Commentary on the Psalms 23 part 2/2

but all these things are dissolved like dust that is swept away, and another better order of life is given, one in which incorruption, immortality, and much power are bestowed upon the body.

And Paul too, making this plain, said:

'For the fashion of this world passeth away.'

But if you disbelieve the things that have been said, because you do not see them present, take from present things the proof concerning things to come.

Go over in thought the whole inhabited world, the land, the sea, Greece, the barbarian lands, the inhabited world, the uninhabited world, the cities upon the land, the islands in the sea, the mountains, and the glens; and seeing everywhere the power of Christ shining forth, and all men proclaiming His precious name, reason with yourself that He who was able to do such things has also promised the things to come.

And if you should wish to take the proof even in part, consider for what reason the whole inhabited world runs together to see a tomb that holds no body.

what power draws those from the ends of the earth, so as to see where He was born, where He was buried, where He was crucified?

Consider the Cross itself, of how great a power it is a sign.

For this Cross, before this time, was an accursed death, a death of reproach, a death the most shameful of all.

But behold, now it has become more honourable than life itself, and more splendid than diadems; and we all carry it about upon our foreheads, not only not being ashamed of it, but even glorying in it.

Not only private persons, but even those very ones who wear the diadems bear it upon their foreheads above their diadems—and very fittingly too.

for it is better than ten thousand diadems.

For while the diadem adorns the head, the Cross makes safe the mind.

This is a defence against demons; this diadem is a destroyer of the soul's diseases.

this is a weapon that cannot be overcome; this is a wall that cannot be stormed.

this is a security that cannot be contended against.

it dissolves not only the assaults of barbarians and the incursions of enemies, but also the very battle-lines of the savage demons themselves.

'In the splendours of the saints.'

He is still discoursing about the day, both the present one and the one to come.

By 'splendour' here he means the beauty of the saints.

What indeed is more splendid than Paul? What more illustrious than Peter? They ran throughout the inhabited world, shining brighter than the sun, sowing the seeds of piety. For as though they were angels come down from heaven, so were they unapproachable to all.

Showing this, he who composed the book of the Acts said that 'No one dared to join himself to them.'

For indeed their very garments were full of grace, and the shadows of their bodies displayed much power.

But if they were such here, consider for me, in that day, when they shall receive incorruptible bodies, when immortal, when bodies gleaming beyond every visible splendour—what shall these men be, and those like them: prophets and apostles, and righteous men, and martyrs, and confessors, and all who have distinguished themselves in the noblest manner of life through faith in Christ?

Consider for me those throngs, the torches, the rays, the glory, the comeliness, the radiance, the festal assembly.

Who shall set these things forth? No word at all.

But experience alone will clearly teach those who are counted worthy to attain to this contemplation, that that splendour

comes to pass as if many suns had blazed forth above the heaven, or as if there were unbroken flashes of lightning;

or rather, whatever I may say in my eagerness to set forth that beauty, I shall not be able to speak of it in a manner worthy of it.

For all these examples are drawn from bodily things;

but the splendour and the glory which shall then shine forth there will blaze out beyond every such beauty.

For the bodies will not only be incorruptible and immortal, but will then also be clothed with unspeakable glory.

'In the splendours of the saints.'

That he might not show Him to be only fearful, he shows also His gentleness and His beneficence, saying:

'In the splendours of the saints.'

And this too belongs to His power, to make those men so resplendent;

which Paul also declared when he said:

'Who shall transform the body of our lowliness, that it may be made conformable to the body of His glory.'

Then, since he had spoken of something great and unutterable, he added:

'According to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself.'

Do not ask how, he says, and in what manner;

for all things are possible to Him, whatsoever He wills.

But why did he not say, 'In the splendour of the saints,' but 'In the splendours'? Because the prizes are many and diverse.

'For there is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars;'

'for one star differeth from another star in glory;'

'so also,' he says, 'shall the resurrection of the dead be.'

'In my Father's house are many mansions.'

Therefore that splendour has no end.

For it neither yields to night nor gives place to darkness, but being unspeakable and great, and far surpassing this visible light, it has yet this further and greatest property, that it admits no limit — which belongs to the unspeakable power of the King, namely, to bring bodies that are corruptible and perishable into such strength and power.

Then, since he had spoken of certain great things and had given wings to the hearer with these hopes, he shows that these things come to pass with good reason, seeing that He who accomplishes them is so great.

And who is He that accomplishes them? He who is of one essence with the Father.

For to declare this he added:

'From the womb, before the morning star, I begat Thee.'

But those who twist what is said to suit their own opinion assert that these words were spoken concerning the generation according to the flesh.

How then, tell me, 'before the morning star'?

He spoke thus of the night in which He was born, because He was brought forth before the dawn.

But this was not what he sought to say, nor did he speak it for the sake of narrating history;

and besides, they cannot show that the prophets, who for the most part spoke in a veiled manner, would have said just what the evangelists taught.

Here, then, the phrase 'before the morning star' does not mean before the rising of the morning star, but before its nature, before the morning star came into being.

For Scripture knows how to distinguish these things, when it says 'before the nature' and when it says 'before the working';

'One must anticipate the dawn to give thanks unto Thee, and to entreat Thee before the rising of the light.'

For here it speaks of the dawn.

For it did not say, 'Before the sun,' but, 'Before the rising';

for nothing came into being before the nature of the sun;

but, 'Before the rising of the sun,' that it might indicate the dawn.

But elsewhere, when it speaks of what is before the nature of the sun itself, it does not say, 'Before the rising,' but, 'Before the sun.'

Before the sun his name endures.

And before the moon, to all generations of generations.

As, therefore, it is one thing to say 'Before the sun,' and another to say 'Before the rising of the sun':

for the one signifies the working of the sun and the dawn, but the other its very nature;

so also here, if he had wished to signify the night, he would not have said 'Before the morning star,' but 'Before the rising of the morning star.'

But in another way also, Christ took this psalm not as referring to the dispensation according to the flesh, but to the generation according to the Spirit.

For when He had said to the Jews, 'What think ye of the Christ? whose son is He?' and they had said, 'David's,' He brought forward the psalm, saying:

'How then doth David say, The Lord said unto my Lord:

Sit thou at my right hand? If then He is his Lord, how say ye that He is his son?'

What then is that which is said? Here He set forth the genuineness of the begetting.

What then? Is He only before the morning star? By no means.

Before the moon is His throne.

And not before the moon only, since concerning the Father also it says:

'Before the mountains were brought forth, and the earth and the world were formed, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art.'

Not from everlasting only, but even before the ages;

nor indeed unto the age, but He is without limit.

Do not, then, stumble at the words, but receive the meaning in a manner befitting God.

When he begins the psalm, he did not begin from this point:

'From the womb, before the morning star, have I begotten thee';

but having first displayed His mighty deeds, and having proclaimed Him through His works, afterwards he shows His dignity as coming from the Lord.

'If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not.'

'But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works;'

that having learned that He who sits at the right hand of the Father, who is called Lord as the Father is, who has His sovereignty together with Himself, who works such splendour, who exercises dominion among the nations, thou mayest not be troubled if thou hearest that this same One is Son, and that before all creation.

It is worthy of wonder how the Prophet utters some things in the person of God, and others in his own person.

For the saying 'Sit thou at my right hand,' and the saying 'From the womb, before the morning star, have I begotten thee,' which are things too high for himself, he introduces God Himself as speaking;

but the other things he himself narrates.

But consider also how great a fittingness of expression he has employed.

For it would have been enough merely to say, 'I have begotten thee';

but for the sake of those who walk upon the ground, that he might set forth the genuineness of it, he also made mention of this expression.

And just as, when Scripture speaks of a hand, it does not speak in order that we should suspect a hand, but the creative power;

so also it made mention of a womb, that it might set forth the genuineness of the begetting.

Then, wishing to frame the prophecy in the form of a judge, he directs his speech toward Him, which was a mark of most vehement love and surpassing joy, and of a soul become wholly possessed by the divine Spirit.

The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent.

Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchizedek.

Seest thou how again he brings the discourse down to what is lowlier, speaking now concerning the Godhead, and now concerning the manhood? which the Evangelists also do, so that on both sides the exactness of the doctrines may be preserved.

And why did he say, 'After the order of Melchizedek'? Both on account of the mysteries, because he too offered bread and wine to Abraham; and because this priesthood was free from the Law; and because of its unendingness, as Paul also says; and because it was without beginning.

For what that man had in the shadows, this came to pass in the truth in the case of Jesus;

and just as the names ran on ahead—such as Joshua, such as Christ—so also did this.

Melchizedek, then, appears to have neither beginning of days nor end of life, not because he had them not, but because he was not genealogically recorded.

But Jesus had neither beginning of days nor end of life, not after this manner, but because in Him there was altogether no temporal beginning nor end.

For the one was a shadow, but the other truth.

As therefore, when you hear the name 'Jesus,' you do not suppose it to be the true Jesus, but receive only the form of the name, and seek nothing further;

so also, when you hear that Melchizedek is without beginning and without end, do not seek him in the truth of the actual facts, but be content with the appellation alone, and learn the truth of it upon Christ.

And when you hear of an oath, do not think it to be an oath.

For just as wrath, in the case of God, is not wrath, but the punitive power, and is no passion;

so God does not swear, but declares that which shall assuredly come to pass. Having therefore spoken of the splendour of the saints, of the setting of the enemies under His feet, and of the

day of His power, He next speaks also of things present.

And observe what an order he gives to his discourse, softening the hardened hearer.

For having first put him in fear by the word of judgement, and softened his stubbornness, he thus introduces also the discourse concerning things present.

For this reason he also makes such a blending.

'Until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet.'

'The Lord shall send forth the rod of your power out of Zion;'

'and rule in the midst of your enemies.'

'With you is the dominion in the day of your power, in the splendours of the saints.'

Then again things present, no longer bearing punishment, but benefaction;

'You are a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.'

For this is the taking away of sin, and reconciliation with God.

Then, having dwelt upon these things as long as he wished, he again lays hold of the dispensation, transforming his discourse to a humbler tone, and saying:

And yet above he said that He Himself sits at the right hand of the Father.

Do you see how one must not simply sit fixed upon the words? What means, 'The Lord at your right hand'? Since he touched upon the dispensation, he turns the discourse to the flesh, which receives the help.

For He is seen in agony, and sweating, and so sweating that clots of blood streamed down, and being strengthened.

For such is the nature of the flesh.

'He shall crush kings in the day of His wrath.'

One would not err in saying this both concerning things present—those who rise up against the Church—and concerning things to come, that they shall render account for the sins and impieties they have committed.

'He shall judge among the nations, He shall fill them with corpses.'

What means, 'He shall judge among the nations'? He shall give sentence, he says, He shall condemn the demons.

And that He did judge, hear Christ saying:

'Now is the judgement of this world;'

'now shall the prince of this world be cast out.'

'And I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto Myself.'

But if he has used a more sensible and vivid expression, do not stumble at it.

'He shall crush the heads of many upon the earth.'

If you would receive this in an anagogical sense, one might say that He shall cast down pride;

but if also in a literal, sensible sense, then the Jewish calamity, whom He utterly destroyed with great vehemence.

'He shall drink of the brook in the way.'

Here he shows the lowliness of His manner of living, the frugality of His way of life, that indeed He did these things not in pomp, nor having bodyguards, nor clothed with any perceptible display, but pursuing a plain life, and such a one as to drink from a brook.

For such as was His table, such also was His drink.

His table was barley loaves, His drink was water from the brook.

For He came to teach this philosophic manner of life—to master the belly, to trample upon vain display, to turn away from arrogance.

Then, showing the gain of such a life, he added this:

For this is the fruit of humility and of a life of hardship.

These things are said not concerning His Godhead, but concerning the flesh which drinks from the torrent and which is exalted.

For this lowliness not only did Him no harm at all, but even lifted Him up to an unspeakable height.

Do you also, then, beloved, since you have these examples, disdain the inflamed life that is puffed up and full of vain show;

and pursue the humble and unpretentious life, if indeed you wish to be someone splendid and great.

For your Master came for this very purpose, that He might teach you this way.

For this reason too the prophet, having spoken of the noble achievements, added this very thing, as though all but saying:

When you hear of victory and trophies, do not expect to behold weapons and soldiers, and chariots, and horses, and horsemen, and men-at-arms, and tumults, and confusions.

So humble is he who accomplishes these things, so lowly, as to drink water from a torrent;

and yet such a man will accomplish all these things.

Let them hear this, those who keep Sybaritic tables, and the dainty dishes, and

who devise every kind of seasoning, and gather from everywhere various tribes of cooks, and enlist sailors and pilots and oarsmen, that they may bring in strange sorts of wine and perfumes and all the rest of that effeminate luxury, and plunge themselves into that very pit, and become more debased than all men.

For to need many things is not wont to make a man lofty, nor is it wont to make him lowly to be in want of few.

And if you will, let us shape the image of each. Let there be one who has many supplying him from every quarter—sailors and pilots, and craftsmen and household servants, and weavers and embroiderers, and cowherds and shepherds, and grooms and horse-breeders—and let him have a great retinue of attendants in all things;

but let another enjoy none of these things, but only bread and water and a plain garment;

which of these is the lofty one, and which the lowly? Is it not quite plain that it is the one who has only the garment? For this man will even be able to despise the very king who reigns;

but that other is the slave of all who furnish him these things, cringing, flattering, courting them all, in dread lest someone forsake him and hurt him in vital matters;

for nothing makes a man a slave so much as needing many things;

just as nothing makes a man free so much as needing only what is necessary.

One might observe this even in the case of the brute beasts.

For what profit is there to an ass laden with a great weight of burdens, though it enjoy them ten thousand times over? And what harm to another that is freed from all these, if it enjoy the food that is needful? For this reason too Christ, in making His own disciples lofty—inasmuch as they were about to discourse with the whole inhabited world—freed them from all cares, rendering them winged, and firmer in tone than adamant.

For nothing so implants strength in the soul as being freed from these things;

and nothing so weakens it as being held fast by them.

For just as it is not possible to find sorrow quickly here, so neither pleasure there.

For the one has many masters and mistresses, savage and inhuman;

but the other is slave to none, yet rules over all, in great security, enjoying the sunbeam, luxuriating in the air, and having none to trouble him.

Anger does not tear him, nor envy, nor malice, nor do cares waste him away, nor jealousies, nor vainglory, nor pride, nor any other such thing;

but like some calm harbour freed from waves, so are the affairs of his soul disposed, and he journeys toward heaven with ease, held down by none of the things that are present.

That we too, then, may enjoy this security, and the cheerfulness of the present life, and the ease of our journey hence, let us pursue this manner of life, so that we may also enjoy the eternal good things, which surpass all speech and mind and understanding, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be the glory and the might, unto the ages of ages.