Renewal in Christ: Athanasius on the Christian Life

Appendix 2: On the Psalms

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things about the deeds of the kings in Psalm 20 saying: Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we will glory in the name of the Lord our God. They are brought down and fall. But we are raised up and restored. Lord, save the king and listen to us in whatever day we call upon you . The events of Esdras are chanted in Psalm 126 of the Psalms of Ascent: 5 When the Lord returned the captives of Zion we became as those who are comforted. And again in Psalm 122: I rejoiced when they said to me, “Let us go into the house of the Lord.” Our feet stood in your courts, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem built as a city meant for joint possession. For that is where the tribes went up, the tribes of the Lord, as a testimony to Israel. §5 – The Psalms Recapitulate the Prophets The matters about which the Prophets speak are included in almost every one of the Psalms. In the 50th Psalm it talks about the Savior’s time here on earth and that he would live here while being God: The Lord will clearly come, our God, and he will not remain silent. And in the 118th Psalm: Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. We have blessed you from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God, and he has illumined us. And the 107th Psalm sings that this one [just mentioned] is the Word of the Father: He sent his Word, and he healed them, and he delivered them from their ruin. For the one who comes is God himself and the Word who is sent. And the voice of the Father sings in the 45th Psalm that this very Word is known to be the Son of God: My heart has uttered a good Word. And again, in the 110th Psalm: From the womb, before the morning star, I have begotten you. For what else would you call someone born of the Father than his Word and Wisdom? This same book

5 Psalms of Ascent – Psalms 120–134 (119–133 in the Septuagint) are a group of fifteen psalms known as the Psalms of Ascent, or the Gradual Psalms.