Bless the Lord, my soul. Let all of our souls, united in Christ, proclaim this. O Lord my God, Thou art greatly exalted! Psalm 102:1. Where do You reveal Your greatness? In the confession and beauty You have adorned us with. Confess so that you may be beautified; let Him envelop you. Clothed in light as in a robe Psalm 103:2. Clothed in His church, which has been transformed into light through Him, once darkness in itself, as the apostle states: You were once darkness, but now are light in the Lord. Ephesians 5:8. You stretched out the heavens like a canopy with ease, comparable to how one might handle a covering. The authority of the Holy Scriptures is spread across the earth like a covering; mortality is symbolized in this covering, and the Divine Scriptures were entrusted to us through mortal beings, whose glory persists beyond their death.
You cover the heights with water Psalm 102:3. What do you mean by the heights? The heavenly realm. What is Heaven? It can only be understood figuratively through the Divine Scriptures. What is the pinnacle of the Divine Scriptures? The commandment of love, which surpasses all. Mark 12:31. Why is love associated with water? Because the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit given to us. Romans 5:5. From Whence does the Spirit come—water? Jesus proclaimed: ‘Whoever believes in Me, rivers of living water will flow from their innermost being.’ John 7:37-38. How do we know this was about the Spirit? The evangelist clarifies when he states, ‘But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive.’ Who goes beyond the winds' wings; that is, above the soul’s virtues. What is the virtue of the soul? Love for self. But how will He conquer it? Because God’s love for us surpasses our love for God.
Who makes His angels spirits, and His ministers a flaming fire Psalm 102:4. This refers to those who have become spirits, who are spiritual and not of the flesh; He appoints them as His messengers to proclaim His gospel. The flaming fire serves Him, for if a minister of the word does not burn with zeal, he will not ignite passion within those he serves.
He established the earth upon its firm foundation Psalm 103:5. He positioned the Church on its solid base. What is the firmness of the Church if not its foundation? What is the Church’s foundation but as the Apostle states: No one can lay any other foundation than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 3:11. What should it then earn on such a foundation? It shall not be moved for eternity. He founded the earth upon its stability. That is, He established the Church upon Christ’s foundation. The Church would falter if the foundation were to quake; but when would Christ, through whom all was created—even the very flesh He assumed—be shaken? John 1:3; Hebrews 1:3. Because Christ remains steadfast, she will not be moved forever. Where are those proclaiming the Church's demise when she remains unassailable?
The abyss, like a robe, is her garment Psalm 102:6. Whose garment is this? Could it be God’s? But He has already declared: ‘Clothed with light as a garment.’ If we desire this light, it encompasses us. What occurs if we seek it? We cease to be darkness. Now, if God is covered in light, whose robe is the abyss? The vast waters are termed the abyss. All water, every moist essence and substance, flowing through seas, rivers, and hidden caves, are collectively known as the Abyss. Thus, we comprehend the earth of which He spoke: ‘He founded the earth.’ I assume He meant: ‘The abyss is like a garment around it.’ For water envelops the earth, surrounding and cloaking it.
The waters rise above the mountains, signifying that the earth’s garment, the abyss, has increased to the point that the waters exceed even the mountains. We read of this occurrence during the flood. The prophet, aiming to forecast the future rather than recount the past, highlighted that the Church must endure persecution’s flood. There was a time when torrents of persecutors engulfed God’s earth, His Church, concealing even the mightiest mountains. When scattered far and wide, did they not cease to appear? Are these not the very waters that cry out, ‘Save me, O God, for the waters have reached my soul’? Especially those tumultuous waters that churn the sea and render the landscape desolate. For any land engulfed by the ocean, it would make barren as swiftly as it would nurture. For there were also mountains submerged beneath water, for above the mountains, the waters prevailed. Why did the apostles flee? Because waters surged over the mountains. The might of the waters was great, but how long would that last?
By Your rebuke they shall disperse. Psalm 102:7. And it has come to pass, dear friends; by the command of God, the waters retreated; that is, they ceased to encroach upon the mountains. Now the mountains themselves—Peter and Paul—how they have been elevated! Those once crushed by persecutors now crowned as rulers. The waters fled at God’s rebuke; since the hearts of kings are in the hands of God, He directs them as He wishes; Proverbs 21:1. He has commanded peace for Christians; the authority of the Apostles has flourished. The waters fled from God’s rebuke. At the sound of Your thunder, they tremble. Who would not stand in awe of God’s voice through the apostles, God’s voice through Scripture, through His clouds? The sea calmed, the waters trembled, the mountains were laid bare, and the emperor issued the decree. But who would have commanded if God had not thundered? For God willed it, they commanded, and it was accomplished. Therefore, let no one attribute anything to their own merits.
The mountains ascend, and the valleys descend to the place You established for them. Psalm 102:8. He continues to describe the waters. Let us not interpret mountains as merely earth; nor plains as flat land, but rather as great waves likened to mountains. The sea once surged, its waves towering like mountains, threatening to overwhelm even the Apostles’ mountains. But how long will the mountains rise and the plains fall? They raged, and now they are tranquil. In their fury, they were mountains; now, pacified, they are valleys, for He established a place for them. There exists a channel, as it were, a profound place where all these newly roused human hearts have retreated. Once they were mountains, but now they are valleys; yet, dear friends, even the stillness is part of the sea. Why are they not fierce now? Why are they not wrathful? Why do they not strive, if they cannot topple our land, at least to cover it? Why is that?
Consider: You have set a boundary that they shall not cross, nor return to cover the earth. Psalm 103:9. What then, now that the most turbulent waves have been restrained, should we preach these truths with freedom; for their limit is established, they cannot surpass the bounds set before them, nor will they return to overwhelm the earth; what is occurring on the land itself? What activity is happening now that the sea has left it exposed? Though gentle waves may lap at its shores, and the nations may still gather around, I hear the noise of the shores; I do not dread the flood. So, what is transpiring on the land? You send forth springs in the valleys Psalm 102:10. He sends, noting those little valleys—lower regions among the lands. For hills and mountains, valleys and small ravines, contrast one another in form. Hills and mountains are the high terrains, while valleys and lowlands are the lows. Do not disdain lowly places; springs emerge from there. You send springs to the small valleys. Consider the mountains. The apostle states, I have labored more abundantly than all. Some grandeur may be evident, but immediately, to allow the waters to flow, he made a valley for himself: Not I, but the grace of God with me. 1 Corinthians 15:10. There is no contradiction in mountains also being valleys; for as they are termed mountains due to their spiritual stature, so they are valleys due to their humble spirit. Not I, he says, but the grace of God that is with me.
What does it signify that ‘The waters shall flow through the midst of the mountains’? We understand the mountains to be the great preachers of the word, the exalted angels of God, albeit still in mortal flesh; elevated not by their own strength, but by His grace; yet, in their humility, they create valleys, pouring forth springs. In the center, he describes, amidst the mountains, the waters shall flow. This could be interpreted as ‘In the midst of the apostles shall flow the preaching of the Word of Truth.’ What dwells in the center between the apostles? That which is termed in the center signifies communal property. The common good, by which all thrive equally, exists in the middle, and does not belong to any one individual; for if it were strictly personal, it would not flow for the public benefit, and I possess mine and he possesses his, making it a place devoid of shared offerings; yet this is not the preaching of peace.
Thus, beloved, let what we have articulated to your love serve this purpose by empowering you—allow the springs to flow from you, as valleys, and share with all that you possess of God. Let the waters flow in the midst, envious of none, drink, be filled, and overflow when filled. Let the communal waters of God be glorified everywhere, not the private distortions of humanity. Hence, all the beasts of the forest shall drink Psalm 103:11. We observe this also in visible creation, that the beasts of the forest quench their thirst at the springs and streams flowing between the mountains; but now, because it pleased God to envelop His wisdom in the imagery of such things, not to withhold it from diligent seekers, but to conceal it from the indifferent and reveal it to those who earnestly seek. It delighted the Lord God Himself to exhort you through us, that in all these elements reflecting the corporeal and visible creation, we might search for something spiritually hidden, which, once discovered, we would rejoice in. By the beasts of the forest, we comprehend the Gentiles; the Scriptures testify to this in many passages.
These creatures shall sip from these waters, but only momentarily; not abiding, but transient; for all the teachings that have been disseminated during this time are ephemeral. Unless your love believes that in that city, which is called, Praise the Lord, Jerusalem, celebrate your God, Zion; for He has fortified the bars of your gates; when the gates are securely locked and the city is sealed, henceforth shall no friend depart, and no enemy shall intrude; that there we shall possess a book to read, or a message to be elucidated as it is currently explained to you. Therefore, this is now addressed in such a way that it may be preserved; this is why it is dissected into portions, enabling contemplation in its full and complete form. There shall be no absence of the Word of God there, nor of letters, sounds, books, readers, or interpreters. How then? As, In the beginning was the Word, etc. John 1:1. For He did not come to us to be estranged from there; for He was in the world, and the world was created through Him. Such is the Word we should meditate upon. The God of gods will manifest in Zion. But when will this occur? After our pilgrimage, when our journey is complete; unless, however, after we fulfill our journey, we stand before the Judge, who might then cast us into confinement. If, when our journey concludes, as we hold hope, desire, and strive, we reach our homeland, there we will behold that which we shall eternally praise; and he who possesses, and we who partake, shall not be satisfied; neither shall he who consumes be sated, nor shall he who consumes be filled with what he consumes. This contemplation will be great and wonderful.
THEOSIS