VERSE 1 " I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk; eat, O friends, drink, yea drink abundantly, O beloved." These different fruits may represent the different results of the Spirit's operations in souls by the truth. There may be tears, bitter as myrrh, flowing from one, under a deep sense of past failure. The Spirit of God having applied the truth in power to the conscience, the heart is broken. Its deep fountains are opened up, and bitterest tears of deepest anguish flow like a river. And now out comes, in unreserved confession before God, the whole matter. Second causes are lost sight of, in the searching light of God's holy presence. " Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight." These are close quarters for a soul to be in with God. Though David's sin had been against his neighbor, and against the well-being of society, yet he says, " Against thee, thee only, have I sinned." All sin is against God; and it is a painful thing to have to do with God about our sin. But right into the presence chamber of the Holy One we must go, just as we are, if we would get rid of the awful burden of sin. There, and there only, can we find full relief. The weeping penitent must lay down the multitude of his sins, side by side with the multitude of God's tender mercies. Only there can he learn what that word meaneth, " Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound." The Father meets His child, blessed be His name, in the boundless grace of His heart, on the ground of the precious blood of Jesus. As the rising wave from the fathomless ocean hastens to meet and embrace the descending stream, and overflow all its limits, so does grace meet the penitent sinner, and obliterate forever all trace of his sin. Its course, like a river, may have been long and deep, but now its very course and limits are untraceable.
" O love divine, thou vast abyss!
My sins are swallowed up in thee;
Covered is my unrighteousness
From condemnation I am free;
While Jesu's blood, through earth and skies,
Mercy I free, boundless mercy cries."
Having passed through the experience of Psa. 51, David could praise and worship God with a joyful heart according to the strains of Psa. 103 " Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits; who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with loving-kindness and tender mercies." Thus God's majesty, holiness, and truth have been maintained, sin judged in the light, the conscience cleared, the heart made happy, full communion restored, and the soul established in. grace. The tears may have been more bitter than myrrh, but the results are sweeter than honey, and more fragrant to the heart of Christ than all spices.
The Lord finds every variety of fruit in. the assemblies of His people. But with all that which is of the Spirit, He has the fullest fellowship and enjoyment. " I have gathered.... I have eaten.... I have drunk." He partakes of all the variety. He slights none. In the advanced disciple He may find that which indicates the strength and vigor of wine; while in the newborn babe there may be the sweet simplicity of milk. An infidel, chafed and annoyed by the beautiful simplicity of a believing child, who was speaking about the joy and happiness of being with Jesus forever, said to her, " But what if Jesus be in hell?" " Ah," replied the dear child, " but it would not be hell if He were there." How simple, yet how unanswerable! How honoring to the name-how refreshing to the heart of Jesus! What hast thou for thy Lord, O my soul? What can He gather from thee-what canine eat-what can He drink of thine? What is sweeter than humility? What is more honoring to the Lord than entire dependence on Him? What more grateful to His heart than a daily, growing desire for the glory of God?
Many will partake of this royal supper, and enter into its joys. Many, very many, are the " friends " of the Bridegroom. And all, in the day of His glory, will enter into His joy. Wondrous, long-looked-for day of heavenly and earthly glory! All hearts will be reached and touched with that joyous invitation. " Eat, O friends, drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved." The " natural branches," long broken off from the stock of promise, shall, as the apostle says, be grafted in again. " In that day "-the day of Israel's restoration-" the Lord shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root; Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit." (Isa. 27) What a feast shall then be provided through restored Israel, for all nations 1 The face of the world shall be filled with fruit. "And in that mountain shall the Lord of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined." (Isa. 25) Again, "And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the Lord, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth: and the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel. And I will sow her unto me in the earth." (Hos. 2) Here the figure is changed from ingrafting to sowing, as if God was going to do an entirely new thing in the earth.
" Now we know, from the New Testament," says a recent writer, " that in that day, the heavens' will be occupied by Christ and His glorified saints. Jehovah will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth.' Christ, in whom all things, both in heaven and earth, will then be gathered, will be the One to whom prayer shall be addressed from all on earth, even as it will be through Him, and His glorified saints, that blessing will be universally administered. 'And the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil.' No want, no scarcity, even then. The voice of complaining will have ceased to be heard in the streets. Creation's universal groan will have been hushed; yea, it will have given place to universal hymns of gratitude and praise. 'And they shall hear Jezreel.' Now, Jezreel, as scholars tell us, means ' the seed of God'; and this interpretation of the word is confirmed by what immediately follows, I will sow her [Israel] unto me in the earth.'.... There shall be one unbroken chain of blessing, from the throne of Jehovah, the great source of all, down to the enjoyment by mankind of all the blessings of this life; and the place in this wondrous chain filled by restored Israel, is that of Jezreel, the seed of God, sown by Jehovah, and to Him, in the earth, and filling the face of the world with fruit. Jehovah-the heavens, occupied by Christ and the church in glory-the earth-restored Israel, or Jezreel, the seed of God-universal blessing on the earth, even to the abundance of corn, and wine, and oil, while war and violence are at an end; 'And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.' Praise, eternal praise to Him who alone doeth wondrous things Let the whole earth be filled with His glory."
Oh! what a circle of blessing is presented to us here Mark it well, O my soul, and meditate thereon. Look forward to the happy day, when He who has been long absent shall have returned, and shall say in the ears of His waiting people, " I am come "-" I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse." Then shall the promises made to the fathers be fulfilled to their children, according to the word of the Lord. Jehovah in the highest heavens-Christ and His glorified saints, in the heavens that are connected with the earth -then restored Israel in the holy land, and all nations of the earth, thus linked together in one glorious chain of universal blessing. Oh 1 what a circle of glory! What a circle of " friends!" What a feast of love! And what a joyous welcome from the heart of Him who is " Lord of all!" " Eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved."
Verse 2. "I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night." In this sad confession of the bride we have brought before us an aspect of experience which many believers, Christian as well as Jewish, are frequently passing through, and which well deserves our patient meditation.
By far the greater proportion of Christians are more occupied with themselves, and their changeable feelings, than with the word of God. This is the fruitful source of endless tioubles and perplexities of the soul. How often it happens in the history of some Christians that when they experience a change of feeling in themselves, they hastily conclude that Christ Himself is not now what He once was to them. They judge the Lord by their own feelings, in place of believing in Him according to His own word. This is looking to self in place of Christ, and being governed by feelings in place of the unchangeable truth of God.
Only a few hours ago, as we may say, following the order of our song, the spouse was in the full joy of her Lord's presence. She was then bright and happy, like a certain class of Christians in the full current of a joyous meeting. But supper being ended, and the guests withdrawn, she retires to rest. Very soon, alas, a change comes over her feelings which greatly troubles her. " I sleep, but my heart waketh." She is restless, uncomfortable, unhappy. The heart is breathing after Christ, but she is indisposed to exert herself for Him. What a sad, melancholy state of things, when the blessed Jesus is knocking at the door! But this is no uncommon case. The believer may be in the main right at heart, but having fallen into a low, dull, sleepy state, spiritual duties become a burden, and they are either entirely neglected, or not done heartily. This is a miserable state of soul to be in, " I sleep, but my heart waketh." It is well to look at both sides of this " but." She is neither asleep nor awake. On the one side there is a slumbering conscience, on the other a wakeful heart. No quiet rest can she find-no refreshment. And well it is so when we become careless about the things of the Lord. But what a picture of thousands, and tens of thousands, who ought to be bright, happy, and always ready girded for anything in the way of service to Christ and immortal souls.
We now turn to the bright and blessed side of this instructive scene. Has the Lord changed because she is changed? Blind unbelief would be sure to say He had; and then unworthy thoughts of Christ would follow, and no end to doubts and fears. When inward thoughts are guiding, the words of Christ go for nothing. But, really, has her coldness and indifference not changed Him in the least towards her? The love of Christ towards His spouse never for one moment changes, notwithstanding her backsliding and inconstancy. But no better answer could be given to the question, than the words of the sleepy spouse herself. Drowsy as she is, she knows His knock, and discerns the voice to be His; and still she says " my beloved." There is a life in her soul which must ever respond to that voice, in spite of failure. "It is the voice of my beloved," she says, " that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night." Now thou hast, O my soul, the poor changeable believer, and the unchangeable Savior before thee, face to face, on the page of eternal truth. What thinkest thou? Are the vain suggestions of the human mind, in such a case, to be the guide, as to the mind of Christ, or the plain word of God? What could be plainer or more to the point than the word before us? Mark it well, O my soul, and meditate thereon. And may its blessed light ever be reflected, from thy heart and conscience, in all thy intercourse with backsliding and troubled souls.
Full of the most patient, touching love, are the words of the Bridegroom to His weak and erring bride. In place of being influenced by her sad state of soul, and accusing her of ingratitude and indifference towards Himself, He appeals to her in terms more tender than on any former occasion. " Open to me," He says, " to me-thine own Messiah-thy Beloved-I am Jesus-why shut the door against me? " " Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled." Never before had he called her his " undefiled." This term of wondrous grace and significancy was reserved for the day of her deep failure. And never before had he alluded to the heavy " dews," and the heavier " drops " of the night by which He had been overtaken in His path of devoted, unselfish love for her. Oh 1 what an appeal! Its deep, deep tones re-echo from the darkness of Gethsemane, and from the solitudes of Calvary, the greatness of a love which nothing could turn aside from its purpose. But alas, His appeal has but little effect on her sleep-laden conscience.
Is there anything in all this, let me now ask, that looks like a change in the love of Christ towards His backsliding one? Who can say there is? unless it be that He now reveals His love more fully, and appeals to her more tenderly. Does He not plead with her in a way that is fit to melt the heart in listening to Him? He pleads as if it would be a great favor to Him to be admitted under her roof? Or, like a weary traveler who has lost His way in a dark and stormy night, He pleads for shelter. It is also worthy of special note, that never before, at any one time, had He addressed her in so many terms of endearment. " Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled." Such, O my soul, is the love of Christ-the love of Christ to a wandering one. Consider it well. There is but one heart that never changes. Oh! how we should value that heart-trust in that heart-count only on that heart-and always keep near to that changeless heart of perfect love. But, oh, alas, what hearts are ours! All this patient, wondrous love is met by the slumbering spouse with great indifference, and answered with the most trifling and frivolous excuses.
Verse 3. "I have put off my coat; how shall I but it on?" Alas, alas, for the daughter of Zion! How insensible, through failure, to the claims of her own Messiah-her gracious Lord! What a hardening, deadening thing is sin! " It is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God." Once away from the presence of the Lord, and who can tell how far we may depart from Him, or into how many bye-ways we may wander? The thought of such a course is fearful to contemplate. And the more we love our brethren, and the more spiritual our perception is of this dreadful evil, the greater will be our sorrow over a backsliding soul. Who that has a care for souls and the Lord's glory, has not wept in secret over the too manifestly decaying zeal, and dying energy of a once earnest, fervent spirit? The pastor's heart once so cheered, so thankful, so hopeful, so delighted, to see such freshness of soul for Jesus! Early at all the meetings-the countenance beaming-spirit joyous-every word about Christ dropping into the soul like the oil of gladness; and only retiring from the public meeting to meditate on some fresh truth, and enjoy deeper communion with the Lord in secret.
Those who have felt the sorrow of such a bright soul being led astray, know what it is. As the green, fresh leaf of summer, after a severe blight, looks withered and drooping-seared as if a hot iron had passed over it; so, alas, does the soul that has been led away by some subtle snare of the enemy. Everything in appearance and manner changes. Oh, how changed! Irregularity in attendance soon follows. Every one, he imagines, is changed towards him; slow to learn the change is in himself. He takes offense at some little thing, it may be, and leaves. Now his seat is empty-he is gone-whither? The Lord only, in most cases, can answer this question. Not that we should be indifferent to the question; but the Lord only can trace the steps of his wanderings. His sleepless eye follows him everywhere; and the heart that was once pierced for his sins can never, never, no never cease to care for him. In the wisdom of His love, He may allow the failing one to taste the bitterness and sorrow of his self-chosen ways; thus it will be with Israel by-and-by; but the Lord has always within His reach the means of bringing to repentance, and of the soul's full restoration to Himself
Verse 4. " My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved by him."
This is a movement in the right direction. The Lord be praised! His own hand has done it. Now we have something like an answer to His love. Feeble it is, but real. The heart is moved for Him. She has never ceased to call Him " My beloved." There is affection for the Lord, though failure. But when the gentle, gracious knockings of a Savior's love are unheeded, He employs other means. He knows the state of the heart, and what will effectually move it towards Himself. " Shall not God search this out; for he knoweth the secrets of the heart? " (Psa. 44:2121Shall not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart. (Psalm 44:21)) Sometimes by means the most unexpected He reaches the conscience. The light corning in discovers where we are, and what we are. Grace triumphs. The soul now seeks the presence of the Lord, and the happiness that is to be found alone in Him. Still, it may be some time before it fully recovers from its failure. There may be much sorrow, humbling, breaking down, before the perfect repose of His presence be found. Confused and agitated, like one just awakened out of sleep, we may run and seek the Lord where He never said He would be found. The sanctuary, not the city, is the place of His blessed and joy-giving presence.
Verse 5. " I rose to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet-smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock." Is there such a thing as sweet tears as well as bitter? And can both flow, mingled down at the same time What more bitter to the taste than myrrh? What more fragrant to the smell than sweet-smelling myrrh? " My hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet-smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock." (Myrrh signifies flowing, weeping.) Distinct now and real is the response of the bride to the persevering love of her bridegroom. " I rose to open to my beloved." She is recovering from her spiritual indolence. The sense of her sin in not opening the door when He knocked, is bitterness in her soul; yet it is mingled with great affection for the one she slighted. Reaching the door at which He stood so long, she finds the scene filled with the fragrance of His person. Laying hold on the handles of the lock, " her hands dropped with myrrh, and her fingers with sweet-smelling myrrh."
Now that she is awakened, and alive to what she has been, and to what she has done, deepest sorrow and bitterest regret, mingled with the most adoring love for her good and gracious Lord, fill and overflow her soul, like one who has ventured back, after sorrowful failure, to the scenes of former, spiritual enjoyment. The well-known entrance, the sight of many faces so familiar, the sound of a voice not forgotten, and which has still an echo in the now melting heart—-fill the soul with deepest emotions. The whole scene recalls to the mind many by-gone days of truest happiness. And now, mingled with the yielding up of the heart to the love of Jesus, are the smitings of an upbraiding conscience. The heart in silence breathes, " Lord Jesus, I am ashamed, and blush before Thee. Miserable and unhappy have I been every hour of my wanderings. Oh! how ungrateful! how ungrateful have I been! Oh! that I should have brought this stain on Thy blessed name I My soul is hitter with self-reproach. Lord, can I be forgiven? But oh! deepen in my soul the sense of my sin in going astray, and of Thy holiness and grace, in bringing me back to Thy fold. Restore unto me the joys of Thy salvation. My soul cleaveth unto Thee."
" Blessed Redeemer! I acknowledge now
How wise, and firm, and suitable Thy ways
Of mercy and of judgment-each in turn-
Bright, and more bright Thy lovingkindness shines.
Dark, and more dark my own depravity,
By love's most strong constraint with hands that drop
Sweet smelling odors by thyself bestowed.
No longer in responseless apathy
I hear Thee knock: but now obedient made."
Verse 6. "I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone; my soul failed when he spake; I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer." Like Joseph of old, who sought in many ways, to exercise the hearts of his brethren, because of their guilt concerning himself: so the true Joseph will deeply exercise the hearts of His brethren, the Jews, in the latter day, because of their condition before God. But Joseph did not love his brethren the less, because he allowed them to pass through a trying, sifting process. His heart was full and ready to burst forth in expressions of strongest affection when the right moment came. What a relief to him when the flood-gates were thrown open, and when the long pent-up love of his heart had a free course. So shall it be with the Lord and Israel, just before He reveals Himself in power and glory, for their complete deliverance, and the full manifestation of His love as their own Messiah.
The point of analogy, however, which is here so striking between Joseph and his brethren, and Christ and the Jews, completely fails when applied to Israel and the church of God. The common notion, that Christ sometimes withdraws Himself, or hides His face, from Christians, in order that He may try them and prove them, has no foundation in the epistles. With the Jew, of course, under law everything was different; God dwelt in the thick darkness-the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest-the perfect sacrifice had not been offered-the conscience of the Jew had not been perfectly purged, therefore he could not have full peace. But with Christians the position of things is entirely changed. " The darkness is past, and the true light now shineth." We are " accepted in the beloved." Our sins, according to the judgment of God, were all, and forever, put away by the one offering of Christ. When God's full judgment against sin was expressed on the cross, the veil was rent, and the way into the holiest of all was laid open. We, dead in sin, and Christ dead for sin, were quickened together, raised up together, and seated together in heavenly places, God having forgiven all our trespass.
There can be no veil between God and Christ in glory, and we being in Christ, all perfect before the face of God, there can be no veil between God and us. And, moreover, the Holy Ghost has come down as the witness and power of our present oneness with the risen and exalted Christ, and to give us by His indwelling the conscious enjoyment of our place and portion with Christ, in the presence of God. The very thought of the Lord hiding His face from those who are in the full light of God with Himself, and as Himself, is surely utterly foreign to the whole doctrine of scripture about the church. True-alas, how true! -we may forget how richly we are blessed in Christ Jesus-we may forget that we are associated with Him as risen from the dead, and gone up on high-we may forget that His life is ours, and that His delights should be ours also; and forgetting these things, we may get away from Him, and sin against Him. And no sin, let us remember, can be so hateful to God as the sin of Christians, and that just because we are brought so near to Himself. But, alas, we must be away from Him when we fall into sin; none of us could sin in His presence. There it is hateful to us, and we have power over it.
So dignified is the manner of the Holy Ghost when referring to this subject, that He barely admits the possibility of the Christian sinning " If," He says, only the possibility of such a thing is supposed. " If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the whole world." (r John ii. r, 2.) Here we have divine provision for all the need of our pilgrim path. The advocacy of Christ, founded on righteousness and propitiation, secures the cleansing away of our defilements, and maintains us spotless before the face of God. How opposed to this blessed truth is the common notion, -that God sometimes hides His face behind a cloud, in order to test the faith and love of His children! We may fail to enjoy this blessed truth, or we may be ignorant of it, but the truth of God remains unchangeably the same; and the position of the church before Him in Christ is as unchangeable as the truth that reveals it.
Now, if we turn from the church to Israel as such, we find not analogy, but the contrast to all this wondrous grace. For although " at the time of the end," the remnant are looking for the Messiah and longing for Him with true affection, they are still under law, and allowed to feel its pressure. Like the manslayer of old, they will be, as it were, in the city of refuge until a change in the priesthood takes place. (See Num. 35) The appearing of the Lord's anointed, in the exercise of His Melchisedec priesthood, will be the great antitype of that ancient law. A change in the priesthood, through death, brought liberty to those who were prisoners in the cities of refuge. " But after the death of the high priest the slayer shall return into the land of his possession." Israel, in the latter day, before the Lord appears, will pass through a deep, sifting work under law, as many scriptures clearly show. The solemn judgment of God against their sin of blood-guiltiness must be felt and owned in the conscience. And when He appears, this blessed, though severe, work will be deepened, but then it will be under grace. The following passage refers to this point: " And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications; and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his first born." Read carefully Zech. 12, also 13 and 14.
But is it not truly beautiful, O my soul, to see the reality and fervor of affection which the blessed Lord has created in the hearts of His people, even amidst all their sufferings? How sweetly the heart of the spouse breathes after her well-beloved! Indeed, this is the character of the Song of Solomon The Psalms give us more of the workings of conscience in the remnant; the Song of Solomon pre-eminently, the affections of the heart. This is the side which we have here, and a blessed side it is. Here we have the Bridegroom-love of Jesus manifested, and its sweet and touching reflection in the heart of His loving spouse. " My soul failed when he spake." She could hear Him, but could not see Him, and her heart fainted within her; she had slighted Him in an evil hour, and being still on the ground of righteousness, He had withdrawn Himself, and was gone. But He loved her not the less, because He did this. And if she felt keenly the hiding of His face, He felt it infinitely more.
Never did the heart of Joseph burn with such an intense flame of love to his brethren, as when he was concealing himself from them. But a greater than Joseph is here! "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever." And mark, it does not read-God is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever; of course He is that; but it is of " Jesus Christ," Savior and Bridegroom, that the passage affirms, He never changes. Learn then, O my soul, to confide in Him. Never doubt His love, whatever appearances may be, or distrust His grace; grace can never, never fail.
The scene which follows is a painful one. She is out of communion, and all is in confusion. The very energy and ardor of her love bring her into all sorts of trouble. She exposes herself, as it were, to the taunts of professors inside, and to the rough treatment of the world outside. Everything for the moment is out of place, as to her ways, but her heart is right in the main, and true to her Lord. " I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, I am sick of love." Oh! how few of us could say, " I am sick of love." How seldom we expose ourselves to persecution through the fervor of our affections! May we know more of the communion which causeth the heart to burn, and the words to flow in living testimony for our absent Lord!
" To those who know the Lord I speak,
Is my Beloved near?
The Bridegroom of my soul I seek,
Oh! when will He appear? "
Verse 9. " What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?" What more grateful to the heart than to know that we are fairer than all others to the one we love best? To he well assured that this is His mind gives sweet contentment to the soul. It is also very pleasant to hear that others, who might have been filled with jealousy, speak of us, and to us, just like Himself. Nothing beyond this can be desired.
Well, so shall it be ere long with the daughter of Zion, the fair spouse of the true King Solomon. When brought into full blessing under the Messiah, and highly honored by Him, all then will gladly address her, " O thou fairest among women." The " daughters of Jerusalem " may represent in this scene the cities of Judah, which will have a subordinate place to Jerusalem in the day of her coming glory, though still in the same circle of blessing. Jerusalem and the Jews will then have the chief place of honor and glory in the earth, and all nations shall then court their favor, and seek the shelter of their wing. " Thus saith the Lord of hosts; in those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold, out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you." (Zech. 8:2323Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you. (Zechariah 8:23).) Clearly this is still future. But further, the spirit of prophecy, speaking of the restoration of the children of Zion, says, " And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet: and thou shalt know that I am the Lord: foi they shall not be ashamed that wait for me." (Isa. 49:2323And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me. (Isaiah 49:23).)
What a change for the Jew when this takes place! What a blessed change for that long downtrodden people! What a history is theirs! at least if we embrace the past, present, and future. " Go, ye swift messengers," says the prophet, " to a nation scattered and peeled, to a people terrible from their beginning hitherto, a nation meted out and trodden down, whose land the rivers have spoiled." But now all is happily changed. Under the figure of a bride, loved, admired, and delighted in, the remnant of Judah is spoken of. The blessed Lord Himself-the spared remnant of the other tribes-and all the Gentiles, admire her peerless beauty. " O thou fairest among women." Thus shall it be in that day with the entire nation-the ten tribes and the two. They shall all he gathered to their own land, and each tribe to its own lot.
In answer to the inquiry of the daughters of Jerusalem, " What is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? " she immediately replies, and gives a full-length portrait of her well-beloved. And there is all that sharpness in the outline, and minuteness in the detail, which strong and mingled passion alone could give. Her strong affection is made doubly strong through self-reproach. Her recollection of Him is vivified through having slighted Him; and all her feelings are intensified through not finding Him. In this state of mind she portrays Him to the daughters of Jerusalem from head to foot. Oh! to be ready -always ready, on the spur of the moment, to speak of Jesus! She needed no time for premeditation. She asks for none. Delighted with the opportunity, all she wanted was the listening ear and the believing heart. Like the woman' at the well of Sychar, her own heart was overflowing. Her love had grown, through disappointment, into a passion. It is relief to her heart to speak of Him. She could not help being eloquent. Love is the best gift of the evangelist-love to the Savior-love to the sinner. But when that love rises into a passion, there must be true, burning eloquence. Never, never, O my soul, be content with less than this. Love to the Savior-love for souls, is good, but the evangelist needs more. Seek that thy love may rise into a fervent flame. The work demands it. Art thou an evangelist? Let everything that would hinder thy work be consumed on the altar of entire consecration. Preaching is not teaching, remember, neither is teaching preaching. Appeal to souls, plead with them, lay hold on them, agonize for them. It is a matter of life or death-of ineffable, eternal blessedness; or unutterable, eternal woe. Realize the future in the present, and raise a cry to the God of all grace, that not one soul may go away unimpressed, unblessed, unsaved.
More temperate hearts, and wiser too, it may be, in many things, may say, " There is much of nature in such zeal, and not a little unbelief; remember the work is the Lord's." Fully admit thine own failure, and that the work is God's from first to last; but let nothing slacken thy zeal, or damp thy energy. May the flame of thy love be unquenchable. Oh! be in earnest; heaven is in earnest, hell is in earnest, and be thou in deep, deep earnest. The Master wept over a city, thou hast a world to weep over. Love with His love, and let His tears flow through thine eyes.
" Oh! speak of Jesus—of that love
Passing all bounds of human thought,
Which made Him quit His throne above,
With God-like deep compassion fraught,
To save from death our ruined race,
Our guilt to purge, our path to trace.
Oh speak of Jesus-of His death,
For sinners such as me He died.
'Tis finished,' with His latest breath,
The Lord, Jehovah, Jesus, cried:
That death of shame and agony
Opened the way of life to me."
Verse 10. " My beloved is white and ruddy; the chiefest among ten thousand." It is said of David that he was " ruddy, and of a fair countenance," referring no doubt, to his youthful bloom and beauty. But in the description here given of the true David, the spotless purity of His Person, and the character of His sacrifice, may be referred to by the Spirit of prophecy. These are significant words-" white and ruddy." The Holy Spirit delights to set forth, whether in type or allegory, the glories of His Person, and the infinite value of His blood. " Can you tell me of anything that is whiter than snow? " inquired one, who was addressing a Sunday school. " The soul that has been washed in the blood of Jesus," was the satisfactory answer of a little girl. But, oh, if a brand plucked from the fire, blackened and consumed, as it were, by sin, can thus be made whiter than snow-pure as the light of heaven, in virtue of that most precious blood; what, we may ask, must be the essential holiness, and infinite dignity of Him, by whose blood-shedding this marvelous work is accomplished? Yes, indeed, one soul thus blest would prove the wondrous efficacy of the sacrifice; but what wilt thou say, my soul, when in heaven thou beholdest myriads upon myriads of ransomed souls singing the song that is ever new, " Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood; and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen." Oh! what exalted, adoring thoughts we shall then have of the once lowly Son of man, but now highly exalted Christ of God!
What thou shalt then see with thine eyes, my soul, thou art now to believe with thine heart.' Oh meditate upon it and glory in the truth, " My beloved is white and ruddy; the chiefest among ten thousand." What so " white "-so clean-so holy, as the blessed Person of the Son of man Jehovah-Jesus-the root and the offspring of David? What so "ruddy" as the blood that flowed from His immaculate veins on Calvary? Who, oh who, is worthy to be the Chieftain of all God's hosts, save the Captain of our salvation?
"Oh! chiefest of ten thousand, who like Thee,
Who, Lord, among the mighty may compote
With Thee, the standard-bearer of the host! "
Thus to know Jesus is present salvation, peace, and happiness. To know that my sins are blotted out by these " ruddy " drops-yes, blotted out, I say blotted out forever, is perfect blessedness. They have no existence now before God, the Judge of sin. Pardoned I am-I know I am, God says it. But to know that thy sins are blotted out is a deeper thought still. Christ abolished sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Like the pebble that has been cast into the depths of the sea, our sins are untraceable-they are buried in the deep waters of God's forgetfulness. And God has been so glorified in the work of His blessed Son, that it is now a righteous thing with God, as well as gracious, to bless all who believe in Jesus. He can now indulge His love by meeting in grace the chief of sinners, who bows to the name of the once lowly, but now exalted Son of man.
Verse 11. " His head is as the most fine gold; his locks are bushy and black as a raven." Having answered the daughters of Jerusalem in a general way as to her beloved, she now begins to describe Him more minutely. Guided by the Spirit of God, she delights to dwell on His varied excellencies and glories, under the similitude of the human features. One word, my soul, at the threshold; seek not, I pray thee, for the mystic meaning of these separate features, beyond the limits of holy scripture. " The place whereon thou standest is holy ground." For although the Lord did not forbid Moses to draw near to the burning bush, He told him, plainly, that it must be with unshod feet. Let thine eye then be anointed, and thy heart worshipping, while meditating on Zion's glorious King.
In chapter 4 the Bridegroom, in recounting the attractions of His bride, enumerates seven features. Here, she points out ten in portraying her beloved. The significant numbers, three and seven, are united in Him. We will now briefly meditate on each feature separately.
" His head is as the most fine gold." Supreme majesty may be indicated by " the most fine gold," as in Dan. 2:3838And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold. (Daniel 2:38), " Thou art this head of gold." It is also frequently used in scripture, to represent divine righteousness in connection with the Person of Christ; as in Isa. 11:55And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. (Isaiah 11:5), and Rev. 1:1313And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. (Revelation 1:13). Of this same Jesus we read, " Behold a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment. And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place; as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." (Isa. 32:1, 21Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment. 2And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. (Isaiah 32:1‑2).)
" His locks are bushy and black as a raven." The bushy, raven locks of the Bridegroom are evidently contrasted with the long, flowing hair of the bride, which he compares to " a flock of goats, that appear from Mount Gilead." Youthful vigor and strength may also be indicated by the profusion of the locks. Of Ephraim it is said (Hos. 7:99Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not: yea, gray hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knoweth not. (Hosea 7:9)), " Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not; yea, gray hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knoweth it not." But of Ephraim's Lord and King no signs of decay shall ever be seen. He is the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever. Some believe, that " the most fine gold " refers to the Godhead of Jesus; and the " bushy locks " to His manhood. No truth lies nearer the heart of faith, than the perfect manhood of the blessed Savior; and that in connection with His eternal Godhead. " Christ who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen." (Rom. 9:55Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen. (Romans 9:5); Col. 1:15-1915Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 16For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. 18And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 19For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; (Colossians 1:15‑19).)
" Admire, adore this God immutable;
To whom alone it appertains to say,
' I LIVE FOR ENTER! ' and to whose vast mind,
The shadow of a turning is unknown."
Verse 12. " His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set." Margin, setting in fullness. In Rev. 5:66And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. (Revelation 5:6), St. John speaks of " the Lamb " which he sees in the midst of the throne, having "seven eyes which are the seven spirits of God sent forth into all the earth." The number seven, we know, denotes fullness, perfection, which here signifies intelligence. " For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of those whose heart is perfect toward him." (2 Chron. 16:99For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. (2 Chronicles 16:9).) But the believer has nothing to fear from the keen, penetrating glance of that eye of sevenfold brightness; to him it is soft, tender and affectionate " as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters." It is his happy privilege to watch its direction. " I will guide thee with mine eye." What feature so expressive as the eye! And, oh! what an eye is now before the eye of faith! Tender as the dove's-bright and lustrous as when bathed in the river; or shining, as with a passing tear of deep compassion. The white part, pure as milk, the eye itself, " fitly set."
Neither too prominent nor too much sunk, but like the precious stone that is perfectly set in the foil of the ring.
Verse 13. " His cheeks are as a bed of spices; as sweet flowers." Margin, towers of perfume; or as some render it, " mounds of balsams." Great sweetness, bloom, beauty, and fragrance, are represented by these comparisons. The face in general may be referred to by this feature. Only think of the difference between the past day of lowly grace with Jesus, and the coming day of wondrous glory. The daughter of Zion, in her blindness, despised and rejected Him because of His lowliness; and in perfect grace He submitted to the will of man, which is enmity against God. " I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair; I hid not my face from shame and spitting." (Isa. 1:66From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment. (Isaiah 1:6).) And, again, " They shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek." (Mic. 5:11Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us: they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek. (Micah 5:1).) But for all this hatred and cruelty, the daughter of Zion will be heartily sorry then. The veil shall be removed. As it dropped from the face of Moses when he turned round to the tabernacle, so shall it drop from the heart of Israel when they look on Him whom they pierced. And then, in place of their saying of Him, " There is no beauty that we should desire him," it will be, " He is altogether lovely." The once marred, insulted, and smitten cheek, is to the heart of the nation as beds of spices-sweet flowers-towers of perfume-mounds of balsams. Oh! what has grace wrought! What the operations of the spirit! What the triumph of God's pardoning love! Hasten! oh hasten, the coming happy-millennial day!
" His lips like lilies, dropping sweet-smelling myrrh." The comparison may be to the beautiful red lily of the East; but the believer knows the truth of that blessed word, " Grace is poured into thy lips," not dropped scantily, but poured abundantly. The lips of Jesus, and His only, can speak peace to a troubled soul. Until He, and He alone, is listened to, true peace is unknown. " The Lord God," He says by the prophet, " hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary."
" Sweet-smelling myrrh of Jesu's holy lips,
Diffusing comfort, purity, and peace,
Where'er it penetrates-oh I waft it soon,
God high and holy I to remotest lands,
Prepare remotest hearts to welcome it!
Yes! Thou hast promised-and what arm of flesh
Shall interpose to hinder or obstruct
What in Thine everlasting purposes is sure? "
Verse 14. " His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl." In general, all the works of His hands may be embraced in this feature. Works of nature, providence, and grace. Their beauty, glory, perfection, and durability, may be represented by the gold, the ring, and the precious stones. The works of his hands are verity and judgment; all his commandments are sure. They stand fast forever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness." (Psa. 111:77The works of his hands are verity and judgment; all his commandments are sure. (Psalm 111:7). 8.) But faith can now say of these jeweled hands, in the language of the loved Shulamite, " His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me." Oh! what an embrace! Happy, thrice happy, they who are thus folded in His everlasting arms! It is everlasting-endless, like the ring itself. " Love never faileth."
" His belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires." The bowels of His deep and tender compassion may be referred to here. " My heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels." (Psa. 22:1414I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. (Psalm 22:14).) The idea of depth may be conveyed by a reference to the bowels. And the color of the sapphire stone being blue, suggests the heavenly character of His tender sympathies. " And there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness." (Ex. 24:1010And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness. (Exodus 24:10).) Pure as the " bright ivory," deep as the bowels-high as heaven, is the tenderness, pity, compassion, and love of our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. " If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, fulfill ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind." (Phil. 2:1, 21If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, 2Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. (Philippians 2:1‑2).)
Verse 15. " His legs are as pillars of marble set in sockets of fine gold." The walk, in general, is usually represented by this feature. " Show me thy ways, O Lord, teach me thy paths All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth." (Psa. 25) By the " pillars of marble," the strength, steadfastness, and continuance of His reign may be set forth; and by the " sockets of fine gold," divine righteousness as characterizing the whole of His governmental ways. Divine righteousness-almighty power-ways of " mercy and truth," appertain to Zion's-to earth's, mighty King " The government shall be upon his shoulders." " But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows." (Heb. 1:8, 98But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. 9Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. (Hebrews 1:8‑9).) " And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever." (Dan. 2:4444And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. (Daniel 2:44).)
" His countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars." The spouse having already portrayed her Beloved from head to foot, she now refers, we doubt not, to His general appearance-to all His glorious features together-His full stature. And His stature " is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars." This figure, evidently, illustrates His glorious Majesty as the Messiah. The lofty cedars " on that goodly mountain Lebanon," are the standing type in scripture of exaltation, glory, and majesty. Resplendent as the " most fine gold " from head to foot-adorned with every grace-fragrant with all sweetness-glorious and majestic like the cedars of Lebanon, is the Person of her well-beloved.
" O Majestic King
Thy front sublime,
Thy perfect character
Is as the noble mount of Lebanon.
Clothed in magnificent solemnity;
Thy spouse adores Thy peerless excellence-
Thy towering glories."
Verse 16. " His mouth is most sweet." The " lips "having been already referred to, something different from words may be indicated by this feature. It seems to refer more especially to the grace of Jesus-to the expressions of His kindness, His communications, His friendships. The spouse has often tasted of His grace, therefore she could say from experience, " His mouth is most sweet." The grace and kindness with which He meets her, even after failure, is enough to impress her heart forever with the sweetness of the grace of her Lord. " If so be," says the apostle, " ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious." Some think that the melody of His voice is alluded to. But she goes on to say-
" Yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem." Language fails her. She is not wearied speaking of Him, but she is unable to say all that He is. Hence she closes the description with, " He is altogether lovely." As if she had said, " All loveliness dwells in him-all that is desirable is found in Him, and every unspecified beauty belongs to Him. In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead and all the graces of manhood. He is lovely in His humiliation, lovely in His exaltation, yea, " He is altogether lovely."
But, oh! is not the last note of this lovely song the richest and sweetest of all? " My beloved.... my friend." Some may say, " what a description this is! " But say thou, O my soul, what a conclusion this is! " This is my beloved.... my friend." He Himself is mine. She is delighted to dwell on His qualities, but more delighted still to be able to say, " He in whom all these qualities shine so brightly is mine I Therefore all His qualities, too, are mine." But the qualities are in the Person. Thrones, crowns, scepters, kingdoms, glories, blessedness are His, and the believer's in Him; but, after all, these are not Himself. What would all these things avail without the Person of the Beloved? To the renewed affections, blessed as they are, a mockery. Like the heart of the fair bride that has been made desolate-that has been wrecked on the very threshold of her new home, through the affections of the one she counted on going out after another. True, the well-furnished house remains, but, alas! it is evident that his heart, all she cared for, is elsewhere. She sees it; and all is turned into the gall and wormwood of bitterest disappointment. The shadow of a dark cloud spreads over the whole scene. Everything now bears the reflection of her own misery. Her happiness is gone. Yes, my soul, this is no uncommon thing with the loves of earth. Many a warm and confiding heart has thus been crushed and broken through the heartlessness of the one she trusted. But not so, never so, the loves of heaven. Blessed are all they that put their trust in Jesus. It is heaven on earth to know Him-to know His love-His unchanging love. His love is not in word only, but in deed and in truth. Not in a formal, heartless vow, but in the eternal covenant of His grace, and sealed with His own most precious blood.