Bellarmine on Psalm 95 : Verse 8

Verse 8

Bring up sacrifices, and come into his courts: Adore ye the Lord in his holy court.

Tollite hostias, et introite in atria ejus; adorate Dominum in atrio sancto ejus.

Here he alludes to the custom of the Jews who, when they used to go up to the temple, would offer victims (for sacrifice), and, having offered adoration to God, they would then return to their towns and cities. But because in this text the Gentiles are invited, so as to come to the Church of the Lord, the offering is to be understood of spiritual sacrifices, about which St. Peter speaks in chapter ii of his first Epistle: “Offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”[1] Spiritual sacrifices are, the sacrifice of a contrite heart, prayer, fasting, alms-giving and the like. This text may also be understood as (referring to) the sacrifice of the Mass, which took the place of all the sacrifices of the Hebrews, and which, according to the prophecy of Malachias : “is offered to God from the rising of the sun even to the going down”[2] by those converted to God, through the hands of the priests of the new Testament. It is not without mystery that the Hebrew text does not have the word zebach, which refers to a victim which is slain 

when it is offered, such as sheep and oxen; but minchah, which refers to a bloodless sacrifice, and especially to one confected from flour. It is of little import because the Hebrew has, in place of atrio sancto /  in his holy court, in decore sanctitatis / in the glory of his sanctity or sanctuary : the sense is however the same: for Scripture calls the sanctuary itself the glory of sanctity, because it is filled with glory and sanctity.

[1] Be you also as living stones built up, a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. et ipsi tamquam lapides vivi superaedificamini, domus spiritualis, sacerdotium sanctum, offerre spirituales hostias, acceptabiles Deo per Jesum Christum. [I Peter ii. 5]

[2] For from the rising of the sun even to the going down, my name is great among the Gentiles, and in every place there is sacrifice, and there is offered to my name a clean oblation: for my name is great among the Gentiles, saith the Lord of hosts. Ab ortu enim solis usque ad occasum, magnum est nomen meum in gentibus, et in omni loco sacrificatur : et offertur nomini meo oblatio munda, quia magnum est nomen meum in gentibus, dicit Dominus exercituum. [Malachi. I. 11]

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.