Ps 8:1

“The Majesty, or as holy David calls it, the Glory, is manifested among the creatures that it has produced and governs. These are the back parts of God, which he leaves behind him, as tokens of himself like the shadows and reflection of the sun in the water, which show the sun to our weak eyes, because we cannot look at the sun himself, for by his unmixed light he is too strong for our power of perception.”

“"How wonderful your name." Through this name, in fact, death was dissolved, demons imprisoned in bonds, heaven opened, gates of paradise thrown wide, the Spirit sent down, slaves made free, enemies become sons, strangers become heirs, human beings become angels. Why speak of angels? God became man, and man became God; heaven accepted the nature from earth, earth accepted the one seated on the cherubim along with the angelic host. The wall was removed, the partition dissolved, what were separate were united, darkness was banished, light shone, death was swallowed up.”

“Accordingly it is said, "O Lord, our Lord, how admirable is Your Name in all the earth!" [Psalm 8:1]. I ask, how is His Name wonderful in all the earth? The answer is, "For Your glory has been raised above the heavens." So that the meaning is this, O Lord, who art our Lord, how do all that inhabit the earth admire You! For Your glory has been raised from earthly humiliation above the heavens. For hence it appeared who You were that descended, when it was by some seen, and by the rest believed, whither it was that You ascended.”

“The church says, "O Lord, our Lord." For after the recognition of Christ when one is freed from the slavery of idolatry, one begins to call on God and the Lord. Always the whole earth truly is full of the marvelous creations, the works of God. And even more marvelous the name of that One, namely, Christ, has been made wonderful among all the nations and foreign peoples through faith in him.”

“But this, dearest brothers, we must greatly consider on this solemnity: that on this day the handwriting of our condemnation has been blotted out, the sentence of our corruption has been changed. For that nature to which it was said, "You are earth, and to earth you will go," today went to heaven. For on account of this very lifting up of our flesh, blessed Job figuratively calls the Lord a bird. For since he saw that Judea would not understand the mystery of His Ascension, he pronounced sentence on their unbelief, saying, "The bird knew not the path." For the Lord was rightly called a bird, because He raised His fleshly body to the heavens. Whoever did not believe that He ascended to heaven did not know the path of this bird. Concerning this solemnity it is said through the Psalmist, "Your magnificence is exalted above the heavens."”

“the gittith A musical instrument that came from Gath, where craftsmen were found to make it (Machbereth Menachem p. 60). But our Sages said (Mid. Ps. 8:1): Concerning a nation [Edom] that is destined to be trodden like a winepress, as it is written (in Isaiah 63:3): “A winepress I trod alone.” However, the contents of the psalm do not indicate it.”

“For the Chief Musician: set to the Gittith. A Psalm of David. – We have expounded already above (Ps. 4:1) that Gittith is a kind of music. And there are those who say that David composed and recited (the Psalm) when he was in Gath; while others say (Ibn Ezra) that he gave it to the sons of Obed Edom the Gittite. This Psalm also is a hymn and rendering of praise and thanks to God, and a recounting of His acts of power.”

“These are the two knowledges of faith illuminating and inflaming in a threefold manner while being retraced to unity. They are said to cry, out of admiration, because both forms of knowledge are admirable. Wherefore in the Psalm: "O Lord, our Lord, how glorious is Your name over all the earth!" And in truth this name is admirable in so far as it refers to the eternal God, for it implies a true distinction of Persons together with unity of essence, through which they are supremely conforming to each other, supremely in accord, supremely coequal, coeternal, consubstantial, and coessential. Likewise, it is admirable in so far as it refers to God made man, because the three natures are conjoined: the highest with the lowest, without debasement; the first with the last, without alteration; the simple with the composite, without composition.”

“Above he set forth a Psalm in which David prayed concerning his persecution; here he sets forth a Psalm of thanksgiving: and first a Psalm is presented for the benefits bestowed upon the whole human race. Second, another for the benefits bestowed upon him for the destruction of enemies, or for the goods granted. Third, for the evils removed, at "I will give thanks": for here he expresses the affection of a man considering the benefits of God bestowed upon the human race, and giving thanks. The title is "Unto the end, a Psalm of David, for the winepresses," and since the rest has been explained above, I shall explain here only the last part. Here it should be noted that in Dt. 16 it says: "Seven days you shall celebrate the feast of tabernacles, when you gather in your produce from the threshing floor and the winepress," etc. For it should be known that David had a special devotion in celebrating the feasts, and he did something special for the praise of God. Now the feast of tabernacles was the principal one. And this took place during the vintage in commemoration of the divine benefit, when he led the children of Israel out of Egypt in tents, and brought them into the promised land where there are fruits: and therefore it was necessary that they have the most beautiful fruits, at which time were the winepresses; and therefore it says "for the winepresses." This is the literal sense. But spiritually, the winepress is the Church: Is. 5: "He planted a choice vineyard, he built a winepress in it"; Mt. 21: "He planted a vineyard, and dug a winepress in it." He says therefore "for the winepresses," that is, for the Churches of the world: and the Church is called a winepress, because just as in a winepress the wine is separated from the grape skins, so in the Church the good are separated from the wicked by the work of ministers: even if not always in place, yet in disposition. For the same reason it is also called a threshing floor: because there the grain is separated from the chaff. Likewise, from the words literally set down, the spiritual sense is separated. Likewise the winepresses are the martyrdoms, in which the separation of souls from bodies takes place, while the bodies of those who are trampled by affliction and persecution for the name of Christ remain crushed on the earth, but their souls flow forth to rest in the heavens. This Psalm is divided into two parts. First the Psalmist marvels at the divine excellence. Second, at his clemency, at "What is man." Concerning the first he does two things. First he shows that the majesty of God is admirable. Second, that it is manifest, at "Out of the mouths of infants." Concerning the first he does two things: first he sets him forth as wonderful. Second he makes clear the reason for what was said, at "For your magnificence is elevated," etc. He says therefore, "Lord" of all: Esth. 13: "You are Lord of all"; but especially "our Lord," we who worship you, who cling to you. Jerome has "our Ruler": Jgs. 8: "I will not rule over you, nor shall my son, but the Lord shall rule over you." "How admirable is your name," etc., namely of your divinity: Ps. 92: "Wonderful are the surges of the sea," etc. Gen. 32: "Why do you ask my name, which is wonderful?" Likewise, of the incarnate Christ: Is. 9: "His name shall be called Wonderful." But is it only in Judea, as the Jews say, or in Africa, as the Donatists claim? No; but "in all the earth": Mal.: "From the rising of the sun to its setting, great is my name among the nations." The reason for the wonder is added: "For your magnificence is elevated," because in the heavens your greatness appears. Wonder occurs when someone sees an effect and is ignorant of the cause. Therefore something is wonderful in two ways: either because the cause is totally unknown, or because it does not produce an effect that perfectly manifests the cause. The first is not the case with God: because he produces an effect: Rom. 1: "The invisible things of God are known through the things that have been made," etc. He produces, I say, an effect, yet not one that perfectly manifests the cause: and therefore he remains admirable: and this is what he says: "your magnificence," that is, your praise or your power, which can do great things, "is elevated above the heavens," surpassing the making of the heavens beyond all proportion. Hence he excludes the error of those who say that God is the form of the heaven: for according to this he would be proportionate to the heavens. Likewise of those who say that he acts by necessity of nature: because he would not extend himself above the heavens: yet he can make something infinitely greater. Or "above the heavens," that is, above the Scriptures, because he is more than is praised in the Scriptures: Sir. 43: "Glorifying God as much as you can, he will still surpass it, and admirable is his magnificence." Or "your magnificence," that is, your Son, God and man, "is elevated" in the ascension "above the heavens": Eph. 4: "He who descended is the same who ascended above all the heavens," etc.”