Exposition of Song of Solomon 1, Treatise · Verse 15, 16, 17
Vers. 15, 16, 17. Behold, thou art fair, my love, Behold, thou art fair, thou hast Doves eyes, &c.
CHrist and his Spouse do in these verses renew the praises one of another more succinctly than before, and with greater plainenesse; first Christ commends her beauty, vers. 15. Secondly, the Spouse praiseth her beloved, vers. 16. Thirdly, both Christ and his Spouse do joyntly commend the Churches glory, vers. 17.
In this 15. verse Christs Eulogie is amplifyed, First, by an Introduction, which consisteth of two parts, 1. A word of Attention, and that doubled, Behold, Behold, not only to satisfye her doubts, but also to move admiration. 2. A Title of affection, my Love. Secondly, by a twofold Assertion, 1. of the Spouse, the Churches, and the Saints spiritual Beauty, which is also doubled, noting both the certainty, and the eminency thereof, Thou art fair, thou art fair. 2. of her Chastity and spiritual understanding! Thou hast Doves eyes.
Behold thou art fair, my love, Behold, thou art fair,] The poor Saints (who are the precious Sons of Sion, and the comely Daughters of Jerusalem,) do very much desire to be beautiful and lovely in the eyes of Christ, but they are apt to look altogether upon their own deformities, defilements, pollutions, and corruptions, whereby it comes to passe, that they lye under great doubtings, darknesse and despondencies in their own Spirits, dare not, cannot beleeve that they are comely in the eyes of Christ. They see not the inward beauty and spiritual glory of the new man, the hidden man of the heart. Now Christ being formed in them, and seeing his own Image in their hearts, doth not only witnesse their spiritual beauty and hidden glory, but calleth them to Behold, that is, to consider, and to look upon the truth of grace in themselves.
Behold, Behold. The word being doubled notes unto us these things, viz.
First, The Saints backwardnesse, indisposition and slownesse of heart to beleeve, and to be perswaded, what Christ hath done for them, what grace he hath bestowed upon them, and what spiritual blessings of the new Covenant, God hath blessed them with in Christ Jesus.
1 Meditation. Christ would have his Saints to beleeve, what he hath done for them, what Grace he hath wrought in their hearts, and what spiritual blessings he hath blessed their Souls with in heavenly things. Christ doth say to every poor doubting Soul, as he did to the Ruler of the Synagogue, Mark. 5.36. Be not affraid, only beleeve.
Secondly, It is a Note of wonder and admiration, Isa. 7.14. Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call his name Emmanuel. And so here; Behold, thou art fair. It is no lesse wonderful that a poor sinner should be born of God, Joh. 1.12, 13. And become the Son of God, Gal. 3.26. And also be made partaker of that divine Nature, 2 Pet. 1.4. Yea, and be sanctifyed in Christ Iesus, called a Saint, 1 Cor. 1.1, 2. And washed from his sins in the blood of Christ, Rev. 1.5. and presented to God in the righteousnesse of Christ without spot, Ephes. 5.26, 27.
2 Meditation. When Christ manifesteth the work of Regeneration and Sanctification in the hearts of his Saints, and calleth and causeth them to behold it by Faith, they cannot but wonder and admire the free grace of God in Christ Jesus unto their Souls. Psal. 31.19, 21. Blessed be the Lord for he hath shewed me his marvelous kindnesse, O how great is thy goodnesse! & Psal. 118.21, 22, 23, 24, 28. I will praise thee, for thou hast heard me, and art become my Salvation. This is the Lord; doing, it is marvelous in our eyes.
When God revealeth Christ in any poor Soul, and by his Spirit sheweth unto him the things that are freely given him of God, speaking pardon and peace unto him in a promise of free grace, witnessing the Fathers love, and his Sonship by the Spirit of Adoption, Oh! how doth that poor Saint admire the free grace of God in Christ, and wonder at the love of God in Christ to his Soul! What? Is it so indeed? Hath God loved me with an everlasting love? Is God my Father? Is Christ mine? Am I a child of God? In everlasting Covenant with God? and shall I have eternal life? Who am I? Oh how vile am I? how defiled, polluted and sinfull am I? What! love me, pardon my sins, make me an heir of grace, give me a kingdome; O infinite loving kindnesse! Oh admirable free grace! Oh the height, and depth, and length, and breadth, of the love of God in Christ, to poor lost perishing sinners!
My love] Christ calleth his Spouse his love: First, because she is the subject of his love; his love is settled upon her: Christs love and delight from all eternity was in the Father, and the Fathers love and delight was from everlasting in Jesus Christ his Son, but it did not rest there. Pro. 8.22, 23, 30, 31. I was set up from overlasting, and I was daily his delight, rejoycing always before him. Rejoycing in the habitable part of his earth, and my delights were with the Sons of men. For Christ seateth his love upon his Sion, his Churches, and in the hearts of his Saints. Psal. 87.2, 3, 7. & 132.13, 14, 15. and Joh. 14.21. And he that loveth me, shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest my self unto him.
Secondly, Christ calleth her his love, because she is the Object of his love, his love is communicated to her, & his hearts delight and desire is unto his Spouse, his Churches, his Saints. Cant. 7.10. I am my beloveds, and his desire is towards me. The greatest out-goings of the heart of Christ is towards his Saints, Jer. 31.3, 20. The Saints hearts are the receptacle of Christs love; Though Christ loveth all men, as he did that young Man, Mark. 10.21. Yet he loveth his Spouse, his Churches, his Saints with a peculiar love, Joh. 15.9.10. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you, continue ye in my love: O what manner of love is this! 1 Joh. 3.1, 2. No love like Christs, and the Fathers love in Christ. Joh. 17.23, 26.
3 Meditation. The Saints are both the Subjects and the Objects of the heart-loves of the Lord Jesus Christ.
First, Christ bestowes his love upon them, which he manifested, 1. in giving himself for them, Gal. 2.20. 2. in drawing them to himself, Jer. 31.3. 3. in washing away their sins in his own blood, Rev. 1.5. 4. in Sanctifying them by his holy Spirit, 2 Thess. 2.15. 5. in preserving them in himself Jude, 1. And 6. in saving them by grace, Ephes. 2.8. and sealing them unto the day of Redemption. Ephes. 4.30.
Secondly, when Christ hath made his Saints lovely, he looks upon his own Image in them, and loves them, because he sees his own Spiritual gifts and graces in their hearts, wherewith Christ is ravished, Cant. 4.9. Before we be actually his, he loved us with a love of good will, as beholding us in his Fathers choyce, and given to himself in Election, Jer. 31.3. and therefore gave himself for us, Ephes. 5.2. And when we lay in our blood, our time was the time of love, and Christ tooke us out of our blood, and spread his skirt over us (put his Righteousnesse upon us) and entered into Covenant with us, and we became his, Ezek. 16.6, 8. to 14.
But when Christ hath called, justifyed, and sanctifyed his elected ones, made them partakers of his divine Nature, given them his holy Spirit, changed them into his own Image and planted the seeds of his grace in their hearts, & they begin to bud, grow and bring forth the spiritual fruits of Faith, love, humility, zeal, patience, meeknesse, and self-denyall in their lives and conversations, to the praise of the glory of his free grace then Christ loveth them, with a love of most intimate friendship; Then he loves them as a Father, yea with the same love that the Father loved him, Joh. 15.9, 10. Then he loveth them as a Husband, Isai. 54.5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14. With a conjugal Marriage-love, his bosome-hear love. Then Christ dwels in their hearts, opens the secrets of his Soul unto them, and sheddeth abroad his love in their hearts by his holy Spirit, which he hath given them.
Thou art fair, thou art fair] This gemination noteth, first, the certainty; and secondly, the eminency of the Spouse's, the Churches, and the Saints Spiritual beauty, and inward glory. The word [foreign] signifieth fair or beautiful, not only in colour, but in comely proportion, and parts, such as engageth affection, and draweth love and complacency, Cant. 4.7. & 7.6. How fair, and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights. As if Christ wanted words to expresse the Spouse's beauty and comelinesse, as one ravished with her love, he breaks forth into admiration, How fair, and how pleasant; &c. Thus Christ gets into the hearts of his poor Saints, & doth win upon them, and gain their affections (ere they be aware, Cant. 6.12.) by his sweet insinuations.
Also the doubling of the word holdeth forth both variety of beauty, and perfection of beauty; As Peace, Peace, is perfect peace, Isai. 26.3. So fair, fair, noteth perfect beauty, Psal. 5….2. Also it denoteth eminent beauty and comlinesse; As high, high, is very high, and low, low, is very low, so fair, fair, is very fair, or exceeding beautiful, Ezek. 16.13, 14. Thou was exceeding Beautiful.
4 Meditation. The Churches and Saints of God, do excel in spiritual beauty, and are most fair and lovely in the account of Christ. Psal. 16.3. Prov. 31.10, 29.
The Church of the Jews was beautiful, fair, and comely in the dayes of H…zekiah. 2 Chron. 29.3, to 36. & 30, 1. to 12, 17. & 31.2. to 21. The Churches of Beleevers were beautiful and glorious in the dayes of the Apostles, Act. 9.31. 2 Thes. 1.3. And every Saint is fair and lovely in the dayes of its first espousals, Jer. 2.2, 3. and Ezek. 16.13, 15. Christ beholdeth his people as covered with the robe of his Righteousnesse, and cloathed with the garments of his Salvation, and made all glorious with in. Isai. 61.10. and Psal. 45.13. Thou are all fair, my love, there is no Spot in thee, Cant. 4.7. & Ephes. 5.27.
First, Christ is the Churches beauty, as he is the head of the Church, and the Saviour of the body. Ephes. 5.23. And Christ is also the Saints Crown of glory, and Diadem of beauty, Isai. 28.5. For he is their wisdome, Righteousnesse, Sanctification, and Redemption, Cor. 1.30.
Secondly, The Churches and Saints are beautiful in respect of all those spiritual gifts and graces, which Christ hath endowed them withall, Joh. 1.16. & Ephes. 4.7. And in this respect, the Spouses Husband and Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus Christ her King doth greatly desire her Beauty, Psal. 45.11.
Thirdly, The Churches and Saints are beautiful and comely, in respect of all the holy Ordinances of God, and administrations of Christ, which they do, or may enjoy, 1 Cor. 11.1, 2. & Psal. 48.1, 2. & 78.3, 5, 6, 7. All my springs are in thee. There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit, And there are differences of Administrations, but the same Lord, 1 Cor. 12.4, 5, 6, 7.
Thou hast Doves eyes] By eyes you may understand, first, Spiritual knowlege, and divine Illumination, called the eyes of our understanding, Ephes. 1.18. Enlightened with the Spirit of wisdome, and revelation in the knowlege of Jesus Christ, and renewed in the Spirit of our mind by putting on the new Man. Ephes. 4.23, 24. Secondly, By eyes you may also understand, the Ministers of Christ in his Churches, who were called Seers, 1 Sam. 9.9. & 2 King. 17.13. And Eyes, 1 Cor. 12.16, 17, 21, 27, 28. & Rev. 4.6, 8. And therefore are said to be the Saints Guides, Heb. 13.7, 17. False Ministers are called blind guides, Mat. 23.16, 24.
Doves are fearful, peaceable, innocent Creatures, Mat. 10.16. which doe fly to the clifts, or holes of the Rock for safety, Jer. 48.28. God compares his mourning Saints to Doves in the valleies, Isai. 38.14. And his Saints under their captivities, bondages, and sufferings, God compares unto Doves, whose wings are covered with silver, and their feathers with yellow gold, Psal. 68.13. So here Christ compareth his Churches & Saints with respect unto the spiritual light and understanding which they and their Teachers have, and shall receive from the unction of his holy Spirit unto Doves eyes, Cant. 4.11. Behold thou art fair my love, behold thou art fair, thou hast Doves eyes, &c.
5 Meditation. The spiritual understanding and experimental knowlege, which the Ministers and Saints have in Mysteries of God and Godlinesse, accompanyed with a chast, holy, and harmlesse conversation (as becomes the Gospel) renders Sion to be very beautiful. Faith can see far into rhe mysteries of Christ, the Eye of faith can see him that is invisible, Heb. 11.27. And behold things not seen, Heb. 11.1.
First, The spiritual understanding and experimental knowlege which the Ministers and Saints in the Churches of Christ have in the Mysteries of God and godlinesse, doth render Sion to be very beautiful. This was a part of the Churches glory and beauty, in the days of the Apostles, Ephes. 2.3, 4, 5, 6. Col. 2.2, 3. And their chast, holy and harmlesse Conversation was another part of the Churches dignity and comlinesse, 2 Tim. 3.10, 11. & Phil. 1.27. & 2.15.
Secondly, Spirirual light will be the glory of Sion, of the Church, and Saints, when God shall restore Jerusalem, Isai. 60.1, 2, 3, 19, 20. The Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee: The Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. And their holinesse and purity shall also be Sions glory in that day. Isai. 60.15, 17, 20, 21, 22. Then saith the Lord, I will make thy Officers peace and thine Exactors righteousnesse, thy people also shall be all righteous; and I will make thee an eternal excellency; I the Lord will hasten it in his time.