They do not make a promise, but instead say: who would keep you clinging to hope?

Here, the beloved refuses to make a promise of meeting, masking their rejection as a kind of mercy: why keep you lingering in false hope? Yet for a lover, even the sweet agony of anticipation is far better than outright despair. By denying even a false promise, the beloved cleverly strips away the lover's only solace, showing how cruel kindness can sometimes feel in love.