Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Song of Solomon 5:9
What [is] thy beloved more than [another] beloved, O thou fairest among women? what [is] thy beloved more than [another] beloved, that thou dost so charge us?
9. What is thy beloved more than another beloved ] This is the reply of the daughters of Jerusalem. The A.V. gives the meaning correctly enough, but there is considerable perplexity as to the exact translation of the Heb. As the italics in the A.V. shew, there is no Heb. word corresponding to another, and the question is whether the preposition min in the phrase midddh is to be translated comparatively, as the A.V. takes it, or partitively, ‘what of a love is thy love?’ i.e. what kind of a love is thy love? as Ewald, Synt. 328 a, and Davidson, Synt. 8, R. 2, translate it. Probably the latter is the better view, but in either case the meaning is the same, ‘What is there so exceptional or extraordinary in this beloved, that thou adjurest us so?’
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Section 5:96:3: The brides commendation of the beloved. In the allegorical interpretations of Jewish expositors all is here spoken by exiled Israel of the Holy One whose praise she sings by the waters of Babylon Psa 137:1. Christian interpreters apply the description directly to the Incarnate Son, partly in His Eternal Godhead, but chiefly in His risen and glorified Humanity.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Son 5:9-16
What is thy Beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women.
The incomparable Bridegroom and His bride
I want to address some earnest words to the people of God upon certain practical truths that arise out of our text; and the first thing I have to say is this, that the daughters of Jerusalem recognized in the spouse an exceeding beauty, which dazzled and charmed them, so that they could not help calling her the fairest among women. This was not her estimate of herself; for she had said, I am black, but comely. Nor was it the estimate of her enemies; for they had smitten her, and wounded her. But it was the estimate of fair, candid, and impartial onlookers.
I. Our character should give weight to our profession of religion. I suppose it is the earnest wish of every Christian to win for Christ some new converts, to bring some fresh province under the dominion of the King of kings. I will tell you how this may be accomplished. Your power to achieve this noble purpose must largely depend upon your own personal consistency. It little availeth what I say if I do the reverse. The world will not care about my testimony with the lip, unless there be also a testimony in my daily life for God, for truth, for holiness, for everything that is honest, lovely, pure, and of good report. If your life be not all of a piece, the world will soon learn how to estimate your testimony, and will count you to be either a fool or a knave, and perhaps both. But it is not enough to be barely consistent; what the world expects in Christians is real holiness as well as consistency. Holiness is something more than virtue. Virtue is like goodness frozen into ice, hard and cold; but holiness is that same goodness when it is thawed into a clear, running, sparkling stream. If you are just barely honest and no more, if you are barely moral, and no more, it is of no service that you should try to speak of Christ; the world will not reckon you as the fairest among women, and it will not inquire anything about your Well-beloved.
II. We should charge others concerning Christ. What is thy Beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? The fairest among women was asked why she had so spoken: I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my Beloved, that ye tell Him, that I am sick of love. By this charge is meant, I suppose, that the spouse adjured them, and spoke solemnly to them about her Beloved. Christians be troublesome to the world! O house of Israel, be like a burdensome stone to the world I While your conduct should be courteous, and everything that could be desired as between man and man, yet let your testimony for Christ be given without any flinching and without any mincing of the matter. We must speak up for Christ, and so speak up for Him that men will be moved to ask us the question, What is thy Beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?
III. It is important for us to make all who come in contact with us feel that Christ Jesus is first and foremost with us. It is clear that Christ is not first in every nominal Christians heart. No, alas! He is not first, and He is not even second, He is very far down in the scale. Look at them,–good honest tradespeople, perhaps, but from the first dawn of Monday morning to the putting up of the shutters on Saturday night, what is the main business of their life? It is only, What shall we eat? or what shall we drink? or wherewithal shall we be clothed? Now, where is Christ in such a case as that? This is not the case with the truly Christ-like man. With him, Christ is first, Christ is last, Christ is midst, Christ is all in all; and when he speaks about anything connected with Christ, his words come with such a solemn earnestness, that men are impressed with what he says, and they turn round to him, and ask, as the daughters of Jerusalem inquired of the spouse, What is thy Beloved? etc.
IV. If ever, through the grace of God, we should possess such a character, and bear such a testimony as we have been talking about, so that men shall ask us the question of the text, it will be well for us to be prepared to answer it. See how the spouse does; she does not pause a minute before she gives her reply. She is asked, What is thy Beloved more than another beloved? and she has the answer, as we say, at her fingers ends, and why was this? Why, because she had it in her heart. So she says, My Beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. She does not say, Stop a bit, I must read up on that question; I must get myself well instructed upon it, but it is such a vital point, and one so dear to her, as it touches the person of her Lord, that she answers at once, Is my Beloved better than any other beloved? Certainly He is, and here are the reasons. She puts them together one after another without a pause, so that the daughters of Jerusalem must have been convinced; and I commend her example to you also, my beloved in Christ Jesus. Do study the Word, that your faith may not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The best Beloved
I. All have some beloved. By a beloved I mean any person or anything that more than any other occupies the thoughts–entwines about itself the affections and constitutes the mainspring of the persons actions. The beloved of many is money. Their thoughts can only run on golden rails. But there are others of lighter, gayer dispositions who laugh to scorn the misers treasure and cast their offerings at the feet of pleasure. For it they live, in it they revel. The world and the things of the world constitute their beloved, and they woo it with a blind devotion. No, my desire is to show and feel, and make you feel, that Jesus is infinitely more than any other, and that no other beloved can possibly be compared to Him.
II. Christ surpasses all beloveds.
1. He does so first in beauty. How magnificent is the description that flows from the lips of the spouse, when she is challenged to show the superiority of her Beloved. My Beloved, she exclaims, is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. Here you have the perfection of loveliness–not merely ruddy, nor only pale, though there may be beauty in both, but white and ruddy, the rose and the lily united, the fairest contrasts meeting in the same person. Oh, is it not so with our Beloved? Your Beloved is white and ruddy now.
2. Our Beloved is more than others in that He reciprocates my love. For every drop of love I have towards Him, there is in His heart an ocean full for me.
3. He is more than any other beloved also, because He is never a cause of sorrow. Can you point me to any other love that never gives a pang or brings a tear? Earthly honey is always mixed with gall, and this worlds fairest rose is ever accompanied with thorns. But Jesus is a beloved who is all joy. His friendship is sweeter than honey, and the rose of Sharon has no thorns.
4. Other beloveds may be loved too well, but Jesus never. Love to Him can never become a snare–love to Him need not and should never have any restraint. Love Him to a passion, and you will not love Him half enough.
5. Our Beloved is more than others in that death robs us not of Him.
6. No other beloved died for me, but Jesus did. Great and wonderful are the sacrifices that have been made through love. Remember our Beloved loved us unto the death, not because we loved Him, but because He would love us. So you will perceive that we here have love beyond that ever shown by friend to friend displayed to enemies.
7. Our Beloved is more than any other beloved in our estimation. Whatever others may think of Him, to me He is the chiefest among ten thousand. (A. G. Brown.)
The Christians Beloved
I. What are the chief objects of mans love?
1. Money.
What is there men will not do or suffer for the sake of wealth?
2. Fashion.–There is a Baal as well as a Moloch in the Pantheon–a god of splendour as well as a god of fire! And Baal has his sacrifices too. To enter a circle a little above their own, to stand out prominently before the world–what unworthy artifices! what mean flatteries! How low men will stoop to raise themselves a little higher!
3. Science.–Here we feel that we are getting to a loftier elevation, and breathing purer air. Heaven and earth–sea and shore–the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms, are full of treasures for the lover of science. And here he revels. Day is as night, and night as day–the hours uncounted, meals untasted pass; whilst his whole soul is in communion with his beloved.
4. Literature.–And surely such a study is not without its fascinations. And cultivated minds there are that make an idol of this object–Literature is the beloved of their souls.
II. Why does Christ deserve a warmer love?
1. Because He can love us in return. Money, Fashion, Science, Literature, are dead things; and the dead have no power to sympathize–their give not smile for smile, or sigh for sigh. But Christ is a living one! He was dead, but is alive again. There glows a heart in his Bosom that can hear and answeer the yearnings of ours. And seeking sympathy anywhere beside is seeking the living among the dead.! Seek it in Christ! He lives and loves!
2. Because He is so exceeding lovely. See Him encompassed with a body like our own–going about doing good. Can you imagine a character more attractive? Is He not altogether lovely?
3. He has shown us so much love already.
4. We may depend upon His love for all time to come. The future–untried, unknown! it is this which weighs on us. What evils, trials, sufferings may there not be in store! The only thing to bring us peace is–the assurance that our future is in the hands of all-wise, unwearied, almighty Love l And is not this the assurance that Christ gives to His people? Lo, I am with you alway. My grace is sufficient for you. All things work together for good to them that love Me. Is not this comforting? (F. Tucker, B. A.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 9. What is thy beloved more than another beloved] This question gives the bride an opportunity to break out into a highly wrought description of the beauty and perfections of her spouse.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
What is thy Beloved more than another beloved? wherein doth he excel them? which professors of religion might ask, because they were ignorant of Christs excellency; and true believers might ask it, that they might be more fully informed of it, and might give the spouse occasion to discourse of that subject which was very grateful to them.
O thou fairest among women; whose beauty may command the respects and affections of the most worthy persons; and therefore we conclude it must be some person of transcendent excellency with whom thou art so highly enamoured.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
9. Her own beauty (Eze16:14), and lovesickness for Him, elicit now their enquiry (Mt5:16); heretofore “other lords besides Him had dominion overthem”; thus they had seen “no beauty in Him” (Isa 26:13;Isa 53:2).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
What is thy beloved more than [another] beloved, O thou fairest among women?…. The same title Christ gives her, So 1:8; and from whom these daughters seem to have taken it; and, in giving it to her, might be assured they were right, since he, who knew her perfectly well, so calls her; in what sense she was so fair,
[See comments on So 1:8]: and this they used, to show their esteem of her, and that they were willing to do all the service they could for her; and what made them so attentive to her charge, and so desirous of knowing her beloved; since they concluded he must be some extraordinary person that one so fair and beautiful as she was should make the object of her love and choice: for this question they put, not in a scornful and disdainful way; nor to shift off any trouble from themselves, through the charge she gave them; nor as altogether ignorant of her beloved, for some knowledge they had, though but small; but as desirous of knowing more of him, and of hearing his excellencies set forth, and especially those which distinguished him from the beloveds of all others: with some, the world, its riches and grandeur, are their beloved; with others, the sinful lusts and pleasures of this life; with others, the praises and applause of men; and with others near and dear relations; and, with all, self: but with a true believer in Christ, he is preferable to them all; to riches, pleasures, honours; to all creatures, and creature enjoyments; and self, in every sense of it, is parted with for him; he is fairer, wiser, and richer, than all others. And this question is repeated by the daughters,
what [is] thy beloved more than [another] beloved? to show their surprise it the charge given them; the suspicion they had of peculiar excellencies in her beloved; and to declare their seriousness and earnestness to know more of Christ; and their importunity to have a speedy answer; and the rather for what follows:
that thou dost so charge us? so awfully and solemnly, so seriously and strictly, with so much warmth and vehemence.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
When, therefore, they put to her the question:
9 What is thy beloved before another (beloved),
Thou fairest of women?
What is thy beloved before another (beloved),
That thou dost adjure us thus?
the question thus asked cannot proceed from ignorance; it can only have the object of giving them the opportunity of hearing from Shulamith’s own mouth and heart her laudatory description of him, whom they also loved, although they were not deemed worthy to stand so near to him as she did who was thus questioned. Bttch. and Ewald, secs. 325 a, 326 a, interpret the in partitively: quid amati (as in Cicero: quod hominis ) amatus tuus ; but then the words would have been , if such a phrase were admissible; for certainly of itself alone means quid amati , what kind of a beloved. Thus the is the comparative ( prae amato ), and the sing., representing the idea of species or kind; , here easily misunderstood, is purposely avoided. The use of the form for is one of the many instances of the disregard of the generic distinction occurring in this Song, which purposely, after the manner of the vulgar language, ignores pedantic regularity.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| Enquiring after the Excellencies of Christ; The Church’s Confidence in Christ. | |
9 What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? 10 My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. 11 His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. 12 His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set. 13 His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. 14 His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. 15 His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. 16 His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
Here is, I. The question which the daughters of Jerusalem put to the spouse concerning her beloved, in answer to the charge she had given them, v. 9. Observe, 1. The respectful title they give to the spouse: O thou fairest among women! Our Lord Jesus makes his spouse truly amiable, not only in his eyes, but in the eyes of all the daughters of Jerusalem. The church is the most excellent society in the world, the communion of saints the best communion, and the beauty of the sanctuary a transcendent beauty. The saints are the most excellent people; holiness is the symmetry of the soul; it is its agreement with itself; it recommends itself to all that are competent judges of it. Even those that have little acquaintance with Christ, as those daughters of Jerusalem here, cannot but see an amiable beauty in those that bear his image, which we should love wherever we see it, though in different dresses. 2. Their enquiry concerning her beloved: “What is thy beloved more than another beloved? If thou wilt have us to find him for thee, give us his marks, that we may know him when we see him.” (1.) Some take it for a scornful question, blaming her for making such ado about him: “Why shouldst thou be so passionate in enquiring after thy beloved, more than others are after theirs? Why shouldst thou be so set upon him, more than others that yet have a kindness for him?” Those that are zealous in religion are men wondered at by such as are indifferent to it. The many careless ones laugh at the few that are solicitous and serious. “What is there in him that is so very charming, more than in another person? If he be gone, thou, who art the fairest among women, wilt soon have another with an equal flame.” Note, Carnal hearts see nothing excellent or extraordinary in the Lord Jesus, in his person or offices, in his doctrine or in his favours; as if there were no more in the knowledge of Christ, and in communion with him, than in the knowledge of the world and in its conversation. (2.) Others rather take it for a serious question, and suppose that those who put it intended, [1.] To comfort the spouse, who, they knew, would recover new spirits if she did but talk awhile of her beloved; nothing would please her better, nor give a more powerful diversion to her grief, than to be put upon the pleasing task of describing the beauties of her beloved. [2.] To inform themselves; they had heard, in general, that he was excellent and glorious, but they desired to know more particularly. They wondered what moved the spouse to charge them concerning her beloved with so much vehemence and concern, and therefore concluded there must be something more in him than in another beloved, which they are willing to be convinced of. Then there begin to be some hopes of people when they begin to enquire concerning Christ and his transcendent perfections. And sometimes the extraordinary zeal of one, in enquiring after Christ, may be a means to provoke many (2 Cor. ix. 2), as the apostle, by the faith of the Gentiles, would stir up the Jews to a holy emulation, Rom. xi. 14. See John iv. 10.
II. The account which the spouse gives of her beloved in answer to this question. We should always be ready to instruct and assist those that are enquiring after Christ. Experienced Christians, who are well acquainted with Christ themselves, should do all they can to make others acquainted with him.
1. She assures them, in general, that he is one of incomparable perfections and unparalleled worth (v. 10): “Do not you know my beloved? Can the daughters of Jerusalem be ignorant of him that is Jerusalem’s crown and crowned head? Let me tell you then,” (1.) That he has every thing in him that is lovely and amiable: My beloved is white and ruddy, the colours that make up a complete beauty. This points not at any extraordinary beauty of his body, when he should be incarnate (it was never said of the child Jesus, as of the child Moses, when he was born, that he was exceedingly fair, Acts vii. 20; nay, he had no form nor comeliness, Isa. liii. 2); but his divine glory, and the concurrence of every thing in him as Mediator, to make him truly lovely in the eyes of those that are enlightened to discern spiritual things. In him we may behold the beauty of the Lord; he was the holy child Jesus; that was his fairness. If we look upon him as made to us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, he appears, in all, very amiable. His love to us renders him lovely. He is white in the spotless innocency of his life, ruddy in the bloody sufferings he went through at his death,–white in his glory, as God (when he was transfigured his raiment was white as the light), ruddy in his assuming the nature of man, Adam—red earth,—white in his tenderness towards his people, ruddy in his terrible appearances against his and their enemies. His complexion is a very happy composition. (2.) That he has that loveliness in him which is not to be found in any other: He is the chief among ten thousand, a nonsuch for beauty, fairer than the children of men, than any of them, than all of them; there is none like him, nor any to be compared with him; every thing else is to be accounted loss and dung in comparison of him, Phil. iii. 8. He is higher than the kings of the earth (Ps. lxxxix. 27) and has obtained a more excellent name than any of the principalities and powers of the upper or lower world, Phi 2:9; Heb 1:1-14; Heb 4:1-16. He is a standard-bearer among ten thousand (so the word is), the tallest and comeliest of the company. He is himself lifted up as an ensign (Isa. xi. 10), to whom we must be gathered and must always have an eye. And there is all the reason in the world why he should have the innermost and uppermost place in our souls who is the fairest of ten thousands in himself and the fittest of twenty thousands for us.
2. She gives a particular detail of his accomplishments, conceals not his power or comely proportion. Every thing in Christ is amiable. Ten instances she here gives of his beauty, which we need not be nice in the application of, lest the wringing of them bring forth blood and prove the wresting of them. The design, in general, is to show that he is every way qualified for his undertaking, and has all that in him which may recommend him to our esteem, love, and confidence. Christ’s appearance to John (Rev. i. 13, c.) may be compared with the description which the spouse gives of him here, the scope of both being to represent him transcendently glorious, that is, both great and gracious, made lovely in the eyes of believers and making them happy in himself. (1.) His head is as the most fine gold. The head of Christ is God (1 Cor. xi. 3), and it is promised to the saints that the Almighty shall be their gold (Job xxii. 25), their defence, their treasure much more was he so to Christ, in whom dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, Col. ii. 9. Christ’s head bespeaks his sovereign dominion over all and his vital influence upon his church and all its members. This is as gold, gold; the former word in the original signifies shining gold, the latter strong solid gold; Christ’s sovereignty is both beautiful and powerful. Nebuchadnezzar’s monarchy is compared to a head of gold (Dan. ii. 38), because it excelled all the other monarchies, and so does Christ’s government. (2.) His locks are bushy and black, not black as the tents of Kedar, whose blackness was their deformity, to which therefore the church compares herself (ch. i. 5), but black as a raven, whose blackness is his beauty. Sometimes Christ’s hair is represented as white (Rev. i. 14), denoting his eternity, that he is the ancient of days; but here as black and bushy, denoting that he is ever young and that there is in him no decay, nothing that waxes old. Every thing that belongs to Christ is amiable in the eyes of a believer, even his hair is so; it was pity that it should be wet, as it was, with the dew, and these locks with the drops of the night, while he waited to be gracious, v. 2. (3.) His eyes are as the eyes of doves, fair and clear, and chaste and kind, by the rivers of waters, which doves delight in, and in which, as in a glass, they see themselves. They are washed, to make them clean, washed with milk, to make them white, and fitly set, neither starting out nor sunk in. Christ is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity, for they are doves’ eyes, Hab. i. 13. All believers speak with pleasure of the omniscience of Christ, as the spouse here of his eyes; for, though it be terrible to his enemies as a flame of fire (Rev. i. 14), yet it is amiable and comfortable to his friends, as doves’ eyes, for it is a witness to their integrity. Thou knowest all things, thou knowest that I love thee. Blessed and holy are those that walk always as under the eye of Christ. (4.) His cheeks (the rising of the face) are as a bed of spices, raised in the gardens, which are the beauty and wealth of them, and as sweet flowers, or towers of sweetness. There is that in Christ’s countenance which is amiable in the eyes of all the saints, in the least glimpse of him, for the cheek is but a part of the face. The half discoveries Christ makes of himself to the soul are reviving and refreshing, fragrant above the richest flowers and perfumes. (5.) His lips are like lilies, not white like lilies, but sweet and pleasant. Such are the words of his lips to all that are sanctified, sweeter than honey and the honey-comb; such are the kisses of his lips, all the communications of his grace; grace is poured into his lips, and those that heard him wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. His lips are as lilies, dropping sweet-smelling myrrh. Never any lilies in nature dropped myrrh, but nothing in nature can fully set forth the beauty and excellence of Christ, and therefore, to do it by comparison, there must be a composition of images. (6.) His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl, a noted precious stone, v. 14. Great men had their hands adorned with gold rings on their fingers, set with diamonds or other precious stones, but, in her eye, his hands themselves were as gold rings; all the instances of his power, the works of his hands, all the performances of his providence and grace, are all rich, and pure, and precious, as gold, as the precious onyx and the sapphire, all fitted to the purpose for which they were designed as gold rings to the finger, and all beautiful and very becoming, as rings set with beryl. His hands, which are stretched forth both to receive his people and to give to them, are thus rich and comely. (7.) His bowels are as bright ivory, for so it should be rendered, rather than his belly, for it is the same word that was used for bowels (v. 4) and is often ascribed to God (as Isa 63:15; Jer 31:20), and so it denotes his tender compassion and affection for his spouse, and the love he has to her even in her desolate and deserted state. This love of his is like bright ivory, finely polished, and richly overlaid with sapphires. The love itself is strong and firm, and the instances and circumstances of it are bright and sparkling, and add much to the inestimable value of it. (8.) His legs are as pillars of marble, so strong, and stately, and no disgrace, no, not to the sockets of fine gold upon which they are set, v. 15. This bespeaks his stability and stedfastness; where he sets his foot he will fix it; he is able to bear all the weight of the government that is upon his shoulders, and his legs will never fail under him. This sets forth the stateliness and magnificence of the goings of our God, our King, in his sanctuary (Ps. lxviii. 24), and the steadiness and evenness of all his dispensations towards his people. The ways of the Lord are equal; they are all mercy and truth; these are the pillars of marble, more lasting than the pillars of heaven. (9.) His countenance (his port and mien) is as Lebanon, that stately hill; his aspect beautiful and charming, like the prospect of that pleasant forest or park, excellent as the cedars, which, in height and strength, excel other trees, and are of excellent use. Christ is a goodly person; the more we look upon him the more beauty we shall see in him. (10.) His mouth is most sweet; it is sweetness itself; it is sweetnesses (so the word is); it is pure essence, nay, it is the quintessence of all delights, v. 16. The words of his mouth are all sweet to a believer, sweet as milk to babes (to whom it is agreeable), as honey to those that are grown up (Ps. cxix. 103), to whom it is delicious. The kisses of his mouth, all the tokens of his love, have a transcendent sweetness in them, and are most delightful to those who have their spiritual senses exercised. To you that believe he is precious.
3. She concludes with a full assurance both of faith and hope, and so gets the mastery of her trouble. (1.) Here is a full assurance of faith concerning the complete beauty of the Lord Jesus: “He is altogether lovely. Why should I stand to mention particulars, when throughout there is nothing amiss?” She is sensible she does him wrong in the particular descriptions of him, and comes far short of the dignity and merit of the subject, and therefore she breaks off with the general encomium: He is truly lovely, he is wholly so; there is nothing in him but what is amiable, and nothing amiable but what is in him. He is all desires; he has all in him that one can desire. And therefore all her desire is towards him, and she seeks him thus carefully and cannot rest contented in the want of him. Who can but love him who is so lovely? (2.) Here is a full assurance of hope concerning her own interest in him: “This is my beloved, and this is my friend; and therefore wonder not that I thus long after him.” See with what a holy boldness she claims relation to him, and then with what a holy triumph she proclaims it. It is property that sweetens excellency. To see Christ, and not to see him as ours, would be rather a torture than a happiness; but to see one that is thus lovely, and to see him as ours, is a complete satisfaction. Here is a true believer, [1.] Giving an entire consent to Christ: “He is mine, my Lord and my God (John xx. 28), mine according to the tenour of the gospel-covenant, mine in all relations, bestowed upon me, to be all that to me that my poor soul stands in need of.” [2.] Taking an entire complacency in Christ. It is spoken of here with an air of triumph: “This is he whom I have chosen, and to whom I have given up myself. None but Christ, none but Christ. This is he on whom my heart is, for he is my best-beloved; this is he in whom I trust, and from whom I expect all good, for this is my friend.” Note, Those that make Christ their beloved shall have him their friend; he has been, is, and will be, a special friend to all believers. He loves those that love him; and those that have him their friend have reason to glory in him, and speak of him with delight. “Let others be governed by the love of the world, and seek their happiness in its friendship and favours, This is my beloved and this is my friend. Others may do as they please, but this is my soul’s choice, my soul’s rest, my life, my joy, my all; this is he whom I desire to live and die with.”
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
FIRST ENQUIRY BY THE
DAUGHTERS OF JERUSALEM
Son. 5:9
What is thy beloved more than another beloved,
O thou fairest among women?
What is thy beloved more than another beloved,
That thou dost so charge us?
Greater tenderness and consideration from the daughters of Jerusalem than from the watchmen of the city. The people of Jerusalem magnified the early converts, while the priests and rulers sought to put them to death. The Spouse, in the eyes of the daughters of Jerusalem, the fairest among women; in those of the watchmen of the city, a mere street-walker. That, in Christ and His Church, revealed to babes, which is hidden from the wise and prudent. Hopeful and others in Vanity Fair attracted to Christain and Faithful, while the rest mocked and persecuted them. A hopeful indication to discern the beauty and excellence of holiness, especially in times of persecution and spiritual desertion. Observe from the appellation given to the Bride
1. Something especially lovely and beautiful in a believing soul earnestly seeking after a missing Christ. Grace in exercise makes the most plain-looking lovely.
2. Believers to appear in the eyes of the world what they really arepossessed of a spiritual beauty which exalts them above others. The righteous is more excellent than his neighbour. The Spouse of Christ the fairest among women. The world to be compelled by a believers life and spirit to acknowledge the reality and beauty of true religion. Christs preciousness and excellence to be seen in the character and disposition of His people.
From the inquiry of the daughters of Jerusalem: What is thy beloved, &c., observe
1. Earnest search after a missing Saviour often blessed to the awakening of a spiritual concern in others. The daughters especially struck with the earnest manner and language of the Bride: that thou dost so charge us. Nothing more likely to impress others than earnestness in seeking Christ. One living, loving, earnest Christian may shake a whole Church and neighbourhood out of its slumbers.
2. The world to learn from the earnestness of believers that there is a preciousness in Christ not to be found in anything else.
3. The world and mere nominal professors of religion, ignorant of Christs loveliness and excellence. This ignorance the reason why others are put in competition with Him, and preferred before Him.
4. Serious inquiry about Christ often the beginning of a new life. A hopeful inquiry of the Greeks: Sir, we would see Jesus.
5. All have something as a belovedeither Christ or something else. The world full of Christs rivals and candidates for mens hearts.
6. Believers expected to give a reason for their attachment to Christ, and to show His superior excellence and claim to mens affection.
7. Christ infinitely above all other beloveds, and supremely worthy of mens hearts; as
(1) More excellent and lovely in Himselfthe sum and source of all loveliness and excellence.
(2) More satisfying as a portion, being more suited to mans nature and requirements.
(3) More durable, never changing either in Himself or His love, and unable to be taken from us either in life or in death.
(4) More loving and kind; having given the greatest proof of His love in what He has done and suffered for ushumbling Himself, laying down His life for us, seeking us in our wandering, and bearing with our weakness and waywardness.
(5) The longer and better known, the more loved and admired.
(6) Able, as being divine as well as human, to be loved with the whole heart, without danger either of idolatry or excess.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
(9) What is thy beloved?This question, introducing the description of the bridegrooms person, raises almost into certainty the conjecture that the poem was actually sung, or presented as an epithalamium, by alternate choirs (or single voices) of maidens and young men, as in the Carmen Nuptiale of Catullus, vying the one in praise of the bridegroom, the other of the bride. Mere love-poems contain descriptions of the charms of the fair one to whom they are addressed, but not of the poet himself.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
9. What is thy Beloved The Chorus draw out by this question a fuller description of the Beloved. The glimpse which they have had of him seems to have given them no particular impression of his superiority. They find it entertaining to listen as the ardent girl gives forth a portraiture in which love quickens fancy. The description illustrates the adage, that love has eyes.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The nightmare continues, for in her nightmare the women merely taunt her:
“What is your beloved more than another beloved, O you fairest among women? What is your beloved more than another beloved, That you do so adjure us?”
The women who had once fawned on her now mock her status and ask why her beloved is more important than anyone else’s? Let her give a reason why they should help her in her need. ‘Fairest among women’ is the typical title given to her by the women who represent Israel (compare Son 1:8; Son 6:1). There is in these words a suggestion that they have nothing but pleasure in the fact she is no longer to be seen as his queen. Now she has been reduced to their level.
We should remember that if we behave so lightly towards our Lord we should not wonder when people begin to treat Him lightly too. They pick up the same attitude as we convey. But what is saddest here is the thought of what she has lost. She has ceased to enjoy her exalted status, and has been reduced to being like any other. It is a reminder that without Him we can do nothing (Joh 15:5).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
The Uniqueness of the Husband in the Eyes of His Wife In Son 5:9-16 the Shulamite praises her Lover for his beauty. It is important to note that while the Lover praises her beauty by speaking directly to her, she praises his beauty by addressing the daughters of Jerusalem. This suggests that while Christ’s words of liquid love are poured forth into our hearts during communion, the believer responds by pouring God’s love upon others as a testimony of His love for us.
The daughters of Jerusalem first ask her why he is more special than other men (Son 5:9) and she responds by describing his unique characteristics (Son 5:10-16). She begins with the head and moves down the body to the legs. She emphasizes the fact that he is unique among men in his appearance.
Son 5:10 – It is very easy to see that each of these phrases describes an aspect of Jesus Christ’s divine nature. For example, the phrase “My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand” (Son 5:10) would represent His righteousness as well as His humanity. White symbolizes righteousness, while ruddy represents humanity. There is none other among men who stands in this position of righteousness with God the Father as does Jesus Christ His Son.
Son 5:11 – The phrase “His head is as the most fine gold” (Son 5:11) would represent the Son’s divinity and Godhead over all of creation. The phrase “his locks are bushy, and black as a raven” (Son 5:11) may suggest eternal youth and strength.
Son 5:12 – The phrase “His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters” (Son 5:12) would represent the fact that He has been given the Spirit without measure (Joh 3:34), like rivers of water. In addition, it is by the outpouring of the Spirit that love flows into and through one’s life (Rom 5:5). I read one description of the Lord Jesus by someone who had received a divine visitation from the Lord. This person said that His eyes were like liquid love as Jesus looked at him. We know in Scripture that the eyes often are symbolic of the heart, or spirit, of a man (see Mat 6:22). His eyes may also represent His infinite understanding and knowledge of all things.
Joh 3:34, “For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.”
Rom 5:5, “And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”
Son 5:13 – The phrase “His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh,” (Son 5:13) may refer to His glory and majesty and anointing. For Jesus tells us in Mat 6:29 that God has arrayed flowers with glory.
Son 5:14 – The phrase “His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl,” (Son 5:14) may refer to His omnipotence and almighty power: for the Scriptures refer to God’s power as the work of His hands. The phrase “his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires” (Son 5:14) may refer to God’s compassion for mankind: for the belly represents the seat of emotions. We can compare the phrase “bowels of compassion” used in 1Jn 3:17. In Gen 43:30 we have a description of Joseph’s emotions, “And Joseph made haste; for his bowels did yearn upon his brother”. In 1Ki 3:26, “for her bowels yearned upon her son.” In Isa 63:15, “the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies toward me.” In Jer 4:19, “My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart.” In Jer 31:20, “my bowels are troubled for him.” In Php 1:8, “For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.” In Php 2:1, “if any bowels and mercies.” His nature is a God of compassion and of tender mercy, who forgives our sins.
Son 5:15 – The phrase “His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold” (Son 5:15) may refer to His unchanging nature. The Scriptures tell us, “I am the Lord and I change not,” (Mal 3:6), and “the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning,” (Jas 1:17). His purpose and plan of redemption is being established upon this earth and cannot be altered by man.
The phrase “his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars” (Son 5:15) refers to His exalted position above all nature.
Son 5:16 – The phrase “His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely,” (Son 5:16) sums up His divine nature in relation to mankind as being a good God, a God who gives His people good things when they serve Him.
Son 5:9 What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?
Son 5:9
1Co 1:3-7 gives us a brief summary of the contents of the epistle of 2 Corinthians. Paul says that the sufferings that he endured were for their sake that they might be comforted during their tribulations. One great illustration of this theme was stated by Juanita Bynum. In the early 1990’s she was at a point of feeling worthless after having gone through many trials, including a divorce. When she laid her heart open to the Lord, He replied by telling her that she was now a “weapon of power.” The Lord began to explain that the power in a gun does not lie in its size or in its shape; but, it lies in the bullet that is powered by the gunpowder packed inside a small primer. This powder had to first be crushed and ground into a powder in order to become useful. But still, it could be blown away with the slightest breath. However, when this gunpowder is pressed inside a cap and placed inside the gun, it becomes a powerful weapon. In the same way, God has to crush us and then re-mould our hearts like gun powder being packed into a primer in order for our lives to become useful to Him. At this point, our testimonies become like a bullet in a gun. When it goes forth, it becomes a powerful weapon of power able to transform many lives. [213]
[213] Juanita Bynum, Weapons of Power, on Trinity Broadcasting Network (Santa Ana, California, 16 June 2004), television program.
Son 5:10 My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand.
Son 5:10
Son 5:10 Word Study on “the chiefest” – Gesenius says the Hebrew word “chiefest” “dagal” ( ) (H1713) literally means, “to cover, to cover over,” thus, “to act covertly, to deceive.” He says the passive participle in Son 5:10 means, “erect as a banner, conspicuous, distinguished,” and the Niphal in Son 6:4; Son 6:10 means, “to be furnished, or arrayed, with banners.” Strong says it is a primitive root literally meaning, “to flaunt, i.e. to raise a flag,” and figuratively, “to be conspicuous.” The Enhanced Strong says this word is used 4 times in the Old Testament, being translated in the KJV as “(set up) banner 3, chiefest 1.”
Psa 20:5, “We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners : the LORD fulfil all thy petitions.”
Son 5:10, “My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand.”
Son 6:4, “Thou art beautiful, O my love, as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem, terrible as an army with banners .”
Son 6:10, “Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners ?”
Comments – This Hebrew word is used in the phrase “terrible as an army with banners” in Son 6:4; Son 6:10, which Gesenius translates, “terrible as furnished with banners,” i.e., as hosts or a camp of soldiers. He explains that the Shulamite woman is described as conquering and captivating the hearts of all.
Son 5:10 Word Study on “ten thousand” Strong says the Hebrew word “reb-aw-baw’” ( ) (7233) means, “abundance (in number), i.e. myriad,” and it comes from the primitive root ( ) (H7231), which means, “to increase, especially in number, to multiply by a myriad.” The Enhanced Strong says this word is used 16 times in the Old Testament, being translated in the KJV as “ten thousand 13, million 1, many 1, multiply.” Gesenius tells us this Hebrew word is commonly used of any large number.
Son 5:10 Literal Interpretation – Son 5:10 may serve as a general description of the Lover, followed by particular aspects of his beauty, much like the Lover opens his love song by summarizing her beauty in Son 4:1 before describing the details. She closes this love song with another summary of his beauty in Son 5:16. This description reminds us of young David in 1Sa 16:12 ; 1Sa 17:42.
1Sa 16:12, “And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the LORD said, Arise, anoint him: for this is he.”
1Sa 17:42, “And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance.”
Figurative Interpretation Watchman Nee suggests that his radiance reflects Christ’s divine countenance. His ruddy complexion reflects his human countenance, which is the reflection of perfect heath. As “the chiefest among ten thousand,” Christ is the one to whom we must look for redemption. [214] No other man could do what Christ accomplished on Calvary. Bickle suggests Son 5:10 is a general statement of His beauty. [215] We see a similar general description in the Lover’s opening statement of his beloved in Son 4:1.
[214] Watchman Nee, Song of Songs (Fort Washington, Pennsylvania: CLC Publications, c1965, 2001), 110-1.
[215] Mike Bickle, Session 14 – The Bride’s Response to the 2-Fold Test (Song of Solomon 5:9-6:5 ), in Song of Songs (Kansas City, Missouri: International House of Prayer, 1998), 1.
Son 5:11 His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven.
Son 5:11
[216] Watchman Nee, Song of Songs (Fort Washington, Pennsylvania: CLC Publications, c1965, 2001), 111.
2Sa 14:25-26, “But in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him. And when he polled his head, (for it was at every year’s end that he polled it: because the hair was heavy on him, therefore he polled it:) he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels after the king’s weight.”
Son 5:12 His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set.
Son 5:12
Son 5:13 His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh.
Son 5:13
Son 5:13 Word Study on “lilies” Strong says the Hebrew word “lily” “ shuwshan ” ( ) (H7799) means, “a lily (from its whiteness), as a flower or [archaic] an ornament.” The Enhanced Strong says this word is used 15 times in the Old Testament, being translated in the KJV as “lily 13, Shoshannim 2.” However, its compound uses in Psalms 60 (Shushan-eduth) and Psalms 80 (Shoshannim-Eduth) can be included. It is found 8 times in Songs (Son 2:1-2; Son 2:16; Son 4:5; Son 5:13; Son 6:2-3; Son 7:2). Lilies were used to adorn Solomon’s Temple (1Ki 7:19; 1Ki 7:22; 1Ki 7:26, 2Ch 4:5). This word or its derivatives are used in the title of four psalms as “Shoshannim” (Psalms 45, 60, 69, 80). Psalms 45 is a song of love, where a wedding processional is described. In Songs the Beloved is describes as “a lily of the valley,” and “a lily among thorns” (Son 2:1-2). The Lover feeds among the lilies in the garden (Son 2:16; Son 4:5; Son 6:3), and gathers lilies (Son 5:13). Hosea describes the children of Israel as a lily, saying, “I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon.” (Hos 14:5) Watchman Nee suggests that the lilies in Songs is symbolic of those who are upright before God. [217]
[217] Watchman Nee, Song of Songs (Fort Washington, Pennsylvania: CLC Publications, c1965, 2001), 53.
Son 5:14 His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires.
Son 5:15 Son 5:16 Son 5:16
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
Becoming Familiar with One Another In Son 5:9 to Son 6:13 the husband and wife become familiar with one another’s characteristics. This passage is important for a maturing marriage in that the spouses focus on the positive unique attributes of one another, rather than on the negative.
In Son 5:9 to Son 6:3 we have symbolic language that suggests that the wife has become familiar with her husband. We have the daughters of Jerusalem asking questions to the beloved about her lover and husband. They first ask her why he is more special than other men (Son 5:9) and she responds by describing his unique characteristics (Son 5:10-16). This symbolizes the journey of every wife to learn about her husband and to admire his unique characteristics. The daughters of Jerusalem then ask the wife about the ways and lifestyle and interests of her husband (Son 6:1). She answers by describing the things that he does (Son 6:2-3), which symbolizes her journey of becoming familiar with her husband’s desires and activities.
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
The Church Praises her Bridegroom
v. 9. What is thy Beloved more than another beloved, v. 10. My Beloved is white and ruddy, v. 11. His head is as the most fine gold, v. 12. His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, v. 13. His cheeks are as a bed of spices, v. 14. His hands are as gold rings, v. 15. His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets, v. 16. His mouth is most sweet,
This is the ecstatic description which the Church gives of the Bridegroom with whose love she is ravished, she herself being once more addressed with the honoring name of “the fairest among women,” since the Church is, by virtue of His grace, without spot, or blemish, or any such thing. Her praise of the King is in the same strain which caused the inspired writers to call out: “Thou art fairer than the children of men; grace is poured out into Thy lips; therefore God hath blessed Thee forever,” Psalms 45, 2. The entire description shows Christ as true man, but at the same time, in the fullness of His divinity, with majesty and stateliness in His entire appearance, and loveliness and sustaining power in His words. Beauty and strength, delicacy and might, are combined in His person, and therefore the sight of Him does not cause fear and terror, but inspires love and confidence. The entire description fits only Him who, while indeed true man, is at the same time God over all, blessed forever. It is the indescribable majesty of His deity which is here set forth in pictures and parables, in order that we might know Him with the eyes of faith, until we shall finally see Him as He is and be with Him in everlasting joy and happiness.
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
DISCOURSE: 852
TRANSCENDENT EXCELLENCIES OF CHRIST
Son 5:9. What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? What is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?
THOUGH zeal in every earthly pursuit is approved and commended, it is almost universally banished from the concerns of religion. The most temperate exertions are deemed excessive, and a moderate degree of solicitude is called enthusiasm. Even they who profess godliness are too often found ready to damp the ardour, which persons, more active than themselves, may at any time express. Thus the Bride was checked in her inquiries after her beloved. The daughters of Jerusalem, who keep up the dialogue with the Bride and Bridegroom, seem to be either formal professors of religion, or to have made a very small progress in the divine life. And they, when the Bride, under great trouble and anxiety, requested their intercession, reflected on her as manifesting an intemperate and needless zeal. But we will answer their questions, by shewing,
I.
The excellencies of our Beloved
Who the Beloved of the Church is, we need not declare; since it is too manifest to admit a doubt. There is not a member of that body who does not regard Jesus with supreme affection. Nor is there any apology needed for such a choice. His excellencies are exceeding great.
[In him are concentrated all the glories of the Godhead [Note: Col 2:9.]. Being the brightness of his Fathers glory, and the express image of his person, he must of necessity possess all the Divine perfections [Note: Heb 1:3.]. To search out these perfections is beyond the ability of any finite being [Note: Job 11:7.]; but to love and adore him on account of them is the duty and privilege of all his people. The excellencies of his human nature may be more easily declared. There his glory is veiled, so that we may behold and contemplate it without being blinded by its overwhelming splendour. He was not only holy, but holiness itself, without spot or blemish. His most inveterate enemies, Satan himself not excepted, could not find a flaw in him [Note: Joh 8:46. Joh 14:30.], and God himself has borne testimony, that in him was no sin [Note: 1Jn 3:5.]. As Mediator, he united both the Godhead and the Manhood in his own person, and executed an office which he alone was able to sustain. In that character we behold him reconciling God to man, and man to God [Note: 2Co 5:19.], yea, glorifying all the perfections of the Deity in the salvation of sinners [Note: Rom 3:25-26.]. Well may we, in this view of him, exclaim, How great is his goodness, how great is his beauty [Note: Zec 9:17.]!]
But the text requires us to speak of him in a comparative view
[Surely there is no other object of affection in the universe worthy to be compared with him. In whom is there such a marvellous combination of excellencies? As God, as Man, and as Mediator, he not only unites in himself every perfection proper to the Divine and human nature, but exhibits a character peculiar to himself, a character that is and ever must be the admiration of the whole universe. In whom was there ever found any one excellence in so eminent a degree? There have been men wise, and virtuous and loving; but in him were hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge [Note: Col 2:3.]; and he was not only virtuous, but virtue itself incarnate; and as for his love, its heights and depths can never be explored [Note: Eph 3:18-19.]. Indeed, whatever excellence has at any time beamed forth in the creature, it has been nothing but a ray reflected from this Sun of Righteousness [Note: 1Co 4:7.]. We may ask yet further, Whose excellencies were ever so beneficial to us? Others indeed have profited us by their example; but He, by his obedience, has wrought out a righteousness for us; a righteousness wherein the vilest of sinners, if truly penitent, shall stand perfect and complete in the sight of God [Note: Rom 5:18-19.]. Let the contemptuous inquirer then blush for his ignorance; and acknowledge that our Beloved infinitely transcends every thing that can be put in competition with him.]
According to his excellencies must of necessity be,
II.
The regard we owe him
If we look to the example of the Bride, who well knew how to appreciate his worth, we shall see how we ought to manifest our affection towards him.
1.
We should esteem him above every thing in the world
[The Bride has used every simile that the most fertile imagination could suggest, in order to express her sense of his excellency [Note: Son 2:3 and in ten different particulars, 5:1016.]. David esteemed nothing in heaven or earth in comparison of him [Note: Psa 73:25.]; and St. Paul counted all things but dung for the knowledge of him [Note: Php 3:8.]. And if we do not see a beauty and comeliness in him for which he is to be desired infinitely beyond every thing else, our eyes must be altogether blinded by the god of this world. Let us then despise every thing in comparison of him, and take him as our portion, our all in all.]
2.
We should be exceeding careful that we do not grieve him
[In this also the Bride affords us an excellent example. Frequently does she repeat her tender concern lest by any means he should be provoked to depart from her [Note: Son 2:7; Son 3:5; Son 8:4.]. Such a holy caution also should we continually maintain. He is a holy and jealous God, and will not endure our neglects without manifesting his displeasure [Note: Isa 45:15.]. The Bride herself, notwithstanding her care in general, experienced the loss of his presence, when she became remiss [Note: Son 5:3-6.]. And thus will he also hide himself from us, if by our unwatchfulness we grieve his Holy Spirit. Let us then walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise. Let us look to him as our Guardian Angel, and beware of him, and obey his voice, and carefully abstain from every species of provocation [Note: Exo 23:20-21.].]
3.
If at any time we have lost a sense of his presence, we should by all possible means immediately exert ourselves to regain it
[With what contrition did the Bride arise! How did her very soul faint within her, when she found he was departed! With what earnestness did she call after him! How did she instantly inquire after him, applying to those who from their office and character were best fitted to direct her! How did she persist, notwithstanding all the discouragements she met with! And what a solemn charge did she give to her fellow-saints to intercede for her [Note: See each distinct step exemplified: Son 5:5-8.]! Such should be our conduct under the hidings of his face. We should not sit down in despondency, but labour with more abundant diligence to obtain renewed expressions of his love and favour [Note: Hos 5:15.].]
4.
If he vouchsafe to visit us again, we should feel ourselves completely happy in him, and yield up ourselves entirely to his will
[No sooner were the Brides endeavours crowned with success, than she redoubled her efforts to retain and enjoy him [Note: Son 3:2-4.], and earnestly sought to be most intimately, and inseparably united to him [Note: Son 8:1-2; Son 8:6.]. Thus should we seek to abide in him, and to have him abiding in us [Note: Joh 15:4.]. We should cleave to him with full purpose of heart, and, in the possession of his love, our souls should find all that they can desire [Note: 2Co 6:10.]. Thrice happy they who are thus influenced by their views of Christ! Their labour shall never be in vain. They shall enjoy the greatest, the only real good, the light of his countenance [Note: Psa 4:6.]; and though in a little wrath he may hide his face from them, it shall be only for a moment, and with everlasting kindness will he have mercy on them [Note: Isa 54:8.].]
It may now be allowed us, not merely to exhort, but to charge, you all
[In the name of Almighty God, we charge you all to love the Saviour. If the love which Believers bear to him constrains them to be singular, let it be remembered, that the blame of singularity does not rest on them: as they can give a reason for the hope that is in them, so can they also for their love to the Saviour. His transcendent excellencies demand their supreme regard. If they love him with all their heart and soul and mind and strength, it is no more than their bounden duty; yea, their most fervent affections fall infinitely short of his desert. Let all then set their love on Jesus. Let them search out his excellencies, till they are ravished with the sight, and let them cast their idols to the moles and to the bats. Nor let any be ashamed to confess him before men. It is a small matter to bear the taunts of an ignorant and ungodly world. One hours enjoyment of Christs presence will more than counterbalance an age of mans contempt; and if on earth, how much more in heaven! Dare then to be singular. Shine, Believers, as becomes your relation to the heavenly Bridegroom. Be the fairest among women, as your Beloved is among men [Note: Psa 45:2-13.]; and let your union with him be discovered by your conformity to his image.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?
We have in this verse a question put to the Church by the daughters of Jerusalem. They call her the fairest among women, and by twice asking what there is in her beloved more than in another, they express both their surprize and their earnestness to know who this is. It is a blessed consideration that the Church is a perfection of beauty. The human soul as it first came out of the hands of the Almighty Creator pure and undefiled, and as it is when again washed in the blood of Christ after its defilements, is such an object of beauty as may well be called fair. Now the question seems to be put with much earnestness, what is there in Christ so superior to every other object of love, that it carries everything before it? Various are the objects of desire among men. Some to the world, – the pride, rank, opulence, grandeur of the world. Others to human learning. Some to pleasure; some to money; some to title; some to natural alliances. But Christ is so fair, so lovely, so supremely the chief, the only good, that the Church hath set her affection upon him, to the total exclusion of them all.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Son 5:9 What [is] thy beloved more than [another] beloved, O thou fairest among women? what [is] thy beloved more than [another] beloved, that thou dost so charge us?
Ver. 9. What is thy beloved more than another beloved? ] This capital question is here doubled for the more vehemence, as also for the strangeness of the matter, wherein they desire much to be better informed, and the rather because she so straightly chargeth, or rather sweareth them. Something they must needs think was in it more than ordinary, since good people do not use to be hot in a cold matter. But as in the Revelation, whensoever heaven opened, some singular thing ensued; so when the saints be so serious in a business, sure it is of very great concernment. Great matters are carried with great movings: as “for the divisions of Reuben there were great thoughts of heart,” Jdg 5:15-16 great impressions, great searchings. It is a common saying, Admiratio peperit philosophiam, wonderment at the works of God, set men awork to inquire into the natural causes of them. Similarily, these damsels of Jerusalem, friends to the Church, little knowing the love of the spouse to Christ, which passed their knowledge, Eph 3:18-19 and yet willing to comprehend with all saints the several dimensions thereof. First, they acknowledge her, amidst all her miseries, to be the “fairest among women.” Son 1:8 As gold is gold, though found in the dirt, or cast into the furnace, and stars have their glory, though we see them sometimes in a puddle, in the bottom of a well, nay, in a stinking ditch. Secondly, They propound to her two most profitable questions: the one concerning his person, whereof we have here a very lively and lofty description, both generally and in his parts. The other concerning the place of his abode, and where he may be had, Son 6:1 to the which she makes answer, Son 5:2 and so her faith begins to revive, Son 5:3 which was the blessed effect of this their gracious communication. Conference in all arts and sciences is a course of incredible profiting. Est aliquid quod ex magno viro vel tacente proficias, the very sight, nay, thought of a good man oft doth good; how much more when he openeth his mouth with wisdom, and in his tongue is the law of kindness! Pro 31:26 And surely it is a fine art to be able to pierce a man that is like a vessel full of wine, and to set him a-running. Pro 20:5 Elihu would “speak that he might be refreshed.” Job 32:20 It would be an ease to him, it would be a great benefit to others, as the mother is in pain till the child hath sucked, and the child not at quiet till he hath done so. “Foolish and unlearned questions” about those things whereof we can neither have proof nor profit, we are bound to “avoid,” 2Ti 2:23 knowing that they do “gender strifes,” and breed crudities, fill men with wind, and make them question sick. 1Ti 6:4 But profitable questions are frequently to be propounded with a desire to learn, and resolution to practise, as the Virgin Mary demanded of the angel, Luk 1:34 the disciples of our Saviour, Joh 16:17 ; Joh 16:19-24 and he resolved them, which he refused to do for the Jews that asked him the same question, Joh 7:35-36 because not with the same mind and desire. So that frolic self-seeker, with his fair offer of following Christ, was rejected, when those that had more honest aims and ends heard, “Come and see.” Mat 8:19-20 Joh 1:46 These daughters of Jerusalem do not, therefore, ask because they were utterly ignorant of Christ, but (1.) That they might hear the Church what she had to say of him, as they that love Christ love to hear talk of him; his very name is mel in ore, melos in aure, &c.; ( 2.) That by her discourse they might better their knowledge; for the very angels know not so much of this mystery, but they would know more, and do therefore curiously pry into it. 1Pe 1:12 Yea, to these very “principalities and powers in heavenly places is made known by the Church the manifold wisdom of God” in contriving man’s salvation by Christ; they cannot but see an abundance of curious variety in this divine wisdom, such as is to be seen in the best pictures or textures, as the apostle’s word, , importeth. Eph 3:10
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Son 5:9
9What kind of beloved is your beloved,
O most beautiful among women?
What kind of beloved is your beloved,
That thus you adjure us?
Son 5:9 most beautiful among women This phrase occurs in Son 1:8; Son 6:1; and here. It appears to be a compliment. However, if the daughters of Jerusalem are the other members of the neglected harem, one could see how it could be sarcastic.
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
What is . . . ? The speakers are the court-ladies, replying to the conclusion of her dream. dost so charge us? = hast so adjured us?
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Son 5:9
Son 5:9
“What is thy beloved more than another beloved,
O thou fairest among women?
What is thy beloved more than another beloved,
Thou that dost so adjure us?”
This verse is an introduction to the paragraph that follows. It was prompted by the maiden’s extravagant praise of her absent shepherd lover in the previous lines and her urgent request for their aid in finding him. These words may be paraphrased, “Why don’t you tell us what is so special about your lover? If the maiden’s lover had been Solomon (which he certainly was not), then she would have said: “He is the richest man on earth; he is the all-powerful king; he has 40,000 horses; all nations pay him tribute; he has the most luxurious harem you ever saw, etc. etc.” There’s not a word in the maiden’s song here that suggests any such things.
The question, asked by “The Daughters of Jerusalem” is apparently that of the women in Solomon’s harem (remember that in a dream anything is possible). Whoever they were, the question simply cannot refer to Solomon as the lover they invited the maiden to praise. THOSE WOMEN ALREADY KNEW ALL ABOUT SOLOMON! Here are the words of the bride:
Son 5:9. Do these women ask because they want to know or only because they wish to needle their rival? We believe it is the latter reason.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
15.
Let me tell you about my beloved
Son 5:9-16
What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set. His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
Let me tell you about my Beloved. His name is Jesus Christ, the Lord. He is my Savior, my Redeemer, my Prophet, my Priest, my King, and my All. He is my Lord; and he is my God. But he is more Jesus Christ is the Beloved One of my heart and the Friend of my soul. He is the chiefest among ten thousand, and he is altogether lovely.
Has God the Holy Spirit has created in your heart a desire to know him. This is the thing that matters. Christ is the one thing needful. It is not enough that we know about Christ. We must know Christ. It is not enough that we know the doctrine of Christ. We must know Christ himself. It is not enough that we merely know about Christ crucified on the tree, we must know the crucified Christ in our hearts. To that end, let me tell you about him. All beauty, excellence, and perfection, divine and human, dwells in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the perfect God and the perfect man. All that our souls need and all that will satisfy our hearts is found in Christ in infinite abundance.
The context
In Son 5:2-8 the Lord came to bless his church (his bride, his beloved) with his presence, his fellowship, and his communion (Son 5:2). But he found his church asleep, slothful and negligent. He was shamefully treated with neglect (Son 5:3). He graciously caused her to desire him, creating in her heart a longing for his presence (Son 5:4). Then the Lord withdrew himself from her (Son 5:5-6). It was not at all his desire to punish her. He simply intended to cause her to see his preciousness to her. So, in order to make her properly value and esteem him, the Lord withdrew and hid himself from her for a while. At last we see the church, the bride of Christ, his beloved, holding him to be precious. When she had lost the sense of his presence, she saw how valuable and necessary he was to her soul. And she gave this solemn charge to those who were around her I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my Beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love.
The question
What is thy Beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? (Son 5:9). There is hope for men when they begin to inquire about the beauty, the perfection, the excellence, the grace, and the glory of Christ. What is thy Beloved more than another beloved? That is a question believing souls delight to answer. Yet, it is a question that I can never answer fully.
The answer
My Beloved is How can he be described? Someone wrote,
What the hand is to the lute,
What breath is to the flute,
What fragrance is to the smell,
What the spring is to the well,
What the flower is to the bee,
That is Jesus Christ to me.
What the mother is to the child,
What the compass is in pathless wild,
What oil is to the troubled wave,
What ransom is to the slave,
What water is to the sea,
That is Jesus Christ to me.
His character
The question is raised, What is thy Beloved more than another beloved? Here is a general description of his character – My Beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand (Son 5:10). My Beloved is one of incomparable perfection, unparalleled beauty, and infinite excellence. He is so infinitely precious above all others that he alone is Precious. His loveliness is so infinitely higher than the loveliness of others that he alone is Lovely.
He has everything in himself that is pleasant, lovely, and admirable He is white and ruddy. These words refer to the excellence of his Divine glory as God and the excellence of his mediatorial character as man. In him resides all the perfection of the eternal God. And in him is all that our souls need. He is the holy, immaculate, eternal Son of God. And he is made unto me wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. His love toward me makes him lovely to me. He is white in the spotless innocence of his life, and ruddy in the bloody sufferings of his death. He is white in his glory as God, and ruddy in his incarnation as man.[2] He is white in his tenderness toward his people, and ruddy in his terrible vengeance upon his enemies.
[2] The name for man, Adam, means red earth.
My Beloved is so infinitely above all others that there is none to compare with him. He is the chiefest among ten thousand. In comparison with Christ, every other object of love and affection is but dung (Php 3:8). He is higher than the kings of the earth; and he has obtained a more excellent name than any in heaven, or earth, or hell (Psa 89:27; Heb 1:4; Php 2:9-11).
In his church Christ is the Chief Corner-Stone. Among the brethren Christ is the Firstborn. Among the resurrected Christ is the First-Begotten. He is the Alpha and the Omega. He is the Firstborn of every creature. God has made Christ to be pre-eminent in all things. And in the hearts of his people, He is pre-eminent (Col 1:14-20). The marginal translation says, He is the Standard-Bearer among ten thousand. He is lifted up as the Ensign, to whom his people gather. He is lifted up as the Banner, around whom we rally (Isa 11:10; Joh 12:32).
The question is asked, What is thy Beloved more than another beloved? The bride answers, My Beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. But that is not enough. A more detailed description must be given of him who ravishes her heart. She wants all to know how she beholds him.Excellent in Beauty!Omnipotent!Gracious!In every way worthy of her trust!Fully qualified to redeem and save his people and bring them all, at last, safe to heaven! Christ is worthy of our love, our trust, and our highest admiration and esteem. He is so transcendently glorious that he is both great and gracious.
His head
His head is as the most fine gold (Son 5:11). His head speaks of our Lords sovereign dominion over all things (Eph 1:22). Like gold, the sovereignty of Christ is beautiful, strong, and precious. All who know this great King relish the fact that he is indeed King over all!
His hair
His locks are bushy, and black as a raven (Son 5:11). His hair is at the same time white and black. Whiteness denotes his eternality and wisdom (Rev 1:14). Blackness speaks of his perpetual strength and power.
His eyes
His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk and fitly set (Son 5:12). His eyes are pure. His eyes toward us are peaceable. His eyes are penetrating. His eyes are powerful, irresistible. One look of his eye struck Peters heart. His eyes never blink. They are always fixed upon the objects of his love.
His cheeks
His cheeks are a bed of spices, as sweet flowers (Son 5:13). The very sight of his face, like a rich, fragrant garden, is reviving, refreshing, and pleasing.
His lips
His lips are like lilies, dropping sweet-smelling myrrh (Son 5:13). His lips are so sweet and pleasant. The words of his lips are sweeter than honey and the honeycomb. The kisses of his lips are better than wine. Grace is poured into his lips. And grace proceeds out of his lips. Grace poured out of his lips as our Surety when he pledged himself to the salvation of his chosen. Grace poured out of his lips as our Substitute at Calvary, when he said, Father, forgive them! and cried again in triumphant majesty, It is finished. Grace pours from his lips as our Savior. He comes to his own in the time of love, spreads over his redeemed the skirt of his righteousness, and says, Live! He declares, I have loved thee with an everlasting love, therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.
His hands
His hands are as gold rings set with beryl (Son 5:14). His hands, like golden rings, fitted to the finger, are fitted to accomplish their purpose the salvation of his people (Mat 1:21). His hands, like the kings signet, seal the covenant of Gods grace. The piercing of his hands in death was the ratification of Gods covenant.
His heart
His belly (His bowels of compassion, His heart) is as ivory overlaid with sapphires (Son 5:14). The love of Christs heart for his people is as strong and firm as ivory. The many instances of his love, by which he reveals his love, are as sapphires and precious jewels.Electing Love!Redeeming Love!Life-Giving Love!Preserving Love!Interceding Love!Forgiving Love!Unfailing Love!Faithful Love!Immutable Love!Everlasting Love!His Love!There is none like it! Words can never describe it!
His legs
His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold (Son 5:15). He is The Rock! His legs are strong. His legs are stable. In other word, the Lord Jesus Christ is ever dependable. He will never be turned aside from his purpose. And he is able to accomplish it.
His countenance
His countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars (Son 5:15). In height, in strength, in power, in grace, in beauty, and in love he excels all others. There is none to rival him.
His mouth
His mouth is most sweet (Son 5:16). The words of his mouth are sweet to his people. The precepts of his Word are sweet. The principles of his Word are sweet. The promises of his Word are sweet. The kisses of his mouth, the many tokens of his love and goodness, have a transcendent sweetness in them.
What more can be said? What more can I tell you about my Beloved? He is altogether lovely! Unto you therefore which believe, He is precious. He is truly lovely. He is wholly lovely. There is nothing in him but that which is lovely, and there is nothing truly lovely but that which is in him. All that our souls need is in him in infinite fulness (Psa 73:25-26). Christ is altogether lovely. In his divinity he is lovely. In his humanity he is lovely. In his redemption he is lovely. In his salvation he is lovely. In his providence he is lovely. He is even lovely in his justice and judgment.
The assurance
This is my Beloved, and this is my Friend (Son 5:16). Matthew Henry wrote, To see Christ, and not to see him as ours, would be rather a torture than a happiness; but to see one that is thus lovely, and to see him as ours, is complete satisfaction.
It is faith in him that gives this assurance (Heb 11:1). We know that Christ, in all the fulness of his grace and glory, is ours, because I trust him. Every believing heart has the right to say with Thomas to the Son of God, My Lord and my God. He is ours in all of his offices. He is ours in all of his works. He is ours in all of his ways. He is ours in all of his provisions. He is ours always, both now and forever. He is ours in all his possessions. He is ours, both when he openly reveals himself, and when he hides his face; both when we sense it and when we do not, he is ours. In prosperity and in adversity, in health and in sickness, in joy and in sorrow, Jesus Christ is mine, and I am his.
Because Christ is ours, he is our Beloved. He loves us and we love him (1Jn 4:19). He is our one true love. We have chosen him. We have willingly, deliberately given ourselves to him. Our hearts are for him, only him, and not another.
And Jesus Christ the Lord, our Beloved is our Friend. O what a Friend! He is a powerful Friend. He is a sympathetic Friend. He is a patient Friend. He is an unchanging Friend. He is a wise Friend. He is a faithful Friend. He is my Friend. I have done what I can to tell you about my Beloved. I do not know whether you will ever trust him or not; but he is worthy of your trust. I do not know whether you will ever love him or not; but he is worthy of your love. I do not know whether you will ever praise him or not; but he is worthy of your praise.
Fuente: Discovering Christ In Selected Books of the Bible
What is: Isa 53:2, Mat 16:13-17, Mat 21:10, Joh 1:14, 2Co 4:3-6
O thou: Son 1:8, Son 6:1, Son 6:9, Son 6:10, Psa 45:13, Psa 87:3
Reciprocal: 2Ch 9:6 – exceedest Psa 45:14 – virgins Psa 148:13 – for his name Son 2:3 – my beloved Son 8:13 – the companions Joh 9:36 – Who 1Pe 1:8 – ye love 1Pe 2:7 – you
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
5:9 {h} What [is] thy beloved more than [another] beloved, O thou fairest among women? what [is] thy beloved more than [another] beloved, that thou dost so charge us?
(h) Thus say they of Jerusalem.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
2. Renewed affection 5:9-16
This pericope contains the most extensive physical description of any character in the Old Testament, namely: Solomon. Of course, it is poetic and so not a completely literal description.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
We might hear this attitude expressed in these words today: "What is so great about him? Surely you could find someone who would treat you better than he does!"
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
MYSTICAL INTERPRETATIONS
THUS far we have been considering the bare, literal sense of the text. It cannot be denied that, if only to lead up to the metaphorical significance of the words employed, those words must be approached through their primary physical meanings. This is essential even to the understanding of pure allegory such as that of “The Faerie Queene” and “The Pilgrims Progress”; we must understand the adventures of the Red Cross Knight and the course of Christians journey before we can learn the moral of Spensers and Bunyans elaborate allegories. Similarly it is absolutely necessary for us to have some idea of the movement of the Song of Solomon as a piece of literature, in its external form, even if we are persuaded that beneath this sensuous exterior it contains the most profound ideas, before we can discover any such ideas. In other words, if it is to be considered as a mass of symbolism the symbols must be understood in themselves before their significance can be drawn out of them.
But now we are confronted with the question whether the book has any other meaning than that which meets the eye. The answers to this question are given on three distinct lines:-First, we have the allegorical schemes of interpretation, according to which the poem is not to be taken literally at all, but is to be regarded as a purely metaphorical representation of national or Church history, philosophical ideas, or spiritual experiences. In the second place, we meet with various forms of double interpretation, described as typical or mystical, in which a primary meaning is allowed to the book as a sort of drama or idyl, or as a collection of Jewish love-songs, while a secondary signification of an ideal or spiritual character is added. Distinct as these lines of interpretation are in themselves, they tend to blend in practice, because even when two meanings are admitted the symbolical signification is considered to be of so much greater importance than the literal that it virtually occupies the whole field. In the third place there is the purely literal interpretation, that which denies the existence of any symbolical or mystical intention in the poem.
Allegorical interpretations of the Song of Solomon are found among the Jews early in the Christian era. The Aramaic Targum, probably originating about the sixth century A.D., takes the first half of the poem as a symbolical picture of the history of Israel previous to the captivity, and the second as a prophetic picture of the subsequent fortunes of the nation. The recurrence of the expression “the congregation of Israel” in this paraphrase wherever the Shulammite appears, and other similar adaptations, entirely destroy the fine poetic flavour of the work, and convert it into a dreary, dry-as-dust composition.
Symbolical interpretations were very popular among Christian Fathers-though not with universal approval, as the protest of Theodore of Mopsuestia testifies. The great Alexandrian Origen is the founder and patron of this method of interpreting the Song of Solomon in the Church. Jerome was of opinion that Origen “surpassed himself” in his commentary on the poem-a commentary to which he devoted ten volumes. According to his view, it was originally an epithalamium celebrating the marriage of Solomon with Pharaohs daughter; but it has secondary mystical meanings descriptive of the relation of the Redeemer to the Church or the individual soul. Thus “the little foxes that spoil the grapes” are evil thoughts in the individual, or heretics in the Church. Gregory the Great contributes a commentary of no lasting interest. Very different is the work of the great mediaeval monk St. Bernard of Clairvaux, who threw himself into it with all the passion and rapture of his enthusiastic soul, and in the course of eighty-six homilies only reached the beginning of the third chapter in this to him inexhaustible mine of spiritual wealth, when he died, handing on the task to his faithful disciple Gilbert Porretanus, who continued it on the same portentous scale, and also died before he had finished the fifth chapter. Even while reading the old monkish Latin in this late age we cannot fail to feel the glowing devotion that inspires it. Bernard is addressing his monks, to whom he says he need not give the milk for babes, and whom he exhorts to prepare their throats not for this milk but for bread. As a schoolman he cannot escape from metaphysical subtleties – he takes the kiss of the bridegroom as a symbol of the incarnation. But throughout there burns the perfect rapture of love to Jesus Christ which inspires his well-known hymns. Here we are at the secret of the extraordinary popularity of mystical interpretations of the Song of Solomon. It has seemed to many in all ages of the Christian Church to afford the best expression for the deepest spiritual relations of Christ and His people. Nevertheless, the mystical method has been widely disputed since the time of the Reformation. Luther complains of the “many wild and monstrous interpretations” that are attached to the Song of Solomon, though even he understands it as symbolical of Solomon and his state. Still, not a few of the most popular hymns of our own day are saturated with ideas and phrases gathered from this book, and fresh expositions of what are considered to be its spiritual lessons may still be met with.
It is not easy to discover any justification for the rabbinical explanation of the Song of Solomon as a representation of successive events in the history of Israel, an explanation which Jewish scholars have abandoned in favour of simple literalism. But the mystical view, according to which the poem sets forth spiritual ideas, has pleas urged in its favour that demand some consideration. We are reminded of the analogy of Oriental literature, which delights in parable to an extent unknown in the West. Works of a kindred nature are produced in which an allegorical signification is plainly intended. Thus the Hindoo “Gitagovinda” celebrates the loves of Chrishna and Radha in verses that bear a remarkable resemblance to the Song of Solomon. Arabian poets sing of the love of Joseph for Zuleikha, which mystics take as the love of God towards the soul that longs for union with Him. There is a Turkish mystical commentary on the Song of Hafiz.
The Bible itself furnishes us with suggestive analogies. Throughout the Old Testament the idea of a marriage union between God and His people occurs repeatedly, and the most frequent metaphor for religious apostasy is drawn from the crime of adultery. {e.g., Exo 34:15-16 Num 15:39 Psa 73:27 Eze 16:23, etc.} This symbolism is especially prominent in the writings of Jeremiah {e.g., Jer 3:1-11} and Hosea. {Hos 2:2; Hos 3:3} The forty-fifth psalm is an epithalamium commonly read with a Messianic signification. John the Baptist describes the coming Messiah as the Bridegroom, {Joh 3:20} and Jesus Christ accepts the title for Himself. {Mar 2:19} Our Lord illustrates the blessedness of the Kingdom of Heaven in a parable of a wedding feast. {Mat 22:1-14} With St. Paul the union of husband and wife is an earthly copy of the Union of Christ and His Church. {Eph 5:22-33} The marriage of the Lamb is a prominent feature in the Book of the Revelation. {Rev 21:9}
Further, it may be maintained that the experience of Christians has demonstrated the aptness of the expression of the deepest spiritual truths in the imagery of the Song of Solomon. Sad hearts disappointed in their earthly hopes have found in the religious reading of this poem as a picture of their relation to their Saviour the satisfaction for which they have hungered, and which the world could never give them. Devout Christians have read in it the very echo of their own emotions. Samuel Rutherfords “Letters,” for example, are in perfect harmony with the religious interpretation of the Song of Solomon; and these letters stand in the first rank of devotional works. There is certainly some force in the argument that a key which seems to fit the lock so well must have been designed to do so.
On the other hand, the objections to a mystical, religious interpretation are very strong. In the first place, we can quite account for its appearance apart from any justification of it in the original intention of the author. Allegory was in the air at the time when, as far as we know, secondary meanings were first attached to the ideas of the Song of Solomon. They sprang from Alexandria, the home of allegory. Origen, who was the first Christian writer to work out a mystical explanation of this book, treated other books of the Old Testament in exactly the same way; but we never dream of following him in his fantastical interpretations of those works. There is no indication that the poem was understood allegorically or mystically as early as the first century of the Christian era. Philo is the prince of allegorists: but while he explains the narratives of the Pentateuch according to his favourite method, be never applies that method to this very tempting book, and never even mentions the work or makes any reference to its contents. The Song of Solomon is not once mentioned or even alluded to in the slightest way by any writer of the New Testament. Since it is never noticed by Christ or the Apostles, of course we cannot appeal to their authority for reading it mystically; and yet it was undoubtedly known to them as one of the books in the canon of the sacred Scriptures to which they were in the habit of appealing repeatedly. Consider the grave significance of this fact. All secondary interpretations of which we know anything, and, as far as we can tell, all that ever existed, had their origin in post-apostolic times. If we would justify this method by authority it is to the Fathers that we must go, not to Christ and His apostles, not to the sacred Scriptures. It is a noteworthy fact, too, that the word Eros, the Greek name for the love of man and woman, as distinguished from Agape, which stands for love in the widest sense of the word, is first applied to our Lord by Ignatius. Here we have the faint beginning of the stream of erotic religious fancies which sometimes manifests itself most objectionably in subsequent Church history. There is not a trace of it in the New Testament.
If the choice spiritual ideas which some people think they see in the Song of Solomon are not imported by the reader, but form part of the genuine contents of the book, how comes it that this fact was not recognised by one of the inspired writers of the New Testament? or, if privately recognised, that it was never utilised? In the hands of the mystical interpreter this work is about the most valuable part of the Old Testament. He finds it to be an inexhaustible mine of the most precious treasures. Why, then, was such a remunerative lode never worked by the first authorities in Christian teaching? It may be replied that we cannot prove much from a bare negative. The apostles may have had their own perfectly sufficient reasons for leaving to the Church of later ages the discovery of this valuable spiritual store. Possibly the converts of their day were not ripe for the comprehension of the mysteries here expounded. Be that as it may, clearly the onus probandi rests with those people of a later age who introduce a method of interpretation for which no sanction can be found in Scripture.
Now the analogies that have been referred to are not sufficient to establish any proof. In the case of the other poems mentioned above there are distinct indications of symbolical intentions. Thus in the “Gitagovinda” the hero is a divinity whose incarnations are acknowledged in Hidoo mythology; and the concluding verse of that poem points the moral by a direct assertion of the religious meaning of the whole composition. This is not the case with the Song of Solomon. We must not be misled by the chapter-headings in our English Bibles, which of course are not to be found in the original Hebrew text. From the first line to the last there is not the slightest hint in the poem itself that it was intended to be read in any mystical sense. This is contrary to the analogy of all allegories. The parable may be difficult to interpret, but at all events it must suggest that it is a parable; otherwise it defeats its own object. If the writer never drops any hint that he has wrapped up spiritual ideas in the sensuous imagery of his poetry, what right has he to expect that anybody will find them there, so long as his poem admits of a perfectly adequate explanation in a literal sense? We need not be so dense as to require the allegorist to say to us in so many words: “This is a parable.” But we may justly expect him to furnish us with some hint that his utterance is of such a character. Aesops fables carry their lessons on the surface of them, so that we can often anticipate the concluding morals that are attached to them. When Tennyson announced that the “Idyls of the King” constituted an allegory most people were taken by surprise; and yet the analogy of “The Faerie Queene,” and the lofty ethical ideas with which the poems are inspired, might have prepared us for the revelation. But we have no similar indications in the case of the Song of Solomon. If somebody were to propound a new theory of “The Vicar of Wakefield,” which should turn that exquisite tale into a parable of the Fall, it would not be enough for him to exercise his ingenuity in pointing out resemblances between the eighteenth-century romance and the ancient narrative of the serpents doings in the Garden of Eden. Since he could not shew that Goldsmith had the slightest intention of teaching anything of the kind, his exploit could be regarded as nothing but a piece of literary trifling.
The Biblical analogies already cited, in which the marriage relation between God or Christ and the Church or the soul are referred to, will not bear the strain that is put upon them when they are brought forward in order to justify a mystical interpretation of the Song of Solomon. At best they simply account for the emergence of this view of the book at a later time, or indicate that such a notion might be maintained if there were good reasons for adopting it. They cannot prove that in the present case it should be adopted. Moreover, they differ from it on two important points First, in harmony with all genuine allegories and metaphors, they carry their own evidence of a symbolical meaning, which as we have seen the Song of Solomon fails to do. Second, they are not elaborate compositions of a dramatic or idyllic character in which the passion of love is vividly illustrated. Regarded in its entirety, the Song of Solomon is quite without parallel in Scripture. It may be replied that we cannot disprove the allegorical intention of the book. But this is not the question. That intention requires to be proved; and until it is proved, or at least until some very good reasons are urged for adopting it, no statement of bare possibilities counts for anything.
But we may push the case further. There is a positive improbability of the highest order that the spiritual ideas read into the Song of Solomon by some of its Christian admirers should have been originally there. This would involve the most tremendous anachronism in all literature. The Song of Solomon is dated among the earlier works of the Old Testament. But the religious ideas now associated with it represent what, is regarded as the fruit of the most advanced saintliness ever attained in the Christian Church. Here we have a flat contradiction to the growth of revelation manifested throughout the whole course of Scripture history. We might as well ascribe the Sistine Madonna to the fresco-painters of the catacombs; or, what is more to the point, our Lords discourse with His disciples at the paschal meal to Solomon or some other Jew of his age.
No doubt the devoted follower of the mystical method will not be troubled by considerations such as these. To him the supposed fitness of the poem to convey his religious ideas is the one sufficient proof of an original design that it should serve that end. So long as the question is approached in this way, the absence of clear evidence only delights the prejudiced commentator with the opportunity it affords for the exercise of his ingenuity. To a certain school of readers the very obscurity of a book is its fascination. The less obvious a meaning is, the more eagerly do they set themselves to expound and defend it. We could leave them to what might be considered a very harmless diversion if it were not for other considerations. But we cannot forget that it is just this ingenious way of interpreting the Bible in accordance with preconceived opinions that has encouraged the quotation of the Sacred Volume in favour of absolutely contradictory propositions, an abuse which in its turn has provoked an inevitable reaction leading to contempt for the Bible as an obscure book which speaks with no certain voice.
Still, it may be contended, the analogy between the words of this poem and the spiritual experience of Christians is in itself an indication of intentional connection. Swedenborg has shewn that there are correspondences between the natural and the spiritual, and this truth is illustrated by the metaphorical references to marriage in the Bible which have been adduced for comparison with the Song of Solomon. But their very existence shows that analogies between religious experience and the love story of the Shulammite may be traced out by the reader without any design on the part of the author to present them. If they are natural they are universal, and any love song will serve our purpose. On this principle, if the Song of Solomon admits of mystical adaptation, so do Mrs. Brownings “Sonnets from the Portuguese.”
We have no alternative, then, but to conclude that the mystical interpretation of this work is based on a delusion. Moreover, it must be added that the delusion is a mischievous one. No doubt to many it has been as meat and drink. They have found in their reading of the Song of Solomon real spiritual refreshment, or they believe they have found it. But there is another side. The poem has been used to minister to a morbid, sentimental type of religion. More than any other influence, the mystical interpretation of this book has imported an effeminate element into the notion of the love of Christ, not one trace of which can be detected in the New Testament. The Catholic legend of the marriage of St. Catherine is somewhat redeemed by the high ascetic tone that pervades it; and yet it indicates a decline from the standpoint of the apostles. Not a few unquestionable revelations of immorality in convents have shed a ghastly light on the abuse of erotic religious fervour. Among Protestants it cannot be said that the most wholesome hymns are those which are composed on the model of the Song of Solomon. In some cases the religious use of this book is perfectly nauseous, indicating nothing less than a disease of religion. When-as sometimes happens-frightful excesses of sensuality follow close on seasons of what has been regarded as the revival of religion, the common explanation of these horrors is that in some mysterious way spiritual emotion lies very near to sensual appetite, so that an excitement of the one tends to rouse the other. A more revolting hypothesis, or one more insulting to religion, cannot be imagined. The truth is, the two regions are separate as the poles. The explanation of the phenomena of their apparent conjunction is to be found in quite another direction. It is that their victims have substituted for religion a sensuous excitement which is as little religious as the elation that follows indulgence in alcoholism. There is no more deadly temptation of the devil than that which hoodwinks deluded fanatics into making this terrible mistake. But it can scarcely be denied that the mystical reading of the Song of Solomon by unspiritual persons, or even by any persons who are not completely fortified against the danger, may tend in this fatal direction.