Psalms 79:20

15. “Turn us again, O Lord God of Hosts, cause Thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.” For whithersoever the soul of man turns itself, unless towards Thee, it is affixed to sorrows, yea, though it is affixed to beauteous things without Thee and without itself. And yet they were not unless they were from Thee. They rise and set; and by rising, they begin as it were to be; and they grow, that they may become perfect; and when perfect, they wax old and perish; and all wax not old, but all perish. Therefore when they rise and tend to be, the more rapidly they grow that they may be, so much the more they hasten not to be. This is the way of them. Thus much hast Thou given them, because they are parts of things, which exist not all at the same time, but by departing and succeeding they together make up the universe, of which they are parts. …

22. For whatever other words we may say, whether the desire of the person praying go before the words, and employ them in order to give definite form to its requests, or come after them, and concentrate attention upon them, that it may increase in fervour, if we pray rightly, and as becomes our wants, we say nothing but what is already contained in the Lord’s Prayer. And whoever says in prayer anything which cannot find its place in that gospel prayer, is praying in a way which, if it be not unlawful, is at least not spiritual; and I know not how carnal prayers can be lawful, since it becomes those who are born again by the Spirit to pray in no other way than spiritually. …

28. “The Lord hath said, Out of Basan I will be turned” ( ver. 22 ): or, as some copies have, “Out of Basan I will turn.” For He turneth that we may be safe, of whom above hath been said, “God of our healths, and God of saving men.” For to Him elsewhere also is said, “O God of virtues, turn Thou us, and show Thy face, and safe we shall be.” Also in another place, “Turn us, O God of our healths.” But he hath said, “Out of Basan I will turn.” Basan is interpreted confusion. …

11. “Let Thy hand be upon the Man of Thy right hand, and upon the Son of Man whom Thou hast strengthened Thyself” ( ver. 17 ). “And we depart not from Thee.…Thou wilt quicken us, and Thy Name we will invoke” ( ver. 18 ). Thou shalt be sweet to us, “Thou wilt quicken us.” For aforetime we did love earth, not Thee: but Thou hast mortified our members which are upon the earth. For the Old Testament, having earthly promises, seemeth to exhort that God should not be loved for nought, but that He should be loved because He giveth something on earth. What dost thou love, so as not to love God? Tell me. Love, if thou canst, anything which He hath not made. Look round upon the whole creation, see whether in any place thou art held with the birdlime of desire, and hindered from loving the Creator, except it be by that very thing which He hath Himself created, whom thou despisest. …