Today in God's Word—August 2023
East Tallassee Church of Christ
August 22, Song of Solomon 5
This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
- Song of Solomon 5:16
When two people love each other, they see the good and desirable traits in one another. Our love for someone makes the flaws disappear. We cherish the time we spend with our loved one. We think of them, miss them and might even dream about them when we’re apart. And we look for opportunities to be together.
All those things are true about the man and woman in the story told by Song of Solomon. They found fulfillment, joy and satisfaction in one another. Because they were human, they had faults. But love made those flaws fade into insignificance.
It’s easier to understand the allegorical interpretation of Song of Solomon when you read this chapter. This couple found genuine and mutual satisfaction in one another. Looking through eyes of love, they saw and admired the good things and beautiful qualities in each other. They built each other up with loving expressions of admiration.
The allegorist sees the mutual affection between Christ and the church in this loving couple's story. The Lord sees us cleansed from our sins by his blood and clothed in his righteousness. We praise him, in awe of his majestic splendor and perfect holiness. We adore him because of who he is and what he has done for us. While he is away (until he comes again) we wait with anticipation. We tell others about how wonderful our Savior really is. It’s not hard to find illustration of those facts in this chapter’s narrative.
The significant difference in our admiration of the Lord and two humans celebrating the good and overlooking the bad in each other is this: He really is perfect in all his ways. He really is uncompromised beauty, unlimited power and unfathomable love. His love for us was a self- emptying, self-sacrificing love. And he loved us
that way when were were unlovable. The woman’s dream about her beloved at the door seems to echo down the centuries to Jesus’ words to the Laodiceans: “Behold I stand at the door and knock.” It’s hard to imagine any Old Testament prophet (let alone polygamous, idolatrous Solomon) having any awareness of how these words would foreshadow our relationship with Christ. It surely is a mark of inspiration if the things we infer from such a text are actually implied by its words.
There’s good counseling advice here for couples, too. How good would it be for our marriages if we esteemed one another as this man and woman did? How affirming and encouraging it would be for husbands and wives to verbalize their admiration and affection for one another! Such expressions might seem awkward at first. But husbands and wives could enhance their relationship with one another by telling and showing their mate their love for each other in daily, practical ways.
Maybe the words of this chapter and book speak to you about your own marriage and how you could make it better. Perhaps you’re stirred to love and praise the Lord Jesus even more as you contemplate these things. Either way, there’s profit and value for us all in these
ancient words.
Copyright © 2023 by Michael B. McElroy. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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