Use 2. In the next place, observe, after this temporary desertion, Christ visits his church tvith more abundant comfort than ever before.
Now, the church cannot hold, ' My beloved is mine, and I am his ;' and Christ cannot hold, but falls into a large commendation of his spouse back again. As she was large in his commendations, so he is large in hers, and -more large. He will have the last word. Therefore, learn by this expe- rience, ' that all things work together for the best to them that love God,' Rom. viii. 23. All things. What? evil ? Ay, evil. Why, even sin turns to their humiliation ; yea, and desertion (those spiritual ills), turns to their good ; for Christ seems to forsake for a while, that he may come after with more abundance of comfort. When once he hath enlarged the soul before with a spacious desire of his coming, to say, 0 ! that he would come ; when the soul is thus stretched with desire in the sense of want, then he fills it again till it burst forth, * My beloved is mine, and I am his.' It was a good experiment of Bernard, an holy man in ill times, tihi accidit, &c., speaking of Christ's dealing with his chm-ch. He comes and he goeth away for thy good. He comes for thy good to comfort thee ; after which, if thou be not careful to maintain communion with him, then he p;oeth away for thy good, to correct thy error, and to enlarge thy desire of him again. to teach thee to lay sure and faster hold upon him when thou hast him, not to let him go again.
If you would see a parallel place to this, look in Cant, iii., where there is the like case of the spouse and Christ, ' By night on my bed I sought him.' The church sought Christ not only by day, but hj night, ' I sought him whom my soul loved.' Though she wanted him, yet her soul loved him constantly. Though a Christian's soul have not present communion with Christ, yet he may truly say. My soul loves him, because he seeks him diligently and constantly in the use of all the means. So we see the church, before my text, calls him my beloved still, though she wanted communion with him. Well, she goes on, ' I sought him, but I found him not.' Would the church give over there ? No ; then she riseth and goeth about the city, and about the streets, and ' seeks him whom her soul loved,' seeks him, and will not give over. So I sought him, but I wanted the issue of my seeking, I found him not. What comes upon that ? ' The watchmen go about the city, and find her.' Of whom, when by her own seeking she could not find Christ, she inquires, ' Saw you him whom my
Cakt. VI. 3.] ' I AM MY brloved's.' 173
soul loveth ?' She inquires of the watchmen, the guides of God's people, who could not satisfy her fully. She could not find her beloved, yet what doth she, she shews, verse 4. It was but a Uttle that she stayed, after she had used aU means, private and public — in her bed, out of her bed — by the watchmen and others, yet, saith she, it was but a little that I was past from them. She had not an answer presently, though the watchmen gave her some good counsel. It was not presently, yet not long after. Christ will exercise us a while with waiting : * It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loved,' After aU our seeking, there must be waiting, and then we shall find him whom our soul loveth. Perhaps we have used all means, private and public, and yet find not that comfort we look for. Oh, but wait a while ! God hath a long time waited for thee. Be thou content to wait a while for him. We shall not lose by it, for it follows in the next verse ; after she had found him whom her soul loved, ' I held him, I would not let him go.' So this is the issue of desertions. They stir up diligence and searching, in the use of means, private and public ; and exercise patience to wait God's leisure, who will not suffer a gracious soul to fail of its expectation. At length he win fulfil the desires of them that fear him, Ps. cxlv. 19 ; and this comes of their patience. Grace grows greater and stronger. ' I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him unto my mother's house.' Thus you see how the Spirit expresseth the same truth in another state of the church. Compare place with place. To go on.
* I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine.' The words themselves are a passionate expression of long-looked-for consolation. Affections have eloquence of their own beyond words. Fear hath a proper expression. Love vents itself in broken words and sighs, delighting in a peculiar eloquence suitable to the height and pitch of the afiection, that no words can reach unto. So that here is more in the words breathed from such an inflamed heart, than in ordinaiy construction can be picked out, ' I am my beloved's,' &c., coming from a full and large heart, expressing the union and communion between Christ and the church, especially after a desertion. ' I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine.'