Verse 7. Thou art all fair, my love, there is no spot in thee.
(/HKiST having mentioned some particular parts of the church, wherein she appeared very beautiful; in describing of which his soul was so taken with her beauty, that he resolves to dwell with her till his second coming; and now, lest it should be thought that there was a defect of beauty in the parts not mentioned, he sums up all in this general commendation; " Thou art all fair, my love, there is no spot in thee:" which commendation may regard the church in some particular period of time; or, in general, be expressive of the fairness and beauty of the church, aad every believer in any age of the world. A learned Jewish writer,** would have the words referred to the days of Solomon; in which, he affirms, all Israel were righteous: and another' to the time when Israel received the law from mount Sinai; when, it is said, there were none lame, blind, and dumb, among fhem: but they much better agree with the primitive and apostolic church, that was gathered by the ministry of the apostles after Christ's ascension, which is the mind of some Christian expositors;'' and indeed the church then bid as fair for this character, as in any other period of time whatever. Therefore, it may not be amiss if we consider how well it agrees with it; which will appear, if we observe,
Pirst. The pure doctrines of grace which were then preached; the doctrines of the gospel by the first ministers thereof, were fully preached; they kept back nothing that might be profitable to the church's upon any pretence whatever; they shunned not to declare all the couusel of God, whatever was the cousequence of it; and this they did in all sincerity and godly simplicity: they used no artful methods to conceal their principles, but renounced those hidden things of dishonesty; they did not handle the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commended themselves to every man's conscience; they did not corrupt the word of God,' and blend it with their own inventions, but as of sincerity, but as of God, being sent by him, in the sight of God, so spake they in Christ; and were always jealous, lest the souls they ministered to should be seduced and drawn away, by cunning and artful men, from the simplicity of the gospel: they were careful to deliver those doctrines consistently; their trumpet did not give an uncertain sound; their word was not yeaand nay, sometimes one thing, and sometimes another, to the dishonour of the gospel, and the confusion of souls, but was all of a piece; they preachedagreeable to theanalogyof faith, and were very solicitous to keep to that rule, and not swerve from it: and with a great deal of warmth and zeal they adhered to these truths; bravely withstood all opposers, feared the faces of none, and studied to please no man; but were bold in the name of God to speak the gospel of God, though with much contention; and however weak, mean, and contemptible their ministry might appear to the world, it was attended with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, and was made useful for the conversion of thousands of souls: for these truths being received
^ Brightman and Cotton in loc. ' KaffiyXfi/ovTev, caupouantes sermouem Dei; metaphora sumpta est ab hospitibus and cauponautibus, quibus m more est vinum aqua corruinpere, Aretjus in 2 Cor. ii. 17.
in the love thereof, wrought eifectually in them that believed: and were constantly adhered to and retained by them, maugre all the opposition of men and devils.
Secondly. If we consider the nature of their worship, which was pure and spiritual: the ordinances were kept by them, as they were delivered to them: were not mixed with human inventions, and, to their eternal honour, were constantly attended on by them: they were very frequent and fervent in the duties of fasting and prayer, aud did nothing of moment in the church without them: all the parts of religious worship were performed decently and in order by them; in all things they sought the glory of God, and the consolation and edification of each other.
Thirdly. If we take notice of their discipline, which was strict, and according to rule: proper officers were chosen by the joint suffrages of the church; ministers were by them set apart for the ministry; and deacons chosen by them to take care of the poor, and serve the tables: church censures and •■ excommunications were administered by the whole body, aud that with a great deal of success; in case of private offences, they gave private admonitions, and for public crimes, rebuked before all, that others might tear: those who were errouous iu principle, they sharply reproved: aud such as were disorderly iu practice, withdrew from; an heretic after the first aud second admonition, they rejected; and such who were the authors of division, and causes of contention, they carefully marked, observed, aud avoided.
Fourthly. -If we take a view of their Christian commuuion and fellowship with each other; they lived in entire unity andharmouy with each other; they were all of one heart and of one soul; one soul did, as it were, dwell iu, and actuate all their bodies; they had a great deal of sympathy for each other iu all distresses, whether inward or outward, and freely communicated to each other; they wept with those that wept, and rejoiced with those that rejoiced; they kept Christ's new commandment, and entirely loved one another; and in so doing, gave an evidence of their beiug the true disciples of Christ; so that the very heatheustook notice of it, and could say, " See how they love one another!" ™ which, though they could not condemn, yet it was not very grateful to them.
Fifthly. Their conversation was as becomeththe gospel of Christ Jesus: they held the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience; that grace, which was reveakd uuto them, and wrought in them, taught them to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world; aud in so doing, they adorned the gospel, honoured their profession, stopped the mouths of gainsayers, aud recommended religion to others; and thus the primitive church much continued for the first three hundred years after
Christ: but we are not to imagine, that there were no blemishes and imperfections in her during all this time; for there were many, and more especially towards the latter end; but, being compared with the state of the church in after ages, she might then be said to be all fair, and no spot in her. But I rather think the words are not to be limited to the church in any one period of time, but are applicable to her and to all believers in any age of the world; who are all fair, not upon the foot of their own works, as the Targum on the place intimates; for all their righteousnesses are as filthy rags, and so are far from making them appear fair and beautiful in Christ's sight; but they are so, being justified by his righteousness, washed iu his blood, and sanctified by his Spirit; and so shall be at last presented to him " a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing," Eph. v. 27.
The title and character which Christ here gives to his church, " my love," I have already met with and explained in chap. i. 9. It is here predicated of her,
1st. That she is all fair. She is said to be fair, and is called by Christ, his fair one, and the fairest among women, before; but here, all fair: To show,
1. That she was a perfection of beauty, being made perfect through that comeliuess which Christ put upon her: believers are perfectly justified by Christ's righteousness from all sin; stand complete in him, and so are esteemed all fair by him; and in respect of sauctification, there is a perfection of parts, though not of degrees; there is a perfect new creature in all its parts, though it is not as yet grown up to be a perfect man in Christ; even as a new born babe, which has every part and limb in just proportion, may be said to be perfect, though it has not as yet grown up to the stature and bigness it will do, if life is continued.
2. That the whole church, and aU the true members thereof are so; all of the church, every member, every individual believer, is fair in Christ's eye; the meanest and weakest believer, as well as the greatest and strongest, is made perfectly comely with Christ's comeliness, and equally accepted in the beloved. 3. He says so of the church, to manifest the exceeding greatness of her beauty, and how much his heart was taken with it, that he, the king, greatly desired it, and delighted to be in her company. 4. To comfort her, banish her doubts aud fears, and strengthen her faith; who, seeing her own vileuess and sinfulness, and spots and blemishes, might be ready to despond in her mind, and call iu question her interest iu Christ, and his righteousness; therefore he says; " Thou art all fair, ray love:" I do love thee, thou art exceeding fair and beautiful in my eye; all of thee is fair and beautiful; thou art fairer than all others, being adorned with my grace, and clothed with ray righteousness.
2ndly. He asserts that there was no spot iu her; which is not to be understood, 1. As if there was no sin in believers; for this is contrary to all the experience of God's children, as well as to express texts of scripture; the humble coufeasions and ingenuous acknowledgments of saints in all ages, their frequent groans and complaints of the weight and burden of it, are plain proofs to the contrary; their ardeut prayers at the throne of grace, for the manifestations of pardoning love, that God would cleanse them from seciet, and keep them back from presumptuous sins, not only testify their commission of sinful actions, but also their sense of indwelling corruptions; and their daily slips and falls loudly proclaim the depravity of their natures; to imagine that we have no sin in ns, is but to deceive ourselves, and to give an evidence to others, that the trutli is not in us; therefore, when Christ says of his church, that there is no spot in her, we are not to understand it in this sense. Nor, 2. As if the sins of God's people were not sins; for, though thev are justified by
Christ's righteousness from all'sin, and have all to Christ and his church: This, says he, is a
great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and
a large and full commendation of his church's beauty, and having his heart exceedingly taken with it, so that he could not bear a distance from her: invites her, as his spouse and bride, to go along with him, and look otf from the several places mentioned. In the words are,
I. A special title given her, expressive of the nearest relation to him; "my spouse."
II. A kind invitation to go along with him, enforced with the most powerful arguments.
I. A special title is given to her, " my spouse." This is a new one, which we never met with before: He had called her his love, his dove, and his fair one, but never, till now, his spouse; which is expressive of that near relation and strict union that is between Christ and his church, which union is represented by several things in scriptore, as by the union of the head and members, vine and branches; but by none more strongly than by the conjugal union of husband and wife, by which they become one flesh; which the apostle, Eph. v. 32, taking notice of, applies their sins pardoned through Christ's blood: yet their sins do not hereby cease to be sins: pardon of sin and justification by Christ's righteousness, free souls from an obligation to the punishment due to sin, but do not destroy the nature of sin: violations and breaches of God's righteous law, made by his own people, are equally esteemed sins by him, as those made by others; and though he never will inflict his vindictive wrath npon them for their sins; yet he does oftentimes, in a fatherly manner, chastise them for them, and brings them under a sense and acknowledgment of them before him. But, 3. The church and all believers are so in Christ's account; though they have sin in them, and have committed sin, and, through infirmity, continue to do so, yet sin is not reckoned and imputed to them; for, being clothed with his spotless righteousness, he looks upou them as if they had no spot in them; and they are so corered with it, that when their sins are sought for by divine justice, they shall not be found, nay, God himself having accepted of Christ's righteousness and imputed it to them, sees no iniquity in Jacob, nor perverseness in Israel: though all sin is seen by him, in articulo providenlia, in the article of providence, and nothing escapes his all-seeing eye; yet, in articulo justificationis, in the article of justification, he sees no sin in his people, so as to reckon it to them, or condemn them for it; for they all stand unblameable and nnreproveable in his sight; and Christ will ere long present them in open view to men and angels, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing.
Verse 8. Come with me from Lebanon, (my spouse) with me from Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, Jrom the lions' duns, from th& mountains of the leopards.
('HBibT haviiij.', ill liie verse? going before, civcn his church:" Christ and his church being espoused together, become one spirit; hence it is that they are called by the same names: Christ is called by the name of Israel, which is the church's name, and the church is called by the name of Christ; hence all that Christ has is the church's, and all that the church has is Christ's; her debts become his, and his grace becomes hers; there is a mutual interest of persons and things; and that which crowns all, is, that this union is indissoluble: this band can never be broken, nor this marriage-knot be ever untied.
I shall now very briefly show you, 1st. How the church came to be the spouse of Christ. 2ndly. Why she is first called so here.
1st. How the church came to be Christ's spouse; a person so much beneath him, at such a distance from him, and so unlovely and unlikely iu herself, it may justly seem strange and be wondered at, how she came to be so nearly related to him. And here aow observe, that the Lord Jesus Christ from all eternity pitched his love upou her: that he loved her from thence, is manifest from his suretyship-engagements for her; he asked her of his I'ather, who had a right to dispose of her, and he gave him his heart's desire, and did not withhold the request of his lips from him; which request being made by the Son, and consent given by the leather, he then betrothed her to himself for ever, and tliat in righteousness, and iu judgment, aud in loving-kindness, and in mercies; aud resolved to bestow that grace upon her, which should cause her to know, own, and acknowledge him to be her Lord and Husband: but notwithstanding this, at present here was an actual consent of her own wanting; wherefore he sends his ministering servants iu the several ages of the world to obtain it: these are sent to display his greatness, discover tlie richness of his giace, aud speak of all his glories; which, being impressed upoa souls by the mighty power of his Spirit and grace, they are willing to give up themselves to him to be his for ever, to love, owu, and acknowledge him as their Lord and Husband; which may be called " the day of their espousals" lo him: but all this will more visibly and gloriously appear, when all the elect are gathered in, and every soul of them made willing to be a holy spouse unto him: then shall the nuptials be solemnized, and that voice should be heard in heaven, " the marriage of the Lamb is come;" whose wife, being " as a bride adorned for her husband," shall be received by him, and enter with him into the marriage chamber, where they shall spend an endless eternity in the enjoyment of each other.
2ndly. Why she is first called so here; she is in the following verses, and in other parts of this song, frequently called so, but never before this time. (1). Being all fair, without any spot or blemish, being prepared by his grace for himself, and having a grant from him to be " arrayed in fine linen, clean and white," he calls her his spouse; for now she looked something like one, having on the wedding garment, Christ's spotless righteousness. (2). The marriage was now consummated, " the day of his espousals" was over, which is mentioned in chap. iii. 11, for all that comes between that and these words, is a commendation of his church's beauty, which his heart was wonderfully taken with on his marriage-day; and when he had finished the commendation, salutes her with this title, my spouse. (3). The mentioning of it here, may be also to prevail with her to go along with him. Where should a wife be? or with whom should she be, but with her husband? I am thy husband, and thou art my spouse and bride; and therefore both duty and affection to vne should oblige thee to go along with me: so that the import of the words is much the same with those; " forget thine own people, and thy father's house, so shall the king greatly desire thy beauty; for he is thy Lord, and worship thou him," Psalm xlv. 10, 11. Which leads me to consider,
II. The invitation he gives her to go along with him, " Come with me, my spouse," &e., or, as the words may be read, " Thou shalt come with me,"° &c., for whatever Christ invites and exhorts us to, he must give us grace and strength to perform, and, blessed be his name, he does.
Lebanon, from whence she is exhorted and invited to remove, was a goodly mountain, on the borders of the land of Canaan, northward; it was famous for odoriferous trees, and especially for cedars, wherefore frequent mention is made of it in this song; this was that "goodly mountain and Lebanon," which Moses had such a desire to see before his death, Deut. iii. 25, the allusion may be to the bringing of Pharaoh's daughter, whom Solomon married, from the house of the forest of Lebanon, where she might be first placed, to tiie house he built for her, when it was prepared to receive her," 1 Kings ix. 24. Some of the Jewish writers^ think, that a mighty conflux of people to the temple, from all parts of Judea, and even from among the uncircumcised, who are compared to lions and leopards, is here intended: but rather, we are to uuderstaud the words as an exhortation, to remove from the teraple and from Jerusalem; for perhaps by Lebanon here, may be meant the temple, as in Zech. xi. 1, " Open thy doors, 0 Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars;" which, by some Jewish writers,"i is expounded of the temple, aud the destruction of it: for they tell us,' that forty years before the destruction of it, the gates of the temple opened of themselves; at which R. Jochanau Ben Zaccai, as if affrighted, rebuked them, aud said, " Now know I that thy destruction is at hand, according to the prophecy of Zechariah, the son of Iddo, Open thy gates, O Lebanon," &c. The temple might be called so, because it was made of the wood of Lebanon, of cedars which were brought from thence, and because the frankincense which grew there, was daily burnt in it, and the glory of it was brought into it. Now iu Christ's time the temple was become a den of thieves, as he calls it, in Matt. sxi. 13; and iu the apostles time was a den of lions, and a mountain of leopards; was full of painted and spotted hypocrites, and cruel persecutors; wolves in sheep's clothing, who made havoc of the church, and persecuted the saints from place to place; wherefore Christ removed from them, broke up housekeeping with them, and left their house desolate unto th em; he took his gospel from them, ordered his ministers to depart far hence to the Gentiles, and calls forth his people from among them, to go along with him thither, " Come with me from Lebanon, ray spouse," &c. Also he bids her look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Ilermon: Amana' was a mountain, which divided Cilicia from Syria; from whence perhaps the river at the foot of it took its name, which in 2 Kings v. 12, is called Abana, but in the keri or margin it is read Amana: and so the Targum here expounds it of the people which dwelt by the river Amana: R. Solomon Jarchi would have it to be a mountain in the northern border of Israel, and that it is the same with mount Hor;* and indeed, iu every place where mention is made of mount Hor, the Targum of Joaathan* always renders it, Taurus
Umanns; for Amanus, according to Ptolemy, was a part of mount Taurus; it is joined with Libanou by Josephus,"' and was a part of it, where the snow lay all the summer; as it is both with that and Carmel by ^lianus.^ Shenir and Ilermon were one and the same mountain, called by different names: Herraon perhaps was the common name to the whole mountain; and that part of it which belonged to the Sidonians, they called Sirion; and the other (lart which belongei to the Amorites, they called Shenir, Dent. iii. 9. Now all these mountains may be called dens of lions, and mountains of leopards, not only because they were inhabited by those wild beasts,'' but because they were inhabited by cruel, savage, and tyrannical persons, and by thieves and robbers, and such like persons, and especially Amana, as Strabo,^ Cicero,* and Plutarch'' relate; and whicli appears also from what Lucan says, in his Pharsnlia, lib. 3, ver. 244.
Cappadoces duri populus nunc cultor Amani.
Shenir and Hermon were formerly, as Jarchi observes, the dens of those lions, Sihon and Og, kings of Bashan and of the Amorites; unless they should rather be thought to be the proper names of some places about Lebanon, for Adrichomius"^ says, " The mountain of the leopards, which was round and high, was two miles distant northwards from Tripolis, three from the city Areas southward, and one from mount Lebanon." Now from the tops of these mountains Christ would have his ehurch look, and take a prospect how the gospel was received, what numbers of souls w'ere converted, and how churches were planted in Phoenicia, Cyprus, Cyrenia, Antioch, &c., though it was contemned, rejected, and persecuted by the Jewish nation; so that the words may be understood of Christ's carrying his gospel into the Gentile world, andsncceeuingin it, and calling his people to take notice of it. Or else.
This may intend in general Christ's call to his church and people, to leave the society of, and come out from among the wicked men of the world, comparalde to lions and leopards, and to go along with him, as in 2 Cor. vi. 17, and Rev. sviii. 4. And here are two sorts of arguments, which he makes use of to enforce this upon them.
I'irst. That the persons from whom he exhorts them to remove, were no better than lions and leopards; and to converse with them, was no better than to dwell in the dens and mountains of such. 1. Wicked and ungodly persons may be compared to lions, especially those wjio are of a cruel and persecuting nature: hence David, baing among such, says, " my soul is among lions;" he frequently represents the wicked as such, and desires deliverance from them: likewise the
V. ^70. ' Mens leopardorum rotuudus and alius apostle Paul calls a persecuting Nero, " the lion," out of whose mouth it pleased the Lord to deliver him. 2. They may be compared to leopards, (1.) For their being full of spots; the leopard is not fuller of spots, than the sinner is of sin; as the one is natural, so is the other; and as the leopard cannot change one spot, nor make any alteration in his nature; no more can the sinner change his own heart, nor by any power of his own remove the spots and stains of sin; as Jeremy says, chap. xiii. 23, " Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil." (2.) For their craftiness and cruelty, as is manifest from Jer. v. 6, Hos. xiii. 7-.Sllianus reports,"* that when the leopard is in want of food, it hides itself among the thickets, so as it cannot be seen; and, by the sweetness of its odour, draws the fawns, does, wild goats, and such like animals to it; and when they are near, breaks out of its lurking-place, and makes them its prey: other artful methods it makes use of for the' same purpose, as is recorded by others f which is a just emblem of the craftiness and cruelty of wicked <and ungodly men, who use all the stratagems to ensnare, and exercise all the cruelty tlicy can devise upon those who are " quiet in the land," (3.) For their swiftness; so in Ilab. i. 8, the horses of the Chaldeans are said to be swifter than leopards: wicked men, thougli slow and backward to that which is good, yet are swift to do mischief; no sooner do their hearts devise wickedness, but their feet run to accomplish it.
Secondly. The second argument he uses with her to quit the society of wicked men, is, the enjoyment of his own company, which is far preferable to theirs; " Come with me, my spouse." L Christ's company is much more pleasant than theirs; though the ways of sin may seem pleasant for a while, yet at length they will appear no other than the haunts of lions and leopards; though the company of sinners may seem now sweet and delightful, they will be found at last to be more bitter than death; but Christ's ways are always " ways of pleasantness." it is good i'or the believer to be always in his company, where he iinds solid pleasure, and inexpressible delight; more than ever he did in the tents of wickedness. 2. It is more profitable: the company and conversation of wicked men is hurtful and pernicious; " evil commimications corrupt good manners;" but the company of Christ is always profitable: a believer always gets something by it; it has a mighty influence upon the inward frame of his soul, and upon his outward walk in the world'; it makes him both comfortable in himself, and est, qui contra aquilonem a Tripoli daubns, versus austrum a civitate Areas tribus, aLibano autom uno niiliario distat, Adrichomii 1 lieatriiro Terras Sanctm. p. iRn. l. "f De Animal.!. 5. c. 40.
useful to others; so that he sustains no loss, but undoubtedly is a gainer, who parts with the coml)any of the men of the world for Christ's. 3. Christ's compauy is much more safe than theirs: the company of wicked men is always dangerous; there is danger not only of being infected with their sins, but also of partaking of their plagues; it tends to ruin here, and leads to everlasting destruction; but the believer is always safe iu Christ's company, in what place or condition soever he be; though he walks through the waters of affliction, and fire of tribulation, nay, though tlirough the valley of the shadow of death; yet he is always safe, being guided by his counsel, supported by his hand, and comforted by his presence. Now Christ in all this discovers a great deal of cave over, and affection to his church and people. One would think she cannot witlistand a request, delivered in such an affectionate manner, where her own comfort, profit, and safety, are so much concerned. Who would dwell in lions' dens, and in the mountains of the leopards, when they might have such agreeable and delightful compauy as Christ's is? which is to be valued and preferred before this world, and all the things of it; though God's owu children are too apt to be taken with them; and therefore have need, as here, to be called to look off from them to things that are spiritual and heavenly; and not take up their rest and satisfaction in those things and places, where lions dwell and leopards walk.
Verse 9. Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse: thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck.
CHRist, having invited his church to go along with him, here discovers the reason of it, because his heart was ravished with her; he had such an affection for her, that he could not bear to be at a distance from her. In these words, consider,
II. What he declares to her; " thou hast ravished my heart," which expression is doubled.
III. What it was his heart was so taken with, which had such a mighty influence upon him; " with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck."
I. I shall consider the titles he gives unto her, and they are two, " my sister, my spouse;" one of which, namely, " my spouse," has been explained iu the former verse, and is here repeated to show his affection to her, how much he delighted in her under this character; as also, to assure her of the truth of it, as well as to mauifest his satisfaction in this relation, and that he was not ashamed to own and acknowledge her as such: the other title, " my sistei'," we have not met before. Novt Christ may call the church his sister, 1. More amatorio, it being a lovestrain;' aud this being a love-song, where Christ and his church are expressing their love to each other; such a title as this cannot be looked upon as an improper one: it being an endearing expression, used by husbands to tiieir wives; as by Raguel to Edna, Tobit vii. 8, and by Tobias to Sara, chap. viii. 4. 3. More Hebrceorum: it being usual with the Jews to call those of their own kindred and coitntry, brethren and sisters, and with none but such were they allowed to marry; and perhaps to this the apostle has a respect, 1 Cor. ix. 5, " Have we not power to lead about a sister, a wife?" &c., agreeable to this, Christ calls his church his sister, whom he had espoused to himself. 3. He may call her so on account of his incarnation; he assuming the same nature, and partaking of the same flesh and blood the children did; and so being of one and the same mass and lump with them, is not ashamed to call them brethreu; which, it may be, is intended in that wish of the church's, chap, viii. 1, " O that thou wert as my brother!" &c., that is, 0 that thou wert incarnate! that we were of the same flesh and blood, and thereby thou appear to be my brother, aud I thy sister. 4. On the account of her adoption: God has by his sovereign, free, and distinguishing grace, adopted all his elect into his family, and has iu his covenant of grace declared himself to be their Father, aud them to be his sons and daughters; and now, being the sons aud daughters of the same Father as Christ is the Son of, they become his brethren and sisters, which he acknowledges, John XX. 17. 5. Being bora again, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God, they bear this character; and are so in Christ's esteem, according to what he says, Matt. xii. 50, " Whosoever shall do the will of my Father Avhich is in heaven, the same is my brother and sister, aud mother:" Christ bears all relations to his people, aud is willing to own them iu all relations to him. 6. Perhaps the church is here first called Christ's sister; because Christ having called his people out of Judea's land, aud gathered a church among the Gentiles, that little sister spoken of iu chap. viii. 8; it might hereby appear that he had a real affection for her, that she was valued by him, and neai'ly related to him.
II. What he declares unto her, is, that she had " ravished his heart." It is but one word in the Hebrew text, and is used in this form and seuse no where else, but twice in this verse; for Christ's love being so unspeakable and inexpressible, he coius, as one? well "observes, new words to discover it by; it is variously rendered, and perhaps by laying the several versions together, it will appear more fully what is intended by it. 1. The words may be rendered, " thou hast heartened me, or put heart into me," and caused me to be of good cheer; so Cocceius and Schmidt: the word is used in this sense, in the Syriac Testament, in Matt. ix. 2, and 1 Thess. v. 14, and then the sense may be this; the love which I bear unto thee, the charming ideas of thee, which I always carry in my mind, and the " joy which was set before me," of having tliy company and presence for ever in glory; have made my heavy sufferings easy, animated me as man and Jlediator, and cheerfully carried mc through them all for thy sake, lieb. xii. 2. 2. Others read them, " thou hast unhcarted me;" thou hast taken away my heart, and stolen it from me, so that 1 have no heart left in me, so the Septuagiut; which reading R. Aben Ezra confirms. Sometimes fear throws persons into such a condition, that they are as if they had no heart, spirit, life, or soul in them; as the Canaanites in Jadg. v. 1; sometimes wonder and surprise; thus the queen of Sheba, when she had seen Solomon's wisdom and glory, it is said, " there was no more spirit in her;" and sometimes love has such an influeuce on the heart, and so it had here on Ciirist; it was so powerful, that it had taken away his heart; " thou hast ravished my heart," that is, thou hast taken it away from me, as it were, by force and violence, that it is no longer mine, but thine; thou art master over it, and hast the command of it,*" having claimed it to thyself as thine own. 3. It is rendered by others, " thou hast drawn my heart unto thee," so R. Solomon Jarchi; or, " brought me near, " or " caused me to draw nigh:"' that our hearts should be drawn to Christ, by views of his loveliness, and discoveries of his love to us, is no wonder; but that Christ's heart should be drawn to us, in whom were neither love nor loveliness, is surprising; which shows the exceeding greatness, freeness, and richness of Christ's love. 4. It may be read, " thou hast coupled ray heart with thine;" and in this sense the Talmudists use the word -.^ Christ's heart and a believer's are so knit, joined, and coupled together, that they are but one heart, one soul, and one spirit; " he that is joined to the Lord is one spirit;" all the powers of hell and earth, united together, are not able to disjoin and separate, either a believer's heart from Christ, or Christ's heart from a believer. 5. The Targum paraphrases it thus, " thy love is fixed upon the table of mv heart;" it is written there in legible characters, which can never be erased; the church is not only engraven on tlie palms of Christ's hands, but also upon the table of his heart: and so the church has what she wished for, chap. viii. 6, " Set me as a seal upon thine heart:" Christ's love to the church is so rivetted and fixed in his heart, that there is no removing it; " Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" 6. It is translated by others, " thou hast wounded my heart," so the Vulgate Latin; which reading is not to be despised; R. David Kinichi' owns it: Christ's heart was wounded with one of love's darts,"" with an arrow shot from one of the church's eyes; which is expressive of the force and power of love, with what vehemence it dwelt in, and what iiidiience it had upon the heart of Christ.
Now this expression is repeated, to show the vehemency and passionateness of liis love, and the exceeding greatness of it; as also to assure her of the reality of it; that he was hearty and sincere in it; and did not say this by way of compliment to her as lovers too often do; nor was it a word which was rashly spoken by him, or that dropped from him at unawares; but as it proceeded from his heart, so it vvas spoken by him in a deliberate manner; therefore he repeats it, not to correct, but to confirm it.
Hence we may conclude what interest a believer has in Christ's heart. What may he not expect? what can he vvant? what need he fear, that has so great a share in Christ's heart? and what reason has he to give Christ his heart, who has so much of Christ's?.
III. I shall now take notice of the things with which Christ's heart was ravished. 1. " With one of the church's eyes;" the eye is an attractive of love;° and therefore it is said in Prov. vi. 25, " Neither let her take thee with her eyelids." By the eye, with which Christ was so taken, may be meant, the eye of faith; by which a soul looks on him, and loves him; beholds his fulness, and wishes for an interest in him; and looks to him, and expects from him alone life and salvation: He says, it was with one of her eyes; which shows that a believer has more eyes than one; and therefore we read of " the eyes of their understanding," Eph. i. 18; but it was with this eye of faith, by which she looked to him, and believed on him, that his heart was so ravished; and that but with one look from it, or glance of it, as botli Junius and Ainsworth read it; nay, though but a very glimmering one; for faith, even in its lowest degree, is exceeding precious to Christ Jesus; which shows how easily and quickly a couquest is gained over Christ's heart by faith; his heart must needs be full of love to believers, since it is ravished and overcome even with a single glimmering look from faith's eye; and if so, how much will his heart be ravished, when we shall see him " face to face, just as he is; "take a full view of him, look at him, and feed our eyes for ever upon the unutterable glories of his person? 2. " With one chain of her neck: " the neck is a beautiful part of the body, and being agreeably adorned, is exceeding enamouring: the Vulgate Latin version is, " with one lock of hair of thy neck," so Aquila; which hung down in it, and looked very beautiful, and with which lovers are sometimes taken." By the neck, we may also understand faith, as we have observed on ver. 4, it beint; neither unusual uor improper to represent one and the same thing under different metaphors: and by the chain, may be meant the graces of the Spirit, which, being linked and chained, do inseparably go together: and being put about this neck of faith, makes it look very beautiful: every grace is as a golden link or precious pearl in Christ's esteem; who having beautified his people with them, takes the utmost delight in viewing them; and whilst he is observing how beautifully they are adorned there-with, his heart is ravished with them.
Verse 10. How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse! how much better is thy love than wine! and the smell of thine ointments than all spices!
Christ having; declared in the preceding verse, hnw much his heart was delighted in, and ravished with the faith of his church; now proceeds to show how well pleased he was with her love, and other graces of the Spirit, in these words; where,
I. The excellency of her love is set forth.
ir. The sweet smell of her ointments is commended.
I. He gives some excellent characters of her love to him, Christ is the objdct of a believer's love; and he is well pleased with that love which they show to him: the nature of this love, its spring and actings, have been shown already, on chap. i. 3, where it has been observed, that it is superlative and universal; a believer loves Christ above all, and all of Christ; it is, or at least ought to be, constant and ardent, and is always hearty and unfeigned; it springs and arises from views of Christ's loveliness, and sights of his suitableness and fulness, from a sense of his love, and a discovery of uuion and relation to him; and is heightened and increased by enjoying communion and fellowship with them; it manifests itself by a regard to his commands and ordinances, his truths, his people, and his presence, and by parting with, and bearing all for him, as has there been more largely shown. Now of such a love as this he says, 1. That it is fair; "How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse 1" the titles and characters he gives her, have been already explained; it was prqper to repeat them here, that whilst he was commending her love, he might show his own; and assure her of the relation she stood in to him, and that he had an undoubted right to the affections of her heart: he here says, that her love to him was fair, that is lovely, delightful, grateful, and acceptable; and it appears to be exceeding well-pleasing to him; for those persons, ha dee]are9,are the objects of his love, to whom he manifests himself in a way of special grace and favour; he overrules all things here for their good; he gives them more grace, has prepared glory for them, and will preserve them safe unto it: not that their love is the meritorious and procuring cause of all this, nor the condition of their enjoying it; for his love to them has resolved all these things for them beforehand, and is the cause of theirs; but when it is wrought in their souls, and discovers itself to him, he is pleased to show by those instances of his grace, how fair and lovely it is in his sight. 2. He says, that it is "better than wine:" he here asserts the same of her love, which she had of his, in chap. i. 3. Christ and the church, in this Song, do frequently gather up each others words, striving, as it were, to outdo each other in their expressions of love; but Christ will in no wise come behind, and be autdane by his church and people; though it may well be wondered at, that Christ should have the same to say of our love, as we have of his; yet so it is: he here declares, it is " better than wine," that is, more grateful and pleasant, more refreshing and reviving; "wine makes glad the heart of man," Psalm civ. 15; but it cannot cheer, and make glad the heart of man, more than a sinner's love does the heart of Christ: wine was used in feasts, and counted a principal part thereof; therefore the " house of feasting" was called the " house of drinking," that is, wine, Eccles. vii. 2; the feast which the rich Pharisee made for Christ, was not, as one? well observes, thought so much of by him, nor half so entertaining to him, as the love which the poor woman showed him: wine was used iu the legal sacrifices; but the wine of legal sacrifices, or any external performance, is not so valued by Christ as a sinner's love is; and indeed no duties or performances whatever are acceptable to him, unless love be the iuward principle from whence they flow, and by which they are acted. 3. He sets off the greatness and excellency of it, by using a word of the plural number; "How fair are thy loves,'' how much better are thy loves," &c., which may be expressive of the several actings of it towards him, for it discovers itself in various ways: and also of the several fruits which accompany or spring from it; all which serve for the greater commendation of it. 4. The manner of the expressions, which is by wav of interrogation and admiration; " How fair! &c., how much better!" &c., as if it could not be well expressed, how fair and lovely it was; which is an evidence of the valuableness of it, or at least an indication how much Christ esteemed it; Christ's love has its heights and depths, and lengths and breadths: and to hear souls speak af- ter such a manner, concerning that, need not to be wondered at; but to bear Christ express himself after this manner, concerning ours, is strange and surprising.
II. Her ointments are next commended, and the smell of them: in chap. i. 3, we read of Christ's ointments, here of the church's; in both places one and the same thing is intended, namely, the graces of the Spirit; why these are called ointments, have been there shown. These ointments, or graces of the Spirit, are first. Christ's and then the church's -. the head is first anointed with them, and then the members; he without measure, but they iu measure; which being poured forth upon them, and they anointed with them, the smell of them is exceeding grateful to him: the smell of these ointments intends the actings and exercises of grace upon him; which are very delightful to him, and preferred by him to all spices, even to all that were used ia the holy anointing oil, Exod. xxx. 23, 24; that was not so valuable as this " anointing which leacheth all things;" nor the smell of that so much esteemed by Christ, as this is.