The Pulpit Commentary — Song of Songs — Section 168

will be quencl1ed in darkn~s~, the stars will disappear or elso assuino new forms• but the ransomed saints will he rising in excellence, and adding to their spiritual adorn- ments, world without end. This high estate of beauty may not as yet bo in esse 1 but It is in pos.•c. It is not yet an actual possession, But it is in course of devolopruent, from the bud to the open flower. It is clearly seen in its perfectness by the prescient eye of our Immanuel. · JI. Tms LANGUAGE BETOKENS THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH, "My dove my undefiled is one." In _all God's works we find unity amid diversity. Througho~t all material forces ~e d1sconr system. Part is subordinated to part. Everything is linked to e-v1Jrylhm_g else. All forces work together for the well-being of the whole. '!'here is organic unity. The universe shows the presence of one Master-mind. God loves order. Confusion, conflict, anarchy, are an abomination to him. Yet variety is not displeasing t-0 him. Very clearly Jesus has not ordained a system of rigid uniformity in his Church. That would not add to her beauty nor to her usefulness. But the heart of Jesus is set upon unity. In his great prayer to his Father, prior to his crucifixion, he pleaded, "That they all may be one, as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee." In opinions and belief,; it is next to impossible for the Church to be one. For God has created such diversities of taste and tempP-r in men's minds, that for the time present truth presents itself under many aspects. Likely enough, this will continue until the human mind can more easily grasp the system of truth as a whole. Yet, while opinions and beliefs may Yary, Christians can be one in feeling, one in love, one in loyalty to their King, one in aggressive service. This unity of life and love, amid diversities of belief and methods of service, will add to the Church's beauty and the Church's success. All the imagery which God has employed in Scripture to set forth his Church conveys this idea of unity. Is the Church a vine, springing out of Christ the Root? Then the manifold branches and twigs imply a united whole. Is a human body employed as an illustration? Then all the members and organs working in harmony imply unity. So, in our text, the bride is the representative of all saints, in all lands and in all ages. A dominant note of Christ's Church is unity. "'l'here are many members, yet are they one body." IIL THE LANGUAGE DENOTES FAME. "The daughters saw her, and blessed her; yea, the queens and the women praised her." High and noble qualities of character are sure to command fame. Fame is a doubtful good. Counterfeit excellence, like tinselled brass, sometimes gains currency, and imposes on credulous people. Successful wicked- ness will, now and then, obtain a transient fame. Nevertheless, real and permanent hononr belongs only to substantial goodness. Sooner or later the true Church will secure higi:i renown. "God is in the midst of her." "The highest himself shall establish her." Her spiritual beauty and her beneficent influence shall win for her immortal praise. Beyond all human institutions, the Church will be found the bond of human society, the bulwark of freedom, the inspirer of intellectual life, the guardian of the nation's welfare. Fame is of secondary importance, yet fame must not be despised. For fame is power. Fame is large opportunity for doing good. Fame, as the result of generous and heroic service, is inevitable. Yet the Church will not keep her fame for herself. She will lay it at the feet of her Lord, to whom all belongs. For the present the Church may inherit the world's scorn rather than the world's fame; but when her hidden light and power shall break forth, "the Gentiles shall come to her light, and kings to the brightness of her risinj!;," Resplendent fame is her sure reversion, "for the mouth of the Lord bath spoken it." IV. Hmrn 1s FURTHER THE IDEA OFHOPE-cnEATING. "Who is this that looketh forth as the morning?" Morning is the dawn of hope to the benighted and the shipwrecked. Such are the -evils that infest human society, that many thoughtful men have become pessimists. " Is life worth living? "many ask. If, after all the struggles and toils and endurances of tLis life, there is only extinction, or if the future is a dark enigma, then may not suicide be true wisdom? H,1pe, the backbone of all energy, is destroyed. The great questions are-Is there any desirable future for the human race on the earth? ~s there a certain prospect of a better life for righteoue souls after death? Now, there 111 no oracle, outside the Church, that can respond to theeo queries. The Church is tho apostle of hope, the champion of humanity. 'l'he Church is a pledge of a better ruture for mankind. The Church proclaims a universal brotherhood. The Church 1s the foster-mDther of all th!l useful arts; the foster-mother of progress, learning, social order, CH, VJ. 1-13.] THE SONG OF SOLOMON. 15G