PRAISE OF THE SILENT DOVE Its occasion: This is the psalm of the silent (or mute) dove; namely, concerns the believer who stands, utterly helpless, before the temptations and afflictions; as though, shocked in the depths of his soul, his tongue would stop talking, and his heart would moan and cries out. When God responds to the moans of his heart, and performs wonders; the believer’s heart, mind, and all his feelings, would open up, together with his tongue, to praise God, and to offer Him sacrifices of thanksgiving, well received by God. The silent (or mute) dove is the suffering church in every era, and in every generation; as well as the true believer, the living member in the church of the crucified Christ. These cries by the prophet David, come out from the hearts of man, when he feels that all those around him intend to swallow, and devour him, even when they utter smooth words, or show apparent compassion. According to St. John Chrysostom, of God’s blessings, is that He did not grant man the fangs of lions, the swift movements of wild beasts, or the huge body of elephants. Because those animals, although wild and vicious, yet they mostly never harm those of their own race. Whereas man often tend to harm to his fellow human, even though he did him no harm. If man possess those possibilities of wild animals, humanity would certainly disappear from the face of the earth. Father Onesimus of Jerusalem believes that the prophet David – the silent dove – talks about the enemies; namely, the demons who stir up men to bear animosity against the children of God; to trample on them by their feet. By the enemies, he might, as well, mean Saul, the evil king; and Antiochus Epiphanus, who oppressed the people of God in the time of the Maccabees, and defiled the temple by offering a swine on the altar; and the Babylonians who captivated the people of God. This psalm is probably a popular praise offered on the occasion of a national celebration, in which the people present thanksgiving to God in the city of Jerusalem. It could be one of the fall celebrations, when the believers look forward to a new year, full of blessings, during which they practice certain rites, seeking the blessings of God to dwell upon them. Some believe that this praise was sung by the people in a spring celebration, during which they offer the firstfruit in the feast of the Passover; when the pastures are green with fertility. While others believe it to be sung following a famine, after which granted rain that restored the fertility to the land; and gave plenty of fruition instead of the famine. Anyway, it is a psalm of thanksgiving to God the Beneficent, the Giver of blessings, and the Grantor of gladness by His Holy Spirit. This psalm reveals a very important fact that the more we become close to God, the more our depths pour praise to Him, and accept His will that perpetually work for our growth and continuous progress. The church tradition binds this psalm (verse 4 in particular) to the liturgy of funerals; when the believers imagine the departed, who used to live praising God in the https://coptic-treasures.com/ 88 house of the Lord, singing and shouting loud on the hills in the eternal valleys; when they see him set forth to praise together with the heavenly creatures forever. 1- Praising God in the house of the Lord 1 -4 2- Praising God in the midst of the universe 5 - 8 3- Praising God for His gifts 9 – 13 The title: Prayer for relief from tormentors. To the Chief Musician. Set to “The silent dove in distant lands”. A Michtam of David when the Philistines captured him in Gath. In the Syrian version it came as: A thanksgiving by the righteous for the sake of his salvation from his enemy, from the hand f Saul; And concerning, as well, the Jews and Christ. David fled from Saul, and went to ‘Gath’ twice. The first time he went alone, and when they caught him, as an enemy, and intended to kill him, he pretended to be out of his mind, So they let him go. In the second time, when he resorted to Gath, together with 500 men, they welcomed him, and let them dwell in the city of ‘Ziklag’ (1 Samuel 27). Who is the silent dove but David?! Yet being so helpless to defend himself, even by talk, like a dove; he attached himself to God, who alone could defend His believers. Seeing that the itle starts (in some versions) by the word “at the ultimate end”; As it is befitting of us to recognize the address where we are heading; we should know that the address is “at the ultimate end” refers to the Lord Christ, being “the end of the law for righteousness for everyone who believes” (Romans 10: 4). That is why, therefore, when we hear the words “at the ultimate end”, we are committed to concentrate our attention on Christ; lest we may linger on the way and never reach the end. The Septuagint version, as well as the Volgata, used to translate the word “Phylistines” as (Allophili), which, according to St. Augustine, means (strangers); namely those strangers or far away from the saints. If God used to call His holy people “His vineyard”, He called the non-believers “wild vine” (Jeremiah 2: 21). As to the word “Gath”, according to St. Augustine, it means “a winepress”, by which it refers to the church. By being taken to “Gath”, the Lord Christ (the Son of David) was taken to a winepress in His body; namely, the church. In a winepress, there is (pressure), by which it would be fruitful. The grapes on the vine, away from pressure, although it may look utterly intact, yet it produces nothing. But once it is cast into the winepress, treaded upon under pressure, although it may look harmed, yet it becomes productive; otherwise it remains barren and unproductive. St. Augustine 1- PRAISING GOD IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD: Entering into the house of the Lord, the believer cast his sins at the feet of God, His Savior, who, alone, can atone for them, to make him enjoy the reconciliation with the Heavenly Father. Feeling that he is in his father’s house, capable of satisfying all his needs with the marrow and fatness of His love, the believer comes close to God, seek to unite with Him, and wishes not to depart from the Holy House. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 89 “Be gracious to me, O God, for man would swallow me up; fighting all day to oppress me” (1) The word “swallow me up”, meaning (pursue me”, thirsty for my blood; came in some versions as “trample on me” or “crush me”. King Saul, with all his possibilities pursued David to kill him. But David, not fearing the king; knowing that he is nothing but a mortal man; corrupt salt that will be trampled by men, he did not say: “for the king would swallow me up”, but said: “for man would swallow me up”. However the wicked think of themselves as of authority, and capable of trampling on us with their feet, or swallow us up, God has mercy on us, and lifts us up; As for them, they would, by their wickedness, would be trampled under feet. While David is compared to a silent dove, helpless to open its mouth to defend itself; the mout of the enemy opens up, not only to utter lies and slanders, but even to swallow up David himself. David was attacked by his fellow citizens, and even by his own household, and his friends. Now, coming to be among his enemies the Philistines, he expected nothing less than to be swallowed up by them alive. As war was continuous against him from his own, as well as from his friends, he had no salvation but by God the Almighty, the fountain of all mercy! Having no man to trust in him, he had no secure refuge but the Lord his God. The psalmist cries out to God to be gracious to him and have mercy upon him; as man, generally, and without designating certain names or groups, have put in their hearts to swallow him up; namely, to pursue him, thirsty for his blood, like a vicious wild beast. The psalmist did not have a moment of comfort; the opposition against him was continuous; “all day long”. The Christian, with his exalted love for his brethren in humanity, feels that the real enemy who unceasingly opposes him id the devil with his spiritual hosts of darkness. I wish the saints who are under pressure from those strangers from the saints, take heed of this psalm … Let us take into consideration two enemies: one whom we can see, and another whom we cannot see. We can see men, but we cannot see the devil. So let us love men, and beware of the devil. Let us pray for the sake of men, and against the devil. Let us say to him: “Be gracious to me, O God, for man would swallow me up” (1)… Don’t fear that man would trample on you; for the first cluster of grapes who was pressed in the winepress has been Christ (Isaiah 53: 3) … whose body (the church) would say, looking up at the Head: “Be gracious to me, O God, for man would trample on me”. St. Augustine “My enemies trample on me all day long, for many fight against me” (2) In all the eras, the wicked bear a kind of animosity against the righteous, not because of some evil done by the righteous against them, but because of their pride. Satan and his angels got haughty against God, and here they are, in their pride, intend to crush every believer. Yet their high hands will soon be destroyed, and their wickedness will get back to them (Psalm 54: 5). The prophet, by so saying, confirms what the apostle Paul will say in the future: “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in https://coptic-treasures.com/ 90 the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6: 12). It is the devils who stir up people like king Saul, Antichus, and the Babylonians; provoke them to practice oppression against the innocent men; and against nations, to lead them to worship idols, and practice evil pleasures. They still fight us to let us be trampled by the earthly lusts. Yet he who rises up to the height of virtues, and does not slide down into longing for the earthlies, would become too high for them to trample him. Father Onesimus of Jerusalem “All day long”; namely, all the time. Let no one say; Yes, there were troubles in the old, against our fathers, but not in our days. If you so think, that there are no troubles that afflict you, you would not be a Christian; about whom the apostle says: “All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Timothy 3: 12). If you have never been persecuted for the sake of Christ, beware, lest you may have not still started to live by godly in Christ. … Enter into the winepress, and prepare to be pressed; Do not be too dry to produce juice when pressed! St. Augustine “The day I am afraid, I will trust in You” (3) David does not deny that he suffered sometimes from fear; Yet he never despaired, but always said: “I wait for the Lord; my soul waits, and in His words I do hope. My soul waits for the Lord, more than those who watch for the morning” (Psalm 130: 5, 6). Although he was courageous, yet he, sometimes, suffered from fear, as he did the day he fled from his people, and had to resort to the enemies; and for fear that they may discover that he was the one who killed their hero – Goliath – and the cause of their defeat; he pretended to be out of his mind before the king of Gath, to escape from his hand. Whenever David felt fear because of an affliction that dwelt upon him, he trusted in God, for his soul to find comfort, and, and for fear to be taken away from him. In the moments fear dwelt upon him, he did not lose hope in the Lord, … The righteous, indeed, are not immune from fear in some moments, but their fear would provoke them to cry out to the Lord, and to trust in Him even more; and their fear would not then, be counted as a fall, but would rather justify them…. He who does not lean on the chest of God when fear comes over him, would be counted as a deniar of the existence of God, and of the divine care. Some believe that the word “day” (3), means (day light). Whenever the soul of the believer is enlightened by the light of God, fear would not be able to dwell on it; as it leans upon God, and puts all its hope in Him who enlightens it by His eternal joy. In the interpretation by father Onesimus of Jerusalem, it came as: “In the height of the day, I would not fear; for in You I trust” (3). Saying: “From the height of the day”, means that my enemies fight against me from the old to defeat me; since the day when the Pharaoh and his followers were having us in bondage in the land of Egypt. But I will not fear, for in You I trust. Others say “For many are they who fight me from the heights”, referring to the angels of the devil who fell from high up. Adding: “In the day light I do not fear”, means that he who is enlightened by the light of faith, is as though, walking in the beauty of the day light, as is written by the apostle to the Romans. That is how it is with him who leans upon God and does not fear. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 91 Father Onesimus of Jerusalem Now, righteousness comes from faith; it is the beginning granted to us by the Spirit, when we start to recognize our evil doings; when we no more justify our sins. But it only reaches perfection, when death is swallowed to conquest. While we are still in the middle of the battle, fighting and become wounded, we would ask ourselves: “Who is the conqueror?” … Brethren, the conqueror is he who trusts in God, while fighting, and does not trust in his own strength. As the devil has his experience in war; yet if God is on our side, we shall overcome. The devil fights by himself; If we do the same, he will be the conqueror!. … As the devil is a mighty warrior, let us then call upon God to confront him. If you let Him dwell in you, who is unconquerable, you will conquer him, who usually conquers. For he conquers only those whose hearts are void of God. Love is the perfection of the law of God, and the goal of His commandments. We did not get the kind of law that threatens us from outside; but the law of righteousness in our hearts1. St. Augustine “In God whose word I praise, In God I trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?” (4) The main line in this praise is the trust of the psalmist on God, for then he would not fear any opposition, particularly that coming from flesh. Holding fast to the divine promises, or the attachment to the word of God, would turn our fears, from being lamentations, to become praises of thanksgiving to God our Savior. That is what led the psalmist, in the midst of his fears, to sing, saying: “In God whose word I praise”. For God’s word is the truth, capable of lifting us up to the divine presence, and bringing us forth to the divine light; that darkness would no more have authority over us. “What can flesh do to me?” The word here came to mean (the body of dust), that is helpless, and cannot stand against God; being written “they were but flesh, a breath that passes away, and does not come again” (Psalm 78: 39); and: “My Spirit shall not abide in mortals forever, for they are flesh” (Genesis 6: 3).; and, “All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades; because the breath of the Lord blows upon it” (Isaiah 40: 6-7). According to father Onesimus of Jerusalem, the word “flesh” here, means (carnal), as the apostle says: “For you are still carnal; for where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal, and behaving like mere men?” (1 Corinthians 3: 3); And his saying: “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8: 6). The spiritual man, trusting in God, will not fear the mortal carnal man; For the former bears in himself the eternal life, and the peace of God; while the later bears the eternal death. Saying: “In God whose word I praise, … I will not fear”. Means: I said, and did not fear; yet I do not boast my own strength, but praise God. And also means: In the time of my anguish, I utter praises beautified by the name of God; And also means: If God 1 Com. On 1 John, 4: 3. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 92 helps me to cry out to Him, men will commend the truth of my sayings; And also means: As my sayings include the knowledge of God, and trusting in Him, they are, accordingly, commended. For he who trusts in God, being a spiritual man, does not fear a mortal man, for the mortal, in the Holy Book, is called (flesh). Father Onesimus of Jerusalem St. Augustine binds between the psalmist’s lack of fear, and his trust in God, saying that he does not refer his lack of fear to himself, but to his hope in God in whom he trusts. In this, the psalmist differs from the wicked who do not fear the others, not out of fear of God, but because of their violent nature, and the hardness of their hearts. St. Augustine does not wonder that the psalmist who was moaning, because men were trampling upon him, and fighting all day long to oppress him(1); now says: “I will not fear. What can flesh do to me”(4). He was before “grapes”; but after men trampled on him with their feet, he produced wine. By trusting in God, we would never fear flesh; For God turns the affliction in our life into a flood of spiritual wine,namely, of inner joy. 2- PRAISING GOD IN THE MIDST OF THE UNIVERSE: If e, in the house of the Lord feel that we are back to our Father’s house, to settle down in His bosom; In the universe with all its beauty and possibilities, we would testify to the might of the Lord our Father, who created the world for the sake of happiness and gladness of man. “All day they twist my words; all their thoughts are against me for evil” (5) The prophet David is amazed for what the wicked around king Saul are doing; twisting his words and deeds; about which David said to Saul: “Why do you listen to the words of men who say: ‘Indeed David seeks your harm’?” (1 Samuel 24: 9). The wicked have joined forces ti think evil against David to do him harm. “All who hate me whisper together against me; Against me they devise my hurt” (Psalm 41: 9). If the prophet David feels pride in God’s words and His true and faithful promises; he complains of the words and hidden thoughts of the wicked, which are diverse and twisted; who set nets to catch and devour the righteous. When the believer utters the words of truth, what would he expect from the wicked who hate the truth? “All day they twist my words”. They oppose the Truth uttered by the true believer, and their thoughts turn to devises to hurt him. They twist our words. Yet be consistent on speaking the truth; Preach the truth; Proclaim Christ to the heathens; Proclaim the church to the heretics; Proclaim the salvation to all men. … When they twist my words; who do they oppose but Him whose words I praise? … When they reject the words, when they hate them; What would they do to him who utters them? … If they hate the bread itself, What would they do to the basket that contain the bread? … If they became against God Himself; I wish the body does not exclude what happened with the Head! … They despised Your Lord; Do you expect to be honored by those who became strangers from the saints?... Do not seek for yourself what Christ did not seek before you! …. For “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household?” (Matthew 10: 24-25). https://coptic-treasures.com/ 93 St. Augustine According to father Onesimus of Jerusalem, the psalmist here, refers to the Jews who twisted the words of our Lord Jesus to catch Him by a word, and to deliver Him to the ruler. And after His ascension they used the same way with the apostles and the disciples. That is what we notice in the epistle of the apostle Paul in his last days, saying to the leaders of the Jews, when he arrived in Rome: “Men and brethren, though I have done nothing against our people, or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans” (Acts 28: 17). God is abundant in mercy to all who call upon Him; “His tender mercies are over all His works” (Psalm 145: 9). If you meditate in the world, you will see this apparent everywhere. Search in the Holy Book, to see Adam and Eve, naked and in fear; and to see how God’s mercy and love, calls on them like a compassionate Father, to clothe them, and to give them peace. St. John Chrysostom “They gather together, they hide, they mark my steps, when they lie in wait for my life” (6) It did not stop at devising evil against him, but the thoughts of the wicked turned to gather together in secret to plan plots to harm him. They marked his steps; they lied in wait for his life (Psalm 59: 3); namely they sought getting rid of him, and even killing him: “Please go and find out for sure, and see the place where his hideout is; … take knowledge of all the lurking places where he hides, and come back to me with certainty” (1 Samuel 22-23). Nothing would please the wicked more than the death and perdition of the righteous. In the translation by Simachus, it came that they gathered together in secret, marked his steps, lied in wait for the perdition of his soul. Father Onesimus of Jerusalem “Repay them for their iniquity; In wrath, cast down the people, O God” (7) In the Hebrew origin it came as: “Shall they escape by iniquity?” The wicked, assuming that evil bear strength, they do not fear death, nor are disturbed by hell: “Because you have said, ‘We have made a covenant with death; and with Sheol we are in agreement” (Isaiah 28: 15). But the psalmist perceives their inability to stand before the wrath of God; he says: “But You, O God, shall bring them down to the pit of destruction; Bloodthirsty and deceitful men shall not live out half their days” (Psalm 55: 23). The wicked may prosper and succeed, yet their success will not be sustained; their depths will not find comfort; and they will never taste the inner peace of God in their hearts. “You number my wanderings; Put my tears into Your bottle; Are they not in Your book?” (8) While the wicked mark the steps of the righteous, to plan to harm him, God, on His part, watch the righteous during his wanderings, and collects his tears as a deposit of glory prepared for him. … While the wicked care for getting rid of the righteous, God, on https://coptic-treasures.com/ 94 His part, cares fo his salvation. “Does He not see my ways? And count all my steps?” (Job 31: 4). “The very hairs of your head are all numbered” (Matthew 10: 30). God records the troubles and tears of His believers in His book, as events that preoccupy His heart; For He cherishes and rewards His believers for their tears that proclaim their faithfulness and love, He treasures their tears as though in a bottle. The apostle Paul, following the example of His Lord, wrote to his very beloved disciple Timothy, saying: “Greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy” (2 Timothy 1: 4). It was an old custom that man collects his tears in the time of anguish and distress in a bottle of delicate glass of 3 to 6 inches, seals it, and keeps it to be buried together with him when he dies. When David said: “My sin is ever before me” (Psalm 51: 3), he probably had in mind the bottles containing the tears of his repentance, by which he drenched his couch every night (Psalm 6: 6) 1. Strive to walk the narrow road to enter the city of peace, Jerusalem, prepared like a bride for her Groom. Yet the way to it needs tears shed day and night: “All night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears” (Psalm 6: 6). “My tears have been my food day and night” (Psalm 42: 3). “For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping” (Psalm 102: 9). “O Lord, and give ear to my cry, for I am a stranger with You” (Psalm 39: 12) 2. St. Maccari the Great You see my tears, O Lord, as though they are before Your eyes. You, who knows the hidden things, and who fulfilled Your promise, saying: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5: 4). Father Onesimus of Jerusalem The tears which are truly shed in intense grief, a depressed heart, together with a knowledge of the truth, and a burning inside, are food for the soul, that comes to it from the Heavenly Bread, of which Mary has partaken when she sat at the feet of the Lord, and shed her tears, according to the testimony of the Savior Himself, saying: “Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10: 42). How precious are the pearls that come down together with the shedding of the blessed tears? St. Maccari the Great 3- PRAISING GOD FOR HIS GIFTS: Whar preoccupies the believer’s mind is the water of the Holy Spirit flowing from under the threshold of the temple of the Lord (Ezekiel 48). Instead of the draught prevailing on the world, God pours His Spirit, to set out of the barren and dry soul, a heavenly paradise. Pouring the water during the celebrations of the feast of the Passover by the high priest, from a golden flask, was a vital part of the rite. If the believer is exulted by the love of God who pours the gift of His Holy Spirit in the depths of the soul, to set out of the inner man, a living icon of the Heavenly 1 Boyld's Bible Handbook, p. 239. .25 : 2 عظة 8 https://coptic-treasures.com/ 95 Groom; The psalmist meditates in nature to see the valleys clothed with green pastures, and the hills girded with the gird of gladness; to see the whole nature dance and sing for the Creator, amazing in His gifts and divine care. “When I cry out to You, Then my enemies will turn back. This I know, because God is for me” (9) While the righteous calls upon God to hide in Him, as though in a secure refuge and stronghold; the wicked, on the other hand, will turn back greatly terrified; “When my enemies turn back, they shall fall and perish at Your presence” (Psalm 9: 3). … That is what the psalmist knew, that God is his Savior from all his enemies; To Him he resorts, and in Him he finds refuge. Once You receive my prayer, my enemies flee away, and my knowledge that You are my Support is realized. Father Onesimus of Jerusalem The psalmist presents to us as an example, when the apostle Peter rebuked the Lord for talking about His coming crucifixion; to which the Lord responded by saying to Peter: “Get behind me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for You are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men” (Matthew 16: 23). By that the saying: “Then my enemies will turn back” (9) is realized. Yet, the Lord did not mean for Peter to remain back, but meant for him to turn back from his faulty reaction, to what he used to be. [For such a goal, remptations are stirred up, to empty the vessel of evil, and fill it again with grace]. What a great knowledge. He does not say: “I knew that You are God”, but says” I knew that You are my God” (9)…. He is yours when He helps you…. He is yours when you are no more a stranger to Him; … When it is said: “Happy are the people whose God is the Lord” (Psalm 144: 15). … Now, To whom is He? And To whom He is not? … Above anything else, God is for those who love Him, and hold fast to Him … those who worship Him, as though they belong to His household; … to His great household, who are saved by the blood of His great only begotten Son. … what a great thing granted to us, to become His own, And He to be Our Own. St. Augustine “In God, whose word I praise; In the Lord whose word I praise” (10) What preoccupies the heart of the psalmist amid his fears, are not the affliction of which he wishes to get rid, But the word of God and His promises that bring the soul forth into the divine presence, to be filled with joy and exultation. While the wicked despises the word of God, The righteous praises it: “He who despises the word will be destroyed; but he who fears the commandment will be rewarded” (Proverb 13: 13). According to father Onesimus of Jerusalem, the talk her concerns the sure and perfect knowledge of God. He who knows Him will trust in Him; and will not fear a mortal man. Here we notice that the psalmist (in the Hebrew version) uses both the two names: God, the (Elohim), and the Lord (Jehovah). The former expresses the divine Might; and the later expresses God’s dwelling among His people. It is as though the psalmist praises God for His Might, as well as for His compassion on His people. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 96 “In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid, What can man do to me?” (11) I remember, O Lord, my vow You; I shall not forget, And I care to fulfill it; as it is a debt on me, to offer sacrifices of praise. Father Onesimus of Jerusalem Why does He say to us: “Rejoice”, but because He conquered for our sake, and fought for our sake?! When did He fight? … He fought by taking our nature upon Himself; He conquered for our sake; We to whom He proclaimed His resurrection; Attach yourself, O man to God; He who created you a man; Attach yourself very close to Him; Put your trust in Him; Call upon Him to be your strength. Say to Him: “In You, O God, is my strength”; Then you would sing when threatened by people. As to what you would sing, the Lord Himself will let you know, saying: “In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid, What can man do to me?” (11) 1. St. Augustine In case some people approach you, with the devil among them; talked evil about you, and reviled you; Listen to what the prophet says: “It is not an enemy who reproaches me; then I would bear it. Nor is it one who hates me, who has magnified himself against me; then I could hide from him” (Psalm 55: 12 – Septuagint). … Do not get out of your cell, but stay there and keep silent… If they present a false testimony against you; Receive it, and say: [It is as you say]…. Do not revile them back, but keep silent…. The Lord Himself kept silent in a similar situation…. Just say to them: [Let me repent}. God will see your humilty, and will save you from such a temptation by great wonders…. In case the devil leads you astray, do niot say in your heart: [there is no more place for repentance], but you should rather moan and cry until the building of your life gets renewed, the way it was before2. St. Theophilus, the Pope The garden of monks When your mind and all your being is commended in the God, there will not be a cause for the loss of commendation; For God never fails; You should, therefore cross over, even on the commendation addressed to you3. Father Caesarius, bishop of Arle “Vows made to You are binding upon me, O God; I will render praises to You” (12) What was the vow that the psalmist had to fulfill? And what were the sacrifices which he was to offer to the divine presence? The vow to fulfill was to receive the will of God with joy, and to exult in His works; trusting in His divine mercy, and His exalted love for him. The sacrifices were “the perpetual sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving to God”. Out of the storehouse of the heart, the incense of thanksgiving is offered; and out of the good conscience, the sacrifice of faith is offered. All what you offer should be 1 Sermon on N.T. Lessons, 67: 4. 2 رسالة القدیس أنبا ثیؤفیلس إلى الرھبان، 18 (فردوس الآباء). 3 Sermon 137: 2. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 97 flared with love. Let your vows inside you, you offer as a praise to God. Why praising Him? For what He granted you; “For You have delivered my soul from death” (13). St. Augustine “For You have delivered my soul from death; Have You not delivered mt feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?” (13) As the believer take refuge in God, the Grantor of life, death will not be able to crawl into his soul; nor his feet would slide or deviate to the way of evil. But he would walk blamelessly before the Lord; the darkness of the tomb would not be able to keep him from setting forth to god, the true Light. Together with our father Abraham, he would listen to the divine voice, saying: “I am God Almighty; Walk before Me, and be blameless” (Genesis 17: 1). The church clarifies how she can please the Lord “in the light of the living” (13); namely, in the splendor of the saints; For by them, the church would be glorious, without spot or wrinkle (Ephesians 5: 27). Everything dwelling on them will shine on her face; like when man is in good health, his face would look more beautiful; “A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance” (Proverb 15: 13). So will the beauty of the holy church become more apparent with more worthiness of the blessed1. Father Cassidorus By myself, I was dead; But by You, I shall be alive. St. Augustine 1 Cassidorus: Exposition of Ps. 5: 13. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 98 AN INSPIRATION FROM PSALM 56 LET MY MOUTH BE SILENT; AND YOU SPEAK INSTEAD! My depths stand in awe; And my mouth becomes mute; Anguish as all around me; All men turned into strangers! Even those I used to count as my household; For, behold, man intends to swallow me up! I resort to Your divine mercies, O You who gives me bountifully! When You transfigure before me, my heart becomes filled with peace toward all men! No enemy opposes me, except the devil; All day long he sets for me the nets of sin; He even stirs up my brethren against me; But with You I can overcome him; My heart flares with love; When toward my opponents; For one enemy intends to devour all; You are the Grantor of conquest, O my Savior! Behold, the hosts of darkness mark my steps; To set for me nets to catch and to kill me; But You, O my God, are marking my steps; To turn evil into good for me; You care even for the number of the hair of my head; How amazing is Your love for me, O my God; And how amazing is Your exalted care. In You I hide; for You are my refuge, and the stronghold of my life; My thirst is quenched with Your words; and my hunger is satisfied with Your love. Your presence grants me life; And satisfies all my being; Your presence terrifies the enemy; He turn back in shame and disgrace. How can I pay You back for Your exalted love? I vow to You to be wholly Yours; To offer You the sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving; I shall enter to Your presence in peace; For You are the true Light. Who scatter every darkness of the enemy. I offer You my thanks, O my Good Savior.
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