No doubt about it.
The book Song of Solomon is the most unique book in the entire Bible. It is passionate yet cultured, it is explicit yet discreet.
And while some theologians argue that it is simply an allegorical comedy on the marriage of King Solomon, and while they continue to argue that it is not a picture of Christ and the church, I must most respectfully disagree.
First of all on the basis that every book of the Bible, every paragraph, every word, every “jot and tittle” are not only inspired by the Holy Spirit but infused with His very breath, and therefore we not only can conclude, but must be absolutely persuaded, that this book can speak to our spiritual lives in a way that causes us to grow in the knowledge and truth of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Second of all, because the comparisons are so clear. Marriage, in and of itself, is a picture of Christ and the church. We see this comparison over and over in Scripture.
The love God had for us is so passionate that He sent His only Son to a world that would despise and hate Him, reject Him, beat Him unmercifully and then kill Him inhumanely.
He did this to win our hearts to Him.
What passion!
Do we love Him with that same passion?
To what measure do we love Him? Because He loves us without measure.
The Shulamite was very passionate about King Solomon:
Like an apple tree among the trees of the woods,
So is my beloved among the sons.
I sat down in his shade with great delight,
And his fruit was sweet to my taste.
How long as it been since we sat down for our devotions and communed with God “with great delight”? How long has it been since we tasted and seen that the Lord is good?
She goes on to say:
By night on my bed I sought the one I love;
I sought him, but I did not find him.“I will rise now,” I said,
“And go about the city;
In the streets and in the squares
I will seek the one I love.”
I sought him, but I did not find him.The watchmen who go about the city found me;
I said,
“Have you seen the one I love?”Scarcely had I passed by them,
When I found the one I love.
I held him and would not let him go,
As I read this my heart broke.
It broke because I knew deep inside that I don’t have this passion for God as the Shulamite had for lover. Yes, I love God and I am deeply devoted to Him. However, there are many other things that also consume my heart!
With eagerness she calls to him to meet with her!
Come, my beloved,
Let us go forth to the field;
Let us lodge in the villages.Let us get up early to the vineyards;
Let us see if the vine has budded,
Whether the grape blossoms are open,
And the pomegranates are in bloom.
There I will give you my love.
And I ask myself, “Do I wake up with eagerness to meet with God early in the morning?”
But the part of the book that really struck me with deep conviction was chapter 6.
In previous chapters we see continual references to a “garden”, which refers to sexual intimacy. But in chapter six we see another “garden”.
My beloved has gone to his garden,
To the beds of spices,
To feed his flock in the gardens,
And to gather lilies.
This garden signifies another pleasure that Solomon has – his kingdom. He had gone away to care for his kingdom.
2,000 years ago another King went away to prepare a Kingdom for His bride. He was called away from His love by His Father to prepare a place for her. But He promised her that He would return to her one day.
While we live in the kingdom of this world, we belong to another kingdom! This world is not our home. We are simply living here temporarily while our Beloved prepares a kingdom for us!
But I’m afraid that some of us (myself included) have become to comfortable here.
As I read this book, I asked myself what it would be like to know a young woman who talked about her fiance the way the Shulamite woman talked about King Solomon. Talking about him endlessly with such odd expressions and descriptions.
I would think she was a little too much in love with him. Actually, I would think she was crazy!
Am I crazy for Jesus? Do I think about him endlessly? Am I (in a non-earthly way) in love with Him?
If the answers to these questions are no…or not really….then I have a problem.
Because that means there is something else occupying my heart.
Something temporal.
Something worldly.
Something that can be called an idol.
Dear Good Morning Girls, as I read this book these past eight days, I have been overwhelmed with sorrow that my heart doesn’t long for God as the Shulamite woman longed for King Solomon.
Yes, I want more of Him, it’s true. But beside Him there are so many other things that occupy my heart.
This world has become too comfortable to me.
It is time to cleanse my heart of this world so that it belongs to Him….and Him alone!
Such a convicting post.. This world is definitely too comfy at times. Thank you for the push this morning to look at my passion for Him.
You’re welcome. I know I need a push so often myself.
Rosilind, Oh, how true! We get so comfortable here in this temporary home. What a beautiful reminder that Jesus is our One and Only, and we need to keep Him in first place. Joining you today from #RaRaLinkup!
Yes, we need that reminder so often, don’t we? I know I do. 🙂
Thanks for this post! It is such a powerful reminder that this world is not our home. We shouldn’t be too comfortable here because we should be longing for Jesus. That is something I need to always be better at, so I really, really appreciate the encouragement (and conviction).
Yes – me too, Meredith. I often find listening to old hymns about heaven really helps to connect my heart where it needs to be.
Amen, amen, amen! This is both inspiring and convicting. You’ve hit on one of the things I love most about the Word of God: it beckons us from cover to cover, in obvious ways and especially in ways that require some pondering, to relate to God through our Savior Jesus Christ personally and intimately. Not because of any intrinsic worth on our part, but because of the magnitude of His kindness and grace. Thank you for sharing this with us at Grace & Truth. Look for it as my feature at A Divine Encounter on Friday. 🙂
Yes – I love that about the Word as well! Thank you so much for featuring me. That is so kind and generous of you!
2 things. As women, we may be able to relate to this book in the way that you describe, but where does that leave men? I think the bride of Christ picture is only PART of what God wants us to know about His relationship with us. There are a lot of places where Jesus describes the Kingdom with different word pictures. I think that’s because no single layer or picture is enough. That brings me to the 2nd thing. Because there are so many layers of truth and revelation in the Bible, we are OK to look at passages and books though additional lens such as allegorical comedy. The Bible has many genres in it – poetry, wisdom, letters, etc. I have grown to understand the Bible and what it shows about what God wanted His people to know MORE by respecting the genre types that it contains.
I don’t think its necessary wrong to understand the genre of the book as it is written (the Psalms are clearly poetry, for example), as long as it doesn’t impede us from being able to hear what God is saying to us through it.
Hi Rosalind! All I can say is, “Oy!” Maybe even “Ouch!” What a truth that permeates which you shared. God, am I too comfortable here? Do I love you like I should or is my heart taken up with other things. Thank you for providing a reminder from the precious book of the song of Solomon that we should long after God with intensity and fervor. That’s one reminder that we all need and that will never get old!
Blessings,
Tiffiney
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Yes – I found this book so convicting – and the message just continues to stay with me!