Read
Love Makes
She Speaks:
1I am merely a rose
from the land of Sharon,
a lily from the valley.
He Speaks:
2My darling, when compared
with other young women,
you are a lily among thorns.
She Speaks:
3And you, my love,
are an apple tree
among trees of the forest.
Your shade brought me pleasure;
your fruit was sweet.
4You led me to your banquet room
and showered me with love.
5Refresh and strengthen me
with raisins and apples.
I am hungry for love!
6Put your left hand under my head
and embrace me
with your right arm.
7Young women of Jerusalem,
promise me by the power
of deer and gazelles
never to awaken love
before it is ready.
Winter Is Past
She Speaks:
8I hear the voice
of the one I love,
as he comes leaping
over mountains and hills
9like a deer or a gazelle.
Now he stands outside our wall,
looking through the window
10and speaking to me.
He Speaks:
My darling, I love you!
Let's go away together.
11Winter is past,
the rain has stopped;
12flowers cover the earth,
it's time to sing.
The cooing of doves
is heard in our land.
13Fig trees are bearing fruit,
while blossoms on grapevines
fill the air with perfume.
My darling, I love you!
Let's go away together.
14You are my dove
hiding among the rocks
on the side of a cliff.
Let me see how lovely you are!
Let me hear the sound
of your melodious voice.
15Our vineyards are in blossom;
we must catch the little foxes
that destroy the vineyards.
She Speaks:
16My darling, I am yours,
and you are mine,
as you feed your sheep
among the lilies.
17Pretend to be a young deer
dancing on mountain slopes
until daylight comes
and shadows fade away.
Beautiful Dreams
She Speaks:
1While in bed at night,
I reached for the one I love
with heart and soul.
I looked for him,
but he wasn't there.
2So I searched through the town
for the one I love.
I looked on every street,
but he wasn't there.
3I even asked the guards
patrolling the town,
“Have you seen the one
I love so much?”
4Right after that, I found him.
I held him and would not let go
until I had taken him
to the home of my mother.
5Young women of Jerusalem,
promise me by the power
of deer and gazelles,
never to awaken love
before it is ready.
Reflect
Someone has said of this book that “We don’t blush at things we should, and we blush at things we shouldn’t.”
It struck me as I was thinking about this book how little we know of unadulterated pleasure. The world and all that God created is good, yet we have corrupted everything with sin, especially sex. We are surrounded with portrayals of sex defiled. Advertising relies on sexual images to persuade us to buy. Headline news brings us stories of missing aboriginal women, celebrities using sex for self-gratification, advice to women on how to avoid getting raped during frosh week.
One answer to the question why this book is in the Bible is that it portrays sex as God intended it. Sexuality is an important part of our humanity. It would be strange if the Bible gave it no place. At the same time sexual union points to a deeper reality, our longing for union with Christ. Not either/or, but both/and.
Perhaps it is no coincidence that I was in Calgary last week for a festival of Bach’s music. Commenting on Bach’s use of discord and harmony, the conductor, Ivars Taurins, told us to think of it like a glass of fine Italian wine, making the spine tingle. Just like the Song of Solomon, I thought.
At the same time, the Song is well aware of the dangers of sex. It is like a fire, and as strong as death (8:6). We need to read with the Holy Spirit, who gives us the gift of self-control (Galatians 5:22). Good things that make our spines tingle become dangerously evil without self-control. The word for self-control was translated as “temperance” in the KJV. “Temperance” used to mean “moderation,” and its change in meaning to “abstinence” illustrates how attitudes have changed. The Spirit gives us self-control. Let’s be sure to use it in every way we enjoy the good things he has created, including sex.
Respond
Father, thank you for all the good things you have created. I ask your forgiveness for the times when I have abused sex, food, drink and other pleasures. Fill me with your Holy Spirit and teach me how to enjoy what is good with self-control—not denial. Amen.
Annabel Robinson
Annabel was born in Kew, near London, England. She committed her life to Jesus Christ at a Scripture Union camp when she was 16, and immediately found joy and peace. At Oxford she was active in the Oxford Inter-Collegiate Christian Union, where she met her husband, Reid. They emigrated to Canada in 1965, where she taught Classics at the University of Regina until 2007. She has two children, Heather in Oslo and Alasdair in Calgary.