The Enarrations, or Expositions, on the Psalms

^9. “The heathen are troubled”. And how troubled? Why troubled? To cast down the City of God, in the midst whereof is God? To overthrow the tabernacle sanctified, which God helps with His Countenance? No: with a wholesome trouble are the heathen now troubled. For what follows? “And the kingdoms are bowed.” Bowed, says He, are the kingdoms; not now erected that they may rage, but bowed that they may adore. When were the kingdoms bowed? When that came to pass which was predicted in another Psalm, “All kings shall fall down before Him, all nations shall serve Him.” What cause made the kingdoms to bow? Hear the cause. “The Most High gave His Voice, and the earth was moved.” The fanatics of idolatry, like frogs in the marshes, clamoured, the more tumultuously, the more sordidly, in filth and mire. And what is the brawling of frogs to the thunder of the clouds? For out of them “the Most High gave His Voice, and the earth was moved:” He thundered out of His clouds. And what are His clouds? His Apostles, His preachers, by whom He thundered in precepts, lightened in miracles. The same are clouds who are also mountains: mountains for their height and firmness, clouds for their rain and fruitfulness. For these clouds watered the earth, of which it was said, “The Most High gave His Voice, and the earth was moved.” For it is of those clouds that He threatens a certain barren vineyard, whence the mountains were carried into the heart of the sea; “I will command,” says He, “the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.” This was fulfilled in that which I have mentioned, when the mountains were carried into the heart of the sea; when it was said, “It was necessary that the word of God should have been spoken first to you; but seeing ye put it from you, we turn to the Gentiles;” then was fulfilled, “I will command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.” The nation of the Jews has just so remained as a fleece dry upon the ground. For this, you know, happened in a certain miracle, the ground was dry, the fleece only was wet, yet rain in the fleece appeared not. So also the mystery of the New Testament appeared not in the nation of the Jews. What there was the fleece, is here the veil. For in the fleece was veiled the mystery. But on the ground, in all the nations open lies Christ's Gospel; the rain is manifest, the Grace of Christ is bare, for it is not covered with a veil. But that the rain might come out of it, the fleece was pressed. For by pressure they from themselves excluded Christ, and the Lord now from His clouds rains on the ground, the fleece has remained dry. But of them then “the Most High gave His Voice,” out of those clouds; by which Voice the kingdoms were bowed and worshipped.

10. “The Lord of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our taker up”. Not any man, not any power, not, in short, Angel, or any creature either earthly or heavenly, but “the Lord of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our taker up.” He who sent Angels, came after Angels, came that Angels might serve Him, came that men He might make equal to Angels. Mighty Grace! If God be for us, who can be against us? “The Lord of Hosts is with us.” What Lord of Hosts is with us? “If” (I say) “God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all; how has He not with Him also freely given us all things.” Therefore be we secure, in tranquillity of heart nourish we a good conscience with the Bread of the Lord. “The Lord of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our taker up.” However great be your infirmity, see who takes you up. One is sick, a physician is called to him. His own taken-up, the Physician calls the sick man. Who has taken him up? Even He. A great hope of salvation; a great Physician has taken him up. What Physician? Every Physician save He is man: every Physician who comes to a sick man, another day can be made sick, beside Him. “The God of Jacob is our taker up.” Make yourself altogether as a little child, such as are taken up by their parents. For those not taken up, are exposed; those taken up are nursed. Do you think God has so taken you up, as when an infant your mother took you up? Not so, but to eternity. For your voice is in that Psalm, “My father and my mother forsake me, but the Lord has taken me up.”

11. “Come and see the works of the Lord”. Now of this taking up, what has the Lord done? Consider the whole world, come and see. For if you come not, you see not; if you see not, you believe not; if you believe not, you stand afar off: if you believek, you come; if you believek, you see. For how came we to that mountain? Not on foot? Is it by ship? Is it on the wing? Is it on horses? For all that pertain to space and place, be not concerned, trouble not yourself, He comes to you. For out of a small stone He has grown, and become a great mountain, so that He has filled all the face of the earth. Why then would you by land come to Him, who fills all lands? Lo, He has already come: watch thou. By growing He wakes even sleepers; if yet there is not in them so deep sleep, as that they be hardened even against the mountain coming; but they hear, “Awake, you that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give you light.” For it was a great thing for the Jews to see the stone. For the stone was yet small: and small they deservedly despised it, and despising they stumbled, and stumbling they were broken; remains that they be ground to powder. For so was it said of the stone, “Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.” It is one thing to be broken, another to be ground to powder. To be broken is less than to be ground to powder: but none grinds He coming exalted, save whom He broke lying low. For now before His coming He lay low before the Jews, and they stumbled at Him, and were broken; hereafter shall He come in His Judgment, glorious and exalted, great and powerful, not weak to be judged, but strong to judge, and grind to powder those who were broken stumbling at Him. For “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense,” is He to them that believe not. Therefore, brethren, no wonder if the Jews acknowledged not Him, whom as a small stone lying before their feet they despised. They are to be wondered at, who even now so great a mountain will not acknowledge. The Jews at a small stone by not seeing stumbled; the heretics stumble at a mountain. For now that stone has grown, now say we unto them, Lo, now is fulfilled the prophecy of Daniel, “The stone that was small became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.” Wherefore stumble ye at Him, and go not rather up to Him? Who is so blind as to stumble at a mountain? Came He to you that you should have whereat to stumble, and not have whereto to go up? “Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord.” Isaiah says this: “Come ye, and let us go up.” What is, “Come ye, and let us go up”? “Come ye,” is, Believe ye. “Let us go up,” is, Let us profit. But they will neither come, nor go up, nor believe, nor profit. They bark against the mountain. Even now by so often stumbling on Him they are broken, and will not go up, choosing always to stumble. Say we to them, “Come ye, and see the works of the Lord:” what “prodigies He has set forth through the earth.” Prodigies are called, because they portend something, those signs of miracles which were done when the world believed. And what thereafter came to pass, and what did they portend?