Thomas Aquinas, on Ps 50:8

“For behold thou hast loved truth: the uncertain and hidden things of thy wisdom thou hast made manifest to me.”

“"To my hearing." Here he sets forth how he has hope for the recovery of the goods which he had lost; and there are two: namely, the gift of prophecy and the joy of conscience. The gift of prophecy is compared to hearing, because the prophet does not see the essence of God so as to see revealed things in it, but certain signs of the revealed truth are made in the soul of the prophet, and these signs function in the manner of speech, etc. 1 Sam. 3: "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening." Is. 21: "What I have heard from the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, I have announced to you." This hearing had been interrupted for him through sin, and he hoped to recover it; and therefore he says, "To my hearing you shall give," etc. Or, "to my hearing" by which I heard from Nathan that my sin was taken away, whereby I conceived joy. But as to the joy of conscience, it should be known that spiritual joy has three degrees. First, it exists in the delight of the affection; second, in the expansion of the heart; third, in its outward progression. Delight is designated by "joy" when he says, "To my hearing," etc., namely, from the fact that I shall hear what you speak, or what Nathan has spoken. Phil. 4: "Rejoice in the Lord," etc. But when the affection rests in the beloved thing, then the mind expands to receive more of this expansion; and this also appears in sensible things. 2 Cor. 6: "Our heart is enlarged"; and therefore he says, "gladness," which here signifies expansion as a kind of gladness. But further, gladness also overflows to the body. Prov. 17: "A joyful mind makes for a flourishing age; a sorrowful spirit dries up the bones." And so, in the vision of glory in the homeland, after the resurrection, from the joy of the mind the body shall be glorified. Is. 66: "You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall sprout like grass." And so he himself says, "the humbled bones shall exult"; and this for present glorification, for through the sorrow of penance the heart of a person is crushed; and therefore when people are joyful, it is a sign that the bones which have been crushed and afflicted participate in the joy. Prov. 12: "Sorrow in the heart of a man shall bring him low." Is. 58: "He will fill your soul with brightness, and will deliver your bones." Or, "the bones shall exult," that is, the spiritual virtues, which are increased through spiritual joy. And because through this joy the just person is strengthened.”

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