Ancient Christian Writers Index

Ancient Christian Writers Series

This series is put out by Paulist Press and was also published by Newman Press (in 1962 Paulist Press acquired Newman Press). I will eventually provide more details for each volume, and provide links to the older volumes that are freely available online or available to borrow from the Internet Archive (IA).

Note: Please do not steal this material. Do not cut-and-paste it to another blog, forum, or any other public document of any kind. This is original work. Respect it. Feel free to link to this material.

01. St. Clement Of Rome & St. Ignatius. The Epistles of St. Clement of Rome and St. Ignatius of Antioch. Trans. by James A. Kleist SJ. Westminster, MD: The Newman Press, 1949; Paulist Press, 1978. (IA)

St. Clement’s epistle, written c. 96, is called the first epistle, and is a model of a pastoral letter. The epistles of St. Ignatius, Bishop of Smyrna at the beginning of the second century, are addressed to six Christian communities.

02. St. Augustine. First Catechetical Instruction (De Catechizandis Rudibus). Trans. by Joseph P. Christopher. Westminster, MD: The Newman Press, 1946/1952; Paulist Press, 1978. (IA)

Written about the year 405, this treatise is unique in that it embodies both a manual for the catechist and a catechesis for the prospective catechumen.

03. St. Augustine. Faith, Hope and Charity (Enchiridion de fide, spe et caritate). Trans. by Louis A. Arand, SS. Westminster, MD: Newman, 1947. (IA)

Augustine has given us here a fairly complete compendium of his whole theology and the system on which it rests.

04. Julianus Pomerius. The Contemplative Life (De vita contemplativa). Trans. by Mary Josephine Suelzer. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1947. (IA)

Written around the end of the fifth century or the beginning of the sixth, this work, composed at the urgent request of a bishop, is an expression of the ideals of the contemplative and the active life, supplemented by a discussion of the vices and the virtues.

05. St. Augustine. The Lord’s Sermon on the Mount (De sermone domini in monte). Trans. by John J. Epson, SS. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1948. (IA)

This work was written between the years 393 to 396, when Augustine served as a priest at Hippo. In the first book he answers the question of the true meaning of The Sermon on the Mount: Is it humanely possible to put The Sermon into practice? The second book deals with the sixth and seventh chapters of this Gospel, and offers a condensed theology of prayer.

06. The Didache; The Epistle of Barnabas; The Epistle and the Martyrdom of St. Polycarp; The Fragments of Papias; The Epistle to Diognetus. Trans. by James A. Kleist, SJ. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1948. (IA)

The Didache or The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, probably written before the end of the first century, purports to be an instruction based on sayings of the Lord and given by the Twelve Apostles to pagans who wished to become Christians. The Epistle of Barnabas is a homily on the mistaken Judaistic conception of the Old Testament. The Epistles consist of a covering note and a letter, which is an exhortation to the Philippians on Christian life in general. The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp is the story of this bishop of Smyrna’s death at the hand of the Roman authorities in Asia for the defense of the Christian faith. The Fragments of Papias. Papias, bishop of Hierapolis in Asia Minor, was the author of five book entitled Exegesis of the Lord’s Gospel. The Epistle to Diognetus is an apology for Christianity, presented by an unknown writer to a pagan of high social or political rank.

07. Arnobius of Sicca. The Case Against the Pagans (Adversus nationes), Vol. 1. Trans. by George E. McCracken. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1949. (IA)

This is in many ways the most remarkable patristic document now extant, the last surviving apology composed before the end of the persecutions.

08. Arnobius of Sicca. The Case Against the Pagans (Adversus nationes), Vol. 2. Trans. by George E. McCracken. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1949. (IA)

This is in many ways the most remarkable patristic document now extant, the last surviving apology composed before the end of the persecutions.

09. St. Augustine. Greatness of the Soul (De quantitate animae), The Teacher (De magistro). Trans. by Joseph M. Colleran CSSR. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1950. (IA)

Among the earlier writings of Augustine, the first work treats the nature of the human soul, its dignity and grandeur. The second discusses the fundamental question of how man acquires knowledge. Each is in the form of a dialogue.

10. St. Athanasius. The Life of St. Anthony. Trans. by George E. McCracken. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1950. (IA)

The most important document of early monasticism, written in 357, this is a biography of the recognized founder and father of monasticism.

11. St. Gregory the Great. Pastoral Care (Regula Pastoralis). Trans. by George E. McCracken. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1950. (IA)

St. Gregory deals with the great responsibility of the episcopal office and its onerous nature.

12. St. Augustine. Against the Academics (Contra Academicos). Trans. by George E. McCracken. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1950. (IA)

Made up of three books that are the earliest extant works of St. Augustine, these works claim to give a reliable picture of the mind and way of life of one of the greatest figures of the West, precisely at the moment that was for him most critical and vital.

13. Tertullian. Treatises on Marriage and Remarriage To His Wife (Ad Uxorem), An Exhortation to Chastity (De exhortatione castitatis), Monogamy (De monogamia). Trans. by William P. Le Saint, SJ. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1951; Paulist Press, 1978. (IA)

Three treatises on marriage, though not generally classified among Tertullian’s major compositions, are works of considerable interest and importance.

14. St. Prosper of Aquitaine. The Call of All Nations (De vocatione omnium gentium). Trans. by P. De Letter, SJ. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1952. (IA)

This is the first treatise in ancient Christian literature on the problem of the salvation of infidels. It is a controversial work written around 450 against the Semi-Pelagians, probably at Rome.

15. St. Augustine. Sermons for Christmas & Epiphany. Trans. by Thomas Comerford Lawler. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1952; New York, NY: Paulist Press, 1978. (IA)

Of all his works, it is Augustine’s sermons that give us the best portrayal of this brilliant and profoundly spiritual man presenting and interpreting the divine mysteries to his own people.

16. St. Irenaeus. Proof of the Apostolic Preaching. Trans. by Joseph P. Smith, SJ. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1952. (IA)

Written in the form of a letter, the Proof is a manual of theology designed to serve as a guide to salvation and a way to refute heretics. It was composed in Lyons and dates from the end of the second to the beginning of the third century.

17. The Works of St. Patrick. St. Secundinus: Hymn of St. Patrick. Trans. by Ludwig Bieler. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1953. (IA)

St. Patrick did not consider himself a man of letters; the short texts that survive reflect, however, his powerful personality. A contemporary and fellow missionary of St. Patrick, Secundinus is an enthusiastic admirer and defender of St. Patrick in this hymn.

18. St. Gregory of Nyssa. The Lord’s Prayer, The Beatitudes. Trans. by Hilda C. Graef. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1954; Paulist Press, 1978. (IA)

The two series of homilies presented here are intensely practical, full of examples from the moral, social, medical, and scientific life of Gregory’s time. They paint a picture of a man thoroughly conversant with human nature in general, and in the needs of his contemporaries.

19. Origen. Prayer, Exhortation to Martyrdom. Trans. by John J. O’Meara. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1954. (IA)

Composed c. 233, the treatise on prayer is not merely a treatise, but a prayer itself. The Exhortation was composed c. 235 to provide solace for Origen’s great friend and patron, Ambrose, and the presbyter, Protoctetus, both of whom had been imprisoned.

20. Rufinus. A Commentary on the Apostles’s Creed (Commentarius in symbolum apostolorum). Trans. by J. N. D. Kelly. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1955; Paulist Press, 1978. (IA)

His most important work, aimed at persons under instruction for the sacraments, the Commentary offers a guide to elucidating and justifying the Creed. It offers a glimpse of popular Christian propaganda at the beginning of the fifth century.

21. St. Maximus the Confessor. The Ascetic Life, The Four Centuries on Charity. Trans. by Polycarp Sherwood, OSB. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1955. (IA)

The Ascetic Life is a dialogue between a young novice and an old monk on how to achieve the Christian life. The Four Centuries is a collection of aphorisms.

22. St. Augustine. Problem of Free Choice (De libero arbitrio). Trans. by Dom Mark Pontifex. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1955. (IA)

One of Augustine’s most important works, written between 388 and 395, this dialogue has as its objective not so much to discuss free will for its own sake as to discuss the problem of evil in reference to the existence of God, who is almighty and all-good.

23. Athenagoras. Embassy for the Christians, The Resurrection of the Dead. Trans. by Joseph Hugh Crehan SJ. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1955. (IA)

These treatises date from the last third of the second century. Athenagoras of Athens belonged to that select group of Christian laymen known as the Apologists, who supported the successors of the apostles in the ministry of the faith by defending that faith and pleading for a just hearing before the pagan majority and pagan overlords.

24. Tertullian. The Treatise Against Hermogenes (Adversus Hermogenem). Trans. by J. H. Waszink. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1956. (IA)

Hermogenes was still living when Carthage’s native son took up his pen to oppose him, but that did not make Tertullian’s polemic more considerate, or his satire less passionate and biting. Hermogenes taught a form of materialism. Tertullian brilliantly convicts him of contradiction.

25. St. Cyprian. The Lapsed (De lapsis), The Unity Catholic Church (De ecclesiae catholicae unitate). Trans. by Maurice Bevenot, SJ. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1957. (IA)

St. Cyprian’s writings portray vividly the life of the Christian church in the middle of the third century. The two pastoral addresses of this intensely devout bishop reveal the aftermath of the persecution by the Emperor Decius.

26. Origen. The Song of Solomon, Commentary & Homilies. Trans. by R. P. Lawson. Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1957. (IA)

Origen’s Commentary, the first great work of Christian mysticism, is characterized by extraordinary richness of thought and depth of mystical conception. The Homilies seem to have been written only a few years after the Commentary probably before 244.

27. St. Methodius. The Symposium: Treatise on Chasity. Trans. by Herbert Musurillo, SJ. New York: Paulist Press, 1958. (IA)

The Symposium, or Banquet, is a dialogue in imitation of Plato, written by Methodius, a teacher and probably a bishop, who flourished in Lycia during the period known as the “little peace of the church.” It is perhaps the most beautiful symbolic prose-poem of the early patristic period.

28. Tertullian. Treaties on Penance (De paenitentia); On Purity (De pudicitia). Trans. by William P. Le Saint, SJ. New York: Paulist Press, 1958. (IA)

The judgment that one forms of the theory and practice of penance in Christian antiquity will be largely determined by the interpretation which one puts upon these two treatises. On Penitence dates from Tertullian’s Catholic period, and is a sermon addressed to the faithful on the subject of repentance and forgiveness. On Purity is one of his most violent Montanist treatises. In it he criticizes the policy the church follows in granting pardon to serious sins.

29. St. Augustine. On the Psalms (Enarrationes in psalmos), Vol. 1: Psalms 1–29. Trans. by Dame Scholastica Hebgin and Dame. New York: Paulist Press, 1960. (IA)

This volume covers Augustine’s notes and commentaries on Psalms 1 through 29. Augustine’s theme is the church, less as an external institution than as the very focus and center of God and Christ.

30. St. Augustine. On the Psalms (Enarrationes in psalmos), Vol. 2: Psalms 30–37. Trans. by Dame Scholastica Hebgin and Dame. New York: Paulist Press, 1960. (IA)

“Saint Augustine shows in simple, forceful language that the psalms…are also part of the first phase of Christ’s revelation, pointing toward the future. Since the saint was talking to his parishioners, his approach is concrete and leisurely.” Jubilee. Psalms 30–37 are treated here.

31. St. John Chrysostom. Baptismal Instruction. Trans. by Paul W. Harkins. New York: The Newman Press, 1963. (IA)

This series of eight instructions on baptism were given by St. John Chrysostom, probably at Antioch about 390. Their interest lies in Chrysostom’s activity as a mystagogue for the baptismal candidates and as their instructor in Christian doctrine and morality immediately after their initiation.

32. St. Prosper of Aquitaine. Defense of St. Augustine. Trans. by P. De Letter, SJ. Westminster, MD: The Newman Press, 1963. (IA)

The first document of the Semi-Pelagian controversy, the Defense involves several mutually connected points of doctrine, all of them centered on the gratuity of grace or on the very idea of grace as an undeserved gift of God. A layman connected with the monasteries of Marseilles, Prosper left Gaul for Rome and lived there until after 455.

33. Jerome. Letters of St. Jerome, Vol. 1. Trans. by Charles Christopher Mierow. Westminster, MD: The Newman Press, 1963. (IA)

No other source gives such an intimate portrait of this brilliant and strong minded individual, one of the four great doctors of the West and generally regarded as the most learned of the Latin fathers.

34. Palladius. Lausiac History. Trans. by Robert T. Meyer. Westminster, MD: The Newman Press, 1965. (IA)

Palladius has written an important history of early monasticism in Egypt with these biographic sketches or notes on some sixty holy men and women he had met or heard of. The work, dating from 419 or 420, is dedicated to Lausus, the royal chamberlain at the court of Emperor Theodosius II.

35. Paulinus of Nola. Letters of St. Paulinus of Nola, Vol. 1. Trans. by P. G. Walsh. Westminster, MD: The Newman Press, 1966. (IA)

Twenty-two prose letters that serve as a spiritual autobiography and intimate view of monastic life in Gaul and Nola, near Naples, in the fifth century.

36. Paulinus of Nola. Letters of St. Paulinus of Nola, Vol. 2. Trans. by P. G. Walsh. Westminster, MD: The Newman Press, 1967. (IA)

Volume 2 contains letters 23–51.

37. Firmicus Maternus. Error of the Pagan Religion. Trans. by Clarence A. Forbes. New York: The Newman Press, 1970. (IA)

A distinguished and literate convert, as well as a former astrologer, Firmicus Maternus called for the ferocious and brutal destruction of paganism by the state. Addressing the brothers, emperors Constantius and Constans, this work was written no later than 350.

38. Egeria. Diary of a Pilgrimage. Trans. by George E. Gingras. New York: The Newman Press, 1970. (IA)

Written in the first part of the fifth century, this work is a charming record of the observations of a Christian woman on a lengthy pilgrimage to the Holy Lands. Her firsthand account is a work of major significance for the fields of archaeology, church history, philology, and comparative liturgy.

39. The Octavius of Marcus Minucius Felix. Trans. by G. W. Clarke. New York: The Newman Press, 1974. (IA)

This work is a defense of Christianity composed in clear and direct imitation of Cicero, by a practicing advocate at Rome of African background, writing within the first third of the third century.

40. Paulinus of Nola. The Poems of St. Paulinus of Nola. Trans. by P. G. Walsh. New York: The Newman Press, 1975. (IA)

In general, the corpus of Paulinus’s poetry has as its purpose to encourage Christians to persevere in a life of Christian commitment and to demonstrate to nominal Christians and to benevolent non-Christians the nature of that commitment. None of the extant poems were written after 409.

41. St. Augustine. The Literal Meaning of Genesis (De Genesi ad litteram), Vol. 1: Books 1–6. Trans. by John Hammond Taylor, SJ. New York: Paulist Press, 1982. (IA)

A thorough and conscientious commentary on the first three chapters from the Book of Genesis, completed in 415. Augustine's purpose is to explain, to the best of his ability, what the author intended to say about what God did when he made heaven and earth. Contains Books 1–6.

42. St. Augustine. The Literal Meaning of Genesis (De Genesi ad litteram), Vol. 2: Books 7–12. Trans. by John Hammond Taylor, SJ. New York: Paulist Press, 1982. (IA)

A thorough and conscientious commentary on the first three chapters from the Book of Genesis, completed in 415. Augustine's purpose is to explain, to the best of his ability, what the author intended to say about what God did when he made heaven and earth. Contains Books 7–12.

43. Cyprian of Carthage. The Letters of St. Cyprian of Carthage, Vol. 1: Letters 1–27. Trans. by G. W. Clarke. Ramsey, NJ: Paulist Press, 1984. (IA)

Written from Roman North Africa, primarily between 250 and 258, and meant to be circulated and copied, the four volumes of letters provide an entry into Cyprian’s social and mental world and a glimpse of some of the spiritual horizons of an articulate mid-third-century provincial Roman. The first volume contains letters from the year 250.

44. Cyprian of Carthage. The Letters of St. Cyprian of Carthage, Vol. 2: Letters 28–54. Trans. by G. W. Clarke. Ramsey, NJ: Paulist Press, 1983. (IA)

The correspondence in this volume covers the period from approximately high summer of 250 to mid-251.

45. Palladius. Dialogue on the Life of St. John Chrysostom (Dialogus de Vita Sancti Joannis Chrysostomi). Trans. by Robert T. Meyer. New York: Newman Press, 1985. (IA)

Probably written in 406–408, this dialogue between an unidentified bishop and Theodore, a deacon of the church of Rome, has as its aim to point out Chrysostom as a model of what a true Christian bishop should be.

46. Cyprian of Carthage. The Letters of St. Cyprian of Carthage, Vol. 3: Letters 55–66. Trans. by G. W. Clarke. New York: Paulist Press, 1986. (IA)

The letters in this volume cover the period from mid 251 to 254, and reveal details of the persecution under Gallus, and the African Council meetings over the years 251–253.

47. Cyprian of Carthage. The Letters of St. Cyprian of Carthage, Vol. 4: Letters 67–82. Trans. by G. W. Clarke. New York: Newman Press, 1989. (IA)

The letters in this volume were composed over the years 254–258, when Cyprian was martyred.

48. St. Augustine. On Faith and Works (De fide et operibus). Trans. by Gregory J. Lombardo, CSC. Mahwah, NJ: Newman; Paulist Press, 1988. (IA)

Composed in 413, this work refutes certain writings that taught that good works were not necessary to obtain eternal life, that faith alone was sufficient for salvation.

49. Theodoret of Cyrus (or Theodoretus Cyrrhensis, Bishop of Cyrrhus). On Divine Providence (De providentia). Trans. by Thomas Halton. Mahwah, NJ: Newman Press, 1988. (IA)

Theodoret can be called the last great torchbearer of Christian rhetoric in Asia and De providentia is regarded by many as exhibiting his literary power in its highest form. Written c. 437.

50. Maximus of Turin. Sermons of St. Maximus of Turin. Trans. by Boniface Ramsey, OP. New York: Newman Press; Paulist Press, 1989. (IA)

Maximus’s sermons are models of a good, popular homiletic style that must have been widespread. Short, characterized by a love of imagery, and with passages of great beauty, they are direct and easy to understand, and in them Maximus manifests his engagement with his rural, superstitious and devout congregation. Maximus’s ministry in Turin dates to the years between c. 390 and 408/423.

51. Cassiodorus. Explanation of the Psalms, Vol. 1. Trans. by P. G. Walsh. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1990. (IA)

The composition of this work can be allotted to the period of the 540’s and 550’s. Cassiodorus deploys the psalms not only for the purposes of instruction in theology and hermeneutics, but also to inculcate a general education in eloquence.

52. Cassiodorus. Explanation of the Psalms, Vol. 2. Trans. by P. G. Walsh. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1990. (IA)

The composition of this work can be allotted to the period of the 540’s and 550’s. Cassiodorus deploys the psalms not only for the purposes of instruction in theology and hermeneutics, but also to inculcate a general education in eloquence.

53. Cassiodorus. Explanation of the Psalms, Vol. 3. Trans. by P. G. Walsh. New York and Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1990. (IA)

The composition of this work can be allotted to the period of the 540’s and 550’s. Cassiodorus deploys the psalms not only for the purposes of instruction in theology and hermeneutics, but also to inculcate a general education in eloquence.

54. Origen. Treatise on the Passover and Dialogue with Heraclides. Trans. by Robert J. Daly, SJ. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1992. (IA)

The Treatise on the Passover dates from around 245. Its central insight is that the Passover is not a figure or type of the passion of Christ, but a figure of Christ himself, of Christ’s passing over to the Father. The Dialogue with Heraclides probably comes from between the years 244 and 249. It seems to be the record of a synod-like meeting of bishops, in the presence of lay people, called to discuss matters of belief and worship. Both pieces seem to come from the last decade of Origen’s activity, when he was at the height of his powers.

55. St. Irenaeus of Lyons. Against the Heresies, Book 1. Trans. by Dominic J. Unger. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1991. (IA)

This work, which establishes Irenaeus as the most important of the theologians of the second century, is a detailed and effective refutation of Gnosticism, and a major source of information on the various Gnostic sects and doctrines. This volume contains Book One.

56. St. Justin Martyr. The First and Second Apologies. Trans. by Leslie William Barnard. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997. (IA)

An English translation from Greek of Justin Martyr's two major apologetic works, which are recognized as a formative influence on the development of Christian theology in the early church.

57. John Cassian. The Conferences. Trans. by Boniface Ramsey, OP. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 1997. (IA)

The first complete English translation of John Cassian’s (c. 360–430) Conferences, a work that records dialogues between Cassian and his traveling companion, Germanus, and the great desert masters on the recurring theme of purity of heart, which is the goal of the spiritual life.

58. John Cassian. The Institutes. Trans. by Boniface Ramsey, OP. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2000. (IA)

The first written work of John Cassian in which he shares the wisdom of Egyptian monasticism, especially rules of monastic life and lessons on battling the eight principal vices.

59. Evagrius Ponticus. Ad Monachos. Trans. by Jeremy Driscoll. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2003. (IA)

Proverbs from this desert father, translated for the first time into English.

60. Quodvultdeus of Carthage. The Creedal Homilies. Trans. by Thomas M. Finn. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2004. (IA)

The Creedal Homilies is a translation and commentary on the recently recovered and critically edited homilies on the Nicene Creed, delivered by Quodvultdeus, the last pre-Vandal archbishop of Carthage and young contemporary of St. Augustine.

61. Isidore of Seville. De Ecclesiasticis Officiis. Trans. by Thomas L. Knoebel. New York: Newman Press, 2008. (IA)

This is the first complete English translation of De Ecclesiasticis Officiis (DEO) of St. Isidore of Seville (d. 636), considered the last Latin father of the church. The work is an invaluable source of information about liturgical practice and church offices.

62. Origen. Homilies 1–14 on Ezekiel. Trans. by Thomas P. Scheck. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2010. (IA)

This is the first English translation of Origen’s fourteen Homilies on Ezekiel, made from the Latin translation of St. Jerome.

63. Julian of Toledo. Foreknowledge of the World to Come (Prognosticum Futuri Saeculi). Trans. by Sergio Stancati, OP. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2010. (IA)

The first English translation of the Prognosticum futuri saeculi of Julian of Toledo (624–690), the most ancient treatise of Christian eschatology.

64. St. Irenaeus of Lyons. Against the Heresies, Book 3. Trans. by Dominic J. Unger and Matthew C Steenberg. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2012. (IA)

Book 3 of St. Irenaeus’s best-known work, Adversus Haereses (Against the Heresies), presented in a new translation with an introduction and notes.

65. St. Irenaeus of Lyons. Against the Heresies, Book 2. Trans. by Dominic J. Unger. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2012. (IA)

In this book, St. Irenaeus of Lyons refutes the gnosis of the Valentinians and the Marcionites from reason.

66. St. Jerome. Commentary on Ecclesiastes. Trans. by Richard J. Goodrich. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2012. (IA)

This first-ever translation into English of this early work by St. Jerome includes a commentary by the translators that not only elucidates the difficulties but also presents an original view of Jerome’s approach to the theological issues raised by this challenging book of the Bible.

67. Theodoret of Cryus. A Cure for Pagan Maladies. Trans. by Thomas Halton. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2013. (IA)

This is the “last of the Christian apologies,” written by influential author and bishop of Cyrrhus (ca. 393–ca. 457).

68. St. Jerome and Origen. Jerome. Commentary on Isaiah, Origen, Homilies 1–9 on Isaiah. Trans. by Thomas P. Scheck. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2015. (IA)

Jerome is best known as the translator of the Latin Vulgate Bible. In medieval times, Jerome was declared to be one of the four great Doctors of the Latin church. The Council of Trent spoke of him as “the greatest doctor in the explanation of Holy Scripture.” Jerome’s Commentary on Isaiah is his longest extant work and considered by many to be his magnum opus. Scheck has offered the English speaking world the first translation of this work. The work is heavily indebted to the Greek exegetical tradition, especially Origen.

69. Theodore the Studite. Writing on Iconoclasm. Trans. by Thomas Cattoi. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2015. (IA)

Famous for his writings exploring the nature and purpose of the monastic life, Theodore the Studite (759–826) was also the author of numerous apologetic works on the theology of the icon, where prose and poetry brought together theological depth and mystical inspiration. In the context of the iconoclast revival that swept through Byzantium in the early years of the ninth century, Theodore was the chief advocate of the legitimacy of icon veneration, and argued for the fundamental congruence between this practice and the Christological vision of the early councils. As John Damascene had done during the eighth century, Theodore envisages the icon as the synthesis of the Christian faith in the incarnation; its veneration is not only the litmus test of doctrinal orthodoxy, but it is also an integral part of the spiritual practice of the Christian, for whom Christ’s resurrection points towards the eschatological redemption of the cosmos. This volume makes available in English for the first time all the writings by Theodore on the subject of iconoclasm. It will be of great interest to scholars and students of early Christian theology and spirituality, as well as to anyone eager to explore the relationship between spiritual practice and the visual arts.

70. Sulpicius Severus. Complete Works. Trans. by Richard J. Goodrich. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2016. (IA)

The first complete English translation since the late nineteenth century of the works of Sulpicius Severus, an early fifth-century Gallic writer.

71. St. Jerome. Commentary on Ezekiel. Trans. by Thomas P. Scheck. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2017.

In this massive volume, patristics scholar Thomas P. Scheck offers a worthy sequel to his magisterial St. Jerome’s Commentary on Isaiah (ACW 68) with the first translation into a modern language of St. Jerome’s Commentary on Ezekiel, his second longest Old Testament commentary. With these two volumes together, Paulist Press now offers Jerome’s two longest commentaries, which are also considered his greatest works. With current interest in the Old Testament prophets, especially the major prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel, at a high level, the Ancient Christian Writers series makes available a new, significant title to the works of Jerome in the English language.

72. St. Irenaeus of Lyons. Against the Heresies, Books 4–5. Trans. by Dominic J. Unger. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2024.

73. Isidore of Seville. Sententiae. Trans. Thomas L. Knoebel. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2018.

Isidore of Seville is one of the dominant contributors to the development of medieval Catholic theology. Sententiae, his major theological work, is arranged in three divisions or books. The first is a dogmatic part, presenting the doctrinal assertions of the Catholic faith. This is followed by two additional books, developing the moral principles and correct behavior necessary to attain eternal union with God, the highest good―summum bonum―who is the subject of the first assertion of faith in Book 1. The work presents a marvelously holistic view of faith and action, developing the relationship between the intellectual and moral, the individual and social life of the Christian believer, all in the context of eternal life.

74. Teachings of the Desert Fathers. Trans. by Richard J. Goodrich. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2020.

Beginning in the fourth century, stories about the Egyptian desert fathers were written in Greek, and collections of them were then translated into Latin. In 1615, Heribert Rosweyde, SJ, gathered the extant collections and published them. While some of the other “books” in the collection have been translated into English, this is the first English translation of Books III, VI, and VII.

An English translation of several Latin collections of the Apophthegmata patrum, including the Commonitiones Sanctorum Patrum, Vitae patrum 6, Paschasius of Dumium’s Geronticon, and excerpts from Vitae patrum 3 and 7.

75. Chromatius of Aquileia. Sermons and Tractates on Matthew. Trans. by Thomas P. Scheck. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2018.

St. Chromatius (345?–407) was a friend and supporter of both Jerome and Rufinus of Aquileia, as well as of Sts. Ambrose and John Chrysostom. His Homilies on Matthew were rediscovered in modern times and translated into French in the SC series, and more recently into Italian. Pope Benedict XVI devoted one of his catecheses to Chromatius, based on the Italian version of the homilies. This new English translation of the homilies and tractates will include a substantial introduction that covers biographical matters, involvement with the Origenist controversy between Rufinus and Jerome, and the controversy over John Chrysostom’s deposition in which Chromatius supported John.

76. Pelagius. Commentaries on the Thirteen Epistles of Paul with the Libellus fidei. Trans. by Thomas P. Scheck. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2022.

The British monk Pelagius (360?–420) is best known for his claim that human beings could perform good works on their own strength, without need of divine assistance, a teaching condemned by the Council of Carthage (417–418).

Yet, before this, Pelagius also penned a collection of commentaries on all the Pauline epistles. This new volume will include new English translations of all of Pelagius’s Pauline Commentaries, including the commentary on Romans, thought to be thus far the only commentary to have been previously translated into English.

The commentaries are not only of interest in demonstrating an orthodox side of someone condemned as a heretic but, perhaps even more importantly, they are of extreme importance for the history of Pauline exegesis.

77. Jerome. Commentary on Daniel. Trans. Thomas P. Scheck. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2024.

St. Jerome: Commentary on Daniel is a new annotated and introduced English translation the based on the Sources Chrétiennes edition of 2019.

78. St. Cyprian: Pamphlets on Pandemics. Trans. Geoffrey D Dunn. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2024.

This volume contains his De mortalitate and Ad Demetrianum, both dealing with a Christian understanding of pandemic, a topic of international interest given the Covid experience of the last few years. The former addresses concerns within the Christian community about why they are suffering as though they were being punished equally with non-Christians and the second addresses non-Christian concerns that Christian non-participation in societal religious practice was responsible for the appearance of the pandemic. There is an extensive introduction to the two works that situate them within Cyprian’s literary output and within the history of pandemic. The reader is invited to take the sense of powerlessness that was experienced in the early days of Covid to appreciate afresh how threatened people must have felt in a world without the medical capacity to combat disease.

Alphabetical Name List of the Fathers in the Series with Wiki Biographical Links:

Arnobius of Sicca (AD c. early 4th century–c.330)
Athenagoras of Athens (AD c.133–c.190)
Augustine of Hippo (AD 354–430)
Cassiodorus (AD 490–c.585)
Chromatius of Aquileia (AD d. c. 406/407)
Clement of Rome (AD c.35–99)
Cyprian of Carthage (AD c.210–258)
Egeria (AD fl.381/2–386)
Evagrius Ponticus (AD 345–399)
Firmicus Maternus (AD c.280–c.360; fl.306–337)
Gregory of Nyssa (AD c.335–c.395)
Gregory the Great (AD c.540–604)
Iranaeus (AD c.130–c.202)
Isidore of Seville (AD c.560–636)
Jerome (AD c.342/347–420)
John Cassian (AD c.360–c.435)
John Chrysostom (AD c.347–407)
Julian of Toledo (AD 642–690)
Julianus Pomerius (AD d. c. 499–505)
Justin Martyr (AD c.100–c.165)
Marcus Minucius Felix (AD d. c.250)
Maximus of Turin (AD c.380–c.465)
Maximus the Confessor (AD c.580–662)
Methodius (AD d. c.311)
Origen (AD c.185–c.253)
Palladius (AD fl.408–431; d. c. 457/461)
Patrick (AD b. c.385–d. c.461)
Paulinus of Nola (AD c.354–431)
Pelagius (AD fl.390–418)
Prosper of Aquitaine (AD c.390–c.455)
Quodvultdeus of Carthage (AD d. c.450)
Rufinus (AD c.344/345–c.410/411)
Secundinus (AD d. c.447/448)
Sulpicius Severus (AD c.363–c.425)
Tertullian (AD c.155–c.220)
Theodore the Studite (AD 759–826)
Theodoret of Cyrus (AD c.393–c.458/466)

Divided by Era:

Ante-Nicene Era Collection

Arnobius of Sicca: The Case against the Pagans, Volumes 1 & 2
Athenagoras: Embassy for the Christians, The Resurrection of the Dead
Origen: Homilies 1–14 on Ezekiel
Origen: Prayer, Exhortation to Martyrdom
Origen: The Song of Songs, Commentary and Homilies
Origen: Treatise on the Passover and Dialogue of Origen with Heraclides and His Fellow Bishops on the Father, the Son, and the Soul
St. Cyprian: The Lapsed and The Unity of the Catholic Church
St. Irenaeus of Lyons: Against the Heresies, Book 2
St. Irenaeus of Lyons: Against the Heresies, Book 3
St. Irenaeus of Lyons: Against the Heresies, Volume 1, Book 1

St. Irenaeus. Proof of the Apostolic Preaching
St. Justin Martyr: The First and Second Apologies
St. Methodius: The Symposium: A Treatise on Chastity
Tertullian: The Treatise against Hermogenes
Tertullian: Treatises on Marriage and Remarriage: To His Wife, An Exhortation to Chastity, Monogamy
Tertullian: Treatises on Penance: On Penitence and On Purity
The Didache, The Epistle of Barnabas, The Epistles and the Martyrdom of St. Polycarp, The Fragments of Papias and The Epistle to Diognetus
The Epistles of St. Clement of Rome and St. Ignatius of Antioch
The Letters of St. Cyprian of Carthage, Volume I, Letters 1–27
The Letters of St. Cyprian of Carthage, Volume II, Letters 28–54
The Letters of St. Cyprian of Carthage, Volume III, Letters 55–66
The Letters of St. Cyprian of Carthage, Volume IV, Letters 67–82

St. Cyprian: Pamphlets on Pandemics
The Octavius of Marcus Minucius Felix

Nicene Era Collection

Chromatius of Aquileia. Sermons and Tractates on Matthew

Egeria: Diary of a Pilgrimage
Evagrius Ponticus: Ad Monachos
Firmicus Maternus: The Error of the Pagan Religions
John Cassian: The Conferences

John Cassian: The Institutes
Palladius: Dialogue on the Life of St. John Chrysostom
Palladius: The Lausiac History

Pelagius. Commentaries on the Thirteen Epistles of Paul with the Libellus fidei
Prosper of Aquitaine: Defense of St. Augustine

Prosper of Aquitaine: The Call of All Nations
Quodvultdeus of Carthage: The Creedal Homilies: Conversion in Fifth-Century North Africa
Rufinus: A Commentary on the Apostles’s Creed
St. Athanasius: The Life of Saint Antony
St. Gregory of Nyssa: The Lord’s Prayer, The Beatitudes
St. Jerome: Commentary on Ecclesiastes

St. Jerome: Commentary on Ezekiel
St. Jerome-Origen: Commentary on Isaiah, Origen Homilies 1–9 on Isaiah

St. Jerome: Commentary on Daniel
St. John Chrysostom: Baptismal Instructions

Sulpicius Severus. Complete Works
The Letters of St. Jerome, Volume I, Letters 1–22
The Sermons of St. Maximus of Turin
Theodoret of Cyrus: A Cure for Pagan Maladies
Theodoret of Cyrus: On Divine Providence

Post-Nicene Era Collection

Cassiodorus: Explanation of the Psalms, Volume I
Cassiodorus: Explanation of the Psalms, Volume II
Cassiodorus: Explanation of the Psalms, Volume III
Isidore of Seville: De Ecclesiasticis Officiis

Isidore of Seville. Sententiae
Julian of Toledo: Foreknowledge of the World to Come (Prognosticum Futuri Saeculi)
Julianus Pomerius: The Contemplative Life
Letters of St. Paulinus of Nola, Volume I
Letters of St. Paulinus of Nola, Volume II

St. Gregory the Great: Pastoral Care
St. Maximus the Confessor: The Ascetic Life, The Four Centuries on Charity

The Poems of St. Paulinus of Nola
The Works of St. Patrick: St. Secundinus: Hymn on St. Patrick

Theodore the Studite. Writing on Iconoclasm

Augustine Volumes

St. Augustine. Against the Academics

St. Augustine. First Catechetical Instruction

St. Augustine. Faith, Hope & Charity

St. Augustine. Greatness of the Soul, The Teacher

St. Augustine. On Faith and Works

St. Augustine. On the Psalms, Vol. 1

St. Augustine. On the Psalms, Vol. 2

St. Augustine. Problem of Free Choice

St. Augustine. Sermons for Christmas & Epiphany

St. Augustine. The Literal Meaning of Genesis, Vol. 1

St. Augustine. The Literal Meaning of Genesis, Vol. 2

St. Augustine. The Lord’s Sermon on the Mount

Martin Luther (1483–1546) on Psalm 51:1; Being A Strong Encouragement to Prayer

Note: This is so good as an encouragement for us sinners to pray, I had to blog it, even though it does not pertain to the usual subject matter of my blog.

1. Have mercy on me, O God, according to Thy steadfast love; according to Thy abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.

David mentions God and makes no reference to Christ. Here at the very beginning you should be reminded of something so that you do not think that David is talking about God like a Mohammedan or like some other Gentile. David is talking with the God of his fathers, with the God who promised. The people of Israel did not have a God who was viewed “absolutely,” to use the expression, the way the inexperienced monks rise into heaven with their speculations and think about God as He is in Himself. From this absolute God everyone should flee who does not want to perish, because human nature and the absolute God—for the sake of teaching we use this familiar term—are the bitterest of enemies. Human weakness cannot help being crushed by such majesty, as Scripture reminds us over and over. Let no one, therefore, interpret David as speaking with the absolute God. He is speaking with God as He is dressed and clothed in His Word and promises, so that from the name “God” we cannot exclude Christ, whom God promised to Adam and the other patriarchs. We must take hold of this God, not naked but clothed and revealed in His Word; otherwise certain despair will crush us. This distinction must always be made between the Prophets who speak with God, and the Gentiles. The Gentiles speak with God outside His Word and promises, according to the thoughts of their own hearts; but the Prophets speak with God as He is clothed and revealed in His promises and Word. This God, clothed in such a kind appearance and, so to speak, in such a pleasant mask, that is to say, dressed in His promises—this God we can grasp and look at with joy and trust. The absolute God, on the other hand, is like an iron wall, against which we cannot bump without destroying ourselves. Therefore Satan is busy day and night, making us run to the naked God so that we forget His promises and blessings shown in Christ and think about God and the judgment of God. When this happens, we perish utterly and fall into despair.

David is not speaking this way with the absolute God. He is speaking with the God of his fathers, with the God whose promises he knows and whose mercy and grace he has felt. Therefore when a Turk, a hypocrite, or a monk says, “Have mercy on me, O God,” this is as though he had said nothing. He does not take hold of the God he names as He is veiled in the sort of mask or face that is suited to us; but he takes hold of God and invades Him in His absolute power, where despair, and Lucifer’s fall from heaven into hell, must necessarily follow (Is. 14:12). This is the reason why the Prophets depended so upon God’s promises in their prayers, because the promises include Christ and make God not our judge or enemy, but a God who is kind and well disposed to us, who wants to restore to life and save the condemned.

I wanted to mention this first because of other passages in the Prophets. Now we must consider whether it is appropriate for him to say, “Have mercy on me.” If you look at the persons dealing with each other here, God and the sinner David, their great dissimilarity and an insoluble contradiction will appear. Is it not the feeling of all nature and a judgment of all men that God hates sin? As the blind man says (John 9:31), “We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if any one is a worshiper of God and does His will, God listens to him.” In the Decalog it says (Ex. 20:5), “I, the Lord, your God, am a jealous God.” Yes, throughout Moses there is almost nothing but sheer threats against the wicked and disobedient, and the feeling of nature agrees with the Law of Moses, a feeling we cannot eradicate in any way. All men judge this way: “You are a sinner, but God is righteous. Therefore He hates you, therefore He inflicts punishments upon you, therefore He does not hear you.” Nothing in our nature can deny this conclusion. Hence almost all the holy fathers who wrote about the psalms expounded “the righteous God” to mean that He righteously avenges and punishes, not that He justifies. So it happened to me when I was a young man that I hated this name for God, and from this deep habit I still shudder today when I hear someone say, “the righteous God.” So great is the power of wicked teaching if the mind is imbued with it from childhood. Yet almost all the early theologians expound it this way. But if God is righteous in such a way that He righteously punishes according to deserts, who can stand before this righteous God? For we are all sinners and bring before God a righteous reason for Him to inflict punishment. Out of here with such a righteousness and such a righteous God! He will devour us all like a consuming fire (Deut. 4:24). Because God sent Christ as Savior, He certainly does not want to be righteous in punishing according to deserts. He wants to be righteous and to be called righteous in justifying and having mercy on those who acknowledge their sins.

Therefore when David the sinner says, “Have mercy on me, O God,” it sounds as though he were speaking against the whole Decalog, in which God commands you not to be a sinner and threatens sinners with punishment. What harmony can there be between a sinner and God, who is righteous and truthful, the enemy and foe of sinners, who by His very nature cannot stand sins? Yet David, who later says (v. 3), “I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me,” this David, I say, calls on God and says, “Have mercy on me.” This is really what they call the conjunction of two things that are incompatible. So at the very beginning David shows an art and a wisdom that is above the wisdom of the Decalog, a truly heavenly wisdom, which is neither taught by the Law nor imagined or understood by reason without the Holy Spirit.

Nature always thinks this way, and it says to itself: “I dare not lift my eyes to heaven; I am afraid of the sight of God. I know both that I am a sinner and that God hates sins. So what shall I pray?” Here a very hard battle begins. Either the mind is confused within itself by the consciousness of sin and believes that it should delay praying until it finds some worthiness within itself, so to speak; or it looks around at human counsels and sophistic consolations so that it first thinks about satisfactions that will enable it to come before God with some confidence in its own worthiness and say, “Have mercy on me, O God.” This is the constant belief of our nature, but it is highly dangerous. It encourages our minds to trust in our own righteousness and to think we can please God with our own works. This is a blasphemous presumption of our own merits against the merit of Christ. Since we are born in sins, it follows that we shall never pray unless we pray before we feel that we are pure of all sins.

Therefore we must drive away this blasphemous notion. In the very midst of our sins, or to put it more meaningfully, in the very sea of our sins, we must use the means David uses here, so that we do not put off praying. What does the word “have mercy” accomplish if those who pray are pure and do not need mercy? As I have said, this is a very bitter battle, that in the very feeling of sin a mind can be aroused to cry to God, “Have mercy on me.” From my own example I have sometimes learned that prayer is the most difficult of almost all works, I who teach and command others! Therefore I do not profess to be a master of this work, but rather confess that in great danger I have often repeated the words very coldly, “Have mercy on me, O God,” because I was offended by my unworthiness. Still the Holy Spirit won out by telling me: “Whatever you may be, surely you must pray! God wants you to pray and to be heard because of His mercy, not because of your worthiness.”

For a proper understanding of the fact that God hates sinners and loves the righteous, we must distinguish between the sinner who feels his sins and the sinner who does not feel his sins. God does not want the prayer of a sinner who does not feel his sins, because he neither understands nor wants what he is praying for. Thus a monk living in superstition often sings and mumbles, “Have mercy on me, O God.” But because he lives with trust in his own righteousness and does not feel the uncleanness of his own heart, he is merely reciting syllables and neither understands nor wants the thing itself. Besides, he adds things that contradict his prayer. He prays for forgiveness, he prays for mercy; meanwhile, by this means or that he is looking for expiation of his sin and for satisfaction. Is not this really an open mockery of God? It is just as though a beggar were constantly crying out for alms and when someone offered him some, he would begin to brag about his riches, that is, his poverty, and thus clearly show that he does not need the alms.

Thus the enemies of the Gospel count words. Not only do they fail to understand this, but they do things that contradict it, when they undertake various acts of worship, when they look for the forgiveness of sins by wicked Masses, pilgrimages, invocation of the saints, and the like. Such sinners, who are sinners but do not feel that they are sinners, who go along with stubborn brow and justify themselves, who persecute the Word of God—such people, I say, should be kept far away from all mercy. Before them you should set sayings of wrath, in which God does not offer mercy but eternal punishments, as in the First Commandment (Ex. 20:5): “I am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and the fourth generation.” To them you should set forth examples of divine wrath, the destruction of Sodom, the coming of the Flood over all flesh, the scattering of the holy people, and whatever other fearful spectacles of the judgment and wrath of God there may be in the Scriptures. Thus the callous and impenitent sinners will be brought to a knowledge of themselves, and they will begin a serious plea for mercy. These are the ones of whom it is said, “God hates the sinners; God does not hear the sinners.”

The other sinners are those who feel their sins and the wrath of God and who are afraid before the face of God. These people apply to themselves the threats set forth in the Word of God, and the fearful examples of divine wrath so depress them that they are afraid of the very same punishments because of their sins. When, amid these terrors, the mind has thus been crushed by the hammer of the Law and the judgment of God, this is really the place, time, and occasion to grasp this divine wisdom. Then the heart consoles itself and is sure that when God is wrathful against sinners, He is wrathful only against those who are hard and callous. About those who feel the burden of their sins, it is said (Ps. 147:11): “The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him.” Then the Law has done enough, the lightning flashes of the wrathful God should stop, and in their place should shine the lights of mercy set forth in the Word of God: that the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him; that God does not despise a contrite and humble heart (Ps. 51:17); that His ears are open (Ps. 10:17) and His eyes attentive to the needy to lift him from the ash heap (Ps. 113:7); that He helps the bruised reed and restores the dimly burning wick (Is. 42:3). Such people are “the most tender little worm”—as Jerome’s translation says of David in 2 Samuel 23:8, though it is not in the Hebrew—and the tender flower, which is moved and shaken by even the slightest breeze of divine threatening. The others, the callous, meanwhile stand unmoved by any preaching of repentance, like iron mountains in a great storm. Amid these terrors of conscience, therefore, you must see to it that these terrified minds do not judge according to their nature and sense, since this would plunge them into despair. Just as sicknesses that are different in nature have different remedies, so those who are terrified should be strengthened with words of grace, while those who are hard should be smashed with a rod of iron. In such dangers of conscience the pope with his theologians cannot give sound advice, as I experienced for myself. They all judge according to nature, which says, “I am a sinner, but God is righteous; therefore the same punishment awaits me as awaits other sinners.” Here nature shrinks back and cannot see the rays of mercy in the clouds of divine wrath. But here comes our true theology and teaches that when minds are terrified this way, then one part of theology is finished, the part that uses the Law and its threats. Thus the sinner begins to know himself and casts out the smugness in which we all naturally live before this revelation of wrath. We must not stop here, but go on to the knowledge of the other part of theology, the part that fulfills the whole of theological knowledge: that God gives grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5). Those threats and horrible examples apply to the hardened and smug sinners; to them God is jealous and a devouring fire (Deut. 4:24). The contrite and fearful are the people of grace, whose wounds the good Shepherd wants to bind up and heal, the Shepherd who gives His life for the sheep (John 10:11). Such people should not give in to the thoughts of their hearts, which persuade them that because of their sins they ought not to pray or hope for grace. With David they should cry out, “Have mercy on me, O God,” for such people are well pleasing to God. The theology of this psalm is unknown to the schools of the papists. Look at David here. With his mouth open he breaks out in the words “Have mercy on me, O God.” Thus he combines things that by nature are dissimilar, God and himself the sinner, the Righteous and the unrighteous. That gigantic mountain of divine wrath that so separates God and David, he crosses by trust in mercy and joins himself to God. This is really what our theology adds to the Law. To call on God and to say, “Have mercy,” is not a great deal of work. But to add the particle “on me”—this is really what the Gospel inculcates so earnestly, and yet we experience how hard it is for us to do it. This “on me” hinders almost all our prayers, when it ought to be the only reason and highest occasion for praying.

Therefore we must first study David’s example so that we may rightly look at the pronoun “on me” and be sure that it means a sinner, as he clearly points out later when he says (v. 5), “I was conceived in sin.” There he confesses that this “me” is the greatest of sinners. Let us also learn this so that the crowd of thoughts that seek to hinder us might rather urge us on even more to cry out to God, as we read of the blind man in the Gospel that when he was rebuked, “he cried out all the more” (Mark 10:48). In ourselves we experience this crowd of thoughts upbraiding us: “Why do you want to pray? Do you not know what you are and what God is?” This crowd of thoughts is very burdensome for the spirit, and it hinders very many. We must despise it and pray for the very reason that seems to call us away from prayer, so that somehow we break through that crowd to Christ and ask for mercy. Those who do this pray rightly, but a truly great struggle of spirit is necessary. I have learned from my own experience that these thoughts often drove prayer away from me. Nevertheless, by the grace of God I came to the knowledge that I must not surrender to Satan as he attacked me with his arrows, but tearing them from him by the power of the Spirit I turned the weapons against the enemy himself and said: “You frighten me away from prayer because I am a sinner. But I see that I must pray most of all because of this one reason, that I am a very great sinner and have need of mercy.”

The same must be done in the very heat of temptation, when the mind is tempted with thoughts of lust or vengeance. If someone is urged to pray under these circumstances, the mind immediately protests that it is impure, as though among these dirty thoughts there could be no room for prayer. Here you should insist on the contrary that we must not expect temptation to end or thoughts of lust or other vice to disappear completely from the mind. In the very moment in which you feel that the temptation is strongest and that you are least prepared for prayer, go off into a solitary place (Matt. 6:6), and pray the Lord’s Prayer or whatever you can say against Satan and his temptation. Then you will feel the temptation subsiding and Satan turning tail. If anyone thinks that prayer should be put off until the mind is clean of impure thoughts, he is doing nothing but using his wisdom and strength to help Satan, who is already more than strong enough. This is really heathen and sophistic religion, the very teaching of Satan. Against it we must maintain the example and teaching of this psalm, where we see that David, viewing his total impurity and his special sin of the flesh, does not flee from God, the way Peter foolishly said in the ship (Luke 5:8), “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” But with trust in mercy he breaks out in prayer and says, “Lord, if I am a sinner, just as I am, have mercy on me.” Just because our hearts really feel sin, we ought to come to God through prayer all the more. Formerly we had to flee and be afraid of God, when there was danger that we might fall into sin. Since the Fall we ought to hope for forgiveness and ask for it instead of remaining in thoughts of wrath and fear. Now Satan is trying to turn that order around, so that in committing sins we are smug and without the fear of God, and after they have been committed, we remain in fear, without hope or trust in mercy.

Look at David, as I said, clearly taking refuge in mercy and saying, “Have mercy on me, O God.” It is as though he were saying: “I know that I am evil and a sinner, and that Thou art righteous. That I arise and dare to pray, all this I do with trust in Thy Word and promises. I know that Thou art not the god of the Mohammedans or the monks, but the God of our fathers, who hast promised that Thou wilt redeem sinners—not simply sinners but such sinners as know and feel that they are sinners.” Therefore let us also dare to say: “Have mercy on me, O God. I am a sinner, tempted by flesh and blood, anger and hate. But my hope is in Thy mercy and goodness, which Thou hast promised to those who thirst for righteousness (Matt. 5:6).” This cannot be adequately expressed in words, but our own experience is necessary in addition. This teaches what hard work it is to climb over the mountain of our own unworthiness and sins standing between God and us as we are about to pray. Although it is here that we feel the weakness of faith most, still we ought to hold to the consolation that we are not alone in saying, “Have mercy on me, O God.” The Spirit is saying and praying the same thing with us in our hearts, “with sighs too deep for words” (Rom. 8:26). As we do not see or fully understand these sighs, so God, who is also a spirit, sees them most clearly and understands them most fully. Struggling in the midst of conflict or of temptation, therefore, we ought to resist Satan with trust in this Intercessor and say: “If I am a sinner, so what? God is merciful. If I am unfit for prayer because of my sins, well and good. I do not want to become more fit. For, alas to God, I am more than fit for prayer, because I am an exceedingly great sinner.”

It is the teaching of this passage that conscious sinners—I call them this for instruction’s sake—should have courage, and that God the Righteous and man the sinner should be reconciled, so that in our sins we are not afraid of God but sing with David, “Have mercy.” To keep the pronoun “on me” and the name “God” from hindering us, let us put between them the verb “have mercy,” by which God and man the sinner are reconciled. Unless this happens, we shall not only be unable to sing this psalm properly, but we shall also be unable to pray the Lord’s Prayer correctly, because in this life it will never happen that we are pure of all sins. Even though “actual sins,” as they are called, may be absent—and this is very rare—still original sin will not be absent. Since we are continually in sin, we must also continually pray, as the reverent hearts of Christians pray every moment, because every moment they see their unworthiness and want it forgiven. These constant sighs of the Christian heart are disturbed and covered by thoughts, and sometimes by duties, so that we do not always see them. Therefore it is really a theological virtue to cover our sin with prayer this way, and when we feel our weakness, to take refuge in this song: “Have mercy on me, O God.”

But after we have said how God the Righteous and man the sinner are to be reconciled, we must also remember to look properly at the word “Have mercy.” If we considered it more carefully, we should have to declare that our whole life is enclosed and established in the bosom of the mercy of God. Since we are all the “me” here, that is, sinners, the conclusion follows clearly and necessarily that whatever we are and live is all by sheer grace, not by our righteousness or merit. “What then,” you say, “ought not the Ten Commandments to be kept? And if they are kept, is not that righteousness?” I answer: We want to keep and observe the Ten Commandments, but with a large, that is, truly evangelical dispensation or distinction. We have received only the first fruits of the Spirit (Rom. 8:23), and the sighs of the Spirit remain in our hearts. Our flesh with its lusts and desires remains, too, the whole tree with its fruits. This is the reason why the Ten Commandments can never be kept fully. Otherwise, if the Ten Commandments could be kept in their entirety, what need would there be of the righteousness for which David prays in the word “Have mercy”? What need would there be of imputation? Now, since even in the saints there are still remnants of sin that have not yet been completely mortified, two things happen: Through the Spirit dwelling in us we resist sin and obey the Ten Commandments; and yet, driven to sin by flesh and Satan, we hope for the forgiveness of sins.

Thus sacrifice was a form of obedience under the Law, and yet the prophet says (v. 16): “Thou hast not wanted sacrifice and burnt offering.” They were sacrifices, but in the sense that they did not do away with mercy. In the same way we keep the Law through the Holy Spirit, and yet the word “Have mercy” remains; that is, we remain sinners and have need of the free forgiveness of sins through the merit of Christ. Thus mercy is our whole life even until death; yet Christians yield obedience to the Law, but imperfect obedience because of the sin dwelling in us. For this reason let us learn to extend the word “Have mercy” not only to our actual sins but to all the blessings of God as well: that we are righteous by the merit of another; that we have God as our Father; that God the Father loves sinners who feel their sins—in short, that all our life is by mercy because all our life is sin and cannot be set against the judgment and wrath of God.

Therefore David does not merely say, “Have mercy on me, O God,” but he adds, “according to Thy steadfast love,” and he simply keeps quiet about any merit or any righteousness of works. He does not say, as did that man in the Gospel (Luke 18:12), “I fast twice a week.” He does not say, “Have mercy on me according to the merit of condignity or congruity.” What do these things have to do with mercy? It is for the monks, not for David, to brag about merit and other things. The story is told that in the hour of death the brother of a certain king said to God, “Grant me what Thou hast promised, for I have given Thee what Thou hast commanded.” I would not want this to be my voice in the hour of death! We must speak differently (Ps. 143:2): “Enter not into judgment with Thy servant”; and again (Ps. 51:9): “Blot out my iniquity.” Of what merit can we boast that deserved even this seemingly minor blessing, that God has preserved our eyesight? David is silent about his own righteousness and merit; he wants God to deal according to His great mercy. In this way he disentangles himself not only from his own righteousness but also from the wrath of God, and he holds no picture before his eyes but that of the merciful, rejoicing, and laughing God. For he declares that God has great mercy, because of which He neither wants nor thinks anything but forgiveness and blessing.

This picture of a gracious and merciful God is a picture that gives life. By it he shields the pronoun “on me,” throws wrath into the corner, and says, “God is gracious.” This is not the theology of reason, which counsels despair in the midst of sin. David feels sin and the wrath of God, and yet he says, “Have mercy on me, O God.” Reason does not know this teaching, but the Holy Scriptures teach it, as you see in the first verse of this psalm. The individual words are purely and chastely placed, but they are the words of the Spirit which have life. From them spiritual men learn to distinguish between sinner and sinner, between God and God, and learn to reconcile the wrath of God or the wrathful God with man the sinner.

You will say, “It does not happen this way, that I am taught by your word and thus learn to think the same for myself.” We must assert that as you believe, so it will happen to you, because this faith is not taken from your judgment but drawn from the Word of God. Therefore if you can grasp this and believe that God is well pleased with those who fear Him (Ps. 147:11), then it will happen this way to you. If you do not grasp it, you are not under His pleasure but under His wrath, according to Christ’s saying (Matt. 8:13), “As you have believed, so be it done for you.” The thought of God’s wrath is false even of itself, because God promises mercy; yet this false thought becomes true because you believe it to be true. However, the other thought, that God is gracious to sinners who feel their sins, is simply true and remains so. You should not suppose that it will be this way because you believe this way. Rather be assured that a thing which is sure and true of itself becomes more sure and true when you believe it. On the other hand, if you believe that God is wrathful, you will certainly have Him wrathful and hostile to you. But this will be a demonic, idolatrous, and perverse thought, because God is served if you fear Him and grasp Christ as the object of mercy.

This is true theology about the true God and the true worship of God. It is false theology that God is wrathful to those who acknowledge their sins. Such a God is not in heaven or anywhere else, but is the idol of a perverse heart. The true God says (Ezek. 33:11): “I do not want the death of the sinner, but that he might turn from his way and live.” This is proved also by the present example of David and his prayer. At the outset we reminded you that we should not only look at the example of David here, but should change the psalm into a general teaching that applies to all men without exception. Thus the Epistle to the Romans (3:4) quotes as a general statement the words (Ps. 116:11) that all men are liars, and also says (Rom. 11:32): “God has consigned all men to disobedience, that He may have mercy upon all.” In the same way we said about David that he includes the death and life of the whole human race, not merely his own sin. Therefore God is the same sort of God to all men that He was to David, namely, one who forgives sins and has mercy upon all who ask for mercy and acknowledge their sins.

Also pertinent here is his use of repetition or rather amplification, when he adds: “According to Thy abundant mercy blot out my transgression.” He asked previously that God in mercy should turn His eyes away from his sins; in this phrase he does the same, but with greater agitation and spirit. He takes hold of God the Promiser and turns the whole vision of his heart upon His mercy. He could not do this if he had not taken hold of God the Promiser with the help of the Spirit and known that in God there remained a hope of forgiveness for sinners, as he says in another psalm (Ps. 130:4), “There is forgiveness with Thee, that Thou mayest be feared.” He is not looking for satisfaction, nor for a corner where he can prepare for grace, but by a direct course he steers for the countenance of God and His mercy. This he knows not from his own heart nor from the dictates of right reason—for in sin, reason flees from God, and the conscience cannot raise itself to the light by which it believes that God has mercy, grace, and favor left for sinners—but from the promises which he sees broadcast everywhere, even in the Law and the Decalog. Even though God threatens sinners here, He still keeps the name “a God merciful” (Ex. 34:6). The promises to Adam, to Abraham, and to others testify to the same thing. In our temptations we must do likewise. Whenever we are stung and vexed in our conscience because of sins, let us simply turn our attention from sin and wrap ourselves in the bosom of the God who is called Grace and Mercy, not doubting at all that He wants to show grace and mercy to miserable and afflicted sinners, just as He wants to show wrath and judgment to hardened sinners. This is true theology, which this verse of the psalm also manifests when it says, “According to Thy abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.”

The word רַב is used for a set and continuous quantity, as in German we also say grosz gelt for much money and for money in great quantity. The word חֶסֶד is also familiar. Paul often renders it with blessing or εὐεργεσία, as in 1 Timothy 6:2, where he says to slaves that they should honor their masters, and then gives the reason: “Because,” he says, “they are partakers of the benefit” of the Gospel. Sometimes he also translates it as “love.” The Greek translator made it “steadfast love,” as in that passage in Hosea 6:6: “I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice,” that is, that you should love one another and bless others. So he translates here: “Have mercy on me, O God, according to Thy steadfast love.” The other word, רֶחֶם, means to have clemency, not to want to look at the sin of another, but to forget and overlook it, as in the passage (Ex. 33:19): “I will show mercy on whom I will show mercy,” that is, I will forget and forgive his sins. From this there comes the noun רַחֲמִים, which our translator renders with “abundant mercy.” This is Hebrew grammar, and those who do not know it should be urged to learn it.

Now look how beautifully David combines these two things: first, that God is merciful, that is, that He freely blesses us undeserving ones; second, that He gives us the forgiveness of sins, which we accept by faith through the Holy Spirit and His promises. If God did not freely forgive, we should have no satisfaction and no remedy left. Not by our fasting nor by other works, not by angels nor by any other creature, is there salvation. Our only salvation is if we flee to the mercy of God and seek blessing and forgiveness from God, asking Him not to look at our sins and transgressions, but to close His eyes and to deal with us according to His steadfast love and abundant mercy. Unless God does this, we are not worthy of being granted one hour of life or one morsel of bread.

Here, too, we experience that it is a great and difficult art to combine these two things and to fix our eyes only on the steadfast love of God and His abundant mercy. For these words are not born in our house, but are brought down from heaven by the Holy Spirit. On the other hand, these thorns are born in our hearts: “I am a sinner, and God is righteous and angry at me the sinner.” The conscience cannot pluck out these thorns; it cannot put the sinner before a gracious and forgiving God. This is the gift of the Holy Spirit, not of our free will or strength. When men are without the Spirit of God, either their hearts are hardened in sins or they despair; but both are contrary to the will of God. Therefore by the Holy Spirit David navigates between this satanic Scylla and Charybdis and throws himself securely on the abundant and endless mercy of God, saying: “Many and great are Thy abundant mercies, O Lord. But I am a sinner. I have lived badly, I am living badly, and I shall live badly as long as I live. If I want to come before Thee, I must bring other thoughts than those which my heart grants me. Therefore I confess my sins before Thee, for they are many (as he says in Psalm 32:5). But I confess my sin in such a way that at the same time I confess Thy steadfast love and Thy abundant mercies, immensely greater than my sin; as well as Thy righteousness, by which Thou dost justify sinners, infinitely more abundant than that I should despair over it.” Hence he says “abundant mercy.” By saying that the mercies are abundant, he simply denies and rejects any holiness, whether his own or other people’s. What connection could there be between abundant mercy and human holiness? If mercy is this abundant, then there is no holiness in us. Then it is a fictitious expression to speak of a “holy man,” just as it is a fictitious expression to speak of God’s falling into sin; for by the nature of things, this cannot be.

For this reason we must reject those very ancient and deep-rooted errors by which in monastic fashion we speak of Jerome or Paul as “holy.” In themselves they are sinners, and only God is holy, as the church sings [A quotation from the Gloria in Excelsis of the Mass; not, as the Weimar edition has it, from Is. 6:3]. Those whom we call “holy” are made holy by an alien holiness, through Christ, by the holiness of free mercy. In this holiness the whole church of the faithful is the same, there is no difference. As Peter is holy, so I am holy. As I am holy, so the thief on Christ’s right hand is holy. It does not matter that Peter and Paul did greater things than you or I. On both sides we are sinners by nature, and we have need of steadfast love and abundant mercy. Although the Apostles had fewer outward sins, still in their hearts they often felt presumption, loathing, thoughts of despair, denial of God, and similar defects of human weakness. So you see nothing holy, nothing good in man, as the psalm says (Ps. 53:2, 3), “God looks down from heaven upon the sons of men … There is none that does good, no, not one.” If there are not good people among the sons of men, where else could they be? Therefore let us keep quiet about holiness and holy people. We know that those have been made holy who have become conscious sinners instead of unconscious sinners. They do not presume to have any righteousness of their own—for it is nonexistent—but begin to have an enlightened heart. Thus they know themselves and God. They know that everything that is ours is evil before God and is forgiven by the free forgiveness of mercy. We and all “saints” must take refuge in this bosom, or we must be damned. God sent His Son to reveal these abundant mercies to the world and to make known this teaching, which the human heart and reason do not know. David presents it to us here when he confesses his sins and yet confesses that mercy is greater. Let all men sing this verse with David and acknowledge that they are sinners but that God is righteous, that is, merciful. This confession is a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God, and David invites us to it. He wants this to be a teaching for the whole world. When the devil or our conscience accuses us because of our sins, we can freely confess that our sins are many and great, but not despair because of them. For though our sins are many and great, nevertheless we are taught here that the mercies of God are also many and great. With this argument all the saints have defended themselves against Satan, that though they were sinners, yet they are made holy by this knowledge, according to Isaiah 53:11: “The knowledge of Christ will justify many.”

When we have once heard this, we suppose that it is easy and can be learned quickly, but it takes effort and work to hold on to this in temptation. This is no quibble about trifles [Horace, Epistolae, I, 18, 18]. The danger of eternal death is involved, and we are struggling over the salvation of our souls. We also experience not only our conscience crying out, but Satan inspiring thoughts of death because of the sins of which we are conscious. Therefore it is completely a divine power to be able to say that I am a sinner and yet not to despair. We do not come to it, as do our adversaries, by minimizing sin. Rather we should do it this way: As by its nature sin is very great and serious, so we believe that grace or mercy, is immense and inexhaustible. Thus David confesses here with a loud voice, “According to Thy abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.” This is also the import of the word “blot out,” which the prophet uses here. Paul speaks in Colossians 2:14 of Christ as “having canceled the bond which stood against us”; and Peter says in Acts 3:19: “Repent and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out.” The word “blot out” means that sins are written in our conscience with the pen of the Law. The prophet wants the memory of sin to be abolished in his heart and in the eyes of God, the way writing is erased from a tablet. Yet this should not happen in such a way that grace or gratitude disappears because guilt is thus forgiven, or that we forget grace, as Peter says (2 Peter 1:9) about those who forget the forgiveness of their old sins and by their unfaithfulness and ingratitude pile up new sins. So also today we see that the world is full of contempt for the Gospel and all sorts of licentiousness. In such people sin is not forgiven, but buried even deeper. Therefore David includes both, that sin be abolished and that the Holy Spirit be given, through whom he can resist sin. Because he asks only for the “blotting out,” it is clear how we become righteous, namely, by the mere imputation of righteousness, when sins are blotted out by grace and we are accepted into grace for Christ’s sake. But if you compare this with the dreams of the sophists and scholastics, you will see how awkwardly they taught about the forgiveness of sins and righteousness.

Martin Luther, “Psalm 51—The Psalm Miserere,” trans. J. J. Pelikan, in Luther’s Works, ed. J. J. Pelikan, H. C. Oswald, and H. T. Lehmann, 55 vols. (Saint Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1999), 12:312–326; Vol. 12: Selected Psalms I, Psalm 51:1.

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John Calvin (1509–1564) on John 12:47

The Pringle translation:

47. If any man hear my words. After having spoken concerning his grace, and exhorted his disciples to steady faith, he now begins to strike the rebellious, though even here he mitigates the severity due to the wickedness of those who deliberately—as it were—reject God; for he delays to pronounce judgment on them, because, on the contrary, he has come for the salvation of all. In the first place, we ought to understand that he does not speak here of all unbelievers without distinction, but of those who, knowingly and willingly, reject the doctrine of the Gospel which has been exhibited to them. Why then does Christ not choose to condemn them? It is because he lays aside for a time the office of a judge, and offers salvation to all without reserve, and stretches out his arms to embrace all, that all may be the more encouraged to repent. And yet there is a circumstance of no small moment, by which he points out the aggravation of the crime, if they reject an invitation so kind and gracious, for it is as if he had said, “Lo, I am here to invite all, and, forgetting the character of a judge, I have this as my single object, to persuade all, and to rescue from destruction those who are already twice ruined.” No man, therefore, is condemned on account of having despised the Gospel, except he who, disdaining the lovely message of salvation, has chosen of his own accord to draw down destruction on himself.

The word judge, as is evident from the word save, which is contrasted with it, here signifies to condemn. Now this ought to be understood as referring to the office which properly and naturally belongs to Christ; for that unbelievers are not more severely condemned on account of the Gospel is accidental, and does not arise from its nature, as we have said on former occasions.

John Calvin, “Commentary on the Gospel of John,” in Calvin’s Commentaries, 22 vols., trans. W. Pringle (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1996), 18:50–51; emphasis original. Also in John Calvin, Commentary on the Gospel according to John, vol. 2, trans. W. Pringle (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2010), 50–51.

The Parker translation:

47. If any man hear my sayings. When He had spoken of His grace and exhorted His disciples to steadfast faith, He now began to pierce the rebels. Yet even here He softened the severity deserved by the ungodliness of those who, as it were, set themselves to reject God. For He delayed pronouncing judgment on them, because He had come rather for the salvation of all. We might understand that He was not speaking here of unbelievers in general but of those who wittingly or voluntarily reject the preaching of the Gospel exhibited to them. Why then did Christ not wish to condemn them? Because He had temporarily laid aside the office of judge and offers salvation to all indiscriminately and stretches out His arms to embrace all, that all may be the more encouraged to repent. And yet He heightens by an important detail the crime of rejecting an invitation so kind and gracious; for it is as if He had said: ‘See, I have come to call all; and forgetting the role of judge, my one aim is to attract and rescue from destruction those who already seem doubly ruined.’ Hence no man is condemned for despising the Gospel save he who spurns the lovely news of salvation and deliberately decides to bring destruction on himself.

The word judge, as is clear from its antithesis save, is here put for ‘condemn’. Now this should be referred to the proper and genuine office of Christ. For that unbelievers are the more severely condemned on account of the Gospel is accidental (accidentale) and does not spring from its nature, as we have said elsewhere.

John Calvin, “The Gospel According to St John 11–21 and the First Epistle of John,” in Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries, 12 vols., ed. D. W. Torrance and T. F. Torrance, trans. T. H. L. Parker (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1994), 5:52–53.

The Latin can be read here (click).

Jean Calvin, Harmonia Ex tribus Euangelistis composita, Matthaeo, Marco & Luca: adiuncto seorsum Johanne, quòd pauca cum aliis communia habeat ([Genevae]: Oliua Roberti Stephanus, 1555), 157–58.

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