Bede

The daughters saw her and acclaimed her most blessed, etc. It seems here that the same daughters are mentioned as the maidens previously named, because while here he brings daughters, queens, and concubines to the forefront, he had earlier mentioned queens, concubines, and maidens together. Therefore, great praise is due to the Catholic unity, which both the mother by grace, who bore them, chose perpetually, and the daughters whom she begot and nurtured to God by the Spirit. As soon as they saw it, that is, as they learned of her chaste life and heard of the gifts of the inheritance promised to her, they rightfully never cease to bless her. And both queens and concubines extol her with just praises, that is, whether these who are truly part of her kingdom or those souls who adhere to her in name only, but are earthly in hope and mind, all certainly acknowledge that she is worthy of eternal praise, understanding for sure that nothing of true and unshakable good can be found without her company. Indeed, since before the end of the world, Judea too is to be gathered to the grace of its Redeemer, and will also praise that same perfection of the holy Church along with others, it is fittingly added from the voice of the Synagogue itself, marveling:"

Beautiful as the moon, chosen as the sun, etc. Beautiful as the moon, because illuminated by the Sun of righteousness, it passes through the night of this world, and floods it with the light of heavenly knowledge and evangelical way of life; chosen as the sun, because it receives the image of its same Creator and illuminator in itself, walking in all righteousness, holiness, and truth, and truly giving thanks to Him, because the light of Your face, Lord, has been signed upon us (Psalm IV). Also beautiful as the moon, in the night of present life, where, with the varying state of times, now bright to the world, now despised and oppressed; now full of the brilliance of virtues, now disfigured by the vices of the wicked, it imitates in many ways the path of the moon increasing and waning. Chosen as the sun, in the day of future blessedness, where, with the state of eternity remaining, it will shine with the true vision of unchangeable light, fulfilled by His promise, in which it is said: The righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father (Cant. VI). Terrible as an army set in array, because it could never be restrained by any clouds of adversity, without showing in itself the beauty of both the moon and the sun: namely, the moon, in the laborious light of good action in the meantime; the sun, in the hope of eternal blessed recompense. And well terrible as an army set in array, because the more perfectly it places the order of virtues in itself, the more terrible it is to the aerial powers, and the whole Church and every faithful soul stands: for in certain good deeds, for example, vigils, fasts, manual labor, meditation on Scriptures, the word of preaching, modest silence, whoever does not know how to hold necessary order, errs. For these and many other such things, as they are often held usefully, so also they are sometimes healthfully interrupted for a time. But there are more excellent gifts of virtues, without which one cannot attain life, such as faith, hope, and charity; which ought therefore never by any consideration of time or place to be absent from the hearts of admonishing faithful. Therefore, whatever soul continually fortifies itself with more eminent virtues, and also diligently girds itself for the exercise of lesser ones, where place and hour are fitting, this is terrible to all adversaries as an army set wisely and firmly in order proceeds. This while a few followers of the Jews believe and worthily admire the struggles of the Church, she herself agrees with the one praising and immediately indicates the reason for her military preparations, responding with the voice of the doctors, that is, leaders of her spiritual militia.

I descended into the garden of nuts, etc. For the garden of nuts is the present Church, where we are scarcely able to perceive each other's consciences. Indeed, nuts are all fruits which are covered with a harder shell; conversely, all soft things are generally called evil. Therefore, the life of the righteous is rightly compared to nuts, where they preserve the sweetness of spiritual fruit in their innermost heart in such a way that they cannot make it known to others, how great it is. Hence, it is necessary that Mother Church always keeps a cautiously ordered line of teachers, while she takes care to battle for them and to defend them from the enemy, whose senses and hearts she often does not know. It can also be understood this way: Just as the nut or almond has a very bitter shell and is surrounded by a very hard casing, and after the harsh and hard parts are removed, the sweetest fruit is found inside, so too every correction and labor of continence, which the holy Church is exercised in, seems bitter indeed at present, but produces in the future the sweetest fruit, according to the saying of the Apostle Paul: "For all discipline seems for the moment not to be joy, but grief; afterward, however, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it" (Hebrews XII). However, the valley fruits say the fruit of humility, as it is in the Psalm: "And the valleys will abound with grain" (Psalm LXVI), because indeed the humble are exuberant with the refreshment of heavenly grace. The valley fruits say the good works of the faithful of the holy Church, exhibited in the depths of the earth, but bringing their workers to the merits of the heavenly kingdom. Of which also the Psalmist says, "He planned ascents in his heart in the valley of tears to the place you have set for them" (Psalm LXXXIII). And the bride descended into my garden, to see the fruits of the valley, when the teachers of the Church, from the height of their secret tranquility and divine contemplation, which they are often granted, turn the acumen of their mind to consider the state of the same Church, to diligently explore how much the faithful are progressing in good deeds, how much they still need the help of teachers, and to provide them with vital fruits for cultivation.

I did not know, my soul was troubled within me, etc. I did not know the gifts of spiritual grace with which you were illuminated by the Lord to bring forth the fruits of faith among all nations. The internal anxiety of my mind troubled me because of the sudden introduction of the New Testament in place of the old, while the proclamation of the gospel suddenly filled the whole world instead of the books of the prophets and the law, which I knew to be divine and written by the Holy Spirit. Like swift chariots, it quickly traversed not only Judea and Samaria, but also the borders of all nations, to my amazement and astonishment. I rightly compare it not just to chariots, but to quadrigas; for indeed the authority of four writers commended it to memory, but the mind and hand to write were directed by one Spirit of God through Jesus Christ, like if you see one quadriga prepared for the course by the harmonious speed of four horses, but governed by the guidance of one charioteer, so that they run on the right path. Indeed, I had heard for a long time that four authors would write about Jesus with equal consent, but what spirit drove them, what utility and truth, how much glory and salvation their scripture contained, alas, I deserved to realize and know so late! Moreover, that the quadrigas are called the heralds of the New Testament in the name of Aminadab, signifies the Lord Savior, who, presiding over the chariot, filled the hearts of the preachers with the grace of His Spirit, through whom, by the preceding notion of the saving doctrine, He would reach the peoples about to believe in Him. For Aminadab, who was the great-grandson of the patriarch Judah, in both his person and name indicates the Lord Savior: namely, by his person, because the genealogy of the Lord's incarnation descends from Abraham to King David, from David to Joseph and Mary, in the same manner as the names of Judah and David, and Solomon, and other fathers, from whom Christ descended according to the flesh, are sometimes taken by the prophets to signify Him; as in the phrase, "Judah is a lion’s cub. To the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down, he crouched as a lion, and as a lioness; who shall rouse him up?" (Gen. XLIX). And again: "And I will cleanse them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, and David My servant shall be king over them" (Ezek. XXXVII). And in this very volume: "Go forth, daughters of Zion, and see King Solomon" (Cant. III). However, by his own name, Aminadab, which means "of my people, spontaneous," he fittingly designates the Mediator of God and men, who, although he was God before the ages, united with flesh, when he wanted and how he wanted, appeared as a pious Redeemer among the people of the Church. He became a part of his people through spontaneous kindness, of whom he was the Creator and ruler by natural power. When the Synagogue confesses the long delay of its mind, by which it was hindered from understanding the mysteries of the Lord's incarnation, the Church promptly responds by comforting and exhorting: Return, return, O Shulammite. Return to the knowledge of your Redeemer, from whom for so long you miserably wandered away, so that being imbued with his sacraments, you may become worthy of entering the heavenly life; return to the peace of our brotherhood, which you considered, for a long time, to be despised due to the cause of discordant religion. Return, return, so that we may look upon you: return in the purity of faith, return in the perfection of works, to the love of the Lord together, so that with joyful eyes and minds, we may contemplate the beauty of your chastity, which we have long desired, and with Christ's love uniting us together, we may be built into one house of faith, both in Him, as in the cornerstone. However, I do not remember ever reading the name Shulammite elsewhere; indeed, it seems to be the name of some noblewoman, either proper or derived from a place, who was distinguished at that time by much glory of wisdom, or beauty, or virtue. But if Shulammite, as some say, means despised or captive, this name is fitting for the Synagogue, which, because of the fault of treachery, departed from the grace of its creator, as much as it was captive under the yoke of sin, it remained unworthy in respect to divine kindness. But the Shulammite is asked to return, so that by the obedience of returning to the Lord, she may deserve to be freed from the binding of harmful captivity and be made worthy of the sight of her Redeemer and Savior. While the Church admonishes the Synagogue to return to the grace of its Redeemer, the Redeemer himself, agreeing to her devoted exhortations, suddenly interjects his speech and declares that the consolations of her exhortations are now about to come to effect. For he says:

The joining of your thighs is like a necklace, etc. Scripture often uses the thighs to symbolize the succession of offspring. For it says: All the souls that entered with Jacob into Egypt, and came out from his thigh, apart from the wives of his sons, were sixty-six souls (Gen. XLVI). Thus, in the thighs of the Church, rightly is its offspring taken as the spiritual generation, which is fulfilled through the mystery of the Word and the cleansing of regeneration. But the joining of its thighs is the unity of two peoples. Namely, the Jew and the Gentile, from which, united in one faith, the universal Church is perfected, and is increased and made fruitful with spiritual offspring until the end of the world. This joining is also likened to necklaces because the Catholic faith is declared by the testimony of good works. Moreover, these necklaces are crafted by the hand of a craftsman because the works of virtues, by which the Church is built from two peoples into one, are strengthened by the ineffable generosity of our Creator. For He is that craftsman of whom the Apostle says: And coming, he preached peace to you who were far off; and peace to those who were near, because through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father (Eph. II). And of whose marvelous craftsmanship the Psalmist states: The stone which the builders rejected, this has become the chief cornerstone. This was done by the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes (Ps. CXVII). Of this craftsman’s praise, the Apostle remembers Abraham the patriarch, saying: For he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Heb. II). Properly, then, after the sandaled steps of the bride, the joining of the thighs is praised, because through the ministry of preachers, the unanimous joining of believing peoples is perfected: and aptly, in these places, the joining of the thighs is brought to mind, where Judah, gathered in faith at the end, promised to be united in Christ, is the partner of both peoples. It continues:

Your navel is a rounded goblet, etc. The navel, which is the most fragile member of our body, rightly signifies the frailty of our mortality. And our navel becomes a rounded goblet never lacking in drink, when, reminded of our mortality and frailty, we strive to offer the cup of the word of salvation to our neighbors, so that, as we show mercy, the blessedness of heavenly mercy is repaid to us. There is also nothing to hinder that what is said about the alms of the general cup may be understood, about which the judge himself will say: "I was thirsty, and you gave me drink" (Matthew 25). For a bowl is another, larger, with two handles. About which the poet says, "But when the first rest has come to the feasts and the tables have been removed, And they place great bowls, and crown the wines." And this bowl is rightly said to be turned: for in this way the vessel which is made by turning is filled more quickly than by other crafts, so that namely the speed of bestowing piety, whether to those who need an earthly or a heavenly cup, or even both, may be shown, according to Solomon's statement: "Do not say to your friend, 'Go, and come again, and tomorrow I will give,' when you can give at once" (Proverbs 3). But it must also be said that, as we mentioned above, turning is more indescribable than other arts, because surely from itself it produces its own rule, by which it may accomplish the work it does with disciplined roundness, and therefore rightly insinuates the simplicity of a truly pious mind, which makes alms with pure intention. For whoever gives a cup to the thirsty for this reason, that an equal rewarder may lavish abundance of the earthly cup on him, or for this reason offers the cup of the word to those erring, that the Lord may grant him greater abundance of knowledge, in which he may appear marvelous to men; the cup turned with a lathe is not matched by the navel made with other tools, because in doing a work of mercy as commanded, he does not seek from the Lord a direct and indescribable reward for sustaining his own fragility, but a temporal one. The navel of the bride's turned cup can also be understood to mean that the Church, or any holy soul, the more it remembers itself to be fragile, and still far distant from the immortality and incorruption it hopes for in the future, the more diligently it takes care to refresh itself with the continuous cups of the word of God and to become warmed in its love, saying that of the Psalmist: "And your cup overflows; how splendid it is!"

Your belly is like a heap of wheat surrounded by lilies. The belly, like the navel, denotes our mortal condition: for it is the most certain and greatest judge of our weakness, which daily renews our body with nourishment, lest it fail, until that which we hold promised is achieved: Meat for the belly, and the belly for meat, but God shall destroy both it and them (I Corinthians VI). Therefore, our belly is like a heap of wheat, when mindful of our frailty, we prepare for ourselves the fruits of good works in the present life which perpetually nourish us. However, he says "heap of wheat" well, and not merely a store of wheat, to signify the virtues rising high. And since a heap, rising from a wider base, is usually narrower at the top, this figure rightly suits our good actions, which are fewer in number when they are higher in merit. For you may see more who offer alms from their possessions to the needy than those who leave everything they possess; more good spouses than celibates; more who abstain from physical pleasures than those who lay down their lives for truth. And he well asserted that the same heap of wheat is surrounded by lilies, so we may perform all our good deeds for the sake of eternal love's sight, and allow no hostile encroachments into the field of our hearts, as we encircle all our deeds with the prospect of heavenly reward. The works of almsgiving which we do for Christ in the poor can also be understood in the heap of wheat, concerning which He says: I was hungry, and you gave me food (Matthew XXV). And well after the bowl filled with cups, are the members of the bride compared to a heap of wheat, to signify that after drink, also, bread may be given to the poor: which indeed can be taken in both a spiritual and a bodily sense, that is, in those things by which we instruct the mind of an erring neighbor. For spiritual instruction is recognized as having the likeness of a cup in some words, and bread of life in others: for it has the similarity of a cup in open teachings, but of bread in mysteries. He hands the cup with those things which, as soon as they are heard, can be easily understood and do not require another explanation, as is the case with: "You shall not kill, you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness" (Deut. V), and "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Matt. XXII). He offers bread when he entrusts to his listeners words that are more difficult to understand, which, like food that reaches our insides through chewing, reach the innermost parts of our senses through interpretation. Such is the entire series of this song, such as the law: “Remember the Sabbath day to sanctify it” (Exod. XX), where mystically it is admonished to sanctify the light of spiritual grace, in which alone we have true rest, that is, to keep it always unblemished in our hearts as we receive it on the day of redemption. Thus, these and similar words, to whose understanding we attain with the effort of interpretation, are rightly compared to a heap of wheat, which is brought to the use of our refreshment by no small labor of grinding, sowing, baking, and chewing. But clearer issues that never need the cup are rightly compared to a drink because abundant open commands or promises of God in the Scriptures, like a drink taken without delay or labor, can be understood as soon as they are heard and, when understood, stored in the repository of memory for the growth of our salvation. The immaculate womb of the divine fountain from which we are reborn into a new creature can be most suitably figured in the bride: which, like a heap of wheat hedged with lilies, because it obviously teaches all whom you regenerate in Christ to persist in good works with the sole gaze of heavenly glory. It is like a heap of wheat because it cleanses those whom it washes from all the chaff of sins and makes them conform through second birth to him who said of himself, "Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John XII). It is hedged with lilies because, having freed them from the entanglements of sins with which they were carnally born, it also adorns them with the light of heavenly graces and confirms them.

Two breasts, etc. We have spoken abundantly about this verse above; but now it should be briefly recalled that rightly after the belly of the bride, her breasts are commended, because indeed the holy Church offers milk to her little ones, whom she generates in Christ from the sacrosanct womb of the saving water, from the nourishment of the neophytes, with gentler doctrine, until she gradually instructs them to receive the bread of higher wisdom. Therefore, the breasts of the Church are those who instruct her little ones, that is, those recently reborn in faith: and it is well that they are mentioned as being two, because from two peoples, namely, the Jews and the Gentiles, the saving font which cleanses them and brings them forth by the heavenly mystery, gathers them. They are well compared to the two young fawns of a gazelle, because the true teachers take from the teachings of both Testaments what they preach. It is also fitting that these fawns are said to be twins, because the Testaments themselves are given by the same author, from the one of whom Ecclesiastes says: The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed, given by one shepherd through the counsel of masters (Ecclesiastes XII). Therefore, there are two breasts of the bride, like two twin fawns of a gazelle, because the teachers of the neophytes do not preach their own but speak as from God, before God in Christ; He is the one shepherd, who from two flocks of sheep makes one fold; whose burning desire the bride above cries out: Tell me, you whom my soul loves, where you pasture your flock, where you rest at noon. He is the one teacher of the teachers, for he commanded his disciples, who are our teachers, saying: Go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you (Matthew XXVIII). Rightly also is the name gazelle assigned to him, for it is a clean animal, noteworthy for its sight and speed, splitting the hoof and chewing the cud, and like all clean quadrupeds, armed with horns. If indeed saints of such nature are apt, because they have a split hoof in the discernment of good and evil, and customarily speak sweetly and as if chew the cud on things they discern are good from evil, who have learned to direct the eye of their heart far off, that is, to contemplate heavenly goods from earth; who eagerly desire to penetrate with a swift course the path of virtues; who rejoice that they have received from the grace of their Creator the cleanliness of mind and body, who, with the confidence of faith, raised against the strength of this world, are accustomed to say to God: Through you we shall push down our enemies with the horn (Psalm XLIII), how much more this nature of the animal suits the meaning of the one who possesses all these gifts of virtues in himself and grants them to others according to the measure of his own gift.

Your eyes are like the pools in Heshbon, etc. The same holy preachers, who were compared to the bride's neck for the nourishment of the word, are also designated in the eyes; this means the inspection of the mysteries, which they learn in secret so that they can openly proclaim them, and through those things which they perceived in secret meditation, they minister the manifest nourishment of the holy Church by teaching. These eyes are rightly compared to the pools built in the gate of the city of Heshbon. He also calls this city, because of the abundance of inhabitants, the daughter of the multitude, because just as those same pools, with the citizens flocking to them, used to provide a continuous abundance of water, so the preachers do not cease to provide streams of doctrine to their listeners; with these streams, they themselves are always filled inwardly, just as the pools are full of living springs of water. These pools resonate with that once-famous probatical pool in Jerusalem, in which the water used to be stirred by an angel at certain times, and the first of the sick to descend was healed, because undoubtedly there is one God, one faith, one baptism; which, when the Holy Spirit descends into the font of life, washes one people of believers with the grace of second regeneration, which is aptly called the probatical pool, that is, for sacrificial use, indicating literally that sacrifices used to be washed in it by the priest; and typically expressing that it is proper for those who are to be brought to the holy altar and offered as a sacrifice to God to be washed in the waters of regeneration. Heshbon is rightly set forth as a type of the Church, either because of its name, which is interpreted as girdle of sorrow, or because it once belonged to Sihon, king of the Amorites, and after he was killed it was seized by the children of Israel. For it is certainly known that the Church was once enslaved to the rule of the devil, the king of all iniquities, but after he was expelled and renounced, it became the city of its Redeemer. And now it has taken the name of Church, which was formerly called Gentiles, since, instead of the wanton and fleeting joy of this world, it has girded itself with the most salutary girdle of sorrow: namely, the girdle to restrain the loins of its mind from all uncleanness; and the girdle of sorrow, that being utterly detached and alienated from temporal joys, fixed confidently in the heavens, it might hope to receive joys. This city, that is, the Church, which is also called the daughter of the multitude because of the abundance of people flocking to the faith, has pools in its gate, to which the eyes of the bride are compared, because no one can enter her who has not first been sprinkled with the water of the salutary doctrine, who has not been cleansed by the washing of the water of regeneration, who has not been consecrated by the drinking of the living fountain. This was most clearly and beautifully prefigured in the tabernacle or the temple of Solomon, at whose entrance a basin or brazen sea was placed, where the priests who were about to enter would wash their hands and feet; doubtlessly for a certain mystery’s sake, because the Lord would provide us with the washing of heavenly teaching, with the font of regeneration; by which we, initiated, might be able to enter either the fellowship of the present Church or the dwelling of its eternal home, which is in heaven.

Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon, etc. Because by the nose odors and stench are usually distinguished, the dispensers of the word of God, who had previously been designated for certain reasons to the neck and eyes of the Church; now also for the cause of very beneficial discretion, which is proven by the fathers to be the mother of virtues, is designated in the nose, because certainly by the function of smelling, they are able to discern more than others, in which acts or words the good odor of Christ flourishes, and which exhale the lethal stench of depravity: for indeed the teacher, or any faithful person, has much need of discretion, lest perhaps vices disguise themselves under the guise of virtues, lest they carry something wolf-like under the sheep's clothing, lest cunning be mistaken for prudence, tenacity for frugality, the desire for revenge for justice, harshness for fortitude, the semblance of constancy for the stubbornness of fools. Hence rightly teachers, rightly the chosen ones, who have received this grace from the Lord, that they may be able to separate the odors of virtues from the stench of vices, are said to be like the tower of Lebanon, which looks towards Damascus, because they hold an eminent place in the holy Church, and always with the most cautious eye of the mind watch against the snares of the old enemy. For it has often been said that Mount Lebanon signifies the Lord the Savior and His Church. Conversely, however, Damascus, because it signifies the city of the devil, that is, the crowd of reprobate angels or men, is as clear as light: for it was the metropolis of the whole of Syria, having the most impious and strong kings, who, as rightly carrying the emblem of the devil, inflicted frequent wars and captivities on the people of God, which clearly symbolize the temptations and snares of the devil, with which he continually attacks the Church. But also the fact that Damascus is called the drink of blood or the eye of blood corresponds to their signification, who delight in the allurements of the flesh and of blood, in whom even the very shedding of blood, which is inflicted on the innocent, is counted. It also corresponds to the most perverse intention of the demons, who labor to spiritually slaughter us, and take away from us the eternal life, which we have in Christ. Against both of them the Psalmist prays to the Lord, saying: Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation (Ps. 51:14). For whoever is firmly established in Christ, watches with diligent caution over himself and his own, lest he be overcome by such wars, which are either openly inflicted by men, or secretly by the devil; such a one can rightly be called the nose of the bride of Christ, and be like the tower which is constructed on Mount Lebanon to look towards Damascus, because skilled in discernment and living a sublime life, he provides continuous vigilance lest the Church be disturbed by sudden incursions of evils.

Your neck is like an ivory tower. Because through the neck, both voice and speech proceed, and food, through which all the members of the body are nourished, usually enters; rightly through the neck, as we have previously admonished, the form of teachers is designated, who strengthen the whole body of the Church both with the voice of exhortation and refresh it with the sustenance of life. This neck, indeed, is like an ivory tower, because teachers provide both adornment and strength and the beauty of their lives to the holy city of God, that is, the Church. Because they are proven to be already dead to this world, they show themselves like ivory to all who see; and they defend the city of God, as a tower elevated and impregnable, from the assault of all enemies. For when they say that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for the destruction of fortresses, destroying counsels and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God (II Cor. X), they prove that they are positioned as a tower for the fortification of the holy city; and when the same Paul, describing his and his co-workers' lives, says: For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God, I am crucified with Christ (Galat. II), he signifies that the quality of ivory, that is, of a bone indeed dead but marked by exceptional beauty, belongs to him.

Your head is like Carmel, etc. In the head of the bride, the soul of the faithful is rightly understood, because just as the members are ruled by the head, so are thoughts arranged by the mind. Hence, even the thoughts themselves, which emerge countless times every hour and moment from the human mind, are aptly depicted as hair. What is said about one chosen soul is to be understood by the prudent reader as applying to the whole Church, because even though the multitude of believers differs in merits, they nevertheless have one heart and soul, insofar as they all aspire to the heavenly courts with one and the same faith, hope, and love. Scripture recounts that Elijah prayed on Mount Carmel kneeling, and after a long drought, he obtained rains from the Lord. Thus, the head of the bride is like Carmel, because the hearts of the chosen are elevated through their way of life and provide an ascent to the Lord through their daily progress in virtues. For Elijah is called the Lord God, who prays to the Father in them and, like dry fields, calls rains from heaven because he invisibly ignites them to pray to God, and through their prayers and merits, he often grants his gifts to a world in peril. The name of Carmel, which is interpreted as the knowledge of circumcision, fits the head of the bride, that is, the ecclesiastical mind, which well knows it should not boast in carnal but in spiritual circumcision, about which the Apostle also debates much to the Galatians, and the prophet teaches, saying, "Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your heart" (Jer. IV). The Jews refused to have this knowledge when they only glorified in the outward circumcision. Therefore, they did not know to have their head like Carmel because their mind was set on things below and on the glory of the flesh. Hence, they rightly deserve to be reproached by the voice of the blessed proto-martyr Stephen, saying, "You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit" (Acts VII). And he says, "The hair of your head is like a purple rope bound in channels." The hair of the bride's head, as we said, represents the thoughts of the faithful soul. But the purple signifies the imitation of the Lord's passion, to which the hair of the bride's head is rightly compared, because every thought of the chosen ones is fortified by the holy faith of the cross, and every intention of their heart is ready to suffer for the Lord, so they may deserve to be resurrected with him. But that the same purple is said to be bound in channels can either be understood to mean that the dyed wool, before it is woven, is stored separated in channels, or that, since the wool is dyed in the channels with the blood of the murex, it is there distinguished and tied separately to be dyed. For the purple dye is extracted by cutting with iron the shellfish, that is, the sea snails, which are also called "conchylia," releasing tears of purple color. When collected, they produce the purple dye. This mystically conveys one and the same meaning. For the channels that receive the king’s purple denote the faithful hearts of Christ; thus, the wool that is sent to be dyed in the channels, so that it may become an ornament for the king after dyeing, represents the humility, the mildest and kindest of a faithful conscience, which through sufferings and works of justice attains the appearance of the eternal king. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ (Galatians 3). Now, this wool bound in the channels is dyed with the purple color, because the virtue of humility, fastened and as if bound in the hearts of the elect, is continuously animated by the memory of the Lord’s blood to endure temporal tribulations, by which it may attain to the fellowship of the Lord’s kingdom. And what we have said about the purple bound in the channels can be understood in such a way that fleeces already dyed by the shellfish, before being spun into threads, are kept stored in compartments, symbolizing the higher virtue, since it represents the humility of those who are already exercised in frequent tribulations for the Lord, showing that they can be overcome by no adversities. They say that the perfect dye of purple never fades from sunlight or water sprinkling, and that the tint once received endures. Thus, the bride’s hair on her head is bound in the purple channels of the king, when thoughts prepared in the devoted hearts for God are also ready to die for Christ, so that they may reign with him, making the purple, drawn from the channels, the highest ornament of the king. When the occasion for suffering is given, they show what they have rendered in that heart, bravely prepared to undergo all sorts of adversities and even death, if it happens, for the glory of their Redeemer. This was well represented in the Acts of the Apostles by Lydia, the purple-seller, who, being a fearer of God, was the first to believe and be baptized with her household when Paul preached in Macedonia, and who received him into her house, both when he first preached the word of faith and later when he suffered beatings, imprisonments, and bonds from the infidels. For she foreshadowed in her profession, faith, and obedience the Church made up of the Gentiles, who, imbued with the confession of the Lord’s passion, were themselves to shed their blood for it and to receive deeply in their hearts the apostolic doctrine expelled by the infidels.

How beautiful you are, etc.! Previously, in the praise of the bride, it was said, You are beautiful, my friend, sweet and lovely like Jerusalem, terrible like an army set in array. There, therefore, along with beauty and loveliness, she is said to be terrible as an army set in array; here, she is stated to be beautiful and lovely in delights. However, according to human custom, it is difficult for one and the same person both to lead a life in delights and to be terrible as an army set in array, because indeed delights soften the mind and do not allow it to focus on warlike matters. But where the delights are spiritual, that is, where the desire for eternal sweetness fills the mind’s throat, there the soul becomes terrible to spiritual enemies, and as if an ordered army, it crushes all their weapons; rather, the more it comprehends the taste of internal satisfaction, the more terrifying it becomes to those who have completely lost the glory of the sweetness of heaven, for which they were created, to the bitterness of proud tyranny. And well did the lover of the holy soul say, How beautiful you are, how lovely! that is, how perfect in faith and work, and immediately he added, Most dear in delights. For it is fitting that the soul, which is seen to be devoted to heavenly delights, should be most dear to the Lord, because indeed the more the pure mind tastes the food of life, the more it is inflamed with that love, and the more fervently it loves the heavenly, the more perfectly it is loved by the author and giver of celestial goods themselves. Therefore, the holy soul is most dear to the Lord in delights, because while it ardently hungers for the joys of internal refreshment, the love for its Creator increases in it; and since such a soul also fore-tastes no small portion of the delights of the future reward in the struggle of the present life, it is rightly added:

Your stature is compared to a palm tree, etc. For the stature of the Church is indeed the uprightness of its good work, because, despising to bend down to earthly desires, it raises itself entirely to attain heavenly rewards. The Apostle admonishes concerning this, saying, "Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave" (1 Cor. 16). And the Lord Himself, "I am the Lord, who brought you out of servitude, by which the Egyptians oppressed you, so that you would walk upright" (1 Kings 10). The palm tree, moreover, is adorned with the hand of the victor. And also among the ancients, whoever had won in a contest was crowned with a palm. Therefore, the stature of the bride is compared to a palm, when the entire intention of the faithful, upright in love for heavenly things, meditating meanwhile while standing in the battle line, reflects on that prize, which is to be given as a reward when the contest is over. Likewise, because the palm tree appears rough in its lower parts but shows beauty and the sweetness of its fruit at the top, it is fittingly compared to the stature of the Church, or of any faithful soul, which bears rough labors on earth for the Lord, but hopes to receive a most pleasant reward from the Lord in heaven. The palm is rough near the ground, because the elect suffer persecution for righteousness. It is beautiful and sweet at the top, because they rejoice in tribulations and exult, knowing that their reward is abundant in heaven. Similarly, just as the palm is covered with enduring leaves and preserves its foliage without replacement, who does not see that it holds the symbol of the stature of faith, which, while the state of the passing world changes, retains the same words of true confession, like leaves that neve fall and are kept, and maintains the same perfection of works that began from the outset, as if the beauty of the palms is held inviolate in His chosen ones until the end of the world? And he says, "Your breasts are like clusters." The breasts, as often said, are the teachers of the Church when they minister the milk of initial instruction to the little ones of Christ. But these same breasts are likened to clusters when those teachers, to whom the initial sacraments of His incarnation were entrusted, also reveal the secrets of the divinity, by which He is equal to the Father; and those who previously said, "We resolve to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified" (1 Cor. 2), afterwards say to those capable of receiving more profound teachings, "Whose are the fathers, and from whom according to the flesh, is Christ, who is over all, God blessed forever" (Romans 9). The breasts of the Church are also likened to clusters when the masters of truth at the same time, reveal to mature listeners the great mysteries or teachings of the Scriptures, and offer to those weak in understanding the sustenance of life that they can grasp. To these they say, "If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments; you shall not kill, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not bear false witness. Honor your father and your mother, and you shall love your neighbor as yourself"; but to those they say, "If you wish to be perfect, go and sell all that you have and give to the poor" (Matt. 19), and the like. But these breasts are also likened to clusters, because the Apostle says, "For whether we are beside ourselves, it is for God; whether we be sober, it is for you" (2 Cor. 5). For they fulfill the function of breasts when they temper their words according to what the weak can hear; they are compared to clusters when, being elevated in mind, they are inebriated by the abundance of the house of God and of that house of God which is not made by hands but is eternal in the heavens. But since all the saints, whatever good they possess, have received it by the liberality of divine grace, it is rightly added:

I will seize its fruits. For he indeed seizes the virtues of a faithful soul, so that with the most healthful touch of his compunction, he may always make them fruitful with greater blessing. The fruits of the palm can also be taken as each of the chosen ones, whom the Church brings forth to the Lord, as her own palm; these fruits it indeed seizes when it strengthens its own in faith and love, and to protect them from ever failing, it guards them with its protection to the perfect maturity of life, in accordance with that of the Psalmist: "You have given me the protection of your salvation, your right hand upholds me" (Psalm 17). Moreover, in what follows, "And your breasts will be like clusters of the vine," it can also be understood that those who do not neglect to announce even the small things they know kindly and simply to their neighbors, may sometimes be inebriated with a greater gift of wisdom; and this when the Lord ascends to the palm and seizes its fruits, because unless His grace brings us growth, unless our hearts are fortified by His grace, we can neither have great nor small goods. Aptly, the victorious tree of the cross can also be signified by the name of the palm, to which the stature of the bride is rightly compared, because the holy Church is raised up through the passion of its Redeemer so that it can remain upright, stable, and immovable. It is rightly compared to this because even those who preceded the times of the Lord's incarnation symbolized the mysteries of His passion either by prophesying or even suffering, and the saints of our time also glorify the same sacred triumph of the passion, all indeed by believing and confessing, many however also by dying. But what the bridegroom says, "I said, I will go up to the palm, I will seize its fruits," fits that age when Solomon sang these things, when the Lord often promised through the voices of the prophets that He would come in the flesh for the redemption of the human race; when He proclaimed that He would ascend the tree, dying for His bride, destroying the dominion of death, and as a victor return to life. The fruits of the palm, which He said He would seize, are later signs of glory which followed the ascent of the cross, that is the brightness of His resurrection and ascension to heaven, the coming of the Holy Spirit, and the salvation of the believing world. Which sense is aptly followed by:

I said, I will ascend into the palm tree, etc. For the sole reason is that the breasts of the Church may be equaled to clusters of grapes, because the Lord has deigned to ascend into her and to gift her with His grace. For indeed, so that the teachers may preach both humble things to the little ones and lofty things to the perfect, so that they may both condescend and be temperate with the unskilled, and they themselves may drink deeply in the contemplation of heavenly things, this is not due to their own merit, but it is a gift from heaven. It was said above concerning the Lord, My beloved descended into His garden (Psalm 86); and now He himself says, I will ascend into the palm tree. However, the same Church, or perfect soul, is the Lord's garden, which is also the palm tree. But there is a difference between the Lord ascending into her and descending into her: for He descends into her when He sends her heavenly grace from above, by which she may become heavenly herself and be transferred to the things above; however, He ascends into the same when He more and more reveals the knowledge of His majesty to the faithful, when He inspires in those who are advancing the love of the heavenly homeland, as it were through certain steps striving towards the heights; when to those to whom He previously said, When you have done all that you were commanded, say: We are unworthy servants (Luke XVII), He adds greater gifts, saying, I will no more call you servants, for the servant does not know what his lord does. But I called you friends (John XV). And again: Go, tell my brothers (John XV). Thus, the Lord descends into His garden when He imparts heavenly gifts to the faithful; He ascends into the palm tree when He graciously bestows the increase of virtues on His advancing chosen ones, until He leads them to perfection: concerning which virtues it is aptly added: