We conclude our study of the great model of marriage in Solomon’s Song. The opening verses of Chapter 7 (1-9) record Solomon’s even more intimate description of his wife than the one on their wedding night, starting with her feet and going up from there. This demonstrates that physical intimacy between husband and wife is God given. Verse 6, in fact, declares that it is for our enjoyment: “How fair and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights!” In verse 10, she responds passionately, “I am my beloved’s, and his desire is toward me.” She goes so far as to take the initiative in verses 11-13 by suggesting they go into countryside to be together. In 8:1-4 we see her desire for even greater intimacy. While this sounds odd to our western ears, in the ancient Near East public displays of affection were frowned upon except by family members, so she playfully wishes that he were her younger brother so she could kiss him anytime she wished. In verse 3 she once again joyfully anticipates their next time together.
As the story nears its conclusion, we read of the nature of true love in verses 5-7. First, true love is a seal. A seal is a symbol of ownership, and she wants it to be clear that she belongs to no one else. While such a thought is repugnant to the feminist, it is the foundational desire of the godly woman. Second, true love is strong, as “strong as death,” in fact. Both are irresistible. Third, true love is singular. She knew how harmful jealousy is and hoped that he never gave her reason to be jealous by looking at other women. Fourth, true love is stirring; it is passionate, as “coals of fire” and “vehement flame.” And fifth, true love is supreme. Verse 7 concludes: “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 [i.e. despised].” Nothing can quench true love and nothing is more valuable. Are these principles true in our marriages?
The closing verses (8-14) are a reminiscence of how it all began. How important this is for all couples to do! After 32 years of marriage, my wife and I still reminisce. “Remember when?” one of us will ask, and then we relive that time. Likewise, this wife remembers her brothers protecting her when she was a little girl and encouraging her to stay pure. She could either be “a wall” that would resist all men who wanted her only for sex, or she could be “a door” that would allow anyone entrance. She recalls, however, that she chose to be a wall. She then remembers meeting Solomon in a vineyard that he had leased out to her brothers. It was there that she fell in love with him. Verses 13-14 recall the early days of the courtship and show that the passion of those days is still alive and well. Whenever he is gone from home, she says, “Make haste, my beloved” to come back to me so we can be together.
Solomon’s Song is a beautiful picture of the “covenant of companionship” that God designed marriage to be (Mal. 2:14). It exalts the personal characteristics of a man and woman on which a marriage is to be partially based. But the Song is also a graphic testimony of God’s endorsement of physical love between husband and wife. It is a relationship in which there should be three last realities: total openness, enduring romance, and lasting passion.
We’ll close with a story that is told of William Jennings Bryan (1860-1925), the great American lecturer and political leader, who was also a devoted Christian and defender of the faith. While having his portrait painted, Bryan was asked, “Why do you wear your hair over your ears?” Bryan responded, “There is a romance connected with that. When I began courting Mrs. Bryan, she objected to the way my ears stood out. So to please her, I let my hair grow to cover them.” “But that was many years ago,” the artist said. “Why don’t you have your hair cut now?” Bryan winked and answered, “Because the romance is still going on.”
As we prepare ourselves for Paul’s instructions to husbands and wives, I pray that each of our marriages will have continued romance.
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