and visible displays of it, which the church now
experienced.
Ver. 5. Stay me with flagons, &c.] Of wine, which
is a supporter of the animal spirits{w}. The church was
now in a house of wine, where was plenty of it; even
of the love of Christ, compared to wine, and preferred
Unto it, oh. i. 9, 4. the church though she had had
large discoveries of it, desired more; and such that
have once tasted of this love are eagerly desirous of it,
and cannot be satisfied until they have their fill of it in
heaven: the flagons, being vessels in which wine is put,
and from thence poured out, may signify the word and
ordinances, in which the love of Christ is displayed
and manifested; the church desires she might be
stayed and supported hereby, whilst she was attending
on Christ in them. Com. fort me with apples; with
exceeding great and precious pr-omises; which, when
filly spoken and applied, are like apples o. f gold in pic-
tures of silver, Prov. xxv. 11. and are very comforting:
or rather, with fresh and greater manifestations of his
Jove still; for the apple is an emblem of love, as before
observed; for one to send or throw an apple to another
indicated love {x}. It may be rendered, strew me with
apples*; in great quantities, about me, before me, and
under me, and all around me, that I may lie down
among them, and be sweetly refreshed and strength-
ened: the words, both in this and the former clause,
are in the plural number; and so may be an address to
the other two divine Persons, along with Christ, to
grant further manifestations of love unto her, giving
the following reason for it: for I am sick of love;
not as loathing it, but as wanting, and eagerly desirous
of more of it; being, as the Septuagint version is,
wounded [z} with it; 1ove's dart stuck in her, and she
was inflamed therewith : and languished {a}; as the Vul-
gate Latin version is; with earnest desires after it; nor
could she be easy without it, as is the case of lovers.
Vet. 6. His left hand is under my head, and his right
hand doth embrace me.] The church, having desired
to be stayed, supported, strengthened, and comforted,
presently found her beloved with her, who with both
hands susta:med her; which shews Iris tender love to
her, care' of her, and regard for her; and is expressive
of. the near and intimate communion she had with him,
as the effect of union to him, often enjoyed in his house
and ordinances ; !;.kewise of blessings of every kind she
received from him; temporal, mercies, or left-hand
blessings, which are necessary to support and carry
through this wilderness; and spiritual, or right-hand
ú blessings, as justification, pardon, adoption, &c. and,
moreover, may denote the safety and security of the
church, being encircled in the arms of her beloved,
sustained by Christ's left hand, and embraced by his
right hand, out of whose hands none can pluck. Some
read the words prayer-wise, let his left hand be, &c. {b};
still desiring further tokens of his love to her, and
more and nearer communion with him: others read it
in the future, his left hand will be, &c. {c}; his right hand
shall embrace, &c.; expressing the strength of her faith
that she should for the future enjoy his gracious pre-
sence; and that he would support her, that she should
not sink and faint.
Ver. 7. I charge you, 0 ye daughters af Jerusalem,
&c.] Of whom, see ch. i. 5. There is some difficulty
in these words, whether they are spoken by the church,
or by Christ: according to our version, they are the
words of the church, and bids fair to be the sense;
since they are spoken to the virgins, her companions,
that waited on her; and the manner of speech is not
by way of command, as by way of adjuration; and
the matter, style, and language of it, Christ being the
church's love; and the phrase, till he please, best agrees
with his sovereignty and authority, who is at liberty to
stay with, and remove from, his people at pleasure;
and the context and scope of the place seem to con.-
firm it; the church, enjoying communion with Christ,
chooses not that he should be disturbed, and by any
means be caused to depart from her. Others think
they are the words of Christ, and not without reason;
since it was the church that was in Christ's arms,.and
fallen asleep in them; and the phrase, my love, is used
by Christ concerning his church, oh. vii. 6. and not
this, but another, is used by her concerning him; and
besides, both the word for my love, and that which is
rendered he please, are feminine, and best agree with
her, that ye stir not up, the or this love, until she please;
so Michaelis {d} interprets and renders the word for love
by this lovely one; the word is very emphatical, the
love, the famous love, the well-known love {e}: add to
which, the following words seem to confirm this sense,
the voice of my beloved/which she had heard, adjuring
the daughters of Jerusalem. This charge is made, by
the ross, and by the hinds of the field ; not that either
Christ or his church swore by them; but the words
may be descriptive of the persons addressed by the
creatures, among whom they were feeding their flocks.
or whom they delighted to huntf; or were loving and
lovely creatures, as they: and the charge is, that they
would continue among them, and mind their business,
and give no disturbance to Christ or the church; or
these creatures are called as witnesses to this charge,
which, if not observed, would be brought against them:
or the charge is made by all that is dear, these being
pleasant and lovely creatures, that they would not
interrupt the mutual communion of Christ-and his
church; or it may be a severe threatening, that, should
they disregard the charge, they should become food as
common as ross and hinds; and that they should be as
cautious of stirring up and awaking the person meant
as theyøwould be of starting those timorous treatares.
The charge is, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love,.
till he or she please; if it is the charge of the church,


{w} Vino fulcire venas cadentes, Senecae Ep. 95.
{x} Malo me Galatea petit, Virgil. Bucolic. Eclog. 3. v. 64. Vid.
Theocrit. Idyll. 3. v. 10. & Idyll. 6. v. 6, 7. & Suidam in voce \~mhlon\~.
{y} \^ynwdpr\^ sternite ante me, so some in Vatablus; substernite mihi,
Tigurine version, Piscator.
{z} \~tetrwmhnh\~, Sept.
{a} Langueo amore, V. L. so Michaelis; aegrotus is used n this sense,
in Terent. Heautont. l. 1.
{b} Tigurine version, some in Mercer. Marckius; so Ainsworth.
{c} V. L. Pagninus Montanus.
{d} Not. in Lowth Praelect. de Pees. Heb. p. 158.
{e} So lovers are frequently called Amor & Amores, love and loves,
vid. Theocrit. Idyll. 2. & Ovid. Briseis Achilli, v. 12. Plauti Curculio,
Act. 2. Sc. 3. v. 78. Miles, Act. 4. Sc. 8. v. 67. Foenulus, Act. 5. Sc.
3. v. 42. Mostell. arg. v. 1. Persa, arg. v. 1.
{f} Virginibus Tyriis mos est gestare pharetram, Virgil. AEneid. l. 1.