Augustine of Hippo

"Confounded be all they that worship carved images" [Psalm 97:7]. Hath not this come to pass? Have they not been confounded? Are they not daily confounded? For carved images are images wrought by the hand. Why are all who worship carved images confounded? Because all people have seen His glory. All nations now confess the glory of Christ: let those who worship stones be ashamed. Because those stones were dead, we have found a living Stone; indeed those stones never lived, so that they cannot be called even dead; but our Stone is living, and has ever lived with the Father, and though He died for us, He revived, and lives now, and death shall no more have dominion over Him. [Romans 6:9] This glory of His the nations have acknowledged; they leave the temples, they run to the Churches. Do they still seek to worship carved images? Have they not chosen to forsake their idols? They have been forsaken by their idols. "Who glory in their idols." But there is a certain disputer who seems unto himself learned, and says, I do not worship that stone, nor that image which is without sense;...I worship not this image but I adore what I see, and serve him whom I see not. Who is that? Some invisible deity, he replies, who presides over that image. By giving this account of their images, they seem to themselves able disputants, because they do not worship idols, and yet do worship devils. "The things," brethren, says the Apostle, "which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice unto devils, and not to God; we know that an idol is nothing: and that what the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God; and I would not that you should have fellowship with devils." Let them not therefore excuse themselves on this ground, that they are not devoted to insensate idols; they are rather devoted to devils, which is more dangerous. For if they were only worshipping idols, as they would not help them, so they would not hurt them; but if you worship and serve devils, they themselves will be your masters....

"Sion heard of it, and rejoiced" [Psalm 97:8]. What did Sion hear? That all His Angels worship Him....For the Church was not as yet among the Gentiles; in Judæa the Jews had some of them believed, and the very Jews who believed thought that they only belonged to Christ: the Apostles were sent to the Gentiles, Cornelius was preached to; Cornelius believed, was baptized, and they who were with Cornelius were also baptized. [Acts 10:47] But ye know what happened, that they might be baptized: the reader indeed has not reached this point, but, nevertheless, some recollect; and let those who do not recollect, hear briefly from me. The Angel was sent to Cornelius: the Angel sent Cornelius to Peter; Peter came to Cornelius. And because Cornelius and his household were Gentiles, and uncircumcised: lest they might hesitate to give the Gospel to the uncircumcised: before Cornelius and his household were baptized, the Holy Spirit came, and filled them, and they began to speak with tongues. Now the Holy Spirit had not fallen upon any one who had not been baptized: but upon these It fell before baptism. For Peter might hesitate whether he might baptize the uncircumcised: the Holy Spirit came, they began to speak with tongues; the invisible gift was given, and took away all doubt about the visible Sacrament; they were all baptized....What did Sion hear, and rejoice at? That the Gentiles also had received the word of God. One wall had come, but the corner existed not as yet. The name Sion is here peculiarly given to the Church which was in Judæa. "Sion heard of it, and rejoiced: and the daughters of Judah were glad." Thus it is written, "The apostles and brethren that were in Judæa heard." See if the daughters of Judæa rejoiced not. What did they hear? "That the Gentiles had also received the word of God."...Therefore, "The daughters of Judah rejoiced because of Your judgments, O Lord." What is, because of Your judgments? Because in any nation, and in any people, he that serves Him is accepted of Him: for He is not the God of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles. [Romans 3:29]

See if this be not the reason for the joy of the daughters of Judah. "For Thou, Lord, art most high over all the earth" [Psalm 97:9]. Not in Judæa alone, but over Jerusalem; not over Sion only, but over all the earth. To this whole earth the judgments of God prevailed, so that it assembled its nations from every quarter: judgments with which they who have cut themselves off have no communion: they neither hear the prophecy, nor see its completion; "For Thou, Lord, art most high over all the earth: You are exalted far above all gods." What is "far"? For it is said of Christ. What then means "far," except that You may be acknowledged coequal with the Father? What means, "above all gods"? Who are they? Idols have not life, have not sense: devils have life and sense; but they are evil. What great thing is it that Christ is exalted above devils? He is exalted above devils: but neither is this very great; the heathen gods indeed are devils, but "He is far above all gods." Even men are styled gods: "I have said, You are gods: and you are all the children of the Most Highest:" again it is written, "God stands in the congregation of princes: He is a Judge among gods." Jesus Christ our Lord is exalted above all: not only above idols, not only above devils; but above all righteous men. Even this is not enough; above all Angels also: for whence otherwise is this, "Worship Him, all you gods"? "You are far exalted above all gods."

What then do we all, who have assembled before Him, before Him who is exalted far above all gods? He has given us a brief commandment, "O you that love the Lord, see that you hate the thing which is evil!" [Psalm 97:10]. Christ does not deserve that with Him you should love avarice. You love Him: you should hate what He hates. There is a man who is your enemy, he is what you are; you are the work of one Creator, with the same nature: and yet if your son were to speak unto your enemy, and come to his house, and constantly converse with him, you would be inclined to disinherit him; because he speaks with your enemy. And how so? Because you seem to say justly, You are my enemy's friend, and do you seek anything of my property? Attend then. You love Christ: avarice is Christ's foe; why speak with her? I say not, speak with her; why do you serve her? For Christ commands you to do many things, and thou dost them not; she commands you, and thou dost them. Christ commands you to clothe the poor man: and thou dost it not; avarice bids you defraud, and this thou dost in preference. If such be the case, if such you are, do not very confidently promise yourself Christ's heritage. But you say, I love Christ. Hence it appears that you love what is good, if you shall be found to hate what is evil....

But perhaps you will say, I lose this light. "There is sprung up a light for the righteous" [Psalm 97:11]. What light do you fear you may lose? Do you fear you may be in darkness? Fear not you may lose light; nay, fear lest while you are guarding against the loss of this light, you may lose that true light. For we see to whom that light is given which you fear losing, and with whom it is shared. Do the righteous only see this sun, when He makes it rise over the just and unjust, and rains upon the just and unjust? [Matthew 5:45] Wicked men, robbers, the unchaste, beasts, flies, worms, see that light together with you. What sort of light does He keep for the righteous, who gives this even to such as these? Deservedly the Martyrs beheld this light in faith; for they who despised this light of the sun, had some light in their eyes, which they longed for, who rejected this. Do you imagine that they were really in misery, when they walked in chains? Spacious was the prison to the faithful, light were the chains to the confessors. They who preached Christ amid their torments, had joy in the iron-chair. What light has sprung up for the righteous? Not that which springs up for the unrighteous; not that which He causes to rise over the good and bad. There is a different light which springs up to the righteous; of which light, that never rose upon themselves, the unrighteous shall in the end say, "Therefore have we erred from the way of truth, and the light of righteousness has not shined upon us, and the sun of righteousness rose not upon us." [Wisdom 5:6] Behold, by loving this sun they have lain in the darkness of the heart. What did it profit them to have seen with their eyes this sun, and not in mind to have seen that light? Tobit was blind, but he used to teach his son the way of God. You know this, that Tobit warned his son, and said to him, "Son, give alms of your substance; because that alms suffer not to come into darkness." [Tobit 4:7, 10] Even he who was in darkness spoke thus....Do you wish to know that light? Be true-hearted. What is, be true-hearted? Be not of a crooked heart before God, withstanding His will, and wishing to bend Him unto you, and not to rule yourself to please Him; and you will feel the joyful gladness which all the true-hearted know.

"Be glad, you righteous" [Psalm 97:12]. Perhaps already the faithful hearing the word, "Be glad," are thinking of banquets, preparing cups, waiting for the season of roses; because it is said, "Be glad, you righteous!" See what follows, "Be glad in the Lord." You are waiting for the season of spring, that you may be glad: you have the Lord for joyful gladness, the Lord is always with you, He has no special season; you have Him by night, you have Him by day. Be true-hearted; and you have ever joy from Him. For that joy which is after the fashion of the world, is not true joy. Hear the prophet Isaiah: "There is no joy, says my God, to the wicked." [Isaiah 57:21] What the wicked call joy is not joy, such as he knew who made no account of their joy: let us believe him, brethren. He was a man, but he knew both kinds of joy. He certainly knew the joys of the cup, for he was a man, he knew the joy of the table, he knew the joys of marriage, he knew those joys worldly and luxurious. He who knew them says with confidence, "There is no joy to the wicked, says the Lord." But it is not man who speaks, it is the Lord....But you say, I see not that light which Isaiah saw. Believe, and you shall see it. For perhaps you have not the eye to see it; for it is an eye by which that beauty is discerned. For as there is an eye of the flesh, by means of which this light is seen: so there is an eye of the heart, by which that joy is perceived: perhaps that eye is wounded, dimmed, disturbed by passion, by avarice, by indulgence, by senseless lust; your eye is disturbed: you can not see that light. Believe, before you see; you shall be healed, and shall see.

"O sing unto the Lord a new song" [Psalm 98:1]. The new man knows this, the old man knows it not. The old man is the old life, and the new man the new life: the old life is derived from Adam, the new life is formed in Christ. But in this Psalm, the whole world is enjoined to sing a new song. More openly elsewhere the words are these: "O sing unto the Lord a new song; sing unto the Lord, all the whole earth;" that they who cut themselves off from the communion of the whole earth, may understand that they cannot sing the new song, because it is sung in the whole, and not in a part of it. Attend here also, and see that this is said. And when the whole earth is enjoined to sing a new song, it is meant, that peace sings a new song. "For He has done marvelous things." What marvelous things? Behold, the Gospel was just now being read, and we heard the marvellous things of the Lord. The only son of his mother, who was a widow, was being carried out dead: the Lord, in compassion, made them stand still; they laid him down, and the Lord said, "Young man, I say unto you, Arise." [Luke 7:12-14] ..."The Lord has done marvellous things." What marvellous things? Hear: "His own right hand, and His holy arm, has healed for Him." What is the Lord's holy Arm? Our Lord Jesus Christ. Hear Isaiah: "Who has believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?" [Isaiah 53:1] His holy arm then, and His own right hand, is Himself. Our Lord Jesus Christ is therefore the arm of God, and the right hand of God; for this reason is it said, "has He healed for Him." It is not said only, "His right hand has healed the world," but "has healed for Him." For many are healed for themselves, not for Him. Behold how many long for that bodily health, and receive it from Him: they are healed by Him, but not for Him. How are they healed by Him, and not for Him? When they have received health, they become wanton: they who when sick were chaste, when cured become adulterers: they who when in illness injured no man, on the recovery of their strength attack and crush the innocent: they are healed, but not unto Him. Who is he who is healed unto Him? He who is healed inwardly. Who is he that is healed inwardly? He who trusts in Him, that when he shall have been healed inwardly, reformed into a new man, afterwards this mortal flesh too, which does languish for a time, may in the end itself even recover its most perfect health. Let us therefore be healed for Him. But that we may be healed for Him, let us believe in His right hand.

"Make melody unto the Lord upon the harp: on the harp and with the voice of a Psalm" [Psalm 98:5]. Praise Him not with the voice only; take up works, that you may not only sing, but work also. He who sings and works, makes melody with psaltery and upon the harp. Now see what sort of instruments are next spoken of, in figure: "With ductile trumpets also, and the sound of the pipe of horn" [Psalm 98:6]. What are ductile trumpets, and pipes of horn? Ductile trumpets are of brass: they are drawn out by hammering; if by hammering, by being beaten, you shall be ductile trumpets, drawn out unto the praise of God, if you improve when in tribulation: tribulation is hammering, improvement is the being drawn out. Job was a ductile trumpet, when suddenly assailed by the heaviest losses, and the death of his sons, become like a ductile trumpet by the beating of so heavy tribulation, he sounded thus: "The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord." [Job 1:21] How did he sound? How pleasantly does his voice sound? This ductile trumpet is still under the hammer....We have heard how he was hammered; let us hear how he sounds: let us, if it please you, hear the sweet sound of this ductile trumpet: "What! shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?" O courageous, O sweet sound! Whom will not that sound awake from sleep? Whom will not confidence in God awake, to march to battle fearlessly against the devil; not to struggle with his own strength, but His who proves him. For He it is who hammers: for the hammer could not do so of itself....See how (I dare so speak, my brethren) even the Apostle was beaten with this very hammer: he says, "there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan, to buffet me." [2 Corinthians 12:7-10] Behold he is under the hammer: let us hear how he speaks of it: "For this thing," he says, "I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for you: for My strength is made perfect in weakness." I, says His Maker, wish to make this trumpet perfect; I cannot do so unless I hammer it; in weakness is strength made perfect. Hear now the ductile trumpet itself sounding as it should: "When I am weak, then am I strong."...

While you are rejoicing, and delighted with the ductile trumpets, and the voice of the horn, what follows? "Let the sea be stirred up, and the fullness thereof" [Psalm 98:7]. Brethren, when the Apostles, like ductile trumpets and horns, were preaching the truth, the sea was stirred up, its waves arose, tempests increased, persecutions of the Church took place. Whence has the sea been stirred up? When a joyful noise was made, when Psalms of thanksgiving were being sung before God: the ears of God were pleased, the waves of the sea were raised. "Let the sea be stirred up, and the fullness thereof: the round world, and all that dwell therein." Let the sea be stirred up in its persecutions. "Let the floods clap their hands together" [Psalm 98:8]. Let the sea be aroused, and the floods clap their hands together; persecutions arise, and the saints rejoice in God. Whence shall the floods clap their hands? What is to clap their hands? To rejoice in works. To clap hands, is to rejoice; hands, mean works. What floods? Those whom God has made floods, by giving them that Water, the Holy Spirit. "If any man thirst," says He, "let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believes in Me, out of his bosom shall flow rivers of living water." [John 7:37-39] These rivers clapped their hands, these rivers rejoiced in works, and blessed God. "The hills shall be joyful together."

"Before the Lord, for He has come; for He has come to judge the earth" [Psalm 98:9]. "The hills" signify the great. The Lord comes to judge the earth, and they rejoice. But there are hills, who, when the Lord is coming to judge the earth, shall tremble. There are therefore good and evil hills; the good hills, are spiritual greatness; the bad hills, are the swelling of pride. "Let the hills be joyful together before the Lord, for He has come; for He has come to judge the earth." Wherefore shall He come, and how shall He come? "With righteousness shall He judge the world, and the people with equity" [Psalm 98:10]. Let the hills therefore rejoice; for He shall not judge unrighteously. When some man is coming as a judge, to whom the conscience cannot lie open, even innocent men may tremble, if from him they expect a reward for virtue, or fear the penalty of condemnation; when He shall come who cannot be deceived, let the hills rejoice, let them rejoice fearlessly; they shall be enlightened by Him, not condemned; let them rejoice, because the Lord will come to judge the world with equity; and if the righteous hills rejoice, let the unrighteous tremble. But behold, He has not yet come: what need is there they should tremble? Let them mend their ways, and rejoice. It is in your power in what way you will to await the coming of Christ. For this reason He delays to come, that when He comes He may not condemn you. Lo, He has not yet come: He is in heaven, thou on earth: He delays His coming, do not thou delay wisdom. His coming is hard to the hard of heart, soft to the pious. See therefore even now what you are: if hard of heart, you can soften; if you are soft, even now rejoice that He will come. For you are a Christian. Yea, you say, I believe that you pray, and sayest, "Your kingdom come." [Matthew 6:10] You desire Him to come, whose coming you fear. Reform yourself, that you may not pray against yourself.

"The Lord is King, be the people angry" [Psalm 99:1]. For our Lord Jesus Christ began to reign, began to be preached, after He arose from the dead and ascended into heaven, after He had filled His disciples with the confidence of the Holy Spirit, that they should not fear death, which He had already killed in Himself. Our Lord Christ began then to be preached, that they who wished for salvation might believe in Him; and the peoples who worshipped idols were angry. They who worshipped what they had made were angry, because He by whom they were made was declared. He announced, in fact, through His disciples, Himself, who wished them to be converted unto Him by whom they were made, and to be turned away from those things which they had made themselves. They were angry with their Lord in behalf of their idols, they who even if they were angry with their slave on their idol's account, were to be condemned. For their slave was better than their idol: for God made their slave, the carpenter made their idol. They were so angry in their idol's behalf, that they feared not to be angry with their Lord. But the words, "be they angry," are a prediction, not a command; for in a prophecy it is that this is said, "The Lord is King, be the people angry." Some good results even from the enraged people: let them be angry, and in their anger let the Martyrs be crowned....You heard when Jeremiah was being read before the reading of the Apostle, if you listened; ye saw therein the times in which we now live. He said, "The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, let them perish from the earth, and from under the heaven." [Jeremiah 10:11] He said not, The gods that have not made the heavens and earth, let them perish from the heaven and from the earth; because they never were in heaven: but what did he say? "Let them perish from the earth, and from under the heaven." As if, while the word earth was repeated, the repetition of the word heaven were wanting (because they never were in heaven): he repeats the earth twice, since it is under heaven. "Let them perish from the earth, and from under the heaven," from their temples. Consider if this be not now taking place; if in a great measure it has not already happened: for what, or how much, has remained? The idols remained rather in the hearts of the pagans, than in the niches of the temples.

"The Lord is great in Sion, and high above all people" [Psalm 99:2]....He whom I spoke to you of as above the Cherubims, is great in Sion. Ask thou now, what is Sion? We know Sion to be the city of God. The city of Jerusalem is called Sion; and is so called according to a certain interpretation, for that Sion signifies watching, that is, sight and contemplation; for to watch is to look forward to, or gaze upon, or strain the eyes to see. Now every soul is a Sion, if it tries to see that light which is to be seen. For if it shall have gazed upon a light of its own, it is darkened; if upon His, it is enlightened. But, now that it is clear that Sion is the city of God; what is the city of God, but the Holy Church? For men who love one another, and who love their God who dwells in them, constitute a city unto God. Because a city is held together by some law; their very law is Love; and that very Love is God: for openly it is written, "God is Love." [1 John 4:8] He therefore who is full of Love, is full of God; and many, full of love, constitute a city full of God. That city of God is called Sion; the Church therefore is Sion. In it God is great....

All these very people, over whom You are great in Sion, "Let them confess unto Your Name, which is great" [Psalm 99:3]. Your Name was little when they were enraged: it has become great; let them now confess. In what sense do we say, that the Name of Christ was little, before it was spread abroad to so great an extent? Because His report is meant by His Name. His Name was small; already it has become great. What nation is there that has not heard of the Name of Christ? Therefore let now the people confess unto Your Name, which is great, who before were enraged with Your little Name. Wherefore shall they confess? Because it is "wonderful and holy." Your very Name is wonderful and holy. He is so preached as crucified, so preached as humbled, so preached as judged, that He may come exalted, that He may come living, that He may come to judge in power. He spares at present the people who blaspheme Him, because "the long-suffering of God leads to repentance." [Romans 2:4] For He who now spares, will not always spare: nor will He, who is now being preached that He may be feared, fail to come to judge. He will come, my brethren, He will come: let us fear Him, and let us live so that we may be found on His right hand. For He will come, and will judge, so as to place some on the left hand, some on the right. [Matthew 25:31-33] And He does not act in an uncertain manner, so as to err perchance between men, so that he who should be set on the right hand, be set on the left; or that he who ought to stand on the left, by a mistake of God should stand on the right: He cannot err, so as to place the evil where He ought to set the good; nor to place the good, where He should have set the evil. If He cannot err, we err, if we fear not; but if we have feared in this life, we shall not then have what to fear for. "For the King's honour loves judgment."...

"O magnify the Lord our God" [Psalm 99:5]. Magnify Him truly, magnify Him well. Let us praise Him, let us magnify Him who has wrought the very righteousness which we have; who wrought it in us, Himself. For who but He who justified us, wrought righteousness in us? For of Christ it is said, "who justifies the ungodly." [Romans 4:5] ..."And fall down before His footstool: for He is holy." What are we to fall down before? His footstool. What is under the feet is called a footstool, in Greek ὑ ποπόδιον, in Latin Scabellum or Suppedaneum. But consider, brethren, what he commands us to fall down before. In another passage of the Scriptures it is said, "The heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool." [Isaiah 66:1] Does he then bid us worship the earth, since in another passage it is said, that it is God's footstool? How then shall we worship the earth, when the Scripture says openly, "You shall worship the Lord your God"? [Deuteronomy 6:13] Yet here it says, "fall down before His footstool:" and, explaining to us what His footstool is, it says, "The earth is My footstool." I am in doubt; I fear to worship the earth, lest He who made the heaven and the earth condemn me; again, I fear not to worship the footstool of my Lord, because the Psalm bids me, "fall down before His footstool." I ask, what is His footstool? And the Scripture tells me, "the earth is My footstool." In hesitation I turn unto Christ, since I am herein seeking Himself: and I discover how the earth may be worshipped without impiety, how His footstool may be worshipped without impiety. For He took upon Him earth from earth; because flesh is from earth, and He received flesh from the flesh of Mary. And because He walked here in very flesh, and gave that very flesh to us to eat for our salvation; and no one eats that flesh, unless he has first worshipped: we have found out in what sense such a footstool of our Lord's may be worshipped, and not only that we sin not in worshipping it, but that we sin in not worshipping. But does the flesh give life? Our Lord Himself, when He was speaking in praise of this same earth, said, "It is the Spirit that quickens, the flesh profits nothing."...But when our Lord praised it, He was speaking of His own flesh, and He had said, "Except a man eat My flesh, he shall have no life in him." [John 6:54] Some disciples of His, about seventy, were offended, and said, "This is an hard saying, who can hear it?" And they went back, and walked no more with Him. It seemed unto them hard that He said, "Except you eat the flesh of the Son of Man, you have no life in you:" they received it foolishly, they thought of it carnally, and imagined that the Lord would cut off parts from His body, and give unto them; and they said, "This is a hard saying." It was they who were hard, not the saying; for unless they had been hard, and not meek, they would have said unto themselves, He says not this without reason, but there must be some latent mystery herein. They would have remained with Him, softened, not hard: and would have learned that from Him which they who remained, when the others departed, learned. For when twelve disciples had remained with Him, on their departure, these remaining followers suggested to Him, as if in grief for the death of the former, that they were offended by His words, and turned back. But He instructed them, and says unto them, "It is the Spirit that quickens, but the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." [John 6:63] Understand spiritually what I have said; you are not to eat this body which you see; nor to drink that blood which they who will crucify Me shall pour forth. I have commended unto you a certain mystery; spiritually understood, it will quicken. Although it is needful that this be visibly celebrated, yet it must be spiritually understood.

"Moses and Aaron among His priests, and Samuel among such as call upon His Name: these called upon the Lord, and He heard them" [Psalm 99:6]. "He spoke unto them out of the cloudy pillar" [Psalm 99:7]....Of Moses it is not there stated that he was a priest. But if he was not this, what was he? Could he be anything greater than a priest? This Psalm declares that he also was himself a priest: "Moses and Aaron among His priests." They therefore were the Lord's priests. Samuel is read of later in the Book of Kings: this Samuel is in David's times; for he anointed the holy David. Samuel from his infancy grew up in the temple....He mentions these: and by these desires us to understand all the saints. Yet why has he here named those? Because we said that we ought here to understand Christ. Attend, holy brethren. He said above, "O magnify the Lord our God: and fall down before His footstool, for He is holy:" praising some one, that is, our Lord Jesus Christ; whose footstool is to be worshipped, because He assumed flesh, in which He was to appear before the human race; and wishing to show unto us that the ancient fathers also had preached of Him, because our Lord Jesus Christ is Himself the True Priest, he mentioned these, because God spoke unto them out of the cloudy pillar. What means, "out of the cloudy pillar"? He was speaking figuratively. For if He spoke in some cloud, those obscure words predicted some one unknown, yet to be manifest. This unknown one is no longer unknown; for He is known by us, our Lord Jesus Christ....He who first spoke out of the cloudy pillar, has in Person spoken unto us in His footstool; that is, on earth, when He had assumed the flesh, for which reason we worship His footstool, for He is holy. He Himself used to speak out of the cloud, which was not then understood: He has spoken in His own footstool, and the words of His cloud have been understood. "They kept His testimonies, and the law that He gave them."