Song of Solomon 4
PATThe first seven verses of this chapter I take to belong to the foregoing: and are the words of the bridegroom, who, praising the incomparable beauty of his spouse, and assuring her she should still appear more lovely and illustrious, concludes the third scene, as some call it, of this dramatic poem. And then begins a new representation at the eighth verse; which continues to the second verse of this the fifth chapter, and composes the fourth part of • this Song. Wherein the bridegroom expresses his Jove to his spouse, his esteem of her, and joy in her, in words. of greater dearness, and higher kindness, than have been hitherto used. Which she prays may be continued; and he graciously grants, inviting all to partake in their joys. Bridegroom. his worthies, which hang there in great abundance, than it is with pendants, and a necklace of pearl, and other jewels, which have been the treasure of mighty princes. See Annot. [d] and lovo in others, and to give the church the comfort of being so amiable in his eyes, whom no beauty can please but that which is Divine. And they are represented, by comparisons borrowed from the country: which was most suitable to a bucolic, or pastoral poem: as I have already said this is. Thou hast doves’ eyes.’] And, first, her eyes are compared to those of a dove (for such reasons as are suggested iu the Paraphrase), when they are tmveilcd, as those words milbaath letsammateck may be translated; (of which see ver. 3.) unto which I have had respect in my Paraphrase as well as to our translation, where this phrase is rendered, ivithin thy locks. Thy hair, &e.] Then the hair of this virgin’s head is compared unto that of goats, as the next passage is to be translated, by repeating the word hair in this manner; Thy hair is like the hair of a flock of goats. Thus the people of Israel are said to have brought for the service of the tabernacle, scarlet, and fine linen, and goats, that is, goats’ hair, as we truly translate it, Exod. xxxv. 23. And in the next chapter, (ver. 13.) he made curtains of goats (whero we supply the word hair) for the tent over the tabernacle, according as he had been ordered, (xxv. 4. xxvi.7.) Upon which passages Abarbinel observes, that Moses makes no mention of wool, either of lamb or sheep; because that was vile, and contemptible in those countries, in comparison with the hair of goats, which was wont to be shorn, not only there, but in other places: for Aristotle observes the same of the goats of Cilicia. And some of them had a wool, as we may call it, so fine, that it was almost as soft as silk: which.was that the women spun for the use of the tabernacle, (Exod. xxxv. 26.) To this sort of hair, perhaps, there may bo an allusion in this place, in regard of its softness, as well as length and thickness; which is a great commendation of hair in men and women. But there.was also a coarser or harder sort, with which they made locks and ornaments for the head, when they were bald, or would appear very fine: as Braunius hath observed, in bis, book about tho priests’ garments, (lib. i. cap. 9.) And, in general, it may be observed of hair, that it was always accounted a very great ornament: which madp Philostratus, in a letter of his to a youth whom he loved, ber seeeh him by no means to cut it off, c X9 va °c> avaOiyxa, koI a/ryvpoc, two* teal Tpixc Kojaioaai, there being no less beauty in a good head of hair, than in gold, in silver, in pendants, and such-like ornaments. Which he illustrates by what it contributes to the greatness of several other creatures, as the lion and horse, &c. and was notably expressed by Lycurgus, when he gave this reason, why ho ordered in his laws that his citizens should take care of the growth of their hair, because it made beautiful persons more comely, and deformed more terrible; as Plutarch relates in his Apophthegms. That appear from Mount Gilead.] Gilead was a mountain fit for goats to browse on, as may be seen in Bochart: which shews these last words of this verse should be thus translated: that ascend from Mount Gilead, to the higher parts, that is, of that mountain, or of that country. I should have adventured to compare the apostles and prophets to these two eyes; who, being illuminated by the Holy Ghost (represented by a dove), and having no other aim, but sincerely to make Christ and his religion known in the world, resembled the eyes of doves; (seo ii. 14.) but I did not know to what the locks and the hair could be handsomely applied; and therefore, I have looked upon these, and the rest that follow, only as parts of those things that make up together a perfect beauty. Theodorct hath made the aptest application, that I can find, which is this: that hair signifying what is superfluous, tho meaning may be (if there be any of every particular in this description), that even in human things, and worldly affairs, wherewith we cannot but be sometime perplexed, the church behaves herself laudably and preserves a decorum. [6] that which we translate temples; which arc not reckoned as a part of the beauty of the face, especially being covered by the locks: and why they should be likened to a slice of a pomegranate, is hard to tell. Grotius, therefore, by the temples understands the cheeks (as the Vulgar doth), which, in regard of their redness, are like to the grains of kernels within a pomegranate. So the Chaldee, indeed, interprets the other woid^aj^‘ece of a pomegranate: when he thus glosses, they are replenished (viz. just and pious men, to whom he applies it) ivith precepts, as a pomegranate: i.e. as a pomegranate is with kernels or grains with which it abounds, rind to which that interpreter, no doubt, hath respect. But our learned Dr. Castell hath,, out of. the neighbouring languages, more clearly explained both these words, and the last also: and hath made them all easy and natural, by shewing that the whole clause is thus most exactly translated: As the flower of the pomegranate so are thy cheeks without a veil. So he translates the last words, which wc met withal before, (ver.l.) mibbaath letsammatech, Hot within thy locks, but vnthout a veil. That is, When thy veil is laid aside, thy cheeks appear of a most lovely colour; for such is that of the pomegranate flower; the purest white and red, most exactly mixed. (Orat. 5. in Schola Thcolog. p. 37.) • [d] Vcr. 4. Thy neck is like, &c] The neck, being compared to the tower of that goodly fortress, which David made upon Mount Zion, which overtopped all the rest of the buildings of the city of Jerusalem, denotes, among other things, the tallness of the whole body. Built for an armoury.] This tower is said to be built tetalpijoth (for an armoury we render it), which the LXX. knew not what to make of, and therefore retain the Hebrew word: and others do but guess at its meaning; having no certain rule, from whence to fetch its original. Aqnila translates it fortifications; but Symmachus translates it heights: which last I have followed, adding another signification also derived from alaph, to teach or instruct. Thousand bucklers.’] This tower, it seems, was adorned with tho shields anil bucklers of those mighty men mentioned 1 Sam. xxiii. and such-like worthies: with which Grotius ingeniously compares those precious stones, which are wont to be the ornament of the neck. But what answers to this in the body of the church I know not; unless we^admit the opinion of R. Solomon, and others of that nation, who will have this to be the place where the Sanhedrin had a room, called in their language liskath haggazith, the chamber ox parlour of square stones (which some interpreters have thought to be the meaning of built tetalpijoth, with square stones), where judgment was administered, and their discipline preserved; which was the strength and support of the nation, as the general council of the apostles and elders, mentioned Acts xv. was of the Christian church: who settled all doubts and controversies, as future councils were to do, and thereby maintained the church in order and peace. From which Thcodoret doth not much differ, when he saith the church hath many shields, whereby it is defended. For thou art armed With all the weapons of the Spirit (saith he, paraphrasing upon these words), whereby thou easily tvoundest thy enemies, 8cc. and sometimes doth refel them by the prophets, sometimes by the apostles: and lay est open their weakness. [e] Ver. 5; Thy two breasts ) &c] The two paps rise upon the breast, like lilies from the ground: among which, if we conceive two red kids feeding, that were twins and perfectly alike, they appeared like the nipples or teats uponthe paps, to those that beheld them afar off. Thus Bochart explains this comparison: which sets forth the* exact proportion, and the pure complexion of the breasts; unto which, most think the two Testaments, the Old and the Now,- very aptly answer in the Christian church, just as R. Solomon hereby understands the two tables of stone in the Jewish. But they forgot that this is a description of the parts of the church (not of things belonging to it), and can be applied to nothing, that I can think of, but the two orders of preachers, that were, one among the Jewish Christians, and the other among the gentiles, as Gregory the Great expounds it: who think these are called twins, because of their perfect agreement and concord in the Christian doctrine: though one of them bent their endeavours most towards the conversion of the Jews, and the other of the gentiles. And, indeed, they that taught tlie first rudiments of Christian doctrine, went forth by pairs, as wc read Luke x. where Christ is said to send them forth by two and two; to admonish them howneccssary their concord was; and that they had need to be assistant, all they could, one to the other in such a difficult work. [/] [g] and follows after, to expound it as Theodoret doth of the church bringing forth not only the fruits of godliness and virtue, but all sorts and variety of fruit; like an excellent garden: and therefore guarded by the singular care and providence of her Lord and owner, from tyrants and heretics; who, like wild beasts or thieves, would destroy or deflower her. * A spring shut up, &c] The same meaning hath a spring shut up, and a fountain sealed; that the waters may be preserved from dirt and filth: which cannot be thrown or fall into them, to trouble them, and make them muddy, when they are so secured; but they flow purely. And, indeed, in the prophetical language, the flourishing condition of the ehurch, after it hath been in aflliction, is set forth by the planting of a wilderness, with all sorts o£ the best trees; and by making fountains break forth, and waters flow therein, (lsa. xli. IS, 19. li. 2.) The LXX. (according to the Vatican copy, and that which Theodoret follows) and the Vulgar Latin, take the second comparison here to be the same with the first; reading it thus, A garden enclosed is my sister, my spouse, a garden enclosed, &c. (just like ver. 9. 11.) reading, it seems, in the Hebrew, gan, a garden, where we now read gal, a spring. But this doth not at all alter the sense, and therefore need not trouble the reader. • « It is possible that in the last words of the verse, a fountain sealed, there may be a description of the Christian font, or baptism: to which none were admitted, but such as sincerely renounced all wickedness; resolving and promising to lead a holy life. Which sense Theodoret may be thought to have expressed, when he saith, the church is compared to a fountain sealed, wcixfi namv, d\a rolg a^iot^ npotctifilvriv, as not lying exposed to all comers, but only to those who are ivorthy. Though his next words seem to confine this passage to the mysteries, in the other sacrament of Christ’s body and blood; which they only that are already initiated in the Christian church can partake of; and not after their initiation wallow again in fiithiness; but live accurately, or purify themselves by repentance, if they fall into any sin. St. Cyprian makes use of this verse, to prove the unity of the churchy not only in this book upon that subject, but in several of his Epistles; saying, If the church be a garden enclosed, and a fountain sealed; how can any man enter into that garden, or drink of that fountain, who is not in the church? &c. (Epist. 69. 74, 75. edit. Oxon.) Cotovicus, in his Itinerary, says, that there is a fountain three miles from Beth-lehem southward, called by this name of fountain sealed: to which he went, and was told, that water still runs from thence in pipes to the place where Solomon’s temple stood. But he himself intimates, that herein he follows an uncertain report. [»] [CHAP. ¥♦ A fountain of gardens, and wall of living waters] Are tho same thing; as Bqchartus hath observed in his Canaan, lib. i. cap. 18. Where he shews that beer, which we translate pit or ivell, signifies a fountain, as much as maajan. Libanus abounds with such springs (as all great mountains do), and particularly, there is at the foot of it an excellent spring, which grows presently into a river, that waters the whole plain between that and Tripolis, with a good stream, whereby the vineyards, olive-yards, fig-yards, and gardens, which there were very numerous, were all supplied. Unto which Theodoret compares the evangelical doctrine, (according to that of our blessed Saviour’s, John iv. 10. 14.) only ho adds also the law; making fountain and welt In this verse two distinct things; and by the latter imagining the law to be denoted, because things lay there deep and secret, as in a pit. [q]
Song of Solomon 4:1
JlSeHOLD, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves eyes within thy locks: thy hair is as a flock of goats, that appear from Mount Gilead.* Great is thy beauty, O my beloved, admirable is thy beauty, worthy of men’s contemplation. Whom I can liken to nothing better than to a pure and chaste virgin, (2 Cor. xi. 2.) whose modest eyes, fixed only upon him to whom she is espoused, sparkle within her locks, when she is unveiled: and who appears to want none of those comely ornaments, which are wont to set ofF the natural beauty of the face. See Annot. [a] Behold, thou art fair.] The Lord of the church is here introduced, describing the beautiful estate of it, under the person of a lovely virgin: whose elegant features are particularly represented to raise admiration
Song of Solomon 4:2
Tliy teeth are like a flock of sheep that are even shorn, which came up from the washing; whereof every one bear twins, and none is barren among them. Part of whose grace lies in the sweetness of the mouth, full of white and even teeth; none of which stand out, or are longer than the rest, but all closely set both above and below in exact order and equality: being firm and sound also, without any breach, or want of so much as one of them. See Annot. [6] Thy teeth are like a flock of sheep.,] Here follows a description of the teeth; which are a great part of the beauty of the mouth, as that is of the face. And their beauty consists in their whiteness; in their evenness and just proportion; and in their closeness and firmness: so that there be none wanting, nor any gap between them. Which are all here expressed, and said (o be like a flock of sheep come from the washing, in respect of whiteness; and as equal as if they had been exactly polished and fitted for their places, in just proportion, by an artificer (so the word wo translate shorn signifies); they that are below oIfo answering to those above, as if they were twins: and none of them miscarry (so that which we translate barren should be rendered), i.e. drops out of the mouth; which is as much as to say, there is a perfect number, as well as order of them. Now the teeth being the instruments whereby we cl^y our meat, they may be looked upon as an apt emblem of the inferior pastors in the church: who prepare Christian doctrine for the people. Which application, though I have not adventured to make in my Paraphrase (because I take these five first verses’to mean no more, but only to set forth tho loveliness of the church in general, by the figure of a virgin, of a most accomplished beauty), yet I shall here note, for the help of those whose thoughts lead them that way; that the virtues of such pastors are, candour, purity, order, concord, exact agreement among themselves, one of them not seeking ambitiously to overtop the rest. [c]
Song of Solomon 4:3
Thy lips are like a thread of scarlet, and thy speech is comely: thy temples are like apiece of a pomegranate within thy locks. To which add fine and delicate lips, of a bright and lively crimson colour; with a sweet and charming voice; and cheeks that appear of as pure a white and red, when the veil is off, as the blossoms of pomegranates. See Annot. [c] Thy lips, &c] In the beginning of this verse thero is no great difficulty: it being certain that schani (the colour of tho lips) signifies some very bright and resplendent colour, which strikes the eyes sharply (as it originally seems to import); viz. either scarlet, as we translate it, or crimson, or purple: such as the poets call coral lips. Whose fineness is here compared to a thread; and is another great part of beauty: as a sweet accent of the voice also is; no-? thing being more ungrateful than a tone that is coarsc’and clownish. If any list to apply these particularly to something in the church, the lips may be thought to signify the teachers in the church, who delivered the doctrine they had learned from the, higher ministers; who had prepared it for them, and, by thfein, for the people. And the voice signifies their excellent manner of preaching: insinuating into the hearts of those that heard them; being accompanied with great modesty and humility, though full of authority and power. Unto which only the last clause of this verse can be applied; which is this: Thy temples are like a piece of a pomegranate within thy locks. - - x. Where two or three words puzzle interpreters. First,
Song of Solomon 4:4
Thy neck is like the tower of David, buildedfor an armoury, whereon there hang a thousand bucklers, all shields of mighty men. And all this upon a goodly body, of a proper and tall stature; whose round and well-formed neck resembles that lofty structure of the tower of David, which may he a pattern of other neat and elegant buildings; and is not moro adorned with the shields and bucklers of
Song of Solomon 4:5
Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins, which feed among the lilies. Below which the two breasts rise up, purely white, exactly round, of a just size and equal bigness: which put me in mind of two young kids, that being fonned together, and brought forth at the •same time, are so perfectly like, that none can know the one from the other; the tops of whose heads I have seen, at a distance, appear like the teats of these breasts, as they fed in’ the same field among the lilies. See Annot. [e] r t
Song of Solomon 4:6
Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense. Such as this is the beauty of my church, as will be seen more fully, when the night of persecution is gone, which hides it from the eyes of worldly men: though, in the mean time, she is most lovely in mine; and no less precious than the mountain and the hill from whence are fetched the most excellent perfumes and the richest spices. See Annot. [/] Mountain of myrrh, &c] Here now the description stops; and proceeds no farther to the lower members of the church: which are not particularly commended; but it is only intimated that, in conjunction:\vilh their guides and directors, they made up a beautiful body; though for the present obscured by the night of persecution, as the first words of this verse may be applied. Which body might be well compared to a mountain of myrrh, and hilldf frankincense; that is, to Mount Moriah and Jerusalem, say thie Hebrew (and so the church is called the Neiv Jerusalem in the Revelation), where the sweet incense/ made of these and other spices, (Exod. xxx. 34.) was continually burnt in the temple. I know it is commonly thotight, that other mountains (afterward mentioned, ver. 8.) -arc here meant: about which I shall not dispute. But only observe, that these two, myrrh and frankincense, were among the mdst precious spices of those countries (and therefore here mehti6ned),as appears by what wc read in Athenaeus, (lib. i. Deipnosoi3h. cap. 3.) who, speaking of the noble entertainments which were made by several persons that overcame in the Olympics, 1 tells us, that Empcdoclcs, being a Pythagorean, and eating no flesh, when he won the prize, caused an ox to be made of myrrh and frankincense, and other precious spices, which he divided among the spectators. And* (cap. 8.) he puts these two among those things which were accounted rpvfa), delicacy. And Hcrmippus, relating what places were most famous for several things, saith, curb’ 8’ ovv 2upidg XtfiavwTov, that frankincense came out of Syria, (cap. 21.) The verses also of Archcstratus (lib. iii. p. 101.) make mention of Syria, and say these were used for perfumes at feasts. The same I observe in 6thcr places of that author; and therefore have made the allusion here only to the preciousness of these things;‘which were no where so excellent as in those countries. And I have taken this verse to be still in praise of the before described beauty: for it-is evident, from the following verse; he had hot yet done with thatitrattcr*
Song of Solomon 4:7
Tlwn art fair, my love; there is no spot in thee. To say all in one word, thou, my love, art the perfection of beauty; there being a most admirable harmony between the several orders, estates, and degrees of men in the church; and not the least spot or blemish (Ephes. v. 27.) to be found in its constitution. See Annot. [g] Bridegroom. Thou art all fair, &c] And here, to comprehend nil that could be said, he enlarges the commendation which he began withal, (ver. 1.) and concludes in these words, that there was no defect in any part: but altogether they made up a complete beauty without the least speck of deformity. Which is not to be applied to every particular person in the church: but, as I have taken it in the Paraphrase, to the admirable constitution of the whole, in which there was no imperfection. [A]
Song of Solomon 4:8
Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions’ dens, from the mountains of the leopards. And now that all the world may see I have espoused, nay married, thee unto myself, (Rev. xxi. 2.) come from those horrid mountains whither thou hast fled for safety, (ii. 14. 17.) where, though I was present with thee, yet thou wast not free from danger, but exposed to the rage and cruelty of furious and troublesome men: come, I say, and dwell there no longer; but look down from thence, and behold the goodly heritage, and the pleasant state, that I have prepared for thee. Sec Annot. \Ji] Come with me from Lebanon, &,c] Here now begins a new representation; as appears by this, that the v style wherein the bridegroom speaks is altered; she who hitherto hath been called his love or friend, being now called his spouse, and never before: though very frequently in the following part of the Song. Which hath moved interpreters, I suppose, to use this name throughout, rather than the other: as the higher and most excellent title. Theodoret, therefore, here begins his third book very judiciously: and we may look upon this as a description of the church, coming out of the state of persecution: and receiving greater testimonies of her Saviour’s love than ever. For coming from the top of high mountains, where there were lions’ dens, and where leopards inhabited, cannot well signify any thing else, than coming from places where they were in danger to be devoured by their persecutors, who are compared to lions in many places of Scripture*. As for the mouatains themselves, they are well known where they were. Only Amana some have fancied to be that mountain in Cilicia called Amanus: which is reckoned among the highest; and joined by iElianwithLibanus and Carmel. We read also that there were tigers and panthers, &c. in this mountain; which hath been brought to countenance this opinion. But Judea and the neighbouring places being the scene of this poem, we are not to go so far off as Cilicia to seek for Amana: for, as Shenir and Hermon were but parts of the same mountains; so Amana was a part of Libanus, asBochartus hath observed in his Canaan, (lib. i. cap. 5.) And though the lower parts of this mountain Libanus was very pleasant, yet the top of it, which is here spoken of, was horrid, and inhabited with wild beasts. From whence the spouse is invited to come into more delightful and secure places: for she is compared presently after to a garden or paradise, (ver. 12, 13, &c.) And it is no wonder Solomon should have the state of the Christian church in trouble thus represented to him; it being very suitable to the state of the church of the Jews, when it was first formed; being then pressed by Pharaoh, and many other enemies afterward, before they came to Canaan. [ [a]
Song of Solomon 4:9
TIiou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy?ieck. Thou hast strongly engaged my affection; thou hast endeared thyself unto me, my tenderly-beloved spouse; thou hast entirely possessed thyself of my heart, by that lovely unity which I see between thy pastors, and between the people that live in holy obedience to them. See Annot. [i] Thou hast ravished my heart, &c] The first word of this verse, libbavtini (which is not to be found any where else), signifies some extraordinary motion in the heart. And is translated by some, TIiou hast wounded my heart; by the LXX. (which we follow) Thou hast taken away my heart: but may as well be translated, Tliou hast taken jwssession of my heart; and deeply engaged my affection. Which is expressed by the addition of another name for her whom he called spouse in the foregoing verse,?ind here also calls sister. Which js only a word of tenderness and endearment, used by husbands to their..wives; as appears by the book of Tobit; wjiere Raguel calls his.wife Edna his sister, (vii.lG.) and Tobias calls Sara by the same name, after he had married her, (vii. 4. 7.) One of thine eyes, &c] All the difficulty here is, what may be thought to be meant by one of her eyes, and one chain of her neck. Some take eyes to signify faith and charity; others, the church of the Jews and gentiles; and then, one eye must signify one glance, one look, of the eyes: but nothing pleases me better than the old interpretation of Alcuinus, who by the word one understands oneness, or unity: and by the eyes, (as ver. 1.) the pastors and guides of the church: and by the one wreath of hair about the neck, the pious unity of the people subject unto them. It maybe interpreted also, the least glance I have of thee and of thy beauty, mightily engages my love to thee; for the eyes are tho very seat of love, as abundance of authors express it. [A]
Song of Solomon 4:10
How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse! how much better is thy love than ivine! and the smell of thine ointments than all spices. Thy love to me and my commandments, O how amiable is it! how doth it endear thee unto me, my beloved spouse! How much more delicious’ is that love, which thy members have one for another, and for all men, than the best entertainments the world can give! How much more grateful are the rest of thy virtues, than the odours of the richest spices, even of those that are burnt at the altar I See Annot. [A] Ilowfair is thy love.’] The love, or rather loves (as it is in the Hebrew), which is here extolled, may signify our love to God, and unto one another. And ointments be applied to all the graces which flow from thence. [/]
Song of Solomon 4:11
Tfiy lips, Omy spouse, drop as the honey-comb: honey and milk are tinder thy tongue; and the smell of thy garments is tike the smell of Lebanon. Nor are thy words less pleasing than thy deeds, the honey that drops of itself from the comb being not more sweet, sincere, and pure, than thy doctrine, O my beloved spouse: which is the delicious food of young and old, of weak and strong, and most powerfully recommended. to their affections by the famed holiness of thy life; which, like the strong perfumes that come from the aromatic plants of Libanus, fill all places with the delightful scent thereof. See Annot. [I] Thy lips distil, &c] That which distils from the lips, as honey from the comb, can be nothing but pure and most delicious doctrine; delivered in such a manner, as to invite all to taste of it. For this by all sorts of authors is compared to honey; and made Xenophon be called the Attic, and Sappho the Pierian bee: because of the sweetness of his orations, and of her poems. When the rare eloquence of Plato is said to have been predicted by bees, which came and sat in his mouth when he was an infant: which is reported also, by no mean authors, of Pindar, Lucan, and St. Ambrose. Honey and milk are under thy tongue.] This signifies the same thing; for these were anciently the food of infants; and may denote that the church hath instruction for all sorts. So wide from the truth is the exposition of the doctors in Maimonidcs, (Porta Mosis, p. 83.) that this milk and honey being said to lie under the tongue, signifies the concealment of such truths as are very sweet, till men be fit to receive them. The smell of thy garments."] Garments, wherewith we aTe clothed, signify, in the New Testament, our whole conversation: and their perfume therefore denotes not only the excellency of the Christian life; but its being known also every where. Like the smell of Lebanon.] From the trees in the forest of Lebanon came many sweet spices; particularly frankincense; from which some think it took its name of Lebanon; though others think rather from laban, white, because of the snow that lay perpetually upon the top of this mountain. [?n]
Song of Solomon 4:12
A garden enclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut tip, a fountain sealed. For, as a garden well planted, watered, and defended, abounds with’ all sort of flowers, and with variety. of pleasant fruit, so doth my well-beloved spouse, by the singular care and special providence of God over her, with all the fruits of righteousness; admitting none to her mysteries, but those who are pure and holy, and washed from all their defilements. See Annot. \m] A garden enclosed.’] In the forest about this mountain Lebanon, Solomon built himself a house; which we find described, 1 Kings vii. 2, &c. unto which, no doubt, there belonged a garden, with springs, and fountains, or receptacles of water; and all sorts of trees, and plants, and flowers, that might make it delightful. Unto which, I conceive, he hath respect in this and in the following verses. I know that very good authors think he here describes a perfect virgin, like a garden newly enclosed, in which no seed hath been sown: as the doctors speak in Pirke Eliezer: (cap. 21.) which hath made some Christian writers apply this to the care of the church, to preserve herself pure and undefiled, &c. But it is more agreeable to what goes before,
Song of Solomon 4:13
Tliy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, ivith pleasant fruits; camphire, with spikenard. Which makes the several orders and ranks of thy young novices (such is the exemplary purity of their lives) look likeihe young sets of pomegranates, and other odoriferous fruit; such as the Cyprus and spikenards, which are growing up into a paradise. See Annot. [«]. Thy plants, &c] By these schetachim, young plants, or shoots and scions (as the word signifies), we may well understand those whom the apostle calls vto
Song of Solomon 4:14
Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices. Planted only with the like precious herbs, shrnbs, and trees to those now mentioned; as saffron, sweet cane, cinnamon, with those that yield frankincense, myrrh, aloes, and the choicest spices: which are not more serviceable to our health or pleasure, than that Tare composition of graces which is visible in the church, make her members acceptable unto God, and useful unto men. See Annot. [o] Saffron, calamus, &c] Most of the names of these fragrant shrubs or trees which we read in the Hebrew text, are the very same with those now in use in our and most other languages. The first of them, carcovi (saffron J being not much different from crocus, from whence that mountain in Cilicia called Corycus had its name; where the best crocus in the world then grew. ■ The next canna (which we translate calamus) is a sweet cane or reed. Cinnamon also retains the same name: as do myrrlv (which grew only in the midst of Arabia among the Sabeans) and aloes, which dropped from a shrub in those countries;. and was reckoned among the prime spices, as* the last words” of this verse are very well translated. Chief spice.] In the Hebrew the words are, the top (or the, head) of aromatics: which signifies the most excellent spices. Just* as the top of myrrh, Exod. xxx. 23. signifies the best and purest myrrh; nwdihe top (or head) of oil, Psal. cxli. 5. the most excellent oil. I shall only note farther; • that frankincense, myrrh, calamus, cinnamon (called there KtvSog), are thus joined together by an ancient poet in Athenaeus, lib. ix. cap. 15. Where Mnesimachus, in a poem of his called Hippotrophos, making a description of a great supper, which w f as a marriage feast, saith at the end of it,- Atfiavov, ji&kqov (it should be KpoKov, I suppose) afxip* V7JC> &C. Where ae^vii (the attribute of smell) which we commonly translate venerable; and is so rendered in the ancient Glossary, signifies most excellent. For by that word the LXX: translate the Hebrew negidim, Prov. viii. G. excellent (or princely) things. ■ And so noble was the smell which the 1 spices gave, that the poet saith it shaked the nostrils; i. el strongly affected them, and stirred up in the brain a brisksense of pleasure. I do not think fit to seek for any thing in the church, particularly answering to every one of these excellent spices/ as interpreters do: but look upon them only as representing in general the incomparable virtues of the church, and its acceptableness unto God. Or, that there are in the church all things necessary to salvation: for rare unguents, and other compositions, were made of the blossoms, fruit,’ or seeds of these shrubs: conducing much to health aiiil long life. [p]
Song of Solomon 4:15
A fountain of gardens, a well of living tvaters, and streams from Lebanon. Whose virtues are preserved in life and vigour.by that heavenly doctrine, which flows from me as plentifully and perpetually, as waters do from those springs that break out of the high mountain Libanus: which run continually in a large stream; and, supplying all the gardens in the neighbouring places, keep them fresh and flourishing. See Annot. [p] Spouse. Ver. 1G. Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow but. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.] O let not then the inspirations of the Holy Spirit, and its manifold gifts, he wanting unto me: but breathe perpetually upon me, as the north and the south winds do upon this garden: and then shall I be a paradise indeed; and not only fill the world with the sweet odour of the knowledge of Christ; but take the boldness to invite him, the beloved of my soul, to come and reap the delightful fruits “(ver. 13.) of his own care and labour, See Annot. [y] ANNOTATIONS. [a] A fountain of gardens, &c] This verse Theodoret judiciously connects with the foregoing; after this manner:?x« Si koI irirynv, and it (i. e. this paradise or orchard, as we translate it) hath also a fountain. 3L
Song of Solomon 4:16
Awake, O north wind, &c. The same great person thinks the north wind is here commanded to arise, merely that it might be gone (as being pernicious to fruit) and give place to the south wind, which is only invited to come and blow upon the garden, with its soft, gentle, and benign breath. But most interpreters take itotherways; and some imagine that these two, being the most vehement winds in those countries, are called upon to blow; that by their strong shaking of the aromatic plants, they might make them send forth their odours the more plentifully. But it seems more reasonable to think, that these two winds were most profitable in their turns, for these two purposes. First, the north wind was useful to close the pores of the trees, and shut up their effluviums; that they might not spend themselves too much, and be exhausted by perpetual evaporation: and then the south wind coming in due season, opened and relaxed them again: making tho aromatic gums drop freely; and the sweet odours fly more actively abroad. Andif this garden to which Solomon here alludes, had the same situation which the maps and charts give to that at Jerusalem (which they place on the east side of the city, having the wall on the west), these two winds here mentioned were those which alone were desirable. The east being biting and blasting, not only in Egypt, (Gen. xli. G.) but in Judea also, (Ezek. xix. 12.) and in Assyria; (Jonah iv. 8.) and therefore they defended their fruits against it, that they might not be exposed to it. Let my beloved come, &c] There is no doubt but this conclusion ofthe chapter is the voice of the spouse, praying her beloved to favour and prosper his own plantation, for his sake as well as for hers, that he might not lose what he himself had designed, and so happily begun and settled in such beautiful order; but take the pleasure of seeing it grow to perfection.