1:1 The song of songs, which is Solomon's. (KJV)

A superlative construction, meaning the "top one", and not a compilation of many.

2 -4 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than wine. Because of the savour of thy good ointments thy name is as ointment poured forth, therefore do the virgins love thee. Draw me, we will run after thee: the king hath brought me into his chambers: we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will remember thy love more than wine: the upright love thee.

5 - 7 I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon. Look not upon me, because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me: my mother's children were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept. Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions?

SOLOMON ENTERS

Solomon's early attempts to marry Abishag

9 - 11 I have compared thee, O my love, to a company of horses in Pharaoh's chariots. Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold. We will make thee borders of gold with studs of silver.

12 - 14  While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof. A bundle of myrrh is my wellbeloved unto me; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts. My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards of Engedi.

15 - 2:1 Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes. Behold, thou art fair, my beloved, yea, pleasant: also our bed is green. The beams of our house are cedar, and our rafters of fir. I am the rose of Sharon*, and the lily of the valleys.                   *white narcissus, ordinary lilies

3 - 7 As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love. Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love. His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me

I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he (it) please.

This book is about love, but a kind that stands out unique among the forest of worldly passions. It is the kind of love that He is.

10 - 14 My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land; The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. 

O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely.

15 - 17 Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes. My beloved is mine, and I am his: he feedeth among the lilies. Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of Bether.

3:1 - 5 By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not. I will rise now, and go about the city in the streets, and in the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not. The watchmen that go about the city found me: to whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth? It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother's house, and into the chamber of her that conceived me.

I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he (it) please.

From our spiritual perspective, the text, "from now on you shall seek the Lord your God, and you shall find him, if you seek him with all your heart and all your soul" challenges us, not to higher levels of performance, but to an accurate evaluation of our fervor for the one we claim to love. Nothing but passion for our Lord will do, for all else is "lukewarm".

Again, the phrase, "You can't force love" becomes clearer. Not only must we not try to force others, we cannot even force ourselves to that degree of love. We now know that we can only love him because he first loved us. Unless one receives that unique love, he has nothing to give in return.                      This ends Act One.

To ACT THREE                TO THE TOP            Act Two

       Setting: The Summer Palace in Lebanon

 SCENE 1

Solomon arrives to convince Abishag to marry him

  6 - 11. Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all powders of the merchant? Behold his bed, which is Solomon's; threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel. They all hold swords, being expert in war: every man hath his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night. King Solomon made himself a chariot of the wood of Lebanon. He made the pillars thereof of silver, the bottom thereof of gold, the covering of it of purple, the midst thereof being paved with love, for the daughters of Jerusalem. Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold king Solomon with the crown wherewith his mother crowned him in the day of his espousals, and in the day of the gladness of his heart.

 The harem ladies see Solomon coming to the palace which is located high on a mountain. They rejoice in his deeds of valor and revel in his wealth, not a little that was spent on his ladies and many wives. They all are impressed with his worldly riches and his affection toward them. A lady of authority, perhaps the queen herself, exhorts the ladies of harem to go to meet him.

(note: some commentators include the queen in the scenes with the harem.)

 4:1-5 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. 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. 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. Thy neck is like the tower of David builded for an armoury, whereon there hang a thousand bucklers, all shields of mighty men. Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins, which feed among the lilies.

 Solomon enters and begins praising Abishag's physical beauties. Has the wisest of men picked up on what "turns her on"? Even so, he ends up mixing in a rather masculine and then sensual image.

At this point I wish to remind the reader that Solomon was well known for his attraction to ladies.

Some readers might be offended with the negative commentary of his approach to Abishag, especially those who view Solomon as a type of Christ in this book.

It was his vast (1000's?) collection of wives, many of them worshippers of foreign gods, that led to his fall from favour with God, and consequently losing all that he worked to build to a foreign king. Over time, relationships with ladies became an obsession. Solomon was an expert in the technique of seduction. Is this how WE fell in love with our Lord? In view of Solomon's life, it is questionable if any part of it is typical of our Lord.

  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.

 Abishag wishes she could "wake up" from this and find herself back home. Her thoughts are back to her shepherd to whom she is betrothed.

  7 - 15 Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee. 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. 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. 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! 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. A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed. Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, with pleasant fruits; camphire, with spikenard, Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices: A fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon

 Her Shepherd speaks into her thoughts.

The mountains of Amana, Shenir and Hermon are all found in the area of the mountains of Hermon. (There were 3 peaks). It is the source area for several main rivers and as Caesarea Philippi is near the base, some thought has been given as to it being the place where Jesus was Transfigured. Mk8) The mountains have rich vineyards on some of the slopes and would be reminiscent of the lower mountains of Shunem.

Spiritually, one is reminded of the Bride of Christ being chaste, without spot or wrinkle. The use of spouse and sister together become less confusing to the Western mind when we consider that Jesus is both our "Elder Brother" as well as our "Bridegroom". The Shepherd does not compliment her on her physical beauty, but on the inward qualities of her love, fruit, anointing and fragrance. That this is how Jesus regards his Bride is overwhelming. He indeed loves us with the same love the Father loves him. What a thought to meditate upon!

  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.

 Abishag responds (by soliloquy) crying for her true love to come and take her and have his will with her.

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.

 The Shepherd tells her that their union is already realized in their love for one another. (She was still chaste) All should celebrate, for marriage has already taken place (in the heart) and only awaits the physical union. For the Church, Scripture says, " he that is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him." We are already the Bride of Christ, now being one with him. He is in us and we in him. We have already been raised with him. Now we are the Sons of God. We await the time when he will soon come to take us to be with him in our own homeland.

SCENE TWO

DREAMS CONTINUE

 2 - 8 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. I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them? My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him. 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. 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. 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. I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love.

[ Lu 12:36; Is 50:6-10; Eph 5:14; Mt 25:4-13; Is 26:9 ]

 Abishag recounts her dreams. Her Shepherd love calls to her through the closed door. She knows she is in bed, and delays as it is inconvenient to get up. As the shepherd made the move to open she could not resist and rose to grant him entry, aware of her anointing. Again, in typical dream frustration, when she opened the door he was gone. She regretted she had not responded more quickly. Abishag went out through the city but could not find him. This time she was unsuccessful in her quest, and she had made herself vulnerable to abuse and misunderstanding. The pursuit of her loved one in the dark hostile world of the city at night led her into even physical and moral abuse. In this scene she turns to the harem and speaking another word of wise admonition, exhorts even them to tell the shepherd, should they find him, that she is sick (even to weakness and perhaps death?) from her love for her shepherd.

In Christian life, one often finds frustration apprehending the life we are destined to live. At times He seems so near, but as we turn to look into His face, He is gone. In the Scriptures, Stephen is martyred one day, and yet the disciples have and will continue to raise the dead. Eschatologically, the King (and His Kingdom) is near, almost to the point of breaking through for all - even the unbelievers - to see. Then, with a chilling wind, darkness again presses upon us. In this world that we are exhorted to not give our love to, we will suffer persecution if we seek to live like him. Abishag was not ashamed to express her love for her shepherd, even before the harem and a hostile system.

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?

The harem responds (reacts?) to Abishag's challenge. "How can this shepherd of yours be so great?" she is asked.

10 - 16 My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set. His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.

 Abishag responds with poetry that has reverberated throughout millennia in the expression of song and verse. I can but refer you to the excellent expositions of others upon these verses, for these passages speak dearly of our Lord and Savior in all of the other reputable interpretations by believers.

 6:1 Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? whither is thy beloved turned aside? that we may seek him with thee.

 Whether or not this is a sincere question by the harem, or if within it lies sarcasm, we cannot know with certainty. Regardless, Abishag provides them with a serious answer.

2 - 3 My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies. I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the lilies.

Abishag's answer is that her love is back home in their true country setting. They cannot have him because he and Abishag belong to one-another. Jesus has one bride, the Church. Others might try to adopt him into their religions in their syncretistic ways, but the Church alone is his Church. He decides those who constitute his bride.

SCENE THREE

Palace - Solomon enters

 6:4-9 Thou art beautiful, O my love, as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem, terrible as an army with banners. Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me: thy hair is as a flock of goats that appear from Gilead. Thy teeth are as a flock of sheep which go up from the washing, whereof every one beareth twins, and there is not one barren among them. As a piece of a pomegranate are thy temples within thy locks. There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines, and virgins without number. My dove, my undefiled is but one; she is the only one of her mother, she is the choice one of her that bare her. The daughters saw her, and blessed her; yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her.

 Solomon claims Abishag singly surpasses his 60 queens and 80 concubines. Even those of the harem admitted her uniqueness. He expresses his vulnerability toward her. [Solomon then temporarily leaves her side.]

It is the innate desire to "be the best" and stand out among the crowd that Solomon uses to woo Abishag. It is also the "come on" used by the world system to draw us to itself. Fame and the promise of power are heady potions that have seduced many a Christian from his humble (but extraordinarily high) calling. It was one of the temptations used against our Master in his early days of ministry.

 10 Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?

 Even though Solomon told Abishag that the ladies in his harem were blessing her, they really were insulted and questioned what was so special about her.

Many a leader in the Church has been led into destruction because of patronizing "support" of the subordinates around them who desire to maintain their own area of influence. This has been true of a number of leaders God has raised up and used powerfully - in the "early days". A saying goes, "When one begins to believe his own publicity, he is on the path downward."

 11 - 12 I went down into the garden of nuts to see the fruits of the valley, and to see whether the vine flourished, and the pomegranates budded. Or ever I was aware, my soul made me like the chariots of Amminadib.

 Abishag answers the sarcastic remark from the harem, and tells of the situation that brought her to her present predicament. She had gone down to the orchard with her brothers to check the fruit when the royal scouts saw her and whisked her off to be a candidate for King David's "sleep in" nurse. Before she knew what was happening she was aboard a royal chariot and "gone". She feared they had wanted her to dance and "entertain" them. She had been summoned to court, but not of her own will.

In this world we all are subject to unexpected events that take us by surprise and against our will. Those who are loved and spoken for are thrust into compromising situations. Even our own brothers and sisters are unable to spare us from these hardships.

13 a Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon thee.

 Her brothers called to her as she was taken away.

 b. What will ye see in the Shulamite? As it were the company of two armies.

Abishag responded to them not to pursue as she was now "property" of the soldiers.

[Solomon returns]

 7:1-9 How beautiful are thy feet with shoes, O prince's daughter! the joints of thy thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a cunning workman. Thy navel is like a round goblet, which wanteth not liquor: thy belly is like an heap of wheat set about with lilies. Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins. Thy neck is as a tower of ivory; thine eyes like the fishpools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bathrabbim: thy nose is as the tower of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus. Thine head upon thee is like Carmel, and the hair of thine head like purple; the king is held in the galleries. How fair and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights! This thy stature is like to a palm tree, and thy breasts to clusters of grapes. I said, I will go up to the palm tree, I will take hold of the boughs thereof: now also thy breasts shall be as clusters of the vine, and the smell of thy nose like apples; And the roof of thy mouth like the best wine for my beloved, that goeth down sweetly, causing the lips of those that are asleep to speak.

 Solomon continues with his seductive praise. It is becoming more sensual. Notice the royal imagery mixed with her physical beauty.

 10 -8:4 I am my beloved's, and his desire is toward me.

Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field; let us lodge in the villages. Let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine flourish, whether the tender grape appear, and the pomegranates bud forth: there will I give thee my loves. The mandrakes give a smell, and at our gates are all manner of pleasant fruits, new and old, which I have laid up for thee, O my beloved. O that thou wert as my brother, that sucked the breasts of my mother! when I should find thee without, I would kiss thee; yea, I should not be despised. I would lead thee, and bring thee into my mother's house, who would instruct me: I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of the juice of my pomegranate. His left hand should be under my head, and his right hand should embrace me.

I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, until he (it) please.

 Abishag refuses and flatly states that she belongs to another and he, to her. Again, with soliloquy, she calls to her true Shepherd lover to come and rescue her. She recalls their times together back home. It is here that a dimension of love is spoken of that is alien, especially to the "romantically rooted " Western world. There is a love that far transcends the physical love and is more closely associated with the brotherly love developed within a growing family.(The sensual is legitimate in its place but with which Solomon seemed so preoccupied) There is a united love that embraces Jesus as our Bridegroom while also accommodating his being our elder brother. These are issues that were spiritual long before they were physical and contaminated by the Fall. The love of an elderly couple no longer sexually motivated, but in a love that has grown from an intimacy of life rather than flesh is a glimmer of that reality. Then again the charge that this love cannot be forced or demanded.

To the TOP                            ACT THREE

Setting: Free and back home in Shunem

 Final Act

 The Message and Admonition of the Play Explained

8:5- Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved?

Brother #1 Calls attention to Abishag returning on the arm of her Shepherd love.

 I raised thee up under the apple tree: there thy mother brought thee forth: there she brought thee forth that bare thee.

Brother #2 States that it is his little sister he helped raise under the apple tree she was born under.

6 - 7. Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame. "Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned. "

Abishag's makes the climatic statement that love conquers even death. Hell was created for Satan and the angels that fell, but it is God's jealousy for His own - those He loves passionately and also for the restoration of all things that give "heat" to it's everlasting fires for those who have frustrated his love for his own. God's judgement flames are kindled, not because of some abstract concept of evil, but from a heart of love for those who actually corrupt and damn each another with that very evil. Jesus said that he did not come to judge the world but that through him those already condemned might have eternal life. To refuse to come to Him for forgiveness leaves that person still condemned for his own corruption, because he refuses to drink God's only "antidote" for sin, the blood of Christ's sacrifice on the cross. Solomon was rejected by God even though God loved him because he led the people God loved away from that infinite love and provision.

Some historical records speak of Solomon's obsession for women and their seduction. Verse 7 could be additional wisdom learned by the man who thought he could have anything he desired. (ref: Ecclesiastes 2:10)

8 We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts: what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for?  

Brother #1 The "Wisdom Riddle". Here is one of the keys to understanding the meaning of this book. The brother's statement made when their sister was young and immature, concerning what they should do when the time came for her marriage.

 9 If she be a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver: and if she be a door, we will inclose her with boards of cedar.

 Brother #2 If she was a wall and maintained her chastity, they would honour her with precious substance. If she was a door and open to immoral access, they would hide her away in a closet.

 10 -12. I am a wall, and my breasts like towers: then was I in his eyes as one that found favour. Solomon had a vineyard at Baalhamon; he let out the vineyard unto keepers; every one for the fruit thereof was to bring a thousand pieces of silver. My vineyard, which is mine, is before me: thou, O Solomon, must have a thousand, and those that keep the fruit thereof two hundred.

 Abishag answers the Riddle. She is now mature and she has maintained her chastity to give to her betrothed. Again using the vineyard as representative of one's inner being (from where the fruit of the spirit comes). Solomon prostituted his heart for worldly treasures and pleasures. Solomon had a thousand lovers, and 200 with which he shared his worth. In the end, the Lord put him aside and gave all his riches to a heathen. Abishag retained her virtue to give as she willed.

Here is the plain and clear call for His Bride not to love the world or the things in it, but to "love the Lord with ALL our heart, and mind, and being - even when all hope seems dim.

 13 -14. Thou that dwellest in the gardens, the companions hearken to thy voice: cause me to hear it. Make haste, my beloved, and be thou like to a roe or to a young hart upon the mountains of spices.

 Abishag addresses her Shepherd and all those where he dwells that obey his voice - his Kingdom where he reigns. In New Testament terms, might I do his will on earth as those in Heaven do it. The Bride calls - "Maranatha - Come Lord Jesus and take me to be with you in your Kingdom."

 Return to TOP

Revised July 21, 2004