A Christian soid seems to glory as it ivere in Christ.
* This is my beloved, and this is my friend, 0 ye daughters of Jerusalem.' But to unfold more fully this point, there be three or four ends why the church thus stands upon the expression of the excellencies of Christ, in par- ticular and in general.
1. The one, to shew that it is most jitst that she should love and respect him in whom there is all this to deserve love. Both in himself, in regard of his own excellencies, so, and in relation to us, in regard of his merits and deserts.
2. Secondly, to justify her large affections before the world and all opposites.f For the world thinks, what mean these who are called Christians to haunt the exercises of religion, to spend so much time in good things ? They wonder at it for want of better information. Now the church here, to justify her large expressions, says, ' This is my beloved, this is my friend, 0 ye daughters of Jerusalem.'
3. And not only to justify, but likewise to glory therein, as you have it, Ps. xliv. 8. The church there boasts of God, ' I will make my boast of thee all the day long.' So that Christians may not onlyjustify their course of life against enemies, but in some sort boast of Christ, as Paul oft doth. And he shews the reason of it, that God hath made Christ to us all in all, wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, 1 Cor. i. 30, that who- soever glorieth might glory in the Lord, ver. 31. For it is not a matter of glorying in the church when she hath such a head and such a husband.
* This is my beloved.' The wife shiues in the beams of her husband. Therefore this yields matter not only of justification but of gloiy.
4. And next, in the fourth place, the church is thus large and shuts up all with a repetition, ' This is my beloved,' to enlarge her own affectiom and to feed ourX own love. For love feeds upon this fuel, as it were; upon ex- pressions and meditations of the person or thing loved. Love is, as it were, wages of itself. The pains it takes is gain to itself. To the church here, it is an argument pleasing. She dilates upon a copious theme. I may truly say there is no gi'eater comfort to a Christian, nor a readier way to enlarge the affections after Christ, than to speak oft of the excellencies of Christ ; to have his tongue as the pen of a ready writer furnished this way,
* This is my beloved,' &c.
* That is, 'beloved of Jehovah.' — G. f That is, ' opponents.' — En. X Qu. ' her ?•— Ed.
Cant. V. 16.] ' this is my beloved.' 163
5. In the fifth place, another end of this may be, to aggravate her own shame, as indeed God's children are much in this argument ; that upon their second thoughts of Christ's worthiness, and therewithal reflecting upon their o^\^l unworthiness and unkindness, they may reUsh Christ the better. Therefore the church here, that it might appear to hei'self, for her humilia- tion, how unkind she had been to shut the door against Christ when he knocked (whereupon he deservedly did withdraw himself, and made her seek him so long sorrowing), I tell you, says she, what a kind of beloved he is, thus and thus excellent. How did the consideration of God's kindness and love melt David's heart after that horrible sin in the matter of Uriah, 2 Sam. xii. 13 ; and the sweet looks of Christ upon Peter, Mat. xxvi. 75, that had been so unkind, melted him. So here the church, when she considered how unkind she had been to Christ her beloved, so incomparably excellent above other beloveds, to let him stand at the door, till his locks were wet with the dew of the night, the consideration hereof made her ashamed of herself. What ! so excellent, so deserving a person as my beloved is to me, to be used of me so ! what indignity is this ! Thus to raise up the aggravation of her unkindness, no question but the chui'ch takes this course. For God's children are not as untoward worldlings and hypocrites, afraid to search and to understand themselves. The child of God loves to be well read in his own heart and unworthy ways. Therefore he lays all the blame he can upon himself every way. He knows he loseth nothing by this ; for there is more mercy in Christ than there is sin in him. And the more sin abounds in his own feehng, the more grace shall abound. He knows the nl;ystery of God's carriage in this kind. Therefore for this end, amongst the rest, she says, ' This is my beloved, and^this is my friend,' whom I have BO unkindly used.
6. And the last reason why the church is thus large was, to draw and wind up tlie affections oj those well-meaning Christians that were comers on, who were inquisitive of the way to Zion. 0 jq daughters of Jerusalem, that you may know that there is some cause to seek after Christ more than you have done before, I tell you what an excellent person my beloved is ; to whet their affections more and more. And we see the success of this ex- cellent discourse in the beginning of the next chapter. ' Whither is thy be- loved gone ? ' &c.