Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Song of Solomon 2:3
As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so [is] my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit [was] sweet to my taste.
3. the apple tree ] The Heb. word is tappach. Tristram, Fauna and Flora of Palestine, p. 294, takes it to mean the apricot; while Delitzsch, in his commentary on Proverbs, suggests the citron or orange, but neither view has more than a slight support. As between apple, which is held to be the tree meant, by Lw, Prof. Robertson Smith, Dr Post in Hastings’ Bible Dictionary, and Prof. Driver on Joe 1:12, and quince, which is supported by the authors of the article ‘Apple’ in the Encycl. Bibl. and others, it is difficult to choose. A strong argument against the quince is contained in the last clause of the verse. The quince is not sweet, but rather bitter, and as the reference here is to the fruit in its natural state, we cannot get over the difficulty by saying that it is delicious when sweetened. Dr Post, who is a medical man living in Syria, remarks that to-day sick persons almost invariably ask the doctor if they may have an apple, and if he objects they urge their case with the plea that they want it only to smell. This is strikingly parallel to what we have in Son 2:5, and on the whole we would decide for apple tree.
I sat down under his shadow with great delight ] Lit. In his shadow I delighted and sat down. The A.V. gives the sense of the Heb. accurately, as the two verbs are intended here to express one idea, and the second verb, as is usual in such constructions, is the principal one.
his fruit ] i.e. the joy of loving converse with him.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
3 7. In these verses the Shulammite replies, but turns her thoughts away from her royal lover to her betrothed, and compares him as contrasted with other young men to a fruitful and shady tappach tree among the other trees of the wood.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The brides answer: As the tappuach with its fragrant fruit excels the barren trees of the wild wood, so my beloved his associates and friends etc. tappuach may in early Hebrew have been a generic name for apple, quince, citron, orange etc.
Son 2:4
His banner – As the standard is the rallying-point and guide of the individual soldier, so the bride, transplanted from a lowly station to new scenes of unaccustomed splendor, finds support and safety in the known attachment of her beloved. His love is her banner. The thought is similar to that expressed in the name Jehovah-nissi (see the Exo 17:15 note).
Son 2:5
Flagons – More probably cakes of raisins or dried grapes (2Sa 6:19 note; 1Ch 16:3; Hos 3:1). For an instance of the reviving power of dried fruit, see 1Sa 30:12.
Son 2:6
Render as a wish or prayer: O that his left hand were under my head, and that his right hand did embrace me! Let him draw me to him with entire affection. Compare Deu 33:27; Pro 4:8.
Son 2:7
Render: I adjure you … by the gazelles, or by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up nor awaken love until it please. The King James Version, my love, is misleading. The affection or passion in itself, not its object, is here meant. This adjuration, three times significantly introduced as a concluding formula (marginal references), expresses one of the main thoughts of the poem; namely, that genuine love is a shy and gentle affection which dreads intrusion and scrutiny; hence the allusion to the gazelles and hinds, shy and timid creatures.
The complementary thought is that of Son 8:6-7, where love is again described, and by the bride, as a fiery principle.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Son 2:3
As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my Beloved among the sons.
The apple tree in the wood
The point of the metaphor is this. There are many trees of the forest, and they all have their uses, but when one is hungry, and faint, and thirsty, the forest trees yield no succour, and we must look elsewhere: they yield shelter, but not refreshing nutriment. If, however, in the midst of the wood one discovers an apple tree, he there finds the refreshment which he needs; his thirst is alleviated, and his hunger removed. Even so the Church here means to say that there are many things in the world which yield us a kind of satisfaction–many men, many truths, many institutions, many earthly comforts, but there are none which yield us the full solace which the soul requires; none which can give to the heart the spiritual food for which it hungers; Jesus Christ alone supplies the needs of the sons of men.
I. First, then, our text speaks of the tree which the fainting soul most desires. Suppose you appeal to yonder stately tree which is the greatest of them all, the king of the forest, unequalled in greatness or girth; admire its stupendous limbs, its gnarled roots, its bossy bark, the vast area beneath its boughs. You look up at it and think what a puny creature you are, and how brief has been your life compared with its duration. You try to contemplate the storms which have swept over it, and the suns which have shone upon it. Great, however, as it is, it cannot help you: if it were a thousand times higher, and its topmost boughs swept the stars, yet it could minister no aid to you. This is a fit picture of the attempt to find consolation in systems of religion which are recommended to you because they are greatly followed. Suppose that in your wanderings to and fro you come upon another tree which is said to be the oldest in the forest. We all of us have a veneration for age. Antiquity has many charms. I scarcely know, if antiquity and novelty should run a race for popular favour, which might win. There are some things which are so old as to be rotten, worm-eaten, and fit only to be put away. Many things called ancient are but clever counterfeits, or wherein they are true they are but the bones and the carcases of that which once was good when life filled it with energy and power. It may be that in the midst of the forest, while you are hungry and thirsty, you come upon a strangely beautiful tree: its proportions are exact, and as you gaze upon it from a distance you exclaim, How wonderful are the works of God! and you begin to think of those trees of the Lord which are full of sap, the cedars of Lebanon Which He hath planted. But beauty can never satisfy hunger, and when a man is dying of thirst it is vain to talk to him of symmetry and taste. He wants food. We will pursue our investigations in the forest, and while we are doing so we shall, come upon some very wonderful trees. I have seen just lately instances in which branches are curiously interlaced with one another; the beech sends forth a long drooping bough, and lest it should not be able to support itself, another bough strikes up from below to buttress it, or descends from above and clasps it, and the boughs actually grow into one another. Strange things may be observed in the undisturbed woods, which are not to be seen in our hedgerow trees, or discerned in our gardens; trees have odd habits of their own, and grow marvellously if left to their own sweet wills. I have stood under them and said, How can this be? This is singular indeed! How could they grow like this? What wondrous inter lacings, and intertwinings, and gnarlings, and knottings! Yes, but if a man were hungry and thirsty, he would not be satisfied with curiosities. You remember when you first came to that precious tree whereon the Saviour died, and found that your sin was blotted out, and that you were accepted in the Beloved, and were made to be henceforth an heir of heaven. Oh, the lusciousness of the fruit which you gathered then! Oh, the delightful quiet of the shadow under which you sat that day; blessed be His name! You had searched among the other trees, but you found no fruit there: you tried to rest in the shadow of other boughs, but you never rested till on that blood-stained tree of the cross you saw your sin put away and your salvation secured, and then you rested and were satisfied. But the Lord Jesus Christ has not only satisfied us as to the past, see what He has done for us as to the present! Why, I know sick people who are far more happy in their sickness than worldlings are in their health; and I know poor men who are infinitely more at peace, and more contented, than rich men who have not the Saviour. Jesus Christ alone satisfies us for the past and delights us for the present. And then as to the future. The man who has found Christ looks forward to it not merely with complacency, not simply without a dread, but with a joyous expectancy and hope. Those things which make others tremble make us glad.
II. The spouse spoke of the tree which she most desired; the wonder was that she found it. It was an apple tree, but it was not in a garden; a fruit tree, but not in a vineyard; it was among the trees of the wood. Who would know of so great a rarity as an apple tree in a wood if he were not first told of it? So Jesus Christ at this present day is not known to all mankind. Even in our own country you will not find it a difficult thing to meet with persons who are totally ignorant of Christ. Where the greatest light is, there the shadows are deepest. Men nearest to the church are often furthest from God. You cannot easily find an apple tree in a great forest. If you were put down in the middle of a forest and told there was an apple tree there, you might wander for many a day before you discovered it, and often go over your own footsteps, lost in endless mazes, but you would not find the object of your search; and so, though there be a Saviour, men have not found the Saviour, and there may even be souls here present who long for that which Jesus is able to give, and yet have not discovered Him. You know all about Him in the letter of His Word, but you cannot find Him spiritually, and I hear you cry, Oh, that I knew where I might find Him. Now, is it not a strange place for an apple tree to be found in- in a wood? We seldom hear of such a thing; an apple tree should grow in a garden. How should it be found in a forest? And is it not a strange thing that a Saviour should be found for us among men–not among angels? Ye shall search for a Saviour amongst the helmed cherubim and sworded seraphim as long as you will, but there is none there. The Saviour is found in a manger at Bethlehem, in a carpenters shop at Nazareth; amongst the poor and needy is He seen while He sojourns amongst the sons of men. Not among you, O ye cedars, not among you, O mighty oaks, but amongst the bushes of the desert, amongst the trees accursed was Jesus found. He made His grave with the wicked. Now, there is some thing very sweet about this, because a wood is the very place where we most love to find Christ growing. If I had come the other day upon an apple tree in the forest, and it had happened to be the time of ripe fruit, I should have felt no compunction of conscience in taking whatsoever I was able to reach, for a tree growing in the forest is free to all comers. Should there be a hungry one beneath its bough, he need not say, May I? when his mouth waters at the golden fruit, he need not say, It would be stealing; I am unfit to take it; I am unworthy of it. Man, if there be an apple tree in the forest, no man can keep it for himself or deny your right to it, for each wanderer has a right to what fruit he can gather. Christ has no barriers around Him to keep you from Him. If there be any they are of your own making. Whoever shall come shall be welcome to this priceless apple tree. There is some comfort, therefore, in thinking that He grows among the trees Of the wood.
III. It was little wonder that when the spouse, all hungry and faint, did come upon this apple tree in the forest she acted as she did. Straightway she sat down under its shadow, with great delight, and its fruit was sweet unto her taste. She looked up at it; that was the first thing she did, and she perceived that it met her double want. The sun was hot, there was the shadow: she was faint, there was the fruit. Now, see how Jesus meets all the wants of all who come to Him. Is it not delightful to sit down beneath the scarlet canopy of the Saviours blood, and feel, God cannot smite me: He has smitten His Son; payment He cannot demand the second time: if Jesus suffered in my stead, how can God make me suffer again for sin? Where were the justice of the Most High to punish an immaculate, Substitute, and then punish men for whom that Substitute endured His wrath I This is the cool, calm, holy shadow under which we abide. But then, the spouse also found that she herself was thirsty, and that the fruit of the tree exactly met her case. Our inner life wants sustenance and food; now, in the Lord Jesus is life, and the bread of life. One thing more is to be noted: the spouse, when she had begun to enjoy the provision and the shade, and had sat down under it as if she intended to say, I never mean to leave this place; in this delicious shadow I mean to repose for ever, then she also began to tell of it to others. In the text she describes Christ as the apple tree, and gives her reason for so calling Him–I sat down under His shadow with great delight, and His fruit was sweet to my taste. Experience must be the ground upon which we found our descriptions. Now, I beseech you who have found the Saviour to be telling others what you know about Him, and try to lead others to look at Him. You cannot make them feed upon Him, but God can, and if you can lead them to the tree, who knows but God will give them spiritual hunger, and will lead them to feed as you have fed. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
I sat down under His shadow with great delight, and His fruit was sweet to my taste.
The Churchs experience
I. what it is to sit down under the shadow of Christ with great delight.
1. A shadow is not prized by men, till some heat scorch them. The Church is here represented as faint and parched with heat. Our addresses to Christ always begin with a sense of our own want and misery. Ease is sweet to the burdened soul, and none seek rest in Christ to any purpose, but those that feel the load of their own sins (Mat 11:28).
2. That which scorcheth poor distressed souls, is a sense of Gods wrath: observe how fitly God s wrath is set forth by the scorching of the sun. Gods goodness is exceeding great and large; yet this good God hath His wrath, which is set forth to us by the notions of a consuming fire (Heb 12:29), and a burning oven (Mal 4:1). The wrath of the living God is a dreadful thing, which consumeth and drieth up all, without recovery, unless we get a shelter from it.
3. Scorched souls can find no shelter nor refreshing shadow among the creatures; but only by coming to the spiritual apple tree, who is the Lord Jesus Christ.
4. Christ is a complete and comfortable shadow, the only screen between us and wrath. In Him alone we find refreshing, ease, and comfort.
5. Faith is necessary, that we may have the comfort of our shadow; for we make use of Christ by faith. There are three acts of faith:
(1) They choose, consent, and own Christ as the only shadow.
(2) They earnestly run to it. And
(3) compose and quiet their hearts under it.
6. They meet not only with coolness, but fruit; as an apple under an apple tree to one that sits under its shadow in a great heat.
II. What these fruits are. They are the benefits and privileges which we have by Christ.
1. Here is fruit. Christ received of the Father the fulness of power and of the Spirit, for the benefit of the redeemed, that He might shower down the streams of grace on all that repair to Him for relief and succour. Now, what these fruits are; in the general, we may tell you, all that is worth the having; we have from Jesus Christ: all the blessings of this present life, and of the world to come. More particularly. There are many choice and excellent fruits which believers receive from Him.
(1) The pardon of all our sins (Eph 1:7).
(2) Peace with God (Rom 5:1).
(3) Adoption into Gods family (Joh 1:12; 1Jn 3:1).
(4) The heirs of glory (Rom 8:17).
(5) The Holy Ghost is given, not only to sanctify us at first, but to dwell in our hearts, as a constant inhabitant, as in His own Temple (1Co 6:19).
(6) Peace of conscience, and joy in the Holy Ghost: for this is a great privilege of Christs kingdom (Rom 12:17).
(7) Access to God, with assurance of welcome and audience (Psa 50:15; Heb 4:15-16; 1Jn 5:14).
2. His fruits: for a threefold reason: Because purchased by Him: all these privileges were procured for us by His blood, death, and sufferings.
3. These are sweet unto a believers taste. Believers have a taste of the goodness of Christ. They do experimentally find a great deal of comfort and sweetness in Him (1Pe 2:2-3). Christs fruits are very sweet to their taste, because of the suitableness of the fruit to the prepared appetite: they have a hungry conscience, and so can sooner taste that sweetness. A Christian hath another spirit than the spirit of this world. A sanctified soul can taste the sweetness of spiritual things, word, sacraments, graces, hopes. Yea, the way of obedience is sweet to them (Pro 3:17). It is wonderful, comfortable, and filleth their hearts in a satisfying manner, when they can have any experience of Gods love in Christ, in the Word, or meditation, or prayer, or sacraments (Psa 63:6). Besides the attractive goodness of the object, there is inclination in their own souls to it.
I. Here is an invitation to draw us to Christ.
1. As He is a shadow. This notion is like to prevail with none but those who are scorched with Gods wrath, or loaden with the burden of sin; with them that are either of a troubled, or of a tender conscience. They long to sit down under His shadow indeed, and to get a taste of His pleasant fruits. Yet I must speak to all to begin here. The fruits are neither eaten, nor the sweetness of them felt, till we come under His shadow, and delightfully sit under His righteousness.
2. With respect to pleasant fruit (Psa 34:8). We entertain black thoughts of the ways of God, as if religion were a sour thing, and there were no pleasure and delight for those that submit to it. O taste and see I You will find enough in Christ to spoil the gust and relish of all other pleasures.
II. Do we ever sit down under His shadow, so as to find His fruit sweet unto our taste? You may try your state, and discern it by your relish of spiritual things.
III. Direction to us in our special addresses to God. The practice of the spouse is then in season. Come and sit down under His shadow, and eat of His fruits. (T. Manton, D. D.)
Suitable improvement of Christ the Apple Tree
I. The way of relief for poor sinners, under all scorchings to which they are exposed, is to sit down in, and by faith to repose themselves under Christs shadow.
1. Show what need sinners have of a shadow to cover them. The world is turned a hot country all over to the sons of fallen Adam, witness the spiritual blackness upon all faces (Amo 9:7). Adams fall has changed the temperature of the air which we breathe. God Himself, the sun of the world, whose influences were enlightening, cheering, comforting and warming to innocent men, is become a consuming, fire to the workers of iniquity.
2. Show how Christ became a shadow for poor stoners in this ease.
(1) He was fitted to afford a shadow from that heat, by His assuming our nature, in that He being God was incarnate and became man. Good news to poor sinners in this weary land. There is a root sprung out of the dry ground, and it is become a tree of life; the name of it is the tree of life; and it casts a shadow, a defence, for guilty creatures under it, from the heat of wrath from Heaven.
(2) He actually affords a shadow for needy sinners by virtue of His complete satisfaction to law and justice.
(a) He received all the scorching beams of wrath on Himself, that so He might keep them from His people.
(b) He exhausted them. He drank the cup of wrath from the brim to the bottom.
(c) And now through Him, the comfortable influences of Heaven are bestowed and conveyed to those under His shadow, through Him as the channel of conveyance.
(3) He is by Divine appointment made a public shadow for all the inhabitants of the weary land; so that it is lawful for them and every one of them to come in by faith and take shelter under, it, whatever they are or have been.
3. Show what it is to sit down under Christs shadow. It is the soul fleeing to Jesus Christ for a refuge, coming unto Him on the call of the Gospel, and receiving Him and uniting with Him by believing on His name. And this notion of faith bears,
(1) The soul being sensibly scorched and uneasy in itself. Though all may, yet none will come under Christs shadow but sensible sinners.
(2) That the soul finds no shadow anywhere else.
(3) A discovery of Christs shadow to the poor outcast that can get lodging nowhere else.
(4) It imports that the soul goes under Christs shadow for shelter and rest. This is the renouncing of all other refuges, and betaking oneself to the covert of blood alone.
(5) It imports the soul abiding under Christs shadow.
II. Christs fruit relisheth well with those who, by faith, sit down under His shadow.
1. Show some things imported in this doctrine.
(1) It imports that there is in Christ Jesus a suitable fulness for the soul.
(2) They must put themselves under the covert of His blood and righteousness, who would partake of His fruits.
(3) Those to whom Christ is a shadow and defence from the wrath of God and curse of the law He also feeds. There is no separating of the justifying blood and sanctifying Spirit.
(4) When we sit down under Christs shadow by faith, it corrects the vitiated taste, cools the distempered heat of the soul, and brings it to a holy temperature; so as spiritual things which before were tasteless as the white of an egg, become sweet to their taste.
(5) Faith, trust, and confidence, in the Lord Jesus Christ, produce sweet experiences at length of the Lords goodness to the soul. This is the way the soul sucks the sweet and nourishment out of the precious promises, while unbelief as it expects nothing from Him, gets as little.
2. Show what are Christs fruits which are so sweet to the taste of those that sit under His shadow. These are all the benefits, privileges, graces, comforts, and fulness of the covenant, making His people happy here and hereafter.
(1) There is an inexhaustible fulness of them that will serve to feed all the saints, in time and through all the ages of eternity. Therefore they are called the unsearchable riches of Christ (Eph 3:8).
(2) There is a variety of them, suited to all the possible cases of those that are under Christs shadow.
3. Show why Christs fruit relisheth so well with those who by faith do partake of it.
(1) Because it is suitable to their case, which drove them under Christs shadow.
(2) Because this fruit is proper food for their new nature.
(3) Because the real experience of Christs fruits communicated to the soul, always leaves a sweet relish of them behind it. (T. Boston, D. D.)
His fruit was sweet to my taste.–
The fruitfulness of Christ
The fruit borne by Christ, the Tree of Life, the Living Vine, the Apple Tree among the trees of the wood, may be regarded under three aspects, relating to His character, work, influence.
I. Character. The Lord Jesus possesses excellence in Himself, apart from the relation in which He stands to us. His own personal nature preceded and qualified Him for His entire mediatorial work. The manifestation of this excellence shone forth in His earthly life. Words, acts, miracles were but the outward exhibitions of what He was within. He was hidden, concealed from earthly gaze, visible only to His Father. As seen thus, however, He was spotless, and Divine Omniscience declared itself well pleased with Him. The soul of Christ, that human spirit, which, in its powers and faculties, was like ours, and which became an offering for sin, was most holy. And His life! this was the embodiment of His pure spirit, its outward working, the channel through which its sympathies flowed out upon the world around. How perfect this; recollect it was life like ours; in the same world, subject to the same laws, physical and mental, as our own. It was far less favour ably circumstanced than ours. It was the first of its kind; there was no previous example for Christ to imitate, no perfect model to copy. It was also surrounded by sin. It was without sympathy too. The loneliness of Christ in these respects was most painful, and itself a test of virtue. That virtue had no external support from custom, habit, friendly countenance. Not only Scribes and Pharisees sought to ensnare, entangle, and catch Him in His talk, the prince of the world came. And how He did resist! What conflict in doing this He had to pass through, how sorely He was tried, what strong crying and tears were wrung from His mighty spirit,–is what none of us can know; but He did resist all; and spite of all there shone forth a character the most radiant earth has ever exhibited, and one which now fills heaven with light and lustre superior to all else which it contains.
II. Work. One of the names by which prophecy foretold the Messiah was Emmanuel, God with us. One of the expressions by which the apostle declares the purport of His work, is in the corresponding sentiment, He was made sin for us. What tongue can express, what imagination conceive, the grandeur of this work I It spans eternity, past and to come. It rescues humanity, and makes it Godlike. Nothing nobler, grander, purer, has been devised, even by God Himself. It is His chief work, His masterpiece, His last and greatest conception; and of it all, Christ is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning, the ending, the first and the last. It is His operation, His fruit, that which here we may find most delectable, which through eternity we shall feast upon and find sweet to our taste.
III. Influence. By this I mean not so much what the Saviour is in Himself, nor what He is for us, though there is influence from both, as the power which He exerts upon us. How vast the influence the Saviour has been ever exerting in our world! Kings, emperors, dynasties, mighty forms of government, have risen and decayed, apparently subject only to natural laws of progress and dissolution. The Saviour has been guiding all. They have been His servants; and although they thought not so, nor did their hearts mean so, He has by them been working out His purposes, and using them as His agents. While His general influence has thus been exerted on the world, its choicest modes of operation have been reserved for the Church. What streams of Divine influence, like waters from a fountain, or beams from the sun, have ever been flowing from Christ. As there is no diminution in the suns power though it has been pouring forth its radiance for six thousand years; as the ocean is to-day as mighty as ever, though it has been ever diffusing freshness and health, so, and far more certainly, is there no diminution in Christ. (J. Viney, D. D.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 3. As the apple tree] The bride returns the compliment, and says, As the apple or citron tree is among the trees of the wood, so is the bridegroom among all other men.
I sat down under his shadow] I am become his spouse, and my union with him makes me indescribably happy.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
As the apple tree, whose fruit is very pleasant and wholesome,
among the trees of the wood, which are either barren, or bear ungrateful and worthless fruit.
I sat down under his shadow; being weary and heavy laden with manifold sins and troubles, inward and outward, I confidently reposed myself under his protection, (which is commonly signified by a shadow, as Isa 4:6; 25:4, &c.,) and by him was defended from the scorching heat of Gods wrath and from the curse of his fiery law, and from the mischief or hurt of all sorts of distresses. His fruit; the benefits which I received by him, the clear, and full, and certain knowledge of Gods will, and the way of salvation, adoption, and remission of sins, faith and repentance, and all manner of grace, and assurance of glory. Thus he was to me both a sun and a shield, as is said, Psa 84:11.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
3. Her reply.applegeneric including the golden citron, pomegranate, andorange apple (Pr 25:11). Hecombines the shadow and fragrance of the citron with thesweetness of the orange and pomegranate fruit. The foliage isperpetual; throughout the year a succession of blossoms, fruit, andperfume (Jas 1:17).
among the sonsparallelto “among the daughters” (So2:2). He alone is ever fruitful among the fruitless wild trees(Psa 89:6; Heb 1:9).
I sat . . . with . . .delightliterally, “I eagerly desired and sat”(Psa 94:19; Mar 6:31;Eph 2:6; 1Pe 1:8).
shadow (Psa 121:5;Isa 4:6; Isa 25:4;Isa 32:2). Jesus Christinterposes the shadow of His cross between the blazing rays ofjustice and us sinners.
fruitFaith plucks it(Pr 3:18). Man lost the tree oflife (Gen 3:22; Gen 3:23).Jesus Christ regained it for him; he eats it partly now (Psa 119:103;Joh 6:55; Joh 6:57;1Pe 2:3); fully hereafter(Rev 2:7; Rev 22:2;Rev 22:14); not earned by thesweat of his brow, or by his righteousness (Ro10:1-21). Contrast the worldling’s fruit (Deu 32:32;Luk 15:16).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so [is] my beloved among the sons,…. As the apple tree, in a garden or orchard, excels and is preferable to the wild barren trees of a forest k, especially it appears so when laden with choice fruit; so the church, who here returns the commendation to Christ, asserts, that he as much excels all the “sons”, the creatures of God, angels or men: angels, as the Targum, who, though sons of God by creation, Christ is the Son of God, in a higher sense; he is their Creator, and the object of their worship; they are confirmed by him in the estate they are, and are ministering spirits to him; and he is exalted above them in human nature: men also, the greatest princes and monarchs of the earth, are sometimes compared to large and lofty trees; but Christ is higher than they, and is possessed of far greater power, riches, glory, and majesty. All the sons of Adam in general may be meant; wicked men, who are like forest trees, wild, barren, and unfruitful; yea, even good men, Christ has the pre-eminence of them, the sons of God by adopting grace; for he is so in such a sense they are not; he is their Creator, Lord, Head, Husband, and Saviour, and they have all their fruit from him; and so ministers of the word have their gifts and grace from him, and therefore Christ excels all that come under this appellation of sons. Christ may be compared to an apple tree, which is very fruitful; and, when full of fruit, very beautiful; and whose fruit is very cooling, comforting, and refreshing. Christ is full of the fruits and blessings of grace, which are to be reached by the hand of faith, and enjoyed; and as he is full of grace and truth, he looks very beautiful and glorious in the eye of faith; and which blessings of grace from him, being applied to a poor sensible sinner, inflamed by the fiery law, and filled with wrath and terror, sweetly cool, refresh, and comfort him. The apple tree has been accounted an hieroglyphic of love, under which lovers used to meet, and sit under its delightful shade, and entertain each other with its fruit; to which the allusion may be; see So 8:5; the apple was sacred to love l. The Targum renders it, the pome citron, or citron apple tree; which is a tree very large and beautiful; its fruit is of a bitter taste, but of a good smell; always fruit on it; is an excellent remedy against poison, and good for the breath, as naturalists m observe; and so is a fit emblem of Christ, in the greatness of his person, in the fulness, of his grace, in the virtue of his blood, and righteousness and grace, which are a sovereign antidote against the poison of sin; and whose presence, and communion with him, cure panting souls, out of breath in seeking him; and whose mediation perfumes their breath, their prayers, whereby they become grateful to God, which otherwise would be strange and disagreeable;
I sat down under his shadow with great delight: under the shadow of the apple tree, to which Christ is compared; whose person, blood, and righteousness, cast a shadow, which is a protecting one, from the heat of divine wrath, from the curses of a fiery law, from the fiery darts of Satan, and from the fury of persecutors, Isa 25:4; and is a cooling, comforting, and refreshing one, like the shadow of a great rock to a weary traveller, Isa 32:2; and though the shadow of some trees, as Pliny n observes, is harmful to plants that grow under them, others are fructifying; and such is Christ; “they that dwell under his shadow shall revive and grow”, c. Ho 14:7. “Sitting” here supposes it was her choice that she preferred Christ to any other shadow, looking upon him to be a suitable one in her circumstances, So 1:6; it intimates that peace, quietness, satisfaction, and security, she enjoyed under him; it denotes her continuance, and desire of abiding there, Ps 91:1; for the words may be rendered, “I desired, and I sat down” o; she desired to sit under the shade of this tree, and she did; she had what she wished for; and she sat “with great delight”: having the presence of Christ, and fellowship with him in his word and ordinances, where Christ is a delightful shade to his people;
and his fruit [was] sweet to my taste; the fruit of the apple tree, to which the allusion is. Solon p advised the bride to eat a quince apple before she went into the bridegroom, as leaving an agreeable savour; and intimating how graceful the words of her mouth should be. By “his fruit” here are meant the blessings of grace, which are Christ’s in a covenant way, come through his sufferings and death, and are at his dispose; such as peace, pardon, justification, c. and fresh discoveries and manifestations of his love, of which the apple is an emblem: and these are sweet, pleasant, and delightful, to those that have tasted that the Lord is gracious whose vitiated taste is changed by the grace of God, and they savour the things of the Spirit of God.
k “Quantum lenta solent inter viburna cupressi”, Virgil. Bucolic. Eclog. 1. v. 26. “Lenta salix”, &c. Eclog. 5. v. 16. l Scholiast. in Aristoph. Nubes, p. 180. The statue of Venus had sometimes an apple in one hand, and a poppy in the other, Pausan. Corinth. sive l. 2. p. 103. m Athenaei Deispnosoph. l. 3. c. 7. p. 83. Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 11. c. 53. & 12. c. 3. Solin. Polyhistor. c. 59. Macrob. Saturnal. l. 3. c. 19. n Nat. Hist. l. 17. c. 12. o “concupivi, et sedi”, Pagninus, Montanus, Mercerus, Marckius. p Plutarch. Conjug. Praecept. vol. 2. p. 138.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
3a As an apple-tree among the trees of the wood,
So is my beloved among the sons.
The apple-tree, the name of which, , is formed from , and denominates it from its fragrant flower and fruit, is as the king among fruit trees, in Shulamith’s view. (from , to be rough, rugged, uneven) is the wilderness and the forest, where are also found trees bearing fruit, which, however, is for the most part sour and unpalatable. But the apple-tree unites delicious fruit along with a grateful shade; and just such a noble tree is the object of her love.
3 b Under his shadow it delighted me to sit down;
And his fruit is sweet to my taste.
In concupivi et consedi the principal verb completes itself by the co-ordinating of a verb instead of an adv. or inf. as Isa 42:21; Est 8:7; Ewald, 285. However, concupivi et consedi is yet more than concupivi considere , for thereby she not only says that she found delight in sitting down, but at the same time also in sitting down in the shadow of this tree. The Piel , occurring only here, expresses the intensity of the wish and longing. The shadow is a figure of protection afforded, and the fruit a figure of enjoyment obtained. The taste is denoted by = , from , to chew, or also imbuere ; and that which is sweet is called , from the smacking connected with an agreeable relish. The usus loq. has neglected this image, true to nature, of physical circumstances in words, especially where, as here, they are transferred to the experience of the soul-life. The taste becomes then a figure of the soul’s power of perception ( ); a man’s fruit are his words and works, in which his inward nature expresses itself; and this fruit is sweet to those on whom that in which the peculiar nature of the man reveals itself makes a happy, pleasing impression. But not only does the person of the king afford to Shulamith so great delight, he entertains her also with what can and must give her enjoyment.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| The Love of the Church to Christ. | |
3 As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. 4 He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love. 5 Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love. 6 His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me. 7 I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.
Here, I. The spouse commends her beloved and prefers him before all others: As the apple-tree among the trees of the wood, which perhaps does not grow so high, nor spread so wide, as some other trees, yet is useful and serviceable to man, yielding pleasant and profitable fruit, while the other trees are of little use, no, not the cedars themselves, till they are cut down, so is my beloved among the sons, so far does he excel them all,–all the sons of God, the angels (that honour was put upon him which was never designed for them, Heb. i. 4), –all the sons of men; he is fairer than them all, fairer than the choicest of them, Ps. xlv. 2. Name what creature you will, and you will find Christ has the pre-eminence above them all. The world is a barren tree to a soul; Christ is a fruitful one.
II. She remembers the abundant comfort she has had in communion with him: She sat down by him with great delight, as shepherds sometimes repose themselves, sometimes converse with one another, under a tree. A double advantage she found in sitting down so near the Lord Jesus:– 1. A refreshing shade: I sat down under his shadow, to be sheltered by him from the scorching heat of the sun, to be cooled, and so to take some rest. Christ is to believers as the shadow of a great tree, nay, of a great rock in a weary land,Isa 32:2; Isa 25:4. When a poor soul is parched with convictions of sin and the terrors of the law, as David (Ps. xxxii. 4), when fatigued with the troubles of this world, as Elijah when he sat down under a juniper tree (1 Kings xix. 4), they find that in Christ, in his name, his graces, his comforts, and his undertaking for poor sinners, which revives them and keeps them from fainting; those that are weary and heavily laden may find rest in Christ. It is not enough to pass by this shadow, but we must sit down under it (here will I dwell, for I have desired it); and we shall find it not like Jonah’s gourd, that soon withered, and left him in a heat, both inward and outward, but like the tree of life, the leaves whereof were not only for shelter, but for the healing of the nations. We must sit down under this shadow with delight, must put an entire confidence in the protection of it (as Judges ix. 15), and take an entire complacency in the refreshment of it. But that is not all: 2. Here is pleasing nourishing food. This tree drops its fruits to those that sit down under its shadow, and they are welcome to them, and will find them sweet unto their taste, whatever they are to others. Believers have tasted that the Lord Jesus is gracious (1 Pet. ii. 3); his fruits are all the precious privileges of the new covenant, purchased by his blood and communicated by his Spirit. Promises are sweet to a believer, yea, and precepts too. I delight in the law of God after the inward man. Pardons are sweet, and peace of conscience is sweet, assurances of God’s love, joys of the Holy Ghost, the hopes of eternal life, and the present earnests and foretastes of it are sweet, all sweet to those that have their spiritual senses exercised. If our mouths be put out of taste for the pleasure of sin, divine consolations will be sweet to our taste, sweeter than honey and the honeycomb.
III. She owns herself obliged to Jesus Christ for all the benefit and comfort she had in communion with him (v. 4): “I sat down under the apple-tree, glad to be there, but he admitted me, nay, he pressed me, to a more intimate communion with him: Come in, thou blessed of the Lord, why standest thou without? He brought me to the house of wine, the place where he entertains his special friends, from lower to higher measures and degrees of comfort, from the fruit of the apple tree to the more generous fruit of the vine.” To him that values the divine joys he has more shall be given. One of the rabbin by the banqueting-house understands the tabernacle of the congregation, where the interpretation of the law was given; surely we may apply it to Christian assemblies, where the gospel is preached and gospel-ordinances are administered, particularly the Lord’s supper, that banquet of wine, especially to the inside of those ordinances, communion with God in them. Observe, 1. How she was introduced: “He brought me, wrought in me an inclination to draw nigh to God, helped me over my discouragements, took me by the hand, guided and led me, and gave me an access with boldness to God as a Father,” Eph. ii. 18. We should never have come into the banqueting-house, never have been acquainted with spiritual pleasures, if Christ had not brought us, by opening for us a new and living way and opening in us a new and living fountain. 2. How she was entertained: His banner over me was love; he brought me in with a banner displayed over my head, not as one he triumphed over, but as one he triumphed in, and whom he always caused to triumph with him and in him, 2 Cor. ii. 14. The gospel is compared to a banner or ensign (Isa. xi. 12), and that which is represented in the banner, written in it in letters of gold, letters of blood, is love, love; and this is the entertainment in the banqueting-house. Christ is the captain of our salvation, and he enlists all his soldiers under the banner of love; in that they centre; to that they must continually have an eye, and be animated by it. The love of Christ must constrain them to fight manfully. When a city was taken the conqueror set up his standard in it. “He has conquered me with his love, overcome me with kindness, and that is the banner over me.” This she speaks of as what she had formerly had experience of, and she remembers it with delight. Eaten bread must not be forgotten, but remembered with thankfulness to that God who has fed us with manna in this wilderness.
IV. She professes her strong affection and most passionate love to Jesus Christ (v. 5): I am sick of love, overcome, overpowered, by it. David explains this when he says (Ps. cxix. 20), My soul breaks for the longing that it has unto thy judgments, and (v. 81), My soul faints for thy salvation, languishing with care to make it sure and fear of coming short of it. The spouse was now absent perhaps from her beloved, waiting for his return, and cannot bear the grief of distance and delay. Oh how much better it is with the soul when it is sick of love to Christ than when it is surfeited with the love of this world! She cries out for cordials: “Oh stay me with flagons, or ointments, or flowers, any thing that is reviving; comfort me with apples, with the fruits of that apple-tree, Christ (v. 3), with the merit and meditation of Christ and the sense of his love to my soul.” Note, Those that are sick of love to Christ shall not want spiritual supports, while they are yet waiting for spiritual comforts.
V. She experiences the power and tenderness of divine grace, relieving her in her present faintings, v. 6. Though he seemed to have withdrawn, yet he was even then a very present help, 1. To sustain the love-sick soul, and to keep it from fainting away: “His left hand is under my head, to bear it up, nay, as a pillow to lay it easy.” David experienced God’s hand upholding him then when his soul was following hard after God (Ps. lxiii. 8), and Job in a state of desertion yet found that God put strength into him, Job xxiii. 6. All his saints are in his hand, which tenderly holds their aching heads. 2. To encourage the love-sick soul to continue waiting till he returns: “For, in the mean time, his right hand embraces me, and thereby gives me an unquestionable assurance of his love.” Believers owe all their strength and comfort to the supporting left hand and embracing right hand of the Lord Jesus.
VI. Finding her beloved thus nigh unto her she is in great care that her communion with him be not interrupted (v. 7): I charge you, O you daughters of Jerusalem. Jerusalem, the mother of us all, charges all her daughters, the church charges all her members, the believing soul charges all its powers and faculties, the spouse charges herself and all about her, not to stir up, or awake, her love until he please, now that he is asleep in her arms, as she was borne up in his, v. 6. She gives them this charge by the roes and the hinds of the field, that is, by every thing that is amiable in their eyes, and dear to them, as the loving hind and the pleasant roe. “My love is to me dearer than those can be to you, and will be disturbed, like them, with a very little noise.” Note, 1. Those that experience the sweetness of communion with Christ, and the sensible manifestations of his love, cannot but desire the continuance of these blessed views, these blessed visits. Pester would make tabernacles upon the holy mount, Matt. xvii. 4. 2. Yet Christ will, when he pleases, withdraw those extraordinary communications of himself, for he is a free-agent, and the Spirit, as the wind, blows where and when it listeth, and in his pleasure it becomes us to acquiesce. But, 3. Our care must be that we do nothing to provoke him to withdraw and to hide his face, that we carefully watch over our own hearts and suppress every thought that may grieve his good Spirit. Let those that have comfort be afraid of sinning it away.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
ANTICIPATED TOGETHERNESS
Verses 3-6 appear to describe the Shulamite’s anticipations of intimate experiences of marriage she and her beloved shepherd will share. She is concerned that her beloved not be disturbed until he awakens and in verse 7 charges the daughters of Jerusalem to avoid doing so.
Verse 7 is a refrain repeated at Son 3:5; Son 8:4 and appears to mark the end of various parts of the song.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(3) Apple tree.So the LXX. and Vulg.; Heb., tappuach. Out of the six times that the word is used, four occur in this book, the other two being Pro. 25:11apple of goldJoe. 1:12, where it is joined with vine, fig, &c, as suffering from drought. It has been very variously identified. The quince, the citron, the apple, and the apricot have each had their advocates.
The apple may be set aside, because the Palestine fruit usually called the apple is really the quince, the climate being too hot for our apple. (But see Thornson, The Land and the Book, p. 546.) The requirements to be satisfied are (1) grateful shade, Son. 2:3; (2) agreeable taste, Son. 2:3-5; (3) sweet perfume, Son. 7:8; (4) golden appearance, Pro. 25:11. The quince is preferred by many, as being by the ancients consecrated to love, but it does not satisfy (2), being astringent and unpleasant to the taste till cooked. The citron does not, according to Thomson and Tristram, satisfy (1); but according to Rev. W. Drake, in Smiths Bible Dictionary, it is a large and beautiful tree, gives a deep and refreshing shade, and is laden with golden-coloured fruit. The apricot meets all the requirements, and is, with the exception of the fig, the most abundant fruit of the country. In highlands and lowlands alike, by the shores of the Mediterranean and on the banks of the Jordan, in the nooks of Judia, under the heights of Lebanon, in the recesses of Galilee, and in the glades of Gilead, the apricot flourishes, and yields a crop of prodigious abundance. Many times have we pitched our tents in its shade, and spread our carpets secure from the rays of the sun. . . . There can scarcely be a more deliciously-perfumed fruit; and what can better fit the epithet of Solomon, apples of gold in pictures of silver, than its golden fruit as its branches bend under the weight, in their setting of bright yet pale foliage? (Tristram, Nat. Hist. of Bible, p. 335).
Among the sonsi.e., among other young men.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
3. As the apple tree The Enamoured terminates with this verse her rehearsal, and then resumes her direct narrative. The apple tree is a native of Asia. Its ample foliage and rich blossoms and fruit make it not only beautiful in itself, but a grateful object of possession. The praise of the preceding verse is fairly answered. The verbs here denote habitual action, I used to sit, etc. The company of the Beloved was like the shade of such a tree. By a natural rhetoric we gradually lose the tree from sight, and think only of him whose presence was like it,
“Whose breath lent sweetness to the gale
And music to the grove.”
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“As the apple-tree among the trees of the wood, So is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, And his fruit was sweet to my taste. He brought me to the banqueting-place, And his banner over me was love. Sustain me with raisins, refresh me with apples, For I am ailing from love. His left hand is under my head, And his right hand embraces me.”
The maiden shyly responds and likens her beloved to an apple tree. The apple tree both provides ample shade and is fruitful. Thus it outdoes other trees. And so to her it is like ‘her beloved’ in comparison with other men. For in her eyes he outshines them all. We note that she does not compare him with a tall cedar or a mighty oak. Her thought here is more on the fact that she can feast on him. That is why she wants to partake of his apples (verse 5). We learn later that outside her house was an apple tree that had great significance for her, which adds weight to the thought here (Son 8:5).
So she has sat under his shadow, out of the sun, with great delight, and his fruit is sweet to her taste, for he is now her protector and provider, and it is a wonderful position to be in. What is more he has brought her to his banqueting tent (his ‘house of wine’ where she can drink of his love to the full – Son 1:2), and the banner flying over it indicates that it is the place of ‘love’. Indeed she is so swept away by the thought of his love, and her own given in response, that it even makes her feel weak and faint, and so she calls on the servants for raisin-cakes and apples, the food of love, to sustain her (compare 1Sa 30:12). And when she faints and then comes back to consciousness she finds that his left hand is under her head, and he is embracing her with his right. No wonder that she is quivering with emotion. But she is not afraid. She is confident that she is safe in his arms. The innocence of her position comes out in that the servants are still present to meet her requests, and the daughters of Jerusalem are still around them. And so is ending her first romantic meeting with her beloved.
What a wonderful picture we have here of our Lord Jesus Christ and His love for us. He too is a shadow from the heat, and a covert from the tempest (Isa 32:2), and the one Who supplies all our need, and feeds us with the fruits of delight, for He promises, ‘He who comes to Me will never hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst’ (Joh 6:35). And we too have come to His house of wine (Luk 22:18). To us the wine is not only a picture of rejoicing and plenty and future blessing (Isa 25:6; Mat 26:29), but also of the blood that He shed for us as He gave Himself for our salvation, bearing on Himself the sins of the world (1Jn 2:1-2), and through which He brings us into His new covenant (Mat 26:27-28). Unless we partake of Him we have no life in us (Joh 6:53).
Over His house of wine proudly flies the banner of love, for it is there that we are found within His arms. Indeed it is even better for us for we are rooted and grounded in His never failing love so that as His church we might experience its length, breadth, depth and height and know the love of Christ which passes all knowledge as we are filled with all the fullness of God (Eph 3:17-19). And we have His promise that if we, ‘Seek first the Kingly Rule of God and His righteousness, all these things will be added to you’ (Mat 6:33). He will make full provision for us because we are His. When we think of the vastness of His love we too should surely be feeling emotional in His presence.
Her cry for apples can be seen in the light of Pro 25:11, ‘A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in baskets of silver’, which fits aptly here, for it is through His words fitly spoken that we receive His guidance and words of love. Our desire also should thus constantly be to hear His voice speaking to us.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
The King’s Provisions for His Beloved Literal Interpretation – With the exchange of love between the king and the Shulamite, the Beloved begins to partake of the blessings from his banquet table. She feasts upon the apples (Son 2:3), sits under his banner of love at his table of provision (Son 2:4), and is sustained with raisin-cakes and apples (Son 2:5). The beloved falls more deeply in love and becomes “lovesick” (Son 2:5). She longs for his close embrace (Son 2:6) and warns other young virgins not to fall into this passion before its proper time (Son 2:7).
Figurative Interpretation God’s love and provision for mankind have always been available from the beginning of time. God planted a beautiful garden in Eden and placed man in the garden so that He could fellowship with man and feed him with His table of blessings. Yet, it is only when a person accepts God’s love and follows the footsteps of the righteous into a local body of Christ that he partakes of God’s manifold blessings.
Son 2:3 As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.
Son 2:3
[117] Thomas L. Constable, Notes on Song of Solomon (Garland, Texas: Sonic Light, 2000) [on-line]; accessed 28 December 2008; available from http://www.soniclight.com/constable/notes.htm; Internet, 26.
Son 2:3 Literal Interpretation – In Son 2:3 the Shulamite expresses joy and delight in her intimate relationship with her beloved. This delight is expressed metaphorically as eating the fruit of the apple tree. This interpretation is supported in Joe 1:12, where the withered grapevine, fig tree, pomegranate tree, palm tree and apple tree symbolized the joy that was withered away from Israel.
Joe 1:12, “The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men.”
In the natural an apple tree benefits mankind in two ways. It provides shade from the sun for times of rest as well as providing sweet fruit for refreshing and strengthening man.
Zckler notes how the same “parallelism” in Son 2:2 of the beautiful of the lily among thorns is used by the beloved in the next verse by comparing him to an apple tree among the trees of the wood (Son 2:3). [118]
[118] Otto Zckler, The Song of Solomon, trans. by W. Henry Green, in Lange’s Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, ed. Philip Schaff (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1872), 61.
Figurative Interpretation Figuratively speaking, the apple tree was a symbol of love in the ancient world. Thus, we would understand this comment in Son 2:3 to say that the Shulamite woman was being refreshed in her soul as she sat under his shadow of attention and tasted the words of affection that her lover was bestowing upon her. Watchman Nee says that apple tree is figurative of Christ “in the fullness of His love.” His shadow would be His divine protection security, and the fruit would be His sustenance and provision. [119] Bickle notes that the position of sitting is a position of receiving God’s grace, rather than giving herself in divine service. [120] As young believers we experience God’s love in tremendous ways. We see His divine intervention in our lives, and almost effortless, we find Him answering our prayers and meeting our needs. The apple tree will again be referred to in a similar way in Son 8:5.
[119] Watchman Nee, Song of Songs (Fort Washington, Pennsylvania: CLC Publications, c1965, 2001), 148.
[120] Mike Bickle, Session 7 – The Bride’s Identity in the Beauty of God (Song of Solomon 1:12-2:7 ), in Song of Songs (Kansas City, Missouri: International House of Prayer, 1998), 18.
Westwood compares the seasonal apple tree to the tree of life in Heaven, which bears fruit every month. [121]
[121] John Westwood, A Short Paraphrase of the Song of Solomon (London: Simpkin, Marshall and Co., 1848), 9-10.
Rev 22:2, “In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”
Son 2:4 He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.
Son 2:4
Son 2:4 Literal Interpretation – No one comes to the king’s banquet uninvited. Thus, Son 2:5 shows that the Shulamite was called from her toils in the field by the king to attend a banquet in one of his banquet halls.
Son 2:5 Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love.
Son 2:5
2Sa 6:19, “And he dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, as well to the women as men, to every one a cake of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine. So all the people departed every one to his house.”
1Ch 16:3, “And he dealt to every one of Israel, both man and woman, to every one a loaf of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine.”
Son 2:5, “Stay me with flagons , comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love.”
Hos 3:1, “Then said the LORD unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the LORD toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine.”
Son 2:5 Word Study on “apples” Strong says the Hebrew word “apple tree” “tappuwach” ( ) (H8598) word means, “an apple, apple tree.” The Enhanced Strong says it is used 6 times in the Old Testament, being translated in the KJV as “apple tree 3, apple.” (see Pro 25:11, Son 2:3; Son 2:5; Son 7:8; Son 8:5, Joe 1:12). Thomas Constable says, “The apple tree was a symbol of love in ancient poetry because of its beauty, fragrance and sweet fruit.” [122]
[122] Thomas L. Constable, Notes on Song of Solomon (Garland, Texas: Sonic Light, 2000) [on-line]; accessed 28 December 2008; available from http://www.soniclight.com/constable/notes.htm; Internet, 26.
Son 2:5 Word Study on “love” Strong says the Hebrew word “love” “ahabah” ( ) (H160), means, “love.” The Enhanced Strong says this word is used forty (40) times in the Old Testament, being translated in the KJV as “love 40.” It is found 11 times in the Song of Solomon (Son 2:4-5; Son 2:7; Son 3:5; Son 3:10; Son 5:8; Son 7:6; Son 8:4; Son 8:6-7 [twice]), with one of these uses as a substantive to refer to her lover (Son 7:6).
Son 2:5 Literal Interpretation – The RSV says, “Sustain me with raisins, refresh me with apples; for I am sick with love.” In other words, the beloved is asking for strength because love has made her weak. It is interesting to compare the fruit mentioned in Son 2:5 to a comment made by Jesse Duplantis in his book Heaven: Encounters of the God-kind in which he describes his visit to Heaven. During his visit he had to continue to eat the fruit of the trees in order to sustain his strength in the presence of God. [123]
[123] Jesse Duplantis, Heaven Close Endounters of the God Kind (Tulsa, Oklahoma: Harrison House, 1996), 73, 76, 113.
Figurative Interpretation A new believer is naturally passionate for the Lord even in his/her immature state, just as a child is passionate to be with his mother and not a stranger.
Son 2:6 His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me.
Son 2:6
Son 8:3-4, “His left hand should be under my head, and his right hand should embrace me. I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, until he please.”
Figurative Interpretation It is God’s hand that supports us and holds us up. He embraces us and protects us. Thus, Son 2:6 suggests a position of rest. Perhaps this statement means that this position of salvation and divine provision in the church is the rest that I now find as a servant of God.
Son 2:7 I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.
Son 2:7
Son 2:7 Word Study on “love” Strong says the Hebrew word “love” “ahabah” ( ) (H160), means, “love.” The Enhanced Strong says this word is used forty (40) times in the Old Testament, being translated in the KJV as “love 40.” It is found 11 times in the Song of Solomon (Son 2:4-5; Son 2:7; Son 3:5; Son 3:10; Son 5:8; Son 7:6; Son 8:4; Son 8:6-7 [twice]), with one of these uses as a substantive to refer to her lover (Son 7:6).
Comments – The possessive personal pronoun “ my ” is not found in the original Hebrew text. The translators of the KJV added it as a means of clarifying their interpretation of the verse to say that Shulamite woman was telling the daughters of Jerusalem not to awaken her lover. The word “love” in this verse is a reference to the emotion and passion of love and not to a person.
Son 2:7 Comments – Son 2:7 serves as a final verse to one of the five divisions of the Song of Solomon. There are three other identical verses in the Song of Solomon that serves to mark these divisions (Son 2:7, Son 3:5, Son 8:4).
Son 2:7, “I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.”
Son 3:5, “I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.”
Son 8:4, “I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, until he please.”
Literal Interpretation – In these verses the beloved charges the daughters of Jerusalem not to stir up the passions of love until it is time. She bases this plea upon the example in nature of the wild gazelles and does of the field. She uses this example because gazelles and deer were considered the most beautiful creatures of the forest, yet they were the most elusive and hard to find. In contrast, domesticated animals and livestock lacked the beauty, but were easily tamed. As God made these animals beautiful, but elusive in this dispensation of man’s fall, these creatures will one day be tamed and companions for us in heaven. In a sense, it is not time for these creatures to be tamed.
In the same way, the beloved is telling the daughters of Jerusalem that catching love and enjoying its pleasures is like catching a beautiful deer. It may appear to be something much to be desired, but it is as elusive as the deer of the forest. This Shulamite woman has discovered that passion during the early stages of courtship is a difficult emotion to manage and does not give her the rest and peace that she expected it to give her; for passion binds someone and does not turn him loose. As much as a romantic love affair appears desirable, she warns the other virgins to wait for God to bring it to pass in His time; otherwise, it will overwhelm someone and cause more harm than good.
In other words, true rest is not found in the strong passions of courtship (Son 1:2 to Son 2:7), nor, as she will later discover, in her engagement (Son 2:8 to Son 3:5), nor in her wedding (Son 3:6 to Son 5:1), nor in the state of marriage (Son 5:2 to Son 8:4). But she will find out that true rest can only be found in yielding herself to her husband and bearing fruit within a marriage (Son 8:10).
Many young girls have been damaged emotionally by letting the passions of love get stirred up before its time. It takes years for them to grow mature enough to deal with the pains and sorrows produced from such passions. Some never do get over the pain. For this reason many marriages have been harmed because such pains were brought into the marriage from a former relationship. I remember praying to the Lord one day and saying, “Lord, it hurts so much to love.” His reply to me was Joh 3:16, “For God so loved the world.”
Regarding the themes that are repeated in each of these phases of love, we find that the beloved suffers from lovesickness during the courtship (Son 2:5) and does not find rest. During the engagement she suffers from being separated from her lover (Son 3:1-4) and does not find rest. During the wedding she suffers from having to abandon her freedom and desires as a single person in order to walk in unity with her husband (Son 5:2-8). During the development of her marriage she must deal with the desire to have her husband’s undivided attention (Son 8:1-4).
Figurative Interpretation The repetitive statements in Son 2:7; Son 3:5; Son 8:4 reflect the seasons of our spiritual journey. Other believers are warned not to interfere in God’s redemptive work in someone’s life. It is natural for a Christian to want others to quickly come to the same level of maturity, or to do the same things, read the same books, or join the same church. We are warned here to not rush someone along at our own preconceived pace, since God leads every believer at his own pace. We are not to meddle in God’s love affair with another believer.
The Lord teaches us as we are able to bear the journey. Jesus told His disciples, “I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.” (Joh 16:12) As we learn to apply God’s Word to our lives, it sets us on our divine journey, which takes us to a place of rest in Christ. There are seasons of rest, but God will move us along the journey by nudging us out of rest and on to maturity in Christ.
Son 2:7 Comments – The Beauty of the Deer of the Field Illustration – In the mid-90’s my brother Steve took me deer hunting in Fredricksburg, Texas, a small, but beautiful, town in the foothills of central Texas. We arrived before dawn at the feeding station where the deer were feeding on corn. We crawled on the ground after parking a distance away in order not to frighten the deer away. We took our positions and both put our gun sights on a deer. He let me pull my trigger first and he quickly followed. His small deer fell immediately, but the doe I shot ran off into the thickets to my disappointment. With the skill of a hunter my brother had us wait for a while, knowing that the deer I hit would settle down a short way off. If we pursued it immediately it would run too far off to find. We eased into the thicket after about thirty minutes and found a trail of blood, which led us to the deer’s internal organs, which were lying on the ground. I now felt sick and remorseful for what I had done. We tracked the doe and eased up on her a few times, only to have her run off a distance. Finally, with no more strength, she looked up at me as I approached her with the most beautiful brown eyes I had ever seen. These large eyes with their beautiful, long eyelashes melted my heart. She looked me straight in the eyes and seemed to say, “Why are you killing me?” My brother made the final shot and killed her. He went on to hunt many more deer, but as for me, I will probably never kill another deer after that experience.
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
Son 2:3. As the apple-tree, &c. As the citron-tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the youths; New Translation; in this rendering following the Chaldee paraphrase, which observes, with what superior beauty that rich fruitful plant must appear among the barren trees of the wood. The word tappuchiim, rendered apples, in the 5th verse, should also be rendered citrons. The author of the Observations remarks, that citron-trees are very noble, being large, their leaves very beautiful, of an exquisite smell, and affording a most delightful shade: the fragrance of the fruit is admirable.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.
These are the words of the church, and very expressive they are, of her affection to her Lord. It should seem, as if conscious of her own undeservings, when hearing herself so spoken of and praised by Jesus, that she interrupts him to tell of his excellency and loveliness, as the sole cause of every grace which induced loveliness in her. Probably the apple tree in those warm countries was vastly superior to these in our colder climates; and this, indeed, historians tell us it was: for in loftiness, fruitfulness, and beauty, this tree surpassed all others. Now Jesus is all this and infinitely more, in the eyes of his people. Jesus, in our nature, is far above all angels, and principalities, and powers; probably these are the sons the church speaks of, and we know, that when Jesus as God-man Mediator is brought into our world under this exalted character, as the first begotten, Jehovah said, Let all the angels of God worship him. And though in his human nature he is said to have been made a little lower than the angels: yet in that nature, united to the Godhead, he is crowned with glory and honour. And how preferable, then, must Jesus be in the eye of the church, compared to that of the highest angels, or the best of men? None of them could redeem the church. None of them make agreement with God for her. I stay not to enter into a larger view of the beauty of the comparison between the graces of Christ, and the qualities of the apple-tree. It is sufficient to our purpose to observe, that for beauty, usefulness, grace in its appearance, and the fruitfulness of the apple-tree beyond all the trees of the wood, Jesus in his person; offices, and character, may be supposed to be by this similitude strikingly represented. Jesus is indeed himself the Tree of life in the midst of the garden; and so lovely, and so prolific in all blessings, temporal, spiritual, and eternal, that he is unceasingly blessed. He beareth twelve manner of fruits every month, and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. Rev 22:2 . But the church doth not stop with commending Christ’s Person; she goeth on in the same verse to tell of her enjoyment of him. Reader, mark with me, that in those two grand points the whole of a believer’s joy in the present life, yea, and in a future, is made up. To know Christ, and to enjoy him; to accept him as the Father’s gift, and to make use of him according to the Father’s will. And the church in this verse tells us how she did it. I sat down (says she) under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. This opens a beautiful view of Christ, and of the believer also; when, under the blessed influences of grace, a full use and enjoyment of Christ is made by him. The Lord Jesus is not only a refuge to protect, but the whole of sustenance and food. Like a rich, luxuriant, and prolific tree, which affords not only shelter to the traveller from the heat, but fruit to live upon; so Christ is made of God to his people, both life, and light, and strength, and supply; Wisdom, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption. The prophet gives a blessed account of the Lord in similar representations; Isa 25:4-5 . and so again, Isa 32:2 . And when the souls of his people have found Christ, and known Christ under these characters, then they can, and do set to their seal, that God is true; for they then dwell under his shadow, and revive as the corn, and grow as the vine. Hos 14:7 . And when then is it that the church, or any individual of the church, find Christ all these, and may be said to sit down under him, and live upon him? No doubt, when from a sense of a want of Christ, the soul betakes herself to Him; and having discovered him to be a full, present, suitable, and all-sufficient Saviour, she sits down as one determined to rise up no more. There is such a fulness, such a blessedness, and such an immediate grace and kindness in him to bestow of his mercy, that the poor soul finds a complacency and delight, and will neither go further in quest of any other Saviour, or accept of any other. That precious child of God that hath so seen Christ as fully to trust in him, and delight in him, hath adopted, and entered into the enjoyment of that sweet scripture, Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart fail, but thou art the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Psa 73:25-26 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Son 2:3 As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so [is] my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit [was] sweet to my taste.
Ver. 3. As the apple tree among the trees, &c. ] Among wild trees, moss begrown trees, trees that bring not forth food for men, but mast for hogs. Such is every natural man. Rom 11:24 “Ephraim is an empty vine, he beareth fruit to himself,” Hos 10:1 paltry hedge fruit. Oaks bring forth apples, such as they are, and acorns. But what saith our Saviour; Joh 15:2 , “Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away”; and “without me ye can do nothing.” Joh 15:5 That is a true saying (though Spiera the expositor censures it for a cruel sentence), Omnis vita infidelium peccatum est, et nihil bonum sine summo bono, a The whole life of an unbeliever is sin, neither is there anything good without Christ the chiefest good. Here he is fitly compared by the Church to an “apple tree,” which yields both shade and food to the weary and hungry traveller, furnisheth him with whatsoever heart can wish or need require. Christ is cornucopia, a universal good, all-sufficient and satisfactory, proportionable, and every way fitting to our necessities. It is not with Christ as with Isaac, that had but one blessing, for “in him are hid all the treasures of wisdom,” Col 2:3 and whatsoever worth. So that, as a friend of Cyrus in Xenophon, being asked where his treasure was, answered, K , where Cyrus is my friend; so may a Christian better answer to the like question, K , where the Lord Christ is my friend; for as sine Deo omnis copia est egestas, without Christ all plenty is scarcity, so with him there can be no want of anything that is good. “In the fulness of his sufficiency he is in want, “saith Job of a wicked man. Contrariwise the godly, in the fulness of his want, is in an all-sufficiency; because he is in Christ, who hath filled Col 3:11 – the neuter gender, not only all the hearts of his people, but all things; he hath filled up that emptiness that was before in the creature, and made it satisfactory.
I sat down under his shadow with great delight.
And his fruit was sweet to my taste,
a Aug. De Vera Innocen., cap. 56.
b Oper. Lat., tom. iv.
c Multi in terris manducant quod apud inferos digerunt. – Aug.
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Son 2:3-6
3Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest,
So is my beloved among the young men.
In his shade I took great delight and sat down,
And his fruit was sweet to my taste.
4He has brought me to his banquet hall,
And his banner over me is love.
5Sustain me with raisin cakes,
Refresh me with apples,
Because I am lovesick
6Let his left hand be under my head
And his right hand embrace me.
Son 2:3 apple Wild apples do not grow well in Palestine, therefore, many have supposed this to be an apricot (NASB margin at Joe 2:12) or citrus tree (cf. Rotherhams, Emphasized Bible, p. 643). The term seems to mean apples (BDB 656, cf. Pro 25:11). The identification of this fruit does not affect the overall understanding of the text. He compliments her; she compliments him!
The metaphorical meaning suggests lovemaking, intimacy (cf. Son 4:11, NIDOTTE, vol. 2, p. 1151). Fruit is used literally in the process of reproduction in Genesis (e.g., Gen 1:11-12) and metaphorically (e.g., Gen 1:22; Gen 1:28-29; Gen 8:17; Gen 9:1; Gen 9:7), children are described as the fruit of the womb. Smelling, eating, and commenting on someone using fruit obviously has sexual overtones and connotations.
In his shade, I took great delight and sat down The rabbis say that Son 2:3-4 refer to the study of the Torah, but in context they seem to be an allusion to sexual intimacy (i.e., Son 2:6).
Son 2:4 banquet hall This is a construct relationship between house (BDB 108) and wine (BDB 406). Again, to what does this refer:
1. Solomon’s palace in Jerusalem (cf. Son 5:2-8)
2. Solomon’s travelling pavilion (cf. Son 3:6-11)
3. a beautiful outdoor setting for a picnic in the northern countryside (cf. Son 1:16-17)
4. a love nest hidden from everyone’s eyes (cf. Son 2:14)
his banner over me is love This probably (BDB 186) refers to the concept of (1) a tribal flag (cf. Num 1:52; Num 2:17-18; Num 2:25) or (2) a military banner used as a signal (cf. Son 6:4; Son 6:10). He publicly acknowledges (opposite of Son 1:7) his love for her in this manner (NIDOTTE, vol. 1, p. 919). Others believe it referred to the practice of placing a brightly colored canopy over the honored guest at an outdoor banquet (i.e., Arab tradition, possibly Son 5:10). The NRSV translates the term as an Akkadian root, wish or intend (cf. NIDOTTE, vol. 1, p. 920).
Son 2:5 Sustain. . .refresh These are both Piel IMPERATIVES (BDB 701, KB 759 and BDB 951 and 1276). The imagery is (1) of food providing the energy for sexual activity (cf. Son 2:6) or (2) distracting one from the mental distress of being separated from a loved person.
with raisin cakes These are often associated with fertility worship (i.e., Hos 3:1; Jer 7:18). Here it is not pagan worship, but the connotation of an aphrodisiac (this is possibly the implication of 2Sa 6:19 and 1Ch 16:3). Often in the OT sexual activity is linked to metaphors for eating:
1. negative- Pro 7:18; Pro 30:20
2. positive – Son 2:3-5; Son 4:11-16
Eating is a recurrent need and often an occasion for fellowship, friendship, family, and worship. Eating is a joyous and fulfilling experience.
Because I am love sick This phrasing is very similar to Egyptian love songs of the same period. This phrase is repeated in Son 5:8. She wants more intimacy!
Son 2:6 This is a reference to an intimate sexual embrace while lying down (cf. Son 8:3).
Let This is in italics, which shows it is not in the MT, but the translators of NASB (1995 Update) are assuming that the Piel IMPERFECT VERB (BDB 287, KB 287), embrace, is being used in a JUSSIVE sense, following the Piel IMPERATIVES of Son 2:5.
the apple tree. Occurs only six times in Scripture: four times in this book (Son 2:3, Son 2:5; Son 7:8; Son 8:5); once in Proverbs (Son 25:11); and once in Joel (Son 1:12); three times for the tree, and three times for the fruit. Probably the orange tree.
the trees of the wood: i.e. the wild trees.
my beloved. Masculine. Showing that it is the Shulamite speaking.
his = its.
the apple tree: Son 8:5, Isa 4:2, Eze 17:23, Eze 17:24, Joh 15:1-8
my beloved: Son 5:9, Son 5:10, Son 5:16, Psa 45:2, Psa 89:6, Joh 1:14-18, Joh 3:29-31, Heb 1:1-6, Heb 3:1-6, Heb 7:23-26, Heb 12:2
I sat: etc. Heb. I delighted and sat down, etc. Jdg 9:15, Jdg 9:19, Jdg 9:20, Psa 57:1, Psa 91:1, Isa 4:6, Isa 25:4, Isa 32:2, 1Jo 1:3, 1Jo 1:4
his fruit: Son 2:5, Gen 3:22-24, Eze 47:12, Rev 22:1, Rev 22:2
taste: Heb. palate
Reciprocal: Exo 16:31 – and it was Exo 28:34 – General Exo 33:22 – in a clift Num 17:8 – budded Job 22:26 – shalt thou Psa 34:8 – taste Psa 37:4 – Delight Son 1:4 – the king Son 1:7 – O thou Son 1:14 – beloved Son 1:16 – thou art Son 7:8 – the smell Isa 12:3 – with joy Isa 25:6 – make Isa 26:8 – desire Hos 14:7 – that Joe 1:12 – the pomegranate Mar 4:32 – lodge Heb 5:14 – their 1Pe 2:3 – General
Son 2:3. As the apple-tree Whose fruit is very pleasant and wholesome; among the trees of the wood Which are barren. I sat down under his shadow I confidently reposed myself under his protection. His fruit was sweet to my taste The benefits which I received by him, namely, remission of sins, faith, grace, and assurance of glory.
2:3 {b} As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so [is] my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit [was] sweet to my taste.
(b) The spouse testifies her great desire toward her husband, but her strength fails her, and therefore she desires to be comforted, and felt it.
The girl responded that Solomon, too, was a rare find. He was as rare as an apple (or possibly quince or citron) tree in a forest of other trees: sweet, beautiful, and outstanding.
"’Shade,’ ’fruit,’ ’apple tree’ are all ancient erotic symbols, and erotic suggestions are what she has in mind (Son 2:3-4). . . . ’Shade’ speaks of closeness." [Note: Hubbard, p. 286.]
". . . if the lotus [lily, Son 2:2] enhances the pleasure of visual form and beauty, the apple tree stimulates the taste and olfactory senses." [Note: Hess, p. 77.]
"The shadow is a figure of protection afforded, and the fruit a figure of enjoyment obtained." [Note: Delitzsch, p. 42.]
Jody Dillow understood the phrase "his fruit is sweet to my taste" (Son 2:3) as referring to the girl having oral sex with Solomon. [Note: Joseph Dillow, Solomon on Sex, p. 31.] However, "fruit" never appears elsewhere in the Old Testament as a euphemism for the genitals, and neither the Hebrew Bible nor the Egyptian love literature refer to oral sex. [Note: The NET Bible note on 2:3.] Probably simple kissing is what is in view.
The metaphors that follow show that Solomon satisfied three needs of this woman: protection, intimate friendship, and public identification as her beloved. A woman’s lover must meet these basic needs for the relationship to flourish.
The word "banner" in "his banner over me" may be from an Akkadian word that means "desire" or "intent." If so, the clause may mean "his intent toward me was lovemaking." [Note: Hubbard, p. 286; Pope, p. 376; and Carr, The Song . . ., p. 91.]
"Lovesick" means faint from love. She needed strengthening (Son 2:5-6; cf. Son 5:8). She felt exhausted from her love for her loved one.
"In the Song, as in much of the other ancient Near Eastern love poetry, the woman is the one who takes the initiative, and who is the more outspoken. Similarly, in the Mesopotamian Ritual Marriage materials, much is placed on the girl’s lips. Our contemporary attitude, where the girl is on the defensive and the man is the initiator, is a direct contrast with the attitude in the ancient world." [Note: Ibid., pp. 88-89.]
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)