31. He is "good," according to that sight, according to which God appears to the pure in heart; for "truly God is good unto Israel even to such as are of a clean heart." [190] But when the wicked shall see the Judge, He will not seem good to them; because they will not rejoice in their heart to see Him, but all "kindreds of the earth shall then wail because of Him," [191] namely, as being reckoned in the number of all the wicked and unbelievers. On this account also He replied to him, who had called Him Good Master, when seeking advice of Him how he might attain eternal life, "Why askest thou me about good? [192] there is none good but One, that is, God." [193] And yet the Lord Himself, in another place, calls man good: "A good man," He says, "out of the good treasure of his heart, bringeth forth good things: and an evil man, out of the evil treasure of his heart, bringeth forth evil things." [194] But because that man was seeking eternal life, and eternal life consists in that contemplation in which God is seen, not for punishment, but for everlasting joy; and because he did not understand with whom he was speaking, and thought Him to be only the Son of man: [195] Why, He says, askest thou me about good? that is, with respect to that form which thou seest, why askest thou about good, and callest me, according to what thou seest, Good Master? This is the form of the Son of man, the form which has been taken, the form that will appear in judgment, not only to the righteous, but also to the ungodly; and the sight of this form will not be for good to those who are wicked. But there is a sight of that form of mine, in which when I was, I thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but in order to take this form I emptied myself. [196] That one God, therefore, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, who will not appear, except for joy which cannot be taken away from the just; for which future joy he sighs, who says, "One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord:" [197] that one God, therefore, Himself, I say, is alone good, for this reason, that no one sees Him for sorrow and wailing, but only for salvation and true joy. If you understand me after this latter form, then I am good; but if according to that former only, then why askest thou me about good? If thou art among those who "shall look upon Him whom they have pierced," [198] that very sight itself will be evil to them, because it will be penal. That after this meaning, then, the Lord said, "Why askest thou me about good? there is none good but One, that is, God," is probable upon those proofs which I have alleged, because that sight of God, whereby we shall contemplate the substance of God unchangeable and invisible to human eyes (which is promised to the saints alone; which the Apostle Paul speaks of, as "face to face;" [199] and of which the Apostle John says, "We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is;" [200] and of which it is said, "One thing have I desired of the Lord, that I may behold the beauty of the Lord," and of which the Lord Himself says, "I will both love him, and will manifest myself to him;" [201] and on account of which alone we cleanse our hearts by faith, that we may be those "pure in heart who are blessed for they shall see God:" [202] and whatever else is spoken of that sight: which whosoever turns the eye of love to seek it, may find most copiously scattered through all the Scriptures),--that sight alone, I say, is our chief good, for the attaining of which we are directed to do whatever we do aright. But that sight of the Son of man which is foretold, when all nations shall be gathered before Him, and shall say to Him, "Lord, when saw we Thee an hungered, or thirsty, etc.?" will neither be a good to the ungodly, who shall be sent into everlasting fire, nor the chief good to the righteous. For He still goes on to call these to the kingdom which has been prepared for them from the foundation of the world. For, as He will say to those, "Depart into everlasting fire;" so to these, "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you." And as those will go into everlasting burning; so the righteous will go into life eternal. But what is life eternal, except "that they may know Thee," He says, "the One true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent?" [203] but know Him now in that glory of which He says to the Father, "Which I had with Thee before the world was." [204] For then He will deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father, [205] that the good servant may enter into the joy of his Lord, [206] and that He may hide those whom God keeps in the hiding of His countenance from the confusion of men, namely, of those men who shall then be confounded by hearing this sentence; of which evil hearing "the righteous man shall not be afraid" [207] if only he be kept in "the tabernacle," that is, in the true faith of the Catholic Church, from "the strife of tongues," [208] that is, from the sophistries of heretics. But if there is any other explanation of the words of the Lord, where He says, "Why asketh thou me about good? there is none good, but One, that is, God;" provided only that the substance of the Father be not therefore believed to be of greater goodness than that of the Son, according to which He is the Word by whom all things were made; and if there is nothing in it abhorrent from sound doctrine; let us securely use it, and not one explanation only, but as many as we are able to find. For so much the more powerfully are the heretics proved wrong, the more outlets are open for avoiding their snares. But let us now start afresh, and address ourselves to the consideration of that which still remains.
[171] 1 Cor. ii. 8
[172] 2 Cor. xiii. 4
[173] Matt. xxv. 31, 32
[174] Zech. xii. 10
[175] Matt. v. 8
[176] 1 Cor. xiii. 12
[177] 1 Cor. xv. 24-28
[178] John xiv. 21
[179] [Augustin in this discussion, sometimes employs the phrase "Son of man" to denote the human nature of Christ, in distinction from the divine. But in Scripture and in trinitarian theology generally, this phrase properly denotes the whole theanthropic person under a human title--just as "man", (1 Tim. ii. 5), "last Adam" (1 Cor. xv. 45), and "second man" (1 Cor. xv. 47), denote not the human nature, but the whole divine-human person under a human title. Strictly used, the phrase "Son of man" does not designate the difference between the divine and human natures in the theanthropos, but between the person of the un-incarnate and that of the incarnate Logos. Augustin's meaning is, that the Son of God will judge men at the last day, not in his original "form of God," but as this is united with human nature--as the Son of man.--W.G.T.S.]
[180] John xii. 47
[181] John viii. 50
[182] John v. 22, 26
[183] Phil. ii. 8-11
[184] Transiit in Vulg.; and so in the Greek.
[185] John v. 24, 25
[186] John v. 25, 26
[187] John v. 22-29
[188] John xvii. 3
[189] [Augustin here seems to teach that the phenomenal appearance of Christ to the redeemed in heaven will be different from that to all men in the day of judgment. He says that he will show himself to the former "in the form of God;" to the latter, "in the form of the Son of man." But, surely, it is one and the same God-man who sits on the judgment throne, and the heavenly throne. His appearance must be the same in both instances: namely, that of God incarnate. The effect of his phenomenal appearance upon the believer will, indeed, be very different from that upon the unbeliever. For the wicked, this vision of God incarnate will be one of terror; for the redeemed one of joy.--W.G.T.S.]
[190] Ps. lxxiii. 1
[191] Apoc. i. 7
[192] [Augustin's reading of this text is that of the uncials; and in that form which omits the article with agathou.--W.G.T.S.]
[193] Matt. xix. 17
[194] Matt. xii. 35
[195] [That is, a mere man. Augustin here, as in some other places, employs the phrase "Son of man" to denote the human nature by itself--not the divine and human natures united in one person, and designated by this human title. The latter is the Scripture usage. As "Immanuel" does not properly denote the divine nature, but the union of divinity and humanity, so "Son of man" does not properly denote the human nature, but the union of divinity and humanity.--W.G.T.S.]
[196] Phil. ii. 6, 7
[197] Ps. xxvii. 4
[198] Zech. xii. 10
[199] 1 Cor. xiii. 12
[200] 1 John iii. 2
[201] John xiv. 21
[202] Matt. v. 8
[203] Matt. xxv. 37, 41, 34
[204] John xvii. 3-5
[205] 1 Cor. xv. 24
[206] Matt. xxv. 21, 23
[207] Ps. cxii. 7
[208] Ps. xxxi. 21