THE MAN CHRIST JESUS: the man anointed by God with the Holy Ghost and with power, who went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed with the devil (for God was with Him), is before us, as we read, “Because of the savor of Thy good ointments, Thy name is as ointment poured forth; therefore do the virgins love Thee” (verse 3).
Here we have these three things:―1. THE GOOD OINTMENT; 2. THE FRAGRANT NAME; and 3. THE VIRGIN-LOVE.
“In fragrance Thine unguents are good;
An unguent poured forth is Thy name,
Therefore virgins love thee.”
1. THE OINTMENTS. ―The perfumes of our Lord Jesus are rich in fragrance. His name is perfume poured forth; and those who know His love, and love Him above all things, are ever ready to tell out their appreciation of His name and affection for Him, and also to give it body and shape in deeds of self-sacrificing devotedness.
It was customary among Orientals to use rich and costly fragrant oils for health and beauty, and on public occasions, such as feasts and marriages, as well as for daily use as among ourselves. Says a modern author:
“The custom of anointing the body is usual in hot climates. Even the Greeks, Romans, and others, whose limbs were mostly protected by clothes from the dryness of the air, found the advantage of its use. In going to entertainments it is probable that, like the Greeks, the Egyptians anointed themselves before they left home; but still it was customary for a servant to attend every guest as he seated himself, and to anoint his head, and this was one of the principal tokens of welcome. The ointment was contained sometimes in an alabaster, sometimes in an elegant porcelain vase; and so strong was the odor, and so perfectly were the different component substances amalgamated, that some of this ancient ointment in one of the alabaster vases in the museum of Alnwick Castle yet retains its scent, though between two and three thousand years old.”
Whatever we may think of the likelihood of this, it conveys to us the beautiful truth that the good ointments of our Anointed One are still as delicious in their fragrance after the lapse of nearly two thousand years, as when the Holy Spirit, like a dove, descended upon Him, and the Father testified from the opened heaven to His well-pleased-ness in Him; and the savor of His good ointments will perfume the Father’s house of many mansions, the throne of God and the Lamb in the heavenly city, and cause the nations to rejoice throughout the redeemed earth in the days when the heavens shall rule, and when the whole earth shall be filled with His glory.
In order to typify the coming anointing of the Holy Ghost and the graces of the Spirit, the Lord instructed Moses to make “an holy anointing oil,” as we read in Exodus 30:23-3823Take thou also unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet calamus two hundred and fifty shekels, 24And of cassia five hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and of oil olive an hin: 25And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil. 26And thou shalt anoint the tabernacle of the congregation therewith, and the ark of the testimony, 27And the table and all his vessels, and the candlestick and his vessels, and the altar of incense, 28And the altar of burnt offering with all his vessels, and the laver and his foot. 29And thou shalt sanctify them, that they may be most holy: whatsoever toucheth them shall be holy. 30And thou shalt anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office. 31And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, This shall be an holy anointing oil unto me throughout your generations. 32Upon man's flesh shall it not be poured, neither shall ye make any other like it, after the composition of it: it is holy, and it shall be holy unto you. 33Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a stranger, shall even be cut off from his people. 34And the Lord said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight: 35And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy: 36And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy. 37And as for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto thee holy for the Lord. 38Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people. (Exodus 30:23‑38): “Take thou unto thee principal spices,... and thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compounded after the art of the perfumer; it shall be was carried on may be inferred from Seneca, Epist. 86, who says that people anointed themselves twice or even three times a day, in order that the delicious fragrance might never diminish. The wealthy Greeks and Romans carried their ointments and perfumes with them, in small boxes of costly materials and beautiful workmanship. “― an holy anointing oil.” With this fragrant oil the tabernacle with all its furniture was anointed, as well as Aaron and his sons, who set forth Christ and the Church. This holy anointing oil was to be exclusively kept for the sanctuary of God. It was not to be put upon man’s flesh, nor on a stranger, but it was to be put before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where, said Jehovah, “I will meet with thee: it shall be to you most holy. And as for the perfume that thou shalt make, ye shall not make unto yourselves according to the composition thereof; it shall be unto thee holy for the LORD. Whosoever shall make like unto that to smell thereto shall even be cut off from his people.”
When Jesus was conceived it was by the Holy Ghost. By the same Spirit He was visibly anointed at His baptism, just as Aaron was anointed without blood (Exod. 29:77Then shalt thou take the anointing oil, and pour it upon his head, and anoint him. (Exodus 29:7)); but in order that we might have the anointing of the Spirit, Jesus offered Himself by the eternal Spirit a sacrifice unto God for our redemption―as Aaron’s sons were first sprinkled with blood, and then anointed with the holy anointing oil. “Thou shalt take of the blood that is upon the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it upon Aaron and upon his garments, and upon his sons, and upon the garments of his sons with him” (Exod. 29:20, 2120Then shalt thou kill the ram, and take of his blood, and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons, and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the great toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about. 21And thou shalt take of the blood that is upon the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it upon Aaron, and upon his garments, and upon his sons, and upon the garments of his sons with him: and he shall be hallowed, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons' garments with him. (Exodus 29:20‑21)). It was because of His own perfection that Jesus was anointed with the Holy Ghost when here; but it is also because of His accomplished work in obedience unto death on Calvary that He has been crowned with glory and honor, as our anointed Aaron, and “like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard―Aaron’s beard; that went down to the skirts of his garents,”―so “This Jesus... being by the right hand of God exalted” ―and “anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows,” “and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, He hath shed forth this which ye now see and hear;” the “precious oil” on the head of Christ has flowed down to the skirts of His garments, and the saints and He are thereby formed into one body―though as in all things, so in being head, He has the pre-eminence.
In Christ Jesus, when on earth, we see the lowly, self-humbled man, formed as to His humanity by and filled with the Holy Ghost, by whom the, divine perfection of His character was developed and all His graces were rendered fragrant. As the vessel of “grace and truth” He was filled with the Holy Ghost, and He was the perfection of manhood to God, and “altogether lovely” in the eyes of such as had the “anointing which teacheth all things,” to discover the engaging perfections of His attractive character. As one has well said― “There was no unevenness in Jesus; there was nothing salient in His character, because all was in perfect subjection to God in His humanity, and had its place, and did exactly its service, and then disappeared. God was glorified in it, and all was in harmony. The hand that struck the chord found all in tune: all answered to the mind of Him whose thoughts of grace and holiness, of goodness yet of judgment of evil, whose fullness of blessing in goodness were sounds of sweetness to every weary ear, and found in Christ their only expression. Every element, every faculty in His humanity, responded to the impulse which the divine will gave to it, and then ceased in a tranquility in which self had no place.” “The savor of Thy ointments is good.”
Christ’s graces were always emitting a delicious fragrance, and all went up in a sweet savor to God like the fragrance of the frankincense that was offered with the meat-offering in the Jewish tabernacle. The perfume of the life of Jesus was unique ―the holy anointing oil of the sanctuary, which was peculiarly His own; for God anointed Him with the Holy Ghost―God gave not the Spirit by measure unto Him. “All thy garments smell of aloes and myrrh and cassia out of the ivory palaces.” “Garments” symbolize character and outward conduct. In all Christ spoke, taught, did, or suffered, there was the perfume of the “holy anointing oil.” He was indeed the Christ―the Anointed―the Messiah promised. He was “conceived of the Holy Ghost” (Matt. 1:2020But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. (Matthew 1:20)); at His baptism John “saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting upon Him, and lo a voice from heaven saying, This is my beloved SON, in whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:16, 1716And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (Matthew 3:16‑17)); He could say, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed me” (Luke 4:1818The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, (Luke 4:18)); He was “by the right hand of God exalted, and received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost;” and being anointed in the upper sanctuary as a King-priest “with the oil of gladness,” after His work on earth to glorify the Father had been finished, the anointing has descended upon all the members of His body, and He hath thereby made us “kings and priests unto God and His Father;” and this is “the unction from the Holy One,” Christ exalted, “which teacheth us all things,” is the “seal” of accomplished redemption, and the “earnest” of promised glory.
And that we who have Christ as our life, the Spirit as our unction, the things above as our portion, and the Word of Christ as our directory, may be a sweet savor of Christ in our daily life, we are enjoined to array ourselves in the perfumed “garments” of the “royal priesthood,” with Christ “all and in all.” “Put on, therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering; forbearing one another and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any; even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye; and above all these things put on LOVE, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body, and be ye thankful:” and that it may be felt by all around you that you have shared with Christ when “anointed with the oil of gladness,” “let the Word of CHRIST dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another, in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord; and whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks unto GOD and the FATHER by HIM” (Col. 3:12-1712Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; 13Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. 14And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. 15And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. (Colossians 3:12‑17)).
And as the vessels of the tabernacle were anointed with the “holy anointing oil,” so those who are “vessels of mercy” are fitted by the Spirit’s unction “for the Master’s use;” and we are also enabled, as a holy priesthood, “to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”
It is a sure sign of advancement in the divine life when we become enamored of and engrossed with the person of Christ, and love to trace the lowly steps of Him “who, in the days of His flesh,” was the obedient Son of God and a stranger here; and all His human life was characterized by being the Vessel of all those gracious qualities that made Him the One on whom the Father’s eye could rest, and in whom He could delight. All fullness dwelt in Him personally: fullness of “grace and truth” —light, life, and love; “and out of His fullness have all we received, and grace for grace” —grace in us by the Holy Ghost answering to grace in Him by the same Spirit; for the germ of every grace in Christ is in all Christians, hence our responsibility to be “the epistle of Christ.” He is the corn of wheat that has fallen into the ground and died, and now produceth the much fruit in us who believe, being possessed of the like qualities “in newness of life;” as the yellow harvest is the same in kind as the seed-corn from which it has sprung, grown, and ripened.
And as ointment having a good savor bespeaks its own presence, so Christ’s face shone with the heavenly anointing, and he could not be hid; for grace having been poured into His lips, “all bare Him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth;” and as the “oil and wine” of the good Samaritan, “virtue went out of Him and healed them all.” And as fragrant oils were pleasing and refreshing at feasts, so pleasing are the graces of Christ to the soul admitted to the banquet of His love, for then truly His “ointment and perfume rejoice the heart” (Prov. 27:99Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel. (Proverbs 27:9)). Such fragrant ointments were refreshing to Christ himself: “I do always the things which please Him; I delight to do Thy will, O my God! Thy law is within my heart. I thank Thee, O Father; even so Father, for so it seemed good in Thy sight. My meat is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to finish His work I have glorified Thee upon the earth, I have finished the work which Thou gavest me to do.” And as the savor of His good ointments—His meekness, lowliness, self-sacrifice, loving obedience, and devotedness—reaches us, we are “filled with all joy and peace in believing;” for “the friend of the Bridegroom, who standeth and heareth Him, rejoiceth, greatly because of the Bridegroom’s voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.” His “ointment and perfume rejoice the heart:” for “such an High Priest became us who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners... the Son consecrated forever more; anointed with the oil of gladness, crowned with glory and honor, and set down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens.”
“Now, from what hath been said it is evident that these precious ointments here mentioned were but types and shadows of Christ’s graces. Firstly, As they were in Himself; secondly, As they are conveyed and manifested in His members; and thirdly, As they are denied to unbelievers (Rom. 8:99But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. (Romans 8:9)). All which do show of what a redolent savor, and of what odoriferous sweetness, all the anointings of God are in JESUS CHRIST.”
2. THE NAME. ― “Thy name is as ointment poured forth.” The soul that knows Him as its Saviour is caught at once by the savor of His good ointments whenever there is the faintest whisper of His precious Name.
“How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
In a believer’s ear!
It soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds,
And drives away his fear?”
The name in Scripture is given as expressive of some quality in the person, and to signalize some blessing granted or work accomplished. Jacob was called Israel, because as a Prince he had power with God; and Simon was called Cephas or Peter in anticipation of his connection with the confession of the Son of God as the Rock on which the Church was to be built; and so we find the Holy Ghost giving the Messiah―the Christ―the name of JESUS, “because He shall save His people from their sins.” The Jehovah-Saviour, long promised, has come, and has been presented as the Messiah, which is by interpretation the Christ―the Anointed One; and it is remarkable how richly the odor of His Name is diffused in even one chapter―the first of the Gospel by John. He is introduced as the Word who was in the beginning with God, and was God, by whom all things were made; and the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us; and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. The glory of the only begotten of the Father is the glory of grace and truth: for as the Light He made all manifest; and as the Love He met in grace all the need the light revealed. His name, as the Son of the Father in the fullness of grace, is like ointment poured forth all through the Gospel; and “the Lamb of God” pointed Him out, His name was as ointment poured forth, and the two disciples that heard John speak followed Jesus. Then spread the fragrance of His name, and they said, “We have found the Messias, which is being interpreted the Christ.” “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law and the prophets did write, Jesus of Nazareth.” And when the guileless Nathanael saw him and heard His voice, he said, “Rabbi, thou art the Son of God, thou art the King of Israel.” And as He, the stranger-Son of God, moves from scene to scene in this Gospel, and meets sinner after sinner alone, and lets forth the fragrance of His good ointments, one after another confesses Him as the Son of God in the glory of His grace.
And Jesus’ “name is as ointment poured forth.” His name is Himself―His nature, graces, work, and glory. When Mary’s fragrant ointment was poured on Him “the whole house was filled with the odor of the ointment” (Mark 14:33And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious; and she brake the box, and poured it on his head. (Mark 14:3)). When Jesus was moving from place to place full of grace and truth, and working in grace, He let forth the savor of His good ointment in deeds and words of love. “There went out a fame of Him” everywhere, and the needy multitudes came to Him from all sides, and testified He hath done all things well; for the sick were recovered; the diseased were healed; the deaf and dumb, the blind and lame, the palsied and dropsical, were made the subjects of His gracious power: and the devils were cast out, and the very dead heard the voice of the Son of God, and were made to own his gracious quickening energy. They were all astonished at His doctrine, for His word was with power. “And the fame of Him went out into every place.”
But it is when we look to the cross that we can say with fullest intelligence, “Thy Name is as ointment poured forth,” for it was there that He “poured out His life unto death,” and He “His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree;” it is there we perceive the love, because “He laid down His life for us,” and “He offered Himself without spot unto God.” There we perceive that “Christ hath loved us, and given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice unto God for a sweet-smelling savor” (Eph. 5:22And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savor. (Ephesians 5:2)). All He was in loving devotedness for the glory of God and our redemption, for establishing righteousness for the throne of God and peace for our consciences, was “poured forth” on Calvary; and as the preachers went from land to land spreading His gospel, and bearing His name before the Gentiles, and kings and children of Israel, they could say, “Now thanks be to God who causeth us always to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savor of His knowledge by us in every place” (2 Cor. 14). Were we able fully to tell out by the Holy Ghost all the excellences of His person; the perfection of His sacrificial work; His death, His resurrection, His ascension; His present life of loving intercessional and priestly service for us in heaven; His love, grace, and glory, that would make all who are capable of relishing the fragrance of His good ointments say with the Bride, “Thy name is as ointment poured forth.”
And when His Name is fully preached, and “the gospel of the glory of Christ” is spiritually apprehended, “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” shines in the heart, and we “beholding, as in a glass, the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord;” and “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty,” and “we rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.”
“Because of the savor of Thy good ointments, Thy name is as an ointment poured forth, therefore do the virgins love Thee.” “Thy name is as ointment poured forth.” The savor of His ointment (as another writes with deep spiritual appreciation) is not confined to the Spouse herself; those associated with her share in its profusion. The attendant virgins are attracted and refreshed by the sweet odors of His name. Happy thought! It is not an ointment sealed up, but “poured forth.” O what fellowship there is in the love of Jesus! Here pause a little, O my soul, and meditate on the fullness of THE NAME of Jesus “for in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.”
What a center, what a source it is Around it the Church of God is gathered as its only center, by the quickening power and indwelling of the Holy Ghost. “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them.”
But, ere long, the heavens and the earth shall be united by its power and glory. The earthly Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with all the surrounding nations, the heavenly Jerusalem, and the innumerable company of angels―the general assembly and church of the firstborn which are written in heaven shall be attracted to, and united by, that one, dear, uniting name. The Father hath purposed this wondrous glory for His Son; and it shall surely come to pass, “That in the dispensation of the fullness of time (the millennium) He might gather together in one (under one head) all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth, even in Him” (Eph. 1:1111In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: (Ephesians 1:11)). Then shall the fragrance of His name be wafted on every breeze, and all kindreds and tongues shall unite in that note of praise, “O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is THY NAME in all the earth” (Psalm 82I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High. (Psalm 9:2)).
And when the thousand years of millennial blessing and glory shall have run their course, the heavens and the earth fled away, and the final judgment past, that NAME shall have lost none of its fragrance, power, and glory. It will then unite, in sweetest love, in holiest bonds, the many circles, the countless myriads of the new heavens and the new earth. The joy of every heart, the melody of every tongue, shall find their spring, power, motive, and object in Him. Every mountain of myrrh, and every hill of frankincense, shall owe their sweetness to His presence. And still His name shall be as ointment poured forth; yes, “poured forth,” and “poured forth” forever. All his garments smelling of myrrh, aloes, and cassia, in the ivory palaces. And as age after age rolls on, the rich and varied graces of His love shall still be “poured forth” in infinite profusion, causing all hands and hearts and lips to drop with sweet-smelling myrrh, and filling every scene throughout the vast realms of the blest with the eternal fragrance of His name.
“Jesus is the name we treasure;
Name beyond what words can tell;
Name of gladness, Name of pleasure,
Ear and heart delighting well;
Name of sweetness passing measure,
Saving us from sin and hell.
“‘Tis the name that whoso preacheth
Speaks like music to the ear;
Who in prayer this name beseecheth
Sweetest comfort findeth near;
Who its perfect wisdom reacheth
Heavenly joy possesseth here.”
3. THE VIRGIN-LOVE.― “Therefore virgins love thee.” It is not the virgins: but virgins as such. The reason for the love is on account of all the excellences in His name—in Himself unfolded, communicated, and enjoyed.
Virgins who love Christ are such as have “oil in their vessels with their lamps,” and have gone forth to meet the Bridegroom (Matt. 25); especially may such as are true to their proper calling be intended, who are glowing with fresh, warm, strong love to Him because of the savor of His good ointments―the knowledge of Himself and the realization of His dying love for them filling their souls with a responsive affection.
Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you a chaste virgin to Christ.”
The leading idea in both passages is chastity and purity. This, of course, is figurative, for, says Paul, “I fear lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ;” and he adds, “another Jesus―another Spirit―another gospel.” The virgin-believer is one who clings to Christ in holy love, is under subjection to His Spirit, and is not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God unto salvation; and is proof against the insidious, serpent-like undermining of the Christian faith which comes from the blandishments of personable men in the Church, whose links of connection with the world have never been cut, and who have succeeded in reducing the professing Church to its present sad state of lukewarmness and worldliness. The same characteristic comes out in the godly remnant in Rev. 14, after the saints have been taken up to the throne of God (chap. 4:4). Their standing with the Lamb on Mount Zion tells of their association with Him in connection with God’s intervention in grace, and His royal purposes for the glory of Jesus-Messiah; and when all the world will be wondering after the beast, receiving his mark and worshipping him, they will be standing with the Lamb, having His name and His Father’s name in their foreheads. They will be openly and manifestly the Lamb’s. They will learn the conquerors’ song, the new song, and be seen walking in separation from all the idolatries that will then prevail, and in resolute adherence to Christ, notwithstanding the fiery ordeal through which they will have to pass. They will be pure, uncontaminated with Satanic pollution, guileless and faultless. They shall walk in their chaste virgin-Purity apart from the beast and his world, following “the Lamb whithersoever He goeth.”
And there may be more connection between the “virgins” of “the Song” and the “virgins” of the “Apocalypse” than most people think. However, for us there is this needful lesson: “therefore do the virgins love Thee;” for the “therefore” takes us back to supreme occupation with the Royal Bridegroom—His kiss, His love, the savor of His good ointments, and His name as ointment poured forth. The virgins in Revelation are seen associated in spirit with the royal purposes of God in grace, in connection with the exaltation of the suffering and rejected Messiah― “the Lamb:” and so Paul espouses his Corinthians “as a chaste virgin to Christ,” when the subtlety of Satan was at work to draw them under the influence of “the god of this world,” and corrupt the saints’ minds from the simplicity that is in Christ; and it is only as we are standing with the Lamb―the Slain One—and are smelling the sweet savor of His good ointments, knowing his grace in humiliation, His dying love for us, beholding Him in heaven and in the full favor of God and we with Him, believing that He, the despised and rejected men, is yet to be manifested in kingly glory, that we shall retain in our souls our first love, and show our devotedness to Him, by following Him, an walking “as He also walked.” Only supreme occupation with our Beloved, and seeing Him it His grace and glory, can preserve us from the wiles of the devil.
“Ah, with such strange sights around us,
Fairest of what earth calls fair,
How I need thy fairer image
To undo the syren snare!
“Lest the subtle serpent-tempter
Lure me with his radiant lie;
As if sin were sin no longer―
Life were no more vanity.”
The deceivings of Satan are very manifold and subtle, and the children of God need to be specially watchful, lest they be drawn into worldly associations, wrong fellowships in service, or errors in doctrine, as well as grosser worldliness. O that our hearts, with virgin purity and simplicity of intelligent love, may be kept for our blessed Bridegroom alone, for―
“Satisfied with Thee, Lord Jesus I am blest;
Peace which passeth understanding on Thy breast.
No more doubting, no more trembling,
Oh, what rest!
“Occupied with me, Lord Jesus, in thy grace;
All Thy ways and thoughts about me only trace
Deeper stories of the glories
Of Thy grace.
“Taken up with Thee, Lord Jesus, I would be,
Finding joy and satisfaction all in Thee,
Thou the nearest, and the dearest,
Unto me.
“Listening for Thy shout, Lord Jesus, in the air;
When Thy saints will rise with joy, to meet Thee
there.
Oh, what gladness, no more sadness,
Sin or care.
“Longing for the Bride, Lord Jesus, of Thy heart;
To be with Thee in the glory where Thou art.
Love so groundless, grace so boundless,
Wins my heart.
“When Thy blood-bought Church, Lord Jesus, is
complete,
When each soul is safely landed at Thy feet,
What a story in the glory
She’ll repeat!
“O to praise Thee there, Lord Jesus, evermore;
O to grieve and wander from Thee nevermore.
Earth’s sad story closed in glory,
On you shore.
“Then Thy church will be, Lord Jesus the display,
Of Thy richest grace and kindness, in that day.
Marking pages, wondrous stages,
O’er earth’s way!”