Works Volume 4, Book 2 · Psalm 51
The Fifty Firſt PSALM.
TO the chief Muſitian, A Pſalm of David, when Nathan the Prophet ‖had come foreigncame unto him, after he had gone in to Bathſheba.
Paraphrase. The Fifty firſt Pſalm was compoſed by David, after the commiſſion of thoſe many ſins in the matter of Uriah, 2 Sam. 11. when by Nathan the Prophet his meſſage to him from God, he was brought to a due humiliation for them, which he expreſt in this penitential Pſalm; and to make it the more publick, to remove the ſcandal of ſo many notorious ſins, he committed it to the Prefect of his Muſick to be ſolemnly ſung.
1. Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy †mercy, or benignity foreignloving kindneſs: according to the multitude of thy *commiſerations foreigntender mercies blot out my tranſgreſſions.
Paraphrase. 1. O thou Father of all mercies and compaſſions▪ permit me, thy moſt unworthy ſervant, foully guilty of many horrid crimes, to make mine humbleſt approach to thee; and out of the riches of thy benignity, out of the abundance of thy melting compaſſions to thoſe that are in the greateſt diſtreſſes, be thou gratiouſly pleaſed to look upon me, to be atoned and reconciled toward me.
2. Waſh me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanſe me from my ſin.
Paraphrase. 2. O let not any the leaſt of theſe crimes, that I have been guilty of in this matter, be permitted to appear in thy ſight, or riſe up in judgment againſt me; but ſeal me thy perfect pardon for every one of them.
3. For I acknowledge my tranſgreſſions, and my ſin is ‖continually, foreignever before me.
Paraphrase. 3. For I do moſt willingly confeſs, that I have committed, in the compaſſing of one carnal pleaſure, many horrid and odious ſins. Theſe are a perpetual terror to my conſcience, an amazing proſpect continually outfacing and tormenting me.
4. †To thee, to thee only.Againſt thee only have I ſinned, and done this evil in thy ſight; that thou mighteſt be juſtified *In thy doings.when thou ſpeakeſt, and ‖overcome.be clear when thou †contendeſt.judgeſt.
Paraphrase. 4. And though the dignity and office wherein thou haſt placed me over thy people▪ leave me not liable to any humane proceſs or judicature among men; yet am I moſt ſadly culpable and liable to vengeance from thee the pure God of heaven, the tranſcendent Ruler over all the Kings of the earth. Thou mayeſt moſt juſtly proceed againſt me, as againſt the moſt criminous rebel, indite me, and arraign me of adultery, drunkenneſs, and murther alſo: and whatever ſuit thou wageſt againſt me, thou art ſure to caſt me; whatſoever vengeance thou exacteſt to be inflicted on me, I muſt moſt deſervedly and inevitably fall under it.
5. Behold, I was *born.ſhapen in iniquity, and in ſin did my mother conceive me.
6. Behold, thou ‖delighteſt in truth in the reins.deſireſt truth in the inward parts; and in the hidden part thou †or makeſt me foreignſhalt make me to know wiſdom.
Paraphrase. 5, 6. Lord, I am a moſt polluted creature: the corruption of my nature, the bare inclinations of my will to any unlawful object ought in any reaſon to be ſtrictly watched, and induſtriouſly rejected by me, and thy grace continually ſollicited, to inable me to overcome them, and not in the leaſt degree favoured, or indulged, or yielded to; when I ſo well know, that thou requireſt purity of the heart and affections, and forbiddeſt the very firſt thoughts of any unlawful injoyment, and beſide this revelation of thy will, that I ſhould thus keep my ſelf pure, art pleaſed to grant me thy grace to make me inwardly ſenſible of this part of my duty: and this is a great inhauncing of my ſin, committed againſt all theſe obligations.
7. Purge me with hyſſop, and I ſhall be clean: waſh me, and I ſhall be whiter than ſnow.
Paraphrase. 7. Lord, be thou pleaſed to abſolve me, and ſolemnly to declare and ſeal to me thy reconciliation, after the ſame manner ‖ſo the Ch.as the prieſt is wont to do, when upon the unclean thing he ſprinkles water mixed with the aſhes of an heifer, and of cedar wood, and of hyſſop, and of ſcarlet, Lev. 14.6, 7. Num. 19.6. the ſolemn ceremony for the purification of ſin, v. 9. and whereby the blood of the lamb of God, the death of the Meſſias, was praefigured: and then I ſhall again be reſtored to that bleſſed ſtate, from which I have ſo ſadly fallen by my outragious miſcarriages.
8. Make me to hear joy and gladneſs; that the bones which thou haſt broken may rejoyce.
Paraphrase. 8. I am in a moſt ſad and wretched condition▪ thy juſt diſpleaſure and wrath for my ſins, as long as it continues over me, is the ſetting my ſoul upon the torture, my own conſcience being the executioner under thee: O be thou pacified and reconciled toward me, and it ſhall be the joyfulleſt news that ever came to any poor tortured ſuppliants ears, when he is taken off from the rack, and all his bones ſet, and reſtored to eaſe again.
9. Hide thy face from my ſins, and blot out all mine iniquities.
Paraphrase. 9. Lord, pardon my ſins, and return to thy wonted favour toward me.
10. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right ſpirit within me.
Paraphrase. 10. I have ſadly fallen from my wonted purity and ſincerity; Lord, by the good work of thy grace upon my heart, reſtore me to it again, and renew me inwardly and throughly, my very thoughts as well as my actions, that I never fall into the leaſt beginning of any ſuch pollution again.
11. Caſt me not away from thy preſence; and take not thy holy ſpirit from me.
Paraphrase. 11. Lord, it is juſt with thee to reject me from all ſpiritual commerce and communication with thee, who have reſiſted thy ſpirit, and waſted my ſoul by ſo many wilful commiſſions againſt thee; juſt that thou ſhouldeſt withdraw thy grace, to which I have done ſuch deſpite: O do not thou thus ſeverely puniſh me, by withdrawing that which now more than ever I ſtand in need of.
12. Reſtore unto me the joy of thy ſalvation, and uphold me with thy free ſpirit.
Paraphrase. 12. Without thy help and aids I am utterly unable to get out of this broken condition; the free and voluntary aſſiſtances of thy ſpirit are ſo perfectly neceſſary to me, that I can never think a good thought, make the leaſt attempt toward recovering the purity from whence I am fallen, without them: O be thou pleaſed to reſtore them to me, and thereby to ſupport and eſtabliſh me.
13. Then will I teach tranſgreſſors thy ways, and ſinners ſhall be converted unto thee.
Paraphrase. 13. And this thy exceeding mercy to a ſinner, ſo ſadly laps'd, may be a means to bring wicked livers home to repentance, I ſhall be able to incourage them to return, by proclaiming mine own ſucceſs, who have fallen as ſadly as any of them can have done. And being thus incouraged by my example and experience, many, I doubt not, by the aſſiſtance of thy grace, ſhall be brought home to thy ſervice, and the practice of the duties of new life.
14. Deliver me from blood-guiltineſs, O God, thou God of my ſalvation, and my tongue ſhall ſing aloud of thy righteouſneſs.
Paraphrase. 14. Oh, that ſin of murther is an horrid and crying ſin, of a black and deep dy; and though mine own hands have not been polluted with it, yet my conſcience aſſures me the guilt of the murther of Uriah lies on me, who projected and contrived it by others: O thou bleſſed Lord, from whom all my deliverance muſt come, be thou pleaſed to deliver me from this one, as from thoſe other foul Commiſſions, and it will be moſt joyful news to me, and with the greateſt exultation of heart ſhall I proclaim thy abundant mercies to me.
15. O Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth ſhall ſhew forth thy praiſe.
Paraphrase. 15. This work of grace from thee ſhall ſet my lips wide open, in praiſing and magnifying thee.
16. For thou deſireſt not ſacrifice, ‖that I ſhould give foreignelſe would I give it: thou delighteſt not in burnt-offerings.
Paraphrase. 16. 'Tis not any the richeſt hecatombe or moſt chargable oblation for my ſin, that thou expecteſt or requireſt of me. The truth is, my ſins are of ſuch a ſort, as for which the Moſaical law allows no reconciliation, no ſacrifice for ſuch wilful ſins, Heb. 10.26.
17. The ſacrifices of God are a broken ſpirit: a broken and contrite heart, O Lord, ſhalt thou not deſpiſe.
Paraphrase. 17. 'Tis my ſincere humiliation, confeſſion, and renovation, which alone thou admitteſt, and even in this fouleſt condition, thou art mercifully pleaſed to have reſpect to them, and look on them, as the moſt acceptable oblation. And whenſoever that is preſented to thee from an honeſt heart, it is ſure to find a welcome and hoſpitable reception.
18. Do good in thy good pleaſure to Sion: build thou the walls of Jeruſalem.
Paraphrase. 18. O be thou thus merciful to me, and to all that love and fear thy name, and meet in the place by thee appointed for thy ſervice: defend and ſuccour all, and preſerve them from falling into ſuch wilful preſumptuous ſins.
19. Then ſhalt thou be pleaſed with the ſacrifices of righteouſneſs, with burnt-offering and whole burnt-offering: then ſhall they offer bullocks upon thy altar.
Paraphrase. 19. And then our ſacrifices of all ſorts, and all that is typified by theſe ſhadows, and what is much more valuable then any of theſe, Mar. 12.33. our prayers, and our praiſes, our ſolemneſt acts of the moſt ardent love and devotion, and the diffuſion of that in acts of charity and mercy to our brethren, ſhall, upon the altars of our very hearts be preſented to thee in an humble, but cheerful confidence, to be accepted by thee.
Annotations on Pſalm LI.
foreignV. 4. Clear] The word foreign is ordinarily rendred mundus fuit, clean, or clear, or pure; and ſo the Chaldee takes it here, and renders it by foreign, from foreign purgavit. But this, as the context evinces, muſt be underſtood in a forenſick ſenſe, as pure is all one with free from guilt; and ſo there is a ſecond notion of the word for overcoming, meaning that ſort of victory which belongs to him that carries the cauſe in judicature. Thus the LXXII. render it here, foreign, and overcome; and thus the Apoſtle takes it from them, Rom. 3.4. and the Syriack there renders that of the Apoſtle by foreign the ſame word which both the Hebrew and Syriack have here in this Pſalm: which is a ſure evidence, that the word here uſed doth certainly ſignifie as the LXXII. rendred it, and was no way miſtaken by them; and that very reconcileable with the notion of mundus fuit, for he that doth foreign, overcome in the ſuite or contention, ſo foreign ſignifies, to be a party in a ſuite) is fitly ſaid to be cleared or quitted by the Law; and that is alſo the importance of foreign juſtified in the forenſick ſenſe alſo, as that is oppoſed to caſt or condemned. The only remaining difficulty is, to what part of the antecedent ſpeech this is to be connected,foreign See Paul Fagius in Exod. 22. foreign that thou mighteſt be juſtified — This, ſay the Jews, is not to be joyned to the words immediately precedent in the former part of this verſe; but either to the prayer, Have mercy upon me, v. 1. or, I acknowledge my tranſgreſſions—v. 3. putting the beginning of this verſe, Againſt thee,— in a parentheſis. But the former of theſe hath little of probability in it; and the latter, which is more tolerable, may very reaſonably be rejected alſo, the immediate antecedents being very fit to bear this conſequence, and indeed much fitter than either of thoſe which are more remote. For if in the beginning of the verſe, the emphaſis be laid, as the thrice repeating ſhews it ought, on the foreign to thee, foreign to thee only, and foreign in thy ſight, the importance of it will certainly be, what S. Ambroſe and S. Chryſoſtome and others have obſerved, that David, being a King, was not liable to puniſhment from any but God: and though he had in this buſineſs highly offended againſt others, againſt Bathſheba, and eſpecially againſt Ʋriah, whom he had cauſed to be made drunk, and afterward ſlain, and in the next verſe confeſſeth the guilt of his blood, and therefore muſt not be underſtood, ſaith Chryſoſtome, as if he ſaid, foreign foreign, that he had not wronged Ʋriah; yet could not he be impleaded or judged by man for this, but only by God: foreign,Tom. 1. p. 709. l. 8. ſaith Chryſoſtome, Being a King I feared not him whom I wronged; he being my ſubject, could not puniſh me: all my fear was for thee, leſt thou ſhouldeſt call me to account. And then this moſt regularly introduceth this conſequence, (for ſo foreign is not foreign,foreign but foreign, a note of conſequence only) foreign, that thou mighteſt be juſtified in thy ſayings, foreignor doings (ſo foreign ordinarily ſignifies a deed, and not only a word or ſaying) and overcome when thou contendeſt. Thus, if any other but God ſhould implead, or judge, or puniſh me for this, I ſhould have juſt reaſon to complain, God having placed me in a condition of judging and puniſhing others, without being my ſelf ſubjected to any other humane tribunal. But for all this I ſtand moſt juſtly chargeable, and puniſhable by God: To thee I have ſinned, from thee I deſerve, and may moſt reaſonably expect puniſhment. In thy ſight I have done this evil, i. e. ſo as to be moſt juſtly liable to thy vengeance; though foreign I am thus liable to thee only, to none elſe but thee; foreign, that (noting this to be the natural conſequence) thou mighteſt be juſtified in thy doings, and overcome when thou contendeſt or impleadeſt me, i. e. whatſoever bill of indictment thou putteſt in againſt me, though to charge upon me the higheſt rebellions againſt thee, and bring upon me the ſevereſt ſentence of eternal rejection out of thy favour and preſence, and infliction of the direfulleſt torments, thou art ſure to overcome and caſt me in the ſuite, I have nothing in the leaſt to pretend, or plead againſt it. The only ſeeming objection to this rendring is fetcht from foreign,foreign which from foreign judicavit is thought to ſignifie, in thy judging. But there is another acknowledged notion of the word in Niphal, for litigare, contendere, cauſam agere, to contend, or plead, or go to law with another: and though in Kal it ordinarily ſignifie to judge, yet 'tis evident the LXXII. and the Syriack took it here in the other ſenſe; and ſo the former renders it foreign, i. e. in pleading or contending (ſo the word foreign, ſignifies in the Helleniſts dialect, ſee note on Rom. 3. b.) and not as the Latine, more to the word than idiome, render it, cum judicaris, when thou art judged. And ſo the Syriack render it foreign from foreign, which both in Hebrew and Syriack ſignifies to contend in judicature, to plead, and not only or ſo frequently to judge. And ſo the ſenſe both here, and to the Romans beſt bears: here, for being juſtified in the forenſick ſenſe, as that is oppoſed to condemned, doth more properly belong to the litigants, or perſons that contend in judgment, than to the Judge, and ſo to be cleared alſo; but moſt neceſſarily ſo it is in the reciting theſe words to the Romans, where he that is ſaid to overcome, muſt neceſſarily be one of the contendents, and not the Judge: And accordingly that which the text is there brought to prove, is, Let God be true, and every man a liar: where God and man being ſuppoſed to have a controverſie, in like manner as Mich. 6.2 and ſo brought in as pleaders or contendents (and not as a judge and a delinquent) the verdict is given on Gods ſide, (Let God be true, which is a pronouncing that God is true, a clearing or juſtifying God) and againſt man, who is pronounced a liar, and ſo this text verified, God is juſtified and cleared, or overcomes in lite, in the ſuppoſed matter of debate between them; foreign, ſaith *Tom. 1. p. 709. l. 22.Chryſoſtome, the buſineſs being debated and brought before a judicature between God and me.
V. 5. Shapen] For the underſtanding of this verſe, 3. things muſt be obſerved. 1. What is meant by the two verbs foreign and foreign.foreign The former of them, from foreign, and foreign which ſignifies ſorrow or labour, but eſpecially that of the woman in travail, ſignifies the birth of a child; and ſo is rendred by the Chaldee foreign, I was born, (and though the Syriack foreign from foreign venter, may ſignifie conception, or carrying in the womb, and ſo may agree with the LXXII. foreign, and the Latine conceptus ſum, I was conceived; yet it ſignifies bringing forth alſo. So Iſa. 54.1. foreign travailing with child is but the explication of foreign going before, bearing or bringing forth the child. So Jer. 4.31. I heard the voice foreign as of one that travaileth, or bringeth forth; and frequently elſewhere. And ſo 'tis beſt here to be rendred, I was born, or brought forth. And the vulgar Latine, that reads otherwiſe, hath made a groſs tautologie, Conceptus ſum, & concepit me—I was conceived, and my mother conceived me; which even thoſe Antients that follow them ſaw neceſſary to avoid. Then for the latter, it is from foreign, incaluit, foreignand is ordinarily taken for the act of conception (ſee Gen. 30.38, 39, 41.) and cannot reaſonably be applyed to that of cheriſhing in the womb after conception, as ſome would have it. And ſo that is the meaning of the verbs, I was born, or brought forth into the world, and not only ſo, but even conceived by my mother in iniquity, and in ſin: and accordingly *in Pſal. 119. Bas. ed. p. 522.St. Hilary, that with the vulgar reads in the firſt place conceptus ſum, I was conceived, reads in the latter, peperit me mater, my mother brought me forth: and ſo doth †de P…n. l. 1. c. 11.St. Ambroſe alſo. Secondly then, for the conjunction of the verbs and nouns, or the notion of his being born and even conceived in ſin, inſtead of ſetting down the ſurmiſes of ſome modern Interpreters, it will not be amiſs to inquire, what the antient Fathers of the Church have ſaid. And herein we ſhall find, that they have with ſome, though but ſmall, variety delivered themſelves. For as moſt of them have lookt on it as a Text whereby to confirm the Catholick Doctrine concerning Original ſin, ſo one of them being preſt with it by hereticks for the maintenance of a foul error, hath been thought to interpret it otherwiſe. St. Paul the Apoſtle tells us of the hereticks of the firſt times, (the abominable Gnoſticks) that they interdicted marriages, 1 Tim. 4.3. The ſame hereſy, ſaith Irenaeus, l. 1. c. 30. was continued and propagated firſt by Saturnius and Marcion, then by the Eneratitae or followers of Tatianus. Now for the confirming of this their interdict, they affirmed, that none could be ſaved but unmarried or ſingle men and women, ſaith Epiphanius; foreign, ſaith Clemens, Strom. l. 3. that generation was ſimply an accurſed thing; foreign, ſaith Irenaeus, l. 1.31. that marriage was pollution or corruption, and fornication: and they brought ſeveral places of Scripture to prove this, (moſt of them thoſe very texts that are brought from the Old Teſtament, to affirm the doctrine of our corruption of nature) and among them this of the Pſalmiſt, In ſin hath my mother conceived me. Theſe their objections are toucht on by *Strom. l. 3. ed. Sylburg, p. 20…,Clemens Alexandrinus, and the account he gives of them is by the learned Author of the Pelagian Hiſtory, l. 11. …par. 1. p. 160. interpreted as an evidence, Clementem non ſatis intellexiſſe, that Clement did not ſufficiently underſtand the doctrine of Original ſin. For having applied the Pſalmiſts words of mater mea, my mother, to Eve, the mother of all living, (a ſenſe which Aben Ezra cites from ſome of the Jews, foreign, &c. ſome ſay Eve is hereby underſtood, who did not bear till after ſhe had ſinned) he adds, foreign, and if he were conceived in ſin, yet he was not himſelf in ſin, nor indeed was he himſelf ſin. And ſomewhat leſs obſcurely ſome few lines before, (on the occaſion of the words of Job, There is none pure from filthineſs, though he be but one day old) he hath theſe words, foreign Let them tell us where the new born child did fornicate, or how that which hath acted nothing is fallen under the curſe of Adam. Inſtead of a larger examination of his words (which indeed have too much of obſcurity in them, to be a teſtimony of much force to prejudice or eſtabliſh a point of doctrine) this one conſideration may, I ſuppoſe, ſuffice, that being not there ingaged by his buſineſs in hand to give the full interpretation of that place, any farther than was uſeful to refute the objectors before him, the Pſeudonymous Gnoſticks and Encratites, it cannot be juſt any farther to extend his words, than the refuting of them makes it reaſonable to extend them: viz. firſt, that by his mothers conceiving him in ſin, he meant not his immediate mother, as if her conception were an act of ſin in her, (which indeed had been for the Encratites turn, who deteſted generation as ſinful, and ſo condemned marriage) but rather Eve, who had ſinned before ſhe conceived Cain, and ſo all mankind after her were conceived in ſin. Secondly, that as by his foreign, conception and birth, his mother committed no ſin in conceiving him, ſo neither the child it ſelf being conceived committed any fault. Thirdly, that neither doth any child of Adam, by the bare pollution of birth, fall into that accurſed ſtate wherein the Encratites thought Adam to be involved, and all that were propagated from him by generation, and thereupon profeſt to deteſt generation and marriage. For this was one ſpecial part of the hereſy of theſe Encratites, that Adam was certainly damn'd, foreign, they reſiſt Adams ſalvation, ſaith Irenaeus, l. 1. c. 30, 31. and conſequent to that, that his ſin being imputed (as they had learnt from the Orthodox) to all his poſterity, the ſame damnation devolved upon all, and that all that were thus born, had not only ſome ſinful corruption born with them, but were themſelves foreign, in ſin, i. e. either guilty of ſome actual ſin, by being begotten (as his queſtion foreign; imports) or elſe were ſpread all over with nothing but ſin, (in a ſenſe ſomewhat proportionable to that of the Phariſees of him that was born blind, Joh. 9.34. Thou wert altogether born in ſins) and foreign, themſelves ſin in the abſtract, and nothing but ſin. Now none of theſe would that learned Father allow to be concluſible from theſe texts; but on the contrary he thinks it moſt ridiculous, that either the child ſhould be ſaid to ſin, or that every child ſhould be ſaid to be thus wholly immerſt in ſin, as to be himſelf ſin, and nothing elſe, when yet he hath committed no ſin, or that the foreign, the curſe of Adam (not in Origens ſenſe, Contra Cels. l.iv. where he ſaith foreign, the curſe of Adam is the common curſe of all, but in the notion of the Encratites, as that was, in their opinion, certain damnation to Adam who commited it) ſhould fall on all that ever were born from him. The falſeneſs and ridiculouſneſs of which, in all the parts, may well be granted, and yet the doctrine of Original ſin, as it was believed by the Antients, remain true, and this text of this Pſalm be one teſtimony of it, viz. that though Adam ſinned, and thereby loſt the image of God, in which he was created, deforming it into Satans image, whoſe temptations he hearkened to; and though this he did, as a common Father, and repreſentative of all mankind, and ſo in him all his poſterity were concluded under the breach and penalty of the firſt Covenant, and all being begotten after the Image of laps'd Adam, were begotten in a corrupt, polluted ſinful ſtate, and had many ſad effects of Adams fall connatural, and born with them; yet Chriſt was given for all, and by that gift, firſt Adam himſelf was redeemed from ſo much of the curſe belonging to ſin, as concerned his eternal ſtate, and ſo alſo all others of his poſterity, that did not by their own actual and habitual ſins and impenitence (their redemption notwithſtanding) bring down that curſe upon them. That this doctrine of Original ſin, as it was maintained againſt Pelagius, is very remote from the Doctrine of the Encratites, is moſt certain and viſible, and cannot be doubted by any. The Encratites thought generation could not be without ſin, that Adam was damned, and all were born heirs apparent to that curſe, and ſo deteſted generation and marriage: but the doctrine of Original ſin ſuppoſes marriage to be honourable, and that the conjugal bed may be kept pure and undefiled, and that neither is ſin committed by the parents in begetting, nor by the child which is begotten; and though the child be born in ſin, after … the image of laps'd and ſinful parents, yet allows a medicine as univerſal as the diſeaſe, and ſo acknowledges this corruption of our nature not only reconcileable with, but uſeful and contributive to our eternal good. And this Clemens in that place ſeems to acknowledge, and to make another part of his anſwer to thoſe Hereticks: for having mentioned foreign, the firſt incitations, which proceed from our natural corrupt ſtate, and thoſe as foreign, impieties, or averſions from God, foreign, in reſpect of which we are ignorant of God, (which ſhews him to be no enemy to the doctrine of Original ſin) he adds, foreign, but if any man in this reſpect calls nativity ill, let him in that other reſpect acknowledge it good, becauſe thereby we come to the knowledge of the truth. In which words he ſeems to refer to the following verſe in this Pſalm, Behold thou deſireſt truth in the inward parts, and in the hidden part thou ſhalt make me to know wiſdom:] which, by the way, as it is an aggravation of every wilful actual ſin committed by any child of Adam, (becauſe though it be committed in compliance with natural corruption, yet 'tis in oppoſition to grace, and the both outward and inward directions of Gods Spirit, which were given to mortifie our natural corruption, and to beget us to a new ſpiritual life;) ſo it is full matter of conviction to the Encratites, that generation and marriage is good, and not evil, becauſe it brings forth children to the grace and mercies of Chriſt, to Baptiſm, that foederal rite of receiving every the tendereſt Infant into the Covenant of grace, whereby the original ſtain or corruption ſhall be diſabled from bringing any eternal miſery upon them, that do not call it on themſelves by thoſe wilful acts of ſin, that might have been reſiſted by them, if they had not been foully wanting to themſelves. Which conſideration being ſo much more proper to the point which Clemens had in hand, (the refuting of the Encratites) than the inſiſting on the doctrines, and aggravations of original corruption, we cannot reaſonably wonder, that he ſhould there confine his diſcourſe to that which was only pertinent (and ſo he goes on to ſhew grounds of mercy and pardon, from the very nature of our temptations, foreign, and the way to contend and overcome in our Chriſtian agonies, by St. Paul's foreign, as he reads it, and foreign, ſubduing, and bringing under the fleſh, and not abſteining wholly, but foreign, temperately uſing thoſe things which we judge fit for us, and ſo atteining the incorruptible crown, foreign, but ſo as not to be crowned without fighting) and not inlarge to that which was more than granted by his adverſaries, with whom he had then to do, even improved into dangerous heretical doctrine: for ſo Tatianus having learnt from Scripture, and the doctrine of the Church, and of his teacher *foreign— Dial. cum Tryph. p. 316. A.Juſtin Martyr, that by Adam's fall all mankind were ingaged in ſin and death, he thinking the act of generation was the committing the ſame fault that lay ſo heavy on Adam, and by not conſidering well the benefits of the Second Adam, prepared for all that were loſt in the firſt Adam, fell into a diſlike and deteſtation of marriage and propagation; which heretical improvement of the Catholick doctrine Clemens refuting, had no occaſion, at leaſt neceſſity, to ſpeak of the true doctrine which was more than granted by thoſe Hereticks. This being the only teſtimony out of antiquity which is thought to be leſs favourable to the doctrine of Original ſin in general, and particularly to the interpreting this text of the Pſalmiſt to that ſenſe, I have thus largely inſiſted on it. And for the farther clearing of it, ſhall adjoyn the interpretation of St. Chryſoſtome, which ſeems to me to proceed in the ſame way as Clemens did, but withal to give us a much more perſpicuous underſtanding of the full deſign of it. Clemens interpreted the mothers conception to be underſtood of Eve; and ſo ſaith *Tom. 1. p. 709. l. 42.Chryſoſtome, In ſin hath my mother—foreign— From the beginning ſin prevailed, for the tranſgreſſing of the commandment was before the conception of Eve; for it was after the ſin, and ejection from paradiſe, that Adam knew his wife, and ſhe conceived, and brought forth Cain. This therefore was the Pſalmiſts meaning, foreign, that ſin prevailing over our firſt parents, wrought a way and path through mankind. Then, whereas Clemens indeavours to free the text from favouring the Encratites, by ſhewing the good and benefits of propagation, out-weighing the evil that was inſeparable from it, and by inſiſting, that as the child new born did not commit fornication, ſo he fell not under Adams curſe; St. Chryſoſtome proceeds alſo on that matter, but much more perſpicuouſly, and ſo, as is viſibly moſt agreeable to the Catholick Doctrine: foreign (*foreign foreign, But by all this we learn that the act of ſin is not natural (for if it were we ſhould be free from puniſhment) but that nature inclines to falling, being diſturbed by a tumult of paſſions: but yet reſolution making uſe of induſtry overcomes. Adding, in reference particularly to the Encratites, foreign, They are therefore fooliſhly miſtaken, that ſuppoſe David to accuſe marriage here, thus underſtanding thoſe words, I was conceived in iniquities (as if his mother ſinned, when ſhe conceived him;) That is not his meaning, but he mentions the tranſgreſſion of old committed by our firſt fathers, and ſaith of that, that it was the fountain of theſe ſtreams. foreign, for, ſaith he, if they had not ſinned, they had not undergone the puniſhment of death, but not being mortal, had been above corruption, and then to incorruption apathie, abſence of paſsions, had been concomitant; and apathie being admitted, ſin had had no place. foreign, But ſeeing they ſinned, they were delivered to corruption; being become corruptible they begat children like themſelves, and to ſuch, deſires and fears and pleaſures were together conſequent. Againſt theſe reaſon contends, and if it overcomes, is pronounced or proclaimed to be rewarded; but if it be overcome, it is a debtor of ſhame, is puniſhed with reproach. Thus far this holy Father in that place, expreſly giving us his own opinion (and, I ſuppoſe, ſufficiently clearing Clements doctrine) in this matter: that though David impute not any of his foul, actual tranſgreſſions to nature, or the force of Original ſin, becauſe he had thoſe other aids from God, which might have reſiſted ſucceſsfully, if he had not been wanting to himſelf; yet he here mentions Adams fall, as the fountain of all vitious corrupt ſtreams, as that which ſhewed ſin the way into the world, brought tumultuous paſſions (which he *in Rom. 6. Hom. 11.elſewhere calls foreign, a large ſwarm of paſſions) together with mortality after it, and ſo an inclination and tendency in our nature to ſtumble and fall: which inclination, or foreign, is all one with the foreign, the firſt incitations from our nativity, in Clemens, which he mentions as impieties, and therefore ſins; though, ſaith Chryſoſtome, foreign, reaſoning, ſuch diſcourſe as a Chriſtian is capable of, and foreign, reſolution, with induſtry making uſe of the means that God hath given us (he adds elſewhere foreign,*in Rom. 6. Hom. 11. the ſpirit helping us Chriſtians, and foreign, baptiſm able to mortifie) may not only oppoſe and incounter this ſwarm and rout of paſſions, but overcome them alſo. What the Latine Fathers thought of this place is viſible from ‖Baſil. ed. p 522.Hilarie, in his Enarration on Pſal. 119. v. 175. Vivere ſe in hac vita non reputat, quippe qui dixerit, Ecce in iniquitatibus conceptus ſum— Scit ſe ſub peccati origine & ſub peccati lege natum eſſe; meditationem autem legis Dei ob id elegit ut vivat; He accounts not himſelf to live in this life, as having ſaid, Behold I am conceived in ſin—He knows he was born under the beginning of ſin (i. e. Original ſin, for he calls it elſewhere, as originem carnis, Ibid. p. 501.the beginning of the fleſh, ſo more expreſly, originis vitium, the vice of his beginning, and peccata humanae naturae, the faults of his humane nature) and under the law of ſin; but he therefore chooſeth to meditate in the law of God, that he may live. And to the ſame purpoſe †de Poenit. 1. c. 11.St. Ambroſe, Omnes homines ſub peccato naſcimur, quorum ipſe ortus in vitio eſt, dicente David, Ecce in iniquitate — All men are born in ſin; our very birth is in fault, as David ſaith, Behold, I was conceived in ſin— And many others concur to the ſame ſenſe, in their Scholia on this Pſalm. As for the doctrine it ſelf of Original ſin, as it is founded on many other places of Scripture, as well as on this, the concordant teſtimonies of the Antient Church are ſet down at large by the Author of the Pelagian Hiſt. l. 11. Par. 1. from Juſtine, Tatianus, Irenaeus, Origen, Macarius Hieroſolymit ▪ and Macarius Aegyptius, Athanaſius, Cyril of Jeruſalem, Baſil, Gregory Nazianzen, Chryſoſtome, Leontius, Olympiodorus (of the Greek Church;) and from Tertullian, Cyprian, Arnobius, Reticius, Olympius, Hilarie, Ambroſe, Optatus, Hilarius Diaconus, Hierome (of the Latine;) as well as from St. Auguſtine, and thoſe that followed him. And ‖Adver. Haer. c. 34.Vincentius's words are remarkable, Quis ante prodigioſum diſcipulum ejus Coeleſtium reatu praevaricationis Adae omne genus humanum negavit aſtrictum? Before Caeleſtius, Pelagius's prodigious ſcholar, who ever denied that all mankind was bound by the guilt of Adams ſin? This I ſuppoſe ſufficient to aſſure us of the ſenſe of the Univerſal Chriſtian Church in this Article. And what from this and the like places of the Old Teſtament the old Jews doctrine was, may be concluded from theſe words of St. Chryſoſtome, Tom. 3. p. 72. l. 8.foreign; The reaſon of St. Paul's phraſe ſo oft repeated [as by one] Rom. v: was, that when a Jew ſhall aske, how the world ſhould be ſaved by the well-doing of one, the righteouſneſs of Chriſt; thou mighteſt be able to ſay to him, How ſhould the world be condemned by one Adams ſinning? By which words of his it appears, that this doctrine of the whole worlds being under condemnation for the ſin of Adam, was ſuch, as he thought no Jew would doubt of; for elſe it could be no fit means to ſilence his objection againſt the redemption of the whole world by Chriſt. To this of the Jews belongs their ordinary ſtyle of foreign the evil formation, (which the Chaldee lightly vary into foreign meaning our evil affections, or concupiſcence) and foreign the formation of ſin, or proclivity to ſin from their frame or fabrick. So Eccl. 10.1. foreign the flyes of death are by the Chaldee rendred foreign evil concupiſcence, which abiding at the gates of the heart, brings the cauſe of death into the world: and Pſal. 103.14. where we read foreign our frame, the Chaldee have foreign the evil concupiſcence which impells us to ſin. So Pſal. 119.70. foreign the figment of the heart. So ſay the Rabbins, three men ſubdued foreign their concupiſcence; Joſeph, Gen. 39. Boaz Ruth 3. Phalati 1 Sam. 25.44. Where by the example of Joſeph, &c. it is evident, that the deſire of carnal forbidden objects, ſuch as another mans wife, is comprehended by them under this ſtyle of foreign formation: And this from Gen. 8.21. where of the foreign imagination, or formation, or figment of the heart of man, it is ſaid, that it is foreign evil from the youth. So in the Midras Tehillem, on Pſal. 34. foreign &c. Now the evil figment is born with a man, and goes about with him all his days, as 'tis ſaid, the imagination of mans heart is evil from his youth; and if it can find occaſion to overthrow him, when he is twenty years old, or forty, or ſeventy, or eighty, it will do ſo. And this the †Tract. S… ca, fol. 52.1.Talmudiſts, ſaith Buxtorfe; obſerve to be called by ſeven names in Scripture: 1. foreign evil, 2. foreign foreskin, 3. foreign unclean, 4. foreign the enemy or bater, 5. foreign a ſtumbling-block, 6. foreign, a ſtone, 7. foreign the hidden thing. What they ſay of theſe is much of it indeed phanſiful and Talmudical, and their writings are too full of ſuch ſtuff to be here ſet down. See Buxtorf Lex. Rabbin. who farther refers the reader to Caphtor, fol. 55.1. Cad. habkemach, fol. 35.2. Afcat Rochel, fol. 12.1. In the forecited place of Succa they add, that foreign, &c. in time to come God ſhall bring the evil figment, or evil concupiſcence, and ſlay it before the juſt and unjuſt; and that as long as the juſt live, foreign they fight with their concupiſcences, Beriſh. Rabba ſect. 9. elſewhere 'tis given for a rule, that this concupiſcence is not foreign in that (i. e. the future) world. See Baſra, fol. 58.1. So the queſtion being asked in S…nhedr. fol. 91.2. from what time this evil figment obteins dominion on a man, whether from time of his birth, or of his formation in the womb; the anſwer is, foreign from the time of his formation, &c. The like diſpute is in Bereſh. Rab. ſect. 34. Elſewhere they ſay, that in the beginning 'tis like a thred of a ſpider, but in the end foreign 'tis like a cart-rope; and again, that at firſt it is as a ſtranger, afterward as a gueſt, and at length foreign a Maſter of an houſe. See More Neu. par. 3. c. 22. and Vaiikra Rabba Sect. 17. The beginning of foreign is ſweet, foreign and the end bitter. So R. Solomon on Pſal. 78.39. for the wind that paſſeth away, and cometh not again, reads foreign the evil figment hidden in the heart, which foreign goes when a man dyes, and returns not again. And Midras Tehill. to avert the argument drawn from that text againſt the reſurrection of the dead, ſays, foreign the evil figment is meant in this place (not the ſoul) foreign which goes with a man at the hour of death, foreign and returns not with him at the hour of the reſurrection of the dead. So when Pſ. 16.3. there is mention of the ſaints that are in the earth, Midras Tehill. underſtands the words, as of thoſe that lye buryed there, adding, God calls not here the righteous foreign Saints till they be buryed in the earth; foreign becauſe the evil figment is in a man in this age; and (as it follows) God doth not fully confide in man, till he be dead. So Kimchi on Pſ. 103.14. and Aben Ezra on this very verſe of Pſal. 51. where he reſolves the Pſalmiſts meaning to be, that in the hour of his nativity the evil figment was planted in his heart; and on ver. 10. that this evil concupiſcence had drawn him to ſin, and therefore he prays to God, that he would help him againſt the evil figment, that he might no more be miſled by it, or admit ſin. To conclude, the Talmud it ſelf tract. Berach. hath a very ſober and Orthodox account of this matter. And ſo this may ſuffice for the ſecond thing, the notion of Davids being born and conceived in ſin. Thirdly then, it may be demanded, how this mention of his conception and birth in ſin comes in here? or how it is a fit ingredient in a penitential Pſalm, the humbling himſelf for ſo many groſs actual ſins, as he ſtood guilty of at this time? And the reaſon of the doubt is, becauſe the ſin of our conception and birth, being no act of our own wills, and yet farther a ſpring of all our corrupt ſtreams, a ſtrong tendency to our actual ſins, the mention of that might ſeem rather a means of extenuating, than aggravating our actual guilts. To this I anſwer, 1. that if Chriſt, the ſecond Adam, had not repaired the errors of the firſt Adam, if original corruption had inevitably betrayed David to his adultery and murther, &c. if he had not had power to reſiſt his corrupt inclinations, or repreſs them from breaking out, as they did, into thoſe groſs ſins, there would then be reaſon in the objection. But the doctrine of Original ſin ſuppoſes not any ſuch inevitable neceſſity, but on the contrary acknowledges the gift of Chriſt to be an antidote fully proportioned to the poiſon of our nativity, and his grace a ſufficient auxiliary to inable men not only to reſiſt, but overcome temptations, and in ſome degree to mortifie corruptions. The Philoſopher was ſaid to overrule his nativity and ſtars: and ſure Davids divine Philoſophy had thus inable him, if he had not ſinned againſt grace and ſtrength. And ſo to him that was thus inabled, the conſideration of his natural corruption could be no competent matter of extenuation. The more turbulent his paſſions were, the ſtronger his inclinations to ſin, the more he was obliged to devotion and watchfulneſs: the one, conſtantly and frequently to pray for grace; which he ſtood ſo much in need of; and the other, to imploy his utmoſt induſtry, not to betray, but make the beſt uſe of thoſe aids, to ſecure him from ſo viſible and imminent a ruine. And to this ſenſe ſome of the antients underſtand the next verſe, Behold thou deſireſt truth in the inward parts, and (as the LXXII. read) foreign, thou haſt manifeſted to me the ſecret and hidden things of thy wiſdom; Though by nature I am corrupt and unclean, yet thou, by thy ſpecial grace, and revelation and communication of the ſecrets of thy wiſdom, thy Chriſt unto me, haſt elevated me above that low pitch of my natural corruption. And thus 'tis not extraordinary in Scripture for two things to be mentioned one after the other, when the latter only is principally intended, and to the purpoſe; and the former only as it is preparative and introductory to the latter. And if this be the meaning of the place, then the account is clear, that the former verſe taken alone, as it cannot be an extenuation, ſo neither need it be lookt on as an ingredient in the aggravation of Davids preſent actual guilts; but only as an introduction to the latter verſe, Gods divine revelations to him, which were very proper to aggravate his ſins, as being committed againſt ſpecial grace and illumination, and ſo neither of weakneſs nor ignorance. But then Secondly, though his natural inclination to ſin were no ground for the aggravation of his actual ſins, yet being not, as hath been ſhewed, uſeful for the extenuation of them, it may fitly come in to bear its part in a penitential Pſalm, eo ipſo as it is a ſin, though but of our nature. For he that is truly ſenſible, and humbled for his groſſer actual enormities, will, and ought to confeſs to God his leſſer and inferior guilts, even his ſins of ignorance and infirmity, and by no means to omit his natural corruptions, and all the branches thereof; Firſt, the darkneſs of his underſtanding, Secondly, the unrulineſs of his affections, and Thirdly, the crookedneſs of his will, the bending down of that toward the carnal part, and great proneneſs to gratifie it: Which laſt, as it differs very much from the complacency of the ſenſes in their proper objects, or the inclinableneſs of the fleſh to that which is prohibited, which were in our firſt parents in Paradiſe (the beauty and ſweetneſs of the apple were then grateful to two of their ſenſes, and fit to be deſired by them) and therefore no ſins; ſo is it a degree of averſion from God, and ſo contrary to that degree of love with all the heart, which is commanded us by the Law, and conſequently an foreign, or breach of Gods Law, and a ſin. And being ſo, and withall ſo connatural to the will, ſince the fall, that it is not perfectly rooted out of us in this life, it may ſure be very fit to be put into the Catalogue, and fill up the number, and increaſe the weight of thoſe ſins for which men are to humble themſelves before God at all times, but eſpecially upon conviction of any one or more groſs actual ſins. For then the more truly ſenſible we are, the more wounding will every the leaſt obliquity, or but inclination of the will to evil, appear to us; the leaſt weight adding to his preſſure, that is ſo much overladen already. And ſo this is a ſecond uſe of this reflexion on his natural corrupt ſtate, in the work of his repentance. But S. Chryſoſtome hath another notion of this paſſage, that it was uſed by David to introduce his prayer for that pardon which is promiſed ſinners by Chriſt. For this he makes the meaning of the next verſe, that God had revealed Chriſt unto him, enabled him to praedict his birth, paſſion, reſurrection, and aſcenſion; and therefore as theſe were means of cure for the corruption of our nature, and of obtaining pardon for the infirmities thereof, ſo the Pſalmiſt prays to God, who deſireth and loveth truth,Tom. l. p. 710. l. 18. that knowing foreign, the weakneſs of our nature, he will communicate his foreign, medicines of pardon to them that beg them of him by prayer; and †p. 711. l. 34.again, that he that had been taught this myſtery of our redemption before-hand by the holy Spirit, prayed that he might obtain his part in that grace which he praedicted to others, and therefore cried out, v. 8. Thou ſhalt purge me with hyſſope— And in this underſtanding of it, as a part of a plea for pardon in Chriſt, it will be perfectly fit alſo for a penitential Pſalm, (though it tended not in the leaſt to his humiliation) Deprecation of puniſhment being as proper a part of ſuch an office, as aggravation of ſin can be ſuppoſed to be. But the former ſeems to me the more probable deſign of the Pſalmiſt in this paſſage, and that in either part is matter of aggravation of ſin; and to that I have confined the Paraphraſe, though the other being honoured with ſo great an Author, was not wholly to be forgotten or omitted.
V. 6. Truth] From foreign to cover, foreignis foreign kidneys or reins, becauſe they are covered over with fat. So once more 'tis uſed in Scripture, Job 38.36. where, as here, our Engliſh renders it inward parts, ſomewhat too generally. The Chaldee expreſſing it more particularly by foreign in the reins, and theſe in the Scripture ſtile being frequently taken for the ſeat of the affections, the purity whereof is moſt contrary to the natural corruption or inbred pollution, in the preceding verſe. As for foreign truth, foreignthat ordinarily ſignifies ſincerity, uprightneſs and integrity: and ſo truth in the reins is aequivalent to an hearty ſincere obedience, not only of the actions, but of the very thoughts and affections to God; and ſo, in things of this nature, wherein this Pſalm is principally concerned, denotes the purity of the heart, the not admitting any unclean deſire or thought, the very firſt degree of indulgence to any luſt. And this God is ſaid to will or deſire, or delight in, (ſo foreign voluit, frequently ſignifies) and ſo to command, and require of us.foreign Then though foreign be in the future tenſe, yet in reaſon that is to be rendred in the paſt or the preſent, thou makeſt, or haſt made me know wiſdom ſecretly; by wiſdom meaning the knowledge of his duty, and by making known, inſtructing in it, and by ſecretly, the inward work of Gods grace (added to the outward of his law) upon the heart, by which he 1. aſſureth him of this being his will, 2. incites him to the practice of it, and 3. inſtructs him in the advantages of this obedience, of this purity of the heart, rejecting the firſt motions of luſt, the entertaining of which had brought this ſad ruine on Davids ſoul, ingaged him in ſo many ſins.