John Trapp on Song of Solomon 8:6

Verſ. 6. Set mee as a ſeal upon thine heart] i. e. Bee thou as a merciful and faithful High-Prieſt in things pertaining to God, Heb. 2.17. with Exod. 28.21, 29. Remember mee for good, and make mention of mee to thy Father. Have mee alſo in pretious eſteem, as great men have the ſignets upon their right hands; and as whatſoever is ſealed with a ſeal, that is excellent in its own kinde, as Iſa. 28.25. hordeum ſignatum, excellent barly. Chriſt wears his people as a ſignet, or as great men wear their jewels, to make him glorious in the eyes of men; neither will hee bee plundered of them by the Churches enemies: to touch them,Zech. 2.8. is to touch the apple of his eye, that tendereſt piece of the tendereſt part. The Proverb is, Oculus & fama non patiuntur jocos, The eye and the good name can bear with no jeſts. As the Saints are in Chriſts heart, ad commoriendum & convivendum, ſo they are alſo upon his arm, ſo that if they do but come and ſay in any danger or difficulty, Awake, awake, put on ſtrength, O arm of the Lord, awake as in the ancient days, &c. Iſa. 51.9. hee will redeem his people with his arm, Pſal. 77.15. yea, with his out-ſtretcht arm, Exod. 6.6. that is, with might and open manifeſtation of his love: hee will awake as one out of ſleep, and like a man that ſhouteth by reaſon of wine, Pſal. 78.65.

For love is ſtrong as death] And yet death is ſo ſtrong, that it paſſeth over all men, Rom. 5.12. and devoureth them as ſheep, Pſal. 49.14. as a rot it over-runneth the whole flock, having for its Motto, Nulli cedo, I yield to none: Onely love is strong as death, nay, ſtronger. Jonathan would have died for the love of David, David of Abſolom. Arſinoe interpoſed her ſelf between the Murtherers weapons ſent by Ptolomy her brother, to kill her children. Priſcilla and Aquila for St. Pauls life laid down their own necks, Rom. 16.4. Paul was in deaths often for Jeſus ſake. Thoſe primitive Martyrs loved not their lives unto the death, Rev. 12.11. Certatim glorioſa in certamina ruebatur, ſaith Sulpitius, they were prodigal of their deareſt lives, and even ambitious of Martyrdome; that thereby they might ſeal up their entire love to the Lord Jeſus. If every hair of mine head were a man,Act. & Mon. fol. 1438. I would ſuffer death in the opinion and faith that I am now in, ſaid John Ardley Martyr to Biſhop Bonner. Ignis, crux, beſtiarum conflictationes, oſſium diſtractiones, &c. Let mee ſuffer fire, croſs, breaking of my bones, quartering of my members, cruſhing of my body, and all the torments that men or devils can deviſe, ſo I may enjoy my Lord Jeſus Chriſt, ſaid holy Ignatius; whoſe Motto was, Amor meus crucifixus, my love was crucified. Love is it ſelf a paſſion, and delights to ſhew it ſelf in ſuffering for the party beloved; yea, though it were to paſs through a thouſand deaths for his ſake. And this is here yielded as a reaſon why the Spouſe firſt awakened Chriſt, and now deſires to bee ſo nearly knit unto him, to bee ſet as a ſeal upon his hand, yea, upon his heart, the love of Chriſt conſtrained her, and lay ſo hard upon her, that ſhe could do no leſs than beg ſuch a boon of him, than covet ſuch a courteſie, as a compenſation of her deareſt love to him. And ſurely to account Chriſt precious as a tree of life, although wee bee faſtned to him as to a ſtake to bee burned, this is love; and this our labour of love cannot be in vain in the Lord.

Jealouſie is cruel as the grave] Or, zeal is hard as hell. This follows well upon the former,Contra Adamant. c. 13. for, Non amat qui non zel[illegible: 1 letter]t, ſaith Auguſtine. Zeal is the extream heat of love and other affections for and toward any whom wee eſteem: burning in our love to him, deſire of him, delight in him, indignation againſt any that ſpeak or do ought againſt him. The object of zeal is, either Man, as 2 Cor. 7.7. Coloſſ. 4.17. Baſil venturing himſelf very far for his friend, and by ſome blamed for it, anſwered, Ego aliter amare non didici, I cannot love a man, but I muſt do mine utmoſt for him. Or (Secondly) God, as John 3.17. 2 Cor. 7.11. Rev. 3.19. And here out love will be, and muſt appear to be fervent, deſire eager, delights raviſhing, hopes longing, hatred deadly, anger fierce, fear terrible, grief deep, deeper than thoſe black deeps, (a place ſo called) at the Thames-mouth, whereinto Richard the third cauſed the dead bodies of his two ſmothered Nephews to be caſt, Speed 935. being firſt cloſed up in lead, &c.

The coals thereof are coals of fire] Or, fiery darts that ſet the ſoul all on a light fire, and turn it into a coal or lump of love to Chriſt. The word here uſed is elſewhere taken for fiery thunderbolts, Pſal. 78.48. and for braſs-headed arrows, that gather heat by motion, Pſal. 76.4. alſo for a carbuncle, or burning feaver, Deut. 32.24. The Church had ſaid before, more than once, that ſhee was ſick of love: here ſhee feels her ſelf in a feaver as it were, or as if her liver were ſtruck through with a love-dart, by that spirit of judgement, and of burning, (Iſa. 4.4.) kindling this flame of God, as ſhee calls it here, upon the ha[illegible: 1 letter]h of her heart. The word ſignifies the conſuming flame of God: and zeal may be very fitly ſo called; For as it comes from above, even from the father of lights, (as the fire of the Altar did) ſo it tends to him, and ends in him; it carries a man up, as it were, in a fiery Chariot, and conformes his corruptions by the way: It quencheth alſo thoſe fiery darts of the devill, (as the Sun-beams will put out the kitchin fire) and ſets the tongue a work, as the Holy Ghoſt ſet on fire the Apoſtles tongues, Act. 2. (when as wicked mens tongues, full of deadly poyſon, are yet further ſet on fire from hell, Jam. 3.6.) yea, the whole man a work for God and his glory, as Elias with his Zelando zelavi. (hee ſucked in fire with his mothers breaſt, as ſome have legended) St. Paul is mad for God (ſo ſome misjudged him, 2 Cor. 5.13.) as ever hee had once been againſt him, Act. 26.11. Peter was a man made all of fire, walking amongſt ſtubble, ſaith Chryſoſtome. And of one that deſired to know what manner of man Baſil was, it is ſaid, there was preſented in a dream a pillar of fire with this Motto, Talis eſt Baſilius, ſuch an one is Baſil. Such alſo was Savanarola, Farel, Luther, Latimer, that bold Tell-troth; who when hee was demanded the reaſon why there was ſo much preaching, and ſo little practiced, anſwered roundly, deeſt ignis, the flame of God is wanting in mens hearts.