Section 674
II. She sums up the whole character, and doses the description of him, in saying
"Yea, he is altogether lovely; or, he is all desire"[4025], as the Septuagint read it; or, "all desires," as it is in the Hebrew text: he is exceeding desirable to believers; there is none in heaven or in earth they desire besides him; and one of the characters which he was known by, under the Old Testament, was, "the desire of all nations. And now what makes him so desirable to the church and to all believers, are, The divine excellencies and perfections which appear in his person; for " in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily: there is no perfection or excellency in the Deity, but what may be found in Christ; and if so, there can be nothing that is excellent in any creature, either in heaven or earth, but what is eminently so in him; and therefore he must needs be a desirable person. 2. The mediatorial qualifications he is possessed of; he has a fullness of the gifts and graces of the Spirit in him, which qualify him as man end mediator for his office; he has a fullness of fitness for it, and a fullness of abilities to carry him through it; which render him a suitable and a desirable high-priest unto us. 3. The fullness of grace, life and salvation in him, makes him altogether desirable to souls; when they can see nothing in themselves, and all in Christ, an emptiness in the creature, and a fullness in him; that it is in vain to expect salvation elsewhere; but that there is enough in him to answer all their wants, present and future; every thing that will make them comfortable here, and happy hereafter; how can he be otherwise than exceeding desirable to them? 4. His agreeable carriage and deportment towards souls render him so; which is so wise and prudent, so loving, tender and compassionate, so week and humble, so courteous and affable, and attended with such an air of familiarity; that it at once fixes our eyes upon him, attracts our affections to him, and makes him all desires unto us. 5. The names and titles which he bears: he has a name that is above every name, which awes and commands our fear, being full of majesty; and he has a name which draws our love, being full of sweetness, which is that sweet and precious name Jesus; which is as ointment poured forth, and therefore do the virgins love him; and so are all those names which are given him, in Isaiah 9:6. 6. The characters he bears, and the relations he stands in to his people, make him exceeding desirable to them; and indeed, how can he be otherwise than so unto them, when he stands in the relations, and bears the characters of a tender husband, an indulgent father, a loving brother, and a faithful friend? He is all things to them[4026], even all in all.
Again, if we read the words as they are translated in our bibles, "he is altogether lovely," we may observe, 1. That Christ, and all of Christ, is lovely to believers; he is so in his person, in all his offices, in his people, and in his ordinances; nay, the worst of Christ, or what may seem the most scaring and frightful to others, is lovely to the saints; as the cross of Christ, reproaches and sufferings on his account; for tho' they are not lovely in themselves, yet they are for his sake; and are therefore preferred by believers to the pleasures of sin, and profits of this world (see Hebrews 11:25, 26). 2. That there is a perfect loveliness in Christ, every thing in him is lovely, and there is nothing lovely but what is in him; he is comprehensively so: if the church is a perfection of beauty, and is perfectly comely, "through the comeliness" which Christ has put upon her; he must needs be so from whom she has it, even "altogether lovely." 3. That he is so to all: he is lovely to his Father, as he is his own Son, the dear son of his love; and as he is man and mediator, engaged in our cause, as having assumed our nature, and obtained eternal redemption for us; he is so to all the holt angels, many of whom descended at his incarnation, and sang his praise, ministered to him in his state of humiliation, attended on him when tempted in the wilderness, and when in his agonies in the garden; and gazed with wonder and delight upon his glorious person, as they accompanied him in his ascension to glory: hence this is said to be one branch of the "great mystery of godliness," that God, who was "manifest in the flesh, was seen of angels," and appeared lovely to them: and so he is to all the saints, for "to them that believe, he is precious;" and indeed he is so to all but Christless sinners; who see no beauty, form nor comeliness in him, wherefore they should desire him. 4. As Christ is lovely in himself, and lovely to all others, so it is he that makes all the saints lovely to God: there is nothing in them, nor done by them, that can make them grateful to him; they are only accepted with him "in the beloved;" he is pleased with Christ and his righteousness, and with them as considered therein: he must needs be lovely, yea, "altogether lovely," that makes all the saints lovely too.
Now the church having given such an ample description of her beloved to the daughters of Jerusalem, they might from henceforward cease to wonder, why she, who was "the fairest among women," was so deeply fallen in love with Christ; why she made such a stir about him, was so much concerned at his absence, was so diligent in her search of him, and gave them so strict a charge concerning him; as well as they need not now be any longer at a loss to know who and what he was, he having given such distinguishing characters of him; and having done this, she closes all with claiming an interest in him, and appropriates him to her own soul, in the latter part of this verse; she having a clear sight of him, and her faith more strengthened in him.