1. This Psalm hath on the title the inscription, "For the end, a song of a Psalm of Resurrection." When ye hear "for the end," whenever the Psalms are repeated, understand it "for Christ:" the Apostle saying, "For the end of the law is Christ, for righteousness to every one believing." In what manner therefore here Resurrection is sung, ye wilt hear, and whose Resurrection it is, as far as Himself deigneth to give and disclose. For the Resurrection we Christians know already hath come to pass in our Head, and in the members it is to be. The Head of the Church is Christ the members of Christ are the Church. That which hath preceded in the Head, will follow in the Body. This is our hope; for this we believe, for this we endure and persevere amid so great perverseness of this world, hope comforting us, before that hope becometh reality. ...The Jews did hold the hope of the resurrection of the dead: and they hoped that themselves alone would rise again to a blessed life because of the work...
2. ...Thence he beginneth, "Be joyful in God." Who? "Every land" (ver. 1). Not therefore Judaea alone. See, brethren, after what sort is set forth the universality of the Church in the whole world spread abroad: and mourn ye not only the Jews, who envied the Gentiles that grace, but still more for heretics wail ye. For if they are to be mourned, that have not been gathered together, how much more they that being gathered together have been divided? "Jubilate in God every land." What is "jubilate"? Into the voice of rejoicings break forth if ye cannot into that of words. For "jubilation" is not of words, but the sound alone of men rejoicing is uttered, as of a heart labouring and bringing forth into voice the pleasure of a thing imagined which cannot be expressed. "Be joyful in God every land:" let no one jubilate in a part: let every land be joyful, let the Catholic Church jubilate. The Catholic Church embraceth the whole: whosoever holdeth a part and from the whole is cut off, should ...
Lie. Prove faithless to thee, (Psalm xvii. 46.) notwithstanding the evidence of thy wonders, and their deceitful professions. Thus the Samaritans pretended they wished to assist the Jews to build the temple; yet soon after obtained an order from court to hinder it, 1 Esdras iv. 1., and viii. 36. (Calmet)
Pharao frequently promised to let the people go, but as often broke his word. (Worthington)
They had been moved with servile fear. (Menochius)
The sight of God's judgments upon the world was enough to inspire terror. (Worthington)
Psalm. Cassiodorus, add, "of David. "But it is thought, he was not the author of this and the following piece, as his name is not in the original. (Calmet)
This argument is, however, of small weight.
Resurrection. Hebrew, Origen's Septuagint, omit these words, (Berthier, T. iii.) which seem to have been added by some Greek Christian, who thought he perceived some allusion to the resurrection of Christ, ver. 9. The Fathers have well explained it in this sense, though they also apply it literally to the return of the captives, (Theodoret; Calmet) and to the general resurrection, the end of all the miseries of the elect, (Bellarmine) as well as to the conversion of the Gentiles, (Genebrard) and the resurrection of a soul from the state of sin. (Haydock)
