The inaugural lectures Rigans Montes and Hic est liber were delivered by a young St. Thomas upon his reception of the license to teach at Paris in 1256. Together, they discourse on the communication of Sacred Doctrine, with the second of the lectures dwelling on Sacred Scripture in particular and concluding with a division of its texts. Thomas’s Commentary on the Psalms, on the other hand, is thought to be the reportatio of one of his final courses (c. 1253), never brought to completion; though this dense report may be limited to the essentials of Thomas’s teaching, it is nonetheless packed with thoughtful, rich expository.

Notes on text:

The Latin text of Hic est liber and Rigans montes is based on the Marietti edition (1954). The Latin text of Thomas's commentary on Psalms 1-51 is based on the Parma edition (1863), whereas the text of the commentary on Psalms 52-54 is based on Busa's edition (1980). English translations of Scripture texts are based on the Douay-Rheims version. The English translation of Hic est liber and Rigans montes was prepared by John R. Gilhooly. The translation of the Psalms commentary was prepared by Sr. Albert Marie Surmanski, O.P., and Sr. Maria Veritas Marks, O.P.