Psalm 109 (after Bellarmine)

David introduces the Psalms. Master Jean de Mandeville,
(French, active 1350 - 1370) [Getty Museum]

We continue to build the pages of the Little Office website. Below is Psalm 109, from Vespers, with notes based on St Robert Bellarmine's explanations.

Totus tuus ego sum 
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum tutus semper sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam

[ ]  Footnotes are not hyperlinked but refer to the notes after the Psalm.

Psalmus 109

Dixit Dominus. Christ's exaltation and everlasting priesthood.

[1] Dixit Dóminus Dómino meo: * [1a] Sede a dextris meis:
The Lord said to my Lord: * Sit thou at my right hand:

[1b] Donec ponam inimícos tuos, * scabéllum pedum tuórum.
Until I make thy enemies * thy footstool.

[2]Virgam virtútis tuæ emíttet Dóminus ex Sion: *[2a] domináre in médio inimicórum tuórum.
The Lord will send forth the sceptre of thy power out of Sion: * rule thou in the midst of thy enemies.

[3] Tecum princípium in die virtútis tuæ in splendóribus sanctórum: *[3a] ex útero ante lucíferum génui te.
With thee is the principality in the day of thy strength: in the brightness of the saints: * from the womb before the day star I begot thee.

[4] Jurávit Dóminus, et non pœnitébit eum: * Tu es sacérdos in ætérnum secúndum órdinem Melchísedech.
The Lord hath sworn, and he will not repent: * Thou art a priest for ever according to the order of Melchisedech.

[5] Dóminus a dextris tuis, * confrégit in die iræ suæ reges.
The Lord at thy right hand * hath broken kings in the day of his wrath.

[6] Judicábit in natiónibus, implébit ruínas: * conquassábit cápita in terra multórum.
He shall judge among nations, he shall fill ruins: * he shall crush the heads in the land of many.

[7] De torrénte in via bibet: * proptérea exaltábit caput.
He shall drink of the torrent in the way: * therefore shall he lift up the head.

Notes

[1] Dixit Dóminus Dómino meo: * [1a] Sede a dextris meis:
The Lord said to my Lord: * Sit thou at my right hand:
[1b] Donec ponam inimícos tuos, * scabéllum pedum tuórum.
Until I make thy enemies * thy footstool.

David, in spirit, saw the Messias ascending into heaven after his death and resurrection, and tells us the language the Father made use of when he invited him to sit beside him and reign along with him. He makes use of the past tense, “the Lord said,” instead of the future; because, in the spirit of prophecy, he looks upon the matter as a thing of the past. “The Lord said,” God the Father said, “to my Lord,” to Christ, for it cannot apply to Abraham or Ezechias, as some of the Jews will have it, neither of whom sat on the right hand of the Father, nor were they begot from the womb before the day star, nor were they priests according to the order of Melchisedech; and, furthermore, when this passage was quoted by Christ when arguing with the Jews, they did not attempt to question its reference to the Messias.
[1a] “Sit thou at my right hand.” Sitting denotes peace and supreme power, which Christ was to enjoy; and sitting “at my right hand, denotes equality, and an equal share in that supreme power enjoyed by God the Father. Christ, as far as his divine nature was concerned, had that equality at all times, but he only got it as regards his human nature after his humiliation unto death, even to the death of the cross, as St. Paul says, “Wherefore God also hath exalted him, and hath given him a name which is above every name, that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow of those that are in heaven, on earth, and in hell, and that every tongue should confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father.” Sitting on the right hand of God, then, is the same as being in the glory and the majesty of God, and that glory consists in having a name above every name, at which every knee shall bend; for, as the same Apostle has it, “He must reign until he hath put all enemies under his feet;” when the Apostle proves that the expression “sit thou at my right hand” means nothing more or less than share my sovereign power.
The same Apostle, Heb. 1, has, “For to which of the Angels hath he said at any time, sit on my right hand? Are they not all ministering spirits sent to minister?” Thus proving the difference between Christ and the Angels, from the fact of the latter being merely ministers and servants, and, therefore, not allowed to sit, but obliged to stand, in readiness for the execution of their Lord’s commands; while Christ, as Lord and King, sits with his Father above all creatures.
Finally, St. Peter, Acts 2, says, “Being exalted, therefore, by the right hand of God, he hath poured forth this which you see and hear; for David did not ascend into heaven, but he himself said, The Lord said to any Lord, sit thou at my right hand, until I make thy enemies thy footstool. Therefore, let all the house of Israel know most assuredly that God hath made him Lord and Christ, this same Jesus whom you have crucified.” St. Peter clearly says here that “sitting at the right hand of God” means his having ascended into heaven, and ruling and governing in all places as God only can rule and govern.
[1b] “Until I make thy enemies thy footstool.” The kingdom of Christ, then, is never to have an end, nor is there any danger of its being subverted by its enemies, God having determined to bring them all under subjection by degrees, that Christ may then reign peaceably forever after. The word, then, “until,” does not imply that Christ’s reign was only to hold until his enemies should be subjected; but it means that his kingdom would be always extended more and more until as much as one single enemy not bowing the knee to him would not remain; as if he said, in other words, Come on ruling with me, and cease not extending our kingdom so long as one solitary enemy shall remain uunconquered. That extension of Christ’s kingdom is daily going on through the conversion of some to faith and obedience, who willingly put themselves under Christ’s feet, that he may rest in them as he would on a footstool, and who, after finishing their exile, set out for their country, where they felicitously rest in God: others have either been perverted, or have got hardened in their perversity and are, in the end, hurried away by death to judgment, and, on being condemned, are consigned to hell, where they are, for all eternity, trampled under the feet of Christ. The extension of Christ’s kingdom will be completed on the last day, when every knee shall bend of those that are in heaven, on earth, and in hell, to Christ. But why is the assertion “until I make” attributed to the Father? does not the Son, too, “make thy enemies thy footstool?” Everything done by the Father is also done by the Son, as he himself asserts; but the Father is made to act here, in order, as it were, to reward the obedience of the Son, as the Apostle says, “Wherefore, God also hath exalted him.” With that, everything implying power is usually attributed to the Father, though the Son has the same power, because the Father shares it with him, though the Son cannot share it with the Father, he having had it from the Father by generation. The Son also, as man, enjoys it but by virtue of the hypostatic union. The part the Son takes in subduing the common enemy will be treated of in the next verse.

[2]Virgam virtútis tuæ emíttet Dóminus ex Sion: *[2a] domináre in médio inimicórum tuórum.
The Lord will send forth the sceptre of thy power out of Sion: * rule thou in the midst of thy enemies.

David having, in spirit, heard the Father saying to the Son, “Sit thou at my right hand,” now addresses the Son, and, in the same spirit of prophecy, shows how the propagation of Christ’s kingdom on earth was to be commenced. “The Lord will send forth the scepter of thy power out of Sion;” that is, God the Father, in order to put your enemies under your feet, will begin to extend the sceptre of your royal power out of the city of Jerusalem, and to extend it from Mount Sion, and propagate it to the remotest corners of the earth. This corresponds with the language of our Lord after his resurrection. “And thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise again from the dead on the third day, and that penance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” And in the first chapter of the Acts, “And you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the uttermost part of the earth.” The sceptre of his power was sent out of Sion, as if it grew on that mountain; for it was in Jerusalem that the spiritual kingdom of Christ commenced, as there were the first believers, and there the faith began to be propagated by the Apostles.
[2a] “Rule thou in the midst of thy enemies.” All success, triumph, and happiness to you on the way; extend your kingdom to all nations; carry the banner of your cross in the midst of Jews and pagans; plant it where they are thickest and strongest; “rule everywhere in the midst of them;” and in spite of them, and in opposition to them, set up your kingdom. That was very soon accomplished; for within a few years, in spite of both Jews and pagans, many Christian churches were established, for the Apostle writes to the Colossians, chap. 1, “The truth of the Gospel is in the whole world, and bringeth forth fruit and groweth;” and St. Ireneus, who lived in the century next the Apostles, writes, “The Church has been planted through the entire world, even to the ends of the earth;” and he specifies the Churches of Germany, Spain, Lybia, Egypt, France, the East, and the churches he calls those in the middle of the world, meaning Greece and Italy.
The Psalm most appropriately adds, “in the midst of thy enemies;” because, however prosperous and triumphant the Church may be, she will always be surrounded by enemies—by pagans, Jews, heretics, and bad Christians—as long as she sojourns here below. But at the end of the world, when the good shall come to be separated from the bad, the kingdom of Christ will be no longer in the midst of her enemies, but will rise above, and be exalted over all her enemies.

[3] Tecum princípium in die virtútis tuæ in splendóribus sanctórum: *[3a] ex útero ante lucíferum génui te.
With thee is the principality in the day of thy strength: in the brightness of the saints: * from the womb before the day star I begot thee.

Having said, “Rule thou in the midst of thy enemies,” which meant at the time that Christ’s kingdom in this world was besieged by his enemies, he now tells us how matters will be on the last day, when all his enemies shall have been subdued, and made his footstool. “With thee is the principality in the day of thy strength;” your power or principality will then be evident to all, and it will be seen that yours is the kingdom. “In the day of thy strength;” on the last day, when your strength will move the heavens, darken the sun, shake the earth, raise the dead, and summon all to your tribunal. “In the brightness of thy saints;” when you shall be surrounded by your saints, who will shine like the sun. [3a] “From the womb, before the day star, I begot thee;” you will have such a principality with you, because I, your Almighty Father, “begot you,” not as I did all other created things, from nothing, but “from the womb,” from my own womb, as my true, natural, and consubstantial Son, and that “before the day star,” before I created the stars, before any creature, before all ages. “From the womb.” The holy fathers very properly use this expression as a proof of the divinity of Christ; for, if he were a [4a] creature, he could not be said to be born of the womb, for no one can say that a house, or a seat, or anything manufactured, is born of the womb; nor does God anywhere say that the heavens or the earth were born of the womb. By the womb is meant the secret and intimate essence of the Deity; and, though the womb is to be found in woman only, still it is applied to the Father, to show more clearly the consubstantiality of the Son with him, as also to show that God needed not the cooperation of woman to bring forth and produce. Himself begot and gave birth. As Isaias says, “Shall not I, that made others to bring forth children, myself bring forth, saith the Lord.”—”Before the day star.” Here we have a proof of the eternity of Christ; for he was born before the day star, and, consequently, before all created things; but he named the day star, for he himself, as the Son of God, is the increate light. For he is the true light, that enlighteneth every man and Angel.

[4] Jurávit Dóminus, et non pœnitébit eum: *[4a] Tu es sacérdos in ætérnum secúndum órdinem Melchísedech.
The Lord hath sworn, and he will not repent: * Thou art a priest for ever according to the order of Melchisedech.

He now passes from the regal to the sacerdotal dignity, and shows that Christ is a priest forever, not by reason of his succeeding to Aaron, but as a priest immediately appointed by God, and of whom Melchisedech was a type. “The Lord hath sworn,” hath confirmed his promise by an oath, “and he will not repent;” firmly resolved upon it, a resolution he will never alter; and that is, that though the priesthood of Aaron was to be changed, that of Christ’s never would. God is said to be sorry, a thing he cannot be subject to, when he acts as men do who are sorry for anything; thus, God says in Genesis, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, from man even to the fowls of the air, for it repenteth me that I have made them.” And, again, in 1 Kings 15, the Lord says, “It repenteth me that I have made Saul king.”—”
[4a] Thou art a priest forever.” These are the words of the Father to the Son, and not of David, as St. Paul reasserts in Heb. 5. Now Christ is said to be a priest forever, because the effect of the one sacrifice in which he offered his body on the cross holds forever, as the Apostle, in Heb. 10 has it, “For by one oblation he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified;” as also, because he, living forever, daily, through the hands of the priests of his Church, who succeed each other, offers a sacrifice to which the Apostle alludes, when he says, “And the others indeed were made many priests, because, by reason of death, they were not suffered to continue; but this, for that he continueth forever, hath an everlasting priesthood.”—”According to the order of Melchisedech;” that is, the rite, law, or custom of Melchisedech, whose order is distinguished from that of Aaron, and from which it differs in many respects.
(1) Melchisedech succeeded no priest, nor had he a successor; and, thus, the Apostle says of him, “without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life.” While in the priesthood of Aaron one succeeded another, the son supplied the father’s place.
(2) Melchisedech was both king and priest; Aaron was simply a priest.
(3) Melchisedech’s offering consisted of bread and wine, that of Aaron was of sheep and oxen.
(4) Melchisedech was the priest of mankind, Aaron’s priesthood was confined to the Jews.
(5) Melchisedech required neither tent, tabernacle, nor temple for sacrifice, Aaron did; and hence, to the present day, the Jews have no sacrifice, because they have no temple.
Christ, then, is a priest according to the order of Melchisedech, by reason of his having succeeded no priest, and by reason of his having had no priest to succeed him in the great dignity of his everlasting priesthood; and he in fact, as to his human nature has really no father, and as to his divine nature has no mother. The same Christ is both King and Priest, and he offered bread and wine at his last supper, that is, his body under the appearance of bread, and his blood under the appearance of wine; and he is the priest, not only of the Jews, but of the gentiles; nor is his priestly office confined to one temple or one tabernacle, but, as Malachy predicted, “From the rising of the sun, even to the going down, in every place there is sacrifice, and there is offered to my name a clean oblation.”

[5] Dóminus a dextris tuis, * confrégit in die iræ suæ reges.
The Lord at thy right hand * hath broken kings in the day of his wrath.
Having asserted that the Son was called a priest forever by the Father, the prophet now addresses the Father, and says that Christ will be really a priest forever; for though many kings of the earth will conspire against him in order to upset his religion and his priesthood, he, however, seated at the right hand of his Father, will break his adversaries down, and, in spite of them all, will perpetuate his priesthood and his sacrifice. “The Lord at thy right hand;” Christ, as you spoke to him sitting there, when you said, “Sit thou at my right hand.” “Hath broken kings in the day of his wrath;” when he shall be angry with his enemies, the kings of the earth, for persecuting his Church, he will break them, and, as far as I can foresee, has already broken them; for in the spirit of prophecy, I already see Herod stricken by the Angel. Nero, in his misery, laying violent hands on himself; Domitian, Maximinus and Decius put to death; Valerian taken captive by the barbarians; Diocletian and Maximinus throwing up the reins of government in despair; Julian, Valens, and Honoricus, and nearly all the kings hostile to Christ meeting a miserable end here, and well merited punishment in hell afterwards for all eternity.

[6] Judicábit in natiónibus, implébit ruínas: * conquassábit cápita in terra multórum.
He shall judge among nations, he shall fill ruins: * he shall crush the heads in the land of many.

Having told us how Christ would deal for the present with his enemies, the kings and princes of the earth, he tells us now, in addition, how he will deal, on the day of judgment, with all his enemies, “He shall judge among nations;” He who, while here below, beat down the impetuosity of princes, and preserved his Church in time of persecution, will afterwards, at the end of the world, judge all nations; and having condemned all the wicked amongst them, “he shall fill ruins,” will utterly exterminate, ruin, and destroy the whole body of the wicked; and thus “he shall crush the heads in the land of many.” He will humble and confound all the proud, that now, with heads erect, make against him; for he will then trample on their pride, when he shall make their weakness known to the whole world, and thus render them both contemptible and confused; and such is the meaning of crushing their heads: and he adds, “in the land of many,” because the truly humble and pious in this world are very few indeed, when compared to the proud and the haughty, who are nearly innumerable.

[7] De torrénte in via bibet: * proptérea exaltábit caput.
He shall drink of the torrent in the way: * therefore shall he lift up the head.
He now assigns a reason for Christ being endowed with such power as to be able to break kings, to judge nations, to fill ruins, and to crush heads, and says, “He shall drink of the torrent in the way, therefore shall he lift up the head;” as if he said with the Apostle, “He humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death, even the death of the cross; wherefore God also hath exalted him, and given him a name, which is above every name.” The torrent means the course of human affairs; for, as a torrent flows with great noise and force, full of mud and confusion, and soon after subsides without leaving even a trace of itself, so it is with the affairs of this mortal life—they all pass away, having, generally speaking, been much troubled and confused. Great battles and revolutions, such as those in the time of Caesar and Alexander, and others, have been heard of, but they and their posterity have passed away without leaving a trace of their power. The Son of God, through his incarnation, came down this torrent, and “in the way,” that is, during his mortal transitory life, drank the muddy water of this torrent in undergoing the calamities consequent on his mortality; nay, even he descended into the very depth of the torrent through his passion, the waters of which, instead of contributing to his ease and refreshment, only increased his pains and sufferings, as he complains in Psalm 68. “The waters have come in even unto my soul. I stick fast in the mire of the deep, and there is no sure standing. I am come into the depth of the sea, and a tempest hath overwhelmed me.” In consideration, then, of such humiliation, freely undertaken for the glory of the Father and the salvation of mankind, he afterwards “lifted up his head,” ascended into heaven, and, sitting at the right hand of the Father, was made Judge of the living and the dead.

Psalm 99 (after Bellarmine)

David introduces the Psalms. Master Jean de Mandeville,
(French, active 1350 - 1370) [Getty Museum]

We continue to build the pages of the Little Office website. Below is Psalm 99, from the third nocturn of Matins, with notes based on St Robert Bellarmine's explanations.

Totus tuus ego sum 
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum tutus semper sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam

[ ]  Footnotes are not hyperlinked but refer to the notes after the Psalm.

Psalmus 99

Jubilate Deo. All are invited to rejoice in God the creator of all.

[1]  Psalmus in confessione.
A psalm of praise.
[2]  Jubilate Deo, omnis terra: * servíte Dómino in lætítia.
Sing joyfully to God, all the earth: * serve ye the Lord with gladness.

[2a]  Introíte in conspéctu ejus, * in exsultatióne.
Come in before his presence * with exceeding great joy.

[3]  Scitóte quóniam Dóminus ipse est Deus: * ipse fecit nos, et non ipsi nos.
Know ye that the Lord he is God: * he made us, and not we ourselves.

Pópulus ejus, et oves páscuæ ejus: *[4]  introíte portas ejus in confessióne, átria ejus in hymnis: confitémini illi.
We are his people and the sheep of his pasture. * Go ye into his gates with praise, into his courts with hymns: and give glory to him.

[5]  Laudáte nomen ejus: quóniam suávis est Dóminus, in ætérnum misericórdia ejus, * et usque in generatiónem et generatiónem véritas ejus.
Praise ye his name: for the Lord is sweet, his mercy endureth for ever, * and his truth to generation and generation.

Notes

[1]  A psalm of praise.
Psalmus in confessione.

[2]  Jubilate Deo, omnis terra: * servíte Dómino in lætítia.
Sing joyfully to God, all the earth: * serve ye the Lord with gladness.

To sing joyfully means, as we have frequently repeated, to praise with loud and joyful voice and to serve with gladness means to be obedient through love, and not through fear. “Sing joyfully to God all the earth.” All you worshippers of the true God, in whatever part of the world you may be cast, praise him. Good and bad are to be found all over the world: in the wheat will be found the cockle, and thorns among the lilies. And as the wicked, when they do not succeed according to their wishes, are always ready to blaspheme and murmur against God, so it is meet that the good throughout the world, whatever may happen to them, whether for or against them, should praise and bless him; for, as St. Paul says, “we know that to them that love God all things work together unto good, to such as, according to his purpose, are called to be saints.”—”Serve ye the Lord with gladness.” Serve him by obeying him freely, and not as if you were under coercion—with the joy of freemen, and not with the bitterness of slaves. For, as St. Augustine expresses it, Truth delivered us, but love has made us slaves; and he that is a slave from love is one with pleasure. The principal reason, however, for serving God with pleasure consists in love being the summary of his precepts, and nothing is sweeter than love. Besides, the service of God is a profitable thing to us, of no profit to him.

[2a]  Introíte in conspéctu ejus, * in exsultatióne.
Come in before his presence * with exceeding great joy.

“Come in before his presence with exceeding great joy.” We are bound to praise God everywhere, but especially when we enter his house, “a house of prayer,” where we see God himself in his sacred things, and he, by a special providence, looks on and hears us, according to 2 Paralip. 7, “My eyes also shall be open, and my ears attentive to the prayer of him that shall pray in this place.” The prophet, therefore, admonishes them “to come in before his presence,” into the house of God, where they can specially see him, and he them, and to come “with exceeding great joy,” in high spirits, so that God may see their ardent desire for him.

[3]  Scitóte quóniam Dóminus ipse est Deus: * ipse fecit nos, et non ipsi nos.
Know ye that the Lord he is God: * he made us, and not we ourselves.

Pópulus ejus, et oves páscuæ ejus: *[4]  introíte portas ejus in confessióne, átria ejus in hymnis: confitémini illi.
We are his people and the sheep of his pasture. * Go ye into his gates with praise, into his courts with hymns: and give glory to him.

[3]  Nothing tends so much to stir up that devotion suited to the house of God, as an attentive consideration of God’s greatness and his gifts. “Know ye that the Lord he is God.” Consider, and, after serious consideration, be it known to you, that the God you worship, and to whom you come to offer your tribute of prayer and praise, is the true God, than whom nothing greater or better can be imagined. To him you owe your whole life and existence; for “he made us, and not we ourselves;” he is the primary source of our being; for though parents beget children, they get them through God’s will only. How many in the world sigh and long for children, and are still denied them; and, on the other hand, how many would enjoy the married state without the burden of children, and still have children thrust upon them. Most justly, then, did the holy mother of the Machabees say to her sons, “I know not how you were formed in my womb, for I neither gave you breath, nor soul, nor life; neither did I frame the limbs of every one of you, but the Creator of the world that formed the nativity of man, and that formed out the origin of all.”—”We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.” He now reminds them of another of God’s favors, for which they are bound to thank and praise him, because he not only created us, but he also directs and supports us. “We are his people,” directed by God’s special providence; “and the sheep of his pasture;” supported by the food of his word, that nourishes us as rich pastures support the sheep that feed on them.

[4]  Enter into his house with praise and thanksgiving, acknowledging you owe all to him, and have received everything from him.

[5]  Laudáte nomen ejus: quóniam suávis est Dóminus, in ætérnum misericórdia ejus, * et usque in generatiónem et generatiónem véritas ejus.
Praise ye his name: for the Lord is sweet, his mercy endureth for ever, * and his truth to generation and generation.

The prophet now enumerates three of God’s attributes as a further reason for being praised and glorified by all. God’s sweetness, mercy and veracity which are so connected that one would seem to be the source of the other. “The Lord is sweet,” and, therefore, inclined to mercy; his mercy causes him to promise pardon, and his veracity causes him to fulfill his promise. “For the Lord is sweet.” An extraordinary attribute of that omnipotent and tremendous majesty that dwells in light inaccessible, that is terrible above all gods, who taketh away the spirit of the princes, and of whom the Apostle says, “It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God;” and yet, most truly is it said of him, “The Lord is sweet.” This is not the only passage that says so. It is frequently repeated in the Scriptures, Psalm 33, “O taste and see that the Lord is sweet;” and in Psalm 85, “For thou, O Lord, art sweet, and mild, and plenteous in mercy;” and, 1 Peter 2, “If yet you have tasted that the Lord is sweet;” and in 2 Cor. 1, “The Father of mercies, and the God of all consolation.” These two apparently contradictory attributes of God are, however, easily reconciled. God is sweet to the upright of heart, to those that fear him; he is rough and terrible to the crooked of heart, and to those that despise him. Hence the prophet, in another Psalm, exclaims, “How good is God to Israel, to them that are of a right heart;” for what is quite level seems rough to one with a crooked heart, and all those are crooked in heart, who will not conform themselves to the will of God; and hence we read in Psalm 102, “As a father hath compassion on his children, so hath the Lord compassion on them that fear him; his mercy is from eternity, and unto eternity upon them that fear him;” an expression used by the Virgin, in her canticle, when she sang, “And his mercy is from generation to generation, to them that fear him.” If anyone, then, will begin to direct his heart, and make it conformable to God’s will, and to fear nothing so much as offending God, he will, at once, begin to taste how sweet God is; and in him will be realized the conclusion of the Psalm, “his mercy endureth forever, and his truth to generation and generation.”

Psalm 97 (after Bellarmine)

David introduces the Psalms. Master Jean de Mandeville,
(French, active 1350 - 1370) [Getty Museum]

We continue to build the pages of the Little Office website. Below is Psalm 97, from the third nocturn of Matins, with notes based on St Robert Bellarmine's explanations.

Totus tuus ego sum 
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum tutus semper sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam

[ ]  Footnotes are not hyperlinked but refer to the notes after the Psalm.

Psalm 97

Cantate Domino. All are again invited to praise the Lord, for the victories of Christ.

[1] Cantáte Dómino cánticum novum: * quia mirabília fecit.
Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle: * because he hath done wonderful things.

Salvávit sibi déxtera ejus: * et bráchium sanctum ejus.
His right hand hath wrought for him salvation, * and his arm is holy.

[2] Notum fecit Dóminus salutáre suum: * in conspéctu géntium revelávit justítiam suam.
The Lord hath made known his salvation: * he hath revealed his justice in the sight of the Gentiles.

[3] Recordátus est misericórdiæ suæ, * et veritátis suæ dómui Israël.
He hath remembered his mercy * and his truth toward the house of Israel.

Vidérunt omnes términi terræ * salutáre Dei nostri.
All the ends of the earth have seen * the salvation of our God.

[4] Jubiláte Deo, omnis terra: * cantáte, et exsultáte, et psállite.
Sing joyfully to God, all the earth; * make melody, rejoice and sing.

[5] Psállite Dómino in cíthara, in cíthara et voce psalmi: *[6] in tubis ductílibus, et voce tubæ córneæ.
Sing praise to the Lord on the harp, on the harp, and with the voice of a psalm: * with long trumpets, and sound of cornet.

Jubiláte in conspéctu regis Dómini: * [7] moveátur mare, et plenitúdo ejus: orbis terrárum, et qui hábitant in eo.
Make a joyful noise before the Lord our king: * let the sea be moved and the fulness thereof: the world and they that dwell therein.

[8]  Flúmina plaudent manu, simul montes exsultábunt a conspéctu Dómini: * quóniam venit judicáre terram.
The rivers shall clap their hands, the mountains shall rejoice together at the presence of the Lord: * because he cometh to judge the earth.

[9]  Judicábit orbem terrárum in justítia, * et pópulos in æquitáte.
He shall judge the world with justice, * and the people with equity.

Notes

[1] Cantáte Dómino cánticum novum: * quia mirabília fecit.
Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle: * because he hath done wonderful things.
Salvávit sibi déxtera ejus: * et bráchium sanctum ejus.
His right hand hath wrought for him salvation, * and his arm is holy.


He invites all men to praise God for his wonderful works. “Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle,” for there is not only new but great and wonderful matter for it, “because he hath done wonderful things;” for he was wonderfully, and in an unheard of manner, conceived of the Holy Ghost, born of a virgin, committed no sin, justified sinners, made the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak, nay, even the blind to see, the lame to walk, cured the sick, raised the dead; and, what is the most strange and wonderful of all, showed himself alive within three days after he was buried, took his body up to heaven, sent the Holy Ghost from heaven, and through the agency of poor, humble men, persuaded the prudent and the wise to worship the crucified, to despise the things of the present, and to look forward to the things of the future; and, finally, as St. Augustine says, conquered the world, not by the sword but by the cross. All this may be referred to the Father, who in the Son, and through the Son, effected all these wonderful things; for the Lord says, “But the Father, who abideth in me, he doth the works.” “His right hand hath wrought for him salvation, and his arm is holy.” He explains what those wonderful things are, and instances one of them that comprehends the whole. The wonderful thing God did consisted in his having saved the world purely by his own power, without associates, without an army, without arms; he alone cast out the prince of this world, and delivered mankind from his power. Such was the object of all the wonderful things enumerated above; and thus, this one thing comprehends all. The expression, “hath wrought for him salvation,” may apply to the Son, who saved the world by his own power; and to the Father who, through Christ, his right hand, saved it; but it comes to the same thing; “and his arm is holy,” is merely a repetition of the foregoing; right hand and arm being nearly synonymous, and they signify virtue and power; but the word “holy” is added, for fear we should suppose carnal, not spiritual, strength is intended; for Christ did not overcome his enemy by the force of arms or by bodily strength, but by love and patience, by humility and obedience, by the merits of his most holy life, by his most precious blood spilled for love of us, and not by the spear or the sword, and obtained a signal victory over a most powerful enemy. So, says the Apostle, “He humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

[2] Notum fecit Dóminus salutáre suum: * in conspéctu géntium revelávit justítiam suam.
The Lord hath made known his salvation: * he hath revealed his justice in the sight of the Gentiles.

This verse, too, may be referred to the Father, “who made known his salvation;” that is, the Saviour he sent; first, through the prophets, then through the Apostles, and through the same “revealeth his justice.” It may also be referred to the Son, who made known the salvation effected by himself, through himself, and through his Apostles; for he preached it openly for three entire years and more, and then he sent his Apostles, who announced his Gospel to the entire world. The Lord, therefore, by his own preaching, “made his salvation known;” that is, the salvation he brought on earth to confer on those who would believe in him; then, “in the sight of the gentiles,” through his Apostles, “he hath revealed his justice;” that is, he made known and revealed to the gentiles that mystery that was hidden from the world; and the mystery is his own justice; that is, the fulfillment of that promise that was formerly made to the fathers concerning the redemption of the human race. This I consider to be the meaning of justice here; for in the following verse it means truth, as we shall see. However, if anyone wishes justice to be understood of the satisfaction Christ had to offer, in the rigour of justice, for the sins of the whole world, I do not object, whether in reference to the Father, or to the Son. For truly did the Father, through the passion of the Son, and the Son through his own sufferings, “reveal” how iniquity required to be punished, and how rigorously God’s justice required satisfaction. On this mystery the Apostle writes as follows to the Ephesians, “To me, the least of all the saints, is given this grace to preach among the gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ. And to enlighten all men what is the dispensation of the mystery, which hath been hidden from eternity in God.”

[3] Recordátus est misericórdiæ suæ, * et veritátis suæ dómui Israël.
He hath remembered his mercy * and his truth toward the house of Israel.

Vidérunt omnes términi terræ * salutáre Dei nostri.
All the ends of the earth have seen * the salvation of our God.

He assigns a reason for God’s having “made known his salvation,” and “revealed his justice.” Because he promised such to the fathers; and though he delayed the fulfillment of his promise for some time, he at length “remembered” it; that is, he acted as those do who remember a thing. God cannot forget, but he is figuratively said to remember when he does a thing after a while, as if he had forgotten it. The expression often occurs in the Scriptures; thus, “The Lord remembered Noe;” and, Luke 1, “He hath remembered his mercy.” God the Father, then, “remembered his mercy,” through which he promised a Saviour to the fathers; and God the Son “remembered his mercy,” that induced him to promise to come as a Saviour; and both remembered “their truth,” their honour and justice in fulfilling the promise “toward the house of Israel;” for the promise was made to them, and not to the gentiles; although God had determined, and often announced it through the prophets, that he would have mercy on the gentiles, too. Hence our Saviour, Mat. 15, says, “I was not sent out to the sheep that are lost of the house of Israel.” And the Apostle, Rom. 15, “For I say that Christ Jesus was minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers; but that the gentiles are to glorify God for his mercy, as it is written. Therefore will I confess to thee, O Lord, among the gentiles.”—”All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.” See the fruit of the preaching of the Apostles! It was not in vain that God made his salvation known through their preaching, for the gentiles heard them, and believed in Christ; and thus, the interior eye of the heart having been purified through faith and grace, “all the ends of the earth,” the whole world, to its remotest boundaries, “have seen the salvation of our God,” or the Saviour sent by him. There is a degree of point in the expression, “have seen;” it implies actual faith, united with knowledge, that moves the will to love and to desire; for they cannot be said to have seen God’s salvation, who, content with habitual faith, never bestow a thought on the Saviour, and take no trouble whatever in accomplishing the salvation to be had through him. The expression, “all the ends of the earth,” is not to be read literally, for it does not mean each and every individual, but a great many from every nation and people.

[4] Jubiláte Deo, omnis terra: * cantáte, et exsultáte, et psállite.
Sing joyfully to God, all the earth; * make melody, rejoice and sing.

The giving thanks to God, and exulting and singing in spiritual joy, is a sign of faith. Thus, he that found the treasure “went, and, through joy, sold all he had.” Thus when Philip preached in Samaria, and the inhabitants received the word of God, “there was great joy in that city;” and the eunuch, when converted and baptized, “went his way rejoicing” thus also St. Peter says, “And believing, shall rejoice with an unspeakable and glorious joy.” This joy is now predicted by the prophet, as if he were inviting and exhorting the faithful to it, “Sing joyfully to God, all the earth.” All you faithful, all over the world, who have been brought from darkness to “the admirable light,” to the knowledge of the true God and our Saviour Jesus Christ, praise and thank with a loud voice; sing, exult, and play upon musical instruments.

[5] Psállite Dómino in cíthara, in cíthara et voce psalmi: *[6] in tubis ductílibus, et voce tubæ córneæ.
Sing praise to the Lord on the harp, on the harp, and with the voice of a psalm: * with long trumpets, and sound of cornet.

Four instruments are enumerated for those who have seen God by faith, and, desire to see him by sight; they are the harp, the psaltery, long trumpets, and sound of cornet. These were, literally, the instruments most in use among the Jews, and a spiritual signification has been attached to each instrument. They seem to be to represent the cardinal virtues,

the harp implying prudence; The harp, having various strings, blends their sounds together, and produces a sweet harmony; and thus prudence unites good works with various circumstances, and produces a perfect work.
the psaltery, justice; The psaltery of ten strings represents the decalogue, containing all the precepts of justice.
the long trumpet, fortitude; The long trumpet is beaten out and formed by repeated blows of the hammer, until it produces the sweet sounds required; thus, fortitude, by patiently bearing all trials and tribulations, so draws out and perfects the man of God, that, with holy Job, it is no trouble to him to give out that sweet sound, “If we have received good things at the hand of God, why should we not receive evil?”
the cornet temperance. temperance, like a hard horn, from which the cornet was made, rising above and out topping the flesh; that is, chastising the body, by fasting and watching, and by bringing it under subjection to the spirit, forms it into a spiritual cornet. Such was the precursor of our Lord, who, with wild honey and locusts for his food, and a garment of camel’s hair with a leathern girdle for his dress, called out, “A voice of one crying in the desert.” Such, too, was the most blessed Paul, who, instructed as he was by long continued temperance, gave out the following sweet sounds, “But having food and wherewith to be covered, with these we are content;” and again, “The meat for the belly, and the belly for the meats; but God shall destroy both it and them.” And truly, “piety with sufficiency is great gain.”

 Finally, “Make a joyful noise before our King.” Be sure to strike up all the aforesaid instruments the moment the great King, who is Lord of all, shall have made his appearance.

Jubiláte in conspéctu regis Dómini: * [7] moveátur mare, et plenitúdo ejus: orbis terrárum, et qui hábitant in eo.
Make a joyful noise before the Lord our king: * let the sea be moved and the fulness thereof: the world and they that dwell therein.
As the coming of the Lord was a blessing to all in general, the prophet calls, not only on the whole earth, but on all its parts, separately, to praise and sing to God. “Let the sea be moved,” heaving and swelling with exultation, as if it were animated; “and the fulness thereof;” its waters, islands, fishes; “the world, and they that dwell therein.” Let them, too, rejoice and exult because the Lord is the Savior of all men, especially of the faithful.

[8]  Flúmina plaudent manu, simul montes exsultábunt a conspéctu Dómini: * quóniam venit judicáre terram.
The rivers shall clap their hands, the mountains shall rejoice together at the presence of the Lord: * because he cometh to judge the earth.

Having invited the sea and the earth, he now summons the rivers and the mountains to unite in their expressions of joy. He said, however, “Let the sea be moved,” in the Hebrew, let it thunder; whereas to the rivers he says, they shall “clap their hands,” thereby expressing the difference between the noise of the one and of the other; and when he calls upon “the mountains to rejoice together,” we can easily understand that the prophet does not ask those inanimate things to speak, to praise, or to sing, but that he is so carried away and inflamed with love for the coming Messias, that he calls upon and wishes all created things to unite with him, as far as possible, in praising and thanking God.

[9]  Judicábit orbem terrárum in justítia, * et pópulos in æquitáte.
He shall judge the world with justice, * and the people with equity.

“Because he cometh to judge the earth” may be referred either to his first or his second coming. If to his first, the meaning will be, Let all the aforesaid rejoice, “because he cometh to judge the earth,” to rule and govern the earth through most just and wise laws, not only as of old, in the majesty of his invisible divinity, but in visible and corporal appearance, “being made to the likeness of men, and in shape found as a man.”—If we refer it to his second coming, the meaning would be, Let all these rejoice, because “the Lord cometh to judge the earth,” and he will exterminate all the sinners in it, and renew all its elements, “and he will deliver it from the servitude of corruption, under which it now groans and is in labor.”—”He shall judge the world with justice.” The same as the conclusion of Psalm 95, which see.

St Mary Magdalen: ora pro nobis

Today is the feast day of a beautiful saint whose outstanding example and inspiration features in the opening scene of the third act of our Rosarium Aureum: Mary Magdalen:

Peccatrix irrigavit. JJ Tissot. Brooklyn Museum.

CUIUS pedes lacrimis:
peccatrix irrigavit:
dolensque ex intimis:
veniam impetravit. Ave Maria.


Whose feet the sinning woman laved
     With tears in deep contrition;
Whom He in gracious pity saved
     From her forlorn condition. Ave Maria.

Mary Magdalen embraces the Cross. JJ Tissot.

She is one of the few whose love gave her the courage to stay close to Jesus until the end. She is depicted once again at the feet of her Lord, her heart broken with sorrow.























After His death, she went to His tomb which she found empty. She searched for Him with tears; she yearned with strong desire for Him Who, she believed, had been taken away:

Sermo sancti Gregórii Papæ

Noli me tangere. JJ Tissot. Brooklyn Museum.

María Magdaléne, quæ fúerat in civitáte peccátrix, amándo veritátem, lavit lácrimis máculas críminis: et vox Veritátis implétur, qua dícitur: Dimíssa sunt ei peccáta multa, quia diléxit multum. Quæ enim prius frígida peccándo remánserat, póstmodum amándo fórtiter ardébat. Quæ a monuménto Dómini, étiam discípulis recedéntibus, non recedébat. Exquirébat quem non invénerat; flebat inquiréndo, et amóris sui igne succénsa, eius, quem ablátum crédidit, ardébat desidério. Unde cóntigit, ut eum sola tunc vidéret, quæ remánserat ut quǽreret: quia nimírum virtus boni óperis perseverántia est.
 
V. Tu autem, Dómine, miserére nobis.
R. Deo grátias.

From the Sermons of Pope St. Gregory the Great.

Mary Magdalen, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, through love of the truth, washed away in her tears the defilement of her sins, and the words of the Truth are fulfilled which He spake Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much. She who had remained chilly in sin, became fiery through love. When even His disciples went away again unto their own home, Mary still stood without at the sepulchre of Christ, weeping. She sought Him Whom her soul loved, but she found Him not. She searched for Him with tears; she yearned with strong desire for Him Who, she believed, had been taken away. And thus it befell her, that being the only one who had remained to seek Him, she was the only one that saw Him. It is the truth that the backbone of a good work is perseverance.

V. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us.
R. Thanks be to God.

Psalm 96 (after Bellarmine)

David introduces the Psalms. Master Jean de Mandeville,
(French, active 1350 - 1370) [Getty Museum]

We continue to build the pages of the Little Office website. Below is Psalm 96, from the third nocturn of Matins, with notes based on St Robert Bellarmine's explanations.

Totus tuus ego sum 
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum tutus semper sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam

[ ]  Footnotes are not hyperlinked but refer to the notes after the Psalm.

Psalmus 96

Dominus regnavit. All are invited to rejoice at the glorious coming and reign of Christ.


[1] Huic David, quando terra ejus restituta est. Dóminus regnávit, exsúltet terra: * læténtur ínsulæ multæ.
For the same David, when his land was restored again to him. The Lord hath reigned, let the earth rejoice: * let many islands be glad.

[2] Nubes, et calígo in circúitu ejus: * justítia, et judícium corréctio sedis ejus.
Clouds and darkness are round about him: * justice and judgment are the establishment of his throne.

[3] Ignis ante ípsum præcédet, * et inflammábit in circúitu inimícos ejus.
A fire shall go before him, * and shall burn his enemies round about.

[4] Illuxérunt fúlgura ejus orbi terræ: * vidit, et commóta est terra.
His lightnings have shone forth to the world: * the earth saw and trembled.

[5] Montes, sicut cera fluxérunt a fácie Dómini: * a fácie Dómini omnis terra.
The mountains melted like wax, at the presence of the Lord: * at the presence of the Lord of all the earth.

[6] Annuntiavérunt cæli justítiam ejus: * et vidérunt omnes pópuli glóriam ejus.
The heavens declared his justice: * and all people saw his glory.

[7] Confundántur omnes, qui adórant sculptília: * et qui gloriántur in simulácris suis.
Let them be all confounded that adore graven things, * and that glory in their idols.

Adoráte eum, omnes Ángeli ejus: *[8] audívit, et lætáta est Sion.
Adore him, all you his angels: * Sion heard, and was glad.

Et exsultavérunt fíliæ Judæ, * propter judícia tua, Dómine:
And the daughters of Juda rejoiced, * because of thy judgments, O Lord.

[9] Quóniam tu Dóminus Altíssimus super omnem terram: * nimis exaltátus es super omnes deos.
For thou art the most high Lord over all the earth: * thou art exalted exceedingly above all gods.

[10] Qui dilígitis Dóminum, odíte malum: * custódit Dóminus ánimas sanctórum suórum, de manu peccatóris liberábit eos.
You that love the Lord, hate evil: * the Lord preserveth the souls of his saints, he will deliver them out of the hand of the sinner.

[11] Lux orta est justo, * et rectis corde lætítia.
Light is risen to the just, * and joy to the right of heart.

[12] Lætámini, justi, in Dómino: * et confitémini memóriæ sanctificatiónis ejus.
Rejoice, ye just, in the Lord: * and give praise to the remembrance of his holiness.

Notes

[1] Huic David, quando terra ejus restituta est. Dóminus regnávit, exsúltet terra: * læténtur ínsulæ multæ[1a] .For the same David, when his land was restored again to him. The Lord hath reigned, let the earth rejoice: * let many islands be glad.

This Psalm admits of two literal explanations. (1) the kingdom of God absolutely; (2) the kingdom of Christ after his resurrection.
Read according to the first the meaning of this verse is, “The Lord hath reigned.” The Lord God is the true and supreme King, and all other kings are but his servants; therefore, “let the earth rejoice; let many islands be glad;” let all the inhabitants of the earth, and of the islands that are so numerous in the sea, rejoice and be glad; for should they be oppressed by any of the kings here below, the Lord, who is the supreme King, and can easily control and bring them to order, will not fail to protect and to shield them.
In the second sense, the meaning is, Christ our Lord, who at one time humbly appeared before the kings of this world, for judgment, “hath reigned,” for “all power on earth and in heaven hath been given unto him,” so that he is subject to no one, nor can any one claim any authority over him; but, on the contrary, he governs all as “Prince of the kings of the earth, as King of kings, and Lord of lords;” and therefore, “let the earth rejoice, let many islands be glad,” because the Lord, who has got possession of his kingdom, has let himself down to be our brother, though he is our God, by having created us, and our Lord, by having redeemed us.
[1a] The total number of islands in the British Isles number in the thousands.  Just choosing islands that are at least a ½ acre (0.2 hectares) in size, the Island of Great Britain has about 4,400 islands, of which about 210 are inhabited.  An additional 6,100 are islands only at low tide.  The Island of Ireland has about 850 islands, of which about 70 are inhabited and about 1000 only appear on low tide.

[2] Nubes, et calígo in circúitu ejus: * justítia, et judícium corréctio sedis ejus.
Clouds and darkness are round about him: * justice and judgment are the establishment of his throne.

According to meaning the first, the nature of God is touched upon here, who, though invisible, governs and rules the visible world with extreme justice. “Clouds and darkness are round about him.” Our King, the Lord, is invisible, for “he inhabits light inaccessible,” and is like the sun concealed by a cloud, yet still diffusing its light and heat. God is also described similarly in Psalm 17, “And he made darkness his covert, his pavilion round about him; dark waters in the clouds of the air.” In like manner, when God gave the ten commandments on mount Sinai, he was covered with a dark cloud; “justice and judgment are the establishment of his throne.” However invisible he may appear to be, he still is really present, and judges his people with extreme justice. Meaning the second is, Christ’s coming to the general judgment; for “he will come on the clouds of heaven,” in great splendour, as he has in Mat. 25, and in the Apocalypse.

[3] Ignis ante ípsum præcédet, * et inflammábit in circúitu inimícos ejus.
A fire shall go before him, * and shall burn his enemies round about.

According to meaning the first the admirable power, efficacy, and celerity of the punishment that God inflicts on the wicked, when he chooses to punish them in this world, is here detailed. “A fire shall go before him.” He will send a fire before him whenever he may wish to judge and punish the wicked, and that will be most effective and immediate, for it will suddenly “burn his enemies,” and consume all “round about him,” so that a trace of them will not remain.
This fire may also mean his ministering Angels, as we read in Psalm 103, “Who maketh thy Angels spirits; and thy ministers a burning fire,” of which fire Psalm 17 says, “A fire flamed from his face;” and Daniel 7, “A swift stream of fire issued forth from before him.”
The second interpretation refers it to that fire that will precede the general judgment, and burn men, houses, gardens, vineyards, and all manner of living things on the face of the earth, concerning which, St. Peter says, as in Noe’s time, “The world that there was, being overflowed with water, perished;” so in the coming of Christ, “The heavens which now are, and the earth, are reserved unto fire against the day of judgment,” and will be consumed. And the Psalm says that said fire will hurt God’s enemies only, because it is for them only it is intended; for those who have their heart and their treasure in this world. It will be a heavy load on them to have themselves, and the wealth they so loved, consumed by the fire. The just will suffer nothing from it, for they long since despised the goods of this world, seeing that death would only put them in a better position.

[4] Illuxérunt fúlgura ejus orbi terræ: * vidit, et commóta est terra.
His lightnings have shone forth to the world: * the earth saw and trembled.

According to the first interpretation, David goes on with the relation of God’s power over the wicked. God, when he chooses, terrifies his enemies, not only with his fire, or that of his Angels, but even with the ordinary lightning, and cuts them down so unexpectedly, that they cannot possibly protect themselves. He says the same in Psalm 17, “And the Lord thundered from heaven, and the highest gave his voice, and he sent forth his arrows, and he scattered them, he multiplied lightnings, and troubled them.” He then says, “His lightnings have shone forth to the world;” he had his winged lightning, wherewith to rouse the world, which so “shone forth as to terrify all who saw them,” and hence, “the earth,” as if it had sense and feeling, “saw and trembled.” A most poetic description to give an idea of the effects of God’s lightning.
In the second explanation, he explains how an enormous fire, that will consume everything, will precede the last judgment, and will be caused by lightning, of which Wisdom, chap. 5., says, “Their shafts of lightning shall go directly from the clouds, as from a bow well bent, they shall be shot out, and shall fly to the mark.”

[5] Montes, sicut cera fluxérunt a fácie Dómini: * a fácie Dómini omnis terra.
The mountains melted like wax, at the presence of the Lord: * at the presence of the Lord of all the earth.

The prophet now shows the extent of God’s power from its effects, and again compares it to fire, for as wax cannot be brought near the fire without liquefying and melting, thus the mountains, however lofty and durable, nay, even the very earth, the most solid of all the elements, cannot stand for a moment, should God wish to consume and destroy them. We are not to understand, then, that the mountains did, or will run like wax, but that God could cause them, if he chose, to melt, and be dissolved like wax.

[6] Annuntiavérunt cæli justítiam ejus: * et vidérunt omnes pópuli glóriam ejus.
The heavens declared his justice: * and all people saw his glory.

According to the first interpretation, “the heavens declared his justice,” because men could easily infer from the appearance of the sun, moon, and stars, and their continual changes, that God was a most just director of the whole world, as is also said in Psalm 18., “The heavens declare the glory of God;” St. Paul, Rom. 1, and Wisdom, chap. 14., say the same.
According to the second interpretation, these words allude to the Angel’s trumpet, that will announce from heaven the Judge about to sit in judgment on the whole world, and the severity of his justice on those who rejected a merciful Redeemer; and then, “all people will see his glory,” when he shall appear in the clouds in his majesty, with all his Angels. The Apostle says of such coming, “For the Lord himself shall come down from heaven with commandment, and with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trumpet of God;” and the Lord himself says, “And he shall send his Angels with a trumpet and a great voice;” and in the Apocalypse, St. John writes, “Behold, he cometh with the clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they that pierced him.” “The heavens declared” the Angels from heaven, “his justice,” for he will come to render unto every one according to his works, “then all people saw,” without any exception, “his glory,” for every knee will bend of those that are in heaven, on earth, and in hell.

[7] Confundántur omnes, qui adórant sculptília: * et qui gloriántur in simulácris suis.
Let them be all confounded that adore graven things, * and that glory in their idols.

According to the first interpretation, the prophet infers from what has been said, that all worshippers of idols should be justly confounded, when it is sufficiently clear that there is only one true God, who rules and governs in heaven and on earth, and who is endowed with the greatest power, wisdom, and justice to direct everything. “Let them be all confounded that adore graven things,” that are vain and empty gods, that cannot help themselves nor anyone else; and much more confusion to those “that glory in their idols,” for glorying in what, above all other things, they should be ashamed of. According to the second interpretation, this is a prediction, in the form of a prayer, of the immense confusion that will overwhelm all idolaters on the day of judgment; for they will then most clearly see that their idols were nothing, that they who spoke through them were unclean spirits, with whom they will be condemned to eternal punishment. “Adore him, all you his Angels.”
According to the first interpretation, the prophet, in order to prove how justly he said, “Let them be all confounded that adore graven things, and that glory in their idols,” turns to the Angels, and invites them to adore God; for, if even the Angels, who are the most noble of created things, so far from being adored, should, like so many servants, adore God, how much less are demons or idols to be adored.
According to the second interpretation, the prophet proves the majesty of Christ coming to judgment, from the fact that it will appear on that day that he is the true God, from the homage that will be rendered to him by the Angels. For the Angels will stand by like so many servants, will adore him, and will execute all his commands, which will be a source of the greatest joy and gladness to the true faithful, seeing their Lord so honored and glorified before the whole world. He appeals to the Angels, as if he were exhorting them to do what he foresaw would certainly be done by them. “Adore him, all you his Angels,” sitting on his throne for judgment. The Apostle bears out this exposition, when he says, in Heb. 1., “And again, when he introduceth the first begotten into the world, he saith: And let all the Angels of God adore him;” for the Apostle would appear by the word “again” to mean his second coming, and to apply these words to it, for no other words of the sort are found in the entire Scripture.

[8] Adoráte eum, omnes Ángeli ejus: * audívit, et lætáta est Sion.
Adore him, all you his angels: * Sion heard, and was glad.
Et exsultavérunt fíliæ Judæ, * propter judícia tua, Dómine:
And the daughters of Juda rejoiced, * because of thy judgments, O Lord.

When God’s people heard that he reigned supreme everywhere, that idols had disappeared, that the very Angels were subject to God, they were greatly rejoiced at having such a king. “And the daughters of Juda rejoiced, because of thy judgments, O Lord;” the same people, now called Sion, now Juda, rejoiced to find the Lord sitting in judgment with so much justice.

[9] Quóniam tu Dóminus Altíssimus super omnem terram: * nimis exaltátus es super omnes deos.
For thou art the most high Lord over all the earth: * thou art exalted exceedingly above all gods.

He assigns a reason for God’s people beginning to exult and be glad on hearing those things, and the reason is, because they inferred from them, that the God of God’s people was really the supreme Lord of all, “the Most High Lord over all the earth,” over all kings and princes, and “exalted exceedingly,” especially over the false gods erroneously worshipped by the gentiles; and, however true this may be, according to interpretation No. 1, for God proved himself, by various miracles, to be superior to all the kings of the earth, and all their false gods; it is no less true, when we read by interpretation No. 2, for God never displayed his glory so openly as he will on the last day, when, as we said above, all men and Angels, bad as well as good, will bend the knee before him.

[10] Qui dilígitis Dóminum, odíte malum: * [10a] custódit Dóminus ánimas sanctórum suórum, de manu peccatóris liberábit eos.
You that love the Lord, hate evil: * the Lord preserveth the souls of his saints, he will deliver them out of the hand of the sinner.

He concludes the Psalm, by exhorting the people to lead a life of holiness and purity, for which they will get a great reward, both in this world and in the next. “You that love the Lord, hate evil.” The holy prophet could not possibly address God’s chosen people more briefly, yet more comprehensively; for, when he says, “You that love the Lord,” he appeals to all the truly just, for charity comprehends all virtues; for, “he that loveth his neighbor hath fulfilled the law, and love, therefore, is the fulfilling of the law,” Rom. 13: “you that love the Lord,” then, means, All you just and holy souls, that fear the Lord really, and not feignedly, not only with your lips, but in your heart, according to the substance, and not the shadow of the law, “hate evil:” which is the essence of perfection, for he does not say, Fly from, or decline from evil, which may be done externally, but “hate evil,” which can only proceed from the heart. The heart is the source of all our actions, good and bad; for, as the love of the supreme good comes from the heart, so, in like manner, “out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies.” [10a] He then announces the reward for having done so, saying, “The Lord preserveth the souls of his saints, he will deliver them out of the hand of the sinner.” The Lord is a faithful, diligent, powerful, and prudent guardian of those that love him, and he will defend and deliver them from the power of the wicked, who are, generally speaking, deadly enemies of the just. According to interpretation No. 1, this promise is fulfilled even in this life, in regard of the just, for God often saves their lives, but will certainly save their souls, which is a far greater blessing; and hence, the expression, “preserveth the souls,” for he causes “all things to work together unto good, to such as according to his purpose are called to be saints.” According to explanation No. 2, the meaning would be, He will preserve the souls of his saints on the last day, so that they will not be injured by the accusations of the enemy; he will most completely deliver them from the hand of the sinner, for once the last sentence shall have been passed, the sinner can no longer harm the just.

[11] Lux orta est justo, * et rectis corde lætítia.
Light is risen to the just, * and joy to the right of heart.

Another reward of the just is, that they will not only be delivered from all evils, but they will be replenished with blessings. By light, here, may be understood the light of divine grace, or what seems more likely, the light of justice, of which Wisdom, chap. 5., says, “Therefore, we have erred from the way of truth, and the light of justice hath not shined unto us, and the sun of understanding hath not risen upon us.” Now, the light of justice and of understanding is said to rise on a person when he begins to know, not only in theory but in practice, what is just and what is unjust, what is good and what is evil; and forms a correct judgment, and makes a judicious choice of what is really good and just, and not of what is apparently so to a badly formed and irregular mind. The light, then, that has risen to the just, is that which constitutes him a just man; and as the just take the greatest pleasure in doing what is just, he very properly adds, “and joy to the right of heart;” for justice directs the heart, and an unspeakable amount of joy is poured into the upright of heart from the fact of its conformity to the will of God, and everything that pleases God, on whose nod all creation hangs, pleases that soul. Nothing, then, can sadden the just; they rejoice and are joyful under the most grievous tribulations, “and nobody taketh their joy from them.”

[12] Lætámini, justi, in Dómino: * et confitémini memóriæ sanctificatiónis ejus.
Rejoice, ye just, in the Lord: * and give praise to the remembrance of his holiness.

This is a consequence of what has been said in the preceding verse; for if joy has arisen to those right of heart, it follows that they should not rejoice in the vanities of the wicked, but “in the Lord,” who bestows justice and gladness on them; nay, who himself is their real and solid joy, being most beautiful to the eyes of the soul, and sweet to the interior; and not only should “the just rejoice in the Lord,” but they should also “give praise to the remembrance of his holiness;” they should ever celebrate with thanksgiving the memory of the sanctification they received from God, for they should never forget so great a favor as that which transformed them from being impious and wicked, to be holy and just. By holiness also may be understood God’s own holiness, for he is supremely holy; hence, Isaias calls him “Holy, Holy, Holy,” and we give praise to the remembrance of his holiness, when with praises we always remember that our God is most holy; and, therefore, that we should with all earnestness endeavor to make ourselves holy too. “For this is the will of God your sanctification;” and “Be ye holy,” saith the Lord, “for I am holy.”

Psalm 95 (after Bellarmine)

David introduces the Psalms. Master Jean de Mandeville,
(French, active 1350 - 1370) [Getty Museum]

We continue to build the pages of the Little Office website. Below is Psalm 95, from the third nocturn of Matins, with notes based on St Robert Bellarmine's explanations.

Totus tuus ego sum 
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum tutus semper sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam

[ ]  Footnotes are not hyperlinked but refer to the notes after the Psalm.

Psalmus 95

Cantate Domino. An exhortation to praise God for the coming of Christ and his kingdom.

[1]  Canticum ipsi David, quando domus aedificabatur post captivitatem. Cantate Domino canticum novum, cantate Domino omnis terra.
A canticle for David himself, when the house was built after the captivity. Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle: sing to the Lord, all the earth.

Cantáte Dómino cánticum novum: * cantáte Dómino, omnis terra.
Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle: * sing to the Lord, all the earth.

[2]  Cantáte Dómino, et benedícite nómini ejus: * annuntiáte de die in diem salutáre ejus.
Sing ye to the Lord and bless his name: * shew forth his salvation from day to day.

[3]  Annuntiáte inter gentes glóriam ejus, * in ómnibus pópulis mirabília ejus.
Declare his glory among the Gentiles: * his wonders among all people.

[4]  Quóniam magnus Dóminus, et laudábilis nimis: * terríbilis est super omnes deos.
For the Lord is great, and exceedingly to be praised: * he is to be feared above all gods.

[5] Quóniam omnes dii géntium dæmónia: * Dóminus autem cælos fecit.
For all the gods of the Gentiles are devils: * but the Lord made the heavens.

[6] Conféssio, et pulchritúdo in conspéctu ejus: * sanctimónia et magnificéntia in sanctificatióne ejus.
Praise and beauty are before him: * holiness and majesty in his sanctuary.

[7] Afférte Dómino, pátriæ géntium, afférte Dómino glóriam et honórem: *[8] afférte Dómino glóriam nómini ejus.
Bring ye to the Lord, O ye kindreds of the Gentiles, bring ye to the Lord glory and honour: * bring to the Lord glory unto his name.

Tóllite hóstias, et introíte in átria ejus: * [9] adoráte Dóminum in átrio sancto ejus.
Bring up sacrifices, and come into his courts: * adore ye the Lord in his holy court.

Commoveátur a fácie ejus univérsa terra: *[10] dícite in géntibus quia Dóminus regnávit.
Let all the earth be moved at his presence. * Say ye among the Gentiles, the Lord hath reigned.

Étenim corréxit orbem terræ qui non commovébitur: * judicábit pópulos in æquitáte.
For he hath corrected the world, which shall not be moved: * he will judge the people with justice.

[11] Læténtur cæli, et exsúltet terra: commoveátur mare, et plenitúdo ejus: * [12] gaudébunt campi, et ómnia quæ in eis sunt.
Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad, let the sea be moved, and the fulness thereof: * the fields and all things that are in them shall be joyful.

Tunc exsultábunt ómnia ligna silvárum [13] a fácie Dómini, quia venit: * quóniam venit judicáre terram.
Then shall all the trees of the woods rejoice before the face of the Lord, because he cometh: * because he cometh to judge the earth.

Judicábit orbem terræ in æquitáte, * et pópulos in veritáte sua.
He shall judge the world with justice, * and the people with his truth.

Notes

[1]  Canticum ipsi David, quando domus aedificabatur post captivitatem. Cantate Domino canticum novum, cantate Domino omnis terra.
A canticle for David himself, when the house was built after the captivity. Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle: sing to the Lord, all the earth.

He begins by exhorting the whole world to unite in thanksgiving to God for the favors bestowed on them in general. He repeats the expression, “Sing ye,” three times, as he also in a subsequent part of the Psalm repeats another expression, “Bring ye to the Lord,” three times, in order to glance remotely at a mystery, that of the Most Holy Trinity, that was to be openly promulgated in the new testament. “Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle,” praise and thank him in joy and song, and it must be “a new canticle,” a beautiful canticle, and elegantly composed; also a canticle for fresh favours; in like manner, a canticle befitting men who have been regenerated, in whom avarice has been supplanted by charity; and, finally, a canticle not like that of Moses, or Deborah, or any of the old canticles that could not be sung outside the land of promise according to Psalm 136, “How shall we sing the song of the Lord in a strange land?” but a new canticle that may be sung all over the world; and he, therefore, adds, “Sing to the Lord all the earth,” not only Judea, but the whole world.

[2]  Cantáte Dómino, et benedícite nómini ejus: * annuntiáte de die in diem salutáre ejus.
Sing ye to the Lord and bless his name: * shew forth his salvation from day to day.

Having promised this general exhortation, he proceeds to tell the subject of his praise and song, which is the advent of the Saviour. “Sing to the Lord and bless his name,” in song, praise the power and bless the name of him, “whose salvation you are to show forth from day to day;” that is, every day be sure to celebrate the coming salvation or Saviour.

[3]  Annuntiáte inter gentes glóriam ejus, * in ómnibus pópulis mirabília ejus.
Declare his glory among the Gentiles: * his wonders among all people.

Having said he should be praised at all times, he now adds, that he should be praised in all places. “Declare his glory among the gentiles.” Make known God’s glory, not only to the Jews, as did the prophets of old, but also to the gentiles, which he expresses more clearly, when he says, “his wonders among all people,” tell all nations of the wonderful works of God, that so manifest his glory. Though this exhortation applies to all who know his wonders, it specially applies to the Apostles of the Lord, for it was they that made God’s glory known to all nations, as well as the wonderful works, not only of the Creator, but also of the Redeemer, and of the sanctifier; that is, of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

[4]  Quóniam magnus Dóminus, et laudábilis nimis: * terríbilis est super omnes deos.
For the Lord is great, and exceedingly to be praised: * he is to be feared above all gods.

He now informs us what glory of the Lord, and what wonderful works of his deserve such praise as he just spoke of. “For the Lord is great and exceedingly to be praised.” In this consists his glory, that he is absolutely great, whether in regard of his power, his wisdom, his goodness, his authority, his riches, or in any other point of view; and that he should be, and is actually praised in proportion to such greatness, and hence the heavens and the earth are full of his glory. Then, “he is to be feared above all gods;” that is, that he rises so far above all who have the remotest claim to be called gods, that so far from their presuming to compare themselves to him, they rather tremble like slaves or serfs before his majesty.

[5] Quóniam omnes dii géntium dæmónia: * Dóminus autem cælos fecit.
For all the gods of the Gentiles are devils: * but the Lord made the heavens.

The Church, in speaking of the good Angels, who are sometimes called gods, says, “The Angels praise, the dominations adore, the powers tremble before thy majesty;” and of the fallen angels, who, too, are improperly called gods by the ignorant, St. James says, “the devils also believe and tremble;” and, as David alludes to false gods, especially in this Psalm, he, therefore, assigns a reason for our God being feared above all gods, when he says, “For all the gods of the gentiles are devils; but the Lord made the heavens;” that is to say, God is to be feared above all false gods, erroneously adored by the gentiles, because the gods of the gentiles are not true gods, but demons, who, through pride, have revolted from the God who created them, and have been doomed by him to eternal punishment; “but the Lord,” instead of being a spirit created, is a creating spirit, who “made the heavens,” the greatest and the most beautiful things in nature, as well as everything under its canopy, that is, all things created.

[6] Conféssio, et pulchritúdo in conspéctu ejus: * sanctimónia et magnificéntia in sanctificatióne ejus.
Praise and beauty are before him: * holiness and majesty in his sanctuary.

Having said that God was great and to be feared; he now adds, that he is most worthy of praise in all points of view, that he is most beautiful, glorious, and holy; and that all this is particularly seen in his heavenly sanctuary, where he shows himself to the Angels and other blessed spirits. The second verse of Psalm 103 will throw some light on this verse, which is rather obscure; that verse is, “Thou hast put on praise and beauty, and art clothed with light like a garment;” for God is said to have put on praise and beauty, because from every point of view he is seen to be worthy of praise, and that by reason of his being all fair and beautiful, both in his essence, his attributes, his judgments, his thoughts, or his works; which St. John briefly summed up, when he said, “God is light and there is no darkness in him.” The prophet, then, says of God, “Praise and beauty are before him;” that is, praise, or matter of praise, and beauty, or comeliness, and glory, are encircling God, for he has put on praise and beauty, and, therefore, sees his own praise and beauty about him, and it is seen by all; just as the sun, if it had the sense of seeing, would see all the rays of his own light; as they are seen by all, bright and beautiful. “Holiness and majesty in his sanctuary;” the holiness, or the purity, and magnificence, or the majesty and glory, with which God is clothed, as it were, with vestments, is seen in his sanctuary, or in the holy temple which he has in heaven.

[7] Afférte Dómino, pátriæ géntium, afférte Dómino glóriam et honórem: *[8] afférte Dómino glóriam nómini ejus.
Bring ye to the Lord, O ye kindreds of the Gentiles, bring ye to the Lord glory and honour: * bring to the Lord glory unto his name.

He had already prophesied that the knowledge of God would be preached to all nations, through the coming of Christ; and he now predicts that all nations will be converted, and will glorify God. And, as he predicted the former by way of exhortation, saying, “Declare his glory among the gentiles,” he now predicts the latter in the same form, saying, “Bring to the Lord, O ye kindreds of the gentiles;” ye families of gentiles scattered all over the world, so soon as the glory of the Lord, who descended from heaven, and, after having accomplished your redemption, returned again in glory to heaven, shall have been announced to you, be not incredulous, nor slow in acting thereon, but run in all haste to the tabernacle of the Lord, and bring to him glory and honor, by glorifying and honoring God and his holy name in your actions and in your words. He calls upon them to come in kindreds or families, in allusion to the Jewish custom of families coming by themselves on the several festival days to worship in Jerusalem; and the Holy Ghost gives us here to understand that such custom was to serve as a model for Christians, whose families should unite in coming to the Church to give glory and honour to God for all the wonderful things he accomplished in the redemption of man; for it was not by our own industry, or by our merits, that we have come to grace, and to be the adopted children of God, but through God’s mercy, to whom, therefore, is due all honor and glory.

Tóllite hóstias, et introíte in átria ejus: * [9] adoráte Dóminum in átrio sancto ejus.
Bring up sacrifices, and come into his courts: * adore ye the Lord in his holy court.
He alludes here to a custom of the Jews, who, when they went up to the temple, offered their victims, and after having adored God, returned to their homes. Now, as the gentiles are here invited to come to the Church of the Lord, such sacrifices are to be understood of those spiritual sacrifices of which St. Peter speaks, “to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.” Those spiritual sacrifices are, the sacrifices of a contrite heart, confession of sins, prayer, fasting, alms, and the like. This may also apply to the Eucharistic sacrifice, that took the place of all the Jewish sacrifices, according to the prophecy of Malachy, and which is offered, “from the rising of the sun even to the going down,” to God, by the converted gentiles, through the hands of the priests of the New Testament.

Commoveátur a fácie ejus univérsa terra: *[10] dícite in géntibus quia Dóminus regnávit.
Let all the earth be moved at his presence. * Say ye among the Gentiles, the Lord hath reigned.

He had hitherto seen, as it were, from afar, the kingdom of the Messias, and he exhorted preachers to announce, and people to acknowledge, the coming King; he now beholds him, as it were, at hand, sees him approaching; and, exulting in spirit, he calls upon not only all nations, but even the heavens and the earth, the seas, the very trees, to exult, and to adore him; not that he looked upon such things as imbued with reason, but in order to express the extent of his own feelings, and the universal joy that would be felt all over the world on the coming of Christ. Some will refer this passage to the first, others to the second, coming of Christ; but we see no reason why it should not take in both. He, therefore, says, “Let all the earth be moved at his presence.” Let all the inhabitants of the earth be full of fear and reverence on the approach of the Lord.

In order to stir the people up, preach to them that the coming Lord has taken possession of his kingdom, which kingdom means his spiritual one, through which he reigns by faith in the hearts of men. God always reigns in heaven, and he reigns on earth through his power and majesty; but he began to reign, through faith, among the gentiles, from the coming of the Messias, where the devil previously reigned, through the errors of idolatry; hence the Lord himself said, “Now is the prince of this world cast out.” “For he hath corrected the world, which shall not be moved.” He proves that this kingdom belongs to Christ, by two arguments. (1) it was Christ, as God, that made, confirmed, and established the world, so that it cannot be moved, and that it is only just that he who made it should reign in it. This, then, may have reference to the creation of the world; and the word “corrected” means that he established the world so firmly that it cannot, even for a minute, go out of its place. (2) The word “corrected” may also apply to correction of morals, and the wholesome reformations introduced by the Gospel, and then the meaning would be, that Christ should justly and deservedly reign upon earth, because, when it had gone astray, and fallen into the pernicious errors of the gentiles, he, by his evangelical precepts, that prohibit all manner of vices, corrected, reformed, and so established it that it can never possibly lapse into error, so long as his rules and precepts shall be observed. One precept alone, that of love, if properly observed, would correct the whole world, and keep it in profound peace. The second reason is contained in the words, “he will judge the people with justice;” that is, he has not only corrected the world by his most holy laws, but he will also, in the fitting time, judge the world with the greatest justice; for, to those who shall have observed the precepts of the Gospel, he will give most ample rewards, and to those who shall not, most condign punishment.

[11] Læténtur cæli, et exsúltet terra: commoveátur mare, et plenitúdo ejus: * [12] gaudébunt campi, et ómnia quæ in eis sunt.
Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad, let the sea be moved, and the fulness thereof: * the fields and all things that are in them shall be joyful.

Tunc exsultábunt ómnia ligna silvárum [13] a fácie Dómini, quia venit: * quóniam venit judicáre terram.
Then shall all the trees of the woods rejoice before the face of the Lord, because he cometh: * because he cometh to judge the earth.

Judicábit orbem terræ in æquitáte, * et pópulos in veritáte sua.
He shall judge the world with justice, * and the people with his truth.

He calls upon all creation to be glad and to rejoice, by reason of the first as well as the second coming of the Messias; for while the first coming consecrated, the second will glorify, all things. “For we know that every creature groaneth and is in labor even till now, but it shall afterwards be delivered from the servitude of corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.” Therefore “Let the heavens rejoice and the earth be glad,” as being the principal parts of the world; “let the sea be moved” with the same feelings of joy and exultation; “and the fulness thereof,” all the living things of which it is full, the fishes. “The fields and all things that are in them shall be joyful,” whether cattle or plants, nay, even the very “trees of the woods,” however barren and uncultivated, “shall rejoice.”

All the things above named will rejoice in the presence of the Lord, “because he cometh” to redeem the world in his mercy, and because he will come again to judge it in his justice. Then they will have to say that the last judgment will be, at once, most terrible and most joyous; terrible to the wicked, a source of unbounded joy to the just. Hence, in the sacred Scripture, the last judgment is sometimes described as a fearful, frightful, and saddening occasion, for, according to St. Luke, “There will be signs in the sun and in the moon and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, by reason of the confusion of the roaring of the sea and of the waves. Men withering away for fear and expectation of what shall come upon the whole world. For the powers of heaven shall be moved.” At other times it is described as something pleasant and delightful, by reason of the glory of the elect, which will produce a certain effect on the very heavens, earth, and sea, all of which will be renovated and placed in a better position, and, therefore, in a few verses after, in the same chapter, our Saviour says, “But when these things come to pass, look up, and lift up your head, because your redemption is at hand.”—”He shall judge the world with justice, and the people with his truth.” He concludes by predicting what sort the judgment will be; one that will be in accordance with the justice and the truth that always characterized him, and by virtue of which he always fulfills what he promises, and he has promised to reward every one according to his works; to have no regard of persons, and to judge in all justice. Such will be his mode of judging, and in no other way will he judge. Such an expression ought to knock the sleep out of men’s eyes and arouse them; nor should we imagine, for a moment, that because God deals patiently with us, and defers the sentence, that we will escape the judgment; for he that promised so much, and was so true to his promises, cannot possibly lead us astray in this one thing of so much importance. Is it possible, says St. Augustine, that God could have been so faithful in everything, and so false as to the day of judgment?