Monday 28 December 2020

A Trinitarian rereading of the psalms - Book 2

More Trinitarian reponses to the psalms, drawn from  J. N. Neale and R. F. Littledale's A Commentary on the Psalms: From Primitive and Mediaeval Writers. 4 vols. London: Joseph Masters, 1868.

You can also download the full set here

The last of these, Psalm 72, is also a lovely example of the fourfold sense of Scripture.

The literal sense teaches                 what took place

The allegorical sense                        what you ought to believe                 (faith)     credenda

The tropological/moral sense        what you ought to do                         (love)      agenda

The anagogical sense                       what you must hope for                     (hope)    speranda

In Psalm 72, Christ is the true Solomon (allegorical), so serve him now (tropological), knowing you will reign with him in the future (anagogical). 


BOOK 2

Psalm 42

Glory be to the Father, in whose presence we shall come to appear; and to the Son, the Hart that desireth the water-brooks of our salvation; and to the Holy Ghost, the God of our strength;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 43

Glory be to the Father, who sends out his light and his truth; and to the Son, the God of our strength; and to the Holy Ghost, which is the help of our countenance, and our God;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 44

Glory be to the Father, of whom our fathers have told us what he hath done in their time of old; and to the Son, who is the king that sends help unto Jacob; and to the Holy Ghost, whom we make our boast all the day long;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 45

Glory be to the Father, the God who anoints the Christ; and to the Son, the king that has pleasure in the beauty of his bride; and to the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of whom the “Good Word” was Incarnate;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 46

Glory be to the Father, our hope and strength; and to the Son, whose city the river of life maketh glad; and to the Holy Ghost, the God who is in the midst of her;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 47

No Gloria given in Neale and Littledale

 

Psalm 48

Glory be to the Father, the Lord highly to be praised; and to the Son, the God who is well known in the earthly and heavenly palaces as a sure refuge; and to the Holy Ghost, for whose loving-kindness we wait in the midst of his temple;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 49

Glory be to the Father, who shall deliver my soul from the place of hell; and to the Son, who showeth his dark speech upon the harp; and to the Holy Ghost, by whom the mouth speaks of wisdom;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 50

Glory be to the Father, even the Most Mighty God, who hath spoken; and to the Son, God the Word, who shall not keep silence; and to the Holy Ghost, with whom his saints have made a covenant by sacrifice;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 51

Glory be to the Father, who, according to the multitude of His mercies, does away our offences; and to the Son, that is the God of our health; and to the Holy Ghost, the free Spirit by whom we are established;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 52

Glory be to the Father, whose goodness endureth yet daily; and to the Son, the righteous, who shall see his reward; and to the Holy Ghost, in whose trust is our tender mercy for ever and ever;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 53

Glory be to the Father, who looked down from heaven upon the children of men; and to the Son, who is in the generation of the righteous; and to the Holy Ghost, by whom the salvation is given unto Israel out of Zion;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 54

Glory be to the Father, who is our helper; and to the Son, for whose name’s sake we are saved; and to the Holy Ghost, in whose strength we are avenged;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 55

Glory be to the Father, that endureth for ever, and shall hear me, and bring mine enemies down; and to the Son, the Lord, on whom our burden is to be cast, and who shall nourish us with his own body and blood; and to the Holy Ghost, who, when its tongues were destroyed and divided of old time, gave us that first Pentecost, the gifts of divers languages to his apostles, for the propagation of the faith;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 56

Glory be to the Father, in whose word we will rejoice; and to the Son, who paid his vows in the evening sacrifice of the world; and to the Holy Ghost, through whom we trust to walk in the light of the living;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 57

Glory be to the Father, who shall send from heaven and save me; and to the Son, under the shadow of whose wings shall be my refuge; and to the Holy Ghost, the mercy and truth sent forth to those whose soul is among lions.

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 58

Glory be to the Father, who hath prepared a reward for the righteous; and to the Son, the God that shall judge the earth; and to the Holy Ghost, who alone can set the minds of men on righteousness;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 59

Glory be to the Father, strong and merciful, whose power and mercy I will sing; glory be to the Son, who is the power of the Father, which I will sing; glory be to the Holy Ghost, who is the mercy of the Father and the Son, which I set before me as the subject of my song;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 60

Glory be to the Father, who delivereth his beloved; and to the Son, who is the right hand of the Father, wherewith he helps his people; and to the Holy Ghost, who is himself the love wherewith God loves His elect;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 61

Glory be to the Father, who hath set me upon the rock; and to the Son, who is the rock; and to the Holy Ghost, the Lord of loving-mercy and faithfulness.

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 62

Glory be to the Father, of whom cometh my salvation; and to the Son, who is my salvation, and the rock of my might; and to the Holy Ghost, who spake by the prophets of the power and mercy of God;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 63

Glory be to the Father, whom we seek early; and to the Son, who watcheth in himself and in his members, and by his watches entreats for his members mercy better than the life itself; and to the Holy Ghost, himself the mercy in judgment to be extolled above all life;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 64

Glory be to God the Father, who is the deep heart,* and to the Son, who cometh to that deep heart; and to the Holy Ghost, who is the gladness wherewith the righteous shall rejoice in the Lord;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 *  Vulgate: “Accedet homo ad cor altum, et exaltabitur Deus” (Man shall come to a deep heart and God will be exalted).


Psalm 65

Glory be to the Father, whose temple is holy in righteousness; and to the Son, who is that holy temple; and to the Holy Ghost, who is that fatness which drops upon the pastures of the wilderness;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 66

Glory be to the Father, who hath heard my prayer; and to the Son, my resurrection and life, through whose mediation my prayer hath reached the Father; and to the Holy Ghost, the mercy of Father and Son, which hath not been turned from me as I prayed;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 67

Glory be to the Father, who hath imprinted on us, his sons by adoption, his countenance, that is, his Son by nature; and to the Son, who is the Father's countenance; and to the Holy Ghost, the mercy and light of the countenance of God.

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 68

Glory be to the Father, who gave the word to the company of the preachers; and to the Son, the word who is preached; and to the Holy Ghost, the power of both, given in gifts to men;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 69

Glory be to the Father, to whom the God-man cried, “Save me, O God”; and to the Son, Jesus Christ, praying for himself and his members to be saved and delivered from the floods; and to the Holy Ghost, who is that love and salvation wherewith God shall save Zion, and whereby all that love his name shall dwell therein;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 70

Glory be to the Father, who maketh speed to save me; and to the Son, who maketh haste to help me; and to the Holy Ghost, my helper and redeemer, for the Spirit helpeth our infirmities, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 71

Glory be to the Father, from whom cometh soberness; and to the Son, of whom is righteousness; and to the Holy Ghost, whose is loving-kindness;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

 

Psalm 72

Glory be to the Father, the King Eternal, who giveth his judgment unto the King his Son; glory be to the Son, the true King Solomon, who maketh peace in all his kingdom; glory be to the Holy Ghost, who is the peace of all them who fight for Solomon, and serve him here below, and who will be yet more fully the peace of them that reign with him in heaven;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.