O thou fairest among women. It is also said of thee, Who is

Christ ' clothed with confession and beauty* in the Church. 71 this that cometh up, made white? What meaneth, made white? Illumined: not whitened, as by a dye, even as women paint themselves white when they wish to seem other than what they are: not whitened like a whitened wall; for the whitened wall, that is, hypocrisy and semblance, shall be destroyed, as the Apostle saith. The whitened wall is clean plaster without, filth within. She therefore is not thus whitened;2, but she is whitened, illumined, in that she is not of herself white. Formerly, he saith, / was a blasphemer; and, JfipiTim.i, were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. Grace cometh, illumining and whitening: at first thou wast black,3* but thou hast become white by His grace. For ye wereEvh.5, sometimes darkness: but now are ye light in the Lord. Of8, thee also it is therefore said, Who is this that cometh up, made white? She is now to be admired, now hardly to be gazed upon. For it is for one who admireth to say, Who is this who cometh up white, so beautiful, so luminous, so free from spot or wrinkle? Is it not she who once lay in the mire of her iniquities? is it not she who27, once lay in the fornication of idols? is it not she who was once unclean in every carnal lust and desire? Who then is she who cometh up, become white? Consider who is He Who for her became without form or comeliness, and thou wilt understand how bright is this honour. If thou dost admire His humility for her sake, do not any longer wonder at her elevation on His account. How great is the happiness of this whitened one, in that even when she was black, she brought down unto herself the beautiful Betrothed, who should die for the ungodly. Our Lord then hath clothed Himself with confession and beauty, He hath clothed Himself with the Church: for the Church herself is confession and beauty. First confession, then beauty: confession of sins, beauty of good works: Thou hast put on confession and beauty.

7. Ver. 2. Thou deckest Tit y self with light as it were with a garment. This is His garment, of which I have already spoken: without spot or wrinkle. It is called light; and this I have already said: Ye were sometime darkness; but now are ye light in the Lord. Not in yourselves, therefore; for in yourselves ye are darkness but light in the Lord. Therefore, Thou deckest thyself with light as it were with a garment; and spreadest out the heavens like a skin. How He hath clothed Himself with the light of the Church as with a garment, he wishes to describe by certain figurative emblems: let us hear, how the Church hath been made light, how she became without spot or wrinkle, how she became white, splenciid, refulgent in the garb of her Betrothed, cleaving unto Him. Thou spreadest the heaven like a hide. Now this indeed I see; for, save God, Who spread out this heaven, which we gaze upon with our fleshly eyes? These words, Thou spreadest it out like a hi le, refer to the ease with which it was spread out, if thou understandest it literally. For when thou hast seen this great fabric, (since if any man hath spread out even one small vault, he doth it with a great effort, with much toil and difficulty, and long work,) that human weakness might not imagine toil of this sort in the works of God, he mentioneth a thing that is easy in proportion to thy power, that thus thou mayest begin to believe that God worketh easily, and not to imagine that He hath spread out the heavens with as much toil as thou hast the roof of thy house; but that it was as easy for Him to spread out so broad a heaven, as for thee to stretch out a single hide. Wonderful ease: but even yet in thee the Spirit speaketh to one of slow comprehension. For God doth not spread out heaven, as thou dost a hide. For if He doth thus spread it out, behold the hide is placed before thee either wrinkled or rolled; command it to be spread out, by thy word spread out the hide. I cannot, thou sayest. Therefore even in spreading out the hide thou art far from the ease of God. For, He spake, and they were made: He said, Let there be a firmament between water and water, and it was so. Yet in order to signify the ease of this work, thou mayest in the mean while take it in a literal sense, according to thy understanding.

8. But if, figuratively, we wish somewhat hidden to be revealed, and to knock at what is closed, we find that God hath spread out heaven as a hide, so that we may understand by heaven holy Scripture. This authority God first placed in His Church; thence He began to follow out the rest: for He set the heaven, and spread it out like a hide, and not

Heaven like a hide, is Holy Writ given through mortals. 73 like a hide without a meaning. First, He hath spread out the report of His preachers as a hide: the hide signifieth mortality: for this reason also those two first parents of ours, the authors of the sin of the human race, Adam and Eve, when in Paradise, in contempt of God's commandment, they had transgressed what God had ordered by yielding to the serpent's suggestion^ being made mortal, were dismissed from Paradise; and that this mortality of theirs might be signified, they were clothed with garments of hides, for they received garments made of hides: but hides are only stripped from dead animals: by hides therefore that state of mortality is signified. What then, if divine Scripture is here signified under the name of a hide, how did God make heaven from a hide, and spread out the heaven like a hide? Because they by whom Scripture was preached to us, were mortal. That word of God indeed is evermore the same, ever immutable, and never failing. Behold, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Was it so, and is it not so now? It both is, and ever will be. If then the Word of God is God with God, read it if thou canst. But what sayest thou? that it is above, and that therefore thou canst not read? The Word of God is every where; it reacheth from one end to another mightily: it passeth and goeth1'7'24' through all things by reason of its pureness. He was in the teorld, and the world was made by Him: and when He came, He was here; for He came in the flesh, never absent in the Godhead. Why then couldest thou not read? Because in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, placed there by the wisdom of God, (for therein are all things, and if that be subtracted, all things are nought,) placed there thou couldest not by wisdom know God: therefore what folio weth was necessary, // pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. If21' they who believe were to be saved by the foolishness of preaching, God bath chosen certain mortal things, He hath chosen men mortal, and doomed unto death; using the human tongue, He hath spoken in a human voice; using the stewardship of mortals, He hath used mortal instruments, and in Him a heaven hath been made in thy sight, that thou mightest in what is mortal recognise the Immortal Word, aud that thou also by sharing in the same Word mightest become immortal. Moses lived, and died: for God said unto him, *e ^ee UP n° ^s mounia^ni and die. Jeremiah and so many Prophets have died; and their words though they be dead abide even to our posterity, because they were not theirs, but His by them, Who spreadeth out the heaven like a hide. Behold the Apostle, who said, that to depart, andrfo be with Christ, was far better, now liveth with Christ, released from this life, even as all those Prophets live with Christ: but by what instrument did He bestow upon us what we read? By what was mortal, by mouth, by tongue, teeth, hands. All those means by which the Apostle achieved the whole work which we read of, are functions of the body, but at the command of the soul which God commanded: for this reason the heaven is spread out like a hide. We are now reading beneath the heaven, as it were beneath the hide of the divine Scriptures, when it is spread. For afterwards, the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll. It is not without meaning, brethren, in this passage said to be as a hide, in the former a scroll. Somewhat is here figured unto us. With respect to holy Scripture, the discourse of the dead is spread: for this reason theu it is spread out as a hide; and much more spread out, since they are dead. For after death the Apostles and Prophets became more known; they were not so well known while alive; Judaea only possessed the Prophets when alive, all nations when they were dead. For while they lived, the hide was not as yet spread out, the heaven was not yet outspread, that it might cover the whole world. He, therefore, spread out the heaven like a hide.

9. Ver. 3. Who covereth the upper parts of it with waters. We read this also, and it is well understood after the letter. For when He commanded that a firmament should be made between waters and waters, it was made, so that there are lower waters which overflow the earth, and waters above, removed from our sight, but presented to our faith. Let the waters praise Him, he saith, which are above the heavens; for He spake the word, and they were made; He commanded, and they were created. The sense therefore hath been explained to the letter; for He Waters above the Firmament typify Charity. covereth the upper parts of it with waters. What is its meaning figuratively? Since we have interpreted figuratively the hide as holy Scripture, and the authority of the divine Word dispensed unto us by mortals, through whom when dead the report of the same dispensation is spread abroad; according to this exposition, in what sense doth He cover the uppe% parts of it with waters? The upper parts of what? Of heaven. And what heaven? The holy Scripture. What are the upper parts of holy Scripture? What do we find higher than the rest in the holy Scriptures? Ask Paul. / shew unto you, he saiih, a more excellent way. What doth he call the more excellent way? Though I speak with the tongues of men and of Angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. If therefore nothing can be found in holy Scripture more excellent than charity, how are the upper parts of heaven covered with waters, if the higher commandments of Scripture are those of charity? Hear in what way; The love of 'Rom. God, he sailh, is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy5' GJiosl, which is given unto us. In the expression shed abroad, understand waters in the love of the Holy Spirit. These are the waters, respecting which it is said in a passage of Scripture: Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad in thy streets; let them be only thine own, and not stranger's with16' thee. For all who are strangers from the way of truth, whether Pagans, or Jews, or heretics, and all wicked Christians, may have many good gifts, love they cannot have. How great a gift is this! not to speak of other outward gifts, which all men have, because He maketh His sun to arise over the good and the bad: they are the gifts of God, and45, not only common to good and bad men, but also to beasts and to cattle. Existence itself, life, sight, feeling, hearing, and the discharge of the other functions of the senses, are God's gifts: but consider with what creatures, and with how many, they are enjoyed in common, and with those whom thou wouldest not choose to imitate. Even an acute intellect the worst men have, even the vilest stage players are skilful and industrious in their arts, even robbers have riches, many wicked men have wives and children, all are God's fair gifts, no one gainsayeth; but consider with whom they are in common. Look back upon the gifts of the Church herself. What sort of gift is that of the Sacraments, in Baptism, in the Eucharist, in the other holy Sacraments? Even the sorcerer Simon attained this gift. What sort of gift is Prophecy? Even Saul the wicked monarch prophesied, even then did he prophesy, when he was persecuting holy David. Remark: 1 said not, when he had persecuted him; for perchance after having persecuted him, he repented, and became worthy of the spirit of prophesying. He prophesied not when he had, nor when he was about to persecute, but whilst he was persecuting. He sent his officers to arrest David: David was at that season among the prophets, where also was holy Samuel; the messengers were filled with the spirit of prophecy, and they prophesied. But perhaps these came with good intentions, or from the necessity of their office, or not intending to execute what was commanded. He sent others also; this happened unto them too; let us understand their intentions to have been the same. Since they were long, he came in person, raving, breathing slaughter, thirsting for the blood of the innocent saint, to whom he was withal ungrateful; and he also was filled with J.jie pr0pnetic spirit, and prophesied. Let not therefore those men be boastful, who perchance have enjoyed without love this holy gift of God, even as holy Baptism; but let them reflect what account they will have with God, who do not use holy things holily. Among these will be those who shall say, In Thy Name we have prophesied. It will not be said unto them, Ye lie: but, / never kneiv you; depart from me> Ve MiQt work iniquity. For though I have all prophecy, and have not charity, I am nothing. Saul even prophesied, but he was working iniquity. But who worketh iniquity, except he who hath not charity? For, Love is the fuijnment 0f fjie Law. Therefore, He covereth the upper parts of it with the waters. What hath he said? In all the Scriptures charity obtaineth the most excellent way, and the most excellent place; none but the good approach it, the wicked share it not with us: they may share Baptism, they may share the other Sacraments, they may share prayer, they may share these walls and this meeting; charity they cannot share with us. For He is their own fountain to the good, their own to saints, of which it is said, Let no stranger have it in common with thee. Who are strangers? All they that hear, / know you not. For if they are not known, doubtless they are strangers, to whom it is said,23, / know you not. Therefore the more excellent way of charity hath in it those who properly belong to the kingdom of heaven^ Therefore the commandment of charity is above the heavens, above all books; for books are subservient to it, every tongue of the saints serves under it, and every movement of the stewards of God, both of mind and body. That way therefore is excellent above all, and is well said to * protect in waters the upper parts of heaven,' because you find nothing higher than charity in the books of God.

10. But hear now yet more distinctly, what is the ' water.' For we said, that the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, Who is given unto us. We said5, also, Let thy waters run abroad in the streets, And some one saith to me, it is not there expressly said, whether 1 ought to understand charity: what if another understand something else? Only remember what the Apostle saith, The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts. Whence? By the Holy Spirit, Who is given uuto us. Hear now the Lord, the Master of the Apostles: If any one thirst, let htm come and drink. Let Him also say, He that believeth3?' on Me, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. What is this? Let the Evangelist expound. But this, saith he, He said of the Spirit, Which they that believed on Him should receive. For the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. Therefore, brethren, if for this reason the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified; when He is glorified and ascended into heaven, the Spirit was sent, and the Apostles were filled with charity, $hed abroad in their hearts by the Holy Spirit, Who was given unto them, because the upper parts of heaven are covered with waters. And rightly, because the Lord ascended into the heavens, so as to be above the heavens, and thence to send charity. For God doth not so cover as to be in any wise sustained by that which He covereth. He lifteth up, and doth not press down, whom He covereth. So, therefore, doth He cover the heaven with waters, that it is rather lifted up by the Divine Spirit. What lifteth is above; what is lifted is beneath: one holdeth up, the other hangeth. If then that lifteth, this hangeth; hear that this ' heaven' of the Scriptures hangeth upon charity. For there are those two well-known commandments of love: On these two commandments hangeth all the Law and the Prophets. " Who covereth with waters the higher parts thereof." #

11. Ver. 3. Who placeth clouds His ascent. This is also well understood after the letter. The Lord visibly ascended into Heaven. How were clouds set the ascents of heaven? When He had said these things, a cloud received Him. You have it also foretold of the resurrecAnd the dead, he saith, in Christ shall rise first; afterward also we that are alive shall be caught up with them in clouds to meet Christ into1 the air, and so shall we ever £e wnn the jj0rd9 Thou hast clouds the ascent of Heaven: I will shew thee also clouds the ascent of this Heaven, that is, of the Divine Scriptures. What is this, brethren? I would the Lord may deign to number me among those clouds, such as they be; He will see how misty a cloud I am; yet all the preachers of the word of truth, you are to understand, are clouds. Whosoever therefore of their infirmity cannot ascend into this Heaven, that is, to the understanding of the Scriptures, let them ascend by the clouds. For perchance it is even now doing in yourselves, if we effect any thing, if our labour and sweat is not fruitless, ye ascend into the Heaven of the Divine Scriptures, that is, into the understanding of them, by our preaching. How high was the Heaven in this Psalm! For no one of you saw what was that in figure: He stretcheth out the Heaven like a skin, Who covereth the upper parts of it in water. This very thing which was said, Who placeth clouds the ascent of it, behold, is now understood, so far as the Lord hath granted, by our preaching; for the clouds rain not by their own gift. Do ye by understanding ascend, in that ye understand bear fruit; lest ye be like that vineyard of which it is said in the Prophet, / will command my clouds that they rain not upon it. For a certain vineyard was accused, that for grapes it had borne thorns, and had made no worthy return for sweet rain. For he who heareth good things, and worketh evil things, is rained on with sweet rain, and beareth thorns. We may not suspect, brethren, that the Lord spake of any earthly vineyard, and of this visible kind. For these, lest under the obscurity of speech the excuse of wickedness should find shelter, the Lord Himself expounded unto what vineyard He spake, and of what vineyard He said those things, fhe vineyard of the Lord of Hosts, He saith, is the House of Israel. Why wander your hearts, ye unrighteous, over the mountains and hills of the vinedressers? I know, He saith, of what vineyard I speak, I know where I sought grapes and found thorns: without reason do ye suspect and imagine one thing and another, unwilling to understand that ye may do well. For this also is written, He would wo/Ps.36,3. understand, that he might do well. Away with all your guesses. The vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the House of Israel, and the men of Judah His beloved plant. Beloved when it was planted; condemned when it bore thorns. Therefore, brethren, perchance the House of Israel was a vineyard, and we are not a vineyard? With fear let us listen to what we see was said to the Jews. See how the Apostle alarms the branches graffed in, from the branches broken off; and in the case of the broken branches sets forth severity to be feared, in the graffed branches sets forth goodness to be loved. Be not unfruitful in goodness, lest, being barren, thou feel severity. But I am not a vine, thou sayest to me. Where is the saying of the Lord; I am the Vine, ye are the branches, My Father0™ is the Husbandman? Where is the saying of the Apostle, Who planteth a vineyard, and receiveth not of its fruit? Thou, O Church, thou art a vineyard, and hast God for thy Husbandman. No man that is an husbandman raineth on his own vineyard. Therefore, most beloved brethren, bowels of the Church, pledges of the Church, children of Mother Church, hear, when there is time. God threatened that vineyard with a most dreadful commination. / will command my clouds, He said, that they rain not upon it. And so it was; the Apostles came to the Jews, they rejected them, and they said to them, Unto you we were sent, but since ye have rejected the word of God, we go to the Gentiles. Ye see how in the same Spirit of God, He commanding within dwells in the hearts of His own, it was commanded the clouds of God that they should not rain on the vineyard, which, when it was expected it should bear grapes, bore thorns. Therefore also He made the clouds the ascent of it, and stretched forth the Heaven like a skin. There is no reason for you to complain: the authority of^the Scriptures is spread out over the world, clouds are not wanting, the word of truth is preached, all things that are obscure are expounded, that your hearts may ascend by the clouds. Look how ye believe, look what ye receive: after the preacher will come the Judge, after the dispenser will come the exactor. Who placeth clouds the ascent of it.

12. Who walketh above the wings of the wind. This it is now hazardous to take to the letter. Or what are the wings of the wind? Or, however, as in a picture, are we to make ourselves winds flying and having wings? There is no wind, brethren, but that we feel, a certain motion, and as it were wave of the air, driving what it can according to its strength. What wings are those of the wind? But again, what wings of God? And yet it was said, Under the shadow of Thy wings they shall hope. Let us endeavour, therefore, to take this also of the letter, as it was properly done in the case of that creature. Perchance the swiftness of the word is what the Scripture commendeth; of which swiftness we have already before spoken on another Psalm, where it is written, Even unto swiftness His word runneth; because men know nothing swifter than the wind. Even as that ease was set forth in the skin; for nothing is easier for a man to stretch out than a skin: so also here, signifying that God, or His word, every where present, by swiftness of motion leaveth not any thing, because thou knowest not any thing swifter than the wind, he saith, He walketh above the wings of the wind, that is, His swiftness surpasseth the swiftness of the wind: so that by the wings of the wind thou mayest understand the swiftness of the wind, and the word of God thou mayest understand to be swifter than all winds. And thus in the first view of consideration: let us knock for something more inward, and let these literal sayings point out something to us in a figure.

Winds metin souls. "Allegory" vindicated and explained. 81

13. The winds indeed we understand in a figure not unfitly of souls; not that the soul is wind, but because the wind is invisible, though a bodily thing, moving bodies; yet as it evades the sight of the human eye, and he soul is invisible, therefore we may well understand souls by wind. Thence it is that God is also said to have breathed the breath oftife into man, when He had formed him, and man became a living soul. Therefore winds are not unfitly taken in allegory for souls. But beware lest you suppose that when I named allegory, I spoke of any thing like a pantomime h. For some words, because they are words, and proceed from the tongue, are used by us in common with ridiculous and unworthy subjects, yet those words have their place in the Church, and their place on the stage. For I did not say any thing but what the Apostle said when he spoke of the two sons of Abraham: which are, he saith, in allegory. It is called allegory, when any thing appears to sound in words of one thing, and in meaning to signify another. As Christ is called a Lamb: is He cattle? Christ a Lion: is He a wild beast? Christ a Rock: is He hardness? Christ a^v Mountain: is He a swelling of the earth? and so many things seem to have one sound and another meaning, and that is called allegory. For he that thinks I said allegory with reference to the theatre, let him think that the Lord also spake "parabola1" of the amphitheatre. Ye see what comes of a cityJ where shows abound! I should speak more safely in the country; for there perchance men would not have learned what allegory is, save in the Scriptures of God. Therefore, in that we say a figure is an allegory, allegory is a sacred meaning figured. And for what do we take here, He walketh above the icings of the winds? We said that the winds might well be taken for souls. The wings of the winds, the wings of souls, what are they but that whereby they are raised upward? The wings of souls, then, are word, from persons taking it in a Bnlengerus De Yenatione Circi, cap. Wings of the soul love to God and man. virtues, good works, right deeds. In two wings tbey have their feathers, for all the commandments are in two commandments. Whoever loves God and his neighbour, has a winged soul, with free pinions, with holy love flying to the Lord. Whoever is entangled in carnal love has birdlime ou his wings. For if the soul has not wings and feathers, whence saith that one groaning in his tribulations, Who will give me wings like a dove's? and it follows, And I will fly away, and be at rest. Also in another place, Whither shall I go from Thy Spirit, and whither shall I fly from rpfoy j-ace f jf J shall ascend into Heaven, Thou art there; if 1 shall go down into Hell, Thou art present. If I shall take my wings, like a dove, and shall fly into the uttermost parts of the sea. As though he should say, Thus I am able to fly from the face of Thy wrath, if I shall take wings as a dove, and fly into the uttermost parts of the sea. To fly into the uttermost parts of the sea, is to carry forward hope even to the end of the world; as he who saith, This is a labour before me, until I enter into the sanctuary of God, and understand for the last things. And how came he into the uttermost parts of the seaj even when he had taken wings? For there, he saith, Thy hand shall lead me, and Thy right hand shall guide me. For even with my wings I shall fall, except Thou lead me. Therefore those souls have good and free wings, and bound with no birdlime, that well fulfil the commandments Qf God, holding charity of a pure conscience and faith unfeigned. But howsoever tbey be endued with the virtues of charity, what is it to that love of God, with which they were loved even while they were yet entangled in birdlime? Greater therefore is the love of God toward us, than ours toward Him. Our love is our wings, but He walketh even above the wings of the winds. ^ow ^e Apostle sa^ to some> I bend my knees for you unto the Father — that He may give you, after the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, that ye being rooted and grounded in love. He already gives them love, He already gives them wings and feathers, that ye may be able, He saith, to comprehend what is the breadth, the length, the height, and the depth. Perhaps he signifieth the Cross of the Lord. For there was breadth, to which the hands were stretched out; a length rising from the earth, on which the Body was fixed; a height which standeth out above from that hanging beam; a depth, where the Cross was fixed, and there all the hope of our life. For breadth is in good works, length in persevering even to the end, height because of ' Lift up the heart,' that we may do all our good works, in which we persevere even to the end, having breadth in which we work well, and length in which we persevere even to the end, no otherwise than in the hope of heavenly rewards. For that is height, not to seek reward here, but above, lest it be said to us, Verily I say unto you, they have had their reward. But what I called depth, where a part of the Cross was fixed, which was not seen; thence arose the parts that were seen. What is that which is hidden, and is not public iu the Church? The Sacrament of Baptism, the Sacrament of the Eucharist. For our good works even pagans see, but Sacraments are hidden from them. But from these which they do not see, arise those which they see; as from the depth of the Cross, which is fixed in the earth, rises the whole Cross which appears and is seen. And what afterwards? When the Apostle had said this, he added, to know also the knowledge, which is above all, of the love of Christ: when he had already said, rooted and grounded in love. For ye love Christ, and therefore ye work in the Cross. But do ye love as much as He loved? But by loving as much as ye do love, ye fly to Him, that ye may know how much He hath loved you: that is, that ye may know the exceeding excellency of the love of Christ. For ye love as much as ye can, and fly as -much as ye can: but He walketh even above the wings of the winds. Who walketh above the wings of the winds.

14. Ver. 4. Who tnaketh spirits His angels, and flaming fire His ministers. And this, although we see not the appearance of angels; for it is hidden from our eyes, and is in a certain vast realm of God's empire, yet we know that there are angels from faith, and we read it written that they have appeared to many, and we hold it, nor is it allowed us to doubt of that. But the angels are spirits, and when they are spirits they are not angels; when they are sent, they become angels. For angel is a name of office, not of nature. Thou askest the name of this nature, it is spirit; thou askest the office, it is angel; by that it is, it is spirit; by that it does, it is angel. See the same in man. Man (homo) is the name of nature, soldier of office: man (vir) is the name of nature, herald of office. For a man becometh a herald; that is, he that was before a man becomes a herald, not he that was before a herald a man. Thus, therefore, those who were already made spirits by God the Creator, them He maketh angels, by sending them to declare what He hath commanded, and He maketh a flaming fire His ministers. We read that a fire appeared in the bush. We read also that fire was sent from above, and fulfilled what was commanded. It ministered, therefore, when it fulfilled: when it existed, it was in its own nature: when it did what was commanded, it fulfilled a ministry. Thus after the letter in1 the creature.

15. But wnat *s ^ figuratively in the Church? How do we take, Who maketh spirits His Angels, and flaming fire His ministers? Spirits He calleth spiritual men. Well is He said to make spiritual men His Angels, that is, the messengers of His word,- for He that is spiritual judgeth all things, but himself is judged of no man. Behold a spiritual man made an Angel of God. / could not, he saith, speak unto you as to them that are spiritual, but as unto the carnal. Of a certain spiritual affection He was sent unto the carnal, as though an angel from Heaven to earth. How saith he, and a flaming flre His ministers, save as he saith, Fervent fn Spirit? For being thus fervent in spirit, every minister of God is a flaming fire. Did not Stephen burn? With what fire did he burn? And what was that fire, when he was stoned, and prayed for them that were stoning him? When thou nearest the minister of God is a fire, dost thou think he will burn? Let him burn, but let it be thy straw, that is, all thy carnal desires let the minister of God burn up, preaching the word of God. Hear him: Thus let a man account of us, as the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. But how did he burn when he said, Our mouth is open unto you, O Corinthians, our heart is enlarged? He burned and flamed with charity, and went towards them to set them on fire. This fire the Lord said He would send on earth when He said, / came to send fire on earth. As a sword, so fire. The sword divideth carnal affection, the fire consumeth it. Understand the^***10' whole in the Word of jGod, know the whole in the Spirit of God. Begin to be fervent with charity through the Word of God which thou hearest, and see what effect the fire, the minister of God, hath had on thee. Who maketh spirits His angels, and flaming fire his ministers.

16. Ver. 5. He hath founded the earth upon its firmness, it shall not be bowed for ever and ever. To take this of this earth, I know not if there be any opening; whether it be rightly said, It shall not be bowed for ever and ever, whereof it is said, Heaven and earth shall pass away. Here there is a difficulty, if you try to take it to the letter. For as to that36. He saith, He hath founded the earth upon its firmness; perdhance there is some firmness hidden from us, which upholdeth the earth; and this he meant by founded. Upon what? Upon the firmness of the earth itself, which He put under it that it might be upheld, which perchance eseapeth thine eyes. Let there be then dark things in the creature, the Creator shall not be hidden from the darkness of the creature. What we are able let us see; from these which we see, let us praise Him and love Him. Let us turn ourselves to seek something here put in a figure. He hath founded the earth, I understand the Church. The earth is1' the Lord's, and the fulness thereof. I understand the Church by the earth. She is that thirsty land, she it is that saith in the Psalms; for one saith it from all; My soul is6' like earth without water unto Thee. What is, without water? Thirsty. So doth my soul thirst toward Thee, as earth without water: for unless it thirstetb, it will not be rightly watered. Rain on a drunken soul is a deluge, she must be thirsty. For, Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after6' righteousness. And she must say, My soul is as earth without water unto Thee: because she saith elsewhere, My2* soul hath thirsted for the living God. The earth, therefore, I understand the Church. What is its firmness, on which it is founded, save its foundation? Do we unfitly understand the firmness on which the earth is founded of the foundation on which the Church is established? What is that foundation? Other foundation, he saith, can no man lay than that is laid, which is Christ Jesus. There, therefore, we are founded. Truly, because we are there founded, we shall not be bowed for ever and ever: for nothing is firmer than that foundation. Weak thou wast, but a firm foundation beareth thee. In thyself thou couldest not be firm: thou wilt be firm always, if from that firm foundation thou depart not. // shall not be bowed for ever and ever. It is the predestined pillar and ground of the truth.

17. Ver. 6 — 17. The deep, as a garment, is its clothing: above the mountains shall the waters stand. 7. From Thy rebuke they shall flee, from the voice of Thy thunder they shall be afraid. 8. The mountains go up, and the plains descend, into the place which Thou hast founded for them. 9. Thou hast set a bound, which they shall not pass, nor return to cover the earth. 10. Who sendest out waters in the valleys, between the midst of the mountains shall the waters pass through. 1 1. All the beasts of the field shall drink, the wild asses shall take for their thirst. 12. On them the fowls of the heaven shall inhabit, from the midst of the rocks they shall give their voice. 13. Watering the mountains from His higher places: from the fruit of Thy works shall the earth be satisfied. 14. Bringing forth hay for the cattle, and herb for the service of men. 15. That he may bring out bread from the earth, and wine that maketh glad the heart of man. That He might brighten His face with oil; and bread strengtheneth man's heart. 16. The trees of the plain shall be satisfied, and the cedars of Libanus which He hath planted. 17. There the sparrows shall build nests: the house of the waterfowl is the leader of them. Ye observe the heaven stretched out. Ye wish to ascend in understanding, and I see it. Yet how high it is, I think that your love observeth, as well as myself. For therefore I thought fit to pronounce a number of verses, that ye may see how high aloft are placed the mysteries of God, lest we should disdain them when offered, lest when at hand they be held cheap, that always after seeking, though with difficulty, tbey may be found with the greater pleasure. Amongst other things, however, brethren, which may be taken to the letter; on this too, which was said, There the sparrows shall build nests, the house of the waterfowl is the leader of them. Is the house of the waterfowl the leader of sparrows? or is the house of the waterfowl the leader of cedars? For this also is there, And the cedars of Libanus, which He hath planted, there the sparrows shall build nests, the house of the waterfowl is the leadS of them. And indeed in the Latin language we cannot understand of them (masculine) of the cedars; for cedars are of the feminine gender. The house of the waterfowl, therefore, how is it the leader of sparrows? For this can in no wise be understood of that creature which is before our eyes. For we know that waterfowl1 are birds of'Fulica the sea or of lakes. Let the house of the waterfowl be the nest of the waterfowl: how then is the house of the waterfowl the leader of sparrows? Wherefore doth the Holy Spirit mix up amongst the visible things some that are in a manner absurd, if it be not that from that which we cannot take to the letter, He may compel us to enquire into those things in a spiritual sense?

18. Therefore if, as I said before, ye desire to ascend unto the heaven in understanding, unto that skin extended, and He hath made clouds the ascent thereof; this cloud which speaketh unto you is not able this day to explain all those things. Make allowance, if not for your own, at least for my infirmity. Your eagerness, indeed, I see to be such, that ye are always ready to hear, but there are two things of which the consideration is not to be despised. For both the weakness of our body is to be considered, and our memory of the very things that are under exposition. Meanwhile think upon what ye have heard. What did I say? Ruminate that ye have eaten. For thus will ye be clean animals, and fit for the feasts of God. But your fruit3, observe in your works. For he digesteth very ill, who heareth well, and worketh not well: because the Lord our God faileth not to feed. It is known to all, that of the bread which we have received, and which we expend, we shall have to give account. Your love knoweth very well, for the sacred page is not silent toward us, nor doth God flatter us. From this place ye may take notice how free we are toward you: and if perchance I am not free enough, or if all we, that speak to you in this place, are wanting in freedom, certainly the word of God itself feareth no man. But we, whether we fear or are free, are compelled to announce Him Who feareth no man. This not men but God gave you, that even by the fearful ye should hear Him that is free. Excuse in God's Judgment ye will have none, unless ye shall have practised yourselves in good works, ihd borne some fruit suitable to the rain, as it were, of the things ye have heard. Suitable fruit are good works; suitable fruit is unfeigned love, not only of a brother, but also of an enemy. Scorn none that entreateth thee, and when thou canst not give any that he asketh, spurn him not: if thou canst give it, give; if thou canst not, shew thyself affable. God crowneth will within, when He findeth not ability. Let no one say, ' 1 have nothing.' Charity is not served out from the bag: because whatsoever things we say, and whatsoever we have said, and whatsoever we shall ever be able to say, either we, or any after us, or they that were before us, have no end save charity; because the end of the commandment. is charity, out of a pure heart, and a good conscience, and faith unfeigned. Question your own hearts, when ye pray to God: see how ye utter that verse. Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. Thou wilt not be praying, unless thou sayest that (prayer): if thou sayest another, He heareth thee not; because it is not the one which the Advocate1 Whom He sent thee dictated. It is necessary therefore that even when we say our own words in prayer, we pray after the manner of that, and that when we say the very words, we should rightly understand what we say, because God willed that it should be manifest. If therefore ye shall not pray, ye will have no hope: if ye shall pray otherwise than the Master taught, or if ye shall be false in prayer, ye shall not obtain. Therefore ye must both pray, and ye must say truth, and ye must so pray as He taught. Whether thou wilt or wilt not, thou wilt be saying daily, ' Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors-' Wouldest thou say it without fear? Do what thou sayest.