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Listen! My lover! Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains, bounding over the hills.
My lover is like a gazelle or a young stag. (Song 2:8-9)
The very exclamation that starts this section signals to us that something new is about to happen. The Lord has attracted the attention of his beloved and reveals himself to her in a new light. She now sees him as a gazelle or young stag skipping from mountain top to mountain top, symbolising his eternally youthful life and energy.
This is depicting the Lord’s life upon earth. He lived in perfect harmony with his heavenly Father knowing nothing but pure faith and love. He dominated the spiritual and physical environment wherever he went, just touching the earth on the mountain tops, as it were, to pick up the spoils of victory.
This is not, of course, to suggest in any way that the Lord was uninterested in what was going on in the world or was remote from human need. On the contrary, Jesus met human need head on wherever he went, and on the cross confronted the deepest and most fundamental consequences of the human tragedy at their very source, and broke forever the power of the forces ranged against us.
...having cancelled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. (Col. 2:14-15)
It was just that Jesus never descended into the valleys of despair, darkness and fear only to struggle exhausted up the mountain to gain the next prize. Rather, he knew nothing but faith and love in an unbroken fellowship with God his Father. It was this life of faith that enabled him to overcome in life and death.
The beloved is now looking in awe and admiration at the Lord’s life as she can now understand it. Here is the one who was "tempted in every way, just as we are, yet was without sin."
But there is something fundamentally different here that the beloved has as yet failed to grasp. That is that the Lord is not only revealing his glory to her, but he is actually inviting her to come up and join him "leaping over the mountains, bounding over the hills." In other words he is urging her to leave behind the life of fear and unbelief, and to enter into the life of faith and dependence upon God that he so gloriously displayed upon earth.
Unknowingly she stands there looking in admiration at this wonderful sight.
...Look! There he stands behind our wall,
gazing through the windows, peering through the lattice. (Song 2:9)
But now, almost before she realises it, a change has taken place. For while she remains inside what she refers to as "our wall" the Lord now appears outside peering in through the lattice. In other words, there is something between them.
This is profoundly disturbing to the beloved Christian who up to this time has been expressing unspeakable joy at her new-found love relationship with the Lord. It now seems like darkness descends upon her soul and she starts to wonder if she has lost what she had.
It is important, at this stage, to stress again that what has happened is that the Lord has withdrawn the emotional sense of his presence from her. He has not left her and she is still covered by his loving care and protection. But she has lost the feeling of assurance and joy that had, up to this point, filled her heart to overflowing.
Further, she refers to the wall which now separates them as "our wall," implying that it had been constructed and maintained with the help and support of the Lord. In fact it should not be referred to as "our wall" at all. She should really call it "my wall."
What the wall represents is that which the beloved has built up in her natural life to enable her to cope with the spiritual and physical environment in which she lives. There are the psychological defences she has constructed to handle hurtful situations. There are in-built attitudes towards people and to the world around her all of which are the work of her natural self life.
Up to this point, her relationship with the Lord has been based upon him coming in and joining her in this little world she has constructed for herself. And so, after a while, she begins to identify all these internal defences as being from God.
But the Lord has no intention of staying within our walls. His intention is to lead us out into the large, wide, open spaces of faith and love where we are to join him in leaping across the mountains, bounding over the hills. This is his world and he desires to draw us into it.
Now, in the most beautiful language imaginable, the Lord explicitly invites his beloved to leave the walled area behind and follow him.
My lover spoke and said to me, "Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come with me.
See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone.
Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves is heard in our land.
The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me." (Song 2:10-13)
She now understands what the Lord is expecting of her. With words pregnant with love and encouragement, he calls his "beautiful one" to leave behind the winter and rain of her past experience and enter into the spring time of a new life of faith and love.
But she cannot find it in her to respond to his call. The magnitude of this step is beyond her comprehension. So he makes another appeal.
My dove in the clefts of the rock, in the hiding places on the mountainside,
show me your face, let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.
Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes
that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom. (Song 2:14-15)
But now the die is cast. The Lord will not go back behind her wall. With gentle and loving persuasion he calls upon her to show her face to him outside the wall and to join him there in the newness of his life. Those secret “hiding places” in which she has, in the past, sought refuge from the world, she needs no longer as the Lord is now drawing her into his world.
He also warns her to beware of the little foxes, that is the little sins that can so easily creep up on us in times of spiritual stress such as she is experiencing now. He is saying to her that despite the fact of how devastated she feels, that these feelings are very much on the surface and underneath there is a promising harvest in her life just springing into bloom. He encourages her to protect this harvest particularly at this time.
My lover is mine and I am his; he browses among the lilies.
Until the day breaks and the shadows flee,
turn, my lover, and be like a gazelle
or like a young stag on the rugged hills. (Song 2:16-17)
The beloved, however, is still distraught. She cannot imagine herself rising to that to which she is being called. It is contrary to everything she knows about herself and flies in the face of all her past experience.
Now, in a state of emotional exhaustion and resignation, she calls out to the Lord and tells him that until this darkness lifts from her soul he should "turn" from her because she is not going to be able to follow him. She asks him to go and be like a gazelle or a young stag, but it will have to be without her.
It is significant to note that the "mountains" and "hills" of the previous passage, have now become "rugged hills." When it was the Lord "leaping across the mountains" she saw them as glorious challenges that he was able to overcome with consummate ease. When faced with them herself they became insurmountable obstacles. It had yet to break in upon her consciousness that the secret of rising to this challenge was "Christ in you the hope of glory."
Finally she sinks down upon her bed and the darkness of night settles upon her soul.
All night long on my bed I looked for the one my heart loves; I looked for him but did not find him. (Song 3:1)
The only activity of her spirit at this time is to look for the Lord while lying on her bed which lies within her wall. In other words she tries to re-capture past experiences, for it was here that her initial love relationship with the Lord had come into being. But all to no avail and she eventually realises that this search is in vain.
It is here, tragically, that many people, churches and whole denominations have stalled. Past experience, sometimes going back over many centuries, has been captured in church liturgy and ritual. This can be expressed in many ways both at a community and individual level.
But the result is the same to all. A pall of darkness descends and covers the soul. What may have been once expressions of life and joy now become mechanical and lifeless. What once flowed from the spirit now comes from a memory desperately trying to stir up the emotions of long ago.
Now she lies on her bed in great disappointment, resigned to the thought that this is as far as she is capable of progressing.
At this point we may be tempted to ask, "How does all this relate to my situation?" What does "rising to the challenge," "leaping over the mountains" and all these apparently grandiose phrases mean to me where I am? Can we have some concrete examples?
The truth is, that when talking about these issues which affect our deepest selves, it is not at all helpful to talk about specific examples or to make real-life illustrations. In fact it can be most harmful and damaging. This is for two major reasons.
Firstly is the fact that we are all different from one another. We have different backgrounds, up-bringings and personalities. What is an insurmountable obstacle for one may well be of little consequence to another. God’s dealings with us are as diverse as we are. He deals with each of us as individuals. Thus his innermost dealings with you or me will have little relevance to anyone else.
Secondly, and even more importantly, is the fact that, having been told of such concrete examples, our natural inclination is to take them as spiritual truth and try to make them work for us! This is most harmful, for not only is it ineffective, producing frustration and disappointment, but it also obscures from our view the real work of the Holy Spirit within us.
Thus, when seeking to understand the dealings of God, it is essential for us to come to terms with these fundamental spiritual truths. It then must be left to the Holy Spirit to apply them specifically to each individual.
To a large extent, if we stop to reflect upon it, we have a good idea of what it is within us, at least in general terms, that the Lord is dealing with. But the Holy Spirit understands these matters far better than we do, and he can be trusted utterly to show us the way.
Just how long she stays lying on her bed in the darkness of the night we are not told. However, she finally can stand it no longer.
I will get up now and go about the city, through its streets and squares;
I will search for the one my heart loves. (Song 3:2)
This is, of course, and inward spiritual search which she now pursues. The "city" refers to the church and thus her search starts in the church and in the teaching which has poured from it over the centuries. In this she looks for clues as to where to find her Lord.
So I looked for him but did not find him. (Song 3:2)
But this search does not produce the desired result. Next she encounters the "watchmen" of the city, that is the church leaders, those whose responsibility it is to care for and protect the flock.
The watchmen found me as they made their rounds in the city. "Have you seen the one my heart loves?" (Song 3:3)
The watchmen are silent. It is as though they are struck dumb! Perhaps it is that, because of their own spiritual immaturity that they do not understand what this Christian is going through, and thus have nothing to say to her.
Be that as it may, her two failed searches show us something profound about her growing relationship with the Lord. This is that the life-support system that the church provided during the initial stages of her spiritual development no longer satisfies her need. She is now being required to learn to draw upon God for herself, to develop her own faith and, through her own relationship with the Lord, to find the strength to stand on her own two spiritual feet. Only when she reaches this goal will she be truly effective in feeding and caring for others in the Body of Christ.
Scarcely had I passed them when I found the one my heart loves.
I held him and would not let him go till I had brought him to my mother’s house, to the room of the one who conceived me. (Song 3:4)
This passage is notable for the absence of any explanation as to what has happened to the beloved except for one thing, she has found the one her heart loves. Her search has ended because she has found Jesus and in finding him everything has been resolved. This is such a simple statement and yet it is one of the most profound truths of the Bible.
Up to this point she has been striving to live life and maintain a relationship with God with all the energy her natural self-life could summon up. All this produced within was a profound sense of failure. She has now become aware of the utter vanity of such striving and activity (Ecclesiastes 1:2-3).
But it has now dawned on her, or rather has been revealed to her, that this sense of failure was an essential part of the Lord's plan for her spiritual development. This is for two reasons.
Firstly the Lord never expected the strivings of the natural man to produce any worthwhile results anyway. Quite the contrary, it is the Lord who has been working to break her of her dependence upon the energy of the self-life. To do this he has been constantly making her aware that the consequences of this striving is the pall of darkness and confusion that has covered her soul.
Secondly, the Lord himself has dealt with the problem of sin on the cross. It is through the blood of Christ and the power of his resurrection that she can stand unashamed in his presence. She now understands in a way she never understood before that nothing she can be or do can ever make her acceptable to God. He has provided everything she needs.
She is now ready to cast all self-effort aside and abandon herself to this relationship with her divine lover. Her inner striving has ceased and she is ready to receive all she needs from Jesus. She is now an empty vessel, albeit still a "jar of clay," into which the Lord is pouring his very life and nature.
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. (2 Cor. 4:7)
She has felt throughout the time of darkness, that what the Lord has been asking of her is so difficult even impossible for her to achieve - and so it is to the natural man. She now knows that it is the most simple thing on earth and that anyone who will come with the simplicity of a little child can offer it to him. She can give him her trust and love.
Previously her perception of the Lord was in the context of her own need, which resulted in her relationship with him being based upon her feelings of ecstatic joy in his presence and his provision in her life.
But now it is something entirely different, for she sees him now as a person, a person who desires to have fellowship with her, a person to be known, listened to, admired and loved. And it is in knowing this person that the darkness which had enveloped her dissipates and a new day dawns upon her soul.
Her faith is no longer in something abstract, a set of doctrine or in an emotional experience, but in a person whom she knows and loves. It is with this faith that she now holds on to the Lord with all the determination of one who, having experienced the inexpressible joy of fellowship with God, never wants to feel the pall of darkness descend on her again.
It is significant that her immediate desire is to bring him "to my mother’s house" that is the church. This means that she now has a strong desire to share her experience and faith with others in the Body of Christ. She now has the confidence that she can do this effectively whereas she had lacked it so completely before (Song 1:6-7). This confidence comes from the fact that the experiences she has just been through have produced in her a state of total dependence upon the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish this task. Thus she insists that she bring the Lord not only into "her mother’s house," that is the church, but right into the "room of the one who conceived me," that is the Holy Spirit ("Spirit gives birth to spirit" [John 3:6]).
Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you by the gazelles and by the does of the fields:
Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires. (Song 3:5)
As mentioned before, this statement, or similar, is made three times in the Song. In each case the statement is, in the NIV, attributed to the beloved. However this is considered unlikely, certainly in the first two instances, as nowhere else does the beloved use this imperious and commanding language. Rather she takes a place of humility before the other children of God and a place of deference before her Lord.
Here, therefore, is a stern and solemn command from the Lord directed at the "daughters of Jerusalem," which refers to the Body of Christ in general and particularly those Christians who were associated with his beloved.
In so doing, the Lord invokes "the gazelles and the does of the fields." This refers to those mature children of God who have found that place in Christ in which they are "leaping across the mountains, bounding over the hills" with their Lord. The Lord has previously (Song 2:9) been referred to as a "gazelle or young stag." Here the female "doe" is used indicating that he is talking about mature members of the church.
In invoking the wisdom of these mature saints, the Lord is solemnly warning the rest of the Christian community not to interfere in what is taking place within this beloved. Her innermost soul has experienced a most profound upheaval and few around her have any comprehension of what has been happening. Well intentioned but ill-informed attempts to help or direct her could hinder her progress.
In particular the Lord is warning them against seeking to generate feelings and expressions of love from his beloved that don’t come from within her own heart. There are few things more irritating and false than demonstrations of emotion that are "worked up" by our own efforts.
These can be generated as a result of pressure from those around and often out of a sincere desire to please the Lord. But they are false nevertheless and the Lord solemnly warns us not to pressure his beloved in this regard. As her relationship with the Lord develops there will no shortage of her response to his love that will come from deep within her. However, they will be manifest in her time and in her way.
We would all do well to heed the very strong language of this most direct command from the Lord.
Who is this coming up from the desert like a column of smoke,
perfumed with myrrh and incense made from all the spices of the merchant?
Look! It is Solomon’s carriage, escorted by sixty warriors, the noblest of Israel,
all of them wearing the sword, all experienced in battle,
each with his sword at his side, prepared for the terrors of the night. (Song 3:6-8)
What a transformation we see here in the beloved! She emerges from the desert which refers to her recent experience of apparent separation from the Lord. She is accompanied by a column of smoke which symbolises the presence and power of God, even as it did as the children of Israel journeyed towards the promised land (Exod. 13:21).
The work that the Lord has been performing within her is now outwardly visible and is attracting the attention of the children of Jerusalem. It is they who are speaking here.
Surrounding her is a spiritual "aroma" given out by myrrh and incense made from all the spices of the merchant. Such were associated with Christ from his birth and in his death and she is thus giving out a spiritual "fragrance" which is derived from the closeness of her relationship with God.
In this passage she is being borne along in "Solomon’s carriage" by which is meant an oriental palanquin. It was a form of transport commonly used by kings, other dignitaries and people of wealth, and was borne along by four or six men.
This is a picture of the believer who has now "entered into her rest" (Heb. 4:9-11) and is being borne along in her life by the power of the indwelling Christ. Outwardly this one may be very active and involved in situations which place her under stress. But inwardly she is completely and utterly at rest, her inner relationship with God being completely undisturbed by the activity around her. She has now joined her Lord, and in the newness of his life, is "leaping over the mountains, bounding over the hills."
She is in a place of absolute security being protected by sixty of Israel’s best warriors. Previously (Song 2:9) she was most reluctant to come out from behind her wall because psychologically, it was her place of security, fragile security perhaps, but security nevertheless and it was all that she knew.
This place of protection and security, however, was in a completely different class altogether. Previously her wall of protection was what she had built into her life by her own natural strength and energy. Now it was God’s protection based upon her faith in his unerring love and care.
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. (Psalm 34:7)
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest?
Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. (Luke 12:22-31)
Her confidence is no longer in the protection she has provided for herself but in what her Lord is providing for her. She now understands fully that this will never fail her.
King Solomon made for himself the carriage; he made it of wood from Lebanon.
Its posts he made of silver, its base of gold.
Its seat was upholstered with purple, its interior lovingly inlaid by the daughters of Jerusalem. (Song 3:9-10)
This carriage is not hers. It has been made and provided by King Solomon. In other words the inner life and strength she is now demonstrating is no longer derived from natural sources as it was when she was described as "a mare harnessed to one of the chariots of Pharaoh." Now its source is divine.
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. (Gal. 2:20)
The carriage is made from the "cedars of Lebanon" which were trees of great height and stateliness which dominated the landscape where they grew. The timber from these trees was in great demand for the construction of palaces and temples. They generally refer to spiritual authority, strength and uprightness of character.
The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;
planted in the house of the LORD they will flourish in the courts of our God. (Ps. 92:12-13)
Here, of course, it refers to the authority, strength and uprightness of the character of Jesus which is now becoming part of her life in an ever-increasing measure.
The carriage’s structure is made of pillars of silver, silver referring to purity and the ongoing refining work of the Holy Spirit which now provides the sustaining structure of her life.
The base is made of gold signifying that the very foundation of her life is the fact that she is a "partaker of the divine nature."
Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world cause by evil desires. (2 Pet. 1:4)
Its seat is upholstered in purple. Purple, in the Bible, symbolises kingship and authority and refers here to the Lordship of Christ and his place of supreme authority in the universe. It tells us that the Lord has now lifted his beloved up to a place in which she is sharing in and experiencing this spiritual authority for herself.
And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,... (Eph. 2:6)
We finally find that its interior has been "lovingly inlaid by the daughters of Jerusalem." This reminds us that although the Lord’s relationship with his beloved is on the basis of her being the only one or the favourite, in fact countless saints over the ages have known this same relationship. The beloved reclining at rest within the carriage is therefore being surrounded by the testimony of an innumerable company of God’s children who have walked this path and have known the reality of a mature relationship with God.
Come out, you daughters of Zion, and look at King Solomon wearing the crown, the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding, the day his heart rejoiced. (Song 3:11)
Now there is a general invitation issued to the Body of Christ to observe this procession. The imagery here is of a bridal procession with King Solomon as the bridegroom.
We would be tempted to understand this passage as referring to the final union, at the marriage supper of the Lamb, of Christ and his bride. However, this would not be consistent with the narrative at this point, which clearly refers to the relationship between the Lord and an individual believer.
Rather, what is being depicted here is a celebration of a new-found love relationship between the Lord and this beloved one. Up to this point a relationship has most certainly existed, but it was immature and notable mainly for its promise. But now it has reached a stage where it could, perhaps, be described as "functional" in that it is yielding recognisable "fruit" and is bringing great joy and satisfaction to both parties.
Perhaps one of the hardest things for us to comprehend is the depth of joy experienced by the Lord when a child of God responds to his love, puts unbounded faith in his strength and wisdom, yields herself unreservedly to his dealings and his will and allows him to remake her in his own image.
But God is love and it is for the satisfying of this infinite well of love that mankind was created in the first place. Love not only must have those it can love, but it is complete only when the loved ones fully return that love. This is our highest calling.
Thus we have a celebration of joy at the very specific and special event referred to here as "his wedding."
We know that at the point of salvation there is rejoicing in heaven.
I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. (Luke 15:7)
Here, however, we have the rejoicing, not over a repentant sinner, but over a believer who has allowed herself to be drawn by the Holy Spirit into a love relationship with the Lord that is bringing satisfaction to his heart.
He wears the life of this believer as a "crown." This symbol of his lordship depicts the reality of his lordship over the heart and life of this believer and the beautiful fruit the exercise of that lordship has produced. His lordship over the universe, over the galaxies, the stars, the earth, over angels and demons and over all of creation, is nothing, in his eyes, compared to the glory of his lordship over the hearts of the ones he loves. It is here that we gain a profound insight into the eternal purpose of God.
It is this crown that Satan so desperately desires to deny the Lord, as he lusts after it himself. In the temptation of Jesus, Satan showed clearly that he was willing to give up everything to stop Jesus completing his redemptive work and achieving this goal.
The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. So if you worship me, it will all be yours." (Luke 4:5-7)
This is where the battle we wage is at its most fierce.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Eph. 6:12)
This struggle is not only in the winning of souls to Christ, but in the leading of the souls of his people to a place of spiritual maturity that will bring joy to his heart.
That is why there are so many diversions, blind alleys, bizarre manifestations and deceptions strewn around about those who would confess faith in Christ. That is why there are so many parts of the church which have a form of godliness but deny its power (2 Tim. 3:5). That is why there are endless squabbles about the meaning of words and much straining at gnats and swallowing of camels. And that is why there is so much vacuous noise and "showbiz" type entertainment being passed off as worship. Anything it seems that will divert the believer from a pathway of true spiritual growth and a growing love relationship with Jesus himself.
He receives his crown from "his mother" meaning that it is the church that has nurtured and cared for this soul until she is now mature and strong enough to respond on her own behalf to the Lord’s call. In this verse is encapsulated the whole purpose of ministry within the church. That is to guide the children of God into the reality of a fruitful love relationship with God the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ (1 John 1:3), presenting them to him as "crowns" to his love.
In referring to the church as "his mother" the Lord is identifying himself with the believers.
For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. (Rom. 8:29)
Jesus is, therefore, not only the Lord of the church and its heavenly bridegroom, but he is also its first member. He is the "mould" into which we are all being poured. It is his image that this beloved is beginning to demonstrate to the world in ways that are real and recognisable to those about her. The crown with which he is being crowned bears his own likeness albeit expressed through the life and personality of this beloved one.
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Cor. 3:18)
In the next section (Song 4:1 to 5:1) we have an expression, in the most beautiful poetic terms, of the Lord’s praise for his beloved. His praise now is not merely encouragement or a statement of things to come but is now a present reality, a statement of fact.
It is important to note that the Lord is not offering praise for anything that his beloved one has attained to, achieved or become through her own devices. The Lord is praising his own handiwork. Perhaps we could say that this passage is like a great artist stepping back for a moment to admire the canvas on which his latest masterpiece is starting to take shape. In all things we are constantly reminded that he is the workman and we are his workmanship.
For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Eph. 2:10)
In this passage a most significant change in the beloved becomes apparent. Up to this point she has done most of the talking. In her ecstatic joy and in her despair there flowed from her lips an almost ceaseless expression of her feelings, of her love for her divine Lover and of her fears and longing. Here she is almost silent and there pours from the Lord’s lips a torrent of love and praise. Only in two verses (Song 4:6, 4:16) does the beloved speak. This represents a significant stage in her growth.
However, this should not be taken as a criticism of what has gone before. He has guided her through her early immature stages of spiritual growth and now she stops to listen to the Lord as he tells her what she means to him.
In extolling the virtues and beauty of his beloved, the divine Lover uses the most expressive and beautiful spiritual imagery.
How beautiful you are, my darling!
Oh, how beautiful!
Your eyes behind your veil are doves. (Song 4:1)
The dove in Scripture symbolises the Holy Spirit.
As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. (Mark 1:10)
In describing her eyes as doves, the Lord is saying that her perception and understanding of life and the world around her are now the result of the illumination of the Holy Spirit. That is she now sees things from God’s point of view.
Having a common, or at least similar, perception of life and the events that surround us is fundamental to the development of any meaningful and long-lasting relationship. Now the Lord is rejoicing over the fact that his beloved can walk in harmony with his will and purpose because she sees the needs of the world as he sees them and recognises the way he is working in the lives of those around her.
Her doves eyes are behind her veil, signifying that this spiritual insight is not on display to the world at large. It is primarily between herself and the Lord, although it will doubtless be recognised by the more spiritually mature of God’s children around her. However, gone forever is any desire to parade her knowledge and wisdom before others and to seek satisfaction from their praise or commendation. Her only concern now is praise and commendation from her Lord and this is now the sole source of her satisfaction.
Your hair is like a flock of goats descending from Mount Gilead. (Song 4:1)
The hair speaks of dedication. Samson was instructed never to allow his hair to be cut, and while he obeyed this command he was anointed by the Holy Spirit to accomplish deeds of super-human strength in the service of God and of Israel. The moment he allowed Delilah to deceive him and cut his hair, the Spirit of the Lord departed from him and he became like any other man.
Her hair is described as a flock of goats descending from Mount Gilead. This is beautiful imagery in itself as we have a pastoral scene of a green and lush mountainside with a flock of white goats flowing downwards.
However, what is being described here is a flock of goats which have been bred for sacrifice, which is the main way in which goats are referred to in the Old Testament. From the moment of their birth they have only one objective, one destiny, that is to be led to the altar and given freely as a sacrifice to the Lord.
Thus, the Lord is describing the fact that his beloved’s dedication to his will and purpose is now absolute and unconditional. She now fully realises that life separated in any way from the eternal purpose of God is devoid of substance and has no meaning whatsoever. She knows that any breath breathed or action taken outside the sphere of his purpose is utterly wasted effort. She acknowledges that any price she has to pay to obey and follow her Lord is no price at all.
Your teeth are like a flock of sheep just shorn, coming up from the washing.
Each has its twin; not one of them is alone. (Song 4:2)
Her teeth refer to her ability to take in spiritual sustenance, that is, the Word of God. This ability is now highly developed in this believer who is now well beyond the "elementary teachings about Christ" and is moving on to maturity (Heb. 6:1).
Sheep crop the grass close to the ground and will strip a field bare if left to graze too long. This is unlike cattle who tend to eat the top growth and leave that which is close to the ground.
The Lord is thus describing one who is now able to penetrate beneath the surface of the Word of God and to understand and absorb the depths of divine revelation. These sheep have just been shorn and washed indicating that her mind has been divested of the tangled web of unresolved fears and confusion that previously obscured her vision and made true understanding of the Word difficult or impossible. She is now able to "correctly handle the word of truth" and distinguish truth from error and, perhaps even more importantly, truth from half-truth.
Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. (2 Tim. 14-15)
Each one of these sheep has its twin. Thus did the Lord attest to the fact that not only has his beloved received the word into her mind and spirit, but that word has found its practical outworking in her life.
"...The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life." (John 6:63)
The fact that she is a "partaker of the divine nature" is no longer a storehouse of exciting possibilities for the future, but is now in evidence as practical everyday experience.
The truth of the Word of God often comes first to our mind through reading, teaching or preaching, and then, at some late stage, becomes a part of our living experience. It is not until this happens that we can truly say that the Word is "known." Here we have the beloved as one who is able to absorb the Word of God, correctly handle it, separate it from error and half-truth and to co-operate with the Holy Spirit as he makes it a living practical reality within her life.
Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon; your mouth is lovely. (Song 4:3)
Her lips refer to her conversation in the world which now shows a restraint which was, to some extent at least, lacking before. Her lips, as it were, stand guard over her speech like a "scarlet ribbon." This is an image of the lipstick this beloved one is wearing but, in fact, refers to the blood of Christ of which she is now acutely conscious and which has made her very sensitive to sin, particularly the sin of words.
If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. (James 1:26)
Her mouth however, as in 5:16, refers more to the intimate words of love which are reserved for her divine Lover. She is now able to relate to the Lord in a far deeper and more intimate way. The Lord finds great pleasure in this and praises her words as "lovely."
Your temples behind your veil are like the halves of a pomegranate. (Song 4:3)
Her "temples" speak of her mind which he praises here as being an adornment to her spirit. He is referring to the fact that in the process of his dealings, her mind has been renewed.
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (Rom. 12:2)
The process of being "transformed into his image" is, to a large extent, accomplished by the renewal of our mind. This is the means by which deep and hidden sub-conscious thought patterns are brought to the surface and expunged from our being. It is only then that we can be "transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory,..."
The renewal of the beloved’s mind is now well under way and the Lord praises the result so far, likening her mind to the "halves of a pomegranate." Pomegranates were a common fruit with a dark red skin, which were widely used as a decorative motif on cloth and in architecture. As an example, they were used as decorations around the hem of the robe of the ephod, which was one of the priestly garments for service in the tabernacle.
Make pomegranates of blue, purple and scarlet yarn around the hem of the robe, with gold bells between them. The gold bells and the pomegranates are to alternate around the hem of the robe. (Ex. 28:33-34)
Her thoughts, which are no longer tossed to and fro by every wind that passed by, are now an adornment to her life, something that adds beauty to all her other qualities of spirit.
You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. (Isa. 26:3)
Her temples are "behind her veil" as are her eyes (Song 4:1). Again this shows us that these inner qualities are primarily for the Lord’s enjoyment. She has lost any desire to seek the favour and applause of men.
Your neck is like the tower of David, built with elegance;
on it hang a thousand shields, all of them shields of warriors. (Song 4:4)
The tower of David was part of the defence system of Jerusalem, and thus typifies strength and resolute defence against the attacks of any enemy.
The neck therefore refers to her strength of character and determination. To be stiff-necked is to be obstinate and stubborn, refusing to yield to reason. But here the strength of Jesus himself, who never deviated from carrying out his Father’s will, has become part of her life and nature.
Your two breasts are like two fawns, like twin fawns of a gazelle that browse among the lilies. (Song 4:5)
As we have seen (Song 1:13) her two breasts speak of the twin virtues of faith and love which are the foundation of our relationship with the Lord. As they grow so does the depth of her relationship with God and also her ability to provide spiritual sustenance for the infants in Christ around her.
Her faith and love are alive and well, full of youthful life and energy as typified by the lively deer. However there will be, in the future, further growth as they are here referred to as "fawns" or infant deer.
The "lilies" refer to the beautiful qualities of character that have been produced by the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the mature Christians around her.
Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. (Luke 12:27)
The beloved is now mature enough to recognise and value the work of God in the lives of others around her, and although she is no longer dependent upon them, knows how to draw upon them for faith and inspiration.
I will go to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of incense. (Song 4:6)
At this point, the beloved briefly interrupts this outpouring of praise and love, making one of only two comments offered by her during this time. She is still conscious of darkness and shadows in her soul. She is aware that despite the great advances that the Lord has worked in her, she is still a "jar of clay" and still finds it somewhat difficult to accept the Lord’s description of her.
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 3:12-14)
For a fleeting moment she wants to retreat to the "mountain of myrrh" and the "hill of incense" which represent her place of intimate fellowship and union with her Lord. She feels that if she could do this for a while and shut out the world from around her, she will, perhaps, feel more worthy to represent the living God before the world.
But the Lord, without sweeping these "shadows" under the carpet, immediately redirects her attention to the work he has done and is continuing to do.
All beautiful you are, my darling; there is no flaw in you. (Song 4:7)
Here the Lord speaks of the beauty of his own nature that he has produced, and also speaks the word of faith about the ultimate goal that he has in mind for her.
From Song 4:8 to 4:15 the focus shifts from praise of the beloved’s beauty to an expression of the feelings of ecstatic joy that this relationship was now bringing to the divine Lover. We may compare some of these to earlier verses (Song 1:3; 2:3) where the expressions of joy were those of the beloved. The similarities are striking.
There the beloved declared:
...for your love is more delightful than wine.
Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes; your name is like perfume poured out. (Song 1:2-3)
Now the lover says:
How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice! (Song 4:10)
And again:
Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest is my lover among the young men.
I delight to sit in his shade, and his fruit is sweet to my taste. (Song 2:3)
The lover’s praise is now:
Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates with choice fruits, with henna and nard,... (Song 4:13)
We can see from this that where the beloved was the one experiencing the joy of this new-found relationship, that it is the divine Lover now who is sharing in that joy.
Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, come with me from Lebanon.
Descend from the crest of Amana, from the top of Senir, the summit of Hermon,
from the lions’ dens and the mountain haunts of the leopards. (Song 4:8)
First of all the Lord brings her down from the high places to the north of Israel in Lebanon, namely Amana and Mt Hermon (Senir is another name for Mt Hermon). From these elevated places she is, at least figuratively, able to look down upon the plains of Israel and the Jordan valley. In other words, this beloved has been learning about the place of spiritual authority that is hers in Christ.
And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. (Eph. 2:6-7)
This is the highest place of authority in the universe, far above all principality and power and every name that is named. She learns this among the "lions dens and the mountain haunts of the leopards," animals, who because of their strength and agility, rule as kings in the natural environment in which they live.
The Lord is now bringing her into the plains where she can exercise this spiritual authority in the everyday environment where she lives. She is now able to dominate this spiritual environment rather than be dominated by it.
You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride; you have stolen my heart
with one glance of your eyes, with one jewel of your necklace. (Song 4:9)
This is, perhaps, one of the most revealing verses in the Song of Songs, for we see here the Lord overcome with love as the beloved with one glance of her eyes looks at him with understanding and love. In this passage, the Lord unveils his heart to us in a way that he does in few other places. In this one verse we can see the passion that drove Jesus to Calvary. We can sense the driving force that has motivated God’s great plan of redemption and the extension of his saving grace to mankind throughout the ages.
We see and understand the beloved’s reaction as she begins to appreciate the reality of the Lord’s love towards her. But it is here that we can gain some understanding of the effect that the loving response of the beloved has upon the Lord himself. He is overcome by it.
It is here that the eternal purpose of God is brought into sharp relief. At the consummation of all things we see that this great yearning of love is brought to fulfilment.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God." (Rev. 21:3)
The startling revelation is that our love relationship with God is as important to the Lord as it is to us. In the absence of such a relationship life has absolutely no meaning for any human being. But, dare we say it, without our response of love God himself is "incomplete" for without a satisfactory response, love itself is incomplete.
How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice! (Song 4:10)
The Lord continues to describe the profound joy he feels at the response of love from his beloved.
It is interesting to note that here and, indeed, five times in this passage (Song 4:8-12) the Lord refers to his beloved as his "bride." The repeated and emphatic use of this term serves to underline the new meaning that this relationship now has to the Lord.
Your lips drop sweetness as the honeycomb, my bride; milk and honey are under your tongue. The fragrance of your garments is like that of Lebanon. (Song 4:11)
The "lips" in this context refer to the kisses of the beloved rather than her words, and emphasise to us the intimacy of her union with her divine Lover. To him this union drips with sweetness as honey drips freely from the honeycomb.
As the children of Israel approached the promised land it was reported to them that the land was "flowing with milk and honey." This metaphor represents, therefore, the unsearchable riches of Christ which lie before us in the land that God has given us as an inheritance.
"Under the tongue" refers to the source of words uttered, whether it be good or evil.
"...For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." (Matt. 12:34)
His mouth is full of curses and lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue. (Ps. 10:7)
Thus, the Lord is rejoicing at her conversation which is based upon the overflow of the work of grace which he has done in her life. The fact that she is a "partaker of the divine nature" is now abundantly evident in her words.
The fragrance speaks to us of the stature of her inner life which now radiates the character and life of Jesus himself.
You are a garden locked up, my sister, my bride; you are a spring enclosed, a sealed fountain. (Song 4:12)
Here we learn that this inner life, this "garden locked up," is primarily the Lord’s domain. Entry is for the most part, denied to others. In other words there is a part of each life that is just between the Lord and his beloved.
That is not to suggest for one moment that this Christian becomes secretive or withdrawn. Just the reverse is the case because it is within this inner life, this secret garden, that our relationship with the Lord grows, and produces the strength to relate to the world and to others as we should.
Without taking the analogy too far, we could liken this to a great ocean liner. We can feel the throb of the engines, we can look over the stern and see the wake as it ploughs through the water. But as passengers we are not allowed into the engine room. We can only imagine the workings of those mighty engines.
So it is that the inner workings of the Lord within the life of the child of God, are not something for public display. Those around may see evidence of the love, the faith, the strength of Christ and sense the peace and joy that fills the heart of this individual. But the wellspring of life, the dealings of God and her growing relationship of love with the Lord, remain hidden from view. It is a matter solely between her and the Lord. This is the source of her strength.
Your plants are an orchard of pomegranates with choice fruits, with henna and nard, nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with every kind of incense tree, with myrrh and aloes and all the finest spices.
You are a garden fountain, a well of flowing water streaming down from Lebanon. (Song 4:13-15)
Having introduced the metaphor of a garden and fountain, the poem goes on to describe this garden and the fountain in some detail. The garden was based upon an orchard of pomegranates, symbolising the characteristics of the nature of Christ which now adorn her life. There are also other "choice fruits" which speaks of the outworking of the divine nature in her everyday life.
Then follows a long list of shrubs and plants used to produce aromatic compounds such as perfumes, cosmetics and spices. Some indeed were extremely rare and valuable.
Perfumes and spices are used as symbols frequently in the Song of Songs and, indeed, throughout Scripture. Such importance is given to this symbolism that it is reasonable to ask what is behind it all.
The beautiful aromas exuded by perfumes and spices are used to typify "spiritual fragrance" or "spiritual aroma." An aroma is something that exists in the atmosphere and is normally invisible to us. In fact we are not conscious of it at all until it wafts into our nostrils and registers on our sense of smell. At that moment we become conscious of its presence, and are either attracted to or repelled by it depending on whether it is good or bad.
Initially we may not be aware of its source. Thus, having sensed the aroma, we may well bring our other senses into play and go looking for the source and, having found it, take the appropriate action.
So it is with the spiritual fragrance that Jesus has released into the world. It exists, as it were, in the atmosphere all around us, and yet we are unconscious of it in any intellectual or emotional way. But somehow, at sometime, this "fragrance" is sensed by our spirit, that is, in our most inner being.
At this point we become conscious that there is something or someone near to us and start looking for an understanding, both intellectual and emotional, of what it is that is drawing and attracting us. It is, of course, the work of the Holy Spirit to spread the fragrance of Christ’s redemptive work abroad.
"The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." (John 3:8)
Paul described his ministry of spreading the fragrance of the knowledge of Christ.
But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life... (2 Cor. 2:14-16)
It is this fragrance that first and foremost draws men and women to salvation. It is this fragrance that draws us into the presence of Christ and into a deep and fruitful fellowship with him. It is this fragrance that draws us along the road to spiritual maturity.
Just as Christ exudes his fragrance into the world, so do we, at least on a small scale. At the highest level it is his fragrance that we spread abroad. As the Holy Spirit works in us he works out the character and nature of Christ in our lives. It is this nature that is the spiritual fragrance referred to here. In a sense also it is our own inner life that exudes a spiritual fragrance. We can, through sensing this "fragrance," be conscious of the inner state of a person’s life without quite understanding why.
Here, the Lord rejoices in the abundant, beautiful and exotic fragrances which emanate from the inner life of this beloved one that he is fashioning in his own image. They are all his to enjoy.
Having listened to this outpouring of love and praise from the very heart of the Lord, the beloved responds.
Awake, north wind, and come, south wind!
Blow on my garden, that its fragrance may spread abroad.
Let my lover come into his garden and taste its choice fruits. (Song 4:16)
The north winds, in the regions around Palestine, are the cold, harsh winds of winter while the south winds are the warm comforting winds that blow up from Sinai and across from the Mediterranean.
The beloved here is inviting both good times and bad, favourable circumstances and adversity to come into her life. She is so confident in the grace of God that she is sure of two things. Firstly that good times will not turn her head, causing her to fall into a place of ease and comfort, causing her to forget her utter reliance upon God. Secondly, she is confident that adversity will not be able to overwhelm her but will, on the contrary, simply cause her to grow in strength and faith.
In either case, she believes the result will be that the spiritual aromas from the beautiful fruit, spices and blooms which are growing abundantly in her life, will be wafted abroad to be enjoyed and admired by the Lord himself and those around her. She now invites the Lord to come into her garden to taste and enjoy the fruits that he has himself caused to grow. She now lives to bring joy and satisfaction to her divine Lover.
I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride; I have gathered my myrrh with my spice.
I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey; I have drunk my wine and my milk.
Eat, O friends, and drink; drink your fill, O lovers. (Song 5:1)
The Lord accepts this invitation and joyous fellowship and union grow and flourish. He gathers his myrrh and spices enjoying their fragrance. He tastes the sweetness of her lips in the sweet intimate words of love that her heart speaks to him.
But there is something new here, because there are some "friends" and "lovers" who are also enjoying the fruits of this enclosed garden. These "friends" and "lovers" represent the other persons of the Trinity, that is the Father and the Holy Spirit. They have now joined the Son of God in this feast.
"If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. (John 14:23)
"If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counsellor to be with you forever - the Spirit of truth... (John 14:16-17)
Thus, although the emphasis is on our relationship with Jesus, we are reminded here that we are called into fellowship with the Father and the Holy Spirit as well as the Son of God.
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Cor. 13:14)
Now all three are feasting upon the spiritual fruit which is being produced in the life of the beloved.
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