Noah (standing) dividing the world between his sons (from left to right: Ham, Japheth, and Shem). Anonymous painter; Russia, 18th century. [Image from the Wikipedia 'Generations of Noah' page, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.]
Continuing the discussion of part 71, we now come to Saint Augustine's City of God Book 16, chapter 2:
...Shem and Japheth, that is to say, the circumcision and uncircumcision, or, as the apostle [St. Paul] otherwise calls them, the Jews and Greeks, but called and justified, having somehow discovered the nakedness of [their father, Noah] (which signifies the Saviour's passion), took a garment and laid it upon their backs, and entered backwards and covered their father’s nakedness, without their seeing what their reverence hid. For we both honor the passion of Christ as accomplished for us, and we hate the crime of the Jews who crucified Him. The garment signifies the sacrament, their backs the memory of things past: for the church celebrates the passion of Christ as already accomplished, and no longer to be looked forward to...
And when to the expression "he was naked" Scripture adds "in his house," it elegantly intimates that Jesus was to suffer the cross and death at the hands of His own household, His own kith and kin, the Jews. This passion of Christ is only externally and verbally professed by the reprobate, for what they profess, they do not understand. But the elect hold in the inner man this so great mystery, and honor inwardly in the heart this weakness and foolishness of God. And of this there is a figure in Ham going out to proclaim his father's nakedness; while Shem and Japheth, to cover or honor it, went in, that is to say, did it inwardly...
