site: migne

title: Expositio in Cantica canticorum

author: Anonymous

languages: en la

source_edition: Migne, Patrologia Latina, vol. 70, coll. 1055C–1106C

source_text:
## MONITUM.

[1055C]

[1055D] *505* *Cassiodori nomen huic opusculo praefigunt tam manuscripti codices quam editi, saltem quos videre licuit; bibliothecarii quoque omnes, si unum exceperis, aliique etiam melioris notae auctores quamplurimi absque ulla controversia auctori nostro illud ascribunt. Mihi tamen Cassiodori non esse certissimum videtur: sed quibus potissimum argumentis in eam adducar sententiam, praefatio nostra, quam hujus operis capiti praemisimus, satis ostendet. Hanc igitur, si lubet, consulas, amice lector.*

## PROLOGUS.

[1056C]

[1056D]Salomon inspiratus divino Spiritu composuit hunc libellum de nuptiis Christi et Ecclesiae, et quodammodo epithalamium fecit Christi et Ecclesiae, id est canticum super thalamos. Unde et Cantica canticorum vocavit hoc opus: quia omnia cantica superexcellit. Sicut enim dicitur, *Rex regum, et Dominus dominantium [n: (Apoc. XVII, 14)]*, et solemnitas solemnitatum: sic dicitur Canticum canticorum ob excellentiam et dignitatem. Est autem in hoc obscurior iste [1057A] libellus, quia nullae ibi commemorantur personae, et quasi comico stylo compositus est.

## CAPUT PRIMUM.

Vers. 1. *Osculetur me osculo oris sui.* Vox est Synagogae desiderantis Christi adventum. Quasi diceret: Toties mihi adventum suum promisit per prophetas; veniat ergo jam et *osculetur me osculo oris sui,* id est, per seipsum mihi loquatur.

*Quia meliora sunt ubera tua vino.* Repente ad ipsum cujus desiderio flagrabat, verba convertens, subdit, *Quia meliora sunt ubera tua vino.* Per ubera Christi dulcedo Evangelii intelligitur: quia eo veluti lacte nutritur infantia credentium. *Vinum* autem austeritatem legis significat: sed ubera Christi meliora sunt vino, quia dulcedo Evangelii melior est austeritate legis. In lege enim nulla reservatur poenitentia, sed praecipitur ut qui peccat occidatur: Evangelium autem dicit: *Nolo mortem peccatoris [n: (Ezech. XVIII, 32)]*, etc.

Vers. 2. *Fragrantia unguentis optimis. Unguenta* [1057B] sunt dona Spiritus sancti, vel etiam operationes virtutum; de quibus Apostolus: *Christi bonus odor sumus [n: (II Cor. II, 15)]*.

*Oleum effusum nomen tuum. Nomen tuum,* o Christe, *effusum est.* Chrisma Graece, Latine unctio, unde Christus. Nomen Christi ab unctione dicitur. Solet enim Spiritus sanctus *olei* nomine appellari, juxta quod Psalmista ait: *Unxit te Deus Deus tuus oleo [n: (Psal. XLIV, 8)]*, id est Spiritu sancto. Hoc oleum effusum est, quando haec gratia quam Christus singulariter habuit, data est omnibus electis. Unde et a Christo Christiani dicuntur, participio nominis Christi. Et bene non stillatum, sed *effusum oleum* dicitur, quia abundanter haec gratia omnibus data est fidem Christi recolentibus.

*Ideo adolescentulae dilexerunt te.* Adolescentulae dicuntur animae electorum, quae in baptismo reliquerunt sordes veteris hominis, et renovatae sunt in Christo. Bene autem feminino genere dicuntur: quia [1057C] animae sanctorum, quo majoris fragilitatis sibi consciae sunt, eo amplius Christum diligunt.

Vers. 3. *Trahe me post te, curremus.* Vox Ecclesiae. Hic est permutatio personae; nam hactenus locuta est Synagoga, hic incipit loqui Ecclesia de gentibus: *Trahe me post te, curremus.* Quia (inquit) meam infirmitatem cognosco, et video me nihil meis viribus boni posse agere, tua gratia *trahe me* ad tui imitationem; vel etiam cum *506* coelum ascenderis, *Trahe me post te,* ut te sequi merear.

*Introduxit me Rex in cellaria sua.* Hic loquitur Ecclesia de Christo sponso suo ad animas fideles. *Cellaria* Dei sunt aeterna beatitudo, et supernae patriae gaudia, in quae *introducta est* jam Ecclesia per fidem et spem, et quandoque *introducetur* per rem.

*Exsultabimus et laetabimur in te.* De donis (inquit) tuis *exsultabimus et laetabimur.* Sed quia scimus hoc non nostri esse meriti, *in te,* non in nobis *exsultabimus.* Hoc est quod Apostolus ait: *Qui gloriatur, in Domino glorietur [n: (I Cor. I, 31)]*.

[1057D] *Memores uberum tuorum super vinum.* Id est *Memores* gratiae tuae, et misericordiae qua salvati sumus. *Ubera* enim sunt ipsa gratia qua salvamur. Recordantes etiam, quod tu austeritatem legis uberibus doctrinae evangelicae temperare dignatus es.

*Recti diligunt te.* Illi (inquit) qui recti cordis sunt diligunt te; id est, illi qui nihil suis meritis tribuunt, sed omnia tuae gratiae deputant. Nullus enim te diligit nisi rectus, et nullus est rectus, nisi qui te diligit.

Vers. 4. *Nigra sum, sed formosa, filiae Jerusalem.* Hic rursus loquitur Ecclesia de suis pressuris ad sanctas animas. *Nigra sum,* quia persecutiones patior; *sed formosa* sum virtutibus, o filiae Jerusalem, id est animae fideles. *Nigra sum,* id est, deformis persecutionibus et aerumnis quas sustineo; *sed formosa* sum decore virtutum. Quomodo autem *nigra* sit, et quomodo *formosa* ostendit, cum subdit:

*Sicut tabernacula Cedar, sicut pelles Salomonis.* Ita [1058A] enim distinguitur: Nigra sum sicut tabernacula Cedar, formosa sicut pelles Salomonis. *Cedar* filius Ismaelis fuit, qui interpretatur tenebrae. Ismaelitae vero semper in tabernaculis habitare soliti sunt, et non habent domos. Dicit ergo Ecclesia se *nigram esse sicut tabernacula Cedar,* propter persecutiones quas patiebatur a filiis tenebrarum, quod interpretatur Cedar. Hinc Psalmista dicit: *Habitavi cum habitantibus Cedar [n: (Psal. CXIX, 5)]*, id est, conversatus sum inter persecutores et peccatores *infidelitate* nigros. *Formosam* vero dicit se *sicut pelles,* id est tabernacula Salomonis, qui pacificus interpretatur: quoniam digna erat visitatione et consolatione sponsi sui Christi inter angustias. Et sicut *tabernacula* ex pellibus mortuorum animalium fiunt, ita Ecclesia, tabernaculum videlicet Dei, ex his construitur qui seipsos cum vitiis et concupiscentiis mortificant [n: (Galat. V, 24)].

Vers. 5. *Nolite me considerare quod fusca sim, quia decoloravit me sol.* O animae fideles et devotae Deo, [1058B] *Nolite me considerare quod fusca sim,* id est, quod tribulationibus afficiar, quod persecutionibus opprimar; *quia decoloravit me sol,* id est, persecutionis fervor meum splendorem quodammodo offuscavit. Ac si diceret: Interiorem pulchritudinem meam cogitate, et illam attendite, non illa quae foris pati videor. Tale est quod et Apostolus dicit: *Nolite deficere in tribulationibus meis pro vobis, quae est gloria vestra. Non enim sunt condignae passiones [n: (Ephes. III, 13)]*, et reliqua. Sol autem in Scripturis multos habet sensus. Aliquando significat ipsum Dei et hominum Mediatorem; unde scriptum est: *Vobis timentibus nomen meum orietur sol justitiae [n: (Malach. IV, 2)]*, id est Christus. Significat et Ecclesiam, sicut Dominus dicit: *Tunc fulgebunt justi sicut sol [n: (Matth. XIII, 43)]*. Aliquando fervorem persecutionis, sicut hic et in Evangelio, ubi dicitur de semine quod cecidit supra petram, et orto sole exaestuavit; quod ipse Dominus aperit exponens: *Facta autem persecutione propter verbum scandalizantur* [1058C] [n: (Matth. XIII, 6, 21)].

*Filii matris meae pugnaverunt contra me.* Unde coeperit haec persecutio ostendit, cum subdit: *Filii matris meae pugnaverunt contra me.* Vox est primitivae Ecclesiae, cujus Synagoga mater est, cui per prophetam dicitur: *Et vocaberis civitas fidelis [n: (Isai. I, 26)]*, et mater civitatum filia Sion. Hujus *filii* sunt Judaei, qui *pugnaverunt* contra Ecclesiam primitivam, quando excitaverunt persecutionem contra credentes, *et omnes dispersi sunt per regiones Samariae [n: (Act. VIII, 1)]*.

*Posuerunt me custodem in vineis.* Vinea una fuit primitiva Ecclesia Jerosolymis; sed ob Judaicam persecutionem dispersis credentibus omnibus, multae vineae factae sunt, id est multae Ecclesiae constructae per universum mundum. Dicit ergo primitiva Ecclesia: *Posuerunt me* (scilicet apostoli et doctores) *custodem,* id est, ut essem custos Ecclesiarum. Unde et in Graeco bene dicitur, *disseminati sunt,* ubi nos legimus, *dispersi sunt [n: (Act. VIII, 1)]*; ad hoc enim divinitus disperi sunt, ut plures Ecclesiae fierent per universum [1058D] mundum.

*Vineam meam non custodivi,* id est, unam illam Ecclesiam quae Jerosolymis fuit, non custodivi. Hoc non ad votum, neque ad mentem est referendum, sed ad locum. *Non custodivi,* subaudi, ut esset ibi ubi coepit.

Vers. 6. *Indica mihi quem diligit anima mea, ubi pascas, ubi cubes in meridie.* Vox Ecclesiae est ad sponsum suum Christum. O sponse, quem diligit anima mea, id est quem tota mentis intentione diligo, *indica mihi ubi pascas,* id est ubi oves tuas pascere facias; ipse est enim *Pastor bonus,* sicut ipse dicit in Evangelio [n: (Joan. X, 14)]. *Indica mihi ubi pascas et ubi cubes,* id est requiescas, et hoc *in meridie,* id est in fervore persecutionis vel tentationis. Laborans enim Ecclesia in persecutionibus, obsecrat sponsum suum ut ei dicat in quorum mentibus requiescat. Nam cubare sponso requiescere est, sicut ipse dicit: *Super quem requiescit spiritus meus (Isai. LXVI, [1059A] 2)*, etc. Ne enim sancti aestu tentationis arescant, ipse in eorum cordibus cubat et requiescit, atque ab omni fervore tentationum et persecutionum protegit. Quare hoc?

*Ne vagari incipiam post greges sodalium tuorum.* Greges sodalium appellat conventicula haereticorum, qui sodales Christi sunt, quia et ipsi greges suos pascunt. Et est sensus: O sponse, indica mihi sanctos et electos tuos, ne forte offendam et incurram in haereticos, putans te ibi posse inveniri. Hunc versum male haeretici distinguebant, tanquam sponsa interrogaret: Ubi pascas, ubi cubes? Et ipse responderet: In meridie cubo, et in australi parte.

Vers. 7. *Si ignoras te, o pulchra inter mulieres, egredere, et abi post vestigia gregum.* Vox sponsi ad sponsam suam Ecclesiam. Ac si diceret: Tu quereris te quasi a me derelictam et persecutionum fervoribus denigratam; nec consideras quam pulchra sis inter mulieres, id est, non attendis virtutum spiritualium pulchritudinem, qua prae caeteris decoraris, [1059B] licet tentationibus denigreris. *Si ignoras* ergo *te,* id est, si hanc dignitatem et formositatem tuam non recognoscis, *egredere* de meo consortio, *et abi post vestigia gregum,* hoc est, sequere et imitare doctrinam errantium haereticorum, *507* qui contempto vero Pastore unius gregis, multos sibi coacervaverunt greges.

*Et pasce haedos tuos,* id est peccatores et erroneos auditores; et hoc *juxta tabernacula pastorum,* id est secundum dogmata haereticorum. Unus enim pastor est Christus, qui unum habet gregem, id est unitatem catholicae Ecclesiae. Pastores vero multi sunt haeretici, qui gregem deceptorum hominum sibi aggregant, quos diabolo pascunt; de quibus et Psalmista: *Sicut oves in inferno positi sunt [n: (Psal. XLVIII, 15)]*. Oves vocantur in hoc loco mali, non propter simplicitatem vel innocentiam, sed propter hebetudinem: quia nesciunt resistere pravae doctrinae: sed omnia quae sibi imponuntur a pravis doctoribus, sustinent non [1059C] bona patientia.

Vers. 8. *Equitatui meo assimilavi te, amica mea, in curribus Pharaonis.* Equitatum suum appellat exercitum filiorum Israel, videlicet sexcenta et sex millia qui egressi sunt de Aegypto, et transierunt mare Rubrum [n: (Num. II, 32; Exod. XIV, 22)]. *Equitatum* autem suum illam multitudinem dicit: quia sicut auriga currui praeest, ita Deus illi plebi praeerat, protegens illam et defendens, et ad terram repromissionis introducens. Huic suo *equitatui assimilavit amicam* suam; quoniam sicut ille populus per mare Rubrum salvatus est, Pharaone demerso [n: (Exod. XIV, 27, 28)], ita Ecclesia gentium per baptismum de diaboli servitio liberata, et ad veram repromissionis terram, et evangelicam libertatem introducta est; sicque quae erat ancilla vitiorum, facta est amica Christi, emundata et abluta per baptismum a sordibus peccatorum.

## CAPUT PRIMUM. (cont.)

Vers. 9. *Pulchrae sunt genae tuae sicut turturis.* Turturis natura est, ut si casu conjugem perdiderit, [1059D] alium ultra non requirat. Turturi ergo assimilatur Ecclesia: quia ex quo Christus mundum praesentia corporali deseruit, et coelos petiit, Ecclesia in ejus amore tenacissime perseverat; nec recipit ullum adulterinum amatorem: quia contemnit mundum et omnes concupiscentias ejus, et solius sponsi sui pulchritudinem mente contemplatur. Genis autem turturis genas Ecclesiae comparat: quia in genis maxime verecundia apparet, et per hoc pudor et verecundia Ecclesiae ostenditur: quia erubescit omne foedum, et quod sponso suo displiceat, perpetrare formidat. Et est sensus: noli timere ne vageris per greges sodalium tuorum, quia tanto te amoris mei pudore, et tanta verecundia donavi et munivi, ut certus sim te me non posse deserere et ad alienos deflectere.

*Collum tuum sicut monilia.* Per *collum* Ecclesiae doctores sancti designantur; nam per collum cibi reficiendo corpori ministrantur. Sermones etiam quibus arcana mentium designantur, per colli fistulam [1060A] egrediuntur. Sic doctores sancti et cibum nobis salutaris doctrinae monstrant, et etiam secreta Scripturarum nobis manifestant. Hoc ergo *collum* Ecclesiae quasi monile est, quia castae doctrinae gemmis et virtutum ornamentis sancti doctores decorantur. *Monile* enim ornamentum est virginum vel matronarum.

Vers. 10. *Murenulas aureas faciemus tibi, vermiculatas argento. Murenulae* juxta litteram ornamentum sunt colli virginalis et puellaris, videlicet virgulae auri perplexae, intermixtis nonnunquam pulchra varietate subtilissimis argenti filis; et hoc est quod dicit: *Vermiculatas argento,* id est in modum vermium terrenorum, quos lumbricos dicunt, distinctas et inter se conjunctas. *Murenulae* autem dicuntur a similitudine piscis marini, qui murena vocatur. Mystice, *murenulae* sunt perplexa Scripturarum dogmata, ex diversis sanctorum Patrum sententiis inter se conjuncta. Aurum quippe claritatem significat sensus spiritalis: argentum vero nitorem eloquii designat. Murenulas ergo aureas sponsus sponsae suae facit, [1060B] cum Christus Ecclesiam suam doctrinis sanctorum Patrum sensu et eloquio fulgentibus instruit, atque ad illorum fidem et virtutem imitandam accendit. Notandum quod pluraliter dicit, *faciemus tibi;* quasi enim Christus se personis doctorum conjungit, per quos ipsae *murenulae* concatenantur, ut illis Ecclesia exornetur.

Vers. 11. *Dum esset rex in accubitu suo.* Vox sponsae regem sponsum suum Christum dicit, qui per divinitatem suam omnia regit, et etiam secundum humanitatem de regia Davidis stirpe natus est. *Accubitus regis* fuit incarnatio ejus. Accumbere enim est reclinari vel discumbere. Et tunc Christus accubuit, quando pro nostra redemptione se usque ad suscipiendam naturam nostram inclinavit. Et tunc

*Nardus mea odorem suum dedit,* quando virtus Ecclesiae magis enituit. Cum enim considerat Deum pro se hominem factum, amplius ad spiritualium virtutum studium et amorem sui conditoris accenditur. [1060C] *Nardus* enim fragrantiam virtutum spiritualium designat. Erant quidam ante incarnationem sancti Dei, sed (sicut dictum est) sanctitas magis a tempore incarnationis excrevit, et tunc quodammodo *nardus* Ecclesiae, id est odor virtutum fortius dedit odorem suum. Juxta litteram *nardus* herba est aromatica, crassa et fragili radice, folioque parvo et denso, cujus cacumina in aristas se spargunt. Hoc unguento Maria Magdalene pedes et caput Domini perunxisse in Evangelio legitur in domo Simonis [n: (Matth. XXVI, 7; Marc. XIV, 3; Luc. VII, 38; Joan. XII, 3)].

Vers. 12. *Fasciculus myrrhae dilectus meus mihi.* Myrrha species est aromatica nimiae amaritudinis, qua mortuorum corpora condiuntur. Hoc loco passio Christi et sepultura designatur: nam depositum corpus Domini de cruce a Nicodemo et Joseph, myrrha et aloe conditum est, et involutum linteis cum aromatibus, ac sepulturae traditum [n: (Matth. XXVII, 59; Marc. XV, 46; Luc. XXIII, 53; Joan. XIX, 40)]. Dicit ergo Ecclesia sponso suo: *Fasciculus myrrhae [1060D] dilectus meus mihi* factus est: quia propter me mortuus et sepultus est.

*Inter ubera mea commorabitur.* Nemo dubitat locum cordis inter ubera esse. Dicit ergo: *Inter ubera mea commorabitur,* id est, in cordis mei memoria aeternaliter habebitur, et nunquam tantorum ejus beneficiorum obliviscar; sed sive in prosperis, sive in adversis sim, tamen recordabor ejus qui me tantum dilexit, et pro me mortuus est.

Vers. 13. *Botrus Cypri dilectus meus mihi, in vineis Engaddi. Cyprus* insula est ubi vites nobiles esse feruntur, maximos botros procreantes. *Engaddi* similiter locus esse fertur habens arbusculas liquorem balsami desudantes. Loquitur ergo sponsa de resurrectione Christi sponsi sui: *Botrus Cypri dilectus meus mihi;* ac si diceret: Sponsus meus, qui mortis amaritudinem pro me gustavit, *508* et quasi fasciculus myrrhae mihi fuit, in resurrectione sua factus [1061A] est *mihi botrus Cypri,* quando me gaudio resurrectionis suae laetificavit. *Vinum* enim *laetificat cor hominis [n: (Psal. CIII, 15)]*; et hoc *in vineis Engaddi:* quia sua resurrectione, quasi suavissimo balsami odore per universum mundum redolevit, et fragrantiam suae fidei late dispersit. *Engaddi* autem fons haedi interpretatur, per quod significatur baptisma, et sacrificium in quo peccata omnia abluuntur. Haedus namque peccatores significat. Baptismus ergo fons est haedi; quia peccatores suscipit, sed immaculatos et mundatos ab omnibus peccatis reddit.

Vers. 14. *Ecce tu pulchra es, amica mea: ecce tu pulchra es.* Vox sponsi Christi ad sponsam suam Ecclesiam. Bis eam repetit esse pulchram, propter perfectionem operis et munditiam cogitationis. *Ecce tu pulchra es,* id est in bonis operibus perfecta es, sancte, et pie, et juste vivendo secundum Apostolum [n: (Tit. II, 12)]. *Ecce tu pulchra es,* mundam et simplicem cordis habens intentionem: quia non propter terrena commoda, vel mundi gloriam, sed ut solis oculis Dei [1061B] placeas, bona operaris.

*Oculi tui columbarum.* Columba simplicissima avis est, et per hanc simplicitas atque innocentia Ecclesiae figuratur. Quasi enim *oculos columbarum* habet, quia ab omni fictione et simulatione se immunem custodit. Vel etiam *oculos columbarum* habet, quia scientiam divinarum Scripturarum casto et simplici intuitu intelligit, spirituales et divinos sensus in ea requirens. Nam quoniam Spiritus sanctus in specie columbae apparuit [n: (Matth. III, 16)], recte doctrina coelestis in oculis columbae intelligitur.

Vers. 15. *Ecce tu pulcher es, dilecte mi, et decorus.* Ac si diceret: Tu quidem me pulchram in opere et cogitatione esse dicis; sed ego omnem hanc pulchritudinem a te me credo habere et cognosco. *Tu* enim *es pulcher et decorus,* tu es fons totius boni, et quidquid boni habeo, tua gratia habeo. *Pulcher* autem *et decorus* dicitur: quia et divinitatis perpetuitate et etiam susceptae humanitatis dignitate mirabilis est.

[1061C] *Lectulus noster floridus.* Lectulus Ecclesiae est qualiscunque tranquillitas, vel requies praesentis vitae. Nam quasi in bello est Ecclesia, dum pro Christo diversa tolerat certamina: quasi vero in lectulo requiescit, cum aliquantula pace sibi concessa fruitur. Sed hic *lectulus floridus est,* hoc est, varietate virtutum quasi vernantibus floribus distincta est requies Ecclesiae. Tunc enim liberius contemplationi divinae insistit; tunc jejunia, vigilias et caetera bonorum operum exercitia liberius exsequitur.

Vers. 16. *Tigna domorum nostrarum cedrina, laquearia nostra cypressina. Domus* Ecclesiae sunt conventicula fidelium per totum orbem dispersa. *Tigna* vero et *laquearia* sunt ipsae personae fidelium, ex quibus Ecclesia constat. Sed attendendum quod *Tigna* ad munimentum sunt domus, *laquearia* ad ornatum. Ideoque per *tigna* designantur doctores, quorum doctrina fulcitur et sustentatur Ecclesia; per laquearia vero sancti simplicitate gaudentes, qui suis [1061D] virtutibus exornant Ecclesiam, non autem doctrina muniunt. Et hoc attendendum quod laquearia tignis affixa sunt: sic et vita fidelium in Ecclesia e doctoribus pendet, quia illorum doctrina instruitur et roboratur. Bene autem *Tigna cedrina,* et *laquearia cypressina* dicuntur; nam utraeque arbores imputribilis naturae sunt, sanctos designantes qui immarcescibili desiderio flagrant amore sui Conditoris, et contemptis transitoriis ad aeterna festinant. Cedrus etiam serpentes odore suo fugat: sic sancti doctores daemones vel haereticos fragrantia doctrinae suae repellunt.

## CAPUT II.

Vers. 1. *Ego flos campi, et lilium convallium.* Postquam sponsa qualem domum ipsa et sponsus ejus habeant ostendit, ipse quoque sponsus de se qualis sit ostendit, dicens: *Ego flos campi,* et reliqua; videlicet quia odorem meae virtutis per latitudinem [1062A] totius mundi diffundo. *Ego flos campi,* id est sum decus mundi. Sicut enim campus floribus adornatur et vernat, ita totus mundus Christi fide et notitia decoratur. Sum etiam *lilium convallium:* quia illis mentibus praecipue meam gratiam tribuo, quae nullam in se spem habentes, mihi se humili devotione submittunt. *Convalles* enim significant humiles vel humilium mentes, quarum lilium Christus est, quia pulchritudo humilium mentium ipse est qui dixit: *Discite a me quia mitis sum et humilis corde [n: (Matth. XI, 29)]*. Potest et hoc quod dicit, *Ego sum flos campi,* ad incarnationem referri. Campus enim non aratur, non scinditur, non ullo vomere prosulcatur. Dicit ergo, *Ego sum flos campi,* id est filius Virginis: non ergo ruris, sed *campi florem* se vocat: quia virgineae carnis fructus est secundum vaticinium Isaiae: *Egredietur virga de radice Jesse [n: (Isai. XI, 1)]*. Lilium convallium est idem Christus, hoc est filius humilium parentum: convalles enim humiles et pauperes parentes ejus significant. Veniens enim Dei Filius in [1062B] mundum, non solum homo fieri dignatus est, sed etiam pauper homo pro nobis; nec divites, sed pauperes elegit habere parentes; ut particeps factus paupertatis nostrae, divitiarum et gloriae suae nos participes faceret.

Vers. 2. *Sicut lilium inter spinas, sic amica mea inter filias.* Videns sponsam suam ad requiem festinare, et labores aeternos fugere, ac per quietem praesentis temporis ad aeternam beatitudinem tendere, monet eam tali comparatione et praedicatione, ut norit se per pressuras et labores hujus saeculi illuc pervenire debere. *Sicut,* inquit, *lilium inter spinas, sic amica mea inter filias. Spinae* quae pungunt et lacerant, significant perversos quosque vel intra vel extra Ecclesiam. Et est sensus: Sic tibi vivendum est ad tempus in mundo, et sic parata esse debes contra omnia adversa, *sicut lilium inter spinas est,* et tamen florere, et gratum odorem ex se emittere non cessat: *sic amica mea inter filias;* quia non solum ab his qui [1062C] extra Ecclesiam sunt, mala pateris: verum etiam ab illis qui regenerati per baptismum in filiationem Dei venisse videntur. Et nota quod se superius sponsus *lilium* appellavit *convallium:* nunc sponsam suam dicit, *Quasi lilium inter spinas;* quia ipse qui vere est *lilium,* per gratiam facit Ecclesiam suam esse *lilium,* candidatam videlicet virtutibus, vel ab omni vitiorum labe immunem.

Vers. 3. *Sicut malus inter ligna silvarum, sic dilectus meus inter filios.* Nunc sponsa laudata a sponso vicem ei reddit et dicit qualis quoque ipse sit. *Sicut malus,* inquit, et reliqua. *Sicut malus* *509* pulchritudinem habet pomorum, et gratum odorem inter agrestia ligna silvarum: ita et *Mediator Dei et hominum homo Christus Jesus [n: (I Tim. II, 5)]* speciali refulget gratia inter filios, id est inter electos. Ipse enim Dei Filius per naturam est, reliqui electi per gratiam, potestate accepta ab unico Filio Dei, ut sint filii Dei. Hinc Joannes: *Vidimus gloriam ejus, gloriam quasi [1062D] Unigeniti a Patre [n: (Joan. I, 14)]*; non qualemcunque, sed *quasi Unigeniti a Patre.*

*Sub umbra illius, quam desiderabam, sedi:* quia in ejus protectione confido, et ab eo inter adversa gubernari spero. Umbra enim Christi protectio est Divinitatis, qua electos tuetur et defendit.

*Et fructus ejus dulcis gutturi meo,* id est Divinitatis contemplatio, qua me satiari confido; haec enim est sanctorum exspectatio, hoc praemium et satietas, visio conditoris sui. Desiderat ergo umbram conditoris sui Ecclesia: quia protectionem illius exoptat inter praesentis vitae adversa. *Fructus illius dulcis gutturi meo* est, quia exspecto perfrui specie visionis illius, et satiari dulcedine charitatis illius.

Vers. 4. *Introduxit me rex in cellam vinariam, ordinavit in me charitatem.* Cella vinaria est Ecclesia, in qua est vinum evangelicae doctrinae. In hanc ergo *cellam* amica sponsi introducitur, quando ex omnibus gentibus in unam Ecclesiam fideles adunantur. *Ordinavit,* [1063A] inquit, *in me charitatem.* Inter omnes virtute primatum tenet charitas, qua ipsa subsistit Ecclesia. Charitas ergo in Ecclesia ordinatur: quia non temere, nec confuse, sed ordinate tenenda est Dei et hominis dilectio. Deus enim diligendus est super omnia toto corde, tota anima, totis viribus, omni mente. Proximus diligendus est denique sicut se unusquisque diligit [n: (Deut. VI, 5; Matth. XXII, 39; Marc. XII, 30, 31; Luc. X, 27)]. Nam confundere vult charitatem qui proximi charitatem Dei dilectioni praeponit: de quibus Dominus in Evangelio: *Qui amat patrem aut matrem plus quam me, non est me dignus [n: (Matth. X, 37)]*. Vel etiam *ordinavit in me charitatem,* id est, ipse prior me dilexit. Deinde qualiter eum diligere deberem, docuit, unde ipse dicit: *Non vos me elegistis, sed ego elegi vos [n: (Joan. XV, 16)]*. Et Joannes dicit: *Diligamus Deum, quoniam ipse prior dilexit nos [n: (Joan., IV, 19)]*.

Vers. 5. *Fulcite me floribus, stipate me malis, quia amore langueo.* Postquam Ecclesia vel anima Deo [1063B] dilecta in se charitatem ordinatam dixit, qualiter velit requiescere, vel in quo lecto cum dilecto sponso suo pausare, ostendit dicens: *Fulcite me floribus,* et reliqua. Alloquitur animas jam perfecte divino amori inhaerentes. Per *flores* initia sanctae conversationis intelliguntur: Per *mala* vero, perfecta bonorum operum exempla; et est sensus: O sanctae animae, quae dilectioni conditoris vestri inhaeretis, *fulcite me* bonorum operum exemplis, et qualiter in exordio virtutum, vel in provectu, vel in perfectione bonorum operum vixeritis, ostendite, *quia amore langueo.* Tunc enim anima Dei amore languet, quando ejus dilectioni nihil praeponit; imo quasi ad saecularia opera languida et imbecillis efficitur, nihilque eam delectat, nisi meditatio coelestium, et contemplatio conditoris sui.

Vers. 6. *Laeva ejus sub capite meo, et dextera illius amplexabitur me.* Cum (inquit) in tali lecto jacuero, *Laeva ejus,* id est sponsi, erit *sub capite meo.* Per [1063C] *laevam* praesentis temporis prosperitas, vel etiam dona Dei intelliguntur, quae sanctis in praesenti vita conferuntur. Per *dexteram* vero coelestis patriae beatitudo accipitur. *Laeva* Dei est pignus Spiritus sancti, Scripturarum divinarum intellectus, et caetera talia dona ac charismata, quibus sancta Ecclesia in praesenti consolatur. *Caput,* principale mentis accipitur. *Laeva* ergo sponsi *sub capite* sponsae est, quia haec omnia dona ad hoc percipit Ecclesia, ut per haec discat suspirare ad aeterna. Dextra vero sponsi eam amplexatur: quia tota intentio Ecclesiae vel animae fidelis haec est, ut ad aeternam beatitudinem quandoque perveniat, et specie sui conditoris gaudeat. Et bene prius *laeva sub capite* sponsae, post sponsi *dextra* eam *amplectitur;* quia nemo ad amplexus aeternae beatitudinis poterit pervenire, nisi hic mysteriorum coelestium et donorum divinorum studeat esse particeps.

Vers. 7. *Adjuro vos, filiae Jerusalem, per capreas cervosque camporum, ne suscitetis, neque evigilare faciatis dilectam, donec ipsa velit.* Vox sponsi adjurantis [1063D] filias Jerusalem, id est amicas aeternis desideriis intentas, et visionem pacis requirentes, ne quiescentem sponsam suscitent et inquietent. *Adjuro vos* et reliqua, ut *dilectam,* hoc est animam divinae contemplationi deditam, orationibus vel lectionibus divinis occupatam inquietare, et ad exteriora opera *suscitare* ne velitis, *donec ipsa velit,* hoc est, donec expleto contemplationis tempore, admonente corporis fragilitate, ipsa velit suscitari a somno aeternae quietis, et ad temporalia agenda procedere. Videamus autem per quid *adjuret filias Jerusalem, per capreas* videlicet *cervosque camporum.* Capreae et cervi munda animalia sunt, serpentibus et venenis inimica. Significant virtutes sanctorum, quae munditia spirituali refulgent, et venena fraudis diabolicae non solum cavent, sed etiam insectantur, et ad nihilum redigunt. Et est sensus: *Adjuro vos, filiae Jerusalem* per virtutes vestras, quas divina gratia vobis collatas [1064A] gaudetis; ut animam contemplationi meae deditam non inquietetis, donec contemplationis hora finita, ipsa aliud quid agere velit.

Vers. 8. *Vox dilecti mei.* Vox Ecclesiae. *Vox dilecti mei,* subaudis, haec est. Laetabunda enim Ecclesia quod tantum diligatur a sponso, ut etiam filias Jerusalem pro illa adjuret, ut non eam requiescentem inquietent, dicit: haec est *vox dilecti mei* pro me loquentis. Quem desiderans videre dilectum, sed non valens, adnectit:

*Ecce iste venit saliens in montibus, transiliens colles.* Montes et colles intelliguntur perfecti quique sancti, conversationis sublimitate a terrenis sublevati, et quasi camporum planitiem melioris vitae meritis excedentes. De his montibus Isaias dicit: *Erit mons domus Domini praeparatus in vertice montium, et elevabitur super colles [n: (Isai. II, 2)]*. Loquitur ergo sponsa de dilecto suo: *Ecce iste venit saliens in montibus, et transiliens colles,* hoc est, etiam secundum humanitatem omnem sanctorum excellentiam, omnem contemplationis [1064B] divinae puritatem excedens, nec stare in montibus, sed transilire dicitur: quia etsi ad horam per internam inspirationem cor sanctorum visitat, subito tamen recedit, ut eos in sui *510* dilectionem accendat. Potest etiam hoc ad incarnationem Christi referri, qui veniens quosdam saltus dedit: quia de coelo venit in uterum Virginis, de utero Virginis in praesepe, de praesepi in baptismum, de baptismo in crucem, de cruce ad sepulcrum, de sepulcro ad coelum; hinc Psalmista: *Exsultavit ut gigas ad currendam viam [n: (Psal. XVIII, 6)]*, et reliqua.

Vers. 9. *Similis est dilectus meus capreae hinnuloque cervorum. Capreae* et *cervi,* quamvis in sua natura multa habeant quae allegoricis sensibus conveniant, hoc habent tamen singulare, quod in planioribus non morantur, sed in arduis et excelsis locis quosdam saltus dare solent. Recte ergo his assimilatur Christus propter subtilem contemplationem; et quia a nullo intellectu divinitatis ejus majestas comprehendi [1064C] potest. Non autem cervis, sed capreis assimilatur, minoribus videlicet animantibus propter humilitatem incarnationis suae: quia non solum homo fieri, sed humilis homo fieri dignatus est. *Hinnulo* autem *cervorum* similis dicitur: quia secundum humanitatem de cervis, hoc est de patriarchis duxit originem; vel etiam propter varietatem virtutum et innocentiam hinnulo cervorum comparatur.

## CAPUT II. (cont.)

*En ipse stat post parietem nostrum. Paries,* mortalis nostra conditio appellatur: quia quodammodo inter nos et Deum quasi crassus quidam paries constitutus, non permittit nos ejus contemplatione perfrui; namque primus homo ita conditus est, ut visione et alloquio Dei frueretur [n: (Gen. I, 26)]: sed postquam peccavit [n: (Gen. III, 6)], appositus est quidam paries, ipsa videlicet mortalitas, qua praegravamur. Nam (ut Sapiens dicit) *Corpus quod corrumpitur aggravat animam, et deprimit terrena inhabitatio sensum multa cogitantem [n: (Sap. IX, 15)]*. Sponsum ergo suum, quem superius capreis vel hinnulis cervorum comparavit, [1064D] nunc dicit post suum parietem stare: quia Christus aliquando vicinus fit cum se, quantum humana mens capere potest, contemplari permittit: aliquando vero elongatur, et quasi caprea vel cervus quibusdam saltibus effugit. Quia ergo paries oppositus erat inter nos et ipsum, nec videre illum poteramus, dignatus est in ipso pariete facere fenestras et cancellos, per quos utcunque sentiri, utcunque perspici possit, Unde et sequitur.

*Respiciens per fenestras, prospiciens per cancellos.* Quasi enim fenestrae et cancelli in pariete fiunt, cum ipse sua gratia se contemplari permittit, licet in speculo et aenigmate. Potest et hoc quod dicit: *Ipse stat post parietem nostrum,* ad humanitatem ejus referri; quasi enim *post parietem nostrum stetit,* cum carnem nostram sibi apposuit, in qua divinitas ejus latuit. Quod vero sequitur, *Respiciens per fenestras, prospiciens per cancellos,* hoc ad divinitatem ejus refertur. [1065A] Ille enim qui per fenestras vel cancellos intuetur, cuncta quae foris aguntur videt, et ipse a nemine videtur; ita Deus, cum omnia videat, ipse investigari et comprehendi non potest.

Vers. 10. *En dilectus meus loquitur mihi,* ad praedicandum hortatur me, dicens: *Surge, propera, amica mea, columba mea, formosa mea, et veni.* Vox sponsi ad publicae operationis studia provocantis. *Surge, propera, amica mea,* per fidem et dilectionem; *columba mea,* per innocentiam et simplicitatem; *formosa,* per virtutum pulchritudinem festina et veni. Ac si diceret: *Surge* de strato tuo illo dulcissimo, hoc est de quiete, in qua soli mihi placere in psalmis, hymnis et orationibus desideras, festina et veni, id est, festina ad utilitatem proximorum; ut illos quoque praedicationis officio, et bonorum operum exemplo tui imitatores facias, et ad salutem tecum perducas. Et notandum quod superius filias Jerusalem adjurabat, ne excitarent neque evigilare facerent dilectam: hic vero ipse eam suscitat et surgere [1065B] ad laborem hortatur; quia omnia tempus habent, et omnium rerum tempus est sub coelo, tempus contemplationis, tempus etiam actionis. Alio enim tempore debent sancti praedicatores divinae contemplationi insistere, et mentem suam coelesti quiete oblectare: alio vero tempore per charitatem debent curam proximorum agere, et eis bonorum operum exempla praebere, ac divinae contemplationis doctrinam impendere.

Vers. 11. *Jam enim hiems transiit, imber abiit, et recessit.* Hiemis et imbris nomine asperitas infidelitatis exprimitur, quae totum mundum tenebat usque ad adventum Christi: Dicit ergo sponsus: *Surge, amica mea, et veni,* quia *hiems transiit* Sole justitiae apparente; et *imber* infidelitatis *recessit,* ac serenitas verae fidei in mundo resplenduit. Tale est quod Apostolus ait: *Nox praecessit, dies autem appropinquavit [n: (Rom. XIII, 12)]*.

Vers. 12. *Flores apparuerunt in terra nostra, tempus [1065C] putationis advenit.* Finita hieme et imbre, flores in terra apparuerunt, decor videlicet virtutum et pudicitiae; et transeunte asperitate infidelitatis, verna fidei successit temperies, *tempus putationis venit,* hoc est purgationis sanctorum. Putatio enim vinearum sanctorum significat purgationem, quae in Christo et per Christum est; de qua ipse: *Ego sum vitis, vos palmites [n: (Joan. XV, 5)]*.

*Vox turturis audita est in terra nostra.* Hoc est, vox praedicantium apostolorum. Turtur enim avis est castissima; et quoniam in excelsis semper arboribus morari solet et nidificare, apostolos vel caeteros doctores significat, qui possunt dicere: *Nostra conversatio in coelis est [n: (Philip. III, 20)]*. Quod etiam gemitum pro cantu habet, sanctorum ploratum significat, qui suos ad fletum et lamenta hortantur, dicentes: *Miseri estote, et lugete, risus vester in luctum convertatur [n: (Jac. IV, 9)]*. *Vox turturis audita est in terra nostra,* id est vox praedicantium apostolorum; *in terra nostra,* hoc est in Ecclesia, de qua Psalmista, *Domini est [1065D] terra et plenitudo ejus [n: (Psal. XXIII, 1)]*.

Vers. 13. *Ficus protulit grossos suos. Ficus* Synagogam significat; *grossi* autem dicuntur primitivae et immaturae ficus, inhabiles ad edendum, qui ad pulsum venti facile cadunt. Voce autem turturis insonante *ficus protulit grossos suos:* quia apostolis praedicantibus emerserunt multi de Synagoga Judaeorum, qui et in Christum crederent, et tamen legem carnaliter observare vellent, magisque auctoritate legis delectarentur quam dulcedine Evangelii: volentes circumcisionem, sabbatum, et alia legis praecepta juxta litteram observare; de quibus Apostolus dicit: *Aemulantur vos non bene; sed volunt vos circumcidi, ut in carne vestra glorientur [n: (Galat. VI, 13)]*.

*Vineae florentes dederunt odorem.* Postquam vox turturis audita est, postquam ficus protulit *511* *grossos suos, vineae florentes dederunt odorem:* quia multitudo Ecclesiarum per latitudinem orbis diffusa est, [1066A] quae flores virtutum et odorem bonae operationis late de se spargerent.

*Surge, propera, amica mea, speciosa mea, et veni.* Noli (inquit), sponsa mea, quam mihi per fidem et dilectionem amicam feci, otioso torpore lentescere; sed *surge et veni,* et exempla virtutum foris proximis ostende.

Vers. 14. *Columba mea in foraminibus petrae.* Si petra est Christus, juxta quod Apostolus ait: *Petra autem erat Christus [n: (I Cor. X, 4)]*; foramina petrae sunt vulnera quae pro salute nostra in cruce suscepit, fixurae videlicet clavorum et lanceae percussura [n: (Joan. XIX)]. In his ergo foraminibus columba, id est Ecclesia moratur: quia totam spem salutis suae in passione sui Redemptoris constituit. Ibi ab insidiis malignorum spirituum quasi a raptu accipitris secura delitescit; ibi nidificat, il est fetus bonorum operum congerit.

*In caverna maceriae. Maceriae* ex siccis lapidibus ad munimenta vinearum solent fieri, ad repellendas [1066B] vulpes vel caeteras nocivas bestiolas. Per maceriam ergo significatur coelestium custodia virtutum, angelicum videlicet praesidium; sicut Isaias de Domini vinea ait: *Et maceriam circumdedit, et circumfodit vineam [n: (Isai. V, 2)]*. In caverna ergo maceriae moratur, quia praesidio angelorum undique circumdatur, et a tentationibus diaboli custoditur.

*Ostende mihi faciem tuam, sonet vox tua in auribus meis: quia vox tua dulcis, et facies tua decora.* Tu (inquit) dilecta mea quae in lecto contemplationis dulcissime quiescis, veni et *ostende mihi faciem tuam,* id est, a secreto quietis egredere ad publicam actionem, et pulchritudinem bonorum operum tuorum aliis ad exemplum demonstra. *Ostende mihi,* dicit; quasi enim Deo faciem suam ostendit Ecclesia, cum proximis ad utilitatem et profectum per virtutum opera, quantam intrinsecus habeat pulchritudinem, demonstrat. Hoc est quod Dominus dicit in Evangelio: *Videant opera vestra bona, et glorificent Patrem [1066C] vestrum, qui in coelis est [n: (Matth. V, 16)]*. *Sonet vox tua in auribus meis.* Vox videlicet praedicationis, vel divinae laudis, qua alios facias proficere. *In auribus* enim Domini vox Ecclesiae sonat, cum per praedicationem ex multorum conversione delectatur Deus. Bene autem dicit: *Ostende mihi faciem tuam,* et *sonet vox tua,* non aliena; *Tuam* videlicet *faciem mihi ostende,* quam in baptismo tibi dedi, quando mundavi te ab omni peccato. *Vox tua,* dicit, *in auribus meis sonet;* ut ex sincera intentione dilectionis meae procedat; ut non propter aliud praedices, nisi propter me.

Vers. 15. *Capite nobis vulpes parvulas quae demoliuntur vineas, nam vinea nostra floruit.* Vox sponsi praecipientis sponsae suae et filiabus Jerusalem, sanctis videlicet doctoribus, vel animabus fidelibus. *Capite* (inquit) *nobis vulpes parvulas. Vulpes* est dolosum animal et fraudulentum, in cavernis et specubus habitans, nec recto, sed tortuoso incedens itinere; ideoque designat haereticos, vel schismaticos, qui [1066D] demoliuntur vineas, hoc est Ecclesiam Dei, plebem videlicet fidelium lacerare et decipere non cessant. Praecipit ergo ut *parvulas vulpes capiant,* id est, ut haereticam pravitatem in ipso initio debellare et destruere non cessent, ne robusta facta fortius impugnet. *Nam vinea nostra floruit,* id est, Ecclesia per universum mundum flores virtutum emisit. Et nota quod cum superius vineas pluraliter dixerit, modo dicit singulariter, *vinea nostra floruit:* quia ex multis Ecclesiis una est electa Ecclesia.

Vers. 16. *Dilectus meus mihi, et ego illi, qui pascitur inter lilia donec aspiret dies, et inclinentur umbrae.* Vox sponsae. *Dilectus meus mihi,* subaudi, societur vinculo charitatis et amoris, *et ego illi* conjungar, et consentiam vicissitudine mutuae dilectionis. Vel *Dilectus meus,* subaudi, det verba exhortationis et divinae promissionis; *et ego,* subaudi, ostendam illi faciem meam. Vel etiam, *Dilectus meus* dignetur [1067A] mihi conjungi glutino charitatis, *et ego illi* conjungar vinculo dignae obedientiae, obtemperans praeceptis ejus. *Qui pascitur inter lilia,* hoc est, delectatur et jucundatur inter candidas et odoriferas virtutes sanctorum. Et notandum quod superius lilium singulariter dicitur; hic vero pluraliter *lilia,* quia multae sunt virtutes sanctorum, una tantum fides est, et una charitas, quibus praecipue Deus delectatur. Sive etiam *pascitur inter lilia,* hoc est, suavissime delectatur inter virgineos choros. Candor enim liliorum recte munditiae virginali comparatur. *Donec aspiret dies,* hoc est, donec transeant nubila praesentis vitae, et appareat dies, hoc est, veniat claritas sempiternae beatitudinis. Et est sensus: *Dilectus meus mihi* praestat auxilium, *et ego illi* dignam praebeo obedientiam, qui virtutibus sanctorum delectatur, quousque transcursa nocte praesentis vitae, in qua per speculum et in aenigmate cernitur, appareat dies supernae claritatis, ut facie ad faciem videatur [n: (I Cor. XIII, 12)].

## CAPUT II. (cont.)

Vers. 17. *Revertere; similis esto, dilecte mi, capreae [1067B] aut hinnulo cervorum super montes Bethel.* Vox Ecclesiae sponsi sui speciem desiderantis. O dilecte mi, qui de lecto quietis me surgere praecipis, et ut tibi faciem meam ostendam, hortaris, *revertere,* hoc est, claritatem divinitatis tuae me speculari permitte, et hoc quod mihi perfecte promittis in alia vita, beatitudinem videlicet et cognitionem tuam in hac adhuc peregrinatione me saltem in figura et aenigmate habere permitte. *Similis esto capreae aut hinnulo cervorum super montes Bethel.* Jam dictum est superius, quod *capreae* campos despiciunt, et ad alta montium enituntur. Christus ergo capreis comparatur, quia secundum carnem resurgens a mortuis, coelorum alta petiit. *Hinnulus* vero *cervorum* vocatur, hoc est filius antiquorum Patrum. Cervi enim sunt patriarchae et prophetae, de quibus Christus carnis duxit originem. Fertur *hinnulus* hanc habere naturam, ut fervente sole opaca et umbrosa loca requirat, in quibus ab aestu protegatur: sic et Christus in eorum [1067C] mentibus requiescit, qui rore Spiritus sancti ab aestibus carnalium voluptatum temperantur. Ac si diceret: *O dilecte mi, revertere,* hoc est, saepius me tua visitatione illustrando laetifica, qui per carnem quam assumpsisti, jam coelorum sublimia penetrasti. *Montes* autem *Bethel* mentes sanctorum significant, a terrenis per superna desideria elevatas. Nam *Bethel* domus consurgens, vel domus vigiliarum interpretatur, et vigiles mentes sanctorum significat, quae ad desideranda *512* superna consurgunt, et ad ea percipienda invigilant: habentes in se Deum inhabitatorem, qui dicit per prophetam: *Inhabitabo in illis et inambulabo [n: (Levit. XXVI, 12)]*. Super hos ergo *montes Bethel dilectus similis est capreae* vel *hinnulo cervorum:* quia illas visitare dignatur quae domus Dei esse student.

## CAPUT III.

Vers. 1. *In lectulo meo per noctes quaesivi quem diligit anima mea; quaesivi illum et non inveni.* Vox [1067D] est Ecclesiae de gentibus congregatae. *In lectulo* (inquit) *meo,* hoc est, cum adhuc in desideriis carnalibus requiescerem, et cum adhuc infidelitatis et ignorantiae tenebris posita essem, *quaesivi quem diligit anima mea.* Multi enim philosophorum Deum ignorantes, studio tamen summo illum requirebant, per creaturam Creatorem cognoscere volentes, sicut Plato, qui in Timaeo multa de anima disputavit, et sicut Aristoteles, Socrates et caeteri, qui omne vitae suae tempus in studiis causa exquirendae veritatis expendebant. *Quaesivi illum, et non inveni;* non enim per mundanam sapientiam Deus cognosci potuit.

Vers. 2. *Surgam, et circuibo civitatem: per vicos et plateas quaeram quem diligit anima mea: quaesivi illum, et non inveni.* Exsurgam (inquit) de strato corporis et carnalis delectationis, et circuibo civitatem hujus mundi, maria ac terras peragrando. *Per vicos et plateas quaeram quem diligit anima mea,* hoc [1068A] est, per lata itinera gradientes hujus saeculi, et suis voluptatibus deditos aspiciam, si forte dilecti mei vestigia inveniam. Hoc cum causa exempli de multis dici possit, praecipue tamen in illo Eunucho impletum est, qui a finibus terrae venit Deum coeli Jerosolymis adorare, quem Philippus invenit, eique Christum in prophetia Isaiae ostendit [n: (Act. VIII, 27)]. Hoc quoque in Cornelio adimpletum est, qui adhuc paganus et ignorans Deum, eleemosynas faciebat, et orationibus vacabat, quem Petrus cum omni domo sua baptizavit [n: (Ibid. X, 22)]. Itera autem difficultatem inventionis, et dicit: *quaesivi, et non inveni.*

Vers. 3. *Invenerunt me vigiles qui custodiunt civitatem.* Vigiles sunt sancti apostoli et caeteri doctores Ecclesiae, qui civitatem, id est sanctam Ecclesiam custodiunt, et ab insidiis infidelium et spiritualium hostium defendunt, quos interrogat.

*Num quem diligit anima mea vidistis?* Quasi vigiles Ecclesia interrogat, cum intenta aure eorum praedicationem [1068B] percipit.

Vers. 4. *Paululum cum pertransissem eos, inveni quem diligit anima mea.* Pertransire vigiles, est eorum dicta et doctrinam diligenter perscrutari. Solemus namque dicere: Transcurri librum legens, vel pertransivi. *Cum* (inquit) *pertransissem eos, inveni quem diligit anima mea:* quia cum sollicita meditatione dicta vel scripta sanctorum requirimus, statim dilectum invenimus: quia Deum in eorum dogmatibus reperimus. Potest et sic intelligi: *Cum pertransissem eos, inveni quem diligit anima mea;* hoc est, cum intellexissem Christum omnem sublimitatem et gratiam superare, tunc inveni quem diligit anima mea, hoc est, tunc vere intellexi quantum ipse a caeterorum sanctorum meritis distet.

*Tenui eum, nec dimittam donec introducam illum in domum matris meae et in cubiculum genitricis meae.* Hoc est, ardentissima fide ac devotione illi inhaesi; *nec dimittam eum,* sed in ejus amore et fide perseverabo, [1068C] *donec introducam eum in domum matris meae et in cubiculum genitricis meae;* hoc est, donec illum Synagogae, quae est mater mea spiritualiter, praedicem, et eam quoque ad ejus fidem perducam. Hoc fiet in fine mundi, quando (ut ait Apostolus) *plenitudo gentium, introierit, tunc omnis Israel salvus fiet [n: (Rom. XI, 25, 26)]*. Tantum ergo sibi de charitate sponsi sui Ecclesia promittit, ut etiam se credat Synagogam posse convertere. Quod autem dicit, *donec introducam illum,* non est putandum quod tunc relictura sit illum, cum in cubiculum matris introduxerit; sed, *donec* pro sempiterno, id est, semper illi inhaerebo, semper in ejus fide et dilectione perseverabo. Tale est in psalmo: *Ita oculi nostri ad Dominum Deum nostrum, donec misereatur nostri [n: (Psal. CXXII, 3)]*. Nunquid postquam nostri misertus fuerit, non erunt oculi nostri ad eum? Utique erunt.

Vers. 5. *Adjuro vos, filiae Jerusalem, per capreas cervosque camporum, ne suscitetis neque evigilare faciatis dilectam, quoadusque ipsa velit.* Bis repetitur [1068D] iste versiculus; nam jam superius positus est: sed supra ad Ecclesiam primitivam de Judaeis collectam pertinet; hic vero ad Ecclesiam de gentibus congregatam et amoris vinculo Christo arctius copulatam. Una enim eademque cura est Deo de sanctis, qui vel in circumcisione, vel etiam tempore baptismatis coruscante gratia Evangelii, illi placuerunt. Quia vero iste versiculus superius expositus est, jam videndum est quare veluti dormientem inducat Ecclesiam, unde et adjurat filias Jerusalem ne eam excitent, cum paulo superius non dormientem vel quiescentem, sed studio laboriosissimae inquisitionis insistentem, qua sponsum inquirebat introducat. Si ergo requirebat sponsum, quomodo requiescebat? sed dulcissimus et suavissimus somnus est Christum quaerere. Dormit ergo Ecclesia, et Christum quaerit; dormit videlicet a desideriis terrenis et ab actibus saeculi: vigilat autem et requirit sponsum, quia ejus [1069A] contemplationi inhaeret, eum solum desiderat, ad illum pervenire contendit. Adjurat ergo sponsus filias Jerusalem, animas videlicet desideriis supernae patriae inhaerentes, ne illam excitent ab hoc somno suavissimae quietis et contemplationis, *donec ipsa velit.* Somnus autem merito amor appellatur: quia sicut dormiens a visibilibus oculos claudit, et invisibilia contemplatur: ita is qui divinae contemplationi insistit, quasi alienus exterioribus dormit, et sola spiritualia et coelestia videt. Nec mirum si amor somnus vocetur, cum in sequentibus mors amor appelletur: *Fortis est ut mors dilectio.* Cum autem dicit, *donec ipsa velit,* ostendit Ecclesiam de gentibus voluntarie se praeparaturam ad labores et persecutiones pro Christo perferendas.

Vers. 6. *Quae est ista quae ascendit per desertum sicut virgula fumi ex aromatibus myrrhae, et thuris, et universi pulveris pigmentarii?* Vox filiarum Jerusalem, id est sanctorum primitivae Ecclesiae, admirantium pulchritudinem Ecclesiae de gentibus congregatae. [1069B] *Quae est* (inquiunt) *ista? Quae,* *513* id est qualis. Quanta laude et admiratione digna, quae circumcisione mundata, nec adhuc baptismo sanctificata jam currit ad Deum? *Ascendit* (inquit) *per desertum;* hoc dicitur ad imitationem priscae plebis Judaicae, quae liberata de Aegyptia servitute, *per desertum,* mari Rubro transito, venit ad terram repromissionis: sic et Ecclesia *per desertum* nationum ascendebat jam de Aegypto, hoc est, de confusione idololatriae liberata, et Pharaone, id est diabolo submerso, ut coelesti manna pasceretur, et veram terram repromissionis ingrederetur. Ascendit (inquit) ad montes virtutum, vel etiam ad ipsum coelum virtutibus sublevata; quae in psalmo dicit: *Levavi oculos meos in montes [n: (Psal. CXX, 1)]*, etc.; et alibi: *Ad te levavi oculos meos, qui habitas in coelis [n: (Psal. CXXII, 1)]*. Montes isti sunt patriarchae, prophetae, apostoli et caeteri sancti Dei, qui merito virtutum appellantur montes. Primo enim ad montes, id est ad sanctos [1069C] sublevat oculos Ecclesia, vel anima fidelis quae istorum doctrinam actusque considerat, illorum exemplo et intercessione muniri gaudet. Postea proficiens ad ipsum quoque qui fecit montes, audet cordis aspectum dirigere, et dicit: *Ad te levavi oculos meos, qui habitas in coelis;* id est, gratanter requiescis in sanctis. *Sicut* (inquit) *virgula fumi ex aromatibus myrrhae et thuris.* Fumus ex igne nascitur, et mox altiora aeris expetit, donec aspectibus intuentium subtrahatur. Fumus igitur significat sanctum desiderium igne divini amoris perfusum; nec absolute fumo comparantur, sed *virgulae fumi:* quia sancta Ecclesia vel anima Deum amans, gracilis est et delicata, disciplinis Spiritus sancti attenuata, non habens grossitudinem carnalium desideriorum. Sive *virgulae fumi,* non sparso fumo comparantur propter unitatem Ecclesiae, quae in Christo unum est. Unde vero esset ille fumus ostendit, cum subdit, *Myrrhae et thuris et universi pulveris pigmentarii. Myrrha* condiuntur mortuorum corpora; *thus* vero adoletur in sacrificio Dei; ideoque [1069D] per myrrham carnis mortificatio designatur: per thus munditia orationum exprimitur. *Virgulae* ergo *fumi myrrhae et thuris* Ecclesia assimilatur: quia sancti mortificatione carnis suae et orationibus mundo et simplici corde profusis, Deo placere student. *Et unversi* (inquit) *pulveris pigmentarii,* id est congerie omnium virtutum. Non enim integra fuisse aromata, sed in pulverem redacta dicuntur: quia sanctorum actiones magna discretione considerandae sunt, et tanquam cribro subtilissimae considerationis eventilandae, ne quid forte in illis durum aut inconveniens existat: ne saltem per ipsas virtutes adversarius milleformis subrepat, qui callidus per bona etiam consuevit nocere.

Vers. 7. *En lectulum Salomonis sexaginta fortes ambiunt ex fortissimis Israel, omnes tenentes gladios, et ad bella doctissimi.* Quo haec dilecta et mirabilis ascenderit, ostenditur cum subditur, *En lectulum Salomonis,* [1070A] et reliqua. *Lectus Salomonis* quamvis superna illius supernae beatitudinis requies accipi possit, in qua Deus cum suis sanctis requiescit, probabilius tamen praesens accipitur Ecclesia, in qua sancti Dei sopitis tumultibus vitiorum, amplexu Salomonis, id est viri pacifici delectantur. Unde et Psalmista de Christo dicit: *Factus est in pace locus ejus, et habitatio ejus in Sion [n: (Psal. LXXV, 3)]*. *Lectulum* ergo *Salomonis,* id est Ecclesiam, *sexaginta fortes ambiunt ex fortissimis Israel.* Per sexaginta fortes ordo doctorum intelligitur, qui vel praedicando Ecclesiam muniunt, vel contemplando ad illam supernam beatitudinem pervenire desiderant. Sexagenarius autem numerus ex senario et denario constat; sexies enim deni, vel decies seni, sexaginta fiunt. Senarius vero perfectionem significat operis: quia sex diebus perfecit Deus opera sua: denarius vero remunerationem et praemium quod in fine electis dabitur; unde et hi qui in vineam venerunt, denarium leguntur accepisse [n: (Matth. XX, 10)]. *Sexaginta* ergo *fortes* significant (ut dictum est) sanctos [1070B] doctores, fortes et animo constantes. Additur vero *ex fortissimis Israel,* omnes in Christum credentes, et Christum diligentes, Israel, id est vir videns Deum, appellantur. *Fortissimi* vero *Israel* sunt, qui Ecclesiam tueri praedicando, et ab incursibus daemonum, vel impugnatione haereticorum defendere noverunt. Hi enim *ambiunt lectulum Salomonis:* quia illis commissa est Ecclesia, et ab illis vigilanti cura est custodienda. *Omnes tenentes gladios, et ad bella doctissimi. Tenent* enim *gladium* spiritualem, verbum Dei, de quo Apostolus: *Et galeam* (inquit) *salutis assumite, et gladium spiritus, quod est verbum Dei [n: (Ephes. VI, 17)]*. *Ad bella* vero *sunt doctissimi:* quia necesse est ut spiritualis praelii arte instructi sint, qui *adversus mundi principatus et potestates, adversus mundi rectores tenebrarum harum, contra spiritualia nequitiae in coelestibus* bella gerunt [n: (Ibid., 12)]. Versutissimus enim iste est hostis, et tam subtilitate spiritualis naturae, quam etiam temporis longaevitate doctissimus, [1070C] contra quem sancti bella suscipiunt.

## CAPUT III. (cont.)

Vers. 8. *Uniuscujusque ensis super femur suum propter timores nocturnos.* Per femur propagatio sobolis accipitur; super femur ergo enses habent, qui timore Dei omnes comprimunt et coercent motus carnalis voluptatis. Et hoc propter timores nocturnos, id est propter occultas insidias maligni hostis, qui in nocte hujus saeculi sanctis maxime, qui in Ecclesia praeeminent, insidiatur; ut illis deceptis, lectulum Salomonis, id est requiem sanctorum foedare possit. Et notandum quod superius tenere gladios dicuntur: hic vero *super femur enses* habere. Gladios enim tenent, ut adversariis resistant, ut eos superent, et ut haereticos et omnes sanae fidei contradicentes confodiant. Super femur ergo enses habent, ut suimet curam gerant, ut fluxus carnalium voluptatum reprimant: ne aliis praedicantes, ipsi reprobi efficiantur [n: (I Cor. IX, 27)].

Vers 9. *Ferculum fecit sibi rex Salomon de lignis [1070D] Libani.* Quod superius per lectulum Salomonis, sic nunc designatur per *ferculum,* sancta videlicet Ecclesia, in qua velut in lecto requiescunt sancti Dei, et velut in lecto discumbunt ad epulas aeternae beatitudinis et satietatis. *De lignis Libani fecit Salomon ferculum.* Libanus mons est Phoenicis, cujus arbores et proceritate et pulchritudine et durabilitate cunctis praeeminent, ideoque significant sanctos virtutum specie fulgentes, et ad aeterna festinantes. *Libanus* enim candidatus, vel candidatio interpretatur, vel dealbatio. *Ligna* ergo *Libani* sunt sancti candidati, vel dealbati in baptismo, et exornati omnium virtutum pulchritudine.

Vers. 10. *Columnas ejus fecit argenteas.* Per columnas *514* doctores ejusdem Ecclesiae significantur, qui eam verbo et exemplo sustinent et roborant; unde et in Actibus apostolorum dicitur: *Jacobus et Joannes et Cephas, qui videbantur columnae esse (Gal. [1071A] II, 9)*. Hae *columnae* sunt *argenteae,* quia nitore coelestis eloquii refulgent; *Eloquia* enim *Domini eloquia casta [n: (Psal. XI, 7)]*, et reliqua.

*Reclinatorium aureum, ascensum purpureum.* Per *reclinatorium aureum* requies aeterna accipitur, quae sanctis in Ecclesia repromittitur; ad quam tamen *ascensus* est *purpureus. Purpureus ascensus* est passio Christi: quia purpura colorem sanguinis imitatur. Ascensu ergo purpureo ad reclinatorium pervenitur: quia illi ad aeternarum epularum discubitum, et ad supernae quietis requiem veniunt, qui in praesenti passionem Redemptoris digne venerari et imitari satagunt. Quia nisi quis actiones ac vitam Christi imitatus fuerit, ad aeternam requiem pervenire non poterit.

*Media charitate constravit propter filias Jerusalem.* Media charitate constravit: quia omnibus fidelibus suam charitatem Christus commendavit patiendo pro nobis, et requiem nobis praeparando, juxta quod Apostolus, dicit: *Commendat autem Deus suam charitatem in nobis: quoniam cum adhuc peccatores essemus, [1071B] pro nobis Filium suum in mortem tradidit [n: (Rom. V, 8)]*. Aliter, per columnas argenteas apostoli et apostolici viri designantur; per reclinatorium aureum doctorum ordo, qui cum ineffabilia aeternae vitae gaudia promittunt, utique nos suaviter requiescere faciunt. Et hoc reclinatorium bene aureum dicitur: quia ineffabile est illud praemium, quod sancti exspectant. In rebus enim caducis nihil pretiosius est auro. Per ascensum vero purpureum ordo signatur martyrum, qui passionem Christi imitati, pro illo suum sanguinem fuderunt. Sed quid nos faciemus, dicit beatus Gregorius, qui nullius meriti sumus, non inter doctores, non inter martyres locum nos habere videmus? Sequitur, *media charitate constravit.* Habeamus ergo charitatem, qua media hujus ferculi constrata sunt, quae et idcirco latum mandatum vocatur, quia omnibus observatoribus suis aeternam salutem parat. Hanc efficaciter teneamus, et per hanc salvabimur, et hoc *propter filias Jerusalem,* hoc [1071C] est, propter animas simplices et nullius sibi virtutis conscias; quae quanto majoris fragilitatis sibi sunt consciae, tanto amplius Salvatorem et Redemptorem suum diligere satagunt.

Vers. 11. *Egredimini, et videte, filiae Sion, regem Salomonem in diademate quo coronavit eum mater sua in die desponsationis illius, et in die laetitiae cordis ejus.* Vox Ecclesiae invitantis animas fidelium ad intuendum quam mirabilis et speciosus sit sponsus ejus. *Filiae* namque *Sion* Ecclesiae sunt, quae et filiae sunt Jerusalem, sanctae videlicet animae, supernae illius civitatis cives, quae et perpetua cum angelis pace fruuntur, et per contemplationem gloriam Dei speculantur. *Egredimini,* inquit, *filiae Sion,* hoc est, exite de turbulenta hujus saeculi conversatione; ut mente expedita eum quem diligitis, contemplari possitis. *Et videte,* inquit, *regem Salomonem,* hoc est verum pacificum Christum, *in diademate quo coronavit eum mater sua.* Ac si diceret: Considerate Christum pro vobis carne indutum, quam carnem de carne Virginis [1071D] matris suae assumpsit. *Diadema* namque vocat carnem quam Christus assumpsit pro nobis, in qua mortuus destruxit imperium mortis, in qua etiam resurgens, resurgendi nobis spem contulit. De hoc diademate Apostolus ait: *Vidimus Jesum per passionem gloria et honore coronatum [n: (Hebr. II, 9)]*. *Mater* vero *sua eum coronasse* dicitur, quia Virgo Maria illi de sua carne carnis materiam praebuit. *In die desponsationis ejus,* hoc est in tempore incarnationis ejus, quando sibi *Ecclesiam* conjunxit, non habentem maculam aut rugam [n: (Ephes. V, 27)]; vel quando Deus homini conjunctus est. *Et in die laetitiae cordis ejus.* Laetitia enim et gaudium Christi, salus et redemptio humani generis est; juxta quod in Evangelio multos ad fidem suam cernens confluere. *In illa,* inquit evangelista, *hora exsultavit et dixit: Confiteor tibi, Pater coeli et terrae, quia abscondisti haec a sapientibus et prudentibus, et revelasti ea parvulis (Matth. XI, [1072A] 25)*. Et in evangelica parabola, inventa ove, convocavit amicos dicens: *Congratulamini mihi [n: (Luc. XV, 6)]*. Potest hoc et simpliciter totum ad passionem Christi referri juxta litteram. Praevidens enim Salomon in spiritu passionem Christi, longe ante praemonebat filiam Sion, id est plebem Israeliticam: *Egredimini,* inquiens, *et videte regem Salomonem,* id est Christum, *in diademate,* in spinea corona *qua coronavit eum mater sua* Synagoga, *in die desponsationis ejus,* quando videlicet sibi conjunxit Ecclesiam, et *in die laetitiae cordis ejus,* quo gaudebat per suam passionem redimi mundum de diaboli potestate. *Egredimini* ergo, hoc est, exite de tenebris infidelitatis, *et videte,* hoc est, mente intelligite: quia ille qui ut homo patitur, verus est Deus; vel etiam *egredimini* extra portam civitatis vestrae, ut eum in Golgotha monte crucifixum videatis.

## CAPUT IV.

Vers. 1. *Quam pulchra es, amica mea; quam pulchra [1072B] esset decora.* Vox Christi bis repetit, *quam pulchra es,* in opere videlicet et praedicatione, In opere, quia nihil foedum, nihil oculis meis indignum agis; in praedicatione, quia ad considerandum incarnationis meae mysterium etiam sodales tuas filias Jerusalem invitare non cessas.

*Oculi tui columbarum.* Per *oculos* intelligitur acumen sensuum spiritualium, quibus divina et sempiterna contemplatur Ecclesia. *Columbae* autem *oculi* Ecclesiae comparantur propter spiritualem gratiam: quia Spiritus sanctus in specie columbae apparuit [n: (Matth. III, 16)]. Sequitur autem.

*Absque eo, quod intrinsecus latet,* id est, absque supernae illius retributionis gloria, quam in fine saeculi es perceptura; quam etsi in praesenti per fidem contemplaris, latet tamen intrinsecus; nec enim in praesenti videri potest, sed in futuro perficietur.

*Capilli tui sicut greges caprarum, quae ascenderunt de monte Galaad.* Per capillos Ecclesiae, subtiles Ecclesiae cogitationes accipiuntur, quibus temporalia [1072C] plerumque disponuntur. Comparantur vero gregibus caprarum, quia haec animalia munda sunt, et in rupibus, sive in excelsis locis resupinata pascuntur: quia cogitationes sanctorum, etsi pro corporali necessitate in temporalibus fiunt, *515* tamen in internorum intentione non discedunt; et in ista etiam cura, quam necessitati corporeae impendunt, quasi coelum semper intuentur. Possumus etiam per *oculos* doctores Ecclesiae et praedicatores accipere, qui in corpore cui caput Christus est, summum locum tenent, et coelestia ac spiritualia prae caeteris membris vident. Per *capillos* vero innumerabilem multitudinem simplicium fidelium in laicali ordine constitutorum intelligimus: qui etsi minus vident spiritualia, sua tamen multitudine et numerositate magnum decus praestant Ecclesiae. Et bene *gregibus* comparantur *caprarum. Capra* peccatoribus convenit, per quam plebes fidelium actionibus saeculi deditae, quae sine peccato agi non possunt, intelliguntur. Bene autem [1072D] sequitur, *Quae ascenderunt de monte Galaad. Galaad* acervus testimonii interpretatur, juxta litteram quidem; ideo quia cum Jacob recederet de Mesopotamia, persecutus est eum Laban, et die tertia reperit eum, ibique in testimonium mutui foederis acervum lapidum erexerunt [n: (Gen. XXXI, 46)]. Mystice acervus testimonii Christus est, in quo multitudo consistit omnium sanctorum, qui sunt lapides vivi, adhaerentes illi vero lapidi, de quo Petrus dicit: *Ad quem accedentes lapidem vivum, et isti tanquam lapides vivi superaedificamini [n: (I Petr. II, 4)]*. Greges ergo caprarum de monte Galaad ascenderunt, quia sanctorum multitudines ad excelsa virtutum conscendunt, et Christi doctrinam ac praecepta in omnibus sequi satagunt.

Vers. 2. *Dentes tui sicut greges tonsarum ovium, quae ascenderunt de lavacro.* Sicut per *capillos* Ecclesiae innumerabilis multitudo simplicium fidelium intelligitur, [1073A] ita et per *dentes* Ecclesiae doctores intelliguntur. Dentibus enim cibos commolimus; et sancti doctores bene dentibus conformantur: quia spirituales cibos, quos simplices capere nequeunt, ipsi quodammodo exponendo comminuunt. Dens Ecclesiae praecipuus erat Petrus, cui dictum est in visione: *Surge, occide, et manduca [n: (Act. X, 13)]*; ac si diceretur, eos quos ad fidem convertis, *occide* ab eo quod sunt, id est, ut desinant esse peccatores; *et manduca,* hoc est transfer, vel transforma in corpus Ecclesiae. Bene autem hi dentes ovibus tonsis et lavacro lotis comparantur. Solent enim oves post tonsionem currenti aqua ablui, ne illotus sudor corpori adhaerescat et scabiem generet. Tonsi ergo sunt sancti doctores et magistri Ecclesiae, qui ex lavacro baptismi abluti, vellera, id est facultates et substantias suas pro Christo amiserunt. Omnibus quidem fidelibus convenit quod dicit: *Quae ascenderunt de lavacro*; nullus enim sine lavacro baptismi fidelis esse potest. Non autem [1073B] omnibus tonsio convenit: quia non omnes ita sunt perfecti, ut sua pro Christo valeant amittere: sed illis specialiter hoc congruit, qui secundum verbum Domini vendunt omnia sua, et dant pauperibus [n: (Matth. XIX, 21)], et nudi atque expediti sequuntur Christum. Tales ergo sunt *dentes* Ecclesiae sanctae, id est praedicatores et ministri ejus, oves per innocentiam abluti baptismo: voluntaria paupertate et rerum spollatione gaudentes. Sequitur.

*Omnes gemellis fetibus, et sterilis non est inter eas.* Quia gemina charitate et dilectione Dei et proximi praeeminent, et hanc observari docent: vel etiam quia fidem et operationem praedicant. *Et sterilis non est in eis;* nullus videlicet alienus est a bonis operibus.

Vers. 3. *Sicut vitta coccinea labia tua, et eloquium tuum dulce.* Per *labia* Ecclesiae, sancti praedicatores accipiuntur, qui et per dentes figurantur. Coccus autem sanguinis vel ignis habet speciem. *Labia* ergo Ecclesiae (id est sancti praedicatores) *vittae coccineae* [1073C] comparantur: quia passionem Christi assidue praedicant qui pro nostra redemptione sanguinem suum fudit. Sive *vittae coccineae* assimilantur, quia praedicatores ardent dilectione: diligentes eos quibus verba praedicationis impendunt, et etiam a quibus mala patiuntur. Ad hoc etiam pertinet quod Spiritus sanctus in linguis igneis apparuit [n: (Act. II, 3)], quia loquentes et ardentes fecit apostolos: ardentes dilectione, loquentes praedicatione. Et bene *vitta coccinea* dicitur; vitta enim capillos ligat et constringit, et sancti doctores sua praedicatione ad unitatem fidei et dilectionis multitudinem fidelium in Ecclesia nectunt, et in unum decorem redigunt. Possunt etiam per capillos, subtiles cogitationes mentis accipi. Vitta ergo coccinea crines ligamus, quando cogitationes nostras disciplina timoris Dei constringimus et coercemus. *Et eloquium tuum dulce.* Dulce est eloquium Ecclesiae, cum sancti doctores vel passionem sui Redemptoris ad memoriam reducunt, et praedicant [1073D] quantum Deus hominem dilexerit, vel etiam cum coelestia praemia auditoribus annuntiant.

*Sicut fragmen mali punici, ita genae tuae, absque eo quod intrinsecus latet.* Per *genas* superius diximus Ecclesiam figurari. Nam cum verecundamur, rubor sanguinis in genis effunditur. Malum autem punicum rubicundum habet corticem, interius vero multitudine granorum plenum est, unde et malum granatum vocatur. Per fragmen ergo mali punici, memoria ejusdem passionis dominicae accipitur, quae et in cocco superius figuratur. Solet enim una res diversis exprimi figuris. Genae ergo Ecclesiae fragmini mali punici comparantur, quia sancti doctores venerabiliter agunt memoriam passionis Redemptoris sui, nec erubescunt crucem ejus, imo gloriantur, dicentes cum Apostolo: *Mihi autem absit gloriari, nisi in cruce Domini nostri Jesu Christi [n: (Gal. VI, 14)]*; et alibi Apostolus ad discipulum suum scribens: *Noli* (inquit) *erubescere crucem Christi, neque me vinctum ejus (II Tim. [1074A] I, 8)*. Bene autem *genae* non integro malo punico, sed fragmini comparantur. Malum enim punicum cum frangitur, exterius rubor, interius candor apparet: sic et sancti praedicatores et doctores cum passionem Christi annuntiant, quasi rubor est exterius: cum vero quanta utilitas nostrae redemptionis inde provenerit, et quod homo per passionem Christi non solum a peccatis justificari, sed etiam quod divinum consortium meruerit, demonstrant, quasi candidum est *quod intrinsecus latet.* Possunt etiam per *genas* Ecclesiae, martyres figurari, qui rubicundi sunt effusione sanguinis sui veluti malum punicum; sed fracto malo punico, candor interius apparet, quia post mortem miraculis coruscant.

Vers. 4. *Sicut turris David collum tuum, quae aedificata est cum propugnaculis.* Collum sanctae Ecclesiae praedicatores sancti et doctores ejus sunt. Iidem enim hic designantur per *collum,* qui superius per *oculos,* vel per *dentes,* sancti videlicet *516* praedicatores, [1074B] qui veluti colla acceptos verbi Dei cibos nutriendo corpori transmittunt, et vocem praedicationis divinae auditoribus proferunt. Vel etiam sancti doctores per collum signantur, quia sicut per collum caput et caetera membra corpori conjunguntur, ita sancti doctores quasi mediatores sunt inter Christum et reliquos quos instruunt fideles, et quasi Christum corpori suo, id est Ecclesiae conjungunt. Hoc autem *collum turri David* comparatur, qui interpretatur manu fortis, vel visu desiderabilis, Christum significat. Et tota quidem Ecclesia civitas David, id est magni Regis Christi est, qui est manu fortis: quoniam diabolum devicit, juxta quod Psalmista dicit: *Dominus fortis et potens, Dominus potens in praelio [n: (Psal. XXIII, 8)]*. Est et visu desiderabilis: quia (ut Apostolus dicit) in eum *desiderant angeli prospicere [n: (I Petr. I, 12)]*. Turris autem civitatis hujus, illi sunt qui vel scientia vel operationis perfectione caeteris praeeminent. *Quae aedificata est cum propugnaculis.* Propugnacula sunt divinarum Scripturarum sacramenta, de [1074C] quibus veluti jacula procedunt, quibus adversariae repelluntur potestates.

*Mille clypei pendent ex ea, omnis armatura fortium. Mille clypei* intelliguntur innumera defensionis divinae praesidia, quibus sancta vallatur et defenditur Ecclesia. *Omnis armatura fortium,* id est omnis instructio vel sanctae operationis vel divinae praedicationis. Et bene collum Ecclesiae, hoc est praedicatores et doctores turri David comparantur, quia semper quasi in bello sunt, pro defensione sanctae Ecclesiae pugnantes.

Vers. 5. *Duo ubera tua sicut duo hinnuli capreae gemelli.* Duo ubera Ecclesiae eosdem significant sanctos doctores. Nec mirum quod una eademque res diversis figuratur modis. Sancti enim doctores *oculi* sunt, quia vitae vias quas ingredi debeant, subjectis demonstrant. *Dentes* sunt, quia cibos divinarum Scripturarum molunt et comminuunt, ut mandi possint, scilicet a simplicibus, hoc est intelligi. *Collum* sunt, [1074D] quia caput et membra, hoc est Christum et Ecclesiam conjungunt; ipsi ergo doctores sunt et *ubera* Ecclesiae quia parvulos et simplices fideles lacte verbi Dei nutriunt, juxta quod Apostolus simplicioribus loquens, dicit: *Non potui vobis loqui tanquam spiritualibus, sed quasi carnalibus; et parvulis in Christo lac vobis potum dedi, non escam [n: (I Cor. III, 1, 2)]*. Et bene non absolute ubera, sed cum additamento dicit, *duo ubera,* cum femina neque plus neque minus habeat quam *duo ubera;* quia nimirum sancti doctores parvulos ex utroque populo, Judaico videlicet et gentili, lacte verbi Dei nutriunt. Nam et Paulus de seipso dicit: *Qui operatus est Petro in apostolatu circumcisionis, operatus est et mihi inter gentes [n: (Gal. II, 8)]*. Et apte *duo ubera,* sicut duo hinnuli gemelli capreas esse dicuntur, qui videlicet fetus sunt et filii Salvatoris nostri Jesu Christi qui superius per capreas designatus est; haec enim animalia et acutissime vident, et nimia velocitate altiora conscendunt: sic et sancti [1075A] doctores quae agenda sunt et ipsi vident, et aliis monstrant, et despectis terrenis ad superna ascendere nituntur.

## CAPUT IV. (cont.)

Vers. 6. *Qui pascuntur in liliis, donec aspiret dies, et inclinentur umbrae. Qui pascuntur in liliis,* hoc est, delectantur purissimis et nitidissimis sensibus Scripturarum. *Donec aspiret dies,* hoc est dies illa aeterna veniat, quam desiderabat Psalmista, dicens: *Melior est dies una in atriis tuis super millia [n: (Psal. LXXXIII, 11)]*: *Et inclinentur umbrae,* hoc est, transeant moerores et perturbationes hujus saeculi. *Donec aspiret dies,* id est oriatur dies; aspirabit enim dies, id est orietur, quando verus ille Sol justitiae, id est Christus apparebit; et tunc *inclinabuntur umbrae,* hoc est, omnia nubila moeroris et tenebrae praesentis saeculi pertransibunt. Sed et si ipsam litteram velimus aspicere, pulchre expressit ortum diei et noctis: nam nox nihil est aliud nisi umbra terrae, quae sole descendente sub terras consurgit; sole autem iterum super terras ascendente, inclinantur umbrae, id est, cedit nox. [1075B] Pascuntur ergo in liliis donec aspiret dies et inclinentur umbrae, quia sanctorum doctorum in praesenti tantum vita necessaria est praedicatio et doctrina; nam in alia vita postquam apparuerit aeterna dies, et finita fuerit nox praesentis saeculi, non necesse erit doceri aliquem: quia *omnes revelata facie gloriam Domini [n: (II Cor. III, 18)]* contemplabuntur. Unde et Dominus per prophetam Jeremiam dicit: *Non ultra docebit vir fratrem suum dicens: Cognosce Dominum; omnes enim cognoscent me a minimo usque ad maximum [n: (Jer. XXXI, 34)]*.

*Vadam ad montem myrrhae, et ad collem thuris.* In myrrha carnis mortificatio, vel passionum pro Christo tolerantia; in thure vero sanctarum orationum devotio accipitur. *Mons* ergo *myrrhae, et collis thuris,* mentes sanctorum sunt, excelsae per contemplationem. Promittit ergo sponsus se ad montem myrrhae venturum, et ad collem thuris: quia illas mentes sua visitatione visitare dignatur, quae membra sua cum vitiis et concupiscentiis [1075C] mortificant [n: (Gal. V, 24)], quae etiam seipsas per sanctorum orationum studia gratum Deo sacrificium faciunt.

Vers. 7. *Tota pulchra es, amica mea, et macula non est in te.* Vox sponsi ad amicam suam sponsam. *Tota pulchra es.* Omni (inquit) ex parte nullam recipis maculam, neque rugam. Non enim soli doctores vel perfecti quique pulchri sunt ante oculos Dei, qui summa scientia et contemplatione praeeminent; sed etiam simplices quique fideles, qui recta fide et bonis operibus exornantur, pulchri in oculis sponsi habentur. Nam, ut Psalmista dicit: *Benedixit omnibus qui timent Dominum, pusillis cum majoribus [n: (Psal. CXIII, 13)]*; ideo dicit: *Tota pulchra es,* non tantum una pars tua. Hoc ideo dicimus, non quod aliquis in praesenti vita sine peccato esse possit, cum scriptum sit: *Nemo est super terram sine peccato, nec infans unius diei [n: (Job XIV, 4)]*: sed ideo quia fides perfecta et coeleste desiderium omnem absterget maculam levioris peccati; non enim de gravioribus nunc ratio [1075D] est, quae qui committunt, jam sponsa Christi non sunt, nec ullam habent particulam hujus sanctae pulchritudinis. Hinc est quod Joannes dicit: *Qui natus est ex Deo non peccat [n: (I Joan. III, 6)]*, subaudi, peccato ad mortem; non quod levi peccato quis careat, sine quo vita ista non ducitur. Tota ergo pulchra est Ecclesia, in quantum se castam et immunem ab omni peccato custodit. Si quando autem levi peccato fuscatur, cita poenitudine et fide recta ad coeleste desiderium in ea prisca pulchritudo reparatur.

*517* Vers. 8. *Veni de Libano, sponsa mea, veni de Libano, veni.* Libanus mons est Phoenicis: interpretatur autem de Hebraeo dealbatio vel candidatio; ex Graeco autem thus interpretatur. Unde et supra ubi loquitur: Vadam ad montem myrrhae et ad collem thuris, collis habetur Libani. Vocat ergo sponsus sponsam suam candidatam baptismate, dealbatam nitore omnium virtutum, flagrantem studio sanctarum orationum. [1076A] Vocat autem eam, ut veniat, id est, ut in virtutibus proficiat. Non solum vocat Deus animam, quando eam a vinculis carnis exutam ad coelestia praemia ducit; sed etiam per internam inspirationem, ut in virtutibus proficiat, hortatur. Quot enim in virtutibus sancti proficiunt, quasi tot passibus ad Deum tendunt. Et tertio dicit, *veni,* quia vult eam perfectam esse in cogitatione, locutione et opere. Vel eam vocat primo, ut ad se veniat per fidem; vocat secundo, ut dignam coelestium praemiorum retributionem jam liberata a corpore accipiat; vocat tertio, ut in die generalis resurrectionis jam resumpto corpore, duplici stola perpetuo coronata gaudeat.

*Coronaberis de capite Amana, de vertice Sanir et Hermon, de cubilibus leonum, de montibus pardorum. Amana* ipsum dicunt esse montem Ciliciae Amanum, qui et Taurus appellatur. *Sanir* vero et *Hermon* montes sunt Judeae in quibus leones et pardi feruntur [1076B] habitare; per quos autem montes, saeculi potestates, reges videlicet et principes intelliguntur, qui veluti montes in superbia extolluntur, et malignis spiritibus quasi leonibus et pardis cubilia praebent. Maligni enim spiritus leones vocantur propter superbiam, pardi propter ferocitatem, vel etiam propter mille artes nocendi, quia pardus varium animal est. De his ergo montibus coronatur Ecclesia, quando principes saeculi ad fidem Christi convertuntur; et non solum propter suas virtutes, sed etiam propter talium conversationem ad salutem remuneratur Ecclesia. Potest et hoc in praesenti accipi. Nam coronatur Ecclesia de vertice horum montium, quando subjectis principibus catholicae fidei, Ecclesia, quae antea premebatur, coronatur et gloriatur in Christo; sicut factum est tempore Constantini, quando illo converso mirabiliter glorificata est Ecclesia. Coronatur et de cubilibus leonum, et montibus pardorum, quando superbos et quosque saevos ac dolosos convertit, et pro illorum quoque conversione aeterna praemia recipit.

[1076C]Vers. 9. *Vulnerasti cor meum, soror mea sponsa; vulnerasti cor meum.* Sponsam et sororem suam sanctam dicit Ecclesiam, quae et sponsa est, quia eam sibi Christus incarnatus despondit, eamque emundatam sordibus peccatorum, dote Spiritus sancti sibi conjunxit. Soror vero est, quia propter eam incarnatus frater ejus fieri dignatus est, sicut resurgens a mortuis dixit mulieribus: *Ite, nuntiate fratribus meis [n: (Matth. XXVIII, 10)]*. Cum ergo dicit vulneratum se cor habere, magnitudinem amoris expressit, quo sanctam suam diligit Ecclesiam. Affirmat autem hoc iterans et inculcans: *Vulnerasti cor meum,* ut tali iteratione quantum Ecclesiam suam diligit, ostendat. Qua autem re vulneratum sit, subjungendo demonstrat.

*In uno oculorum tuorum, et in uno crine colli tui.* Per oculos Ecclesiae, spirituales sensus vel doctores sanctos accipimus: per crines vero multitudines subjectarum plebium, quibus sancta decoratur Ecclesia. [1076D] Et est sensus: cum tota sis pulchra, o Ecclesia, et cum te ob multa diligam, praecipue tamen nitor spiritualium sensuum, et doctorum tuorum sinceritas me delectat, simplicitas etiam vitae subjectarum plebium, quae pie et fideliter verbis doctorum obtemperant. Bene autem cum superius pluraliter dixit oculos et capillos, hic singulariter dicit *in uno oculo, et in uno crine;* ut per hoc unitas sanctorum doctorum exprimatur. Unitas est enim coelestis doctrinae quam subjectis impendunt. *Unus* enim *Dominus,* ut Apostolus dicit, *una fides, unum baptisma [n: (Ephes. IV, 5)]*, nec non et una devotio subjectorum fidelium. Potest et hoc quod dicit, *Vulnerasti cor meum,* de passione Christi accipi. *Vulnerasti cor meum,* id est, tuo amore fecisti ut ego in cruce vulnerarer. Notandum vero quod dicit, *In uno crine colli tui.* Per collum enim diximus doctores significari, et crinis Ecclesiae collo adhaeret, quo subjectae plebes a sanctis doctoribus [1077A] nutriuntur, et eorum sanae doctrinae inhaerent, ac secundum illorum praecepta vivere satagunt.

Vers. 10. *Quam pulchrae sunt mammae tuae, soror mea sponsa!* Per mammas superius eosdem doctores diximus figurari, qui et per oculos designantur; nam sancti doctores *mammae* sunt, id est simplici doctrina humiles nutriunt; *oculi* sunt cum summa quaeque et coelestia praedicant. Ait ergo: *Quam pulchrae sunt mammae tuae, soror mea sponsa!* id est, quam pulchri sunt doctores tui! quoniam sermo illorum et eloquio praeeminet, et pondere sensuum pretiosus est.

*Pulchriora sunt ubera tua vino.* Hic versiculus jam superius expositus est, ubi dicitur: *Meliora sunt ubera tua vino.* Et hoc notandum quod Ecclesia superius ubera sponsi sui laudavit, dicens: *Meliora sunt ubera tua vino;* nunc vero vicissim sponsus sponsae suae ubera extollit, ut per hoc unitas Ecclesiae commendetur. Christus enim caput est, et Ecclesia corpus ejus; praecellit enim initium praedicationis evangelicae legalem sententiam.

[1077B] *Et odor unguentorum tuorum super omnia aromata. Unguenta* Ecclesiae sunt doctrinae coelestis charismata vel etiam fama virtutum, quae de Ecclesia fragrat; *aromata* vero intelliguntur legales observationes. Super aromata ergo est odor unguentorum Ecclesiae: quia dignitas et fama evangelicae perfectionis transcendit omnem laudem legalis observationis.

Vers. 11. *Favus distillans labia tua, sponsa.* Favus est mel in cera; mel autem in cera est spiritualis intelligentia in littera. Labia ergo Ecclesiae favus distillans vocantur, quia sancti doctores, qui per labia designantur, spiritualia documenta proferunt instruendis fidelibus. Nec solum favus, sed etiam distillans vocantur Ecclesiae labia; distillat enim favus, cum mellis copia exuberans, jam non potest cereis capsulis contineri. Recte ergo divina Scriptura favus distillans vocatur, quia multipliciter intelligitur, et variis sensibus exponitur, nunc juxta litteram, nunc juxta allegoriam, nunc juxta moralitatem, [1077C] nunc juxta anagogem, id est superiorem sensum.

*Mel et lac sub lingua tua.* Lac parvulis convenit, *518* ideoque per *lac* designatur simplex doctrina, qua initium credentium imbuitur. *Mel* vero, quod de rore coeli confici creditur, coelestem et spiritualem doctrinam significat, quae perfectis et instructis convenit. *Sub lingua* ergo Ecclesiae *mel et ac est:* quia aliquando coelestia mysteria perfectis, aliquando rudibus plana et simplicia annuntiat.

## CAPUT IV. (cont.)

*Et odor vestimentorum tuorum sicut odor thuris.* Vestimenta Ecclesiae sunt bonorum operum ornamenta, juxta quod Joannes in Apocalypsi dicit: *Byssinum enim justificationes sanctorum sunt [n: (Apoc. XIX, 8)]*; et in Job dicitur: *Justitia indutus sum, et indui me sicut ornamento et diademate judicio meo [n: (Job. XXIX, 14)]*. Thure autem diximus sanctarum orationum munditiam designari. *Vestimenta* ergo Ecclesiae thuri comparantur: quia omnia opera Ecclesiae quasi orationes sunt; in cunctis enim quae agit, semper [1077D] Dominum deprecatur, et tali modo impletur illud quod Dominus dicit: *Oportet semper orare [n: (Luc. VIII, 1)]*. Nec semper ante Dominum hoc aliter impleri potest, nisi tota nostra vita et conversatio talis sit, ut in conspectu Dei oratio deputetur. Thus arbor est Arabiae, cortice et folio lauro similis, succum amygdalae modo emittens, qui bis in anno colligitur, in autumno et vere. In autumnali collectione praeparantur arbores incisis corticibus flagrantissimo aestatis ardore, ac sic prosiliente spuma pingui quae concreta densatur, ubi natura loci poscat, tegete palmea excipiente. Quod in arbore haesit, ferro depectitur; ideoque videtur corticeum esse purissimum, id est candidum thus. Secunda vindemia est vere, ad eam hieme incisis corticibus, rubrum hoc exit, nec comparandum priori. Creditur et novellae arboris candidius esse, sed veteris odoratius. Quod ex eo rotunditate guttae pependit, masculum [1078A] vocamus; guttam concussu elisam, mannam vocamus.

Vers. 12. *Hortus conclusus soror mea sponsa, hortus conclusus, fons signatus.* Sororem et sponsam suam Ecclesiam dicit, quam ex ancilla sororem sibi esse constituit, et dote Spiritus sancti pigneratam, sibi sponsam effecit. Haec ergo Ecclesia *hortus* est: quia spiritualium virtutum germina profert, quae in consequentibus aromatum vocabulis designatur. *Conclusus* vero *hortus* est iste: quia sancta Ecclesia Redemptoris Domini sui adjutorio munita est, et praesidio angelicarum virtutum vallata, nullis malignorum spirituum patet insidiis. Haec ipsa Ecclesia est *fons signatus:* fons ideo, quia doctrinae coelestis fluentis manat, quibus omnes in Christo credentes a peccatis lavat, et veritatis scientia potat. *Signatus* vero *fons* est iste: quia sermo fidei evangelicae veritatis signaculo munitus est, ita ut neque haeretici, neque maligni spiritus fidem catholicam violare aut [1078B] irrumpere valeant. Hic hortus, vel hic fons, id est Ecclesia, primum in parvo Judeae locello plantatus vel exortus est: deinde per universum mundum disseminata praedicatione areolas suas, vel rivulos suos emisit; unde sequitur:

Vers. 13. *Emissiones tuae paradisus malorum punicorum cum pomorum fructibus. Emissiones* Ecclesiae (ut dictum est) incrementa sunt fidei et disseminatio praedicationis; quae *emissiones paradisus* sunt. *Paradisus* Graece, hortus Latine dicitur: quia illa primitiva Ecclesia, quae in Judaea quasi hortus fuit, per universum mundum multos hortos, id est Ecclesias emisit. *Mala* autem *punica,* quae rubicundum habent corticem, eos significant qui non solum generali baptismo sanctificati sunt, verum etiam qui proprio sanguine in passione baptizati, martyres effecti sunt. *Fructus* vero *pomorum,* opera significant virtutum, sive eos qui ipsas virtutes opere exercent. *Emissiones* ergo Ecclesiae *paradisus malorum punicorum* fuerunt: quia primum locum in Ecclesia post apostolos [1078C] martyres obtinuerunt, qui ipsam Domini passionem patiendo imitari studuerunt; quamvis generaliter omnis multitudo *paradisus malorum punicorum* possit accipi, qui mala punica sunt, quia passionem sui Redemptoris semper in memoria retinent. Et sicut malum punicum intra unum corticem multitudinem continet granorum: ita in Ecclesia multitudo fidelium intra fidem dominicae passionis continetur. Hinc Apostolus dicit: *Quotquot baptizati estis in Christo Jesu, in morte ipsius baptizati estis [n: (Rom. VI, 3)]*.

Vers. 14. *Cypri cum nardo, nardus et crocus, fistula et cinnamomum cum universis lignis Libani.* Cyprus arbor est aromatica, semen simile coriandri habens, id est album et sublucidum, quod oleo coquitur, et inde exprimitur quod cyprus vocatur, unde regium unguentum paratur. Legimus in Exodo quod manna erat quasi semen album coriandri [n: (Exod. XVI, 31)]. Cyprus ergo et manna unam habent significationem: significant enim gratiam coelestem tanquam manna [1078D] de coelestibus venientem. *Cyprus* ergo in horto Ecclesiae nascitur, cum fideles quique docentur gratiam coelestem omnibus praeferre, et per illam salutem sperare. Nemo enim suis virtutibus, sed sola gratia Dei salvari potest. Nardus typus est dominicae passionis, unde et Maria Magdalena nardo pistica caput et pedes Jesu unxit [n: (Joan. XII, 3)]. Nardus ergo in horto Ecclesiae est, cum sancti quique memoriam dominicae passionis venerantur, eique gratias agunt quod in tantum eos dilexerit, ut pro eorum salute et liberatione mortem susciperet. *Nardus et crocus. Crocus* aurosi coloris habet florem, ideoque significat charitatem. Sicut enim aurum inter omnia metalia pretiosius est, ita charitas inter omnes virtutes primatum tenet, dicente Apostolo: *Nunc autem manent fides, spes, charitas, major autem his est charitas [n: (I Cor. XIII, 13)]*. Cum nardo ergo crocus in horto Ecclesiae nascitur, cum membra Christi, hoc est [1079A] fideles quique charitatem Dei et proximi efficaciter tenere student. *Crocus* autem fertur ignitas febres refrigerare: sic vera charitas ardorem concupiscentiae saecularis et carnalis refrigerat, et dilectionem Dei et proximi in mente accendit. *Fistula et cinnamomum. Fistula.* brevis est arbuscula quae et casia vocatur, cortice purpureo; significat sanctos in Ecclesia humilitate et patientia praecipuos, pauperes videlicet spiritu, quorum est regnum coelorum [n: (Matth. V, 3)]. Purpureus autem cortex significat similitudinem passionis Christi, quam humiles spiritu semper in corde retinent, vel quam illi qui in vera humilitate fundantur, in corde semper retinentes, imitari satagunt. *Cinnamomum* et ipsa brevis est arbuscula, sed mirae virtutis et odoris, ideoque profectum designant humilitatis, quae et per fistulam designatur. *Fistula* ergo *et cinnamomum* in Ecclesia sunt, cum sancti Dei humilitatem et patientiam, *519* et in corde veraciter tenent, et foris aliis ostendunt. Quod autem *fistula* rubicundum habet corticem, *cinnamomum* vero [1079B] cinericeum habet colorem, significat quod sancti Dei quanto plus sunt memores passionis Redemptoris sui, tanto in oculis suis viliores et despectiores sunt, dicentes cum Abraham: *Loquar ad Dominum meum quamvis sim cinis et pulvis [n: (Gen. XVIII, 27)]*; et cum Job: *Idcirco me reprehendo, et ago poenitentiam in favilla et cinere [n: (Job XLII, 6)]*. *Cum universis lignis Libani.* Ligna Libani pulchritudine et proceritate ac robore praeeminent, ideoque significant doctores et perfectos quosque in Ecclesia, de quibus superius domus Ecclesiae legitur facta, dicente eadem Ecclesia: *Ligna domorum nostrarum cedrina, laquearia nostra cypressina [n: (Cant. I, 16)]*: quia videlicet sancti doctores praedicatione sua Ecclesiam muniunt. Cum fistula ergo et cinnamomo universa ligna Libani in horto Ecclesiae memorantur: quia sive humiles et patientes, sive perfecti quique doctores eamdem fidem habent in Ecclesia, et eamdem beatitudinem exspectant.

[1079C] *Myrrha et aloe cum omnibus primis unguentis. Myrrha* arbor est cujus succus stacte dicitur, tantae virtutis, ut quidquid eo tactum fuerit, ab omni putredine et vermibus servetur illaesum. *Aloe* arbor est suavissimi odoris, adeo ut vice thymiamatis altaribus adoleatur. Habet vero succum amarissimum, resistentem putredini et vermibus. Hinc et in passione Domini Nicodemus detulisse dicitur mixturam myrrhae et aloes quasi libras centum [n: (Joan. XIX, 39)]. Per has ergo arbores designatur carnis continentia et castimonia. Nam putredo luxuriam solet designare, juxta quod propheta de quibusdam dicit: *Computruerunt jumenta in stercore suo [n: (Joel. I, 17)]*. In horto ergo Ecclesiae sunt *myrrha et aloe,* hoc est, mentes coelestes et omnis corruptionis immunes, audientes ab Apostolo: *Pacem sectamini cum omnibus, et castimoniam, sine qua nemo videbit Deum [n: (Hebr. XII, 14)]*. *Cum omnibus primis unguentis. Prima unguenta,* quid melius quam charitas intelliguntur? de qua Apostolus dicit: *Adhuc excellentiorem viam vobis demonstro* [1079D] [n: (I Cor. XII, 31)]; ac deinde: *Si linguis* (inquit) *hominum loquar et angelorum, charitatem autem non habeam, nihil mihi prodest [n: (I Cor. XIII, 1)]*. Post myrrham autem et aloen bene prima unguenta ponuntur: quia post carnis continentiam succedit vera charitas quae Deus est, qua Deus super omnia diligitur [n: (I Joan. IV, 16)]. Neque enim illi qui mundana dilectione tenentur, hoc est, qui voluptatibus et illecebris adhuc delectantur, hujus charitatis participes esse possunt.

Vers. 15. *Fons hortorum, puteus aquarum viventium, quae fluunt impetu de Libano. Fons hortorum,* ipsa est primitiva Ecclesia, quae veritatis scientia hortos, id est Ecclesias per universum mundum disseminatas irrigat; ipsa est et *puteus aquarum viventium:* quia scientia veritatis quae est Ecclesia, in quibusdam quasi *fons* est ubi patet, in quibusdam quasi *puteus* ubi latet, et ad liquidum percipi non [1080A] potest. Nam inter fontem et puteum hoc distat, quod fons et in imo et in superficie terrae dicitur esse, puteus vero semper est in imo. Ecclesia ergo *fons* est et *puteus:* quia mysteria Dei in quibusdam veluti fons facile capiuntur; in quibusdam vero cum difficultate tanquam aquae puteo extrahuntur. *Aquae viventes* ipsa mysteria designant Scripturarum, quae in se coelestem habent virtutem. At contra cisternae vocantur, id est collectiones aquarum, documenta haereticorum, de quibus Dominus per prophetam: *Me dereliquerunt fontem aquae vivae, et foderunt sibi cisternas, cisternas dissipatas, quae continere non valent aquas [n: (Jer. II, 13)]*. Hae fluentes *aquae fluunt impetu de Libano,* hoc est, manant de Ecclesia, quae albata est et candidata baptismate et bonis operibus, quod Libanus interpretatur. De hoc Libano (hoc est de Ecclesia) *fluunt,* hoc est, emanant *aquae* doctrinarum coelestium, et hoc cum *impetu,* id est cum quadam virtute, qua omnia haereticorum figmenta destruantur et subvertantur. Hinc et Psalmista: *Fluminis [1080B] impetus laetificat civitatem Dei [n: (Psal. XLV, 5)]*, id est virtus divinorum eloquiorum.

## CAPUT IV. (cont.)

Vers. 16. *Surge, Aquilo, et veni, Auster: perfla hortum meum, et fluant aromata illius.* Enumeratis Ecclesiae virtutibus sub nomine aromatum, sciens Dominus qui est sponsus et redemptor Ecclesiae, ipsam Ecclesiam persecutionibus esse multiplicandam, subsequenter ipsam quodammodo jubet venire, persecutionem non praecipiendo, sed permittendo. *Surge* (inquit), *Aquilo, et veni, Auster.* Per Aquilonem et Austrum flatus persecutionum et perturbationum intelliguntur contra Ecclesiam saevientium. Aquilo quidem frigidissimus ventus est, Auster calidus; et ideo per *Aquilonem* terrores et minae designantur, per *Austrum* blandimentorum decipulae, quibus duobus modis probatur Ecclesia, terroribus videlicet et blandimentis. Quod autem dicit: *Surge, Aquilo, et veni, Auster,* non imperat malis, nec cogit eos ad mala facienda; sed permittit, et facultatem illis dat, ut [1080C] possint saevire contra Ecclesiam; quatenus per illorum malitiam Ecclesia probetur, et illi gravius puniantur. Novit enim Dominus malis hominum bona quaedam facere; sed ipsam persecutionem in potestate sua habet, ut non tantum saeviant quantum volunt; unde scriptum est: *Qui facit ventis pondus [n: (Job. XXVIII, 25)]*: quia videlicet flatibus persecutionem modum imponit quemdam, juxta quod Apostolus dicit: *Faciet cum tentatione etiam proventum, ut possitis sustinere [n: (I Cor. X, 13)]*. *Perfla* (inquit) *hortum meum,* hoc est Ecclesiam meam, *et fluant aromata illius,* hoc est, fragrantia virtutum et odor bonorum operum ex illa procedat. Quo enim acerbius Ecclesia concutitur, eo majorem virtutum odorem ex se emittit.

## CAPUT V.

Vers. 1. *Veniat dilectus meus in hortum suum, ut comedat fructum pomorum suorum.* Audiens Ecclesia persecutionem vocari, tanquam se praeparans contra adversa, dicit: *Veniat dilectus meus in hortum suum,* [1080D] hoc est, Christus sponsus meus veniat, quem toto corde diligo, ad Ecclesiam suam, *ut comedat fructum pomorum suorum,* hoc est, delectetur atque pascatur bonis operibus fidelium suorum. Nam cibus Domini, bona nostra opera sunt, sicut ipse fidem Samaritanorum vel gentium intuens, dixit discipulis suis: *Ego cibum habeo manducare quem vos nescitis [n: (Joan. IV, 32)]*.

*Veni in hortum meum, soror mea sponsa.* Desideranti Ecclesiae ut ad se veniat sponsus respondet se jam hoc fecisse. Ego (inquit) jam veni. Nam *veni,* hic, non est imperantis, sed praeteriti temporis indicativum. O soror mea sponsa, *520* jam veni in hortum meum, jam visitavi Ecclesiam meam; sed et quotidie visito, et virtutum illius pomis pascor atque odore fruor. Venio ad eam, ut errantes corrigam, infirmantes roborem, dubios confirmem, et perfectos quosque praemiis coelestibus donem.

[1081A] *Messui myrrham meam cum aromalibus meis.* Per *myrrham* designantur illi qui martyrio vitam finierunt, vel etiam carnem suam cum vitiis et concupiscentiis crucifixerunt [n: (Gal. V, 24)]. Aromata vero sunt opera sanctarum virtutum, bonae operationis odoribus fragrantia. *Metit* ergo Dominus *myrrham cum aromatibus* suis, quando sanctos martyres vel reliquos electos bonis operibus insignes, ab hac vita falce mortis praecidit, atque ad maturitatem bonorum operum perductos in horrea supernae patriae recondit.

*Comedi favum meum cum melle meo, bibi vinum cum lacte meo.* Per *favum* et *vinum* sancti praedicatores figurantur: per *mel* vero et *lac* boni auditores. *Favus* enim sunt praedicatores, qui arcana et intima Scripturarum mysteria quasi mella de favis producunt, cum ea praedicando aliis manifestant. *Mel* vero boni auditores sunt: quia dulcidinem verbi Dei attente suscipere, eaque delectabiliter pasci student. *Vinum* sunt ipsi praedicatores, qui et *favus:* quia fortia sacramenta [1081B] Scripturarum annuntiant. *Lac* vero sunt infirmi quique auditores, quibus aperta mysteria quasi lac conveniunt. Cum ergo horum omnium vita diversis studiis agatur, et horum omnium bona intentione Redemptor pascitur et delectatur; et sic quasi *favum cum melle comedit, et vinum cum lacte bibit.* Possumus hoc etiam ad mortem electorum referre, quos Dominus comedit, cum ad aeternam vitam per mortem vocat, et corpori suo, hoc est societati electorum in illa jam coelesti felicitate laetantium conjungit. Quod si hoc de morte sanctorum accipimus, debemus in *vino* eos accipere, quorum animae jam coelesti felicitate gloriantur; in *favo* vero eos qui jam corpore et anima in illa beatitudine gaudent, quales sunt illi qui cum Domino surrexerunt [n: (Matth. XXVII, 52)].

*Comedite, amici, et bibite, et inebriamini, charissimi.* Non solum Dominus profectu sanctorum gaudet, verum etiam nos hortatur ut illorum virtutibus gaudeamus, [1081C] et illos imitemur: *Comedite* (inquiens), *amici,* hoc est fideles mei, qui amici estis faciendo quae jubeo; *charissimi* mei estis, perfecta me animi charitate diligendo. *Comedite* ergo (inquit) *et bibite,* id est, sanctorum bonis actibus congaudete, et illos vobis ad imitandum proponite. Notandum vero quod dicit, *bibite et inebriamini.* Ebrietas aliquando in Scripturis pro saturitate ponitur, sicut de fratribus Joseph dictum est: *Biberunt et inebriati sunt coram eo [n: (Gen. XLIII, 34)]*; et Psalmista: *Visitasti terram, et inebriasti eam [n: (Psal. LXIV, 16)]*, id est, satiasti et replesti. Hortatur ergo nos ut non solum comedamus et bibamus, verum etiam saturemur: quia sunt quidam qui comedunt et non saturantur, quia videlicet delectabiliter praedicationem divinam audiunt, sed negligenter obliviscuntur, nec ad effectum boni operis quod audierint perducunt. Comedunt autem et saturantur qui verba vitae quae audiunt, in internis sensibus recondunt et opere implere satagunt; [1081D] de quibus Psalmista dicit: *Edent pauperes et saturabuntur [n: (Psal. XXI, 27)]*. Si vero (ut superius dictum est) de morte sanctorum hoc acceperimus, *amici* et *charissimi* ipsi sunt angelici spiritus, quos jubet Dominus congratulari electis suis, cum ab hac vita ad aeternae beatitudinis requiem transferuntur, juxta quod in evangelica parabola legitur: *Congratulamini mihi, quia inveni ovem meam quae perierat [n: (Luc. XV, 6)]*.

Vers. 2. *Ego dormio et cor meum vigilat.* Vox Ecclesiae, *Ego dormio:* quia aliquantula pace largiente sponso meo requiesco, nec tales patior pressuras quales primitiva Ecclesia, et ideo *cor meum vigilat,* quia securius concessa mihi pace amori sponsi mei inhaereo, et ad illum oculos cordis mei intendo. Sed quia hoc tempus non est requiei, sed potius laboris et certaminis, rursus sponsus Ecclesiam ad labores excitat, et ad praedicationis certamen hortatur.

[1082A] *Vox dilecti mei pulsantis. Pulsat* dilectus, cum Christus fideles suos ad profectum virtutum hortatur; sive *pulsat,* cum eos ut proximos praedicando lucrentur, admonet. Et est tertia pulsatio, qua pulsat electos suos Dominus, cum per aegritudinis molestiam esse mortem vicinam designat; de qua pulsatione in Evangelio dicitur: *Ut cum venerit et pulsaverit confestim aperiant ei [n: (Luc. XII, 36)]*. Sed hoc loco *pulsare* dicitur, hoc est, Ecclesiam ad opus praedicationis instigare.

*Aperi mihi, soror mea, amica mea, columba mea, immaculata mea. Aperi mihi, soror mea. Soror,* quia cohaeres es regni mei facta; *amica mea,* quia de jugo servitutis liberata, arcana veritatis meae cognovisti; *columba mea,* quia Spiritus mei dote es sanctificata; *immaculata mea,* quia effusione mei sanguinis ab omni peccatorum macula purgata es. *Aperi mihi,* hoc est, de quiete et otio dulcedinis et contemplationis egredere ad opus praedicationis.

[1082B] *Quia caput meum plenum est rore, et cincinni mei guttis noctium. Caput* Ecclesiae (ut Apostolus dicit) Christus est [n: (Ephes. V, 23)]; *cincinni* vero sunt intimae cogitationes sanctorum, quae non laxe et dissolute fluunt, sed vinculo timoris et amoris Dei colligantur. *Ros* vero et *guttae noctium* hoc loco tenebrosas et infidelitate plenas, frigidasque mentes designant. *Caput* ergo sponsi *plenum est rore,* cum saeculares quique a charitate Dei torpescunt, et juxta quod Dominus dicit: *Abundante peccato refrigescit charitas [n: (Matth. XXIV, 12)]*. Et cum tales sanctos Dei coelestia meditantes persequuntur et odiunt, quasi *cincinni* sponsi *pleni sunt guttis noctium.* Cum ergo tales multiplicantur et gravant Ecclesiam, tunc sponsus admonet sponsam suam ut surgat et operi praedicationis insistat.

Vers. 3. *Exspoliavi me tunica mea, quomodo induar illa?* Provocata Ecclesia a sponso suo ad officium praedicationis, respondet: *Exspoliavi me tunica mea: quomodo induar illa?* Exui me curis et occupationibus [1082C] hujus saeculi, sine quibus officium praedicationis aut vix aut nullatenus agitur, et quomodo fieri potest ut iterum ad ea quae deserui revertar? Nam qui se ad officium praedicationis adaptat suscipiendum, debet quoque temporalia subditis providere, quae sine magna sollicitudine agi non possunt. Quod autem tunica sollicitudines et curas saeculi significet, Dominus ostendit in Evangelio: *Et qui in tecto est non descendat tollere tunicam suam [n: (Matth. XXIV, 18)]*; quod est aperte dicere: Qui in sublimi contemplationis arce consistit, non descendat ut tollat tunicam *521* suam, id est, non descendat tollere curas saeculi; hoc est, ne iterum occupationibus saeculi implicetur. Timet ergo Ecclesia vel anima quaeque sancta hac tunica exui, et in contemplatione sui Conditoris requiescens, iterum reindui et saecularibus negotiis occupari.

*Lavi pedes meos, quomodo inquinabo illos? Lavi pedes meos,* hoc est, actiones quibus nunquam pulverem [1082D] tangere, hoc est, terrena agere consueveram, dignis poenitentiae fletibus ablui, adeo ut nihil nunc nisi divina me libeat cogitare. *Quomodo inquinabo illos?* id est, quomodo fieri potest, ut iterum ad cogitanda caduca et terrena redeam, quae nunc in occupato et libero corde divino fruor contuitu?

Vers. 4. *Dilectus meus misit manum suam per foramen, et venter meus intremuit ad tactum ejus. Dilectus manum per foramen mittit* et ventrem tangit, cum interna Conditor inspiratione cor visitat, et ad profectum virtutum accendit: seu etiam cum nos ad memoriam operum suorum revocat, ut cogitemus: quia cum Deus esset, pro nobis homo fieri dignatus est; ut terrena nostra suscipiens, coelestes nos faceret, et moriendo pro nobis vitam aeternam nobis donaret. Quod cum fit, *venter intremit:* quia cum talia cogitare incipimus, cordis nostri arcana se concutiunt, dum stupere incipimus, quanta dignatione haec Conditor pro nobis agere dignatus est [1083A] Nam quod venter cor significet, ostendit propheta dicens: *Ventrem meum, ventrem meum doleo [n: (Jer. IV, 19)]*; quod quid esset ostendit, dicens: *Sensus cordis mei dissipati sunt.*

Vers. 5. *Surrexi, ut aperirem dilecto meo.* Aperimus dilecto non solum cum adventum ejus suscipimus, verum etiam cum aliis praedicamus; et eos qui per malitiam pectus clauserant, nostra praedicatione conversos, facimus ut ipsi quoque januam cordis Christo aperiant. Bene autem primo dicitur, *Surrexi;* deinde, *ut aperirem dilecto meo.* Qui enim praedicando aliorum corda Christo vult aperire, prius debet surgere, hoc est, ad studium bonorum operum erigi, et opere implere quod praedicat: *ne forte aliis praedicans, ipse reprobus efficiatur [n: (I Cor. IX, 27)]*; hinc et Lucas de Domino dicit: *Quae coepit Jesus facere et docere [n: (Act. I, 1)]*; prius dicit facere, deinde docere.

*Manus meae distillaverunt myrrham, et digiti mei [1083B] pleni myrrha probatissima.* Per manus quibus operamur, ipsa operatio designatur; per digitos vero discretio operationis: quia in nullo membro tantae sunt distinctiones articulorum, quantae in digitis. *Manus* Ecclesiae *myrrham stillant,* cum praedicatores ejus continentiae et mortificationi carnis suae operam dant, dicentes cum Apostolo: *Castigo corpus meum, et in servitutem redigo [n: (II Cor. IX, 27)]*. Sive cum pro Christo mori parati sunt; sicut Joannes dicit: *Si Christus pro nobis animam suam posuit, et nos debemus pro fratribus animas ponere [n: (I Joan. III, 16)]*. Digiti vero sunt pleni myrrha probatissima, cum ipsum opus mortificationis subtiliter discernimus, utrum pro intuitu supernae mercedis fiat, an pro laudibus saeculi. Qui enim pro humanis favoribus jejunat, vel abstinentiae sive continentiae operibus insistit, in manibus quidem myrrham habet, sed in digitis non habet: quia non discernit quare hoc faciat; de quibus Dominus dicit: *Amen dico vobis, receperunt mercedem suam [n: (Matth. VI, 2)]*. Sive manus sponsae distillant [1083C] myrrham, cum operibus sanctae Ecclesiae, castimoniae vel sanctae continentiae seipsos aptant.

## CAPUT V. (cont.)

Vers. 6. *Pessulum ostii mei aperui dilecto meo, at ille declinaverat atque transierat.* Pessulum ostii aperit, cum Ecclesia vel fidelis quaeque anima cor advenienti Conditori pandit. *At ille declinaverat atque transierat.* Plerumque enim cum spiritualia quaeque tractare volumus, quanto subtilius intendimus, tanto acies cordis reverberatur; unde Salomon dicit: *Dixi, sapiens efficiar, et ipsa longius recessit a me [n: (Eccl. VII, 24)]*; Psalmista quoque dicit: *Accedet homo ad cor altum, et exaltabitur Deus [n: (Psal. LXIII, 8)]*. Quanto enim quisque magis ad contemplationem divinam purificatione carnis cor sustollit, tanto altius quod quaerebat, esse invenit. Dicit ergo: *Ille declinaverat atque transierat,* quia nemo eum in praesenti vita, sicuti est, comprehendere potest.

*Anima mea liquefacta est, ut dilectus locutus est.* Quanto (inquit) vicinius adventum sponsi mei persensi ad tactum secretae inspirationis, tanto magis [1083D] quidquid in me erat frigidum, incaluit, ita ut nihil jam libeat nisi in lacrymas resolvi. Loquitur enim sponsus, cum interna sui inspiratione Christus sanctam animam inspirat, eique coeleste desiderium suggerit, et ita eo loquente liquefit: quia quo magis coelestibus afflatur desideriis, eo amplius terrenis emoritur et quasi insensibilis mundo efficitur, solumque coelesti desiderio vivit. Hoc est quod etiam per prophetam dicitur: *Quis caecus nisi servus meus? Quis surdus, nisi ad quem nuntios meos misi? [n: (Isai. XLII, 19)]*.

*Quaesivi, et non inveni illum: vocavi, et non respondit mihi.* Ingeminat iterum causam doloris sui. Omnibus quidem se pie quaerentibus adest Dominus semper: se invocantibus respondet, id est, ad salutem exaudit; sed plerumque fidelem animam se desiderantem, et ad se venire cupientem non exaudit, ad hoc ut ita se ei praesenti ostendat, sicut se in futurum [1084A] ostensurum promittit: vel etiam *non respondet,* id est, non exaudit, ad hoc ut libito suo sanctus quisque vinculis corporis exuatur et liber amplexibus sponsi sui demulceatur. Nam quando Apostolus dicebat: *Cupio dissolvi et esse cum Christo [n: (Philip. I, 23)]*, quasi quaerebat inhaerere sponso suo, et vocabat illum desiderio mentis; sed tamen *non respondebat* illi, quia non statim de corpore eum liberabat, sed adhuc laboribus exerceri, et utilitatibus Ecclesiae insudare permittebat.

Vers. 7. *Invenerunt me custodes qui circumeunt civitatem; percusserunt me et vulneraverunt me.* Vigiles qui custodiunt civitatem, sancti sunt doctores, qui civitatem Dei (id est Ecclesiam) circumeunt, pervigilem ejus curam agentes, quo illam et ab adversariis tueantur, et verbo suo vel exemplo ad coelestia desideria accendant. Inveniunt ergo sponsam dilectum quaerentem, cum sancti doctores animam coelestibus desideriis intentam, et praesentes verbo vel [1084B] absentes, sacris Scripturis suis instituunt et informant. *Percusserunt* (inquit) *et vulneraverunt me.* Verbum Dei gladius est, dicente Apostolo: *Vivus est sermo Dei et efficax, et penetrabilior omni gladio ancipiti, et pertingens usque ad divisionem animae ac spiritus [n: (Hebr. IV, 12)]*. Hoc gladio sponsa percutitur et vulneratur, quando praedicatoris sermo de Deo loquitur, et auditores veluti quodam spiculo compunctionis et amoris transfodit.

*522* *Tulerunt pallium meum mihi custodes murorum.* Hoc hic *pallium,* quod superius tunica intelligitur, ubi dicitur: *Exspoliavi me tunica mea,* tegmine videlicet saecularium desideriorum, quod custodes auferunt: quia quidquid de amore praesentis saeculi in mente alicujus remanserit, totum sancti doctores auferunt, et eam solummodo sponsum suum Christum diligere faciunt. Hi tales possunt dicere cum Apostolo: *Mihi mundus crucifixus est, et ego mundo [n: (Gal. VI, 14)]*. *Custodes murorum.* Muri civitatis sunt sancti doctores Ecclesiae. *Custodes* autem *murorum* illi sunt [1084C] qui etiam eos instruunt qui aliis quoque praeesse possunt, qualis erat Paulus, qui Timotheum et Titum, muros utique hujus civitatis, instruebat et custodiebat, hoc est, exhortabatur ad perfectionem boni operis.

Vers. 8. *Adjuro vos, filiae Jerusalem, si inveneritis dilectum meum, ut nuntietis ei quia amore langueo. Filiae Jerusalem* sunt animae fideles, quae vel adhuc in praesenti peregrinantur, vel etiam Christo fruuntur, vel quae quandoque facie ad faciem contemplaturae sunt Christum. Vel *filiae Jerusalem* sunt cives illius supernae civitatis, in qua est summa pax et felicitas divinae contemplationis. Sed hoc loco *filias Jerusalem,* animas debemus accipere Deum desiderantes, sed adhuc in hac peregrinatione versantes. *Adjurat* ergo sponsa filias Jerusalem ut nuntient sponso quia amore languet, cum anima fidelis fideles alios Deum desiderantes adjurat ut Christo insinuent, eique nuntient suo illam amore teneri. Bene autem se amore languere dicit. Quanto enim magis superna [1084D] desiderare coeperit, tanto erga ea quae mundi sunt, languescit. Nec mirum si tales languere dicuntur, cum Apostolus eos mortuos dicat: *Mortui,* inquiens, *estis, et vita vestra abscondita est cum Christo [n: (Coloss. III, 3)]*. Ita ergo adjuranti sponsae respondent filiae Jerusalem.

Vers. 9. *Qualis est dilectus tuus ex dilecto, o pulcherrima mulierum? qualis est dilectus tuus ex dilecto, quia sic adjurasti nos?* Hoc tunc fit, quando quis fidelis fratrem fidelem alloquitur, et invicem sibi coelestium desideriorum verba suggerunt, quibus se ad supernorum amorem accendunt. Indica mihi, inquit, jam desideranti, jam ad visionem Conditoris mei pervenire cupienti, *qualis est dilectus tuus,* hoc est, qualiter Christus amari debeat. Jam dudum, inquit, illum timere coepi; sed jam charitate timorem expellente, opto audire verba quibus ad amorem illius accendar. Tu ergo quae illum jam amore quaeris, [1085A] ejusque amore langues, dic mihi: *Qualis est dilectus tuus ex dilecto. Dilectus ex dilecto,* Filius est ex Patre, sicut est Deus de Deo, lumen de lumine. Vel etiam, *dilectus tuus ex dilecto,* Christus est ex ea parte qua diligendus est, non ex ea qua timendus. Nam timere magis imperfectorum est, quos timor a peccatis revocat: amare vero perfectorum. Jam ergo interrogat, *Qualis sit dilectus ex dilecto,* id est, qualiter Christus amari debeat, vel qualis sit erga illos qui illum tantum amare noverunt.

Vers. 10. *Dilectus meus candidus et rubicundus, electus ex millibus.* Vox respondentis Ecclesiae: *Dilectus meus candidus et rubicundus: candidus* virginitate, *rubicundus* passione. *Candidus,* quia sine peccato; nam sine peccato est conversatus: *Peccatum* enim *non fecit, nec inventus est dolus in ore ejus [n: (I Petr. II, 22)]*. *Rubicundus,* quia *lavit nos a peccatis nostris in sanguine suo [n: (Apoc. I, 5)]*. *Electus ex millibus.* Singulari enim gratia homo Christus in omni humani generis [1085B] massa refulsit: quia per illum proposuit Deus salvare genus humanum, et ipse est *Mediator Dei et hominum homo Jesus Christus [n: (I Tim. II, 5)]*; de quo Psalmista: *Non est qui faciat bonum, non est usque ad unum [n: (Psal. XIII, 3)]*; et Salomon: *Virum de mille unum reperi [n: (Eccle. VII, 29)]*, id est Christum; et ipse in psalmo: *Singulariter sum ego donec transeam [n: (Psal. CXL, 10)]*. *Electus* ergo *ex millibus,* quia ex omni multitudine sanctorum solus dignus fuit audire: *Hic est Filius meus dilectus, in quo mihi complacui [n: (Matth. III, 17)]*.

Vers. 11. *Caput ejus aurum optimum.* Caput sponsi Deus est, juxta quod Apostolus dicit: *Caput Christi Deus [n: (I Cor. XI, 3)]*; quod auro optimo comparatur, quia sicut aurum omnibus metallis pretiosius est, ita Deus omnipotens a se factis bonis praecellit et supereminet; unde Dominus: *Nemo bonus, nisi solus Deus [n: (Marc. X, 18)]*. *Caput* ergo sponsi *aurum optimum* est, quia Dei bonitas est ineffabilis, omnium rerum bonitatem transcendens: quia nihil bonum nisi [1085C] participatione hujus summi boni.

*Comae ejus sicut elatae palmarum. Comae* sponsi sunt multi udines fidelium, per fidem et dilectionem Deo adhaerentes, quae elatis palmarum comparantur. *Elatae palmarum* sunt rami productiores et excellentiores, interdum aureosi coloris, crispantes et semper ad excelsa tendentes, et nunquam virorem suum amittentes. Tales ergo dicit comas sponsi sui Ecclesia, crispas videlicet et rutilas. Nonnulli dicunt elatas palmarum speciem arboris esse aromaticae, quam Latine abietem sive spatas vocant; nam Graece abies ἐλάτη dicitur. Est autem species haec apta conficiendis unguentis. Abietem vero hic non magnam illam arborem quae est navigiis et domibus apta, sed (ut diximus) speciem aromaticae arboris debemus accipere. Haec juxta litteram de elatis palmarum. *Comae* ergo sponsi *elatis palmarum* comparantur: quia fidelium multitudines et virore fidei gaudent, et ad aeterna desideranda extolluntur, atque dulcedinem supernae [1085D] suavitatis degustant; quam quanto magis percipiunt, tanto magis in oculis suis peccatores sibi et contemptibiles esse videntur; unde sequitur:

*Nigrae quasi corvus.* Comae enim sponsi *nigrae* sunt *quasi corvus,* quia fidelium multitudines suae fragilitatis sibi consciae sunt, et nihil se boni ex se habere noverunt; vel etiam, elatae palmarum sunt in spe et victoria, *nigrae* vero *quasi corvus,* quasi despecti et contemptibiles sunt pressuris hujus saeculi. Elatae palmarum sunt sancti, quia per gratiam Dei ad coelestis victoriae palmam tendunt; *nigrae* vero *quasi corvus,* quia per se infirmos et peccatores se esse cognoscunt. Possunt etiam comae sponsi angelicae virtutes accipi, quae Deo specialiter inhaerent, sicut comae capiti, eumque a vicino contemplantur. Quae bene *elatis palmarum* comparantur: quia nunquam a status sui rectitudine inclinantur, sed in dignitate officii sui immaculatae permanent; quae quanto magis claritatem sui Conditoris contemplantur, eo [1086A] amplius quam vile sit omne creatum, in ejus comparatione aspiciunt, et ideo *nigrae quasi corvus* esse dicuntur.

*523* Vers. 12. *Oculi ejus sicut columbae super rivulos aquarum, quae lacte sunt lotae.* Oculi ejus dona sunt Spiritus sancti; quod ostendit Joannes in Apocalypsi, dicens: *Vidi agnum tanquam occisum, habentem cornua septem, et oculos septem, qui sunt septem spiritus Dei missi in omnem terram [n: (Apoc. V, 6)]*. Unde et bene columbis super rivulos aquarum comparantur, quia Spiritus sanctus puris et sinceris mentibus delectatur. Non enim super stagna vel paludes, sed super rivulos aquarum columbae resident: quia (ut dictum est) Spiritus sanctus castas et mundas mentes sibi habitaculum facit. *Quae lacte sunt lotae:* quia (ut dictum est) Spiritus sanctus lactis nomine, id est Dei gratia intelligitur, quae per Spiritum sanctum Ecclesiae tribuitur, et qua veluti lacte parvuli, ita Ecclesia nutritur. Possumus et per oculos sponsi doctores Ecclesiae accipere, qui columbis comparantur [1086B] propter innocentiam et simplicitatem. Hae *columbae* super rivulos resident, ut adventum accipitris a longe prospiciant et praecaveant: sic et sancti doctores aqua baptismatis perfusi, nitore castitatis et sanctimoniae dealbati sunt.

## CAPUT V. (cont.)

*Et resident juxta fluenta plenissima,* hoc est, juxta Scripturarum exuberantem scientiam. Si quid vero putamus distare inter rivulos et fluenta plenissima, dicendum est per rivulos, Veteris Testamenti scripturas designari; per fluenta plenissima, copiosam sancti Evangelii doctrinam accipi. Istae ergo columbae et super rivulos aquarum sunt, et juxta fluenta plenissima resident: quia sancti doctores assidue tam Veteris Testamenti quam Novi mysteria perserutantur.

Vers. 13. *Genae illius sicut areolae aromatum consitae a pigmentariis. Genae* sponsi, modesta Christi pietas, vel severitas, sive habitus vultus illius accipitur; nam in genis viri laetitia, vel modestia, severitas [1086C] quoque et pietas deprehenditur. Ideoque in genis sponsi juste habitus vultus Redemptoris nostri accipitur. *Genae* enim illius erant, cum exsultaret in spiritu, ut Evangelium dicit, vel cum fleret super mortuum Lazarum [n: (Joan. XI, 35)], vel cum doleret super perituram Jerusalem [n: (Luc. XIX, 41)], et plura id genus. Hae *genae* sponsi areolis aromatum comparantur; sicut enim areolae aromatum optime compositae et ordinatae, aspectum intuentium delectant, eisque odoris sui gratiam propinant: ita Christi mansuetudo et absentes fama, et praesentes reipsa delectabat, et ad sui dilectionem provocabat. Hae *areolae a pigmentariis consitae sunt. Pigmentarii* sunt prophetae vel apostoli, quorum alteri haec omnia futura, alteri jam facta descripserunt.

*Labia illius lilia distillantia myrrham primam.* Per labia sponsi, verba Domini nostri Jesu Christi accipiuntur, quae liliis comparantur: quia candoris aeterni praemia annuntiant. *Distillant myrrham primam,* quia per carnis mortificationem ad haec perveniendum [1086D] docent. Vel etiam *liliis labia* Domini comparantur, quia castitatis illa et munditiae opera docent. *Distillant primam myrrham,* quia quaecunque adversa patienter perferenda insinuant. *Labia* Domini *lilia* erant, cum docens in monte diceret: *Beati pauperes spiritu, beati mites, beati misericordes, beati mundo corde [n: (Matth. V, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10)]*. *Distillant myrrham primam,* cum post haec subjungeret: *Beati qui persecutionem patiuntur propter justitiam.*

Vers. 14. *Manus ejus tornatiles aureae.* In manibus namque sponsi digne operatio Salvatoris accipitur. Sicut enim quis torno facile operatur, nec regula ulla indiget, sic operatio Salvatoris facilis erat; quidquid enim volebat, illico perficiebat: *quia dixit, et facta sunt [n: (Psal. XXXII, 9)]*, et de quo evangelista [n: (Matth. VII, 29)]: Erat quasi in potestate habens sermonem. Aureae enim crant, quia operatio illius divinitatis peragebatur potentia; nam in auro Divinitas [1087A] figuratur: quia sicut aurum caetera metalla antecellit et pretiosius est, ita Divinitas suis omnibus operibus ineffabili modo praecellit.

*Plenae hyacinthis.* Hyacinthus lapis est aerii coloris. Quid ergo in hyacinthis, nisi spes et desiderium coeleste accipitur? Et manus Domini plenae sunt hyacinthis, quia omnis ejus operatio nos ad spem et desiderium supernorum excitat. Hyacinthus est etiam flos aromaticus, coloris purpurei, bonique odoris. Manus Domini plenae sunt hyacinthis, quia in cruce clavis perforatae, et rubore sui sanguinis quasi colore purpureo respersae sunt. Sed superior expositio de hyacintho lapide melius hic convenit. In alia translatione lapis habetur. Dicuntur enim manus ejus tornatiles, plenae Tharsis. Tharsis lapis est quem nos chalcedonium dicimus.

*Venter ejus eburneus.* In membris humani corporis nihil ventre fragilius, nihil tenerius; ideoque per ventrem fragilitas assumptae humanitatis in Christo accipitur. Ebur autem est os elephantis, quod animal [1087B] dicunt esse castissimum, et naturae frigidissimae unde et a dracone, qui calidae naturae est, vehementer appetitur. Venter ergo sponsi eburneus est, quia assumpta humanitas Redemptoris nullam corruptionem, nullam labem admisit; *peccatum* enim *non fecit, nec dolus inventus est in eo ullus [n: (Isai. LIII, 9)]*. Fragilitatem quidem carnis assumpsit; sed tamen totius peccati immunis fuit; sicut serpens aeneus a Moyse in deserto exaltatus [n: (Num. XXI, 9)], figuram quidem serpentis habuit, sed malitia veneni caruit.

*Distinctus sapphiris.* Sapphirus lapis est coeli sereni habens colorem. Unde in visione Domini dicitur: *Et viderunt Deum Israel, sub pedibus ejus quasi opus lapidis sapphiri, et quasi coelum cum serenum est [n: (Exod. XXIV, 10)]*. Per sapphiros ergo opera divinae Majestatis intelliguntur, quae in carne perficiuntur. Venter ergo sponsi distinctus erat sapphiris: quia humanitas Christi coelestibus virtutibus refulgebat. Nec plenus dicitur esse sapphiris, sed distinctus; ita [1087C] videlicet, ut inter sapphiros appareret eboris candor: quia sic Dominus operabatur ea quae divinitatis erant, ut nihilominus perficeret ea quae erant humanitatis, et non relinqueret ea quae erant divinitatis. Distincta est enim operatio in Christo, divinitatis et humanitatis. Nam quod esuriebat, quod sitiebat, quod flebat, quod lassabatur, quod ad ultimum crucifigi et mori poterat, humanitatis opera erant; quod vero mortuos suscitabat, quod omnibus infirmantibus succurrebat, quod seipsum a mortuis resuscitabat, evidentissima erant opera divinitatis.

Vers. 15. *Crara illius columnae marmoreae, quae fundatae sunt super bases aureas.* Crura sponsi itinera sunt Salvatoris, quibus homo fieri et ad nos venire dignatus est; quae recte columnis marmoreis comparantur, quia nihil marmore fortius, nihil columna rectius. Et crura sponsi columnae marmoreae sunt: quia omnia itinera Domini et fortia et recta sunt. De ejus fortitudine *524* dicit Psalmista: *Exsultavit ut gigas ad currendam viam, a summo coelo egressio ejus* [1087D] [n: (Psal. XV II, 6)]. De rectitudine alibi: *Justus Dominus et justitias dilexit; aequitatem vidit vultus ejus [n: (Psal. X, 8)]*; et, *Universae viae Domini misericordia et veritas [n: (Psal. XXIV, 10)]*. Haec *crura super bases aureas fundata sunt,* quia omnia quae per Christum vel in Christo agenda erant, divinitatis consilio ante mundi constitutionem praeordinata et praefinita sunt. Aurum enim, quod (ut saepe dictum est) splendidius et pretiosius est caeteris metallis, divini consilii sincerissimum secretum significat. De basibus ergo aureis columnae marmoreae procedunt, quia ab initio saeculi praeordinata est incarnatio, nativitas, passio et resurrectio Salvatoris, caeteraque mysteria quibus humanum genus redimeretur. Unde et propheta laudans Deum, dicebat: *Domine Deus meus, honorificabo te, laudes dicam nomini tuo, qui facis mirabiles res: consilium tuum verum fiat [n: (Isai. XXV, 1)]*.

*Species ejus ut Libani, electus ut cedri.* Libanus [1088A] Phoenicis est mons, terminus Judeae contra septentrionem, et est excelsior caeteris montibus. Arbores etiam illius montis et proceritate et specie ac robore caeterarum silvarum ligna praecellunt. Sicut (inquit) *Libanus* caeteris montibus Judeae terrae praecelsior est: ita Redemptor noster speciosior est omnibus electis: quia *speciosus est forma prae filiis hominum [n: (Psal. XLIV, 3)]*. Et sicut *cedrus* pulchrior est et procerior caeteris arboribus, ita et ille gratia divinitatis praecellit omnes ab initio saeculi sanctos.

Vers. 16. *Guttur illius suavissimum.* Superius per labia sponsi verba illius intellecta sunt, nunc per guttur, ipsorum verborum interior dulcedo significatur, qua intellectus noster reficitur; unde et Psalmista: *Gustate et videte quoniam suavis est Dominus [n: (Psal. XXXIII, 9.)]* Et multi quidem verba Domini facile intelligere possunt; sed pauci sunt qui dulcedinem illorum valeant penetrare, hoc est, qui praecepta Dei ex amore et desiderio studeant adimplere.

*Et totus desiderabilis.* Ac si diceret: Quid per [1088B] singula membra ejus describendo immoror? Totus est desiderabilis sponsus meus. Totus (inquit), quia perfectus Deus, perfectus homo. Totus ergo desiderabilis est, quia angelos et electos quosque ad suum accendit desiderium, juxta quod Apostolus dicit: *In quem desiderant angeli prospicere [n: (I Petr. I, 12)]*; et quo vicinius aspicitur, hoc majori desiderio ad se aspiciendum provocat intuentes.

*Talis est dilectus meus, et ipse est amicus meus, filiae Jerusalem. Dilectus,* quia per fidem et charitatem illi inhaereo; *amicus* vero, quia me de vinculo peccati redemptam, amicam suam, et secretorum suorum consciam facere dignatus est; quem quanto plus quisque diligit, tanto amicitia ejus dignior efficitur.

Vers. 17. *Quo abiit dilectus tuus, o pulcherrima mulierum?* Vox est filiarum Jerusalem, id est Ecclesiarum, sive etiam animarum sanctarum. Nam sponsa Christi Ecclesia est, filiae Jerusalem ipsa Ecclesia est, quae ex singulis fidelium animabus [1088C] constat. Aiunt ergo: *Quo abiit dilectus tuus, o pulcherrima mulierum?*

*Quo declinavit dilectus tuus? et quaeremus eum tecum.* Adjuraverat enim superius ipsa sponsa filias Jerusalem, ut nuntiarent sponso quod amore ejus langueret; interrogaverant eaedem filiae Jerusalem, qualis esset sponsus, et illa consequenter formam sponsi sui exposuerat; nunc interrogant ipsae filiae Jerusalem, quo abierit sponsus ille, ut quaerant eum cum ea. Hoc faciunt sanctae animae, quando adinvicem de aeterna salute colloquuntur: flagrantes amore Christi, et ejus aspectum desiderantes; sive cum diligenter investigant in quorum maxime cordibus Christus requiescat; ut eorum exemplo et conversatione aedificentur. Notandum autem quod dicitur, *Quo abiit,* vel, *Quo declinavit dilectus tuus?* Quasi enim ad tempus declinat dum quaeritur; ut majus ad se quaerendum desiderium excitet. Ad hoc enim plurumque differt vota et orationes sanctorum, ut ardentius eum desiderare incipiant; sicut et quondam [1088D] Mariae se quaerenti non statim se ostendit, sed in specie hortulani apparens [n: (Joan. XX, 15)], tandem quod ipse qui quaerebatur esset, ostendit. Exaudit ergo Christus semper electos suos, sed semper quasi *declinat,* cum non statim postulata concedit. Bene autem dicitur: *quaeremus tecum;* nam qui sine Ecclesia Christum quaerit, errare et fatigari potest, proficere non potest.

## CAPUT VI.

Vers. 1. *Dilectus meus descendit in hortum suum ad areolam aromatis, ut pascatur in hortis, et lilia colligat.* Jam supra docti sumus quis sit hortus Christi, sancta videlicet Ecclesia, de qua superius dictum est: *Hortus conclusus soror mea sponsa. Descendit* (inquit) Christus *in hortum suum ad areolam,* quem ipse praeparavit et excoluit, quem virtutum germinibus consevit, quem sua gratia illustravit, quem [1089A] muro suae custodiae ab incursu malignorum spirituum defendit. Et bene *in hortum suum descendisse* dicitur; nam in horto sepeliri voluit [n: (Joan. XIX, 41)], et primum Mariae Magdalenae in horto apparuit [n: (Joan. XX, 15)], ibique quodammodo primitias Ecclesiae consecravit. *Descendisse* dicitur, quando de superioribus et coelestibus sedibus in hortum descendit, quem ipse humili loco plantavit, sed ad hoc ipse descendit, ut hortus (id est Ecclesia) ejus ad ipsum ascenderet. Unde et in sequentibus de horto, id est Ecclesia sua, dicit: *Quae est ista quae ascendit per desertum? Ad areolam* (inquit) *aromatis.* Per areolam, anima cujusque fidelis intelligitur, quae disciplina coelesti exculta et diligenter composita, ac laterum parilitate exquadrata est. *Ut pascatur* (inquit) *in hortis,* id est, ex piis sanctorum laboribus delectetur. Ipse enim bonis nostris pascitur, in tantum, ut in paupere ipse reficiatur. *Et lilia* (inquit) *colligat,* hoc est, ut sanctas animas virtutis maturitate ad perfectum candorem [1089B] perductas, ab hoc mundo ad se colligat, et secum in aeterna beatitudine gaudere faciat. *Lilia* enim sanctae sunt animae, virtutum studiis et bonis operibus candidatae.

Vers. 2. *Ego dilecto meo, et dilectus meus mihi, qui pascitur inter lilia. Ego dilecto meo,* subauditur, gratam pastionem praeparo; *et dilectus meus mihi* gratiam perfectionis, vel praemium aeternae remunerationis praestabit. Sive, *Ego dilecto meo* in me ipsa mansionem paro; *et dilectus meus mihi,* quia ipse in me habitat, et me in se habitare facit; sicut ipse in Evangelio dicit: *Ego in vobis, et vos in me [n: (Joan. XIV, 20)]*.

Vers. 3. *Pulchra es, amica mea, suavis et decora sicut Jerusalem.* Quaerebat Ecclesia sponsum suum tanquam absentem; sed ille ut se semper praesentem *525* ostenderet, eique de se colloquenti, seque desideranti semper adesse demonstraret, cito respondet: *Pulchra es, amica mea, suavis et decora sicut Jerusalem. Pulchra es,* quia maculam et rugam non habes [1089C] peccati, sed omni nitore virtutum vernas. *Amica mea,* Ecclesia vel anima quaeque fidelis. *Suavis et decora sicut Jerusalem.* Jerusalem, quae visio pacis interpretatur, illam supernam civitatem designat in qua est vera pax et felicitas: quia ibi sic gaudent sancti de munere; ut non sit quod doleant de corruptione. Ergo Ecclesia, quae adhuc in terris est, vel anima quaeque fidelis, ad similitudinem illius Jerusalem suavis est et decora: quia illam pacem in quantum potest imitatur. Sequitur:

*Terribilis ut castrorum acies ordinata. Terribilis* est Ecclesia malignis spiritibus, et est *ordinata ut castrorum acies;* cum videlicet unusquisque fidelis ordinem suum et vocationem suam recte custodit. Tres enim sunt ordines Ecclesiae, doctorum, continentium, et conjugatorum, quae species in tribus viris illis demonstratae sunt, Noe, Daniel et Job. Noe enim, qui inter fluctus arcam rexit, sanctos doctores significat; Daniel caelebs et castus, continentium ordinem significat; [1089D] Job, qui uxorem habuit et filios, ordinem conjugatorum exprimit. Ergo Ecclesia ordinata est sicut acies castrorum, quia unusquisque ordo Ecclesiae velut in acie contra hostes malignorum spirituum consistit, dum sancti doctores praedicationi et doctrinae operam impendunt. Continentes quae mundi sunt contemnentes, tantum quae Dei sunt cogitant, et libera a terrenis occupationibus mente, soli Deo vacant. Conjugati eleemosynis et caeteris actualis vitae operibus bonis insistunt; sicque utuntur mundo, ut quae Dei sunt, non deserant. Haec ergo ordinatissima dispositio Ecclesiae *terribilis est* immundis spiritibus, *velut acies castrorum* ad bellum *ordinata.* Sive pulchra est Ecclesia et decora sicut Jerusalem in virtutibus: *terribilis* vero *ut castrorum acies ordinata:* quia imperium suum et potestatem proferre non cessat usque ad terminos totius orbis. Sive *terribilis* est *ut castrorum acies ordinata:* quia sic unitate charitatis connexa est et conjuncta, ut nulla vi maligni hostis, [1090A] nulla peste discordiae possit penetrari; nihil enim sic terret malignos spiritus quomodo charitas.

Vers. 4. *Averte oculos tuos a me, quia ipsi me avolare fecerunt.* Ac si diceret: Ego quidem dedi tibi oculos columbinos, quibus me intueri et arcana Scripturarum acutissime penetrare valeres; sed cave ne illos ad me videndum modo intendere velis: quia dum in praesenti vivis, non potes; *Non enim videbit me homo, et vivet [n: (Exod. XXXIII, 20)]*. Cum autem vinculis carnis absoluta ad me perveneris, tunc me aperta visione videbis, et implebitur quod in Evangelio promittitur: *Qui autem diligit me, diligetur a Patre meo, et ego diligam eum, et manifestabo ei meipsum [n: (Joan. XIV, 21)]*. Quod autem dicitur, *quia ipsi me avolare fecerunt,* non est putandum quod Deus quaerentes se deserat, et ab illis recedat, cum ipse praecipiat: *Quaerite et invenietis [n: (Luc. XI, 9)]*; sed ita potius accipiendum, quia quanto amplius quisque divinitatem majestatis Dei perscrutari voluerit, eo [1090B] amplius intelligit, quam imperscrutabilis atque incomprehensibilis sit. Et hoc est quod Psalmista dicit: *Accedet homo ad cor altum, et exaltabitur Deus [n: (Psal. LXIII, 7)]*. Ac si diceret: Licet homo ad videndum Deum cor sublevet, exaltabitur Deus, quia quantus sit comprehendi non potest.

*Capilli tui sicut grex caprarum quae apparuerunt de Galaad.* Hi versiculi saepius expositi sunt; sed non pigeat iterato exponere, quos non piguit Spiritum sanctum repetere. Ideo enim bis istos versiculos posuit, ut certissimum et stabile teneremus, quod sub repetitione confirmari audiremus. Capilli Ecclesiae sanctae, multiplices sunt subtilium cogitationum varietates. Et bene comparantur gregi caprarum; nam capra peccatoris figura est; unde et in lege praecipitur, ut quicunque per ignorantiam peccaverit et cognoverit reatum suum, offerat pro delicto suo capram in holocaustum [n: (Lev. IV, 28)]. Capilli ergo Ecclesiae gregi caprarum comparantur, quia sancti, qui sunt membra Ecclesiae, omnes reatus cogitationis suae per dignam [1090C] poenitentiam et per lacrymas justae compunctionis delere satagunt. Bene autem *de* monte *Galaad apparuisse* dicuntur. Galaad interpretatur acervus testimonii: ideoque per Galaad mens sanctorum designatur, qui sunt acervus testimonii quoniam omnia quae saeculi sunt negligere, et solum Deum desiderare evidentissimis attestatur indiciis. Potest etiam per Galaad ipse Dominus et Redemptor noster intelligi. Galaad enim et montis et civitatis nomen est. *De* monte ergo *Galaad grex caprarum apparuit,* quia Ecclesia super Christum est fundata, sicut ipse dicit: *Non potest civitas abscondi supra montem posita [n: (Matth. V, 15)]*. Ipse est acervus testimonii: quia multitudo prophetarum et patriarcharum gestis et scriptis ei testimonium perhibent.

Vers. 5. *Dentes tui sicut greges ovium, quae ascenderunt de lavacro, omnes gemellis fetibus, et sterilis non est in eis.* Per dentes Ecclesiae firma sermonum ejus stabilitas intelligitur. Qui bene gregi ovium comparantur quae de lavacro ascenderunt, quia verba Ecclesiae nihil nisi innocentiam et mansuetudinem [1090D] sonant, nihilque in se foedum, nihilque turpe vel immundum retinent; sed lavacro sinceritatis et puritatis lavantur, audientes ab Apostolo: *Sermo malus ab ore vestro non procedat [n: (Ephes. IV, 29)]*. Bene autem *omnes gemellis fetibus* esse dicuntur, quia sermo sanctorum nihil aliud sonat nec loquitur, nisi quod ad dilectionem Dei et proximi pertinet. Solummodo enim ea sancti loqui debent, quae ad perpetuam corporum et animarum pertineant sanitatem.

Vers. 6. *Sicut cortex mali punici, sic genae tuae absque occultis tuis.* In genis diximus superius sanctorum castam verecundiam figurari; in *cortice mali punici,* mysterium passionis Christi, audientes a Paulo apostolo: *Noli erubescere crucem Christi, neque me vinctum ejus [n: (II Tim. I, 8)]*. Et haec quidem magna sunt, quae in aperto sunt: maxima vero sunt illa quae sunt intrinsecus, hoc est, quae in futuro sanctis reservantur.

[1091A]Vers. 7. *Sexaginta sunt reginae, et octoginta concubinae, et adolescentularum non est numerus.* Reginae sunt doctores sanctae Ecclesiae, qui merito fidei et scientiae thoro Regis aeterni propinquant, et spirituales Deo filios pariunt. Sexagenarius numerus ex denario et senario perficitur. Denarius enim per senarium multiplicatus *526* in sexagenarium consurgit. Et denario significantur divina praecepta propter Decalogum legis; senarius vero pro perfectione ponitur, quia sex diebus perfecit Deus opera sua. *Reginae* ergo sexaginta esse dicuntur, quia eos significant, ut diximus, qui perfectione scientiae et operis pollent, et propter solum amorem Conditoris sui, et intuitum supernae remunerationis praedicant. Hic etiam numerus, id est sexagenarius ex duodenario quinquies ducto conficitur; nam quinquies duodeni, vel duodecies quini sexaginta fiunt. *Reginae* ergo sexaginta esse dicuntur, quia illos significant qui in Ecclesia constituti, quinque sui corporis sensus juxta institutionem duodecim apostolorum caste [1091B] disponere noverunt. *Concubinae* eos significant qui non sincere Christum praedicant, sed propter lucra temporalia, vel propter laudes populares. Nam et istae sicut reginae ad thorum Regis per scientiam accedunt, et filios spirituales generant; sed a corona aeterni regni alienae existunt. Et bene octogenario numero comprehenduntur; nam hic numerus ex denario et octonario conficitur. Octogenarius vero in malo accipitur aliquando propter quaternarium, quo multiplicato consistit. Quaternarius enim temporalia quaeque et praesentia significat propter quatuor mundi climata vel quatuor anni tempora. Recte ergo *concubinae* istae octoginta esse dicuntur: quia (ut dictum est) propter sola temporalia et visibilia praedicant, et spiritualia minus curant. De talibus Apostolus dicebat: *Sunt quidam Christum annuntiantes non sincere,* etc. [n: (Philip. I, 17, 18)]; donec dicit: *in hoc gaudeo, sed et gaudebo. Adolescentularum non est numerus.* Adolescentulae sunt animae jam in Christo [1091C] regeneratae, quae deposita primi hominis vetustate in Christo renovatae sunt, necdum tamen sunt nubiles, necdum thoro Regis aptae; quia necdum ad perfectionem Christum praedicandi pervenerunt. Quarum *non est numerus,* quia infinitus est numerus animarum in Christo credentium, nec ab ullo homine comprehendi potest. Caeterum Deo numerati sunt omnes electi; nam apud quem etiam stellarum numerus comprehensus est [n: (Psal. CXLVI, 4)], ignorari non potest electorum numerus.

## CAPUT VI. (cont.)

Vers. 8. *Una est columba mea, perfecta mea.* Hoc est, una est catholica per universum mundum diffusa Ecclesia, quae ex reginis et adolescentulis, sive adolescentibus constans, etiam concubinas habet, hoc est, quosdam qui nomine tenus Christiani vel doctores dicuntur. *Una est* ergo Ecclesia, quia scissuram et schismata non recipit; sed sicut *unus est Deus, una fides, unum baptisma [n: (Ephes. IV, 5)]*, ita una est generalis Ecclesia, quae recte et columba vocatur: quia Spiritus sancti dote, qui in specie colombae apparuit, [1091D] Christo sponsata et sanctificata est.

*Una est matri suae, electa genitricis suae.* Mater nostra illa est coelestis Jerusalem, de qua Apostolus dicit: *Illa autem quae sursum est Jerusalem, libera est, quae est mater nostra.* Haec ergo Ecclesia *una est matri suae,* quia ad exemplum illius Ecclesiae, quae jam Christo fruitur, ipsa in hac peregrinatione instituitur et informatur, atque ad illam beatitudinem in qua cum Christo conregnat, pervenire nititur.

*Viderunt illam filiae Sion, et beatissimam praedicaverunt reginae, et concubinae laudaverunt eam.* Quas superius adolescentulas, hic filias appellat. *Reginas* vero *et concubinas* in hoc loco, ut superius, intelligamus. Filiae ergo, reginae et concubinae praedicant Ecclesiam et laudant, quia universitas fidelium catholicam admiratur Ecclesiam. Ipsa enim Ecclesia, quae ex multis fidelium constat personis, catholicam, id est universalem Ecclesiam conficit.

[1092A]Vers. 9. *Quae est ista quae progreditur quasi aurora consurgens?* Vox est Synagogae. In fine siquidem saeculi cum plebs Judaica ad praedicationem Eliae et Enoch conversa fuerit ad Christum, ipsa quoque Ecclesiam admirabitur, dicens: *Quae est ista?* id est, quanta et qualis est Ecclesia, *quae progreditur?* hoc est, proficit de virtute in virtutem. Non enim stare, sed progredi dicitur Ecclesia: quia non in uno loco contenta, sed totum mundum coelesti praedicatione occupavit. *Quasi aurora progreditur,* quia transactis tenebris infidelitatis, lumen veritatis habere ostendit.

*Pulchra ut luna.* Lunam ferunt physici a sole illuminari. Et ecce Ecclesia pulchra est ut luna: quia claritate sponsi sui Christi illuminatur, et ejus gratia resplendet. Sive *pulchra est ut luna* in praesenti vita, ubi aliquando concessa sibi pace et tranquillitate sive securitate crescit, aliquando adversitatibus obtrita decrescit.

*Electa ut sol.* In alia vita, ubi perpetuo resplendebit gaudio de visione Conditoris sui. Sive *electa* est [1092B] *ut sol:* quia illum iterum Solem imitari nititur, de quo scriptum est: *Vobis timentibus nomen meum orietur sol justitiae [n: (Malach. IV, 2)]*. Hunc Solem imitatur vivendo in humilitate, et justitia, et pietate.

*Terribilis ut castrorum acies ordinata. Terribilis* aeris potestatibus, *ordinata ut castrorum acies,* id est charitatis unitate unita, ut nullis tentationibus penetrari valeat.

Vers. 10. *Descendi ad hortum nucum.* Laudata Ecclesia a Synagoga respondet: *Descendi ad hortum nucum. Hortus nucum* est vita praesens. Nam sicut in nuce tegmen quidem durissimum videtur, sed nucleus latet: ita in praesenti vita nostrae conscientiae clausae sunt, et non apparent, donec fracta testa corporis manifestentur. *Descendit* ergo *ad hortum nucum* Ecclesia, quando per doctores suos vitam singulorum considerat; unde sequitur:

*Ut viderem poma convallium.* Poma convallium sunt virtutes quae humilitate condiuntur. Descendi [1092C] (inquit) ad hortum, ut viderem poma convallium, id est ut considerarem sanctos, excellentia quidem virtutum praeditos, sed humilitate depressos.

*Et inspicerem si floruisset vinea.* Hoc est, ut considerarem qui in studio sanctarum virtutum proficerent.

*Et germinassent mala punica,* hoc est, ut eos quoque perquirerem qui jam apti sunt ad imitandam passionem Christi. Nam *mala punica* (ut saepe dictum est) mysterium passionis Christi significant. Considerat ergo Ecclesia per praelatos suos, qui in virtutibus crescant, vel qui jam ita perfecti sunt, ut imitantes passionem Christi, pro illo quoque idonei sint sanguinem fundere, quaies erant illi quibus Apostolus dicebat: *Vobis datum est non solum ut credatis in Christum, sed ut pro illo patiamini [n: (Philip. I, 29)]*.

*527* Vers. 11. *Nescivi.* Vox est Synagogae, quae videns tantam Ecclesiae gratiam, inspecta veritate Evangelii, dolet quod antea non cognoverit fidem Christi; et quasi excusans se quod tam tarde conversa [1092D] sit, dicit: *Nescivi,* o sponsi Christi Ecclesia. *Nescivi,* id est non cognovi tantam gratiam, et tanta dona spiritualium virtutum tibi a sponso tuo collata.

*Anima mea conturbavit me propter quadrigas Aminadab.* Conturbata (inquit) sum nimia animi sollicitudine propter tam subitam Evangelii praedicationem. Sciebam enim legem et prophetas divinitus datos, et ideo cum subito vidissem praedicari Evangelium, *conturbata sum propter quadrigas Aminadab. Aminadab,* abnepos fuit Judae, per quem generatio Christi contexitur. Interpretatur autem Aminadab, populi mei spontaneus; ideoque significat Christum, qui spontaneus fuit populi sui: quia ipse cum esset Deus, sponte factus est homo: cum esset Conditor et Creator, sola benignitate sua factus est portio populi sui. Et est sensus: Conturbata (inquit) sum propter subitam Evangelii praedicationem, quae veluti [1093A] velocissima quadriga totum subito mundum pervolavit. Et bene hanc praedicationem non currus, sed quadrigas appellat: quia Evangelii praedicatio quatuor evangelistarum auctoritate consistit, et quatuor Evangelia quasi quatuor quadrigae sunt Novi Testamenti, cui praesidet auriga ipse Christus, temperans et disponens ipse currum Evangeliorum.

Vers. 12. *Revertere, revertere Sunamitis.* Vox est Ecclesiae Synagogam ad fidem invitantis: *Revertere, revertere Sunamitis. Revertere,* o Synagoga, ab infidelitate ad fidem, *revertere* ab odio ad dilectionem. *Sunamitis* interpretatur captiva vel despecta. Talis erat Synagoga ante adventum Christi, captiva videlicet vinculo diaboli, et despecta a Deo: quia Christum ad salutem suam missum non cognovit.

*Revertere, revertere, ut intueamur te,* id est, ut pulchritudinem tuae castitatis aspiciamus.

## CAPUT VII.

[1093B]

Vers. 1. *Quid videbis in Sunamite, nisi choros castrorum?* Vox est sponsi, qui audiens invitari Synagogam a sponsa sua Ecclesia ad fidem, dicit: *Quid videbis in Sunamite, nisi choros castrorum?* ac si diceret: Tu quidem, o sponsa, doles de perditione Synagogae, et quod tarde ad fidem veniat; sed adest tempus quo convertatur, et tunc nihil *videbis in ea nisi choros castrorum,* id est, nisi charitatis concordiam et stabile robur fidei, quo pro defensione meae fidei pugnabit. Nam chori, canentium sunt: castra vero, militum pugnantium. *In Sunamite* ergo chori castrorum videbuntur, quia conversa Synagoga et concorditer Christum praedicabit cum Ecclesia, et pro fide Christi usque ad mortem pugnabit.

*Quam pulchri sunt gressus tui!* Ab hoc loco incipit sponsus exponere laudes sponsae suae. Et notandum quod a gressibus incipit ejus pulchritudinem texere, et in ore laudes ejus finit, sicut superius ab oculis [1093C] coeperat. Hoc autem fecit vel ad pulchritudinem carminis variandam, vel etiam quia sic mysteriis aptissimum est. *Quam pulchri* (inquit) *sunt gressus tui!* Vidit Ecclesiam non otiose in uno loco stantem, sed veloci praedicatione totum mundum peragrantem, ideoque a gressibus coepit eam laudare.: *Gressus* enim Ecclesiae sunt velox praedicatio apostolorum, per quos in omnem terram Evangelium insonuit.

*In calceamentis,* id est in patrum praecedentium exemplis. *Calceamenta* enim ex mortuis fiunt animalibus. Et *calceamenta* Ecclesiae sunt patrum praecedentium exempla, quibus gressus habet munitos; ut securius eum imitando, et sine offensione gradiatur.

*Filia principis.* Alia translatio, *filia Aminadab* dicit. Aminadab (ut superius dictum est) populi mei spontaneus dicitur, qui recte figuram Christi tenet. Nam Ecclesia et filia est, et sponsa: filia, quia ejus sanguine redempta, ejus baptismate regenerata; [1093D] sponsa, quia dote Spiritus sancti illi est conjuncta.

*Juncturae femorum tuorum sicut monilia quae fabricata sunt manu artificis.* In feminibus, vel in femoribus solet sacra Scriptura generationis propaginem designare. Unde de Jacob legimus: *Omnes animae quae egressae sunt de femore Jacob [n: (Exod. I, 5)]*. *Femina* ergo Ecclesiae sunt spiritualis generatio credentis populi per verbum praedicationis et lavacrum regenerationis. *Juncturae femorum* est conjunctio duorum populorum in una fide, Judaici et gentilis. Et bene haec *junctura monilibus* comparatur: quia fides utriusque populi maxime in operibus manifestatur; nam *fides sine operibus mortua est [n: (Jac. II, 26)]*. *Fabricata* autem *sunt manu artificis,* hoc est, Dei omnipotentis, cujus munere virtus boni operis credentibus tribuitur. Hic est ille artifex de quo Paulus dicebat, quando memoriam Abrahae patriarchae faciebat: [1094A] *Exspectabat enim manentem civitatem, cujus conditor et artifex Deus est [n: (Hebr. XI, 10)]*.

Vers. 2. *Umbilicus tuus crater tornatilis, nunquam indigens poculis. Umbilicus,* fragilissima est pars corporis, et ideo per umbilicum fragilitatem nostrae mortalitatis debemus accipere. Crater vero est calix major ansas hinc inde habens. Umbilicus ergo Ecclesiae, crater est tornatilis: quia quanto magis doctores Ecclesiae suae fragilitatis meminerint, tanto magis verbo praedicationis insistunt; ut eleemosynam verbi Dei praebentes, ipsi misericordiam a Deo consequantur. Et bene *crater tornatilis* dicitur: torno enim facilius operamur; per quod significatur facilitas erogandi verbum, vel eleemosynam dandi. Non enim morose, nec haesitando eleemosyna danda est; juxta quod Salomon dicit: *Ne dixeris amico tuo: Vade et revertere, cras dabo tibi, cum statim possis dare [n: (Prov. III, 26)]*. Quod etiam torno fit, non eget exterius adhibita regula vel linea: sed inerrate ex seipso perficitur. *Umbilicus* ergo Ecclesiae *crater est [1094B] tornatilis,* quia quicunque vel praedicat, vel eleemosynam dat, pro sola dilectione et supernae me cedis exspectatione hoc facere debet. Nam quicunque vel praedicat, vel proximis miseretur pro remuneratione temporali vel laude, *crater* est, sed non *tornatilis.* Et hic *crater nunquam indiget poculis,* quia praedicatoribus nunquam deest praedicatio verbi Dei: quia ipse quem praedicant, pocula scientiae, et virtutem constantiae illis subministrat; unde et Psalmista: *Dominus dabit verbum evangelizantibus virtute multa [n: (Psal. LXVII, 12)]*.

*528* *Venter tuus sicut acervus tritici, vallatus liliis.* Eadem fragilitas quae per *umbilicum* designata est, ostenditur hoc loco per *ventrem,* quia *venter* nulla ossium firmitate praemunitur. Bene ergo *venter* Ecclesiae *acervo tritici* comparatur, quia sancti quique quanto magis memores sunt suae fragilitatis, eo studiosius ad proferendos bonorum operum fructus insistunt. Et recte non copiam tritici, sed *acervum [1094C] tritici* dicit, ut per hoc significet incrementa virtutum, quae veluti *acervus,* ab inferioribus ad superiora crescendo conscendunt. Nam sicut *acervus* in inferioribus lata amplitudine spatiatur, superius vero quadam brevitate contrahitur et acuminatur: ita in Ecclesia multi sunt qui indulgentius vivunt, pauci vero qui summae perfectioni insistunt. Plures enim inveniuntur qui de bonis suis eleemosynam faciunt, quam qui sua pro Deo relinquunt. Hic *acervus liliis vallatus* dicitur, quia sancti bona quae faciunt, pro desiderio supernae claritatis et candoris agunt. Nam per lilia coelestis illa claritas designatur. Potest etiam per *ventrem* Ecclesiae divinus fons baptismatis accipi, quo fideles in novam creaturam regenerantur. Hic ergo *venter acervo tritici vallato liliis* comparatur, quia regenerati fonte baptismatis docentur bonis insudare operibus, et ad intuendam supernae claritatis gloriam semper inhiare.

Vers. 3. *Duo ubera tua sicut duo hinnuli gemelli [1094D] capreae.* Ubera Ecclesiae (sicut jam superius dictum est) sanctos doctores significant, qui parvulos quosque (hoc est, nuper in Christo regeneratos) lacte apertioris et facilioris doctrinae instruunt. Bene autem *duo ubera* dicuntur, quia de duobus populis, Judaico videlicet et gentili fideles congregantur, et lacte spiritualis doctrinae aluntur. *Haec duo ubera, sicut duo hinnuli capreae gemelli* esse dicuntur. *Duo hinnuli* sunt duo Testamenta, quibus eorumdem doctorum omnis praedicatio subsistit, quorum Testamentorum unus est auctor et promulgator Christus, juxta quod Salomon dicit: *Verba sapientium quasi stimuli, et quasi clari in altum defixi, quae data sunt a pastore uno [n: (Eccli. XII, 11)]*, Christo videlicet. Caprea enim recte Christum significat, quia et intuitu et velocitate caeteris animantibus praeeminet, et mundum est animal, ungulam dividens et ruminans. Tales enim sunt membra Christi, doctores videlicet, intuitu [1095A] scientiae insignes, et ea velocitate terrena deserentes, atque ad coelestia festinantes. Dividens ungulam, id est habens boni et mali discretionem; et ruminans, hoc est sedula memoria praecepta Dei meditans.

Vers. 4. *Collum tuum sicut turris eburnea.* Doctores sancti, qui designantur per ubera, ipsi designantur et per *collum.* Nam et per arterias colli vox egreditur, et *colli* ministerio caeteris membris vitalia alimenta ministrantur: sic et sancti doctores et verba vitae populis annuntiant, et alimento doctrinae coelestis eos nutriunt. *Collum* ergo Ecclesiae *turri eburneae* comparatur: quia sancti doctores eidem Ecclesiae et pulchritudinem et robur praestant; pulchritudinem quidem, quae per candorem eboris designatur, caste et sincere vivendo; robur vero praestant, quod significatur per turrim, quando eamdem Ecclesiam contra tentationes diaboli vel impetus haereticorum muniunt.

*Oculi tui sicut piscinae in Hesebon, quae sunt in porta [1095B] filiae multitudinis.* Id est ipsi doctores, qui per collum designati sunt, designantur et per oculos. Ipsi enim quasi *oculi* universo corpori Ecclesiae provident, et iter quod ingredi debeant ostendunt. Hi *oculi* Ecclesiae comparantur *piscinis* aedificatis in porta civitatis *Hesebon,* quia sancti doctores populos in Christum credentes, vitali lavacro abluunt, et salutaris doctrinae potu reficiunt. *Filia* autem *multitudinis* vocatur *Hesebon* juxta litteram, ob multitudinem confluentium inibi populorum. Sic et sancta Ecclesia recte dicitur *filia multitudinis,* quia numerositatem quotidie colligit gentium. *Hesebon* autem interpretatur cingulum moeroris. *Oculi* ergo Ecclesiae *piscinis Hesebon* comparantur, quia sancti doctores, neglectis caducis saeculi gaudiis, cingulo moeroris se constringunt: quia *caste et sobrie vivunt in hoc saeculo [n: (Tit. II, 12)]*, et pro suis erratibus deflent; quatenus in praesenti saeculo lugentes, ad vera aeternaque possint pervenire gaudia. In *porta* autem [1095D] *Hesebon* hae *piscinae* esse dicuntur: quia nullus Ecclesiam ingredi valet, nisi prius aqua baptismatis abluatur, et nisi fonte salutaris doctrinae potetur. Hoc etiam significabat labrum aeneum quod Salomon in porticu templi posuerat, ut sacerdotes ingressuri templum, et hostias immolaturi, ibi corpora abluerent [n: (III Reg. VII, 23)].

*Nasus tuus sicut turris Libani, quae respicit contra Damascum.* Quia *naso* fetores et bonos odores discernimus, recte per nasum Ecclesiae iidem sancti doctores intelliguntur. Ipsi enim sagaciter discernere noverunt fragrantem catholicae fidei doctrinam, et lethiferum haeretici erroris fetorem. Nam et in divinis charismatibus, quae per Spiritum sanctum distribuuntur, dicitur: *Alii datur per Spiritum discretio spirituum [n: (I Cor. XII, 10)]*. *Nasus* ergo Ecclesiae *turri Libani* comparatur, quia sancti doctores et summum locum in Ecclesia tenent, ac veluti in Libano monte consistunt, et defendunt Ecclesiam a malignorum spirituum incursibus. Haec *turris* contra [1095D] Damascum esse dicitur. Damascus metropolis civitas est Syriae, quae quondam contra filios Israel, ut pote fortissimos et crudelissimos reges habens, dimicabat. Interpretatur autem Damascus, sanguinis potus, vel sanguinis oculus. Ferunt ibi Abel interfectum, ideoque significat potestates hujus saeculi, quae sanguinis potum sitiunt: quia voluptatibus et illecebris carnis et sanguinis delectantur. Significat etiam aeras potestates, quae animarum nostrarum cruorem sitiunt. Contra Damascum ergo est haec turris: quia haec Ecclesia semper diabolo et membris illius, adjutorio Christi munita, resistit.

## CAPUT VII. (cont.)

Vers. 5. *Caput tuum ut Carmelus. Caput* ergo Ecclesiae, principalitas mentis fidelium intelligitur; nam sicut capite membra reguntur caetera; ita mente cogitationes disponuntur. Bene autem *caput* Ecclesiae *Carmelo* comparatur. Carmelus enim, qui et Carmel dicitur, interpretatur cognitio vel scientia circumcisionis. [1096A] Ergo caput Ecclesiae Carmelo assimilatur: quia novit circumcisionem aliquando corporaliter celebratam, nunc se spiritualiter observare debere, juxta quod propheta dicit: *Circumcidimini Domino in cordibus vestris [n: (Jer. IV, 2)]*. Hanc sententiam circumcisionis non habuerunt Judaei, ideoque reprehenduntur a beato Stephano protomartyre *529* dicente: *Dura cervice et incircumcisi cordibus et auribus, semper Spiritui sancto restitistis [n: (Act. VII, 51)]*. In libro quoque Regum legitur [n: (III Reg. XVIII, 45)] quod Elias in montem Carmeli ascenderit, et ibi orando aridam terram coelestibus pluviis irrigaverit post longam trium annorum et semis siccitatem. Quae historia pulchram redolet allegoriam; nam Elias, qui interpretatur Deus meus Dominus, Christum significat, qui cum sit Deus et Dominus omnium et totius creaturae, specialiter suus, id est proprius est Deus et Dominus Ecclesiae. Hic in Carmelum ascendit, quando per gratiam suam mentes fidelium suorum conscendit, et per eos arenti mundo gratiarum suarum pluvias [1096B] tribuit. Recte ergo (ut dictum est) caput Ecclesiae Carmelo monti comparatur: quia mens sanctorum quadam conversatione sublimis est, et Christo in se ascensum praebet per profectum virtutum.

*Et comae capitis tui ut purpura regis vincta canalibus.* Si per caput Ecclesiae mens accipitur, per comas capitis cogitationes mentis debemus accipere, quae assidue de illa prodeunt. Purpureus vero color, qui sanguinis habet speciem, mysterium dominicae passionis significat. Juxta litteram quod dicit, *purpura regis vincta canalibus,* significat lanam jam purpureo colore confectam, et necdum in fila deductam, sed adhuc in canalibus constitutam, quas Graece βάτια vocant, in quibus sanguis conchyliorum solet defluere, et lanam in purpureum colorem vertere. Mystice canales isti humilitatem sanctorum significant, in quibus aeterni Regis purpura tingitur, cum sancti quique humilitatem sui Redemptoris imitando, passionum illius conformes fieri satagunt; quatenus in [1096C] purpurae dignitatem vertantur, id est laborantes pro Christo, mereantur coronari et regnare cum Christo. *Vincta* autem haec purpura esse dicitur, quia sanctorum praecordia fixa sunt et stabilita in timore et amore Redemptoris sui, nec unquam a charitate ejus separari possunt.

Vers. 6. *Quam pulchra es, et quam decora, charissima, in deliciis! Quam pulchra es,* scilicet in fide, et *decora* in operatione, *charissima, in deliciis.* Supra dictum est de eadem Ecclesia: *Pulchra ut luna, electa ut sol, terribilis ut castrorum acies ordinata;* hic vero dicitur, *pulchra et decora, charissima, in deliciis.* Quae quasi contraria esse videntur; nam ordinatam esse velut castrorum aciem, et esse in deliciis, repugnat, quia deliciae fortitudinem militum solent enervare. Sed sancta Ecclesia utrumque agit; ordinata est velut castrorum acies, quia infidelibus haereticis resistit, et malignos spiritus sua sanctitate et perfectione terret: in deliciis etiam est, quia suavitatem supernae dulcedinis assidue palato mentis degustat, et inter [1096D] pressuras hujus saeculi illas adipisci desiderat, et continue illis satiari. Unde merito illa quae talis est, sponso suo Christo *charissima* esse dicitur.

Vers. 7. *Statura tua assimilata est pulmae.* Statura Ecclesiae est perfecta ejus rectitudo; neque enim ad vitia incurvatur, sed recta et immobilis persistit. Unde Psalmista ex persona peccantium dicebat: *Incurvatus sum et humiliatus usquequaque [n: (Psal. CXVIII, 107)]*. Et propheta sub specie Jerusalem, peccanti animae de malignis spiritibus dicit: *Quia humiliaverunt te, et dixerunt animae tuae: Incurvare ut transeamus [n: (Isa. LI, 23)]*. At contra sancta Ecclesia recta stat, nec unquam incurvari consentit, audiens ab Apostolo: *Vigilate, state in fide, viriliter agite, et confortamini, et omnia vestra in charitate fiant [n: (I Cor. XVI, 13)]*. Et Dominus filiis Israel loquitur: *Ego sum Dominus Deus vester, qui eripui vos de ergastulo Aegyptiorum, ut incederetis recte [n: (Exod. VI, 8)]*. Statura [1097A] ergo Ecclesiae palmae assimilantur, quae in omnibus quae agit, semper in memoria supernam retinet remunerationem. Palma enim victricem ornat manum, et ideo significat praemium illud quod victoribus sanctis in coelestibus est dandum.

*Et ubera tua botris.* Ubera Ecclesiae (ut superius dictum est) sunt doctores sancti, qui lacte simplicis doctrinae regeneratos in Christo nutriunt. Sed haec ubera botris assimilantur, quando iidem doctores perfectis perfectiora denuntiant, sicut Apostolus loquens simplicioribus dicebat: *Non potui vobis loqui tanquam spiritualibus, sed tanquam carnalibus; tanquam parvulis in Christo lac potum vobis dedi, non escam [n: (I Cor. III, 1)]*. Ecce ubera lactis plena; quae ubera in botros sunt versa, cum diceret: *Nos praedicamus Christum Dei virtutem et Dei sapientiam, et loquimur sapientiam inter perfectos.*

Vers. 8. *Dixi: Ascendam in palmam, et apprehendam fructus ejus.* Ut ostenderetur omnis haec excellentia et magnitudo donorum Ecclesiae de Dei gratia [1097B] venire, introducitur idem sponsus dicens: *Ascendam in palmam;* quasi diceret: Inde habes ubera ad nutriendos parvulos, unde etiam habes botros, quibus perfectioribus perfectiorem propines doctrinam: quia ego mea gratia in te ascendi, et hanc tibi perfectionem concessi. *Ascendam* (inquit) *in palmam. Palma* Ecclesiam significat, vel etiam animam cujuscunque fidelis, qui memor est Domini Dei sui, qui dicit: *Confidite, ego vici mundum [n: (Joan. XVI, 33)]*. Ipsa quoque omnium vitiorum et iniquitatis victrix esse studet. Bene autem in palmam hic ascendisse dicitur, cum superius in hortum descendisse legatur. Dixit enim Ecclesia: *Dilectus meus descendit in hortum suum.* Idem est hortus quod et palma, videlicet una eademque Ecclesia. Sed in eam Dominus descendit, et ad eam ascendit: descendit in eam, copiam suae gratiae illi de coelestibus mittendo; ascendit ad illam, dona sua in ea incrementando eamque quibusdam profectibus, veluti quibusdam gradibus, ad [1097C] celsiora sublevando. Sed et hoc de natura palmae est sciendum, quod in inferioribus aspera est, in superioribus pulcherrima decore foliorum, et pulchritudine fructuum. Sic et sancta Ecclesia in inferioribus asperitatem laborum et passionum sustinet pro Christo: in superioribus vero, hoc est in coelestibus, pulchritudinem et suavitatem exspectat praemiorum. Potest et per palmam arbor dominicae crucis exprimi, in quam Redemptor noster pro humani generis redemptione ascendit, et in qua hostem humani generis superavit. Ait ergo, *Ascendam in palmam,* id est, per meos prophetas locutus sum, et promisi me ad passionem venturum, et meam Ecclesiam redempturum. *Apprehendam* (inquit) *fructus ejus,* id est, fructus bonorum operum et laborum, quibus Ecclesia desudat, remunerando. Vel etiam secundum meum sensum, quo per palmam crux intelligitur: *Apprehendam fructus* *530* *ejus,* id est, impleto triumpho passionis, veniam ad gloriam resurrectionis, et apostolis meis spiritualia dona concedam.

[1097D] *Et erunt ubera tua sicut botri vineae.* Hoc superius jam expositum est; nam ubera Ecclesiae doctores sunt, cum parvulos simplici doctrina nutriunt: sed botri vineae efficiuntur, cum perfectioribus sublimia quaeque annuntiant. Nam beatus Paulus uno eodemque tempore ubera et botros habuit, quando de Christo loquens dixit: *Quorum patres, et ex quibus Christus [n: (Rom. IX, 5)]*; ecce ubera, id est simplex de Christo praedicatio: sed haec ubera in suavissimum et fortissimum vinum conversa sunt, cum subjunxit: *Qui est Deus super omnia benedictus in saecula.*

Vers. 9. *Et odor oris tui sicut malorum. Guttur tuum sicut vinum optimum. Os* et *odor* Ecclesiae est praesens ejus praedicatio, quae fama vel scripto ad absentes ejus pervenit: *guttur* vero est vox ipsa praedicatoris, quae in praesenti auditur. *Odor* ergo *oris* Ecclesiae odoribus malorum comparatur, quia ipsa fama praedicationis plena est suavitatis et gratiae. *Guttur* vero *vino optimo* assimilatur, quia ipsa [1098A] vox praedicantium magnam in se virtutem auditoribus ostendebat. Quod vero malorum odor in novitate est, vini vero in vetustate, significat praedicationem Ecclesiae et in sui novitate, et etiam in sui perfectione omnem habere suavitatem et gratiam.

*Dignum dilecto meo ad potandum, labiisque et dentibus illius ad ruminandum.* Vox Ecclesiae est, quae audiens se laudari a sponso, gratulabunda respondet, dicens: *Dignum dilecto meo ad potandum;* ac si diceret: Sponsus meus guttur meum vino optimo comparavit, et illud *vinum dignum* est *ad potandum* ipsi *dilecto meo;* hoc est praedicatio evangelica, quam in ore meo posuit, per ipsum, et non per alium annuntiari debet in mundo; neque enim per alium decebat mysteria regni coelestis praedicari mundo, quam per *Mediatorem Dei et hominum [n: (I Tim. II, 5)]*. *Et labiis* (inquit) *et dentibus illius ad ruminandum.* Labia et dentes sponsi, ut supra dictum est, doctores sancti sunt. Illud ergo vinum optimum ruminandum est labiis et dentibus sponsi, quia praedicatio evangelica [1098B] tradita a Deo, doctoribus tractanda et exponenda est. Nec absurdum est quod cum vinum potetur et non ruminetur, hic tamen dicitur *labiis et dentibus ruminandum,* quod magis ad cibum quam ad potum pertinet; nam sancti doctores vinum spirituale ruminant, quando praecepta evangelica diligenter exquirunt, et crebra meditatione investigant atque invicem conferunt.

Vers. 10. *Ego dilecto meo, et ad me conversio ejus. Ego dilecto meo,* subaudi, obsequium justitiae et devotionis impendo, illi et non alteri fidem et servitutem meam promitto. *Et ad me conversio ejus,* ut me in praesenti inter labores et aerumnas hujus vitae tueatur, et in futuro ad gaudia vitae coelestis introducat. Potest etiam haec esse vox Synagogae ex persona sanctorum Patrum, adventum Christi desiderantium. Ac si diceret: Scio (inquit) illum spirituali praesentia mihi semper adesse, et ideo *ego dilecto meo* omni devotione famulari cupio; sed tandem *ad me [1098C] conversio ejus,* quia opto ut tandem, sicut promisit, in mea substantia mihi appareat. Nam dixerat supra sponsus: *Ascendam in palmam,* id est promiserat se in carne venturum, et in mea substantia hominem mundo manifestandum.

## CAPUT VII. (cont.)

Vers. 11. *Veni, dilecte mi; egrediamur in agrum, commoremur in villis.* Ejusdem Synagogae vox est. *Veni, dilecte mi,* id est appare per assumptum hominem. Tale est et illud Psalmistae: *Excita potentiam tuam, et veni [n: (Psal. LXXIX, 3)]*. Et Isaias: *Utinam dirumperes coelos, et venires [n: (Isai. LXIV, 1)]*. *Egrediamur in agrum.* Ager mundus iste est. *Egrediamur* (inquit) *in agrum,* id est praedicemus mundo. *Commoremur in villis,* hoc est ipsis quoque paganis fidem tuam annuntiemus. Nemo nescit Paganos a villa dictos: quia πάγος Graece, villa dicitur Latine; inde Pagani dicti, quia longe sunt a civitate Dei. Potest et Vox Ecclesiae esse: *Veni, dilecte mi;* ac si diceret: Jam mysterio ascensionis assumptum hominem ad coelos sublevasti; sed *veni,* divinae majestatis praesentia [1098D] me saepius visitando. *Egrediamur in agrum,* eodem sensu quo et superius: praedicemus tuae incarnationis fidem mundo. *Commoremur in villis,* id est etiam ignorantibus te paganis tuam fidem annuntiemus, nec in transitu tantum, sed commoremur ibi, donec illos ex paganis catholicos, ex alienis tibi proprios faciamus.

Vers. 12. *Mane surgamus ad vineas. Mane,* exortus est novae gratiae, quando videlicet transeuntibus tenebris infidelitatis Evangelium mundo coepit praedicari.

*Videamus si floruit vinea,* hoc est, inspiciamus Ecclesiam, si jam prima fidei rudimenta suscepit.

*Si flores fructus parturiunt.* Inspiciamus etiam *si flores parturiunt fructum,* id est si illi qui jam in Christum crediderunt, idonei sunt ad bene operandum. Nam flores emittit Ecclesia, cum primum fideles ad fidem veniunt: flores vero fructus parturiunt, cum jam ipsa fide et dilectione bene operatur, ne [1099A] ipsa fides otiosa sit, vel mortua sine operibus, nam, ut Jacobus dicit: *Fides sine operibus mortua est [n: (Jac. II, 26)]*.

*Si floruerunt mala punica. Mala punica* (ut supra dictum est) rubicundum vel sanguineum habent corticem, et ideo significant passionem Domini, vel membrorum ipsius. Dicit ergo, *Si floruerunt mala punica,* hoc est si sancti qui jam fide et opere perfecti sunt, idonei etiam sint imitari passionem Christi, et pati pro illo. *Mala punica* erant illi quibus Apostolus dicebat: *Vobis datum est non solum ut in illum credatis, verum etiam ut pro illo patiamini [n: (Philipp. I, 29)]*.

*Ibi dabo tibi ubera mea.* Ubera Ecclesiae doctores sunt, qui fideles primum ad fidem erudiunt. Cum (inquit) ad vineas exierimus, *ibi dabo tibi,* o sponse, *ubera mea,* hoc est, spirituales tibi filios generabo. Unde adhuc subditur.

Vers. 13. *Mandragorae dederunt odorem in portis nostris. Mandragora* herba est aromatica, cujus radix [1099B] similitudinem habet humani corporis. Poma ejus optimi sunt odoris in similitudinem pomi Matiani, quod nostri terrae malum vocant. Haec herba rebus medicinalibus aptissima est. Nam ferunt eos qui incommodo vigiliarum laborant, haustu hujus pomi relevari, et posse dormire. Item ferunt eos qui ob curam secandi sunt, si exteriorem hujus pomi corticem biberint, non sentire sectionem vel adustionem; *531* quae omnia si quis mystice disquirere voluerit, spirituales sensus et Ecclesiae convenientes ibi inveniet. Dicit ergo, *Mandragorae dederunt odorem in portis nostris.* Portae Ecclesiae sunt apostoli et eorum successores: quia nemo civitatem Dei (id est Ecclesiam) intrat, nisi per sanctos doctores aqua baptismatis regeneratus et vitali doctrina instructus fuerit. De his portis Psalmista dicebat: *Diligit Dominus portas Sion super omnia tabernacula Jacob [n: (Psal. LXXXVI, 2)]*. *Mandragorae* autem fragrantiam virtutum designant. *In portis* ergo Ecclesiae *mandragorae [1099C] odorem dederunt,* quando apostoli vel successores eorum famam suavissimae opinionis, et odorem virtutum longe lateque sparserunt. Ideoque invitat sponsum suum Ecclesia ut veniat, quia jam nomen ejus longe lateque per apostolos annuntiatur, et odor praedicationis Christi longe lateque dispergitur.

*Omnia poma nova et vetera, dilecte mi, servavi tibi,* id est praecepta vel promissa Veteris Testamenti et Novi servavi tibi, o dilecte mi. Sciebat enim omnia quae in Veteri Testamento annuntiata sunt, nonnisi per Christum et in Christo posse compleri, ideoque dicebat: *Servavi tibi poma nova et vetera,* hoc est te exspecto, ut per te impleantur in Novo Testamento quae praedicta sunt in Veteri. Unde et in passione sua jam pendens in cruce, *Cum gustasset acetum, dixit, Consummatum est [n: (Joan. XIX, 30)]*; Et post resurrectionem apostolis: *Necesse est impleri omnia quae scripta sunt in Lege, et Prophetis, et Psalmis de me [n: (Luc. XXIV, 44)]*. Possunt etiam poma nova et vetera justorum personae intelligi, qui vel in Veteri vel in [1099D] Novo Testamento fuerunt. Dicit ergo Ecclesia, *Servavi tibi nova et vetera,* id est, justos qui in Veteri Testamento praecesserunt, vel in Novo subsecuti sunt, tibi servavi; ut per te laborum suorum praemia perciperent. Nullus enim justorum regnum coelorum intrare valuit, nisi per Christum: quia ipse primus ascendit, et sequentibus suis membris coelum aperuit.

## CAPUT VIII.

Vers. 1. *Quis mihi det te fratrem meum sugentem ubera matris meae?* Ex his verbis intelligitur totum hoc carmen divinum esse et spirituale, et nihil in se quod juxta litteram intelligi possit, habere. Quae enim unquam amatrix hoc optavit, ut is quem diligit parvulus efficiatur, et ejus frater; et in infantem versus, sugat ubera matris suae? Est ergo vox illius Ecclesiae, quae adventum Christi praecessit, quam Synagogam, id est congregationem appellamus. *Quis* (inquit) *mihi det te fratrem meum sugentem ubera matris [1100A] meae?* Et est sensus: Tu *qui* modo *es in sinu Patris [n: (Joan. I, 18)]*, quis det ut homo efficiaris, et particeps ac consors meae naturae existens, frater meus appelleris? Nam ipse se fratrem apostolorum vocare dignatus est, dicens per Psalmistam: *Narrabo nomen tuum fratribus meis [n: (Psal. XXI, 23)]*; et post resurrectionem mulieribus: *Ite* (inquit) *nuntiate fratribus meis [n: (Matth. XXVIII, 10)]*. *Sugentem ubera matris meae,* inquit, hoc est implentem omnia quae naturae humanae conveniunt, excepto peccato. Nam mater Synagogae in hoc loco ipsa natura humana intelligitur, de qua ipsa Synagoga exorta est. *Sugentem* (inquit) *ubera matris meae,* id est sustinentem omnia quae humanae fragilitati competunt.

*Ut inveniam te foris,* hoc est ut hominem factum in aperto videam. Quasi enim intus erat Deus, cum jam in sinu majestatis paternae lateret; sed foris inventus est, quando homo factus visibilem se hominibus praebuit, et incomprehensibilis voluit comprehendi.

*Et deosculer te. Et deosculer te,* inquit, id est manifesta [1100B] te aspiciam visione, quem nunc tantum in fidei teneo osculo; quod initio hujus carminis optavit, dicens: *Osculetur me osculo oris sui [n: (Cant. I, 1)]*, id est per semetipsum jam veniat, ut mihi appareat. Quasi enim per prophetas osculabatur Ecclesiam dilectus, cum adventum suum per eos repromitteret. Optat ergo ut per seipsum veniens illam osculetur, hoc est, ut in carne sua praesentiam exhibeat.

*Et jam me nemo despiciat.* Quasi enim despecta erat ante Synagoga quam Christus veniret: quia jam legalibus observationibus dedita, sub typo et figura, et non in veritate adventum Christi praedicabat. At postquam Jesus apparuit, et adventus sui gratia mundum illustravit, *Jam nemo despexit* eam; quinimo *terribilis ut castrorum acies* hostibus suis fuit: quia per universum mundum Christum praedicavit, et mundanum imperium sibi subdidit. Nec mirum videri debet, si nunc Ecclesiam Synagogam dicimus; una est enim Ecclesia in praecedentibus et [1100C] in sequentibus partibus.

Vers. 2. *Apprehendam te, et ducam te in domum matris meae.* O dilecte! per fidem et charitatem tibi adhaerendo, *ducam te in domum matris meae.* Mater Ecclesiae, hoc in loco coelestis illa Jerusalem intelligitur de qua Paulus dicit: *Illa autem quae sursum est Jerusalem, libera est, quae est mater nostra [n: (Gal. IV, 26)]*. *Ducam te* (inquit) *in domum matris meae,* id est, prosequar te revertentem in coelum, post actum incarnationis tuae et passionis mysterium. *Ducam* autem *te,* inquit, pro eo quod est, deducam et prosequar: quia ascendentem Dominum in coelos apostoli oculis deduxerunt, et quousque eum nubes suscepit, pio aspectu prosecuti sunt, donec angeli assistentes dixerunt: *Viri Galilaei, quid statis aspicientes in coelum? Hic Jesus qui assumptus est a vobis in coelum, sic veniet quemadmodum vidistis eum euntem in coelum [n: (Act. I, 11)]*.

*Ibi me docebis.* Hoc ad superiora refertur, ubi dicitur, *inveniam te foris.* Cum (inquit) te foris invenero, [1100D] hoc est, cum te in assumpta carne aspexero, *ibi docebis me:* quia ad omnia quae interrogare voluero, respondebis. Nam saepe etiam volentes interrogare apostolos Dominus praeveniebat, eosque instruebat [n: (Marc. IX)]. Potest et ad hunc locum jungi, ubi dicit, *Ducam te in domum matris meae, ibi me docebis.* Cum (inquit) coelo receptus fueris, et me quoque in coelum tecum assumpseris, *ibi me docebis,* et in omnem veritatem induces, quod impossibile est homini in praesenti vita posse consequi. Hinc est quod Dominus repromittit apostolis dicens: *Venit hora cum jam non in proverbiis loquar vobis, sed palam de Patre annuntiabo vobis [n: (Joan. XVI, 25)]*. Ergo *ibi me docebis,* id est, te et Patrem mihi aperta visione revelabis, hoc est divinitatem tuam mihi facie ad faciem ostendes.

*Et dabo tibi poculum ex vino condito.* Per *vinum* fervor charitatis et dilectionis intelligitur. *532* *Dabo* (inquit) *tibi vinum,* hoc est ostendam quam ferventissima charitate te diligam. Et hoc *vinum* non simplex [1101A] erit, sed *conditum,* bonis videlicet operibus et virtutibus. Nam amor Dei, sicut beatus Gregorius dicit [n: (S. Gregorius, homil. 30 in Evang.)], nunquam est otiosus, operatur magna si est; si enim operari renuit, amor non est. Vinum enim conditum est dilectio cum operatione. Unde et Dominus in Evangelio: *Si quis diligit me, sermonem meum servabit [n: (Joan. XIV, 23)]*. Probatio ergo dilectionis exhibitio est operis.

*Et mustum malorum granatorum meorum.* Malum granatum idem est quod et malum punicum. Dicitur autem malum granatum, eo quod multitudine granorum sit plenum; malum punicum, eo quod in Africa plurimum abundat. *Punica* enim ipsa est Africa. Habet autem corticem sanguinei coloris, et ideo (ut saepe dictum est) figuram tenet dominicae passionis. *Mustum* enim *malorum granatorum* est dilectio sanctorum martyrum, qui in tantum Deum dilexerunt, ut pro illo mori non dubitarent. Et bene mustum dicitur, non aliud quodlibet poculum, quia mustum [1101B] ferventissimum est, ita ut in nimio fervore omnem sordem ex se excoquat et purget. Dabit ergo Ecclesia Dilecto mustum malorum granatorum suorum, id est, ostendet in passionibus sanctorum martyrum quanta charitate Christus diligatur.

Vers. 3. *Laeva ejus sub capite meo, et dextera illius amplexabitur me.* Per *laevam* (ut beatus Gregorius dicit) omnia prospera praesentis vitae accipiuntur [n: (S. Greg. in cap. II Cant. cant.)]; per *dexteram* vero futura beata vita in coelis accipitur. *Laevam* ergo sponsi Ecclesia *sub capite* habet, *et dextera* illam *amplexatur:* quia quaecunque prospera praesentis saeculi blandiuntur, pro nihilo deputat: cuncta quae temporaliter arrident, despicit; et dum ad solam supernae beatitudinis visionem tendit, illam solummodo amplexari desiderat.

Vers. 4. *Adjuro vos, filiae Jerusalem, ne suscitetis neque evigilare faciatis dilectam, donec ipsa velit.* Habet Ecclesia quosdam in se, qui baptismo Christi sunt [1101C] renati, et nomine christianitatis titulati moribus tamen et conversatione saeculo serviunt, et Ecclesiam suavissima sopitam quiete inquietare, atque ad perferendos tumultus excitare nituntur. Hi ergo propter gratiam mysteriorum Christi, quae perceperunt, *filiae Jerusalem* appellantur in hoc loco, cum tamen moribus contraria agant. Et *adjurat* eos sponsus *ne suscitent vel evigilare faciant dilectam,* hoc est, ne illam in somno dulcissimae quietis positam, hoc est in contemplatione sui Conditoris, sua inquietudine *excitent,* et ad sollicitudines et curas saeculi *evigilare* compellant. *Donec ipsa velit,* hoc est donec peracto officio debitae servitutis, qua in psalmis, hymnis et canticis spiritualibus Deo famulatur, admoneatur iterum cura corporeae fragilitatis ad usum saeculi redire.

Vers. 5. *Quae est ista quae ascendit de deserto, deliciis affluens, innixa super dilectum suum?* Vox Synagogae admirantis Ecclesiam de gentibus congregatam. *Quae est,* inquit, *ista,* id est qualis est, quanti meriti, *quae ascendit de deserto?* Derelicta enim fuerat a Deo [1101D] per idololatriam et veritatis ignorantiam. Ascendebat ergo virtutum gradibus de deserto, hoc est de errore infidelitatis, in quo ad tempus derelicta fuerat. *Deliciis affluens,* id est virtutibus abundans. *Innixa,* inquit, *super dilectum suum,* id est, fiducialiter agens in Christo, et omnes virtutes suas et cuncta bona ad ejus gratiam referens. Sciebat se nihil suis viribus boni implere posse, ideoque cum Apostolo dicit: *Gratia Dei sum id quod sum [n: (I Cor. XV, 10)]*. Et notandum quod dicit, *super dilectum suum:* nam Synagoga sola putabat se habere cognitionem Dei, caeteris gentibus in ignorantia destitutis. *Notus* enim, ut ait Psalmista, *in Judaea Deus, in Israel magnum nomen ejus [n: (Psal. LXXV, 2)]*. Sed ita miranti respondet Synagogae ipsius sponsus et dilectus quod sequitur.

*Sub arbore malo suscitavi te. Arborem malum,* crucem dominicam debemus accipere, sub qua arbore *suscitata est* Synagoga: quia ipsa a praevaricatione originalis peccati, et a potestate diaboli per crucem [1102A] Christi redempta est: ibi *suscitata est* quae peccatis mortua erat. Et bene arborem mali dicit; nam et supra dilectum huic arbori Christum comparavit, dicens: *Sicut malum inter ligna silvarum, sic dilectus meus inter filios.*

*Ibi corrupta est mater tua, ibi violata est genitrix tua.* Matrem et genitricem Synagogae, majorem et principaliorem Judaicae plebis partem dicit, quales erant scribae et pharisaei, qui Christum Pilato tradiderunt [n: (Matth. XXVII, 2)], qui reliquam plebem tanquam mater et genitrix regere debebant et erudire; et quales erant illi qui suadentibus illis principibus improbe acclamabant: *Crucifige, crucifige eum [n: (Joan. XIX, 6)]*. Haec ergo *mater* Synagogae *sub arbore malo corrupta est* et *violata,* quando se suosque posteros crudeli maledictione constrinxit, dicens: *Sanguis ejus super nos et super filios nostros [n: (Matth. XXVII, 25)]*. Nam et ipsi sub cruce Christi erant, licet non fide et devotione, tamen crudelis vindictae sibi et suis posteris imprecatione.

## CAPUT VIII. (cont.)

[1102B]Vers. 6. *Pone me ut signaculum super cor tuum, ut signaculum super brachium tuum.* Quia (inquit) *sub arbore malo suscitavi te,* hoc est quia in passione mea in cruce te redemi, *Pone me ut signaculum super cor tuum,* hoc est habeto me semper in memoria, et ne obliviscaris mei, quanta pro tua salute pertulerim. *Pone me* (inquit) *ut signaculum super cor tuum* per fidem, *pone me ut signaculum super brachium tuum* per dignam operationem. Nam et nos quando aliquid in memoria habere volumus, signaculum digito vel brachio imponere solemus; ut illo admoniti, illius rei, cujus curam habemus, recordemur. Et nos ut signaculum super cor et brachium Christum ponere debemus, ut ejus memoriam semper habeamus, et ut recte in illum credentes, fidem ipsam bonis operibus exornemus. Quod si fecerimus, ipse quoque nos velut signaculum assumet, et nostri recordabitur, juxta quod Zorobabel duci Judaeae repromittit: *In die illa suscipiam te, Zorobabel serve meus, et ponam te [1102C] sicut signaculum in conspectu meo (Aggaei II, 24)*. Nam si nos beneficiorum ejus obliti fuerimus, nec ei dignas gratiarum actiones retulerimus, ipse quoque *533* nostri obliviscetur, sicut de impio rege Jechonia dicitur: *Si fuerit Jechonias filius Joachim regis Juda, annulus in manu dextera mea, inde evellam eum [n: (Jer. XXII, 24)]*.

*Quia fortis est ut mors dilectio, dura ut infernus aemulatio.* Dilectio Christi fortis est ut mors. Sicut enim mors animam a corpore separat, et jam nihil concupiscere, nihil in praesenti vita licet ambire: ita dilectio Christi quem vere pervaserit, totum huic saeculo mortificat, et quasi insensibilem reddit, solumque pro Christo vivens, mundo mortuus est. Idem sensus est cum dicit, *dura ut infernus aemulatio.* Nam sicut infernus eos quos semel recipit, nunquam restituit, sed semper retinet: ita verus Christi amor quem semel acceperit, nunquam dimittit; unde Apostolus dicit: *Quis nos separabit a charitate Christi, tribulatio, an angustia, an persecutio, an fames, an [1102D] nuditas, an periculum, an gladius [n: (Rom. VIII, 35)]*? Sed et dilectio Christi hoc loco potest accipi, cujus *dilectio fortis fuit ut mors:* quia in tantum dilexit nos, ut pro nobis immortalis mortem susciperet. *Dura fuit aemulatio* ejus *ut infernus,* quia infernus nescit misereri, aut a poenis miserorum mitigari: sic et Christi dilectio non potuit a misericordia cessare, aut ullis improbitatibus persecutorum removeri ab amore humani generis. Quidam hoc quod dicitur, *dura est ut infernus aemulatio,* ad Synagogam proprie referunt, quae gentes aemulabatur, et invidebat saluti eorum. Monet ergo Christus hoc dicens, ut ab invidia cesset, et saluti Ecclesiae congaudeat.

*Lampades ejus, lampades ignis atque flammarum.* Id est, dilectionis lampades sunt lampades ignis atque flammarum. Lampades dilectionis sunt praecordia sanctorum, in quibus veluti in vasis dilectio habitat. Hae ergo *lampades* sunt *ignis et flammarum:* lampades quidem sunt ignis, quia in corde ardent [1103A] per amorem: lampades vero flammarum, quia exterius lucent per operationem.

Vers. 7. *Aquae multae non poterunt exstinguere charitatem, nec flumina obruent illam.* Aquae et flumina sunt violentae persecutorum minae, vel etiam blandimenta, quibus sanctos a charitate Dei separare nituntur. De quibus Dominus in Evangelio dicit, de viro qui aedificavit domum suam supra petram: *Venerunt flumina, flaverunt venti, et impegerunt in domum illam, et non cecidit; fuit enim aedificata supra petram [n: (Matth. VII, 25)]*. *Aquae* ergo *multae non poterunt exstinguere charitatem,* quia nulla tribulatio, nulla angustia sanctos a charitate Dei separare valebit.

*Si dederit homo omnem substantiam domus suae pro dilectione, quasi nihil despiciet eam.* Hic versiculus non eget expositione; nam nullius mundi substantiae, nullae opes comparatione dilectionis aliquid sunt. Legimus quidem sanctos sua dimisisse pro amore Christi, sed tamen nihil sibi videbantur dimittere in [1103B] comparatione charitatis Christi, quem amabant. Unde Apostolus cum non solum terrenam substantiam, sed et paternas traditiones dimitteret pro Christo, dicebat: *Haec omnia contemno et arbitror ut stercora, ut Christum lucrifaciam [n: (Philip. III, 8)]*, id est, ut amorem illius acquiram.

Vers. 8. *Soror nostra parva est, et ubera non habet. Quid faciemus sorori nostrae in die quando alloquenda est?* Vox dilecti Synagogam alloquentis pro Ecclesia gentium. *Soror nostra,* inquit, id est gentium Ecclesia, *parva est, et ubera non habet;* et magna dignatione communicato cum Synagoga nomine, dicit, *Soror nostra;* quia enim ex Judaeis carnem assumpsit, ideo se quasi Synagogae contemperat et exaequat. *Parva est* (inquit) *soror nostra.* Sicut alicujus hominis aetas describitur, sic et aetas describitur Ecclesiae. *Parva* enim erat Ecclesia adhuc de gentibus congregata sub ipsis Domini et apostolorum temporibus: quia et parvitate credentium *parva* existebat; [1103C] et ubera necdum habebat, id est, nequaquam praedicando spirituales Deo filios generare valebat. Dicit ergo quasi consilium Synagogae requirens: *Quid faciemus sorori nostrae in die quando alloquenda est?* Allocutio Ecclesiae est, vel cum intrinsecus occulta inspiratione, vel exterius aperta praedicatione admonet Deus animam cujusque fidelis. Et est sensus; *quando* per apostolos meos *alloquar* Ecclesiam de gentibus congregatam, *quid faciemus?* quomodo illi praecepta coelestia committemus? Utrum videlicet minima quaeque praecepta illi committemus, an quo major efficiatur, perfectiora illi secretorum coelestium mysteria trademus? Nam Deus omnipotens pro mensura et capacitate mentis humanae temperat verbum praedicationis, considerans vires et capacitatem auditoris. Sed Synagoga tacente, ipse sponsus pro ea respondit.

Vers. 9. *Si murus est, aedificemus super eum propugnacula argentea; si ostium est, compingamus illud tabulis cedrinis. Si* (inquit) soror nostra *est murus, [1103D] aedificemus super eum propugnacula argentea.* Ac si dicat: Cum coeperint apostoli mei praedicare Ecclesiae de gentibus congregatae, si tales fuerint auditores, qui merito perfectionis murus appellari possint, dum videlicet vel naturali ingenio praediti, vel philosophica eruditione praestantes, quasi alios defendere et munire possint vice muri, *aedificemus super* hunc talem *murum propugnacula argentea,* id est, addamus illis eloquia divinarum Scripturarum. Nam, ut Psalmista dicit: *Eloquia Domini eloquia casta, argentum igne examinatum [n: (Psal. XI, 7)]*. Si vero tales fuerint auditores qui nequaquam hostibus resistere possint, nec tela contra venientia repellere, sed fuerint velut *ostium,* ut simplicia annuntiantes, possint aliquos in Ecclesiam et ad fidem adducere, quales sunt sacerdotes minoris gradus, qui baptizando in Ecclesia, et divinis mysteriis initiando homines in Ecclesiam introducunt, *compingamus illud ostium tabulis cedrinis,* id est, proponamus eis exempla praecedentum [1104A] Patrum, qui veluti cedri, imputribilia videlicet ligna, id est immarcescibilia opera habent, et veluti tabulae scientiae et charitatis latitudine diffusi sunt. Latitudo enim tabularum latitudinem cordis (in quo debet esse latitudo charitatis vel scientiae) significat, dicente Psalmista: *Viam mandatorum tuorum cucurri, cum dilatares cor meum [n: (Psal. CXVIII, 32)]*. His ergo cedrinis tabulis (id est sanctorum exemplis) compingamus illud ostium; ut videlicet illorum imitando exempla, aliis Ecclesiam introeundi veluti ostium, januam aperiant.

Vers. 10. *Ego murus, et ubera mea sicut turris.* Vox Ecclesiae. Quae cum audisset pro sua salute consulentem dilectum suum, ipsa laeta respondit: *Ego sum murus, et ubera mea sicut turris. Ego* (inquit) *murus:* quia ego super firmam petram *534* fundata sum [n: (Matth. XVI, 18)], et glutine divinae charitatis solidata. Sive murus sum, quia de *vivis* et electis lapidibus (hoc est sanctis) aedificata sum. *Et ubera mea sicut turris,* quia tales intra me contineo, qui [1104B] vice uberum alios nutrire possunt spirituali doctrina, et vice turris possunt alios defendere et munire; quique, sicut turres in muro eminenti, sic ipsi merito doctrinae et conversationis inter reliquos membra mea praecellunt. Hoc autem non meis meritis, neque libertate mei arbitrii habeo, sed dono et gratia sponsi mei.

*Ex quo facta sum coram eo quasi pacem reperiens.* Id est, ex quo ille sanguinem suum pro me fudit, et repropitiando mihi Deum Patrem, dissolvit inimicitias quae erant inter Deum et hominem, mihique coelestia pacificavit. *Ex quo* ergo hanc *pacem reperi,* murus esse et ubera habere vice turrium merui.

Vers. 11. *Vinea fuit pacifico,* id est dilecto meo, qui est verus pacificus: quia per eum pacificata sunt omnia quae sunt in coelis et in terra. Unde et a propheta: *Pater futuri saeculi, Princeps pacis [n: (Isai. IX, 6)]* appellatur: in cujus veri *pacifici* typo Salomon, id est *pacificus,* auctor hujus carminis praecessit. Huic [1104C] ergo *fuit vinea,* id est sancta Ecclesia.

*In ea quae habet populos.* Hoc dicit, ut se de Ecclesia gentium, non de Synagoga ostenderet canere. Nam Synagoga unius gentis fuit tantum, Ecclesia vero habet populos: quia omnes gentes intra capacissimum suum gremium capit et recipit.

*Tradidit eam custodibus.* Custodes hujus vineae (id est sanctae Ecclesiae) sunt prophetae, apostoli, apostolorumque successores. Sive etiam custodes hujus saeculi sunt angelicae virtutes, quae ab incursibus tentationum et daemonum Ecclesiam custodiunt.

*Vir affert pro fructu ejus mille argenteos.* Viros fortes dicit et perfectos, nam *vir* a virtute dicitur. Fructus Ecclesiae est coelestis vitae remuneratio, pro qua sancta Ecclesia in praesenti vita laborare non cessat. *Mille* autem *argentei* quos *pro fructu vir affert,* significant omnia quae in hoc mundo possideri possunt. Millenarius enim numerus pro summa perfectione et plenitudine ponitur. *Vir* ergo *pro fructu* hujus vineae *mille argenteos affert:* quia sancti omnia [1104D] sua relinquunt, et pauperibus erogant; ut fructum hujus vineae (hoc est supernam mercedem) consequantur. Tale est et illud quod Dominus in Evangelii parabola dicit: *Simile est regnum coelorum thesauro abscondito in agro, quem qui invenit homo, abscondit, et prae gaudio illius vadit, et vendit omnia quae habet, et emit agrum illum [n: (Matth. XIII, 44)]*.

Vers. 12. *Vinea mea coram me est.* Vox sponsi. Tu (inquit) dicis quod vineam meam tradidi custodibus: tamen *vinea semper coram me est;* quia licet eam custodibus meis commiserim, ego tamen semper curam illius habeo, nec pro illa semper sollicitus esse desisto, sed sum cum illa usque ad consummationem saeculi.

## CAPUT VIII. (cont.)

*Mille tui pacifici, et ducenti his qui custodiunt fructus ejus. Mille* subauditur argentei, quos pro vineae dedisti fructu, *pacifici tui* sunt; quasi diceret: O anima fidelis, noli dubia esse pro aeterna mercede, pro qua omnia tua dedisti: quia *mille* argentei *pacifici [1105A] tui* sunt, id est, manet te certa illa remuneratio, et verum inde fructum consecutura es. Et *ducenti,* subaudi, argentei pacifici sunt, *his qui custodiunt fructus ejus.* Sicut per millenarium plenitudo perfectionis, sic et per centenarium summa perfectio designatur: quia centenarius de laeva in dexteram transfertur. Ducenti ergo argentei, qui est duplicatus centenarius, significant eos qui doctrina et sancta operatione perfecti sunt, qui juste et pie vivendo semetipsos custodiunt, et etiam praedicando alios convertunt. His ergo talibus ducenti argentei sunt pacifici: quia duplicata in coelis eos manet remuneratio; de qualibus per Danielem dicitur: *Et qui ad justitiam erudiunt multos, fulgebunt quasi stellae in perpetuas aeternitates [n: (Dan. XII, 3)]*. Hos enim Apostolus dupliciter jubet honorari, dicens: *Presbyteri qui in vobis sunt, duplici honore digni habeantur, maxime qui praesunt vobis et laborant in verbo [n: (I Tim. V, 17)]*.

Vers. 13. *Quae habitas in hortis, amici auscultant: fac me audire vocem tuam.* Vox dilecti sponsam, id [1105B] est Ecclesiam alloquentis: O Ecclesia *quae habitas in hortis,* id est quae excolendis virtutum germinibus insistis. *Hortus* etenim sponsi ipsa Ecclesia est, quam (ut superius dictum est) crebro se promittit invisere. Ecclesia ergo *in hortis habitat:* quia plantaria virtutum assidue nutrit; nec transitorie quasi post modicum recessura, ibi tugurium ponit, sed fixa statione ibi habitat. *Fac me* (inquit) *audire vocem tuam,* id est, praedica quibus vales Evangelium, praecepta meae legis, simul et promissum coelestium praemiorum annuntia. Hoc enim mihi jucundum et delectabile est, ut audiam vocem tuam, hoc est, ut audiam te verba salutis aeternae annuntiantem. Sed *amici auscultant te,* id est, angelici spiritus vocem tuam audire delectant, quos tibi amicos feci effusione sanguinis mei, quosque adjutores et protectores contra malignos spiritus institui. Sive *amici,* id est, justorum spiritus *auscultant,* quos de tuo coetu ad me in coelestia assumpsi. Ipsi enim de tua praedicatione et fratrum salute congaudent. Respondet confestim [1105C] ipsa sponsa dilecto suo.

Vers. 14. *Fuge, dilecte mi, et assimilare capreae hinnuloque cervorum super montes aromatum.* Mira responsio. Invitatur ad praedicandum, et ut sponsus audiat vocem ejus; illa vero hortatur sponsum suum [1106A] ut fugiat. Sed magna est mysterii consequentia. Nam quia superius praedicta fuerat Christi nativitas cum dixit: *Quis det te fratrem meum sugentem ubera:* praedicta enim fuerat ejus passio, ubi dictum est: *Sub arbore malo suscitavi te;* nunc consequenter hortatur sponsum ut fugiat, hoc est, velocissime per ascensionem ad Patrem redeat. Et est sensus: jubes me praedicare, vis vocem meam audire, *fuge, dilecte mi,* id est, impleto incarnationis tuae et passionis mysterio, *revertere* ad coelum; ut non jam te sicut hominem, sed sicut Deum super omnia cogitare incipiam. Tunc enim audies vocem meam, quia tunc te liberius omni mundo praedicabo. Et hoc est quod Dominus in Evangelio dicit: *Ego veritatem dico vobis, expedit vobis ut ego vadam [n: (Joan. XVI, 7)]*. Expediebat enim apostolis et omni Ecclesiae ut Christus rediret, et praesentiam corporalem absentaret: quia dum in corpore praesens erat, non poterant eum spiritualiter amare, nec poterant eum, quem hominem cernebant, ut Deum invisibilem et ubique praesentem cogitare. [1106B] *535* At postquam ipse coelos ascendit, coepit eum Ecclesia spiritualiter diligere, et sic jam Deum cogitare et praedicare. Et hoc est quod Apostolus dicit: *Etsi noveramus Christum secundum carnem, sed nunc jam eum non novimus [n: (II Cor. V, 16)]*. Ergo, *dilecte mi,* si vis ita me te praedicare, *fuge,* id est, recede ad coelestia; et qui fuisti comprehensibilis per humanitatem, efficere incomprehensibilis per divinitatem. Verumtamen ne me in praesenti sine tua visitatione deseras, sed dignare me crebra tua visitatione requirere, mihique te saepius videndum praebere. Et hoc est quod dicit: *Similis esto capreae hinnuloque cervorum super montes aromatum.* Sicut (inquit) capreae et hinauli cervorum, indomita animalia, humanum consortium refugiunt, et tamen crebrius in montibus videntur: sic et tu post tuam ascensionem, licet invisibilis sis, dignare mihi tamen saepius dono tuae gratiae apparere, et hoc *super montes aromatum. Montes aromatum* sancti Dei sunt, excellentia sanctae conversationis coelo proximi, et [1106C] odore ac fama virtutum longe lateque fragrantes; hinc Apostolus de se suique similibus dicit: *Nostra conversatio in coelis est [n: (Philip. III, 20)]*; et alibi: *Christi bonus odor sumus Deo in omni loco [n: (II Cor. II, 1)]*.

english:
## NOTICE.

[1055C]

[1055D] *505* *Both manuscript codices and printed editions set the name of Cassiodorus at the head of this little work — at least those which it has been possible to see; all the librarians too, if you except one, and very many other authors of better note ascribe it to our author without any controversy. To me, however, it seems most certain that it is not Cassiodorus's; but by what arguments chiefly I am led to that opinion, our preface, which we have placed before the head of this work, will sufficiently show. Consult it therefore, if you please, kind reader.*

## PROLOGUE.

[1056C]

[1056D] Solomon, inspired by the divine Spirit, composed this little book concerning the marriage of Christ and the Church, and in a manner made an epithalamium of Christ and the Church, that is, a song upon the bridal chambers. Whence also he called this work the Song of Songs: because it surpasses all songs. For as it is said, *King of kings, and Lord of lords [n: (Apoc. XVII, 14)]*, and solemnity of solemnities: so it is called the Song of Songs on account of its excellence and dignity. But in this respect that little book is the more obscure, [1057A] because no persons are there named, and it is composed as it were in the comic style.

## CHAPTER ONE.

Verse 1. *Let him kiss me with the kiss of his mouth.* It is the voice of the Synagogue longing for the coming of Christ. As though she said: So many times has he promised me his coming through the prophets; let him come therefore now, and *let him kiss me with the kiss of his mouth,* that is, let him speak to me through himself.

*For thy breasts are better than wine.* Suddenly turning her words to him for desire of whom she was burning, she adds, *For thy breasts are better than wine.* By the breasts of Christ the sweetness of the Gospel is understood: because by it, as by milk, the infancy of believers is nourished. *Wine,* however, signifies the severity of the law: but the breasts of Christ are better than wine, because the sweetness of the Gospel is better than the severity of the law. For in the law no repentance is reserved, but it is commanded that he who sins be slain; whereas the Gospel says: *I will not the death of the sinner [n: (Ezech. XVIII, 32)]*, and so forth.

Verse 2. *Fragrant with the best ointments.* The *ointments* [1057B] are the gifts of the Holy Spirit, or also the workings of the virtues; of which the Apostle says: *We are the good odour of Christ [n: (II Cor. II, 15)]*.

*Thy name is oil poured out. Thy name,* O Christ, *is poured out.* In Greek *chrisma,* in Latin *unctio,* anointing — whence Christ. The name of Christ is so called from anointing. For the Holy Spirit is wont to be called by the name of *oil,* according to what the Psalmist says: *God, thy God, hath anointed thee with oil [n: (Psal. XLIV, 8)]*, that is, with the Holy Spirit. This oil was poured out when that grace which Christ had in a singular way was given to all the elect. Whence also from Christ they are called Christians, by a sharing in the name of Christ. And well is it said to be oil not dripped but *poured out,* because this grace was given abundantly to all who cherish the faith of Christ.

*Therefore the young maidens have loved thee.* The *young maidens* are said to be the souls of the elect, which in baptism have left behind the filth of the old man and have been made new in Christ. And well are they spoken of in the feminine gender: because [1057C] the souls of the saints, the more conscious they are of their own frailty, the more abundantly do they love Christ.

Verse 3. *Draw me after thee, we will run.* The voice of the Church. Here there is a change of person; for hitherto the Synagogue has spoken, here the Church of the Gentiles begins to speak: *Draw me after thee, we will run.* Because (she says) I know my own weakness, and I see that by my own strength I can do nothing good, by thy grace *draw me* to the imitation of thee; or also, when thou hast *506* ascended into heaven, *Draw me after thee,* that I may deserve to follow thee.

*The King hath brought me into his cellars.* Here the Church speaks concerning Christ her bridegroom to the faithful souls. The *cellars* of God are eternal blessedness and the joys of the heavenly fatherland, into which the Church *has* already *been brought* by faith and hope, and one day *shall be brought* in the reality.

*We will exult and rejoice in thee.* Of thy gifts (she says) *we will exult and rejoice.* But because we know that this is not of our own merit, *in thee,* not in ourselves, *shall we exult.* This is what the Apostle says: *He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord [n: (I Cor. I, 31)]*.

[1057D] *Mindful of thy breasts above wine.* That is, *mindful* of thy grace, and of the mercy by which we have been saved. For the *breasts* are that very grace by which we are saved. Remembering also that thou hast deigned to temper the severity of the law with the breasts of evangelical teaching.

*The upright love thee.* Those (she says) who are upright of heart love thee; that is, those who attribute nothing to their own merits, but reckon all to thy grace. For no one loves thee save the upright, and no one is upright save he who loves thee.

Verse 4. *I am black, but comely, ye daughters of Jerusalem.* Here again the Church speaks of her afflictions to the holy souls. *I am black,* because I suffer persecutions; *but* I am *comely* in virtues, O daughters of Jerusalem, that is, ye faithful souls. *I am black,* that is, misshapen by the persecutions and hardships which I endure; *but* I am *comely* with the beauty of the virtues. And in what way she is *black,* and in what way *comely,* she shows when she adds:

*As the tents of Cedar, as the skins of Solomon.* For thus [1058A] it is to be distinguished: I am black as the tents of Cedar, comely as the skins of Solomon. *Cedar* was a son of Ishmael, which is interpreted darkness. And the Ishmaelites have always been accustomed to dwell in tents, and have no houses. The Church says therefore that she is *black as the tents of Cedar,* on account of the persecutions which she suffered from the sons of darkness, which is what Cedar is interpreted. Hence the Psalmist says: *I have dwelt with the inhabitants of Cedar [n: (Psal. CXIX, 5)]*, that is, I have lived among persecutors and sinners black *with unbelief.* But she says that she is *comely as the skins,* that is, the tents *of Solomon,* who is interpreted peaceable: since she was worthy of the visitation and consolation of her bridegroom Christ amid her straits. And as *tents* are made from the skins of dead animals, so the Church, the tabernacle namely of God, is built up out of those who mortify themselves together with their vices and concupiscences [n: (Galat. V, 24)].

Verse 5. *Consider me not that I am swarthy, because the sun hath discoloured me.* O souls faithful and devoted to God, [1058B] *consider me not that I am swarthy,* that is, that I am afflicted with tribulations, that I am oppressed with persecutions; *because the sun hath discoloured me,* that is, the heat of persecution has in a manner darkened my splendour. As if she said: Think upon my inward beauty, and attend to that, not to those things which I am seen to suffer outwardly. Such is what the Apostle also says: *Faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. For the sufferings are not worthy [n: (Ephes. III, 13)]*, and the rest. Now the sun in the Scriptures has many senses. Sometimes it signifies the very Mediator of God and men; whence it is written: *To you that fear my name the sun of justice shall arise [n: (Malach. IV, 2)]*, that is, Christ. It signifies also the Church, as the Lord says: *Then shall the just shine as the sun [n: (Matth. XIII, 43)]*. Sometimes the heat of persecution, as here and in the Gospel, where it is said of the seed that fell upon the rock, and when the sun was risen it was scorched; which the Lord himself opens up in expounding it: *But when persecution ariseth because of the word, they are scandalized* [1058C] [n: (Matth. XIII, 6, 21)].

*The sons of my mother have fought against me.* Whence this persecution took its beginning she shows when she adds: *The sons of my mother have fought against me.* It is the voice of the primitive Church, whose mother is the Synagogue, to whom it is said by the prophet: *And thou shalt be called the faithful city [n: (Isai. I, 26)]*, and mother of cities, daughter of Sion. Her *sons* are the Jews, who *fought* against the primitive Church when they stirred up persecution against the believers, *and all were scattered through the regions of Samaria [n: (Act. VIII, 1)]*.

*They have set me keeper in the vineyards.* One vineyard was the primitive Church at Jerusalem; but when, because of the Jewish persecution, all the believers were scattered, many vineyards were made, that is, many Churches were built throughout the whole world. The primitive Church therefore says: *They have set me* (namely the apostles and teachers) *keeper,* that is, that I should be the keeper of the Churches. Whence also in the Greek it is well said, *they were sown abroad,* where we read, *they were scattered [n: (Act. VIII, 1)]*; for to this end were they divinely scattered [sic: *disperi*], that more Churches might be made throughout the whole [1058D] world.

*My vineyard I have not kept,* that is, that one Church which was at Jerusalem I have not kept. This is to be referred not to her will, nor to her mind, but to the place. *I have not kept it* — supply: so that it should be there where it began.

Verse 6. *Show me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou liest down at midday.* It is the voice of the Church to her bridegroom Christ. O bridegroom, whom my soul loveth, that is, whom I love with the whole intent of my mind, *show me where thou feedest,* that is, where thou causest thy sheep to be fed; for he himself is the *good Shepherd,* as he himself says in the Gospel [n: (Joan. X, 14)]. *Show me where thou feedest and where thou liest down,* that is, where thou restest, and this *at midday,* that is, in the heat of persecution or of temptation. For the Church, labouring under persecutions, entreats her bridegroom to tell her in whose minds he rests. For to lie down is, for the bridegroom, to rest, as he himself says: *Upon whom doth my spirit rest (Isai. LXVI, [1059A] 2)*, and so forth. For lest the saints wither in the heat of temptation, he himself lies down and rests in their hearts, and protects them from every heat of temptations and persecutions. Why this?

*Lest I begin to wander after the flocks of thy companions.* By the flocks of companions he calls the conventicles of heretics, who are companions of Christ, because they too feed their own flocks. And the sense is: O bridegroom, show me thy saints and elect, lest perchance I stumble and fall in among heretics, thinking that thou canst be found there. This verse the heretics distinguished ill, as though the bride were asking: Where dost thou feed, where dost thou lie down? and he himself answered: At midday I lie down, and in the southern quarter.

Verse 7. *If thou know not thyself, O beautiful among women, go forth, and go after the steps of the flocks.* The voice of the bridegroom to his bride the Church. As if he said: Thou complainest that thou art as it were forsaken by me and blackened by the heats of persecutions; and thou dost not consider how beautiful thou art among women, that is, thou attendest not to the beauty of the spiritual virtues by which thou art adorned above all others, [1059B] although thou art blackened by temptations. *If* therefore *thou know not thyself,* that is, if thou dost not acknowledge this thy dignity and comeliness, *go forth* from my fellowship, *and go after the steps of the flocks,* that is, follow and imitate the teaching of the erring heretics, *507* who, despising the true Shepherd of the one flock, have heaped up for themselves many flocks.

*And feed thy kids,* that is, sinners and erring hearers; and this *beside the tents of the shepherds,* that is, according to the doctrines of the heretics. For there is one shepherd, Christ, who has one flock, that is, the unity of the catholic Church. But the shepherds are many, the heretics, who gather to themselves a flock of deceived men, whom they feed for the devil; of whom the Psalmist also says: *They are laid in hell like sheep [n: (Psal. XLVIII, 15)]*. In this place the wicked are called sheep, not on account of simplicity or innocence, but on account of dullness: because they know not how to resist depraved teaching; but all things that are laid upon them by depraved teachers they endure with no [1059C] good patience.

Verse 8. *To my company of horsemen amid the chariots of Pharaoh have I likened thee, my friend.* His company of horsemen he calls the army of the children of Israel, namely the six hundred and six thousand who went out of Egypt and passed through the Red Sea [n: (Num. II, 32; Exod. XIV, 22)]. And he calls that multitude his *company of horsemen* because, as a charioteer is set over his chariot, so God was set over that people, protecting and defending it, and bringing it into the land of promise. To this his *company of horsemen he likened* his *friend;* since as that people was saved through the Red Sea, Pharaoh being drowned [n: (Exod. XIV, 27, 28)], so the Church of the Gentiles was freed by baptism from the servitude of the devil, and was brought into the true land of promise and into evangelical liberty; and thus she who was the handmaid of vices was made the friend of Christ, cleansed and washed by baptism from the filth of sins.

## CHAPTER ONE. (cont.)

Verse 9. *Thy cheeks are beautiful as the turtle-dove's.* It is the nature of the turtle-dove that, if by chance it has lost its mate, [1059D] it seeks no other thereafter. To the turtle-dove therefore is the Church likened: because from the time that Christ left the world in bodily presence and sought the heavens, the Church perseveres most tenaciously in his love; nor does she receive any adulterous lover: because she despises the world and all its concupiscences, and contemplates in mind the beauty of her bridegroom alone. And he compares the cheeks of the Church to the cheeks of the turtle-dove: because in the cheeks modesty chiefly appears, and by this the shame and modesty of the Church is shown: because she blushes at everything foul, and dreads to commit what may displease her bridegroom. And the sense is: fear not that thou wilt wander among the flocks of thy companions, because with so great a modesty of love for me, and with so great a shamefastness, have I endowed and fortified thee, that I am certain thou canst not forsake me and turn aside to strangers.

*Thy neck as necklaces.* By the *neck* of the Church the holy teachers are designated; for through the neck food is supplied for the refreshing of the body. The words also by which the secrets of minds are made known go forth [1060A] through the pipe of the neck. So the holy teachers both show us the food of saving doctrine, and also make plain to us the hidden things of the Scriptures. This *neck* of the Church, therefore, is as it were a necklace, because the holy teachers are adorned with the gems of chaste doctrine and with the ornaments of the virtues. For a *necklace* is an ornament of maidens or of matrons.

Verse 10. *We will make thee murenulae of gold, vermiculated with silver. Murenulae,* according to the letter, are an ornament of a virgin's and a girl's neck, namely little rods of gold interwoven, with the finest threads of silver sometimes intermingled in a beautiful variety; and this is what he says: *Vermiculated with silver,* that is, marked out and joined to one another in the manner of the earthworms which they call *lumbrici.* And *murenulae* are so called from their likeness to the sea-fish which is called *murena.* Mystically, the *murenulae* are the interwoven doctrines of the Scriptures, joined together out of the diverse opinions of the holy Fathers. For gold signifies the brightness of the spiritual sense: silver indeed denotes the lustre of eloquence. The bridegroom therefore makes golden *murenulae* for his bride, [1060B] when Christ instructs his Church with the teachings of the holy Fathers, shining in sense and in eloquence, and kindles her to imitate their faith and virtue. It is to be noted that he says in the plural, *we will make thee;* for Christ as it were joins himself to the persons of the teachers, through whom those very *murenulae* are linked together, that the Church may be adorned with them.

Verse 11. *While the king was at his reclining.* The voice of the bride calls her bridegroom Christ king, who by his divinity governs all things, and who also according to his humanity was born of the royal stock of David. The *reclining of the king* was his incarnation. For to recline is to be laid back or to sit down at meat. And then Christ reclined, when for our redemption he bowed himself down even to the taking up of our nature. And then

*My nard gave forth its odour,* when the virtue of the Church shone forth the more. For when she considers God made man for her sake, she is the more kindled to the pursuit of the spiritual virtues and to the love of her Creator. [1060C] For *nard* denotes the fragrance of the spiritual virtues. There were certain saints of God before the incarnation, but (as has been said) holiness increased the more from the time of the incarnation, and then in a manner the *nard* of the Church, that is, the odour of the virtues, gave forth its odour more strongly. According to the letter, *nard* is an aromatic herb, with a thick and brittle root, and a small and dense leaf, whose tips spread themselves out into spikes. With this ointment Mary Magdalene is read in the Gospel to have anointed the feet and the head of the Lord in the house of Simon [n: (Matth. XXVI, 7; Marc. XIV, 3; Luc. VII, 38; Joan. XII, 3)].

Verse 12. *A bundle of myrrh is my beloved to me.* Myrrh is an aromatic species of exceeding bitterness, with which the bodies of the dead are embalmed. In this place the passion and burial of Christ are designated: for the body of the Lord, when taken down from the cross by Nicodemus and Joseph, was embalmed with myrrh and aloes, and wrapped in linen cloths with spices, and given over to burial [n: (Matth. XXVII, 59; Marc. XV, 46; Luc. XXIII, 53; Joan. XIX, 40)]. The Church therefore says to her bridegroom: *A bundle of myrrh [1060D] hath my beloved* been made *to me:* because for my sake he died and was buried.

*He shall abide between my breasts.* No one doubts that the place of the heart is between the breasts. She says therefore: *He shall abide between my breasts,* that is, he shall be held eternally in the memory of my heart, and I shall never forget his so great benefits; but whether I be in prosperity or in adversity, yet shall I remember him who loved me so greatly, and died for me.

Verse 13. *A cluster of Cyprus is my beloved to me, in the vineyards of Engaddi. Cyprus* is an island where noble vines are reported to be, bringing forth the largest clusters. *Engaddi* likewise is reported to be a place having little trees that sweat out the liquor of balsam. The bride therefore speaks of the resurrection of Christ her bridegroom: *A cluster of Cyprus is my beloved to me;* as if she said: My bridegroom, who tasted the bitterness of death for me, *508* and was to me as it were a bundle of myrrh, in his resurrection was made [1061A] *to me a cluster of Cyprus,* when he gladdened me with the joy of his resurrection. For *wine maketh glad the heart of man [n: (Psal. CIII, 15)]*; and this *in the vineyards of Engaddi:* because by his resurrection he gave forth his fragrance throughout the whole world as with the sweetest odour of balsam, and spread abroad far and wide the fragrance of faith in him. And *Engaddi* is interpreted the fountain of the kid, by which baptism is signified, and the sacrifice in which all sins are washed away. For the kid signifies sinners. Baptism therefore is the fountain of the kid; because it receives sinners, but renders them unstained and cleansed from all sins.

Verse 14. *Behold thou art beautiful, my friend: behold thou art beautiful.* The voice of the bridegroom Christ to his bride the Church. Twice he repeats that she is beautiful, on account of the perfection of her work and the purity of her thought. *Behold thou art beautiful,* that is, thou art perfect in good works, living holily and piously and justly according to the Apostle [n: (Tit. II, 12)]. *Behold thou art beautiful,* having a clean and single intention of heart: because not for earthly advantages, nor for the glory of the world, but that thou mayest please the eyes of God alone, [1061B] dost thou work good things.

*Thy eyes are of doves.* The dove is a most simple bird, and by it the simplicity and innocence of the Church is figured. For she has as it were the *eyes of doves,* because she keeps herself free from all feigning and dissimulation. Or also she has the *eyes of doves,* because she understands the knowledge of the divine Scriptures with a chaste and simple gaze, seeking in it the spiritual and divine senses. For since the Holy Spirit appeared in the likeness of a dove [n: (Matth. III, 16)], rightly is the heavenly doctrine understood in the eyes of the dove.

Verse 15. *Behold thou art beautiful, my beloved, and seemly.* As if she said: Thou indeed sayest that I am beautiful in work and in thought; but I believe and know that I have all this beauty from thee. For *thou art beautiful and seemly,* thou art the fountain of every good, and whatever good I have, I have by thy grace. And he is called *beautiful and seemly:* because he is wonderful both in the perpetuity of his divinity and also in the dignity of the humanity he took up.

[1061C] *Our little bed is flowering.* The little bed of the Church is whatever tranquillity or rest there is in the present life. For the Church is as it were in war, while for Christ she endures diverse conflicts: but she rests as it were in a little bed when she enjoys some small measure of peace granted her. But this *little bed is flowering,* that is, the rest of the Church is picked out with the variety of the virtues as with blossoming flowers. For then she applies herself more freely to divine contemplation; then she carries out more freely fastings, vigils, and the other exercises of good works.

Verse 16. *The beams of our houses are of cedar, our panelled ceilings of cypress.* The *houses* of the Church are the assemblies of the faithful scattered throughout the whole world. But the *beams* and the *panelled ceilings* are the very persons of the faithful, of whom the Church consists. But it is to be observed that the *beams* are for the strengthening of the house, the *panelled ceilings* for its adornment. And therefore by the *beams* are designated the teachers, by whose teaching the Church is propped and sustained; but by the panelled ceilings the saints who rejoice in simplicity, who by their [1061D] virtues adorn the Church, but do not fortify it by teaching. And this is to be observed, that the panelled ceilings are fastened to the beams: so too the life of the faithful in the Church hangs upon the teachers, because by their teaching it is instructed and strengthened. And well are they called *beams of cedar* and *panelled ceilings of cypress;* for both trees are of an incorruptible nature, designating the saints who burn with unfading desire in the love of their Creator, and, despising things transitory, hasten to things eternal. The cedar also puts serpents to flight by its odour: so the holy teachers drive off demons or heretics by the fragrance of their teaching.

## CHAPTER II.

Verse 1. *I am the flower of the field, and the lily of the valleys.* After the bride has shown what manner of house she and her bridegroom have, the bridegroom too shows of himself what manner of one he is, saying: *I am the flower of the field,* and the rest; namely, because I spread the odour of my virtue through the breadth [1062A] of the whole world. *I am the flower of the field,* that is, I am the glory of the world. For as a field is adorned with flowers and grows green, so the whole world is adorned with the faith and knowledge of Christ. I am also *the lily of the valleys:* because I bestow my grace chiefly upon those minds which, having no hope in themselves, submit themselves to me with humble devotion. For the *valleys* signify the humble, or the minds of the humble, whose lily is Christ, because the beauty of humble minds is he who said: *Learn of me, because I am meek and humble of heart [n: (Matth. XI, 29)]*. This too, which he says, *I am the flower of the field,* can be referred to the incarnation. For a field is not ploughed, is not cut, is not furrowed by any ploughshare. He says therefore, *I am the flower of the field,* that is, the Son of the Virgin: he calls himself therefore the flower not of tilled land, but *of the field:* because he is the fruit of virginal flesh, according to the prophecy of Isaias: *There shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse [n: (Isai. XI, 1)]*. The same Christ is the lily of the valleys, that is, the son of humble parents: for the valleys signify his humble and poor parents. For the Son of God, coming into [1062B] the world, deigned not only to become man, but even a poor man for us; and he chose to have parents not rich, but poor, that, being made a partaker of our poverty, he might make us partakers of his riches and glory.

Verse 2. *As the lily among thorns, so is my friend among the daughters.* Seeing his bride hasten to rest and flee eternal labours, and through the quiet of the present time strive toward eternal blessedness, he admonishes her by such a comparison and declaration, that she may know she must come thither through the afflictions and labours of this world. *As the lily among thorns,* he says, *so is my friend among the daughters.* The *thorns* which prick and tear signify all the perverse, whether within or without the Church. And the sense is: So must thou live for a time in the world, and so oughtest thou to be prepared against all adversities, *as the lily is among thorns,* and yet does not cease to flower and to send forth from itself a pleasing odour: *so is my friend among the daughters;* because not only from those who are [1062C] outside the Church dost thou suffer evils, but even from those who, regenerated by baptism, seem to have come into the adoption of God. And note that above the bridegroom called himself the *lily of the valleys:* now he calls his bride *As the lily among thorns;* because he who is truly the *lily* makes his Church by grace to be a *lily,* white, namely, with the virtues, or free from every stain of vices.

Verse 3. *As the apple tree among the trees of the woods, so is my beloved among the sons.* Now the bride, praised by the bridegroom, returns him the like, and tells what manner of one he himself also is. *As the apple tree,* she says, and the rest. *As the apple tree* *509* has beauty of fruit and a pleasing odour among the wild trees of the woods: so also *the man Christ Jesus, the Mediator of God and men [n: (I Tim. II, 5)]*, shines with a special grace among the sons, that is, among the elect. For he himself is the Son of God by nature, the rest of the elect by grace, having received power from the only Son of God to be sons of God. Hence John: *We saw his glory, the glory as it were [1062D] of the Only-begotten of the Father [n: (Joan. I, 14)]*; not of any sort whatever, but *as it were of the Only-begotten of the Father.*

*Under his shadow, which I desired, I sat:* because I trust in his protection, and hope to be governed by him amid adversities. For the shadow of Christ is the protection of the Divinity, by which he guards and defends the elect.

*And his fruit is sweet to my throat,* that is, the contemplation of the Divinity, with which I trust to be satisfied; for this is the expectation of the saints, this their reward and their fullness, the vision of their Creator. The Church therefore desires the shadow of her Creator: because she longs for his protection amid the adversities of the present life. *His fruit is sweet to my throat,* because I look to enjoy fully the sight of his vision, and to be satisfied with the sweetness of his charity.

Verse 4. *The king brought me into the wine cellar, he set charity in order in me.* The wine cellar is the Church, in which is the wine of evangelical teaching. Into this *cellar,* therefore, the friend of the bridegroom is brought, when out of all nations the faithful are gathered into one Church. *He set charity in order in me,* [1063A] she says. Among all, charity holds the primacy in virtue, by which the Church herself subsists. Charity therefore is set in order in the Church: because the love of God and of man is to be held not rashly, nor confusedly, but in order. For God is to be loved above all things with the whole heart, the whole soul, all one's strength, all one's mind. One's neighbour, finally, is to be loved as each one loves himself [n: (Deut. VI, 5; Matth. XXII, 39; Marc. XII, 30, 31; Luc. X, 27)]. For he wishes to confound charity who sets the charity of his neighbour before the love of God: of whom the Lord says in the Gospel: *He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me [n: (Matth. X, 37)]*. Or also *he set charity in order in me,* that is, he himself first loved me. Then he taught in what manner I ought to love him, whence he himself says: *You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you [n: (Joan. XV, 16)]*. And John says: *Let us love God, because he first loved us [n: (Joan., IV, 19)]*.

Verse 5. *Stay me up with flowers, compass me about with apples, because I languish with love.* After the Church, or the soul beloved [1063B] of God, has said that charity is set in order within her, she shows in what manner she wishes to rest, or on what bed to repose with her beloved bridegroom, saying: *Stay me up with flowers,* and the rest. She addresses the souls that already cleave perfectly to the divine love. By the *flowers* are understood the beginnings of holy conversation; by the *apples,* the perfect examples of good works; and the sense is: O holy souls, who cleave to the love of your Creator, *stay me up* with examples of good works, and show in what manner you have lived at the outset of the virtues, or in their advancement, or in the perfection of good works, *because I languish with love.* For then does the soul languish with the love of God, when she sets nothing before his love; nay, she is made as it were languid and feeble for worldly works, and nothing delights her but the meditation of heavenly things and the contemplation of her Creator.

Verse 6. *His left hand under my head, and his right hand shall embrace me.* When (she says) I shall lie on such a bed, *his left hand,* that is, the bridegroom's, shall be *under my head.* By the [1063C] *left hand* is understood the prosperity of the present time, or also the gifts of God which are conferred upon the saints in this present life. By the *right hand,* indeed, is taken the blessedness of the heavenly fatherland. The *left hand* of God is the pledge of the Holy Spirit, the understanding of the divine Scriptures, and the other such gifts and charisms by which holy Church is consoled in the present. By the *head* is taken the chief part of the mind. The *left hand* of the bridegroom, therefore, is *under the head* of the bride, because the Church receives all these gifts to this end, that by them she may learn to sigh after things eternal. But the right hand of the bridegroom embraces her: because the whole intent of the Church, or of the faithful soul, is this, that she may one day come to eternal blessedness, and rejoice in the sight of her Creator. And well is first the *left hand under the head* of the bride, and afterward the *right hand* of the bridegroom *embraces* her; because no one will be able to come to the embraces of eternal blessedness, unless here he strive to be a partaker of the heavenly mysteries and of the divine gifts.

Verse 7. *I adjure you, ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes and the harts of the fields, that you stir not up, nor make the beloved to awake, until she please.* It is the voice of the bridegroom adjuring [1063D] the daughters of Jerusalem, that is, the friends intent upon eternal desires and seeking the vision of peace, that they rouse not and disquiet not the bride who is at rest. *I adjure you,* and the rest, that you be not willing to disquiet *the beloved,* that is, the soul given over to divine contemplation and occupied with prayers or divine readings, and to *rouse* her to outward works, *until she please,* that is, until, the time of contemplation being fulfilled, and the frailty of the body admonishing her, she herself be willing to be roused from the sleep of eternal quiet, and to go forth to the doing of temporal things. But let us see by what he *adjures the daughters of Jerusalem* — namely, *by the roes and the harts of the fields.* Roes and harts are clean animals, hostile to serpents and to poisons. They signify the virtues of the saints, which shine with spiritual purity, and not only beware of the poisons of diabolical deceit, but even pursue them and bring them to nothing. And the sense is: *I adjure you, ye daughters of Jerusalem,* by your virtues, which you rejoice to have been conferred upon you by divine grace, [1064A] that you disquiet not the soul given over to my contemplation, until, the hour of contemplation being ended, she herself be willing to do something else.

Verse 8. *The voice of my beloved.* The voice of the Church. *The voice of my beloved* — supply: this is it. For the Church, rejoicing that she is so greatly loved by the bridegroom that he even adjures the daughters of Jerusalem on her behalf, that they disquiet her not while she rests, says: this is *the voice of my beloved* speaking for me. And desiring to see him whom she loves, but not being able, she adds:

*Behold he cometh leaping upon the mountains, skipping over the hills.* By the mountains and hills are understood all the perfect saints, raised from earthly things by the sublimity of their conversation, and as it were overtopping the level of the plains by the merits of a better life. Of these mountains Isaias says: *The mountain of the house of the Lord shall be prepared on the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills [n: (Isai. II, 2)]*. The bride therefore speaks of her beloved: *Behold he cometh leaping upon the mountains, and skipping over the hills,* that is, even according to his humanity surpassing all the excellence of the saints, all the purity of divine [1064B] contemplation; and he is said not to stand upon the mountains, but to skip over them: because although for an hour he visits the heart of the saints by inward inspiration, yet he suddenly withdraws, that he may kindle them to the love of *510* himself. This too can be referred to the incarnation of Christ, who in coming gave certain leaps: because from heaven he came into the womb of the Virgin, from the womb of the Virgin into the manger, from the manger into baptism, from baptism to the cross, from the cross to the sepulchre, from the sepulchre to heaven; hence the Psalmist: *He hath rejoiced as a giant to run the way [n: (Psal. XVIII, 6)]*, and the rest.

Verse 9. *My beloved is like a roe and a fawn of harts.* Roes and harts, although in their own nature they have many things which suit allegorical senses, yet have this peculiar to them, that they do not tarry in the more level places, but are wont to give certain leaps in steep and lofty places. Rightly therefore is Christ likened to these, on account of his subtle contemplation; and because by no understanding can the majesty of his divinity be comprehended. [1064C] But he is likened not to harts, but to roes — to the smaller animals, namely — on account of the humility of his incarnation: because he deigned not only to become man, but to become a humble man. And he is said to be like a *fawn of harts:* because according to his humanity he drew his origin from the harts, that is, from the patriarchs; or also he is compared to a fawn of harts on account of the variety of the virtues and his innocence.

## CHAPTER II. (cont.)

*Behold he standeth behind our wall.* By the *wall* our mortal condition is named: because, set as it were like some thick wall between us and God, it does not permit us to enjoy the contemplation of him; for the first man was so created that he might enjoy the vision and converse of God [n: (Gen. I, 26)]: but after he had sinned [n: (Gen. III, 6)], a certain wall was set up, namely that mortality by which we are weighed down. For (as the Wise Man says) *The body that is corrupted weigheth down the soul, and the earthly habitation presseth down the mind that museth upon many things [n: (Sap. IX, 15)]*. Her bridegroom, therefore, whom above she compared to roes or to fawns of harts, [1064D] she now says stands behind her wall: because Christ sometimes draws near when he permits himself to be contemplated, as far as the human mind can take him in; but sometimes he is removed afar off, and like a roe or a hart escapes with certain leaps. Since therefore a wall was set between us and him, and we could not see him, he deigned to make in that very wall windows and lattices, through which he might in some manner be perceived, in some manner be discerned. Whence there follows also:

*Looking through the windows, looking forth through the lattices.* For windows and lattices are as it were made in the wall when he by his grace permits himself to be contemplated, although in a glass and in a riddle. This too, which he says, *He standeth behind our wall,* can be referred to his humanity; for he as it were *stood behind our wall* when he set our flesh before himself, in which his divinity lay hid. But that which follows, *Looking through the windows, looking forth through the lattices,* this is referred to his divinity. [1065A] For he who looks through windows or lattices sees all that is done outside, and is himself seen by no one; so God, though he sees all things, cannot himself be searched out and comprehended.

Verse 10. *Behold my beloved speaketh to me,* he exhorts me to preach, saying: *Arise, make haste, my friend, my dove, my comely one, and come.* The voice of the bridegroom calling her forth to the pursuits of public work. *Arise, make haste, my friend,* by faith and love; *my dove,* by innocence and simplicity; *my comely one,* by the beauty of the virtues, hasten and come. As if he said: *Arise* from that most sweet couch of thine, that is, from the quiet in which thou desirest to please me alone in psalms, hymns, and prayers; hasten and come, that is, hasten to the profit of thy neighbours; that them also thou mayest make imitators of thee by the office of preaching and by the example of good works, and mayest lead them with thee to salvation. And it is to be noted that above he adjured the daughters of Jerusalem not to stir up nor make the beloved to awake: but here he himself rouses her and exhorts her to rise [1065B] to labour; because all things have their time, and there is a time for all things under heaven — a time of contemplation, a time also of action. For at one time holy preachers ought to apply themselves to divine contemplation, and to delight their mind with heavenly quiet: but at another time they ought through charity to take care of their neighbours, and to give them examples of good works, and to bestow upon them the teaching of divine contemplation.

Verse 11. *For now the winter is past, the rain is gone and departed.* By the name of winter and of rain is expressed the harshness of unbelief, which held the whole world until the coming of Christ. The bridegroom therefore says: *Arise, my friend, and come,* because *the winter is past,* the Sun of justice having appeared; and the *rain* of unbelief *is departed,* and the serenity of the true faith has shone forth in the world. Such is what the Apostle says: *The night is passed, and the day is at hand [n: (Rom. XIII, 12)]*.

Verse 12. *The flowers have appeared in our land, the time [1065C] of pruning is come.* Winter and rain being ended, the flowers have appeared in the land, namely the grace of the virtues and of chastity; and, the harshness of unbelief passing away, the spring mildness of faith succeeded, *the time of pruning is come,* that is, of the cleansing of the saints. For the pruning of the vineyards signifies the cleansing of the saints, which is in Christ and through Christ; of which he himself says: *I am the vine, you the branches [n: (Joan. XV, 5)]*.

*The voice of the turtle-dove is heard in our land.* That is, the voice of the preaching apostles. For the turtle-dove is a most chaste bird; and since it is wont always to dwell and to nest in lofty trees, it signifies the apostles or the other teachers, who can say: *Our conversation is in heaven [n: (Philip. III, 20)]*. And in that it has a groaning instead of a song, it signifies the weeping of the saints, who exhort their own to tears and lamentation, saying: *Be miserable, and mourn: let your laughter be turned into mourning [n: (Jac. IV, 9)]*. *The voice of the turtle-dove is heard in our land,* that is, the voice of the preaching apostles; *in our land,* that is, in the Church, of which the Psalmist says, *The earth is [1065D] the Lord's, and the fullness thereof [n: (Psal. XXIII, 1)]*.

Verse 13. *The fig tree hath put forth her green figs.* The *fig tree* signifies the Synagogue; and *green figs* is the name given to the first and unripe figs, unfit for eating, which fall easily at the beating of the wind. And at the sounding of the voice of the turtle-dove *the fig tree hath put forth her green figs:* because, while the apostles were preaching, many came forth from the Synagogue of the Jews who both believed in Christ and yet wished to observe the law carnally, and were more delighted with the authority of the law than with the sweetness of the Gospel: wishing to observe circumcision, the sabbath, and the other precepts of the law according to the letter; of whom the Apostle says: *They are zealous for you, not well; but they would have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh [n: (Galat. VI, 13)]*.

*The vines in flower have yielded their odour.* After the voice of the turtle-dove was heard, after the fig tree put forth *511* *her green figs, the vines in flower have yielded their odour:* because the multitude of the Churches was spread through the breadth of the world, [1066A] to scatter widely from themselves the flowers of the virtues and the odour of good working.

*Arise, make haste, my friend, my fair one, and come.* Be not willing (he says), my bride, whom I have made my friend by faith and love, to grow slack in idle torpor; but *arise and come,* and show outwardly to thy neighbours the examples of the virtues.

Verse 14. *My dove in the holes of the rock.* If the rock is Christ, according to what the Apostle says: *And the rock was Christ [n: (I Cor. X, 4)]*; the holes of the rock are the wounds which he received on the cross for our salvation, namely the piercings of the nails and the stroke of the lance [n: (Joan. XIX)]. In these holes, therefore, the dove, that is, the Church, abides: because she has set the whole hope of her salvation in the passion of her Redeemer. There she lies hid in safety from the snares of malignant spirits, as from the swoop of the hawk; there she nests, that is [sic: *il est*] she gathers the brood of good works.

*In the hollow of the stone wall.* Stone *walls* are wont to be made of dry stones for the fortification of vineyards, to drive off [1066B] foxes or the other harmful little beasts. By the stone wall, therefore, is signified the guardianship of the heavenly virtues, namely the angelic protection; as Isaias says of the Lord's vineyard: *And he set a stone wall about it, and dug round about the vineyard [n: (Isai. V, 2)]*. In the hollow of the stone wall, then, she abides, because she is surrounded on every side by the protection of the angels, and is guarded from the temptations of the devil.

*Show me thy face, let thy voice sound in my ears: for thy voice is sweet, and thy face seemly.* Thou (he says), my beloved, who restest most sweetly on the bed of contemplation, come and *show me thy face,* that is, go forth from the secret of quiet to public action, and display the beauty of thy good works to others for an example. *Show me,* he says; for the Church as it were shows her face to God when she displays to her neighbours, for their profit and advancement, through the works of the virtues, how great a beauty she has within. This is what the Lord says in the Gospel: *Let them see your good works, and glorify your Father [1066C] who is in heaven [n: (Matth. V, 16)]*. *Let thy voice sound in my ears.* The voice, namely, of preaching, or of divine praise, by which thou mayest make others to profit. For the voice of the Church sounds *in the ears* of the Lord when God is delighted by the conversion of many through preaching. And well does he say: *Show me thy face,* and *let thy voice sound,* not another's; *show me* thy own *face,* namely, which I gave thee in baptism, when I cleansed thee from every sin. *Let thy voice,* he says, *sound in my ears;* that it may proceed from the sincere intention of love for me; that thou preach for no other cause but for me.

Verse 15. *Catch us the little foxes that destroy the vineyards, for our vineyard hath flourished.* The voice of the bridegroom giving command to his bride and to the daughters of Jerusalem, that is, to the holy teachers, or to the faithful souls. *Catch us* (he says) *the little foxes.* The *fox* is a crafty and deceitful animal, dwelling in caverns and dens, and going not by a straight but by a winding path; and therefore it designates heretics or schismatics, who [1066D] destroy the vineyards, that is, who cease not to tear and to deceive the Church of God, namely the people of the faithful. He commands therefore that they *catch the little foxes,* that is, that they cease not to war down and destroy heretical depravity at its very beginning, lest, being grown strong, it assail more mightily. *For our vineyard hath flourished,* that is, the Church throughout the whole world has put forth the flowers of the virtues. And note that whereas above he said vineyards in the plural, now he says in the singular, *our vineyard hath flourished:* because out of many Churches one Church is chosen.

Verse 16. *My beloved to me, and I to him, who feedeth among the lilies till the day break, and the shadows retire.* The voice of the bride. *My beloved to me* — supply: let him be joined by the bond of charity and love, *and I to him* shall be joined, and shall consent in the interchange of mutual love. Or *My beloved* — supply: let him give words of exhortation and of divine promise; *and I* — supply: will show him my face. Or also, let *my beloved* deign [1067A] to be joined to me by the glue of charity, *and I to him* shall be joined by the bond of worthy obedience, complying with his precepts. *Who feedeth among the lilies,* that is, who is delighted and made glad among the white and sweet-smelling virtues of the saints. And it is to be noted that above the lily is spoken of in the singular; but here, in the plural, *lilies,* because many are the virtues of the saints, but there is only one faith and one charity, in which God is chiefly delighted. Or also *he feedeth among the lilies,* that is, he is most sweetly delighted among the choirs of virgins. For the whiteness of lilies is rightly compared to virginal purity. *Till the day break,* that is, until the clouds of the present life pass away, and the day appear, that is, until the brightness of everlasting blessedness come. And the sense is: *My beloved* affords *me* help, *and I to him* render worthy obedience — he who is delighted with the virtues of the saints — until, the night of the present life being run through, in which he is discerned through a glass and in a riddle, there appear the day of the heavenly brightness, that he may be seen face to face [n: (I Cor. XIII, 12)].

## CHAPTER II. (cont.)

Verse 17. *Return; be thou like, my beloved, to a roe [1067B] or to a fawn of harts upon the mountains of Bethel.* The voice of the Church desiring the sight of her bridegroom. O my beloved, who biddest me rise from the bed of quiet, and exhortest me to show thee my face, *return,* that is, permit me to behold the brightness of thy divinity; and that which thou promisest me perfectly in the other life, namely thy blessedness and the knowledge of thee, permit me to have while still in this pilgrimage at least in figure and in a riddle. *Be thou like to a roe or to a fawn of harts upon the mountains of Bethel.* It has already been said above that *roes* look down upon the plains and strive up to the heights of the mountains. Christ therefore is compared to roes, because, rising from the dead according to the flesh, he sought the heights of the heavens. And he is called a *fawn of harts,* that is, the son of the ancient Fathers. For the harts are the patriarchs and prophets, from whom Christ drew the origin of his flesh. The *fawn* is reported to have this nature, that when the sun is burning it seeks out shaded and shadowy places, in which it may be sheltered from the heat: so also Christ rests in the [1067C] minds of those who by the dew of the Holy Spirit are tempered against the heats of carnal pleasures. As if she said: *O my beloved, return,* that is, gladden me by enlightening me more often with thy visitation, thou who through the flesh which thou hast assumed hast already penetrated the heights of the heavens. And the *mountains of Bethel* signify the minds of the saints, raised from earthly things by heavenly desires. For *Bethel* is interpreted a house rising up, or a house of watchings, and it signifies the watchful minds of the saints, which rise up to the desiring of *512* heavenly things, and keep vigil to obtain them: having within themselves God as their indweller, who says through the prophet: *I will dwell in them and walk among them [n: (Levit. XXVI, 12)]*. Above these *mountains of Bethel,* therefore, *the beloved is like a roe* or *a fawn of harts:* because he deigns to visit those minds which strive to be the house of God.

## CHAPTER III.

Verse 1. *In my little bed by night I sought him whom my soul loveth; I sought him, and found him not.* It is the voice [1067D] of the Church gathered from the Gentiles. *In my little bed* (she says), that is, while I was still resting in carnal desires, and while I was still set in the darkness of unbelief and ignorance, *I sought him whom my soul loveth.* For many of the philosophers, not knowing God, yet with the highest zeal sought after him, wishing to know the Creator through the creature, as Plato, who in the *Timaeus* disputed much concerning the soul, and as Aristotle, Socrates, and the rest, who spent all the time of their life in studies for the sake of searching out the truth. *I sought him, and found him not;* for God could not be known through worldly wisdom.

Verse 2. *I will rise, and will go about the city: through the streets and the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, and found him not.* I will rise up (she says) from the couch of the body and of carnal delight, and will go about the city of this world, traversing seas and lands. *Through the streets and the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth,* that [1068A] is, I will look upon those who walk by the broad roads of this world and are given over to their own pleasures, if perchance I may find the traces of my beloved. Although this may be said, by way of example, of many, yet it was chiefly fulfilled in that Eunuch who came from the ends of the earth to adore the God of heaven at Jerusalem, whom Philip found, and showed him Christ in the prophecy of Isaias [n: (Act. VIII, 27)]. This also was fulfilled in Cornelius, who, while still a pagan and not knowing God, gave alms and gave himself to prayers, whom Peter baptized with all his house [n: (Ibid. X, 22)]. Repeat, however, the difficulty of the finding, and he says: *I sought, and found him not.*

Verse 3. *The watchmen who keep the city found me.* The watchmen are the holy apostles and the other teachers of the Church, who keep the city, that is, holy Church, and defend it from the snares of unbelievers and of spiritual enemies; and these she questions.

*Have you seen him whom my soul loveth?* The Church as it were questions the watchmen when with attentive ear she [1068B] receives their preaching.

Verse 4. *When I had a little passed by them, I found him whom my soul loveth.* To pass by the watchmen is to search out diligently their sayings and their teaching. For we are wont to say: I have run through a book in reading it, or I have passed through it. *When* (she says) *I had passed by them, I found him whom my soul loveth:* because when with careful meditation we seek out the sayings or the writings of the saints, straightway we find the beloved: because we discover God in their teachings. It can also be understood thus: *When I had passed by them, I found him whom my soul loveth;* that is, when I had understood that Christ surpasses all sublimity and grace, then I found him whom my soul loveth, that is, then I truly understood how far he stands from the merits of the other saints.

*I held him, nor will I let him go, till I bring him into my mother's house, and into the chamber of her that bore me.* That is, I clung to him with most ardent faith and devotion; *nor will I let him go,* but I will persevere in his love and faith, [1068C] *till I bring him into my mother's house and into the chamber of her that bore me;* that is, until I preach him to the Synagogue, who is my mother spiritually, and lead her also to faith in him. This shall be done at the end of the world, when (as the Apostle says) *the fullness of the Gentiles, shall have come in, then all Israel shall be saved [n: (Rom. XI, 25, 26)]*. So much, therefore, does the Church promise herself out of the charity of her bridegroom, that she even believes she can convert the Synagogue. But in that she says, *till I bring him in,* it is not to be thought that she will then leave him, when she has brought him into her mother's chamber; but *till* stands for the everlasting, that is, I will always cleave to him, I will always persevere in his faith and love. Such is the saying in the psalm: *So are our eyes unto the Lord our God, until he have mercy on us [n: (Psal. CXXII, 3)]*. Shall it be that after he has had mercy on us, our eyes shall not be unto him? Assuredly they shall.

Verse 5. *I adjure you, ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes and the harts of the fields, that you stir not up, nor make the beloved to awake, until she please.* Twice is [1068D] this little verse repeated; for it has already been set down above: but above it belongs to the primitive Church gathered from the Jews; here, however, to the Church gathered from the Gentiles and more closely bound to Christ by the bond of love. For one and the same is God's care for the saints who pleased him either in circumcision, or also in the time of baptism when the grace of the Gospel was shining forth. But since this little verse has been expounded above, it must now be seen why he brings in the Church as it were sleeping, whence also he adjures the daughters of Jerusalem not to rouse her, since a little above he brings her in not sleeping or resting, but pressing on with the zeal of a most laborious search, by which she was seeking the bridegroom. If therefore she was seeking the bridegroom, how was she resting? but a most sweet and most pleasant sleep it is to seek Christ. The Church therefore sleeps, and seeks Christ; she sleeps, namely, to earthly desires and to the deeds of the world: but she watches and seeks the bridegroom, because she cleaves to his [1069A] contemplation, desires him alone, and strives to come to him. The bridegroom therefore adjures the daughters of Jerusalem, namely the souls that cleave to the desires of the heavenly fatherland, not to rouse her from this sleep of most sweet quiet and contemplation, *until she please.* And sleep is deservedly called love: because as one sleeping closes his eyes to visible things and contemplates things invisible, so he who applies himself to divine contemplation sleeps as it were a stranger to outward things, and sees only things spiritual and heavenly. Nor is it a wonder if love be called sleep, since in what follows death is called love: *Love is strong as death.* But when he says, *until she please,* he shows that the Church of the Gentiles would of her own will prepare herself to bear labours and persecutions for Christ.

Verse 6. *Who is she that goeth up by the desert as a little rod of smoke of the aromatical spices of myrrh, and of frankincense, and of all the powder of the perfumer?* The voice of the daughters of Jerusalem, that is, of the saints of the primitive Church, marvelling at the beauty of the Church gathered from the Gentiles. [1069B] *Who is* (they say) *she? Who,* *513* that is, of what sort. How worthy of praise and admiration, who, cleansed by circumcision, and not yet sanctified by baptism, already runs to God? *She goeth up* (he says) *by the desert;* this is said in imitation of the ancient Jewish people, which, freed from the Egyptian servitude, came *through the desert,* the Red Sea being crossed, to the land of promise: so also the Church was going up *through the desert* of the nations, already freed from Egypt, that is, from the confusion of idolatry, and Pharaoh, that is, the devil, being drowned, that she might be fed with the heavenly manna, and might enter the true land of promise. She goeth up (he says) to the mountains of the virtues, or also to heaven itself, raised on high by the virtues; she who says in the psalm: *I have lifted up my eyes to the mountains [n: (Psal. CXX, 1)]*, and so forth; and elsewhere: *To thee have I lifted up my eyes, who dwellest in the heavens [n: (Psal. CXXII, 1)]*. These mountains are the patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and the other saints of God, who are deservedly called mountains for their virtues. For first to the mountains, that is, to the saints, [1069C] does the Church lift up her eyes, or the faithful soul which considers their teaching and their acts, and rejoices to be fortified by their example and intercession. Afterward, advancing, she dares to direct the gaze of her heart to him also who made the mountains, and says: *To thee have I lifted up my eyes, who dwellest in the heavens;* that is, who restest gladly in the saints. *As* (he says) *a little rod of smoke of the aromatical spices of myrrh and of frankincense.* Smoke is born of fire, and straightway seeks the higher regions of the air, until it is withdrawn from the sight of those who look on. Smoke, therefore, signifies holy desire suffused with the fire of divine love; nor are they compared simply to smoke, but to *a little rod of smoke:* because holy Church, or the soul that loves God, is slender and delicate, made thin by the disciplines of the Holy Spirit, not having the grossness of carnal desires. Or else they are compared to *a little rod of smoke,* not to scattered smoke, on account of the unity of the Church, which in Christ is one. And whence that smoke came he shows, when he adds, *Of myrrh and of frankincense and of all the powder of the perfumer.* With *myrrh* the bodies of the dead are embalmed; but *frankincense* is burnt in the sacrifice of God; and therefore [1069D] by myrrh is designated the mortification of the flesh, by frankincense is expressed the purity of prayers. To *a little rod of smoke of myrrh and of frankincense,* therefore, is the Church likened: because the saints strive to please God by the mortification of their flesh and by prayers poured forth with a clean and single heart. *And of* [sic: *unversi*] (he says) *powder of the perfumer,* that is, the heap of all the virtues. For the spices are said not to have been whole, but reduced to powder: because the actions of the saints are to be weighed with great discretion, and to be winnowed as with the sieve of the most subtle consideration, lest perchance there be in them anything harsh or unfitting: lest at the least through the virtues themselves the thousand-shaped adversary creep in, who, being crafty, is wont to do harm even through good things.

Verse 7. *Behold threescore valiant ones of the most valiant of Israel surround the little bed of Solomon, all holding swords, and most expert in war.* Whither this beloved and wonderful one has gone up is shown when there is added, *Behold the little bed of Solomon,* [1070A] and the rest. Although the *bed of Solomon* may be taken as that heavenly rest of the heavenly blessedness in which God rests with his saints, yet more probably the present Church is understood, in which the saints of God, the tumults of the vices being lulled to sleep, are delighted in the embrace of Solomon, that is, of the peaceable man. Whence also the Psalmist says of Christ: *His place is made in peace, and his dwelling in Sion [n: (Psal. LXXV, 3)]*. The *little bed of Solomon,* therefore, that is, the Church, *threescore valiant ones of the most valiant of Israel surround.* By the threescore valiant ones is understood the order of teachers, who either fortify the Church by preaching, or by contemplation desire to attain to that heavenly blessedness. And the number sixty consists of the senary and the denary; for six times ten, or ten times six, make sixty. The senary indeed signifies the perfection of work: because in six days God perfected his works; but the denary, the recompense and reward which will be given to the elect at the end; whence also those who came into the vineyard are read to have received a denarius [n: (Matth. XX, 10)]. The *threescore valiant ones,* therefore, signify (as has been said) the holy [1070B] teachers, valiant and steadfast in mind. And there is added *of the most valiant of Israel:* all who believe in Christ and love Christ are called Israel, that is, a man seeing God. But the *most valiant of Israel* are those who know how to guard the Church by preaching, and to defend her from the assaults of demons or from the attacks of heretics. For these *surround the little bed of Solomon:* because to them the Church is committed, and by them she must be kept with watchful care. *All holding swords, and most expert in war.* For they *hold* the spiritual *sword,* the word of God, of which the Apostle says: *And take unto you* (he says) *the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God [n: (Ephes. VI, 17)]*. And they *are most expert in war:* because it is needful that they be instructed in the art of spiritual battle, who wage wars *against the principalities and powers of the world, against the rulers of the world of these darknesses, against the spiritual things of wickedness in the heavenly places* [n: (Ibid., 12)]. For that enemy is most wily, and most expert both by the subtlety of his spiritual nature and also by the long duration of time, [1070C] against whom the saints take up wars.

## CHAPTER III. (cont.)

Verse 8. *Every man's sword upon his thigh, because of the fears of the night.* By the thigh the propagation of offspring is understood; upon the thigh, therefore, they have swords who by the fear of God check and restrain all the motions of carnal pleasure. And this because of the fears of the night, that is, because of the hidden ambushes of the malignant enemy, who in the night of this world lies in wait chiefly for the saints who stand out in the Church, so that, when they have been deceived, he may be able to defile the couch of Solomon, that is, the rest of the saints. And it is to be noted that above they are said to hold swords, but here to have *swords upon the thigh*. For they hold swords that they may withstand adversaries, that they may overcome them, and that they may pierce through heretics and all who contradict the sound faith. Upon the thigh, therefore, they have swords, that they may take care of themselves, that they may repress the flux of carnal pleasures: lest, preaching to others, they themselves become reprobate [n: (I Cor. IX, 27)].

Verse 9. *King Solomon made himself a litter of the wood [1070D] of Lebanon.* That which above was set forth by the couch of Solomon is now designated by the *litter*, namely the holy Church, in which the saints of God rest as upon a bed, and as upon a bed recline to the banquets of eternal blessedness and satisfaction. *Of the wood of Lebanon did Solomon make the litter.* Lebanon is a mountain of Phoenicia, whose trees excel all others in height and in beauty and in durability, and therefore they signify the saints, shining with the appearance of the virtues and hastening toward things eternal. For *Lebanon* is interpreted "white-robed," or "whitening," or "made white." The *wood* of *Lebanon*, therefore, is the saints, robed in white, or made white in baptism, and adorned with the beauty of all the virtues.

Verse 10. *He made the pillars thereof of silver.* By the pillars are signified the *514* teachers of that same Church, who uphold and strengthen it by word and by example; whence also in the Acts of the Apostles it is said: *James and John and Cephas, who seemed to be pillars (Gal. [1071A] II, 9)*. These *pillars* are *of silver*, because they shine with the brightness of heavenly speech; for *the words of the Lord are chaste words [n: (Psal. XI, 7)]*, and the rest.

*A reclining-place of gold, an ascent of purple.* By the *golden reclining-place* is understood eternal rest, which is promised to the saints in the Church; to which, nevertheless, the *ascent* is *purple*. The *purple ascent* is the passion of Christ, because purple imitates the color of blood. By a purple ascent, therefore, one arrives at the reclining-place, because they come to the reclining at the eternal banquets, and to the repose of the rest above, who in the present labor to venerate and to imitate worthily the passion of the Redeemer. For unless a man shall have imitated the actions and the life of Christ, he will not be able to arrive at eternal rest.

*He paved the midst with charity, because of the daughters of Jerusalem.* He paved the midst with charity: because Christ commended his charity to all the faithful by suffering for us and by preparing rest for us, according to what the Apostle says: *But God commendeth his charity in us: because when as yet we were sinners, [1071B] he delivered up his Son to death for us [n: (Rom. V, 8)]*. Otherwise: by the silver pillars are designated the apostles and apostolic men; by the golden reclining-place, the order of the teachers, who, when they promise the unspeakable joys of eternal life, assuredly make us to rest sweetly. And this reclining-place is well called golden, because unspeakable is that reward which the saints await. For among perishable things nothing is more precious than gold. But by the purple ascent is signified the order of the martyrs, who, having imitated the passion of Christ, poured out their blood for him. But what shall we do, says the blessed Gregory, who are of no merit, who see ourselves to have a place neither among the teachers nor among the martyrs? There follows, *he paved the midst with charity.* Let us therefore have charity, with which the midst of this litter is paved, which is also on that account called the broad commandment, because it prepares eternal salvation for all its observers. Let us hold this effectually, and through it we shall be saved, and this *because of the daughters of Jerusalem*, that [1071C] is, because of the simple souls that are conscious of no virtue in themselves; which, the more conscious they are of their own greater frailty, so much the more do they labor to love their Savior and Redeemer.

Verse 11. *Go forth, and see, ye daughters of Sion, king Solomon in the diadem wherewith his mother crowned him in the day of his espousals, and in the day of the joy of his heart.* The voice of the Church inviting the souls of the faithful to behold how wonderful and fair her bridegroom is. For the *daughters of Sion* are of the Church, who are also daughters of Jerusalem, namely holy souls, citizens of that city above, who both enjoy perpetual peace with the angels, and by contemplation gaze upon the glory of God. *Go forth*, he says, *ye daughters of Sion*, that is, go out from the turbulent converse of this world; that with a mind unencumbered you may be able to contemplate him whom you love. *And see*, he says, *king Solomon*, that is, the true peaceable one, Christ, *in the diadem wherewith his mother crowned him.* As if he should say: Consider Christ clothed in flesh for you, which flesh he took from the flesh of the Virgin [1071D] his mother. For he calls *diadem* the flesh which Christ took for us, in which by dying he destroyed the empire of death, in which also by rising again he bestowed upon us the hope of rising. Of this diadem the Apostle says: *We saw Jesus crowned with glory and honor through his passion [n: (Hebr. II, 9)]*. But *his mother* is said *to have crowned him*, because the Virgin Mary furnished him from her own flesh the matter of his flesh. *In the day of his espousals*, that is, in the time of his incarnation, when he joined to himself the *Church*, not having spot or wrinkle [n: (Ephes. V, 27)]; or when God was joined to man. *And in the day of the joy of his heart.* For the gladness and joy of Christ is the salvation and redemption of the human race; according to what is in the Gospel, when he saw many flowing together to his faith. *In that hour*, says the evangelist, *he rejoiced and said: I confess to thee, Father of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them to little ones (Matth. XI, [1072A] 25)*. And in the evangelical parable, when the sheep was found, he called together his friends, saying: *Rejoice with me [n: (Luc. XV, 6)]*. This whole passage can also be referred simply to the passion of Christ according to the letter. For Solomon, foreseeing in spirit the passion of Christ, long before forewarned the daughter of Sion, that is, the Israelite people: *Go forth*, saying, *and see king Solomon*, that is, Christ, *in the diadem*, in the crown of thorns *wherewith his mother crowned him*, the Synagogue, *in the day of his espousals*, namely when he joined the Church to himself, and *in the day of the joy of his heart*, wherein he rejoiced that the world was redeemed through his passion from the power of the devil. *Go forth*, therefore, that is, go out from the darkness of unbelief, *and see*, that is, understand with the mind: that he who suffers as a man is true God; or also *go forth* outside the gate of your city, that you may see him crucified on mount Golgotha.

## CHAPTER IV.

Verse 1. *How beautiful art thou, my friend; how beautiful [1072B] art thou and [sic: esset] seemly.* The voice of Christ twice repeats, *how beautiful art thou*, namely in work and in preaching, In work, because thou doest nothing foul, nothing unworthy of my eyes; in preaching, because thou dost not cease to invite even thy companions, the daughters of Jerusalem, to consider the mystery of my incarnation.

*Thy eyes are those of doves.* By the *eyes* is understood the keenness of the spiritual senses, by which the Church contemplates things divine and everlasting. But the *eyes* of the Church are compared to a *dove* on account of spiritual grace: because the Holy Spirit appeared in the likeness of a dove [n: (Matth. III, 16)]. And there follows.

*Besides that which lieth hid within*, that is, besides the glory of that recompense above, which thou art to receive at the end of the world; which, although in the present thou contemplatest it by faith, nevertheless lieth hid within; for it cannot be seen in the present, but shall be perfected in the time to come.

*Thy hair is as flocks of goats, which have come up from mount Galaad.* By the hair of the Church are understood the subtle thoughts of the Church, by which temporal things [1072C] are for the most part ordered. But they are compared to flocks of goats, because these animals are clean, and feed upon rocks, or with heads thrown back in lofty places: because the thoughts of the saints, even if for bodily necessity they are occupied with temporal things, *515* nevertheless do not depart from their intention toward things inward; and even in that care which they expend upon bodily necessity, they gaze as it were always upon heaven. We can also understand by the *eyes* the teachers and preachers of the Church, who in the body whose head is Christ hold the highest place, and see heavenly and spiritual things before the rest of the members. But by the *hair* we understand the innumerable multitude of the simple faithful established in the lay order: who, although they see spiritual things less, nevertheless by their multitude and number furnish a great ornament to the Church. And well are they compared to *flocks of goats*. The *goat* is fitting for sinners, and by it are understood the peoples of the faithful given over to the actions of the world, which cannot be carried on without sin. And well does there [1072D] follow, *Which have come up from mount Galaad. Galaad* is interpreted "the heap of testimony," according to the letter indeed; and this because, when Jacob was withdrawing from Mesopotamia, Laban pursued him, and on the third day found him, and there in testimony of a mutual covenant they raised up a heap of stones [n: (Gen. XXXI, 46)]. Mystically the heap of testimony is Christ, in whom stands the multitude of all the saints, who are living stones, cleaving to that true stone of which Peter says: *Unto whom coming, a living stone, be you also as living stones built up [n: (I Petr. II, 4)]*. Flocks of goats, therefore, have come up from mount Galaad, because the multitudes of the saints climb up to the heights of the virtues, and labor to follow in all things the doctrine and the precepts of Christ.

Verse 2. *Thy teeth as flocks of shorn sheep, which have come up from the washing.* As by the *hair* of the Church is understood the innumerable multitude of the simple faithful, [1073A] so also by the *teeth* of the Church are understood the teachers. For with the teeth we grind our food; and holy teachers are well conformed to teeth: because the spiritual foods which the simple cannot take, they themselves in a manner break small by expounding them. The chief tooth of the Church was Peter, to whom it was said in the vision: *Arise, kill, and eat [n: (Act. X, 13)]*; as if it were said, those whom thou convertest to the faith, *kill* from that which they are, that is, that they may cease to be sinners; *and eat*, that is, transfer, or transform them into the body of the Church. And well are these teeth compared to sheep shorn and washed in the washing. For sheep are wont after shearing to be washed in running water, lest unwashed sweat cling to the body and breed the scab. Shorn, therefore, are the holy teachers and masters of the Church, who, washed by the laver of baptism, have lost their fleeces, that is, their means and substance, for Christ. To all the faithful indeed belongs what it says: *Which have come up from the washing*; for no one can be faithful without the laver of baptism. But shearing [1073B] does not belong to all: because not all are so perfect that they are able to lose their own for Christ; but this belongs especially to those who according to the word of the Lord sell all their goods and give to the poor [n: (Matth. XIX, 21)], and naked and unencumbered follow Christ. Such, therefore, are the *teeth* of the holy Church, that is, her preachers and ministers, sheep washed by baptism through innocence: rejoicing in voluntary poverty and in the [sic: *spollatione*] of their goods. There follows.

*All with twin offspring, and there is not a barren one among them.* Because they stand out by the twofold charity and love of God and of the neighbor, and teach it to be observed: or also because they preach faith and work. *And there is not a barren one in them;* that is, no one is a stranger to good works.

Verse 3. *Thy lips are as a scarlet fillet, and thy speech is sweet.* By the *lips* of the Church are understood the holy preachers, who are also figured by the teeth. Now scarlet has the appearance of blood or of fire. The *lips*, therefore, of the Church (that is, the holy preachers) are compared to a *scarlet fillet*, [1073C] because they continually preach the passion of Christ, who poured out his blood for our redemption. Or they are likened to a *scarlet fillet* because the preachers burn with love: loving those on whom they bestow the words of preaching, and even those from whom they suffer evils. To this also pertains the fact that the Holy Spirit appeared in fiery tongues [n: (Act. II, 3)], because he made the apostles speakers and burners: burners by love, speakers by preaching. And well is it called a *scarlet fillet*; for a fillet binds and constrains the hair, and holy teachers by their preaching knit the multitude of the faithful in the Church into the unity of faith and love, and reduce them to one comeliness. By the hair also may be understood the subtle thoughts of the mind. With a scarlet fillet, therefore, we bind the locks, when we constrain and restrain our thoughts by the discipline of the fear of God. *And thy speech is sweet.* Sweet is the speech of the Church, when holy teachers either bring back to memory the passion of their Redeemer, and preach [1073D] how much God has loved man, or also when they announce heavenly rewards to their hearers.

*As a piece of a pomegranate, so are thy cheeks, besides that which lieth hid within.* By the *cheeks* we have said above that the Church is figured. For when we are ashamed, the redness of the blood is poured out in the cheeks. Now the pomegranate has a ruddy rind, but within is full of a multitude of grains, whence it is also called the grained apple. By the piece of a pomegranate, therefore, is understood the memory of that same passion of the Lord, which above is also figured in the scarlet. For one and the same thing is wont to be expressed by different figures. The cheeks, therefore, of the Church are compared to a piece of a pomegranate, because the holy teachers keep the memory of the passion of their Redeemer with veneration, nor are they ashamed of his cross, but rather glory in it, saying with the Apostle: *But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ [n: (Gal. VI, 14)]*; and elsewhere the Apostle, writing to his disciple: *Be not* (he says) *ashamed of the cross of Christ, nor of me his prisoner (II Tim. [1074A] I, 8)* [var: Vulg. *testimonium Domini nostri*, "the testimony of our Lord"]. And well are the *cheeks* compared not to a whole pomegranate, but to a piece. For when a pomegranate is broken, redness appears on the outside, whiteness within: so also the holy preachers and teachers, when they announce the passion of Christ, are as it were redness on the outside; but when they show how great a benefit of our redemption has come from it, and that man through the passion of Christ has deserved not only to be justified from sins, but even to attain fellowship with God, that is as it were the whiteness of *that which lieth hid within*. By the *cheeks* of the Church may also be figured the martyrs, who are ruddy with the pouring out of their own blood like a pomegranate; but when the pomegranate is broken, whiteness appears within, because after death they shine with miracles.

Verse 4. *Thy neck is as the tower of David, which is built with bulwarks.* The neck of the holy Church is her holy preachers and teachers. For the same are here designated by the *neck* who above were designated by the *eyes*, or by the *teeth*, namely the holy *516* preachers, [1074B] who like necks pass on the foods of the word of God that they have received to nourish the body, and bring forth the voice of divine preaching to their hearers. Or also the holy teachers are signified by the neck, because as through the neck the head and the other members are joined to the body, so the holy teachers are as it were mediators between Christ and the rest of the faithful whom they instruct, and as it were join Christ to his body, that is, to the Church. Now this *neck* is compared to the *tower of David*, which, being interpreted "strong of hand" or "desirable in sight," signifies Christ. And indeed the whole Church is the city of David, that is, of the great King Christ, who is strong of hand: since he overcame the devil, according to what the Psalmist says: *The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle [n: (Psal. XXIII, 8)]*. He is also desirable in sight: because (as the Apostle says) *the angels desire to look upon him [n: (I Petr. I, 12)]*. But the tower of this city is those who excel the rest either in knowledge or in perfection of work. *Which is built with bulwarks.* The bulwarks are the sacred mysteries of the divine Scriptures, from [1074C] which there go forth as it were javelins, by which the adversary powers are driven back.

*A thousand bucklers hang upon it, all the armor of valiant men. A thousand bucklers* are understood to be the innumerable defenses of divine protection, by which the holy Church is fenced about and defended. *All the armor of valiant men*, that is, all the equipment either of holy work or of divine preaching. And well are the neck of the Church, that is, the preachers and teachers, compared to the tower of David, because they are always as it were in war, fighting for the defense of the holy Church.

Verse 5. *Thy two breasts are like two twin fawns of a roe.* The two breasts of the Church signify those same holy teachers. Nor is it a wonder that one and the same thing is figured in different ways. For the holy teachers are *eyes*, because they show to their subjects the ways of life which they ought to enter. They are *teeth*, because they grind and break small the foods of the divine Scriptures, that they may be chewed, namely by the simple, that is, understood. They are the *neck*, [1074D] because they join the head and the members, that is, Christ and the Church; those same teachers, therefore, are also the *breasts* of the Church, because they nourish the little ones and the simple faithful with the milk of the word of God, according to what the Apostle, speaking to the more simple, says: *I could not speak to you as to spiritual, but as to carnal; and to little ones in Christ I gave you milk to drink, not meat [n: (I Cor. III, 1, 2)]*. And well does he say, not simply breasts, but with an addition, *two breasts*, since a woman has neither more nor less than *two breasts*; because assuredly the holy teachers nourish the little ones from each people, namely the Jewish and the Gentile, with the milk of the word of God. For Paul too says of himself: *He who wrought in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision wrought in me also among the Gentiles [n: (Gal. II, 8)]*. And fitly the *two breasts*, just as two twin fawns are said to be roes, who namely are the offspring and sons of our Savior Jesus Christ, who above was designated by the roes; for these animals both see most keenly and climb up to higher places with exceeding swiftness: so also the holy [1075A] teachers both themselves see what things are to be done, and show them to others, and, despising earthly things, strive to ascend to those above.

## CHAPTER IV. (cont.)

Verse 6. *Who feed among the lilies, till the day break, and the shadows decline. Who feed among the lilies*, that is, they take delight in the purest and brightest senses of the Scriptures. *Till the day break*, that is, till that eternal day come which the Psalmist desired, saying: *Better is one day in thy courts above thousands [n: (Psal. LXXXIII, 11)]*: *And the shadows decline*, that is, let the sorrows and disturbances of this world pass away. *Till the day break*, that is, till the day arise; for the day shall breathe, that is, shall arise, when that true Sun of justice, that is, Christ, shall appear; and then *the shadows shall decline*, that is, all the clouds of sorrow and the darkness of the present world shall pass away. But if we should wish also to look at the letter itself, he has beautifully expressed the rising of day and of night: for night is nothing else than the shadow of the earth, which rises up as the sun goes down beneath the earth; but when the sun again ascends above the earth, the shadows decline, that is, night gives way. [1075B] They feed, therefore, among the lilies till the day break and the shadows decline, because the preaching and teaching of the holy teachers is necessary in the present life only; for in the other life, after the eternal day has appeared and the night of the present world has been ended, it will not be needful that any be taught: because *all with unveiled face* shall contemplate *the glory of the Lord [n: (II Cor. III, 18)]*. Whence also the Lord says through the prophet Jeremiah: *No more shall a man teach his brother, saying: Know the Lord; for all shall know me from the least even to the greatest [n: (Jer. XXXI, 34)]*.

*I will go to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense.* In the myrrh is understood the mortification of the flesh, or the endurance of sufferings for Christ; but in the frankincense the devotion of holy prayers. The *mountain* therefore *of myrrh, and the hill of frankincense*, are the minds of the saints, lofty through contemplation. The bridegroom therefore promises that he will come to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of frankincense: because he deigns to visit with his visitation those minds which mortify their members with their vices and concupiscences [1075C] [n: (Gal. V, 24)], which also make themselves, through the zeal of holy prayers, a sacrifice pleasing to God.

Verse 7. *Thou art all beautiful, my friend, and there is not a spot in thee.* The voice of the bridegroom to his friend the bride. *Thou art all beautiful.* On every side (he says) thou receivest no spot, nor wrinkle. For not the teachers alone, or the perfect, are beautiful before the eyes of God, who excel in the highest knowledge and contemplation; but also the simple faithful, whoever are adorned with right faith and good works, are held to be beautiful in the eyes of the bridegroom. For, as the Psalmist says: *He hath blessed all that fear the Lord, both little and great [n: (Psal. CXIII, 13)]*; therefore he says: *Thou art all beautiful*, not one part of thee only. We say this not because anyone can be without sin in the present life, since it is written: *There is no one upon earth without sin, not even an infant of one day [n: (Job XIV, 4)]*: but for this reason, because perfect faith and heavenly desire wipe away every spot of the lighter sin; for there is no question now [1075D] of the graver sins, and those who commit them are no longer the bride of Christ, nor have they any portion of this holy beauty. Hence it is that John says: *He that is born of God sinneth not [n: (I Joan. III, 6)]*, understand, with the sin unto death; not that anyone is free from light sin, without which this life is not led. The Church, therefore, is all beautiful, in so far as she keeps herself chaste and free from every sin. But if at any time she is darkened by a light sin, by swift repentance and by right faith unto heavenly desire her ancient beauty is repaired in her.

*517* Verse 8. *Come from Lebanon, my bride, come from Lebanon, come.* Lebanon is a mountain of Phoenicia: it is interpreted from the Hebrew "whitening" or "white-robing"; but from the Greek it is interpreted "frankincense." Whence also above, where it says: I will go to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of frankincense, the hill is taken as Lebanon. The bridegroom therefore calls his bride, robed in white by baptism, made white by the brightness of all the virtues, burning with the zeal of holy prayers. [1076A] And he calls her that she may come, that is, that she may advance in the virtues. God does not call the soul only when he leads it, stripped of the bonds of the flesh, to the heavenly rewards; but he also exhorts it by inward inspiration, that it may advance in the virtues. For by as many steps as the saints advance in the virtues, by so many do they tend toward God. And he says *come* three times, because he wills her to be perfect in thought, in speech, and in work. Or he calls her first, that she may come to him by faith; he calls her a second time, that, now freed from the body, she may receive the worthy recompense of the heavenly rewards; he calls her a third time, that on the day of the general resurrection, her body now resumed, she may rejoice, crowned forever with a twofold robe.

*Thou shalt be crowned from the top of Amana, from the summit of Sanir and Hermon, from the dens of lions, from the mountains of leopards. Amana* they say to be that mount Amanus of Cilicia, which is also called Taurus. But *Sanir* and *Hermon* are mountains of Judea in which lions and leopards are reported [1076B] to dwell; and by these mountains are understood the powers of the world, namely kings and princes, who are lifted up like mountains in pride, and who furnish dens to malignant spirits as to lions and leopards. For the malignant spirits are called lions on account of pride, leopards on account of ferocity, or also on account of their thousand arts of harming, because the leopard is a spotted animal. From these mountains, therefore, the Church is crowned, when the princes of the world are converted to the faith of Christ; and not only for her own virtues, but also for the manner of life of such men, is the Church rewarded unto salvation. This can also be understood of the present. For the Church is crowned from the summit of these mountains, when, the princes being made subject to the catholic faith, the Church, which before was oppressed, is crowned and glories in Christ; as was done in the time of Constantine, when at his conversion the Church was wondrously glorified. She is crowned also from the dens of lions and from the mountains of leopards, when she converts the proud and all the cruel and deceitful, and for their conversion also receives eternal rewards.

[1076C]Verse 9. *Thou hast wounded my heart, my sister, my bride; thou hast wounded my heart.* He calls the holy Church his bride and his sister, who is a bride because Christ incarnate betrothed her to himself, and, cleansing her from the filth of sins, joined her to himself with the dowry of the Holy Spirit. But she is a sister, because for her sake he who was made incarnate deigned to become her brother, as, rising from the dead, he said to the women: *Go, tell my brethren [n: (Matth. XXVIII, 10)]*. When therefore he says that he has a wounded heart, he has expressed the greatness of the love with which he loves his holy Church. And he affirms this by repeating and pressing it: *Thou hast wounded my heart*, that by such repetition he may show how much he loves his Church. But by what thing it was wounded, he shows by adding.

*With one of thy eyes, and with one hair of thy neck.* By the eyes of the Church we understand the spiritual senses or the holy teachers: but by the hairs, the multitudes of the peoples subject to her, with which the holy Church is adorned. [1076D] And the sense is: although thou art all beautiful, O Church, and although I love thee for many things, yet chiefly the brightness of the spiritual senses and the sincerity of thy teachers delight me, and also the simplicity of life of the peoples subject to thee, who piously and faithfully obey the words of the teachers. And well, though above he said eyes and hairs in the plural, does he here say in the singular *with one eye, and with one hair*; that by this the unity of the holy teachers may be expressed. For there is a unity of the heavenly doctrine which they bestow upon their subjects. For *one Lord*, as the Apostle says, *one faith, one baptism [n: (Ephes. IV, 5)]*, and also one devotion of the subject faithful. This also which he says, *Thou hast wounded my heart*, can be understood of the passion of Christ. *Thou hast wounded my heart*, that is, by thy love thou hast brought it about that I should be wounded on the cross. But it is to be noted that he says, *With one hair of thy neck.* For by the neck we have said that the teachers are signified, and the hair of the Church cleaves to the neck, whereby the subject peoples are nourished by the holy teachers, [1077A] and cleave to their sound doctrine, and labor to live according to their precepts.

Verse 10. *How beautiful are thy breasts, my sister, my bride!* By the breasts we have said above that those same teachers are figured, who are also designated by the eyes; for the holy teachers are *breasts*, that is, they nourish the humble with simple doctrine; they are *eyes* when they preach the highest and heavenly things. He says therefore: *How beautiful are thy breasts, my sister, my bride!* that is, how beautiful are thy teachers! since their discourse both excels in eloquence and is precious in the weight of its senses.

*Thy breasts are more beautiful than wine.* This little verse has already been expounded above, where it is said: *Thy breasts are better than wine.* And this is to be noted, that above the Church praised the breasts of her bridegroom, saying: *Thy breasts are better than wine;* but now in turn the bridegroom extols the breasts of his bride, that by this the unity of the Church may be commended. For Christ is the head, and the Church is his body; for the beginning of the evangelical preaching surpasses the sentence of the law.

[1077B] *And the odor of thy ointments above all aromatical spices. The ointments* of the Church are the graces of heavenly doctrine, or also the fame of the virtues which is fragrant from the Church; but by the *aromatical spices* are understood the observances of the law. Above the aromatical spices, therefore, is the odor of the ointments of the Church: because the dignity and fame of evangelical perfection transcends every praise of legal observance.

Verse 11. *Thy lips, O bride, are as a dropping honeycomb.* A honeycomb is honey in the wax; and honey in the wax is the spiritual understanding in the letter. The lips of the Church, therefore, are called a dropping honeycomb, because the holy teachers, who are designated by the lips, bring forth spiritual instruction for the faithful who are to be taught. And the lips of the Church are called not only a honeycomb, but a dropping one; for a honeycomb drops when the abundance of honey, overflowing, can no longer be contained in the waxen cells. Rightly, therefore, is the divine Scripture called a dropping honeycomb, because it is understood in manifold ways, and is expounded in various senses, now according to the letter, now according to allegory, now according to morality, [1077C] now according to anagogy, that is, the higher sense.

*Honey and milk are under thy tongue.* Milk is fitting for little ones, *518* and therefore by *milk* is designated the simple doctrine with which the beginning of believers is imbued. But *honey*, which is believed to be made from the dew of heaven, signifies the heavenly and spiritual doctrine which is fitting for the perfect and the instructed. *Under* the *tongue*, therefore, of the Church *there is honey and [sic: ac]*: because sometimes she announces heavenly mysteries to the perfect, sometimes plain and simple things to the untrained.

## CHAPTER IV. (cont.)

*And the odor of thy garments as the odor of frankincense.* The garments of the Church are the ornaments of good works, according to what John says in the Apocalypse: *For the fine linen is the justifications of the saints [n: (Apoc. XIX, 8)]*; and in Job it is said: *I was clothed with justice, and I clothed myself with my judgment as with an ornament and a diadem [n: (Job. XXIX, 14)]*. And we have said that by frankincense is designated the purity of holy prayers. The *garments*, therefore, of the Church are compared to frankincense: because all the works of the Church are as it were prayers; for in all things that she does she always [1077D] beseeches the Lord, and in such a manner that is fulfilled which the Lord says: *We ought always to pray [n: (Luc. VIII, 1)]*. Nor can this be fulfilled always before the Lord in any other way, unless our whole life and manner of living be such that it is reckoned as prayer in the sight of God. Frankincense is a tree of Arabia, like the laurel in bark and in leaf, sending forth its sap after the manner of the almond; and it is gathered twice in the year, in autumn and in spring. In the autumn gathering the trees are prepared by cutting the bark in the most burning heat of summer, and thus, as the rich foam bursts forth, which hardens and thickens, a mat of palm receives it where the nature of the place requires. What has clung to the tree is combed off with iron; and therefore what is of the bark seems to be purest, that is, white frankincense. The second vintage is in spring, the bark having been cut for it in winter; this comes out red, and is not to be compared with the former. It is also believed that the frankincense of a young tree is whiter, but that of an old one more fragrant. That which has hung from it in the roundness of a drop we call male [1078A]; a drop struck off by a blow we call manna.

Verse 12. *A garden enclosed, my sister, my bride, a garden enclosed, a fountain sealed up.* He calls the Church his sister and his bride, whom from a handmaid he appointed to be his sister, and, pledged with the dowry of the Holy Spirit, made his bride. This Church, therefore, is a *garden*: because she brings forth the shoots of the spiritual virtues, which are designated in what follows by the names of the aromatical spices. And this *garden* is *enclosed*: because the holy Church is fortified by the help of the Lord her Redeemer, and fenced about by the protection of the angelic powers, and lies open to no snares of the malignant spirits. This same Church is a *fountain sealed up*: a fountain, therefore, because she flows with the streams of heavenly doctrine, with which she washes from sins all who believe in Christ, and gives them the knowledge of truth to drink. And this *fountain* is *sealed up*: because the word of the faith of evangelical truth is fortified with a seal, so that neither heretics nor malignant spirits are able to violate or [1078B] to break into the catholic faith. This garden, or this fountain, that is, the Church, was first planted or sprang up in a small little place of Judea: then, preaching having been sown throughout the whole world, she sent forth her garden-plots, or her rivulets; whence there follows:

Verse 13. *Thy shoots are a paradise of pomegranates with the fruits of the orchard. The shoots* of the Church (as has been said) are the increases of faith and the sowing of preaching; and these *shoots* are a *paradise*. *Paradise* in Greek is called garden in Latin: because that primitive Church, which in Judea was as it were a garden, sent forth throughout the whole world many gardens, that is, Churches. But the *pomegranates*, which have a ruddy rind, signify those who not only have been sanctified by the common baptism, but also those who, baptized in their own blood in their passion, have been made martyrs. But the *fruits of the orchard* signify the works of the virtues, or those who exercise those same virtues in work. The *shoots*, therefore, of the Church were a *paradise of pomegranates*: because after the apostles the martyrs obtained the first place [1078C] in the Church, who by suffering strove to imitate the passion of the Lord himself; although generally the whole multitude may be understood as a *paradise of pomegranates*, who are pomegranates because they always retain in memory the passion of their Redeemer. And as the pomegranate contains within one rind a multitude of grains, so in the Church the multitude of the faithful is contained within the faith of the Lord's passion. Hence the Apostle says: *As many of you as have been baptized in Christ Jesus, have been baptized in his death [n: (Rom. VI, 3)]*.

Verse 14. *Cypress with spikenard, spikenard and saffron, sweet cane and cinnamon, with all the trees of Lebanon.* Cypress is an aromatic tree, having a seed like that of coriander, that is, white and translucent, which is boiled in oil, and from it is pressed out that which is called cypress, from which the royal ointment is prepared. We read in Exodus that manna was like the white seed of coriander [n: (Exod. XVI, 31)]. Cypress, therefore, and manna have one signification: for they signify heavenly grace, coming as manna [1078D] from the things above. *Cypress*, therefore, grows in the garden of the Church, when all the faithful are taught to set heavenly grace before all things, and through it to hope for salvation. For no one can be saved by his own virtues, but by the grace of God alone. Spikenard is a type of the Lord's passion, whence also Mary Magdalene anointed the head and the feet of Jesus with pure spikenard [n: (Joan. XII, 3)]. Spikenard, therefore, is in the garden of the Church, when all the saints venerate the memory of the Lord's passion, and give thanks to him because he so greatly loved them that for their salvation and deliverance he underwent death. *Spikenard and saffron. Saffron* has a flower of a golden color, and therefore it signifies charity. For as gold is more precious among all [sic: *metalia*], so charity holds the primacy among all the virtues, the Apostle saying: *And now there remain faith, hope, charity, but the greater of these is charity [n: (I Cor. XIII, 13)]*. Saffron, therefore, grows with spikenard in the garden of the Church, when the members of Christ, that is, [1079A] all the faithful, strive effectually to hold the love of God and of the neighbor. But *saffron* is said to cool burning fevers: so true charity cools the ardor of worldly and carnal concupiscence, and kindles in the mind the love of God and of the neighbor. *Sweet cane and cinnamon. Sweet cane.* it is a low shrub which is also called cassia, with a purple bark; it signifies the saints in the Church who are foremost in humility and patience, namely the poor in spirit, whose is the kingdom of heaven [n: (Matth. V, 3)]. But the purple bark signifies the likeness of the passion of Christ, which the humble in spirit always retain in their heart, or which those who are grounded in true humility, always retaining it in their heart, labor to imitate. *Cinnamon* is likewise a low shrub, but of wonderful power and odor, and therefore they designate the advancement of humility, which is also designated by the sweet cane. *Sweet cane*, therefore, *and cinnamon* are in the Church, when the saints of God both truly hold humility and patience *519* in their heart, and show them outwardly to others. But that the *sweet cane* has a ruddy bark, while *cinnamon* [1079B] has an ashen color, signifies that the saints of God, the more they are mindful of the passion of their Redeemer, so much the more vile and contemptible are they in their own eyes, saying with Abraham: *I will speak to my Lord, although I am ashes and dust [n: (Gen. XVIII, 27)]*; and with Job: *Therefore I reprehend myself, and do penance in embers and ashes [n: (Job XLII, 6)]*. *With all the trees of Lebanon.* The trees of Lebanon excel in beauty and in height and in strength, and therefore they signify the teachers and all the perfect in the Church, of whom above the house of the Church is read to have been made, the same Church saying: *The beams of our houses are of cedar, our rafters of cypress [n: (Cant. I, 16)]*: because, namely, the holy teachers fortify the Church by their preaching. With the sweet cane, therefore, and the cinnamon, all the trees of Lebanon are mentioned in the garden of the Church: because whether the humble and patient, or all the perfect teachers, have the same faith in the Church, and await the same blessedness.

[1079C] *Myrrh and aloes with all the chief ointments. Myrrh* is a tree whose sap is called stacte, of such power that whatever has been touched by it is preserved unharmed from all rottenness and worms. *Aloes* is a tree of most sweet odor, so much so that it is burnt upon altars in place of incense. But it has a most bitter sap, resisting rottenness and worms. Hence also in the passion of the Lord Nicodemus is said to have brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes about a hundred pounds [n: (Joan. XIX, 39)]. By these trees, therefore, is designated the continence and chastity of the flesh. For rottenness is wont to designate luxury, according to what the prophet says of certain men: *The beasts have rotted in their dung [n: (Joel. I, 17)]*. In the garden of the Church, therefore, there are *myrrh and aloes*, that is, minds heavenly and free from all corruption, hearing from the Apostle: *Follow peace with all men, and chastity, without which no man shall see God [n: (Hebr. XII, 14)]*. *With all the chief ointments.* By the *chief ointments*, what better is understood than charity? of which the Apostle says: *I show unto you yet a more excellent way* [1079D] [n: (I Cor. XII, 31)]; and then: *If* (he says) *I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing [n: (I Cor. XIII, 1)]*. And well are the chief ointments placed after myrrh and aloes: because after the continence of the flesh there succeeds true charity, which is God, by which God is loved above all things [n: (I Joan. IV, 16)]. For neither can those who are held by worldly love, that is, who still take delight in pleasures and enticements, be partakers of this charity.

Verse 15. *The fountain of gardens, the well of living waters, which run with a rush from Lebanon. The fountain of gardens* is that primitive Church herself, who by the knowledge of truth waters the gardens, that is, the Churches sown throughout the whole world; she is also the *well of living waters*: because the knowledge of truth, which is the Church, is in certain men as it were a *fountain* where it lies open, in certain men as it were a *well* where it lies hid, and cannot [1080A] be clearly perceived. For between a fountain and a well there is this difference, that a fountain is said to be both in the depth and on the surface of the earth, but a well is always in the depth. The Church, therefore, is a *fountain* and a *well*: because the mysteries of God in certain men are easily taken as from a fountain; but in certain men they are drawn out with difficulty as waters from a well. The *living waters* designate those same mysteries of the Scriptures, which have in themselves a heavenly power. But on the contrary the teachings of the heretics are called cisterns, that is, collections of waters, of which the Lord says through the prophet: *They have forsaken me, the fountain of living water, and have digged to themselves cisterns, broken cisterns, that cannot hold the waters [n: (Jer. II, 13)]*. These flowing *waters run with a rush from Lebanon*, that is, they flow from the Church, which has been made white and robed in white by baptism and by good works, which is what Lebanon is interpreted to mean. From this Lebanon (that is, from the Church) *there flow*, that is, there stream forth, the *waters* of the heavenly doctrines, and this *with a rush*, that is, with a certain power, by which all the fabrications of the heretics are destroyed and overthrown. Hence also the Psalmist: *The stream of the river [1080B] maketh the city of God joyful [n: (Psal. XLV, 5)]*, that is, the power of the divine words.

## CHAPTER IV. (cont.)

Verse 16. *Arise, O north wind, and come, O south wind: blow through my garden, and let the aromatical spices thereof flow.* When the virtues of the Church have been enumerated under the name of aromatical spices, the Lord, who is the bridegroom and redeemer of the Church, knowing that the Church herself was to be multiplied by persecutions, thereupon in a manner bids her come, not by commanding persecution, but by permitting it. *Arise* (he says), *O north wind, and come, O south wind.* By the north wind and the south wind are understood the blasts of the persecutions and disturbances of those who rage against the Church. The north wind indeed is a most cold wind, the south wind a warm one; and therefore by the *north wind* are designated terrors and threats, by the *south wind* the snares of blandishments, by which two ways the Church is tried, namely by terrors and by blandishments. But in that he says: *Arise, O north wind, and come, O south wind*, he does not command the wicked, nor does he compel them to do evil; but he permits it, and gives them the power that they may [1080C] be able to rage against the Church; so far as by their malice the Church may be tried, and they more grievously punished. For the Lord knows how to do certain good things by the evils of men; but he holds the persecution itself in his own power, so that they may not rage as much as they wish; whence it is written: *Who maketh a weight for the winds [n: (Job. XXVIII, 25)]*: because, namely, he imposes upon the blasts a certain measure of persecution, according to what the Apostle says: *He will make also with temptation issue, that you may be able to bear it [n: (I Cor. X, 13)]*. *Blow through* (he says) *my garden*, that is, my Church, *and let the aromatical spices thereof flow*, that is, let the fragrance of the virtues and the odor of good works go forth from her. For the more bitterly the Church is shaken, so much the greater odor of the virtues does she send forth from herself.

## CHAPTER V.

Verse 1. *Let my beloved come into his garden, that he may eat the fruit of his apple trees.* The Church, hearing persecution called for, as though preparing herself against adversities, says: *Let my beloved come into his garden*, [1080D] that is, let Christ my bridegroom come, whom I love with my whole heart, to his Church, *that he may eat the fruit of his apple trees*, that is, let him be delighted and fed by the good works of his faithful. For the food of the Lord is our good works, as he himself, beholding the faith of the Samaritans or of the Gentiles, said to his disciples: *I have meat to eat which you know not [n: (Joan. IV, 32)]*.

*I am come into my garden, my sister, my bride.* To the Church desiring that he come to her the bridegroom answers that he has already done this. I (he says) have already come. For *veni*, here, is not the word of one commanding, but the indicative of the past tense. O my sister, my bride, *520* I have already come into my garden, I have already visited my Church; but I also visit it daily, and I am fed with the apples of her virtues and enjoy her odor. I come to her, that I may correct the erring, strengthen the infirm, confirm the doubting, and endow all the perfect with heavenly rewards.

[1081A] *I have reaped my myrrh with my [sic: aromalibus].* By *myrrh* are designated those who have ended their life by martyrdom, or also who have crucified their flesh with its vices and concupiscences [n: (Gal. V, 24)]. But the aromatical spices are the works of the holy virtues, fragrant with the odors of good working. The Lord therefore *reaps* his *myrrh with* his *aromatical spices*, when he cuts off from this life with the sickle of death the holy martyrs, or the rest of the elect who are marked out by good works, and, when they have been brought to the ripeness of good works, stores them up in the granaries of the country above.

*I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey, I have drunk my wine with my milk.* By the *honeycomb* and the *wine* the holy preachers are figured: but by the *honey* and the *milk*, the good hearers. For the preachers are the *honeycomb*, who bring forth the hidden and innermost mysteries of the Scriptures as honey from the combs, when by preaching they make them manifest to others. But the *honey* is the good hearers: because they strive to receive attentively the sweetness of the word of God, and to be fed upon it with delight. The preachers themselves are the *wine*, who are also the *honeycomb*: because they announce the strong sacred mysteries [1081B] of the Scriptures. But the *milk* is all the weak hearers, for whom open mysteries are suited as milk. Since, therefore, the life of all these is passed in different pursuits, and by the good intention of all of them the Redeemer is fed and delighted; and thus he as it were *eats the honeycomb with the honey, and drinks the wine with the milk.* We can also refer this to the death of the elect, whom the Lord eats, when through death he calls them to eternal life, and joins them to his body, that is, to the fellowship of the elect now rejoicing in that heavenly happiness. But if we understand this of the death of the saints, we ought to understand in the *wine* those whose souls now glory in heavenly happiness; but in the *honeycomb*, those who now rejoice in body and soul in that blessedness, such as are those who rose again with the Lord [n: (Matth. XXVII, 52)].

*Eat, O friends, and drink, and be inebriated, O dearly beloved.* Not only does the Lord rejoice in the advancement of the saints, but he also exhorts us to rejoice in their virtues [1081C] and to imitate them: *Eat* (he says), *O friends*, that is, my faithful, who are friends by doing what I command; you are my *dearly beloved* by loving me with a perfect charity of soul. *Eat*, therefore (he says), *and drink*, that is, rejoice together in the good acts of the saints, and set them before yourselves for imitation. But it is to be noted that he says, *drink and be inebriated.* Inebriation is sometimes put in the Scriptures for fullness, as it is said of the brethren of Joseph: *They drank and were inebriated with him [n: (Gen. XLIII, 34)]*; and the Psalmist: *Thou hast visited the earth, and hast inebriated it [n: (Psal. LXIV, 16)]*, that is, thou hast satisfied and filled it. He exhorts us therefore not only to eat and to drink, but also to be filled: because there are some who eat and are not filled, because, namely, they hear the divine preaching with delight, but negligently forget it, and do not bring what they have heard to the effect of good work. But those eat and are filled who lay up in their inward senses the words of life which they hear, and labor to fulfill them in work; [1081D] of whom the Psalmist says: *The poor shall eat and shall be filled [n: (Psal. XXI, 27)]*. But if (as has been said above) we understand this of the death of the saints, the *friends* and the *dearly beloved* are the angelic spirits, whom the Lord bids rejoice together with his elect, when they are carried over from this life to the rest of eternal blessedness, according to what is read in the evangelical parable: *Rejoice with me, because I have found my sheep that was lost [n: (Luc. XV, 6)]*.

Verse 2. *I sleep, and my heart watcheth.* The voice of the Church, *I sleep*: because, my bridegroom granting some little peace, I am at rest, nor do I suffer such oppressions as the primitive Church, and therefore *my heart watcheth*, because, peace being granted me, I cleave more securely to the love of my bridegroom, and direct toward him the eyes of my heart. But because this time is not one of rest, but rather of labor and of contest, again the bridegroom rouses the Church to labors, and exhorts her to the contest of preaching.

[1082A] *The voice of my beloved knocking.* The beloved *knocks*, when Christ exhorts his faithful to the advancement of the virtues; or he *knocks*, when he admonishes them to gain their neighbors by preaching. And there is a third knocking, with which the Lord knocks upon his elect, when through the trouble of sickness he signifies that death is near; of which knocking it is said in the Gospel: *That when he cometh and knocketh, they may open to him immediately [n: (Luc. XII, 36)]*. But in this place he is said *to knock*, that is, to urge the Church on to the work of preaching.

*Open to me, my sister, my friend, my dove, my undefiled. Open to me, my sister. Sister*, because thou hast been made coheir of my kingdom; *my friend*, because, delivered from the yoke of servitude, thou hast come to know the secrets of my truth; *my dove*, because thou hast been sanctified by the dowry of my Spirit; *my undefiled*, because by the pouring out of my blood thou hast been cleansed from every spot of sins. *Open to me*, that is, go forth from the quiet and leisure of sweetness and of contemplation to the work of preaching.

[1082B] *For my head is full of dew, and my locks of the drops of the nights. The head* of the Church (as the Apostle says) is Christ [n: (Ephes. V, 23)]; but the *locks* are the innermost thoughts of the saints, which do not flow loose and unbound, but are gathered together by the bond of the fear and the love of God. But the *dew* and the *drops of the nights* in this place designate minds that are dark and full of unbelief and cold. The *head*, therefore, of the bridegroom *is full of dew*, when all worldly men grow torpid toward the charity of God, and according to what the Lord says: *When sin aboundeth, charity groweth cold [n: (Matth. XXIV, 12)]*. And when such men persecute and hate the saints of God who meditate upon heavenly things, then as it were the *locks* of the bridegroom *are full of the drops of the nights.* When, therefore, such men are multiplied and burden the Church, then the bridegroom admonishes his bride that she rise and press on to the work of preaching.

Verse 3. *I have put off my garment, how shall I put it on?* The Church, being called on by her bridegroom to the office of preaching, answers: *I have put off my garment: how shall I put it on?* I have stripped myself of the cares and occupations [1082C] of this world, without which the office of preaching is carried on either scarcely or not at all, and how can it come about that I should return again to those things which I have forsaken? For he who fits himself to take up the office of preaching ought also to provide temporal things for his subjects, which cannot be managed without great solicitude. But that the garment signifies the solicitudes and cares of the world, the Lord shows in the Gospel: *And he that is on the housetop, let him not come down to take his garment [n: (Matth. XXIV, 18)]*; which is plainly to say: He who stands on the lofty citadel of contemplation, let him not come down to take his garment *521*, that is, let him not come down to take up the cares of the world; that is, lest he be again entangled in the occupations of the world. The Church, therefore, or every holy soul, fears to be stripped of this garment, and, resting in the contemplation of her Maker, to be clothed again and taken up with worldly business.

*I have washed my feet, how shall I defile them? I have washed my feet*, that is, the actions with which I was never accustomed to touch the dust, [1082D] that is, to do earthly things, I have washed with the worthy weeping of penance, so much so that now nothing pleases me to think upon but divine things. *How shall I defile them?* that is, how can it come about that I should return again to thinking upon perishable and earthly things, I who now, in an occupied and free heart, enjoy the divine gaze?

Verse 4. *My beloved put his hand through the hole, and my belly trembled at his touch. The beloved puts his hand through the hole* and touches the belly, when the Maker visits the heart with inward inspiration, and kindles it to the advancement of the virtues: or also when he calls us back to the memory of his works, that we may consider: that, when he was God, he deigned to become man for us; that, taking on our earthly things, he might make us heavenly, and by dying for us might bestow eternal life upon us. And when this comes to pass, *the belly trembles*: because, when we begin to think upon such things, the secret places of our heart are shaken, while we begin to be amazed with how great a condescension the Maker deigned to do these things for us [1083A] For that the belly signifies the heart, the prophet shows, saying: *My belly, my belly is in pain [n: (Jer. IV, 19)]*; and he shows what this was, saying: *The senses of my heart are troubled.*

Verse 5. *I arose up to open to my beloved.* We open to the beloved not only when we receive his coming, but also when we preach to others; and those who through malice had closed their breast, converted by our preaching, we bring it about that they too open the door of their heart to Christ. And well is it first said, *I arose up;* then, *to open to my beloved.* For he who by preaching wishes to open the hearts of others to Christ ought first to rise up, that is, to be lifted up to the zeal of good works, and to fulfill in work what he preaches: *lest perhaps, preaching to others, he himself become reprobate [n: (I Cor. IX, 27)]*; hence also Luke says of the Lord: *Which Jesus began to do and to teach [n: (Act. I, 1)]*; first he says to do, then to teach.

*My hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers [1083B] were full of the choicest myrrh.* By the hands with which we work is designated the working itself; but by the fingers, the discernment of the working: because in no member are the distinctions of the joints so many as in the fingers. The *hands* of the Church *drop myrrh*, when her preachers give their labor to continence and to the mortification of their flesh, saying with the Apostle: *I chastise my body, and bring it into subjection [n: (II Cor. IX, 27)]*. Or when they are ready to die for Christ; as John says: *If Christ laid down his life for us, we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren [n: (I Joan. III, 16)]*. But the fingers are full of the choicest myrrh, when we subtly discern the work of mortification itself, whether it be done for the sake of the reward above, or for the praises of the world. For he who fasts for human favors, or presses on with works of abstinence or of continence, has indeed myrrh in his hands, but has it not in his fingers: because he does not discern why he does this; of whom the Lord says: *Amen I say to you, they have received their reward [n: (Matth. VI, 2)]*. Or the hands of the bride drop [1083C] myrrh, when they fit themselves to the works of the holy Church, of chastity or of holy continence.

## CHAPTER V. (cont.)

Verse 6. *I opened the bolt of my door to my beloved, but he had turned aside and passed on.* She opens the bolt of the door when the Church, or any faithful soul, spreads open the heart to the Creator as he comes. *But he had turned aside and passed on.* For very often, when we wish to treat of things spiritual, the more subtly we strain, the more the eye of the heart is beaten back; whence Solomon says: *I said, I shall be made wise, and she withdrew farther from me [n: (Eccl. VII, 24)]*; the Psalmist too says: *Man shall come to a deep heart, and God shall be exalted [n: (Psal. LXIII, 8)]*. For the more anyone lifts up his heart to divine contemplation by the purifying of the flesh, the higher he finds that to be which he was seeking. He says therefore: *He had turned aside and passed on,* because no one can grasp him in this present life as he is.

*My soul melted when the beloved spoke.* The more nearly (she says) I perceived the coming of my bridegroom at the touch of his secret inbreathing, the more did [1083D] whatever was cold in me grow warm, so that now nothing pleases me but to be dissolved into tears. For the bridegroom speaks when Christ breathes into the holy soul by his inward inspiration, and suggests to it a heavenly desire; and so, as he speaks, it melts: because the more it is breathed upon by heavenly desires, the more fully it dies to earthly things and is made as it were insensible to the world, and lives by heavenly desire alone. This is what is also said through the prophet: *Who is blind but my servant? Who is deaf, but he to whom I have sent my messengers? [n: (Isai. XLII, 19)]*.

*I sought him, and found him not: I called, and he answered me not.* Again she redoubles the cause of her grief. To all indeed who seek him devoutly the Lord is always at hand: to those who call upon him he answers, that is, he hears them unto salvation; but very often he does not hear the faithful soul that desires him and longs to come to him, to this end, that he may so show himself to it as present as he promises he will show himself in the time to come; [1084A] or also *he does not answer,* that is, he does not hear, to this end, that at his own good pleasure every holy man may be stripped of the bonds of the body and, being free, be caressed by the embraces of his bridegroom. For when the Apostle said: *I desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ [n: (Philip. I, 23)]*, he was as it were seeking to cleave to his bridegroom, and calling him with the desire of his mind; and yet *he did not answer* him, because he did not at once free him from the body, but permitted him still to be exercised with labors and to sweat over the needs of the Church.

Verse 7. *The keepers who go about the city found me; they struck me and wounded me.* The watchmen who guard the city are the holy teachers, who go about the city of God (that is, the Church), keeping unsleeping care of her, that they may both defend her from adversaries and, by their word or their example, kindle her to heavenly desires. They find the bride, therefore, seeking her beloved, when the holy teachers instruct and form the soul that is intent upon heavenly desires — present, by their word, or [1084B] absent, by their sacred writings. *They struck me* (she says) *and wounded me.* The word of God is a sword, as the Apostle says: *The word of God is living and effectual, and more piercing than any two-edged sword, and reaching unto the division of the soul and the spirit [n: (Hebr. IV, 12)]*. By this sword the bride is struck and wounded, when the preacher's discourse speaks of God, and pierces the hearers through as it were with a certain dart of compunction and love.

*522* *The keepers of the walls took my cloak from me.* This *cloak* here is understood as the tunic above, where it is said: *I have put off my tunic* — namely, the covering of worldly desires, which the keepers take away: because whatever of the love of this present world has remained in anyone's mind, the holy teachers take it all away, and make her love only her bridegroom Christ. Such as these can say with the Apostle: *The world is crucified to me, and I to the world [n: (Gal. VI, 14)]*. *The keepers of the walls.* The walls of the city are the holy teachers of the Church. But the *keepers of the walls* are those [1084C] who instruct even those who are able to preside over others, such as Paul was, who instructed and guarded Timothy and Titus — walls, surely, of this city — that is, exhorted them to the perfection of good work.

Verse 8. *I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem, if you find my beloved, that you tell him that I languish with love.* The *daughters of Jerusalem* are the faithful souls, whether they are still sojourning in this present life, or already enjoy Christ, or are one day to contemplate Christ face to face. Or the *daughters of Jerusalem* are the citizens of that city above, in which is the highest peace and the happiness of divine contemplation. But in this place we ought to take the *daughters of Jerusalem* as souls that desire God, but are still passing their time in this pilgrimage. The bride therefore *adjures* the daughters of Jerusalem to tell the bridegroom that she languishes with love, when the faithful soul adjures other faithful souls that desire God to make it known to Christ, and to tell him that she is held by his love. And well does she say that she languishes with love. For the more she has begun to desire the things above, [1084D] the more she grows faint toward the things that are of the world. Nor is it any wonder if such are said to languish, since the Apostle calls them dead: *You are dead,* he says, *and your life is hid with Christ [n: (Coloss. III, 3)]*. So then the daughters of Jerusalem answer the bride who adjures them.

Verse 9. *What manner of one is thy beloved of the beloved, O most beautiful of women? what manner of one is thy beloved of the beloved, that thou hast so adjured us?* This comes to pass when some faithful man addresses a faithful brother, and they suggest to each other words of heavenly desires, by which they kindle themselves to the love of things above. Tell me, she says, who now desire, who now long to come to the vision of my Creator, *what manner of one is thy beloved,* that is, in what manner Christ ought to be loved. Long since, she says, I began to fear him; but now, since charity drives out fear, I choose to hear words by which I may be kindled to his love. Do thou therefore, who already seekest him with love, [1085A] and languishest with love of him, tell me: *What manner of one is thy beloved of the beloved. Beloved of the beloved* — the Son is of the Father, as he is God of God, light of light. Or also, *thy beloved of the beloved* is Christ on that side by which he is to be loved, not on that by which he is to be feared. For to fear belongs rather to the imperfect, whom fear calls back from sins; but to love, to the perfect. Now therefore she asks *What manner of one the beloved is of the beloved,* that is, in what manner Christ ought to be loved, or of what sort he is toward those who have known how to love him only.

Verse 10. *My beloved is white and ruddy, chosen out of thousands.* The voice of the Church answering: *My beloved is white and ruddy: white* by virginity, *ruddy* by his passion. *White,* because without sin; for without sin did he pass his life: *Sin* indeed *he did not do, neither was guile found in his mouth [n: (I Petr. II, 22)]*. *Ruddy,* because *he washed us from our sins in his own blood [n: (Apoc. I, 5)]*. *Chosen out of thousands.* For by a singular grace Christ the man shone out in the whole [1085B] mass of the human race: because through him God purposed to save the human race, and he himself is *the Mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus [n: (I Tim. II, 5)]*; of whom the Psalmist says: *There is none that doth good, there is not so much as one [n: (Psal. XIII, 3)]*; and Solomon: *One man among a thousand I have found [n: (Eccle. VII, 29)]*, that is, Christ; and he himself in the psalm: *I am alone until I pass [n: (Psal. CXL, 10)]*. *Chosen* therefore *out of thousands,* because out of all the multitude of the saints he alone was worthy to hear: *This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased [n: (Matth. III, 17)]*.

Verse 11. *His head is the finest gold.* The head of the bridegroom is God, according to what the Apostle says: *The head of Christ is God [n: (I Cor. XI, 3)]*; which is compared to the finest gold, because as gold is more precious than all metals, so almighty God excels and rises above the good things made by him; whence the Lord says: *None is good but God alone [n: (Marc. X, 18)]*. The *head* therefore of the bridegroom is *the finest gold,* because the goodness of God is unspeakable, transcending the goodness of all things: because nothing is good save by [1085C] participation in this highest good.

*His locks are as the elatae of palm trees. The locks* of the bridegroom are the [sic: *multi udines*] of the faithful, cleaving to God through faith and love, which are compared to the *elatae* of palm trees. *The elatae of palm trees* are the longer and more excellent branches, at times of a golden color, curling and ever stretching toward the heights, and never losing their greenness. Such then does the Church call the locks of her bridegroom — curling, that is, and glowing red. Some say that the *elatae* of palm trees are a species of aromatic tree, which in Latin they call *abies* or *spatae*; for in Greek the fir is called ἐλάτη. And this species is fit for the making of ointments. But by *abies* here we ought to understand not that great tree which is fit for ships and houses, but (as we have said) a species of aromatic tree. So much, according to the letter, concerning the *elatae* of palm trees. The *locks* therefore of the bridegroom are compared to the *elatae of palm trees:* because the multitudes of the faithful both rejoice in the greenness of faith, and are lifted up to desire things eternal, and taste the sweetness of the delight [1085D] above; and the more they perceive of it, the more do they seem in their own eyes sinners and contemptible; whence there follows:

*Black as a raven.* For the locks of the bridegroom are *black as a raven,* because the multitudes of the faithful are conscious to themselves of their own frailty, and have known that of themselves they have nothing good; or also, they are *elatae* of palm trees in hope and in victory, but *black as a raven,* as being despised and contemptible amid the pressures of this world. The *elatae* of palm trees are the saints, because by the grace of God they press on toward the palm of heavenly victory; but *black as a raven,* because they know themselves to be of themselves weak and sinners. The locks of the bridegroom may also be taken as the angelic powers, which cleave to God in a special way, as the locks to the head, and contemplate him from close at hand. And these are rightly compared to the *elatae of palm trees:* because they are never bent from the uprightness of their estate, but remain unstained in the dignity of their office; and the more they contemplate the brightness of their Creator, the [1086A] more fully do they behold, in comparison with him, how worthless is every created thing, and therefore they are said to be *black as a raven.*

*523* Verse 12. *His eyes are as doves upon brooks of waters, which are washed with milk.* His eyes are the gifts of the Holy Spirit; which John shows in the Apocalypse, saying: *I saw a Lamb as it were slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent into all the earth [n: (Apoc. V, 6)]*. Whence also they are well compared to doves upon brooks of waters, because the Holy Spirit is delighted with pure and sincere minds. For doves settle not upon pools or marshes, but upon brooks of waters: because (as has been said) the Holy Spirit makes chaste and clean minds a dwelling-place for himself. *Which are washed with milk:* because (as has been said) the Holy Spirit is understood under the name of milk, that is, the grace of God, which is bestowed upon the Church through the Holy Spirit, and by which, as little ones by milk, so the Church is nourished. We may also take by the eyes of the bridegroom the teachers of the Church, who are compared to doves [1086B] on account of their innocence and simplicity. These *doves* settle upon the brooks, that they may see the coming of the hawk from afar and be on their guard: so also the holy teachers, drenched with the water of baptism, are made white with the brightness of chastity and holiness.

## CHAPTER V. (cont.)

*And they settle beside the fullest streams,* that is, beside the abounding knowledge of the Scriptures. But if we think there is any difference between the brooks and the fullest streams, it must be said that by the brooks are signified the writings of the Old Testament; by the fullest streams is taken the copious teaching of the holy Gospel. These doves therefore are both upon the brooks of waters, and settle beside the fullest streams: because the holy teachers assiduously search out [sic: *perserutantur*] the mysteries of the Old Testament as well as of the New.

Verse 13. *His cheeks are as beds of spices planted by the perfumers.* By the *cheeks* of the bridegroom is taken the modest kindness of Christ, or his severity, or the bearing of his countenance; for in a man's cheeks gladness, or modesty, severity [1086C] also and kindness are discerned. And therefore in the cheeks of the bridegroom the bearing of our Redeemer's countenance is rightly taken. For those were his *cheeks* when he rejoiced in spirit, as the Gospel says, or when he wept over the dead Lazarus [n: (Joan. XI, 35)], or when he grieved over Jerusalem that was to perish [n: (Luc. XIX, 41)], and many things of that kind. These *cheeks* of the bridegroom are compared to beds of spices; for as beds of spices, excellently laid out and set in order, delight the sight of those who look on them, and offer them the grace of their fragrance: so the meekness of Christ delighted the absent by report and those present in very deed, and called them forth to love of him. These *beds are planted by the perfumers.* The *perfumers* are the prophets or the apostles, of whom the one sort described all these things as still to come, the other as already done.

*His lips are lilies dropping the first myrrh.* By the lips of the bridegroom are taken the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, which are compared to lilies: because they announce the rewards of eternal whiteness. *They drop the first myrrh,* because they teach that these things are to be reached [1086D] through the mortification of the flesh. Or also the *lips* of the Lord are compared to *lilies,* because they teach the works of chastity and cleanness. *They drop the first myrrh,* because they suggest that whatever adversities come are to be borne patiently. The *lips* of the Lord were *lilies* when, teaching on the mountain, he said: *Blessed are the poor in spirit, blessed are the meek, blessed are the merciful, blessed are the clean of heart [n: (Matth. V, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10)]*. *They drop the first myrrh,* when after these things he added: *Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake.*

Verse 14. *His hands are turned and golden.* For in the hands of the bridegroom the working of the Saviour is worthily taken. For as a man works easily with the lathe, and needs no rule, so the working of the Saviour was easy; for whatever he willed, he accomplished on the spot: *because he spoke, and they were made [n: (Psal. XXXII, 9)]*; and of whom the evangelist says [n: (Matth. VII, 29)]: He was as one having his word in power. For they were [sic: *crant*] golden, because his working was carried through by the power of the divinity; for in gold the Divinity [1087A] is figured: because as gold surpasses the other metals and is more precious, so the Divinity excels all its own works in an unspeakable manner.

*Full of hyacinths.* The hyacinth is a stone of the color of air. What then is taken in the hyacinths, but hope and heavenly desire? And the hands of the Lord are full of hyacinths, because all his working stirs us up to hope and desire of the things above. The hyacinth is also an aromatic flower, of purple color and of good scent. The hands of the Lord are full of hyacinths, because on the cross they were pierced with nails, and sprinkled with the redness of his own blood as with a purple color. But the former exposition, concerning the hyacinth as a stone, fits better here. In another translation a stone is found. For his hands are said to be turned, full of Tharsis. Tharsis is the stone which we call chalcedony.

*His belly is of ivory.* Among the members of the human body nothing is frailer than the belly, nothing more tender; and therefore by the belly is taken the frailty of the humanity assumed in Christ. Now ivory is the bone of the elephant, which animal [1087B] they say is most chaste, and of a most cold nature whence also it is vehemently sought after by the dragon, which is of a hot nature. The belly therefore of the bridegroom is of ivory, because the assumed humanity of the Redeemer admitted no corruption, no stain; *Sin* indeed *he did not do, neither was any guile found in him [n: (Isai. LIII, 9)]*. He assumed indeed the frailty of the flesh; and yet he was free of all sin; just as the brazen serpent lifted up by Moses in the desert [n: (Num. XXI, 9)] had indeed the figure of a serpent, but lacked the malice of venom.

*Distinguished with sapphires.* The sapphire is a stone having the color of a clear sky. Whence in the vision of the Lord it is said: *And they saw the God of Israel, and under his feet as it were a work of sapphire stone, and as the heaven when it is clear [n: (Exod. XXIV, 10)]*. By the sapphires therefore are understood the works of the divine Majesty, which are accomplished in the flesh. The belly therefore of the bridegroom was distinguished with sapphires: because the humanity of Christ shone with heavenly powers. Nor is he said to be full of sapphires, but distinguished with them; so, [1087C] namely, that between the sapphires the whiteness of the ivory might appear: because the Lord so worked those things that were of the divinity, that he none the less accomplished those that were of the humanity, and did not leave off those that were of the divinity. For the working in Christ, of the divinity and of the humanity, is distinguished. For that he hungered, that he thirsted, that he wept, that he grew weary, that at the last he could be crucified and die, were works of the humanity; but that he raised the dead, that he came to the aid of all the sick, that he raised himself from the dead, were most evident works of the divinity.

Verse 15. *His [sic: Crara] are pillars of marble, which are founded upon bases of gold.* The legs of the bridegroom are the journeys of the Saviour, by which he deigned to become man and to come to us; and these are rightly compared to pillars of marble, because nothing is stronger than marble, nothing straighter than a pillar. And the legs of the bridegroom are pillars of marble: because all the ways of the Lord are both strong and straight. Of his strength *524* the Psalmist says: *He rejoiced as a giant to run the way, his going forth is from the top of heaven* [1087D] [n: (Psal. XV II, 6)]. Of his straightness, elsewhere: *The Lord is just, and hath loved justices; his countenance hath beheld equity [n: (Psal. X, 8)]*; and, *All the ways of the Lord are mercy and truth [n: (Psal. XXIV, 10)]*. These *legs are founded upon bases of gold,* because all things that were to be done through Christ or in Christ were foreordained and determined beforehand by the counsel of the divinity before the founding of the world. For gold, which (as has often been said) is more splendid and more precious than the other metals, signifies the most unalloyed secret of the divine counsel. From the bases of gold therefore the pillars of marble rise, because from the beginning of the world were foreordained the incarnation, the nativity, the passion and the resurrection of the Saviour, and the other mysteries by which the human race was to be redeemed. Whence also the prophet, praising God, said: *O Lord my God, I will honor thee, I will sing praise to thy name, who doest wonderful things: let thy counsel be made true [n: (Isai. XXV, 1)]*.

*His fairness is as of Lebanon, chosen as the cedars.* Lebanon [1088A] is a mountain of Phoenicia, the boundary of Judea toward the north, and it is loftier than the other mountains. The trees also of that mountain excel the timber of all other forests both in height and in fairness and in strength. As (he says) *Lebanon* is loftier than the other mountains of the land of Judea: so our Redeemer is fairer than all the elect: because *he is fair in form above the sons of men [n: (Psal. XLIV, 3)]*. And as the *cedar* is more beautiful and taller than the other trees, so he too by the grace of the divinity excels all the saints from the beginning of the world.

Verse 16. *His throat is most sweet.* Above, by the lips of the bridegroom his words were understood; now, by the throat, the inward sweetness of those very words is signified, by which our understanding is refreshed; whence also the Psalmist: *Taste and see that the Lord is sweet [n: (Psal. XXXIII, 9.)]* And many indeed can easily understand the words of the Lord; but few are they who are able to penetrate their sweetness, that is, who are eager to fulfil the precepts of God out of love and desire.

*And he is wholly desirable.* As if he were to say: Why do I linger in describing him [1088B] through his single members? Wholly desirable is my bridegroom. Wholly (she says), because perfect God, perfect man. Wholly desirable therefore is he, because he kindles the angels and all the elect to desire of him, according to what the Apostle says: *On whom the angels desire to look [n: (I Petr. I, 12)]*; and the more nearly he is beheld, the more does he provoke those who behold him to gaze upon him with greater desire.

*Such is my beloved, and he is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem. Beloved,* because through faith and charity I cleave to him; but *friend,* because he has deigned to make me, redeemed from the bond of sin, his friend, and privy to his secrets; and the more anyone loves him, the more worthy of his friendship is he made.

Verse 17. *Whither has thy beloved gone, O most beautiful of women?* It is the voice of the daughters of Jerusalem, that is, of the Churches, or also of the holy souls. For the bride of Christ is the Church, and the daughters of Jerusalem are that same Church, which consists [1088C] of the several souls of the faithful. They say therefore: *Whither has thy beloved gone, O most beautiful of women?*

*Whither has thy beloved turned aside? and we will seek him with thee.* For the bride herself had above adjured the daughters of Jerusalem to tell the bridegroom that she languished with his love; those same daughters of Jerusalem had asked what manner of one the bridegroom was, and she accordingly had set forth the form of her bridegroom; now the daughters of Jerusalem themselves ask whither that bridegroom has gone, that they may seek him with her. This the holy souls do, when they converse with one another concerning eternal salvation: burning with the love of Christ, and desiring the sight of him; or when they diligently search out in whose hearts especially Christ may rest, that they may be built up by their example and manner of life. And it is to be noted what is said, *Whither has he gone,* or, *Whither has thy beloved turned aside?* For he as it were turns aside for a time while he is sought, that he may stir up a greater desire to seek him. For to this end he very often defers the vows and prayers of the saints, that they may begin to desire him more ardently; just as of old [1088D] he did not at once show himself to Mary who sought him, but appearing in the form of a gardener [n: (Joan. XX, 15)], he showed at length that he himself was the one who was sought. Christ therefore always hears his elect, but he always as it were *turns aside,* when he does not at once grant what is asked. And well is it said: *we will seek with thee;* for he who seeks Christ without the Church can wander and grow weary, but cannot profit.

## CHAPTER VI.

Verse 1. *My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the bed of spice, that he may feed in the gardens, and gather lilies.* We have already been taught above what the garden of Christ is, namely the holy Church, of which it was said above: *A garden enclosed is my sister the bride. Christ is gone down* (he says) *into his own garden, to the bed,* which he himself prepared and tilled, which he sowed with the seeds of the virtues, which he lit up with his own grace, which [1089A] he defended by the wall of his own keeping from the onset of the malignant spirits. And well is he said to have *gone down into his own garden;* for in a garden he willed to be buried [n: (Joan. XIX, 41)], and first of all appeared to Mary Magdalen in a garden [n: (Joan. XX, 15)], and there in a manner consecrated the first-fruits of the Church. He is said to have *gone down* when from the higher and heavenly seats he went down into the garden which he himself had planted in a lowly place; but for this he went down, that the garden (that is, the Church) might ascend to him. Whence also in what follows he says of the garden, that is, of his Church: *Who is this that ascends through the desert? To the bed* (he says) *of spice.* By the bed is understood the soul of every faithful man, which is cultivated by heavenly discipline and diligently composed, and squared by the evenness of its sides. *That he may feed* (he says) *in the gardens,* that is, that he may be delighted by the devout labors of the saints. For he himself is fed by our good things, so far that in the poor man he himself is refreshed. *And that he may gather lilies* (he says), that is, that he may gather to himself out of this world the holy souls that have been brought by ripeness of virtue to perfect whiteness, [1089B] and may make them rejoice with him in eternal blessedness. For the *lilies* are holy souls, made white by the pursuits of the virtues and by good works.

Verse 2. *I to my beloved, and my beloved to me, who feeds among the lilies. I to my beloved* — there is understood, I prepare a pleasing pasture; *and my beloved to me* will grant the grace of perfection, or the reward of eternal recompense. Or else, *I to my beloved* prepare a dwelling in my own self; *and my beloved to me,* because he himself dwells in me, and makes me dwell in him; as he himself says in the Gospel: *I in you, and you in me [n: (Joan. XIV, 20)]*.

Verse 3. *Thou art beautiful, my friend, sweet and seemly as Jerusalem.* The Church was seeking her bridegroom as though he were absent; but he, that he might show himself always present, *525* and might make plain that he is always at hand to her who speaks of him and desires him, answers quickly: *Thou art beautiful, my friend, sweet and seemly as Jerusalem. Thou art beautiful,* because thou hast not spot nor wrinkle [1089C] of sin, but art green with every brightness of the virtues. *My friend* — the Church, or every faithful soul. *Sweet and seemly as Jerusalem.* Jerusalem, which is interpreted *vision of peace,* signifies that city above in which is true peace and happiness: because there the saints so rejoice over the gift, that there is nothing over which they should grieve on account of corruption. Therefore the Church, which is still on earth, or every faithful soul, is after the likeness of that Jerusalem sweet and seemly: because so far as it can it imitates that peace. There follows:

*Terrible as a battle-line of the camps set in order.* The Church is *terrible* to the malignant spirits, and she is *set in order as a battle-line of the camps;* when, namely, each of the faithful rightly keeps his own order and his own calling. For there are three orders of the Church: of teachers, of the continent, and of the married; which kinds were shown in those three men, Noe, Daniel and Job. For Noe, who steered the ark amid the waves, signifies the holy teachers; Daniel, unmarried and chaste, signifies the order of the continent; [1089D] Job, who had a wife and sons, expresses the order of the married. Therefore the Church is set in order as a battle-line of the camps, because each order of the Church stands as in a line of battle against the enemy hosts of the malignant spirits, while the holy teachers spend their labor upon preaching and teaching. The continent, despising the things that are of the world, think only upon the things that are of God, and with a mind free from earthly occupations are at leisure for God alone. The married press on with alms and with the other good works of the active life; and so they use the world as not to forsake the things that are of God. This most well-ordered disposition of the Church therefore *is terrible* to the unclean spirits, *as a battle-line of the camps set in order* for war. Or else the Church is beautiful and seemly as Jerusalem in the virtues: but *terrible as a battle-line of the camps set in order,* because she does not cease to carry forth her rule and her power unto the ends of the whole world. Or she is *terrible as a battle-line of the camps set in order,* because she is so knit and joined together by the unity of charity, that by no force of the malignant enemy, [1090A] by no plague of discord can she be pierced; for nothing so terrifies the malignant spirits as charity does.

Verse 4. *Turn away thy eyes from me, for they have made me fly away.* As if he were to say: I indeed gave thee dove-like eyes, by which thou mightest gaze upon me and pierce most keenly into the secrets of the Scriptures; but beware lest thou wish to strain them now to seeing me: because while thou livest in this present life, thou canst not; *For man shall not see me, and live [n: (Exod. XXXIII, 20)]*. But when, loosed from the bonds of the flesh, thou hast come to me, then shalt thou see me with open vision, and there shall be fulfilled what is promised in the Gospel: *But he that loveth me shall be loved by my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him [n: (Joan. XIV, 21)]*. But as for what is said, *for they have made me fly away,* it is not to be thought that God forsakes those who seek him, and withdraws from them, since he himself commands: *Seek, and you shall find [n: (Luc. XI, 9)]*; but it is rather so to be taken, that the more anyone has wished to search out the divinity of the majesty of God, the [1090B] more does he understand how unsearchable and incomprehensible it is. And this is what the Psalmist says: *Man shall come to a deep heart, and God shall be exalted [n: (Psal. LXIII, 7)]*. As if he were to say: Although a man lift up his heart to seeing God, God shall be exalted, because how great he is cannot be grasped.

*Thy hair is as a flock of goats which have appeared from Galaad.* These little verses have been expounded more than once; but let it not irk us to expound again what it did not irk the Holy Spirit to repeat. For he set down these little verses twice for this reason, that we might hold as most certain and settled what we heard confirmed by repetition. The hairs of the holy Church are the manifold varieties of subtle thoughts. And they are well compared to a flock of goats; for the goat is a figure of the sinner; whence also it is commanded in the law that whoever has sinned through ignorance and has come to know his guilt should offer for his offense a she-goat for a holocaust [n: (Lev. IV, 28)]. The hairs therefore of the Church are compared to a flock of goats, because the saints, who are members of the Church, take pains to blot out all the guilt of their thought by worthy [1090C] penance and by the tears of just compunction. And well are they said *to have appeared from* the mountain *of Galaad.* Galaad is interpreted *a heap of witness;* and therefore by Galaad is signified the mind of the saints, who are a heap of witness, since it attests by the most evident tokens that it disregards all things that are of the world, and desires God alone. By Galaad also can our Lord and Redeemer himself be understood. For Galaad is the name both of a mountain and of a city. *From* the mountain therefore *of Galaad the flock of goats appeared,* because the Church is founded upon Christ, as he himself says: *A city seated upon a mountain cannot be hid [n: (Matth. V, 15)]*. He himself is the heap of witness: because the multitude of the prophets and of the patriarchs bear him witness by their deeds and their writings.

Verse 5. *Thy teeth are as flocks of sheep, which have come up from the washing, all with twin young, and there is not a barren one among them.* By the teeth of the Church is understood the firm steadfastness of her words. And these are well compared to a flock of sheep that have come up from the washing, because the words of the Church sound nothing but innocence and meekness, [1090D] and keep in themselves nothing foul, nothing base or unclean; but they are washed in the washing of sincerity and purity, hearing from the Apostle: *Let not evil speech proceed out of your mouth [n: (Ephes. IV, 29)]*. And well are they said to be *all with twin young,* because the speech of the saints sounds nothing else nor utters anything, save what belongs to the love of God and of the neighbor. For the saints ought to speak those things only which pertain to the everlasting soundness of bodies and of souls.

Verse 6. *As is the rind of the pomegranate, so are thy cheeks, apart from thy hidden things.* We said above that in the cheeks the chaste modesty of the saints is figured; in the *rind of the pomegranate,* the mystery of the passion of Christ, as we hear from Paul the apostle: *Be not ashamed of the cross of Christ, nor of me his prisoner [n: (II Tim. I, 8)]* [var: Vulg. *testimonium Domini nostri*, "the testimony of our Lord," for "the cross of Christ"]. And these things indeed are great, which are in the open: but greatest are those which are within, that is, those which are kept in store for the saints in time to come.

[1091A]Verse 7. *There are sixty queens, and eighty concubines, and of young maidens there is no number.* The queens are the teachers of the holy Church, who by the merit of faith and of knowledge draw near to the couch of the eternal King, and bear spiritual sons to God. The number sixty is completed out of ten and six. For ten multiplied by six *526* rises into sixty. And by ten are signified the divine precepts, on account of the Decalogue of the law; but six is put for perfection, because in six days God finished his works. *The queens* therefore are said to be sixty, because they signify those, as we have said, who are strong in perfection of knowledge and of work, and who preach for the love alone of their Creator and with a view to the recompense above. This number also, that is, sixty, is made up out of twelve taken five times; for five twelves, or twelve fives, make sixty. *The queens* therefore are said to be sixty, because they signify those who, being set in the Church, have known how chastely [1091B] to order the five senses of their body according to the institution of the twelve apostles. The *concubines* signify those who preach Christ not sincerely, but for the sake of temporal gain, or for the sake of popular praise. For these also, like the queens, come to the couch of the King through knowledge, and beget spiritual sons; but they stand estranged from the crown of the eternal kingdom. And well are they comprised under the number eighty; for this number is made up out of ten and eight. But eighty is sometimes taken in a bad sense on account of the number four, by the multiplying of which it consists. For four signifies all things temporal and present, on account of the four regions of the world or the four seasons of the year. Rightly therefore are these *concubines* said to be eighty: because (as has been said) they preach for the sake of temporal and visible things alone, and care less for things spiritual. Of such the Apostle said: *There are some who announce Christ not sincerely,* etc. [n: (Philip. I, 17, 18)]; until he says: *in this I rejoice, yea and I will rejoice. Of young maidens there is no number.* The young maidens are souls already regenerate in Christ, [1091C] who, having put off the oldness of the first man, have been renewed in Christ, and yet are not yet marriageable, not yet fit for the couch of the King; because they have not yet come to the perfection of preaching Christ. And *of these there is no number,* because infinite is the number of souls believing in Christ, nor can it be grasped by any man. For the rest, all the elect are numbered by God; for with him, by whom even the number of the stars is comprehended [n: (Psal. CXLVI, 4)], the number of the elect cannot be unknown.

## CHAPTER VI. (cont.)

Verse 8. *One is my dove, my perfect one.* That is, one is the catholic Church spread throughout the whole world, which, consisting of queens and of young maidens, or of young men, has also concubines, that is, certain persons who are called Christians or teachers in name only. *One* therefore *is* the Church, because she admits no rending or schisms; but as *there is one God, one faith, one baptism [n: (Ephes. IV, 5)]*, so there is one general Church, which is rightly also called a dove: because by the dowry of the Holy Spirit, who appeared in the form of a dove, [1091D] she was betrothed and sanctified to Christ.

*She is one to her mother, the chosen one of her that bore her.* Our mother is that heavenly Jerusalem, of which the Apostle says: *But that Jerusalem which is above is free, which is our mother.* This Church therefore *is one to her mother,* because after the example of that Church which already enjoys Christ, she herself is instructed and formed in this pilgrimage, and strives to come to that blessedness in which she reigns together with Christ.

*The daughters of Sion saw her, and the queens proclaimed her most blessed, and the concubines praised her.* Those whom above he called young maidens, here he calls daughters. But the *queens* and *concubines* let us understand in this place as above. The daughters therefore, the queens and the concubines proclaim and praise the Church, because the whole body of the faithful marvels at the catholic Church. For that same Church, which consists of many persons of the faithful, makes up the catholic, that is, the universal Church.

[1092A]Verse 9. *Who is this that comes forth as the morning rising?* It is the voice of the Synagogue. For at the end of the world, when the Jewish people has been converted to Christ at the preaching of Elias and Enoch, she too will marvel at the Church, saying: *Who is this?* that is, how great and of what sort is the Church, *that comes forth?* that is, that goes forward from virtue to virtue. For the Church is said not to stand still, but to come forth: because she was not content with one place, but has taken possession of the whole world by her heavenly preaching. *She comes forth as the morning,* because, the darkness of unbelief being past, she has shown that she has the light of truth.

*Beautiful as the moon.* The natural philosophers report that the moon is lit up by the sun. And behold, the Church is beautiful as the moon: because she is lit up by the brightness of her bridegroom Christ, and shines again with his grace. Or she is *beautiful as the moon* in this present life, where sometimes, peace and tranquillity or security being granted her, she waxes, and sometimes, worn down by adversities, she wanes.

*Chosen as the sun.* In the other life, where she will shine again with perpetual joy from the vision of her Creator. Or she is *chosen* [1092B] *as the sun:* because she strives to imitate that other Sun of whom it is written: *To you that fear my name the sun of justice shall arise [n: (Malach. IV, 2)]*. This Sun she imitates by living in humility, and justice, and godliness.

*Terrible as a battle-line of the camps set in order. Terrible* to the powers of the air, *set in order as a battle-line of the camps,* that is, made one by the unity of charity, so that she can be pierced by no temptations.

Verse 10. *I went down into the garden of nuts.* The Church, being praised by the Synagogue, answers: *I went down into the garden of nuts. The garden of nuts* is this present life. For as in a nut the shell indeed is seen to be very hard, but the kernel lies hidden: so in this present life our consciences are shut up, and do not appear, until, the shell of the body being broken, they are made manifest. The Church therefore *goes down into the garden of nuts* when through her teachers she considers the life of each; whence there follows:

*That I might see the fruits of the valleys.* The fruits of the valleys are the virtues which are seasoned with humility. I went down [1092C] (she says) into the garden, that I might see the fruits of the valleys, that is, that I might consider the saints, endowed indeed with excellence of virtues, but pressed down by humility.

*And to look whether the vineyard had flourished.* That is, that I might consider who were making progress in the pursuit of holy virtues.

*And whether the pomegranates had budded,* that is, that I might search out those also who are now fit to imitate the passion of Christ. For the *pomegranates* (as has often been said) signify the mystery of the passion of Christ. The Church therefore considers, through her prelates, who are growing in the virtues, or who are now so perfect that, imitating the passion of Christ, they are fit also to shed their blood for him; such as [sic: *quaies*] were they to whom the Apostle said: *To you it is given not only to believe in Christ, but to suffer for him [n: (Philip. I, 29)]*.

*527* Verse 11. *I knew not.* It is the voice of the Synagogue, who, seeing so great a grace of the Church, and having looked into the truth of the Gospel, grieves that she did not before know the faith of Christ; and as though excusing herself for having been converted so late, [1092D] she says: *I knew not,* O Church, bride of Christ. *I knew not,* that is, I did not recognize so great a grace, and such great gifts of spiritual virtues bestowed upon thee by thy bridegroom.

*My soul troubled me because of the chariots of Aminadab.* I was troubled (she says) by an exceeding anxiety of mind because of so sudden a preaching of the Gospel. For I knew that the law and the prophets had been given from God, and therefore, when on a sudden I saw the Gospel preached, *I was troubled because of the chariots of Aminadab. Aminadab* was the great-great-grandson of Judah, through whom the generation of Christ is woven together. Now Aminadab is interpreted *the willing one of my people;* and therefore he signifies Christ, who was the willing one of his people: because he himself, being God, of his own will was made man; being Founder and Creator, of his own kindness alone he was made a portion of his own people. And the sense is: I was troubled (she says) because of the sudden preaching of the Gospel, which as it were [1093A] with a most swift chariot suddenly flew over the whole world. And well does she call this preaching not a car, but chariots: because the preaching of the Gospel stands upon the authority of four evangelists, and the four Gospels are as it were the four chariots of the New Testament, over which Christ himself presides as charioteer, himself guiding and ordering the car of the Gospels.

Verse 12. *Return, return, O Sunamite.* It is the voice of the Church calling the Synagogue to the faith: *Return, return, O Sunamite. Return,* O Synagogue, from unbelief to faith, *return* from hatred to love. *Sunamite* is interpreted *captive* or *despised.* Such was the Synagogue before the coming of Christ, captive namely in the bond of the devil, and despised by God: because she did not recognize Christ, who was sent for her salvation.

*Return, return, that we may behold thee,* that is, that we may look upon the beauty of thy chastity.

## CHAPTER VII.

[1093B]

Verse 1. *What wilt thou see in the Sunamite, but the choirs of the camps?* It is the voice of the bridegroom, who, hearing the Synagogue invited to the faith by his bride the Church, says: *What wilt thou see in the Sunamite, but the choirs of the camps?* as if he were to say: Thou indeed, O bride, grievest over the ruin of the Synagogue, and that she comes late to the faith; but the time is at hand when she shall be converted, and then thou shalt *see in her nothing but the choirs of the camps,* that is, nothing but the concord of charity and the steadfast strength of faith, wherewith she shall fight for the defense of my faith. For choirs belong to singers: but camps to fighting soldiers. *In the Sunamite* therefore shall the choirs of the camps be seen, because the Synagogue, when converted, shall both preach Christ in concord with the Church, and shall fight for the faith of Christ even unto death.

*How beautiful are thy steps!* From this place the bridegroom begins to set forth the praises of his bride. And it is to be noted that he begins to weave her beauty from the steps, and ends her praises at the mouth, as above [1093C] he had begun from the eyes. And this he did either to vary the beauty of the song, or also because it is thus most apt for the mysteries. *How beautiful* (he says) *are thy steps!* He saw the Church not standing idly in one place, but traversing the whole world with swift preaching, and therefore he began to praise her from her steps.: For the *steps* of the Church are the swift preaching of the apostles, through whom the Gospel resounded into all the earth.

*In sandals,* that is, in the examples of the fathers who went before. For *sandals* are made from dead animals. And the *sandals* of the Church are the examples of the fathers who went before, by which she has her steps fortified; that by imitating him more safely, and without stumbling, she may walk.

*Daughter of the prince.* Another translation says, *daughter of Aminadab.* Aminadab (as was said above) is called *the willing one of my people,* who rightly holds the figure of Christ. For the Church is both daughter and bride: daughter, because redeemed by his blood, regenerated by his baptism; [1093D] bride, because she is joined to him by the dowry of the Holy Spirit.

*The joints of thy thighs are as necklaces that are wrought by the hand of a craftsman.* In the thighs, or in the loins, Holy Scripture is wont to designate the propagation of generation. Whence we read of Jacob: *All the souls that came out of the thigh of Jacob [n: (Exod. I, 5)]*. The *thighs* therefore of the Church are the spiritual generation of the believing people through the word of preaching and the washing of regeneration. The *joint of the thighs* is the joining of the two peoples in one faith, the Jewish and the Gentile. And well is this *joint compared to necklaces:* because the faith of both peoples is chiefly made manifest in works; for *faith without works is dead [n: (Jac. II, 26)]*. And they *are wrought by the hand of a craftsman,* that is, of almighty God, by whose gift the power of good work is granted to believers. This is that craftsman of whom Paul spoke, when he made mention of the patriarch Abraham: [1094A] *For he looked for an abiding city, whose builder and craftsman is God [n: (Hebr. XI, 10)]*.

Verse 2. *Thy navel is a turned bowl, never wanting cups. The navel* is the frailest part of the body, and therefore by the navel we ought to understand the frailty of our mortality. Now a bowl is a larger cup having handles on this side and on that. The navel therefore of the Church is a turned bowl: because the more the teachers of the Church remember their own frailty, the more do they press on with the word of preaching; that, offering the alms of the word of God, they may themselves obtain mercy from God. And well is it called a *turned bowl:* for with the lathe we work more easily; by which is signified the readiness of paying out the word, or of giving alms. For alms are not to be given peevishly, nor with hesitation; according to what Solomon says: *Say not to thy friend: Go, and come again, tomorrow I will give to thee, when thou canst give at once [n: (Prov. III, 26)]*. That also which is made on the lathe needs no rule or line applied from without: but is unerringly completed of itself. The *navel* therefore of the Church is a *turned [1094B] bowl,* because whoever either preaches or gives alms ought to do this for love alone and for the expectation of the heavenly [sic: *me cedis*]. For whoever either preaches or has pity on his neighbors for the sake of temporal recompense or of praise, is a *bowl,* but not a *turned* one. And this *bowl never wants cups,* because to preachers the preaching of the word of God is never lacking: because he himself whom they preach supplies them with the cups of knowledge and the strength of constancy; whence also the Psalmist: *The Lord shall give the word to them that preach the gospel with great power [n: (Psal. LXVII, 12)]*.

*528* *Thy belly is like a heap of wheat, set about with lilies.* The same frailty which was signified by the *navel* is shown in this place by the *belly,* because the *belly* is guarded by no firmness of bones. Well therefore is the *belly* of the Church compared to a *heap of wheat,* because the more each of the saints is mindful of his own frailty, the more zealously does he press on to bring forth the fruits of good works. And rightly he says, not an abundance of wheat, but a *heap [1094C] of wheat,* that by this he may signify the increases of the virtues, which like a *heap* climb by growing from the lower to the higher parts. For as a *heap* spreads out below in broad amplitude, but above is drawn together and pointed in a certain narrowness: so in the Church there are many who live more indulgently, but few who press on to the highest perfection. For more are found who give alms out of their goods than who leave their goods for God. This *heap* is said to be *set about with lilies,* because the saints do the good things which they do out of desire of the brightness and whiteness above. For by the lilies that heavenly brightness is signified. By the *belly* of the Church can also be taken the divine font of baptism, in which the faithful are regenerated into a new creature. This *belly* therefore is compared to a *heap of wheat set about with lilies,* because those regenerated at the font of baptism are taught to sweat over good works, and always to gape after the beholding of the glory of the brightness above.

Verse 3. *Thy two breasts are like two twin fawns [1094D] of a roe.* The breasts of the Church (as has already been said above) signify the holy teachers, who instruct all the little ones (that is, those newly regenerated in Christ) with the milk of a plainer and easier teaching. And well are they called *two breasts,* because out of two peoples, namely the Jewish and the Gentile, the faithful are gathered, and are nourished with the milk of spiritual teaching. *These two breasts are said to be like two twin fawns of a roe. The two fawns* are the two Testaments, upon which all the preaching of those same teachers rests, of which Testaments the one author and promulgator is Christ, according to what Solomon says: *The words of the wise are as goads, and as bright ones fixed deep on high, which are given by one shepherd [n: (Eccli. XII, 11)]*, namely Christ. For the roe rightly signifies Christ, because both in sight and in swiftness it excels the other living creatures, and it is a clean animal, dividing the hoof and chewing the cud. For such are the members of Christ, namely the teachers, marked out by keenness [1095A] of knowledge, and forsaking earthly things with that same swiftness, and hastening to the things of heaven. Dividing the hoof, that is, having discernment of good and evil; and chewing the cud, that is, meditating on the precepts of God with diligent memory.

Verse 4. *Thy neck is as a tower of ivory.* The holy teachers, who are signified by the breasts, are themselves signified also by the *neck.* For both through the arteries of the neck the voice goes forth, and by the service of the *neck* vital nourishment is supplied to the other members: so also the holy teachers both announce the words of life to the peoples, and nourish them with the food of heavenly teaching. The *neck* therefore of the Church is compared to a *tower of ivory:* because the holy teachers furnish that same Church both with beauty and with strength; with beauty indeed, which is signified by the whiteness of the ivory, by living chastely and sincerely; and they furnish strength, which is signified by the tower, when they fortify that same Church against the temptations of the devil or the assaults of heretics.

*Thy eyes are as the fishpools in Hesebon, which are in the gate [1095B] of the daughter of the multitude.* That is, those same teachers, who were signified by the neck, are signified also by the eyes. For they, as *eyes,* provide for the whole body of the Church, and show the way which it ought to enter. These *eyes* of the Church are compared to *fishpools* built in the gate of the city of *Hesebon,* because the holy teachers wash the peoples believing in Christ with the life-giving washing, and refresh them with the drink of saving doctrine. And *Hesebon* is called *daughter of the multitude* according to the letter, on account of the multitude of peoples flowing together thither. So also the holy Church is rightly called *daughter of the multitude,* because daily she gathers a great number of the nations. And *Hesebon* is interpreted *a girdle of sorrow.* The *eyes* therefore of the Church are compared to the *fishpools of Hesebon,* because the holy teachers, having set aside the fleeting joys of the world, bind themselves with the girdle of sorrow: because *they live chastely and soberly in this world [n: (Tit. II, 12)]*, and weep for their own wanderings; that mourning in this present world they may be able to come to true and eternal joys. And in the *gate* [1095D] of *Hesebon* these *fishpools* are said to be: because no one is able to enter the Church, unless he be first washed with the water of baptism, and unless he be given to drink of the font of saving doctrine. This also signified the brazen laver which Solomon had set in the porch of the temple, that the priests who were to enter the temple and to immolate the victims might there wash their bodies [n: (III Reg. VII, 23)].

*Thy nose is as the tower of Lebanon, which looks toward Damascus.* Because by the *nose* we distinguish stenches and good odors, rightly by the nose of the Church are understood those same holy teachers. For they have known how sagaciously to distinguish the fragrant teaching of the catholic faith and the death-bearing stench of heretical error. For among the divine gifts also, which are distributed through the Holy Spirit, it is said: *To another is given by the Spirit the discerning of spirits [n: (I Cor. XII, 10)]*. The *nose* therefore of the Church is compared to the *tower of Lebanon,* because the holy teachers both hold the highest place in the Church, and stand as it were upon the mountain of Lebanon, and defend the Church from the assaults of the malignant spirits. This *tower* is said to be toward [1095D] Damascus. Damascus is the metropolitan city of Syria, which of old fought against the children of Israel, having as it did most mighty and most cruel kings. Now Damascus is interpreted *a drink of blood,* or *an eye of blood.* They report that Abel was slain there, and therefore it signifies the powers of this world, which thirst for a drink of blood: because they are delighted with the pleasures and enticements of flesh and blood. It signifies also the [sic: *aeras*] powers, which thirst for the gore of our souls. This tower therefore is against Damascus: because this Church, fortified by the help of Christ, always resists the devil and his members.

## CHAPTER VII. (cont.)

Verse 5. *Thy head is as Carmel. The head*, therefore, of the Church is understood to be the principal part of the mind of the faithful; for as by the head the rest of the members are ruled, so by the mind the thoughts are ordered. And fittingly is the *head* of the Church compared to *Carmel*. For Carmelus, which is also called Carmel, is interpreted knowledge or science of circumcision. [1096A] Therefore the head of the Church is likened to Carmel, because it knows that circumcision, once celebrated bodily, must now be observed by it spiritually, according to what the prophet says: *Be ye circumcised to the Lord in your hearts [n: (Jer. IV, 2)]*. This understanding of circumcision the Jews did not have, and therefore they are rebuked by the blessed Stephen, the protomartyr, *529* who says: *Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in hearts and ears, ye have always resisted the Holy Spirit [n: (Act. VII, 51)]*. In the book of Kings too it is read [n: (III Reg. XVIII, 45)] that Elias went up into mount Carmel, and there by his prayer watered the dry earth with heavenly rains after a long drought of three years and a half. Which history breathes a beautiful allegory; for Elias, who is interpreted my God the Lord, signifies Christ, who, though he is God and Lord of all and of the whole creation, is in a special way her own, that is, is the proper God and Lord of the Church. He goes up into Carmel when by his grace he climbs the minds of his faithful, and through them bestows upon the parched world the rains of his graces. [1096B] Rightly therefore (as has been said) is the head of the Church compared to mount Carmel: because the mind of the saints is lofty by a certain manner of life, and offers Christ an ascent into itself through the increase of the virtues.

*And the hair of thy head as the purple of the king bound in the channels.* If by the head of the Church the mind is understood, by the hair of the head we ought to understand the thoughts of the mind, which continually issue from it. But the purple colour, which has the appearance of blood, signifies the mystery of the Lord's passion. According to the letter, what he says, *the purple of the king bound in the channels*, signifies wool already wrought into the purple colour and not yet drawn out into threads, but still set in the channels, which in Greek they call βάτια, in which the blood of the shellfish is wont to run down and to turn the wool into a purple colour. Mystically these channels signify the humility of the saints, in which the purple of the eternal King is dyed, when all the saints, by imitating the humility of their Redeemer, take pains to be made conformable to his sufferings; so far as they may be turned into [1096C] the dignity of purple, that is, labouring for Christ, they may deserve to be crowned and to reign with Christ. And this purple is said to be *bound*, because the hearts of the saints are fixed and established in the fear and love of their Redeemer, nor can they ever be separated from his charity.

Verse 6. *How beautiful art thou, and how seemly, most dear one, in delights! How beautiful art thou* — namely, in faith — and *seemly* in work, *most dear one, in delights.* Above it was said of the same Church: *Beautiful as the moon, chosen as the sun, terrible as a battle-line of the camps set in order;* but here it is said, *beautiful and seemly, most dear one, in delights.* Which things seem to be as it were contrary; for to be set in order like a battle-line of the camps, and to be in delights, are at odds, because delights are wont to unnerve the strength of soldiers. But the holy Church does both: she is set in order like a battle-line of the camps, because she resists unbelieving heretics, and terrifies the malignant spirits by her holiness and perfection; she is also in delights, because she continually tastes the sweetness of the heavenly pleasantness with the palate of the mind, and amid [1096D] the pressures of this world desires to obtain those delights, and to be satisfied with them without ceasing. Whence deservedly she who is such is said to be *most dear* to her bridegroom Christ.

Verse 7. *Thy stature is likened to [sic: pulmae].* The stature of the Church is her perfect uprightness; for she is not bent down to vices, but stands upright and unmoved. Whence the Psalmist said in the person of sinners: *I am bowed down and humbled exceedingly [n: (Psal. CXVIII, 107)]*. And the prophet, under the figure of Jerusalem, says to the sinning soul concerning the malignant spirits: *Because they have humbled thee, and have said to thy soul: Bow down, that we may pass over [n: (Isa. LI, 23)]*. But on the contrary the holy Church stands upright, and never consents to be bowed down, hearing from the Apostle: *Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, do manfully, and be strengthened, and let all your things be done in charity [n: (I Cor. XVI, 13)]*. And the Lord speaks to the children of Israel: *I am the Lord your God, who rescued you out of the workhouse of the Egyptians, that you might walk upright [n: (Exod. VI, 8)]*. The stature [1097A] therefore of the Church are likened to the palm, which in all that she does ever keeps in memory the reward above. For the palm adorns the victorious hand, and therefore signifies that reward which is to be given in the heavens to the saints who conquer.

*And thy breasts to clusters of grapes.* The breasts of the Church (as was said above) are the holy teachers, who nourish with the milk of simple doctrine those regenerated in Christ. But these breasts are likened to clusters when the same teachers declare more perfect things to the perfect, as the Apostle said, speaking to the simpler sort: *I could not speak to you as to spiritual, but as to carnal; as to little ones in Christ I gave you milk to drink, not meat [n: (I Cor. III, 1)]*. Behold breasts full of milk; which breasts were turned into clusters when he said: *We preach Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God, and we speak wisdom among the perfect.*

Verse 8. *I said: I will go up into the palm tree, and will take hold of the fruits thereof.* That it might be shown that all this excellence and greatness of the gifts of the Church comes from the grace of God, [1097B] the same bridegroom is brought in saying: *I will go up into the palm tree;* as if he should say: From that source thou hast breasts for the nourishing of little ones, from which also thou hast clusters, whereby thou mayest hold out a more perfect doctrine to the more perfect: because I by my grace have gone up into thee, and have granted thee this perfection. *I will go up*, he says, *into the palm tree. The palm* signifies the Church, or also the soul of any faithful man who is mindful of the Lord his God, who says: *Have confidence, I have overcome the world [n: (Joan. XVI, 33)]*. She too strives to be the conqueror of all vices and of iniquity. And fittingly is he said here to have gone up into the palm, whereas above he is read to have gone down into the garden. For the Church said: *My beloved is gone down into his garden.* The garden is the same as the palm, namely one and the same Church. But the Lord goes down into her and goes up to her: he goes down into her by sending her from the heavens the abundance of his grace; he goes up to her by increasing his gifts in her and by lifting her up to loftier things [1097C] by certain advances, as it were by certain steps. But this too is to be known of the nature of the palm, that in its lower parts it is rough, in its upper parts most beautiful with the grace of its leaves and the beauty of its fruits. So also the holy Church in her lower parts endures for Christ the roughness of labours and sufferings; but in her upper parts, that is, in the heavens, she awaits the beauty and sweetness of the rewards. The tree of the Lord's cross too may be expressed by the palm, into which our Redeemer went up for the redemption of the human race, and on which he overcame the enemy of the human race. He says therefore, *I will go up into the palm tree*, that is: I have spoken through my prophets, and have promised that I would come to the passion and would redeem my Church. *I will take hold*, he says, *of the fruits thereof*, that is, of the fruits of the good works and labours over which the Church sweats, by rewarding them. Or also according to my sense, whereby the cross is understood by the palm: *I will take hold of the fruits* *530* *thereof*, that is, the triumph of the passion being fulfilled, I will come to the glory of the resurrection, and will grant spiritual gifts to my apostles.

[1097D] *And thy breasts shall be as the clusters of the vine.* This has already been expounded above; for the breasts of the Church are the teachers, when they nourish little ones with simple doctrine; but they are made clusters of the vine when they announce lofty things to the more perfect. For the blessed Paul at one and the same time had breasts and clusters, when speaking of Christ he said: *Whose are the fathers, and of whom is Christ [n: (Rom. IX, 5)]*; behold the breasts, that is, the simple preaching concerning Christ: but these breasts were turned into most sweet and most strong wine when he added: *Who is God over all, blessed for ever.*

Verse 9. *And the odour of thy mouth as of apples. Thy throat as the best wine. The mouth* and the *odour* of the Church is her present preaching, which reaches those who are absent from her by report or by writing; but the *throat* is the very voice of the preacher, which is heard in the present. The *odour* therefore of the *mouth* of the Church is compared to the odours of apples, because the very report of her preaching is full of sweetness and grace. But the *throat* is likened to *the best wine*, because the very [1098A] voice of those who preach showed in itself great power to its hearers. But that the odour of apples is in newness, and that of wine in age, signifies that the preaching of the Church has all sweetness and grace both in its newness and also in its perfection.

*Worthy for my beloved to drink, and for his lips and teeth to ruminate upon.* It is the voice of the Church, who, hearing herself praised by the bridegroom, answers with rejoicing, saying: *Worthy for my beloved to drink;* as if she should say: My bridegroom has compared my throat to the best wine, and that *wine* is *worthy to be drunk* by my very *beloved;* that is, the gospel preaching, which he has placed in my mouth, ought to be announced in the world through him and not through another; for it was not fitting that the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven be preached to the world through any other than through the *Mediator of God and men [n: (I Tim. II, 5)]*. *And for his lips*, she says, *and teeth to ruminate upon.* The lips and teeth of the bridegroom, as was said above, are the holy teachers. That best wine, therefore, is to be ruminated by the lips and teeth of the bridegroom, because the gospel preaching, [1098B] delivered by God, is to be handled and expounded by the teachers. Nor is it absurd that, although wine is drunk and not ruminated, yet here it is said to be *ruminated by the lips and teeth*, which belongs rather to food than to drink; for the holy teachers ruminate the spiritual wine when they diligently search out the gospel precepts, and investigate them by frequent meditation and confer them one with another.

Verse 10. *I to my beloved, and his turning is toward me. I to my beloved* — understand: I bestow the obedience of justice and devotion; to him and to no other do I promise my faith and my service. *And his turning is toward me*, that in the present he may protect me amid the labours and hardships of this life, and in the future may bring me into the joys of the heavenly life. This may also be the voice of the Synagogue in the person of the holy Fathers, who longed for the coming of Christ. As if she should say: I know, she says, that he is always present to me by a spiritual presence, and therefore *I to my beloved* — I desire to serve him with all devotion; but at last *his turning is toward me*, [1098C] because I wish that at last, as he promised, he may appear to me in my own substance. For the bridegroom had said above: *I will go up into the palm tree*, that is, he had promised that he would come in the flesh, and would be manifested to the world as man in my substance.

## CHAPTER VII. (cont.)

Verse 11. *Come, my beloved; let us go forth into the field, let us abide in the villages.* It is the voice of the same Synagogue. *Come, my beloved*, that is, appear through the manhood thou hast assumed. Such also is that word of the Psalmist: *Stir up thy might, and come [n: (Psal. LXXIX, 3)]*. And Isaias: *O that thou wouldst break asunder the heavens, and come [n: (Isai. LXIV, 1)]*. *Let us go forth into the field.* The field is this world. *Let us go forth*, he says, *into the field*, that is, let us preach to the world. *Let us abide in the villages*, that is, let us announce thy faith to the pagans themselves also. No one is ignorant that Pagans are named from the *villa*, the village: for πάγος in Greek is called *villa* in Latin; thence they are called Pagans, because they are far from the city of God. It can also be the voice of the Church: *Come, my beloved;* as if she should say: Already by the mystery of the ascension thou hast raised to the heavens the manhood thou didst assume; but *come*, by visiting me [1098D] more often with the presence of thy divine majesty. *Let us go forth into the field*, in the same sense as above: let us preach to the world the faith of thy incarnation. *Let us abide in the villages*, that is, let us announce thy faith even to the pagans who know thee not; and not in passing only, but let us abide there, until we make them catholics out of pagans, and thine own out of strangers.

Verse 12. *Let us get up early to the vineyards. The morning* is the rising of the new grace, when, namely, the darkness of unbelief passing away, the Gospel began to be preached to the world.

*Let us see if the vineyard has flourished*, that is, let us look upon the Church, whether she has already received the first rudiments of faith.

*If the flowers bring forth fruits.* Let us look also *whether the flowers bring forth fruit*, that is, whether they who have now believed in Christ are fit for working well. For the Church puts forth flowers when the faithful first come to the faith; but the flowers bring forth fruits when she now works well by that very faith and love, lest [1099A] the faith itself be idle, or dead without works; for, as James says: *Faith without works is dead [n: (Jac. II, 26)]*.

*If the pomegranates have flourished. Pomegranates* (as was said above) have a ruddy or blood-coloured rind, and therefore signify the passion of the Lord, or of his members. He says therefore, *If the pomegranates have flourished*, that is, whether the saints who are now perfect in faith and in work are also fit to imitate the passion of Christ and to suffer for him. *Pomegranates* were those to whom the Apostle said: *To you it is given, not only that you believe in him, but also that you suffer for him [n: (Philipp. I, 29)]*.

*There will I give thee my breasts.* The breasts of the Church are the teachers, who first instruct the faithful unto the faith. When, she says, we shall have gone out to the vineyards, *there will I give thee*, O bridegroom, *my breasts*, that is, I will beget for thee spiritual sons. Whence there is further subjoined:

Verse 13. *The mandrakes have given a smell in our gates. The mandrake* is an aromatic herb, whose root [1099B] has the likeness of a human body. Its apples are of the best odour, after the likeness of the Matian apple, which our own people call the apple of the earth. This herb is most apt for medicinal uses. For they report that those who labour under the trouble of sleeplessness are relieved by a draught of this apple, and are able to sleep. Likewise they report that those who for the sake of a cure are to be cut, if they have drunk the outer rind of this apple, do not feel the cutting or the burning; *531* all which things, if anyone should wish to search out mystically, he will find there spiritual senses, and such as befit the Church. He says therefore, *The mandrakes have given a smell in our gates.* The gates of the Church are the apostles and their successors: because no one enters the city of God (that is, the Church) unless he has been regenerated by the water of baptism through the holy teachers and instructed in life-giving doctrine. Of these gates the Psalmist said: *The Lord loveth the gates of Sion above all the tabernacles of Jacob [n: (Psal. LXXXVI, 2)]*. And the *mandrakes* designate the fragrance of the virtues. *In the gates*, therefore, of the Church *the mandrakes [1099C] have given their smell*, when the apostles or their successors scattered far and wide the report of a most sweet repute and the odour of the virtues. And therefore the Church invites her bridegroom to come, because now his name is announced far and wide through the apostles, and the odour of the preaching of Christ is spread far and wide.

*All apples, the new and the old, my beloved, I have kept for thee*, that is, the precepts or the promises of the Old Testament and of the New I have kept for thee, O my beloved. For she knew that all the things which were announced in the Old Testament could not be fulfilled save through Christ and in Christ, and therefore she said: *I have kept for thee apples new and old*, that is: I await thee, that through thee there may be fulfilled in the New Testament the things which were foretold in the Old. Whence also in his passion, now hanging on the cross, *When he had tasted the vinegar, he said, It is consummated [n: (Joan. XIX, 30)]*; and after the resurrection, to the apostles: *All things must needs be fulfilled which are written in the Law, and the Prophets, and the Psalms concerning me [n: (Luc. XXIV, 44)]*. The new and the old apples may also be understood as the persons of the just, who were either in the Old or in [1099D] the New Testament. The Church says therefore, *I have kept for thee the new and the old*, that is: the just who went before in the Old Testament, or followed after in the New, I have kept for thee, that through thee they might receive the rewards of their labours. For none of the just was able to enter the kingdom of heaven save through Christ: because he first ascended, and opened heaven for his members who follow.

## CHAPTER VIII.

Verse 1. *Who shall give thee to me for my brother, sucking the breasts of my mother?* From these words it is understood that this whole song is divine and spiritual, and has in itself nothing that can be understood according to the letter. For what woman in love ever wished this, that he whom she loves should be made a little child, and her brother; and, turned into an infant, should suck the breasts of her mother? It is therefore the voice of that Church which went before the coming of Christ, which we call the Synagogue, that is, the congregation. *Who*, she says, *shall give thee to me for my brother, sucking the breasts of [1100A] my mother?* And the sense is: Thou *who* art now *in the bosom of the Father [n: (Joan. I, 18)]*, who shall grant that thou be made man, and, being partaker and consort of my nature, be called my brother? For he himself deigned to call himself the brother of the apostles, saying through the Psalmist: *I will declare thy name to my brethren [n: (Psal. XXI, 23)]*; and after the resurrection, to the women: *Go*, he says, *tell my brethren [n: (Matth. XXVIII, 10)]*. *Sucking the breasts of my mother*, she says, that is, fulfilling all things that belong to human nature, sin excepted. For the mother of the Synagogue in this place is understood to be human nature itself, from which the Synagogue herself arose. *Sucking*, she says, *the breasts of my mother*, that is, bearing all things that pertain to human frailty.

*That I may find thee without*, that is, that I may see thee made man in the open. For God was as it were within, since he was already hidden in the bosom of the Father's majesty; but he was found without when, made man, he showed himself visible to men, and, being incomprehensible, willed to be comprehended.

*And I may kiss thee. And I may kiss thee*, she says, that is, that I may behold [1100B] thee with a manifest vision, whom now I hold only in the kiss of faith; which she wished at the beginning of this song, saying: *Let him kiss me with the kiss of his mouth [n: (Cant. I, 1)]*, that is, let him now come by himself, that he may appear to me. For the beloved was as it were kissing the Church through the prophets, when he promised his coming through them. She wishes, therefore, that coming by himself he may kiss her, that is, that he may show his presence in his own flesh.

*And now let no man despise me.* For the Synagogue was as it were despised before Christ came: because, given over to the observances of the law, she preached the coming of Christ under type and figure, and not in truth. But after Jesus appeared and enlightened the world by the grace of his coming, *now no man despised* her; nay rather, she was *terrible as a battle-line of the camps set in order* to her enemies: because through the whole world she preached Christ, and subjected the worldly empire to herself. Nor ought it to seem strange if we now call the Church the Synagogue; for the Church is one in the parts that go before and [1100C] in those that follow.

Verse 2. *I will take hold of thee, and will lead thee into my mother's house.* O beloved! by cleaving to thee through faith and charity, *I will lead thee into my mother's house.* The mother of the Church, in this place, is understood to be that heavenly Jerusalem of which Paul says: *But that Jerusalem which is above is free, which is our mother [n: (Gal. IV, 26)]*. *I will lead thee*, she says, *into my mother's house*, that is, I will follow thee returning into heaven, after the act of thy incarnation and the mystery of thy passion. And *I will lead thee*, she says, stands for this: I will escort and follow; because the apostles escorted with their eyes the Lord ascending into the heavens, and followed him with a devout gaze even until the cloud received him, until the angels standing by said: *Ye men of Galilee, why stand you looking up to heaven? This Jesus who is taken up from you into heaven shall so come as you have seen him going into heaven [n: (Act. I, 11)]*.

*There thou shalt teach me.* This refers back to what is above, where it is said, *I may find thee without.* When, she says, I shall have found thee without, [1100D] that is, when I shall have beheld thee in the flesh thou hast assumed, *there thou shalt teach me*: because thou wilt answer to all things that I shall wish to ask. For often too the Lord anticipated the apostles when they wished to ask, and instructed them [n: (Marc. IX)]. It may also be joined to this place, where he says, *I will lead thee into my mother's house, there thou shalt teach me.* When, she says, thou shalt have been received into heaven, and shalt have taken me also up with thee into heaven, *there thou shalt teach me*, and wilt lead me into all truth — which it is impossible for man to be able to attain in the present life. Hence it is that the Lord promises to the apostles, saying: *The hour cometh when I will no more speak to you in proverbs, but will show you plainly of the Father [n: (Joan. XVI, 25)]*. Therefore *there thou shalt teach me*, that is, thou wilt reveal thyself and the Father to me in open vision; that is, thou wilt show me thy divinity face to face.

*And I will give thee a cup of spiced wine.* By the *wine* is understood the fervour of charity and love. *532* *I will give thee wine*, she says, that is, I will show with how most fervent a charity I love thee. And this *wine* will not be plain, [1101A] but *spiced*, namely with good works and virtues. For the love of God, as the blessed Gregory says [n: (S. Gregorius, homil. 30 in Evang.)], is never idle; it works great things if it is there; for if it refuses to work, it is not love. For spiced wine is love together with work. Whence also the Lord in the Gospel: *If any man love me, he will keep my word [n: (Joan. XIV, 23)]*. The proof, therefore, of love is the showing forth of work.

*And the new wine of my pomegranates.* The *malum granatum* is the same as the *malum punicum*. Now it is called *malum granatum* because it is full of a multitude of grains (*grana*); *malum punicum*, because it abounds most plentifully in Africa. For *Punica* is Africa itself. And it has a rind of a blood-red colour, and therefore (as has often been said) it holds the figure of the Lord's passion. For the *new wine of pomegranates* is the love of the holy martyrs, who loved God so greatly that they did not hesitate to die for him. And fittingly is it called new wine, and not any other draught, because new wine [1101B] is most fervent, so that in its exceeding ferment it boils out and purges from itself every impurity. The Church, therefore, will give to the Beloved the new wine of her pomegranates, that is, she will show in the sufferings of the holy martyrs with how great a charity Christ is loved.

Verse 3. *His left hand under my head, and his right hand shall embrace me.* By the *left hand* (as the blessed Gregory says) are understood all the prosperities of the present life [n: (S. Greg. in cap. II Cant. cant.)]; but by the *right hand* is understood the blessed life to come in the heavens. The Church, therefore, has the *left hand* of the bridegroom *under her head*, *and the right hand* embraces her: because whatever prosperities of the present world allure her, she counts for nothing; all things that smile upon her for a time she despises; and while she strives toward the vision of the heavenly blessedness alone, that alone she desires to embrace.

Verse 4. *I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that you stir not up, nor make the beloved to awake, till she herself will.* The Church has certain persons within her who have been [1101C] born again by the baptism of Christ and are entitled with the name of Christianity, yet by their manners and their manner of life serve the world, and strive to disquiet the Church lulled in a most sweet rest, and to rouse her to the enduring of tumults. These, therefore, on account of the grace of the mysteries of Christ which they have received, are called in this place *daughters of Jerusalem*, although by their manners they do the contrary. And the bridegroom *adjures* them *not to stir up nor to make the beloved to awake*, that is, that they should not by their own restlessness *rouse* her, set as she is in the sleep of a most sweet quiet, that is, in the contemplation of her Creator, and compel her *to awake* unto the anxieties and cares of the world. *Till she herself will*, that is, until, the office of her due service being performed, whereby she serves God in psalms, hymns, and spiritual canticles, she be admonished again by the care of bodily frailty to return to the use of the world.

Verse 5. *Who is this that cometh up from the desert, flowing with delights, leaning upon her beloved?* The voice of the Synagogue marvelling at the Church gathered from the nations. *Who is*, she says, *this*, that is, of what sort is she, of how great merit, *that cometh up from the desert?* For she had been forsaken by God [1101D] through idolatry and ignorance of the truth. She was ascending, therefore, by the steps of the virtues out of the desert, that is, out of the error of unbelief, in which for a time she had been forsaken. *Flowing with delights*, that is, abounding in virtues. *Leaning*, she says, *upon her beloved*, that is, acting with confidence in Christ, and referring all her virtues and all her goods to his grace. She knew that by her own strength she could accomplish nothing of good, and therefore she says with the Apostle: *By the grace of God I am what I am [n: (I Cor. XV, 10)]*. And it is to be noted that she says, *upon her beloved*: for the Synagogue thought that she alone had the knowledge of God, the rest of the nations being left in ignorance. For *God is known*, as the Psalmist says, *in Judea; in Israel his name is great [n: (Psal. LXXV, 2)]*. But to the Synagogue thus marvelling her own bridegroom and beloved answers what follows.

*Under the apple tree I raised thee up. By the apple tree* we ought to understand the Lord's cross, under which tree the Synagogue *was raised up*: because she was redeemed from the transgression of original sin, and from the power of the devil, by the cross of [1102A] Christ: there *was she raised up* who was dead in her sins. And fittingly does he say the apple tree; for above also she compared her beloved Christ to this tree, saying: *As the apple tree among the trees of the woods, so is my beloved among the sons.*

*There was thy mother corrupted, there was she that bore thee violated.* By the mother and her that bore the Synagogue he means the greater and more principal part of the Jewish people, such as were the scribes and Pharisees, who delivered Christ to Pilate [n: (Matth. XXVII, 2)], and who as mother and bearer ought to have ruled and instructed the rest of the people; and such as were those who, at the urging of those chief men, shamelessly cried out: *Crucify him, crucify him [n: (Joan. XIX, 6)]*. This *mother*, therefore, of the Synagogue *was corrupted* and *violated under the apple tree*, when she bound herself and her posterity with a cruel curse, saying: *His blood be upon us and upon our children [n: (Matth. XXVII, 25)]*. For they too were under the cross of Christ — not indeed in faith and devotion, yet by the imprecation of a cruel vengeance upon themselves and upon their posterity.

## CHAPTER VIII. (cont.)

[1102B]Verse 6. *Set me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm.* Because, he says, *under the apple tree I raised thee up*, that is, because in my passion on the cross I redeemed thee, *Set me as a seal upon thy heart*, that is, have me always in memory, and forget not me, how great things I bore for thy salvation. *Set me*, he says, *as a seal upon thy heart* by faith; *set me as a seal upon thy arm* by worthy work. For we also, when we wish to hold something in memory, are wont to put a seal upon a finger or upon the arm, so that, admonished by it, we may remember that matter of which we have the care. And we ought to set Christ as a seal upon our heart and upon our arm, that we may always have his memory, and that, believing rightly in him, we may adorn that very faith with good works. And if we shall have done this, he too will take us up as a seal, and will remember us, according to what he promises to Zorobabel, leader of Judea: *In that day I will take thee, O Zorobabel my servant, and will set thee [1102C] as a seal before my face (Aggaei II, 24)*. For if we shall have forgotten his benefits, and shall not have rendered him worthy thanksgivings, he too *533* will forget us, as is said of the impious king Jechonias: *If Jechonias the son of Joachim king of Juda were a ring on my right hand, I would pluck him thence [n: (Jer. XXII, 24)]*.

*For love is strong as death, jealousy as hard as hell.* The love of Christ is strong as death. For as death separates the soul from the body, and it is no longer permitted to covet anything, nor to strive after anything in the present life: so the love of Christ, whomsoever it has truly pervaded, wholly mortifies him to this world and renders him as it were without feeling; and living for Christ alone, he is dead to the world. The sense is the same when he says, *jealousy as hard as hell.* For as hell never restores those whom it has once received, but ever retains them: so the true love of Christ never lets go him whom it has once received; whence the Apostle says: *Who shall separate us from the charity of Christ, tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or [1102D] nakedness, or danger, or the sword [n: (Rom. VIII, 35)]*? But the love of Christ may also be understood in this place, whose *love was strong as death*: because he so loved us that, being immortal, he took death upon himself for us. *His jealousy was hard as hell*, because hell knows not how to have mercy, nor to be softened by the punishments of the wretched: so also the love of Christ could not cease from mercy, nor be removed by any wickednesses of persecutors from the love of the human race. Some refer this which is said, *jealousy is hard as hell*, properly to the Synagogue, which was jealous of the nations and envied their salvation. Christ therefore admonishes her by saying this, that she may cease from envy and may rejoice together at the salvation of the Church.

*The lamps thereof are lamps of fire and of flames.* That is, the lamps of love are lamps of fire and of flames. The lamps of love are the hearts of the saints, in which, as in vessels, love dwells. These *lamps*, therefore, are *of fire and of flames*: lamps indeed of fire, because they burn in the heart [1103A] by love; but lamps of flames, because outwardly they shine by work.

Verse 7. *Many waters cannot quench charity, neither shall the floods overwhelm it.* The waters and the floods are the violent threats of persecutors, or also their blandishments, by which they strive to separate the saints from the charity of God. Of which the Lord says in the Gospel, concerning the man who built his house upon a rock: *The floods came, the winds blew, and they beat upon that house, and it fell not; for it was built upon a rock [n: (Matth. VII, 25)]*. *Many waters*, therefore, *cannot quench charity*, because no tribulation, no distress will be able to separate the saints from the charity of God.

*If a man should give all the substance of his house for love, he shall despise it as nothing.* This little verse needs no exposition; for the substances of no world, no riches, are anything in comparison of love. We read indeed that the saints left their own goods for the love of Christ, and yet they seemed to themselves to leave nothing in [1103B] comparison of the charity of Christ, whom they loved. Whence the Apostle, when he was leaving for Christ not only his earthly substance but also the traditions of his fathers, said: *All these things I despise and count as dung, that I may gain Christ [n: (Philip. III, 8)]*, that is, that I may acquire his love.

Verse 8. *Our sister is little, and she hath no breasts. What shall we do to our sister in the day when she is to be spoken to?* The voice of the beloved addressing the Synagogue on behalf of the Church of the nations. *Our sister*, he says — that is, the Church of the nations — *is little, and hath no breasts;* and, the name being shared with the Synagogue by a great condescension, he says, *Our sister*; for because he took flesh from the Jews, therefore he as it were tempers himself to the Synagogue and makes himself her equal. *Our sister is little*, he says. As the age of any man is described, so also the age of the Church is described. For the Church as yet gathered from the nations was *little* under the very times of the Lord and of the apostles: because by the fewness of believers she was *little*; [1103C] and she had not yet breasts, that is, she was by no means able by preaching to beget spiritual sons for God. He says therefore, as though seeking the counsel of the Synagogue: *What shall we do to our sister in the day when she is to be spoken to?* The speaking to the Church is when God admonishes the soul of every faithful person, either inwardly by hidden inspiration or outwardly by open preaching. And the sense is: *when* through my apostles *I shall speak to* the Church gathered from the nations, *what shall we do?* how shall we entrust to her the heavenly precepts? Whether, namely, we shall entrust to her the least precepts, or, that she may be made greater, shall we deliver to her the more perfect mysteries of the heavenly secrets? For God almighty tempers the word of preaching to the measure and capacity of the human mind, considering the strength and capacity of the hearer. But the Synagogue being silent, the bridegroom himself answered for her.

Verse 9. *If she be a wall, let us build upon it bulwarks of silver; if she be a door, let us join it together with boards of cedar. If*, he says, our sister *be a wall, [1103D] let us build upon it bulwarks of silver.* As if he should say: When my apostles shall have begun to preach to the Church gathered from the nations, if the hearers shall be such as can deservedly be called a wall for their perfection — when, namely, being either endowed with natural talent or excelling in philosophical learning, they can as it were defend and fortify others in the stead of a wall — *let us build upon* such a *wall bulwarks of silver*, that is, let us add to them the eloquences of the divine Scriptures. For, as the Psalmist says: *The words of the Lord are chaste words, silver tried by the fire [n: (Psal. XI, 7)]*. But if the hearers shall be such as can by no means resist enemies, nor beat back the weapons that come against them, but shall be as it were a *door*, so that, announcing simple things, they can bring some into the Church and unto the faith — such as are the priests of lesser rank, who by baptizing in the Church and by initiating men into the divine mysteries bring men into the Church — *let us join together that door with boards of cedar*, that is, let us set before them the examples of the Fathers who went before, [1104A] who like cedars — woods, namely, that cannot rot — have unfading works, and like boards are spread out in the breadth of knowledge and of charity. For the breadth of the boards signifies the breadth of the heart (in which there ought to be the breadth of charity or of knowledge), the Psalmist saying: *I have run the way of thy commandments, when thou didst enlarge my heart [n: (Psal. CXVIII, 32)]*. With these boards of cedar, therefore (that is, with the examples of the saints), let us join together that door; so that, namely, by imitating their examples they may open to others, as a door, the gate of entering the Church.

Verse 10. *I am a wall, and my breasts are as a tower.* The voice of the Church. Who, when she had heard her beloved taking counsel for her salvation, herself answered gladly: *I am a wall, and my breasts are as a tower. I*, she says, *am a wall*: because I am founded upon the firm rock *534* [n: (Matth. XVI, 18)], and made solid with the glue of divine charity. Or I am a wall, because I am built of *living* and chosen stones (that is, of the saints). *And my breasts are as a tower*, because I contain within me such as can, [1104B] in the stead of breasts, nourish others with spiritual doctrine, and, in the stead of a tower, can defend and fortify others; and who, as towers upon a lofty wall, so they themselves excel among the rest of my members by the merit of their doctrine and of their manner of life. But this I have not by my own merits, nor by the freedom of my will, but by the gift and grace of my bridegroom.

*From the time that I became before him as one finding peace.* That is, from the time that he poured out his blood for me and, propitiating God the Father toward me, dissolved the enmities that were between God and man, and made the things of heaven peaceable for me. *From the time*, therefore, that I *found* this *peace*, I have deserved to be a wall and to have breasts in the stead of towers.

Verse 11. *The peaceable one had a vineyard*, that is, my beloved, who is the true peaceable one: because through him all things are made peaceable that are in the heavens and on the earth. Whence also by the prophet he is called *Father of the world to come, Prince of peace [n: (Isai. IX, 6)]*: in the type of which true *peaceable one* there went before Salomon, that is, *peaceable*, the author of this song. To him, therefore, [1104C] *there was a vineyard*, that is, the holy Church.

*In that which hath peoples.* This he says, that he might show that he sings of the Church of the nations, not of the Synagogue. For the Synagogue was of one nation only, but the Church has peoples: because she holds and receives all the nations within her most capacious bosom.

*He delivered it to keepers.* The keepers of this vineyard (that is, of the holy Church) are the prophets, the apostles, and the successors of the apostles. Or also the keepers of this world are the angelic powers, who keep the Church from the assaults of temptations and of demons.

*A man bringeth for the fruit thereof a thousand pieces of silver.* He means strong and perfect men, for *vir*, a man, is so named from *virtus*, strength. The fruit of the Church is the reward of the heavenly life, for which the holy Church ceases not to labour in the present life. And the *thousand pieces of silver* which *the man bringeth for the fruit* signify all things that can be possessed in this world. For the number of a thousand is set for the highest perfection and fulness. *The man*, therefore, *bringeth a thousand pieces of silver for the fruit* of this vineyard: because the saints leave all [1104D] their own goods and pay them out to the poor, that they may obtain the fruit of this vineyard (that is, the reward above). Such also is that which the Lord says in the parable of the Gospel: *The kingdom of heaven is like unto a treasure hidden in a field, which when a man hath found, he hideth it, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field [n: (Matth. XIII, 44)]*.

Verse 12. *My vineyard is before me.* The voice of the bridegroom. Thou sayest, he says, that I delivered my vineyard to keepers: yet *the vineyard is always before me*; because, although I have committed her to my keepers, I nevertheless always have care of her, nor do I cease ever to be solicitous for her, but I am with her even unto the consummation of the world.

## CHAPTER VIII. (cont.)

*A thousand are thy peaceable ones, and two hundred to them that keep the fruits thereof. A thousand* — understand, pieces of silver, which thou gavest for the fruit of the vineyard — are *thy peaceable ones*; as if he should say: O faithful soul, be not doubtful concerning the eternal reward, for which thou hast given all that is thine: because the *thousand* pieces of silver are *thy peaceable [1105A] ones*, that is, that reward awaits thee assured, and thou shalt obtain true fruit therefrom. And *two hundred* — understand, pieces of silver — are peaceable *to them that keep the fruits thereof.* As by the number of a thousand the fulness of perfection, so also by the number of a hundred the highest perfection is designated: because the hundred is carried over from the left hand to the right. The two hundred pieces of silver, therefore, which is the hundred doubled, signify those who are perfect in doctrine and in holy work, who by living justly and piously keep themselves, and also by preaching convert others. To such as these, therefore, the two hundred pieces of silver are peaceable: because a doubled reward awaits them in the heavens; of whom it is said through Daniel: *And they that instruct many unto justice shall shine as stars unto perpetual eternities [n: (Dan. XII, 3)]*. For these the Apostle bids be doubly honoured, saying: *Let the priests that are among you be accounted worthy of double honour, especially they that rule over you and labour in the word [n: (I Tim. V, 17)]*.

Verse 13. *Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the friends hearken: make me hear thy voice.* The voice of the beloved addressing the bride, that [1105B] is, the Church: O Church, *thou that dwellest in the gardens*, that is, thou that appliest thyself to the cultivating of the shoots of the virtues. For the *garden* of the bridegroom is the Church herself, which (as was said above) he promises to visit often. The Church, therefore, *dwells in the gardens*: because she continually nourishes the nurseries of the virtues; nor does she set up her hut there in passing, as one about to withdraw after a little, but she dwells there in a fixed station. *Make me*, he says, *hear thy voice*, that is, preach the Gospel to those to whom thou art able; announce the precepts of my law, and together with them the promise of the heavenly rewards. For this is pleasant and delightful to me, that I hear thy voice, that is, that I hear thee announcing the words of eternal salvation. But *the friends hearken to thee*, that is, the angelic spirits delight to hear thy voice, whom I made thy friends by the shedding of my blood, and whom I appointed as helpers and protectors against the malignant spirits. Or the *friends*, that is, the spirits of the just, *hearken*, whom I have taken up out of thy company to myself into the heavenly places. For they rejoice together over thy preaching and over the salvation of the brethren. Straightway [1105C] the bride herself answers her beloved.

Verse 14. *Flee away, my beloved, and be thou like to the roe and to the young hart upon the mountains of spices.* A wondrous answer. She is invited to preach, and that the bridegroom may hear her voice; but she exhorts her bridegroom [1106A] to flee. But great is the sequence of the mystery. For because above the nativity of Christ had been foretold, when she said: *Who shall give thee to me for my brother, sucking the breasts:* for his passion had been foretold, where it was said: *Under the apple tree I raised thee up;* now she consequently exhorts the bridegroom to flee, that is, most swiftly to return by the ascension to the Father. And the sense is: thou biddest me preach, thou willest to hear my voice — *flee away, my beloved*, that is, the mystery of thy incarnation and of thy passion being fulfilled, *return* to heaven; that I may begin to think of thee no longer as man, but as God above all things. For then thou wilt hear my voice, because then I shall preach thee more freely to the whole world. And this is what the Lord says in the Gospel: *I tell you the truth, it is expedient for you that I go [n: (Joan. XVI, 7)]*. For it was expedient for the apostles and for the whole Church that Christ should return and should absent his bodily presence: because while he was present in the body they could not love him spiritually, nor could they think of him whom they beheld as man as God invisible and everywhere present. [1106B] *535* But after he himself ascended the heavens, the Church began to love him spiritually, and so now to think of him and to preach him as God. And this is what the Apostle says: *And if we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him no more [n: (II Cor. V, 16)]*. Therefore, *my beloved*, if thou wilt that I so preach thee, *flee away*, that is, withdraw to the heavenly places; and thou who wast comprehensible through thy humanity, be made incomprehensible through thy divinity. Yet nevertheless forsake me not in the present without thy visitation, but deign to seek me out with thy frequent visitation, and to offer thyself to me more often to be seen. And this is what she says: *Be thou like to the roe and to the young hart upon the mountains of spices.* As, she says, roes and the [sic: *hinauli*] of harts, untamed animals, flee from human company, and yet are the more often seen upon the mountains: so thou too after thy ascension, although thou be invisible, yet deign to appear to me more often by the gift of thy grace, and this *upon the mountains of spices. The mountains of spices* are the saints of God, nearest to heaven by the excellence of their holy manner of life, and [1106C] fragrant far and wide with the odour and report of their virtues; hence the Apostle says of himself and of those like him: *Our conversation is in heaven [n: (Philip. III, 20)]*; and elsewhere: *We are the good odour of Christ unto God in every place [n: (II Cor. II, 1)]*.

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