Homily 1, on Psalm 1

[Latin Source: Liber De Expositione Psalmorum, Patrologiae Cursus Completus. English Translation Sources: 1, 2, 3]

The PSALTER is like a stately mansion that has only one key to the main entrance. Within the mansion, however, each separate chamber has its own key. Even though the great key to the grand entrance is the Holy Spirit, still each room without exception has its own smaller key. Should anyone accidentally confuse the keys and throw them out and then want to open one of the rooms, he could not do so until he found the right one. Similarly, the psalms are each like single cells, every one with its own proper key. The main entrance to the mansion of the Psalter is the first psalm which begins with the words: 'Happy the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked.'

Some commentators think that the key to this first psalm must be the person of Christ our Lord, interpreting 'the happy man' to be the man, Christ. They mean well, of course, but such an interpretation certainly shows a lack of experience and knowledge, for if that happy man is Christ, and Christ gave the law, how can the words: 'But delights in the law of the Lord,' apply to Christ? Besides, how can Christ be compared to a tree where it says: 'He is like a tree planted near running water'? For if Christ is compared to a tree, He is less than the tree since in comparison the thing compared is less than that to which it is compared; hence, the tree would be greater than the Lord who is compared to it. Do you see, then, that the psalm cannot refer to the person of the Lord, but rather refers in general to the just man? I grant that there are many who with some reason, I think, apply the words of the Psalm to Joseph; I mean Joseph of Arimathea, who did not follow the counsel of the Jews, who did not stand in the way of sinners, and who did not sit in the company of the Pharisees. Nevertheless, what others choose to interpret in a particular way as referring to Joseph, we shall take to apply in a general way to the just man.

'Happy the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked.' In Genesis, we read how Adam was cursed: 'Cursed be the ground because of you;' but the first malediction pronounced against man is absolved and replaced with a benediction. The Old Law lays down, as it were, only one condition of blessedness; the Gospel, on the other hand, announces simultaneously eight beatitudes. 'Happy the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked.' Happy the man, not any man, but the man who has reached the perfection of the manhood of Christ: 'Who follows not the counsel of the wicked.'

Here, Scripture describes the three usual ways of committing sin: we entertain sinful thoughts; we commit sin in act; or we teach what is sinful. First, we entertain a sinful thought; then, after we have reflected upon it, we convert that thought into action. When we commit sin, moreover, we multiply sin by teaching others to do what we have done. 'Happy the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked' - who thinks no evil; 'nor has stood in the way of sinners' - who does no evil; 'nor sits in the company of the insolent' - who has not taught others to sin. He has not consorted with the scornful, 'nor has stood in the way of sinners.'

It is difficult for one not to sin. John the Evangelist says, in fact, that anyone who denies that he has sinned is a liar. [1 John 1:8] If, therefore, we all sin, what do the words mean, 'nor has stood in the way of sinners'? If we all sin, no one is happy, except, of course, the one who has not sinned. But we all sin, every last one of us, and so no one is blessed.

Consider, however, just what the Scripture says: 'nor has stood in the way of sinners.' Scripture did not say happy the man who has not sinned, but rather, happy the man who has not persevered in sin. 'Nor has stood in the way of sinners.' Yesterday I committed sin. I am not happy. If, however, I do not remain in the state of sin, but withdraw from sin, I become happy once more. 'Nor sits in the company of the insolent.' Why does it say 'sits' in this verse and 'has stood' in the preceding one? For this reason: just as he who has not stood - persisted - in sin is happy, so he who has not sat - persisted - in evil doctrine is happy. What does that mean? You see yourselves that the three determinants of beatitude consist in not thinking evil, in not persevering in sin, and in not teaching evil. This is really what the Prophet Amos says: 'For three crimes and for four, I will not revoke my word, says the Lord.' [Amos 1:3] Moreover, he says this same thing eight times. Now, this is what he actually is saying: you have entertained sin, I have pardoned you; you have done evil, I have forgiven you; you have not repented of your sins, I have excused you: did you also have to teach evil? What the Scripture implies is this: For three sins and for four, I shall not be angered against you, says the Lord. [Isaiah 57:16]

'And meditates on his law day and night.' The psalmist has already mentioned three things one must not do: follow the Counsel of the wicked; stand in the way of sinners; sit in the company of the insolent. These three things we must not do, but there are also two things that we must do, for it will not be sufficient for us to shun evil unless we seek good. 'But delights in the law of the Lord.' The psalm does not say fears the law, but delights in the law. There are many who observe the law through fear, but fear as a motive for action is far from meritorious. 'But delights in the law of the Lord' - wholeheartedly he obeys the Lord's command.

'And meditates on his law day and night.' Mere words cannot express adequately what the mind conceives. 'But delights in the law of the Lord.' Some one may say: 'Look, I want to obey the law of God, and so because I want to obey, I am happy.' But consider the words that follow. It is not enough to want the law of God, but one must meditate on His law day and night. 'Meditate day and night.' Someone else may object: 'This is too much for human nature to endure, for one must walk, and drink, and eat, and sleep, and perform all the other necessities of life. How, then, meditate on the law of God day and night, and especially since the Apostle says: "Pray without ceasing"? [1 Thess 5:17] How can I be praying during the time that I am sleeping?'

Meditation on the law does not consist in reading, but in doing, just as the Apostle says in another place: 'Whether you eat or drink, or do anything else, do all for the glory of God. [1 Cor. 10:31] Even if I merely stretch forth my hand in alms giving, I am meditating on the law of God; if I visit the sick, my feet are meditating on the law of God; if I do what is prescribed, I am praying with my whole body what others are praying with their lips. The Jews, indeed, prayed with their lips, but our prayer is works. So there are three things we must not do; two things we must do. What reward does one merit who follows these injunctions?

'He is like a tree planted near running water, that yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade.' There are many who interpret these words very simply to mean that just as a tree, if planted near water, will take root and grow and not wither away because it has enough moisture, so in like manner one who meditates on the law of God will derive strength and life from his meditation. This is their simple interpretation. But we shall combine spiritual things with spiritual things [1 Cor. 2:13] and read of the tree of life that was planted in Paradise, the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This tree of life was planted in the Garden of Eden and in Eden there rose a river that separated into four branches [Gen 2:9]... Likewise we read in Solomon - if one accepts that book as Solomon's, for he speaks there of wisdom (Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God [1 Cor. 1:24]) then, as I was saying, where Solomon says: 'She is a tree of life to those who grasp her,' [Prov 3:18] he is speaking of wisdom. Now, if wisdom is the tree of life, Wisdom itself, indeed, is Christ. You understand now that the man who is blessed and holy is compared to this tree, that is, he is compared to Wisdom. Consequently, you see, too, that the just man, that blessed man who has not followed in the counsel of the wicked - who has not done that but has done this - is like the tree that is planted near running water. He is, in other words, like Christ, inasmuch as He 'raised us up together, and seated us together in heaven.' [Eph. 2:6] You see, then, that we shall reign together with Christ in heaven; you see, too, that because this tree has been planted in the Garden of Eden, we have all been planted there together with Him.

'He is like a tree planted near running water.' Indeed, it is from that fountainhead that all rivers take their rise. 'That yields its fruit in due season.' This tree does not yield fruit in every season, but in the proper season. This is the tree that does not yield its fruit in the present day, but in the future, that is, on the day of judgment. This is the tree that bears blossoms now, that buds forth now, and promises fruits for the future. This tree bears twofold: it produces fruit and it produces foliage. The fruit that it bears contains the meaning of Scripture; the leaves, only the words. The fruit is in the meaning; the leaves are in the words. For that reason, whoever reads Sacred Scripture, if he reads merely as the Jews read, grasps only the words. If he reads with true spiritual insight, he gathers the fruit.

'And whose leaves never fade.' The leaves of this tree are by no means useless. Even if one understands Holy Writ only as history, he has something useful for his soul. We read in the Apocalypse of John (a book which, although rejected in these regions, we ought nevertheless to know, because it is accepted and held as canonical throughout the west, and in other Phoenician provinces, and in Egypt, for the ancient churchmen, including Irenaeus, Polycarp, Dionysius, and other Roman expounders of Sacred Scripture, among whom is holy Cyprian, accept and interpret it): 'Behold, I saw a throne set up, and one Lamb and a tree alongside a river, and on both sides of the river was that tree.' [Revelation 22:1-2] This means that the tree 'was both on this side and on that side of the river. 'And this tree,' he says, 'bore fruit and was yielding its twelve fruits for the year according to each month. And it had lean's, too, and the leaves for the healing of the nations.' [Revelation 22:2]

'I saw,' he says, 'a single throne set up.' We believe in the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, that is true, and that they are a Trinity; nevertheless the kingship is one. 'I saw a single throne set lip, and I saw a single Lamb standing in the presence of the throne.' [Revelation 5:6] This refers to the Incarnation of the Savior. Scripture says: 'Behold the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world' [John 1:29] 'And there was a fountain of water coming forth from beneath the middle of the throne' [Revelation 22:1] Notice that it is from the midst of the throne that there issues forth a river of graces. That river does not issue forth from the throne unless the Lamb is standing before it, [Revelation 7:17] for unless we believe in the Incarnation of Christ, we do not receive those graces.

A tree, he says, one lofty tree had been set up. He did not say trees, but only one tree. If there is but one tree how can it be on both sides of the river? If he had said, I saw trees, it would have been possible for some trees to be on one side of the river and other trees on the other side. Actually, one tree is said to be on both sides of the river. One river comes forth from the throne of God - the grace of the Holy Spirit - and this grace of the Holy Spirit is found in the river of the Sacred Scriptures. This river, moreover, has two banks, the Old Testament and the New Testament, and the tree planted on both sides is Christ. During the year, this tree yields twelve fruits, one for each month, but we are unable to receive the fruits except through the apostles. If one approaches the tree through the apostles, he must receive the fruit; he gathers the fruit from the Sacred Scriptures; he grasps the divine meaning abiding within the words. If, therefore, one comes to this tree through the apostles, he gathers its fruit just as we have said. If, indeed, he cannot pluck the fruit, it is because he is still too weak; he is not yet a disciple, but belongs to the throng; he is an outsider, a stranger from the nations. Because he cannot pluck the fruit, he plucks only words, the leaves for the healing of the nations, for it is written: 'and the leaves are for the healing of the nations.' One who belongs to the nations, who is not a disciple, who is as yet only one of the crowd, gathers only leaves from the tree; he receives from Scripture plain words for a healing remedy. Briefly, then, the Scripture says: 'and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations'; in other words, the leaves are medicine. Why have we digressed on the Apocalypse? Simply became of that tree 'that yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade. Whatever he does, prospers.'

We have discussed the happiness of the just man, We spoke of his reward. Because of the three things he did not do and the two things he did do, he was compared to the tree in the Garden of Eden, to Christ, who is 'Wisdom". We have said all this about the holy man.

Now let us see what Scripture says about the sinner, the wicked man. 'Not so the wicked.' Those universal rewards the just man receives, the wicked man will not receive. 'Not so the wicked.' The psalmist did not say, not so the sinners, for if he had said 'sinners,' we would all then be excluded from reward. 'Not so the wicked.' There is a difference between the wicked and sinners. The wicked deny God altogether; the sinner acknowledges God and in spite of his acknowledgment commits sin. 'Not so the wicked.' In some manuscripts, the words, 'Not so,' are repeated, 'Not so the wicked, not so,' but in the Hebrew there is no such repetition.

We have spoken of the holy man and his likeness to the tree planted near running water, Now for the wicked man, it is exactly the opposite. As the just man is compared to the tree, the wicked man is compared to dust. He who is just is compared to a tree in the Garden of Eden; he who is wicked is compared to dust which the wind drives away. Dust may come from the soil but has ceased to be soil. The wicked are 'like dust which the wind drives away.' (Ps 1:4). Holy Writ says the wicked man will be so unhappy that he is not even dust from the earth. Dust does not seem to have any substance, but it does, of course, have a kind of existence of its own. There is no body to it, yet what substance it does have is really by way of punishment. It is scattered here and there and is never in anyone place; wherever the wind sweeps it, there its whole force is spent. The same is true of the wicked man. Once he has denied God, he is led by delusion wherever the breath of the devil sends him.

Since we have already discussed at length the just man and his likeness to the tree, also the wicked man and his likeness, and have talked about the present world, it remains for us to meditate on the future life and on eternity. Therefore in judgment the wicked shall not stand, nor shall sinners, in the assembly of the just.' In the Gospel according to John, we read: 'He who believes in me is not judged; but he who does not believe in me is already judged.' [John 3:18] Who is left to be judged if both he who believes will no be judged and he who does not believe is already judged? Who will be judged on the day of judgment?

Let us reflect upon the one who stands between the believer and the non-believer, the one that is to be judged. He who believes will not be judged. Now he who believes does not sin; he who believes according to truth does not sin; he who has true faith does not sin. Actually, when we commit sin, it is because our mind is wavering in faith. When we are giving way to anger, when we are detracting from the reputation of another, when we are committing murder, when we are yielding to fornication, just where is our faith? Hence, the words: 'He who believes in me will not be judged'; there is no need to judge him, he is already blessed. Further, he who does not believe is already judged; he has already been judged un to punishment. Who, therefore, is to be judged? The one who indeed believes and yet yields to sin; he who has goodness, but has evil too; he who performs good acts at the time when he believes, but commits sin when his faith is weak.

Let us at this point consider the meaning of the words: 'Therefore in judgment the wicked shall not stand.' They shall not rise to be judged because they have already been judged, for 'he who does not believe in Me is already judged.' 'Nor shall sinners in the assembly of the just.' It does not say that sinners shall not rise again; but that they shall not stand in the assembly of the just; they do not deserve to stand with those who are not to be judged. If they believed in Me, says the Lord, they would rise up with those who do not have to be judged.

'For the Lord knows the way of the just, but the way of the wicked vanishes.' [Ps 1:6] 'For the Lord knows the way of the just.' Why is it so extraordinary that the Lord knows the way of the just? The Scriptures also say that God knows those whom He deigns to know. [John 9:31] In regard to the wicked, it says: 'I never knew you. Depart from me, you workers of iniquity.' [Mt 7:23, Lk 13:27] Moreover, the Apostle says: 'If anyone acknowledges the Lord, the Lord will acknowledge him.' 'For the Lord knows the way of the just.' The Lord does not know the sinner, but the just man He does know.

We read in Genesis that when Adam transgressed, when he paid heed to the serpent rather than to God, when he hid himself from the face of God, God came into the Garden and was walking about in the cool of day [Gen 3:8]. Now listen to what the Scripture says. God sought out Adam, not at midday but in the evening. Adam had already lost the sunlight, for his highnoon was over. It was toward evening and God was walking about, for as far as the sinner is concerned, God is not standing, but is walking. He knew that Adam was in the Garden and He was well aware of what had happened, but because Adam had sinned, God knew him not. And God said: 'Adam, where are you?'

We have heard enough on how God does not know the sinner, so we ought to consider now how the just man is known by Him. God said to Abraham: 'Leave your country, your kinsfolk.' [Gen 12:1] Abraham accordingly came into Palestine; he was in Abramiri; he sojourned a long time in Gerara. When his son Isaac was born, he had received the promise: 'In your descendants all the nations of the earth shall be blessed.' [Gen 22:18] He took Isaac and offered him to God, and a voice from heaven was heard to say: Spare thy son. Straightway, at the very moment that he offered his son, what does God say to Abraham? 'I know now that you fear the Lord, your God.' [Gen 22:12] Have you just now known Abraham, Lord, with whom You have communicated for such a long time? Because Abraham had such great faith in sacrificing his own son, on that account God first began to know him. Why have we said all this? Because it is written: 'For the Lord knows the way of the just.' Let us put it another way: The way, the life, and the truth is Christ; [John 14:6] let us walk, therefore, in Christ and then God the Father will know our way.

'But the way of the wicked vanishes.' That does not mean that the wicked will perish. If they repent and do penance, they too will be saved. When the Apostle Paul was persecuting Christ and His Church, he was wicked. If the wicked perish, there is no chance for their repentance. It does not say that the wicked shall perish, but that the way of the wicked vanishes, that is, wickedness shall perish. Not the wicked, but wickedness itself; not the man who was wicked will perish, but while he is repenting, wickedness vanishes.

God vouchsafes to instruct us that there are three things we must not do, and two things that we must do. Let us be the just man compared to the tree of life; let us not be the wicked who are compared to dust; let us not be sinners, for sinners shall not stand in the assembly of the just. Let us take heed that the path of evil may vanish; and let us bless God to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.