6 Let the Catholic soul then say, “In the Lord I trust; how say ye to my soul, Remove into the mountains as a sparrow? For, lo, the sinners have bent the bow, they have prepared their arrows in the quiver, that they may in the obscure moon shoot at the upright in heart:” and from them let her turn her speech to the Lord and say, “For they have destroyed what You have perfected”. And this let her say not against these only, but against all heretics. For they have all, as far as in them lies, destroyed the praise which God has perfected out of the mouth of babes and sucklings, when they disturb the little ones with vain and scrupulous questions, and suffer them not to be nourished with the milk of faith. As if then it were said to this soul, why do they say to you, “Remove into the mountains as a sparrow;” why do they frighten you with sinners, who “have bent the bow, to shoot in the obscure moon at the upright in heart”? She answers, Therefore it is they frighten me, “because they have destroyed what You have perfected.” Where but in their conventicles, where they nourish not with milk, but kill with poison the babes and ignorant of the interior light. “But what has the Just done?” If Macarius, if Cæcilianus, offend you, what has Christ done to you, who said, “My peace I give unto you, My peace I leave with you;” which you with your abominable dissensions have violated? What has Christ done to you? Who with such exceeding patience endured His betrayer, as to give to him, as to the other Apostles, the first Eucharist consecrated with His own hands, and blessed with His own mouth. What has Christ done to you? Who sent this same betrayer, whom He called a devil, who before betraying the Lord could not show good faith even to the Lord's purse, with the other disciples to preach the kingdom of heaven; that He might show that the gifts of God come to those that with faith receive them, though he, through whom they receive them, be such as Judas was.
7. “The Lord is in His holy temple”, yea in such wise as the Apostle says, “For the temple of God is holy, which” temple “you are.” “Now if any man shall violate the temple of God, him shall God destroy.” He violates the temple of God, who violates unity: for he “holds not the head, from which the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplies according to the working after the measure of every part makes increase of the body to the edifying of itself in love.” The Lord is in this His holy temple; which consists of His many members, fulfilling each his own separate duties, by love built up into one building. Which temple he violates, who for the sake of his own pre-eminence separates himself from the Catholic society. “The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord, His seat is in heaven.” If you take heaven to be the just man, as you take the earth to be the sinner, to whom it was said, “Earth you are, and unto earth shall you go;” the words, “The Lord is in His holy temple” you will understand to be repeated, while it is said, “The Lord, His seat is in heaven.”
8. “His eyes look upon the poor.” His to Whom the poor man has been left, and Who has been made a refuge to the poor. And therefore all the seditions and tumults within these nets, until they be drawn to shore, concerning which heretics upbraid us to their own ruin and our correction, are caused by those men, who will not be Christ's poor. But do they turn away God's eyes from such as would be so? “For His eyes look upon the poor.” Is it to be feared lest, in the crowd of the rich, He may not be able to see the few poor, whom He brings up in safe keeping in the bosom of the Catholic Church? “His eyelids question the sons of men.” Here by that rule I would wish to take “the sons of men” of those that from old men have been regenerated by faith. For these, by certain obscure passages of Scripture, as it were the closed eyes of God, are exercised that they may seek: and again, by certain clear passages, as it were the open eyes of God, are enlightened that they may rejoice. And this frequent closing and opening in the holy Books are as it were the eyelids of God; which question, that is, which try the “sons of men;” who are neither wearied with the obscurity of the matter, but exercised; nor puffed up by knowledge, but confirmed.
9. “The Lord questions the righteous and ungodly”. Why then do we fear lest the ungodly should be any hurt to us, if so be they do with insincere heart share the sacraments with us, seeing that He “questions the righteous and the ungodly.” “But whoso loves iniquity, hates his own soul:” that is, not him who believes God, and puts not his hope in man, but only his own soul does the lover of iniquity hurt.
10. “He shall rain snares upon the sinners”. If by clouds are understood prophets generally, whether good or bad, who are also called false prophets: false prophets are so ordered by the Lord God, that by them He may rain snares upon sinners. For no one, but the sinner, falls into a following of them, whether by way of preparation for the last punishment, if he shall choose to persevere in sin; or to dissuade from pride, if in time he shall come to seek God with a more sincere intent. But if by clouds are understood good and true prophets only; by these too it is clear that God rains snares upon sinners, although by them He waters also the godly unto fruitfulness. “To some,” says the Apostle, “we are the savour of life unto life; to some the savour of death unto death.” For not prophets only, but all who with the word of God water souls, may be called clouds. Who when they are understood amiss, God rains snares upon sinners; but when they are understood aright, He makes the hearts of the godly and believing fruitful. As, for instance, the passage, “and they two shall be in one flesh,” if one interpret it with an eye to lust, He rains a snare upon the sinner. But if you understand it, as he who says, “But I speak concerning Christ and the Church,” He rains a shower on the fertile soil. Now both are effected by the same cloud, that is, holy Scripture. Again the Lord says, “Not that which goes into your mouth defiles you, but that which comes out.” The sinner hears this, and makes ready his palate for gluttony: the righteous hears it, and is guarded against the superstitious distinction in meats. Here then also out of the same cloud of Scripture, according to the several desert of each, upon the sinner the rain of snares, upon the righteous the rain of fruitfulness, is poured.
Source: The Enarrations, or Expositions, on the Psalms (New Advent)