Chapter I.—He Calls Upon God, and Proposes to Himself to Worship Him.

1. I Call upon Thee, my God, my mercy, who madest me, and who didst not forget me, though forgetful of Thee. I call Thee into1048    Gen. i. 1.    That is, not the atmosphere which surrounds the earth, as when we say, “the birds of heaven” (Jer. iv. 25), “the dew of heaven” (Gen. xxvii. 28); nor that “firmament of heaven” (Gen. i. 17) in which the stars have their courses; nor both these together; but that “third heaven” to which Paul was “caught up” (2 Cor. xii. 1) in his rapture, and where God most manifests His glory, and the angels do Him homage.    See i. sec. 2, above. my soul, which by the desire which Thou inspirest in it Thou preparest for Thy reception. Do not Thou forsake me calling upon Thee, who didst anticipate me before I called, and didst importunately urge with manifold calls that I should hear Thee from afar, and be converted, and call upon Thee who calledst me. For Thou, O Lord, hast blotted out all my evil deserts, that Thou mightest not repay into my hands wherewith I have fallen from Thee, and Thou hast anticipated all my good deserts, that Thou mightest repay into Thy hands wherewith Thou madest me; because before I was, Thou wast, nor was I [anything] to which Thou mightest grant being. And yet behold, I am, out of Thy goodness, anticipating all this which Thou hast made me, and of which Thou hast made me. For neither hadst Thou stood in need of me, nor am I such a good as to be helpful unto Thee,1049    Augustin was not singular amongst the early Fathers in not knowing Hebrew, for of the Greeks only Origen, and of the Latins Jerome, knew anything of it. We find him confessing his ignorance both here and elsewhere (Enarr. in Ps. cxxxvi. 7, and De Doctr. Christ. ii. 22); and though he recommends a knowledge of Hebrew as well as Greek, to correct “the endless diversity of the Latin translators” (De Doctr. Christ. ii. 16); he speaks as strongly as does Grinfield, in his Apology for the Septuagint, in favour of the claims of that version to “biblical and canonical authority” (Eps. xxviii., lxxi., and lxxv.; De Civ. Dei, xviii. 42, 43; De Doctr. Christ. ii. 22). He discountenanced Jerome’s new translation, probably from fear of giving offence, and, as we gather from Ep. lxxi. 5, not without cause. From the tumult he there describes as ensuing upon Jerome’s version being read, the outcry would appear to have been as great as when, on the change of the old style of reckoning to the new, the ignorant mob clamoured to have back their eleven days!    Ps. cxv. 16, after the LXX., Vulgate, and Syriac.    Similar views as to God’s not having need of us, though He created us, and as to our service being for our and not His advantage, will be found in his De Gen. ad Lit. viii. 11; and Con. Adv. Leg. et Proph. i. 4. my Lord and God; not that I may so serve Thee as though Thou wert fatigued in working, or lest Thy power may be less if lacking my assistance nor that, like the land, I may so cultivate Thee that Thou wouldest be uncultivated did I cultivate Thee not but that I may serve and worship Thee, to the end that I may have well-being from Thee; from whom it is that I am one susceptible of well-being.

CAPUT PRIMUM. Invocat Deum, cujus bonitate se praeventum agnoscit.

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1. Invoco te, Deus meus, misericordia mea, qui fecisti me, et oblitum tui oblitus non es. Invoco te in animam meam, quam praeparas ad capiendum te ex desiderio quod inspiras ei: nunc invocantem te ne deseras, qui priusquam invocarem praevenisti et institisti crebrescens multimodis vocibus, ut audirem de longinquo et converterer, et vocantem me invocarem te. Tu enim, Domine, delevisti omnia mala merita mea, ne retribueres manibus meis in quibus a te defeci; et praevenisti omnia bona merita mea, ut retribueres manibus tuis quibus me fecisti: quia et priusquam essem, tu eras; nec eram cui praestares ut essem; et tamen ecce sum ex bonitate tua praeveniente totum hoc quod me fecisti, et unde me fecisti. Neque enim eguisti me, aut ego tale bonum sum quo tu adjuveris, Domine meus et Deus meus; non ut tibi sic serviam quasi ne fatigeris in agendo, aut ne minor sit potestas tua carens obsequio meo; neque ut sic te colam quasi terram, ut sis incultus si non te colam; sed ut serviam tibi et colam te, ut de te mihi bene sit, a quo mihi est ut sim cui bene sit.