1014 B.C. – 8 Chapters – 117 Verses
Amongst the 1005 songs sung or composed by King Solomon (1 Kings 4:3232And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five. (1 Kings 4:32)), this one is pre-eminently “the song of songs.” The Spirit of God has been pleased to convey this Song to us, which, like all other portions of Holy Scripture given by inspiration of God, will be found most needful for the Christian (2 Tim. 3:16-1716All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. (2 Timothy 3:16‑17)). What became of the 1004 songs we know not. Had it been to our profit to know, we would have been divinely informed. Our true wisdom is to learn from what God has preserved and chosen in His sovereign goodness to communicate to us.
This book does not figure the relationship existing between Christ and the church, and the affections and exercises of heart resulting therefrom. This Song reveals the longings and yearnings of a heart desiring an established relationship with the object loved, but the contrary is true of the Church. Her relationship with Christ is already settled, although the actual consummation is yet future (Rev. 19:7-97Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 8And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. 9And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God. (Revelation 19:7‑9)). Our union to Christ is as good as accomplished, as the Holy Spirit, given to dwell in the believer, is the power of present enjoyment, bringing all the blessedness of the coming day of glory into our hearts, besides imparting the consciousness that “now are we the sons of God.” Hence the feelings and heart exercises of the church as produced by the Spirit of God, result from a present, established, and known relationship.
In this precious book, King Solomon figures the Lord in His future dealings and ways with the godly remnant of Israel in drawing out their affections and desires after Himself. It is the king and the spouse, not the bridegroom and the bride. But while the book has a typical and future bearing upon Israel, we must be careful to maintain its distinctly moral application to ourselves individually. Love and Communion are in the main its themes. It comes short, however, of the love of John 17. If in Ecclesiastes the object is too small for the heart, in this book, the object is too large for the heart; in the former we need an object, in the latter an enlarged heart.
The Speakers
Careful and accurate attention to the various actors and speakers will greatly assist in the intelligent apprehension of the purport and contents of the book. We have marked them off as follows: —
The SPOUSE, Ch. 1:1-7,12-14,16-17; Ch. 2:1,3-17; Ch. 3:1-4; Ch. 4:16; Ch. 5:2-8,10-16; Ch. 6:2-3, and the two last clauses of verse 13; Ch. 7:9-13 beginning “for my beloved”; Ch. 8:1-3,6-7,10-12,14.
The KING, Ch. 1:8-11,15; Ch. 2:2; Ch. 3:5; Ch. 4:1-15; Ch. 5:1; Ch. 6:4-12; Ch. 7:1-9, middle clause; Ch. 8:13.
The COMPANIONS, Ch. 3:6-11; Ch. 5:9; Ch. 6:1, and first two clauses of verse 13; Ch. 8:8-9, and first clause of verse 5.
General Divisions
Chapter 1-2:16 — ”My beloved is mine.” The desire is towards Him and the spouse, realizing that He belongs to her.
Chapter 2:17-6:3 — “I am my beloved’s.” The desire of His heart is toward me, and I have the sweet consciousness that I belong to Him.
Chapters 6:4-8:14 — “I am my beloved’s, and His desire is toward me” (ch. 7:10). That is, I belong to Him, and the unchanging love of His devoted heart is ever set upon me.
In these divisions there is a growing and deepening apprehension of His love, and consequently a ripening experience on the part of the spouse.
Note
Chapter 3:5, “till he please,” should read “till she please.”
We are aware that this book has been questioned, that its inspiration and Divine origin have been denied, that its claim for insertion amongst the sacred writings has been rejected by many. But it has always struck us as a singular thing, that many who reject the book are most unspiritual persons. The mass of saints in all ages have richly enjoyed the reading of this Song; it has quickened their affections and spoken to their hearts of Him who loved them and died for them.
The argument usually advanced by objectors, that the book is full of love-imagery, could have no weight with Easterns. Oriental poetry and language abounds in flowery metaphor and forms of expression as dramatic in character as will be found in the Song. Neither Orientals — past nor present — nor Hebrews — ancient and modern — have ever regarded this book as the expression of voluptuous passion. It has been reserved for the cold and heartless Christianity of the Western world to find fault, where others have revelled to the delight and joy of their souls.
Jonathan Edwards, regarded by many as the “driest and most astute of scholastic theologians,” greatly delighted in this book; so Dr. Chalmers; but need we multiply? The book is of God. It formed part of the sacred Hebrew canon, and was accepted as such by the compiler of the Old Testament writings, the Jewish nation as a whole, and the Septuagint translators, who inserted it in the place where we have it in our English Bibles. Further, the Lord spoke of it as forming part of the collection then known and recognized by the Jews as “The Psalms” (Luke 24:4444And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. (Luke 24:44)).
Here is an expression of honest indignation from the scholarly Spanish-Jew Rabbi, Aben Ezra, against the unbelieving attacks hurled against the Song of Solomon: “Far be it! far be it! that the Song of Songs should treat of carnal affections; but all things in it are figuratively spoken. Yea, unless its excellence had been great, it would have had no place among the sacred writings: nor is there any controversy as to that.”
“The voice of my beloved sounds
Over the rocks and rising grounds —
O’er hills of guilt and seas of grief
He leaps, He flies to my relief.”