Expositions on the Book of Psalms
516 THE WORKS OF
ST. AUGUSTIN. [Psatm CIV.
And where are they? "And they lay them down in their dens." Their dens are the hearts of the unbelieving. How many carry lions crouching in their hearts? They burst not forth thence, they make no assault upon the pilgrim Jerusalem. Wherefore do they not so? Because the Sun is already risen, and is shining over the whole world.
28. What then, when the sun went down, when our Lord suffered? There was a sort of darkness with the Apostles, hope failed, in those to whom He at first seemed great, and the Redeemer of all men. How so? "Thou didst make darkness, and it became night ; wherein all the beasts of the forest shall move" (ver. 20). . . . Here the beasts of the forest are used in different ways : for these things are always understood in varying senses ; as our Lord Himself is at one time termed a lion, 'at another a lamb. What is so different as a lion and a lamb? But what sort of lamb? One that could overcome the wolf, overcome the lion. He is the Rock, He the Shepherd, He the Gate. The Shepherd entereth by the gate: and He saith, "I am the good Shepherd: " and, "Tram the Door tof, the; Sheep." 2... Learn thus to understand, when these things are spoken figuratively ; lest perchance when ye have read that the Rock signifieth Christ,? ye may understand it to mean Him in every passage. In one place it meaneth one thing, another in another, just as we can only understand the meaning of gether."
30. What art thou doing, O man of God? thou, O Church of God? what art thou, O body of Christ, whose Head is in Heaven? what art thou doing, O man, His unity? ' Man," he saith, "shall go forth to his work" (ver. 23). Let therefore this man work good works in the security of the peace of the Church, let him work unto the end. For sometime there will be a sort of general darkening, and a sort of assault will be made, but in the evening, that is, in the end of the world ; but now the Church doth work in peace and tranquillity ; for "' man shall go forth to his work, and to his labour, unto the evening."
31. "O Lord, how great are made Thy works !'"' (ver. 24). Justly great, justly sublime ! where were those works made, that are so great? what was that station where God stood, or that seat whereupon He sat, when He did those works? what was the place where He worked thus? whence did those so beautiful works proceed at the first? To take it word for word, every ordained creation, running by ordinance, beautiful by ordinance, rising by ordinance, setting by ordinance, going through all seasons by ordinance, whence hath it proceeded ? whence hath the Church herself received her rise, her growth, her perfection? In what manner is she destined to a consummation in immortality ? with what heralding is she preached? by what mysteries 1s she recommended? by what types is she concealed ? by what preaching is she revealed? where hath God done these things? I see great works. " How great are made Thy works, O Lord!" I ask where He hath made them: I find not the place: but I see what followeth : " In Wisdom hast Thou made them all." All therefore Thou hast made in Christ... . "The earth is full of Thy creation." The earth is full of the creation of Christ. And how so? We discern how: for what was not made by the Father through the Son? Whatever walketh and doth crawl on earth, whatever doth swim in the waters, whatever flieth in the air, whatever doth revolve in heaven, how much more then the earth, the whole universe, is the work of God. But he seems to me to speak here of some new creation, of which the Apostle saith, "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things have passed away ; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God." 7 All who a letter by seeing its position 'The lion's whelps roaring after their prey, do seek their meat from God" (ver. 21). Justly then our Lord, when nigh unto His going down, the very Sun of Righteousness recognising His going down, said to His disciples, as if darkness being about to come, the lion would roam about to seek whom he might devour, that that lion could devour no man, unless with leave: "Simon," said He, " this night Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not."4 When Peter thrice denied,5 was he not already between thesion's teeth: 3... ; 2g. " The Sun hath arisen, and they get them away together, and lay them down in their dens" (ver. 22). More and more as the Sun riseth, so that Christ is recognised by the round world, and glorified therein, do the lion's whelps get them away together; those devils recede from the persecution of the Church, who instigated men to persecute the house of God, by working in the sons of unbelief.© Now that none of them dareth persecute the Church, " the Sun hath arisen, and they get them away to-
2 x Cor. x. I John x. 11, 7.
He tas "Tf thou hast 3 Circumstantia sut exponuntur. heard the first letter in the word Deus, and thinkest it must always belong to it alone, thou wilt blot it out in the word Diabolus. For the word Deus beginneth with the same letter as the word Diabolus: and nothing is so far apart, as God from the devil. Consider how utterly ignorant of things both human and divine he must be, who shall say of the letter D, it ought not to be used in the beginning of the word devil; and when thou hast asked the reason, replieth, I read that letter in the name of God. Such a man is laughed at: for he is not worthy of an argument. Do not then so childishly interpret these divine things, as if any of you were to think, from my having said above that the beasts of the forest signifies the Gentiles, while I now say that they signify devils and the angels of disobedience, that I am contradicting what I said before. For they are only figures, and wherever they occur, are explained by the context they, have."
4 Luke xxii. 31, 32. 5 Matt. xxvi. 70, 74. 6 Eph. ii. 2.
Psaim CIV.] ON THE PSALMS. 517 believe in Christ, who put off the old man, and put on the new,' are a new creature. 'The earth is full of Thy works." On one spot of the earth He was crucified, in one small spot that seed fell into the earth, and died; but brought forth great fruit... . 32. "The earth is full of Thy creation." Of what creation of Thine is the earth full? Of all trees and shrubs, of all animals and flocks, and of the whole of the human race; the earth is full of the creation of God. We see, know, read, recognise, praise, and in these we preach of Him; yet we are not able to praise respecting these things, as fully as our heart doth abound with praise after the beautiful contemplation of them. But we ought rather to heed that creation, of which the Apostle saith, "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." What "old things have passed away ''? In the Gentiles, all idolatry ; in the Jews themselves, all that servitude unto the Law, all those sacrifices that were harbingers of the present Sacrifice. The oldness of man was then abundant ; One came to renovate His own work, to melt His silver, to form His coin, and we now see the earth full of Christians believing in God, turning themselves away from their former uncleanness and idolatry, from a past hope to the hope of a new age: and behold it is not yet realized, but is already possessed in hope, and through that very hope we now sing, and say, "The earth is full of Thy creation."" We do not as yet sing this in our country, nor yet in that rest which is promised, the bars of the gates of Jerusalem not being as yet made fast ;3 but still in our pilgrimage gazing upon the whole of this world, upon men who on every side are running unto the faith, fearing hell, despising death, loving eternal life, scorning the present, and filled with joy at sucha spectacle, we say, "The earth is full of Thy creation."
believers still; for they dwell in barren and bitter waters: but they are both small and great. We know this: many little men of this world are still unbelievers, many great men of this world are so: there are living creatures, both small and great, in this sea. They hate the Church: the name of Christ is a burden to them: they rage not, because they are not permitted ; the cruelty which cannot burst forth in deeds, is shut up within the heart. For all, whether small or great, "creeping things, both small and great," who at present grieve at the temples being shut, the altars overthrown, the images broken, the laws which make it a capital crime to sacrifice to idols; all who mourn on this account, are still in the sea. What then of us? And by what road then are we to journey unto our country? Through this very sea, but on the Wood. Fear not the danger ; that wood which holdeth together the world doth bear thee up.
34. " There shall go the ships" (ver. 26). Lo, ships float upon that which alarmed you, and sink not. By ships we understand churches ; they go among the storms, among the tempests of temptations, among the waves of the world, among the beasts, both small and great. Christ on the wood of His cross is the Pilot. 'There shall go the ships." Let not the ships fear, let them not much mind where they float, but by Whom they are steered. "There shall go the ships." What voyage do they find tedious, when they feel that Christ is their Pilot? They will sail safely, let them sail diligently, they wiil reach their promised haven, they will be led to the land of rest.
35. There is also in that sea somewhat which transcends all creatures, great and small. What is this? Let us hear the Psalm: "There is that Leviathan, whom Thou hast formed to make sport of him." There are creeping things innumerable, both small and great beasts; there shall the ships go, and shall not fear, not only the creeping things innumerable, and beasts both small and great, but not even the serpent which is there; "whom Thou," he speaketh unto God, "' hast made to make sport of him." This is a great mystery ; and yet I am about to utter what ye already know. Ye know that a certain serpent is the enemy of the Church: ye have not seen him with the eyes of the flesh, but ye see him with the eyes of faith... . 36. This serpent then, our ancient enemy, glowing with rage, cunning in his wiles, is in the mighty sea. "Here is that Leviathan, whom Thou hast formed to make sport of him." Do thou now make sport of the serpent: for for this end was this serpent made. He falling by his own sin from the sublime realms of the heavens, and made devil instead of angel, received a certain region of his own in this
33:'- - » "So is the great and wide sea also ; wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts " (ver. 25). He speaketh of the sea as terrible. Snares creep in this world, and surprise the careless suddenly ; for who numbereth the temptations that creep? They creep, but beware, lest they snatch us away. Let us keep watch on the Wood; even in the water,# even on the waves, we are safe: let not Christ sleep, let not faith sleep; if He hath slept, let Him be awakened ; He will command the winds; He will calm the sea;5 the voyage will be ended, and we shall rejoice in our country. For I see in this terrible sea un-
1 Eph. iv. 22-24. 2 2 Cor. v. 17. 3 Ps, cxlvii, 13. 4 Some mss. add, "' On the cross let us sail; " but this may be a gloss.
5 Matt. viii. 24-26.