Section 441
IV. She assigns a reason for this request, "for thy love is better than wine"
Here is a sudden change of person, from the third to the second; before she said, "let him kiss me," etc. now she says, "for thy love," etc. the reason of which, perhaps, is, because he was absent before, but now present; she had lost sight of him, and speaks of him as at a distance from her; but now he is in view, at the very sight of whom her faith is increased, and her soul fired with love; and having greater nearness to him, grows in her familiarity and boldness with him.
Here we shall, 1. Take notice of the love of Christ, and give some account of the nature and excellency, of it: And, 2. Shew in what respects it is preferable to wine.
First Let us consider this love of Christ, which is so highly commended by the church; in the Hebrew text it is in the plural number, loves[3317] to shew,
1st, The various ways in which Christ has discovered it; he shewed it by his suretyship-engagements for the elect in the everlasting covenant of grace and peace, of which he is the surety, mediator, and messenger; he showed it in his assumption of human nature in time; he has given a full display of it, in laying down his life for the sheep, in giving himself a ransom for many, and in offering himself a sacrifice for the sins of all his chosen ones; he has loved them and died for them, loved them and shed his precious blood for them, and in that blood, has washed them from all their sins; he now shews that he loves them, by appearing in the presence of God for them, acting as an advocate with the Father, and preparing glory for them; and he will, ere long, come again to take them to himself, that where he is, there they may be also.
2dly, It may intend the various effects of it; all the blessings of grace flow from it, such as vocation, sanctification, justification, adoption, and glorification; all spring from this boundless and matchless love of Christ.
3dly, Being in the plural number, may denote the aboundings of it; it is superabounding love; love that has heights, and depths, and lengths, and breadths; it is immeasurable and unconceivable; it passeth the perfect knowledge of men and angels.
4thly, The frequent discoveries of it, which are made to the saints; and which, like the waters in Ezekiel's vision, increase and rise from the ankles to the knees, and from the knees to the loins, and from thence become waters to swim in, a river, an ocean of love which cannot be passed over.
5thly, The great esteem the church had of Christ's love, which she shows by calling it "loves," in the plural number, as well as by saying that it was "better than wine:" the excellency of which will farther appear, if we consider the nature and properties of it, which are as follow:
1. As to the original of it, it is free and sovereign; it does not take its rise from any thing in us, or done by us, nothing of this nature moved him to it, but he loved us, because he would love us; nothing out of himself moved him to it; it was not because we were better than others, for we are by nature children of wrath, even as others; he loved us when unlovely; he died for us while we were yet sinners, and ungodly in ourselves, and enemies to himself; our love to him is not the cause of his loving us, but his love to us is the cause of ours: in this he is entirely free and sovereign; he has pitched his love and grace on whom he will, and these he loves freely; he was not moved or influenced by foreseen faith or works, or any deservings of ours whatever; for we neither deserved nor desired his love, neither indeed could we have expected it.
2. As to the time of its commencement, it is from eternity; before the mountains were formed, and the highest part of the dust of the earth was made, he was "rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth, and his delights were with the sons of men:" that he loved his people from eternity, is manifest from his engaging as a surety for them; his becoming the mediator of an everlasting covenant; in which he agreed to take care of their persons, and by dying to redeem their lives from destruction, and to bring them to eternal glory; as also from his receiving all grace for them before the world began; all which manifestly shew that he had a love for them; for all the after-actings of his love and grace are but the openings and breakings forth of this love of his, which he bore towards them from everlasting.
3. As to its duration, it is to eternity; "having loved his own, which were in the world, he loved them unto the end," (John 13:1) his love is invariable, unalterable, and unchangeable; it is like himself, "the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever;" all the waters of sin and corruption cannot extinguish it; nor can any creature in heaven, earth, or hell, separate his people from it.
4. As to the degree of it, it is the greatest love, "greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends," (John 15:13) but Christ's love is greater than this, for he hath laid down his life for enemies, and even whilst they were such: here is great love for great sinners, shewn by a great person, one who "thought it no robbery to be equal with God:" and this he shewed by giving himself a ransom for them; such is the greatness of this love, that it cannot fully be expressed by men or angels.
5. As to the quality of it, it is the nearest; that of the nearest relations and friends to each other as of a parent to a child, of an husband to a wife, of brothers, or friends, to each other, are but faint resemblances and mere shadows of this; all fall short of painting and expressing to the life the nature of this love.
6. As to the pattern or form of it, it is as the Father's love to him; "as the Father hath loved me; (says he) so have I loved you," (John 15:9) as the Father loves Christ, as mediator, with an everlasting, unchangeable, and inseparable love, so does Christ love his people. What surprising grace is this, that Christ should love us with such a love! when there is no comparison between him, who is the object of the one, and them, who are the objects of the other; when we contemplate this amazing love, conceptions fail us to comprehend it, words fall short of expressing it; in eternity only will those surprising mysteries of grace be unfolded to us.
7. As to any instance of love, none can be compared: with it, it is unparalleled; that of Jonathan's to David, of one friend's dying for another, and of those brave Romans who died for their country, which history furnishes us withal, can by no means equal or come near it; scarcely for a righteous man will one die, peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die, says the apostle, Romans 5:7, 8 where he alludes[3318] to the division of the Jewish nation into three parts, which were these; First, There were םיקידצ, or righteous persons, who kept to the external letter of the law, and did, as they imagined, what that required, but would do no more. Secondly, There were others called םידיסח, or good men, who were bountiful and liberal to the poor, and did more than the law required in repairing the temple and maintaining of sacrifices, etc. But, Thirdly, there were another sort who were called םיעשר, or wicked and ungodly persons, who had no regard to the law, profligate wretches, the refuse of the people. Now for one of these righteous ones, says the apostle, scarce any would die, because what he had done, he was obliged by the law to do; peradventure for one of these good men, one to whom he had been kind and liberal, a person would even dare to die; but who will die for the other sort, the wicked and ungodly? not one; but God commendeth his love towards us, in that while-we were yet sinners, Christ died for us; O matchless and unparalleled love!
8. As to its effect upon the hearts of sinners, it is surprising, comfortable, and rejoicing; for souls, when but just let into it, begin that wonder which will last through out an endless eternity; they now place an ecce, a behold before it, and say as the Jews did of Christ, in regard to Lazarus, behold how he loved him! O how has he loved me, and me! says one and the other; what manner of love is this! it is surprising, wonderful, passing the love of women, as David said concerning Jonathan's; and it being shed abroad in the heart by the Spirit of God, fills the soul with an universal pleasure, with a joy unspeakable and full of glory; the manifestations and discovery of it bear up the soul under all the trials of life, and make it long to be in glory, that it may have its fill thereof, wherefore it is no wonder the church here prefers it to wine, which,
Secondly, We shall now consider, The church had a real value for Christ's person, and therefore must needs esteem his love; his person being, to her, the chiefest among ten thousands, his love must be preferable to all others; she hath tasted a real sweetness in it, and hath seen the vanity and emptiness of all earthly enjoyments, and therefore prefers it to wine; by which. is intended the most sumptuous banquet, with all the dainties, and delightful entertainments thereof: nothing is so valuable as the love of Christ; O how excellent is thy loving kindness! says the Psalmist, it is better than life, Psalm 36:7. and 63:3. and all the comforts, pleasures, and profits thereof. I will now endeavor to shew, in a few particulars, wherein this love of Christ is better than wine.
1st, It is preferable to it for its antiquity; good old wine is accounted the best; and therefore Christ says, No man having drunk old wine, straightway desireth new: for he saith, the old is better, Luke 5:39. Age makes wine better, but not oil, as Plutarch observes.[3319] Now no wine is comparable to this of Christ's love, for its antiquity; for, as has been already shewn, it is a love which commences from everlasting; it does not bear date with time, but was before time was, and will be when time shall be no more. The Jews[3320] often speak of wine, that has been reserved in the grape ever since the creation of the world, which, they imagine, they shall drink in the earthly kingdom of the Messiah; but this wine of divine love was laid up and reserved in the heart of Christ long before the creation of the world: this excels all other wine for its antiquity.
2dly, It is preferable to wine for its purity; no wine so pure and unmixed as this of Christ's love; it is wine on the lees well refined, free from all the dregs of deceit, hypocrisy, and dissimulation; it is a love unfeigned, a pure river of water of life.
3dly, It is better than wine, and is preferable to it for its freeness and cheapness; wine is not every one's liquor, every one's purse cannot reach it, especially in some countries; but this wine of Christ's love, is to be had without money, and without price, than which nothing can be cheaper; nor is any thing freer, for it is freely shed abroad in the hearts of God's people, by the Spirit.
4thly, For the plenty of it, it is preferable to wine; wine, as it is dear, so it is scarce in some places; but this, as it is cheap, and to be had freely, so there is plenty of it: in the marriage at Cana of Galilee, there was want of wine; but there is no want thereof in this feast of love, which Christ has made for his spouse and bride: this is a river, nay, an ocean of love, which flows forth in plentiful streams to poor sinners.
5thly, It is preferable to wine in the effects of it.
1. Wine will revive and cheer a man that is of an heavy heart, and therefore it is advised to be given to such, Proverbs 31:6, yet it will not bring a man to life that is dead; but such is the nature of Christ's love, that when it is conveyed into the heart of a sinner, dead in trespasses and sins, it makes him alive; for whenever it is a time of love to a poor sinner, it is also a time of life; nay, it not only conveys life, but it maintains and supports it and keeps souls from dying; he that has had it shed abroad in his heart, by the Spirit, shall never die the second death.
2. Wine may remove a worldly heaviness, or a sorrow on the account of worldly things, the things of time; but not of spiritual heaviness, or a sorrow on the account of the things or another world, the things of eternity; but the manifestation of Christ's love to the soul, can remove this sorrow and heaviness, and fill it with a joy unspeakable and full of glory, and give him that ease, comfort, and satisfaction of mind, he is wishing for:
3. If a man drinks never such large draughts of the wine of Christ's love, it will never hurt him, when other wine, with excessive drinking of it, not only wastes the estates, but consumes the bodies, and destroys the health of men; but of this a man may drink freely and plentifully, without doing himself any hurt; nay, it will be of considerable advantage to him, and therefore says Christ, in chapter 5:1. Eat, O friends, yea, drink abundantly, O my beloved.
No wonder then that the church was so desirous of enjoying Christ's presence, and having the manifestations of his love to her soul, seeing his tore is thus better than wine; besides, it may be observed that she makes use of this as an argument with him to obtain her request; and in so doing, shews what a value she had for the love of Christ, how much she esteemed it, as also what it was she expected and sought after, in desiring communion with him.