Augustine of Hippo — Commentary on Scripture

We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.

But let us hear what they next confess: "we have sinned with our fathers: we have done amiss, and dealt wickedly" [Psalm 106:6]. What means "with our fathers"?..."Our fathers," he says, "regarded not Your wonders in Egypt" [Psalm 106:7]; and many other things also, he does relate of their sins. Or is, "we have sinned with our fathers," to be understood as meaning, we have sinned like our fathers, that is, by imitating their sins? If it be so, it should be supported by some example of this mode of expression: which did not occur to me when I sought on this occasion an instance of any one saying that he had sinned, or done anything, with another, whom he had imitated by a similar act after a long interval of time. What means then, "Our fathers understood not Your wonders;" save this, they did not know what You wished to convince them of by these miracles? What indeed, save life eternal, and a good, not temporal, but immutable, which is waited for only through endurance? For this reason they impatiently murmured, and provoked, and they asked to be blessed with present and fugitive bles…

But let us hear what they next confess: "we have sinned with our fathers: we have done amiss, and dealt wickedly" [Psalm 106:6]. What means "with our fathers"?..."Our fathers," he says, "regarded not Your wonders in Egypt" [Psalm 106:7]; and many other things also, he does relate of their sins. Or is, "we have sinned with our fathers," to be understood as meaning, we have sinned like our fathers, that is, by imitating their sins? If it be so, it should be supported by some example of this mode of expression: which did not occur to me when I sought on this occasion an instance of any one saying that he had sinned, or done anything, with another, whom he had imitated by a similar act after a long interval of time. What means then, "Our fathers understood not Your wonders;" save this, they did not know what You wished to convince them of by these miracles? What indeed, save life eternal, and a good, not temporal, but immutable, which is waited for only through endurance? For this reason they impatiently murmured, and provoked, and they asked to be blessed with present and fugitive blessings, "Neither were they mindful of the greatness of Your mercy." He reproves both their understanding and memory. Understanding there was need of, that they might meditate unto what eternal blessings God was calling them through these temporal ones; and of memory, that at least they might not forget the temporal wonders which had been wrought, and might faithfully believe, that by the same power which they had already experienced, God would free them from the persecutions of their enemies; whereas they forgot the aid which He had given them in Egypt, by means of such wonders, to crush their enemies. "And they provoked, as they went up to the sea, even to the Red Sea." We ought especially to notice how the Scripture does censure the not understanding that which ought to have been understood, and the not remembering that which ought to have been remembered; which men are unwilling to have ascribed to their own fault, for no other reason than that they may pray less, and be less humble unto God, in whose sight they should confess what they are, and might by praying for His aid, become what they are not. For it is better to accuse even the sins of ignorance and negligence, that they may be done away with, than to excuse them, so that they remain; and it is better to clear them off by calling upon God, than to clench them by provoking Him.

Psalms 106:8

Nevertheless he saved them for his name's sake, that he might make his mighty power to be known.

He adds, that God acted not according to their unbelief. "Nevertheless," he says, "He saved them for His Name's sake: that He might make His power to be known": not on account of any deservings of their own.

Psalms 106:9

He rebuked the Red sea also, and it was dried up: so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness.

"He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it was dried up" [Psalm 106:9]. We do not read that any voice was sent forth from Heaven to rebuke the sea; but he has called the Divine Power by which this was effected, a rebuke: unless indeed any one may choose to say, that the sea was secretly rebuked, so that the waters might hear, and yet men could not. The power by which God acts is very abstruse and mysterious, a power which He causes that even things devoid of sense instantly obey at His will. "So He led them through the deeps, as through a wilderness." He calls a multitude of waters the deeps. For some wishing to give the sense of this whole verse, have translated, "So He led them forth amid many waters." What then does "through the deeps, as through a wilderness," mean, except that that had become as a wilderness from its dryness, where before had been the watery deeps?

Psalms 106:10

And he saved them from the hand of him that hated them, and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.

"And He saved them from the hating ones" [Psalm 106:10]. Some translators, in order to avoid an expression unusual in Latin, have rendered the word, by a circumlocution, "And He saved them from the hand of those that hated them, and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy." What price was given in this redemption? Is it a prophecy, since this deed was a figure of Baptism, wherein we are redeemed from the hand of the devil at a great price, which price is the Blood of Christ? Whence this is more consistently figured forth, not by any sea indiscriminately, but by the Red Sea; since blood has a red colour.

Psalms 106:11

And the waters covered their enemies: there was not one of them left.

"As for those that troubled them, the waters overwhelmed them: there was not one of them left" [Psalm 106:11]; not of all the Egyptians, but of those who pursued the departing Israelites, desirous either of taking or of killing them.

Psalms 106:12

Then believed they his words; they sang his praise.

"Then believed they in His words" [Psalm 106:12]. The expression seems barely Latin, for he says not "believed His word," or "on His words," but "in His words;" yet it is very frequent in Scripture. "And praised praise unto Him;" such an expression as when we say, "This servitude he served," "such a life he lived." He is here alluding to that well-known hymn, commencing, "I will sing unto the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously: the horse and the rider has He thrown into the sea."

Psalms 106:13

They soon forgat his works; they waited not for his counsel:

"They acted hastily: they forgot His works" [Psalm 106:13]: other copies read more intelligibly, "They hastened, they forgot His works, and would not abide His counsel." For they ought to have thought, that so great works of God towards themselves were not without a purpose, but that they invited them to some endless happiness, which was to be waited for with patience; but they hastened to make themselves happy with temporal things, which give no man true happiness, because they do not quench insatiable longing: for "whosoever," says our Lord, "shall drink of this water, shall thirst again." [John 4:4, 13]

Psalms 106:14

But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert.

Lastly, "And they lusted a lust in the wilderness, and they tempted God in the dry land" [Psalm 106:14]. The "dry land," or land without water, and "desert," are the same: so also are, "they lusted a lust," and, "they tempted God." The form of speech is the same as above, "they praised a praise."

Psalms 106:15

And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.

"And He gave them their desire, and sent fullness withal into their souls" [Psalm 106:15]. But He did not thus render them happy: for it was not that fullness of which it is said, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled." [Matthew 5:6] In this passage he does not speak of the rational soul, but of the soul as giving animal life to the body; to the substance of which belong meat and drink, according to what is said in the Gospel, "Is not the soul more than meat, and the body than raiment?" [Matthew 6:26] as if it belonged to the soul to eat, to the body to be clothed.

Psalms 106:16

They envied Moses also in the camp, and Aaron the saint of the LORD.

"And they angered Moses in the tents, and Aaron the saint of the Lord" [Psalm 106:16]. What angering, or, as some have more literally rendered it, what provocation, he speaks of, the following words sufficiently show.

Psalms 106:17

The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, and covered the company of Abiram.

"The earth opened," he says, "and swallowed up Dathan, and covered over the congregation of Abiram" [Psalm 106:17]: "swallowed up" answers to "covered over." Both Dathan and Abiram were equally concerned in a most sacrilegious schism.

Psalms 106:18

And a fire was kindled in their company; the flame burned up the wicked.

"And the fire was kindled in their company; the flame burnt up the sinners" [Psalm 106:18]. This word is not in Scripture usually applied to those, who, although they live righteously, and in a praiseworthy manner, are not without sin. Rather, as there is a difference between those who scorn and scorners, between men who murmur and murmurers, between men who are writing and writers, and so forth; so Scripture is wont to signify by sinners such as are very wicked, and laden with heavy loads of sins.

Psalms 106:19-20

They made a calf in Horeb, and worshipped the molten image.

"And they made a calf in Horeb, and worshipped the graven image" [Psalm 106:19]. "Thus they changed their glory, in the similitude of a calf that eats hay" [Psalm 106:20]. He says not "into" the likeness, but "in" the likeness. It is such a form of speech as where he said "and they believed in His words." With great effect in truth he says not, they changed the glory of God when they did this; as the Apostle also says, "They changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man:" [Romans 1:23] but "their glory." For God was their glory, if they would abide His counsel, and hasten not....

Psalms 106:21-22

They forgat God their saviour, which had done great things in Egypt;

"They forgat God who saved them" [Psalm 106:21]. How did He save them? "Who did so great things in Egypt: Wondrous works in the land of Ham, and fearful things in the Red Sea" [Psalm 106:22]. The things that are wondrous, are also fearful; for there is no wonder without a certain fear: although these might be called fearful, because they beat down their adversaries, and showed them what they ought to fear.

Psalms 106:23

Therefore he said that he would destroy them, had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, to turn away his wrath, lest he should destroy them.

"So He said, He would have destroyed them" [Psalm 106:23]. Since they forgot Him who saved them, the Worker of wondrous works, and made and worshipped a graven image, by this atrocious and incredible impiety they deserved death. "Had not Moses His chosen stood before Him in the breaking." He does not say, that he stood in the breaking, as if to break the wrath of God, but in the way of the breaking, meaning the stroke which was to strike them: that is, had he not put himself in the way for them, saying, "Yet now, if You will forgive their sin—and if not, blot me, I pray You, out of Your book." Where it is proved how greatly the intercession of the saints in behalf of others prevails with God. For Moses, fearless in the justice of God, which could not blot him out, implored mercy, that He would not blot out those whom He justly might. Thus he "stood before Him in the breaking, to turn away His wrathful indignation, lest He should destroy them."

Psalms 106:24

Yea, they despised the pleasant land, they believed not his word:

"Yea, they thought scorn of that pleasant land" [Psalm 106:24]. But had they seen it? How then could they scorn that which they had not seen, except as the following words explain, "and believed not in His words." Indeed, unless that land which was styled the land that flowed with milk and honey, [Exodus 3:8] signified something great, through which, as by a visible token, He was leading those who understood His wondrous works to invisible grace and the kingdom of heaven, they could not be blamed for scorning that land, whose temporal kingdom we also ought to esteem as nothing, that we may love that Jerusalem which is free, the mother of us all, [Galatians 4:26] which is in heaven, and truly to be desired. But rather unbelief is here reproved, since they gave no credence to the words of God, who was leading them to great things through small things, and hastening to bless themselves with temporal things, which they carnally savoured of, they "abided not His counsel," as is said above.

Psalms 106:25

But murmured in their tents, and hearkened not unto the voice of the LORD.

"But murmured in their tents, and hearkened not unto the voice of the Lord" [Psalm 106:25]; who strongly forbade them to murmur.

Psalms 106:26-27

Therefore he lifted up his hand against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness:

"Then lift He up His hand against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness" [Psalm 106:26]; "to cast out their seed among the nations: and to scatter them in the lands" [Psalm 106:27].

Psalms 106:28

They joined themselves also unto Baalpeor, and ate the sacrifices of the dead.

"They were initiated also unto Baalpeor;" that is, were consecrated to the Gentile idol; "and ate the offerings of the dead" [Psalm 106:28].

Psalms 106:29

Thus they provoked him to anger with their inventions: and the plague brake in upon them.

"Thus they provoked Him to anger with their own inventions; and destruction was multiplied among them" [Psalm 106:29]. As if He had deferred the lifting up of His hand which was to cast them down in the desert, and to cast out their seed among the nations, and to scatter them in the lands; as the Apostle says: "And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient." [Romans 1:28] "'Destruction,' therefore, 'was multiplied among them,' when they were heavily punished for their heavy sins."