Day 857: Song Of Solomon 1 - Beloved And Beautiful

The Song of Songs, which is Solomon's.
The Bride Confesses Her Love
She
2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!
For your love is better than wine;
3     your anointing oils are fragrant;
your name is oil poured out;
    therefore virgins love you.
4 Draw me after you; let us run.
    The king has brought me into his chambers.
Others
We will exult and rejoice in you;
    we will extol your love more than wine;
    rightly do they love you.
She
5 I am very dark, but lovely,
    O daughters of Jerusalem,
like the tents of Kedar,
    like the curtains of Solomon.
6 Do not gaze at me because I am dark,
    because the sun has looked upon me.
My mother's sons were angry with me;
    they made me keeper of the vineyards,
    but my own vineyard I have not kept!
7 Tell me, you whom my soul loves,
    where you pasture your flock,
    where you make it lie down at noon;
for why should I be like one who veils herself
    beside the flocks of your companions?
Solomon and His Bride Delight in Each Other
He
8 If you do not know,
    O most beautiful among women,
follow in the tracks of the flock,
    and pasture your young goats
    beside the shepherds' tents.
9 I compare you, my love,
    to a mare among Pharaoh's chariots.
10 Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments,
    your neck with strings of jewels.
Others
11 We will make for you ornaments of gold,
    studded with silver.
She
12 While the king was on his couch,
    my nard gave forth its fragrance.
13 My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh
    that lies between my breasts.
14 My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
    in the vineyards of Engedi.
He
15 Behold, you are beautiful, my love;
    behold, you are beautiful;
    your eyes are doves.
She
16 Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved, truly delightful.
Our couch is green;
17     the beams of our house are cedar;
    our rafters are pine.
 
Meditation
The world is longing for the affirmation of beauty as it is looking for the security of being someone’s beloved. In my home town, a random sign on a building offers empty affirmation: You are beautiful. Humanity will only find the satisfaction we are looking for when we allow True Love to celebrate the beauty of who we are and how we are created. Christ alone offers this love.
 
The Song of Solomon is a poetic portrait of God’s love song celebrating His Bride, the people He has chosen for Himself. Cloaked in sexual imagery and allegory we will not attempt to unpack; the short wisdom book joyfully celebrates intimacy as it affirms human sexuality. God desires for you to trust His intimate love, allowing yourself to know Him even as you are fully known.
 
The first six poems begin without the context of relationship yet quickly reveal the heart of the matter: The woman desires love (2-4) but feels disqualified to know her lover (5-7). The gracious love of the king celebrates the woman beyond her insecurities, using culturally distant images to emphasize two familiar terms of endearment: Beloved and beautiful (8, 13, 14, 15, 16). The King sees the one he loves as both beloved and beautiful even when she cannot accept these truths for herself.
 
Jesus Christ displays both the belovedness of God’s love for you and the beauty He sees in you. God loves the unlovely and makes them His beloved Bride, beautifully adorned for eternal relationship with Him (Revelation 21:2).
 
Richly Dwelling
-Does the intimate language of celebration and sexuality make you uncomfortable? Why or why not?
 
-God’s love for you desires this level of intimacy as He makes you beautiful and beloved. Where do you need to open yourself up for this level of intimacy with the Lord?
 
-How does the work of Christ free you to love the Lord with all your heart? You are fully accepted, fully forgiven, and free!
 
Key Verses
15 Behold, you are beautiful, my love; behold, you are beautiful; your eyes are doves.