Chapter 51
Psalm 119, Discourse 14 of Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Volume 5. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Volume 5, by St. Augustine of Hippo, Psalm 119, Discourse 14, verses 45 through 48. The former verses of this long psalm contain a prayer, but these following the subject of our present exposition, a narration. For the man of
God in the above lines was praying for the aid of God's grace when he said, Quicken me in thy righteousness, and let thy loving mercies come also upon me, O Lord. And other passages of the same kind both above and after this. But he now saith, And I walked at liberty, for I sought thy precepts. Verse 46. And I spoke of thy testimonies also before kings, and was not ashamed. Verse 47. And I meditated on thy commandments, which I have loved. Verse 48. My hands also have I lifted up
unto thy commandments, which I have loved, and I was exercised in thy statutes. Where these are the words of one narrating, not of one praying, as if after he had received what he had prayed for, he were confessing in the praises of God what the loving mercy of God had made him, which he had prayed might come upon him. For he hath not connected these lines with the proceeding, as if he had written thus. And take not from my mouth the word of truth even utterly,
for I have hoped more in thy judgments, and I will keep thy law continually for ever and ever, and I will walk at liberty, for I have sought out thy precepts, and I will talk of thy statutes in the sight of kings, and will not be ashamed, and the rest in this way. For this would seem to have been the mode in which what follows should have been connected with the foregoing verses. But, he says, and I walked at liberty. Here the copulative conjunction, and, is not used as a
connecting particle, for he doth not say, and I will walk, as he had said, and I will keep thy commandments for ever and ever. For if this latter verse be in the optative mood, and may I keep thy law, he doth not add, and may I walk at liberty, as if he had desired and prayed for both of these things. But he saith, and I walked at liberty. If this conjunction were not used here, and if the sentence were introduced free from any such connection with what proceeded, I walked at
liberty. The reader would never have been induced by anything unusual in the mode of speech to think he should seek for some hidden sense. Doubtless, then, he wished what he hath not said to be understood, that is, that his prayers had been heard. And he then added what he had become, as if he were to say, When I prayed for these things, thou hurtest me, and I walked at liberty. and so with the remaining expressions which he hath added to the same purpose
what then mean the words and i walked at liberty save i walked in love which is shed abroad in our hearts by the holy spirit which is given us in this liberty he walked who said o ye corinthians our mouth is open unto you our heart is enlarged now the whole of this love is comprised in those two commandments, the love of God and the love of our neighbor, on which all the law and the prophets hang. Whence after he had said, And I walked at liberty, he subjoined the reason,
for I sought out thy commandments. Some copies have not commandments but testimonies, but we find commandments in most, and especially in the Greek, and who would hesitate rather to believe this tongue as prior to our own, and that from which these psalms have been rendered into Latin. If, then, we wish to know how we sought out these commandments, or how they ought to be sought out, let us consider what our good Master, who both taught and gave them, saith,
Ask, and it shall be given you, Seek, and ye shall find, Knock, and it shall be opened unto you. and a little lower if ye then he saith being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children how much more shall your father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him where he evidently showeth that the words he had spoken seek ask knock belong only to earnestness in asking, that is, in praying. Moreover, another evangelist saith not, he will give good things to
them that ask him, which may be understood in many ways, either as earthly or spiritual blessings, but has excluded other interpretations, and very carefully expressed what our Lord wished us to pray earnestly and instantly for in these words. How much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him. This is that spirit by which love is shed abroad in our hearts, so that by loving God and our neighbor we may execute the divine commandments.
That is that spirit in which we cry, Abba, Father. And on this account it is he himself whom we desire to receive who causes us to ask, himself causes us to seek, whom we wish to find. himself causeth us to knock unto whom we strive to come this the apostle teacheth for while in one passage he sayeth that we cry out in the holy spirit abba father in another passage again he sayeth God hath sent forth the spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. How do we cry, if he himself crieth in us, save because he caused us to cry, when he began to dwell in us?
Also he so acteth when he is received, that he is desired, by asking, by seeking, by knocking, to be more fully received. For whether he leadeth them to seek a good life or to live well, as many as are led by the spirit of god these are the sons of god therefore he saith i walked at liberty for i sought out thy commandments he had sought and found since he had sought and received the good spirit whereby having been made good he might do good works well by faith which worketh
by love. Verse 46. I spoke of thy testimonies also, he saith, before kings, and I was not ashamed. As one who had sought and had received grace to answer those who reproached him with the word, and the promise that the word of truth should not be taken from his mouth, struggling for this truth even unto death, not even before kings was he ashamed to speak of it. for testimonies whereof he doth a vow that he was speaking are in greek styled martyria a word which
we now employ instead of the latin the name of martyrs unto whom jesus foretold that they should confess him even before kings is derived hence verse 47 and i meditated he saith on thy commandments which I have loved. Verse 48. My hands also have I lifted up unto thy commandments, which I have loved. Or, as some copies read, which I have loved exceedingly, or too much, or vehemently, as they have chosen to render the Greek word Svodra. He then loved the commandments
of God, because he walked at liberty, that is, through the Holy Spirit, through whom love itself is shed abroad, and enlargeth the hearts of the faithful. But he loved both in thought and in acts. With a view to thought, he saith, and I meditated on thy commandments. As to action, my hands also have I lifted up into thy commandments. But to both sentences he hath annexed the words, which I have loved. For the end of the commandment is love out of a pure heart.
when the commandment of god is obeyed with this end then a really good work is done and then our hands are lifted up because that towards which they are lifted is above on this account when the apostle was about to speak of charity he saith i show unto you a higher way and in another passage to know the love of christ which is exceeding high above knowledge for if the reward of earthly happiness be sought for from the performance of God's commandments, the hands
are rather lowered than lifted up, since earthly rewards, which are not above but below, are sought for by that obedience. The following words, and my study was in thy statutes, relate to both. This expression most of the translators have preferred to this, I rejoiced in, or I talked of, a version which some have given from the Greek, for he who keepeth the commandments of God,
which he loveth, both in thought and in works, taking delight in them, is exercised with joy, and with a certain abundance of speech in the judgments of God.
End of Psalm 119, Discourse 14
