^11:33 O the depth of the riches of the wisdom and of the knowledge of God! How incomprehensible are his judgments, and how unsearchable his ways! [n. 933]
^11:34 For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counsellor? [n. 938]
^11:35 Or who has first given to him, and recompense shall be made him? [n. 940]
^11:36 For from him, and through him, and in him, are all things: to him be glory for ever. Amen. [n. 942]

933. Above the Apostle endeavored to assign a reason for the divine judgments, by which gentiles and Jews obtain mercy after unbelief; now he recognizes his inadequacy for such an investigation and exclaims his admiration of the divine excellence.

First, he extols the divine excellence;

second, he proves what he says, at for who has known.

In regard to the first he does two things:

first, he extols the divine wisdom in itself;

second, in relation to us, at how incomprehensible.

934. He extols the excellence of divine knowledge: first, as to its depth, saying: O the depth: it is a great depth. Who shall find it out? (Eccl 7:25); a glorious throne set on high from the beginning (Jer 17:12).

This depth is considered in regard to three things: first, in regard to the thing known, inasmuch as God knows himself perfectly: I dwell in the highest places (Sir 24:7); second, in regard to the manner of knowing, inasmuch as he knows all things through himself: the Lord looked down from his holy height, from heaven the Lord looked at the earth (Ps 102:19); third, in regard to the certainty of his knowledge: the eyes of the Lord are far brighter than the sun (Sir 23:28).

935. Second, he extols the excellence of divine knowledge in regard to its fullness when he says: of the riches. Abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge (Isa 33:6).

This fullness is regarded in three ways: in one way as to the number of things known, because he knows all things: Lord, you know all things (John 21:17); in him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2:3); in another way in regard to ease of knowing, because he intuits all things without search and difficulty: all things are open and laid bare to his eyes (Heb 4:13). Third, in regard to the abundance of his knowledge, because he gives it generously to everyone: if anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask God who gives to all men generously (Jas 1:5).

936. Third, he extols the divine excellence in regard to its perfection when he says, of the wisdom and of the knowledge of God. For he has wisdom about divine things: with him is strength and wisdom (Job 12:16), and knowledge about created things: who knows all things knows her (Bar 3:32).

937. Then when he says, how incomprehensible, he shows the excellence of divine wisdom as compared to our understanding.

And first in regard to wisdom, whose function is to judge and put things in order, he says: how incomprehensible are his judgments, because man cannot comprehend the reason of God’s judgments, since they are hidden in his wisdom: your judgments are like the great deep (Ps 36:6); perhaps you will comprehend the steps of God, and will find out the Almighty perfectly? (Job 11:7).

Second, in regard to knowledge, through which he is at work in things; hence he adds: and how unsearchable, i.e., not completely searchable by men, his ways, i.e., his procedures, by which he works in creatures. Even though the creatures are known by man, the ways in which God works in them cannot be comprehended by man: your way was through the sea, your paths through the great waters; yet their footprints were unseen (Ps 77:19); where is the way to the dwelling of light (Job 38:19).

938. Then when he says, for who, he proves what he had said by appealing to two authorities, one of which is in Isaiah: for who has helped the spirit of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? (Isa 40:13). And in place of this he says: for who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? The other authority is from Job: who has given me before that I should repay him? (Job 41:2). And in place of this he says: or who has first given to him, and recompense shall be made him?

In these words and those that follow them the Apostle does three things.

939. First, he shows the excellence of divine wisdom as compared to our understanding, saying: how incomprehensible are his judgments, and how unsearchable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, namely, through which he judges and acts. As if to say: no one, unless God reveals it: who shall know your thought, except you give wisdom, and send your Holy Spirit from above (Wis 9:17) and the things of God no one knows but the Spirit of God. But to us God has revealed them through his Spirit (1 Cor 2:10).

940. Second, he shows the excellence of divine wisdom according as it has height in itself, and indeed is that height which is the supreme principle. Two points pertain to this:

first, that it does not proceed from something else;

second, that other things proceed from it, at for from him.

941. That God’s wisdom does not depend on a higher source is shown in two ways.

First, by the fact that it is not instructed by someone else’s teaching. Hence, he says: or who has been his counselor? As if to say: no one. For counsel is needed by one who does not fully know how something is to be done, and this does not apply to God: to whom have you given counsel? Perhaps to him that has no wisdom (Job 26:3). Who has stood in the counsel of the Lord? (Jer 23:18).

Second, by the fact that it is not helped by another’s gift. Hence he adds: or who has first given to him, and recompense shall be made him, as one giving first? As if to say: no one. For man can give God only what he has received from God: all this abundance comes from your hand and is all your own (1 Chr 29:16); if you do justly, what shall you give him, or what shall he receive of your hand? (Job 35:7).

942. Then when he says, for from him, he shows God’s depth, inasmuch as in him are all things.

First, he shows his causality;

second, his dignity, at to him be glory;

third, his perpetuity, at for ever.

943. First, therefore, he says: it is right to say that no one first gave to him, because from him, and through him, and in him, are all things. Thus nothing can be unless received from God.

To designate God’s causality he uses three prepositions, namely, from, through, and in.

But the preposition from denotes a principle of change; and this is in three ways. In one way the acting or moving principle; in another way the matter; in a third way the opposite contrary, which is the point of departure of the change.

For we say that the knife came to be from the knife maker, from the steel, and from the unshaped matter. But the universe of creatures was not made from preexisting matter, because even their matter is an effect of God. Accordingly, created things are not said to be from something but from its opposite, which is nothing; because they were nothing, before they were created to exist: we are born of nothing (Wis 2:2). But all things are from God as from their first maker: all things are from God (1 Cor 11:12).

944. It should be noted that another Latin word for from is de, which seems to suggest the same relationships; however, de always designates a consubstantial cause. For we say that the knife is from the iron, but not from the maker. Therefore, because the Son proceeds from the Father as consubstantial with him, we say that the Son is from the Father. But creatures do not proceed from God as consubstantial with him; hence, they are not said to be from him but out from him.

945. The preposition through designates the cause of an action; but because an action lies between the maker and the things he makes, there are two ways in which the preposition through can designate the cause of an action.

In one way according as the action comes from its performer, as something which is its own cause of acting is said to act through itself. In one way this is the form, as we say that fire acts through heat. In another way it is a higher agent, as we say that man begets man through the power of the sun or rather of God.

So, therefore, all things are said to be through him in two ways: In one way as through the first agent, by whose power all things act: through me kings reign (Prov 8:15). In another way, inasmuch as his wisdom, which is his essence, is the form through which God makes all things: the Lord through wisdom founded the earth (Prov 3:19).

946. In another way the preposition through designates the cause of an action, not as it comes from the performer but as terminated in its products, as we say that the artisan makes a knife through a hammer: not that the hammer works with the artisan in the way described above, but because the knife comes to be from the activity of the artisan by means of the hammer. Therefore, it is said that this preposition, through, designates authority directly, as when we say that the king acts through his bailiff—which pertains to what is now being said. But sometimes in a causal sense, as when we say that the bailiff acts through the king—which pertains to the preceding mode.

In this mode about which we are now speaking, all things are said to have been made by the Father through the Son, as in John: all things were made through him (John 1:3), not that the Father has from the Son the power to make things, but rather that the Son accepts the power of making things from the Father, a power not instrumental but principal, not of a lower order but equal, not diverse but the same: whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise (John 5:19).

Hence, although all things were made by the Father through the Son, the Son is not an instrument or minister of the Father.

947. The preposition in also designates a causal relationship in three ways: in one way it designates matter, as we say that the soul is in the body or a form in matter. This is not the way in which things are said to be in God, because he is not the material cause of things.

In another way it designates a relationship of efficient cause, in whose power it lies to dispose of its effects. In this sense all things are said to be in him, inasmuch as all things lie under his power and arrangement: in his hand are all the ends of the earth (Ps 95:4); in him we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28).

In a third way it designates a relationship of final cause, in that the entire good of a thing and its preservation consists in its own optimum. In this sense all things are said to be in God as in the goodness preserving them. All things hold together in him (Col 1:17).

948. When he says, all things, it is to be taken absolutely for all things which have true being. Sins do not have true being, but insofar as they are sins they lack some being, due to the fact that evil is nothing else than a deprivation of good.

Therefore, when he says, from him, and through him, and in him are all things, this does not include sin, because, according to Augustine, sin is nothing and man accomplishes nothing when he sins. Yet, whatever entity is present in sin, it is from God.

949. Therefore, according to the foregoing, all things are from him, i.e., God as from the first operating power. All things are through him, inasmuch as he makes all things through his wisdom. All things are in him as in their preserving goodness.

Now these three things, namely, power, wisdom, and goodness are common to the three persons. Hence, the statement that from him, and through him, and in him can be applied to each of the three persons. Nevertheless, the power, which involves the notion of principle, is appropriated to the Father, who is the principle of the entire Godhead; wisdom to the Son, who proceeds as Word, which is nothing else than wisdom begotten; goodness is appropriated to the Holy Spirit, who proceeds as love, whose object is goodness.

Therefore, by appropriation we can say: from him, namely, from the Father, through him, namely, through the Son, in him, namely, in the Holy Spirit, are all things.

950. Then when he says, to him be honor and glory for ever, he shows God’s dignity, which consists in the two things previously mentioned. For from the fact that all things are from him and through him and in him, honor and reverence and subjection are owed him by every creature: if I am a father, where is my honor? (Mal 1:6). But from the fact that he has not received either counsel or gifts from anyone, glory is owed him; just as on the contrary it is said of man: if then you received it, why do you boast as though it were not a gift? (1 Cor 4:7). And because this is proper to God, it is said: I am the Lord; my glory I give to no other (Isa 42:8).

951. Finally, he mentions his eternity when he says: forever, because his glory does not pass as does man’s glory, of which it is said: all his glory is like the flower of the field (Isa 40:6). But God’s glory lasts for all ages, i.e., through all the ages succeeding all ages, inasmuch as the duration of any given thing is called an age.

Or for ever refers to the durations of incorruptible things, which contain the ages of corruptible things. This applies especially to God’s eternity, which can be spoken of as a plurality because of the multitude and diversity of things contained in it, even though it is one and simple in itself. The meaning would then be unto the ages that contain the ages: your reign is a reign of all ages (Ps 144:13).

952. He adds: amen, as confirmation. As if to say: truly it is so. This is the meaning in the gospels when it says: amen, I say to you. Sometimes, however, it means: may it come to pass.

Thus in Jerome’s Psalter it says: all the people will say: amen, amen, where our text has may it come to pass! May it come to pass!