Psalm LX
it is mine, saith the Church.
10. “Juda is my king: Moab the pot of my hope” (ver. 7). What Juda? He that is of the tribe of Juda. What Juda, but He to whom Jacob himself said, “Juda, thy brethren shall praise thee”? What therefore should I fear, when Juda my king saith, “Fear not them that kill the body”? “Moab the pot of my hope.” Wherefore “pot”? Because tribulation. Wherefore “of my hope”? Because there hath gone before Juda my king.…Moab is perceived in the Gentiles. For that nation was born of sin, that nation was born of the daughters of Lot, who lay with their father drunken, abusing a father. Better were it to have remained barren, than thus to have become mothers. But this was a kind of figure of them that abuse the law. For do not heed that law in the Latin language is of the feminine gender: in Greek of the masculine gender it is: but whether it be of the feminine gender in speaking, or of the masculine, the expression maketh no difference to the truth. For law hath rather a masculine force, because it ruleth, is not ruled. But moreover, the Apostle Paul saith what? “Good is the law, if any one use it lawfully.” But those daughters of Lot unlawfully used their father. But in the same manner as good works begin to grow when a man useth well the law: so arise evil works, when a man ill useth the law. Furthermore, they ill using their father, that is, ill using the law, engendered the Moabites, by whom are signified evil works. Thence the tribulation of the Church, thence the pot boiling up. Of this pot in a certain place of prophecy is said, “A pot heated by the North wind.” Whence but by the quarters of the devil, who hath said, “I will set my seat at the North”? The chiefest tribulations therefore arise against the Church from none except from those that ill use the law.…
11. “Into Idumæa I will stretch out my shoe” (ver. 8). The Church speaketh, “I will come through even unto Idumæa.” Let tribulations rage, let the world boil with offences, even unto those very persons that lead an earthly life (for Idumæa is interpreted earthly), even unto those same, “even unto Idumæa, I will stretch out my shoe.” Of what thing the shoe except of the Gospel? “How beautiful the feet of them that tell of peace, that tell of good things,” and “the feet shod unto the preparation of the Gospel of peace.” …In these times we see, brethren, how many earthly men do perpetrate frauds for the sake of gain, for frauds perjuries; on account of their fears they consult fortune-tellers, astrologers: all these men are Edomites, earthly; and nevertheless all these men adore Christ, under His own shoe they are; now even unto Idumæa is stretched out His shoe. “To Me Allophyli have been made subject.” Who are “Allophyli”? Men of other race, not belonging to My race.
They “have been made subject,” because many men adore Christ, and are not to reign with Christ.
12. “Who will lead Me down into the city of standing round?” (ver. 9). What is the city of standing round? If ye remember already, I have made mention thereof in another Psalm, wherein hath been said, “And they shall go around the city.” For the city of standing round is the compassing around of the Gentiles, which compassing around of the Gentiles in the middle thereof had the one nation of the Jews, worshipping one God: the rest of the compassing around of the Gentiles to idols made supplication, demons they did serve. And mystically it was called the city of standing round; because on all sides the Gentiles had poured themselves around, and had stood around that nation which did worship one God.…“Who will lead me down even unto Idumæa?”
13. “Wilt not Thou, O God, that hast driven us back? And wilt not Thou, O God, march forth in our powers?” (ver. 10). Wilt not Thou lead us down, that hast driven us back? But wherefore “hast driven us back”? Because Thou hast destroyed us. Wherefore hast destroyed us? Because angry Thou hast been, and hast had pity on us. Thou therefore wilt lead down, that hast driven back; Thou, O God, that wilt not march forth in our powers, wilt lead down. What is, “wilt not march forth in our powers”? The world is to rage, the world is to tread us down, there is to be a heap of witnesses, builded of the spilled blood of martyrs, and the raging heathen are to say, “Where is the God of them?”
Then “Thou wilt not march forth in our powers:” against them Thou wilt not show Thyself, Thou wilt not show Thy power, such as Thou hast shown in David, in Moses, in Joshua the son of Nun, when to their might the Gentiles yielded, and when the slaughter had been ended, and the great laying waste repaired, into the land which Thou promisedst Thou leddest in Thy people. This thing then Thou wilt not do, “Thou wilt not march forth in our powers,” but within Thou wilt work. What is, “wilt not march forth”? Wilt not show Thyself. For indeed when in chains the Martyrs were being led along, when they were being shut up in prison, when they were being led forth to be mocked, when to the beasts they were exposed, when they were being smitten with the sword, when with fire they were being burned, were they not despised as though forsaken, as though without helper? In what manner was God working within? in what manner within was He comforting? in what manner to these men was He making sweet the hope of life everlasting? in what manner was He not forsaking the hearts of them, where the man was dwelling in silence, well if good, ill if evil? Was He then by any means forsaking, because He was not marching forth in the powers of them? By not marching forth in the powers of them, did He not the more lead down the Church even unto Idumæa, lead down the Church even unto the city of standing around? For if the Church chose to war and to use the sword, She would seem to be fighting for life present: but because she was despising life present, therefore there was made a heap of witness for the life that shall be.
14. Thou therefore, O God, that wilt not march forth in our powers, “Give to us aid from tribulation, and vain is the safety of man” (ver. 11). Go now they that salt have not, and desire safety temporal for their friends, which is empty oldness. “Give to us aid:” from thence whence Thou wast supposed to forsake, thence succour. “In God we will do valour, and Himself to nothing shall bring down our enemies” (ver. 12). We will not do valour with the sword, not with horses, not with breastplates, not with shields, not in the mightiness of an army, not abroad. But where? Within, where we are not seen. Where within? “In God we will do virtue:” and as if abjects, and as if trodden down, men as if of no consideration we shall be, but “Himself to nothing shall bring down our enemies.” In a word, this thing hath been done to our enemies. Trodden down have been the Martyrs: by suffering, by enduring, by persevering even unto the end, in God they have done valour. Himself also hath done that which followeth: to nothing He hath brought down the enemies of them. Where are now the enemies of the Martyrs, except perchance that now drunken men with their cups do persecute those whom at that time frenzied men did use with stones to persecute?