4. " For the enemy hath persecuted my soul: he hath humbled my life on the earth " (ver. 3). Here we speak, here our Head speaketh for us. Manifestly both the devil persecuted the * Mall, vi 9.
> Congregatorit; MSS. Congrtgatorts, The gatherer*. ° Mall. vi. 11.
Soul of Christ and Judas the Soul of his Master: and now too the same devil remaineth to persecute the Body of Christ, and one Judas succeedeth another. There lacketh not then of whom the Body too may say, " For the enemy hath persecuted my soul." For what doth each one who persecuteth us endeavour save to make us abandon our heavenly hope, and savour of the earth, yield to our persecutor, and love earthly things? " They have laid me in dark places, as the dead of the world." This ye hear more readily from the Head; this ye perceive more readily in the Head. For He died indeed for us, yet was He not one of the " dead of the world." For who are the " dead of the world "?• And how was not He one of the " dead of the world "? " The dead of the world " are those who have died of their own desert, receiving the reward of iniquity, deriving death from the sin transmissed to them; according as it is said, " For I was conceived in iniquity." 7...In dying, saith He, I do the will of My Father, but I am not deserving of death. Nought have I done wherefore I should die, yet is it Mine own doing that I die, that by the death of an innocent One, they may be freed who had wherefore they should die. " They set me in places," as though in Hades, as though in the tomb, as though in His very Passion, "as the dead of the world." 8 5. "And My Spirit within me," saith He, "suffered weariness" (ver. 4). Remember, " My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death." ' Here we see one voice. Do we not see plainly the transition from the Head to the members, from the members to the Head?...6. But we too were there. He goes to the members. " I have called to mind the days of old " (ver. 5). Did He "call to mind the days of old," by whom every day was made? No, but the body speaketh, each one who has been justified by His grace, who dwelleth in Him in love and devout humility, speaketh and saith, " I have meditated upon all Thy works: " plainly because Thou hast made all things good, and nothing would have stood fast, which was not established by Thee. Thy creation is made a spectacle unto me: I have sought in the work the Artificer, in all that is made the Maker. Wherefore this, to what purpose this, save that he might understand, that whatever there was of good in himself was made by Him...Look back then upon the Framer of thy life, the Author of thy substance, of thy righteousness, and of thy salvation: " meditate upon the works of His hands," for the righteousness -too which is in thee, thou wilt find to pertain to His hand. Hear the Apostle teaching thee this, " not of works," he saith, " lest any should boast." Have » P.. li. s.
• p».
1 Matt. xxvi. 38.
Psalm CXLIII.]
we no good works? Plainly we have: but see what follows; " for we are His workmanship," ' saith he. " We are His workmanship: " perhaps in thus speaking of workmanship, he meant to mention the nature whereby we are men? Evidently not: he was speaking of works. But let us not make conjectures; let the text go on, "for we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works." Think not then that thou thyself doest anything, save in so far as thou art evil..." Work out your own salvation," saith the Apostle, "with fear and trembling." * If we do work out our own salvation, wherefore with fear, wherefore with trembling, when what we work is in our own power? Hear wherefore with fear and trembling: " for it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do, of His good pleasure." Therefore " with fear and trembling," that it may delight our Maker to work in the lowly valley...7. " I stretched forth," saith he, " my hands to Thee: my soul is as a land without water to Thee " (ver. 6). Rain upon me, saith he, to bring forth from me good fruit. " For the Lord shall give sweetness, that our land may give her fruit." 3 " I have stretched forth my hands to Thee; my soul is as a land without water," not to me, but " to Thee." I can thirst for Thee, I cannot water myself.
8. "Speedily hear me, Lord" (ver. 7). For what need of delay to inflame my thirst, when already I thirst so eagerly? Thou didst delay the rain, that I might drink and imbibe, not reject, Thy inflowing. If then Thou didst for this cause delay, now give; for, " my spirit hath failed." Let Thy Spirit fill me. This is the reason why Thou shouldest speedily hear me. I am now become " poor in spirit," make Thou me " blessed in the kingdom of heaven." 4 For he in whom his own spirit liveth, is proud, is puffed up with his own spirit against God...9. " Turn not Thou away Thy Face from me." Thou didst turn it away from me when proud. For once I was full, and in my fulness I was puffed up. Once " in my fulness I said, I shall never be moved." " I said in my fulness, I shall not be moved," knowing not Thy Righteousness, and establishing mine own; but " Thou, Lord, in Thy Will hast afforded strength to my beauty." " I said in my fulness, I shall not be moved," but from Thee came whatever fulness I had. And to prove to me that it was from Thee, "Thou didst turn away Thy Face from me, and I was troubled." 5 After this trouble, whereinto I was cast, because Thou didst turn away Thy Face, after the weariness of my spirit, after my heart was troubled within me, because Thou didst turn away Thy Face, then 3 Ps. lxxxv. is.
became I " like a land without water to Thee: turn not Thou away Thy Face." Thou turnedst it away from me when proud; give it back to me now I am humble. Because, if Thou turn it away, " I shall be like to them that go clown into the pit." What is, " that go down into the pit"? When the sinner has come into the depth of sins, he will show contempt. They " go down into the pit," who lose even confession; against which is said, " Let not the pit close her mouth over me."6 This depth Scripture calleth mostly " a pit," into which depth when a sinner hath come, " he showeth contempt." What is, " he showeth contempt "? He no longer believeth in Providence, or if he do believe, he thinketh that he has no longer aught to do with it...
10. " Make me to hear in the morning Thy mercy, for in Thee have I hoped" (ver. 8). Behold, I am in the night, yet " in Thee have I hoped," until the iniquity of the night pass away. " For we have," as Peter saith, " a more sure word of prophecy, whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the daystar arise in your hearts." " Morning " then he "calleth the time after the end of the world, when we shall see what in this world we believe. But what here, until the morning come? For it is not enough to hope for the morning; we must do somewhat. Why do somewhat? God is to be sought with the hands in the night. What is, "with the hands"? By good works. Since then we must thus hope for the morning, and bear this night, and persevere in this patience until the day dawn, what meanwhile must we do here? lest perchance thou think that thou wilt do aught of thyself, whereby thou mayest earn to be brought to the morning. " Make known to me, O Lord, the way wherein I must walk." Therefore did He kindle the lamp of prophecy, therefore did He send the Lord in the vessel,7 as it were, of the flesh, who should even say, " My strength is dried up like a potsherd." 8 Walk by prophecy, walk by the lamp of future things predicted, walk by the word of God...
11. " Deliver me from mine enemies, O Lord, for unto Thee have I fled for refuge" (ver. 9). I who once fled from Thee, now flee to Thee. For Adam fled from the Face of God, and hid himself among the trees of Paradise, so that of him was said in the Book of Job, "As a servant that fleeth from his Lord, and findeth a shadow." ' He fled from the Face of his Lord, and found a shadow. Woe to him, if he continue in the shade, lest it be said afterward, " All things are passed away like a shadow." '° The rulers of 6 Ps. lxix.
9 Jobvii. 2.TLXX.
iX* ' Ttstd.
[Psalm CXLIV.
this world, of this darkness, the rulers of the wicked; against these ye wrestle. Great is your conflict, not to see your enemies, and yet to conquer. Against the rulers of this world, of this darkness, the devil, that is, and his angels; not the rulers of that world, whereof is said, " the world was made by Him," but that world whereof is said, " the world knew Him not." ' " For unto Thee have I fled for refuge."...Whither should I flee? "Whither shall I go from Thy Spirit?"2 12. "Teach me to do Thy will, for Thou art my God " (ver. 10). Glorious confession! glorious rule! " For Thou," saith he, " art my God." To another will I hasten to be re-made, if by another I was made. Thou art my all, " for Thou art my God." Shall I seek a father to get an inheritance? " Thou art my God," not only the Giver of mine inheritance, but mine Inheritance itself. " The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance." ' Shall I seek a patron, to obtain redemption? "Thou art my God." Lastly, having been created, do I desire to be re-created? " Thou art my God," my Creator, who hast created me by Thy Word, and re-created me by Thy Word. " Teach Thou me:" for it cannot be that Thou art my God, and yet I am to' be mine own master. See how grace is commended to us. This hold fast, this drink in, this let none drive out of your hearts, lest ye have " a zeal, of God, but not according to knowledge." * Say then this: " Thy good Spirit," not my bad one, " Thy good Spirit shall lead me into the right land." For my bad spirit hath led me into a crooked land. And what have I deserved? What can be reckoned as my good works without Thy aid, through which I might obtain and be worthy to be led by Thy Spirit into the right land?
13. Listen, then, with all your power, to the commendation of Grace, whereby ye are saved without price. " For Thy Name's sake, O Lord, Thou shalt quicken me in Thy righteousness " (ver. n); not in mine own: not because I have deserved, but because Thou hast mercy. For were I to show mine own desert, nought should I deserve of Thee, save punishment. Thou hast pruned off from me mine own merits; Thou hast grafted in Thine own gifts. " Thou shalt bring forth my soul out of tribulation." " And in thy mercy shalt bring mine enemies to destruction: and thou shalt destroy all them that afflict my sou]; for I am Thy servant" (ver. 12).
PSALM CXLIV.s 1. The title of this Psalm is brief in number of words, but heavy in the weight of its myste- 3 Ps. xvi. 5. Sermon to the people.
ries. "To David himself against Goliath." This battle was fought in the time of our fathers, and ye, beloved, remember it with me from Holy Scripture...David put five stones in his scrip, he hurled but one. The five Books were chosen, but unity conquered. Then, having smitten and overthrown him, he took the enemy's sword, and with it cut off his head. This our David also did, He overthrew the devil with his • own weapons: and when his great ones, whom he had in his power, by means of whom he slew other souls, believe, they turn their tongues against the devil, and so Goliath's head is cut off with his own sword.
2. " Blessed be the Lord my God, who teacheth my hands for battle, my fingers for war " (ver. 1). These are our words, if we be the Body of Christ. It seems a repetition of sentiment; " our hands for battle," and " our fingers for war," are the same. Or is there some difference between " hands " and " fingers "? Certainly both hands and fingers work. Not then without reason do we take "fingers" as put for " hands." But still in the " fingers " we recognise the division of operation, yet still a sort of unity. Behold that grace! the Apostle saith,6 To one, this; to another, that; " there are diversities of operations; all these worketh one and the selfsame Spirit; " there is the root of unity. With these " fingers " then the Body of Christ fighteth, going forth to " war," going forth to " battle."...By works of Mercy our enemy is conquered, and we could not have works of mercy unless we had charity, and charity we could have none unless we received it by the Holy Ghost; He then " teacheth our hands for battle, and our fingers for war: " to Him rightfully do we say, " My Mercy," from whom we have also that we are merciful: " for he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath showed no mercy." ' 3. My Mercy and my Refuge, my Upholder and my Deliverer" (ver. 2). Much toileth this combatant, having his flesh lusting against his spirit. Keep what thou hast. Then shalt thou have in full what thou wishest, when "death shall have been swallowed up in victory; " 8 when this mortal body has been raised, and is changed into the condition of the angels, and rises aloft to a heavenly quality...There is life, there are good days, where nought lusteth against the spirit, where it is not said, " Fight," but " Rejoice." But who is he that lusteth for these days? Every man certainly saith, " I do." Hear what followeth. I see that thou art toiling, I see that thou art engaged in battle, and in danger; hear what followeth:..." Depart from evil, and do good: " let not the poor first weep under thee, that the poor may rejoice 6 1 Cor. xii. 8. etc.
7 Jas. u. 13.
8 1 Cor. xv. 54.
Psalm CXLIV.]
through thee. For what reward, since now thou art fighting? " Seek peace, and ensue it." Learn and say, " My Mercy and my Refuge, mine Upholder and my Deliverer, my Protector: " " mine Upholder," lest I fall; " my Deliverer," lest I stick; " my Protector," lest I be stricken. In all these things, in all my toil, in all my battles, in all my difficulties, in Him have I hoped, "who subdueth my people under me." Behold, our Head speaketh together with us.
4. " Lord, what is man, that Thou hast become known unto him?" (ver. 3). All is included in " that Thou hast become known unto him." " Or the son of man, that Thou valuest him?" Thou valuest him, that is, Thou makest him of such importance, Thou countest him of such price, Thou knowest under what Thou placest him, over what Thou placest him. For valuing is considering the price of a thing. How greatly did He value man, who for him shed the blood of His only-begotten Son! For God valueth not man in the same way as one man valueth another: he, when he findeth a slave for sale, giveth a higher price for a horse than for a man. Consider how greatly He valued thee, that thou mayest be able to say, "If God be for us, who can be against us?" And how greatly did He value thee, " who spared not His own Son "? " How shall He not also with Him freely give us all things?" ' He who giveth this food to the combatant, what keepeth He in store for the conqueror?...
5. "Man is made like unto vanity: his days pass away like a shadow" (ver 4). What vanity? Time, which passeth on, and floweth by. For this "vanity" is said in comparison of the Truth, which ever abideth, and never faileth: for it too is a work of His Hand, in its degree. " For," as it is written, " God filled the earth with His good things."2 What is " His"? That accord with Him. But all these things, being earthly, fleeting, transitory, if they be compared to that Truth, where it is said, " I Am That I Am," » all this which passeth away is called "vanity." For through time it vanisheth, like smoke into the air. And why should I say more than that which the Apostle James said, willing to bring down proud men to humility, " VVhat is," saith he, " your life? It is even a vapour, which appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away." 4...Work then, though it be in.the night, with thine hands, that is, by good works seek God, before the day come which shall gladden thee, lest the day come which shall sadden thee. For see how safely thou workest, who art not left by Him whom thou seekest; " that thy Father which seeth in secret may reward thee openly."'...6. " Lord, bow Thy heavens, and come 2 Ecclus. xvi. 29. 5 Matt. vi. 4.
3 Exod. iii. 14.
down: touch the mountains, and they shall smoke" (ver. 5). "Flash Thy lightning, and Thou shalt scatter them; send forth Thine arrows, and Thou shalt confound them " (ver. 6). "Send forth Thy Hand from above, and deliver me, and draw me out of many waters " (ver. 7). The Body of Christ, the humble David, full of grace, relying on God, fighting in this world, calleth for the help of God. What are " heavens bowed down "? Apostles humbled. For those " heavens declare the glory of God; " and of these heavens declaring the glory of God it is presently said, " There is neither speech nor language, but their voices are heard among them," etc.6 When then these heavens sent forth their voices through all lands, and did wonderful things, while the Lord flashed and thundered from them by miracles and commandments, the gods were thought to have come down from heaven to men. For certain of the Gentiles, thinking this, desired even to sacrifice to them...But they commended to these the Lord Jesus Christ, humbling themselves, that God might be praised; because " the heavens " were " bowed," that " God " might " come down."..."Touch the mountains, and they shall smoke." So long as they are not touched, they seem to themselves great: they are now about to say, " Great art Thou, O Lord: " 7 the mountains also are about to say, " Thou only art the Most Highest over all the earth." 8 7. But there are some that conspire, that "gather themselves together against the Lord, and against His Christ." 9 They have come together, they have conspired. " Flash forth Thy lightnings, and Thou shalt scatter them." Abound with Thy miracles, and their conspiracy shall be broken..." Send forth Thine arrows, and Thou shalt confound them." Let the unsound be wounded, that, being well wounded, they may be made sound; and let them say, being set now in the Church, in the Body of Christ, let them say with the Church, " I am wounded with Love." '° " Send forth Thine Hand from on high." What afterward? What in the end? How conquereth the Body of Christ? By heavenly aid. "For the Lord Himself shall come with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God shall He descend from heaven," " Himself the Saviour of the body, the Hand of God. What is, " Out of many waters "? From many peoples. What peoples? Aliens, unbelievers, whether assailing us from without, or laying snares within. Take me out of many waters, in which Thou didst discipline me, in which Thou didst roll me, to free me from my filth. This is the " water of contradiction." '2..." From the hand of strange 6 Ps. xix. I, 3, 4.
9 Ps. ii. 2.
11 1 Thcss. iv. 16.
7 Ps. xlviii. I. ■° Cant. ii. 5, LXX. 12 Numb. xx. 13.
6 Ps. lxxxiii. 18.
[Psalm CXLIV.
children." Hear, brethren, among whom we are, among whom we live, from whom we long to be delivered. "Whose mouth hath spoken vanity" (ver. 8). All of you to-day, if ye had not gathered yourselves together to these divine shows ' of the word of God, and were not at this hour engaged in them, how great vanities would ye be hearing! "whose mouth hath spoken vanity:" when, in short, would they, speaking vanity, hear you speaking vanity? " And their right hand is a right hand of iniquity." What doest thou among them with thy pastoral scrip with five stones in it? Say it to me in another form: that same law which thou hast signified by five stones, signify in some other way also. " I will sing a new song unto Thee, O God" (ver. 9). "A new song" is of grace; " a new song " is of the new man; " a new song " is of the New Testament. But lest thou shouldest think that grace departeth from the law, whereas rather by grace the law is fulfilled, " upon a psaltery of ten strings will I sing unto Thee." Upon the law of ten commandments: therein may I sing to Thee; therein may I rejoice to Thee; therein may " I sing to Thee a new song; " for, " Love is the fulfilling of the law." 2 But they who have not love may carry the psaltery, sing they cannot. Contradiction cannot make my psaltery to be silent. 8. " Who giveth salvation to kings, who redeemeth David His servant" (ver. 10). Ye know who David is; be yourselves David. Whence " redeemeth He David His servant"?
Whence redeemeth He Christ? Whence redeemeth He the Body of Christ? " From the sword of ill intent deliver me." " From the sword " is not sufficient; he addeth, " of ill intent." Without doubt there is a sword of good intent. What is the sword of good intent? That whereof the Lord saith, " I came not to send peace on earth, but a sword." 3 For He was about to separate believers from unbelievers, sons from parents, and to sever all other ties, while the sword cut off what was diseased, but healed the members of Christ. Of good intent then is the sword twice sharpened, powerful with both edges, the Old and New Testaments, with the narration of the past and the promise of the future. That then is the sword of good intent: but the other is of ill intent, wherewith they talk vanity, for that is of good intent, wherewith God speaketh verity. For truly " the sons of men have teeth which are spears and arrows, and their tongue is a sharp sword."4 "From " this " sword deliver me " (ver. n). " And. take me out of the hand of strange children, whose mouth hath spoken vanity: " just as before. And that which followeth, " their right hand is a right hand of iniquity," the same he had set down before also, when he called them " many waters." For lest thou shouldest think that the " many waters " were good waters, he explained them by the " sword of ill intent."
9. " Whose sons are like young vines firmly planted in their youth" (ver. I21. He wisheth to recount their happiness. Observe, ye sons of light, sons of peace: observe, ye sons of the Church, members of Christ; observe whom he calleth " strangers," whom he calleth " strange children," whom he calleth " waters of contradiction," whom he calleth a " sword of ill intent." Observe, I beseech you, for among them ye are in peril, among their tongues ye fight against the desires of your flesh, among their tongues, set in the hand of the devil wherewith he fightetb.5...What vanity hath their mouth spoken, and how is their right hand a right hand of iniquity? "Their daughters are fitted and adorned after the similitude of a temple." " Their garners are full, bursting out from one store to another: their sheep are fruitful, multiplying in their streets" (ver. 13): "their oxen are fat: their hedge is not broken down, nor their road, nor is their crying in their streets " (ver. 14). Is not this then happiness? I ask the sons of the kingdom of heaven, I ask the offspring of everlasting resurrection, I ask the body of Christ, the members of Christ, the temple of God. Is not this then happiness, to have sons safe, daughters beautiful, garners full, cattle abundant, no downfall, I say not of a wall, but not even of a hedge, no tumult and clamour in the streets, but quiet, peace, abundance, plenty of all things in their houses and in their cities? Is not this then happiness? or ought the righteous to shun it? or findest thou not the house of the righteous too abounding with all these things, full of this happiness? Did not Abraham's house abound with gold, silver, children, servants, cattle? What say we? is not this happiness? Be it so, still it is on the left hand. What is, on the left hand? Temporal, mortal, bodily. I desire not that thou shun it, but that thou think it not to be on the right hand...For what ought they to have set on the right hand? God, eternity, the years of God which fail not, whereof is said, " and Thy years shall not fail." 6 There should be the right hand, there shouid be our longing. Let us use the left for the time, let us long for the right for eternity. " If riches increase, set not your heart upon them." 7...
10. "They have called the people blessed who have these things" (ver. 15). O men that speak vanity! They have lost the true right hand, wicked and perverse, they have put on the benefits of God inversely. O wicked ones, O speakers of vanity, O strange children!
3 Rom. xiii. 10.
* Ps. ML 4.
* Eph. vi. la.
6 Ps. cii. a;.
1 Ps. lxii. 10.
Psalm CXLV.]
What was on the left hand, they have set on the right. What dost thou, David? What dost thou, Body of Christ? What do ye, members of Christ? What do ye, not strange children, but children of Cod?...What say ye? Say ye with us, " Blessed is the people whose Lord is their Cod."
PSALM CXLV.'
1...The title is, "Praise, to David himself." Praise to Christ Himself. And since He is called David, who came to us of the seed of David, yet He was our King, ruling us, and bringing us into His kingdom, therefore " Praise to David himself" is understood to mean, Praise to Christ Himself. Christ according to the flesh is David, because He is the Son of David: but according to His Divine Nature He is the Creator of David, and Lord of David. " I will exalt Thee, my Cod, my King; and I will bless Thy Name for the age, and age upon age " (ver. 1 ). Ye see that the praise of God is here begun, and this praise is carried on even to the end of the Psalm...Now then begin to praise, if thou intendest to praise for ever. He who will not praise in this transitory " age," will be silent when " age upon age " has come. But lest any one should in any otherwise also understand what he saith, " I will praise Thy Name for the age," and should seek another age, wherein to praise, he saith, " Every day will I bless Thee " (ver. 2). Praise then and bless the Lord thy God every day, that when single days have passed, and there has come one day without end, thou mayest go from praise to praise, as " from strength to strength." 2 No day shall pass by, wherein I bless 1 hee not. And it is no wonder, if in thy day of joy thou bless the Lord. What if perchance some day of sorrow hath dawned on thee, as is natural in the circumstances of our mortal nature, as there is abundance of offences, as temptations are multiplied; what, if something sad befall thee, a man; wilt thou cease to praise God? wilt thou cease to bless thy Creator? If thou cease, thou hast lied in saying, " every day," etc. But if thou cease not, although it seem to thee to be ill with thee in the day of thy sorrow, yet in thy God it shall be well with thee...
2. " Great is the Lord, and very much to be praised " (ver. 3). How much was he about to say? what terms was he about to seek? How vast a conception hath he included in the one word, "very much"? Imagine what thou wilt, for how can that be imagined, which cannot be contained? "He is very much to be praised. And of His Greatness there is no end; " therefore said he " very much: " lest perchance thou 1 Lat. CXLIV. Sermon to the people. 2 Ps, lxxxiv. 7.
begin to wish to praise, and think that thou canst reach the end of His praises, whose Greatness can have no end. Think not then that He, whose Greatness has no end, can ever be enough praised by thee. Is it not then better that as He has no end, so neither should thy praise have end? His Greatness is without end; let thy praise also be without end...
3. For how great things besides has His boundless Goodness and illimitable Greatness made, which we do not know! When we lift the gaze of our eyes even to the heaven, and then recall it from sun, moon, and stars to the earth, and there is all this space where our sight can wander; beyond the heavens who can extend the eyesight of his mind, not to say of his flesh? So far then as His works are known to us, let us praise Him through His works.3 " Generation and generation shall praise Thy works" (ver. 4). Every generation shall praise Thy works. For perhaps every generation is meant by " generation and generation."...Did he perchance mean to imply two generations by that repetition? For we are in this generation sons of God, we shall be in another generation sons of the Resurrection. Scripture hath called us " sons of the Resurrection; " the Resurrection itself it hath called Regeneration. " In the regeneration," it saith, " when the Son of Man shall be seated in His Majesty." 4 So also in another place > " For they shall not marry, nor be given in marriage, for they are the sons of the Resurrection." 5 Therefore " generation and generation shall praise Thy works...And they shall tell out Thine excellence." For neither shall they praise Thy works, save in order to " tell out Thine excellence." Boys at school are set to praise, and all such things are set before them to be praised, as God hath wrought: a mortal is set to praise the sun, the sky, the earth; to come to even lesser things, to praise a rose-, or a laurel; all these are works of God: they are set, they are undertaken, they are praised: the works are lauded, of the Worker they are silent. I desire in the works to praise the Creator: I love not a thankless praiser. Dost thou praise what He hath made, and art silent of Him who made? In that which thou seest, what is it that thou praisest? The form, the usefulness, some virtue, some power in the things. If beauty delight thee, what is more beautiful than the Maker? If usefulness be praised, what more useful than He who made all things? If excellence be praised, what more excellent than He by whom all things were made?...
4. " They shall speak of the magnificence of the glory of Thy Holiness, and shall record Thy [Psalm CXI.V.
wondrous deeds" (ver. 5). "And the excellence of Thy fearful works shall they speak of: and Thy greatness, they shall relate it " (ver. 6). "The remembrance of the abundance of Thy sweetness they shall pour forth" (ver. 7): none but Thine. See whether this man, meditating on Thy works, hath turned aside from the Worker to the work: see whether he hath sunk from Him who made, to the things which He made. Of the things which He hath made, he hath made a step up to Him, not a descent from Him to them. For if thou love, these more than Him, thou wilt not have Him. And what profit is it to thee to overflow with the works, if the Worker leave thee? Truly thou shouldest love them; but love Him more, and love them for His sake. For He doth not hold out promises, without holding out threats also: if He held out no promises, there would be no encouragement; if He held out no threats, there would be no correction. They that praise Thee therefore shall "speak" also "of the excellence of Thy terrible deeds; " the excellence of that work of Thy hands which punisheth and administereth discipline, they shall speak of, they shall not be silent: for they shall not proclaim Thine everlasting kingdom, and be silent about Thine everlasting fire. For the praise of God, setting thee in the way, ought to show thee both what thou shouldest love, and what thou shouldest fear; what thou shouldest seek, and what thou shouldest shun; what thou shouldest choose, and what thou shouldest avoid.