Cassiodorus
Late Patristic · AD 500–800 · 444 passages across 36 books
Commentary
Psalms 9:16
The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah.
The truth of this judgment will be fulfilled when the Lord at last executes his judgments in plain sight, when sinners are handed over to eternal torment. Because they have the freedom to commit offenses in this life, some may think that these acts will escape punishment. But when that day of his appearance arrives and the Lord Savior sits upon his majestic throne, then all will acknowledge that his judgments are in effect, when the human race is separated by his judgment either to his right or to his left. For in order to make fair judgments one must determine the merits of each person without partiality. A plain explanation of this thought follows next. For it shows how one can know that the Lord makes fair judgments. His justice can be observed when a sinner becomes caught in his own tangled deeds, and he receives a punishment commensurate with his actions.
Psalms 9:18
For the needy shall not alway be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever.
If patience is lacking in any hardships, the soul is not able to be perfect. For patience is the act of giving thanks, maintained continuously in the fear of the Lord throughout the anxious trials of life to the point of death.
Psalms 9:19
Arise, O LORD; let not man prevail: let the heathen be judged in thy sight.
When the prophet was discussing the end of the world, through the illumination of his heart he foresaw the coming of the Antichrist. Terrified by the magnitude of the danger, he shouted out with a loud voice, “Arise, O Lord, let not humankind prevail.” For the Antichrist is certainly the most wicked man and one which human nature is not able to withstand. He possess such great cunning and power that only the Lord’s might is able to overcome his wickedness.
Psalms 10:1-2
Why standest thou afar off, O LORD? why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble?
In his regard for the afflicted, he says to the Lord in the manner of human weakness, “Why have you withdrawn far away?” This does not mean that God leaves a place and moves to another location since he is completely present in every place. But God is thought to have withdrawn when he is slow to help.… For we think that we are being spurned if we are put off even for the shortest time. But God’s presence is much more fruitful when he furnishes us with the consolations that come through great patience.
Psalms 10:3
For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the LORD abhorreth.
When the evil person is praised, he becomes conceited; he does not give a thought to correcting his ways, provided that someone can always be found to praise him in spite of his faults. The exaltation of sin follows, so that the one known as an evildoer is blessed. Deceived by the insincerity of those who sing his praise, such a person lets himself get drawn into the excessive pride of tyranny. Strictly speaking, one ought to understand this passage as referring to the Antichrist; he is led to this point by the crowds of deceivers so that he proclaims himself not only as earthly king, but even as God of all things.
Psalms 10:7-10
· 2 passages
His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and fraud: under his tongue is mischief and vanity.
His wickedness is described as a two-fold corruption, for in his mouth he will have a blasphemous cursing when he makes the false claim that he is the Son of God. He will also have bitterness when he imposes the death penalty on those who resist him, and he will hand over to punishment whoever refuses to worship him as the deity. He will have these things in his mouth, which he will speak in public. But “under his tongue,” as the psalmist says, indicates that he will have the most savage thoughts, so that since he himself is already destroyed he may hasten to destroy everything.
In earlier times, the persecution of the church was merely violent, when Christians were being pressed by pagans through proscriptions, torture and beatings to sacrifice to idols. A second type of persecution is through deceit, which is currently being carried out by heretics and false Christians. A final form still remains, and it is predicted to come through the Antichrist. No form of persecution is more dangerous than this, since it will be extremely violent because of the power of this unique kingdom, and it will result in deception through miraculous signs. As a result, just as the Lord says in the Gospel, “it will deceive, if possible, even the elect.” The word lion refers to the violence of this kingdom, and the phrase “in his den,” predicts its deceit.
Psalms 10:14
· 2 passages
Thou hast seen it; for thou beholdest mischief and spite, to requite it with thy hand: the poor committeth himself unto thee; thou art the helper of the fatherless.
When he says, “he is left to you as a poor man,” he shows that the one who is left to him is not cheated of any advantage, for to be left to the devoted Prince is the same as to be handed over to all good things.
He will find that the one whom he had hoped had forgotten has remembered, and he will realize that the sins that he had believed to be too numerous to be remembered, even to the point of being immeasurable, are actually taken into account.
Psalms 10:16
The LORD is King for ever and ever: the heathen are perished out of his land.
After the universal calamity has been abolished, the psalmist turns to the new order of things. For after the Antichrist has been killed, the eternal, holy and benevolent kingdom of the Lord will come. Wicked evil is permitted to advance quite far in order that the longed-for kingdom of the Lord may be received with greater thanks. For in God’s kingdom, the blessed are without worry and find rest, nor is there any more fear of the traps that the holy are compelled to endure in this world.
Psalms 10:17
LORD, thou hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear:
“Your ear has heard.” We should regularly note that God does not have any physical members, but the the power by which he hears is called his ear, that by which he sees his eye, and that by which he acts his hand. These ideas should be committed to memory so that we may not seem to offend you by repeating them, because they often need to be repeated.
Psalms 11:1
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. In the LORD put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee as a bird to your mountain?
In this passage, the psalmist speaks about those who are drawn off to earth’s highest places by the most trivial desire. Those who turn to the most worthless proclamations because of the fickleness of their unsettled mind are rightly considered similar to them.
Psalms 11:3
If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?
Heretics … have destroyed the law of the Lord … by false interpretations, changes resulting in the death of some, while the Scriptures were intended to serve as the Lord’s prophets for our salvation.
Psalms 11:6
Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup.
“It rains” refers to the words of the preachers flowing down from heaven which are rain showers for the pious, but fiery snares for the ungodly. For the pious produce fruit based on their proper understanding of the words, but the ungodly suffocate their souls with the noose of their perversity by handling the words improperly.
Psalms 11:7
For the righteous LORD loveth righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright.
He added: “his face beheld righteousness,” namely, that righteousness that he himself graciously grants. For humanity does not have anything of worth on its own; it can only lay claim to what it has received from the Lord, the Granter of all good things.
Psalms 12:1
To the chief Musician upon Sheminith, A Psalm of David. Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men.
Since he was observing that this world burdens souls, he asks the Lord to be saved. He knew that genuine medicine can only be found with God.
Psalms 12:3
The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things:
Consider the piety of the speaker, for he does not direct his prayer against people, since many of them needed to be converted, but against the vices themselves.
Psalms 12:5
For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
“I will arise” is a metaphor to indicate that the one who is not familiar with the human need to lie down out of weakness does in fact rise up. But he says I will arise, I will appear and be manifest in the Son. For the strength and majesty of the Father and of the Son are one and undivided. For the Father appears and is manifest in the Son, as Christ himself says in the Gospel: “He who sees me sees the Father also.”
Psalms 12:7
Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
Here he consoles us in tribulations while [in heaven] he establishes us in the security of eternity. Here he helps us, but there he glorifies and crowns us. In this way, a most devoted Creator preserves us here in order that we may not perish and that he may bless us there so that we can no longer be miserable in any way.
Psalms 12:8
The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted.
“The wicked walk in a circle” so that they are never able to arrive at the right path, since crooked paths are always associated with bad character.… For this reason, they are not able to attain the rest of the eighth day, for they are always turning backward like wheels.