Alcuin of York, on Rev 11:17

“We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, who art, and who wast, and who art to come: because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and thou hast reigned.”

“And adored God, saying: We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, who wast, and who art. By the fact that they do not say "who art to come," it is made clear that all this will be said or done at the last judgment. As for what follows, because thou hast received thy great power, and the nations were angry, it refers to his first coming. He received in his humanity the great power he has always had by his divinity. On the other hand, what is said next, because thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, refers to his second coming. Yet since the Lord says, Love your enemies, [Matt. 5:44 and Luke 6:27/35] how can it be said that these people are giving thanks for the coming of his wrath against the reprobates? Therefore they are not rejoicing at the destruction of the wicked, but at their own resurrection and glorification, which they know cannot possibly be fulfilled unless the damnation of the wicked comes first. It is according to this interpretation that the souls of the slain under the altar of God are said to cry, How long, O Lord, etc.; [Rev. 6:10] for they are not asking for revenge, but to be themselves rewarded after revenge has been taken on the wicked. Hence the Psalmist: The just shall rejoice when he shall see the revenge. [Ps. 57:11] The Judge's wrath does not mean a perturbation of the mind, but its straightness. So one shall see him such as one's own conscience is like. That thou shouldest judge them, and render reward to thy servants the prophets and the saints, and to them that fear thy name, little and great. When the apostle says that we are saved by grace, [Eph. 2:8] how can the Lord be said here to render reward? One should know then that when the Lord renders reward to his servants, it is his own gifts that he rewards in them, for we could not have any work worthy of reward if we had not received from him the ability to do works. Note also that by the name of prophets are represented the apostles. Meanwhile, let no one despair on account of their imperfection, if they nonetheless strive to do perfect things but do not succeed; because even the little ones shall obtain that reward; whence blessed Job: The small and great are there. [Job 3:19] And shouldest banish them who have corrupted the earth. They are said to be banished rather than killed so as to show the everlasting exile of damnation, their eternal indigence. To corrupt the earth is to pervert one's life with wicked works. So it is from this that the third woe of the wicked results, about which it was foretold that it would come quickly with the seventh angel.”

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

This page is the stable address of one quotation — verbatim, dated, attributed, with its edition. Cite it freely.