Chapter XIV.—Figurative Style of Certain Messianic Prophecies in the Psalms. Military Metaphors Applied to Christ.

This interpretation of ours will derive confirmation, when, on your supposing that Christ is in any passage called a warrior, from the mention of certain arms and expressions of that sort, you weigh well the analogy of their other meanings, and draw your conclusions accordingly. “Gird on Thy sword,” says David, “upon Thy thigh.”965    Ps. xlv. 3. But what do you read about Christ just before? “Thou art fairer than the children of men; grace is poured forth upon Thy lips.”966    Ps. xlv. 2. It amuses me to imagine that blandishments of fair beauty and graceful lips are ascribed to one who had to gird on His sword for war! So likewise, when it is added, “Ride on prosperously in Thy majesty,”967    Literally, “Advance, and prosper, and reign.” the reason is subjoined: “Because of truth, and meekness, and righteousness.”968    Ps. xlv. 4. But who shall produce these results with the sword, and not their opposites rather—deceit, and harshness, and injury—which, it must be confessed, are the proper business of battles? Let us see, therefore, whether that is not some other sword, which has so different an action. Now the Apostle John, in the Apocalypse, describes a sword which proceeded from the mouth of God as “a doubly sharp, two-edged one.”969    Rev. i. 16. This may be understood to be the Divine Word, who is doubly edged with the two testaments of the law and the gospel—sharpened with wisdom, hostile to the devil, arming us against the spiritual enemies of all wickedness and concupiscence, and cutting us off from the dearest objects for the sake of God’s holy name. If, however, you will not acknowledge John, you have our common master Paul, who “girds our loins about with truth, and puts on us the breastplate of righteousness, and shoes us with the preparation of the gospel of peace, not of war; who bids us take the shield of faith, wherewith we may be able to quench all the fiery darts of the devil, and the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which (he says) is the word of God.”970    Eph. vi. 14–17. This sword the Lord Himself came to send on earth, and not peace.971    Matt. x. 34. If he is your Christ, then even he is a warrior. If he is not a warrior, and the sword he brandishes is an allegorical one, then the Creator’s Christ in the psalm too may have been girded with the figurative sword of the Word, without any martial gear. The above-mentioned “fairness” of His beauty and “grace of His lips” would quite suit such a sword, girt as it even then was upon His thigh in the passage of David, and sent as it would one day be by Him on earth. For this is what He says: “Ride on prosperously in Thy majesty972    “Advance, and prosper, and reign.””—advancing His word into every land, so as to call all nations: destined to prosper in the success of that faith which received Him, and reigning, from the fact that973    Exinde qua. He conquered death by His resurrection.  “Thy right hand,” says He, “shall wonderfully lead Thee forth,”974    Ps. xlv. 4, but changed. even the might of Thy spiritual grace, whereby the knowledge of Christ is spread. “Thine arrows are sharp;”975    Ps. xlv. 5. everywhere Thy precepts fly about, Thy threatenings also, and convictions976    Traductiones. of heart, pricking and piercing each conscience. “The people shall fall under Thee,”977    Ps. xlv. 5. that is, in adoration. Thus is the Creator’s Christ mighty in war, and a bearer of arms; thus also does He now take the spoils, not of Samaria alone, but of all nations. Acknowledge, then, that His spoils are figurative, since you have learned that His arms are allegorical. Since, therefore, both the Lord speaks and His apostle writes such things978    Ejusmodi. in a figurative style, we are not rash in using His interpretations, the records979    Exempla. of which even our adversaries admit; and thus in so far will it be Isaiah’s Christ who has come, in as far as He was not a warrior, because it is not of such a character that He is described by Isaiah.

CAPUT XIV.

Adjuvabitur haec nostra interpretatio, dum et alibi bellatorem existimans Christum, ob armorum quorumdam vocabula et ejusmodi verba, ex reliquorum quoque sensuum comparatione convinceris: Accingere, inquit David (Ps. XLIV, 4), ensesuper femur. Sed quid supra legis de Christo? Tempestivus decore praeter filios hominum: effusa est gratia in labiis tuis. Rideo, si quem ad bellum ense cingebat, ei de tempestivitate decoris, et labiorum gratia blandiebatur. Sic item subjungens: Extende, et prosperare, et regna; adjecit: Propter veritatem, et lenitatem, et justitiam. Quis enim haec ense operabitur, et 0340B non contraria potius lenitati et justitiae , dolum et asperitatem et injustitiam, propria scilicet negotia praeliorum? Videamus ergo, an alius sit ensis ille, cujus alius est actus. Nam et apostolus Joannes in Apocalypsi (Apoc. I, 16), ensem describit ex ore Dei prodeuntem, bis acutum, praeculum; quem intelligi oportet (Eph. VI, 17) sermonem divinum, bis acutum duobus Testamentis, Legis et Evangelii; acutum sapientia, infestum diabolo; armantem nos adversus hostes spiritales nequitiae et concupiscentiae omnis, amputantem etiam a carissimis ob Dei nomen. Quod si Joannem agnitum non vis, habes communem magistrum Paulum , praecingentem lumbos nostros veritate et lorica justitiae, et calciantem nos praeparationem Evangelii pacis, non belli: assumere 0340C jubentem scutum fidei, in quo possimus omnia diaboli ignita tela extinguere; et galeam salutaris, et gladium spiritus, quod est, inquit, Dei sermo. Hanc et Dominus ipse machaeram venit mittere in terram, non pacem (Matth. X, 33). Si tuus Christus est, ergo et ipse bellator est; si bellator non est, machaeram intentans allegoricam, licuit ergo et Christo Creatoris in Psalmo, sine bellicis rebus, ensem sermonis Dei praecingi figurato, cui 0341A supradicta tempestivitas congruat, et gratia labiorum; quem tunc jam cingebatur super femur apud David, quandoque missurus in terram. Hoc est enim quod ait, et extende, et prosperare, et regna. Extendes sermonem in omnem terram ad universarum gentium vocationem; prosperaturus successu fidei, qua est recepturus; et regnans exinde, qua mortem resurrectione devicit. Et deducet te, inquit, mirifice dextera tua; virtus scilicet gratiae spiritalis, qua Christi agnitio deducitur. Sagittae tuae acutae, pervolantia ubique praecepta, et minae, et traductiones cordis, compungentes et transfigentes conscientiam quamque. Populi sub te concident, utique adorantes. Sic bellipotens et armiger Christus Creatoris, sic et nunc accipiens spolia, non solius Samariae, 0341B verum et omnium gentium. Agnosce et spolia figurata, cujus et arma allegorica didicisti. Figurate itaque et Domino ejusmodi loquente, et Apostolo scribente, non temere interpretationibus ejus utimur, quarum exempla etiam adversarii admittunt: atque ita in tantum Esaiae erit Christus qui venit, in quantum non fuit bellator, quia non talis ab Esaia praedicatur.