LXXVII. On the other hand, you will find virtue not only conceiving with extraordinary joy, but also bringing forth her good offspring with laughter and cheerfulness ; and you will also find the offspring of the two parents to be actually cheerfulness itself. Xow that the wise man becomes a parent with joy, and not with sorrow, the word of God itself will testify to us when it speaks thus : " And God said unto Abraham, Sarai, thy wife, shall no longer be called Sarai, but her name shall be Sarah ; I will bless her, and give thee a son from her.'t And, afterwards, Moses proceeds to say, "And Abraham fell upon his face and laughed, and said, " Shall a son be born to him who is a hundred years old ; and shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, have a son?" Abraham, therefore, appears here to be in a state of joy, and to be laughing because he is about to Exodus iii. 9. t Genesis xvii. 15. Sarah is interpreted Princess in the margin of the bible. become the father of happiness, that is to say, of Isaac ; and virtue, that is to say, Sarah, laughs also. And the same prophet will further bear witness, speaking thus, "And it had ceased to he with Sarah after the manner of women, and she laughed in her mind and said, such happiness has never yet happened to me to this time, and my lord," that is to say, the divine Lord, "is older than I;" in whose power, however, this tiling must inevitably he, and in whose power it is becoming to place confidence. For the offspring is laughter and joy. For this is the meaning and interpretation of the name of Isaac. Therefore, let the outward sense he grieved, but let virtue be always rejoicing. For, also, when happiness, that is Isaac, was born, she says, in the pious exaltation, " The Lord has caused me laughter, and whoever shall hear of it shall rejoice with me." Open your ears, therefore, 0 ye initiated, and receive the most sacred mysteries. Laughter is joy ; and the expression, " has caused," is equivalent to " has begotten." So that what is here said has some such meaning as this, " The Lord has begotten Isaac." For he is the father of perfect nature, sowing and begetting happiness in the soul. LXXVIII. " And thy desire," says God, " shall be to thy husband. "t There are two husbands of the outward senses. The one a legal one, the other a destroyer. For the object of sight, acting upon it like a husband, puts the sense of sight in motion ; and so does sound affect the sense of hearing, flavour the sense of taste, and so on with each of the outward senses respectively. And these things attract the attention of and call the irrational outward sense to itself, and become the masters of it and govern it. For beauty enslaves the sight, and sweet flowers enslave the sense of taste, and each of the other objects of outward sense enslaves that sense which corresponds to them. See the glutton, what a slave he is to all the preparations which cooks and confectioners devise. Behold the man who is devoted to the study of music, how he is governed by the harp, or the flute, or by any one who is able to sing. But the sense which turns itself to its legitimate husband, that is to say, to the mind, derives the greatest possible advantage from that object.

XXVIII. But there are some persons whom, even before their creation. God creates and disposes excellently ; respecting whom he determines beforehand that they shall have a most excellent inheritance. Do you not see what he says about Isaac to Abraham, when he had no hope of any such thing, namely, that he should become the father of such an offspring, but did rather laugh at the promise, and asked, " Shall a son Genesis xiv. 18 f Deuteronomy iv. 39. $ Genesis xii.l. § Or, " Father of a great multitude," according to the marginal translation in the bible. K be born to me, who am a hundred years old ; and shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bring forth a child?" But God asserts it positively, and ratifies his promise saying, " Yea, behold Sarah, thy wife, shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name Isaac, and I will establish my covenant towards him for an everlasting covenant." What then is the reason which caused this man, also, to be praised before his birth ? There are some good things which are an advantage to a man both when they are past, and when they are present, such as good health, a sound condition of the outward senses, riches, if he be endowed with them, a good reputation ; for all these things may, by a slight perversion of words, be called good things. But some are so not merely when they have been given to us, but even when it is predicted that they shall be so given, as joy is a good affection of the soul ; for this does not cheer a man only when it is present and energises actively in him, but it delights him also by anticipations when it is hoped for — for it has this especial quality ; all other good qualities have their own separate operation and effect, but joy is both a separate good and a common good, for it comes as a crowning one after all the rest — for we feel joy at good health, and we feel joy at liberty and at honour, and at all other such things, so that one may say with propriety that there is not one single good thing which has not the additional good of joy. But not only do we rejoice at other good things which are already previously past and also at those which are present, but we rejoice also at good things when about to happen to us and expected ; as for instance, when we hope that we shall become rich, or that we shall obtain power, or that we shall receive praise, or that we shall find a means to get rid of an illness, or that we shall acquire vigour and strength, or that we shall become learned instead of ignorant, in all these cases we are rejoiced in no slight degree. Since, then, joy diffuses itself over and cheers the soul, not only while it is present but also even when it is expected, it was very consistent and natural for God to think Isaac worthy of a good name and of a great gift before he was born, for the name of Isaac, being interpreted, means laughter of soul, and delight, and joy.

"Blessed are all they that fear the Lord, and walk in His ways" [Psalm 128:1]. He speaketh to many; but since these many are one in Christ, in the next words he speaketh in the singular: "For thou shall eat the labours of thy fruits."...When I speak of Christians in the plural, I understand one in the One Christ. Ye are therefore many, and ye are one; we are many, and we are one. How are we many, and yet one? Because we cling unto Him whose members we are; and since our Head is in heaven, that His members may follow....Let us therefore so hear this Psalm, as considering it to be spoken of Christ: and all of us who cling unto the Body of Christ, and have been made members of Christ, walk in the ways of the Lord; and let us fear the Lord with a chaste fear, with a fear that abideth for ever....

"You shall eat the labours of your fruits" [Psalm 128:2]. And ye, O thou, you many who are One, "You shall eat of the labours of your fruits." He seems to speak perversely to those who understand not: for he should have said, you shall eat the fruit of your labours. For many eat the fruit of their labours. They labour in the vineyard; they eat not the toil itself; but what arises from their labour they eat. They labour about trees that bear fruit: who would eat labours? But the fruit of these labours, the produce of these trees; it is this that delights the husbandman. What means, "You shall eat the labours of your fruits"? At present we have toils: the fruits will come afterwards. But since their labours themselves are not without joy, on account of the hope whereof we have a little before spoken, "Rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation;" [Romans 12:12] at present those very labours delight us, and make us joyful in hope. If therefore our toil has been what could be eaten, and could also delight us; what will be the fruit of our labour when eaten? "They who went weeping on their way, scattering their seed," did eat their labours; with how much greater pleasure will they eat the fruits of their labours, who "shall come again with joy, bearing their sheaves with them"?..."Blessed are you, and well shall it be with you." "Blessed are you," is of the present: "well shall it be with you," is of the future. When you eat the labours of your fruits, "blessed are you;" when you have reached the fruit of your labours, "well shall it be with you." What has he said? For if it be well with you, you will be happy: and if you will be happy, you will also have all well with you. But there is a difference between hope and attainment. If hope be so sweet, how much sweeter will reality be?

Let us now come to the words, "Thy wife" [Psalm 128:3]: it is said unto Christ. His wife, therefore, is the Church: His Church, His wife, we ourselves are. "As a fruitful vineyard." But in whom is the vineyard fruitful? For we see many barren ones entering those walls; we see that many intemperate, usurious persons, slave dealers, enter these walls, and such as resort to fortune-tellers, go to enchanters and enchantresses when they have a headache. Is this the fruitfulness of the vine? Is this the fecundity of the wife? It is not. These are thorns, but the vineyard is not everywhere thorny. It hath a certain fruitfulness, and is a fruitful vine; but in whom? "Upon the sides of thy house." Not all are called the sides of the house. For I ask what are the sides. What shall I say? Are they walls, strong stones, as it were? If he were speaking of this bodily tenement, we should perhaps understand this by sides. We mean by the sides of the house, those who cling unto Christ...."Thy children." The wife and the children are the same. In these carnal marriages and wedlocks, the wife is one, the children other: in the Church, she who is the wife, is the children also. For the Apostles belonged to the Church, and were among the members of the Church. They were therefore in His wife, and were His wife according to their own portion which they held in His members. Why then is it said concerning them, "When the Bridegroom shall be taken from them, then shall the children of the Bridegroom fast"? She who is the wife, then, is the children also....

"The Lord from out of Sion bless thee: and mayest thou see thee good things that are of Jerusalem" [Psalm 128:5]. Even to the birds was it said, "Be fruitful and multiply." [Genesis 1:22] Dost thou wish to hold as a great blessing what was given unto birds? Who can be ignorant, that it was given indeed by the voice of God? But use these goods, if thou receive them; and rather think how thou mayest nourish those who have been born, than that others may be born. For it is not happiness to have children, but to have good ones. Labour in the task of nourishing them, if they be born; but if they be not born, give thanks unto God. ...Thy children are infants: thou dost caress the infants: the infants caress thee: do they abide thus? But thou wishest they may grow, thou wishest that their age may increase. But consider that when one age cometh, another dieth. When boyhood cometh, infancy dieth; when youth cometh, boyhood dieth: when manhood cometh, youth dieth; when old age cometh, manhood dieth: when death cometh, all age dieth. As many successions of ages as thou wishest for, so many deaths of ages dost thou wish for. These things therefore "are" not. Finally, are children born unto thee to share life with thee on earth, or rather to shut thee out and to succeed thee? Rejoicest thou in those born to exclude thee? Boys when born speak somewhat like this to their parents: "Now then, begin to think of removing hence, let us too play our parts on the stage." For the whole life of temptation in the human race is a stage play; for it is said, "Every man living is altogether vanity." Nevertheless, if we rejoice in children who will succeed us; how much must we rejoice in children with whom we shall remain, and in that Father for whom we are born, who will not die, but that we may evermore live with Him? These are the good things of Jerusalem: for they "are." And how long shall I see the good things of Jerusalem? "All thy life long." If thy life be for ever, thou wilt see the good things of Jerusalem for evermore....