Song of Solomon/Part 5/Commentary

Song of Songs Part 5 The Shulammite: 6:11-12 “In the most charming manner possible, the maiden recounts the circumstances when she had encountered Solomon and his soldiers. It was in the early spring of the year, I had gone to the garden where the walnut and pomegranate trees grow, and it was also in the valley where the vineyard is planted. I had come for two reasons—I did want to check on the budding of the grapevines and to stand beneath the flaming bloom of the pomegranate trees. ‘When quite unexpectedly this quest of mine led me into the midst of the chariots of my noble people’” (Kidwell p. 417). “The words would mean that when she was engaged in inspecting and enjoying the gardens, suddenly, before she knew, her longing to see the plants brought her among the chariots of her noble people, i.e., of noble people who were hers, that is the rulers of her land. She suddenly came upon the train of King Solomon, as they were on the way from or to some royal dwelling in the North” (Harper, p. 47).

Daughters of Jerusalem: 6:13a Various interpretations exist concerning who is speaking here. If one views Solomon as the only lover in the book, then those pleading for the Shulammite to return would be the people of her home town. Others view this as being spoken by the women in Solomon’s harem. “She is rehearsing all that happened on the eventful day when Solomon came upon her. When she found herself among the royal chariots she turned to flee, and the ladies called to her to return. “O Shulammite”, this name for the bride occurs here only. It must mean ‘maiden of Shulam’. Not knowing her name, the courtiers call her by the name of the village near which they were when they saw her” (Harper p. 47). “That we may gaze at you”: The Hebrew verb with the construction it has here means generally “to look upon with pleasure”.

The Shulammite: 6:13b “Why should you gaze at the Shulammite, as at the dance of the two companies?” The expression “two companies” comes from the word “Mahanaim”, which was a town east of the Jordan River. Apparently, this was a dance worth seeing, or one for public

entertainment. The Shulammite asks, “Would they stare at me as at a public spectacle?” I think we learn something here about the Shulammite. She takes no pleasure in being an object to be displayed. She does not want to be the center of attention, nor a trinket for some king’s amusement.

The Daughters of Jerusalem: 7:1-5 All of this may have been said to the Shulammite in private when she was being dressed by the women of the court to receive Solomon. The object of this flattery would be to induce her to accept the king’s addresses. The expression, “O prince’s daughter” does not mean that the bride was actually of a noble family. Rather it could mean, a princely or noble woman, that is, one who would adorn any station. As far as the images are concerned, she had rounded thighs, like the work of an artist, her stomach is round and wheat-colored. Her neck gives her stature and impressiveness.

Her eyes are like pools, luminous, clear, and deep. The nose adds to her stateliness.

She is awesome and majestic as Mount Carmel. “The king is captivated by your tresses”: This seems to be the purpose of the entire section, to convince her to yield to Solomon’s advances. Notice that we are in Israel and not some pagan nation, but this Shulammite is being given very bad advice. It is easy for God’s people to be influenced by the values of the world around them (Romans 12:1-2; 1 John 2:15-17). It is also easy to place all the emphasis on physical appearance (1 Peter 3:3). It is easy for our young men and women to fall into the trap of trying to catch a mate through sensuality instead of inner character.

Solomon: His final attempt: 7:6-9a “We may suppose that after her attendants have completed the Shulammite’s adornment, and have finished their fulsome praises of her beauty, she receives a new visit from the king” (Harper p. 53). Solomon compares the Shulammite to a palm tree and he wants to go on a date-picking expedition. As noted in previous lessons, Solomon already had 140 other women. What kind of relationship do you imagine that he has had with his wives? What do we learn here about relationships built on physical attraction? Solomon was seeking love, but do you think he ever found it? Why or why not? One must feel sorry for all the other wives, who eventually learned that they would not compete with the new and younger models. What disillusionment for Solomon, who thought that he had so often been in love, when in reality, he had only be lusting (Ecclesiastes 2:11). The dangerous thing is that lust can feel like love and yet have nothing in common with genuine love (2 Samuel 13:15). What a tragedy that so many people have sold their souls for what they thought was love, only to find out latter that they gave up eternity for cheap and common lust. What a cheap, demeaning and counterfeit thing lust is. Consider the following passage: “For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; that

each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God” (1 Thessalonians 4:3-5).

Points to Note: Marriage will not stop a person from fornicating, unless they learn how to control themselves first. A Christian man must first learn how to view his own body properly, and his own urges, before he can have the right perspective concerning his wife.

Stott notes, “The fact that marriage is the only God-given context for sexual intercourse does not mean that within marriage there is no need for restraint. We have all heard or read about, and some have experienced, the selfish sexual demands which are sometimes made by one married partner on the other...But marriage is not a form of legalized lust...it is possible for sexual partners in marriage to wrong or take advantage of each other...The fact is that there is a world of difference between lust and love, between dishonorable sexual practices which use the partner and true love-making which honors the partner, between the selfish desire to possess and the unselfish desire to love, cherish and respect...The Lord himself sees even the intimacies of the bedroom. He hates every kind of human exploitation” (pp. 85-86).

There is nothing wrong with passion, but Paul is speaking of “lustful passion” (“the mere gratification of his passions” TCNT). This statement is very revealing, for God is telling us that many relationships in the world are not based on love, rather, they are relationships in which both partners or one is simply gratifying themselves physically with no real concern for the person they are with. Sadly, much of what our world proclaims as love is nothing more than lustful passion, where self-gratification takes precedence over being genuinely concerned about another person. Note that Paul says that one needs to “know how” to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor. Those who take the time to understand the difference between lust and love and who learn to see beyond the outward appearance will be rewarded. One writer noted, “We shall not become a bundle of frustrations and inhibitions if we embrace God’s standard, but only if we rebel against it” (Stott p. 84).

When you control yourself, you are not only honoring others, you are showing respect to your own body.

Shulammite: 7:9b-10 Apparently in these verses Solomon withdraws, in 7:9b-13, the Shulammite is speaking of her absent lover, and calls upon him to go back with her into their obscure but happy country life. The term “smoothly” in 7:9 is significant. The word means, “that which is right, righteous, prosperous; sweet, and upright”. There may be a contrast here, between Solomon’s claim that her mouth was like the best wine (7:8), and her response that such wine rightly belongs to the one she loves. Here the Shulammite could be interrupting Solomon in the middle of his appeal and saying, “That rightly goes down only for my beloved”. The statement, “flowing gently through the lips of those who fall asleep”, apparently indicates how her wine will cause a sweet taste to the lips and bring

peaceful sleep to her beloved. “I am my beloved’s”, some see this statement has a definite rejection of Solomon’s advances. “And his desire is for me”: “I belong to my beloved alone, and he on his part longs after me only”.

It is very important in a marriage that both partners “desire” each other. The shepherd’s desire was for the Shulammite and she knew it, where is our desire? Does our desire wander? The word “desire” here is the same word found in Genesis 3:16 “Yet your desire shall be for your husband”. Note that his desire for her equals her desire for him.

The Shulammite is not at a disadvantage, rather, she relishes the security of her relationship with the Shepherd. In a healthy marriage, desire is mutual. Be impressed that the Shulammite is able to resist the advances of Solomon and all his splendor and glory. Part of this must be due to the fact that she knew that her shepherd desired her.

Our mates will be better prepared to resist the temptations of the world that surround us, if they know they are desired and loved at home. “Where did the Shulammite learn to have such a healthy view of love so that she was even able to turn down the advances of a lustful king?” (Kercheville p. 30).

Shulammite: 7:11-13 “Come, my beloved, let us go out into the country, let us spend the night in the villages”.

The word rendered “villages” can also mean “henna flowers”, and to dwell among either would be to live in the countryside. These verses appear to be the desire of the Shulammite to go with her shepherd on a honeymoon. The “mandrake” belongs to the family of plants to which the potato belongs. The flowers are cup-shaped, of a rich purple color. The fruit has a peculiar but decidedly not unpleasant smell, and a pleasant, sweet taste. The fruit when ripe, in the beginning of May, is of the size and color of a small apple. Even though this fruit was viewed as an aphrodisiac (Genesis 30:14-16), here it may have nothing to do with that (for our couple already desires each other), rather, it may be mentioned here to simply denote the time of year. These verses would seem to indicate that in village houses it was the custom to lay up fruits on shelves or in cupboards placed above the doorways in order so that they would ripen. “If Solomon were the bridegroom it is difficult to see how the shepherdess could have laid up fruits for him, as she had not been home since he carried her away” (Harper p. 54).

As we close, note how on the one hand this Shulammite resists the advances of Solomon, but on the other hand is eager to be with her Shepherd. Purity does not mean that one does not have passion, or that one is not eager to be with the person they love, but that such passion is channeled. Our culture often claims that marriage is boring, but be impressed that there is nothing boring about the relationship of this couple. In fact, the only person fighting boredom in this book appears to be Solomon.

Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017 www.ch-of-christ.beaverton.or.us