CHAPTER VIII.

1. O that thou wert as a brother to me, Nourished in the bosom of my mother!

Should I find thee abroad, then would I kiss thee, Nor should it be imputed to me as an impropriety. 2. I would lead thee, I would bring thee to the house of my mother;

Thou shalt teach me how to gratify thy wishes;

I will make thee drink of the spiced wine,
Of my fresh juice of the pomegranate.

3. His left hand shall be under my head,
And his right hand shall embrace me.
4. I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem,
That ye rouse not and disturb not

My love, till he please.

DAUGHTERS OF JERUSALEM.

5. Who is this coming up from the wilderness, Leaning on the beloved.

BELOVED.

Under the citron tree I gained thine affection;

There thy mother pledged thee;

There she that bore thee betrothed thee.

SPOUSE.

6. Set me as a seal on thine heart;

As a seal on thine arm :

For love is strong as death;

Devoted affection is unrelaxing as the realms of the dead: Its flames have the energy of lightning,

Which have the fiercest blaze.

7. Many waters cannot quench love,

And floods cannot overwhelm it:

Should a man give all the wealth of his house for this

love,

It would be utterly despised.

8. We have a young sister,

And she has not yet reached womanhood:
What shall we do for our sister,

With reference to the day when she shall be spoken for in marriage?

BELOVED.

9. If she be a wall, we will build on it a turret of silver; And if she be a door, we will enclose it with boards of cedar.

SPOUSE.

10. I am a wall and my breasts as towers;

Then am I in his eyes as one finding favour.
11. A vineyard has Solomon in Baal-hamon;
He has let out the vineyard to keepers;
Each shall yield him for its fruit

A thousand pieces of silver.

12. My vineyard which belongs to me, is under my own. supervision;

Thou, O Solomon, shalt have the thousand pieces of silver from it;

And the keepers of its fruit two hundred.

BELOVED.

13. O thou who dwellest in the gardens,

The companions hearken to thy voice;
Cause me to hear it.

SPOUSE.

14. Make haste, my beloved,

And be thou like a gazelle, or a beauteous fawn,
Over the mountains of spices.

ANALYSIS OF THE SONG.

CHAPTER I.

THE desire which in the heart of the saint absorbs every other, is for the manifestation of the love of the Lord Jesus, through the influences of the Holy Spirit; and this love is thus ardently desired, because its effect is more reviving and exhilarating than any of the pleasures of sense, even of wine, the most refreshing of them all. Verse 2.

This desire is not a blind instinct or a fanatical impulse, but springs from an intelligent apprehension of the excellency of the nature of Christ, as transcending every thing known to man, more than the holy anointing oil of the sanctuary surpassed any other perfume; an excellence so rich, that the pure in heart, and they only, love him, and they cannot do otherwise than love him. Ver. 3.

The thought of the excellency of the character of Christ and of the influences of the Holy Spirit shedding abroad his love in the heart, creates the desire of coming as near to him as possible, without any delay -of running to him; and as our own insufficiency and

weakness are felt sensibly at such times, we pray for the attracting power of his grace and for the strength of his Spirit. This desire is never expressed in vain; with kingly majesty and condescension, he brings us into confidential communion with him apart from the world; this communion is attended with fulness of joy and a holy exultation in his superior grace; and these manifestations of his love thus made, only to the upright or pure, and by such sincerely appreciated, are followed by remembrances, not painful, like the pleasures of sense, but always refreshing and delightful. Ver. 4.

This love is a perfect regulator of the powers of the soul; and carrying with it true wisdom, gives us a correct knowledge of ourselves, as the offspring of the humility to which this divine love leads, and which consists in thinking of ourselves according to the whole truth, nothing more, nothing less, realizing that while, black like the tents of Kedar, we are darkened by native depravity, grace is working in us virtues more beautiful than the curtains of Solomon. Ver. 5.

The humility inseparable from this love makes us modest and retiring, and prompts us to shrink from courting admiration; because we are conscious of unworthiness; have been stripped of our spiritual beauty by sin; have suffered many evils and afflictions; have received ill treatment, not only from the ungodly world, but from brethren of the same household of faith; and have failed in many duties. Ver. 6.

This love so captivates the heart with the Lord Jesus, while keeping it thus humble, that we are