The Penitential Psalms - Psalm 31/4: On being as stubborn as a mule (verses 11-12)!

It is impossible for me to conclude this mini-series on Psalm 31 without a quick look at my two favourite verses, which deal with our natural instinct to rebel against God's providential guidance of our lives!

God's guidance

Verses 8&9 of Psalm 31 discuss the gifts that God gives to those who repent of their sins, including his guidance and protection.  But verses 11&12 (in the liturgical ordering of the text), which I want to focus on today, contain a warning:

11	V/NV	Nolíte fíeri sicut equus et mulus, * quibus non est intelléctus.
	JH	Nolite fieri sicut equus et mulus in quibus non est intellegentia :
		μὴ γίνεσθε ὡς ἵππος καὶ ἡμίονος οἷς οὐκ ἔστιν σύνεσις

Nolíte fíeri  = be not unwilling to be made = do not be

nolo, nolui, nolle  to be unwilling, not to wish, to refuse.

fio, factus sum, fieri to be made or done, to become, happen.

sicut equus et mulus = like the horse and mule

equus, i. m. a horse.

mulus, i, m., a mule.

quibus non est intelléctus [which he who has not] that have no understanding

intelligo, lexi, lectum, ere 3  understand, give heed to something, to consider

intellectus, us, m.  understanding, insight

DR	Do not become like the horse and the mule, who have no understanding.
Brenton	Be ye not as horse and mule, which have no understanding
MD	Be not like the horse and the mule that have no understanding
Cover	Be ye not like to horse and mule, which have no understanding
Knox	Do not be like the horse and the mule, senseless creatures which will not come near thee unless their spirit is tamed by bit and bridle.

12	V	In camo et freno maxíllas eórum constrínge: * qui non appróximant ad te.
	NV	In camo et freno si accedis ad constringendum, non approximant ad te.
	JH	in camo et freno maxillas eorum constringe, qui non accedunt ad te.
		μὴ γίνεσθε ὡς ἵππος καὶ ἡμίονος οἷς οὐκ ἔστιν σύνεσις

Text notes: The sense is ‘don’t be like an animal that will not come to someone unless controlled by bit and bridle’ – but the underlying text in Latin, Greek and the Hebrew is difficult!

In camo et freno maxíllas eórum constringe = with bit and bridle bind their jaws

*camus, i, m.  a bit, curb

*frenum, i, n., a bridle, curb.

maxilla, ae, f the jawbone, the jaw.

*constringo strinxi, strictum, 3, to bind, fetter, shackle, chain, restrain

qui non appróximant ad te = who do not approach you

approximo, are to approach, draw near to

DR	With bit and bridle bind fast their jaws, who come not near unto you.
Brenton	but thou must constrain their jaws with bit and curb, lest they should come nigh to thee.
MD	With bit and bridle their jaws must be checked or they will not follow thee
RSV	which must be curbed with bit and bridle, else it will not keep with you.
Cover	Whose mouths must be held with bit and bridle, if they will not obey thee
Knox	which will not come near thee unless their spirit is tamed by bit and bridle.

The verses are translated fairly literally in the Douay-Rheims as:

"Do not become like the horse and the mule, who have no understanding. With bit and bridle bind fast their jaws, who come not near unto you."

In terms of the translation, the first phrase, giving us the image of the horse (equus) and mule (mulus) is straightforward.  Intellectus simply means understanding or insight.  The last phrases are a little harder to get but the sense is clear: 'in camo et freno' means with bit and bridle; maxilla means jaw or jawbone; while the verb constringere means to bind together, hold fast, fetter or restrain.  Approximare means to approach or draw near.

The virtue of reason

St Robert Bellarmine explains the verses as follows:

"The Prophet now exhorts all, both good and bad, to learn from his example the evils consequent on sin, and the blessings to be derived from penance and virtue, he having tasted of both. Turning to the wicked first, he says, "Do not become like the horse and the mule, who have no understanding." Endowed with reason, but not guided by your animal propen­sities; be not like the horse and the mule in your licentious desires, as I was; be not like the horse and the mule, in tearing and lashing at your fellow creatures, as I have been in regard of Urias. "With bit and bridle bind fast their jaws, who come not near unto thee." He foretells the calamities in store for those who will act the part of the horse and the mule towards their neighbor. They will be forced by tribulations either to return to God, or will be prevented from injuring their neighbors to the extent they intended; but, as usual, this prophetic warning is expressed as if it were an imprecation. You will force those wicked men to obey you, as you would subdue a horse or a mule, with a bit and bridle, and make them obedient to you. The words bit and bridle are used in a metaphorical sense to signify the crosses and trials that God has sometimes recourse to..."

And that completes this look at Psalm 31.  The next part in this series on the Seven Penitential Psalms is an introduction to Psalm 37.

The Penitential Psalms - Psalm 31/3: Admitting our faults

Folio 66v*
http://www.metmuseum.org/

I want to pick up my Lenten series on the Seven Penitential Psalms today with a look at verse 6 of Psalm 31, which picks up a major theme of the psalm, namely our unfortunate tendency to refuse to not to simply accept that we have sinned, confess it, and move on.

Instead, human nature means that we either continue blithely ignoring the fact of our sin; try and persuade ourselves that we haven't sinned really; or persuade ourselves that our sin is not really that serious.

The sentiment also though has application for most of us, I think not just in relation to serious sins, but also in relation to those personality faults, failures and weaknesses that we all know we should work on - but do our best to try not to think about!

The verse

6	V/NV	Dixi: confitébor advérsum me injustítiam meam Dómino: * et tu remisísti impietátem peccáti mei.
	JH	Dixi, Confitebor scelus meum Domino; et tu dimisisti iniquitatem peccati mei.
	Septuagint	τὴν ἀνομίαν μου τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ σὺ ἀφῆκας τὴν ἀσέβειαν τῆς ἁμαρτίας μου διάψαλμα

Note that the Neo-Vulgate (NV) is identical to the older form of the text, despite it differing somewhat from St Jerome's take on the Hebrew (JH).

adversus or adversum, prep, with ace against; in the presence of, over against, before.

confiteor, fessus sum, eri 2 to praise, give thanks; to confess, acknowledge one's guilt.

injustitia, ae,   injustice, iniquity, sin..

remitto, misi, missum, ere 3,  to forgive, pardon, remit; to send or give back, return

impietas, atis, sin, misdeed, transgression; impiety, wickedness.

peccatum, i, n. sin, failure, error , perversion, going astray

DR	I said I will confess against my self my injustice to the Lord: and you have forgiven the wickedness of my sin.
Brenton	I said, I will confess mine iniquity to the Lord against myself; and thou forgavest the ungodliness of my heart.
MD	I said: I will confess to the Lord my injustice And thou forgavest the guilt of my sin.
RSV	I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD"; then thou didst forgive the guilt of my sin.
Cover	I said, I will confess my sins unto the Lord; and so thou forgavest the wickedness of my sin.
Knox	Fault of mine, said I, I here confess to the Lord; and with that, thou didst remit the guilt of my sin

A literal translation is: "I said: I will confess (confitebor) against myself (adversum me) my injustice (injustitiam meam) to the Lord: and you have remitted (tu remisisti) to me the impiety/wickedness (impietatem) of my sins."  The Douay-Rheims, and translations that mainly follow the Septuagint/Vulgate, translate the second phrase as God forgiving the 'wickedness' of the sin; those taking greater note of the Hebrew Masoretic Text, such as the Monastic Diurnal (MD), Revised Standard Version and Knox, see it as remitting the guilt of the sin involved.

The process of conversion

By way of commentary on the verses, I want to offer first St John Chrysostom's take on this verse in the process of conversion:

"Would you like me to list also the paths of repentance? They are numerous and quite varied, and all lead to heaven.  A first path of repentance is the condemnation of your own sins: Be the first to admit your sins and you will be justified. For this reason, too, the prophet wrote: I said: I will accuse myself of my sins to the Lord, and you forgave the wickedness of my heart. Therefore, you too should condemn your own sins; that will be enough reason for the Lord to forgive you, for a man who condemns his own sins is slower to commit them again. Rouse your conscience to accuse you within your own house, lest it become your accuser before the judgment seat of the Lord..."

The renewal of our baptism

Secondly, Pope Benedict XVI stressed in a message for Lent the connection between Lent and our baptism. In his catechesis on this psalm Pope John Paul II reflects this idea, saying:

"St Cyril of Jerusalem (fourth century) uses Psalm 32[31] to teach catechumens of the profound renewal of Baptism, a radical purification from all sin (cf. Procatechesi, n. 15). Using the words of the Psalmist, he too exalts divine mercy. We end our catechesis with his words: "God is merciful and is not stingy in granting forgiveness.... The mountain of your sins will not rise above the greatness of God's mercy, the depth of your wounds will not overcome the skilfulness of the "most high' Doctor: on condition that you abandon yourself to him with trust. Make known your evil to the Doctor, and address him with the words of the prophet David: "I will confess to the Lord the sin that is always before me'. In this way, these words will follow: "You have forgiven the ungodliness of my heart'" (Le Catechesi, Rome, 1993, pp. 52-53)."

And you can find the next part of this series on Psalm 31 here.

*(Illustration at top: Belles Heures of Jean de France, duc de Berry, 1405–1408/9. Herman, Paul, and Jean de Limbourg (Franco-Netherlandish, active in France by 1399–1416). French; Made in Paris. Ink, tempera, and gold leaf on vellum; 9 3/8 x 6 5/8 in. (23.8 x 16.8 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 

New York, The Cloisters Collection, 1954 (54.1.1).)

The Seven Penitential Psalms - Psalm 31/2: The grace of forgiveness

 

The first verse of Psalm 131 points us to the idea of happiness, or blessedness.

	V	Beáti quorum remíssæ sunt iniquitátes: * et quorum tecta sunt peccáta.
	NV	Beatus, cui remissa est iniquitas, et obtectum est peccatum.
	JH	Beatus cui dimissa est iniquitas, et absconditum est peccatum.
		συνέσεως μακάριοι ὧν ἀφέθησαν αἱ ἀνομίαι καὶ ὧν ἐπεκαλύφθησαν αἱ ἁμαρτίαι

remitto, misi, missum, ere 3,  to forgive, pardon, remit; to send or give back, return

tego, texi, tectum, ere 3,  to cover, covered, taken away altogether.

DR	Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
MD	Blessed are they whose guilt is forgiven, and whose sins are pardoned.
RSV	Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
NETS	Happy are those whose lawless behaviour was forgiven and whose sins were covered over.
Brenton	Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, and who sins are covered.
Coverdale	Blessed is he whose unrighteousness is forgiven, & whose sin is covered.
Knox	Blessed are they who have their faults forgiven, their transgressions buried deep;

The idea of beatitude

Beatus simply means happy, or blessed.  It has the same meaning in the (New Testament) beatitudes.  In the first verse, it is in the plural; in the second verse, the psalmist continues with the same ideas, bringing it back to the individual.
 
Why is the psalmist happy?  Because his sins (iniquitas=iniquity, sin, or rebellion against God's authority; peccatum=sin, failure, error, going astray) are forgiven or pardoned (the verb is from remittere), 'covered' (tegere) or taken away altogether (the Hebrew suggests something more like 'offend the eye no longer').  The whole thrust of the verse is that sense of a lightening of one's burden experienced (hopefully) when one emerges from the confessional.
 
Scripture interprets Scripture?
 
It always important to look at how the New Testament in particular interprets passages from the Old, since the New fulfills and explains the Old.  In the case, St Paul quotes this verse in Romans 4, in his discussion on salvation:

"Now to one who works, his wages are not reckoned as a gift but as his due. And to one who does not work but trusts him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness.  So also David pronounces a blessing upon the man to whom God reckons righteousness apart from works: "Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not reckon his sin."… No distrust made him [Abraham] waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was "reckoned to him as righteousness." But the words, "it was reckoned to him," were written not for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him that raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was put to death for our trespasses and raised for our justification."

 Real remission of sin

This passage by St Paul, though, is one of those passages that demonstrate the importance of reading Scripture with the guidance of the Church, for the verses are also used by Luther in his theory of the non-imputation, rather than real forgiveness of sin.
 
Pope John Paul II puts the text in its orthodox context:

"In the Letter to the Romans St Paul refers explicitly to the beginning of our Psalm to celebrate Christ's liberating grace (cf. Rom 4: 6-8). We could apply this to the sacrament of Reconciliation.  In light of the Psalm, this sacrament allows one to experience the awareness of sin, often darkened in our day, together with the joy of forgiveness. The binomial "sin-punishment" is replaced by the binomial "sin-forgiveness", because the Lord is a God who "forgives iniquity and transgression and sin" (cf. Ex 34: 7)."

You can find the next part in this series on Psalm 31 here. 

The Penitential Psalms: No. 2 - Psalm 31/1

The second of the Seven Penitential Psalms, Psalm 31 (32), Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, is a timely reminder of why we undertake Lenten penances, namely the joy that comes when we confess our sins and have them forgiven.  It is a prayer to overcome our resistance to doing just that.

In the traditional Benedictine Office, it is the last psalm of Sunday Matins.

Psalm 31: Beati quorum remissae sunt iniquitates

Vulgate	Douay-Rheims
Ipsi David intellectus.	To David himself, understanding
1 Beáti quorum remíssæ sunt iniquitátes: * et quorum tecta sunt peccáta.	Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
2  Beátus vir, cui non imputávit Dóminus peccátum, * nec est in spíritu ejus dolus.	2 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord has not imputed sin, and in whose spirit there is no guile.
3  Quóniam tácui, inveteravérunt ossa mea, * dum clamárem tota die.	3 Because I was silent my bones grew old; whilst I cried out all the day long
4  Quóniam die ac nocte graváta est super me manus tua: * convérsus sum in ærúmna mea, dum confígitur spina.	4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me: I am turned in my anguish, whilst the thorn is fastened.
5  Delíctum meum cógnitum tibi feci: * et injustítiam meam non abscóndi.	5 I have acknowledged my sin to you, and my injustice I have not concealed.
6  Dixi: Confitébor advérsum me injustítiam meam Dómino: * et tu remisísti impietátem peccáti mei.	I said I will confess against my self my injustice to the Lord: and you have forgiven the wickedness of my sin.
7  Pro hac orábit ad te omnis sanctus, * in témpore opportúno.	6 For this shall every one that is holy pray to you in a seasonable time.
8  Verúmtamen in dilúvio aquárum multárum, * ad eum non approximábunt.	And yet in a flood of many waters, they shall not come near unto him.
9  Tu es refúgium meum a tribulatióne, quæ circúmdedit me: * exsultátio mea, érue me a circumdántibus me.	7 You are my refuge from the trouble which has encompassed me: my joy, deliver me from them that surround me.
10  Intelléctum tibi dabo, et ínstruam te in via hac, qua gradiéris: * firmábo super te óculos meos.	8 I will give you understanding, and I will instruct you in this way, in which you shall go: I will fix my eyes upon you.
11  Nolíte fíeri sicut equus et mulus, * quibus non est intelléctus.	9 Do not become like the horse and the mule, who have no understanding.
12  In camo et freno maxíllas eórum constrínge: * qui non appróximant ad te.	With bit and bridle bind fast their jaws, who come not near unto you.
13  Multa flagélla peccatóris, * sperántem autem in Dómino misericórdia circúmdabit.	10 Many are the scourges of the sinner, but mercy shall encompass him that hopes in the Lord
14  Lætámini in Dómino et exsultáte, justi, * et gloriámini, omnes recti corde.	11 Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, you just, and glory, all you right of heart.

Psalm 31 in the Vulgate numbering, or 32 in the Hebrew, starts with a reminder that ‘penitential’ does not mean gloom and doom!

Instead, this psalm reminds us that penitence is, paradoxically, the key to true happiness.

The main focus of this psalm is the grace of conversion, and how God brings it about in us, as its opening lines suggest:

"Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord has not imputed sin, and in whose spirit there is no guile...."

Context

The setting for the psalm is generally accepted to be after David has confessed his sins and been punished for it through the death of his child, as described in 2 Samuel 12. That chapter tells how when the child becomes sick, David fasted and wept for seven days, imploring God to spare the child.  But when the child died despite his entreaties, David scandalized his servants by putting on his normal clothes and eating as normal again rather than mourning, since there was nothing he could then do to change the outcome. Instead he went out to worship God, and comforted his wife.

The psalm helps fill out Samuel's account by giving us some insight into King David's state of mind, taking us through several stages of the process of his conversion, including his stubborn resistance, until he at last reaches the joy that comes when he finally accepts God’s mercy, grace and guidance.  Perhaps the most graphic verses are the early ones describing the psalmist's torment before he achieves that realization however, as  Pope John Paul II commented:

"Above all, the person praying describes his very distressful state of conscience by keeping it "secret" (cf. v. 3): having committed grave offences, he did not have the courage to confess his sins to God. It was a terrible interior torment, described with very strong images. His bones waste away, as if consumed by a parching fever; thirst saps his energy and he finds himself fading, his groan constant. The sinner felt God's hand weighing upon him, aware as he was that God is not indifferent to the evil committed by his creature, since he is the guardian of justice and truth.

Unable to hold out any longer, the sinner made the decision to confess his sin with a courageous declaration that seems a prelude to that of the prodigal son in Jesus' parable (cf. Lk 15: 18)...In this way, a horizon of security, trust and peace unfolds before "every believer" who is repentant and forgiven, regardless of the trials of life (cf. Ps 32[31]: 6-7)."

Sin and punishment

The punishments we incur for sin in this life at least are rarely as horrific and direct as David's loss of a child.  Indeed, when bad things happen to us, they are not necessarily meant as punishments at all.

Still, David's example is given to us for a reason, and St John Fisher's commentary on this psalm points out that while contrition and confession are important, voluntarily doing penance to make up for the evil of what we have done is equally important.  The sacrament of confession, he points out requires that we do 'satisfaction', make amends, ideally accepting our penance with good grace.  And if the penance given is merely tokenistic, and does not 'cover' us as the psalm suggests, then we would do well to do more now, so as to avoid having to do it in purgatory later! St John argues that:  "There are many who wail, are contrite, and confess their sins, but there is scarce one in a thousand who does due satisfaction."

Lent then, is a good time to address any deficit in penance we may have to our charge.  Nor should this weigh us down: on the contrary, St John argues, doing penance expels sin and leads to the joy the psalmist eventually arrives at.

New Testament citations and liturgical uses

NT Refs	Roman 4: esp 7-8; James 5:16 (v1); Jn 1:47, Rev 14:5 (v2); 1 John 9 (v5); Jas 3:3 (v11)
RB cursus	Sunday II, 6
Monastic/(Roman) feasts etc	All Saints; Penitential psalms AN 3563 (11)
Roman pre 1911	Monday matins
Responsories	7066 (11), 6063 (11)
Roman post 1911	1911-62: Monday None .
Mass propers (EF)	Common of several martyrs, Fabian and Sebastian (Jan 20) OF (11)

You can find the next set of notes on this psalm here.