The Enarrations, or Expositions, on the Psalms

^8. But if these words further signify something else which more closely concerns us, God “by His wisdom made the heavens,” that is, His saints, spiritual men, to whom He has given not only to believe, but also to understand things divine; those who cannot yet attain to this, and only hold their faith firmly, as being beneath the heavens, are figured by the name of earth. And because they abide with unshaken belief upon the baptism they have received, therefore it is said, “He laid out the earth above the waters.” Further, since it is written of our Lord Jesus Christ, that “in Him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,” and that these two, wisdom and knowledge, differ somewhat from one another is testified by other utterances of Scripture, especially in the words of holy Job, where both are in a manner defined; not unsuitably then do we understand wisdom to consist in the knowledge and love of That which ever is and abides unchangeable, which is God. For where he says, “piety is wisdom,” in Greek is θεοσ·βεια, and to express the whole of this in Latin, we may call it worship of God. But to depart from evil, which he calls knowledge, what else is it but to walk cautiously and heedfully “in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation,” in the night, as it were, of this world, that each one by keeping himself from iniquity may avoid being confounded with the darkness, distinguished by the light of his proper gift....

9. “Who brought out Israel from the midst of them”. He brought out also His saints and faithful ones from the midst of the wicked. “With a mighty Hand and stretched-out Arm”. What more powerful, what more out-stretched, than that of which is said “To whom is the Arm of the Lord revealed?” “Who divided the Red Sea in two parts”. He divided also in such wise, that the same baptism should be to some unto life, to others unto death. “And brought out Israel through the midst of it”. So too He brings out His renewed people through the laver of regeneration. “And overthrew Pharaoh and his power in the Red Sea”. He quickly destroys both the sin of His people and the guilt thereof by baptism. “Who led His people through the wilderness”. Us too He leads through the drought and barrenness of this world, that we perish not therein. “Who smote great kings”, “and slew famous kings”. From us too He smites and slays the deadly powers of the devil. “Sehon king of the Amorites”, an “useless shoot,” or “fiery temptation,” for so is Sehon interpreted: the king of “them who cause bitterness,” for such is the meaning of Amorites. “And Og, the king of Basan”. The “heaper-together,” such is the meaning of Og, and, king of “confusion,” which Basan signifies. For what else does the devil heap together but confusion? “And gave away their land for an heritage”, “even an heritage unto Israel His servant”. For He gives them, whom once the devil owned, for an heritage to the seed of Abraham, that is, Christ. “Who remembered us in our low estate”, “and redeemed us from our enemies” by the Blood of His only-begotten Son. “Who gives food to all flesh”, that is, to the whole race of mankind, not Israelites only, but Gentiles too; and of this Food is said, “My Flesh is meat indeed.” “Give thanks unto the God of Heaven”. “Give thanks unto the Lord of lords”. For what he here says, “the God of Heaven,” I suppose that he meant to express in other words what He had before said, “the God of gods.” For what there he subjoined, he has here also repeated. “Give thanks unto the Lord of lords.” “But to us there is but one God,” etc., “and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him;” to whom we confess that “His mercy endures for ever.”