Sunday Sermons

Song of Songs - Part 6

Mark Dunagan
07/01/01 - Sunday Evening

Song of Songs

Lesson Six

The Shulammite: 8:1-4

In the ancient Near East public displays of affection were frowned upon except in the case of certain family members. Thus the beloved wished that her husband were like a brother to her so that it would be acceptable to display her affection for him at any time. “The proprieties demanded in public seem limiting. She would like the liberty in public that the brother and sister in that day had. So she wishes she could freely kiss him in public” (Gaebelein p. 1239). “This singular mode of courtship between two lovers who are so passionately devoted to one another that we might call them the Hebrew Romeo and Juliet, it not without significance. Its recurrence, now on the lips of the bride, helps to sharpen still more the contrast between what passes for love in the royal harem, and the true emotion experienced by a pair of innocent young people, unsullied by the corruptions of the court—illustrating, as it does at once, its sweet intimacy and its perfect purity” (Kidwell p. 429). “I would lead you and bring you into the house of my mother”: “There is no sense of wrongness about their love. She is reminded of her mother, who in a similar relationship gave to her the life that she now enjoys with her groom” (Gaebelein p. 1241). Notice that the Shulammite speaks of her relationship with her mother in the following terms, “who used to instruct me”. Parental instruction in our culture is not always popular, but the very purpose of having parents is to learn from their wisdom (Ephesians 6:4). We need to remember that when parents are imparting instruction they are not interfering, rather, they are merely fulfilling their God-given responsibility. “Spiced wine from the juice of my pomegranates”. This juice was and still is expressed for a cooling drink, or sherbet, and sometimes also fermented into a light wine. The wine of the pomegranate does not keep long and is very light. Notice the contrast here between the splendor of Solomon’s court and what the Shulammite wants, that is, a simple home-like atmosphere.

“Let his left hand be under my head, and his right hand embrace me”: The Shulammite longs for her lover’s embrace.

“I want you to swear, O daughters of Jerusalem, do not arouse or awaken my love, until she pleases”: The word “she” can also be translated “it”. This verse is a repetition of verses 2:7 and 3:5. This may be a final word of warning to the women of the court. “She is saying in essence: ‘I am committed to the shepherd as my husband—I can already feel his strong arms around me. Do not, as I have said twice before, attempt to arouse any love on my part for Solomon, love will take its spontaneous course and in my case it is for my shepherd’” (Kidwell p. 430). “You see it was quite unnecessary to try to rouse love before its time. Your experience must teach you how vain it has been to attempt to arouse it prematurely” (Harper p. 57).

Application: The “love” of this verse may include sexual desire. “If we do not control it the way God intended, it will cause great problems within us as well as great hurts to others with whom we become involved. It is dangerous to let sexual desires be stirred up or awakened, for they are more powerful than we think” (Hocking p. 172) (Proverbs 6:25 “Do not desire her beauty in your heart, nor let her catch you with her eyelids”; 5:8 “Do not go near the door of her house”; 7:21-22 “with her many persuasions she entices him….suddenly he follows her”).

Chorus of Country People: 8:5a

The scene depicted in these verses is the return of the Shulammite with her lover to the village. The “wilderness” is the uncultivated open pasturelands around the village. Notice that she is “leaning on her beloved”, that is, he is her pillar of support.

The Shepherd: 8:5b

As the couple arrives back home, the shepherd points out to the Shulammite the apple tree where he had first let his love for her be known. The word “awakened” is better than the word “aroused”, that is, here love had been naturally and purely awakened (8:4). “To awaken love in a pure and upright way, one must do so in surroundings that lend themselves to purity. What lessons can you learn about dating from the way the shepherd dated the Shulammite?” (Kercheville p. 32). “There your mother was in labor with you, there she was in labor and gave you birth”: The idea may be that real love is like a rebirth, a new life, or rather a new way of looking at life. Or, this particular apple tree was located in the garden of a cottage where the Shulammite had been born.

Shulammite: 8:6-7

“Put me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm”: An engraved stone or metal seal was a mark of ownership in the ancient world. Possession of another’s seal indicated mutual access and possession. “She wishes to be united in the closest way with her lover, and to be valued as his most precious possessions were valued” (Harper p. 57). “So the beloved asked to be her lover’s most valued possession, a possession that would influence his thoughts (over your heart) and his actions (over your arm)” (Bible Knowledge Comm. p. 1024).

“For love is as strong as death”: Love is as irresistible as death, from which none can escape. “But it is a stern and terrible aspect of love to which our attention is now directed. This is apparent as the Shulammite proceeds to speak of jealousy, which is ‘hard as the grave’. If love is treated falsely, it can flash out in a flame of wrath ten times more furious than the raging of hatred—‘a most vehement flame of the Lord’. This is the only place the name of God appears throughout the whole poem. But the Shulammite has good reason for claiming God to be on her side in the protection of her love from cruel love and outrage. Love, as she knows it, is both unquenchable and unpurchasable. She has tested and proved these two attributes in her own experience. At the court of Solomon every effort was made to destroy her love for the shepherd, and all possible means were employed for buying her love for the king. Both utterly failed. All the floods of scorn which the harem ladies poured over her love for the country lad could not quench it; all the wealth of a kingdom could not buy it for Solomon. Where true love exists, no opposition can destroy it; where it is not, no money can purchase it” (Kidwell p. 437). “In all of human literature there are few passages on the power of love compared with this unit” (Gaebelein p. 1241). The final description about the love depicted in the Song is that it is priceless. All one’s wealth would be totally inadequate to purchase such love. In fact such money would be scorned, because love cannot be bought.

Applications:

Notice the importance of a good marriage. A good marriage, in which genuine love is found, can be had by everyday people, and is more valuable than all the possessions in the world. Do not underestimate the value of a good marriage!

Notice the security found in genuine love! Contrast this with the insecurity in so many marriages today, where over half of all marriages end in divorce, and 60% of all second marriages also end in divorce.

Love is an intimate commitment. Possession of another person’s seal means that you have free access to all that he or she possesses. She wants to be closer to his heart than anyone else. This is vitally important in order for a relationship to be what it should be. Love is an intense commitment. Love is an indestructible commitment. Love is an invaluable commitment.

Shulammite’s Brothers: 8:8-9

The brothers appear to be speaking here. We first met them in 1:6. When the Shulammite was young, an evaluation was made. The family sensed their responsibility. The brothers concluded that if she was a “wall”, then all they would do is enhance her beauty. Being a “wall” refers to her inner strength of character. But if she were easily seduced or seemed quite vulnerable as she grew up, then they would enclose her with boards of cedar. Is she going to be a “door” or a “wall”? Will she be able to resist temptations that come her way, or will she give in to them? The fact that the family was concerned about this shows us the importance of the family in terms of character development as well as protection. The brothers speak of how they will best guide a younger sister when she comes of age. Their response depends upon her character. Points to Note: 1. Our character can be seen by others! 2. Parents do need to respond differently to differences in their children. 3. Some young people have more inner strength than others. 4. If you want to be given more freedom by your parents, what does this passage indicate that you should do?

The Shulammite: 8:10-12

“I was a wall”: The book bears this out, for the Shulammite had resisted very powerful temptations. Because of her purity, the Shulammite was able to give peace and contentment to her lover. Thus by keeping herself a virgin, she was as one bringing contentment. The point implied is that God’s “walls” only intensify the joy of marriage. The purity of the relationship intensifies the riches of the experience.

In verses 11 and 12 it appears that we have a contrast. The location of Baal Hamon is unknown. Solomon had a large vineyard here where each tenant was to grow enough grapes to make about 25 pounds of silver, and each tenant would receive as his share about 5 pounds of silver as his wages. Some think that Solomon may have offered the Shulammite or her family a very large and prosperous vineyard. This may have been offered as a dowry or maybe even a kind of bribe to encourage the Shulammite to marry him. In contrast, she has her own vineyard (8:12). The meaning of this verse could be, “O Solomon, you may keep the income of your vineyard, and the keepers may have their reward for their guardianship, but my vineyard is beyond your reach”.

The Shepherd: 8:13

Here the shepherd calls upon the Shulammite to let his companions, his friends who have come to congratulate him on his bride’s safe return, hear her voice.

The Shulammite: 8:14

Notice once again the intensity of true love, “make haste, hurry”, the desire to hear the voice of our spouse, and the desire to be together. As we close this study, let us realize that this level of devotion is possible within our marriages as well. God is offering each of us the beauty of the love found between the shepherd and the Shulammite if we will only follow His plan and His pattern for love between a man and a woman.

Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017