December 21

Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts. Praise him sun and moon: praise him, all ye stare of light. Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord: for he commanded and they were created. He hath also established them for ever and ever: he hath made a decree which shall not pass.—Psalm exlviii. 2-6.

WHEN can he unfold all in his enumeration? Yet he hath in a manner touched upon them all summarily, and including all things in heaven praising their Creator.

And as though it were said to him, "Why do they praise him? what hath he conferred on them, that they should praise him? he goeth on, for he spake, and they were made; he commanded and they were created. No wonder if the works praise the Worker, no wonder if the things that are made praise the Maker, no wonder if creation praise its Creator. In this Christ also is mentioned, though we seem not to have heard his name. Who is Christ? In the beginning was the Word, and the word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things where made by him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. By what were they made? By the Word? How doth he show in this psalm that all things were made by the Word? He spake and they were made; he commanded and they were created. No one speaketh, no one commandeth, save by word.

He hath established them for ever and ever. All things in heaven, all things above, all powers and angels, a certain city on high, good, holy, blessed; from whence because we are wanderers, we are wretched; whither because we are to return, we are blessed in hope; whither when we shall have returned, we shall be blessed indeed; He hath established them for ever and ever; he hath given them a law which shall not pass away. What sort of command, think ye, have things in heaven and the holy angels received? What sort of command hath God given them? What, but they praise him? Blessed are they whose business is to praise God! They plough not, they sow not, they grind not, they cook not; for these are works of necessity, and there is no necessity there. They steal not, they plunder not, they commit no adultery; for these are works of iniquity, and there is no iniquity there. They break not bread for the hungry, they clothe not the naked, they take not in the stranger, they visit not the sick, they set not at one the contentious, they bury not the dead; for these are works of mercy, and there there is no misery, for mercy to be shown to. O blessed they! Think we that we too shall be like this? Ah! let us sigh, let us groan in sighing. And what are we, that we should be there? mortal, outcast, abject, earth and ashes! But he, who hath promised, is almighty. If we regard ourselves, what are we? if we regard him, he is God. He is almighty. Cannot he make of a man an angel, who made man out of nothing? or doth God count man of little, for whom he willed that his only-begotten Son should die? Let us observe the proof of his love. These are the pledges which we have received of the promise of God: we have already the death of Christ, we have already the blood of Christ. Who is it that did die? The Only-begotten. For whom did he die? Would that it were for the good, would that it were for the righteous. But what? Christ, saith the apostle, died for the ungodly. He who gave to the ungodly his death, what reserveth he for the righteous but his life? Let the frail man lift himself up, let him not despair, let him not dash himself down, let him not turn away, let him not say, "I shall not be one." He who hath promised is God; and he came to promise; he appeared unto men, he came to take upon him our death, to promise us his life. He came to the region where we were strangers, here to receive all that aboundeth here, disgrace, scourges, buffetings, spitting in the face, insults, a crown of thorns, the hanging on the tree, the cross, death. These things abound in our region, these he came to barter for. What gave he here, what received he? he gave exhortation, he gave teaching, he gave remission of sins: he received insults, death, the cross. He brought to us, from the region where he was, good things; he endured, in the region were we were, evil things. Yet hath he provided for us that we shall be in the place from whence he came, and saith, Father, I will that where I am, there they may be with me also. So great is the love that hath gone before. For where we were, he hath been with us; where he is, we shall be with him. What hath God promised thee, O mortal? That thou shalt live for ever. Dost not thou believe? Believe it, believe it. For greater is what he hath done already, than what he hath promised. What hath he done? He hath died for thee. What hath he promised? That thou shalt live with him. More incredible is it, that the Immortal should die, than that the mortal should live for ever. Already we have what is the more incredible. If God died for man, shall not man live with God? Shall not the mortal live for ever, for whom he, who liveth for ever, died? But how did God die? and by what means did he die? and can God die? He took of thee that, whereby he might die for thee. Nought could die, save flesh: nought could die, save a mortal body: he put on him that wherein he might die for thee; he will put on thee that wherein thou shalt live with him. Where did he clothe himself with death? In the womb of his Virgin Mother. Where will he clothe thee with life? In his equality with the Father. He chose for himself here a chaste chamber, where the Bridegroom might be wedded to the Bride. He was the Word made flesh, that he might become the Head of the Church. For the Word himself is not part of the church: but, that he might become the Head of the Church, he took upon him flesh. Somewhat of us is already above, that which he took here, when he died, when he was crucified. Already a sort of first-fruits of thee are gone before, and doubtest thou that thou wilt follow?

"What heart of stone but glows at thoughts like these? Such contemplations mount us, and should mount The mind still higher, nor ever glance on man Unraptured, uninflamed.—Where rolled my thoughts To rest from wonders? other wonders rise, And strike where'er they roll: my soul is caught:

Heaven's sovereign blessings, clustering from the cross, Rush on her, in a throng, and close her round, The prisoner of amaze!—In his blest life I see the path, and in his death the price, And in his great ascent the proof supreme Of immortality."