Book 3
[Song of Solomon 2:10] -- "Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away," etc. If, according to the Apostle's exposition, the Rock was Christ (1 Corinthians 10), what are the clefts of the rock except the wounds which Christ received for our salvation? In these very clefts the dove resides and nests, whether each meek soul or the entire Church, places its sole hope of salvation in the Lord's passion, relying on the sacrament of his death to protect themselves, as if from the snatching of a hawk by an ancient enemy, and strives to bring forth spiritual offspring—either children or virtues—in the same. Hence well Jeremiah, under the guise of Moab, urging heretics to the unity of ecclesiastical faith, says, "Leave the cities and dwell in the rock, inhabitants of Moab. Be like a dove nesting in the highest mouth of the cleft" (Jeremiah 48). Moreover, the wall which is usually constructed of stones to fortify vineyards (whence it is said in the song of Isaiah, "My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill, and he built a wall around it" [Isaiah 5]) signifies the guardianship of heavenly virtues by which the Lord surrounds the Church, his vineyard, lest it be ravaged by the incursions of unclean spirits like those of wicked creatures. Hence, therefore, the Psalmist says, "The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and delivers them" (Psalm 34). And the Apostle, speaking of angels, says, "Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?" (Hebrews 1). Thus, in this secure wall, the bride and friend of Christ, like a dove, finds a hole for herself, while the Holy Church has learned to defend itself from the deceptions of the devil through angelic help. Therefore, the Lord exhorts the same Church, He exhorts every soul devoted to Him, to the exercise of holy and fruitful labor; and He says, "Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come away. For behold, the winter is past," and so on, until He says, "Arise, my love, my bride, and come away; my dove in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the cliff." As if He openly says, "After the tempest of the Gentile life has been removed by divine mercy, after the flowers of saving conversation have already emerged on earth, after the vines have begun to be pruned by the celestial husbandmen with the sickle of discernment so that the wicked are separated from the just and the vices from the virtues, after the herald of salvation has already widely resounded in the world, after the world itself has been converted to the acknowledgment of the truth, and the most delightful fame of new life has spread among the Gentiles, I beseech you, O greatly beloved company of faithful souls, to whom I have bestowed the gifts of my friendship, whom I have deigned to unite to myself as a bride, to whom I have given the simplicity of the dove-like mind by the infusion of my Spirit, for whose health and life I have taken upon myself wounds and death, to whom I have granted the help of heavenly protection against invisible enemies; I beseech you, I say, who have been made the recipient of such gifts, not to become sluggish in idle ease, but to rather hasten to gird yourself with zealous effort and diligence in the esteemed struggle for eternal rest."
[Song of Solomon 2:14] -- Show me your face, etc. You who in the hidden recesses of quiet, like a dove in the clefts of the rock, or in the hole of the wall, desire to be concealed, I pray that you come forth into the public sphere of action, and show your faith from your works, and declare to others also outwardly as an example what beauty you have within. For indeed to me, who perceive the inner part of the heart, I consider your face shown when I see your action demonstrating unblemished, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, for the benefit of others. For as long as one does something to the least of these, they do it to Me. Let your voice sound in my ears, namely the voice of praise or preaching, that is, either which praises me in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, or which by proclaiming stirs the mouths and minds of others to my praise. Therefore, the bride shows her face to the Lord in what she does in His sight; she also shows the sound of her voice in what she rightly says before Him. It is also to be considered more attentively what He says, Show me your face. He says, yours, not another's, that is, holy and unblemished: for such I have made it, cleansing it by the washing of water with the word; such I have perfected by the anointing of the Holy Spirit, signing upon you the light of my face. Let your voice sound in my ears, not another's, that is, the one which I taught you to have on your wedding day, by which you promised to keep your chastity for me. Again show me your face, let your voice sound in my ears, that is, to me, not to others, show your face. To my ears, not others, remember to give your voice; that is, for the sake of my love, not any other reason, and take care to do good works and speak holy words; for whoever expends their good works or words for human approval shows the beauty of their face or the sweetness of their voice to externals rather than to the Creator. But also according to the letter, women who strive to beautify the face of their body for the deception of fools and to soften their words over oil are transgressors of this Lord's precept, and therefore remain unworthy of that eminent praise by which the Lord glorifies His bride, adding,
[Song of Solomon 2:14] -- Because your voice is sweet, etc. Indeed, the voice of that soul is sweet to the Lord, which knows how either to announce the words of the Lord to neighbors or to resound praises to the Lord Himself sweetly with the prophet, How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth (Psalm 119)! That face seems beautiful to the Lord, which strives to present itself as worthy to behold His face, which is accustomed to say to Him from the innermost heart, I have sought Your face, O Lord; Your face will I seek; do not turn Your face away from me (Psalm 27). However, our diligence in cleanliness will not be sufficient for us, if we do not also correct those who err, as much as we can, if we do not care to defend the weaker ones from their snares. Hence it is added:
[Song of Solomon 2:15] -- Catch for us the little foxes, etc. Indeed, the foxes that destroy the vineyards are heretics and schismatics, who with the teeth of perverse doctrine are accustomed to tear apart the flourishing vineyards of Christ, that is, the unripe minds of the faithful. If only we did not know how much they tend to damage them! Therefore Christ commanded His bride, with her maidens, whom He usually calls the daughters of Jerusalem, that is, with preachers exalted in holy humility, busily in pious labor to catch the little foxes, that is, as soon as they begin to discern and challenge the tricks of the fraudulent; lest, having grown larger over time, they are driven away from harming His spiritual vineyards with that much more difficulty, as they have already accustomed to graze longer; and beautifully, He who had first spoken of the vineyards in the plural, again used the singular number. For "our vineyard has blossomed"; thus indeed, He calls many vineyards one vineyard, just as He wished to call many churches throughout the world one Church for Himself. For He said the vineyards have blossomed, to show widely germinating populations of the chosen; and rightly, where He admonished to catch the foxes, there soon marked the singular appellation vineyard, to teach that for this reason above all, heretics should be pursued and crushed, lest the infestation tear apart and scatter into parts the faith of the Church, which ought to be one. Moreover, the nature of foxes aptly aligns with the manners and words of heretics, because they are indeed very deceitful animals, which hide in holes or caves, and when they appear, they never run in straight paths, but in winding turns. How these fit with the deceit and fraud of heretics, anyone can easily understand. It should not be overlooked that He did not say, "Catch for yourselves," when speaking to the children of the Church, or "Your vineyard has blossomed"; but, "Catch for us the little foxes, for our vineyard has blossomed"; so that He might more strongly incite all, who could, to conquer or correct the wickedness of heretics or bad Catholics, showing that they serve Him in this endeavor, and to demonstrate Himself as the defender of the vineyard, which is the rewarder of pious labors. Rightly, therefore, His beloved friend and bride responds immediately with the simplicity of a dove's heart:
[Song of Solomon 2:16] -- My beloved is mine, and I am his, etc. The meaning of this response is as broad as it seems to be briefly concluded. For it may rightly be understood in this way: My beloved is mine, and I am his, we are united by true and sincere love. It may also be understood in this way: My beloved has promised me such words of His divine exhortation, consolation, and promise, and I will always offer Him a clear face of my conduct and a pure voice of my speech and grace. But it can also be very decently accepted that, since pronouns usually have great force, the Church, that is, the multitude of all the elect, says, My beloved is mine, and no other; and again, My beloved is mine, not to anyone else, implying that He grants eternal favor of His love and repays fruitfully; and I am His, not to anyone else; I am His, not any other crowd of people, implying that I am always united with Him in full devotion of humility and obedience. To all these meanings aptly fits what follows:
[Song of Solomon 2:16] -- Who feeds among the lilies. That is, who is accustomed to rejoice in the most radiant and sweetest fragrance of my virtues, who delights in the most pleasing fruit of the glittering churches throughout the world. Thus indeed the holy universal Church is sometimes described in the plural as lilies, sometimes in the singular as a lily. For as it says, As a lily among thorns, so is my beloved among the daughters. Similarly, it refers to vineyards in the plural, where it says: Blooming vineyards; and again in the singular as a vineyard, where it adds, For our vineyard has blossomed, it represents the one Church. It is named in the singular because there is one heart and one soul of the multitude of believers (Acts IV); and it is also very aptly named in the plural because that unity of faithful heart and soul is no longer contained in a few, but in a multitude of believers. Noteworthy is also that lilies, even in that they are accustomed to heal limbs burned by fire, correspond to the acts of the saints. If they chance to detect hearts being burned by the flames of vices, they immediately extend the help of brotherly love to heal them, and lest the heat of desire or luxury, arrogance or anger, or other crimes overwhelm them, they provide them with the refreshment of their consolation and exhortation with diligent care. Some interpret the Lord feeding among the lilies as among the purest choirs of virgins, and rightly so, because both their chastity of the flesh shines outwardly and the brilliance of their inviolate hearts shines inwardly. Again, the Lord feeds among the lilies, that is, among the most pleasing virtues or bands of saints, in the very reason that He is born among them; for since He Himself, the Mediator of God and men, willed to be of one nature with His Church, hence the same Church is often called His body and He the head of the body of the Church. He feeds among the lilies when the number of the faithful within the Church is increased through the fountain of regeneration. He feeds among the lilies when the faithful, who are certainly members of Him, advance in the love of the highest by the illustrious examples of previous faithful. And it is noteworthy that here the beloved is said to feed, while above he is said to lead the pastures: the bride saying, Tell me, whom my soul loves, where you feed, where you rest at midday; for he is fed in us, because we are His body, and members from His member; He feeds us because He is our head, in whom we all rightly glory, each saying, But now has He exalted my head above my enemies, implying that He will also later exalt us, and gather us to the head; and since this pasturing of the Lord, which takes place in the progress of His saints, extends to the end of this age (for when they reach His vision, they will have nothing further to advance in), it is rightly added:
[Song of Solomon 2:17] -- Until the day breaks, etc. That is, until the eternal light of the future age arises, and the shadows of this present life, that is, of ignorance or error, under which even we faithful now walk, who use the lamp of the word of God, until they pass away. For when that day desired by all nations begins to break forth, the Lord will no longer feed among the lilies, that is, among the assemblies of the saints, whom He will rather refresh with the eternal vision of His glory. "I will be satisfied," he says, "when your glory is revealed" (Psalm 16); and, "Blessed are those who hunger now, for they shall be filled" (Matthew 5). Nor is this, which compares present life to the shadows of night, and future life to the day, contrary to the apostolic saying; which testifies of this life we now live, saying, "The night is far gone; the day is at hand" (Romans 15); for, to speak briefly, the present life of the faithful, who, casting off the works of darkness, put on the armor of light, is indeed day in comparison to the unbelievers, who know or love nothing of true light; but in comparison to the future blessedness, where true light is seen eternally, it is still a very dark night. However, because the holy Church in this world recognizes two spiritual lives, one active and the other contemplative, Divine Scripture customarily speaks now of this, now of that, and now of both together. Above, making mention of the contemplative life, it says of the Lord, "Behold, he comes leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills. My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag." And then beginning with the active life, it says, "Behold, he stands behind our wall," and so on, until it says, "Catch us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes." All these things, well considered, urge us to the duty of good action. Then he adds of both together, "My beloved is mine, and I am his; he feeds among the lilies until the day breaks and the shadows flee away": for in both lives the beloved feeds among the lilies, because the Lord delights in the pure outward works and the sweet inner contemplation of the eternal ones of his chosen ones, and he is refreshed in his members. And this until the true light of day breaks, for then neither are we troubled by any labor of good work, nor do even the most perfect behold heavenly things through a glass darkly and momentarily, but the whole Church will see the King of Heaven in His beauty forever: of which vision, since any taste, however slight, greatly delights the spouse of Christ, it is aptly added:
[Song of Solomon 2:17] -- Return, be like, my beloved, a roe or a young deer, etc. Because, he says, you have stirred and provoked me to cultivate the vineyards, that is, to instruct and multiply the faithful people, who have been ordered to drive away the cunning plots of attackers, like little foxes, from these same vineyards, because you wanted me to show my face to you, although you have not yet promised to reveal your face clearly to me, but making your acquaintance partly known to me, as if you speak to me through windows and lattice work. I beseech you to return more often from general instruction, to illuminate more sublimely the hearts of the more advanced, and just as the gaze, though rare, is with delight seen on the mountains from the roe or the young deer, so may your presence be any kind of traces of your greatness in the exalted minds. I pray that you reveal the sweetness of immortal life, which you promise to all my members in recompense, to be speculated upon even by some along the way, albeit from a distance. Furthermore, the name of the mountains suits the minds of those who have learned to open the eyes of the heart to the contemplation of heavenly things; when it is said, Over the mountains of Bether. For Bether is interpreted as a rising house, or a house of watches; and those who ascend more diligently in mind to the desires of the higher things, who more zealously watch to receive these, deservedly see the heavenly mysteries more excellently than others. But if it is read, as some manuscripts have, Over the mountains of Bethel, that is, the house of God, it has no question at all; for it is clear that the hearts of the righteous are rightly called mountains of the house of God, as opposed to the mountains of Samaria and Esau, and the like, that is, of heretics and all the proud. In another edition, we have seen written instead of this name, Over the mountains of spices and perfumes, which equally fits the minds of the saints, who are not dried up by vain thoughts, but, as with the healthful juices of the aromatic tree, are always refreshed with the internal sweetness and charity: about which juices and perfumes it has been signified often in this volume under the name of incense, myrrh, and aloes, and the like. But because lovers of truth come not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles, and from both peoples one Church of the faithful is gathered, it remains in the song of love, after the vocation of Judea and the most sweet dialogue with its Redeemer, also to relate specifically how the Gentiles, in what order, have come to the recognition of salvation, and with what love they have held this found. Thus follows the voice of the beloved Church from the Gentiles.