Introduction
‘I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys. Like a lily among thorns is my darling among the young women. Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest is my beloved among the young men. I delight to sit in his shade, and his fruit is sweet to my taste.’ Song Of Solomon 2:1-3
Here the Shulammite woman compares her love for Solomon with the professed love among the daughters of Jerusalem. She compares herself to two flowers, first, she is like a ‘rose of Sharon’, a crocus plant, Song of Songs 2:1.
There are seven species of rose that grow in the Holy Land and the most widely distributed of these is Rosa Phoenicia, which grows on the coast and in the mountains. The flower was recognised as ‘Sharon’ due to the plain it grew in. The Plain of Sharon was a coastal plain found on the Mediterranean coast between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Sharon was a very fruitful place, where David’s cattle were fed, 1 Chronicles 27:29. It is mentioned as a place of excellence, Isaiah 35:2, and as a place of flocks, Isaiah 65:10.’
While her love for Solomon is like a ‘lily’, she sees herself among the thorns, Song of Songs 2:2. The young women’s love for Solomon was a thorny kind of love, a love full of deception and ulterior motives. In other words, the young daughters want a share in the king’s glory and riches, while the Shulammite woman simply just wanted Solomon for who he is.
Second, the Shulammite woman sees in this apple tree her beloved Solomon, Song of Songs 2:3. This tree, which is among other trees in the forest, produces fruit and is apparently the noblest of trees in this geographic region. Solomon is the shade that the tree produces, which means she feels safe and protected when with him. Song of Songs 2:3. Solomon’s fruit, that is, his character, his words and actions, Matthew 7:15-20 / John 15:5-8 / Galatians 5:22-23, is a refreshing sweet apple to the Shulammite woman. Song of Songs 2:3.
‘Let him lead me to the banquet hall and let his banner over me be love. Strengthen me with raisins, refresh me with apples, for I am faint with love. His left arm is under my head, and his right arm embraces me. Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you by the gazelles and by the does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.’ Song Of Solomon 2:4-7
Solomon now brings the Shulammite woman to the ‘banquet hall’, Song of Songs 2:4, which literally means ‘the house of wine’ and is the place where he entertains his closest friends. However, the Shulammite woman appears to be a little uncomfortable with this setting because she is ‘dark’, Song of Songs 1:4, and not of royal descent. Solomon realises that she’s feeling uncomfortable and his love is shown as a ‘banner over’ her, Song of Songs 2:4, as a result, Solomon makes her feel comfortable.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following, concerning the banner.
‘As the standard is the rallying-point and guide of the individual soldier, so the bride, transplanted from a lowly station to new scenes of unaccustomed splendour, finds support and safety in the known attachment of her beloved. His ‘love’ is her ‘banner.’ The thought is similar to that expressed in the name ‘Jehovah-Nissi’, Exodus 17:15.’
The Shulammite woman begins to feel herself going down into a realm of intense loving feelings for Solomon. She knows this isn’t a dream, she knows this isn’t a fantasy, she’s refreshed by the reality of his love, like raisins and apples refresh the physical body, Song of Songs 2:5 / 2 Samuel 6:19 / 1 Chronicles 16:3 / Hosea 3:1. It’s clear she isn’t looking to end this feeling but rather to be refreshed and so she calls upon raisins and apples to refresh her from her state of being lovesick. Notice that it’s Solomon who does the refreshing, he uses his left hand to support her lovesick head and his right hand to embrace her, Song of Songs 2:6 / Deuteronomy 33:27 / Proverbs 4:8.
Because Solomon embraced her in front of the daughters of Jerusalem, this was the moment when Solomon gave his public approval of her. It’s at this point, while she’s being embraced by Solomon that the daughters of Jerusalem are filled with jealousy that the Shulammite woman charges them to leave them alone. The moment of her greatest feelings of love are being fulfilled here as her love sickened heart is made comfortable and fulfilled by Solomon.
She has witnessed wild animals performing mating rituals and understands that even animals must become acquainted before they mate, Song of Songs 2:7 / Song of Songs 8:6-7. Gazelles and does are sleek, graceful creatures who, when startled, will quickly disappear. The Shulammite woman insists that the young women from Jerusalem don’t try and force her to love the king but to give love time to awaken if it is to be, Song of Songs 2:7 / Song of Songs 3:5 / Song of Songs 8:4. By speaking about these animals, the Shulammite woman is warning us that in a rush for love, we can easily lose the very thing we are pursuing.
The passion of sexual intercourse must never be aroused outside the limits of God’s intended relationship between a man and a woman, Matthew 5:28. And that intended relationship is in the bond of marriage. Young people should never place themselves in a situation where their sexual passions are aroused to the point of being out of control, Proverbs 23:6-7. In the first chapter, we saw how the Shulammite woman was singing and daydreaming of Solomon, Song of Songs 1:2-4. Now at this point in time, her daydream has become a reality, as she is now in the arms of Solomon.
‘Listen! My beloved! Look! Here he comes, leaping across the mountains, bounding over the hills. My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Look! There he stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, peering through the lattice.’ Song Of Solomon 2:8-9
It’s been a long winter and the Shulammite woman sees Solomon coming to her through the mountains and excitement is in the air. Solomon, with the speed of a gazelle, rides through the mountains to reach his beloved at her house, Song of Songs 2:8 / Proverbs 5:19.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The points of comparison here are beauty of form, grace, and speed of movement. In 2 Samuel 2:18 / 1 Chronicles 12:8, princes are compared to ‘gazelles.’
When he arrives he gazes through the windows, walls, and lattice as though he’s frantically searching for her, Song of Songs 2:9 / Song of Songs 5:7 / Song of Songs 8:9-10.
‘My beloved spoke and said to me. Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me. See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come; the cooing of doves is heard in our land. The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance. Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me.’ My dove in the clefts of the rock, in the hiding places on the mountainside, show me your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely. Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom.’ Song Of Solomon 2:10-15
The Shulammite explains that Solomon finds her and calls upon her to ‘arise’ and come with him back to the royal city, Song of Songs 2:10. It appears the long winter is over and spring has arrived, flowers, songbirds, turtle doves, and the plants starting to display their green leaves are all signs of the warmer season, Song of Songs 2:11-13.
Solomon then calls the Shulammite woman to ‘arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me’, Song of Songs 2:13. Earlier Solomon referred to the Shulammite woman as having the eyes of a dove, Song of Songs 1:15. He told her of her beauty, Song of Songs 1:9-10, and he calls her ‘darling’, Song of Songs 1:9. He now calls upon this beautiful dove that he loves to leave her home in the mountains and come back to the city with him, Song of Songs 2:13. He said that it’s a good time due to the weather warming, hence it’s spring.
Solomon now longs to see her face and hear her voice, Song of Songs 2:14, and it appears that nothing can please him like seeing her face and hearing her voice. It’s all too easy to forget how wonderful our wives are, especially when we’ve been married for several years. I wonder how many married men still see their wives in this way today!
Foxes dig holes and burrow underground destroying root systems and creating holes where the roots can gain no sustenance from, Song of Songs 2:15. This is a picture of a vineyard which is overrun with foxes and is now ruined.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following, concerning the foxes.
‘They love the vine, and they are eaten in autumn in some countries, according to Galen, when they are very fat with eating the grapes. They abounded in Judea and did most damage when the clusters were young and tender.’
Throughout the Scriptures, foxes are used figuratively to denote the physical, Nehemiah 4:3, and spiritual destroyers, Ezekiel 13:4 / Luke 13:32. The Shulammite woman wants nothing to do with fox-like people who would destroy the love that she and Solomon share, such as the daughters of Jerusalem who live in the royal city. The Shulammite woman thinks about the vineyard she works at in relation to her love for Solomon and his love for her, Song of Songs 2:15 / Song of Songs 1:6.
‘My beloved is mine and I am his; he browses among the lilies. Until the day breaks and the shadows flee, turn, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or like a young stag on the rugged hills.’ Song Of Solomon 2:16-17
Notice that the one who holds the Shulammite’s affection is her ‘beloved,’ Song of Songs 2:16. Up until this point she’s referred to a man as her beloved and the one to whom her soul loves ten times. Although Solomon wasn’t a shepherd the Shulammite woman has nothing better to compare him to in relation to her experiences.
The idea of Solomon belonging to the Shulammite woman and the Shulammite woman belonging to Solomon, Song of Songs 2:16, conjures up ideas of monogamy. It appears that she has taken the ultimate place in Solomon’s heart.
Although the N.I.V. says that ‘he browses along the lilies’, Song of Songs 2:16, other translations use the words, ‘he feeds his flock among the lilies’. The ‘feeding of the flock among the lilies’ considers Solomon’s kingly work viewed with beauty by the Shulammite woman. She requests that he comes quickly like a gazelle and finish his work so that they may be together again in the evening, Song of Songs 2:17 / Song of Songs 4:6.
Note again back in Song of Songs 1:12-13, the beloved is attributed to the ‘king’. This tells us that even though the Shulammite woman uses ‘shepherd’ terms, there’s no second man in the picture, as some suggest. As we saw in the very beginning, this is ‘Solomon’s song’, Song of Songs 1:1.
Up until this point in time, there have been three main characters in the song, Solomon, the Shulammite woman and the daughters of Jerusalem.