Thomas Aquinas

After the Apostle has shown that the truth of God was known by the gentiles, he here shows that they are liable to the guilt of impiety and of injustice. And first he shows this with respect to the guilt of impiety, second with respect to the guilt of injustice, at the place "and just as they did not approve," etc. Now someone might believe that they are excused from the guilt of impiety on account of ignorance, just as the Apostle says of himself below, 1 Timothy 1:13: "I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly." Therefore he first shows that the gentiles are not excusable, second he sets down their guilt, at the place "and they changed the glory." Concerning the first point it must be considered that ignorance excuses from guilt only when it proceeds in such a way, and causes the guilt, that it is not itself caused by guilt. As when someone, having employed due diligence, while believing he is striking an enemy, strikes his father. But if the ignorance is caused by guilt, the ignorance cannot excuse the subsequent guilt. Hence if someone commits homicide through drunkenness, he is not excused from guilt, because he sinned in making himself drunk; wherefore, according to the Philosopher, he deserves a double penalty.

First, therefore, he sets forth what he intends, saying thus: "that which is of God is known to them," so that they are inexcusable, that is, so that they cannot be excused by ignorance — James 4:17: "To him that knoweth to do good, and doth it not, to him it is sin." Below, chapter 2:1: "wherefore he is inexcusable." Second, at the place "because when they knew," etc., he proves what he had said. And first, he shows that their first guilt did not proceed from ignorance; second, that ignorance followed upon this guilt, at the place "but they became vain." Now that their first guilt was not from ignorance is shown by this: that having the knowledge of God, they did not make use of it unto good.

Now they knew God in two ways. In one way, as surpassing all things in eminence, and thus they owed him the glory and honor which is owed to what surpasses all else. These, therefore, are called inexcusable because, when they had known God, they did not glorify him as God — either because they did not render him the worship due to him, or because they set a limit to his power and knowledge, withdrawing something from his power and knowledge, contrary to what is said in Ecclesiasticus 43:37: "Glorify the Lord as much as ever you can." Second, they knew him as the cause of all good things. Hence thanksgiving was owed to him in all things, which nevertheless they themselves did not render, but rather ascribed their goods to their own talent and their own power; hence he adds "they gave not thanks," namely to the Lord — 1 Thessalonians, last chapter: "In all things give thanks."

Then, when he says "but they became vain," he shows that ignorance followed upon their guilt. And first he sets down what he intends, second he makes his proposal manifest, at the place "saying." First, therefore, he sets forth the guilt which is the cause of the ignorance when he says "they became vain." For that is called vain which does not have stability or firmness. But God alone is of himself immutable — Malachi 3:6: "I am God, and I change not." And therefore only then is the human mind free from vanity, when it leans upon God. But when, having set God aside, it leans upon any creature whatsoever, it falls into vanity — Wisdom 13:1: "All men are vain in whom there is not the knowledge of God," etc.; Psalm 93:11: "The Lord knoweth the thoughts of men, that they are vain." "They became vain in their thoughts," inasmuch as they had confidence in themselves, and not in God, ascribing their goods to themselves and not to God, according to that word of Psalm 11:5: "Our lips," etc.

Second, he sets down the ignorance that followed, saying "and it was darkened"; that is, through this that it was darkened, their foolish heart was made, that is, deprived of the light of wisdom, by which man truly knows God. For just as one who turns his bodily eyes away from the material sun falls into bodily darkness, so he who turns away from God, presuming upon himself and not upon God, is spiritually darkened. Proverbs 11:2: "Where humility is" — namely that by which man subjects himself to God — "there is wisdom; where pride is, there is reproach." Matthew 11:25: "Thou hast hid these things from the wise" — namely, as it seemed to them — "and hast revealed them to little ones," that is, to the humble. And concerning these it is found in Ephesians 4:17f.: "The gentiles walk in the vanity of their mind, having their understanding darkened."

Then, when he says "saying," he expounds what he had said. And first, how they became vain in their thoughts, when he says "saying that they were wise, they became fools." "Saying," that is, ascribing wisdom to themselves from themselves — Isaiah 5:21: "Woe to you that are wise in your own eyes." Isaiah 19:11: "How will you say to Pharaoh: I am the son of the wise, the son of ancient kings?" etc. Second, he expounds what he had said, "and their foolish heart was darkened," when he says "they became fools," as acting against divine wisdom — Jeremiah 10:14: "Every man is become a fool by his own knowledge," namely, that upon which he presumed.

Then, when he says "and they changed the glory," he sets down the sin of the gentiles' impiety. And first, as to how they sinned against the glory of God; second, how they sinned against the truth of his very nature, at the place "who changed the truth." Concerning the first he does two things: first he sets down the guilt of impiety, second the punishment, at the place "wherefore he delivered them up." Their guilt was indeed that, as far as was in them, they transferred the divine honor to another, according to that word of Jeremiah 2:11: "My people have changed their glory into an idol." First, therefore, he sets down what they changed, second that into which they changed it, at the place "into the likeness." Concerning the first, three things are to be attended to on the part of God.

First, indeed, his glory, which he touches upon saying "and they changed the glory," which can be understood in two ways. In one way, of the glory by which man glorifies God, rendering to him the worship of latria — 1 Timothy 1:17: "To God alone be honor." This, then, they changed, when they rendered to others the worship owed to God. In another way it can be understood of the glory by which God is glorious in himself, which is incomprehensible and infinite — Proverbs 25:27: "He that is a searcher of majesty, shall be overwhelmed by glory." This glory is nothing other than the very brightness of the divine nature; for "he dwelleth in light inaccessible," 1 Timothy, last chapter. This, however, they changed, when they attributed it to others. For "they gave the incommunicable name to wood and stones," as is said in Wisdom 14:21.

Second, incorruptibility is noted, when he says "incorruptible." For he alone is perfectly incorruptible, who is wholly immutable; for every change is a kind of corruption. Hence it is said, 1 Timothy, last chapter: "He alone hath immortality." Third, the sublimity of his nature is noted, when it is said "of God," for as is said in Psalm 47:2: "God is great, the Lord."

Now on the part of that into which they changed it, three corresponding things are set down. For, against "glory" he says "into the likeness of an image," that is, into the likeness of some thing expressed by another by way of an image. For it is manifest that the likeness of an image is posterior to that thing of which it is the image. But the glory, or brightness, of God is the principle of every species and form; and thus, when they changed the glory of God into the likeness of an image, they turned the first into the last. Wisdom 14:15: "For a father being afflicted with bitter grief, made to himself the image of his son who was quickly taken away."

Against what he had said, "incorruptible," he says "corruptible." Psalm 29:10: "What profit is there in my blood, while I go down to corruption?" Namely, that which is already further corrupted or dead? Wisdom 15:17: "Since he is mortal, he forms with wicked hands a dead thing." Against what he had said, "of God," he sets down "of man." Job 32:21: "I will not accept the person of man, and I will not equal God to man."

And, what is more abominable, man transferred the glory of God not only to man, who is made to the image of God, but even to those things which are beneath man; hence he adds "and of birds," as to flying things, "and of four-footed beasts," as to walking things, "and of serpents," as to creeping things. He passes over fish, however, as being more removed from human intercourse. But all these things have been subjected by God to man — Psalm 8:8: "Thou hast subjected all things under his feet." Ezekiel 8:9: "Go in, and see the wicked abominations which they do here. And I went in, and saw; and behold every form of creeping things and of beasts," etc.

Now it is to be noted that, as the Gloss says, from the coming of Aeneas it was customary in Italy for images of men to be worshipped, such as of Jupiter, Hercules, and the like. But in the time of Caesar Augustus, Egypt having been conquered, the Romans took up the worship of those who worshipped images of animals, on account of the figures of animals which are marked in the heavens, to which the Egyptians, as devoted to astrology, rendered the worship of divinity. Whence also the Lord removes the sons of Israel, who had been reared in Egypt, from this sort of worship, saying, Deuteronomy 4:19: "Lest perhaps lifting up thy eyes to heaven, thou see the sun and the moon and all the stars of heaven," etc.

Then, when he says "wherefore he delivered them up," he sets down the punishment corresponding to this guilt. Concerning which it must be considered that man holds a middle place between God and the brute animals, and communicates with both extremes: with God indeed, according to intellectuality; but with the brute animals, according to sensuality. Just as, therefore, man changed that which is of God all the way down to beasts, so God subjected that which is divine in man according to reason to that which is brutal in him, namely to the desire of sensuality, according to that word of Psalm 48:21: "Man, when he was in honor, did not understand" — namely the likeness of the divine image on account of reason — "he is compared to senseless beasts."

This, therefore, is what he says: "wherefore God delivered them up to the desires of their heart," so that their reason should be made subject to the desires of the heart, namely of sensual affection, of which it is said below, 13:14: "Make not provision for the flesh in its desires." This, indeed, is contrary to the natural order of man, according to which reason rules over sensible appetite — Genesis 4:7: "Its appetite shall be under thee, and thou shalt have dominion over it." He therefore leads men into the desires of their heart as into the hand of cruel lords — Isaiah 19:4: "I will deliver Egypt into the hand of cruel lords."

Especially, however, does a certain bestial disorder concerning the sensitive appetite pertain to carnal sins. For the pleasures of touch, with which gluttony and lust are concerned, are manifestly common to us and to brutes. And therefore they are the more reproachable, as being the more bestial, as the Philosopher says in Book III of the Ethics. And this is designated when he adds "unto uncleanness," which pertains to carnal sins, according to that word of Ephesians 5:5: "No fornicator, or unclean person" — because, namely, man, through sins of this kind, is above all turned and drawn to that which is beneath himself. For each thing is said to be impure or unclean from admixture with something baser, as silver from admixture with lead.

Hence, expounding, he adds "that they should afflict," that is, that with contumelies, that is, with base and unclean acts, they should afflict, that is, infect, "their own bodies among themselves," that is, not as though compelled by others, for instance by barbarians, but they do this of themselves, of their own accord. Below, 9:21: "Or hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonor?" Namely unto base use.

But since uncleanness of this kind is a sin, it seems that God does not deliver men up into it, because, as is said, James 1:13: "God is not a tempter of evils." It must be said that God is not said to deliver men into uncleanness directly, by inclining man's affection to evil, because God orders all things to himself — Proverbs 16:4: "The Lord hath made all things for himself" — whereas sin is something by turning away from him. But he delivers men indirectly into sin, insofar as he justly withdraws the grace by which men were held back from sinning; just as if someone were to remove a support from under someone, he would be said to cause his fall.

And in this way the first sin is the cause of the following sin, while the following is the punishment of the prior. For the evidence of which it must be known that one sin can be the cause of another indirectly and directly. Directly, indeed, insofar as from one sin there is an inclination to another, which happens in three ways. In one way, according to the nature of a final cause; as when someone is incited by avarice or envy to commit homicide. Second, according to the nature of a material cause; as gluttony leads to lust, by furnishing matter. Third, according to the nature of a moving cause; as when from many acts of some sin a habit is generated that induces to a similar sin.

Indirectly, however, as when the first sin merits the exclusion of grace, which being withdrawn, man rushes into another sin. And thus the first sin is the cause of the second indirectly, or by accident, as removing an obstacle. But it is to be noted that sin, as such, cannot be a punishment, because we suffer punishment against our will, whereas sin is voluntary, as Augustine says. But because sin has certain things attached to it which are against the will of the sinner, by reason of these, sin is called the punishment of a preceding sin.

Now this is, in one way, something preceding the sin, as the withdrawal of grace from which it follows that man sins. In another way, it is something joined to the sin itself, either interiorly, as is the disorder of the soul — whence Augustine says in Book I of the Confessions: "Thou hast commanded, O Lord," and thus it is that every disordered soul is a punishment to itself — or as regards exterior acts, to which difficulties and labors are joined, according to what the wicked say, Wisdom 5:7: "We have walked through difficult ways," etc. Third, as regards that which follows upon sin, such as remorse of conscience, infamy, and the like.

Then, when he says "changed," he sets down the guilt of impiety which they committed against the truth of the divine nature. And first he sets down the guilt, second the punishment, at the place "therefore he delivered them up." Now the divine nature can be considered in two ways. In one way, according as it is the ground of knowing, as the first truth, and as to this he says: "because they changed the truth of God into a lie." This indeed can be understood in two ways. In one way, because the true knowledge which they had received from God, they turned by a perverse reasoning to false doctrines, as when they said idols were gods, or that God was not omnipotent, or not omniscient — Jeremiah 9:5: "They have taught their tongue to speak lies."

In another way they changed the truth of God into a lie because they attributed the nature of divinity, which is truth itself, to an idol, which is a lie inasmuch as it is not God, as is said in Jeremiah 16:19f.: "Surely our fathers have possessed lies, vanity which hath not profited them. Shall a man make gods unto himself, and these are no gods?"

In another way the divine nature can be considered according as it is the principle of being to all things through creation: and thus there is owed to it from man, interiorly indeed, worship according to pious affection — John 9:31: "If any man be a server of God," etc. — but exteriorly, there is owed to it the service of latria, according to that word of Deuteronomy 6:13: "Thou shalt adore the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." Hence he adds, against them namely: "and worshipped and served the creature rather," etc.

For they worshipped the heavenly bodies, and air, and water, and other things of this kind, according to that word of Wisdom 13:2: "or fire, or spirit, or the swift air," etc. And in this he reproves the wise men among the gentiles who, although they never believed there to be any divinity in images, as the followers of Hermes believed, nor believed that the things fabulously said by the poets about the gods were true, nevertheless rendered the worship of divinity to certain creatures, from which they assigned the reason of the fables.

As Varro held that the whole world was God on account of its soul, saying that to the whole world, and to all its parts, the worship of divinity could be rendered — namely to the air, which they called Juno, and to water, which they called Liaeus, and so of the others. The Platonists also held that the worship of divinity is owed to all the rational substances which are above us; for instance, to demons, to the souls of the heavenly bodies, to intelligences, that is, to separate substances.

Although, however, we ought to show some reverence to those things which are above us, yet not the worship of latria, which consists chiefly in sacrifices and oblation, by which man professes that God is the author of all good things, just as in any kingdom some honor is shown to the supreme lord which it is not lawful to transfer to another. And therefore he adds "who is blessed," that is, whose goodness is manifest — for thus we say that we bless God insofar as we recognize his goodness in our heart and confess it with our mouth. Ecclesiasticus 43:33: "Blessing the Lord, exalt him as much as you can."

He adds, moreover, "forever," because his goodness is everlasting, not dependent on another, but the principle of all good. And from this all the worship of latria is owed to him. He adds, moreover, "Amen," to assert an all-encompassing certainty — Isaiah 65:16: "He who is blessed upon the earth shall be blessed in God. Amen," which is the same as "true," or "so be it."

Now it seems that the Apostle touches upon a threefold theology of the gentiles. First, indeed, the civil theology, which was observed by the priests in the worship of idols in the temple; and as to this he says: "and they changed the glory of the incorruptible God." Second, the fabulous theology, which the poets handed down in the theaters; and as to this he says: "who changed the truth of God into a lie." Third, the natural theology, which the philosophers observed in the world, worshipping the parts of the world; and as to this he says: "and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator."