Psalm LXXX.3736    Lat. LXXIX. A Sermon delivered to the people.

1. …If perchance things obscure demand the office of an interpreter, those things which are evident ought to require of me the office of a reader. The song here is of the Advent of the Lord and of our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His vineyard. But the singer of the song is that Asaph, as far as doth appear, enlightened and converted, by whose name ye know the synagogue to be signified. Lastly, the title of the Psalm is: “For the end in behalf of them that shall be changed;” that is, for the better. For Christ, the end of the Law,3737    Rom. x. 4. hath come on purpose that He should change men for the better. And he addeth, “a testimony to Asaph himself.” A good testimony of truth. Lastly, this testimony doth confess both Christ and the vineyard; that is, Head and Body, King and people, Shepherd and flock, and the entire mystery of all Scriptures, Christ and the Church. But the title of the Psalm doth conclude with, “for the Assyrians.” The Assyrians are interpreted, “men guiding.” Therefore it is no longer a generation which hath not guided the heart3738    Ps. lxxviii. 8, p. 369, supra. thereof, but now a generation guiding. Therefore hear we what he saith in this testimony.

2. What is, “Thou that feedest Israel, hearken, Thou that conducteth Joseph like sheep”? (ver. 1). He is being invoked to come, He is being expected until He come, He is being yearned for until He come. Therefore may He find “men guiding:” “Thou that conductest,” he saith, “Joseph like sheep:” Joseph himself like sheep. Joseph himself are the sheep, and Joseph himself is a sheep. Observe Joseph; for although even the interpretation of his name doth aid us much, for it signifieth increase; and He came indeed in order that the grain given to death3739    Mortificatum. might arise manifold;3740    John xii. 24. that is, that the people of God might be increased.…“Thou that sittest upon the Cherubin.” Cherubin is the seat of the glory of God, and is interpreted the fulness of knowledge. There God sitteth in the fulness of knowledge. Though we understand the Cherubin to be the exalted powers and virtues of the heavens: yet, if thou wilt, thou wilt be Cherubin.3741    See St. Macarius, Hom. 1. For if Cherubin is the seat of God, hear what saith the Scripture: “The soul of a just man is the seat of wisdom.” How, thou sayest, shall I be the fulness of knowledge? Who shall fulfil this? Thou hast the means of fulfilling it: “The fulness of the Law is love.”3742    Rom. xiii. 10. Do not run after many things, and strain thyself. The amplitude of the branches doth terrify thee: hold by the root, and of the greatness of the tree think not. Be there in thee love, and the fulness of knowledge must needs follow. For what doth he not know that knoweth love? Inasmuch as it hath been said, “God is love.”3743    1 John iv. 8. “Appear.” For we went astray because Thou didst not appear. “Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasse” (ver. 2). Appear, I say, before the nation of the Jews, before the people of Israel. For there is Ephraim, there Manasses, there Benjamin. But to the interpretation let us look: Ephraim is fruit-bearing, Benjamin son of right hand, Manasses one forgetful. Appear Thou then before one made fruitful, before a son of the right hand: appear Thou before one forgetful, in order that he may be no longer forgetful, but Thou mayest come into his mind that hast delivered him.…For weak Thou wast when it was being said, “If Son of God He is, let Him come down from the Cross.”3744    Matt. xxvii. 40. Thou wast seeming to have no power: the persecutor had power over Thee: and Thou didst show this aforetime, for Jacob too himself prevailed in wrestling, a man with an angel. Would he at any time, except the angel had been willing? And man prevailed, and the angel was conquered: and victorious man holdeth the angel, and saith, “I will not let thee go, except thou shalt have blessed me.”3745    Gen. xxxii. 26. A great sacrament! He both standeth conquered, and blesseth the conqueror. Conquered, because he willed it; in flesh weak, in majesty strong.…Having been crucified of weakness, rise Thou in power:3746    2 Cor. xiii. 4. “Stir up Thy power, and come Thou, to save us.”

3. “O God, convert us.” For averse we have been from Thee, and except Thou convert us, we shall not be converted. “And illumine Thy face, and we shall be saved” (ver. 3). Hath He anywise a darkened face? He hath not a darkened face, but He placed before it a cloud of flesh, and as it were a veil of weakness; and when He hung on the tree, He was not thought the Same as He was after to be acknowledged when He was sitting in Heaven. For thus it hath come to pass. Christ present on the earth, and doing miracles, Asaph knew not; but when He had died, after that He rose again, and ascended into Heaven, he knew Him. He was pricked to the heart, and he may have spoken3747    Oxf. mss. “he spoke.” also of Him this testimony which now we acknowledge in this Psalm. Thou didst cover Thy face, and we were sick: illumine Thou the same, and we shall be whole.

4. “O Lord God of virtues, how long wilt Thou be angry with the prayer of Thy servant?” (ver. 4). Now Thy servant. Thou wast angry at the prayer of Thy enemy, wilt Thou still be angry with the prayer of Thy servant? Thou hast converted us, we know Thee, and wilt Thou still be angry with the prayer of Thy servant? Thou wilt evidently be angry, in fact, as a father correcting, not as a judge condemning. In such manner evidently Thou wilt be angry, because it hath been written, “My son, drawing near unto the service of God, stand thou in righteousness and in fear, and prepare thy soul for temptation.”3748    Ecclus. ii. 1. Think not that now the wrath of God hath passed away, because thou hast been converted. The wrath of God3749    So Oxf. mss.; Ben. “it.” hath passed away from thee, but only so that it condemn not for everlasting. But He scourgeth, He spareth not: because He scourgeth every son whom He receiveth.3750    Heb. xii. 6. If thou refusest to be scourged, why dost thou desire to be received? He scourgeth every son whom He receiveth. He who did not spare even His only Son, scourgeth every one. But nevertheless, “How long wilt Thou be angry with the prayer of Thy servant?” No longer thine enemy: but, “Thou wilt be angry with the prayer of Thy servant,” how long? There followeth: “Thou wilt feed us with the bread of tears, and wilt give us to drink with tears in measure” (ver. 5). What is, “in measure”? Hear the Apostle: “Faithful is God, who doth not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able to bear.”3751    1 Cor. x. 13. The measure is, according to your powers: the measure is, that thou be instructed, not that thou be crushed.

5. “Thou hast set us for a contradiction to our neighbours” (ver. 6). Evidently this did come to pass: for out of Asaph were chosen they that should go to the Gentiles and preach Christ, and should have it said to them, “Who is this proclaimer of new demons?”3752    Acts xvii. 18. E.V. “strange gods.” “Thou hast set us for a contradiction to our neighbours.” For they were preaching Him who was the subject of the contradiction. Whom did they preach? That after He was dead, Christ rose again. Who would hear this? Who would know this? It is a new thing. But signs did follow, and to an incredible thing miracles gave credibility. He was contradicted, but the contradictor was conquered, and from being a contradictor was made a believer. There, however, was a great flame: there the martyrs fed with the bread of tears, and given to drink in tears, but in measure, not more than they are able to bear; in order that after the measure of tears there should follow a crown of joys. “And our enemies have sneered at us.” And where are they that sneered? For a long while it was said, Who are they that worship the Dead One, that adore the Crucified? For a long while so it was said. Where is the nose of them that sneered? Now do not they that censure flee into caves, that they may not be seen? But ye see what followeth: “O Lord God of virtues, convert us, and show Thy face, and we shall be whole” (ver. 7). “A vineyard out of Egypt Thou hast brought over, Thou hast cast out the nations, and hast planted her” (ver. 8). It was done, we know. How many nations were cast out? Amorites, Cethites, Jebusites, Gergesites, and Evites: after whose expulsion and overthrow, there was led in the people delivered out of Egypt, into the land of promise. Whence the vineyard was cast out, and where she was planted, we have heard. Let us see what next was done, how she believed, how much she grew, what ground she covered.

6. “A way Thou hast made in the sight of her, and hast planted the roots of her, and she hath filled the land” (ver. 9). Would she have filled the land, unless a way had been made in the sight of her? What was the way which was made in the sight of her? “I am,” He saith, “the Way, the Truth, and the Life.”3753    John xiv. 6. With reason she hath filled the land. That hath now been said of this vineyard, which hath been accomplished at the last. But in the mean time what? “She hath covered the mountains with her shadow, and with her branch the cedars of God” (ver. 10). “Thou hast stretched out her boughs even unto the sea, and even unto the river her shoots” (ver. 11). This requireth the office of an expositor, that of a reader and praiser3754    One ms. “hearer.” doth not suffice: aid me with attention; for the mention of this vineyard in this Psalm is wont to overcloud with darkness the inattentive.…But nevertheless the first Jewish nation was this vine. But the Jewish nation reigned as far as the sea and as far as the river. As far as the sea; it appeareth in Scripture3755    Numb. xxxiv. 5. that the sea was in the vicinity thereof. And as far as the river Jordan. For on the other side of Jordan some part of the Jews was established, but within Jordan was the whole nation. Therefore, “even unto the sea and even unto the river,” is the kingdom of the Jews, the kingdom of Israel: but not “from sea even unto sea, and from the river even unto the ends of the round world;”3756    Ps. lxxii. 8. this is the future perfection of the vineyard, concerning which in this place he hath foretold. When, I say, he had foretold to thee the perfection, he returneth to the beginning, out of which the perfection was made. Of the beginning wilt thou hear? “Even unto the river.” Of the end wilt thou hear? “He shall have dominion from sea even unto sea:”3757    Ps. lxxii. 8. that is, “she hath filled the earth.” Let us look then to the testimony of Asaph, as to what was done to the first vineyard, and what must be expected for the second vineyard, nay to the same vineyard.…What then, the vineyard before the sight whereof a way was made, that she should fill the earth, at first was where? “Her shadow covered the mountains.” Who are the mountains? The Prophets. Why did her shadow cover them? Because darkly they spake the things which were foretold as to come. Thou hearest from the Prophets, Keep the Sabbath-day, on the eighth day circumcise a child, offer sacrifice of ram, of calf, of he-goat. Be not troubled, her shadow doth cover the mountains of God; there will come after the shadow a manifestation. “And her shrubs the cedars of God,” that is, she hath covered the cedars of God; very lofty, but of God. For the cedars are types of the proud, that must needs be overthrown. The “cedars of Lebanon,” the heights of the world, this vineyard did cover in growing, and the mountains of God, all the holy Prophets and Patriarchs.

7. Then what? “Wherefore hast Thou thrown down her enclosure?” (ver. 12). Now ye see the overthrow of that nation of the Jews: already out of another Psalm ye have heard, “with axe and hammer3758    Fractorio. they have thrown her down.”3759    Ps. lxxiv. 6. When could this have been done, except her enclosure had been thrown down. What is her enclosure? Her defence. For she bore herself proudly against her planter. The servants that were sent to her and demanded a recompense, the husbandmen they scourged, beat, slew: there came also the Only Son, they said, “This is the Heir; come, let us kill Him, and our own the inheritance will be:” they killed Him, and out of the vineyard they cast Him forth. 3760    Matt. xxi. 35, etc. When cast forth, He did more perfectly possess the place whence He was cast forth. For thus He threatens her through Isaiah, “I will throw down her enclosure.” Wherefore? “For I looked that she should bring forth grapes, but she brought forth thorns.”3761    Isa. v. 2. I looked for fruit from thence, and I found sin. Why then dost thou ask, O Asaph, “Why hast Thou thrown down her enclosure?” For knowest thou not why? I looked that she should do judgment, and she did iniquity. Must not her enclosure needs be thrown down? And there came the Gentiles when the enclosure was thrown down, the vineyard was assailed, and the kingdom of the Jews effaced. This at first he is lamenting, but not without hope. For of directing the heart he is now speaking, that is, for the “Assyrians,” for “men directing,” the Psalm is. “Wherefore hast Thou thrown down her enclosure: and there pluck off her grapes all men passing along the way.” What is “men passing along the way?” Men having dominion for a time.

8. “There hath laid her waste the boar from the wood” (ver. 13). In the boar from the wood what do we understand? To the Jews a swine is an abomination, and in a swine they imagine as it were the uncleanness of the Gentiles. But by the Gentiles was overthrown the nation of the Jews: but that king who overthrew, was not only an unclean swine, but was also a boar. For what is a boar but a savage swine, a furious swine? “A boar from the wood hath laid her waste.” “From the wood,” from the Gentiles. For she was a vineyard, but the Gentiles were woods. But when the Gentiles believed, there was said what? “Then there shall exult all the trees of the woods.”3762    Ps. xcvi. 12. “The boar from the wood hath laid her waste; and a singular wild beast hath devoured her.” “A singular wild beast” is what? The very boar that laid her waste is the singular wild beast. Singular, because proud. For thus saith every proud one, It is I, it is I, and no other.

9. But with what