Thomas Aquinas, on Ps 18:5

“Their sound hath gone forth into all the earth: and their words unto the ends of the world.”

“Concerning the motion of the sun he says two things: "From the highest heaven." Note that he speaks of the heaven as it is in its motion, which is the end of the night and the beginning of the day. And insofar as it is the end of the night, it is nothing other than the going forth from the hidden into the manifest, because it does not rise as though it then begins to exist, but because it is then made manifest. And therefore he likens it to a bridegroom coming forth from his bridal chamber, because just as the bridegroom is hidden in the bridal chamber, so the sun is hidden at night. Therefore he says, "He as a bridegroom coming forth from his bridal chamber." But insofar as it is the beginning of the day, he sets forth four things: namely, its property or efficacy, its magnitude, its swiftness, and the regularity of its motion. Its property, because night indicates sadness, but the day makes joyful: Ps. 29: "In the evening weeping shall have place, and in the morning gladness." And therefore he says, "He has rejoiced." Its magnitude, because it is great among all particular corporeal things; and therefore he says, "As a giant." Its swiftness; hence he says, "To run." Its regularity; hence he says, "The way," because it does not deviate from the straightness of the way, as some planets do. His nativity is designated when it says, "He as a bridegroom coming forth from his bridal chamber." The bridal chamber is the virginal womb. From this he came forth as a bridegroom, because in that perpetual union he espoused human nature. Hence in death the divinity remained united to the soul and the body: Hos. 2: "I will espouse you to me in faithfulness." The course of his way is described by its joyfulness. Hence, "He has rejoiced," inwardly, namely with spiritual joy, which neither death nor any sadness in the sensory part could disturb, because even in his passion he enjoyed blessedness: Is. 42: "He shall not be sad nor troubled"; because from the sadness of the sensory part no sadness arose in the higher part; yet the whole suffered according as it was nature, but not according as it was turned toward God. Likewise it is described by its magnitude, because, "as a giant" of twofold substance, because of the divine nature in which he is great: Ps. 76: "Who is so great a God as," and so on, and of the human nature in which also he is great: Lk. 1: "He shall be great," and so on. By its swiftness, because he accomplished our salvation in a short time; hence he says, "To run the way": Acts 10: "He went about doing good and healing," as it were swiftly.”

Imported from an open dataset — not yet checked against the printed edition.