No one loves himself unless he loves God.
Therefore, it was necessary that these two commandments be commended, because one does not love one's neighbor unless one first loves God. For when one loves God, one does not love iniquity, lest by loving iniquity one hates one's own soul. If, therefore, one does not love iniquity, let one love righteousness, and there one loves God. Do not seek Him as if with your eyes: seek Him with your mind, love Him more with your heart and affection. Do not set before yourself what is not God, lest you love and not love God, and love an empty thought. For in this thought, lest we perhaps err and form and imagine God according to our carnal affection as we wish, Scripture taking us away from such thoughts says: God is love. If, therefore, you love, love from where you love, and you love God. Have you not heard? For he who loves iniquity hates his own soul. If you love, also love that from which you love, and you love God. Because from where you love, is love. You love with love, love love itself, and you have loved God, because God is love, and he who abides in love, abides in God. Therefore, both commandments had to be commended. For one would suffice: You shall love your neighbor as yourself, but lest man err in loving his neighbor, because he erred in loving himself, the Lord wished to inform your love in the love of God, by which you might love yourself; and then He committed your neighbor to you, whom you might love as yourself.
The first commandment of love draws the second with it.
So now, if it pleases you, let even one commandment of the apostle suffice for you. You already understand two; one will suffice. For before you understand two, one does not suffice. For you begin to love yourself wrongly, and you love him whom you love as yourself wrongly. Nor is it to be said: You love wrongly, but: You do not love. Therefore, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not kill, you shall not covet, where the whole is, there it calls you back to yourself. For you cannot avoid adultery out of fear of punishment, not out of love for justice. You shall not kill: you may want to kill, but fear the punishment. Murder will not be in your hands, but you will be held guilty in your heart. For you want to kill a man, but you fear; you want to kill: you do not yet love not to kill. Let what you do be within, let it be there, where He who crowns sees; fight there, win there: for there you have Him who watches over you. Therefore, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not kill, you shall not covet, and if there is any other commandment, it is recapitulated in this saying: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. You also love God. You cannot have this without that, the second follows the first. Let the first be and it draws the second. The second cannot exist without the first. Therefore, fulfill one, who thought of two. You cannot fulfill one, except in two. For the second is so-called from following the first. Therefore, it follows. Love your neighbor as yourself: this is sufficient for me. Can you not also think of God? How then do you begin to love yourself? Love of neighbor does no evil. But where is charity? In the love of God and in the love of neighbor. Choose whichever love you will. If you choose the love of neighbor: it will not be true unless God is loved. If you choose the love of God: it will not be true unless the neighbor is heeded.
"What the law commands, faith obtains."
But you do not yet have love: lament, believe, ask, obtain. What is commanded, what the law orders, faith obtains. For if you already have what you obtain, what indeed do you have that you did not receive? For if you do not yet have it, ask so that you may receive. Love is what we ask for; if we do not yet have it, let us ask so that we may not remain empty. For whence will we have it from ourselves, who have earned nothing good, but evil? We will have it from Him to whom our soul says: Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquities. This happens in baptism. But if this alone were to happen, what would we remain? But it follows: Who heals all your diseases. For with the diseases healed, we will not disdain our bread. Therefore see what follows, with the diseases healed: Who redeems your life from corruption. This happens already in the resurrection of the dead. And what follows the redemption from the corruption of our lives? Who crowns you. Perhaps for your merits? Consider what follows: Who crowns you with mercy and compassion. For judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Therefore, with sins forgiven, diseases healed, life redeemed from corruption, and our crown restored to us in His mercy, what will we do, what will we have? Who satisfies with good, not evil. You were greedy: you were not satisfied with gold, because a greedy man is not satisfied with gold. Be righteous and you will be satisfied with God. Nothing at all will satisfy you, except God; nothing will suffice for you, except God. Show us the Father, and it is enough for us. Therefore let us love works of mercy while our diseases are being healed, so that once healed, our desires may flourish; and once flourishing, they may be satisfied, so that we may have judgment, but with mercy. For it is grievous to have judgment without mercy. It is difficult that He may not find something in you to punish. You have already pleased yourself: for He knows something which escapes you, He finds in you what you were hiding, or perhaps even what you did not know. Therefore let works of mercy overflow, and in this need of temporal things let us love our neighbors, so that we may deserve to feel judgment with mercy.