Augustine of Hippo — Commentary on Scripture

The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the work of men's hands.

Lastly, after all that arrangement and dispensation, the Spirit of God turns itself to reproaching and ridiculing those idols, which are now ridiculed by their very worshippers. "The idols of the Gentiles are silver and gold" [Psalm 135:15]. As God made all these things, who made whatever He would in heaven and earth, what can anything that man makes be, but an object of ridicule, not adoration? Was He perchance about to speak of "the idols of the Gentiles," that we might despise them all? Was He about to speak of the idols of the heathen, stones and wood, plaster and pottery? I say not these, they are mean materials. I speak of that which they specially love, that which they specially honour. "The idols of the Gentiles are silver and gold, the work of men's hands." Surely it is gold, surely it is silver: because silver glitters, and gold glitters, have they therefore eyes, or do they see?

Psalms 135:16

They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not;

But as these things are senseless, why make ye men of silver and gold to be gods? See ye not that the gods which you make see not? "They have a mouth, and will not speak; they have eyes, and will not see" [Psalm 135:16].

Psalms 135:17

They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in their mouths.

"They have ears, and will not hear; neither is there any breath in their mouth" [Psalm 135:17]; "they have nostrils, and will not smell; they have hands, and will not work; they have feet, and will not walk." All these things could the carpenter, the silversmith, the goldsmith make, both eyes, and ears, and nostrils, and mouth, and hands, and feet, but he could give neither sight to the eyes, nor hearing to the ears, nor speech to the mouth, nor smell to the nostrils, nor motion to the hands, or going to the feet.

Psalms 135:18

They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that trusteth in them.

And man, you laugh doubtless at what you have made, if you know by whom you are made. But of them who know not, what is said? "All they who make them, and all they who trust in them, are like them" [Psalm 135:18]. And ye believe, brethren, that there is a likeness to these idols expressed not in their flesh, but in their inner man. For "they have ears, and hear not." God calls to them indeed, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear." [Matthew 11:15] They have eyes, and see not, for they have the eyes of the body, and not the eyes of faith. Lastly, this prophecy is fulfilled among all the nations....Is it not fulfilled? Is it not seen, as it is written? And they who remain have eyes, and see not; have nostrils, and smell not. They perceive not that savour. "We are a good savour of Christ," [2 Corinthians 2:15] as the apostle says everywhere. What profits it, that they have nostrils, and smell not that so sweet savour of Christ? Truly it is done in them, and truly it is said of them, "All they who make them," etc.

Psalms 135:19

Bless the LORD, O house of Israel: bless the LORD, O house of Aaron:

But daily do men believe through the miracles of Christ our Lord; daily the eyes of the blind, the ears of the deaf are opened, the nostrils of the senseless are breathed into, the tongues of the dumb are loosed, the hands of the palsied are strengthened, the feet of the lame are guided; sons of Abraham are raised up of these stones, [Matthew 3:9] to all of whom be it said, "Bless the Lord, you house of Israel" [Psalm 135:19]. All are sons of Abraham; and if sons of Abraham are raised up from these stones, it is plain that they are rather the house of Israel who belong to the house of Israel, the seed of Abraham, not by the flesh, but by faith. But even granting that it is said of that house, and the people of Israel is meant, from thence did the Apostles and thousands of the circumcised believe?

Psalms 135:20

Bless the LORD, O house of Levi: ye that fear the LORD, bless the LORD.

"Bless the Lord, you house of Aaron. Bless the Lord, you house of Levi" [Psalm 135:20]. Bless the Lord, you nations, this is, the "house of Israel" generally; bless Him, you leaders, this is, the "house of Aaron;" bless Him, you servants, this is, the "house of Levi." What of the other nations? "You that fear the Lord, bless the Lord."

Psalms 135:21

Blessed be the LORD out of Zion, which dwelleth at Jerusalem. Praise ye the LORD.

Let us also with one voice say what follows: "Blessed be the Lord out of Zion, who dwells in Jerusalem" [Psalm 135:21]. Out of Zion is Jerusalem too. Zion is "watching," Jerusalem the "vision of peace." In what Jerusalem will He dwell now? In that which has fallen? Nay, but in that which is our mother, which is in the heavens, of which it is said, "The desolate has more children than she which has a husband." For now the Lord is from Zion, because we watch when He will come; now as long as we live in hope, we are in Zion. When our way is ended, we shall dwell in that city which will never fall, because the Lord dwells in her, and keeps her, which is the vision of peace, the eternal Jerusalem; for the praise of which, my brethren, language suffices not; where we shall find no enemy, either within the Church or without the Church, neither in our flesh, nor in our thoughts. For "death shall be swallowed up in victory," [1 Corinthians 15:54] and we shall be free to see God in eternal peace, being made citizens of Jerusalem, the city of God.

Psalms 136:1

O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

"Give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures for ever" [Psalm 136:1]. This Psalm contains the praise of God, and all its verses finish in the same way. Wherefore although many things are related here in praise of God, yet His mercy is most commended; for without this plain commendation, he, whom the Holy Spirit used to utter this Psalm, would have no verse be ended. Although after the judgment, by which at the end of the world the quick and the dead must be judged, the just being sent into life eternal, the unjust into everlasting fire, [Matthew 25:46] there will not afterwards be those, whom God will have mercy on, yet rightly may His future mercy be understood to be for ever, which He bestows on His saints and faithful ones, not because they will be miserable for ever, and therefore will need His mercy for ever, but because that very blessedness, which He mercifully bestows on the miserable, that they cease to be miserable, and begin to be happy, will have no end, and therefore "His mercy is for ever." For that we shall be just from being unjust, whole from be…

"Give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures for ever" [Psalm 136:1]. This Psalm contains the praise of God, and all its verses finish in the same way. Wherefore although many things are related here in praise of God, yet His mercy is most commended; for without this plain commendation, he, whom the Holy Spirit used to utter this Psalm, would have no verse be ended. Although after the judgment, by which at the end of the world the quick and the dead must be judged, the just being sent into life eternal, the unjust into everlasting fire, [Matthew 25:46] there will not afterwards be those, whom God will have mercy on, yet rightly may His future mercy be understood to be for ever, which He bestows on His saints and faithful ones, not because they will be miserable for ever, and therefore will need His mercy for ever, but because that very blessedness, which He mercifully bestows on the miserable, that they cease to be miserable, and begin to be happy, will have no end, and therefore "His mercy is for ever." For that we shall be just from being unjust, whole from being unsound, alive from being dead, immortal from being mortal, happy from being wretched, is of His mercy. But this that we shall be, will be for ever, and therefore "His mercy is for ever." Wherefore, "give thanks to the Lord;" that is, praise the Lord by giving thanks, "for He is good:" nor is it any temporal good you will gain from this confession, for, "His mercy endures for ever;" that is, the benefit which He bestows mercifully upon you, is for ever.

Psalms 136:2 · 2 passages

O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever.

Then follows, "Give thanks to the God of gods, for His mercy endures for ever" [Psalm 136:2]. "Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for His mercy endures for ever" [Psalm 136:3]. We may well enquire, Who are these gods and lords, of whom He who is the true God is God and Lord? And we find written in another Psalm, that even men are called gods. The Lord even takes note of this testimony in the Gospel, saying, "Is it not written in your Law, I have said, You are gods?" [John 10:34] ...It is not therefore because they are all good, but because "the word of God came to them," that they were called gods. For were it because they are all good, He would not thus distinguish between them. He says, "He judges between the gods." Then follows, "How long do ye judge iniquity!" and the rest, which He says certainly not to all, but to some, because He says it in distinguishing, and yet He distinguishes between the gods.

And that this is the opinion either of all or the best of the Platonists can be ascertained by their writings. And regarding the name itself, if they see fit to call such blessed and immortal creatures gods, this need not give rise to any serious discussion between us, since in our own Scriptures we read, “The God of gods, the Lord hath spoken;” and again, “Confess to the God of gods;” and again, “He is a great King above all gods.” And where it is said, “He is to be feared above all gods,” the reason is forthwith added, for it follows, “for all the gods of the nations are idols, but the Lord made the heavens.” He said, “above all gods,” but added, “of the nations;” that is to say, above all those whom the nations count gods, in other words, demons. By them he is to be feared with that terror in which they cried to the Lord, “Hast Thou come to destroy us?” But where it is said, “the God of gods,” it cannot be understood as the god of the demons; and far be it from us to say that “great King above all gods” means “great King above all demons.”

Psalms 136:4

To him who alone doeth great wonders: for his mercy endureth for ever.

Let us therefore "give thanks to the God of gods, and the Lord of lords, for His mercy," etc. "Who alone did wonderful things" [Psalm 136:4]. As at the last part of every verse, it is written, "For His mercy endures for ever," so we must understand at the beginning of each, though it be not written, "Give thanks." Which indeed in the Greek is very plain. It would be so in Latin, if our translators had been able to make use of that expression. Which indeed they could have done in this verse, if they had said, "To Him who does wonderful things." For where we have, "who did wonderful things," the Greek has τῷ ποιήσαντι, where we must necessarily understand, "give thanks." And I would they had added the pronoun, and said to Him, "who did," or to Him "who does," or to Him "who made sure;" because then one might easily understand, "let us give thanks." For now it is so obscurely rendered, that he who either knows not or cares not to examine a Greek manuscript may think, "who made the heavens, who made sure the earth, who made the luminaries, for His mercy endures for ever," has been so s…

Let us therefore "give thanks to the God of gods, and the Lord of lords, for His mercy," etc. "Who alone did wonderful things" [Psalm 136:4]. As at the last part of every verse, it is written, "For His mercy endures for ever," so we must understand at the beginning of each, though it be not written, "Give thanks." Which indeed in the Greek is very plain. It would be so in Latin, if our translators had been able to make use of that expression. Which indeed they could have done in this verse, if they had said, "To Him who does wonderful things." For where we have, "who did wonderful things," the Greek has τῷ ποιήσαντι, where we must necessarily understand, "give thanks." And I would they had added the pronoun, and said to Him, "who did," or to Him "who does," or to Him "who made sure;" because then one might easily understand, "let us give thanks." For now it is so obscurely rendered, that he who either knows not or cares not to examine a Greek manuscript may think, "who made the heavens, who made sure the earth, who made the luminaries, for His mercy endures for ever," has been so said, because He did these things for this reason, "because His mercy endures for ever:" whereas they, whom He has freed from misery, belong to His Mercy: but not that we should believe that He makes sky, earth, and luminaries, of His Mercy; since they are marks of His Goodness, who created all things very good. [Genesis 1:31] For He created all things, that they might have their being; [Wisdom 1:14] but it is the work of His Mercy, to cleanse us from our sins, and deliver us from everlasting misery. And so the Psalm thus addresses us, "Give thanks unto the God of gods, give thanks unto the Lord of lords." Give thanks to Him, "who alone does great wonders;" give thanks to Him, "who by His wisdom made the heavens;" give thanks to Him, "who stretched out the earth above the waters;" give thanks to Him, "who alone made great lights." But why we are to praise, he sets down at the end of all the verses, "for His mercy endures for ever."

Psalms 136:5-10

To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for ever.

But what means, "who alone does great wonders"? Is it because many wonderful things He has done by means of angels and men? Some wonderful things there are which God does alone, and these he enumerates, saying, "who by His wisdom made the heavens" [Psalm 136:5], "who stretched out the earth above the waters" [Psalm 136:6], "who alone made great lights" [Psalm 136:7]. For this reason did he add "alone" in this verse also, because the other wonders which he is about to tell of, God did by means of man. For having said, "who alone made great lights," he goes on to explain what these are, "the sun to rule the day" [Psalm 136:8], "the moon and stars to govern the night" [Psalm 136:9]; then he begins to tell the wonders which He did by means of angels and men: "who smote Egypt with their first-born" [Psalm 136:10], and the rest. The whole creation then God manifestly made, not by means of any creature, but "alone;" and of this creation he has mentioned certain more eminent parts, that they might make us think on the whole; the heavens we can understand, and the earth we see. And as there…

But what means, "who alone does great wonders"? Is it because many wonderful things He has done by means of angels and men? Some wonderful things there are which God does alone, and these he enumerates, saying, "who by His wisdom made the heavens" [Psalm 136:5], "who stretched out the earth above the waters" [Psalm 136:6], "who alone made great lights" [Psalm 136:7]. For this reason did he add "alone" in this verse also, because the other wonders which he is about to tell of, God did by means of man. For having said, "who alone made great lights," he goes on to explain what these are, "the sun to rule the day" [Psalm 136:8], "the moon and stars to govern the night" [Psalm 136:9]; then he begins to tell the wonders which He did by means of angels and men: "who smote Egypt with their first-born" [Psalm 136:10], and the rest. The whole creation then God manifestly made, not by means of any creature, but "alone;" and of this creation he has mentioned certain more eminent parts, that they might make us think on the whole; the heavens we can understand, and the earth we see. And as there are visible heavens too, by mentioning the lights in them, he has bid us look on the whole body of the heavens as made by Him.

Psalms 136:11

And brought out Israel from among them: for his mercy endureth for ever:

"Who brought out Israel from the midst of them" [Psalm 136:11]. He brought out also His saints and faithful ones from the midst of the wicked.

Psalms 136:12

With a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm: for his mercy endureth for ever.

"With a mighty Hand and stretched-out Arm" [Psalm 136:12]. What more powerful, what more out-stretched, than that of which is said "To whom is the Arm of the Lord revealed?" [Isaiah 53:1]

Psalms 136:13

To him which divided the Red sea into parts: for his mercy endureth for ever:

"Who divided the Red Sea in two parts" [Psalm 136:13]. He divided also in such wise, that the same baptism should be to some unto life, to others unto death.

Psalms 136:14

And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: for his mercy endureth for ever:

"And brought out Israel through the midst of it" [Psalm 136:14]. So too He brings out His renewed people through the laver of regeneration.

Psalms 136:15

But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for his mercy endureth for ever.

"And overthrew Pharaoh and his power in the Red Sea" [Psalm 136:15]. He quickly destroys both the sin of His people and the guilt thereof by baptism.

Psalms 136:16

To him which led his people through the wilderness: for his mercy endureth for ever.

"Who led His people through the wilderness" [Psalm 136:16]. Us too He leads through the drought and barrenness of this world, that we perish not therein.

Psalms 136:17-18

To him which smote great kings: for his mercy endureth for ever:

"Who smote great kings" [Psalm 136:17], "and slew famous kings" [Psalm 136:18]. From us too He smites and slays the deadly powers of the devil.

Psalms 136:19

Sihon king of the Amorites: for his mercy endureth for ever:

"Sehon king of the Amorites" [Psalm 136:19], an "useless shoot," or "fiery temptation," for so is Sehon interpreted: the king of "them who cause bitterness," for such is the meaning of Amorites.