on a day of public rejoicing; or was a source of pleasure like that derived from such a sight; far greater than could be had from beholding any individual, however excellent; such as is felt from gazing on the combination of lovely forms, crowning with their elegance of form, shape, beauty of dress, and grace of movement, some public festal scene;* more beautiful than when on the shore of the Red Sea, Miriam took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women went out after

* In the scenes described by Homer as portrayed on the shield of Achilles, none would have been introduced but those deemed most attractive in his age, which could not have been long after the time of Solomon. Now, he has given such a scene as is noticed in the text, a place on that famous shield; and thereby we may know such was an object of beauty to the ancients, and proper to be used for illustrating any thing which excited deep emotions of pleasure.

"To these the artist added next a dance

Drawn with surpassing skill, such as of old
In Crete's broad island Dædalus composed
For bright-haired Ariadne. There the youths
And youth-alluring maidens, hand in hand
Danced jocund, every maiden, neat attired
In finest linen, and the youths in vests
Well woven, glossy as the glaze of oil.

These all wore garlands, and bright falchions, those,
Of burnished gold in silver trappings hung:
They with well tutor'd step, now nimbly ran
The circle, swift, as when, before his wheel
Seated, the potter twirls it with both hands
For trial of its speed, now, crossing quick
They passed at once into each other's place.
On either side spectators numerous stood
Delighted."-Iliad, xviii. 590.

her with timbrels and with dances, Exod. xv. 20; than when David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord, with shouting and with the sound of the trumpet, and with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and harps, leaping and dancing before the Lord, 2 Sam. vi. 15; 1 Chron. xv. 26. As in chap. i. 9, the horse is the emblem of nobleness, energy, and activity in the believer; here, the reference is to elegance and grace of motion, as an element of beauty, while in the perfected saint perfect beauty is found. Thus, in something of a like train of thought, Byron says

"She walks in beauty like the night

Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that's best of dark and bright,

Meets in that aspect and those eyes."

As there is dignity, majesty, and grandeur in the calm movement of the evening sky, with its starry hosts, and therein is blended the beauty of darkness and of light; so this poet would say there was in her of whom he wrote, dignity, and majesty, and a blending of all that is beautiful. And in this passage the spouse is compared, if not to the starry hosts, to two hosts or companies rejoicing at a wedding, or on some festive occasion.

Poetry furnishes nothing of its kind more beautiful than the scene in the Fairie Queene, where, in a spot of singular loveliness, are espied, from the covert of a wood bordering "th' open greene,"

"An hundred beauteous maidens lily white,

All ranged in a ring and dancing with delight;"

and in their midst, was placed

"Another damzell, as a precious gemme,
Amidst a ring most richly well enchased.
Look! how the crowne which Ariadne wore
Upon her ivory forehead that same day
That Theseus her unto his bridale bore,

Being now placed in the firmament,

Through the bright heaven doth her beams display,

And is unto the starres an ornament,

Which round about her move in order excellent:

Such was the beauty of this goodly band."

Now the spirit of the text implies, that the spouse was in the eyes of the beloved, an object causing more pleasure than such scenes as these. With a delight of which this is the best, though faint resemblance, does Jesus view the sanctified soul, and the innumerable multitude constituting his redeemed Church. All things are present to him; and even now he sees that rejoicing host which no man can number, redeemed from all kindreds, and tribes, and people, and tongues, standing before the throne, clothed in white robes and palms in their hands; of all his varied works of creation, this is to him the most glorious. Is it strange that on a day of public rejoicing, a kingly father should view a brave, gallant, and victorious son with more pleasure than that felt from the presence of all the host besides. While king Edward, beholding from his tower the battle of Crecy, had proper feelings towards all his valiant followers who surrounded his son, with what especial delight did he watch the progress of that son; and after the victory, amid the bonfires, and lighted

torches, and rejoicing of the soldiers, take the Black

"You are my true son, yourself this day, and Thus, from his watch

Prince in his arms, and say, for loyally have you acquitted worthy are you of a crown." tower in the skies, the Captain of our salvation, our friend, our beloved, has his eye on every one of his saints; and when our conflict winds up with the victory over death, he will give us more than a father's greeting, while bestowing the crown of righteousness and glory which fadeth not away. Like the virgin among the hundred lily-like maidens of Spenser, "as a precious gemme amidst a ring most richly well enchased," the glorified soul, the redeemed Church, shall be in heaven an object of pre-eminent beauty to Jesus, a brilliant gem amid the golden ring of innumerable angels encircling as a crown the throne of the Lamb slain.

We may therefore be comforted by keeping in mind the four things here stated concerning Jesus on leaving us, when grieved away by our neglect: He withdraws, not in anger, but in love; he feels without ceasing, the strongest desire to return to us; he earnestly invites us to return; he continues still to view us with unabated love, with even greater pleasure than the angels, the hosts seen by Jacob at Mahanaim.

CHAPTER VII.

VER. 1, 2.-How beautiful are thy feet with shoes, O prince's daughter! the joints of thy thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a cunning workman: thy navel is like a round goblet, which wanteth not liquor; thy belly is like an heap of wheat set about with lilies.

THE language of chap. vi. 4—10, is for encouraging the spouse to come on, and not hesitate on account of her recent neglect of him; in chap. vi. 11-13, he states his feelings of unabated tenderness during the time of his withdrawal; the object of chap. vii. 1—9, is to show his love towards her is still the same.

"Prince's daughter" seems to mean daughter of a noble, a word signifying generous, noble-minded; and in the thought of an oriental, is closely connected with liberality in giving; it is spoken of character and conduct, and according to a common Hebrew idiom, expresses one who is herself noble, the same with noble-woman. The whole of this description is a fitting portrait of a woman of noble character and majestic mien-the original words, "prince's daughter," referring to the nobleness of her disposition, and the following part of the passage setting forth the majesty and beauty of her appearance.* Having referred to grace of motion in the last verse of the

* With these descriptions of the spouse in the Song, we may compare the celebrated ivory and gold statue of Minerva in the Parthenon, which was an effort by Phidias to embody his imaginary conception of that goddess. "The statue stood in the foremost and larger chamber of the temple. It repre