They speak boldly in the Gate,' who speak in Christ. 31

Ver.

5.

tists.

aptly used: if that which is called a house be not rightly termed a city. For both are said a little before: Except the Lord build the house, their labour is but lost that build it; and lest thou shouldest think this house some small thing, he addeth, Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. The house, therefore, and the city are the same. The city hath a door like a house, and hath a gate as a city. He, therefore, Who is the door of the house, is Himself the gate of the city. If, therefore, Christ be the gate of the city, he is not ashamed who standeth in Christ, and thus preacheth. But he who preacheth against Christ, against him the gate is shut. Who are they who preach against Christ? They who deny that the arrows are sent Donafrom the hand of the Mighty One, and have reached the uttermost parts of the earth; and this is the heritage of the Lord, of which it is said, Desire of Me, and I shall give thee the Ps. 2, 8. heathen for thy inheritance, and the utmost parts of the earth for thy possession. It was preached, it was listened to, before it was fulfilled; and now that it hath been fulfilled, they refuse to acknowledge it. They, therefore, who speak against Christ, are without the gate; because they seek their own honours, not those of Christ. But he who preacheth in the gate, seeketh Christ's honour, not his own: and, therefore, he who preacheth in the gate, saith, Trust not in me; for ye will not enter through me, but through the gate. While they who wish men to trust in themselves, wish them not to enter through the gate: it is no marvel if the gate be closed against them, and if they vainly knock for it to be opened. Be present in mind, therefore, brethren, on account of to-morrow's discourse also, which shall be delivered to you, according to our promise, by the Lord's help, from the Gospel concerning the dove. In Whose Name we have promised, in His mercy we will fulfil our promise. But, that we may fulfil it worthily, and may not have been too daring in promising, do ye pray for us.

e Vid. Tract. iv. on St. John i. 31, 32. §. 16. cf. Tract v. and vi.

LAT. CXXVII.

32 Some are misled by the promise of temporal blessings.

PSALM CXXVIII.

EXPOSITION.

1 Cor. 2,

A Sermon to the People, on the day of St. Felix the Martyr.

1. Ver. 1-4. As the Apostle saith, dearest brethren, Com13. 14. paring spiritual things with spiritual; but the natural man receiveth not the things that are of the Spirit of God; we must be on our guard lest natural men, not receiving the things that are of the Spirit of God, may rather be scandalized than edified by this Psalm. For briefly (though we heard it in the singing) I am running through it, since it is brief, not expounding, but reading it. Now consider that if every man hath desired such things as a great gift from God, as this Psalm mentioneth; and perhaps, not because he is forsaken by God, but because he is more loved, hath not received them; and seeth that what he hath here heard described as the rewards of them that fear God, abound unto those who fear not God: his steps totter, and his footsteps slip, and he saith in his heart, that he hath feared God without a cause, since he hath not received those rewards which God hath promised to them that fear Him; while they have received over and above, who not only have not feared, but have even blasphemed Him. Consider what he saith, Blessed are all they that fear the Lord, and walk in His ways. For thou shalt eat the labours of thy hands. O well is thee, and happy shalt thou be. We may, as far as this, though we be natural men, think of the bliss of a future life: but consider what followeth: Thy wife shall be as the fruitful vine upon the walls of thine house. Thy children like the olive-branches, round about thy table. Lo, thus shall the man be blessed, that feareth the Lord. How? In that his wife shall be as the fruitful vine, upon the walls of his house and his children like the olive-branches, round about his table. Have they then, who for God's sake have even refused to marry, lost their reward? No: he who

:

Something beyond this life must be understood.

33

1.

refuseth to marry saith: God will bless me in other ways. VER. Nay truly either He will bless thee thus, or He will not bless thee at all; the language of the Psalm is plain, Lo, thus shall the man be blessed, that feareth the Lord.

2. What then, brethren, is the meaning of this? That we may not, by desiring temporal and earthly blessings, lose our heavenly happiness, the Prophet setteth before us a sort of veil, this veil hath I know not what within. You remember, beloved, when I was expounding the preceding Psalm to you, which goeth before this, we met with a certain obscure verse, where it was said, Like as the arrows in the hand of a Ps. 127, mighty one, so are the sons of them that are shaken out; and 4. when we enquired who the sons of them that are shaken out were, it seemed to us, that the Apostles (the Lord suggesting this, as we believe) were termed the sons of them that were shaken out, the sons of the Prophets: because the Prophets spoke in enigmas, and under figures as with the veil of mysteries covered their meaning; which meaning could not issue forth unto men, unless these veils were shaken out; whence they were called the sons of those that are shaken out, who gained spiritual profit by the opening out the Prophets. Let us too, therefore, shake out this one, that we may not be deceived through the coverings, lest touching what is within and not seeing it, we may perchance say wood for gold, and tiles for silver. Let us shake it out, if it seem good unto you, beloved; the Lord will aid, that what is within may come forth; especially, my brethren, as we are celebrating the birthdays of the Martyrs. How great evils have the Martyrs endured, what deaths, what terrible tortures, what filthy prisons, pinching of chains, fury of wild beasts, heat of flames, stings of insults! Would they have endured all these things, unless they saw somewhat, whither they were tending, not belonging to the happiness of this world? Now it is shameful for us to celebrate the birthdays of the Martyrs, that is, of those servants of God who despised this world for the sake of everlasting bliss, and understand what is here written in the sense of present happiness; so that we should say of any faithful man of God, citizen of that Jerusalem, to whom marriage may have brought no issue, This man feareth not the Lord; for if he feared the Lord, his wife

34 God does not always give Children to the Righteous.

PSALM Would be as the fruitful vine upon the walls of his house, not CXXVIII. barren, so that she could give birth to none; and if this man

feared the Lord, his sons would surround his table, like olivebranches. For if we should speak thus, we are natural men not receiving the things that are of the Spirit of God. Let us also begin to shake them out, that we also may be the sons of them that are shaken out. For if we shall be the sons of them that are shaken out, we shall be like as the arrows in the hand of the giant, and He will dart us from His commandment into the hearts of men who do not as yet love Him, that, struck by the arrows of God's words, they may love. For if we begin to preach to them such words as these, My sons, or my brethren, fear ye the Lord, that ye may have children and grandchildren, that your house may be joyful; we are not leading them to love that everlasting Jerusalem; they will remain in the love of earthly things, and seeing these things abound to the ungodly, though they dare not speak so to us, they will say in their heart, Why hath he who feareth not God, his house full of children? And if perchance another say to him, As yet thou knowest not what may happen; what if he shall have to bury them, because he feareth not God; what if many sons were born unto him for this reason, that he might suffer greater pain from their death? But if thou speak thus, he will answer thee: I know of a man who was ungodly, a heathen, sacrilegious, a worshipper of idols, (and perhaps he doth know, and saith the truth, and knoweth not one only, nor even two or three only,) whom numerous sons and grandsons have carried to the grave, an old man, bowed down with years, who had died in his bed. Lo, he feared not the Lord, and yet a most numerous offspring of his house hath closed his eyes. What shall we say to this? Nothing evil can happen to him, for he can never, in his lifetime, bury his children, since he hath already died, and been borne to an honourable tomb by his children.

3. Let us shake this out then, let us shake it out, if we wish to be the sons of them that are shaken out let some meaning be educed from it. For there is a certain Man who is thus blessed: and no one feareth the Lord, except he be in the members of this Man: and there are many men,

The Promise is to the Church, as one in Christ. 35

1.

5, 30.

1 Cor.

and there is one Man; for there are many Christians, and VER. there is One Christ. The Christians themselves with their Head, Who hath ascended into heaven, are one Christ. He is not One, and we many, but we many are one in That One. Christ then is one Man, the Head of the Body. What is His Body? His Church, as the Apostle saith: We are Ephes. members of His Body; and, ye are the body of Christ, and His members in particular. Let us therefore understand 12, 27. the words of this Man, in whose body we are one man; and we shall there see the true good things of Jerusalem. For thus he saith at the end: That thou mayest see the good things that are of Jerusalem. But if thou hast looked for these good things with an earthly eye, the abundance of children and grandchildren, and the fecundity and fruitfulness of his wife, are not the good things of that Jerusalem; for these good things are in the land of the dying, that is the land of the living. Hold it not as a very great thing, if thou hast sons who will die, although not before thee, yet certainly after thee. Dost thou wish to have children who will never die, and who will ever live with thee? Be thou in His Body, of Whom it hath been said, Ye are the Body of Christ, and His members in particular.

4. That this Psalm also might shew this, since it is so far obscure that it admonisheth us to knock at it, so far covered that it doth wish to be shaken out, it beginneth with speaking of many Blessed are all they that fear the Lord, and walk in His ways. He speaketh to many; but since these many are one in Christ, in the next words he speaketh in the singular: For thou shalt eat the labours of thy fruits. He had said above, Blessed are all they that fear the Lord, and walk in His ways; why doth he now say, Thou shalt eat the labours of thy fruits: and not, ye shall eat? and why, the labours of thy fruits, and not the labours of your fruits. Hath he forgotten that so lately as in the preceding verse he was speaking of more than one? If thou hast already shaken it out, what doth he answer thee? When I speak of Christians in the plural, I understand one in the One Christ. Ye are therefore many, and ye are one; we are many, and we are one. How are we many, and yet one? Because we