The Young Shulammite Bride and Jerusalem’s Daughters
1 The [a]Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.
2 “[b]May he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!
For your love is better than wine.
3 “Your oils have a pleasing fragrance,
Your name is like [c]purified oil;
Therefore the [d]maidens love you.
4 “Draw me after you and let us run together!
The king has brought me into his chambers.”“[e]We will rejoice in you and be glad;
We will [f]extol your love more than wine.
Rightly do they love you.”5 “[g]I am black but lovely,
O daughters of Jerusalem,
Like the tents of Kedar,
Like the curtains of Solomon.
6 “Do not stare at me because I am [h]swarthy,
For the sun has burned me.
My mother’s sons were angry with me;
They made me caretaker of the vineyards,
But I have not taken care of my own vineyard.
7 “Tell me, O you whom my soul loves,
Where do you pasture your flock,
Where do you make it lie down at noon?
For why should I be like one who [i]veils herself
Beside the flocks of your companions?”
Oh boy, here we go! I’ll admit I was tempted to skip straight over this book, but I felt God telling me not to, so here we are. This “Song of Songs” or “Best of Songs” is all about the romance, and since God created romance and love, we certainly shouldn’t be afraid of it. Also, some have supposed that this “song” is more of a three-way struggle, between a woman and her true love, and the king Solomon who also wants her for his bride.
At least today, we aren’t going to try and figure out one way or the other. It’s clear enough that we have a woman and man who are in love, and this first passage is spoken (mostly) by the woman, except the chorus in v. 4b. Two verses stand out then, and the first reminds me of when David was anointed as king. Solomon was presented with Jesse’s sons, and they were strong and handsome, and any one of them looked the part of king.
Yet God said no to all of them, and told Samuel, “God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” You can find the rest of the story in 1 Samuel 16, but back to our Shulammite woman… In v. 5 she tells the “daughters of Jerusalem” that she is black, but lovely. In v. 6 she clarifies a bit more, and says, “hey, don’t look at my skin, I know it’s dark, but it’s just from hard work.”
Perhaps unwittingly, she shares of her inner beauty, that she knows how to work hard. And so, for the unmarried folks, and maybe for all of us, don’t focus so much on the external. Certainly, it seems this woman was beautiful, regardless of her complexion, but we are all so much more than our external appearance. There are too many whose beauty is only skin deep, but a lasting relationship must be built on more than that.
Beauty will fade, and then what are you left with? Rather, build your relationship intentionally, be mindful of, and thankful for, all the beauty of your spouse. I was tempted to say “real beauty”, but God did also make our outward beauty, so I think it’s something to also value, and certainly not something to take for granted.
Lastly, somewhat fitting now, is v. 7 where the woman asks her lover to tell her where she can find him later. She doesn’t want to be wandering by someone else’s flocks. The implication is, with the veil, she doesn’t want to be seen as a loose woman, or a prostitute. Rather, she desires to be faithful to the man whom she loves.
So again, don’t be so distracted by outward beauty that you miss things which are of more importance. And when you find someone you love, and who loves you, don’t take that for granted. But be faithful like the Shulammite, and cultivate your love for life.