PM Sept 24th Song 4

September 24^th

Song of Solomon 4

1: Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes within thy locks: thy hair is as a flock of goats, that appear from mount Gilead. 2: Thy teeth are like a flock of sheep that are even shorn, which came up from the washing; whereof every one bear twins, and none is barren among them. 3: Thy lips are like a thread of scarlet, and thy speech is comely: thy temples are like a piece of a pomegranate within thy locks. 4: Thy neck is like the tower of David builded for an armoury, whereon there hang a thousand bucklers, all shields of mighty men. 5: Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins, which feed among the lilies. 6: Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense. 7: Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee. 8: Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions' dens, from the mountains of the leopards. 9: Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck. 10: How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse! how much better is thy love than wine! and the smell of thine ointments than all spices! 11: Thy lips, O my spouse, drop as the honeycomb: honey and milk are under thy tongue; and the smell of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon. 12: A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed. 13: Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, with pleasant fruits; camphire, with spikenard, 14: Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices: 15: A fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon. 16: Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.

Song of Solomon 5

1: I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved. 2: I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night. 3: I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them? 4: My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him. 5: I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock. 6: I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer. 7: The watchmen that went about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took away my veil from me. 8: I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love. 9: What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? 10: My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. 11: His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. 12: His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set. 13: His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. 14: His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. 15: His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. 16: His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.

Today we are reading chapter 4 & 5. We saw yesterday that from 3v6 – 5v1 we have the procession of Solomon’s court to Jerusalem. In v1-5 of this chapter the beloved shepherd boy comes to Solomon’s court to rescue his devoted love. He manages to see her and expresses his delight in her again. We see a contrast between his modesty and Solomon’s coarse flattery in 6v4-10 and 7v1-9. He says to her you are beautiful – he says it twice. You have beautiful eyes within your black hair. Black hair like the goats of mount Gilead. Your teeth are like the whiteness of the sheep that have just been shorn and washed and they are all pregnant with twins. Your lips are like a scarlet thread and you speak so appropriately. Your forehead is like a pomegranate. You neck is like the tower David built for his armoury. Your breasts are like two young roes. She answers, I will return to you before night-time. I will meet you on the mountains of myrrh and the hills of frankincense. He speaks again saying, You are so beautiful there is no blemish in you. Come away with me to the north to secret places (where they will never be found). You have conquered my heart with your eyes. I love you more than my daily drink. Your smell is wonderful. Then he speaks adoringly of her lips, her clothes, calling her a secret place - sealed up. He describes her as if she were a secret garden full of fruits. She answers him asking him to take her away. In ch 5 v1 he says I am coming for you. Some of the women of Jerusalem encourage her in her love. From v2 the daughter speaks to the court ladies of a dream she once had. She say I slept but my mind was awake and she heard in her dream to voice of her beloved shepherd. He was calling on her to open the door for him to enter her bedroom. He says I am wet and I have taken off my coat and don’t want to put it back on. He says I have washed my feet and don’t want to get them dirty again. He put his hand through the hole of the door to lift the latch to come in. And her love for him moved within her. She rose up to open the door and her hands dropped myrrh onto the handle of the bolt. She says I opened the door to her shepherd boy but by that time he had slipped away and was gone. She heart had been touched by his voice but now she could not find him. She called out his name but there was no answer. As she searched for him the watchmen pushed her about and hurt her and took off her veil. (A gross insult) He made the women of the city swear to tell her where her beloved had gone if they ever found out, she confessed she was love sick. They ask her what is so special about her shepherd and she answers. She describes him as white but red. (Typical of a shepherd exposed to the sun all day – just as David was) His skin is very white yet sun scorched. She says he is the chief of 10,000 sheep - an outstanding shepherd. His head is like fine gold, his hair is bushy and jet black. His eyes are like doves eyes deep and black surrounded with white and beautifully set. His checks are like a bed of spices, like aromatic flowers. His lips are like lilies which drop myrrh. His legs are like pillars of marble on sockets of fine gold. He is tall like a cedar. His mouth is sweet and all together he is lovely. She says this is what my beloved is like and he is my best friend.