Early in Book 2 of The Confessions, Augustine reflects on the sinfulness of his past life and writes, “I was decomposing before your eyes while in men’s eyes I was pleasing myself and trying to please them” (Bk. 2:1,1 Garry Wills translation).
Augustine has in mind here the effect of sin on the human soul. We are dead in our sins (Ephesians 2:1) and our souls do what every dead thing does, it rots. This is the reward for giving one’s life to pursuing pleasure and currying the favor of other men. On the outside, we may appear to be the life of the party, while on the inside, it bound us for the compost heap. And there is nothing we can do about it until God sovereignly covers our sin in the righteousness of Christ (Ephesians 2:1-10).
