AD TERTIAM
At howre of Tyerse, our Lorde Jesu Crist was scourged & crowned with thornes & scorned. The same howre after Hys resurreccion he appeared to the women comyng from the sepulcre. And on Pentecoste Sunday the same howre he sent the Holy Goste downe to the Apostles.
At Tierce, labourers desyre to have theyr diner, & Our Lady hath brought forth to us, Him that is foode, & breade of lyfe, Our Lorde Ihesu Crist, comfort, & refection to all that laboure in his service.
[From The Myroure of Oure Ladye, 15th century]
 |
| The Scourging. Willem Vrelant, early 1460s. Getty Center [Public domain] |
Ad tertiam de passione domini nostri
Crucifige clamittent
hora terciarum. Illu
sus induitur veste pur
purarum. Caput eius
pungitur corona spi
narum, crucem portat humeris ad
In English:
The third hour of Our Lord's passion
Crucify [Him] they shout
at the third hour. Mock-
ed He is clothed in purp-
le. His head
is pierced with a crown of thorns,
He bears His cross to
V. Hail, Mary, full of grace. * the Lord is with thee.
R. Benedícta tu * in muliéribus, et benedíctus fructus ventris tui.
R. Blessed art thou among women, * and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.
V. Deus ☩ (Large sign of the cross) in adjutórium meum inténde.
V. O God, ☩ come to my assistance;
R. Dómine, ad adjuvándum me festína.
R. O Lord, make haste to help me.
V. Glória Patri, et Fílio, * et Spirítui Sancto.
V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, * and to the Holy Ghost.
R. Sicut erat in princípio, et nunc, et semper, * et in sæcula sæculórum. Amen.
R. As it was in the beginning, is now, * and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Allelúia.
Alleluia.
From Septuagesima to Easter, instead of Alleluia, is said:
R. Laus tibi Dómine, Rex aeternae glóriae
R. Praise the thee, O Lord, King of everlasting glory.
Hymn
Meménto, rerum Cónditor,
Nostri quod olim córporis
Sacráta ab alvo Vírginis
Nascéndo formam súmpseris.
Remember, O creator Lord,María Mater grátiæ,
That in the Virgin’s sacred womb
Thou wast conceived, and of her flesh
Didst our mortality assume.
Dulcis parens cleméntiae (Mater misericórdiæ),
Tu nos ab hoste prótege,
Et mortis hora súscipe.
Mother of grace, O Mary blest,Jesu tibi sit glória (Gloría tibi, Dómine),
To thee, sweet fount of love, we fly;
Shield us through life, and take us hence
To thy dear bosom when we die.
Qui natus es de Vírgine,
Cum Patre, et almo Spíritu,
In sempitérna sæcula.
Amen
O Jesu, born of Virgin bright
Immortal glory be to thee;
Praise to the Father infinite,
And Holy Ghost eternally.
Amen.
During the year
Ant. María Virgo * [assúmpta est ad æthéreum thálamum, in quo Rex regum stelláto sedet sólio.]Ant. The Virgin Mary * hath been taken into the chamber on high, * where the King of kings sitteth on a throne amid the stars.During Advent
Ant. Ave María [grátia plena, Dóminus tecum, benedícta tu in muléribus, Allelúia.]Ant. Hail Mary, full of grace: our Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women, Alleluia.
After Christmas
Ant. Quando natus es [ineffabíliter ex Vírgine, tunc implétae sunt Scriptúrae: sicut plúvia in vellus descendísti, ut salvum fáceres genus humánum: te laudámus Deus noster.] Ant. When as unspeakably thou wast born of the virgin, then were the scriptures fulfilled, thou didst descend like rain into the fleece: that thou mightest save mankind: we praise thee our God.
Psalmus 119
Ad Dominum. A prayer in tribulation. A gradual canticle.Ad Dóminum cum tribulárer clamávi: * et exaudívit me.
In my trouble I cried to the Lord: * and he heard me.
Dómine, líbera ánimam meam a lábiis iníquis, * et a lingua dolósa.
O Lord, deliver my soul from wicked lips, * and a deceitful tongue.
Quid detur tibi, aut quid apponátur tibi * ad linguam dolósam?
What shall be given to thee, or what shall be added to thee, * to a deceitful tongue?
Sagíttæ poténtis acútæ, * cum carbónibus desolatóriis.
The sharp arrows of the mighty, * with coals that lay waste.
Heu mihi, quia incolátus meus prolongátus est: habitávi cum habitántibus Cedar: * multum íncola fuit ánima mea.
Woe is me, that my sojourning is prolonged! I have dwelt with the inhabitants of Cedar: * my soul hath been long a sojourner.
Cum his, qui odérunt pacem, eram pacíficus: * cum loquébar illis, impugnábant me gratis.
With them that hated peace I was peaceable: * when I spoke to them they fought against me without cause.
V. Glória Patri, et Fílio, * et Spirítui Sancto.
V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, * and to the Holy Ghost.
R. Sicut erat in princípio, et nunc, et semper, * et in sæcula sæculórum. Amen.
R. As it was in the beginning, is now, * and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Psalm 120
Levávi oculos. God is the keeper of his servants. A gradual canticle.Levávi óculos meos in montes, * unde véniet auxílium mihi.
I have lifted up my eyes to the mountains, * from whence help shall come to me.
Auxílium meum a Dómino, * qui fecit cælum et terram.
My help is from the Lord, * who made heaven and earth.
Non det in commotiónem pedem tuum: * neque dormítet qui custódit te.
May he not suffer thy foot to be moved: * neither let him slumber that keepeth thee.
Ecce, non dormitábit neque dórmiet, * qui custódit Israël.
Behold he shall neither slumber nor sleep, * that keepeth Israel.
Dóminus custódit te, Dóminus protéctio tua, * super manum déxteram tuam.
The Lord is thy keeper, the Lord is thy protection * upon thy right hand.
Per diem sol non uret te: * neque luna per noctem.
The sun shall not burn thee by day: * nor the moon by night.
Dóminus custódit te ab omni malo: * custódiat ánimam tuam Dóminus.
The Lord keepeth thee from all evil: * may the Lord keep thy soul.
Dóminus custódiat intróitum tuum, et éxitum tuum: * ex hoc nunc, et usque in sæculum.
May the Lord keep thy coming in and thy going out; * from henceforth now and for ever.
V. Glória Patri, et Fílio, * et Spirítui Sancto.
V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, * and to the Holy Ghost.
R. Sicut erat in princípio, et nunc, et semper, * et in sæcula sæculórum. Amen.
R. As it was in the beginning, is now, * and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Psalmus 121
Laetátus sum in his. The desire and hope of the just for the coming of the kingdom of God, and the peace of his church.Lætátus sum in his, quæ dicta sunt mihi: * In domum Dómini íbimus.
I rejoiced at the things that were said to me: * We shall go into the house of the Lord.
Stantes erant pedes nostri, * in átriis tuis, Jerúsalem.
Our feet were standing * in thy courts, O Jerusalem.
Jerúsalem, quæ ædificátur ut cívitas: * cujus participátio ejus in idípsum.
Jerusalem, which is built as a city, * which is compact together.
Illuc enim ascendérunt tribus, tribus Dómini: * testimónium Israël ad confiténdum nómini Dómini.
For thither did the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord: * the testimony of Israel, to praise the name of the Lord.
Quia illic sedérunt sedes in judício, * sedes super domum David.
Because their seats have sat in judgment, * seats upon the house of David.
Rogáte quæ ad pacem sunt Jerúsalem: * et abundántia diligéntibus te:
Pray ye for the things that are for the peace of Jerusalem: * and abundance for them that love thee.
Fiat pax in virtúte tua: * et abundántia in túrribus tuis.
Let peace be in thy strength: * and abundance in thy towers.
Propter fratres meos, et próximos meos, * loquébar pacem de te:
For the sake of my brethren, and of my neighbours, * I spoke peace of thee.
Propter domum Dómini, Dei nostri, * quæsívi bona tibi.
Because of the house of the Lord our God, * I have sought good things for thee.
V. Glória Patri, et Fílio, * et Spirítui Sancto.
V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, * and to the Holy Ghost.
R. Sicut erat in princípio, et nunc, et semper, * et in sæcula sæculórum. Amen.
R. As it was in the beginning, is now, * and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
During the year
Ant. María Virgo * assúmpta est ad æthéreum thálamum, in quo Rex regum stelláto sedet sólio.
Ant. The Virgin Mary * hath been taken into the chamber on high, * where the King of kings sitteth on a throne amid the stars.
Capitulum - The Little Chapter -Ecclesiasticus 24:15
V. Et sic in Sion firmáta sum, et in civitáte sanctificáta simíliter requiévi, et in Jerúsalem potéstas mea.
V. And so was I established in Sion, and in the holy city likewise I rested, and my power was in Jerusalem.
R. Deo grátias.
R. Thanks be to God.
V. Diffúsa est gratia in lábiis tuis.
V. Grace was poured forth on thy lips.
R. Proptérea benedíxit te Deus in aetérnum.
R. Therefore hath God blessed thee for ever.
Kyrie eléison. Christe eléison. Kyrie eléison.
Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. Lord have mercy.
V. Dómine, exáudi oratiónem meam.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. Et clamor meus ad te véniat
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
Oremus
Let us pray.
Deus, qui salútis ætérnae, beátæ Maríæ virginitáte fœcúnda, humáno géneri præmia praestitísti: tríbue, quæsumus; ut ipsam pro nobis intercédere sentiámus, per quam merúimus auctórem vitæ suscípere, Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum: Qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti Deus per ómnia sæcula sæculórum.
O God, Who, by the fruitful virginity of the Blessed Mary, hast given unto mankind the rewards of everlasting life; grant, we beseech thee, that we may continually feel the might of her intercession through whom we have worthily received the Author of our life, our Lord Jesus Christ, thy Son: Who livest and reignest with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.
R. Amen.
R. Amen.
V. Dómine, exáudi oratiónem meam.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. Et clamor meus ad te véniat
R. And let my cry come unto Thee
.
V. Benedicámus Dómino.
V. Let us bless the Lord.
R. Deo grátias.
R. Thanks be to God.
Fidélium ánimae per misericórdiam Dei requiéscant in pace.
May the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.
R. Amen.
R. Amen.
_____________________________________________________________
During Advent
Ant. Ave María [grátia plena, Dóminus tecum, benedícta tu in muléribus, Allelúia.]
Ant. Hail Mary, full of grace: our Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women, Alleluia.
Capitulum : Little Chapter (Isai 11)
Egrediétur virga de radíce Iesse, et flos de radíce eius ascéndet, et requiéscet super eum spíritus Dómini.A rod shall come forth of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his root, and the spirit of our Lord shall rest upon him.
R. Deo grátias.
R. Thanks be to God.
V. Diffúsa est gratia in lábiis tuis.
V. Grace was poured forth on thy lips.
R. Proptérea benedíxit te Deus in aetérnum.
R. Therefore hath God blessed thee for ever.
Kyrie eléison. Christe eléison. Kyrie eléison.
Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. Lord have mercy.
V. Dómine, exáudi oratiónem meam.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. Et clamor meus ad te véniat
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
Orátio: Prayer
Deus, qui de beátae Maríae Vírginis útero, verbum tuum Ángelo nuntiánte, carnem suscípere voluísti: praesta suppícibus tuis, ut qui vere eam Genitrícem Dei crédimus: eius apud te intercessiónibus adiuvémur. Per eúndem Dóminum nostrum Iesum Christum Fílium tuum: Qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus sancti Deus, per ómnia saecula saeculórum.
O God, which wouldst thy word, should take flesh, of the womb of blessed Mary the virgin, the angel declaring it, grant unto us thy suppliants, that we which truly do believe her to be the mother of God: may be by her intercessions holpen with thee. Through the same Lord Jesus Christ thy son: who liveth and reigneth, God, with thee, in the unity of the holy Ghost, world without end.
R. Amen.
R. Amen.
V. Dómine, exáudi oratiónem meam.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. Et clamor meus ad te véniat
R. And let my cry come unto Thee
.
V. Benedicámus Dómino.
V. Let us bless the Lord.
R. Deo grátias.
R. Thanks be to God.
Fidélium ánimae per misericórdiam Dei requiéscant in pace.
May the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.
R. Amen.
R. Amen.
______________________________________________________________
After Christmas
Ant. Quando natus es ineffabíliter ex Vírgine, tunc implétae sunt Scriptúrae: sicut plúvia in vellus descendísti, ut salvum fáceres genus humánum: te laudámus Deus noster.
Ant. When as unspeakably thou wast born of the virgin, then were the scriptures fulfilled, thou didst descend like rain into the fleece: that thou mightest save mankind: we praise thee our God.
Capitulum - The Little Chapter -Ecclesiasticus 24:15
V. Et sic in Sion firmáta sum, et in civitáte sanctificáta simíliter requiévi, et in Jerúsalem potéstas mea.
V. And so was I established in Sion, and in the holy city likewise I rested, and my power was in Jerusalem.
R. Deo grátias.
R. Thanks be to God.
V. Diffúsa est gratia in lábiis tuis.
V. Grace was poured forth on thy lips.
R. Proptérea benedíxit te Deus in aetérnum.
R. Therefore hath God blessed thee for ever.
Kyrie eléison. Christe eléison. Kyrie eléison.
Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. Lord have mercy.
V. Dómine, exáudi oratiónem meam.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. Et clamor meus ad te véniat
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
Orémus
Let us pray.
Deus, qui salútis ætérnae, beátæ Maríæ virginitáte fœcúnda, humáno géneri præmia praestitísti: tríbue, quæsumus; ut ipsam pro nobis intercédere sentiámus, per quam merúimus auctórem vitæ suscípere, Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum: Qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti Deus per ómnia sæcula sæculórum.
O God, Who, by the fruitful virginity of the Blessed Mary, hast given unto mankind the rewards of everlasting life; grant, we beseech thee, that we may continually feel the might of her intercession through whom we have worthily received the Author of our life, our Lord Jesus Christ, thy Son: Who livest and reignest with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.
R. Amen.
R. Amen.
V. Dómine, exáudi oratiónem meam.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. Et clamor meus ad te véniat
R. And let my cry come unto Thee
.
V. Benedicámus Dómino.
V. Let us bless the Lord.
R. Deo grátias.
R. Thanks be to God.
Fidélium ánimae per misericórdiam Dei requiéscant in pace.
May the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.
R. Amen.
R. Amen.
Continue to Sext or to Prayers after the Office
Notes on Psalms 119, 120 & 121
Psalm 119
[1] Ad Dóminum cum tribulárer clamávi: * et exaudívit me.
In my trouble I cried to the Lord: * and he heard me.
Among the various calamities of this our exile, one is specially to be deplored, and that is the deceitful tongue of those among whom we are obliged to mix; and the prophet, in order to instruct his fellow exiles by his example, sings in this Psalm of his having asked for and obtained deliverance from such an evil. “In my trouble,” I did not look for help from man, but “I cried,” in prayer, “to the Lord,” and he, in his mercy, “heard me.”
[2] Dómine, líbera ánimam meam a lábiis iníquis, * et a lingua dolósa.
O Lord, deliver my soul from wicked lips, * and a deceitful tongue.
He tells what he prayed for when he cried to the Lord. It was, “O Lord, deliver my soul from wicked lips and a deceitful tongue,” one of the greatest and most numerous evils of this our pilgrimage. “Wicked lips” give expression to detraction, railing, calumny, false testimony, and similar expressions against the law of justice; “a deceitful tongue” sends forth words of deceit, flattery, pretence, and fraud. We may meet with “wicked lips” without “the deceitful tongue,” as when one openly reproaches or calumniates; but when the wicked lips and the deceitful tongue are united, the evil exceeds comprehension, so as scarce to admit of any addition to it, as the next verse will inform us.
[3] Quid detur tibi, aut quid apponátur tibi * ad linguam dolósam?
What shall be given to thee, or what shall be added to thee, * to a deceitful tongue?
He assigns a reason for having asked to be delivered from a deceitful tongue, because it is such a calamity as to admit of no addition to it. For what evil can be given to or added to a deceitful tongue?
[4] Sagíttæ poténtis acútæ, * cum carbónibus desolatóriis.
The sharp arrows of the mighty, * with coals that lay waste.
By an elegant metaphor, he explains the enormity of the evil of a deceitful tongue; he says that the words issuing from such a tongue are like arrows that shoot from afar, and with great rapidity, so that they can scarcely be guarded against; and, in order to give greater force and expression to the idea, he adds, that they are not like the arrows shot by an ordinary person, but “by the mighty;” that is, by a strong and robust hand; and, furthermore, that they are “sharp,” well steeled and pointed by the maker; and, finally, that they are so full of fire that, like the lightnings of heaven that are discharged from the hands of the Almighty, and are truly both sharp and fiery, they can lay everything waste and desolate. Such are words of deceit, especially when used by the devil to ruin souls, and are called by the Apostle “the fiery darts of the most wicked one.”
[5] Heu mihi, quia incolátus meus prolongátus est: habitávi cum habitántibus Cedar: *[6] multum íncola fuit ánima mea.
Woe is me, that my sojourning is prolonged! I have dwelt with the inhabitants of Cedar: * my soul hath been long a sojourner.
In consequence of so great and so frequent an evil in this our place of peregrination, he sighs for his country, and thus, truly and from his heart, sings the “canticle of ascent,” as these fifteen Psalms are called. “Woe is me that my sojourning is prolonged;” for the true pilgrim desires rather to be shut out from his body than from his Lord, and therefore, looks upon the present life as entirely too long, inasmuch as it keeps him the longer away from the Lord. “I have dwelt with the inhabitants of Cedar.” No wonder I should complain of being detained too long here below, for hitherto “I have dwelt with the inhabitants of Cedar;” with wild and barbarous tribes, that live in tents instead of houses, and are black and swarthy. The word Cedar in Hebrew signifies blackness; and hence, in Canticles, we have the “tents of Cedar” put in opposition to “the curtains of Solomon;” that is, black and rustic tents, to splendid and valuable curtains. And, truly, the cities and palaces of the kings of this world, when compared to the mansions of the heavenly Jerusalem, are but so many rustic tents; and, therefore, the holy pilgrim again mourns, saying-
My exile in a foreign land has been entirely too long. Hence we may infer how few are to be found in those days who chant this gradual Psalm from their heart; whereas most people are so attached to the exile and the tents of Cedar that there is nothing they hear with greater pain than any allusion to their leaving it.
[7] Cum his, qui odérunt pacem, eram pacíficus: * cum loquébar illis, impugnábant me gratis.
With them that hated peace I was peaceable: * when I spoke to them they fought against me without cause.
He concludes by assigning a reason for its being a loss to him to have his exile extended, and at the same time explains the expression, “the inhabitants of Cedar;” he there said, “I have dwelt with the inhabitants of Cedar,” which he now explains by saying, I have dwelt “with them that hated peace.” There is nothing I love more than peace; I have dwelt with people of quite different habits, with the wicked, so wicked that they fought equally with friend and foe; and if, perchance, I ever “spoke to them” about peace it only caused them the more “to fight against me without cause.”
This Psalm is applicable to all the elect, and especially to Christ, the head of the elect, so far as his human nature is concerned. For he cried to some purpose to his Father, on the night he spent in prayer, and afterwards in the garden, and, finally, on the cross, when God exalted him “and gave him a name above every name. He also truly suffered from “the wicked lips and the deceitful tongue,” even to the hour of his death, as can be clearly seen throughout the Gospels. He could say with the greatest truth, “My sojourning is prolonged,” whereas, he said in the Gospel, “O incredulous generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you?” Truly “did he dwell with the inhabitants of Cedar,” for though he was light, and, therefore, did not dwell in Cedar, that is, in darkness, still he was seen by the inhabitants of Cedar, and conversed with them. Finally, “he was truly peaceable with them that hated peace,” because “when he was reviled he reviled not, when he suffered he threatened not,” “and when he spoke to them” on peace, love, on the kingdom of God, they, on the contrary, “fought against him without cause,” as our Saviour himself remarked, when he said, “But that the word may be fulfilled, which is written in their law; They have hated me without cause.”
Psalm 120
[1] Levávi óculos meos in montes, * unde véniet auxílium mihi.
I have lifted up my eyes to the mountains, * from whence help shall come to me.
Travelers look at nothing more frequently than the place for which they are bound, and if they cannot see it, they fix their eyes on the point next to it, from which they derive great consolation, so much so that they gather fresh strength and courage to prosecute their journey. The earthly Jerusalem being in the mountains, and the celestial Jerusalem being above all the heavens, this traveler, whether real or imaginary, says, “I have lifted up my eyes to the mountains,” where the holy city is situated, “from whence help shall come to me,” that of consolation.
[2] Auxílium meum a Dómino, * qui fecit cælum et terram.
My help is from the Lord, * who made heaven and earth.
The traveler declares he expects no help from the mountains to which he raised his eyes, but from him who presides over the holy city that is on the mountains, which he explains more clearly in the beginning of Psalm, 122, where he says, “To thee have I lifted up my eyes who dwellest in heaven.” He then describes the true God by the creation of heaven and earth, as he did in another Psalm, where he says, “For all the gods of the gentiles are devils: but the Lord made the heavens.”
[3] Non det in commotiónem pedem tuum: * neque dormítet qui custódit te.
May he not suffer thy foot to be moved: * neither let him slumber that keepeth thee.
The prophet, now speaking in his own person, answers the traveler, and says you did well and wisely in raising your eyes to the mountains, in not regarding the vanities you met on the road, and seeking for help and consolation from the founder of your heavenly country; and I, therefore, sincerely hope “he may not suffer thy foot to be moved,” that he may not allow you to slip or to fall on the road, but that he may so strengthen your feet that they may continue to be sound during your journey to your country. “Neither let him slumber that keepeth thee.” I also wish and pray that the Father, who is your guardian, may be always vigilant in guarding you, so as never to suffer your feet to be moved. God is said to slumber, in a figurative sense, when he suffers us, as if he did not advert to it, to fall, as he who slumbers has no cognizance of what is being done. “Thy foot to be moved,” is a Hebrew phrase for falling into sin, as in Psalm 17, “My feet are not weakened,” and in Psalm 72, “My feet were almost moved; my steps had well nigh slipt.”
[4] Ecce, non dormitábit neque dórmiet, * qui custódit Israël.
Behold he shall neither slumber nor sleep, * that keepeth Israel.
The prophet promises the pilgrim the grace he had been asking for, saying, I pray that the Father, who undertook the care of you, may not slumber; and he certainly will not slumber; because he who has charge of his own people, the people of Israel, including all the pilgrims in this world, who hasten to go up to their heavenly country, never sleeps nor slumbers.
[5] Dóminus custódit te, Dóminus protéctio tua, * super manum déxteram tuam.
The Lord is thy keeper, the Lord is thy protection * upon thy right hand.
[6] Per diem sol non uret te: * neque luna per noctem.
The sun shall not burn thee by day: * nor the moon by night.
The prophet just assured the pilgrim so confiding in God that he would be protected, that he may not fall on the way; and he now promises another consolation, that he would be protected from the heat of the sun in the daytime, and that of the moon in the night; because God will be like a shade to him, that he can hold in his hand, so as to protect himself on every quarter. The Lord not only protects Israel, his people in general, “but he is thy protector” in particular; and his protector, as the Hebrew implies, is like a parasol, held in the hand, and raised over the head, and can be moved so as to give protection on any side.
[7] Dóminus custódit te ab omni malo: * custódiat ánimam tuam Dóminus.
The Lord keepeth thee from all evil: * may the Lord keep thy soul.
He now adds another consolation, a general one. Not only will the Lord guard you from falling and from fatigue, but he will protect you from every other evil that could possibly befall you on the journey, so that your soul or your life will be preserved whole and intact through the whole journey.
[8] Dóminus custódiat intróitum tuum, et éxitum tuum: * ex hoc nunc, et usque in sæculum.
May the Lord keep thy coming in and thy going out; * from henceforth now and for ever.
The prophet concludes by promising the last and most desirable consolation of all. Not only will the pilgrim, “who in his heart hath disposed to ascend by steps,” be so protected in any particular part of his journey; but he will be always protected throughout the journey. Every journey consists of an entrance and exit; for, as we go along, we enter on one road, and when that is finished we leave it; then we enter on another, from which we also depart; so also we come into a city or a house, and we go out of them; we enter another and out we go again, until we finish the journey by arriving at our country. Thus it is that we get along on the road of life, entering on and completing good works; for to begin corresponds with coming into; completing with going out; “from henceforth now and forever;” from this day and forever, may the Lord guard thy coming in and thy going out, and protect and save thee.
Psalm 121
[1] Lætátus sum in his, quæ dicta sunt mihi: * In domum Dómini íbimus.
I rejoiced at the things that were said to me: * We shall go into the house of the Lord.
Such is the language of God’s people, expressive of their joy on hearing the welcome news of their return to their country. Jeremias was the person to announce that, after seventy years, there would be an end to the captivity, and that the city and the temple would be rebuilt. Daniel, Aggeus, and Zacharias, who lived at the time the captivity was ended, foretold it more clearly; and they, therefore, created much joy among the people, when, on the completion of the seventy years, they said, “We shall go into the house of the Lord;” that is to say, we shall return to our country, where we shall get to see mount Sion and the site of the house of the Lord; and then, when we shall have rebuilt the temple, we will again “go into the house of the Lord.”
Christ, however, was the bearer of a far and away more happy message when he announced, “Do penance, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand;” and when he said more clearly, “In my Father’s house there are many mansions. If not, I would have told you; because I go to prepare a place for you. And if I shall go and prepare a place for you I will come again, and will take you to myself, that where I am, you also may be.” Such news fills with unspeakable joy those who have learned the value “of going into the house of the Lord;” and to hold in that house, not the position “of a stranger or a foreigner, but of a fellow citizen with the saints and a domestic of God’s.” That must be well known to anyone reflecting seriously on the saying of David, “They shall be inebriated with the plenty of thy house;” and in another Psalm, “We shall be filled with the good things of thy house;” as also on that saying of the Apostle, “That you may know what is the hope of his calling, and what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.” Such is the man who, from his heart, desires to go into the house of the Lord; and, therefore, from his heart sings, “I rejoiced at the things that were said to me. We shall go into the house of the Lord.” Now, “the sensual man perceiveth not the things that are of the spirit of God,” and, therefore, on the approach of death, or the termination of his exile and pilgrimage, instead of rejoicing, is troubled and laments, and justly, because, as he did not choose during his life time “to dispose in his heart to ascend by steps,” he cannot possibly expect to go up to the house of the Lord on high, but rather fears to go down to the prison of the damned, there to be punished forever.
[2] Stantes erant pedes nostri, * in átriis tuis, Jerúsalem.
Our feet were standing * in thy courts, O Jerusalem.
He tells us why the Jews were so overjoyed at the idea of their return to their country, and he says it arose from their remembrance of the time previous to the captivity, when they saw Jerusalem in her extent and in her splendor; for many who had been carried off captives in their youth could have remembered Jerusalem as she then was; and in 1 Esdras 3 we read, that many returned from the captivity who had seen the city and the temple. These men, therefore, say, “Our feet were standing in thy courts, O Jerusalem;” that is to say, because we recollected the time when we stood in your courts or in your gates, as it is more clearly expressed in the Hebrew. He names the courts or the gates, being, as it were, the vestibules of the city, rather than the public buildings or the streets, because it was at the gates that business was mostly transacted; it was there that the citizens mostly assembled, as we may infer from that verse in Proverbs, “Her husband is honourable in the gates, when he sitteth among the senators of the land.” It also appears, from 2 Kings 18, that the gates of Jerusalem were not plain, ordinary gates, but that they were double gates, with a considerable space between them, which, perhaps, is here called “thy courts.” Thus we read in 2 Kings 24, “And David sat between the two gates.” And again, Jeremias 39, “And all the princes of the king of Babylon came in and sat in the middle gate;” and, certainly, no small space was necessary to accommodate all those princes with their retinue.
But how can we Christians say, “Our feet were standing in thy courts, O Jerusalem,” when we were never in her courts? Well, we have been in her courts, otherwise we would not be now exiles and pilgrims, nor would Christ have redeemed us from captivity had we not been torn from our country and captives in a foreign land. We have been, then, in the courts of the heavenly Jerusalem, when, through our father Adam, we had possession of paradise, that was the gate of the paradise above; and the state of innocence then and there was the gate and the court to the state of glory; and that, perhaps, was the reason why the Holy Spirit made David write “in the courts,” instead of the streets of Jerusalem, that we may understand that the Psalm treats of the celestial, and not the earthly Jerusalem. “We have (therefore) rejoiced at the things that were said of thee,” when they said, “we shall go into the house of the Lord,” because we remembered the time when “our feet were standing” in paradise, and, consequently, in the courts of the paradise above; and, from the idea we got of happiness in the place below, we can guess at the happiness that awaits us above. And though this great place in question is sometimes called the house of the Lord, sometimes the city of Jerusalem, still it is all one and the same place; for our heavenly country is one time called a kingdom, sometimes a city, and at other times a house. It is a kingdom by reason of the multitude and the variety of its inhabitants, as St. John observes, Apoc. 7, “It is a great multitude which no man could number, of all nations, and tribes, and peoples, and tongues.” It is a city by reason of the friendship and fellowship that exist between the saints and the blessed; for, however great their number may be, they know, recognize, and love each other as so many fellow citizens; and, finally, it is a house by reason of the elect having only one father, one inheritance, in which they are all brethren, under the one Father, God.
[3] Jerúsalem, quæ ædificátur ut cívitas: * cujus participátio ejus in idípsum.
Jerusalem, which is built as a city, * which is compact together.
The prophet now, in the person of the pilgrims hastening to Jerusalem, begins to enumerate its praises, with a view of thereby stirring himself up to make greater haste in his ascent to it. He praises it, (1) by reason of the supreme peace enjoyed by all its inhabitants, who were so united in the love of each other that they held all their property in common. “Our feet were standing in thy courts, O Jerusalem;” that same Jerusalem whose buildings have so increased, and are daily increasing, that it has now become a city “which is compact together;” which is enjoyed and shared in common by all. Referring the passage to a future state it is much more beautiful and more sublime, for the heavenly Jerusalem is truly built up as a city; not that it is, strictly speaking, a city, nor that there were stones used in the building; still, it is built up as a city so long as the living stones, dressed by a consummate workman, and, after being actually squared and fitted, are placed on the building of the celestial habitation; from which it follows, that they who understand it not only bear all manner of persecutions with equanimity, but they even rejoice and glory in their tribulations, being perfectly sensible that it is in such manner they are squared and fitted for being built into and raised upon the heavenly habitation. One of these living stones, St. James, thus admonishes us, “My brethren, count it great joy when you shall fall into diverse temptations.” Again, in our heavenly country, we shall have the real community of property; for, in the earthly Jerusalem such community of property was more a matter of fact than a matter of right, and arose from the mutual love of the inhabitants for each other; the same held for a time, in the infancy of the Church, as we read in the Acts, “Neither did any of them say, that of the things which he possessed, anything was his own, but all things were common to them;” which still holds among those religious orders that observe the spirit of their institute. But in the heavenly Jerusalem there is complete community of property, the one God being all unto all; that is, the one and the same God being the honour, the riches, and the delight of all those who dwell in his house; and that most happy and most supreme abundance is really always the same, subject to no diminution or alteration whatever.
[4] Illuc enim ascendérunt tribus, tribus Dómini: * testimónium Israël ad confiténdum nómini Dómini.
For thither did the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord: * the testimony of Israel, to praise the name of the Lord.
(2)The second subject of praise in Jerusalem is the number of its inhabitants; and this verse has a connection with the second verse, because he now assigns a reason for having said, or rather, for having put in the mouth of God’s people, “Our feet were standing in thy courts, O Jerusalem;” for, though they were not all citizens of Jerusalem, but inhabitants of different cities, still they all came up to Jerusalem three times in every year. He, therefore, says, “Our feet were standing in thy courts, O Jerusalem; for thither did the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord;” that is, a great many tribes; such repetitions, in the Hebrew, being indicative of multitude; and thus, a great multitude assembled in Jerusalem, “the testimony of Israel to praise the name of the Lord;” explaining the cause of such an assemblage in Jerusalem. It was according to “the testimony,” that is, the law that obliged all Israel to visit the temple of the Lord at stated times, it being the only temple in the land of promise; and there “praise the name of the Lord,” in acts of thanksgiving and praise.
From another point of view, which we consider was more intended by the Holy Ghost, the meaning is, A reason is assigned for having said, “Jerusalem which is built as a city;” because it was built as a city, by reason of “the tribes that go up there;” that is, the holy souls from all tribes and nations, who go up to be built into the spiritual structures, that St. Peter writes of in his first epistle, chap. 2. Now, those blessed souls have gone up to that heavenly Jerusalem, “to praise the name of the Lord;” for that is their whole occupation there, to the exclusion of every other business. Hence, in Psalm 83, we have, “Blessed are they that dwell in thy house, O Lord: they shall praise thee forever and ever;” and Tobias, speaking of the heavenly Jerusalem, has, “And Alleluia shall be sung in its streets;” and such is “the testimony,” that is, the command, “to Israel,” that is, to the soul enjoying the beatific vision, that it should never desist from praise, inasmuch as it never ceases to love.
[5] Quia illic sedérunt sedes in judício, * sedes super domum David.
Because there seats have sat in judgment, * seats upon the house of David.
(3) The third matter for praise in Jerusalem is its being the seat of government, and having a royal palace in it; and the word “because” would seem to connect this verse with the preceding; for it looks like assigning a reason why God wished to have a temple, which the people were bound to visit three times a year, in Jerusalem, in consequence of being the residence of royalty, and the metropolis of the kingdom. He, therefore, says, “Because there,” in Jerusalem, “seats have sat in judgment;” seats of kings in succession, whose business it was to judge the people, “have sat,” have been firmly settled and fixed, not like that of Saul’s, which was for a while in Gabaa of Benjamin, and made no great stay there either; nor, like that of the judges who preceded the kings, who never had any certain fixed place for “sitting,” or delivering judgment, while the kings of the family of David sat permanently in Jerusalem; and he, therefore, adds, “seats upon the house of David;” that is, the seat of royalty founded on the family of David, met with rest and stability; for God said to David, 2 Kings 7, “And thy house shall be faithful, and thy kingdom forever before thy face; and thy throne shall be firm forever.” From the expression, “seats upon the house of David,” we are not to infer that they sat in judgment on the family of David alone; for they had authority over the whole family of Jacob, that is, over the twelve tribes of Israel; but they are called seats upon the house of David, because all the kings of God’s people sprang from the family of David.
All this is much more applicable to Christ and the heavenly Jerusalem. Because, lest the Jews may imagine that the words of the Psalm apply to that earthly Jerusalem, and not to the celestial Jerusalem, of which it was a figure, God permitted the seat of government to be removed from Jerusalem, and, furthermore, Jerusalem itself to be destroyed. The promise, then, applies to the Jerusalem above, and to Christ, according to the prophecy of Isaias, chap. 9; of Daniel, chap. 9; and of the Angel to the Virgin, Lk. 1, “The Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father, and he shall reign in the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” In the strictest acceptance, then, of the words have “the seats sat in judgment” in the heavenly Jerusalem; because Christ’s throne and the thrones of those who reign with him have been established most firmly in heaven; and because those very saints who reign and judge with Christ are a throne for God; for “the soul of the just is the seat of wisdom;” and those seats really sit in judgment, according to the promise of our Lord, “You that have followed me shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And those seats are upon the house of David, because all the power of the saints, royal as well as judiciary, is derived from Christ, who is called the son of David in the Gospel, and who got the seat of David his father, and who will reign forever in the house of Jacob, and of whose kingdom there shall be no end.
[6] Rogáte quæ ad pacem sunt Jerúsalem: * et abundántia diligéntibus te:
Pray ye for the things that are for the peace of Jerusalem: * and abundance for them that love thee.
The prophet now exhorts the exiles, on their return from their captivity, to salute, even from afar, the city of Jerusalem, praying for peace and abundance on it, two things that contribute principally to the happiness of cities; for peace, without abundance, is only a firm hold of misery; and abundance, without peace, amounts to doubtful and uncertain happiness; but when both are combined, the city needs nothing necessary for its happiness. He, therefore, says, “Pray for the things that are for the peace of Jerusalem.” Pray ye to God for true and solid peace for your country, and for “abundance,” not only for the city of Jerusalem, but also “to them that love thee,” you holy city.
[7] Fiat pax in virtúte tua: * et abundántia in túrribus tuis.
Let peace be in thy strength: * and abundance in thy towers.
He dictates the very words in which those who pray for peace and abundance to Jerusalem are to salute her. When you salute her say ye, “Let peace be in thy strength, and abundance in thy towers;” that is to say, may your walk be always secure and fortified, thereby ensuring perfect peace and quiet to all who dwell within them; “and abundance in thy towers;” no lack of meat or drink in your public buildings and private houses.
[8] Propter fratres meos, et próximos meos, * loquébar pacem de te:
For the sake of my brethren, and of my neighbours, * I spoke peace of thee.
[9] Propter domum Dómini, Dei nostri, * quæsívi bona tibi.
Because of the house of the Lord our God, * I have sought good things for thee.
Now, the two last verses, in reference to the heavenly Jerusalem, though they imply prayers for peace and abundance, still they do not mean to insinuate that there can ever possibly be a want of either there, when we read in Psalm 147, “Who hath placed peace in thy borders; and filleth thee with the fat corn?” they, therefore, merely express the pious affection we cherish for the blessings of the Jerusalem above, just as we have in the Apocalypse, “Salvation to our God who sitteth on the throne, and to the Lamb.”
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