Quod duobus modis inhabitet Deus cor hominis, et quod multis nominibus dicatur inhabitatio Dei, et inhabitator Deus, et quod arca sit exemplar aedificii spiritualis.
The Twofold Dwelling of God in the Heart
God dwells in the human heart through knowledge and love, and the soul is adorned with many sacred names and images as the one house of God.
God dwells in the human heart in two ways — through knowledge, that is, and through love — yet it remains one single dwelling, because everyone who knows also loves, and no one can love what they do not know. There is a difference, however: knowledge, through the awareness of faith, raises the structure, while love, through virtue, paints the building as if by applying color over it. So it's clear that each is necessary: the structure can't shine unless it exists, and it can't please unless it shines. So go inward, now, into the secret place of your heart, and make a dwelling for God — make a temple, make a home, make a tabernacle, make an ark of the covenant, make an ark of the flood, or whatever name you call it — it is one single house of God. In the temple, let the psalmist worship the Creator; in the house, let the child honor the Father; in the tabernacle, let the soldier revere the King; in the covenant, let the follower listen to the Teacher; in the flood, let the shipwrecked soul cry out to the Pilot. God has become everything to you, and God has made everything for you. He made a dwelling and became a shelter; this one thing is the whole, and the whole is this one thing — it is the house of God, the city of the King, the Body of Christ, the Bride of the Lamb. It is heaven, it is the sun, it is the moon, it is the morning star, it is the dawn, it is the trumpet, it is the mountain, it is the wilderness, it is the promised land, it is the ship, it is the way across the sea, it is the net, it is the vineyard, it is the field, it is the ark, it is the storehouse, it is the manger, it is the yoke, it is the horse, it is the storeroom, it is the hall, it is the chamber, it is the tower, it is the camp, it is the battle line, it is the people, it is the kingdom, it is the priesthood, it is the flock, it is the shepherd, it is the sheep, it is the pasture, it is paradise, it is the garden, it is the palm, it is the rose, it is the lily, it is the spring, it is the river, it is the colonnade, it is the dove, it is the garment, it is the pearl, it is the crown, it is the scepter, it is the throne, it is the table, it is the bread, it is the spouse, it is the mother, it is the daughter, it is the sister.
All Things Exist for This Dwelling
All of Scripture, creation, and the Incarnation are ordered toward this indwelling, and the ark of Noah is given as a visible model for the spiritual building.
And so I can sum it all up more briefly: all of Scripture was written about this, for this, and because of this. The world was made because of this. The Word became flesh because of this.✦ God made low, man raised on high. If you have this, then you have everything; if you have everything, there's nothing more for you to wait for, and your heart finds its rest. As a model for this spiritual building, I'll give you the ark of Noah. Your eye will see it from the outside, so that your soul may be shaped within according to its likeness. There you'll see certain colors, forms, and figures that delight the eye. But you should know that these things have been placed there for a reason: so that through them you may learn wisdom, discipline, and virtue to adorn your soul.
The Vision of Isaiah: The Lofty Throne
The author depicts the whole person of Christ and introduces Isaiah's vision of God seated on a high and lofty throne, interpreting the throne as angelic spirits and the saints.
And because this ark signifies the Church, and the Church is the body of Christ, so that the example may become clearer to you, I've depicted the whole person of Christ—that is, the head with its members—in visible form, so that when you see the whole, you can more easily understand the things said afterward about its parts.✦ Such is the person I want to portray for you, the kind that Isaiah testified he had seen, and so I'll bring his very words forward and draw from them what I wish to show you, so that what the letter says may be confirmed by the prophet.✦1 He says therefore: 'I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and raised up.'✦ It is lofty because it is set on high; it is raised up because it has been lifted from what is below to what is above. Therefore the lofty throne is the angelic spirits; the raised-up throne is the souls of the saints, carried over from the whirlpool of this world to the joys of heavenly peace. And because God presides over both, he is said to sit on a throne that is lofty and raised up. What is said in the following passage—'The whole earth is full of his majesty'—signifies, through 'the earth,' every bodily creature, which is filled with the majesty of God.✦ For just as the divine essence presides over the spiritual creature through knowledge, so it fills the bodily creature by governing and ordering it.
The Fullness of God's Majesty and Eternity
God fills heaven and earth, his works exceed all comprehension, and his eternity is the high throne on which he sits, perfect and unchanging.
So when it says elsewhere, 'I fill heaven and earth,'✦ And again: 'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is the footstool for my feet.' At this point it says, 'I saw the Lord sitting on a high and lofty throne,' and then: 'All the earth is full of his majesty, and what was beneath him filled the temple.'✦✦✦ The temple is the capacity of angelic or human understanding — that is, the temple is clearly filled by what lies beneath it. Because the immensity of God's works is so great that no creature's intelligence is sufficient to comprehend them perfectly. Contemplating them fills our heart, yet their immensity is not grasped by our heart. So how will we be able to comprehend the maker of the work, when we cannot even fully grasp the work of the maker? We can also say that this high and lofty throne on which God sits is the eternity of his deity — because of him alone it is said, 'He who inhabits eternity' — not that God is one thing and his eternity another, but because it is the throne of those who reign, and so he is rightly said to sit on the throne of eternity, because just as no beginning or end is found in his essence, so also none is found in his omnipotence.✦ He always was, he has always been omnipotent, he has always been in himself, full and perfect from himself — and yet not overflowing beyond himself.
Time Filled with God's Works
The temple is understood as the circuit of times and ages, which are full of God's works, enclosed within eternity that has no change.
Let him say, therefore: I saw the Lord sitting on a high and exalted throne, because the power of the divinity goes before every creature in eternity, and transcends in dignity, and orders in power.✦ And those things that were under him filled the temple.✦ In this place the temple can be understood as the circuit of times and the compass of the ages. For times, while they return into themselves by their own course, as it were encircle a certain compass of the temple by their turning. What then does he mean: 'Those things that were under him filled the temple'? Thus it is to be understood: that all the times of the ages are full of the works of God, and every generation tells of his wonders.✦ Or it can be read this way. Those things that were under him filled the temple, that is, those things that filled the temple were under him, because whatever is rolled onward in time is found within and beneath eternity, for the immensity of eternity encloses the narrow stretches of time within itself, because that which never began is before time, and that which knows no end is after time. And above time is that which has received no changeability.
The Two Seraphim: The Two Testaments
The two seraphim signify the two Testaments, which first enlighten the mind and then set it ablaze with love, standing over the throne as Scripture lifts the soul upward.
The seraphim stood over it; two seraphim, two suns. The two Testaments. And fittingly — the name 'seraphim,' which means 'burning,' signifies divine Scripture, which first enlightens through knowledge those whom it will afterward cause to burn fiercely with love. For when it shows our mind what it ought to desire, it first enlightens it, and then sets it ablaze. It burns, then, because it causes burning — just as elsewhere it is said to give light because it enlightens. The apostle Peter says of this: We have the more sure prophetic word, to which you do well to take heed, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.✦ And perhaps this is why the text says 'The seraphim stood over it' — following the same figure by which Scripture itself is credited with what it produces in the hearts of those who hear it. For it rises when it raises us up; it walks when it helps us grow; it stands firm when it fixes us in good resolve. But we must ask why God is said to sit upon the throne, while the seraphim are described not as sitting but as standing upon it.
Why God Sits and the Soul Stands
God sits in eternal rest and perfection, while the soul, even when raised to God's presence, stands as a laborer striving, reaching immortal eternity only through grace.
And because we've interpreted this throne in two ways above, we need to adapt our explanation to fit each of those ways. So if by the throne of God we understand spiritual creatures, God is rightly described as sitting above the throne, because the dignity of the deity is above all things — it makes no progress in virtue, wisdom does not grow in it when its fullness cannot be increased, and eternity cannot be changed. The human mind, on the other hand, whenever it is lifted up to contemplate heavenly things, illuminated through knowledge of sacred Scripture, if it has advanced beyond even the choirs of angels, all the way to the presence of its Creator, does indeed ascend above the throne, but still it stands and does not sit, because it arrives there through laboring and striving, where by nature it had no power to remain. To stand belongs to the one laboring, to sit belongs to the one at rest; and so we stand above the throne. God sits, because through grace we begin to exist where he himself is by nature. In the same way, if by the throne we understand the eternity of God, we stand above the throne, because we can reach his immortal state only through the labor of facing death, and though by our condition we are bound to an ending, through being adopted into eternity we are made its heirs.
The Six Wings: Three Senses of Scripture
The three pairs of wings signify the three senses of Scripture — history, allegory, and tropology — each twofold because each kindles love of God and neighbor.
One had six wings, and the other had six wings — that is, each had six wings, which, joined two by two, make three pairs. With two, each covers its own body — not the Lord's — that is, the first pair. With two, each extends one wing to cover not its own head but the Lord's, and the other to cover not its own feet but the Lord's — that is, the second pair. With two, each flies, one toward the other — that is, the third pair. So if the seraphim signify sacred Scripture, the three pairs of wings are the three understandings of that same Scripture: that is, history, allegory, and tropology. Each of these is twofold, because each one kindles the minds of those who read toward love of God and love of neighbor. The two wings that cover the seraph's body are history, which, through the veil of the letter, covers mystical understandings. The two wings that are extended all the way to the Lord's head and feet are allegory, because when we learn the mystical truths of divine Scripture, we penetrate, through the illumination of the mind, to the knowledge of the divine nature itself, which is before all things and after all things. But it must be understood that the wings, though extended all the way to the head and feet, are reached only as they touch and cover, because as often as we are carried away in mind to ponder God's eternity, we find in it no beginning and no end.
Covering the Head and Feet of the Lord
The seraphim cover the head and feet of the Lord because the human mind cannot grasp God's beginninglessness or endlessness, though the blessed vision is promised in eternal life.
But with this same wing we cover his head, because we can't grasp how there is no beginning in him. We extend a wing to his feet as we consider that he comes after all things—not in time, but in eternity. But we cover his feet because we find no end in him. So by touching his head and his feet we cover them, because the more the human mind strives to investigate his eternity, the more it marvels that he is incomprehensible. Now, the fact that Isaiah doesn't say they covered his head, but rather that they covered his face, should be understood in the same way it was said to Moses: "You will not be able to see my face."✦✦ For no one will see me and live.✦ That full knowledge of the Godhead is indeed promised to the saints in eternal life, about which the Apostle says: "We will see him face to face," and again: "Then I will know just as I am known."✦ For those still living in this mortality, it is veiled and hidden.
The Unveiled Face and the Angelic Vision
The face of the Lord is left uncovered in the picture to signify that the blessed angels always see the Father's face in heaven.
But in that eternal life, it is not veiled but revealed and made clear, as the Lord bears witness in the Gospel about the blessed angels: "Their angels always see the face of the Father."✦ Because, then, it was more relevant to the present discussion that the face remain bare, we do not alter the words of prophecy but pass over them so that what is said may stand true—that no beginning in God is comprehended—and we veil the head from above. And so that what is said may hold, that "Their angels always see the face of the Father in heaven," we leave the face uncovered. The other things that are said differently here are not to be referred to prophecy but to the picture.✦2
The Wings of Holy Work and the Body's Length
The flying wings signify the tropological sense that lifts us through good works, and the body of Christ — the Church — extends from before the foundation of the world to the consummation of the age.
They were flying with two wings. These two wings, on which the seraphim fly, signify the tropological sense, because when divine Scripture instructs us through reading to do good works, we are raised up to higher things as if by certain wings. By these wings we also fly toward one another, as we are urged on to each other through the effort of good activity. Flying, then, we cry out, 'Holy, holy, holy,' if through good works we strive to amplify not our own glory but the glory of our Father who is in heaven. For what does it mean to cry out 'Holy, holy, holy' unless to openly proclaim the glory of the Creator that we have recognized within ourselves? With these things briefly explained, let us now turn to what follows. For it remains that, after we have shown what is meant by the Lord's head and his feet being described as hidden from us, we should also demonstrate what is to be thought about the rest of the body. If, then, we say that God's head is what existed before the foundation of this world, and his feet are what will come to be after the consummation of the age, we rightly understand the length of his body to be the span of time that lies between the beginning and the end.
The Church as Ark: Outside and Inside
The Church is the ark battered by external persecution and internal false brethren, yet Christ's arms embrace all things and no one escapes his power.
So the head and the feet are covered, because we cannot investigate the first things and the last things. The body appears, because we see the things that are done in the middle, in this present age. This body is the Church, which began from the beginning of the world and will endure even to the end of the age. This is the ark we proposed to speak of, which reaches from head to feet, because holy Church extends itself from beginning to end through the succession of generations. But it must be understood that just as in a human person there are things around the body that are neither in the body nor of the body, so too in the body of Christ—that is, the Church—which dwells in the midst of a depraved nation, and while it endures the assaults of unbelievers, the ark is battered outside as if by stormy waves; but while it suffers tribulation from false brothers, the body is tormented inside as if by harmful fluids. Therefore, whatever things are contrary to the body, whether they are inside or outside, are not of the body. But that the arms of the Lord embrace all things on every side means this: that all things are under his power, and no one can escape his hand—his right hand to receive a reward, or his left hand to flee from punishment. Why then should the members be anxious any longer about the salvation of the body, when they have recognized such power in the head?
Christ the Pilot of the Ark
Christ guides the Church as an ark through the flood of this life, and we must not only enter it but build it within ourselves and learn to dwell in it.
He himself knows what is good for his body, because through compassion he senses the danger, and through his power he provides the remedy. He is the one who sets a path in the sea, because his body — that is, his Church — he guides like an ark through the flood, through the storms of this life, all the way to the harbor of eternal rest. If we want to be saved, we must enter this ark. And as I said above, we must build this ark within ourselves, so that we may be able to dwell in it. It's not enough to be outside it, if we haven't also learned how we ought to dwell within it. Three things chiefly must be considered for this purpose: first, how we ought to build it within us; second, how we ought to enter it; third, how we ought to dwell in it.
The Four Arks
Four arks are distinguished — Noah's, the Church's, wisdom's, and mother grace's — two visible and two invisible, yet all one in form and likeness.
But look — as I set out to speak of one ark, the very sequence of things carries my mind along, so that now I must speak not of just one, but of four. Of these, two were made visibly, outward in visible form, while the other two are made invisibly, inward by an invisible structuring. The first is the one Noah made with axes and adzes, from wood and pitch. The second is the one Christ makes through his preachers, from the gathering of peoples into one confession of faith. The third is the one wisdom builds daily in our hearts from constant meditation on God's law. The fourth is the one mother grace works in us from the joining together of many virtues into one love. The first is in you, the second in faith, the third in understanding, the fourth in virtue. Let us call the first the ark of Noah, the second the ark of the Church, the third the ark of wisdom, and the fourth the ark of mother grace.
The One Ark and the Plan Ahead
All four arks share one form and property, and the author announces a plan to treat the remaining three briefly before lingering on the ark of wisdom.
In a certain sense, however, there is one ark everywhere, because there is one likeness everywhere, and it ought not differ in name since it does not differ in property; there is one form but different matter, because what is in the wood is in the people, and what is in the mind is the same in love. We, however, undertook to speak specifically about the ark of wisdom, and for this reason we will briefly run through the explanation of the remaining three, so that afterward we may be able to linger more freely in the explanation of this one.
Read the original Latin
Duobus modis Deus cor humanum inhabitat, per cognitionem videlicet et amorem, una tamen mansio est, quia et omnis qui novit cum diligit, et nemo diligere potest qui non novit. In hoc tamen differre videtur, quod scientia per cognitionem fidei fabricam erigit, dilectio autem per virtutem quasi colore superducto aedificium pingit. Sic autem utrum libet necessarium perspicitur, quia nec splendere potest si non fuerit, nec placere si non splenduerit. Ingredere ergo nunc si secretum cordis tui, et fac habitaculum Deo, fac templum, fac domum, fac tabernaculum, fac arcam testamenti, fac arcam diluvii, vel quocunque nomine appelles, una est domus Dei. In templo adoret psalma Creatorem, in domo veneretur filius patrem, in tabernaculo honoret miles regem, in testamento auscultet assecla praeceptorem, in diluvio imploret naufragus gubernatorem. Totum tibi factus est Deus, et totum tibi fecit Deus. Fecit habitaculum, factus est patrocinium; hoc unum totum est, et totum hoc unum est, domus Dei est, civitas regis est, corpus Christi est, sponsa Agni est. Coelum est, sol est, luna est, stella matutina est, aurora est, tuba est, mons est, desertum est, terra promissionis est, navis est, via in mari est, sagena est, vinea est, ager est, arca est, horreum est, praesepe est, subjugale est, equus est, apotheca est, aula est, thalamus est, turris est, castra est, acies est, populus est, regnum est, sacerdotium est, grex est, pastor est, ovis est, pascua est, paradisus est, hortus est, palma est, rosa est, lilium est, fons est, fluvius est, porticus est, columba est, vestis est, margaritum est, corona est, sceptrum est, thronus est, mensa est, panis est, conjux est, mater est, filia est, soror est.
Et ut brevius concludam de hac, et ad hanc, et propter hanc omnis Scriptura factus est. Propter hanc mundus factus est. Propter hanc verbum caro factum est. Deus humilis, homo sublimis. Si hanc ergo habes, totum habes, si totum habes, nihil est amplius, quod exspectes, et requiescit cor tuum. Hujus vero spiritualis aedificii exemplar tibi dabo arcam Noe, quam foris videbit oculus tuus, ut ad ejus similitudinem intus fabricetur animus tuus. Videbis ibi colores quosdam, formas et figuras, quae delectent visum. Sed scire debes, ideo haec posita esse, ut in eis discas sapientiam, disciplinam atque virtutem, quae exornent animum tuum.
Et quia haec arca Ecclesiam significat, ecclesia autem corpus Christi est, ut evidentius exemplar tibi fiat, totam personam Christi, id est caput cum membris in forma visibili depinxi, ut cum totum videris, quae deinde de parte dicuntur facilius intelligere possis. Talem autem personam hanc exprimere tibi cupio qualem Isaias so vidisse testabatur, et idcirco ejus ipsius verba in medium proferam, atque ex ipsis quod tibi demonstrare volo sumam, ut quod dicit littera probet propheta. Ait ergo: Vidi Dominum sedentem super solium excelsum et elevatum. Excelsum est quod situm est in sublimi, elevatum est quod de inferioribus translatum est ad superiora. Solium ergo excelsum sunt angelici spiritus, solium elevatum animae sanctorum de hujus mundi voragine translatae ad gaudia supernae pacis. Et quia utrisque praesidet Deus, ideo sedere perhibetur super solium excelsum et elevatum. Quod vero in sequentibus dicitur: Plena est omnis terra majestate ejus, per terram omnis corporea creatura significatur, quae plena est majestate Dei. Quia divina essentia sicut spirituali creaturae per cognitionem praesidet, ita corpoream creaturam regendo atque disponendo implet.
Quod ergo alibi dicitur: « Coelum et terram ego impleo. » Et rursum: Coelum mihi sedes est, et terra scabellum pedum meorum; hoc hic dicitur: Vidi Dominum sedentem super solium excelsum et elevatum, deinde: Plena est omnis terra majestate ejus, et ea quae sub ipso erant replebant templum. Templum est angelici sive humani intellectus capacitas, quod scilicet templum impletur ab his quae sub eo sunt. Quia tanta est divinorum operum immensitas, ut ad ea perfecte comprehendenda nullius creaturae intelligentia sufficiat. Implet cor nostrum consideratio eorum non comprehenditur a corde nostro immensitas eorum. Quomodo ergo factorem operis comprehendere valebimus, qui ipsum opus factoris ad plenum capere non valemus? Possumus etiam dicere quod solium hoc excelsum et elevatum, in quo sedet Deus, aeternitas sit deitatis, quia de ipso solo dicitur: Qui habitat aeternitatem, non quod aliud sit Deus, et aliud aeternitas ejus, sed quia solium regnantium est, et ideo recte in solio aeternitatis sedere perhibetur, quia sicut essentiae ejus, ita etiam omnipotentiae ipsius nec principium nec finis invenitur. Semper fuit, semper omnipotens fuit, semper in se, et a se plenus, et perfectus fuit, nec tamen redundans.
Dicat ergo: Vidi Dominum sedentem super solium excelsum et elevatum, quia virtus divinitatis omnem creaturam et aeternitate praecedit, et dignitate transcendit, et potestate disponit. Sequitur: Et ea, quae sub ipso erant, replebant templum. Templum in hoc loco intelligi potest circuitus temporum et ambitus saeculorum. Tempora namque dum cursu suo in seipsa redeunt, quasi quemdam templi ambitum gyrando circumscribunt. Quid ergo dicit: Ea, quae sub ipso erant replebant templum, sic intelligendum est, quod omnia saeculorum tempora plena sunt operibus Dei, et omnis generatio narrat mirabilia ejus. Vel sic legi potest. Ea, quae sub ipso erant, implebant templum, id est ea, quae implebant templum sub ipso erant, quia quidquid temporaliter volvitur, intra et infra aeternitatem invenitur, immensitas enim aeternitatis temporales angustias intra se claudit, quia et prius tempore est, quod nunquam coepit, et posterius tempore, quod finem nescit. Et supra tempus est, quod mutabilitatem non recepit.
Seraphim stabant super illud, Duo seraphim duo sun. Testamenta. Et pulchre seraphim, quod interpretatur ardens, divinam Scripturam significat, quae eos quos per cognitionem prius illuminaverit per amorem postmodum fortiter ardere facit. Dum enim menti nostrae quod desiderare debeat ostendit, prius eam illuminat, ac deinde ardentem facit. Ardet ergo quia ardentes facit, sicut alibi lucere dicitur quia illuminat, de hac enim, Petrus apostolus ait: Habemus firmiorem propheticum sermonem, cui benefacitis attendentes quasi lucernae lucenti in caliginoso loco, donec dies illucescat, et lucifer oriatur in cordibus vestris. Et fortassis secundum hanc similitudinem qua ipsi Scripturae attribui solet quod ipsa in cordibus efficit audientium, hoc dictum est: Seraphim stabant super illud. Surgit enim cum nos erigit, ambulat cum nos perficere facit, stat cum nos in bono proposito figit. Sed inquirendum est quare super solium Deus sedere dicitur, et seraphim super solium non sedere, sed stare perhibentur.
Et quia superius duobus modis hoc solium interpretati sumus, secundum utrumque modum expositionem adaptare debemus. Si ergo per solium Dei spirituales creaturas accipimus, recte super solium Deus sedens describitur quia dignitas deitatis ut sit super omnia nec virtute proficit, nec sapientia crescit, cum plenitudo augeri possit, nec aeternitas variari; mens vero humana quoties per cognitionem sacrae Scripturae illuminata ad coelestia contemplanda sublevatur, si ipsos quoque angelorum chorus transcendens usque ad praesentiam conditoris sui profecerit, super solium quidem ascendit, sed tamen stat non sedet, quia illuc proficiendo per laborem venit, ubi per naturam manere non habuit. Stare namque laborantis est, sedere quiescentis, et ideo super solium nos stamus. Deus sedet, quia esse incipimus per gratiam, ubi ipse est per naturam. Similiter si per solium aeternitatem Dei intelligimus nos super solium stamus, quia ejus immortalitatem non nisi per mortis laborem pervenire possumus, et qui ex conditione fine obnoxii sumus, ex adoptione aeternitatis haeredes efficimur.
Sex alae uni, et sex alae alteri, id est utrumque sex alas habebat, quae juncta binae et binae tria paria alarum faciunt. Utrumque duabus corpus suum tegit non domini, hoc est primum par. Utrumque duas extendit, alteram ad tegendum caput non suum sed Domini, alteram ad tegendos pedes non suos sed Domini, hoc est secundum par. Utrumque duabus volat alter ad alterum, hoc est tertium par. Si ergo seraphim Scripturam sacram significat, tria paria alarum tres sunt intellectus ejusdem Scripturae, id est historia, allegoria, tropologia, quae singula idcirco bina sunt, quia singula ad dilectionem Dei et proximi legentium animos accendunt. Duae alae, quae corpus seraphim tegunt, historia est, quae per velamen litterae mysticos tegit intellectus. Duae alae, quae usque ad caput et pedes Domini extenduntur, allegoria est; quia cum mystica divinae Scripturae discimus, usque ad ipsius divinitatis agnitionem, quae ante omnia, et post omnia est, per illuminationem mentis penetramus. Sed sciendum est quod alae extensae usque ad caput, et pedes attinguntur, sed utrumque tangentes tegunt, quia quoties ad ejus aeternitatem cogitandam per excessum mentis rapimur, nullum in eo principium aut finem invenimus.
Sed hac eadem ala nobis caput ejus velamus, quia qualiter in eo nullum sit principium comprehendere non valeamus. Alam ad pedes extendimus, dum eum post omnia esse non tempore, sed aeternitate consideramus. Sed pedes tegimus, dum in eo finem non invenimus. Tangendo ergo caput ejus, et pedes tegimus, quia quanto magis ejus aeternitatem mens humana investigare nititur, tanto magis incomprehensibilem esse miratur. Quod autem in Isaia scriptum non est velabant caput ejus, sed scriptum est: Velabant faciem ejus, eo modo intelligi debet, quo dictum est ad Moysem: Non poteris videre faciem meam. Non enim videbit me homo, et vivet. Illa quippe plena cognitio divinitatis, quae sanctis in aeterna vita promittitur, de qua dicit Apostolus: Videbimus eum facie ad faciem, et rursus: Tunc cognoscam sicut et cognitus sum. In hac adhuc mortalitate degentibus velata est, et abscondita.
In illa autem vita aeterna non velata, sed revelata est et manifesta, sicut Dominus in Evangelio de beatis angelis testatur: Angeli eorum semper vident faciem Patris. Quia ergo ad praesentem tractatum magis pertinebat, ut facies nuda remaneret, verba prophetiae non mutantes, sed praetermittentes ut verum sit, quod nullum in Deo principium comprehenditur, caput desuper velamus, et ut stare possit quod dicitur: Angeli eorum semper vident in coelis faciem Patris, faciem apertam relinquimus; caetera quoque, quae hic aliter dicuntur, non ad prophetiam, sed ad picturam referenda sunt.
Duabus alis volabant. Istae duae alae, quibus volabant seraphim, tropologiam significant, quia dum per lectionem divinae Scripturae ad bona opera instruimur, quasi quibusdam alis ad alta sublevamur. Quibus etiam volamus alter ad alterum, dum per studium bonae operationis nos invicem exhortamur. Volantes autem Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus, clamamus, si per bona opera nostra non nostram, sed Patris nostri, qui in coelis est, gloriam amplificare satagimus. Quid est enim: Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus clamare, nisi Creatoris gloriam, quam agnovimus intus, in aperto praedicare? His breviter explanatis ea, quae sequuntur, deinceps tractare incipiamus. Restat enim ut postquam ostendimus quid sibi vult, quod caput Domini, et pedes ejus nobis abscondita esse leguntur, etiam quid de reliquo corpore cogitandum sit demonstremus. Si ergo caput Dei dicimus esse quod fuit ante constitutionem hujus mundi, et pedes ejus quod futurum est post consummationem saeculi, recte longitudinem corporis ejus accipimus, quod inter principium et finem medium est spatium temporis.
Caput ergo et pedes teguntur, quia prima et novissima investigare non possumus. Corpus apparet, quia ea quae media in hoc praesenti saeculo geruntur, videmus. Hoc corpus est Ecclesia, quae coepit a principio mundi, et usque ad finem saeculi durabit. Haec est arca, de qua loqui proposuimus, quae a capite usque ad pedes pertingit, quia a principio usque ad finem per successionem generationum sancta Ecclesia se extendit. Sed sciendum est quod sicut in persona hominis alia sunt circa corpus ejus, et neque in corpore sunt, neque de corpore, ita etiam est in corpore Christi, id est Ecclesia, quae habitat in medio pravae nationis, et dum assultus infidelium excipit, quasi quibusdam fluctibus procellosis foris arca tunditur; dum vero a falsis fratribus tribulationem sustinet, quasi quibusdam noxiis humoribus intus corpus torquetur. Quaecunque ergo corpori contraria sunt sive intus sive extra sint, non sunt de corpore. Quod autem brachia Domini hinc inde complectuntur omnia, hoc significat, quod sub ejus potestate sunt universa, et nemo manum ejus vel dextram ad praemium, vel sinistram ejus effugere potest ad supplicium. Cur ergo amplius membra de salute corporis sollicita sint, quae talem capitis potestatem agnoverunt?
Ipse novit quid expediat corpori suo, qui et per compassionem sentit periculum, et per potestatem praestat remedium. Ipse est, qui in mari viam ponit, quia corpus suum, id est Ecclesiam suam, quasi arcam in diluvio, sic inter hujus vitae procellas regens usque ad portum quietis aeternae perducit. Si ergo salvari cupimus, oportet nos intrare hanc arcam. Et sicut supra dixi, hanc, arcam in nobis debemus facere, ut possimus intra nos in ea habitare. Non enim sufficit si extra nos in ea sumus, si non etiam didicerimus qualiter in nobis habitare eam debeamus. Ad quod nobis tria principaliter consideranda sunt, primum qualiter eam debeamus aedificare in nobis, secundum qualiter eam debeamus intrare in nobis, tertium qualiter eam debeamus habitare in nobis.
Sed ecce dum de una arca loqui proponimus, ita per consequentiam rerum ducitur mens nostra, ut jam non de una tantum, sed de quatuor loquendum nobis videamus. E quibus duae visibiles exterius visibiliter factae sunt, duae autem invisibiles invisibili structura intus invisibiliter fiunt. Prima est, quam fecit Noe securibus et dolabris ex materia lignorum et bitumine. Secunda est, quam fecit Christus per praedicatores suos ex collectione populorum in una fidei confessione. Tertia, quam sapientia quotidie aedificat in cordibus nostris ex jugi legis Dei meditatione. Quarta est, quam mater gratia operatur in nobis ex confoederatione multarum virtutum in una charitate. Prima est in te, secunda in fide, tertia in cognitione, quarta in virtute. Primam vocemus arcam Noe, secundam arcam Ecclesiae, tertiam arcam sapientiae, quartam arcam matris gratiae.
Quodammodo tamen una ubique arca est, quia unica ubique similitudo est, et non discrepare debet in nomine, quod non discrepat in proprietate, una est forma, diversa materia, quia quod est in ligno, hoc est in populo, et quod est in mente, idem est in charitate. Nos tamen specialiter de arca sapientiae loqui suscepimus, et idcirco reliquarum trium expositionem breviter transcurremus, ut in explanatione hujus postmodum liberius morari valeamus.
Scripture echoes
- ↩John.1.14 — And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only-begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- ↩1Cor.12.12-1Cor.12.27;Col.1.18 — For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so also is Christ. 1Cor.12.13 — For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. 1Cor.12.14 — For the body is not one member, but many. 1Cor.12.15 — If the foot should say, 'Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,' it is not for that reason any less a part of the body. 1Cor.12.16 — And if the ear should say, 'Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,' it is not for that reason any less a part of the body. 1Cor.12.17 — If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 1Cor.12.18 — But now God has placed each one of the members in the body just as he desired. 1Cor.12.19 — If they were all one member, where would the body be? 1Cor.12.20 — Now there are many parts, but one body. 1Cor.12.21 — The eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you," nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." 1Cor.12.22 — On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are in fact indispensable. 1Cor.12.23 — and the parts of the body that we consider less honorable, we clothe with greater honor; and our unpresentable parts receive greater propriety, 1Cor.12.24 — but our presentable parts have no such need. Rather, God has composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, 1Cor.12.25 — so that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 1Cor.12.26 — And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. 1Cor.12.27 — Now you are the body of Christ, and individually members of it. Col.1.18 — And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might have first place in everything.
- ↩Isa.6.1 — In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple.
- ↩Isa.6.1 — In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple.
- ↩Isa.6.3;Ps.72.19 — And one called to another and said, 'Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the fullness of the earth is his glory. Ps.72.19 — And blessed be the name of his glory forever, and may his glory fill the whole earth. Amen and Amen.
- ↩Jer.23.24 — Can a person hide in secret places so that I cannot see them? declares the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the LORD.
- ↩Isa.66.1 — Thus says the LORD: The heavens are my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What house will you build for me, and what is the place of my rest?
- ↩Isa.6.1 — In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple.
- ↩Isa.6.3 — And one called to another and said, 'Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the fullness of the earth is his glory.
- ↩Isa.57.17 — Because of his greedy gain I was angry and struck him; I hid my face and was furious, yet he kept turning back to the way of his own heart.
- ↩Isa.6.1 — In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple.
- ↩Isa.6.1 — In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple.
- ↩Ps.145.4 — One generation shall praise your works to the next, and they shall declare your mighty acts.
- ↩2Pet.1.19 — And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.
- ↩Isa.6.2 — Seraphim were standing above him; each one had six wings: with two each covered his face, with two each covered his feet, and with two each would fly.
- ↩Exod.33.20 — And he said, 'You cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.'
- ↩Exod.33.20 — And he said, 'You cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.'
- ↩1Cor.13.12 — For now we see in a mirror, dimly; but then face to face. Now I know in part; but then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.
- ↩Matt.18.10;Luke.1.19;Heb.1.14 — See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father who is in heaven. Luke.1.19 — And the angel answered him, 'I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.' Heb.1.14 — Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to serve for the sake of those who are about to inherit salvation?
- ↩Matt.18.10 — See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
Notes
- 1 ↩The phrase 'so vidisse testabatur' includes an uncertain adverb 'so' (possibly filler or emphasis); rendered loosely as 'the kind that' to preserve flow without inventing meaning.
- 2 ↩The author treats the Ark's 'head' as God's incomprehensible origin (no beginning in God) and the 'uncovered face' as the beatific vision; the shift from prophecy to picture (pictura) is a deliberate hermeneutical distinction.
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