Make haste, my beloved, and be thou like to a roe or to a young hart upon the mountains of spices.
Ver. 14. Make haste, my beloved.] Heb., Flee, or speed thee away, as Amaziah said to Amos, "Go, flee thee away into the land of Judah." Amo 7:12 And as a senator of Hala in Suevia wrote to Brentius, Fuge, fuge, Brenti, cito citius citissime, Make all possible speed, haste, haste, haste; so the Church is at it here, with her "Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly." Rev 22:20 O mora! Christe, veni. Oh delay, Christ come. Thus, as this book began with a wish, so it ends. Tota vita boni Christiani sanctum desiderium est: a The whole life of a good Christian is a holy wish. He loves, and longs, and looks for Christ's second appearance, and even spends and exhales himself in continual sallies and egressions of affection unto him in the meanwhile. He hath taken some turns with Christ upon those "mountains of spices," - so heaven is called for its unconceivable height and sweetness; he hath tasted of the grapes of this celestial Canaan; hence he is as eager after it as once the Gauls were after Italy, when they had once tasted of the sweet wine of those grapes that grew there. b The old character of God's people was, they waited for the consolation of Israel, Christ's first coming. Now they long as much for his second as the espoused maid doth after the marriage, as the apprentice for his freedom, the captive for his ransom, the traveller for his inn, the mariner for the haven, "looking for, and hasting c the coming of that day of God." 2Pe 3:12
a Augustine
b Plut. in Vita. Camilli.
c σπευδοντας την παρουσιαν, see /LXXE Isaiah 16:5, Septuag.
Soli Deo gloria aeternum