Text in red are my additions.
From the Catholic Encyclopedia: A
learned Benedictine exegete and Orientalist, b. 12 December, 1535, at
Riom, in the department of Puy-de-Dôme; d. 16 Feb., 1597, at Semur,
department of Côte-d’Or. In his early youth he entered the Cluniac
monastery of Mausac near Riom, later continued his studies at the
monastery of Saint-Allyre in Clermont, and completed them at the College
de Navarre in Paris, where he obtained the doctorate in theology in
1562. A year later he was appointed professor of Hebrew and exegesis at
the Collège Royal and at the same time held the office of prior at
Saint-Denis de La Chartre in Paris. He was one of the most learned
professors at the university and through his numerous and erudite
exegetical works became famous throughout Europe. Among his scholars at
the Collège Royal was St. Francis de Sales, who in his later life
considered it an honour to have had Génebrard as professor (Traite de
l’Amour de Dieu, XI, 11). About 1578 he went to Rome where he was
honourably received by Sixtus V and stood in close relation to Allen,
Baronius, Bosio, and other ecclesiastical celebrities. Upon his return,
in 1588, he became one of the chief supporters of the Holy League in
France. On 10 May, 1591 he was appointed Archbishop of Aix by Gregory
XIII, but accepted this dignity only after the express command of the
pope. He was consecrated by Archbishop Beaton of Glasgow on 10 April,
1592. As archbishop he remained a zealous leaguer, even after Henry IV
became reconciled with the Church in July, 1593. The new king, however,
became daily more popular and gained over to his side most of the
Catholics. Génebrard saw that further opposition would be useless and,
on 15 Nov., 1593, sent his submission to the king (“Revue des questions
historiques”, Paris, 1866, I 616, note). This, however, did not prevent
the Provencal Parliament from banishing him on 26 Sept. 1596. For a
short time he stayed at Avignon, but being allowed by the king to
return, he retired to the priory of Semur, which he held in commendam.
Génebrard translated many rabbinic writings into Latin, wrote one of the
best commentaries on the Psalms: “Psalmi Davidis vulgatâ editione,
calendario hebraeo, syro, graeco, latino, hymnis, argumentis, et
commentariis, etc. instructi” (Paris, 1577); is the author of “De Sanctâ
Trinitate” (Paris, 1569); “Joel Propheta cum chaldæâ paraphrasi et
commentariis”, etc. (Paris, 1563); “Chronographiae libri IV” (Paris
1580), and numerous other works. He also edited the works of Origen
(Paris, 1574).
Title of this book commonly known among the Hebrews is: “Sefer
Tehillim,” which is abbreviated to “Tehillim.” From ancient times,
according to Eusebius, it is regarded as the “Book of Praises with joy
and jubilation,” or, as Jerome correctly interprets, “The Book of
Hymns.” It contains a variety of forms, including complaints,
lamentations, thanksgiving, petitions, imprecations, narrations, and
prophecies. Similarly, the Book of Proverbs of Solomon, which
nonetheless contains not only proverbial sayings but also the wisdom of
the wise and enigmas…
PSALM 1
Beatus Vir
Argument
The pious are blessed, the impious, on the contrary, are miserable.
Ps 1:1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of
the wicked, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of the
pestilent.
Blessed is the man who does not… This lacks a title
but does not cease to be David’s, present in a book partly composed by
him and partly collected from others and arranged in this five-fold book
order. Thus, the second one has the same author, and so on, those that
do not bear the author’s name, David’s, will be according to some
others, the name that immediately preceded. It is said that there are
ten or eleven sacred authors of the Psalms, according to Jerome and the
traditions of the Hebrews, except that these mention instead of Solomon,
Adam, and Melchizedek. But they agree on the remaining nine: Moses,
David, the three sons of Korah, Asaph, Ethan, Heman, and Jeduthun.
Blessed is the man (are the Beatitudes of that man The Hebrew ashre is plural),
that is, that man is blessed in many ways, both in this world and the
next, he is most blessed and fortunate, as if these beatitudes seem to
belong to him specifically. For there is a twofold beatitude: heavenly
and temporal.
The wicked are impious towards God, for so are
called the despisers of God and religion, who do not worship God, or who
worship many gods, according to Euthymius. The Hebrews interpret them
as restless in mind and conscience, as if they are unstable in faith and
religion. Such are, they say, all greedy, rapacious, murderers. Some
think it is a forensic term signifying the guilty, condemned, to be
opposed to Saddic, the just (צַדִּיקִֽים׃ see Ps 1:4-5)
. Sinners (Hat-tā’îm) refer to those who have acquired a habit of
sinning, who by custom have gained a habit of acting wickedly, and as if
they have generated a skill, so that they rush to sins more willingly
than by judgment. Finally, the wicked are those who do not sin through
imprudence, but willingly, even if they profess religion with their
mouths. Scoffers, whom here are called plagues (as in “pests”), are
referred to by the Septuagint as those who mock both divine and human
matters, like heretics, like atheists.
He has gone, walked properly (the Heb. הָלַךְ֮ = halak can mean go, walk, lead, etc.).
There is a gradation in the names Counsel, Path, Seat, and perhaps of
the wicked, sinners, and scoffers, as well as in the verbs Walking,
Standing, Sitting. However, Kimhi thinks this is just an expression to
give greater clarity (Kimhi is a reference to David Kimhi, or Kimchi, a medieval Jewish Rabbi and exegete).
The verse is metaphorical about not following the counsels of the
wicked, their actions, manners, and way of living. Separating oneself
from the wicked, not following their counsels, actions, doctrine, is
most blessed. Pests: of plagues, pestilent men, and scoffers who mock
both human and divine matters. This almost exclusively refers to false
prophets and teachers of pestilent and impious doctrine, teaching not
only to avoid friendships and associations with those wicked in counsel
and living but also with those who teach it. Seat here often stands for
doctrine, as noted by Jerome. “I am accustomed to leave Scripture in its
broadness, that it may be open to many things, as in Philosophy,
universal and general propositions, in Mathematics Axioms, and common
opinions.” However, not inconveniently, Barnabas the Apostle, according
to Clement, speaks of three kinds of evils: impious (Jewish opinion),
sinners (heresies), and the pestilent seat (all impious except
atheists).
Ps 1:2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law, he meditates day and night.
In the Law of the Lord, in His precepts, some pertain to faith and
religion, others to action. Here some understand the entire Scripture by
the Law of the Lord, others the Law of Moses, which God gave to His
people. But because the unlearned cannot continuously meditate on this,
and beatitude is common to both the unlearned and the learned, I prefer
to think here it denotes the simple commandments of God, which are truly
sung about in Psalm 119, around matters to be believed, worshiped,
done, and avoided. Delight will, pleasure, desire, study, business: all
these are signified by the Hebrew “Hefetz,” as often in Ecclesiastes. He
will meditate, will exercise himself, will think effectively, being
solicitous about knowing and understanding it. Meditate is a term that
means something deeper than mere contemplation, including a certain
constant agitation of the mind, often breaking out in a movement of the
lips and a quiet voice, even when engaged in work.
Ps 1:3 He is like a tree planted beside streams of water,
which yields its fruit in its season, and whose leaf does not wither;
and whatever he does prospers.
Born of a wild tree, not barren, but fruitful and planted beside streams and rivers, such as the olive tree, the palm, etc., (the Heb. shathal is derived from a root meaning transplanted). Others, for instance, explain why such a man is blessed (transplanting a tree implies it is being cared for). The Hebrews also call a tree “wood.” Just as in French, bois de haute futaie means trees of high growth. Beside streams,
properly in the plural, as if referring to a tree planted near several
streams, almost like at the divisions or divergences of waters, where
water flows in different directions, for palag means “to divide.” A
basic meaning of the word palag (peleg) is “to dig.” When irrigation
ditches are dug the effect is to divide the field. Sometimes larger
ditches were dug on all sides of a plot of land, then smaller furrows
were dug between the larger one which served to feed them. A tree
planted near the confluence or intersection of two of the larger ditches
would have been especially vibrant in the Holy Land’s typically dry
climate.
In its season—summer or autumn, in the season
appropriate and timely for each species of tree, in its own time, when
the time for bearing fruit is at hand. For trees have their own various
seasons. The Chaldean interpretation is: “like a tree whose fruit will
mature.” Just as a tree brings forth its fruit when it should be
harvested, that is, in the season of reaping and ripening, so too the
righteous in their season—that is, when it is opportune—will bring forth
the fruit of their piety, that is, virtues and good works. Or, if we
liken the malis (apples) to the age of the future world and reward, the
righteous will bear the fruit of their piety—eternal and blessed
life—and will reap the salvation of their souls as the reward of faith,
either at the time of death or the end of the world.
In its season, summer or autumn, or rather in that
part of summer that is closest to autumn, when the dog star is at its
height. This is the time when fruits are properly gathered. Hence, the
Feast of Tabernacles was celebrated on the fifteenth day of the month
Tishri, or the lunar month of September, which was also called the Feast
of Ingathering, Hassub in Deuteronomy 16:13, after the fruits
and grapes were gathered. Just as Pentecost is celebrated after the
grain is harvested on the sixth day of Sivan, or the lunar month of May,
metopōron in Greek, meaning the time after the fruits are
gathered, the season for the harvest of fruits. Therefore, some fruits
are summer fruits, others autumnal, unless they are early or produced by
some extraordinary art or cause.
It does not wither. Its leaf will remain green
perpetually, nor will its fruit be consumed. Whatever he does, this
righteous man, will prosper. This is another fruit of piety, and the
righteous person will flourish and bear fruit in due season. In all
things, he prospers. One may refer the previous verse to the eternal
reward and this one to the reward of the present life. For piety holds
the promise of life both now and forever, as mentioned in 1 Timothy 4:8.
See the blessings in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28. Some less
appropriately refer to the tree. Hence, the Chaldean interpretation is: “All his offspring (the tree’s sprouts or shoots, i.e., suckers) will prosper.”
Ps 1:4 Not so the wicked, not so; but they are like the chaff that the wind drives away.
Not so the wicked—they will not prosper. The
antithesis: The wicked will be destroyed quickly and with little
trouble, as if by the wind, violently and unsuccessfully, and they will
disappear like dust that the wind drives and carries away so that it
appears nowhere, as it vanishes into the air. Not so.
This repetition is not in Hebrew but added here to emphasize the source:
that we may understand the wicked to be miserable and unfortunate in
many ways, even on earth, for their permanence will not last long, and
they will suffer many things. Dust here properly means the tiniest and lightest chaff,
especially that which is blown away by the wind and scattered as if
sifted from the grains of wheat, debris, chaff, or husks, to which the
wicked are compared as being useless and without any fruit.
Ps 1:5 Therefore, the wicked will not stand (kum) in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
The wicked will not stand in the judgment. That is,
when the righteous are judged and absolved, rewarded, the wicked will
not endure due to fear, will not lift their heads, as they do now, nor
will they dare to appear before God’s tribunal, nor will they stand with
the righteous or have a place among them. The metaphor (in verse 4)
persists, comparing the wicked to dust. Just as dust is scattered by
the wind, so too the wicked will not appear in judgment. Some think the
metaphor is drawn from the courtroom, where those who lose the case are
said to fall. The Chaldean interpretation: “Therefore, the wicked will
not stand in the day of great judgment (the final judgment).” Others
refer this to the blessed resurrection, for the wicked will not rise to
it but to eternal punishment, which is called the second death, eternal
destruction. The word Kum means to rise and stand, and it is also used
concerning the resurrection of the dead, as in Kimhi’s interpretation,
which seems to be taken here. The wicked (says Kimhi) will not rise, but
their souls will perish along with their bodies on the day of their
death. This alludes to the heresy of some Rabbis who deny the
resurrection of the reprobate. But David does not support this, for he
adds “in the judgment and assembly of the righteous.” It is one thing to
say, “The wicked will not rise in the judgment of the righteous,” and
another to say, “They will not rise at all.”
In the assembly—the assembly here signifies a
gathering or congregation. Therefore, it should be written with a “C” to
correspond to the Hebrew word aadath. However, it was previously
written with an “S,” like aafath, although in Greek, the word is the
same but ambiguous. To put it in Latin/English terms, the Latin should read concilio (council), rather than, consilio (counsel).
Ps 1:6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
The Lord knows—the word “to know” among the Hebrews
signifies to care for, to recognize, etc. The Lord approves, regards
with favor, cares for, recognizes, that is, blesses the way, that is,
the way of living, studies, and works of the righteous. This knowledge
is not merely intellectual understanding but benevolence and approval,
about which the Apostle says, “The Lord knows who are His” (2 Timothy
2:19). But the wicked with their way of living will perish.
The wicked will perish. They will meet an unhappy
end. The wicked will go into eternal destruction, and they will be
removed from among the living unhappily, through metonymy. Or, to put it
in a simple metaphor, the path, that is, the way of living, mode,
actions, thoughts, studies, and efforts of the wicked will perish, that
is, will be completely destroyed. Not only will they not endure, but
they will not achieve their ends; they will vanish without fruit, and
they will meet a sorrowful end. For all their glory will fade away, etc.
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