Bellarmine on Psalm 142: Verse 2

Today, we continue with St Robert Bellarmine's commentary on Psalm 142, the last of the Seven Penitential Psalms.

The Latin is reproduced courtesy of the Digital Collection site  - UANL and is accompanied by my fairly literal translation. The Scripture excerpts (Douay Rheims/Vulgate) are taken from the DRBO site but the verse numbering follows that of Bellarmine’s Latin text.

Where footnotes are included, the text follows each section.

Verse 2

And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight no man living shall be justified.

Et non intres in judicium cum servo tuo, quia non justificabitur in conspectu tuo omnis vivens.

He has been seeking pardon for his sin based on the promise of God’s faithfulness; he adds now another reason based on the condition and weakness of the human race. “And enter not into judgment with thy servant,” that is, do not strive against me in judgement; for I shall not attempt to resist, neither shall I call myself just, but rather I shall confess my sin. “For in thy sight no man living shall be justified,” that is, not I alone but every person living shall fail in his cause if he chooses to contend with Thee in judgement. For every living person is either a sinner, or a just person still on earth or a just person in heaven. Those who are sinners , such as murderers, adulterers and the like, could be justified in the yes of men, from whom the crimes of others are often hidden, or which are incapable of juridical proof; but in the eyes of God they will not justified, because God sees inside their hearts and consciences, and He convicts them by the testimony of their own conscience. Those just persons who arestill on earth will not be justified in the sigh of God because they will not dare to justify themselves; but they will say with the Apostle: “ For I am not conscious to myself of any thing, yet am I not hereby justified; but he that judgeth me, is the Lord:”[1] for perhaps He sees  

in me that which I do not see; and along with Job I ought to say: “ Although I should have any just thing, would not answer, but would make supplication to my judge.”[2]  Again, they will not be justified “in the sight of God” since they understand their justice was not acquired as a result of their own efforts but was given to them by God, and so they will not justify themselves in God’s presence, as if they were of themselves just, but they will give thanks to the one who executes judgement. Finally, they will not be justified “in God’s sight” because, even though they might be just, for they are free from grave sin, they nevertheless consider themselves to be sinners because they are not free from daily sins, and they say together with the Saints: “Forgive us our debts;”[3] and “ If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, (we deceive ourselves).”[4]

[1] For I am not conscious to myself of any thing, yet am I not hereby justified; but he that judgeth me, is the Lord. Nihil enim mihi conscius sum, sed non in hoc justificatus sum : qui autem judicat me, Dominus est. [I Cor. iv. 4]
[2] I, who although I should have any just thing, would not answer, but would make supplication to my judge. Qui, etiam si habuero quippiam justum, non respondebo : sed meum judicem deprecabor. [Job ix. 15]
[3] And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. et dimitte nobis debita nostra, sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. [Matt. vi. 12] 
[4] If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. Si dixerimus quoniam non peccavimus, mendacem facimus eum, et verbum ejus non est in nobis. [I Ioan. i.10]

The just who are in heaven are not only free from serious and venial sins but are also unable to be defiled by sin any more; they will not be justified “ in thy sight” firstly, because they do not attribute their justice to themselves but to God, from whom they receive it; secondly, because God’s purity is so great that all other justice seems in comparison to be an injustice. “And the stars are not pure in his sight.”[1] Now, because the Lutheran and Calvinist heretics seek to prove from this text that there is no true justice in a justified man, but only imputed justice, and all the works of the just are mortal sins and deserving of eternal punishment, if they were imputed thus by God, it should be noted that David did not say there was no truly just man, but on the contrary he said in Psalm xvii: “And the Lord will reward me according to my justice; and will repay me according to the cleanness of my hands: Because I have kept the ways of the Lord; and have not done wickedly against my God.  … And I shall be spotless with him:” etc;[2] and see Psalm cxviii: “ Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.”[3] And the same David did not say in this text: no man will truly be justified, but, will not be justified in Thy

sight;  which the Fathers understand either as meaning that the justice of these same just is indeed true justice but it is not from them, as though acquired through their own powers, but given freely by God; as St Augustine understands this text; or,  the justice of these same just is true but it is not pure, as it is tainted by venial sins: this is the reading of St. Gregory and of St. Jerome in his epistle to Ctesiphontes, and of St. Augustine in his book De Perfectione justitiae; or, finally, even if their justice is absolutely true and pure, compared to the uncreated and infinite justice of God, it does not appear to be justice, in the same way that the light from a lamp does not shine in the presence of the sun. This is the reading of St. Hilary, St. Jerome and others on this text, as well as St. Bernard in his serm. 5 De Verbis Isaiæ. And this is what we read in Job iv: “Shall man be justified in comparison of God?”[4] and in chapter ix: “Indeed I know it is so, and that man cannot be justified compared with God.”[5] On this text see St. Augustine in his book ad Orosium against the Priscillianists and the Origenists, chapter x.

[1] Behold even the moon doth not shine, and the stars are not pure in his sight. Ecce luna etiam non splendet, et stellae non sunt mundae in conspectu ejus : [Job. Xxv. 5]
[2] And the Lord will reward me according to my justice; and will repay me according to the cleanness of my hands: Because I have kept the ways of the Lord; and have not done wickedly against my God. For till his judgments are in my sight: and his justices I have not put away from me. And I shall be spotless with him: and shall keep myself from my iniquity. And the Lord will reward me according to my justice; and according to the cleanness of my hands before his eyes. et retribuet mihi Dominus secundum justitiam meam, et secundum puritatem manuum mearum retribuet mihi; quia custodivi vias Domini, nec impie gessi a Deo meo; quoniam omnia judicia ejus in conspectu meo, et justitias ejus non repuli a me. Et ero immaculatus cum eo; et observabo me ab iniquitate mea. Et retribuet mihi Dominus secundum justitiam meam, et secundum puritatem manuum mearum in conspectu oculorum ejus.  [Ps. Xvii 21-25]
[3] Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord. Beati immaculati in via, qui ambulant in lege Domini. [Ps. Cxviii. 1]
[4] Shall man be justified in comparison of God, or shall a man be more pure than his maker? Numquid homo, Dei comparatione, justificabitur? aut factore suo purior erit vir? [Job iv. 17]

[5] Indeed I know it is so, and that man cannot be justified compared with God. Vere scio quod ita sit, et quod non justificetur homo compositus Deo. [Job. ix. 2] 

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.