lu doubtless B poetic orlillce, as before in a dance, perhaps one in which the inhnhi- the oo.se of the dream, for the purpose of tants of l\fahanaim excelled, or one in which introducing tho lovely clcscriplion of her angele, or hosts wero thought to engage. The pcr~onal attro.ctions. Plainly sho is dcscribecl old tmnslators, the Syriac, J eromc, nn<I tl1() us dancing or 11s if dancing. Delitzsch, how- Venetian, render, "the dances of the cnmpa" ever, \hinks that the <lo.nee iu only rcfcrrecl (choros castrarum, 8la.<rov <r-rpa.-ro1r,~r,111), p()S• to by tho lnclieu ns a comparison; but in that sibly a. war-dance or pararle. The word, case he certainly leaves unexplo.ined the however, is in the clual. Delitzach thinks peculiarity of the description in eh. vii. 1-5, the meaning is n dance e.s of angels," only o. which most naturally 1s a description of a step beyond the responsive song of the aem- dancing figure. phim" (Isa. vi.). Of c01use, there ran be no Ver. 13b.-Why will ye look upon the objection to the aaeociation of angels with Shu!amite as upon the dance of Mahanaim 1 the bride, but tl1ere is no necessity fnr it. The Shulamite, in her perfect modesty and The word wonl<l be, no doubt, familiarly humility, not knowing bow beautiful she known in the nge of Solomon. The sacred rnnlly is, usks why it is that they wish still to dances wero often referred to in Scripture, gaze upon her, like those that gaze at the and there woulcl be nothing clegracling to the dance of Mrthanaim, or why they wish her dignity of the bride in dancing before. the to dance. But at the so.me moment, with the ladies and her own husband. " After throw- complaisance of perfect amiability, begins to ing aside her upper garment, so that she had move-al ways o. pleasure to a lovely me.iden- only tho light clothing of a shepherdess or thus filling them with admiration. Mahan aim vine-dresser, Shulamith danced to a.nd fro came in later times to mean "angels," or the before the daughters of Jerusalem, and dia- '' heavenly host" (see Gen. xx.xii. 3), but here played all her attractions before them." it is generally thought to be the name of
HOMILETICS. Vers, 1-3.-Dialogue between the bride and the daughters of Jerusalem. I. Tmi: QUESTION OF THE MAIDENS. 'l'he dream is past. The bridegroom is absent for a time, but the bride is not anxious; she knows where he is, and that he will soon return. Perhaps it was such a short absence which filled l:cr thoughts before, and was the occasion of those narratives which are so dream-like, which recall so vividly reminiscences of dreams such as most men have probably experienced. The chorus again address the bride as "fairest among women. n They recognize her beauty and graces. They do not see the bridegroom with her ; they ask, " Whither is he gone?" They offer to seek him with her. So we sometimes ask others who have more Christian graces, more love of Christ, than we have, where we may find the Lord. W o want to seek Christ with them; we ask for their prayers; we will join our prayers with theirs. II. 'l'HE ANSWER. 1. The bride knows where her beloved may be found. She has no doubts now, no anxieties, as she had in her dream. She answers without hesitation, "My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed [his flock J in the gardens, and to gather lilies." She invests her beloved with the ideal character of a shepherd, ns she had done before ( eh. i. 7). We see that the words are not to be taken literally; he is no shepherd in the ordinary sense. He is said, indeed, to be feeding (his flock), but not in ordinary pastures. He is gone to his garden, a garden of costly spices; and he is gone to gather lilies, apparently for his bride. The bride never dwells on the wealth and magnificence of her royal lover as the chorns do. Such thoughts, perhaps, were to her oppressive rather than attractive; she loves to think of him as a shepherd, as one in her own condition in life. 'l'he grandeur of the king was dazzlin" to the country maiden. So the Christian loves to think of the Lord Jesus as the good Shepherd. We know, indeed, that the kingdoms of this world are his ; that he is King of kings and Lord of lords; that he is the Word who in the beginning was with Goel, and himself was God; that all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. 'We know that he will come nanin in majesty and great glory to judge the quick and the dead. But when our s;uls are dazzled by the contemplation of his glory; when we shrink, as sinful men must shrink, from the thought of the great white throne and him that sitteth on H, from whose face the earth and the heaven flee away (Rev. xx. 11) ;-it is a relief then 148 THE SONG OF SOLOMON. [en. v1. 1-18.