8 "Listen ! My beloved ! Behold , he is coming , Climbing on the mountains , Leaping on the hills ! 9 "My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag . Behold , he is standing behind our wall , He is looking through the windows , He is peering through the lattice . 10 "My beloved responded and said to me, ' Arise , my darling , my beautiful one , And come along. 11 'For behold , the winter is past , The rain is over and gone . 12 'The flowers have already appeared in the land ; The time has arrived for pruning the vines, And the voice of the turtledove has been heard in our land . 13 'The fig tree has ripened its figs , And the vines in blossom have given forth their fragrance . Arise , my darling , my beautiful one , And come along!' "
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Song of Solomon 2:8-13
Commentary on Song of Solomon 2:8-13
(Read Song of Solomon 2:8-13)
The church pleases herself with thoughts of further communion with Christ. None besides can speak to the heart. She sees him come. This may be applied to the prospect the Old Testament saints had of Christ's coming in the flesh. He comes as pleased with his own undertaking. He comes speedily. Even when Christ seems to forsake, it is but for a moment; he will soon return with everlasting loving-kindness. The saints of old saw him, appearing through the sacrifices and ceremonial institutions. We see him through a glass darkly, as he manifests himself through the lattices. Christ invites the new convert to arise from sloth and despondency, and to leave sin and worldly vanities, for union and communion with him. The winter may mean years passed in ignorance and sin, unfruitful and miserable, or storms and tempests that accompanied his conviction of guilt and danger. Even the unripe fruits of holiness are pleasant unto Him whose grace has produced them. All these encouraging tokens and evidences of Divine favour, are motives to the soul to follow Christ more fully. Arise then, and come away from the world and the flesh, come into fellowship with Christ. This blessed change is owing wholly to the approaches and influences of the Sun of righteousness.