*

*

9

Pfal. 16.

mons throne exceeded his in all other magnificence: h fo did his name exceed h 1.King. his also, yet this is no difparagement 1.47. to the other Songs; fo neither that fome of Davids Pfalmes fhould bee ftiled golden Pfalmes: All purified gold; yet fome gold wrought more exquifitely then others, and finer en-i graven then others; even fome portion 6. of the pure and holy word of God, more exquifitely penned and polished then other.

56,57,58, 52.

Pfal, 12.

The first Reason why this Song is Reafon. more excellent then others, is, because this Song fpeaketh not onely of the chiefeft matter, to wit, Chrift and his Church; but also more largely then any of Davids Pfalmes, and with more ftore of more fweet and precious, exquifite and amiable Resemblances, taken from the richest Jewels, the fweeteft Spices, Gardens, Orchards, Vineyards, Winecellars, and the chiefeft beauties of all the workes of God and Man.

Secondly, this Song admitteth more Reafon. 2. varietie of interpretation then any other, and alfo of fingular ufe: fome have applied it to expreffe the mutuall af

fection

10 This fong an hiftoricall prophecie. Chap.1

I

2

Reafon 3.

fection and fellowship betweene Chrift and every Christian foule; fome between Chrift and the Catholick Church; fome to particular Churches, from Solomons time to the laft judgement: And there is an holy and usefull truth in each one of these interpretations; but the laft doth exceedingly magnifie the wonderfull excellency of this Song, making it a divine abridgement of the Acts and Monuments of the Church. And that this booke was chiefly penned to bee fuch an historicall prophecie or propheticall history, may appeare,

First, by the Correspondency, or futableneffe of the words of this Song, to the events of each age.

Secondly, by the Repetition of the fame defcription, and other occurrences in divers parts of this Song; which would be a needleffe tautologie, if it were fpoken of the fame perfons in the fame time; as you may fee if you compare Chap. 4.2.with 6.6. and 2.7. with 3.5. and 8.4.3.6. with 8. 5.

Thirdly, by the diverfities of defcriptions of fome perfons, which would

Chap. 1 This Song proved Canonicall.

II

6. with ch. 5.7,8,9. Keafon 4.

Chap.3.6.

and 6. 10. and 8. 5.

Ufe 1.

would intimate and imply a contra- Chap.3.3. diction, if they were not spoken of severall times and feverall perfons. Fourthly, by the fudden admiration of fome new perfons and occurrences. First, wee may here fee, the eldeft fonne of Wifedome giveth the double portion of excellency to this Song above all others; yea, fince the Holy Ghost giveth it, it is not therefore onely Canonicall Scripture, but an eminent portion of it. It were profane blafphemie to preferre this Song above other Songs of holy Scripture, if it were not alfo given by divine infpiration as well as they to preferre the invention of Man before the wifedome of God were facrilegious madneffe. And although none of Gods ten proper names in Hebrew be once mentioned in thisSong, yet that impeacheth not the authority of this booke more then it doth of Hefter, where no name of God is mentioned at all. Befides, this booke is full of fuch names of God as fute more with the arguments; as, Welbeloved Brother, Shepheard, O thou whom my foule loveth, the Chap.1.7, chiefeft of ten thousand.

Secondly,

8,9. and

5.10.

12

Use 2.

ufe 3.

Solomon proved to be faved. Chap.1. Secondly, this must exhort us to a more studious reading and meditating of this booke, as of a moft excellent portion of holy Writ.

Thirdly, this fhewes us, that as this Scripture is Canonicall, fo the Pen-man of it is a Canonicall Saint in Heaven; for hee must needs be fo, according to that (not of Peters fucceffor, as the Papifts would have it, but) of S. Peter himselfe : 2.Pet.1.k Holy men of God fpake as they were moved

21.

28.

by the Holy Ghoft fo that hee muft needs be a Saint by S.Peters confeffion; and not I Luk. 13. he onely, but Chrift himselfe faith, 1 All the Prophets are in the kingdome of God. Now, all the Prophets came not neere this Prophet; and there was no Scripture but it was penned by a Propheticall and Apoftolicall fpirit, and though Solomon m 2.Sam. did fall, yet m If he commit Iniquitie, I will chaften him with the rod of Men, &c. verfe 15. But my mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul. If fome fay, By this it was meant that God would not take awayhis kingdom; to this it is answered,he did take it away, but hee would not deale with him as he dealt with Saul: fo then this telleth us Solomon is a Saint in Hea

7.14, 15.

ven.

[which

Chap.1. Solomon a canonized Saint.

n

[Which is Solomons.] Solomon the penner of it, but a wifer then Solomon indited it: The Holy Ghoft maketh choice of his Inftruments, according to the ufe he had to put them to; to fet forth the estate of his Church by the choycest treafures of nature: Hee ufeth Solomons fpirit, which was as large as the fand of the Sea fhore. And as God led Mofes to the top of mount Pifgah, to behold all the places and fituations of Ifrael: So he lifted up Solomons fpirit to the mountaine of Activitie, (that I may fo fpeake,) where onely all times to come are prefent, to behold the estate of the Church throughout the prefent, and all after

ages.

13

The text

verfe 1.

n 1.King. 4. 29, 30. Deut. 34. 1.7.

This is to teach us, as it was faid be- Ufe 1. fore, that Solomon is a canonized Saint, elfe hee had not beene a Pen-man of Canonicall Scripture, canonized,not by Peters pretended fucceffors, who have fhamefully erred in this kinde; but by Peter himfelfe, yea by a greater then Peter or Solomon, even Chrift Jefus: 21. That promife P reacheth further then to preferre Solomon before Saul in referving the kingdome to his pofterity, which 7.14, 15.

he

* 2. Pet.1.

o Luk. 13.

28,

P 2. Sam.