October 14, 2009
OPen the door
Song of Solomon 5
Chris Gurley
Central Truth
Let us not be slow to respond to Christ’s calling on our lives.
Key Verse | Song of Solomon 5:2
I was asleep, but my mind was dreaming.
Listen! My lover is knocking at the door!
(Song of Solomon 5:2a)
Song of Solomon 5
He
1
I came to my garden, my sister, my bride,
I gathered my myrrh with my spice,
I ate my honeycomb with my honey,
I drank my wine with my milk.
Others
Eat, friends, drink,
and be drunk with love!
The Bride Searches for Her Beloved
She
2
I slept, but my heart was awake.
A sound! My beloved is knocking.
“Open to me, my sister, my love,
my dove, my perfect one,
for my head is wet with dew,
my locks with the drops of the night.”
3
I had put off my garment;
how could I put it on?
I had bathed my feet;
how could I soil them?
4
My beloved put his hand to the latch,
and my heart was thrilled within me.
5
I arose to open to my beloved,
and my hands dripped with myrrh,
my fingers with liquid myrrh,
on the handles of the bolt.
6
I opened to my beloved,
but my beloved had turned and gone.
My soul failed me when he spoke.
I sought him, but found him not;
I called him, but he gave no answer.
7
The watchmen found me
as they went about in the city;
they beat me, they bruised me,
they took away my veil,
those watchmen of the walls.
8
I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
if you find my beloved,
that you tell him
I am sick with love.
Others
9
What is your beloved more than another beloved,
O most beautiful among women?
What is your beloved more than another beloved,
that you thus adjure us?
The Bride Praises Her Beloved
She
10
My beloved is radiant and ruddy,
distinguished among ten thousand.
11
His head is the finest gold;
his locks are wavy,
black as a raven.
12
His eyes are like doves
beside streams of water,
bathed in milk,
sitting beside a full pool.
1
5:12
The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
13
His cheeks are like beds of spices,
mounds of sweet-smelling herbs.
His lips are lilies,
dripping liquid myrrh.
14
His arms are rods of gold,
set with jewels.
His body is polished ivory,
2
5:14
The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
bedecked with sapphires.
3
5:14
Hebrew lapis lazuli
15
His legs are alabaster columns,
set on bases of gold.
His appearance is like Lebanon,
choice as the cedars.
16
His mouth
4
5:16
Hebrew palate
is most sweet,
and he is altogether desirable.
This is my beloved and this is my friend,
O daughters of Jerusalem.
Dive Deeper | Song of Solomon 5
How often are we slow to respond to Christ’s call on our lives? He knocks at the door, and His appeal is sweet, as if scented with myrrh and perfumes. Yet, we are reluctant to respond, being comfortable where we are. We know of His love, and we love Him in a way in return, but we like to keep it simple, convenient, and clean. The Spirit, though, stirs our hearts—if we are listening—and puts such a burning longing within us to follow our Beloved that no darkness or worldly resistance can sway us from our pursuit of Christ.
So it is in Song of Solomon 5. Her beloved called. He appealed for her to respond, but she esteemed cleanliness and comfort above her love. When she finally overcame her selfishness, he was gone. Opportunity lost. Still, her heart would give her no rest until she exhausted the city with her searching, and until she appealed to everyone she met to tell her beloved of her love—though she did not show it at first. And why this impassioned plea? Because every part of him was desirable, and “he is altogether lovely” (5:16b, NIV).
Jesus is our glorious beloved. As the words of the bride fell short of describing how lovely her bridegroom was to her, so our words cannot capture the magnificence and beauty of Christ. Even so, especially in our culture today, we are so easily distracted by all that glitters and gleams around us. We become discontented with the eternal gifts of an infinitely wise God and try to fill our lives with things that will inevitably disappoint us. The calling to us echoes the message of Solomon’s bride: “[W]e must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us, keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.” (Hebrews 12:1b-2)
Discussion Questions
1. How have I neglected Christ’s appeal of love in my life?
2. Are there specific areas in which I know Christ is calling me to respond, but I have been slow to do so?
3. Is Christ “altogether lovely” to me? If not, what should I do to appreciate His beauty more?
4. What things in my life are hindering me from running with abandon in pursuit of Christ?