Doves fly straight, swiftly, surely. They neither linger nor loiter, but hasten home.
III. WHO ARE THEY THAT THEY SHOULD FLY TOGETHER? They fly in such a flock that they appear like a cloud: why is this?
1. They are all in one common danger.1. Seeking safety in Jesus, from the hawks which pursue them.
2. Desiring rest in his love, for they are wearied, and find no other rest for the soles of their feet.
3. Finding a home in his heart. Swallows go to another home in winter, but saints abide in Christ forever.
4. Their companions are there: doves congregate, and so do saved sinners love fellowship with each other.
5. Their young are there. "The swallow hath found a nest for herself, where she may lay her young" (Ps. 84:3). Believers love to have their children housed in Christ.
6. Their food is there. Where else can we find provender?
7. Their all is there. Christ is all.
This text has been well illustrated by Morier. "In the environs of the city (Ispahan), to the westward, near Zainderood, are many pigeonhouses, erected at a distance from habitations. They are large, round towers, rather broader at the bottom than at the top, and crowned by conical spiracles, through which the pigeons descend. The interior resembles a honey-comb, pierced with a thousand holes, each of which forms a snug retreat for a nest. The extraordinary flights of pigeons, which I have seen upon one of these buildings, afford perhaps a good illustration of the passage. The great numbers, and the compactness of the mass, literally looked like a cloud at a distance, and obscured the sun in their passage)' What gives an additional value to this illustration is the probability that similar dove-houses were in use among the Hebrews, for they certainly were so among their Egyptian neighbors. — Kitto's Pictorial Bible
God's children love communion and fellowship one with another, that they may mutually be comforted and edified in faith: "they fly like a cloud, and as doves to their windows"; that is, to the house or church of God. — Benjamin Keach
Those that are weak want supply and support from others. Nature teacheth this lesson. The weakest creatures amongst fish, or fowls, or beasts, go usually in flocks and companies. — G. Swinnock
Birds of a feather flock together.Everybody knows that large flocks of pigeons assemble at the stroke of the great clock in the square of St. Mark, Venice. Believe me, it is not the music of the bell which attracts them, they can hear that every hour. They come, Mr. Preacher, for food, and no mere sound will long collect them. This is a hint for filling your meeting house; it must be done, not merely by that fine, bell-like voice of yours, but by all the neighborhood's being assured that spiritual food is to be had when you open your mouth. Barley for pigeons, good sir; and the gospel for men and women. Try it in earnest, and you cannot fail; you will soon be saying, "Who are they that fly as a cloud, and as doves to their windows?" — From "Feathers for Arrows," by C. H. Spurgeon
A writer in "Nature" states that the small birds, that are unable to fly the three hundred and fifty miles across the Mediterranean Sea, are carried over on the backs of cranes When the first cold weather comes, the cranes fly low, making a peculiar cry. Little birds of every species fly up to them, while the twittering of those already settled may be distinctly heard. But for this provision, many species of small birds would become extinct. So, many converts that are young and feeble need much assistance in seeking Christ. Let those that are strong help the weaker ones in their spiritual flight.