Psalm 129

A prayer of a sinner, trusting in the mercies of God. The sixth penitential psalm.

1 Out of the depths I haye cried to thee, O Lord:

2 O Lord, hear my voice. Let thy ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.

3 If thou, O Lord, wilt mark iniquities ; Lord, who shall stand it?

4 For with thee there is merciful forgiveness: and by reason of thy law, I have waited for thee, O Lord. My soul hath relied on his word:

5 My soul hath hoped in the Lord.

6 From the morning watch even until night, let Israel hope in the Lord.

7 Because with the Lord there is merey; and. with him plentiful redemption.

8 And hevshall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.

EXPLANATION OF THE PSALM.

1 ‘* Out of the depths [ have cried to thee, O Lord:

2 ‘§ Lord, hear my voice. Let thy ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.”

The prophet being about to pray to God, first demands an audience, and then explains what he wants. He begins by comparing himself to one in a low valley, or a very deep well, who, unless he calls with a very loud voice, cannot be heard by one who is on a very high mountain, and thus, in fact, matters stand with us. For though God, by reason of his essence and power, be every where, stillthe sinner, by reason of his dissimilitude to God, is removed very far from God. God is always justand happy, and “‘dwelleth on high.” The sinner is always bad and miserable, and like Jonas the prophet, who, for his disobedience to God,

was thrown not only into the depths of the sea, but even into the depths of the belly of the whale; and, nevertheless, when he cried from thence he was heard, for a fervent prayer breaks through and penetrates every thing. David then says, “ Wrom the depths,” not from the depth, because a true penitent has need to ery from two depths, the depth of misery and the depth of his heart; from the former, as if from the valley of tears, or as another Psalm ex-_ presses it, “ Out of the pit of misery and the mire of dregs,” and from the latter, the depth of his heart ;

that is, from a thorough consideration and deep re-

flection on his own misery ; for he that is not aware

of, and that does not reflect on the depth in which

he lies, has no wish to rise out of it, and, therefore,

despises it, and thus sinks deeper again, as the Pro-

verbs say, ‘‘ The wicked man when he is come into

the depth of sins contemneth.” But whoever will, on profound reflection, feel that he is an exile, a pilgrim,

and in great danger of never arriving at his country ;

and what is infinitely worse, that though he is not just now in the lowest depths of hell, he deserves

to be there by reason of his sins, it is impos-

sible for such a one not to be thorougly frightened

and horrified, or to avoid calling out with all his

might to him who alone can rescue him from such a

dreadful depth, and extend a hand to him to get up. ** Lord, hear my prayer,” However deep I may be,

and however high you may be, as I cry with a very

loud voice, you can hear me, and therefore, I beg of you to “ hear my voice.” —“ Let thy ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.” However loud

one may cry, he will not be heard, unless the person

to whom he cries attend to him. People are often

so absorbed in other matters, that they pay no heed

to one talking to them, and then one talks to them

in vain. Now, God always sees and hears every

thing, but when he does not grant what we ask, he

is like one that does not attend to us, as if he were

thinking of something else, and, therefore, David,

being most anxious for a hearing, and not content

with having called out with a loud voice, asks,

furthermore, that God may deign to attend to him;

that is, to receive his prayer, and grant what it

asked,

3 ‘Tf thou, O Lord, wilt mark iniquities ; Lord, who, shall stand it 2”

Having got an audience, he now tells what he wants, and that is, that God should not deal with him in his justice, but in his mercy ; that he should not require an exact account of the debt, but mercifully wipe it ont; and, as he cannot summon sufiicient courage to make such a request openly, he lays down a proposition with wonderful tact, and which must have been specially suggested by the Holy Ghost, from which he hopes to move God to: grant his prayer. He, therefore, says as follows, ‘“ Jf thou, O Lord, wilt mark iniquities,” you will condemn the whole world ; and, ag it would not be consistent with

your goodness to do that, I should not be looked upon as too forward in asking you to pardon my sins, and to rescue me from those depths into which my sins alone have plunged me. As regards the words, iniquity means all sorts of sin that break the law; as we read in 1 John iii., ** All sin ts intquity;” for all sins, strictly speaking, are not iniquity; that is, sins against justice; because there are sins of pride, of luxury, of the flesh, and many others. The word ‘ observe” does not mean simply to look at; it means to note down, to record, to make an entry, as a creditor would against a debtor.

The expression, ‘ who shall stand i ?” means, that

should God choose to judge us, save in his mercy, nobody could pass his judgment ; because any offence offered to God is infinite, and we, without his grace, are not only unable to offer condign satisfaction, but we are even incapable of seeing the enormity of the offence, or of having a perfect sorrow for it, or even of the manner in which we should set about doing penance for it; besides, we know not the number nor the heinousness of our sins; for, ‘‘ Who can undersiand sins 2” Now, God knows exactly the number of our sins; and he has them all written in his book ; for, as Job says, “ Thou, indeed hast numbered my steps.” He, too, knows, and is the only one that knows, the infinite enormity of mortal sin ; and how, then, can weak, ignorant men render an account to so exact a calculator, and so powerful an exactor? Thus, like one who is able to throw himself into a well without being able to get out of it, is the sinner who can transgress, but cannot make satisfaction for the transgression, unless he be mercifully helped thereto,

4 “* For with thee there is merciful forgiveness : and by reason of thy law, Ihave waited for thee, O Lord. My soul hath relied on his word :

5 ‘+ My soul hath hoped in the Lord,”

To be truly penitent,(the subject of the prophet’s instruction in this penitential Psalm,) we need two things ; to reflect on our own wretched condition, and to know the extent of God’s mercy ; because he that is ignorant of the state he is in, seeks for no medicine, does no penance; and he that has no idea of God’s mercy, falls into despair, and looks upon penance as of no value. The prophet, then, having clearly shewn, in the preceding verses, that he was fully aware of his nothingness, because he cried from the depths, and because he said that his sins were so grievous, that if God were to be influenced by his judgment alone, no one could stand the ordeal; he now shews that he has an idea of God’s mercy, and, therefore, however great and numerous his sins may be, that he still hopes for pardon of them, and for salvation; and, in consequence, he says, “Mor with thee there is merciful forgiveness, and by reason of thy law I have waited for thee, O Lord;” as much as to say, Though no one can stand before you if you choose tu mark our iniquities, still,

COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.

knowing you, as I do, to be naturally merciful, and knowing that “ with thee there is merciful forgiveness,” and that, ‘by reason of the law” you imposed on yourself, to shew no mercy to the impenitent, but to receive the penitent, it is “by reason of such law that I have waited for thee, O Lord,” in the hope and expectation of pardon for my sins, ‘ My soul hath relied on his word.” He now begins to exhort others, whom he encourages by his own example, to put their hope in God, saying, I have been in the lowest depths of misery, but I never despaired of God’s mercy ; for “ my soul,” wounded, as it was, with the gores of sin, *‘ relzed,” looked for a cure, ‘ in his word,” on his promise ; for God frequently, through Moses, in Deuteronomy, and in various other parts of the Scripture, promised pardon to those who do penance. ‘ And when thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him; yet so if thow seek him with all thy heart, and all the affliction of thy soul.” Hence David himself previously said, in Psalm exviii,, “ Be thou mindful of thy word to thy servant, in which thou hast given me hope.” And he then repeats more clearly what he had just expressed rather obscurely, when he adds, “ My soul hath haped in the Lord,” that he would get the pardon he looked for. David’s example ought to be of great value to us; for he was in the depth of misery, whether we regard his sins or what he suffered for them. His sins were most grievous; he had been guilty of adultery, took the life of a most faithful soldier; offended that God who had bestowed a kingdom on him, the gift of prophecy, strength, beauty, prudence, riches on him. He was also in the depths of misery when he was constantly persecuted by Saul, and in daily danger of his life; and yet, as he did not despair, but rather clung to hope, he was delivered.

6 ‘* From the morning watch even until night, let Israel hope in the Lord.”

Let all Israel, that is, all God’s people, do what I do; let them, in whatever depth they may be, hope in the Lord: be they oppressed by sin or by the punishment of sin, let them trust in God’s help. % From the morning watch even until night; the whole day, from day break tu the end of the night, let them not, for as much as one moment, cease to trust inGod. We are bound to hope in God during the whole day, and during the whole night, for two reasons; first, because we are always in danger; nor

' is there one moment in which we do not need God’s

help and assistance; secondly, because we are at liberty to hope at all times in God ; and our conversion or penance is always acceptable, be it in the morning; that is, in our youth; or at mid-day, in the prime of life ; or in the evening, in our old age ; or be it in the day time of our prosperity ; or in the. night of our adversity. 7 ‘ Because with the Lord there is mercy ; and with

He assigns a reason why we should always confide

COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.

in God; and at the same time predicts the redemption of man, through Jesus Christ our Lord. We ean justly hope in God all day and night, ‘‘ Because with the Lord there is mercy.” There are works of mercy that are not in God; hence we read, ‘‘ The earth is full of the mercy of the Lord; and in another place, ‘‘Zhy mercy is to the heavens;” pious souls, too, have a certain share of mercy; but mercy, properly speaking, is found with God alone, rests in his bosom alone; mercy it is that removes misery 5 for, who can remove misery but one that cannot be subject to it ? who can cure all defects but the one that is free from them, who is Almighty? To God only can be applied what the same prophet says, ‘For thou, O Lord, art sweet and mild, and plenteous in mercy to all that call upon thee ;” and, therefore, it is that our holy mother, the Church, when appealing to God in her prayers, most commonly commences with, “OQ Almighty and merciful God.” Nor should we hope in God by reason of his being merciful only, but with that, because ‘‘there zs plentis ful redemption with him;” because, when God in his mercy determined to spare the human race, in order that he may satisfy his justice, he offered a ransom of infinite value, the blood of his only begotten, sufficient to redeem any number of captives in the most plentiful manner, to any amount. Man could have sold himself as a captive for his sins, or he could have been given up to the devil, to whose temptations he had yieided, to torture him for his sins, but he never could have redeemed himself, nor have rescued himself from the power of the devil. What man was unable to do, therefore, God’s mercy did for him, and that through the blood of the only begotten, Now, when this Psalm was being written, the said mercy was with God, in his counsel and resolve, but at present “‘the earth is full of the mercy of the Lord,” because the price that was paid for the redemption of the captives is being daily expended, and hence the Apostle says, ** For you are bought with a great price, glorify and bear God in your body,” which is more clearly expressed by St. Peter, when he says, “You were not redeemed with corruptible gold or silver, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb unspotted and undefiled.” Such redemption is called “ plentiful,” because ‘‘ he is the propitiation for our sins ; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world,” not only because such a ransom redeems us from captivity, but, besides, raises us to share in the inheritance, and the kingdom, whereby we become “heirs of God and co-heirs of Christ.”

8 “And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.”

The “plentiful redemption” will be clearly manifested to all, when ‘“‘Jsrael”—that is, God’s people— shall be redeemed ; not as the carnal Jews idly expect, from the sovereign powers now in possession of

promised would be accomplished by our Saviour, when he said to St. Joseph, ‘* And thow shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins.” This redemption has begun, and is going on, and will be completely accomplished on the last day, when we shali be delivered not only from our sins, but even from the punishment due to them, and from any danger of relapse, as is conveyed to us by David in Psalm cii., when he says, “‘ As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our inaquaties Jrom us;” and, again, in the same Psalm, ‘Who forgiveth all thy iniquities, who healeth all thy diseases, who redeemeth thy life from destruction, who satisfieth thy desire with good things;”’ and most clearly in Daniel, ‘That transgression may be finished, and sin may have an end, and iniquity may be abolished, anc everlasting justice may be brought.”

1 Lord, my heart is not exalted: nor are my eyes lofty. Neither have I walked in great matters, nor in wonderful things above me.

2 If I was not humbly minded, but exalted in my soul: as a child that is weaned is towards his mother, so reward in my soul. —

3 Let Istael hope in the Lord, from henceforth now and for ever.

EXPLANATION OF THE PSALM.

1 ‘ Lord, my heartis not exalted: nor are my. eyes lofty. Neither have I walked in great matters, nor in wonderful things above me.” e

The prophet, being quite certain of saying nothin but the truth, directly addresses God, whom no one can deceive, and asserts that he was never subject to, pride, either in his interior or his bearing. Many, with a semblance of humility, are full of interior pride and self-importance ; and many look down upon their neighbours without the slightest effort at concealing their pride and impudence; while David’s “ heart was not exalted, nor were his eyes lofty ;” he was humble in his heart, and he expressed it in his looks. “ Neither have I walked in great matters, nor in wonderful things above me.” Having thus disposed of interior and exterior pride, he now comes to the pride arising from our words and our actions, Some are fond of boasting of being able to do, or of having done, or of being about to do greater, or more wonderful things than they could possibly do; and thus, “ they walk in things above them,” as to their speech ; and others undertake to do what they are quite unequal to, and “they walk in things above them,” in their actions or in their works ; but David, grounded in true humility, knew his own place; neither in word nor deed “ walked above himself in gi eat and

wonderful things ;” that is to say, never boasted of having done great and wonderful things beyond his strength, nor attempted to do what he felt himself unequal to.

2“ TFT was not humbly minded, but exalted in my soul: as a child that is weaned is towards his mother, so reward in my soul.” é

Not satisfied with having declared to God, the searcher of hearts, that he always had the greatest abhorrence of all manner of pride, he confirms it by an oath or imprecation, in order to make it more thoroughly believed by all; and therefore, says, ‘‘ Jf I was not humbly-minded” about myself, “but exalted in my soul;” and thus, looking down upon others ; “as a child that is weaned is towards his mother ;” as a child recently weaned, lies crying and moaning on its mother’s lap or breast, by reason of being deprived of that usual nourishment that was so sweet and agreeable to it; ‘‘ so reward in my soul,” so may my soul be deprived of the sweetness of divine consolation, my especial, and nearly my only delight. They alone who have been filled with the same spirit, and haye tasted how sweet God is, can form an idea of the amount of punishment the holy prophet thus imprecates on himself; for the Psalms that were composed, like so many amatory ditties, testify to his disregard for the wealth of this world or the glory of a throne, as compared with his love for God. Take a few of the numberless proofs of it. “ O/ how great is the multitude of thy sweetness, O Lord, which thou hast hidden for them that fear thee.” “ O taste and see, that the Lord is sweet.” ‘ My heart hath said to thee, My face hath sought thee; thy face, O Lord, will I still seek. Turn not away thy face from _ me.’ “* My soul refused to be comforted, I remembered God, and was delighted.” ‘* Give joy to the soul of thy servant, for to thee, O Lord, I have lifted up my soul, for thou, O Lord, art sweet and mild.” “¢ Butt will take delight in the Lord.” “ And I will rejoice under the covert of thy wings; my soul hath stuck close to thee.” ‘* For what have I in heaven? and besides thee what do I desire upon earth? Thou art the God of my heart, and the God that is my portion for ever; but it 1s good for me to adhere to my God;” as much as to say, let others run after ideal happiness, whether in air or'on earth, “ My good is to adhere to my God;” he is my supreme happiness, he is ‘the God of my heart;” my share, my inheritance, my portion, my all; with him alone Iam, and ever will be, content, When David, then, in his humility and his simplicity, like a child just weaned, placed all his happiness in the milk of divine love, he could not have wished himself a greater evil than to be in the position of a child prematurely weaned, who refuses all manner of consolation on being debarred from its mother’s breast.

3‘ Let Israel hope in the Lord, from henceforth now and for ever.”

The conclusion of the Psalm explains the object of

COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.

the great praise so conferred on humility ; for the holy soul did not mean or intend to hold himself up as an example of it, but he wanted to admonish the people how little they ought to confide in themselves, and how much in God; and he, therefore, says, ‘* Let Israel hope in the Lord.” Jf I, a king and a prophet, dare not take a shine out of myself by reason of my power and my wisdom, and, instead of relying on myself, cast all my hope on God, it certainly is only right that Israel, my people, and who are also God’s people, should not “imagine that they are something when they are nothing,” nor confide in their own strength, but hope in the Lord—they will hope in him, not only to-day and to-morrow, but for ever and ever,

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PSALM CXXXI. A prayer for the fulfilling of the promise made to David.

1 O Lord, remember David, and all his meekness:

2 How he swore to the Lerd: he vowed a vow to the God of Jacob.

3 If I shall enter into the tabernacle of

‘my house; if I shall go up into the bed

4 If I shall give sleep to my eyes, or slumber to my eyelids,

5 Or rest to my temples; until I find out a place for the Lord, a tabernacle for the God of Jacob.

6 Behold, we have heard of it in Ephrata: we have found it in the fields of the wood.

7 We will go into his tabernacle: we will adore in the place where his feet stood.

8 Arise, O Lord, into thy resting place; thou and the ark, which thou hast sanctified.

9 Let thy priests be clothed with justice: and let thy saints rejoice.

10 For thy servant David’s sake, turn not away the face of thy anointed.

1l The Lord hath sworn truth to David; and he will not make it void: of the fruit of thy womb I will set upon thy throne.

12 If thy children will keep my covenant, and these my testimonies which I shall teach them: their children also for evermore shall sit upon thy throne.

13 For the Lord hath chosen Sion: he hath chosen it for his dwelling.

14 This is my rest for ever and ever: here will I dwell, for I have chosen it.

15 Blessing I will bless her widow; I will satisfy her poor with bread. ‘

16 I will clothe her priests with salvation ;

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and her saints shall rejoice with exceeding great joy.

17 There will I bring forth a horn to David: I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.

18 His enemies I will clothe with confusion: but upon him shall my sanctification flourish.

EXPLANATION OF THE PSALM.

1 ‘“ O Lord, remember David, and all his meekness :”

Such is the language of Solomon, who is supposed to be the author of this Psalm, in which he prays to God through the merits of his father, David, “ Lord, remember David,” your friend, and all his good qualities, the principal of which was “ his meekness.” The word “remember” does not imply that God is subject to forgetfulness ; it means that when he does not regard the just he seems to act as if he did not remember their merits. The meaning, then, of such expression is, that he wishes we should pray for many things which, without our prayers, he would not have granted. An instance of it occurs in 3 Kings, where God, through the prophet, speaks to Jeroboam, and says he is highly incensed at the sins of Solomon; still, that he would preserve the kingdom for him during his life, “on account of David, his servant, who observed his precepts and commandments;” from which it appears that this prayer of Solomon was heard. Solomon alludes to David’s mildness, without taking any notice of his other virtues; because David was most remarkable for mildness, as was evident from his refusing to take Saul’s life, though he might have done so, and he knew Saul was seeking to take his, and that without cause; as, also, because mildness is of great value in the sight of God, being the constant companion of humility and charity, and because it makes man like to God, who is “sweet, and mild, and plenteous in mercy to all that call upon him.” Thus, previous to David, Moses was God’s greatest friend, “ because Moses was a man exceeding meek, above all men that dwelt upon earth;” and Christ our Lord, who was full of grace and truth, held up no other virtue more for our imitation. ‘ Learn of me, for I am meek and humble of heart.” Nor is it inconsistent with the meekness of David or Moses to have taken the lives of so many, nor with that of Christ to have turned the buyers and sellers out of the temple, and to upset their tables; for meekness is not inconsistent with justice, it is rather sister to zeal for the honour of God; and they who readily put up with a personal offence, which is the office of meekness, are the more fit to punish one offered to God or to the neighbour, because it is evident to all that they are not influenced by any private pique or selfish motive, but by a pure love of justice ; as, also, because they seem to forget themselves altogether, and to be en-

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tirely absorbed in seeking and extending God’s honour and glory.

2 ‘How he sworeto the Lord: he vowed a vow to the God of Jacob.

3 ‘If I shall enter into the tabernacle of my house ; if I shall go up into the bed wherein I lie ;

4 ‘If I shall give sleep to my eyes, or slumber to my eyelids,

5 ‘* Or rest to my temples ; until I find out a place Sor the Lord, a tabernacle for the God of Jacob.”

Solomon now tells the consequence of the meekness and the humility of his father David. Being meek and humble in heart, he looked upon it as a reproach, that he should have a house wherein to dwell, and a bed whereon to lie, while the Ark of the Testament had no fixed place of residence, no temple where it may be worshipped with the reverence due to it; but was constantly shifted from one place to another; and, therefore, he swore that he would not enter, his house, nor lie on his bed; nay, more, that he would not close his eyes any where, or take any manner of rest, so long as the Ark had no resting place. We have no exact account of David’s having made such a vow, unless we can infer it from 2 Kings viii., where David tells Nathan the prophet that he had determined to build a temple to the Lord, because he was ashamed of living in “a house of cedar,” while the Ark of God was under a tent. On that very night God ordered Nathan to tell David that it was not his wish that he should build the temple, but that he should leave it to his son to build it; and he repeated the same to David, in Par. xxii. and xxviii. If David, then, bound himself by oath to build the temple, why did not he build it? Why did not he even make the attempt ? He was forbidden by God; and besides, the words of the oath contain an exaggeration not unusual in the Scriptures; and they mean no more here than the expression of David’s great anxiety to build the temple. Thus, in Psalm i., the words, “And on his law he shall meditate day and night,” contain a similar exaggeration; and again, ‘ J will bless the Lord at all times, his praise shall be ever in my mouth;” and a more striking one in Isaias, ‘‘ Upon thy walls I have appointed watchmen, all the day and all the night they shall never hold their peace ;” and Solomon prescribes the same anxiety to perform a promise that he here attributes to his father, when he says, “ Kun about, make haste, stir up thy friend, give not sleep to thy eyes, neither let thy eyelids slumber.” Similar expressions occur in the New Testament, “ We ought always to pray, and not to faint ;” and, further on, “ Watch ye, therefore, praying at all times.” Such expressions do not imply that we must be praying at every given moment, but that we must pray often, and in matters of importance, and that we must not suffer the cares of the world, however urgent, to interfere with our ordinary prayers. The oath, then, may be thus explained, “J/I shall enter into the tabernacle of my house,” so as to forget the obliga-

tion of building God’s house, which I swear never to forget-—“ If I shall go up into the bed where I lie,” I sweer I will never go into it without thinking on the bed, the site of the temple, where the Ark of the. Lord may rest in dignity. “Jf I shall give sleep to my eyes, or slumber to my eyelids ;” I swear that I will not sleep or rest, without waking to consider on the necessity of building up a temple to the Lord ; which oath and vow he most faithfully fulfilled, as can be seen in Par. xxix., “And J, with all my ability, have prepared the expenses for the house of my God. Gold fur vessels of gold, and silver for vessels of silver, brass for things of brass, iron for things of iron, wood for things of wood: and onyx stones, and stones like alabaster, and of divers colours, and all manner of precious stones, and marbles of Paros in great abundance. Now, over and above the things which I have offered into the house of my God, I give of my own proper goods, gold and silver for the temple of my God, besides what things I hawe prepared for the holy house. Three thousand talents of gold of the gold of Ophir: and seven thousand talents of refined silver to overlay the walls of the temple.” Besides this large amount of property, he drew up a most elaborate specification of all parts of the temple, of its halls, porches, supper-rooms, chapter-rooms, and the like, as well as of all the ornamentation of it. Now, these were all types and figures of Christ, the true David, who, in his desire of raising a living temple, and an everlasting tabernacle to God, spent whole nights ia prayer, and, truly, neither entered his house, nor went up into his bed, nor gave slumber to his eyelids, nor rest to his temples, and presented to himself “a glorious Church, not having spot nor wrinkle, nor any such thing,” nor built “eth corruptible gold or silver,” but with his own precious sweat and more precious blood ; it was with them he built that city in heaven that was seen by St. John in the Apocalypse, and “was ornamented with all manner of precious stones.” Hence, we can all understand the amount of care, cost, and labour we need to erect a becoming temple in our hearts to God.

6 ‘* Behold, we have heard of it in Ephrata : we have found it in the fields of the wood.”

He tells the reason why David was so anxious to build a temple, and it was because the Ark of the Lord had no fixed or certain residence. ‘“‘ Behold, we have heard of it in Ephrata,” of the Ark being in Ephrata, in the land of Ephraim, that was when it was in Silo, in Samuel’s time ; then ‘‘ we found it in the fields of the woods,” when it was sent off by the Philistines, and found in the field of Joshua the Bethsamite, which must have been a woody place, as it was taken from thence to the neighbouring town Cariathiarim, which means the city of woods.

7 “ We will go into his tabernacle: we will adore in the place where his feet stood.”

_Haying expressed the wishes and desires of his

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ON THE PSALMS.

father David, Solomon beiag now about to bring the Ark into the temple he had built, says, “ We will go into his tabernacle;” in other words, Hitherto, the Lord has been a stranger in various places, but now he shall have a fixed residence, and, therefore, * we will go into his tabernacle,” now erected, and built on Sion, and “ we will adore in the place where his feet stood,” we will turn towards the holy Ark which is his footstool, where his feet stood, and are wont to stand, and adore there. The sanctuary in the interior of the tabernacle was so constructed that the Ark was the footstool, and the propitiatory was the seat of the Lord, and was supported bytwo Cherubim.

8 ‘‘ Arise, O Lord, into thy resting place ; thou and the ark, which thou hast sanctified.”

Solomon, now about to introduce the Ark to a temple builtin a most magnificent style, most poetically addresses it, inviting it to come in and take its habitation there. ‘ Arse, O Lord,” fromthe place in which you have been hitherto but as a guest, and enter your own house, to stay there, and no longer toe wander about from place to place, as you have done hitherto. And he lets us see that, when he speaks thus to the Lord, he does not acdress him, as he essentially exists, for, as such, ‘‘ the heaven of heavens do not contain him,” but as he is peculiarly in the Ark of the Testament, because it was from it he gave his answers, and he, therefore, adds, “ Thow and the ark which thou hast sanctified ;” that is, you and your throne, and the footstool of your feet, which footstool is “ the ark which thou hast sanctified,’ and through which you will be sanctified and honoured by all who know it. In the Hebrew it is the ‘ Ark of thy strength,” because it was through it God displayed his strength. When the priests brought it to the Jordan, the river at once turned back ; when it was carried seven times round the city of Jericho, down came the walls; when it was taken by the Philistines, and lodged in the temple of Dagon, the idol was found in the morning stretched on the ground before the Ark ; and wherever it was carried about by them, innumerable were killed, so that the Philistines were at length forced to say, ‘‘ The Ark of the God of Israel shall not stay with us; for his hand is heavy upon us, and upon Dagon our god.” When the Bethsamites inspected the Ark with too much curiosity, over forty thousand of them were slain; and Oza, for merely touching it, was at once slain by God.

9 “ Let thy priests be clothed with justice : and let thy saints rejoice.”

The Ark having been brought into the temple, Solomon puts up a prayer, first for the priests, then for the king, that is, for himself; for on them depend the whole safety of the people, the priests being the rulers in spiritual matters, as are the kings in temporal. He asks for the priests, that they may be just and holy, as they ought to be,-in order to discharge their duty properly, and that they should be alive in praising God, that being their peculiar pro-

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vince because they are bound to give God the tribute of praise and thanksgiving, both on their own part, and on that of the people, for the favours we are constantly receiving from him; and so to praise and thank our benefactor as to stir up his kindness to continue and increase his blessings. He, therefore, says, I beg of you, O Lord, that “ thy priests be clothed with justice,” interior and exterior, within and without; that justice may appear in their lives, words, and actions, and that nothing disgraceful should turn up in those who are to minister to you and to teach your people. The metaphor of a robe is used here to give us to understand, that as such an article not only covers the deformities, but also adds to the appearance of those who wear it, and distinguishes them too; so should priests, through their virtues, and their extreme sanctity, not only rise above the imputation of any thing mean or disgraceful, but should hold themselves up as a bright model and example to the flocks they have in charge, so that it may not be said of them, that ‘ the people are as bad as the priest.” “And let thy saints rejoie.” Let the same priests, who, strictly speaking, are your saints, at least they ought to be, as being consecrated and segregated to you, let them exult and rejoice in praising you, and thus properly discharge their duty. If such was the justice, holiness, and promptness required of the priests who sacrificed but sheep and oxen, what amount of those virtues will be required of the priests who sacrifice the Lamb ? Woe to us wretched, who have been called to so sublime a ministry, and are so far short of the fervour that Solomon required in the priests who were but foreshadows of the priests of the new law!

10 “ For thy servant David’s sake, turn not away the face of thy anointed.”

He now prays for the king, that is, for himself ; and in order to get what he wants more easily, he draws upon the merits of his father David, and his prayer consists in asking that he may be heard whenever he may pray. “ Lor thy servant David's sake.” In consideration of the faithful services of David my father, “ turn not away the face of thy anointed.” Do not cause me who have been anointed king in his place, to retire in confusion from you at the rejection of my prayer, and thus cause me to turn my face away from you. To turn away the face of the supplicant means, to refuse his prayer, to dismiss him in confusion, as when Solomon’s mother said to him, “‘ J desire one small thing of thee, do not put me to confusion. And the king said to her; My mother, ask, for I must not turn away thy face.” However true all this may be, there is still a ‘more spiritual meaning in this verse. Every good act of ours has a reference to God and to ourselves ; to God, in order that he may look upon us with the love of a father, and that we should look upon him with the affection of a child; for such reciprocal love is the source and origin of all our good, but God’s love or regard pre-

cedes, and causes our regard for him. As St. John says, “ In this ws charity, not as if we have loved God, but because he first loved us.” Thus, when God loves us, he causes us to love him, and when he regards us as children he makes us regard him as a father ; and though we, of our own free will, turn our face away from God by the commission of sin, still, should God deign to look upon us, and to look upon us in his mercy, he will mercifully cause us to take no further pleasure in sin, and not to turn away our face from him, or should we chance to do so, that we will at once turn to him again, just as when the Lord looked on Peter, who had turned his face from him, and thereby converted him so effectually, that “he went out at once and wept bitterly.” David put up the same prayer, when he said, ‘“* Look thou upon me, and have mercy on me;” and thus, Solomon prays here, “turn not away the face of thy anointed;” let not my face be turned away from you, which will be caused by your not turning your face away from me.

11 “ The Lord hath sworn truth to David; and he will not make it void: of the fruit of thy womb I will set upon thy throne.”

Tie now begins to refer to the promises that were made by God to David his father, in the hope of the more easily obtaining what he asks for through such reference, as he seems to demand it as a debt fairly due. “ The Lord hath sworn truth to David;” as much as to say, David, having sworn to the Lord, that he would build a temple to his glory, and the Lord swore, in return, that he would establish the sovereign power in David’s family for all eternity ; for God will not be outdone in liberality, and rewards not only our actions, but even our words and our thoughts, with the most unheard-of generosity. The oath here implies the fixed determination on the subject, intimating that God, not satisfied with a promise he was sure not to break, went further, and confirmed it by an oath. He then reconfirms the matter, by adding, “ and he will not make it void;” his oath will not be left unaccomplished, as he expresses it in another Psalm, “* The Lord hath sworn, and he will not repent.” He next proceeds to tell us what the truth was that he promised and confirmed by an oath, and says, “ Of the fruit of thy womb I will set upon thy throne ;” in other words, I will make your son your successor on the throne; words that should be literally applied to Christ, and not to Solomon, unless we look upon him as the type of Christ, for in Psalm Ixxxviii., that refers to the same oath, we read, ‘¢ Once have I sworn by my holiness I will not lie unto David; his seed shall endure for ever ; and his throne asthe sun before me; and asthe moon perfect for ever, and a faithful witness in heaven.” The phrase, then, ‘* J wild set,” does not mean I will put there, but I will establish, and put tlhe e for ever, which does not apply to Solomon. Furthermore, St. Peter, speaking of David, says, Acts ii., ‘“‘ Whereas, therefore, he was a prophet, and knew that God had

sworn to him with an oath, that of the fruit of his loins one should sit upon his throne; foreseeing he spoke of the resurrection of Christ; for neither was he left in hell, neither did his flesh see corruption ;” in which passage St. Peter explains an expression in Psalm xxx., by another in Psalm cxxxi., now before us, and this is also alluded to by the Angel in saluting the Virgin, when he said, “* And the Lord shall give unto him the throne of David his father, and he shall reign in the house of Jacob for ever.”

12 “Tf thy children will keep my covenant, and these my testimonies which I shall teach them: their children also for evermore shall sit upon thy throne.”

The oath and the promise in reference to his only son Christ, of whose kingdom there will be no end, was given and made unconditionally; but not so to others—it was on condition, ‘if they will keep my covenant;” the treaty I entered into with them of having no strange gods, and of their observing “ my

testimonies,” my commandments, in which case “ they ' shall sit upon thy throne,” and if not, they will be cast out. Dayid expressed this idea much more clearly to Solomon, when he said, “ Jf thow seek him thou shalt find him; but of thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever ;” and God himself, speaking of Solomon, a short time before, says, “ And I will establish his kingdom for ever, if he continue to keep my commandments, and my judgments, as at this day ;” and in Psalm lxxxviii., where we read, “‘ And if his children forsake my law, I will visit their iniquities with a rod;” and he does not add, but my mercy I will not take away from them, “ but from him,” that is, from David,.whose throne was everlasting, by reason of his being the type of Christ, even though the temporal sovereignty of Solomon, Roboam, and their successors may have an end.

13 ‘* For the Lord hath chosen Sion: he hath chosen it for his dwelling.

14 “ This is my rest for ever and ever: here will I dwell, for I have chosen it.”

These verses apply, to a certain extent, to the city of Jerusalem, inasmnch as it was a type of the Church militant, and afterwards triumphant; because God chose that city for a time as the seat of royalty and of the priesthood, and in it were to be found the throne and the temple. But, as that city was soon to be laid in ruins, and the kingdom upset, and the temple itself to be burned, we are constrained to say that these verses apply to the Church, the kingdom of Christ, and that the Sion, or Jerusalem, alluded to here is that of which he speaks in the second Psalm, when he says, “ But Iam appointed king by him over Sion, his holy mountain,” a continuation of which we have in verse 11 of this Psalm. “ The Lord hath sworn truth to David, and he will not make it void, of the fruit of thy womb I will set upon thy throne;? that is to say, he swore to David that he would place and’ establish his Son, Christ, on his throne, which is Sion, and which is, conse-

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quently, called the city of David, because “ the Lord hath chosen Sion,” that is, the Church, “ as his dwelling for ever,” and said in regard of it, “ This os my rest for ever and ever;” that is to say, I will never desert this Church, but I will rest for ever in her, because I will remove her to a perfect certainty in heaven; .and there “ J wil] dwell” in her for ever, “‘ because I have chosen it,” by a firm and everlasting decree.

15 “‘ Blessing I will bless her widow; I will satisfy her poor with bread.”

This and the following verses promise many blessings to Sion, the city of David, which are, to a certain extent, applicable to that city, inasmuch as she was a type of the Church, but they are much more applicable to the Church itself. He, first, promises such an abnndance of the good things of this world that even the widows, who are generally destitute, and all the poor in general, will enjoy an abundance. Now, this abundance, as applied to the Church, means an abundance of spiritual food, of the food of the word of God and of the sacraments, an abundance of which is enjoyed by the children of the Church, especially by those who are poor in spirit.

16 ‘I will clothe her priests with salvation : and her saints shall rejoice with exceeding great joy.”

The second blessing conferred on the holy city will consist in its priests being conspicuous for their justice and their holiness, because, as iniquity is the disease of the soul, so is justice its salvation; and, as Solomon previously prayed that “ her priests be clothed with justice,’ God now says, that ‘‘ he will clothe those priests with salvation,” which is the same as justice when there is question of our spiritual salvation.

17“ There will I bring forth a horn to David: I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.”

The third and the greatest blessing to be conferred on holy Sion will be, that there will the kingdom of David have its rise. The horn metaphorically means the power and the dignity of the king, and that by reason of its pre-eminence and durability. But, in a literal sense, the horn of David means the kingdom of the Messiah, that was to have its rise in Sion, and to be propagated from thence throughout the entire world. Zacharias announced it when he said, Luke i, “‘ And he hath raised up a horn of salvation to us in the house of David, his servant.” The prophet, too, foretold it; for Isaias says, chap. ix., “‘ He shall sit upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom, to establish tt and strengthen it for ever.” Jeremias has the following: “ Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, and I will raise up to David a just branch, and a king shall reign and shall be wise, and shall execute judgment and justice.” Ezechiel not only foretells the kingdom of Christ, but even describes his triumphal chariot, drawn by four animals, a man, a lion, a calf, and an eagle, meaning the four Evangelists. In-Daniel ii. we

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have, “ But in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed ;” and Zach. ix., ‘“* Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Sion, shout for joy, O daughter of Jerusalem, behold, thy king will come to thee, the just and Saviour ; he is poor and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt, the foal of an ass.” From all of which prophecies it is clear that this verse cannot possibly apply to Solomon or to his kingdom, for he was then alive and on his throne, whereas some future king is evidently intended. ‘The expression, “ will J bring Sorth,” means, I will make David’s horn, or power, spring up, as it were, and germinate, wherein he evidently foretells the destruction of Jerusalem, and the establishment of the everlasting kingdom of the Messias in place of the temporal power enjoyed hitherto by its kings. “ J have prepared a lamp for my anointed.” St. Augustine says, the lamp alludes to St. John Baptist ; for, as the Messias was to come without any shew, pomp, or retinue, it was likely that the carnal Jews, who expected quite a different Messias, would hardly receive him had not John preceded him, who, by his singular sanctity and austerities, “lke a light shining in a dark place,” brought the eyes of all upon him. ‘ There wil I bring forth a horn to David,” this means, I have established the eternal kingdom of the Messias. “TI have prepared a lamp,” the precursor, who will be as a lamp, ‘“‘ for my anointed,” for the Messias ; and Christ himself seems to allude to this verse when he said of St. John, “He was a burning and a shining lamp.”

18 ‘* His enemies I will clothe with confusion: but upon him shall my sanctification flourish.”

He prophesies that Christ will have many enemies, as, in truth, he had amongst the Jews, who said, ‘‘ We will not have this man to reign over us;” and when they said td Pilate, ‘‘We have no king but Cesar ;” but he also prophesies the punishment in store for them. ‘ His enemies I will clothe with confusion.” I will brand them with infamy, as we see all over the world. Soon after the death of Christ, the Romans sacked and destroyed the city, slew immense numbers of them, sold many of them as slaves, and exposed a great many of them to wild beasts in the public games; and from thence to the present day, the Jewish race are every where in a state of slavery, and are every where despised; but on the last day, then not only will Jews, but all pagans, heretics, and all false brethren, who, though his brethren, have been enemies to Christ, will be ‘‘ clothed with confusion.” While they shall be “ clothed with confusion,” Christ will be clothed with glory, because the seed that had been buried in the earth will then flower orth into glory, by budding forth the flowers of sanctification ; and not only will Christ be clothed with glory, but so will all his members too, because such sanctification will then produce flowers of incredible beauty, when grace shall be turned into glory.

PSALM CXXXII. The happiness of brotherly love and concord.

1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity:

2 Like the precious ointment on the head, that ran down upon the beard, the beard of Aaron, which ran down to the skirt of his — garment:

3 As the dew of Hermon, which descendeth upon mount Sion. For there the Lord hath commanded blessing, and life for evermore.

EXPLANATION OF THE PSALM.

1 “* Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity :”

Such is the language of those who begin to feel the sweetness as well as the advantage of perfect charity. He calls it “‘ good” by reason of its advantages, and ‘‘ pleasant” by reason of its sweetness ; for though some things are good without being pleasant, such as penance; and pleasant without being good, such as sin; still, both are found combined in the peace and harmony of “‘ brethren dwelling together.” For virtue so combined is greater and stronger, and is easier and better preserved, which thus tends to their mutual advantage; and where many are so united by charity as to form “ one heart and one soul,” every one rejoices in the happiness of the others as well as he does in his own, and thus tends to incease the mutual pleasure of all.

2 “ Like the precious ointment on the head, that ran down upon the beard, the beard of Aaron, which ran down to the skirt of his garment :

3 ‘* As the dew of Hermon, which descendeth upon mount Sion. For there the Lord hath commanded blessing, and liye for evermore.”

He explains the pleasure and the advantages of living together by two similes ; first, comparing the pleasure to the precious ointment used for anointing the head of the high priest, which was most highly perfumed, as appears from Exodus xxx., and which dropped from his head on his beard, and from thence on the upper fringe of his robe; not on the lower, as the word skirt would seem to imply, which is quite plain in the Greek and Hebrew, and which common sense seems to indicate. We have to observe here, that the ointment on the head could be communicated to the parts only in connexion with the head ; for if the beard had not been united to the head, it would have received none of the ointment as it fell; and so with the garment, if that had not been in connexion with the head, it too would have caught none of the ointment ; and thus the ointment was communicated to all through their union with each other; and thus it becomes necessary for “ brethren to dwell together,”

and to be united by the bond of love, in order to get the supernatural graces that flow from Christ, as the head, and from him on the prelates of the Church, who are indicated by the beard, and through them on the faithful in general, indicated by the fringe of his garment. He then compares such union of brethren to the dew that falls on the mountain, which confers no pleasure thereon, but certainly great benefits; for the dew causes the grass to spring up, and clothes the mountain with verdure. He names two mountains, Hermon and Sion, considerably distant from each other ; one of thema very high mountain, Hermon, and the other a very low one, Sion, as if the Holy Ghost would have us infer therefrom, that the union, most pleasing to God, is that of the heart and not of the body, as we read in the Acts, of the first Christians, of whom it is said, ‘And the multttude of the believers had but one heart and one soul.” He, therefore, says, that the advantage of brethren living together is like ‘‘ the dew of Hermon which descendeth upon mount Sion;” but how the dew of Hermon can descend upon Sion, at such a distance, cannot be easily explained, though attempted by many. I imagine that Hermon, being a lofty and extensive mountain, and Sion a low and small one, that Hermon, to a certain extent, shared its dew with Sion, inasmuch as the dew falling on Sion would seem to have come from Hermon; and such precisely should be the system of brethren living together, one sharing with the other, for brethren in such harmony may be well compared to the hill of Sion, on whom a heavenly dew falls from Hermon ; that is, from Christ, who is so elevated, and so abouads in such heavenly dew; and, therefore, St. John said, ‘ And of his fulness we have all received.” Christ, however, does not share his grace and glory with us to the extent in which he enjoys it himself, but inasimilar, thoughinferior manner, ‘ Wor there the Lord hath commanded blessing and life for evermore.” He now assigns a reason why an assembly of brethren, living together in peace and concord, should enjoy so many blessings. ‘‘ Wor there the Lord hath commanded blessings,” because the Lord sends his blessing to such; and that is, the source of all blessings, and numberless favours always flow from the Lord’s blessing. As nothing, then, is more gratifying to God than to see brethren living together, united in peace and harmony, he pours down all manner of favours on them; and those not temporary or transient favours, but eternal; and it was for such reason that to the blessing he adds, “And life for evermore,” all of which blessings we enjoy here in hope; and when we get to our country, we shall enjoy in the reality. We, therefore, had good reason to say, in the beginning of this Psalm, how appropriate it is to us, pilgrims, here below, on our journey to our country above, for it is there we are to look for perfect harmony; there the ointment of perfect love constantly flows from Christ, the head

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on all the members, and the dew of the light of glory from mount Hermon on all the hills of Sion. Hermon means a light on an elevated place, and Sion means a watch tower, a look out; and, therefore, most justly, does a share in that divine light, or in other words, the Lord’s blessing, which means an abundance of all imaginable goods, descend on those who are worthy to “look out” on God, face to face. And there, in conclusion, is “‘life for evermore,” never to have an end.