Psalms 149:6
The high praise of God shall be in their mouth: and two-edged swords in their hands:
Open Psalms 149:6 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Exaltationes Dei in gutture eorum, et gladii ancipites in manibus eorum :
- Septuagint (Swete)
- αἱ ὑψώσεις τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν λάρυγγι αὐτῶν, καὶ ῥομφαῖαι δίστομοι ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτῶν,
- Hebrew (WLC)
- רוֹמְמ֣וֹת אֵ֭ל בִּגְרוֹנָ֑ם וְחֶ֖רֶב פִּֽיפִיּ֣וֹת בְּיָדָֽם
Haydock's commentary
Hands. He seems to allude to the regulation of Nehemias, (2 Esdras iv. 17.; Haydock) or to the Machabees, who were priests and soldiers. They shall proclaim God's praises, and defend the nation. In the spiritual sense, Catholics employ the two-edged sword of the Old and New Testament against heretics, and exercise the power of Christ in excommunicating the wicked. (St. Jerome)
Our Saviour enables the saints to judge at the last day, Matthew xix. 28. (Calmet)
This chiefly regards such as have left all things, like the apostles, and those who embrace a monastic life, Matthew iv. 20., and xix. 27., Acts iv. 34., and 1 Corinthians vi. 3.
They shall judge whether people have made good or bad use of their possessions. (St. Augustine) (Ven. Bede)
All the blessed will approve of God's sentence; and their example in overcoming difficulties, will evince the baseness of the wicked, who have yielded to less temptations. (Worthington)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm CXLIX
7. But the saints who “exult in glory,” no need is there for us to say how they exult: just hear the verse of the Psalm which followeth: “The saints shall exult in glory, they shall rejoice in their beds:” not in theatres, or amphitheatres, or circuses, or follies, or market places, but “in their chambers.” What is, “in their chambers”? In their hearts. Hear the Apostle Paul exulting in his closet: “For this is our glory, the testimony of our conscience.” On the other hand, there is reason to fear lest any be pleasing to himself, and so seem to be proud, and boast of his conscience. For every one ought to exult with fear, for that wherein he exulteth is God’s gift, not his own desert. …
St Gregory Nazianzen On the Arrival of the Egyptians
IX. This being so, if any be on the Lord’s side let him come with us, and let us adore the One Godhead in the Three; not ascribing any name of humiliation to the unapproachable Glory, but having the exaltations of the Triune God continually in our mouth. For since we cannot properly describe even the greatness of Its Nature, on account of Its infinity and undefinableness, how can we assert of It humiliation? But if any one be estranged from God, and therefore divideth the One Supreme Substance into an inequality of Natures, it were marvellous if such an one were not cut in sunder by the sword, and his portion appointed with the unbelievers, reaping any evil fruit of his evil thought both now and hereafter.