bridegroom; wherefore in the three evangelists it is said that the wind was rebuked; and the winds simply obey him; Christ then, casting out those of the devil, dwells in souls; concerning whom it is said, God will come from Teman, that is, from the South. CHAPTER 5. Open to me, my sister, my neighbor, my dove, my perfect one, for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night. Necessarily the addition of "to me" to "open"; for it is possible to open also to opposing powers; he seems to speak of the dew as troublesome, as also of the drops of the night; for he seems to seek rest from these things. These things are consistent with the first; for after the resurrection he entered though the doors were shut; and he calls Thomas, and through him every unbelieving soul, to open its own heart and to receive the full assurance of the resurrection; and he calls him perfect who said, My Lord and my God; and the dew signifies the resurrection at dawn, when the dew comes down. My beloved has passed by; my soul went out at his word. When the bride reached the latch, so as to open the soul to the Word, then showing only his hand and some of his deeds he passed by, as the bride was not yet able to see more; and at the same time he also manages to intensify her love more; the soul goes out and departs from the body on account of the bridegroom's word, having its citizenship in heaven. I sought him, and did not find him; I called him and he did not answer me. The soul continually seeks the bridegroom Word; and having found him, being perplexed by other things, she seeks again; and having contemplated those things, she desires the revelation of others; and having obtained these, she prays for the bridegroom to visit for other things. My beloved is white and ruddy, chosen from ten thousands. Or white because God is true, and ruddy on account of the incarnation. His head is gold of Ophir; his locks are like palm branches, black as a raven. The locks, on account of their thickness, are compared to the branches of palm trees, which they say are in place of seed for the female palms, so that they bear 17.276 edible fruit; and on account of the depth of the thoughts that have sprung up as it were instead of hairs, they are praiseworthily called black, contributing to the beauty of the bridegroom; and "as a raven," not simply, I think, because of the color; but it is a symbol of the deepest things and of things filled with dark water in the clouds of the air; concerning which Job said: Who prepared food for the raven? And its young cry out to the Lord; for God has prepared much food for those deeper in mind, whose disciples, the young, devoting themselves to prayers, have cried out to the Lord; wandering and seeking the food that is perplexing to them among them. His cheeks are like bowls of spice, bringing forth ointments. The cheeks of Christ are to be understood as those who serve with the word of God and with spiritual food; on the one hand, because of the fullness of the fragrance of good works and words, they are like bowls of spice; and on the other hand, because the varied word of all the composition of scripture is rooted in them, they are always bearing the fruit of ointment. His belly is an ivory box, upon a sapphire stone. The belly of the word is those capable of receiving the mysteries, that is, those hollow for reception; and a box, those suitable for preservation; and it is said to be of ivory according to its brilliance and clarity; and such a belly, the ivory box, is placed upon a sapphire stone, which is Christ; therefore, as many as are the belly of the word, these from the fear of the Lord conceive in the womb, and give birth to a spirit of salvation; for this reason also the belly of the sacrifice in Leviticus is washed, so as to have nothing of dung. CHAPTER 2. You are beautiful, my neighbor, as Tirzah, lovely as Jerusalem, a wonder as those set in array. The closer she gets to the bridegroom, the better things she is compared to; for to "beautiful" and "lovely" and "neighbor," he added "as Jerusalem"; and he says the perfected Church is astonishing; on the one hand, to the opposing powers, who are not able to gaze upon the beauty of her face; on the other hand, also to those inferior to her, who are like those set in array in

νυμφίου· διὸ παρὰ τοῖς τρισὶν εὐαγγελισταῖς ἐπιτιμηθῆναι τῷ ἀνέμῳ εἴρηται· οἱ δὲ ἄνεμοι ἁπλῶς ὑπακούουσιν αὐτῷ· Χριστὸς οὖν ἐξωθουμένους τοῦ διαβόλου, εἰσοι κίζεται ταῖς ψυχαῖς· περὶ οὗ τὸ, ὁ Θεὸς ἀπὸ Θαιμὰν ἥξει, τουτέστιν ἐκ Νότου. ΚΕΦΑΛΑΙΟΝ Εʹ. Ἄνοιξόν μοι, ἀδελφή μου, πλησίον μου, περιστε ρά μου, τελεία μου, ὅτι ἡ κεφαλή μου ἐπλήσθη δρόσου, καὶ οἱ βόστρυχοί μου ψεκάδων νυκτός. Ἀναγκαίως ἡ τοῦ μοί προσθήκη τοῦ ἄνοιξον· ἔστι γὰρ καὶ ἀντικειμέναις δυνάμεσιν ἀνοῖξαι· ὡς περὶ ὀχληρᾶς δὲ τῆς δρόσου λέγειν δοκεῖ, ὡς καὶ περὶ τῶν τῆς νυκτὸς ψεκάδων· ἀνάπαυλαν γὰρ ἔοικεν ἀπὸ τού των ἐπιζητεῖν. Ἀκόλουθα ταῦτα τοῖς πρώτοις· μετὰ γὰρ τὴν ἀνάστασιν εἰσῆλθε τῶν θυρῶν κεκλεισμένων· καὶ καλεῖ τὸν Θωμᾶν, καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ πᾶσαν ἄπιστον ψυχὴν, ἀνοῖξαι τὴν ἰδίαν καρδίαν καὶ τὴν τῆς ἀναστά σεως χωρῆσαι πληροφορίαν· καλεῖ δὲ αὐτὸν τελείαν εἰπόντα, ὁ Κύριός μου καὶ ὁ Θεός μου· ἡ δρόσος δὲ δηλοῖ τὴν κατὰ τὸν ὄρθρον ἀνάστασιν, ὅτε κάτεισι δρόσος. Ἀδελφιδός μου παρῆλθε· ψυχή μου ἐξῆλθεν ἐν λόγῳ αὐτοῦ. Ἡνίκα ἔφθασεν ἡ νύμφη τὸ κλεῖθρον, ὥστε τὴν ψυχὴν ἀναπετάσαι τῷ λόγῳ, τότε μόνην τὴν χεῖρα καί τινας ἑαυτοῦ δείξας πράξεις παρελήλυθεν, ὡς μη δέπω τὸ πλέον εἰς θέαν χωρούσης τῆς νύμφης· ἅμα δὲ καὶ οἰκονομεῖ πλέον αὐτῆς ἐπιτεῖναι τὸν ἔρωτα· ἐξέρχεται καὶ ἐκδημεῖ τοῦ σώματος ἡ ψυχὴ διὰ τὸν τοῦ νυμφίου λόγον ἔχουσα ἐν οὐρανῷ τὸ πολί τευμα. Ἐζήτησα αὐτὸν, καὶ οὐχ εὗρον· ἐκάλεσα αὐτὸν καὶ οὐχ ὑπήκουσέ μου. Συνεχῶς ἡ ψυχὴ τὸν νυμφίον λόγον ἐπιζητεῖ· καὶ εὑροῦσα πάλιν ἑτέροις ἀποροῦσα ζητεῖ· κἀκεῖνα θεωρήσασα ποθεῖ τὴν ἑτέρων ἀποκάλυψιν· καὶ τυ χοῦσα τούτων, ἐπ' ἄλλοις εὔχεται τὸν νυμφίον ἐπι δημεῖν. Ἀδελφιδός μου λευκὸς καὶ πυῤῥὸς, ἐκλελοχισμέ νος ἀπὸ μυριάδων. Ἢ λευκὸς ἐπειδὴ ὁ Θεὸς ἀληθινὸς, πυῤῥὸς δὲ διὰ τὴν σάρκωσιν. Κεφαλὴ αὐτοῦ χρυσίον κεφάζ· βόστρυχοι αὐτοῦ ἐλάται, μέλανες ὡς κόραξ. Οἱ βόστρυχοι διὰ τὴν πυκνότητα παραβάλλονται ταῖς τῶν φοινίκων ἐλάταις, ἅς φασιν ἀντὶ σπέρματος εἶναι ταῖς θηλείαις φοίνιξιν, ὥστε καρπὸν φέρειν 17.276 ἐδώδιμον· διὰ δὲ τὴν βαθύτητα τῶν ὥσπερ ἐκφυέντων ἀντὶ τριχῶν λογισμῶν, μέλανες ἐπαινετῶς ὀνομάζον ται, τῷ τοῦ νυμφίου συμβαλλόμενοι κάλλει· τὸ δὲ ὡς κόραξ, οὐχ ἁπλῶς οἶμαι διὰ τὸ χρῶμα· σύμβολον δὲ τῶν βαθυτάτων εἶναι καὶ πεπληρωμένων σκοτεινοῦ ὕδατος ἐν νεφέλαις ἀέρων· περὶ ὧν εἶπεν ὁ Ἰώβ· Τίς δὲ ἡτοίμασε κόρακι βοράν; νεοσσοὶ δὲ αὐτοῦ πρὸς Κύριον κεκράζονται· ἡτοίμασε γὰρ τοῖς βαθυτέροις τὸν νοῦν, πολλὴν τροφὴν ὁ Θεὸς, ὧν οἱ μαθηταὶ νεοσ σοὶ εὐχαῖς σχολάζοντες, πρὸς Κύριον κεκράγασιν· πλανώμενοι καὶ ζητοῦντες τὰ ἐν αὐτοῖς ἐπαπορου μένοις ὑπ' αὐτῶν σιτά. Σιαγόνες αὐτοῦ ὡς φιάλαι τοῦ ἀρώματος, φύουσαι μυρεψικά. Σιαγόνας Χριστοῦ τοὺς διακονουμένους λόγῳ Θεοῦ καὶ τροφῇ πνευματικῇ νοητέον· διὰ μὲν τὴν πληρό τητα τῆς εὐωδίας τῶν καλῶν ἔργων καὶ λόγων, ἐοι κότας φιάλαις τοῦ ἀρώματος· διὰ δὲ τὸ ἐῤῥιζωμένον ἐν αὐταῖς ποικίλον ἐν πάσῃ συνθέσει γραφῆς λόγον ἀεὶ καρποφοροῦντας μυρεψικόν. Κοιλία αὐτοῦ πυξίον ἐλεφάντινον, ἐπὶ λίθου σαπ φείρου. Κοιλία ἐστὶ τοῦ λόγου, οἱ χωρητικοὶ τῶν μυστη ρίων, τουτέστιν οἱ κοῖλοι πρὸς ὑποδοχήν· πυξίον δὲ, οἱ πρὸς διατήρησιν ἐπιτήδειοι· κατὰ δὲ τὸ λαμπρὸν καὶ σαφὲς ἐλεφάντινον εἶναι λέγεται· ἡ δὲ τοιαύτη κοιλία, τὸ πύξιον τὸ ἐλεφάντινον, ἐπιβέβληκε λίθῳ σαπφείρῳ, ὅς ἐστι Χριστός· ὅσοι οὖν εἰσι κοιλία τοῦ λόγου, οὗτοι ἀπὸ τοῦ φόβου Κύριον ἐν γαστρὶ λαμβά νουσι, καὶ τίκτουσι πνεῦμα σωτηρίας· διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἡ κοιλία τῆς θυσίας ἐν τῷ Λευιτικῷ πλύνεται, ὡς μη δὲν ἔχειν κοπρῶδες. ΚΕΦΑΛΑΙΟΝ ʹ. Καλὴ εἶ, ἡ πλησίον μου, ὡς εὐδοκία, ὡραία ὡς Ἱερουσαλὴμ, θάμβος ὡς τεταγμέναι. Ὅσον πλησίον γίνεται τοῦ νυμφίου, κρείττοσιν ἀπεικάζεται· τῷ γὰρ καλὴ καὶ ὡραία καὶ πλησίον, προσέθηκε τὸ ὡς Ἱερουσαλήμ· καὶ καταπληκτικὴν δὲ τὴν τετελειωμένην φησὶν Ἐκκλησίαν· πῆ μὲν, ἐν ταῖς ἀντικειμέναις δυνάμεσιν, οὐ δυναμέναις ἐνατενί ζειν τῷ κάλλει τοῦ προσώπου αὐτῆς· πῆ δὲ καὶ ταῖς ὑποδεεστέραις αὐτῆς, ἐοικυίαις ταῖς τεταγμέναις ἐν