February 29, 2024
This Is What Delighting Looks Like.
Song of Solomon 6-7
Brooke Alger
Big Book Idea
God's design for relationships is always best.
Key Verse | Song of Solomon 6:3
I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine;
he grazes among the lilies.
Song of Solomon 6-7
Others
1
Where has your beloved gone,
O most beautiful among women?
Where has your beloved turned,
that we may seek him with you?
Together in the Garden of Love
She
2
My beloved has gone down to his garden
to the beds of spices,
to graze
1
6:2
Or to pasture his flock; also verse 3
in the gardens
and to gather lilies.
3
I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine;
he grazes among the lilies.
Solomon and His Bride Delight in Each Other
He
4
You are beautiful as Tirzah, my love,
lovely as Jerusalem,
awesome as an army with banners.
5
Turn away your eyes from me,
for they overwhelm me—
Your hair is like a flock of goats
leaping down the slopes of Gilead.
6
Your teeth are like a flock of ewes
that have come up from the washing;
all of them bear twins;
not one among them has lost its young.
7
Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate
behind your veil.
8
There are sixty queens and eighty concubines,
and virgins without number.
9
My dove, my perfect one, is the only one,
the only one of her mother,
pure to her who bore her.
The young women saw her and called her blessed;
the queens and concubines also, and they praised her.
10
“Who is this who looks down like the dawn,
beautiful as the moon, bright as the sun,
awesome as an army with banners?”
She
11
I went down to the nut orchard
to look at the blossoms of the valley,
to see whether the vines had budded,
whether the pomegranates were in bloom.
12
Before I was aware, my desire set me
among the chariots of my kinsman, a prince.
2
6:12
Or chariots of Ammi-Nadib
Others
13
3
6:13
Ch 7:1 in Hebrew
Return, return, O Shulammite,
return, return, that we may look upon you.
He
Why should you look upon the Shulammite,
as upon a dance before two armies?
4
6:13
Or dance of Mahanaim
1
How beautiful are your feet in sandals,
O noble daughter!
Your rounded thighs are like jewels,
the work of a master hand.
2
Your navel is a rounded bowl
that never lacks mixed wine.
Your belly is a heap of wheat,
encircled with lilies.
3
Your two breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle.
4
Your neck is like an ivory tower.
Your eyes are pools in Heshbon,
by the gate of Bath-rabbim.
Your nose is like a tower of Lebanon,
which looks toward Damascus.
5
Your head crowns you like Carmel,
and your flowing locks are like purple;
a king is held captive in the tresses.
6
How beautiful and pleasant you are,
O loved one, with all your delights!
5
7:6
Or among delights
7
Your stature is like a palm tree,
and your breasts are like its clusters.
8
I say I will climb the palm tree
and lay hold of its fruit.
Oh may your breasts be like clusters of the vine,
and the scent of your breath like apples,
9
and your mouth
6
7:9
Hebrew palate
like the best wine.
She
It goes down smoothly for my beloved,
gliding over lips and teeth.
7
7:9
Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew causing the lips of sleepers to speak, or gliding over the lips of those who sleep
10
I am my beloved's,
and his desire is for me.
The Bride Gives Her Love
11
Come, my beloved,
let us go out into the fields
and lodge in the villages;
8
7:11
Or among the henna plants
12
let us go out early to the vineyards
and see whether the vines have budded,
whether the grape blossoms have opened
and the pomegranates are in bloom.
There I will give you my love.
13
The mandrakes give forth fragrance,
and beside our doors are all choice fruits,
new as well as old,
which I have laid up for you, O my beloved.
Footnotes
[1] 6:2 Or to pasture his flock; also verse 3[2] 6:12 Or chariots of Ammi-Nadib
[3] 6:13 Ch 7:1 in Hebrew
[4] 6:13 Or dance of Mahanaim
[5] 7:6 Or among delights
[6] 7:9 Hebrew palate
[7] 7:9 Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew causing the lips of sleepers to speak, or gliding over the lips of those who sleep
[8] 7:11 Or among the henna plants
Table of Contents
Introduction to The Song of Solomon
Timeline
Author and Date
The wording of the first verse in Song of Solomon (or Song of Songs; 1:1) does not necessarily mean that Solomon wrote the book. It may have been written by Solomon himself, or it could have been written in his honor. When he is mentioned (1:5; 3:7, 9, 11; 8:11–12), it is generally as a distant, even idealized figure. What is known about Solomon suggests that he probably was not the writer himself (1 Kings 3:1; 11:1–8). However, the book was probably composed during Solomon’s time, perhaps under his oversight, between c. 960 and 931 B.C.
Theme
The Song of Solomon contains beautiful poetry expressing romantic love between a young man and a young woman in ancient Israel. He is a shepherd (1:7) and she is a shepherdess (1:8). They are looking forward to their marriage and the pleasure it will bring.
Interpreting Literary Images
The Song of Solomon includes several extravagant comparisons. For example, the woman is compared to a horse in Pharaoh’s court (1:9), and her hair is compared to a flock of goats (4:1). It is helpful to remember that (1) the comparisons are figurative rather than literal, and (2) what the person has in common with what he or she is compared with is a certain quality, usually the quality of excellence, or of being the best of its kind.
Structure
The author has presented the Song of Solomon as a series of exchanges, mostly between the shepherdess and the shepherd, with the chorus-like “others” sprinkled in. These others usually pick up items from the lovers’ speeches and urge the two forward in love. There is also a refrain, “I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, . . . that you not stir up or awaken love until it pleases” (2:7; 3:5; 8:4; variation in 5:8), spoken by the shepherdess. This is understood as her urging the other women not to push this love too fast, in order to let it reach its consummation at the right time (the marriage bed, which seems to begin in 8:5).
Key Themes
- God’s law commands sexual purity. Marriage provides the right framework within which his people may properly enjoy the gift of sexual intimacy (see Gen. 2:23–24). Thus God’s people honor him and commend him to the world when they demonstrate with their lives that obedience in such matters brings genuine delight.
- Marriage is a gift of God, and is to be founded on loyalty and commitment (see Gen. 2:24, “hold fast”), which allows delight to flourish. As such, it is a fitting image for God’s relationship with his people.
Outline
Fact: Song of Deliverance
David’s Song of Deliverance is nearly identical to Psalm 18. Perhaps 2 Samuel 22 was meant to be read aloud for instruction and Psalm 18 was meant to be sung or prayed as part of worship.
Fact: Vineyards, fields, and palm trees
Vineyards, fields, and palm trees. The Song of Solomon takes place in a rural setting, and the lovers describe each other using images drawn from this context. The man is a shepherd, and the woman works in her family’s vineyard.
Song. 3:1–6:3 The Shepherdess Dreams. The woman reports her dream, which comes from her eager anticipation of the consummation of their love. That this is a dream is suggested by 3:1 and 5:2. The dream includes romantic longings, fears of losing her beloved, nightmarish scenes (5:7), and an imaginative transformation of the beloved into a Solomon-like figure (3:6–11).
Song. 5:2–6:3 This dream is caused by the woman’s desire to be with her beloved instead of being separated from him.
Song. 6:3 The lovers gladly declare that they have given themselves to each other.
Song. 6:4 awesome as an army with banners. Not only is she beautiful, she inspires the most profound respect.
Song. 6:8–9 Notice how the numbers increase from sixty to eighty to without number. The woman is without equal. All women, even royal women, praise her.
Song. 6:10 Dawn, moon, and sun all reflect the woman’s radiant beauty.
Song. 6:13 The chorus picks up on the idea of “looking” (v. 11). As she had gone down to the orchard to look, so they want her to return, that they might look upon her. Shulammite likely refers to the woman’s origin. The nature of the dance before two armies is unknown. The beloved intervenes and denies their request.
Song. 7:7 In ancient literature, a person of elegance was often compared to a palm tree.
Song. 7:1–9a This description of the woman’s beauty echoes that of 4:1–7 (see her description of the man in 5:10–16). They take romantic delight in each other’s physical appearance.
Song. 7:10 The context indicates that desire here refers to sexual desire. The thought of the man desiring her gives the shepherdess pleasure.
Song. 7:13 It is possible that mandrakes (which sounds like my beloved in Hebrew) were seen as an aphrodisiac (see Gen. 30:14–16). Here, they appear to be seductive as they give forth fragrance.
S3:044 Song of Solomon 6-7
Listen NowDive Deeper | Song of Solomon 6-7
Wowza, am I right? Now, that is what delighting looks like!
First, let's start off by defining delight. It means that our hearts truly find peace and fulfillment in someone or something. In this chapter, the couple delighted in one another because they knew each other deeply and admired everything about the other.
If you've been reading up until this point, you have seen a shift in their relationship. Beginning as infatuation, it becomes a loving, committed relationship and is evident through some of Shulamite's statements:
SS 2:16 "My beloved is mine, and I am his; he grazes among the lilies."
SS 6:3 "I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine; he grazes among the lilies."
SS 7:10 "I am my beloved's, and his desire is for me."
The progression of her testimony changes as their relationship becomes more intimate. They are like stepping stones to her new identity. Read them again and see the differences. She starts as a love-struck, insecure girl in the field and, through mutual interest and affirmation, she matures into a secure woman. In chapters 6-7, she could rest in the security of her King because she trusts him wholeheartedly. Shulamite is content with the identity that she is Solomon's and the one he desires. This allows her to eliminate anxieties (potentially, the dreams of her king leaving her), gain confidence, and rest.
What a beautiful picture of our relationship with God. We all begin as insecure persons toiling in a field and looking for something or someone to fulfill us. I know that was my story. I was looking for just about anything to make me feel seen and important. Bending over backward to try to get others to like me left me toiling for years. It wasn't until the Holy Spirit helped me believe that the Triune God of the universe sees me, desires me, pursues me, and never stops loving me. He helped me see that God is, in the words of John Piper, "The most admirable person and reality in the universe." Knowing Him leads us to admiring Him, which leads us to delighting in Him.
This month's memory verse
Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.
– Exodus 34:6b
Discussion Questions
1. What field were you toiling in before you met your Savior? (Example: the field of people pleasing, pride, perfectionism, numbing.) Reflect on where the Lord has brought you out, and praise Him for it!
2. When you think about your relationship with Christ, do you feel it is anchored in security, or does it bring any level of anxiety to your heart? For instance, do you have big questions left to be answered that allow insecurity to seep in, or do you feel as though you need to work for your salvation? If so, check out Great Questions.
3. What are some ways you show God that He is most admirable? How do you delight in the Lord?
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