The Penitential Psalms - Introduction to Psalm 50

Today, I want to pick up my Lent series on the penitential psalms with a look at the most famous one of them all, Psalm 50 (51), the Miserere.

Psalm 50 has been described as the penitential psalm par excellence, and I think that’s a fair description: it is a powerful expression of deep humility and contrition, and every verse has great spiritual and theological riches waiting to be uncovered.  Accordingly, I plan to linger over it for a while.

The title of the psalm suggests that it is, like Psalm 6, a response to King David's sin with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11-12).  St Thomas Aquinas’ commentary on the psalm suggests that there is something of a schema at work here, mimicking that of the sacrament of penance: the first penitential psalm, Psalm 6, is about contrition; the second, Psalm 31 is about confession of sins; the third, Psalm 37 deals with satisfaction. Psalm 50, he suggests, is about absolution: in the first half of the psalm he asks for mercy; in the second, he promises correction and seeks the restoration of holiness and grace.

The best known of the psalms?

The Miserere is surely the best known of the penitential psalms, perhaps almost of all the psalms.

It is often used for quasi-liturgical purposes, such as part of grace before and after meals, and each week at Mass in the Asperges (and in monasteries again after Compline).

St Benedict set verse 16 to open Matins each day, a practice subsequently adopted in the Roman Office as well, as well as setting the full psalm for Lauds every day.

And there are a number of famous stories centred around it, including when the child Mozart stole the fabulous setting of the psalm by Gregorio Allegri (composed in the 1630s and used at Tenebrae during Holy Week in the Sistine Chapel) by transcribing it from memory, thus making what had been restricted to the Vatican available to the world. He escaped excommunication for his act partly perhaps because of his youth, but mostly because the Pope of the day was so impressed at the musical feat.

The text

Keep in mind that saying the Miserere has a partial indulgence attached to it if you recite it 'in a spirit of penitence'.

Psalm 50: Miserere me Deus 

Vulgate	Douay-Rheims
In finem. Psalmus David cum venit ad eum Nathan propheta, quando intravit ad Bethsabee.	Unto the end, a psalm of David, 2 when Nathan the prophet came to him, after he had sinned with Bethsabee.
1 Miserére mei Deus, * secúndum magnam misericórdiam tuam.	Have mercy on me, O God, according to your great mercy.
2  Et secúndum multitúdinem miseratiónum tuárum, * dele iniquitátem meam.	And according to the multitude of your tender mercies blot out my iniquity.
3  Amplius lava me ab iniquitáte mea: * et a peccáto meo munda me.	Wash me yet more from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
4  Quóniam iniquitátem meam ego cognósco: * et peccátum meum contra me est semper.	For I know my iniquity, and my sin is always before me.
5  Tibi soli peccávi, et malum coram te feci: * ut justificéris in sermónibus tuis, et vincas cum judicáris.	To you only have I sinned, and have done evil before you: that you may be justified in your words, and may overcome when you are judged.
6  Ecce enim in iniquitátibus concéptus sum: * et in peccátis concépit me mater mea.	For behold I was conceived in iniquities; and in sins did my mother conceive me.
7  Ecce enim veritátem dilexísti: * incérta et occúlta sapiéntiæ tuæ manifestásti mihi.	For behold you have loved truth: the uncertain and hidden things of your wisdom you have made manifest to me.
8  Aspérges me hyssópo, et mundábor: * lavábis me, et super nivem dealbábor.	You shall sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be cleansed: you shall wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow.
9  Audítui meo dabis gáudium et lætítiam: * et exsultábunt ossa humiliáta.	To my hearing you shall give joy and gladness: and the bones that have been humbled shall rejoice.
10  Avérte fáciem tuam a peccátis meis: * et omnes iniquitátes meas dele.	Turn away your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.
11  Cor mundum crea in me, Deus: * et spíritum rectum ínnova in viscéribus meis.	Create a clean heart in me, O God: and renew a right spirit within my bowels.
12  Ne projícias me a fácie tua: * et spíritum sanctum tuum ne áuferas a me.	Cast me not away from your face; and take not your holy spirit from me.
13  Redde mihi lætítiam salutáris tui: * et spíritu principáli confírma me.	Restore unto me the joy of your salvation, and strengthen me with a perfect spirit.
14  Docébo iníquos vias tuas: * et ímpii ad te converténtur.	I will teach the unjust your ways: and the wicked shall be converted to you.
15  Líbera me de sanguínibus, Deus, Deus salútis meæ: * et exsultábit lingua mea justítiam tuam.	Deliver me from blood, O God, you God of my salvation: and my tongue shall extol your justice.
16  Dómine, lábia mea apéries: * et os meum annuntiábit laudem tuam.	O Lord, you will open my lips: and my mouth shall declare your praise.
17  Quóniam si voluísses sacrifícium dedíssem útique: * holocáustis non delectáberis.	For if you had desired sacrifice, I would indeed have given it: with burnt offerings you will not be delighted.
18  Sacrifícium Deo spíritus contribulátus: * cor contrítum, et humiliátum, Deus non despícies.	A sacrifice to God is an afflicted spirit: a contrite and humbled heart, O God, you will not despise.
19  Benígne fac, Dómine, in bona voluntáte tua Sion: * ut ædificéntur muri Jerúsalem.	Deal favourably, O Lord, in your good will with Sion; that the walls of Jerusalem may be built up.
20  Tunc acceptábis sacrifícium justítiæ, oblatiónes, et holocáusta: * tunc impónent super altáre tuum vítulos.	Then shall you accept the sacrifice of justice, oblations and whole burnt offerings: then shall they lay calves upon your altar.

  Psalm 50 and the sacrament of penance

Pope John Paul II devoted four separate General Audiences to this psalm. For this introduction to it, I'm largely going to draw on them:

• the first Audience, on 21 October 2001 provided a general overview of the psalm;
• on 8 May 2002 the Pope looked at the first half of the psalm;
• the Audience of 4 December 2002 looked at the verses on forgiveness; and
• the final Audience of July 2003 looked at the concluding verses.

Two horizons: sin and grace

The Pope suggested, following the tradition, that the psalm basically falls into two parts, or ‘horizons’:

“Psalm 50 (51) outlines two horizons. First, there is the dark region of sin (cf. vv. 3-11) in which man is placed from the beginning of his existence: "Behold in guilt I was born, a sinner was I conceived" (v. 7)...The first part of the Psalm appears to be an analysis of sin, taking place before God…the second spiritual part of the psalm, the luminous realm of grace (cf. vv. 12-19). By the confession of sins, for the person who prays there opens an horizon of light where God is at work. The Lord does not just act negatively, eliminating sin, but recreates sinful humanity by means of his life-giving Spirit: he places in the human person a new and pure "heart", namely, a renewed conscience, and opens to him the possibility of a limpid faith and worship pleasing to God…”

Within these two horizons, there are several key themes and theological concepts that the psalm points to that deserve to be highlighted.

Sin and its nature

The first the psalm points to the importance of recovering a sense of sin, something so much lacking in our time:

“There is above all a lively sense of sin, seen as a free choice, with a negative connotation on the moral and theological level: "Against you, you alone, have I sinned, I have done what is evil in your sight" (v. 6).

King David alludes to our inheritance of original sin: “For behold I was conceived in iniquities; and in sins did my mother conceive me”. But he also explores the dimensions of personal sin, using three different terms to capture its dimensions:

“Three Hebrew terms are used to define this sad reality, which comes from the evil use of human freedom. The first term, hattá, literally means "falling short of the target": sin is an aberration which leads us far from God, the fundamental goal of our relations, and, consequently, also from our neighbour. The second Hebrew term is "awôn, which takes us back to the image of "twisting" or of "curving". Sin is a tortuous deviation from the straight path; it is an inversion, a distortion, deformation of good and of evil; in the sense declared by Isaiah: "Woe to those who call good evil and evil good, who change darkness into light and light into darkness" (Is 5,20). Certainly, for this reason in the Bible conversion is indicated as a "return" (in Hebrew shûb) to the right way, correcting one's course. The third term the psalmist uses to speak of sin is peshá. It expresses the rebellion of the subject toward his sovereign and therefore an open challenge addressed to God and to his plan for human history.”

He also draws out the broader implications of sin:

“In the confession of the Miserere there is a noteworthy emphasis: the sin is described not only in its personal and "psychological" dimension but above all what is described is the theological reality. "Against you, against you alone have I sinned" (Ps 50[51],6) exclaims the sinner…Sin is not just a psychological and social matter, but an event that corrodes the relationship with God, violating his law, refusing his plan in history and overturning his set of values, "putting darkness for light and light for darkness", in other words, "calling evil good and good evil" (cf. Is 5,20). Before finally injuring man, sin is first and foremost a betrayal of God.”

Conversion and renewal

But the real force of this psalm surely comes from its testimony to the contrasting possibility of conversion and renewal from even the gravest of sins: “You shall sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be cleansed: you shall wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow. To my hearing you shall give joy and gladness: and the bones that have been humbled shall rejoice.”

I have to admit that my personal favourite verse is that strident demand for joy: Redde mihi lætítiam salutáris tui: et spíritu principáli confírma me, or ‘Give me back the joy of your salvation and strengthen me with a noble spirit’.

Grace through the Holy Spirit

Pope John Paul II points to the allusions to the Holy Spirit in the psalm read in the light of the New Testament:

“The movements of grace through the Holy Spirit: in the original Hebrew the word "spirit" is repeated three times, invoked of God as a gift and received by the human creature who has repented of his sin: "Renew in me a steadfast spirit.... Do not deprive me of your holy spirit.... Sustain in me a generous spirit" (vv. 12.13.14). One could say, taking recourse to a liturgical term, that it is an "epiclesis", that is, a triple invocation of the Spirit who, as in creation hovered over the waters (cf. Gn 1,2), now penetrates the soul of the faithful, infusing it with new life and raising it from the kingdom of sin to the heaven of grace.”

The mediation of Christ and his Church

The last two verses, praying for the rebuilding of the city of Jerusalem, and the restoration of animal sacrifices, and may be later additions (for those who worry about such things, the old Pontifical Biblical Commission ruled this an acceptable opinion). Pope John Paul II commented:

“The person who completed the Psalm had a valid intuition: he grasped the needy state of sinners, their need for sacrificial mediation. Sinners cannot purify themselves on their own; good intentions are not enough. An effective external mediation is required. The New Testament was to reveal the full significance of this insight, showing that Christ, in giving his life, achieved a perfect sacrificial mediation.”

He pointed to St Gregory the Great’s interpretation of the verse about the offering of a contrite heart as the proper sacrifice to God as speaking of the earthly life of the Church. The verse on burnt offerings, as of the Church in heaven. He ended his Audiences with the relevant section from St Gregory, and it is indeed a fitting place to conclude this brief overview:

"Holy Church has two lives: one that she lives in time, the other that she receives eternally; one with which she struggles on earth, the other that is rewarded in heaven; one with which she accumulates merits, the other that henceforth enjoys the merits earned. And in both these lives she offers a sacrifice: here below, the sacrifice of compunction, and in heaven above, the sacrifice of praise. Of the former sacrifice it is said: "The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit' (Ps 51[50]: 19); of the latter it is written: "Then will you delight in right sacrifices, in burnt offerings and in whole burnt offerings' (Ps 51[50]: 21).... In both, flesh is offered, since the sacrifice of the flesh is the mortification of the body, up above; the sacrifice of the flesh is the glory of the resurrection in praise to God. In heaven, flesh will be offered as a burnt holocaust when it is transformed into eternal incorruptibility, and there will be no more conflict for us and nothing that is mortal, for our flesh will endure in everlasting praise, all on fire with love for him" (Omelie su Ezechiele/2, Rome 1993, p. 271).”

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

St Patrick's Day

Today is a day off Lenten penance provided you live in a country where St Patrick's Day is a solemnity...

Sunday canticle for Lent : Lamentations 5

Herewith the next part in my series on the canticles used in the third nocturn of Matins on Sundays in the Benedictine Office, in the form of a look at the second canticle for the Lenten season, which comes from Lamentations Chapter 5. The canticle is a plea for God to have pity on his people, enslaved because of their sins.  

Lamentations 5:1-7; 15-17; 19-21

Vulgate	Douay-Rheims
Recordare, Domine, quid acciderit nobis; intuere et respice opprobrium nostrum.	Remember, O Lord, what is come upon us: consider and behold our reproach.
2 Hæreditas nostra versa est ad alienos, domus nostræ ad extraneos.	Our inheritance is turned to aliens: our houses to strangers.
3 Pupilli facti sumus absque patre, matres nostræ quasi viduæ.	We are become orphans without a father: our mothers are as widows.
4 Aquam nostram pecunia bibimus; ligna nostra pretio comparavimus.	We have drunk our water for money: we have bought our wood.
5 Cervicibus nostris minabamur, lassis non dabatur requies	We were dragged by the necks, we were weary and no rest was given us.
6 Ægypto dedimus manum et Assyriis, ut saturaremur pane.	We have given our hand to Egypt, and to the Assyrians, that we might be satisfied with bread.
7 Patres nostri peccaverunt, et non sunt: et nos iniquitates eorum portavimus.	Our fathers have sinned, and are not: and we have borne their iniquities.
8 Defecit gaudium cordis nostri; versus est in luctum chorus noster.	[15] The joy of our heart is ceased, our dancing is turned into mourning.
9 Cecidit corona capitis nostri: væ nobis, quia peccavimus!	[16] The crown is fallen from our head: woe to us, because we have sinned.
10 Propterea mœstum factum est cor nostrum; ideo contenebrati sunt oculi nostri,	[17] Therefore is our heart sorrowful, therefore are our eyes become dim,
11 Tu autem, Domine, in æternum permanebis, solium tuum in generationem et generationem.	[19] But thou, O Lord, shalt remain for ever, thy throne from generation to generation.
12 Quare in perpetuum oblivisceris nostri, derelinques nos in longitudine dierum?	[20] Why wilt thou forget us for ever? why wilt thou forsake us for a long time?
13 Converte nos, Domine, ad te, et convertemur; innova dies nostros, sicut a principio.	[21] Convert us, O Lord, to thee, and we shall be converted: renew our days, as from the beginning.

St Thomas Aquinas' commentary on these verses opens with the comment that:

"Here in Chapter 5, the prophet, after many lamentations, addressed himself for a remedy by prayer. So, he first exposes the people's misery, second, he seeks mercy. As expressed in Verse 19: "But thou, O Lord, dost reign for ever; thy throne endures to all generations."

The price of sin

The opening verses (1-6) bemoan the sorry state the people are living in.  It is worth noting that St Thomas interprets verse 3 on the description of the people as defenseless as widows and orphans as meaning destitute of divine direction.

The Knox translation perhaps better gives a better sense of the meaning of the text than the Douay-Rheims:

Bethink thee, Lord, of our ill case; see where we lie humiliated, and seeing take pity! New tenants our lands have, our homes foreign masters; orphaned sons of widowed mothers were not more defenceless. Ours to buy the very water we drink, pay a price for every stick of fire-wood;  led hither and thither under the yoke, with no respite given, we must make our peace with men of Egypt or Assyria, for a belly-full of bread. 

The next set of verses (7-10 in the liturgical arrangement) 7 &15-17 of the chapter) acknowledges that this situation is due primarily due to the sins of their parents, but also their own.

The grace of conversion

The final section is a plea for God to relent from his punishments. 

It starts from an acknowledgement of God's eternal reign, and a plea for God to 'remember' them.  

The most important verse though is the last, which is a plea for the grace of conversion.

St Thomas points out that for our exile from God to end, two things are necessary: 'a preparation of one's will is demanded for deeds of merits', and 'an infusion of divine grace.'   He notes that God is always calling us, willing us to repent, and without his help we can never be saved, hence the prayer "Restore us to thyself, O Lord, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old!" But at the same time, "the prophet Zechariah 1:3 proclaims: "Therefore say to them, Thus says the Lord of hosts: Return to me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will return to you."

The Penitential Psalms: Psalm 37/4: verse 18

Les Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry, Folio 144r
The Flagellation the Musée Condé, Chantilly.

In the last part of this series on Psalm 37, I looked at our proper response to sin and the attacks of others, as articulated in the previous verse.

But one of the key themes of this psalm is the necessity of accepting, even embracing, the trials and tribulations of life as a way of discharging the accumulated debt due to our sins. It is not a very fashionable approach these days.  But more than one saint has seen this as the fastest path to sanctity.  Today's verse is one of the clearest statements of this idea.

The psalm itself relates to someone who is guilty of serious sin.  The Christological connotations of the psalm, and particularly of today’s verse, however, also point to our duty to pray and do penance on behalf of others as well, particularly the souls in purgatory.

The text

Verse 18 of the psalm says:

“Quóniam ego in flagélla parátus sum: * et dolor meus in conspéctu meo semper,” or “For I am ready for scourges: and my sorrow is continually before me.”

Flagellum, means a scourge or whip, punishment, sting of conscience. Parare means to prepare, make ready. Dolor means pain, whether of body or of mind, grief, sorrow or affliction. Conspectus means sight or presence.

So the speaker is saying he is ready to accept the punishment before him.

The psalmist goes on to acknowledge that he deserves punishment.

But the psalm can also be applied to Our Lord’s voluntary acceptance of the punishment for our sins.

Better now than in purgatory or hell!

Les Très Riches Heures du duc de Berry
folio 113v: Purgatory

18	V	Quóniam ego in flagélla parátus sum: * et dolor meus in conspéctu meo semper.
	NV	Quoniam ego in lapsum paratus sum, et dolor meus in conspectu meo semper.
	JH	Quia ego ad plagas paratus, et dolor meus contra me est semper.

Flagellum, means a scourge or whip, punishment, sting of conscience. Parare means to prepare, make ready. Dolor means pain, whether of body or of mind, grief, sorrow or affliction. Conspectus means sight or presence. So the speaker is saying he is ready to accept the punishment before him.

flagellum, i, n.  a scourge, whip; by meton., sorrow, punishment, sting of conscience. 31,10 Multa flagella peccatoris. Many are the scourges of the sinner; a plague, affliction.

paro, avi, atum, are, to prepare, make ready; part, and part, adj., paratus, a, um, ready, fixed, steadfast. 56,8 Paratum cor meum, Deus. My heart is steadfast, 0 God

dolor, oris, m. (doleo), pain whether of body or of mind, grief, sorrow, affliction.

conspectus, us, m. (conspicio), sight, presence; very common and nearly always with one of the prepositions a, ante, or in. 

St Augustine’s commentary on this psalm makes the point that it is far better to take correction and punishment now, in this life, then to suffer it in the next.

That might seem obvious in the case of hell.

But these days we tend to downplay the suffering of purgatory, and perhaps to underestimate the extent of the punishment our sins actually incur, at least if the judgment of previous centuries is correct.

St Augustine for example suggests that the pain of purgatory is worse than anything we can experience in this life.

Personally I tend to put more weight on the testimony of the saints over nearly two millennia of tradition than on the last forty or so years of denial of unpleasant realities!

So embrace the difficulties life sends us and strive to conquer sin!

St Augustine comments on the verse, that it is as if:

“...He were saying, It was even for this that I was born; that I might suffer. For He was not to be born, but from Adam, to whom the scourge is due. But sinners are in this life sometimes not scourged at all, or are scourged less than their deserts: because the wickedness of their heart is given over as already desperate.

Those, however, for whom eternal life is prepared, must needs be scourged in this life: for that sentence is true: My son, faint not under the chastening of the Lord, neither be weary when you are rebuked of Him. Proverbs 3:11 For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives. Hebrews 12:6 Let not mine enemies therefore insult over me; let them not magnify themselves; and if my Father scourges me, I am prepared for the scourge; because there is an inheritance in store for me. You will not submit to the scourge: the inheritance is not bestowed upon you. For every son must needs be scourged. So true it is that every son is scourged, that He spared not even Him who had no sin. For I am prepared for the scourges…For the scourge is a remedy against sins.

Be not free from anxiety when you have confessed your sin, as if always able to confess your sin, and to commit it again. Do thou declare your iniquity in such a manner, as to have a care for your sin. What is meant by having a care of your sin? To have a care of your wound. If you were to say, I will have a care of my wound, what would be meant by it, but I will do my endeavour to have it healed. For this is to have a care for one's sin, to be ever struggling, ever endeavouring, ever exerting one's self, earnestly and zealously, to heal one's wound. Behold! You are from day to day mourning over your sins; but perhaps your tears indeed flow, but your hands are unemployed. Do alms, redeem your sins, let the poor rejoice of your bounty, that you also may rejoice of the Grace of God...”

Psalm 37: Domine, ne in furore

Vulgate	Douay-Rheims
Psalmus David, in rememorationem de sabbato.	A psalm for David, for a remembrance of the sabbath.
1 Dómine, ne in furóre tuo árguas me, * neque in ira tua corrípias me.	1 Rebuke me not, O Lord, in your indignation; nor chastise me in your wrath.
2  Quóniam sagíttæ tuæ infíxæ sunt mihi: * et confirmásti super me manum tuam.	2 For your arrows are fastened in me: and your hand has been strong upon me.
3  Non est sánitas in carne mea a fácie iræ tuæ: * non est pax óssibus meis a fácie peccatórum meórum.	3 There is no health in my flesh, because of your wrath: there is no peace for my bones, because of my sins.
4  Quóniam iniquitátes meæ supergréssæ sunt caput meum: * et sicut onus grave gravátæ sunt super me.	4 For my iniquities have gone over my head: and as a heavy burden have become heavy upon me.
5 Putruérunt et corrúptæ sunt cicatríces meæ, * a fácie insipiéntiæ meæ.	5 My sores are putrefied and corrupted, because of my foolishness.
6  Miser factus sum, et curvátus sum usque in finem: * tota die contristátus ingrediébar.	6 I have become miserable, and am bowed down even to the end: I walked sorrowful all the day long.
7  Quóniam lumbi mei impléti sunt illusiónibus: * et non est sánitas in carne mea.	7 For my loins are filled with illusions; and there is no health in my flesh.
8  Afflíctus sum, et humiliátus sum nimis: * rugiébam a gémitu cordis mei.	8 I am afflicted and humbled exceedingly: I roared with the groaning of my heart.
9  Dómine, ante te omne desidérium meum: * et gémitus meus a te non est abscónditus.	9 Lord, all my desire is before you, and my groaning is not hidden from you.
10  Cor meum conturbátum est, derelíquit me virtus mea: * et lumen oculórum meórum, et ipsum non est mecum.	10 My heart is troubled, my strength has left me, and the light of my eyes itself is not with me.
11  Amíci mei, et próximi mei * advérsum me appropinquavérunt, et stetérunt.	11 My friends and my neighbours have drawn near, and stood against me.
12  Et qui juxta me erant, de longe stetérunt: * et vim faciébant qui quærébant ánimam meam.	12 And they that were near me stood afar off: And they that sought my soul used violence.
13  Et qui inquirébant mala mihi, locúti sunt vanitátes: * et dolos tota die meditabántur.	13 And they that sought evils to me spoke vain things, and studied deceits all the day long.
14  Ego autem tamquam surdus non audiébam: * et sicut mutus non apériens os suum.	14 But I, as a deaf man, heard not: and as a dumb man not opening his mouth.
15  Et factus sum sicut homo non áudiens: * et non habens in ore suo redargutiónes.	15 And I became as a man that hears not: and that has no reproofs in his mouth.
16  Quóniam in te, Dómine, sperávi: * tu exáudies me, Dómine, Deus meus.	16 For in you, O Lord, have I hoped: you will hear me, O Lord my God.
17  Quia dixi: Nequándo supergáudeant mihi inimíci mei: * et dum commovéntur pedes mei, super me magna locúti sunt.	17 For I said: Lest at any time my enemies rejoice over me: and whilst my feet are moved, they speak great things against me.
18  Quóniam ego in flagélla parátus sum: * et dolor meus in conspéctu meo semper.	18 For I am ready for scourges: and my sorrow is continually before me.
19  Quóniam iniquitátem meam annuntiábo: * et cogitábo pro peccáto meo.	19 For I will declare my iniquity: and I will think for my sin.
20  Inimíci autem mei vivunt, et confirmáti sunt super me: * et multiplicáti sunt qui odérunt me iníque.	20 But my enemies live, and are stronger than I: and they that hate me wrongfully are multiplied.
21  Qui retríbuunt mala pro bonis, detrahébant mihi: * quóniam sequébar bonitátem.	21 They that render evil for good, have detracted me, because I followed goodness.
22  Ne derelínquas me, Dómine, Deus meus: * ne discésseris a me.	22 Forsake me not, O Lord my God: do not depart from me.
23  Inténde in adjutórium meum, * Dómine, Deus, salútis meæ.	23 Attend unto my help, O Lord, the God of my salvation.

And the next part in this series on the Penitential Psalms, is on Psalm 50.

The Seven Penitential Psalms - Ps 37/3: verses 14&15

I said in the Introduction to Psalm 37 that it deals primarily with God’s punishment of us here and now.

Our first instinct, when faced with suffering and persecution is to ask God to have mercy on us, to heal our wounds and grant us the joy that comes with forgiveness of our sins, as the Psalmist does in the first two penitential psalms, Psalms 6&31. More, we naturally seek vindication in the face of our enemies, as the psalmist requests in some of the later penitential psalms.

Punishment and suffering in this life

This psalm, however, is a reminder that sin incurs punishment too, and that while not every suffering we face in the here and now is a punishment (remember Job!), some sufferings are punishments necessary for our own good.

The psalm is also an important reminder of the Gospel injunction: “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”

And the first kind of punishment, dealt with in today's verses, is false accusations against one.  So how should one respond?

The text

The first half of the psalm describes the speaker’s sufferings, with the verses immediately prior to the verses we will consider today talking about his rejection by friends and neighbours, and the plotting of enemies against him. Verses 14 &15 talk about his response, which is to keep silence, as Our Lord did in the face of the false accusations made against him.

14	V/NV	Ego autem tamquam surdus non audiébam: * et sicut mutus non apériens os suum.
	JH	Ego autem quasi surdus non audiebam; et quasi mutus non aperiebam os meum.

15	V/NV	Et factus sum sicut homo non áudiens: * et non habens in ore suo redargutiónes.
	JH	Et eram quasi homo non audiens, nec habens in ore suo redargutiones.

Verses 14&15 say essentially the same thing in different words: the speaker becomes deaf (non audiebam=was not hearing; non audiens = not hearing; surdus=deaf) and dumb (mutus=dumb; not offering a defense= non habens in ore suo redargutiones).

A reasonably literal translation would be: “But I was hearing, like a deaf man, and like a mute not opening his mouth.  I was like a man not hearing, and not having rejoinders in his mouth.” A more poetic translation, from the Collegeville translators of the Monastic Diurnal is:“But I am as one deaf and do not hear; and as one dumb, that openeth not his mouth. I am become like a man that heareth not, and that hath no reproofs in his mouth.”

tamquam or tanquam, adv. of comparison, sometimes followed by sic or ita, as, just as, like, as it were.

surdus, a, um, deaf. 37,14 Ego autem tamquam surdus non audiebam. But I, as a deaf man, heard not.

audio, ivi or li, Itum, ire (connected with auris),  to hear.

mutus, a, um, dumb, unable to speak. 37,14 Ego autem tamquam surdus non audiebam: et sicut mutus non aperiens os suum. But I, as a deaf man, heard not: and I was as a dumb man that opened not his mouth.

aperio, periii, pertum, ire,  to open.

os, oris, n., the mouth
redargutio, onis, (redarguo, to maintain the contrary), a retort,rejoinder, reply to accusations; rebuttals, defense

Verses 14&15 say essentially the same thing in different words: the speaker becomes deaf (non audiebam=was not hearing; non audiens = not hearing; surdus=deaf) and dumb (mutus=dumb; not offering a defense= non habens in ore suo redargutiones).

A reasonably literal translation would be:

“But I was hearing, like a deaf man, and like a mute not opening his mouth
I was like a man not hearing, and not having rejoinders in his mouth”

A more poetic translation, from the Collegeville translators of the Monastic Diurnal is:

“But I am as one deaf and do not hear; and as one dumb, that openeth not his mouth. I am become like a man that heareth not, and that hath no reproofs in his mouth.”

Why does he offer no defense?

We are generally entitled to defend ourselves rather than simply stand there and accept the evil that others do to us. So why does the speaker here offer no defense? The psalm suggests several possible answers. The first and most obvious is suggested by the verses immediately prior: the charges against him may be fabricated, and his accusers will not give him a fair trial – what he says can make no difference to the outcome.

Of course, the only person who can truly claim total innocence is Our Lord, hence the Christological interpretation of this psalm - our Lord accepts the punishment on our behalf even though he is totally innocent.  Still, the psalmist goes on to explain why this may still be an appropriate response for us even if there is some grain of truth mixed in with the lies, or where we are not guilty of what we are accused of - but are guilty of some other crime.

One reason is that the evil of the accusers could lead one into sin. St John Cassian comments in his Institutes:

“as the Psalmist says: "I was like a deaf man and heard not and as one that is dumb who doth not open his mouth; and I became as a man that heareth not, and in whose mouth there are no reproofs," so you also should walk as one that is deaf and dumb and blind, so that--putting aside the contemplation of him who has been rightly chosen by you as your model of perfection--you should be like a blind man and not see any of those things which you find to be unedifying, nor be influenced by the authority or fashion of those who do these things, and give yourself up to what is worse and what you formerly condemned. If you hear any one disobedient or insubordinate or disparaging another or doing anything different from what was taught to you, you should not go wrong and be led astray by such an example to imitate him; but, "like a deaf man," as if you had never heard it, you should pass it all by…”

Worse, we could be drawn into sin by the fury of our response, as St Robert Bellarmine points out:

"Another reason why he chose to be silent and deaf. It is better for me to have patience, and trust in God's assistance, for fear, by getting into impatience, and returning malediction for malediction, God may desert me...”

Thirdly, the psalm, in the very next verse instructs us to cultivate always the virtue of hope, and look to God, not man for our vindication and salvation. St Robert Bellarmine comments:

“…because he considered it would be of more service to him to put his trust in God, than in any defense he could set up for himself. I was silent, "for in thee, O Lord, have I hoped." I paid no attention to all the false and idle abuse so heaped upon me; because I was conscious that you, who are the just judge, giving to everyone according to his works, and in whom I have always hoped, was looking at, and hearing every¬thing; and as I did put my trust in thee, "thou wilt hear me, O Lord, my God," and deliver me from their "unjust lips, and deceitful tongue."

The next part of this series will look at the further reason the psalmist adduces for standing deaf and dumb to the attack on him, namely accepting it as our deserved punishment for other sins.

Psalm 37: Domine, ne in furore

Vulgate	Douay-Rheims
Psalmus David, in rememorationem de sabbato.	A psalm for David, for a remembrance of the sabbath.
1 Dómine, ne in furóre tuo árguas me, * neque in ira tua corrípias me.	1 Rebuke me not, O Lord, in your indignation; nor chastise me in your wrath.
2  Quóniam sagíttæ tuæ infíxæ sunt mihi: * et confirmásti super me manum tuam.	2 For your arrows are fastened in me: and your hand has been strong upon me.
3  Non est sánitas in carne mea a fácie iræ tuæ: * non est pax óssibus meis a fácie peccatórum meórum.	3 There is no health in my flesh, because of your wrath: there is no peace for my bones, because of my sins.
4  Quóniam iniquitátes meæ supergréssæ sunt caput meum: * et sicut onus grave gravátæ sunt super me.	4 For my iniquities have gone over my head: and as a heavy burden have become heavy upon me.
5 Putruérunt et corrúptæ sunt cicatríces meæ, * a fácie insipiéntiæ meæ.	5 My sores are putrefied and corrupted, because of my foolishness.
6  Miser factus sum, et curvátus sum usque in finem: * tota die contristátus ingrediébar.	6 I have become miserable, and am bowed down even to the end: I walked sorrowful all the day long.
7  Quóniam lumbi mei impléti sunt illusiónibus: * et non est sánitas in carne mea.	7 For my loins are filled with illusions; and there is no health in my flesh.
8  Afflíctus sum, et humiliátus sum nimis: * rugiébam a gémitu cordis mei.	8 I am afflicted and humbled exceedingly: I roared with the groaning of my heart.
9  Dómine, ante te omne desidérium meum: * et gémitus meus a te non est abscónditus.	9 Lord, all my desire is before you, and my groaning is not hidden from you.
10  Cor meum conturbátum est, derelíquit me virtus mea: * et lumen oculórum meórum, et ipsum non est mecum.	10 My heart is troubled, my strength has left me, and the light of my eyes itself is not with me.
11  Amíci mei, et próximi mei * advérsum me appropinquavérunt, et stetérunt.	11 My friends and my neighbours have drawn near, and stood against me.
12  Et qui juxta me erant, de longe stetérunt: * et vim faciébant qui quærébant ánimam meam.	12 And they that were near me stood afar off: And they that sought my soul used violence.
13  Et qui inquirébant mala mihi, locúti sunt vanitátes: * et dolos tota die meditabántur.	13 And they that sought evils to me spoke vain things, and studied deceits all the day long.
14  Ego autem tamquam surdus non audiébam: * et sicut mutus non apériens os suum.	14 But I, as a deaf man, heard not: and as a dumb man not opening his mouth.
15  Et factus sum sicut homo non áudiens: * et non habens in ore suo redargutiónes.	15 And I became as a man that hears not: and that has no reproofs in his mouth.
16  Quóniam in te, Dómine, sperávi: * tu exáudies me, Dómine, Deus meus.	16 For in you, O Lord, have I hoped: you will hear me, O Lord my God.
17  Quia dixi: Nequándo supergáudeant mihi inimíci mei: * et dum commovéntur pedes mei, super me magna locúti sunt.	17 For I said: Lest at any time my enemies rejoice over me: and whilst my feet are moved, they speak great things against me.
18  Quóniam ego in flagélla parátus sum: * et dolor meus in conspéctu meo semper.	18 For I am ready for scourges: and my sorrow is continually before me.
19  Quóniam iniquitátem meam annuntiábo: * et cogitábo pro peccáto meo.	19 For I will declare my iniquity: and I will think for my sin.
20  Inimíci autem mei vivunt, et confirmáti sunt super me: * et multiplicáti sunt qui odérunt me iníque.	20 But my enemies live, and are stronger than I: and they that hate me wrongfully are multiplied.
21  Qui retríbuunt mala pro bonis, detrahébant mihi: * quóniam sequébar bonitátem.	21 They that render evil for good, have detracted me, because I followed goodness.
22  Ne derelínquas me, Dómine, Deus meus: * ne discésseris a me.	22 Forsake me not, O Lord my God: do not depart from me.
23  Inténde in adjutórium meum, * Dómine, Deus, salútis meæ.	23 Attend unto my help, O Lord, the God of my salvation.

You can find the next set of notes on Psalm 37 here.