lies:--

As the apple-tree (the citron) among the trees of the wood,
So is my Beloved among the sons.
I sat down under His shadow with great delight,
And His fruit was sweet to my taste.

The citron is a beautiful evergreen, affording delightful shade as well
as refreshing fruit. A humble wild flower herself, she recognizes her
Bridegroom as a noble tree, alike ornamental and fruitful. Shade from
the burning sun, refreshment and rest she finds in Him. What a contrast
her present position and feelings to those with which this section
commenced! He knew full well the cause of all her fears; her distrust
sprang from her ignorance of Himself, so He took her aside, and in the
sweet intimacies of mutual love her fears and distrust have vanished,
like the mists of the morning before the rising sun.

But now that she has learned to know Him, she has a further experience
of His love. He is not ashamed to acknowledge her publicly.

He brought me to the banqueting house,
And His banner over me was love.

The house of wine is now as appropriate as the King's chambers were.
Fearlessly and without shame she can sit at His side, His acknowledged
spouse, the bride of His choice. Overwhelmed with His love she
exclaims:--

Stay ye me with raisins, comfort me with apples:
For I am sick of love.
His left hand is under my head,
And His right hand doth embrace me.

Now she finds the blessedness of being possessed. No longer her own,
heart-rest is alike her right and her enjoyment; and so the Bridegroom
would have it.

I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
By the roes, and by the hinds of the field,
That ye stir not up nor awake My love,
Until she[2] please.

It is never by His will that our rest in Him is disturbed.

You may always be abiding,
If you will, at JESUS' side;
In the secret of His presence
You may every moment hide.

There is no change in His love; He is the same yesterday, to-day, and
for ever. To us He promises, "I will never leave thee, never fail thee,
nor forsake thee"; and His earnest exhortation and command is, "Abide in
Me, and I in you."

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Loves = endearments, caresses.

[2] The pronoun here and in chapter iii. 5, and viii. 4, should not be
"he" as A.V., nor "it" as R.V., but "she."

SECTION II