The Best Match, Chapter 2
CHAP. II The Eſpouſal or Marriage-Relation between Chriſt and Believers opened, and the import thereof laid down in ſive things.
BUt what is this Eſpouſal or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers? The Apoſtle ſpeaking of it, calls it a great Myſtery: This (ſaith he) is a great Myſtery; but I ſpeak concerning Chriſt, and his Church, Epheſ. 5.32. I ſpeak of that Spiritual Marriage that is between Chriſt and his People;foreign, ſignificat rem occultam, & per ſe arcanam, non ſimpliciter, ſed rengioſam, quae ab humana ratione abſcondita eſt, & non poteſt percipi ſine Revelatione Divinâ, & Spiritus Sancti lumine. Zanch. in locum. which indeed is a great Myſtery, that is, an hidden ſecret Thing; a thing hid from humane reaſon, and not to be underſtood but by Divine Revelation, and the Light of the Holy Spirit. So far as we apprehend it, you may take this ſhort account in general of it: 'Tis that ſpiritual conjunction or relation that is between Chriſt and Bellevers, between the Perſon of Chriſt and the Perſon of Believers, ariſing from his inhabitation in them by his Spirit, and their cloſe with him by Faith. Much might be ſaid for the opening of this general Concluſion; but I ſhall wave it, and give you the true nature of the thing, under conſideration, more particularly, as carrying theſe five things in it, viz.
I. Free and cordial Donation.
II. Near and intimate Union.
III. Sweet and laſting Communion.
IV. Strong and ardent Affection.
V. Mutual reſt and complacency for ever.
I. This Eſpouſal or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers, carries in it free and cordial Donation; a giving of themſelves each to other. In Marriages or Eſpouſals, the Parties give themſelves each to other; the Husband gives himſelf unto the Wife, and the Wife, by way of return, gives her ſelf unto the Husband; they conſent to take each other in that relation, and accordingly do give up themſelves each to other: So in this Spiritual Eſpouſal, or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and his People, there is a giving of themſelves each to other; they conſent to take each other, and accordingly do give up themſelves each to other. — Chriſt, on the one hand, gives himſelf unto the Soul: I will be thine, ſayes he, to the Soul; thine to love thee; thine to ſave thee; thine to make thee happy in me, and with me: I, with all my Riches and Treaſures, will be fully and for ever thine: I will be for thee; that is the language of his Eſpouſing Love unto the Soul, Hoſ. 3.3. And oh how ſweet is this Language! What can Chriſt give to poor Souls like himſelf? In giving himſelf, he gives the beſt Gift that either Heaven or Earth affords: In giving himſelf, he gives Life, he gives Peace, he gives Grace, he gives Righteouſneſs, he gives the favour of God, he gives Heaven, he gives all. Oh ſweet Gift! — On the other hand, the Soul by way of return gives himſelf to Chriſt: I will be thine, ſayes the Soul to Chriſt, I will be for thee and not for another: Hence 'tis ſaid, They gave themſelves to the Lord, 2 Cor. 8.5. they freely and willingly yeelded up themſelves to Chriſt, to be his, and his for ever; Sweet Jeſus, ſuch as I am, and have, I give to thee. I am a poor, a ſorry Gift (ſayes the Soul) infinitely unworthy of thine acceptance; my beſt is too bad, my All is too little for thee: but ſeeing 'tis thy pleaſure to call for, and accept of ſuch a Gift at my hands, I do with my whole Soul give up my Self, my Strength, my Time, my Talents, my All for ever to thee. And though, the truth is, this be a ſorry Gift, yet you little think, how pleaſing, how grateful it is to Chriſt, and what a value he puts upon it. You have the whole of this owned and aſſerted by the Spouſe, Cant. 2.16. My Beloved is mine, and I am his.
II. This Eſpouſal or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers, carries in it near and intimate union. In Marriage there is a very near union and conjunction between the Parties: As they give up themſelves each to other, ſo they become one each with other; They are no more twain, but one fleſh, Mat. 19.6. So in this Eſpouſal, or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers, there is a very near union and conjunction between them; they two are made one; and thus the Apoſtle ſets forth the Marriage between Chriſt and them, Epheſ. 5.31, 32. For this cauſe ſhall a man leave Father and Mother, and ſhall be joyned unto his Wife, and they two ſhall be one fleſh. This is a great Myſtery; but I ſpake concerning Chriſt and the Church, that is, I ſpeak of the Marriage-relation which is between Chriſt and the Church, which conſiſts in union: Hence alſo Believers are ſaid to be joyned to the Lord, and to be one Spirit with him, 1 Cor. 6.17. So that eſpouſing to Chriſt, and being joyned to Chriſt, are all one. The truth is, herein lies the very ſoul and ſubſtance of this Spiritual Marriage, viz. in a ſpiritual union between Chriſt and the Believer: though Chriſt and the Soul were two before; two, that were ſtrangers each to other, yet in this Marriage or Eſpouſal they become one, and ſo one, as that all the World can never make them two again, never diſſolve this union.*Sponſi & ſponſae uſitatâ, at omnium jucun diſſ…â Metaph…râ, unio ſpiritualis inter Chriſtum &… Eccleſiam, piamque an mam exprimitur. Gleſ. Rhe. ſac. By this uſual, but of all others moſt pleaſant Metaphor of a Bridegroom and Bride (as a learned Man hath obſerved) is expreſſed and ſet forth the Spiritual Ʋnion that is between Chriſt and the Church, Chriſt and every Holy Soul. And this Union is a full Union, an Union between the whole Perſon of Chriſt, and the whole Perſon of the Believer; the whole Perſon of Chriſt is united unto the Believer, and the whole Perſon of the Believer is united unto Chriſt.Neque anima neſtra ſola cum ſolâ Chriſti animâ, neque care noſtra ſola cum ſolâ Chriſti carne, ſed tota cujuſque fidelis perſona cum totâ Chriſti perſonâ conjungitur. Zanch. Neither is our Soul alone (ſaith a Learned Man) joyned with the Soul of Chriſt alone; nor is our fleſh alone joyned with the fleſh of Chriſt alone; but the whole Perſon of every Believer is truly joyned with the whole Perſon of Chriſt.
1. On the one hand, the whole Perſon of Chriſt is united to the Believer; the Believers union with Chriſt, is neither with the Divine nor Humane Nature conſidered apart; but it is with the whole Perſon conſiſting of both Natures; and indeed, elſe they could not be ſaid to be united to [Chriſt], for neither of the Natures, conſidered apart, is Chriſt: We cannot ſay, that the Divine Nature is Chriſt, or that the Humane Nature is Chriſt; but Chriſt is both the Divine and Humane Nature, God-man, in one Perſon.Buchan. Inſtitut. Theol.loc. 2. Chriſt (ſaith a Learned Man) is not a Name of either Nature, but of the Perſon conſiſting of both Natures, together with his Office. Beſides, were we united only to one Nature, and not to the whole Perſon of Chriſt, what would our Union avail us? Surely it would be vain and ineffectual. Were we united to the Humane Nature only, and not to the Divine, then to be ſure our Union muſt be ineffectual; For Chriſt himſelf tells us, That it is the Spirit which quickeneth, the fleſh profiteth nothing, John 6.63. That is (as judicious Interpreters expound it) the fleſh or Humane Nature of Chriſt conſidered alone, and without the influence of the Divine, availeth nothing to Souls as to their ſpiritual or eternal good: Nor indeed, can the Humane Nature of Chriſt, without the Divine, give Grace, or any ſpiritual good thing. On the other hand, were we united to the Divine Nature alone, and not to the Humane, then our Union would be as ineffectual: for how full ſoever the Divine Nature is of Grace and Life in it ſelf, yet nothing can thence be derived and communicated to us, but by and through the Humanity: And indeed, as the Humanity profiteth nothing without the Divinity; ſo I may ſay, the Divinity will profit us nothing without the Humanity. Hence it is, that Chriſt ſo often ſpeaks of eating his Fleſh, and drinking his Blood, and withal aſſerts the neceſſity thereof in order to life and happineſs by him, John 6.53, 54, 55. What doth eating his Fleſh and drinking his Blood ſignifie, but an Union with his Humanity? And therefore in verſ. 56. he addeth, He that eateth my Fleſh, and drinketh my Blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him; which is an expreſſion of Union; and without this we have, we can have no Life, no Grace from him. In a word, as the humanity hath nothing to give or communicate to us, no Life, no Grace, no Spiritual Bleſſing without the Divinity; ſo the Divinity is incommunicable to us without the Humanity; and therefore were our Union with the one only without the other, it muſt needs he ineffectual. I will cloſe this with the ſaying of an eminent Divine,Etſi tota ſalus & vita a Deitatis plenitudine pendet quae eſt in Chriſto, interim tamen nobis non communicatur niſi in carne & per carnem Chriſti: Deitas enim eſt ceu fons unde fluunt omnia bona, vita, & ſalus, ſed caro atque humanitas eſt ceu canalis per quem ad nos derivantur omnia haec bona omneſque gratiae, niſi quis igitur canalem hunc apprehendat, eique uniatur, aquarum certè, quae è fonte profluunt, particeps fieri non poteſt. Zanch. in Thes: de connubio Spirituali. Although all Life, all Salvation floweth from the fulneſs of the Deity that is in Chriſt, yet notwithſtanding it is not communicated to us but in the fleſh, and by the fleſh of Chriſt. For the Deity is as the Fountain whence all good things flow, Life and Salvation; but the fleſh, or humanity, is as the Channel, by which all theſe good things, and all Gifts and Graees are derived unto us; therefore unleſs a man apprehendeth this Channel, and be united to it, he cannot poſſibly be made a partaker of theſe Waters which do flow from this Fountain.
2. On the other hand, the whole Perſon of the Believer is united to Chriſt; not his Soul onelyonly without his Body, nor yet his Body onelyonly without his Soul, but his whole Perſon conſiſting of both Soul and Body in conjunction: As Chriſt is the Saviour, ſo he is the Head of the whole Perſon of every Believer, for he ſaves none but thoſe whom he is a Head unto: And as Chriſt is the Head of, ſo he muſt have union with the whole Perſon of every Believer; for his being an Head implies union, and that union muſt extend as far as his Headſhip doth, even to the whole Perſon: In ſhort, the Believers Soul is united to Chriſt, therefore ſaith the Apoſtle, 1 Cor. 6.17. He that is joyned to the Lord, is one Spirit; and the Believers Body is united to Chriſt, and therefore the Bodies of Believers are ſaid to be Members of Chriſt, 1 Cor. 6.15. thus this union is a full union: And as it is a full, ſo it is a very near union. Next to thoſe two great Unions, the eſſential Union, the Union of the three Perſons in One, and the ſame Divine Eſſence, and the Perſonal Union, the Union of the two Natures, Divine and Humane, in the Perſon of Chriſt; this is the neareſt Union. Hence it is expreſſed, ſometimes by their being in each other, John 14.20. Ye ſhall know, that I am in the Father, and ye in me, and I in you: ſometimes by their dwelling in each other; John 6.56. He that eateth my Fleſh, and drinketh my Blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. And what can be nearer, than to be and dwell in each other? It is a nearer Union than that between the Husband and the Wife, for that Union may be broken, and is at laſt, but this never is, never can be broken, (as in its place will be ſhewn).
III. This Eſpouſal, or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers, carries in it full and laſting communion: In Marriage-relations there is a full and free communion between the Parties, both in what they are, and what they have: The Husband admits the ſife into a participation in all he is and hath; on the other hand, he communicates with her in all ſhe is and hath; and indeed union is in order to communion: So here, in the Eſpouſal or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers, there is a full and free communion between them in all they are and have. On the one hand, Chriſt communicates himſelf unto the Believer, he admits him into a fellowſhip and participation with him in all his riches and fulneſs; hence is, that John 1.16. of his fullneſs have all we received, and that Grace for Grace: verſ. 14. He is ſaid to be full of Grace: And what Grace is that? Why all Grace, Perſonal Grace, Purchaſed Grace, Grace of Priviledge, and Grace of Influence: And here it is ſaid, that of his fulneſs have all we received; not ſome onelyonly, but all, great and ſmall have received, and that not in a low, poor, ſcanty meaſure onelyonly,Gratiam ſuper gratiam h. e. accumulat iſſimam & copioſiſſimam, omnem gratiam, nempe juſtitiam, remiſſionem peccatorum, ſanctitatem, renovationem ſpiritus, &c. Glaſ. Gram. Sacr. but in great abundance; therefore it's added, and Grace for Grace; or Grace upon Grace, heaps of Grace, Grace in a plentiful manner, all Grace needful for the Soul, Righteouſneſs, Remiſſion of Sins, Sanctification, Renovation of the Spirit, and the like. Look what-ever Chriſt is, or hath, which Believers are capable of, it is all theirs, and they all hold communion with him therein: His beauty is theirs; and how black and deformed ſoever they are in themſelves, yet they are fair and comely in him:Nigra per naturam, formoſa per gratiam. Aug. Hence ſaith the Spouſe, I am black, but comely, Cant. 1.5. that is, black in my ſelf, but comely in Chriſt; black by Nature, but comely by the Redeemers Grace, comely through the comelineſs which he puts upon me, Ezek. 16.14. His Righteouſneſs is theirs; and how guilty and unrighteous ſoever they are in themſelves, yet in him they are Righteous, and do ſtand perfectly righteous in the ſight of God: Hence his Name is ſaid to be, The Lord our Righteouſneſs, Jer. 23.6. and they are ſaid to be made the Righteouſneſs of God in him, 2 Cor. 5.21. His Priviledges and Dignities are theirs; and how vile and baſe ſoever they are in themſelves; yet in him they are highly dignified and advanced. Is he a Son? ſo are they through him: To as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the Sons of God, to as many as believed in his Name, John 1.12. Is he an Heir, an Heir of God? ſo are they, they are Heirs, yea coheirs with him of God, Rom. 8.17. Is he beloved by the Father, and that with a choice and ſingular love? ſo are they, they are beloved in him, Epheſ. 1.6. yea, they are beloved with the ſame love, wherewith he is beloved by the Father, John 17.23. Is he a King? ſo are they, he hath made them, and doth make them all Kings, and they do, and ſhall reign with him for ever, Rev. 1.6.In Chriſte beatam immortalitatem & gloriam poſſidemus. Calv. in loc. Is he in Heaven, in poſſeſſion of happineſs and glory? ſo are they: Hence they are ſaid to ſit together with him in heavenly places, Epheſ. 2.6. What ſhall I ſay? his glory is theirs: The glory which thou gaveſt me (ſaith he to his Father) I have given them, John 17.22. Yea all his divine fulneſs is theirs; and how empty and imperfect ſoever they are in themſelves, yet they are perfect and compleat in him, and in his fulneſs, Col. 2.9, 10. In him dwelleth all the fulneſs of the God-head bodily; foreign h. e. Verè, perfectiſſimè, & immutabiliter, & non typicè tantum, ut in Templo Hieroloſolymitane. Glaſ. Rh. Sac.bodily, that is, truly, perfectly, unchangeably, and not typically only, as in the Temple of old. All the fulneſs and perfection of the God-head dwelleth truly and perfectly in him:Et eſtis in ipſo completi, q. d. quod retus Deus in Chriſto reſldet, ideo ut ipſum adepti, ſolidam in ipſo perfectionem pollideamus. Calv. in Col. 2.10. And what then? why it follows, and ye are compleat in him, q.d. You are poor and empty things in your ſelves, but your Head and Husband hath all the fulneſs of the God-head in him, and it is alwayes in him; for it dwelleth in him; and it is all yours, and you do communicate with him in all, ſo far as you are capable of it, to compleat you both in Grace and Glory. Thus Chriſt communicates himſelf unto the Believer, and admits him into a participation with him in all he is and hath.
On the other hand, Chriſt partakes and holds communion with Believers in all they are and have: And what is their All? truly a poor All; in and of themſelves, they have nothing but ſins and ſorrows, guilt and afflictions. Indeed in marrying of them, he gives them Gifts, Graces, Comforts, and the like: and having given them theſe, he holds communion with them in all: their Gifts and Graces, their Joys and Comforts are his: but, I ſay, in and of themſelves they have nothing but ſorrows and ſins, and he in a ſort holdeth communion with them in both: he holds communion with them in their ſorrows; hence it is ſaid, that in all their afflictions he is afflicted, Iſa. 63.9. He looks upon their ſorrows as his, and their ſufferings as his. I was an hungry, and ye gave me no meat; I was thirſty, naked, impriſoned, &c. Mat. 25.35, 36. And often (you know) in Scripture, their Sufferings and Afflictions, are called the Sufferings and Afflictions of Chriſt: And why the Sufferings and Afflictions of Chriſt? not onelyonly becauſe for the moſt part they ſuffer for his ſake; but alſo becauſe he ſuffereth and is afflicted in them,*Chriſtus nominat ſuas iniquitates, quia ſenſit in ſe tranſlata eſſe peccata omnium noſtrſim, ſeque propter haec plecti, non aliter ac ſi ipſe ſe mois, tuis, & omnium hominum ſcaeleribus polluiſſet. Mol. and with them: He communicates with them in their afflictions: And, as in their ſorrows, ſo alſo in ſome ſort in their ſius too: Hence he calls their ſins, as well as their afflictions, his. Mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, Pſal. 40.12. Which Luther, and others, underſtand of Chriſt ſpeaking of our ſins, and calling them his: Not, my Beloved, that he doth admit of any the leaſt ſtain or tincture of ſinful defilement upon himſelf; but he ſo looks upon our ſins as his, as to take them off from us, and looks upon himſelf reſponſible to the Fathers juſtice for them: ſo he was ſaid to be made ſin for us, *Ipſe peccatum, non ſuum ſed noſtrum, nec in ſe, ſed in nobis factus eſt. Aug.2 Cor. 5.21. O what Grace is here! I cloſe this head with a great and ſweet ſaying, which I have read in one of the Ancients, ſutable to this purpoſe.†Non ſunt inventa aeque dulcia nomina, quibus Verbi animaeque dulces adinvicem exprimerentur aſfectus, quemadmodum ſponſus & ſponſa, quippe quibus omnia communia ſunt, nil proprium, nil a ſe diviſum habentibus, una utriuſque haereditas, una domus, una menſa, unus thorus, una etiam caro. Bern. Serm. 7. in Cant. The like ſweet Names are not to be found, by which the ſweet Affections of Chriſt and the Soul are expreſſed each to other, as thoſe of the Bridegroom and the Bride, for why, all things are common with thent, nothing proper, having nothing ſeparate and apart each from other; they have both one Inheritance, one Houſe, one Table, one Marriage-bed, alſo one fleſh: The ſum is, they communicate with each other in all they are and have.
IV. This Eſpouſal, or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers, carries in it ſtrong and ardent Affection. In a Marriage-relation, there is the deareſt, ſtrongeſt, and moſt intimate Affection that is to be found among the Children of Men: 'Tis a Relation made up of love: Love is not only a concomitant of Marriage, but it is even a part of it, and is eſſential to it: In Marriages, Hearts muſt be joyned as well as Hands, or they are not right: So here in this Spiritual-eſpouſal, or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers, there is a very dear and intimate Affection each to other; their hearts are indeed knit, and do intimately cleave to one another: The Saints (ſayes one) are called the Spouſe of Chriſt, Propter amoris magnitudinem; becauſe of that great and unparallel'd love that is between them. And it is a ſweet ſaying, which I have read in one of the Antients to this purpoſe.Chriſtus ſe ſponſum noſtrum appellat, ut magni tudinem inſinuet ſui amcru, qui tempore non decreſcit amicam ſuam ſponſam non uxcrem, eo quodillius amer, ſemper novus ſt. Bern. de paſſ. Dom. Chriſt (ſayes he) calls himſelf our. Bridegroom, that he might inſinuate the greatneſs of his love to us, which decayes not with time; and he calls us his Spouſe, not his Wife, noting that our love to him ſhould be alwayes new, alwayes lively and vigorous. The truth is, no love like that between Chriſt and his Spouſe; Chriſt loves and eſpouſes, and the Soul loves and is eſpouſed; and both being eſpouſed, do love for ever; and ſo this relation is both founded in love, and perfected in love; 'tis both made up and managed with love on all hands; Chriſt ſets his love upon the Soul, and in that love eſpouſes him to himſelf; and having in this love of his eſpouſed him to himſelf, then he loves him as his Spouſe: often in the Book of Canticles his Spouſe is called his Love; as alſo he on the other hand is called her Beloved: and what doth this note, but that the whole relation conſiſts mainly in love, and that they are moſt dearly and intimately beloved by each other? Chriſt having eſpouſed the Soul to himſelf, now his love runs out in full ſtreams towards him; he loves him above all the reſt of the Creatures, in ſome reſpects above the Angels themſelves, as ſtanding in a nearer relation to him than they do. On the other hand, the Souls love is drawn out to Chriſt, and loving him, he is eſpouſed to him, and being eſpouſed to him, he loves him yet more; now Chriſt is laid between his breaſts, in his moſt intimate Affections, he has the Throne in his heart, Cant. 1.13. yea the Soul by degrees comes to be ſick of love to him, (as you have it) Cant. 2.5. Stay me with Flagons, (ſayes ſhe) comfort me with Apples, for I am ſick of love; to whom? to Chriſt: And truly this (as one of the Antients hath obſerved) is a ſweet ſickneſs, a bleſſed languor, Hic amor dulcis, hic languor ſica vis, haec infirmit at ſancta. Bern.a pleaſant love: And this love between Chriſt and his Spouſe, is a chaſt love, a Virgin love, a love that is pitched upon the perſon of each other; Chriſt loves the perſon of the Believer, and the Believer loves the Perſon of Chriſt. (Of which more in its place.)
V. This Eſpouſal, or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers, carries in it a mutual reſt and complacency for ever. In a Marriage-relation, there is great delight and complacency the Parties have, or ſhould have each in other, eſpecially in the day of Eſpouſals. You know how Solomon ſpeaks, Rejoyce with the Wife of thy Youth: let her be as the loving Hind and pleaſant Roe: let her Breaſts ſatisfie thee at all times, and be thou raviſhed alwayes with her love, Prov. 5.18, 19. All noting that joy, reſt, and complacency, that that relation carries in it, and the Parties have in each other; and we read (you know) of the joy of the Bridegroom, as the higheſt and pureſt that is found among the Sons of men:Non ille aliam velit amitam, nec ego amicum alium: uterqe alterius actore contentus eſt. Merc in Cant. 2.16. So in this ſpiritual Eſpouſals between Chriſt and Believers, there is a mutual reſt and complacency which they have in each other: They are, as it were, the reſt, the joy, the ſatisfaction of each other; the ſolace of each others Soul. On the one hand, Chriſt reſts and rejoyces in the Believer, as one would do in the Wife of his Youth: This his Spouſe is to him, as a loving Hind, and pleaſant Roe, and he lives joyfully with her: hence ſhe is called his delight, and that as being married to him: Thou ſhalt be called Hephzibah,Vecaberis Chephziba, h. e. ita exornata & amaena eris, ut volupt as mea in te futura ſt. Glaſ. Gra. Sac. (ſayes he to her) for the Lord delighteth in thee, thou ſhalt be the joy and delight of my Soul, Iſa. 62.4. And again, As a young man marryeth a Virgin, ſo ſhall thy Sons marry thee; and as the Bridegroom rejoyceth over the Bride, ſo ſhall thy God rejoyce over thee, verſ. 5. The ſum of all which amounts to this, That Chriſt marrying his People to himſelf, delights in them, and rejoyces over them, and that with the higheſt and pureſt delight and complacency of all others, a delight and complacency ſutable to the relation: The truth is, he ſpeaks as if all his delight were in them, as if he had forgotten to delight in the Angels, or in any of the works of his hands, but in them alone. My goodneſs (ſayes he to the Father) extendeth not to thee, but to the Saints, in whom is all my delight, Pſalm 16.2. Yea, he declares himſelf raviſhed with them, as his Spouſe; Cant. 4.9. Thou haſt raviſhed my heart, my Siſter my Spouſe; thou haſt raviſhed my heart: And he ſpeaks as one raviſhed indeed. Cant. 7.6. How fair and pleaſant art thou, O Love, for delight! and Chap. 6. v. 5. he acknowledges himſelf captivated by her, Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me: Yea, he has declared them to be his Reſt, Pſal. 132.14. This is my reſt for ever, (ſayes he) here will I dwell, for I have deſired it: It's ſpoken of Zion, as a Type of the Church, and Spouſe of Chriſt, and his reſt in her; and indeed they are his Reſt, his Soul is at reſt in them, in them is his higheſt joy: Hence that ſweet word, Zeph. 3.17. The Lord thy God, in the midſt of thee is mighty; duplicate page duplicate page he will rejoyce over thee with joy; he will reſt in his love upon thee, he will joy over thee with ſinging; as much as to ſay, his whole reſt, ſolace, and delight ſhall be in thee. On the other hand, the Believer reſts and rejoyces in Chriſt, as in his Head and Husband: I ſat down under his ſhadow (ſayes the Spouſe) with great delight, Cant. 2.3. She did ſuaviter requieſcere (as one expreſſes it) ſweetly reſt, and repoſe her Soul in him: Her Soul was at reſt, and filled with delight, great delight, ſhe had great ſpringings of joy within her, and all this in Chriſt her Bridegroom; in his Perſon, in his Preſence, in his Protection, in the fruits of his Grace and Love: And therefore it follows, and his Fruit was ſweet to my taſte; as if ſhe ſhould ſay, O with what joy, what ſolace, what delight and ſatisfaction of Soul did I converſe with him, and feed upon him! Thus in theſe Eſpouſals there is a mutual delight and fatisfaction between Chriſt and Believers; and O how ſweet is this! this makes this Eſpouſal to reliſh ſtrongly of Heaven, and to ſet the Soul down even at the Gate thereof. Thus I have ſhewen you what this Eſpouſal or Marriage-relation between Chriſt and Believers is.