in this way then that God both knows and to be judged, are set far from their counsel; knows not Adam the sinner is not known, while the ungodly shall not rise again to judgand Abraham the faithful is known, is worthy, ment, because their way has perished, and they that is, of being known by God Who surely have already been judged by Him Who said : knows all things. The way of the righteous, The Father judge'h no man, but hath given all therefore, who are not to be judged is known judgment unto the Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, by God and this is why sinners, who are Who is blessed for ever and ever. Amen.

:

PSALM LIII. (LIV.).

For the end among the hymns, of the meaning follows: When the Ziphims came and said to of David when the Ziphims came and said to Saul: behold, is not David hid with us? Thus Saul: behold. is not David hid with us? David's betrayal by the Ziphims awaits for its Save me, O God, by Thy name, and judge interpretation the end. This shews that what me by Thy power. Hear my prayer, O God; was actually being done to David contained give ear unto the words of my mouth, and so on. a type of something yet to come; an innocent 1. The doctrines of the Gospel were well man is harassed by railing, a prophet is mocked known to holy and blessed David in his capa- by reviling words, one approved by God is decity of Prophet, and although it was under the manded for execution, a king is betrayed to his Law that he lived his bodily life, he yet ful- foe. So the Lord was betrayed to Herod and filled, as far as in him lay, the requirements Pilate by those very men in whose hands He of the Apostolic behest and justified the wit ought to have been safe. The Psalm then ness borne to him by God in the words: awaits the end for its interpretation, and finds I have found a man after My own heart, David, its meaning in the true David, in Whom is the the son of Jesse. He did not avenge himself end of the Law, that David who holds the keys upon his foes by war, he did not oppose force and opens with them the gate of knowledge, of arms to those that laid wait for him, but in fulfilling the things foretold of Him by after the pattern of the Lord, Whose name David.

and Whose meekness alike he foreshadowed,

3. The meaning of the proper name, accordwhen he was betrayed he entreated, when he ing to the exact sense of the Hebrew, affords was in danger he sang psalms, when he in- us no small assistance in interpreting the pascurred hatred he rejoiced; and for this cause sage. Ziphims mean what we call sprinklings he was found a man after God's own heart. of the face; these were called in Hebrew For although twelve legions of angels might Ziphims. Now, by the Law, sprinkling was have come to the help of the Lord in His a cleansing from sins; it purified the people hour of passion, yet that He might perfectly through faith by the sprinkling of blood, of fulfil His service of humble obedience, He sur- which this same blessed David thus speaks: rendered Himself to suffering and weakness, Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop and I shail only praying with the words: Father into Thy be cleansed; the Law, through faith, providing hands I commend My spirit 3. After the same as a temporary substitute, in the bloo l of whole pattern, David, whose actual sufferings pro- burnt-offerings, a type of the sprinkling with phetically foretold the future sufferings of the Lord, opposed not his enemies either by word or act; in obedience to the command of the Gospel, he would not render evil for evil, in imitation of his Master's meekness, in his affliction, in his betrayal, in his flight, he called upon the Lord and was content to use His weapons only in his contest with the ungodly.

2. Now to this Psalm is prefixed a title arising out of an historical event; but before the event is described we are instructed as to the scope, time and application of the incidents underlying it. First we have: For the end of the meaning of that David. Then there

* Acts xiii. 22 (cp. 1 Sam. xiii. 14), 3 St. Luke xxiii. 46.

But

the blood of the Lord, which was to be.
this people, like the people of the Ziphims,
being sprinkled on their face and not in their
faith, and receiving the cleansing drops on
their lips and not in their hearts, turned faith-
less and traitors towards their David, as God
had foretold by the Prophet: This people hon-
oureth Me with their tips, but their heart is far
from Me 5. They were ready to betray David
because, the faith of their heart being dead,
they had performed all the mystical ceremonies
of the Law with deceitful face.

The suffering of the Prophet David is, accord- from weakness, yet He liveth by the power of ing to the account we have given of the title, God, and again: For I am not ashamed of the a type of the Passion of our God and Lord Gospel: for it is the power of God unto salvation Jesus Christ. This is why his prayer also to every one that believeth8. For by the power corresponds in sense with the prayer of Him, of the Judgment human weakness is rescued Who being the Word was made flesh in such to bear God's name and nature; and thus wise that He Who suffered all things after the as the reward for His obedience He is exalted manner of man, in everything He said, spoke by the power of this judgment unto the saving after the manner of man; and He who bore the protection of God's name; whence He posinfirmities and took on Him the sins of men sesses both the Name and the Power of God. approached God in prayer with the humility Again, if the Prophet had begun this utterance proper to men. This interpretation, even in the way men generally speak, he would have though we be unwilling and slow to receive asked to be judged by mercy or kindness, not it, is required by the meaning and force of the by power. But judgment by power was a words, so that there can be no doubt that necessity in the case of One Who being the everything in the Psalm is uttered by David Son of God was born of a virgin to be Son of as His mouthpiece. For he says: Save me, Man, and Who now being Son of Man was O God, by Thy name. Thus prays in bodily to have the Name and power of the Son of humiliation, using the words of His own Pro- God restored to Him by the power of judgphet, the Oly-begotten Son of God, Who at ment. the same time was claiming again the glory 6. Next there follows: Hear my prayer, O which He had possessed before the ages. He God, give ear unto the words of my mouth. asks to be saved by the Name of God whereby The obvious thing for the Prophet to say was, He was called and wherein He was begotten, O God, hear me. But because he is speaking in order that the Name of God which rightly as the mouthpiece of Him, Who alone knew belonged to His former nature and kind might how to pray, we are given a constantly reiteravail to save Him in that body wherein Heated demand that prayer shall be heard. The had been born. words of St. Paul teach us that no man knows how he ought to pray: For we know not how to pray as we ought 9. Man in his weakness, therefore, has no right to demand that his prayer shall be heard: for even the teacher of the Gentiles does not know the true object and scope of prayer, and that, after the Lord had given a model. What we are shewn here is the perfect confidence of Him, Who alone

5. And because the whole of this passage is the utterance of One in the form of a servant-of a servant obedient unto the death of the Cross-which He took upon Him and for which He supplicates the saving help of the Name that belongs to God, and being sure of salvation by that Name, He immediately adds and judge Me by Thy power. For now, as the reward for His humility in emptying sees the Father, Who alone knows the Father, Himself and assuming the form of a servant, in the same humility in which He had assumed it, He was asking to resume the form which He shared with God, having saved to bear the Name of God that humanity in which as God He had obediently condescended to be born. And in order to teach us that the dignity of this Name whereby He prayed to be saved is something more than an empty title, He prays to be judged by the power of God. For a right award is the essential result of judgment, as the Scripture says: Becoming obedient unto death, yea, the death of the Cross. Wherefore also God highly exalted Him and gave unto Him the name which is above every name. Thus, first of all the name which is above every name is given unto Him; then next, this is a judgment of decisive force, because by the power of God, He, Who after being God had died as man, rose again from death as man to be God, as the Apostle says: He was crucified

6 Phil. ii. 8ff.

Who alone can pray the whole night throughthe Gospel tells us that the Lord continued all night in prayer-Who in the mirror of words has shewn us the true image of the deepest of all mysteries in the simple words we use in prayer. And so, in making the demand that His prayer should be heard, he added, in order to teach us that this was the prerogative of His perfect confidence: Give ear unto the words of My mouth. Now can any man suppose that it is a human confidence which can thus desire that the words of his mouth should be heard? Those words, for instance, in which we express the motions and instincts of the mind, either when anger inflames us, or hatred moves us to slander, or pain to complaint, when flattery makes us fawn, when hope of gain or shame of the truth begets the lie, or resentment over injury, the insult? Was there ever any man at all points so pure and patient in his life as not to be liable to these failings of human insta

bility? He alone could confidently desire this of God. For the Son of God is none other Who did no sin, in Whose mouth was nothan He Who is Son of Man, and Son of Man deceit, Who gave His back to the smiters, not in partial measure but born so, the Form Who turned not His cheek from the blow, of God divesting Itself of that which It was Who did not resent scorn and spitting, Who and becoming that which It was not, that never crossed the will of Him, to Whose Will so It might be born into a soul and body ordering it all He gave in 'all points glad of Its own. Hence He is both Son of God obedience. and Son of Man, hence both God and Man: 7. He has next added the reason why He in other words the Son of God was born with prays for His words to be heard: For strangers the attributes derived from human birth, the are risen up against Me and violent men have Nature of God condescending to assume the nasought after My soul; they have not set God ture of one born as man who is wholly moulded before their eyes. The Only-begotten Son of of soul and flesh. Wherefore strangers, when God, the Word of God and God the Word- they rise up against Him, and the mighty, when although assuredly He could Himself do all they seek after that soul of His, which in the things that the Father could, as He says: Gospels is often sad and cast down, set not God What things soever the Father doeth, the Son before their eyes, because God it was, and the also doeth in like manner, while the name Son of God existing from out the ages, that was describing the divine nature which was His born with the attributes of human nature, was inseparably involved the inseparable possession born as man, that is, with our body and our of divine power, yet in order that He might soul, by a virgin birth; the mighty and glorious present to us a perfect example of human works He wrought never opened their eyes humility. both prayed for and underwent all to the fact that the Son of Man Whose soul things that are the lot of man. Sharing in they were seeking had come to be man with our common weakness He prayed the Father a beginning of life after an eternal existence to save Him, so that He might teach us that as Son of God.

--

He was born man under all the conditions of 9. The introduction of a pause marks a man's infirmity. This is why He was hungry change of person. He no longer speaks but and thirsty, slept and was weary, shunned the is addressed. For now the prophetic utter

assemblies of the ungodly, was sad and wept, ance assumes a general character. Thus suffered and died. And it was in order to immediately after the prayer addressed to God, make it clear that He was subject to all these he has added, in order that the confidence conditions, not by His nature, but by as- of the speaker might be understood to have sumption, that when He had undergone them obtained what He was asking even in the all He rose again. Thus all His complaints in the Psalms spring from a mental state belonging to our nature. Nor must it cause surprise if we take the words of the Psalms in this sense, seeing that the Lord Himself testified, if we believe the Gospel, that the Psalms spiritually foretold His Passion.

very moment of asking: Behold, God is My helper and the Lord is the upholder of My soul. He has requited evil unto Mine enemies. To each separate petition he has assigned its proper result, thus teaching us both that God does not neglect to hear, and that to look for a pledge of His pitifulness in hearing our 8. Now they were strangers that rose up several petitions is not a thing unreasonable. against Him. For these are no sons of Abra- For to the words, For strangers are risen up ham, nor sons of God, but a brood of viners, against Me, the corresponding statement is: servants of sin, a Canaanitish seed, their father God is My helper; while with regard to and an Amorite and their mother a daughter of the violent have sought after My soul, the exact Heth, inheriting diabolical desires from the result of the hearing of His prayer is expressed devil their parent. Further it is the violent in the words: and the Lord is the upholder that seek after His soul; such as was Herod of My soul; lastly the statement, they have when he asked the chief priests where Christ not set God before their eyes, is appropriately should be born, such as was the whole syna- balanced by, He hath requited evil unto gogue when it bore false witness against Him. Mine enemies. Thus God both gives help But in deeming this soul to be of human against those that rise up, and upholds the nature and weakness they set not God before soul of His Holy One when it is sought by their eyes; for God had stooped from that the violent, and when He is not set before the estate wherein He abode as God, even to the eyes, nor considered by the ungodly, He rebeginnings of human birth; that is, He be- quites upon His enemies the very evils which came Son of Man Who before was the Son they had wrought; so that while without think

St. John v. 19.

2 Diapsalmus, see Suicer, s.v. and Dict. of Bible, Selah.