The song of songs, which is Solomon's.
The book opens with a claim, not a scene: this poem outranks every other song, and it is Solomon's. Two questions follow. Why does it stand above the rest, and who are the King and His bride?
The title is not a modest label. In Hebrew it is a way of saying the best song of all — and Solomon's name runs right through the book:
The name "Song of Songs" is an absolute comparison in Hebrew and means roughly the most beautiful song. The first verse already names Solomon as the author. We find this mentioned seven times (chapters 1:1, 5; 3:7, 9, 11; 8:11, 12), and besides that the title "King" three times (chapters 1:4, 12; 7:6).
Scripture holds many songs. One writer traces this one's pre-eminence back to whose song it is:
But why call this precious little book "The Song of Songs"? Just because it is Solomon's, or rather Christ's, who will in due time be King in Jerusalem, in true Solomon glory. On the same principle Scripture calls Him "King of kings and Lord of lords." Pre-eminence in all things is His. There are many sweet songs in Scripture. Moses, Miriam and her maidens, Deborah, and David all sang sweetly of the Lord's goodness. Scripture says of Solomon himself that "his songs were 1,005." But this one he calls "The Song of Songs." It far surpassed them all. It is the deep melody of hearts filled with holy love, finding their supreme delight in its full and free expression.
Solomon wrote in several forms, and only this one song survived:
Solomon was not only a preacher (Ecclesiastes) and a moral teacher (Proverbs), but a song-writer (the Song of Songs). Solomon wrote 1,005 songs (1 Kings 4:32). All have perished except this one. It is called "The Song of Songs" because it stands above the rest… As a picture it points to the Jew of the future. Its moral lesson is all-important for the Christian now. This divine poem is in the form of a dialogue between Solomon, his spouse, and her companions.
The king named in the title points past himself. His name and his wealth both prepare us for someone greater:
Solomon is the writer. His name means peace. Of him it is written, "King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom" (2 Chronicles 9:22). He is only a faint type of our great Prince of peace, who is the altogether lovely One, "the most handsome of the sons of men," whom God has "anointed… with the oil of gladness beyond your companions," and "appointed the heir of all things."
Readers have taken the Song in different directions, and the writers themselves note the disagreement. Some apply it to the church, some to the individual believer:
Many have applied this wonderful book of Scripture to the church, many more to the soul, in relation to the Lord Jesus. No one denies for a moment that all born of God share one principle — love to Him who died for all who enter by faith into the love of God in Christ. His known love creates it, a love that passes knowledge.
The same writer warns against reading the book as a simple love story:
Literalists are apt here, as elsewhere, to deprive the book of a worthy object and divine character. According to one of the ablest recent writers, the book is meant to show humble, constant love winning over the temptations of wealth and royalty! Such an aim might suit the Idylls of Theocritus, or the Eclogues of his Latin imitator Virgil. But it betrays fatal ignorance of Old Testament Scripture. Scripture rises again and again above the immediate historical occasion into a purpose of grace.
Whatever view of the bride is right, this song works on the heart. One writer marks out what it never touches:
There is no question in this book of the purification of the conscience. That question is not touched on. But it speaks of those affections of the heart which cannot be too ardent when the Lord is their object. So the faults that show we have forgotten Him and His grace only stir the heart towards Him. They bring back all that draws us to His Person… Forming our heart in this part of the Christian life is all-important. This is how Christ is truly known. With divine Persons, the one who does not love does not know.
- Supreme — the title is a Hebrew superlative: the song that outranks every other song ever sung.
- Sole — of Solomon's 1,005 songs, only this one survives; it far surpassed them all.
- Solomon's — the king whose name means peace, and who surpassed all kings, is a faint sketch of the true Prince of peace.
- Subject — commentators differ on who the bride is: the church, the believer's own soul, or the Jew of the future. All read the book in relation to the Lord Jesus.
- Soul — the book works on the heart, not the conscience. With divine Persons, the one who does not love does not know.
Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth; For thy love is better than wine.
The Song opens with the bride's voice, not the king's, and she asks for the closest sign of love from someone she never names. Two questions follow: who is speaking, and why does she measure love against wine?
Commentators read the book as a prophetic picture. In it the bride stands for Jerusalem and the faithful of Israel, longing for their Messiah.
It begins with a recognition of the blessedness of Messiah's love. His name, because of the graces in Him, is like ointment poured out. The uncorrupted ones love Him — those, I suppose, who have guarded themselves from idolatry and corruption.
Writers also apply her words to any believer today.
She says "him" without explaining who. That silence is not vagueness — it is the mark of a heart with only one object.
Instead of saying, "Let Messiah kiss me," she says what is more fitting, more becoming. There was only one object. As she was His object, so He was her Object, for this is the point; and she does not need to say who. And indeed is not this its beauty? "Let him." It could not be mistaken. There might be ever so many in the world, but there was only One. And that was the One whom she had so offended — whom she had refused and rejected and despised.
She asks for no gift and no favour. Scripture gives the kiss three meanings, and all three stand behind her words.
In holy Scripture a kiss is the token of reconciliation, the pledge of peace, and the expression of affection... And the father kissed the prodigal son while he was still in his rags. Would such displays of love be too much to ask, or to expect, once he was clean from all his defilement and wearing the best robe? Certainly not! Is it too much, then, for the bride in the Song — for the believer in Jesus — to desire such an expression of the Lord's love? We are sure she desired it, not because she had any doubt that it was there, but because she delighted to see it shown. Love can only be satisfied with love.
She has spoken about Him. Now she speaks to Him, and gives her reason.
The love of Jesus is now preferred to all the joys of earth. Wine is the symbol of the natural delights of men — the joys and luxuries of earth. But what are all these now, even in their most charming form, to the soul that is delighting in the love of Jesus? They have lost their charm for the eye and the heart, and now they would be a weariness and a burden heavy to carry. Jesus Himself is the soul's delight. "Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory." (1 Peter 1:8)
She is not comparing love in the abstract. She is comparing love as she feels it — which is why she asks for more of what she already has.
She speaks not so much of the love itself, but of the enjoyment of the love. This is what is "better than wine." Every renewed heart will agree. The love of Christ is always beyond all our thoughts, infinite and unspeakable. Yet it is only as we enjoy it that we enter into it or appreciate it at all... Another thing is equally true. The more we taste of the love of Christ, the more we desire it. Every experience of it produces a deeper longing for a larger measure. So if the bride had not already known something of the Bridegroom's affection, she would never have spoken this passionate desire.
She says "me," not "us." One writer finds the secret of Paul's endurance in that one word.
Trace the devoted life of the Apostle Paul — the persecutions he suffered, the perils he faced, the hardships he endured — and ask what the hidden secret of that life was. We hear him answer, "the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me" (Galatians 2:20). Here was the hidden spring of his life: a heart kept in the assurance and enjoyment of Christ's individual love. There are other loves in this world, but His love alone can satisfy the heart — "Let Him kiss me." For satisfaction of heart His love must be consciously known. This is what the kiss means — "Let Him kiss me." But further, His love must be known as an individual and personal love, "Let Him kiss me."
- Object — She never names Him, and does not need to. Where there is only one Beloved, "him" cannot be mistaken for anyone else.
- Token — The kiss is reconciliation, peace, and affection at once. She does not doubt the love; she wants to see it shown.
- Comparison — Wine stands for the best joys earth can pour out. Set beside His love, they lose their taste.
- Enjoyment — What is "better than wine" is love enjoyed, not just love owned. Every taste makes the appetite grow.
- Personal — "Kiss me." His love must be known as mine, not just ours. That assurance, not effort, is the spring of a devoted life.
Thine ointments savour sweetly; Thy name is an ointment poured forth Therefore do the virgins love thee.
The bride moves from His love to His name. The picture she reaches for is perfume — a scent no one can hide once the jar is open. The ESV calls them "anointing oils"; the writers quoted here use the older wording "good ointments." Two questions follow. What are these ointments? And why does a name carry a scent that draws love?
The bride does not describe one title. She gathers everything He is into the word "name," and finds she cannot say enough.
To her heart it is full of fragrance. All His names, titles, attributes, and relationships are sweet to her taste. His name is Himself. It expresses His nature, His excellence, and His graces. She cannot find words for the riches of His goodness, so she says, "Your name is oil poured out."
One writer contrasts a name announced long before with a name lived out among us.
While the perfume stayed in the alabaster jar, its fragrance was shut in. Once poured out, "the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume." Prophets, priests, and kings had foretold the coming of Christ and the names He would bear. But in their day the fragrance of His name stayed shut in the jar. Then Christ became man and lived among us, full of grace and truth. Now His name was truly poured out. The name of Jesus stood revealed as the perfect expression of meekness, gentleness, patience, endurance, holiness, and love. Other names may disgust people because of the cruelty and wickedness of those who bear them. This name is fragrant with every grace.
The fragrance is the record of a life. You catch it close up, not by report.
The "good ointments" stand for the fragrance of His excellent perfections — seen in His life, in His acts of tenderness and grace, in His words, and in His walk of complete dependence and obedience before God as He passed through this world… Report and testimony can impress us deeply, even at a distance, as they impressed the Queen of Sheba. But only when, like her, we hear and see for ourselves are we lost in adoration before the fragrance of the good ointments.
Ointment also heals. One writer turns that to our own hurts:
Ointments speak of fragrant grace. "Your anointing oils." Oh, how many and varied are the graces that abound in Him, each having its special charm and all fragrant. Ointments were not only used for perfumes but also for healing. (See Isaiah 1:6.) There is not a heartache nor a wound that His ointments cannot soothe and heal.
Before anyone on earth enjoyed this sweetness, it rose to God.
The sweet fragrance of the life of Christ, as we may gather from Leviticus 2, was first and foremost for God. The priests might eat of the fine flour, mixed with oil, that made up the grain offering… but all its frankincense was to be burned on the altar, an offering made by fire, a sweet fragrance to the Lord… If there had not been a single soul on the face of the earth to delight in the fragrance of the good ointments of Christ, His life would still not have been in vain. It brought glory to God and filled His heart with infinite joy… And the more Christ was tested — and He was tested in every possible way, even by the holy fire of the altar itself — the more richly His sweet fragrance flowed out to gratify the heart of His God.
Commentators differ on who the virgins are. Some read them as separated ones within Israel in a time of widespread corruption:
"Therefore virgins love you." Who does she mean by "the virgins"? Those who stayed clean from the corruptions of that day. This Song assumes the heart of the godly in Israel. They will be the true Israel, the true bride, when the day comes for this to be made good — a day of widespread corruption and turning away from God.
Another writer takes it as a matter of character, and traces the love back to its source:
It is only the virgins — the pure in heart — who value His name and appreciate His love… They love because of His love. "We love because He first loved us."
The fragrance does not stop with the bride. It spreads through people who keep His company.
Every trait, every perfection He showed in His walk through this world may be reproduced in those who are His… The more we are with Him and taken up with Him, the more we will be transformed into His likeness, and the more surely the fragrance of His good ointments will spread… The sweet fragrance of the name of Christ will flow from our walk as well as from our words.
- Fragrance — The "good ointments" are the perfections of His life. Look at His acts of tenderness, His words, and His obedient walk before God.
- Poured — Sealed perfume gives no scent. Prophets kept His name in the jar; His coming among us broke it open.
- Godward — The sweetness reached God first. Testing only made it flow more freely, and our enjoyment of it is a share in His joy.
- Drawn — A name released is a name loved. Those kept clear of corruption are attracted, and they love only because He loved first.
- Carried — The same fragrance is meant to spread through those who keep His company, in walk as much as in speech.
Draw me, we will run after thee! -- The king hath brought me into his chambers -- We will be glad and rejoice in thee, We will remember thy love more than wine. They love thee uprightly.
The song moves in three quick steps: a prayer, a promise, and a place — "draw me," "let us run," and the King's own rooms. Who moves first in love, and why does one voice ask while a company answers? The writers below quote an older translation, which reads "Draw me, we will run after you" and "we will remember your love more than wine."
The bride is no stranger to the Bridegroom, yet she asks Him to draw her nearer:
I read the heart of the loving bride in these words: "Draw me, we will run after you." Her desire to be near the Person of the Lord is so great that she feels something like distance — near and dear though she is. So her heart breathes out, "Draw me" — oh, draw me nearer, closer, my Lord, to you! There is growth in grace compared with verse 2 — a growing understanding of Him... The most blessed communion with the Lord goes perfectly with the most earnest longing to be nearer Him.
The order matters. She does not generate the love she offers; she returns it.
His love is precious and His name is excellent. This creates not only the longing to be sure of His love, but also the desire for His company... She is loved into loving and drawn into running. And, so drawn, the Bridegroom leads her into the secret place of His presence — the chambers of the King. In due time the bride will worship the King at His table, and a little later she will rest with infinite delight in His banqueting house. But first she must be a learner in the chambers of the King. In that secret place she forgets herself, rejoices in the Bridegroom, and remembers His love. There the King is loved with a pure love — they love Him uprightly.
The same principle shows up in the race to the empty tomb, where John outran Peter:
He who is most drawn by the love of Christ, runs the fastest. It was a case of, "Draw me, we will run after You."
Running is not enough by itself; the last two words decide everything.
"We will run," but note the last two words — "after you." Not after our own ideas, or even after the best of men on earth, but "after you." As the beautiful sixteenth Psalm says, "I have set the LORD always before me." Not sometimes, but "always." What a path ours on earth would be if this were so! It would be separate from everything that is not Christ. And when we pray "draw me," we should be ready to add, like the bride and her companions, "we will run after you."
The danger is running after something else:
The world is running after many things today. All too often Christians run after this or that instead of Christ. No wonder their joy runs low and their light burns dim, and you see them restless and uneasy in soul.
The prayer is singular, the answer plural. That shift is a picture of how affection for Christ spreads.
Weaned from everything else, attracted to Himself, we speak among our brothers and sisters of Him and His glories alone. How precious to influence others in this way, so that they run with answering affection after our precious Lord!
The asking gives way to a report, and one source explains every part of it.
Now we have the result, the happy fruit, of the drawing and the running. The prayer expressed conscious weakness and dependence, combined with holy diligence. They have run well and reached the goal, and now they are crowned with joy and gladness. But never forget, my soul: it is grace that draws, grace that runs, and grace that crowns. It all flows from the shoreless ocean of the Saviour's love. "We will remember your love more than wine." Now she uses the word "remember" — she knew His love before. But she is enjoying it with increased interest. Like air, she is surrounded by it; she is in it.
Commentators read the title first in relation to Israel.
Why should Christ be called "the King" here? It is prophetic of His relationship with Israel after their restoration. As to His right or title, He is always that. Is He ever called the King of the church? Not in Scripture. He is a King and worthy of all homage. But Scripture speaks of Him as Head of His body, the church, and as King of the Jews.
That first sense does not shut out a personal reading:
In its first application it is a prophecy of Christ, the Messiah of Israel, winning to Himself the heart of the faithful remnant in Israel... The Lord's love to Israel, His earthly bride, is only a shadow or reflection of His deeper love to His heavenly bride. Once we realize this, we find immense profit in applying these beautiful figures to ourselves.
- Grace draws. The running never starts on its own — she is loved into loving and drawn into running.
- Grace directs. The prayer is only honest if the promise follows: not after our own ideas, but "after you."
- Grace spreads. One heart asks, a company answers; affection for Christ shared with others makes them run too.
- Grace crowns. The chambers are the fruit of the drawing and the running; those who run reach the goal and joy crowns them.
- Grace keeps. Inside, love already known is now remembered and enjoyed — she is surrounded by it like air.