Fear And Prayer

Exaudi, Deus, orationem meam, cum tribulor; a timore inimici eripe animam meam. Ingruentibus his quae superius memoravimus, per quae fides nostra et spes periclitatur, ad eum qui solus mederi his potest refertur oratio. Metus est enim, ne infirmam per naturam et consortium carnis animam, undique subrepentium illecebrarum aestus absorbeat. Adsunt namque quotidie, et pugnant blandimentis fallacibus, quasdam machinas excidii admoventes. Itaque per doctrinam coelestis eruditionis, pervigilem curam fidei impendere admonemur, timere insidiantem semper hostem, ne incautam securitatem nostram ipse in speculis positus incurset. Vigilandum ergo in oratione Dei est, et semper orandum: ut cum fatigari anima et affligi subrepentium illecebrarum aculeis coeperit, Deus semper oratus exaudiat, nosque ab his quae timemus eripiat. Ait enim: A timore inimici eripe animam meam. Deus enim non tum tantum orandus est, cum quae timentur ingruerint; sed timenda ea sunt, quae cum coeperint adesse dominantur: et semper atque indefessis precibus orandus est, ut nos a timore eorum, quorum dominatum timemus, eripiat. Scriptum est enim in Proverbiis: Cum vocarem, non exaudistis; et cum extenderem verba, non intendistis; sed inania fecistis consilia mea, et consiliis meis non intendistis. Et ego perditionem vestram irridebo. Erit ergo, cum invocabitis me, et ego non exaudiam. Propheta ergo, licet prior tempore, non tamen eorum quae postea dicerentur ignarus est; sed impendentibus semper tribulationibus anxius, et ad omnem timorem inimici sollicitus, Deum orat ob ea quae timet: et ut secum in tribulatione sit, et ut exaudiat, deprecatur. Neque enim Dei misericordiam metus noster, sed fides promeretur: et longae praeparationis documento opus est, ut mereamur audiri. Meminit ergo propheta ab his se omnibus precatu liberari: et docet orationem suam non ex dominatu eorum quae timuerit, sed ex metu esse dominatus. Sanctus Hilarius Pictaviensis, Tractatus super Psalmos, Tractatus in Psalmum LXIII Source: Migne PL 9.409c-410b

Hear, O God, my prayer when I am trouble, from the fear of the enemy deliver my soul. 1 Because of the attackers we have mentioned, through which our faith and hope is imperiled, prayer is directed to Him who alone is able to provide aid. There should always be fear lest our weak souls, which are by their nature a consort of the flesh, are absorbed by the blaze of snares set everywhere about us. For they are near every day and they fight with deceitful charm, inclining us to ruin with certain machinations. Thus through the teaching of heavenly wisdom we are admonished to have care for the faith and always fear the plots of the enemy, lest careless for our security the foe storm our watchtowers. One must, then, be vigilant in prayer to God and always pray, so that when our soul begins to become fatigued and afflicted with the barbs of hidden snares, God who always hears those who have prayed, delivers us from those things which we fear, whence it says, 'from the fear of the enemy deliver my soul.' And one must pray to God not only when those we fear fall upon us, but the enemy must be feared even when he has only drawn near to conquer. One should always pray with unwearying prayers, so that He shall deliver us from the fear of those who we fear to be ruled by. It has been written in Proverbs: 'When I called you did not hear, and when I set forth my words you did not attend to them, but you treated my counsel as worthless and you had no care for my advice. I shall laugh at your ruin, and when you call on me, I shall not hear you. 2 Therefore the prophet prays to God because of what he fears in the time before, and not for later things of which he is unaware, but always for those pressing tribulations over which he frets with every fear of the enemy, even entreating God to be near in tribulations and that He might hear. For the mercy of our God is not something fearful but faith merits it, and the proof of long preparation is the work that makes us worthy of being heard. Therefore the prophet is mindful that prayer delivers us from all these things, and he teaches us his own prayer, and that not because he has been conquered by the things he fears, but because of the fear of being conquered. Saint Hilary of Poitiers, Homilies on the Psalms, from Psalm 63 1 Ps 63.2 2 Prov 1.24-26