Expositions of the Psalms 73–98
Digital Logos Edition
Overview
As the psalms are a microcosm of the Old Testament, so the Expositions of the Psalms can be seen as a microcosm of Augustinian thought. In the Book of Psalms are to be found the history of the people of Israel, the theology and spirituality of the Old Covenant, and a treasury of human experience expressed in prayer and poetry. So too does the work of expounding the psalms recapitulate and focus the experiences of Augustine’s personal life, his theological reflections and his pastoral concerns as Bishop of Hippo. The full set of 6 Volumes of the Expositions of the Psalms is translated by Maria Boulding.
Top Highlights
“The one sole savior of his body is our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who prays for us, prays in us, and is prayed to by us. He prays for us as our priest, he prays in us as our head, and he is prayed to by us as our God.” (Page 220)
“God has taken his stand in the synagogue of the gods, to make a distinction among them (Ps 81(82):1). He calls them gods in virtue of participation, not nature; they are gods by the grace through which he willed to deify them.” (Page 414)
“But the Lord insisted: It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life (Jn 6:54). ‘Understand what I have told you in a spiritual way. You are not asked to eat this body that you can see, nor to drink the blood that will be shed by those who will crucify me. What I have revealed to you is something mysterious,19 something which when understood spiritually will mean life for you. Although it is to be celebrated in a visible manner, you must understand it in a way that transcends bodily sight.’” (Page 475)
“What does it mean, then, to proclaim God’s truth through the night? It means not accusing God when you are having a bad time, but attributing your woes to your own sins and his corrective discipline, to proclaim his mercy in the morning, and his truth throughout the night. When you proclaim his mercy in the morning and his truth at night you are praising God all the time, confessing to God always, and playing psalms to his name.” (Page 349)
“None of us must say in our hearts, ‘His promises are true, but his threats are empty.’ Just as what he promises is real, so is what he threatens certain. As you must be utterly sure about gaining rest, happiness, eternity and immortality, if you have kept his commandments, so must you be equally sure of perdition, the heat of eternal fire, and damnation with the devil, if you have despised his commandments.” (Pages 421–422)