Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan, Canticles · Chapter 6
CHAP. VI. Verſ. 1. Whither is thy Beloved gone, &c?]
ALL Chriſts Diſciples are foreign, inquiſitive after the truth that is in Jeſus, Epheſ. 4.21. and are fellow-helpers to it, John 3.8. There is alſo quid divinum in auſcultatione, as one well noteth, that is, a ſtrange and ſtrong energy or forcibleneſs in hearing (whether publiquely or in private conference) Chriſt and his excellencies diſplayed and diſcourſed of. Let but his name, as an ointment, bee powred out, and the Virgins can do no leſs than love him. Cant. 1.3. Theſe daughters of Jeruſalem are by hearing the Church deſcribing her Spouſe, and painting him out in lively colours, fired up to an holy contention in godlineſs: and might they but know where to have him, they would bee at any pains to partake of the benefit, 1 Tim. 6.2. They wondred at firſt why ſhee ſhould make ſuch ado about Chriſt: But when they converſed a while with her, and had heard her ſpeak with ſuch affection and admiration, they are turned, and will now go ſeek him with her. God is pleaſed many times to water the holy meetings and conferences of his people with bleſſing, beyond expectation or belief. Wee ſhould frame our ſelves to an eaſie diſcourſe of the glory of Chriſts Kingdome, and talk of his power, Pſal. 145.8, 9. Our tongues in this argument ſhould bee as the pen of a ready writer, Pſal. 45.1. that wee may bee able to ſpeak oft to one another, with profit and power in the beſt thing, Mal. 3.10. Little do wee know what a deal of good may bee done hereby. Mr. Fox ſpeaking of Gods little flock in the days of Henry the 8. ſaith, in ſuch rarity of good books and want of teachers,Act. & Mon. fol. 750. this one thing I cannot but marvell and muſe at; to note in the regiſters, and conſider how the word of God did multiply ſo exceedingly amongſt them. For I finde that one neighbour reſorting and conferring with another, eftſoons with a few words of their firſt or ſecond talk did win and turn their minds to that wherein they deſired to perſwade them, touching the truth of Gods Word and Sacraments, &c. In all ages ſuch as were ordained to eternal life, believed. Acts 13.48. after that they had heard the Word of truth, they beleeved, and were ſealed. Irridentis vex, non interrogantis.Contrariwiſe reprobates either refuſe to hear the Church preaching Chriſt, John 8.47. Of elſe they hear and jear, (as Pilat with his What's truth? in meer mockage, John 18.38.) hear and blaſpheme, Acts 13.45. or, at beſt, hear and admire, and that's all: they leave the Word where they found it, for any thing they will practice. They think they do a great chare to ſit out a Sermon, and then commend it. But Wiſdoms children will not onelyonly juſtifie her, Mat. 11.19. but alſo glorifie her, Acts 13.48. they will ſeek the Lord and his ſtrength, ſeek his face evermore, Pſal. 105.4. Seek him in his holy Temple, ſeek him in and with the Church, as here. They know that extra Eccleſiam nulla ſalus. The Church is the pillar and ground of truth, 1 Tim. 3.15. in as much as by her miniſtery, the authority, dignity, knowledge, virtue, and uſe of the truth of the Goſpel is preſerved in the world, and held out, Philip. 2.16. as the hand holds forth the torch, or the watch-tower the light, and ſo the haven, to the weather-beaten Mariners.
That wee may ſeek him with thee] For hee is not like to ſeek long that ſeeks alone; there being a notable tye to conſtancy in the Communion of Saints. Surely as ſincerity is the life of Religion: ſo ſociety is the life of ſincerity. The Philippians had no ſooner received the Goſpel, but they were in fellowſhip, to a day, Phil. 1.5.
Verſ. 2. My Beloved is gone down into his garden] Now ſhe can tell where Chriſt is, and inform others: who before was to ſeek of him, and ſought information from others. Poſt tenebras lux, is the Churches Motto. Though I ſit in darkneſs, the Lord ſhall give mee light: hee will with the temptation give the iſſue, a way to get out of it, as the Moon wades out of a cloud, as the Seed gets up from under a clod. And ſee how forward ſhee is to communicate: her friends ſhall know all that ſhee can tell them. There is no envy in Spiritual things, becauſe they may bee divided in ſolidum: one may have as much as another, and all alike: Yea, Gods people know, that the manifeſtation of the Spirit is given them to profit withall, 1 Cor. 12.7. and that it is not powring out, but want of powring out, that dries up the ſtreams of grace, as that of oyl, 2 Kings 4.6. What is meant by Chriſts garden, ſee chap. 4.17. with the Note: Hee is ſaid to go down to it, in alluſion to the ſituation of Jeruſalem, which was on an hill: their gardens being below in the fruitfull valleys.foreign ex omni ad nihilum ſeipſum redegit. Beza. Chriſt came down to his Church: he deſcended into the lower parts of the earth, that is, into his mothers womb, Eph. 4.9. with Pſal. 139.15. yea, hee emptied himſelf of all his excellencies, and took upon him the form of a ſervant, yea, of an evil ſervant that was to bee beaten. Yea more, hee humbled himſelf, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the Croſs, Phil. 2.9. Oh humble Saviour, whether wilt thou deſcend? Facinus vincire civem Romanum, Cicero.It was much for the Son of God to bee bound, more to bee beaten, moſt of all to bee ſlain, Quid dicam in crucem toll…, &c? well might the Apoſtle ſay, He humbled himſelf.
To the beds of ſpices] i. e. To the particular Churches, or to the companies of Believers: theſe beds, or rowes of renewed ſouls, Chriſt, as a good Gardiner, treadeth out, ſoweth, planteth, watereth, fenceth, filleth with ſundry gifts and graces.
To feed in the Gardens, and to gather Lillies] Like as men go to their Gardens, either to make merry (as wee ſay) or to gather fruits. So Chriſt here, either to eat his pleaſant fruits, Cant. 4.16. his peoples holy performances, better to him than any Ambroſia: and then to gather his Lillies, to tranſplant them into heaven. Paſcitur Chriſtus, quando ſuorum virtutes videt (ſaith one) Lilia decerpit, quando optimum quemque ex hac vita traducit. Chriſt feedeth in the Gardens, when hee beholdeth the vertues of his people: hee gathereth Lillies, when hee tranſlateth good ſouls into his Kingdom above.
Verſe 3. I am my Beloveds, &c.] Or, I am for my Beloved, and hee is for me, i. e. for mee onelyonly:Flamm… redardeſcit, quae modo nulla fuit. Ovid. hee reſteth in his love, and I in mine, wee will ſeek no further. And here her faith reviveth, who in her late temptation, and deſertion, was in a miſt, and could not read her own graces. (See the Note on chap. 2.16.) It reviveth, I ſay, and fetcheth out Chriſt that had hid himſelf, as that brave woman did, Mark 7.24, 25.
Verſ. 4. Thou art beautiful, O my Love, as Tirzah] A moſt neat and elegant City, where the Kings of Iſrael kept their Courts. A place of pleaſure it was,foreign. as the very name imports: hence the Greeks tranſlate it here, Good pleaſure, like as the Italians call a City of theirs, Placenza. Of the Churches exquiſite beauty much hath been ſaid before: let it ever bee remembred, that all her beauty is but borrowed, Ezek. 16.14. Uxor fulget radiis mariti, as they ſay in the Civil Law. Iſaac, when hee was to marry Rebecca, ſent her jewels aforehand; that having them ſhee might bee more lovely in his eye: So doth Chriſt the Spirit of faith, and other graces (beſides the imputation of his own perfect righteouſneſs) that hee may delight in his Spouſe. And albeit ſhee had ſo diſcourteouſly dealt with him, as chap. 5.3. and thereupon hee had ſtept aſide for a while: yet, that ſhee might know that hee was ſtill the ſame, without ſhadow of change, and that hee hated putting away, Mal. 2.16. meeting her again, hee doth marvelouſly commend her, that is, his own graces in her, and all is as well as ever betwixt them. Homo agnoſcit, Deus ignoſcit: it is but acknowledging the debt, and Chriſt will ſoon croſs the book, and cancell the hand-writing, Col. 2.14. Quem poenitet peccaſſe, Jer. 3.22.pene eſt innocens. Repent, and the amends is made▪ Return yee backſliding children, and I will heal your backſlidings.
Comely as Jeruſalem] That City of the great King, great among the Nations, and Princeſs among the Provinces, Lam. 1.1. the glory of the whole earth, urbium totius Orientis clariſſima, Plin. l. 5. c. 14.ſaith Pliny, the moſt famous of all the Cities of the Eaſt, Orbis totius lumen, as another calls it: yea, an earthly paradiſe, (as Joſephus) ſoli coelique fertilitate omnes civitates ſuperans, a City compact together, Pſal. 122.3. The Church is all this in Chriſts eſteem: and though the leaſt, yet not the leaſt among the Princes of Juda, as it is ſaid of Bethlehem in a different reſpect, Mic. 5.2. Mat. 2.6.
Terrible as an army with banners] i. e. Of invincible faith, and Spiritual courage: terrible alſo and full of majeſty, either to draw hearts, or to daunt them; as Nazianzen ſaith of Athanaſius, that hee was Magnes, & Adamas, a Loadſtone in his ſweet gentle drawing nature: and yet an Adamant in his reſolute ſtout carriage againſt thoſe that were evil, and erroneous.Exod. 15.14, 15, 16. Pſal. 48.5, 6. How terrible were the Iſraelites encamped and bannered in the wilderneſs unto the Moabites, Canaanites, &c? And the like may bee ſaid of the Huſſites in Bohemia (when all Germany were up in arms againſt them, and worſted by them:) of the Britains under the conduct of Germanus, D. Uſher de Britan. Eccleſ. primord. 337.fighting againſt a mighty army of Pelagian Picts and Saxons in this Kingdome, and prevailing onelyonly by the three times pronouncing the word Hallelujah. Of the Proteſtants in France at the ſiege of Mountalban, where the people of God uſing daily humiliation, immediately before their ſallying forth ſang a Pſalm, which when the enemy heard, they would ſo quake and tremble, crying, They come, Spe…. be…li ſac. 282.they come, as though the wrath of God had been ruſhing out upon them. God is both Van and Rere in the Churches Army, Iſa. 52.12. The Lord will go before you, and the God of Iſrael will bee your rereward: Even hee that is the great, the mighty, and the terrible God, Nehem. 9.32. So that although, Loricatus incedat Satan, & cataphractus, as Luther hath it, Satan muſter up all his forces, Tyrants, Hereticks, &c. that invade the Church, and aſſault her on all ſides; yet they ſhall finde her invincible: Oppugnatur, ſed non expugnatur. Many a time have they afflicted mee from my youth, may Iſrael ſay, yet they have not prevailed againſt mee, Pſal. 129.1, 2. Populus Rom. ſaepe prae…io victus, nunquam bello, ſaith Florus. The people of Rome loſt many battels, but were never overcome in a ſet war, at the long run they cruſhed all their enemies. So the Church: Nay, it may bee truly affirmed of her, that ſhee conquereth, even then, when ſhee is conquered; as Chriſt overcame as well by patience, as by power. So that more truly it may bee written upon her gates, that is at this day upon the gates of Venice, Intacta manet, becauſe it was never yet ſubdued by any enemy.
Verſ. 5. Turn away thine eyes from mee] Or, Turn thine eyes right upon mee, ſo verſ. 13. hee calls Return, return, O Shulamite, &c. And then the ſenſe is, Look up unto mee by Faith. Look unto mee, and bee yee ſaved all the ends of the earth, Iſa. 45.22. See chap. 31.1. & 42.18. But to keep to our Tranſlation. Chriſt had before confeſt himſelf raviſhed with one of her eyes; and here hee ſaith the ſame in effect. Stupenda ſane dignatio, a wonderful condeſcenſion.Non bene conveniunt nec in una ſede morantur, Majestas & Amor. Wee uſe to ſay, Majeſty and love cannot meet, or cohabit: becauſe love is the abaſing of the ſoul to all ſervices. But it is otherwiſe in Chriſt: Majeſty and Love (even unto raviſhment) meet in his holy heart. If the Church bee ſick of love toward him, hee would ſhee ſhould know, that hee is overcome with love towards her; and that there is no love loſt betwixt them.
Thy hair is as a flock of Goats, &c.] Grazing upon, and gazing from Gilead, q. d. I like thee as well as ever I did, thy late relapſe notwithſtanding: for I finde thee more humble, watchful, thankful for a Saviour, merciful to others, deſirous of the ſtate of perfection, &c. And as a limb once broke, and well ſet again, knits and grows ſtronger there, than in any other place: ſo by thy late falling in ſome ſort from mee, I finde thee more firmly faſtened unto mee; Thus God changeth (ſaith one) out grieſly wounds into beauty-ſpots; and maketh the horrible ſting of Satan, to bee a pearl-pin to pin upon us the long white Robe of Chriſt, and to dreſs us with the garment of gladneſs. See chap. 4.1, 2, &c. And obſerve here an addition of ſome other parts deſcribed, and a more full deſcription of ſome of the former: to ſhew, that his love was no whit diminiſhed, but rather increaſed. Something it was ſurely that made Mr. Fox, the Martyrologue ſay, that hee got by his infirmities, and loſt by his graces.
Verſ. 6, 7, Thy teeth are as a flock of ſheep, &c.] See verſ. 4, & 5. chap. 4.2. with the Notes there.
Verſ. 8. There are threeſcore Queens, and fourſcore, &c.] Or, as ſome read it, hypothetically, Bee there ſixty Queens, and eighty Concubines (which were ſecondary wives, uſurary the Lawyers call them, that had right to the bed, but no rule in the family) and Virgins, or waiting Gentlewomen without number; although there bee of other ſorts never ſo many, yet My Dove (albeit but one) is an onelyonly one, and beloved accordingly; ſee Jer. 31.20. For the allegory here; ſome go one way to work, ſome another. Let there bee never ſo great a number (ſaith one) of Peoples and Nations, of Churches and Aſſemblies, which challenge my name, and love, and perhaps by their outward proſperities may ſeem to plead much intereſt in mee, and much worth in themſelves; yet My Dove, &c. Others think, that by Queens are meant, true Beleevers, by Concubines, Hypocrites, and formal profeſſours, and by Virgins, prophane perſons, that have not yet ſo much as a form of godlineſs. The firſt are the feweſt, and the laſt are the greateſt number. Laſtly, There are that make Queens, Concubines, and Virgins, to ſignifie three ſeveral ſorts or degrees of true Chriſtians in the Catholick Church, which yet is but one. Some have made but ſmall progreſs in piety; theſe are compared to Virgins, and are the far greater in number. Some are got further onward, and are of better proof; theſe are like Concubines, and do exceed the Queens in number; quo enim perfectiores, eo pauciores. Some again are eminent and eximious Chriſtians; theſe are Queens, and have more cloſe communion with Chriſt: and to this higheſt degree wee muſt all aſpire and indeavour, ſtriving to perfection. Nature, Art, Grace, do all proceed from leſs perfect to more perfect. Wee read in Scripture of a Chriſtians conception, Gal. 4.19. birth, 1 Pet. 1.23. & 2.2. childe-hood, 1 Cor. 3.1, 2. 1 John 2.13. youth or well-grown age, Epheſ. 4.13. old age, Act. 21.15. M…aſon was a gray-headed experienced Chriſtian, a Father, 1 John 2.13. All muſt exact of themſelves a daily growth, and be ſtill bringing forth fruit in their old age, Pſal. 92.13, 14. ſo ſhall the King take pleaſure ſtill in their beauty: ſo ſhall hee one day ſet them upon his right hand, (as place of dignity and ſafety) in gold of Ophir, Pſal. 45.9, 11.
Verſ. 19. My Dove, mine undefiled is but one] For though all the forenamed may bee called Spouſes; yet they all make but One. Hee that hath the Bride (not Brides) is the Bridegroom, ſaith the Baptiſt. And this is a great Myſtery (ſaith Paul) but I ſpeak concerning Chriſt and the Church, not Churches, Epheſ. 5.32. Una Eccleſia, quia ex una fide, per unum ſpiritum naſcitur, Chriſti tunica eſt unica. Gal. 2.11, 12.ſaith Epiphanius, Beware therefore of the conciſion, Phil. 3.2. that is, of thoſe that make diviſions, and cut the Church in minutula fruſtula (as Auſtin ſaith of the Donatiſts) into little peeces, and ſucking Congregations, making ſeparations. Peter himſelf was blamed for this, and others branded for profligate profeſſours, Jude 19. Theſe are they that ſeparate themſelves, ſenſual, having not the ſpirit. The Primitive Chriſtians were famous for their unity, animo animaque inter ſe miſcebantur, ſaith Tertullian. The very Heathens acknowledged that no people in the world did hold together, and love one another, ſo as Chriſtians did. As the curtains of the Tabernacles were joyned by loops, ſo were they by love. And as the ſtones of the Temple were ſo cloſe cemented together, that they ſeemed to bee all but one ſtone: ſo was it among them. Neither need wee wonder, ſith Chriſts Dove is but one; neither is there any ſuch oneneſs or intireneſs any where, as amongſt the Saints. Other Societies are but as the Clay in the toes of Nebuchadnezzars Image: they may cleave together, but not incorporate one into another.
Shee is the onelyonly one of her Mother] i. e. Of the world, ſay ſome, of the fleſh, ſay others: but they ſay beſt that expound it of Jeruſalem, that is above, Gal. 4.26.the Mother of us all. Epiphanius makes Faith and Religion the Mother of the Church.
The Daughters ſaw her, and bleſſed her] i. e. Called and counted her bleſſed above all other people. Happy art thou O Iſrael Who is like unto thee O people ſaved by the Lord, &c? Deut. 33.29. And yet at that time, they ſeemed to bee nothing ſo happy as the Moabites, Edomites, &c. as being in a very unſettled condition in the wilderneſs. So David, What one Nation in the earth is like thy people, like Iſrael? 2 Sam. 7.23. O bleſſed is the people whoſe God is the Lord! Pſal. 144.15. Eſt Eccleſiae Scoticanae privilegium rarum prae multis, inquo ejus nomen apud caeteros fuit celebre, &c. Sic in elogio▪ praefator… de confeſſ. in Pre…cip. Syntag confeſſ. pag. 6.It is the ſingular priviledge of the Church of Scotland, and they are deſervedly famous for it, that for this fourſcore years and upwards, they have kept an unity, together with purity of Doctrine, without hereſie, or ſo much as ſchiſm. This the daughters (other Chriſtian reformed Churches) have ſeen, and bleſſed her: yea, the Queens and Concubines, and they praiſed her.
Verſ. 10. Who is ſhee that looketh forth as the morning] This is the commendation that the Queens and Concubines give her: and it is expreſſed by way of queſtion: not becauſe they doubted, but for that they admired her excellency. See the like, Pſal. 77.13. Mic. 7.17. Firſt, the Church is compared to the morning, which hath no full light, but mixt: ſo that light ſeems to ſtrive with darkneſs. Then ſhall thy light break forth as the morning, Iſa. 58.8.foreign The Hebrew word here uſed hath its name from blackneſs or dimneſs. Next ſhee is ſaid to be fair as the Moon, which is called here Lebanah, ab albedine, from her whiteneſs, or bright ſhining. In her full the Moon is a very beautiful and fair creature: And even in her Eclipſe, though ſhee appear dark toward the earth, yet is ſhee bright and radiant in that part which looketh toward heaven: So is the Church. The Papiſts would have this Moon alwaies in the full: And if ſhee ſhew but little light to us, or bee eclipſed, they will not yield ſhee is the Moon. And yet (except in the Eclipſe) Aſtronomers demonſtrate that the Moon hath at all times as much light, as in the full: but oftentimes a great part of the bright ſide is turned to heaven, and a leſſer part to the earth: And ſo the Church is ever conſpicuous to Gods eye, though it appear not alwaies ſo to us. The Church waxeth and waneth as the Moon, non nunquam etiam in debquio eſt & aſpici non poteſt: adeo exiguns numerus fidelium aliquando apparet. Elias complained of his aloneneſs. Chriſt, when hee came, ſcarce found faith upon the earth. Papiſts themſelves yield, that there was but Mary, and ſome few others, that looked for the conſolation of Iſrael. Chriſt came to his own, and his own received him not, John 1.11. hee wondred at one good Nathaniel, and ſets him forth with an Ecce admirantis. Behold an Iſraelite indeed. The mad multitude cried Crucifige with one conſent. The whole world went wondring after the Beaſt; Revel. 13.…, 4. Of Luther it is ſaid, Iſte vir…o…iu… orbis impetum ſuſtinuit, that hee had all the world againſt him, as once Athanaſius had. Latimer ſaw ſo few good in his time,Mat. 24.12, 13 that hee thought the laſt day had been come. Our Saviour foretold that toward that day, the love of many ſhould wax cold, but hee that endureth to the end ſhall bee ſaved. Lo it is but a Hee, a ſingle man (a very few) that holdeth out, in compariſon of the many Apoſtates, that fall from their own ſtedfaſtneſs. Here then falls to the ground that Popiſh and ſottiſh mark of the true Church, Univerſality and viſibility. Wee deny not, that the Church is a multitude of Believers, and a Catholick company, to the which wee muſt joyn our ſelves: but that ſhee is alwaies viſible and aſpectable, as a City on an hill, as the Sun in heaven,Luna ſipet. can never bee proved. As the Moon, ſhee hath her wa…es, and non-appearances: and when at the very brighteſt and broadeſt, ſhee may bee m…led up, and overcaſt with a cloud of perſecution. Such was the paucity and obſcurity of Chriſtians in the Arrian times, that Baſil cries out, An Eccleſias ſuas prorſus dereliquit Dominus? Hath the Lord utterly left his Churches, &c? The Ship of the Church was then almoſt overwhelmed, ſaith Hierome. The Church was not then to be ſought intectis & ex…eriori pomp▪ in places and external pomp, but in dens, mines, and priſons, ſaith Hillary. God hath ſet the Moon loweſt in the heavens, and neareſt the earth, that it might daily put us in mind of the conſtancy of the one, and inconſtancy of the other; herſelf in ſome ſort partaking of both.
Clear as the Sun] As having put on Chriſt that Sun of Righteouſneſs, Gal. 3.27. Mal. 4.2. Rev. 12.1. The Sun is ſo glorious a creature, that the Heathens over-admiring it, deified it: and from the Hebrew word Chammah here uſed, called it Jupiter Hammon. The Greeks called it foreign from gnelion the moſt high God. Eudoxes ſaid, that hee was made for no other purpoſe but to behold it: and that hee could be content to be preſently burnt up by the heat of the Sun, ſo hee might bee admitted to come ſo near it, as to learn the nature of it.Chryſoſt. Hom. 8. ad pop. Anti. Chryſoſtome cannot but wonder, that whereas all fire naturally tends upwards, the Sun ſhould ſhoot down his raies to the earth, and ſend his light abroad all below him. Chriſt (the Father of lights) doth the like for his Spouſes, Jam. 1.17. And as the Pearl by the often beating of the Sun-beams upon it, becomes radiant and orient as the Sunne it ſelf: So doth the Church, and ſhall do much more when ſhee ſhall appear with him in glory. Then ſhall the righteous ſhine forth as the Sun in the Kingdome of their father. Mat. 13.43. The Sun in his ſtrength, compared to them, ſhall bee but as a clod of clay, or as thoſe things that ſhine in the dark, but it is onelyonly from their rottenneſs. Three glimpſes of this ſurpaſſing glory expected by the Saints, were ſeen in Moſes his face when hee came from the Mount,Mar. 17.2. Mark 9.3. Luke 9.29. in Chriſts transfiguration, (when his face did ſhine as the Sun, his rayment was white and gliſtering, ſo as no fuller can white them) and in St. Stevens countenance when hee ſtood before the Council. It ſhould ſuffice for the preſent that the Church looketh for (or is looked for, ſo ſome render this Text) at firſt, as the morning, ſomewhat dark and duskiſh: Shee ſhall bee fair as the Moon, at leaſt, in regard of Sanctification: and for Juſtification, ſhee is clear as the Sun, ſo that God ſeeth no ſin in her; or if hee do, yet (as the Sun) hee blots out the thick cloud as well as the cloud, the thickeſt miſt as well as the thinneſt vapour, Iſa. 44.12. And therefore to the Devill and his Angells ſhee muſt needs bee terrible as an Army with Banners: 2 Cor. 10.4.becauſe, as ſhee marcheth under the banner of Chriſts mercy and love, chap. 2.4. ſo the weapons of her warfare are not carnal but mighty through God, &c. and do ſtrike as great a terrour into her enemies, as once Chriſt did into thoſe ruffian ſouldiers that came to apprehend him;Greg. Orat. de laude Baſil. or as Baſil did into Valens the Emperour, that came to diſturb him when hee was in holy exerciſes. See the Note on v. 4. of this chapter.
Verſ. 11. I went down into the garden of Nuts] Or, Nutmegs, Tremellius and thoſe that follow him, render it the well-dreſſed or pruned Gardens: Theſe are the particular Churches, and ſeveral Saints; Chriſts myſtical and ſpiritual garden, that need much pruning and trimming. Of all poſſeſſions, Nulla majorem operam requirit, ſaith Cato, none requireth ſo much pains to bee taken with it as a Garden or Orchard. Corn comes up and grows alone: ripeneth and commeth to perfection, the husbandman ſleeping and waking, &c. (Mark 3.) hee knows not how. But Gardens muſt bee dreſſed, trimmed, pruned, pared almoſt every day, or elſe all will bee out of order. Chriſt therefore as a careful Gardiner, foreign, Putat, purgat, amputat, weeds, lops, prunes his garden, John 15.2. Be careful therefore (ſaith a Worthy Divine) Chriſt walks in his Garden, ſpies how many raw, unripe, indigeſted prayers, &c. hang on ſuch a branch: What gum of pride, what leaves or luxuriant ſprigs and rotten boughes there are; and with his pruning-knife cuts and ſlaſhes where hee ſees things amiſs, &c. Thus hee. Neither may wee think that Chriſt doth this or any of this in ill-will, but out of ſingular love and faithfulneſs to our ſouls, which elſe would ſoon bee wofully over-grown with the weeds of wickedneſs, as a neglected garden. The wicked, God never meddleth with (as I may ſo ſay) till hee come with his ax to hew them down to the fire: becauſe hee findes them incorrigible.Hoſ. 4.17. Iſa. 1. Let him alone, faith God concerning Ephraim; And, why ſhould yee be ſmitten any more, ſith yee revolt more and more? They have a great deal of freedome for preſent: but the end is utter extirpation. Non ſurget hic afflictio, Nehem. 1.9. they ſhall totally and finally bee conſumed at once.
To ſee the fruits of the valley] Green valley-plants: that is, the humble ſpirits which tremble at Gods Word, and preſent him with the firſt ripe fruits, which his ſoul deſireth, Mic. 7.1.
And to ſee whether the Vine flouriſhed] Theſe Vines and Pomegranates are the faithful: who are compared to th…ſe trees, for the plenty and ſweetneſs of their fruits. Chriſt came to ſee whether the former were flowring, and the latter budding; to ſee if there were any hopes of ripe fruit in due time: for hee liketh not thoſe out-landiſh plants, that every year bud and bloſſom, but never bring any fruit to its perfection. No: when hee hath done all that can be done for his Vineyard, hee looks for fruit, Iſa. 5.2. Matth. 21.34.1 Cor. 9.7. For who, ſaith hee, planteth a Vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? Danda igitur eſt opera ut hujus agricolae votis reſpondeamus. Anſwer Chriſts expectation, or elſe hee will lay down his Basket, and take up his Axe, Luk. 13.7.
Verſ. 12. Or ever I was aware, my ſoul, &c.] Heb. I knew not. So Chriſt ſpeaketh after the manner of men: And it is as if hee ſhould ſay, I could not conceive that my people were in ſo good a forwardneſs, as indeed I found them; for they have over and above anſwered mine expectation, being full of goodneſs, as thoſe beleeving Romans, chap. 15.14. filled with all knowledge, and alwaies abounding in the work of the Lord; from whom therefore they ſhall bee ſure to receive a full reward, 2 John 8. Or thus; I know not, that is, I perceived not, that the Vines flouriſhed, the Pomegranates budded, that all was ripe and ready; therefore I withdrew my ſelf for a ſeaſon, O my Spouſe: And therein I dealt with thee no otherwiſe, than as good Gardiners and Vinedreſſers do; who coming (perhaps before the time of fruit) to look for fruit, and finding none, depart for preſent, till a more convenient ſeaſon. But that thou mayeſt know my dear love and tender care of thy comfort, behold my haſte to call thee to thy former feelings again: for dicto citius, my ſoul ſet mee on the Charrets of Amminadib, who may ſeem to bee ſome famous Charret-driver of Solomons, that could out-drive all the reſt. There is another ſenſe given of theſe words, and perhaps a better. For by ſome, theſe are thought to bee the words of the Church confeſſing her ignorance: I knew not, Lord, ſaith ſhee, that thou waſt gone down into the Garden to do thoſe things. I thought rather that thou hadſt departed in great anger againſt mee for my negligence; and therefore I ſought thee carefully, I made out after thee with all my might; my ſoul made mee like the Charrets of Amminadib; Amor addidit alas, I drove furiouſly, till I had found thee: I was like unto thoſe two women in Zachary, that had wings, and wind in their wings, chap. 5.9. This was well; that miſſing her Spouſe, ſhee followed ſo hard after him, Pſal. 63.8. My ſoul cleaveth after thee, ſaith David, thereby ſhewing his love, conſtancy, and humility. But then that was not ſo well: that ſhee ſo far miſtook Chriſt, as to think that hee went away from her, in deep diſpleaſure, and kept away from her, as loathing her company: Such hard conceits of Chriſt, and heavy conceits wee are apt to have of our ſelves, as if hee had forſaken us, becauſe wee cannot preſently finde him (when as hee is onelyonly gone down in his Garden to prune it, or to ſee how things thrive there) as it hee had caſt off the care of us; becauſe, finding us too light, hee make us heavy (as there is need) with manifold temptations, 1 Cor. 11.1 Pet. 1.6. Wee are therefore judged of the Lord, that wee may not bee condemned with the world. Hee leaves us on the other ſide the ſtile (as Fathers ſometimes do their children) and then helps us over, when wee cry. To ſay God hath caſt us off, becauſe hee hath hid his face, is a fallacy fetcht out of the Devils Topicks. Non eſt argumentum averſi Dei quemadmodum diabolus interpretatu…, Lavat. in Prov. 3.ſed potius paternae ipſius benevolentiae, ſaith learned Lavater. It is not an argument of Gods wrath and diſpleaſure, as the Devil would make it, but rather of his fatherly love and affection, hee hides his love, as Joſeph did, out of increaſement of love. And yet how apt are wee to ſay in this caſe, with thoſe male-contents in Malachi, In quo dilexisti nos? Wherein haſt thou loved us? and with thoſe Iſraelites in the Wilderneſs, Is God amongſt us? as if that could not bee,Exod 17.7. Judg. 6.12. and they athirſt. O my Lord, ſaid Gideon, If the Lord bee with us, why then is all this evil befallen us? And, Lord God, (ſaid Abraham, when hee had received many gracious promiſes) What wilt thou give mee, ſeeing I go childleſs? Gen. 15.1, 2. We ſee then how ready the beſt of us are to caſt the helve after the hatchet, as they ſay; and, like little children, becauſe wee may not have what wee would, ſullenly to ſay, God loves us not, and we will not have what hee thinks good to give unto us. My ſoul refuſed comfort, ſaith hee, Pſal. 77.2. And I ſaid, my hope and my ſtrength is periſhed from the Lord, remembring mine afflictions, and my miſery, the wormwood and the gall: Lam. 3.18, 19This our folly and fault wee muſt confeſs to Chriſt, as the Church here doth; and beſeech him, by his Spirit, to teach us better things; that wee may not miſtake the cauſe of our calamities, and make them heavier than God meant them, by our frowardneſs and impatience: Pondus ipſa jactatione incommodius fit, ſaith Seneca.
Verſ. 13. Return, return, O Shulamite] The Church is ſo called of her peace and perfection with God in Chriſt. Brightman gathers from this word, that the Church of the Jews in ſpecial is meant, (the Church in general being uſually before ſignified by the daughters of Jeruſalem) and applies it to the recalling of the Jews, according to Rom. 11.25, &c. which is yet to be fulfilled. Solomons wife, ſaith another, was after his name called the Shulamite, according to Iſa. 4.1. And as Chriſt in this Book is named Solomon, ſo the Church is called Shulamite, to ſhew the communion that ſhee hath with him: and therefore alſo the forming of the Hebrew word is rather paſſive than active. That which ſhee is again and again called upon to do, is, to return. It ſeems ſhee had ſo poſted apace after Chriſt (as on ſwift chariots, verſ. 12.) that ſhee had gone quite beyond him. Hee therefore as it were by houting and ſhouting to her, calls her back. How eaſily wee overſhoot and run into extreams, may bee ſeen in Peter, John 13.9. and the Galatians, chap. 4. It is beſt to hold the golden mean. Howbeit, as in falling forward, is nothing ſo much danger as backward: ſo hee that is earneſt in good, though hee may over do and carry ſome things indiſcreetly: yet is he far better than a lusk, or Apoſtate; eſpecially if he afterwards return, and diſcern, and hearken to better counſell. But ſome are ſo ſet upon it, that (like a man that is running a race) though you give them never ſo good advice, they will not ſtay to hear it. Of theſe the Proverb is verified,Prov. 19.2. Hee that haſteth with his feet, ſinneth, Prov. 19.2. See the Note there.
That wee may look upon thee] Or, contemplate thee with complacency and delight. This is the ſpeech of the Bridegroom and his friends. The Church though in her fright and grief for want of her Beloved, though unveyled and evil-intreated by the Watch-men, &c. and ſo not ſo ſightly as at ſome other times, yet wanted not that beauty that made her deſireable: like as ſome faces appear moſt oriently beautiful when they are moſt inſtampt with ſorrow: and as the sky is moſt clear after a ſtorm.
What will yee ſee in the Shulamite? as it were the company of two Armies] Ready to joyn battail, or maintaining Civil War within her: for in the Chriſtian conflict, the very ſame faculties are oppoſed; becauſe in every faculty the fleſh luſteth againſt the ſpirit, and the ſpirit againſt the fleſh, and theſe are contrary the one to the other: Gal. 5.17.Theſe maintain civil broils within the Shulamite, (as the two Babes did in Rebecca's womb) ſo that ſhee cannot do what ſhee would. And this the Apoſtle ſpake by woful experience, as appears, Rom. 7.21. & 15. Something lay at the fountain head, and ſtopt it. There is a continual conteſt with ſpiritual wickedneſſes about heavenly priviledges.foreign. Eph. 6.12. Put fire and water together, there is no quiet, till one of them get the victory. So in ſickneſſes: Let a man have a ſtrong diſeaſe and a ſtrong body, hee ſhall never have any reſt, as long as they both continue in their ſtrength. When Chriſt was born, all Jeruſalem was troubled. When Paul came to Epheſus, there aroſe no ſmall ſtir about that way, Acts 19.23. So when grace is wrought once, there's ſomewhat to do within; though till then all was jolly, quiet. When cold Salt-Peter and hot Brimſtone meet, they make a great noiſe: ſo do the fleſh and ſpirit in their skirmiſhes and encounters. Now theſe two duellars meet and fight in every faculty of the ſoul; as hot and cold do in luke-warm water; as light and darkneſs meet in the morning light; or as wine and water in a cup mixt of both. In the wicked one faculty may, and ſometimes doth oppoſe another: as ſenſual appetite may reſiſt natural reaſon, &c. But in ſuch as are ſanctified, the underſtanding is againſt the underſtanding, the will againſt the will, &c. as the ſick patient both wills and nills, thoſe phyſical ſlibber-ſauces. But Satan is not ſo divided againſt himſelf, Luke 11.18. No more is the fleſh. It is in the Shulamite onelyonly, and in every part of her, that this conflict is found: which maketh her cry out with Rebecca ſometimes, If it bee ſo, Why am I thus? and with Paul, Wretched creature that I am, &c.