THEOSISAugustine of Hippo
I desire, dear friends, that we would have rather adhered to our Father, yet it is indeed right to obey Him. Since He who humbly intercedes for us has commanded us, I shall share, beloved, what this psalm reveals about our Lord Jesus Christ. The title of the psalm is ‘A Song of Celebration by David.’ A song of celebration embodies both delight, for it is indeed a song, and reverence, for it entails praise. For what should a person praise more than that which they cherish so deeply that it becomes impossible for them to harbor any dislike towards it? Consequently, when we extol God, we do so with confident hearts. The one who offers praise is in a secure place, untroubled by the fear of shame in regard to the object of worship. Therefore, let us both praise and sing; that is, let us offer our praise with joy and gladness. What we are about to exalt, this Psalm elucidates in the following verses.
“Come, let us sing unto the Lord" Psalm 94:1. He summons us to partake in a grand celebration of joy, one that transcends this earthly realm, focusing instead on the Lord. Were there no false joys in this life, which must be distinguished from righteous joy, it would suffice to say, “Come, let us rejoice,” but He succinctly emphasizes this invitation. What does it truly mean to rejoice? It means to find joy in the Lord. If you wish to safely navigate the world, you ought to rejoice in Him. Yet what does the word ‘Come’ imply? It invites those who are distant to approach; it signifies that being far off, they may draw close, and in drawing near, they may indeed rejoice. Yet, from where are they distant? Is it possible for one to be physically remote from He who is omnipresent? The distance is not spatial but rather a reflection of our dissimilarity to Him. To be unlike Him signifies a life filled with wrongdoing and bad habits; if our good practices draw us nearer to God, then our vices lead us away. Hence, if our dissimilarity distances us from God, our likeness to Him brings us closer. What likeness do we speak of? It is that which we were created in, which we have tarnished through sin, yet which is bestowed upon us again through forgiveness, and rejuvenated in our inner being, so that it may be re-etched in our souls—the image of our God—allowing us to return to His treasures.
“Let us make a joyful noise to God, our salvation” ... Consider, dear ones, those who make a joyful noise with ordinary songs in contests of earthly joy; observe how, when they recite the written lyrics, they erupt with an exuberance that words can scarcely contain, crying out in a way that expresses the depths of their hearts which can find no utterance. If they burst forth in earthly joy, how much more should we express our joy from the heavenly, an emotion truly beyond words?
“Let us draw near to Him with confession” Psalm 94:2. In Scripture, “confession” carries a dual meaning. It can refer to proclaiming praise, as well as to the lamentation of repentance. This praise acknowledges the honor of the one exalted, while lamentation reflects a sincere admission of our shortcomings. We recognize that we confess when we laud God, and we confess again when we acknowledge our failures; our tongues cannot be put to a more noble purpose. Indeed, these are the very vows of which the psalmist speaks: “I will pay You my vows, which I have uttered with my mouth.” Nothing is more profound than discernment; it is essential both to comprehend and to act. How then can you discern the vows made to God? By praising Him and confessing your faults; for it is His merciful nature to forgive us. If He had opted to judge us according to our deeds, He would only have found cause for condemnation. “Oh, come,” He calls, “that we may turn away from our sins, and may not have our past laid before us, but that we may begin anew, as all the ties of our debts are burned away.” Thus, the greater your despair over your iniquities, the more you should confess, for the glory of the Forgiver shines brighter in the fullness of the penitent’s acknowledgment. Let us not think that by recognizing confession as an act, we stray from the song of praise; for in confessing our sins, we magnify the glory of God.
“And shout joyfully unto Him with psalms.” We have already established the meaning of making a joyful noise: the repetition of the word serves to emphasize an action; this repetition itself becomes an encouragement. We have not forgotten the earlier exhortation to make a joyful noise; rather, it is frequent in places of strong emotion for familiar words to be reiterated—not to make them more common, but to deepen the impact of what is conveyed. Thus it is repeated so that we may understand the sentiments of the speaker:
“For the Lord is a great God and a great King above all gods” Psalm 94:3. The Lord will not abandon His people. Which people will He not cast away? We cannot inject our own interpretations here, as the Apostle has clarified it for us. It pertains to the Jewish nation—a nation of prophets, a people of patriarchs, birthed of the seed of Abraham; a people through whom all the promises concerning our Savior were delivered, and among whom the temple, the anointing, and the priesthood were established, so that when these shadows passed away, the Light itself might emerge. This was God’s chosen people; to them, the prophets were sent, and through them, the messengers arose, entrusted with the revelations of God. So what of it? Is this entire nation condemned? Far from it. The apostle refers to it as the good olive tree, rooted in the patriarchs. This is the tree itself; even though some branches were broken, not all were lost. If every branch was severed, from where would Peter come? What of John? Where is Thomas from? Where is Matthew? Where does Andrew come from? Where do all of these apostles hail? Where is the apostle Paul, who has just spoken to us about the good olive tree by his fruits? Were they not all from that lineage? What of the five hundred brothers to whom our Lord appeared following His resurrection? 1 Corinthians 15:6 How did so many thousands turn to God, as Peter said, when the apostles, filled with the Holy Spirit, proclaimed in the tongues of all nations? Acts 2:4 What about those who, having been the first to shed the blood of the Lord in rage, learned to drink it in faith? And all of these five thousand were so transformed that they sold their possessions and laid the proceeds at the apostles' feet. What one wealthy man could not bring himself to do when Jesus spoke to him and he walked away sorrowfully, Matthew 19:21-22, many thousands of those who participated in the crucifixion accomplished. The more profound the wound in their hearts, the more vigorously they sought a healer. Therefore, since they all stem from there, the psalm assures us, “For the Lord will not cast away His people.”
What does the Psalm further declare? “All the corners of the earth are in His hand” Psalm 94:4. Here we understand the cornerstone: that cornerstone is Christ. A corner cannot exist unless it joins two walls together; they converge from different sides into one corner without opposing one another. Circumcision comes from one side, and uncircumcision from the other; in Christ, both elements unite because He is the stone referred to in the scripture, “The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.”
“For the sea is His and He made it” Psalm 94:5. The sea symbolizes this world, which God also formed, and the waves cannot crash beyond the prescribed shores He established. Therefore, there is no temptation that exceeds His design... And His hands have fashioned the dry land. May this dry land symbolize a yearning for the grace of God so that it may descend upon you like refreshing rain, bringing forth fruit. He does not permit the waves to cover what He has sown; and His hands have prepared the dry land. Therefore, let us raise our voices to the Lord.
“Come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker” Psalm 94:6. If you are aflame with awareness of your wrongdoings, douse the fire of your sin with tears: weep courageously before the Lord, for He does not reject the works of His hands. Do not deceive yourself into thinking you can recover by your own means. Alone, you may stumble, but you cannot restore yourself. He who created you will restore you. Weep before the Lord your Maker; confess before Him, allowing His presence to guide your confession. For who are you that weeps and confesses before Him, but one who was formed by His hands? A created being has immense trust in the Creator—not indifferently, but in the reflection of His image and likeness.
“For He is the Lord our God” Psalm 94:7. To approach and kneel before Him in confidence, we must ask who we are. We are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand. Observe how beautifully He has altered the order of the words, assigning attributes to each word; we understand that the sheep are indeed the people. He did not say, “The sheep of His pasture, and the people of His hand,” which might seem more fitting, as sheep belong in pasture, but rather He called us “the people of His pasture.” Hence, the people are sheep, as He identifies them in this way—His people are sheep. He also praises these sheep in the Song of Songs, referring to them as perfect sheep likened to the teeth of His Spouse, the Holy Church: “Your teeth are like a flock of sheep just shorn, coming up from the washing; each one bears twins, and none are barren.” What does “Your teeth” signify? They are those through whom you articulate; for the teeth of the Church are her means of speech. What are your teeth like? Like a flock of sheared sheep. Why are they shorn? Because they have shed the burdens of the world. Those sheep I previously mentioned were shorn by God's command, as He instructed, “Go, sell what you possess, give to the poor; you will find treasure in heaven, and come follow Me” Matthew 19:21. They obeyed this command: they emerged shorn. And what of those who are baptized in Christ? What does it say? They come out of the washing, deriving from the act of cleansing. Each gives birth to twins. What twins? These are the two commandments upon which the entire Law and the Prophets rest. Matthew 22:40
“So today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” Psalm 94:8. O my people, the people of God! God speaks to His people—not merely to those He will not forsake but to all His people. For He speaks in the cornerstone of Ephesians 2:20 to every wall; the prophecy speaks in Christ both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles. For a time, you heard His voice through Moses, but hardened your hearts. Then He spoke through a herald; now, He speaks personally; allow your hearts to be softened. He who sent heralds before Him has now chosen to come Himself; He speaks with His own voice, the same one that spoke through the prophets.
“As in the day of trial and temptation in the wilderness, where your fathers tested Me” Psalm 94:9. Let your forebears be no more examples for you: do not follow in their footsteps. They were indeed your ancestors, but if you choose not to emulate them, they shall not be your fathers. Though you are born from them, do not imitate. And if the Gentiles, coming from the ends of the earth, say, “Surely our fathers have inherited lies, emptiness, and vain things” Jeremiah 16:19, if they cast aside their idols and turn to the God of Israel, how could Israel, whom God liberated from Egypt through the Red Sea, Exodus 14:21-22, where He vanquished their enemies; whom He brought into the wilderness, nourished with manna, Exodus 16:13-35, continually corrected and graced with His favors, forsake their God when Gentiles were drawn to Him? When your ancestors tested and provoked Me, they witnessed My works...