The Tenth Sunday after Trinity
Homily of Augustine on Psalm 49 Part II
Home, Tenth Sunday after Trinity
LET thy merciful ears, O Lord, be open to the prayers of thy humble servants; and, that they may obtain their petitions, make them to ask such things as shall please thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Source of Collect: Gelasian Sacramentary [492-496] and one similar appeared before in the Sacrementary of Leo. The petition reminds one of Romans: Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. Latin [Barber & Zahl]"8:26-27
Psalms 61, 62 | 48, 49
, 1 Corinthians xii. 1
& St. Luke xix. 41
Homily of Augustine on Psalm XLIX Part II
1 Corinthians xii. 1.
CONCERNING spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant. Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led. Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to an other the interpretation of tongues: but all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.St. Luke xix. 41
AND when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation. And he went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought; saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves.Scripture from 1928 Book of Common Prayer
Psalm XLVIII Part II
The Second Part.
Notes:
Latin
Leo
1. "Like sheep laid in hell, death is their shepherd" (ver. 14). Whose?
Of those whose way is a stumbling-block to themselves. Whose? Of those
who mind only things present, while they think not of things future: of
those who think not of any life, but of that which must be called
death. Not without cause, then, like sheep in hell, have they death to
their shepherd. What meaneth, "they have death to their shepherd"? For
is death either some thing or some power? Yea, death is either the
separation of the soul from the body, or a separation of the soul from
God, [1648] and that indeed which men fear is the separation of the
soul from the body: but the real death, which men do not fear, is the
separation of the soul from God. And ofttimes when men fear that which
doth separate the soul from the body, they fall into that wherein the
soul is separated from God. This then is death. But how is "death their
shepherd"? If Christ is life, the devil is death. But we read in many
places in Scripture, how that Christ is life. But the devil is death,
not because he is himself death, but because through him is death. For
whether that (death) wherein Adam fell was given man to drink by the
persuasion of him: or whether that wherein the soul is separated from
the body, still they have him for the author thereof, who first falling
through pride envied him who stood, and overthrew him who stood with an
invisible death, in order that he might have to pay [1649] the visible
death. They who belong to him have death to their shepherd: but we who
think of future immortality, and not without reason do wear the sign of
the Cross of Christ on the forehead, have no shepherd but life. Of
unbelievers death is the shepherd, of believers life is the shepherd.
If then in hell are the sheep, whose shepherd is death, in heaven are
the sheep, whose shepherd is life. What then? Are we now in heaven? In
heaven we are by faith. For if not in heaven, where is the "Lift up
your heart"? If not in heaven, whence with the Apostle Paul, "For our
conversation is in heaven"? [1650] In body we walk on earth, in heart
we dwell in heaven. We dwell there, if thither we send anything which
holdeth us there. For no one dwelleth in heart, save where thought is:
but there his thought is, where his treasure is. He hath treasured on
earth, his heart doth not withdraw from earth: he hath treasured in
heaven, his heart from heaven doth not come down: for the Lord saith
plainly, "Where thy treasure is, there will thy heart be also." [1651]
2. They, then, whose shepherd is death, seem to flourish for a time,
and the righteous to labour: but why? Because it is yet night. What
meaneth, it is night? The merits of the righteous appear not, and the
felicity of the unrighteous hath, as it were, a name. So long as it is
winter, grass appeareth more verdant than a tree. For grass flourisheth
through the winter, a tree is as it were dry through the winter: when
in summer time the sun hath come forth with greater heat, the tree,
which seemed dry through the winter, is bursting with leaves, and
putteth forth fruits, but the grass withereth: thou wilt see the honour
of the tree, the grass is dried. So also now the righteous labour,
before that summer cometh. There is life in the root, it doth not yet
appear in the branches. But our root is love. And what saith the
Apostle? That we ought to have our root above, in order that life may
be our shepherd, because our dwelling ought not to quit heaven, because
in this earth we ought to walk as if dead; so that living above, below
we may be dead; not so as that being dead above, we may live
below....Our labour shall appear in the morning, and there shall be
fruit in the morning: so that they that now labour shall hereafter
reign, and they that now boast them and are proud, shall hereafter be
brought under. For what followeth? "Like sheep laid in hell, death is
their shepherd; and the righteous shall reign over them in the
morning."
3. Endure thou the night, yearn for the morning. Think not because the
night hath life, the morning too hath not life. Doth then he that
sleepeth live, and he that riseth live not? Is not he that sleepeth
more like death? [1652] And who are they that sleep? They whom the
Apostle Paul rouseth, if they choose but to awake. For to certain he
saith, "Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ
shall give thee light." [1653] They then that are lightened by Christ
watch now, but the fruit of their watchings appeareth not yet: in the
morning it shall appear, that is, when doubtful things of this world
shall have passed away. For these are very night: for do they not
appear to thee like darkness?...But they on whom men have trampled, and
who were ridiculed for believing, shall hear from Life Itself, whom
they have for shepherd, "Come, ye blessed of My Father, receive the
kingdom which was prepared for you from the foundation of the world."
Therefore the righteous "shall reign over them," not now, but "in the
morning." Let no one say, Wherefore am I a Christian? I rule no one,
[1654] I would rule the wicked. Be not in haste, thou shalt reign, but
"in the morning." "And the help of them shall grow old in hell from
their glory." Now they have glory, in hell they shall grow old. What is
"the help of them"? Help from money, help from friends, help from their
own might. But when a man shall be dead, "in that day shall perish all
his thoughts." [1655] How great glory he seemed to have among men,
while he lived, so great oldness and decay of punishments shall he
have, when he shall be dead in hell.
4. "Nevertheless, God shall redeem my soul" (ver. 15). Behold the voice
of one hoping in the future: "Nevertheless, God shall redeem my soul."
[1656] Perhaps it is the voice of one still wishing to be relieved from
oppression. Some one is in prison, he saith, "God shall redeem my
soul:" some one is in bond, "God shall redeem my soul:" some one is
suffering peril by sea, is being tossed by waves and raging tempests,
what saith he? "God shall redeem my soul." They would be delivered for
the sake of this life. Not such is the voice of this man. Hear what
followeth: "God shall redeem my soul from the hand of hell, when He
shall have received me." He is speaking of this redemption, which
Christ now showeth in Himself. For He hath descended into hell, and
hath ascended into heaven. What we have seen in the Head we have found
in the Body. For what we have believed in the Head, they that have
seen, have themselves told us, and by themselves we have seen: "For we
are" all "one body." [1657] But are they better that hear, we worse to
whom it hath been told? Not so saith The Life Itself, Our Shepherd
Himself. For He rebuketh a certain disciple of His, doubting and
desiring to handle His scars, and when he had handled the scars and had
cried out, saying, "My Lord and my God," [1658] seeing His disciple
doubting, and looking to the whole world about to believe, "Because
thou hast seen Me," He saith, "thou hast believed: blessed are they
that see not, and believe." "But God shall redeem my soul from the land
of hell, when He hath received me." Here then what? Labour, oppression,
tribulation, temptation: expect nothing else. Where joy? In future
hope....
5. ...Perchance thy heart saith, Wretch that I am, I suppose to no
purpose I have believed, God doth not regard things human. God
therefore doth awaken us: and He saith what? "Fear not, though a man
have become rich" (ver. 16). For why didst thou fear, because a man
hath become rich? Thou didst fear that thou hadst believed to no
purpose, that perchance thou shouldest have lost the labour for thy
faith, and the hope of thy conversion: because perchance there hath
come in thy way gain with guilt, and thou couldest have been rich, if
thou hadst seized upon that same gain with the guilt, and neededst not
have laboured; and thou, remembering what God hath threatened, hast
refrained from guilt, and hast contemned the gain: thou seest another
man that hath made gain by guilt, and hath suffered no harm; and thou
fearest to be good. "Fear not," saith the Spirit of God to thee,
"though a man shall have become rich." Wouldest thou not have eyes but
for things present? Things future He hath promised, who hath risen
again; peace in this world, and repose in this life, He hath not
promised. Every man doth seek repose; a good thing he is seeking, but
not in the proper region thereof he is seeking it. There is no peace in
this life; in Heaven hath been promised that which on earth we are
seeking: in the world to come hath been promised that which in this
world we are seeking.
6. "Fear not, though a man be made rich, and though the glory of his
house be multiplied." Wherefore "fear not"? "For when he shall die, he
shall not receive anything" (ver. 17). Thou seest him living, consider
him dying. Thou markest what he hath here, mark what he taketh with
him. What doth he take with him? He hath store of gold, he hath store
of silver, numerous estates, slaves: he dieth, these remain, he knoweth
not for whom. For though he leaveth them for whom he will, he keepeth
them not for whom he will. For many have gained even what was not left
them, and many have lost what was left them. All these things then
remain, and he taketh with him what? Perhaps some one saith, He taketh
that with him in which he is wound, and that which is expended upon him
for a costly and marble tomb, to erect a monument, this he taketh with
him. I say, not even this. For these things are presented to him
without his feeling them. If thou deckest a man sleeping and not awake,
he hath the decorations with him on the couch: perhaps the decorations
are resting upon the body of him as he lieth, and perhaps he seeth
himself in tatters during sleep. What he feeleth is more to him than
what he feeleth not. Though even this when he shall have awaked will
not be: yet to him sleeping, that which he saw in sleep was more than
that which he felt not. Why then, brethren, should [1659] men say to
themselves, Let money be spent at my death: why do I leave my heirs
rich? Many things will they have of mine, let me too have something of
my own for my body. What shall a dead body have? what shall rotting
flesh have? what shall flesh not feeling have? If that rich man had
anything, whose tongue was dry, then man hath something of his own. My
brethren, do we read in the Gospel, that this rich man appeared in the
fire with all-silken and fine-linen coverings? Was he of such sort in
hell as he was in feastings at table? When he thirsted and desired a
drop, all those things were not there. Therefore man carrieth not with
him anything, nor doth the dead take with him that which the burial
taketh. For where feeling is, there is the man; where is no feeling,
the man is not. There lieth fallen the vessel which contained the man,
the house which held the man. The body let us call the house, the
spirit let us call the inhabitant of the house. The spirit is tormented
in hell: what doth it profit him, that the body lieth in spices and
perfumes, wound in costly linens? just as if the master of the house
should be sent into banishment, and thou shouldest garnish the walls of
his house. He in banishment is in need, and doth faint with hunger, he
scarce findeth to himself one hovel where he may snatch a sleep, and
thou sayest, "Happy is he, for his house hath been garnished." Who
would not judge that thou wast either jesting or wast mad? Thou dost
garnish the body, the spirit is tormented. Give something to the
spirit, and ye have given something to the dead man. But what wilt thou
give him, when he desired one drop, and received not? For the man
scorned to send before him anything. Wherefore scorned? "because this
their way is a stumbling-block to them." [1660] He minded not any but
the present life, he thought not but how he might be buried, wound in
costly vestments. His soul was taken from him, as the Lord saith: "Thou
fool, this night thy soul shall be taken from thee, and whose shall
those things be which thou hast provided?" [1661] And that is fulfilled
which this Psalm saith: "Fear not, though a man be made rich, and
though the glory of his house be multiplied: for when he shall die he
shall not receive anything, nor shall his glory descend together with
him."
7. Let your love observe: "For his soul shall be blessed in his life"
(ver. 18). As long as he lived he did well for himself. This all men
say, but say falsely. It is a blessing from the mind of the blesser,
not from the truth itself. For what sayest thou? Because he ate and
drank, because he did what he chose, because he feasted sumptuously,
therefore he did well with himself. I say, he did ill for himself. Not
I say, but Christ. He did ill for himself. For that rich man, when he
feasted sumptuously every day, was supposed to do well with himself:
but when he began to burn in hell, then that which was supposed to be
well was found to be ill. For what he had eaten with men above, [1662]
he digested in hell beneath. Unrighteousness I mean, brethren, on which
he used to feast. He used to eat costly banquets with the mouth of
flesh, with his heart's mouth he used to eat unrighteousness. What he
ate with his heart's mouth with men above, this he digested amid those
punishments in the places beneath. And verily he had eaten for a time,
he digested ill for everlasting. Is then unrighteousness eaten? perhaps
some one saith: what is it that he saith? Unrighteousness eaten? It is
not I that say: hear the Scripture: "As a sour grape is vexation to the
teeth, and smoke to the eyes, so is unrighteousness to them that use
it." [1663] For he that shall have eaten unrighteousness, that is, he
that shall have had unrighteousness wilfully, shall not be able to eat
righteousness. For righteousness is bread. Who is bread? "I am the
living bread which came down from heaven." [1664] Himself is the bread
of our heart....Is then even righteousness eaten? If it were not eaten,
the Lord would not have said, "Blessed are they which do hunger and
thirst after righteousness." [1665] Therefore "since his soul shall be
blessed in life," in life it "shall" be blessed, in death it shall be
tormented....
8. "He shall confess to Thee, when Thou shalt have done him good." Be
not of such sort, brethren: see ye how that to this end we say these
words, to this end we sing, to this end we treat, to this end toil--do
not these things. Your business doth prove you: sometimes in your
business ye hear the truth, and ye blaspheme. The Church ye blaspheme.
Wherefore? Because ye are Christians. "If so it be, I betake myself to
Donatus's party: I will be a heathen." [1666] Wherefore? Because thou
hast eaten bread, and the teeth are in pain. When thou sawest the bread
itself, thou didst praise; thou beginnest to eat, and the teeth are in
pain; that is, when thou wast hearing the Word of God thou didst
praise: when it is said to thee, "Do this," thou blasphemest: do not so
ill: say this, "The bread is good, but I cannot eat it." But now if
thou seest with the eyes, thou praisest: when thou beginnest to close
the teeth thou sayest, "Bad is this bread, and like him that made it."
So it cometh to pass that thou confessest to God, when God doeth thee
good and thou liest when thou singest, "I will alway bless God, His
praise is ever in my mouth." [1667] How alway? If alway gain, alway He
is blessed: if sometime there is loss, He is not blessed, but
blasphemed. Forsooth thou blessest alway, forsooth His praise is ever
in thy mouth! Thou wilt be such as just now he describeth: "He will
confess to Thee, when Thou shalt have done him good."
9. "He shall enter even unto the generations of his fathers" (ver. 19):
that is, he shall imitate his fathers. For the unrighteous, that now
are, have brothers, have fathers. Unrighteous men of old, are the
fathers of the present; and they that are now unrighteous, are the
fathers of unrighteous posterity: just as the fathers of the righteous,
the righteous of old, are the fathers of the righteous that now are;
and they that now are, are the fathers of them that are to be. The Holy
Spirit hath willed to show that righteousness is not evil when men
murmur against her: but these men have their father from the beginning,
even to the generation of their fathers. Two men Adam begat, and in one
was unrighteousness, in one was righteousness: unrighteousness in Cain,
righteousness in Abel. [1668] Unrighteousness seemed to prevail over
righteousness, because Cain unrighteous slew Abel righteous [1669] in
the night. Is it so in the morning? Nay, "but the righteous shall reign
over them in the morning." [1670] The morning shall come, and it shall
be seen where Abel is, and where Cain. So all men who are after Cain,
and so all who are after Abel, even unto the end of the world. "He
shall enter even unto the generations of his fathers: even to eternity
he shall not see light." Because even when he was here, he was in
darkness, taking pleasure in false goods, and not loving real goods:
even so he shall go hence into hell: from the darkness of his dreams
the darkness of torments shall receive him. Therefore, "even to
eternity he shall not see light."
But wherefore this? What he hath written in the middle of the Psalm,
[1671] the same also he hath writ at the end: "Man, though he was in
honour, understood not, was compared to the beasts without sense, and
was made like to them" (ver. 20). But ye, brethren, consider that ye be
men made after the image and likeness of God. The image [1672] of God
is within, is not in the body; is not in these ears which ye see, and
eyes, and nostrils, and palate, and hands, and feet; but is made
nevertheless: [1673] wherein is the intellect, wherein is the mind,
wherein the power of discovering truth, wherein is faith, wherein is
your hope, wherein your charity, there God hath His Image: there at
least ye perceive and see that these things pass away; for so he hath
said in another Psalm, "Though man walketh in an image, yet he is
disquieted in vain: he heapeth up treasures, and knoweth not for whom
he shall gather them." [1674] Be not disquieted, for of whatsoever kind
these things be, they are transitory, if ye are men who being in honour
understand. For if being men in honour ye understand not, ye are
compared to the beasts without sense, and are made like to them.
Let us pray in the words of Augustine.
Turn we to the Lord God, the Father Almighty, and with pure hearts offer to him, so far as our
meanness can, great and true thanks, with all our hearts praying his exceeding kindness, that of
his good pleasure he would deign to hear our prayers, that by his Power he would drive out the
enemy from our deeds and thoughts, that he would increase our faith, guide our understandings,
give us spiritual thoughts, and lead us to his bliss, through Jesus Christ his Son our Lord, who
liveth and reigneth with him, in the Unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
[A prayer which he was wont to use after his Sermons and Lectures.]
NPNF (V1-08) St. Augustine
[1648] Oxf. mss. add, "or a separation of the soul from God."
[1649] Al. "destroy him with the visible death."
[1650] Philip. iii. 20.
[1651] Matt. vi. 12.
[1652] Or, "a dead person."
[1653] Eph. v. 14.
[1654] Most mss. omit, "I rule no one." See Ser. 72, ad. Fr. in Erem.
[1655] Ps. cxlvi. 4.
[1656] [Compare ver. 7, p. 171, supra.--C.]
[1657] Rom. xii. 5.
[1658] John xx. 28.
[1659] Oxf. mss. "do."
[1660] Ps. xlix. 13.
[1661] Luke xii. 20.
[1662] Apud superos.
[1663] Prov. x. 26.
[1664] John vi. 51.
[1665] Matt. v. 6.
[1666] Those who became Donatists declared themselves not yet
Christians, in order to be rebaptized.
[1667] Ps. xxxiv. 1.
[1668] 1 John iii. 12.
[1669] Gen. iv. 8.
[1670] Ps. xlix. 14.
[1671] Ps. xlix. 12.
[1672] Gen. i. 26.
[1673] Most mss. "made a mind."
[1674] Ps. xxxix. 6.
_
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As Gelasius published it
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