Chapter 1
Vs. 1
Written by Solomon, the song of songs means that it is the pre-eminent among all songs ever written. There are many men who write many songs about their loves, but there is only one written by God about His people.
Vs. 2
The bride, longing for the intimacy of her beloved. Kisses signify intimacy, Psalm 85:10; friendship, 1Sam 20:41; alliance, 1Sam 10:1, 2Sam 15:5, 1Kings 19:18, Job 31:27. But perhaps the true meaning is to be found in Proverbs 24:26, “He who gives a right answer kisses the lips.” Do we not long for the truth from Him, and long for His intimacy? Is this not better than all things on the earth? For wine cheers the soul, but passes; his love gives peace and joy, and is eternal.
Vs. 3
Ointment - Proverbs 27:9, Ecc 7:1; Virgins - Psalm 45:14, Matt 25:1, 2Cor11:2
Vs. 4
“Draw me…” - John 12:32, 6:44
Now that he has drawn us, we follow him where he goes, Matthew 10:38, 16:24.
Chambers - Psalm 45:15, John 14:23, make our home with him.
Rejoice – 2Cor 13:11, Philippians 3:1, 4:4, Malachi 4:2
Wine – The joy one gets from wine is here for a moment, and then it passes away; the joy from the Lord is eternal, and our memory of its taste lasts with us.
Rightly – There are many things which man loves, which it is not good to love. But love for the Lord is right; it’s only right to do.
Vs. 5
I think there’s a symbolic significance to her being dark, to show that she is foreign, and marked from her life in the world; to show that the church is not the same as Israel, that the bride is not the nation of Israel. Where Israel had been elevated to royalty, Ezekiel 16:13, she is from the commoners of the field. So the church is not comprised of many from the wise and the rich of this world, but of the common people, 1Cor 1:26-27.
Vs. 6
Don’t look at me with wonder, because of my condition; it was not her natural state, but was brought about by her having to keep the vineyards which were not hers.
She was not able to pursue her own interests, her own well-being, for she was forced into labor, that is, she grew up among the people she grew up among, picking up their ways and traits. It is common that we take after the ways of those we grow up among.
Following after the ways of those she had grown up with, she had not looked to herself, had not looked to see what was the truth in life. But now, desiring the Lord, she sees that she has been destitute in this regard, that is, she confesses that she is poor (poor in spirit), i.e., has not kept her own vineyard.
Vs. 7
Or, how do I draw near to you? For why should I look elsewhere than to you? John 6:67-68.
Vs. 8
The answer from the Lord: follow the church, the flock, and her example; draw near to the shepherds, (the elders and the teachers), and learn the truth. Remember the Bereans, Acts 17:10-11.
Vs. 9-11
His love for the church.
(Cf. John 14:23 for the plural in regard to God).
Proverbs 1:9, where instruction and teaching are ornaments for the head & neck; Proverbs 25:11-12, where the ability to answer wisely and to wisely reprove are ornaments of gold in a silver setting, and gold ornaments.
Vs. 12
Philippians 4:18, our works are a fragrant aroma to the Lord, as we serve him at his table, Luke 17:5-10, 2Cor 2:14-17.
Vs. 13-14
The sweet fragrance of Christ, which the church holds close to her heart.
Vs. 15
The view of Christ towards the church, emphatically repeated, his love for her.
Vs. 16-17
The reply of the church, of how beautiful Christ is to her, and how the place of our interaction with him is a well-constructed, beautiful home, John 14:23, “Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.” (As Armageddon is a spiritual battleground, so this house is a spiritual house.)
Chapter 2
Vs. 1
The Shulamite speaking.
Vs. 2
So much greater is the church to him than any other! For the unbelieving and apostate world here is referred to as thorns, while the church is the lily.
Vs. 3
Generally speaking, you don’t randomly come upon fruit trees in the forest. So here, among the trees which are barren for human food, Christ is referred to as a fruit-bearing tree, an apple tree, and so she took her rest, her relief, under his shade (for we are under his wings, Matt 23:37, Ps 17:8, under his protection, and he gives us rest, Matt 11:28), and comments on how sweet Christ is to those who taste of Him, Ps 34:8, 119:103.
Vs. 4
A joyful celebration, a celebration of His love for the church. Luke 15:7, 10, joy over the repentant.
Vs. 5
Ps 6; 13; 63:6-8; 119:145-152
Vs. 6
Ps 63:6-8
Vs. 7
Proverbs 13:12 (“hope deferred makes the heart sick…”). Since we are in a state of betrothal, we are in a state of anticipation, looking forward to and yearning for the day to come when we are with the Lord forever. Until that time, the heart can only yearn, and how it longs to be satisfied!
Vs. 8-9a
1Chr 12:8, the swiftness of a gazelle on the mountains, the swiftness of the Savior to save his people, Isaiah 46:13, Hebrews 10:37-38.
Vs. 9b-10
Rev. 3:20, “…I stand at the door and knock…” He is looking for us, as in the parable of the lost sheep, Matthew 18:12ff. The time has come for her to be saved, and so he has come to her.
Vs. 11-13
Springtime is the time of renewal, the time of love. The call is out from the Lord, now is the time to be saved, to be renewed of heart. Ezekiel 16:8; Eph. 4:22-23; Ps. 103:3-5; 2Cor 4:16; Col 3:9-10
Vs. 14
As Adam and Eve hid from him in the garden after sinning, Genesis 3:8. She is hiding, but there’s no need, for he calls to her gently of his love for her; she hides from shame, but he entreats her with to come forth, and to taste of his love. Though she is conscious of her sins, her infirmities, yet she is beautiful to him.
Vs. 15
Depending on who this is attributed to, the meaning varies. If to her brothers, which is likely, then they call to her to tend to the vineyard they had forced her to attend to, i.e., the constant call of the world for us to leave the Lord and return to them, and be like them; for there is always a reason to return, if we desire to. To the world there are always pressing matters in their eyes that require us, metaphorically speaking, or evil ways they wish us to join in on; these things now matter little to us, and this they don’t understand.
If her beloved, then it is the call for us to expose and rid the church of those who from within destroy her. For false teachers prey upon those who as of yet have not grown to full strength, i.e., the tender grapes, and ruin them.
Vs. 16
If the above is to be understood of her brothers, then this is her answer, that she cannot return for she belongs to Christ, and him to her, and she must be where the flock is, among the lilies. If it’s to be understood of her beloved, then this is her renewed closeness to him after having hid from him, her closeness regained after she received her charge from him to see to those destroyers amongst her.
Vs. 17
Her call, that until the times comes for us to be with him in eternity, to still come swiftly to her. To swiftly return, and take her away forever.
Chapter 3
Vs. 1-3
A picture of the different ways men pusue religion, and where Christ is to be found.
-At first she sought him in her dreaming, but he was not found; Jeremiah 27:9, jude 8, Isaiah 56:10.
-Next she looked for him among the world, but didn’t find him.
-She went to the watchmen, the religious leaders, but they did not know where he was. They went about the city, that is, they intermingled with the world. There were false prophets among Israel, as there is the antichrist among us. Jeremiah 6:16-17, Isaiah 56:10, Isaiah 62:6, Ezekiel 3:17
Vs. 4
When she saw they had no answer, she moved on, and immediately found him.
Jer 29:13-14, “And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” When we seek for the truth, and do not content ourselves with what this man says, and what that man says, when in truth from the heart we earnestly seek for him according to his ways, through his word, we will find him.
Having now found the one she loves, she held on to him, and would not let him go. Thus we are to cling to the Lord, and refuse to let go for anything. Compare Elisha with Elijah, 2Kings 2.
She brought him into the innermost place she could bring him, as close as she could to herself.
Vs. 5
Hope deferred…
Vs. 6-11
The King, on the day of his wedding. The splendor of his arrival, in likelihood this signifies his arrival for his earthly mission, as he has a guard “for fear in the night,” which there shall be no fear left at the wedding on the day of judgment, but there certainly was when he was here, for Satan and Israel sought to defeat him. Possibly signifying the angels who guarded him, Psalm 91:11-12, quoted by Satan when he tempted him.
Hebrews 12:2, “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Also Ephesians 4:8.
Chapter 4
Vs. 1-5
The love of Christ for the church.
Vs. 6
2Peter 1:9, the day dawning is eternity, the shadow of death flees away. Until then he has gone away, ever-present with us, but hidden from us, off preparing a home for us.
Vs. 7
- 2 Peter 3:14-15, “Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;”
- 1 Tim 6:14-15, “that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ's appearing,”
- Heb 9:14-15, “how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”
Vs. 8-15
The Lord’s love for us.
Vs. 16
What our response should be; that he should be able to enjoy the fruits of his love for us, that we should give ourselves wholly to him, and be obedient in all things. In Rev. 5:8, the prayers of the saints are described as incense.
Chapter 5
Vs. 1
When he has been filled, then he gives to all the church of the bounty he enjoys, and gives of himself to her, that they may have sweet communion one with the other.
Vs. 2-6
In this vignette, when Christ comes to call, she is sleepy, and doesn’t wish to answer, for he came at an unseasonable time. But we are to be ready, “instant in season and out of season,” 2Timothy 4:2.
How often when the call comes, we are not quite sleeping, but not quite awake! (For she slept but her heart was awake.) But her heart yearned for him, so she arose, but she had delayed, and now the time had passed, and now he had left, and didn’t hear when she called. He has withdrawn his favor as a just penalty for her neglect. How often is this the case with us; he is ready to open to us, and calls out for us, but yet we give all manner of excuse (Matt 22:2ff).
Vs. 7
The watchmen are the religious leaders, who should have been looking after the people, but instead fed on and devoured them. In Israel, it was the watchmen who killed Jesus, and in NT times, a correlation can be made to the Catholic Church. They are the ones who say they are the true church, and when men began to break away from them, they committed all manner of heinous acts against them.
Vs. 8
Having passed on from those who abuse her for her search, she heartbreakingly says to any who “profess” of the truth that she is seeking after him, and tell her if they find him!
Vs. 9
Does not the world call to uas, saying that our God is no different than their gods, that one is as good as the other, and all lead to truth? That ours is a myth as theirs, and as of the same value?
Vs. 10-16
When we are thus told, that our God is no different, we tell of his beauty, of why he is different, Ps 96:4-6, Ps 27:4.
Or, as we are his body, so all who are a part of it are made into wonderful beauty. However, I do think this is a description of Him, and not us. However, we are the body of Christ.
Another thought - we are the body of Christ. When the Shulamite is described by Him, we are told of the beauty of the individual members. When Christ looks at us, he sees beauty. When we look at His body, which is also us, the church, we see strength, as His body is here described by strong objects. The male is strength, the female is beauty. We look to the church for strength, for we strengthen and exhort one another, Ecc. 4:12, Hebrews 10:24-25.
Chapter 6
Having heard of the Christ, they earnestly seek to know where they might find him.
Vs. 2-3
He feeds us in the good places; where he takes his return, there he feeds us.
Vs. 4-7
Again overcome by his love for her, he again makes comparisons for her.
Vs. 8-10
There are many, but there is only one church, the offspring of the heavenly Jerusalem, Galatians 4:26. There is nothing here which compares with her in the sight of God.
Vs. 11-12
She went down to see, that is, she set her heart after him, and before she even knew, she had been transformed. This is the lot of the Christian: we have become different before we even realize it; it is only later that we see what we have become, Ephesians 4:24, Colossians 3:10.
Vs. 13
The wandering of man, and the earnest desire of God to redeem him. The fourfold call to return, and the nature of man; the dance of the two camps, that is, the struggle of the two natures within us, “For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please,” Galatians 5:17.
Chapter 7
We are the body of Christ, and members thereof, Romans 12:4-8 & 1Corinthians 12:14-27. As we are one a hand, and one a foot, one this, and one that, so we are all beautiful to Him.
Vs. 1-6
His love for her, how often he has repeated it; how great then is his love!
Vs. 7-8
See Ezekiel 23.
Vs. 9
Her speech is like the best wine for him.
Vs. 10 - 8:3
His desire is towards her, and so he follows where he leads her, off to a good place.
As it isn’t proper for lovers to kiss in the open, so openly showing the overflowing love in our heart towards him isn’t proper; but that she could! But as the world despises those who make a show of their love in public, so the world despises us in our love for Christ, if poured out openly.
Vs. 4
Hope deferred…
Vs. 5-7
Where she had sought shade and refreshment under the apple tree, now he declares that it was then that she was brought forth.
Either the bringing forth of the church from it’s mother, Israel, or the bringing forth of the individual Christian (or, of Israel being brought out of the wilderness into the ladn of Canaan, which is a type of the church in the world (the wilderness), awaiting her final redemption out of the temporal into eternity.
The seal, Rev 9:4, Eze 9:4; we are to settle and acknowledge in our hearts that we are his, to set our hearts to follow him. For as death lays hold of us and doesn’t release us back to the land of the living, so is his love for us, of this strength. If we stray from him, if we turn back and commit adultery with the world, we will arouse in him a jealousy, a fiercer anger than if we had never known him, 2Peter 2:20-22, Heb 10:38
Vs. 8-9
One who is not ready yet for the Lord. In the day that they turn to him, they are one of two kinds; either a wall, strong and impenetrable, or a door, weak, and the way through the wall. If they be a wall, they may be a source of strength to be built upon, but if a door, we must enclose them, that is, guard and protect them, until they do become a wall.
Vs. 10
The Shulamite is a wall, strong and at peace, with the peace given her by Christ, John 14:27, Philippians 4:6-7 (cf. Jeremiah 1:18).
Vs. 11
Luke 20:9-19, 13:6-9. He has leased the vineyard to us, to the church, and he expects a return from us. Luke 17:7-10.
Vs. 12
Before, in verse 6, she had not tended to her vineyard, but now she sees it before her.
Our own field of work is before us; and in our labor, we also eat of the fruit of our work, for, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it is treading out grain,” Deut 25:4, and again, “The hard-working farmer ought to be the first to receive his share of the crops,” 2Tim 2:6, meaning, it is only right that we receive a share in our work for him, but only if we work. “The laborer is worthy of his wages,” Luke 10:7, 1Tim 5:17.
Joy as a wage
3 John 4, I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.
Hebrews 12:2, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Luke 15:7, "I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.
Proverbs 12:20, Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, But counselors of peace have joy.
Psalm 51:8, Make me to hear joy and gladness, Let the bones which You have broken rejoice.
Eccl 5:20, For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart. RSV
Vs. 13
It is we who dwell in the gardens, and He longs to hear from us; Ps 55:22, 1Peter 5:7. The companions, our fellow christians, we have our fellowship with each other, our friendships, and He desires the same with us, our friendship and fellowship; remember Enoch, “Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him,” Genesis 5:22-24. Of none of the others does it say that they walked with God; Enoch alone.
Vs. 14
We long for his return, “He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming quickly." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus,” Revelation 22:20.