For inquisition shall be made into the counsels of the ungodly: and the sound of his words shall come unto the Lord for the manifestation of his wicked deeds.
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Augustine of Hippo
AD 430
So that human beings would not complain that they lacked something, what they were unable to read in their own hearts was written on tablets of stone. It is not true that they did not have a law written in their hearts. It is only that they refused to read it. What they should have read in their consciences was thus put before their eyes. People were urged to look into their hearts by the voice of God, coming, as it were, from without. As Scripture says, "He will inquire into the counsels of the godless." Now, where there is an inquiry, there must also be law. But, because human beings, in their desire for exterior things, had become strangers even to themselves, they were also given a written law. Not because the law had not already been written on their hearts, but because you had fled from your heart, and he who is everywhere wanted to find you again and compel you to return to yourself. And what does the written law call out to those who have distanced themselves from the law impre...
Perhaps the good that has come to us from the Lord"s passion should be attributed to the godless people who killed Christ? Absolutely not. They wanted to kill; God permitted it. They would have been guilty even if they had had only the intention. As for God, he would not have permitted the crime if it had not been just. Let us suppose that they had not been able to carry out their crime but had only wanted to: they would have been equally unjust, equally murderers. Who can doubt this? It is true that "the Lord scrutinizes the righteous and the godless," and "he will inquire into the counsels of the ungodly." God sees, therefore, what someone wants, and not only what he is able to do. It follows that, if the Jews had wanted to kill Christ but were unable to carry out their intention (and therefore actually would not have killed him), they would have still been guilty, while you would have been without the advantages of the passion of Christ. The godless therefore wanted to carry out act...
Is God perhaps circumscribed by a place"he to whom every conscience is present, angelic and human, not only good but also evil? This distinction is truly important: whereas to good consciences he is present as Father, to bad consciences he is present as judge. In fact, it is written, "God judges the righteous and the ungodly." It is also written, "The thoughts of the ungodly will be examined." The Lord does not make himself heard to the ears of the body more strongly than he does in the secret of one"s thoughts, where he alone listens, where he alone is heard. - "Sermon 12.3.3"
