in Christ? Is He not Himself the Virtue of God, and the Wisdom of God? Doth He call this His.improvidence, whereof the Apostle speaketh, " the foolishness of God is wiser than men "? ' Mine improvidence, that very thing which in Me they derided that seem to themselves to be wise, Thou hast known why it was done. For what was so much like improvidence, as, when He had it in His power with one word to lay low the persecutors, to suffer Himself to be held, scourged, spit upon, buffeted, with thorns to be crowned, to the tree to be nailed? It is like improvidence, it seemeth a foolish thing; but this foolish thing excelleth all wise men. Foolish indeed it is: but even when grain falleth into the earth, if no one knoweth the custom of husbandmen, it seemeth foolish...Improvidence it appeareth; but hope maketh it not to be improvidence. He then spared not Himself: because even the Father spared Him not, but delivered Him up for us all.2 And of the Same, " Who loved me," saith the Apostle, " and delivered up Himself for me: " 3 for except a grain shall have fallen into the land so that it die, fruit, He saith, it will not yield.4 This is the improvidence. " And my transgressions from Thee are not concealed." It is plain, clear, open, that this must be perceived to be out of the mouth of the Body. Transgressions none had Christ: He was the bearer of transgressions, but not the committer.
" Are not concealed: " that is, I have confessed to Thee_ all my transgressions, and before my mouth Thou hast seen them in my thought, hast seen the wounds which Thou wast to heal. But where? Even in the Body, in the members: in those believers out of whom there was now cleaving to Him that member, who was confessing his sins.
10. " Let them not blush in 5 Me, that wait for Thee, O Lord, Lord of virtues" (ver. 6). Again, the voice of the Head, " Let them not blush in Me: " let it not be said to them, Where is He on whom ye were relying? Let it not be said to them, Where is He that was saying to you, " Believe ye 6 in God, and in Me believe "? 7 " Let them not blush in Me, that wait for Thee," O Lord, Lord of virtues. Let them not be confounded concerning Me, that seek Thee, O God of Israel." This also may be understood of the Body, but only if thou consider the Body of Him not one man: for in truth one man is not the Body of Him, but a small member, but the Body is made up of members. Therefore the full Body of Him is the whole Church. With reason then saith the Church, " Let them not blush in Me, that wait for Thee, O Lord, Lord of virtues."...1 1 Cor. i. 25. 2 Rom. viii. 32. 3 Gal. ii. 30.
* John xii. 24. 5 Or, " for Me."
6 Lxl. mss. " ye believe." 7 John xiv. 1.
11. "For because of Thee I have sustained upbraiding, shamelessness hath covered my face " (ver. 7). No great thing is that which is spoken of in " I have sustained: " but that which is spoken of in " for Thy sake I have sustained," is. For if thou sustainest because thou hast sinned; for thine own sake thou sustainest, not for the sake of God. For to you what glory is there, saith Peter, if sinning ye are punished, and ye bear it? But if thou sustainest because thou hast kept the commandment of God, truly for the sake of God thou sustainest; and thy reward remaineth for everlasting, because for the sake of God thou hast sustained revilings.8 For to this end He first sustained, in order that we might learn to sustain..."Shamelessness hath covered my face." Shamelessness is what? Not to be confused. Lastly, it seemeth to be as it were a fault, when we say, the man is shameless. Great is the shamelessness of the man, that he doth not blush. Therefore shamelessness is a kind of folly. A Christian ought to have this shamelessness, when he cometh among men to whom Christ is an offence. If he shall have blushed because of Christ, he will be blotted out from the book of the living. Thou must needs therefore have shamelessness when Thou art reviled because of Christ; when they say, Worshipper of the Crucified, adorer of Him that died ill, venerator of Him that was slain! here if thou shalt blush thou art a dead man. For see the sentence of Him that deceiveth no one. " He that shall have been ashamed of Me before men, I will also be ashamed of him before the Angels of God." ^ Watch therefore thyself whether there be in thee shamelessness; be thou boldfaced,10 when thou hearest a reproach concerning Christ; yea be boldfaced. Why fearest thou for thy forehead which thou hast armed with the sign of the Cross?...
12. "An alien I have become to My brethren, and a stranger to the sons of My mother " (ver. 8). To the sons of the Synagogue He became a stranger...Why so? Why did they not acknowledge? Why did they call Him an alien? Why did they dare to say, we know riot whence He is? " Because the zeal of Thine House hath eaten Me up: " that is, because I have persecuted in them their own iniquities, because I have not patiently borne those whom I have rebuked, because I have sought Thy glory in Thy House, because I have scourged them that in the Temple dealt unseemly: " in which place also there is quoted, " the zeal of Thine House hath eaten Me up." Hence an alien, hence a stranger; hence, we know not whence He is. They would have acknowledged 3©4 [Psalm LXIX.
whence I am, if they had acknowledged that which Thou hast commanded. For if I had found them keeping Thy commandments, the zeal of Thine House would not have eaten Me up. " And the reproaches of men reproaching Thee haven fallen upon Me." Of this testimony Paul the Apostle hath also made use (there hath been read but now the very lesson), and saith, "Whatsoever things aforetime have been written, have been written that we might be instructed.'"...Why "Thee"? Is the Father reproached, and not Christ Himself? Why have " the reproaches of men reproaching Thee fallen upon Me "? Because, " he that hath known Me, hath known the Father also: " 2 because no one hath reviled Christ without reviling God: because no one honoureth the Father, except he that honoureth the Son also.3 13. "And I have covered in fasting My Soul, and it became to Me for a reviling " (ver. 10). His fasting was, when there fell away all they that had believed in Him; because also it was His hunger, that men should believe in Him: because also it was His thirst, when He said to the woman, I thirst, " give Me to drink: " 4 yea for her faith He was thirsting. And from the Cross when He was saying, " I thirst," 5 He was seeking the faith of them for whom He had said, " Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." 6 But what did those men give to drink to Him thirsty? Vinegar. Vinegar is also called old? With reason of the old man they gave to drink, because they willed not to be new. Why willed they not to become new? Because to the title of this Psalm whereon is written, " For them that shall be changed," they belonged not. Therefore, " I have covered in fasting My Soul." Lastly, He put from Him even the gall which they offered: He chose rather to fast than to accept bitterness. For they enter not into His Body that are embittered,8 whereof in another place a Psalm saith, " They that are embittered shall not be exalted in themselves." » Therefore, " I have covered in fasting My Soul: and it became to Me for a reviling." This very thing became to Me for a reviling, that I consented not to them, that is, from them I fasted. For he that consenteth not to men seducing to evil, fasteth from them; and through this fasting earneth reviling, so that he is upbraided because he consenteth not to the evil thing.
14. " And I have set sackcloth my garment " (ver. n). Already before IO we have said something of the sackcloth, from whence there is this, " But I, when they were troubling Me, was * John iv. 7. ' John xix. 28. 6 Luke xxiii. 34.
10 Ps. xxxv., p. 82, note 11, supra.
covering myself with sackcloth, and was humbling My Soul in fasting. I have set sackcloth for My garment: " that is, have set against them My flesh, on which to spend their rage, I have concealed My divinity. " Sackcloth," because mortal the flesh was: in order that by sin He might condemn sin in the flesh." "And I have set sackcloth my garment: and I have been made to them for a parable," that is, for a derision. It is called a parable, whenever a comparison is made concerning some one, when he is evil spoken of. " So may this man perish," for example, " as that man did," is a parable: that is, a comparison and likeness in cursing. " I have been made to them," then, " for a parable."
15. "Against Me were reviling they that were sitting in the gate" (ver. 12). "In the gate" is nothing else but in public. " And against Me they were chanting,12 they that were drinking wine." Do ye think, brethren, that this hath befallen Christ alone? Daily to Him in His members it happeneth: whenever perchance it is necessary for the servant of God to forbid excess of wine and luxuries in any village or town, where there hath not been heard the Word of God, it is not enough that they sing, nay more even against him they begin to sing, by whom they are forbidden to sing. Compare ye now His fasting and their wine.
16. "But I with My prayer with Thee,1' O Lord " (ver. 13). But I was with Thee. But how? With Thee by praying. For when thou art evil spoken of, and knowest not what thou mayest do; when at thee are hurled reproaches, and thou findest not any way of rebuking him by whom they are hurled; nothing remaineth for thee but to pray. But remember even for that very man to pray. " But I with my prayer with Thee, O Lord. It is the time of Thy good pleasure, O God." For behold the grain is being buried, there shall spring up fruit. " It is the time of Thy good pleasure, O God." Of this time even the Prophets have spoken, whereof the Apostle maketh mention: " Behold now the time acceptable, behold now the day of salvation." '4 " It is the time of Thy good pleasure, O God. In the multitude of Thy mercy." This is the time of good pleasure, "in the multitude of Thy mercy." For if there were not a multitude of Thy mercy, what should we do for the multitude of our iniquity? " In the multitude of Thy mercy; Hearken to me in the truth of Thy Salvation." Because He hath said, " of Thy mercy," he hath added truth also: for " mercy and truth " are all the ways of the Lord.1' Why mercy? In forgiving sins. Why truth? In fulfilling the promises.
17. "Save Thou Me from the mire, that I ■* Psallebant. W Ps. xxv. 10.
» Ad Tt.
Psalm LXIX.]
may not stick" (ver. 14). From that whereof above he had spoken, " Fixed I am in the clay of the deep, and there is no substance." ' Furthermore, since ye have duly received the exposition of that expression, in this place there is nothing further for you to hear particularly. From hence he saith that he must be delivered, wherein before he said that he was fixed: " Save Thou Me from the mire, that I may not stick." And he explaineth this himself: " Let Me be rescued from them that hate Me." They were themselves therefore the clay wherein he had stuck. But the following perchance suggesteth itself. A little before he had said, Fixed I am; now he saith, Save Thou Me from the mire, that I may not stick: " whereas after the meaning of what was said before he ought to have said, Save Thou Me from the mire where I had stuck, by rescuing Me, not by causing that I stick not. Therefore He had stuck in flesh, but had not stuck in spirit. He saith this, because of the infirmity of His members. Whenever perchance thou art seized by one that urgeth thee to iniquity, thy body indeed is taken, in regard to the body thou art fixed in the clay of the deep: but so long as thou consentest not, thou hast not stuck; but if thou consentest, thou hast stuck. Let then thy prayer be in that place, in order that as thy body is now held, so thy soul may not be held, so thou mayest be free in bonds.
18. "Let not the tempest of waters drown Me" (ver. 15). But already he had been drowned. " I have come into the depth of the sea," thou hast said, and "the tempest hath drowned Me," ' thou hast said. It hath drowned after the flesh, let it not drown after the Spirit. They to whom was said, If they shall have persecuted you in one city, flee ye into another; 2 had this said to them, that neither in flesh they should stick, nor in spirit. For we must not desire to stick even in flesh; but as far as we are able we ought to avoid it. But if we shall have stuck, and shall have fallen into the hands of sinners: then in body we have stuck, we are fixed in the clay of the deep, it remaineth to entreat for the soul that we stick not, that is, that we consent not, that the tempest of water drown us not, so that we go into the deep of the clay. " Neither let the deep swallow Me, nor the pit close her mouth upon Me." What is this, brethren? What hath he prayed against? Great is the pit of the depth of human iniquity: every one, if he shall have fallen into it, will fall into the deep. But yet if a man being there placed confesseth his sins to his God, the pit will not shut her mouth upon him: as is written in another Psalm, " From the depths I have cried to Thee, O Lord; Lord, hearken unto my voice." ' But 1 Ps lxix. 2.
3 PS. CXXX. I.
2 Matt. x. 33.
if there is done in him that which another passage of Scripture saith, " When a sinner shall have come into the depth of evil things, he will despise," 4 upon him the pit hath shut her mouth. Why hath she shut her mouth? Because she hath shut his mouth. He hath lost confession, really dead he is, and there is fulfilled in him that which elsewhere is spoken of, " From a dead man, as from one that is not, there perisheth confession." 5...
19. " Hearken unto me, O Lord, for sweet is Thy mercy" (ver. 16). He hath given this as a reason why He ought to be hearkened unto, because sweet is the mercy of God...To a man set in trouble the mercy of God must needs be sweet. Concerning this sweetness of the mercy of God see ye what in another place the Scripture saith: " Like rain in drought, so beautiful is the mercyof God in trouble."6 That which there he saith to be " beautiful," the same he saith here to be " sweet." Not even bread would be sweet, unless hunger had preceded. Therefore even when the Lord permitteth or causeth us to be in any trouble, even then He is merciful: for He doth not withdraw nourishment, but stirreth up longing. Accordingly what saith he now, " Hearken to me, O Lord, for sweet is Thy mercy "? Now do not Thou defer hearkening, in so great trouble I am, that sweet to me is Thy mercy. For to this end Thou didst defer to succour, in order that to me that wherewith Thou didst succour might be sweet: but now no longer is there cause why Thou must defer; my trouble hath arrived at the appointed measure of distress, let Thy mercy come to do the work of goodness. " After the multitude of Thy pities have regard unto me: " not after the multitude of my sins.
20. " Turn not away Thy face from Thy child"' (ver. 17). And this is a commending of humility; " from Thy child," that is, " from Thy little one: " because now I have been rid of pride through the discipline of tribulation, " turn not away Thy face from Thy child." This is that beautiful mercy of God, whereof he spake above. For in the following verse he explaineth that whereof he spake: " For I am troubled, speedily hearken Thou unto me." What is " speedily "? Now there is no cause why Thou must defer it: I am troubled, my affliction hath gone before; let Thy mercy follow.
21. "Give heed to my soul, and redeem her," doth need no exposition: let us see therefore what followeth. " Because of mine enemies deliver me " (ver 18). This petition is evidently wonderful, neither briefly to be touched upon, nor hastily to be skipped over; truly wonderful: " Because of mine enemies deliver me." What * Prov. xviii. 3. 6 Ecclus. xxxv. 20.
5 Ecclus. xvii. 28.
3°6 [Psalm LXIX.
is, " Because of mine enemies deliver me "?., I see no reason for this petition, " Because of mine enemies deliver me: " unless we understand it of something else, which when I shall have spoken by the help of the Lord, He shall judge in you, that dwelleth in you.1 There is a kind of secret deliverance of holy men: this for their own sakes is made. There is one public and evident: this is made because of their enemies, either for their punishment, or for their deliverance. For truly God delivered not the brothers in the book of Maccabees from the fires of the persecutor.2...But again the Three Children openly were delivered from the furnace of fire; 3 because their body also was rescued, their safety was public. The former were in secret crowned, the latter openly delivered: all however saved...There is then a secret deliverance, there is an open deliverance. Secret deliverance doth belong to the soul, open deliverance to the body as well. For in secret the soul is delivered, openly the body. Again, if so it be, in this Psalm the voice of the Lord let us acknowledge: to the secret deliverance doth belong that whereof he spake above, " Give heed to my soul, and redeem her." There remaineth the body's deliverance: for on His arising and ascending into the Heavens, and sending the Holy Ghost from above, there were converted to His faith they that at His death did rage, and out of enemies they were made friends through His grace, not through their righteousness.4 Therefore he hath continued, " Because of mine enemies deliver me. Give heed to my soul," but this in secret: but " because of mine enemies deliver " even my body. For mine enemies it will profit nothing if soul alone Thou shalt have delivered; that they have done something, that they have accomplished something, they will believe. "What profit is there in my blood, while I go down into corruption? " 5 Therefore " give heed to my soul, and redeem her," which Thou alone knowest: secondly also, " because of mine enemies deliver me," that my flesh may not see corruption.
22. "Thou knowest my reproach, and my confusion, and my shame " (ver. 19). What is reproach? What is confusion? What shame? Reproach is that which the enemy casteth in the teeth. Confusion is that which gnaweth the conscience. Shame is that which causeth even a noble brow to blush, because of the upbraiding with a pretended crime. There is no crime; or even if there is a crime, it doth not belong to him, against whom it is alleged: but yet the infirmity of the human mind ofttimes is made ashamed even when a pretended crime is alleged; not because it is alleged, but because it is be- 1 Oxf. mss. " in you also." 2 2 Mace. vii.
lieved. All these things are in the Body of the Lord. For confusion in Him could not be, in whom guilt was not found. There was alleged as a crime against Christians, the very fact that they were Christians. That indeed was glory: the brave gladly received it, and so received it as that they blushed not at all for the Lord's name. For fearlessness had covered the face of them, having the effrontery of Paul, saying, " for I blush not because of the Gospel: for the virtue of God it is for salvation to every one believing." 6 O Paul, art not thou a venerator of the Crucified? Little it is, he saith, for me not to blush for it: nay, therein alone I glory, wherefore the enemy thinketh me to blush. " But from me far be it to glory, save in the Cross of Jesus Christ, through whom to me the world is crucified, and I to the world." ' At such a brow as this then reproach alone could be hurled.
For neither could there be confusion in a conscience already made whole, nor shame in a brow so free. But when it was being alleged against certain that they had slain Christ, deservedly they were pricked through with evil conscience, and to their health confounded and converted, so that they could say, " Thou hast known my confusion." Thou therefore, O Lord, hast known not only my reproach but also my confusion, in certain shame also: who, though in me they believe, publicly blush to confess me before ungodly men, human tongue having more influence with them than promise divine. Behold ye therefore them: even such are commended to God, not that so He may leave them, but that by aiding them He may make them perfect. For a certain man believing and wavering hath said, " I believe, O Lord, help Thou mine unbelief." 8 23. " In Thy sight are all they that trouble Me " (ver. 20). Why I have reproach, Thou knowest; why confusion, Thou knowest; why shame, Thou knowest: therefore deliver Thou me because of mine enemies, because Thou knowest these things of me, they know not; and thus, because they are themselves in Thy sight, not knowing these things, they will not be able to be either confounded or corrected, unless openly Thou shalt have delivered me because of mine enemies. " Reproach my heart hath expected, and misery." What is, " hath expected "? Hath foreseen these things as going to be, hath foretold them as going to be. For He came not for any other purpose. If He had been unwilling to die, neither would He have willed to be born: for the sake of resurrection He did both. For there jvere two particular things known to us among mankind, but one thing unknown. For we knew that men were born and died: that they rose again and lived for everlasting we 6 Rom. i. 16.
7 Gal. vi. 14.
8 Mark ix. 24.
Psalm LXIX.]
knew not. That He might show to us that which we knew not, He took upon Him the two things which we knew. To this end therefore He came. " Reproach my heart hath expected and misery." But the misery of whom? For He expected misery, but rather of the crucifiers, rather of the persecutors, that in them should be misery, in Him mercy. For pitying the misery of them even while hanging on the Cross, He saith, " Fathar, forgive them, for they know not what they do."' What then did it profit, that I expected? That is, what did it profit that I foretold? What did it profit that I said to this end I had come? I came to fulfil that which I said, " I waited for one that together should be made sorrowful, and there was not; and men comforting, and I found not: " that is, there was none. For that which in the former verse He said, " I waited for one that together should be made sorrowful," the same is in the following verse, " and men comforting." But that which in the former verse is, " and there was not; " the same in the following verse is, " and I found not." Therefore another sentence is not added, but the former is repeated. Which sentence if we reconsider, a question may arise. For were His disciples nowise made sorrowful when He was led to the Passion, when on the tree hanged, when dead? So much were they made sorrowful, that Mary Magdalene, who first saw Him, rejoicing told them as they were mourning what she had seen.2 The Gospel speaketh of these things: it is not our presumption, not our suspicion: it is evident that the disciples grieved, it is evident that they mourned. Strange women were weeping, when to the Passion He was being led, unto whom turning He saith, " Weep ye, but for yourselves, do not for Me." 3...Peter certainly loved very much, and without hesitation threw himself to walk on the waves,4 and at the voice of the Lord he was delivered: and though following Him when led to the Passion, with the boldness of love, yet being troubled, thrice he denied Him. Whence, except because an evil thing it seemed to him to die? For he was shunning that which he thought an evil thing. This then even in the Lord he was lamenting, which he was himself shunning. On this account even before he had said, " Far be it from Thee, O Lord, merciful be Thou to Thyself: there shall not come to pass this thing: " 5 at which time he merited to hear, " Satan; " after that he had heard, " Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona." Therefore in that sorrowfulness which the Lord felt because of those for whom He prayed, " Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do: " ' no companion He found. " And I waited for 1 Luke xxiii. 34. 3 Luke xxiii. 28.
2 John xx. 18; Mark xvi. 9.
* Matt. xiv. 29. 3 Matt. xvi. 22.
one that together should be made sorrowful, and there was not." There was not at all. " And men comforting, and I found not." Who are men comforting? Men profiting. For they comfort us, they are the comfort of all preachers of the Truth.
24. " And they gave for My food gall, and in My thirst they gave Me vinegar to drink " (ver. 22). This was done indeed to the letter. And the Gospel declareth this to us. But we must understand, brethren, that the very fact that I found not comforters, that the very fact that I found not one that together should be made sorrowful, this was My gall, this to Me was bitter, this was vinegar: bitter because of grief, vinegar because of their old man. For we read, that to Him indeed gall was offered, as the Gospel speaketh; but for drink, not for food.6 Nevertheless, we must so take and consider that when fulfilled, which here had been before predicted, " They gave for My food gall: " and in that very action, not only in this saying, we ought to seek for a mystery, at secret things to knock, to enter the rent veil of the Temple, to see there a Sacrament, both in what there hath been said and in what there hath been done. " They gave," He saith, " for My food gall: " not the thing itself which they gave was food, for it was drink: but " for food they gave it." Because already the Lord had taken food, and into it there had been thrown gall. But He had taken Himself pleasant food, when He ate the Passover with His disciples: therein He showed the Sacrament of His Body.7 Unto this food so pleasant, so sweet, of the Unity of Christ, of which the Apostle maketh mention, saying, " For one bread, One Body, being many we are; " 8 unto this pleasant food who is there that addeth gall, except the gainsayers of the Gospel, like those persecutors of Christ? For less the Jews sinned in crucifying Him walking on earth, than they that despise Him sitting in Heaven. That which then the Jews did, in giving above the food which He had already taken that bitter draught to drink, the same they do that by evil living bring scandal upon the Church: the same do embittered heretics, " But let them not be exalted in their own selves." 9 They give gall after so delectable meat. But what doth the Lord? He admitteth them not to His Body. In this mystery, when they presented gall, the Lord Himself tasted, and would not drink.6 If we did not suffer them,-neither at all should we taste: but because it is necessary to suffer them, we must needs taste. But because in the members of Christ such sort cannot be, they can be tasted, received into the 6 Matt, xxvii. 34.
7 Luke xxii. 19. The Sacrament of the Body of Christ.
3o8 [Psalm LXIX.
Body they cannot be. " And they gave for My food gall, and in My thirst they gave Me vinegar to drink." I was thirsting, and vinegar I received: that is, for the faith of them I longed, and I found oldness.