-
56. Homily 56 On Psalm 146 (147A)
- The Catholic University of America Press
- Chapter
- Additional Information
HOMILY 56 ON PSALM 146 (147A) [IRAISE THE LORD, because a psalm is good:1 The title ~ o~ Psalm 146 is 'Alleluia.' Those who an~ un~am~liar .... wIth the Hebrew language, are wont to mqUlre mto the significance of the word 'alleluia' when it appears in the title of a psalm. This particular psalm has 'alleluia' not only in its title but also in its prelude. Where our text says, 'Praise the Lord,' the Hebrew says, 'alleluia: Among the Hebrews, God has as many as ten names; He is called Sabaoth, Saddai, Eloim, EI, even Jao, and Eser Jaia. Along with others, there is also the name Ja, the meaning of which is 'invisible: As the Hebrew for our word praise is 'allelu,' the Hebrew psalm has, 'allelu Ja,'2 in the same way that it would say: allelu Sabaoth, allelu Saddai, allelu Eloim. As a matter of fact, Theodotion, one of the translators, in his attempt to produce a literal translation, says, alv€iT€ TOV 'let. Why have we made such a point of this? So that we may know that alleluia is the title and theme of this psalm: Praise the Lord. Since we have digressed, meditate on this explanation in your hearts; otherwise, we shall have to prolong our sermon. 'Praise the Lord, because a psalm is good.' The prophet did not say, a good psalm, but a psalm is good in the absolute sense; it is a good thing to sing a sacred song. To sing, not with the voice, mind you, but with the heart. How many there are who have good voices but because they are sinners, their singing is bad. He sings well who sings in his heart, 1 Cf. Ps. 146 (147A).1. 2 Cf. Letter 26.3, PL 22.430 (132); cf. Commentarioli in ps. 146.1. 400 HOMILY 56 401 who sings to Christ in his conscience. 'It is fitting to praise him in joyful song:s It is fitting to praise Him with joyful song, not with the voice, but with a good conscience. In such wise, Noe, too, offered holocausts 'and the Lord smelled the sweet odor.'4 There is much more to be said, but we must touch lightly upon the high points and indicate the thought, rather than dwell on the broader meaning of the words. 'The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem; the dispersed of Israel he gathers: How Jerusalem is rebuilt and the banished exiles are brought home again has already been told. Since, moreover , these two versicles have been explained and we must not build on another's foundation, let us move on to the rest of the psalm to learn just how Jerusalem is restored, for the prophet has given us a description in the remaining verses. 'He heals the brokenhearted.' You see now how the rebuilding of Jerusalem takes place: The broken heart is mended. 'A heart contrite and humbled, God does not spum.'s 'And binds up their wounds.' You wound your heart and the Lord binds up your wounds. The Samaritan, who was on his way down from Jerusalem to Jericho, bound up the wounds of the tom and bruised man he found lying in the road. He is the one to whom the Scripture fittingly applies:6 'And binds up their wounds.' It refers also to those who are penitent, but of the unrepentant, Scripture says, their wounds 'are not drained, or bandaged, or eased with salve:7 'He tells the number of the stars.' What literal connection is there between, 'binds up their wounds' and 'he tells the number of the stars'? Well, since He healed the brokenhearted and bound up their wounds, after their wounds had been healed, He changed them into stars. 'He tells the 3 Cf. Ps. 146 (147A).1. 4 Cf. Gen. 8.21. 5 Cf. Ps. 50.19. 6 Cf. Commentarioli in ps. 146.3. 7 Isa. 1.6. [44.200.32.31] Project MUSE (2024-03-29 07:34 GMT) 402 SAINT JEROME number of the stars.' 'The number.' Many, indeed, had sinned; many there are whom He has healed. 'He tells the number of the stars.' He does not tell the number of the wounded, but the number of those who have already become stars; God tells the number only of those who are worthy of Him. 'He calls each by name.' He speaks of Lucifer and Orion, of the stars that we see in the sky, and it is certainly understandable...