Author: admin

The Lord Reigns

¹ The Lord reigns; he is robed in majesty;
    the Lord is robed; he has put on strength as his belt.
Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved.
² Your throne is established from of old;
    you are from everlasting.

³ The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
    the floods have lifted up their voice;
    the floods lift up their roaring.
⁴ Mightier than the thunders of many waters,
    mightier than the waves of the sea,
    the Lord on high is mighty!

⁵ Your decrees are very trustworthy;
    holiness befits your house,
    O Lord, forevermore.

Reflection

• The living God is the King from the beginning of time (vv. 1, 2). As King, he exercises authority over all. He does not fear a resurgent sea (vv. 3, 4). Not only is the Lord omnipotent, but he is truthful and holy (v. 5).
• God’s power demonstrates that he is alive and active. God’s throne was established in eternity. He is the one and only stable element in the universe. Consequently, everyone should submit to him and obey his commands.
• The Lord’s kingship is established here through the creative power that makes the world unshakable. And God’s power is greater than that of the tumultuous seas that move with irresistible force and great noise.  Therefore, when chaos rattles our foundation, admiring God’s power in creation can strengthen our stability and hope.
• Is it sometimes hard to believe that God controls nature and history? What does this belief imply? What might obscure it?

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

How Great Are Your Works

A Psalm. A Song for the Sabbath.

¹ It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
    to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
² to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
    and your faithfulness by night,
³ to the music of the lute and the harp,
    to the melody of the lyre.
⁴ For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;
    at the works of your hands I sing for joy.

⁵ How great are your works, O Lord!
    Your thoughts are very deep!
⁶ The stupid man cannot know;
    the fool cannot understand this:
⁷ that though the wicked sprout like grass
    and all evildoers flourish,
they are doomed to destruction forever;
⁸     but you, O Lord, are on high forever.
⁹ For behold, your enemies, O Lord,
    for behold, your enemies shall perish;
    all evildoers shall be scattered.

¹⁰ But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox;
    you have poured over me fresh oil.
¹¹ My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies;
    my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants.

¹² The righteous flourish like the palm tree
    and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
¹³ They are planted in the house of the Lord;
    they flourish in the courts of our God.
¹⁴ They still bear fruit in old age;
    they are ever full of sap and green,
¹⁵ to declare that the Lord is upright;
    he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.

Reflection

• This psalm proclaims God’s love, praises God for the goodness of his acts and the righteousness of his character. We too can exalt God, and sing for joy as we contemplate God’s works and his thoughts.
• Palm trees symbolize fruitfulness, and cedars stood for long life. Both types of trees were also beautiful and desirable. The godly are like these trees planted in the temple environs who delight in drawing near to God.
• Which of God’s deeds brings you joy? How do you express such joy?
• How can you stay fresh and “flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar” as the time goes by? What fruit do you bear?

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

My Refuge and My Fortress

¹ He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
² I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

³ For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler
and from the deadly pestilence.
⁴ He will cover you with his pinions,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
⁵ You will not fear the terror of the night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.

⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
⁸ You will only look with your eyes
and see the recompense of the wicked.

⁹ Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place—
the Most High, who is my refuge—
¹⁰ no evil shall be allowed to befall you,
no plague come near your tent.

¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways.
¹² On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.
¹³ You will tread on the lion and the adder;
the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.

¹⁴ “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
I will protect him, because he knows my name.
¹⁵ When he calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.
¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”

Reflection

• God himself our security. The psalmist described him as the Most High (Sovereign Ruler) and the Almighty (one having all power). Those who rely on him find that he is a shelter from the storms of life and a shadowy place of security, much like the area under a bird’s wing. He is a refuge where we can run for safety in times of danger and a fortress that will provide defense against attacking foes.
• What are you particularly anxious about these days, for which God is waiting on you to call his name and acknowledge your need?
• How can you make God your dwelling place, your refuge, and your shield in times of trouble?
• God is waiting to hear from his people who love him and acknowledge their need of him. Tell him whatever is on your mind, whatever fears you have and whatever terrible circumstances you are facing. Trust him to answer.

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

From Everlasting to Everlasting

A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.

¹ Lord, you have been our dwelling place
in all generations.
² Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

³ You return man to dust
and say, “Return, O children of man!”
⁴ For a thousand years in your sight
are but as yesterday when it is past,
or as a watch in the night.

⁵ You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream,
like grass that is renewed in the morning:
⁶ in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
in the evening it fades and withers.

⁷ For we are brought to an end by your anger;
by your wrath we are dismayed.
⁸ You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.

⁹ For all our days pass away under your wrath;
we bring our years to an end like a sigh.
¹⁰ The years of our life are seventy,
or even by reason of strength eighty;
yet their span is but toil and trouble;
they are soon gone, and we fly away.
¹¹ Who considers the power of your anger,
and your wrath according to the fear of you?

¹² So teach us to number our days
that we may get a heart of wisdom.
¹³ Return, O Lord! How long?
Have pity on your servants!
¹⁴ Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
¹⁵ Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
and for as many years as we have seen evil.
¹⁶ Let your work be shown to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.
¹⁷ Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
and establish the work of our hands upon us;
yes, establish the work of our hands!

Reflection

• Death is not a popular subject. We live in a society characterized by the denial of death. However, most people who have lived on this earth have given a great deal of attention to death. Preparing for a good death has been, in centuries past, an accepted goal in life. Psalm 90 has been part of that preparation for millions of Christians.
• Death sets a limit to our lives and stimulates reflection on the context of life, which is not death, but God. Acknowledge our weakness and frailty is a step toward wisdom (v12).
• Read meditatively verses 14-17. What emerges as most important for you—what you do for the rest of your life or what God will do in your life?
• When you think about your own death, what do you think about? What do you feel? How long do you expect to live? How do you plan to live the years left to you?
• Express your awareness that you will die. In your prayers be conscious of Christ’s death.

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Longing for Her Beloved

¹ Oh that you were like a brother to me
who nursed at my mother’s breasts!
If I found you outside, I would kiss you,
and none would despise me.
² I would lead you and bring you
into the house of my mother—
she who used to teach me.
I would give you spiced wine to drink,
the juice of my pomegranate.
³ His left hand is under my head,
and his right hand embraces me!
⁴ I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
that you not stir up or awaken love
until it pleases.

⁵ Who is that coming up from the wilderness,
leaning on her beloved?

Under the apple tree I awakened you.
There your mother was in labor with you;
there she who bore you was in labor.

⁶ Set me as a seal upon your heart,
as a seal upon your arm,
for love is strong as death,
jealousy is fierce as the grave.
Its flashes are flashes of fire,
the very flame of the Lord.
⁷ Many waters cannot quench love,
neither can floods drown it.
If a man offered for love
all the wealth of his house,
he would be utterly despised.

Final Advice

Others

⁸ We have a little sister,
and she has no breasts.
What shall we do for our sister
on the day when she is spoken for?
⁹ If she is a wall,
we will build on her a battlement of silver,
but if she is a door,
we will enclose her with boards of cedar.

She

¹⁰ I was a wall,
and my breasts were like towers;
then I was in his eyes
as one who finds peace.

¹¹ Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon;
he let out the vineyard to keepers;
each one was to bring for its fruit a thousand pieces of silver.
¹² My vineyard, my very own, is before me;
you, O Solomon, may have the thousand,
and the keepers of the fruit two hundred.

He

¹³ O you who dwell in the gardens,
with companions listening for your voice;
let me hear it.

She

¹⁴ Make haste, my beloved,
and be like a gazelle
or a young stag
on the mountains of spices.

Reflection

• The language of vv6-7 is rich and beautiful. What qualities of love are named? How are these qualities unique to the long-term commitment of marriage?
• In what ways does marriage require a willingness to give one’s self to your partner (v12)?
• The woman desires that the man take full possession of her. She surrenders herself to him, yearning for “one flesh” union. The “seal” (v6) in ancient Israelite society was typically a stamp that was pressed on soft clay to leave an impression that served as a person’s identification. She wants to be marked as belonging to her beloved, with all her inward (“your heart”) and outward (“your arm”) being. However, our sense of individuality often rebels against this idea, and the danger is great in a fallen world. But the woman expresses a desire that we all have to be intimate and safe in the presence of another. Therefore, the ideal relationship between a man and a woman serves so well as a metaphor for our relationship with God.
• When is it difficult for you to surrender yourself to those who love you? When is it difficult for you to surrender to God’s love for you?
• Ask God to make you responsive to his unending love for you.

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

¹ How beautiful are your feet in sandals,
O noble daughter!
Your rounded thighs are like jewels,
the work of a master hand.
² Your navel is a rounded bowl
that never lacks mixed wine.
Your belly is a heap of wheat,
encircled with lilies.
³ Your two breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle.
⁴ Your neck is like an ivory tower.
Your eyes are pools in Heshbon,
by the gate of Bath-rabbim.
Your nose is like a tower of Lebanon,
which looks toward Damascus.
⁵ Your head crowns you like Carmel,
and your flowing locks are like purple;
a king is held captive in the tresses.

⁶ How beautiful and pleasant you are,
O loved one, with all your delights!
⁷ Your stature is like a palm tree,
and your breasts are like its clusters.
⁸ I say I will climb the palm tree
and lay hold of its fruit.
Oh may your breasts be like clusters of the vine,
and the scent of your breath like apples,
⁹ and your mouth like the best wine.

She

It goes down smoothly for my beloved,
gliding over lips and teeth.

¹⁰ I am my beloved’s,
and his desire is for me.

The Bride Gives Her Love

¹¹ Come, my beloved,
let us go out into the fields
and lodge in the villages;
¹² let us go out early to the vineyards
and see whether the vines have budded,
whether the grape blossoms have opened
and the pomegranates are in bloom.
There I will give you my love.
¹³ The mandrakes give forth fragrance,
and beside our doors are all choice fruits,
new as well as old,
which I have laid up for you, O my beloved.

Reflection

• The lover offers his beloved praise in exquisite detail in vv1-9. What does this reveal about their love?
• In v10 we see another variation of the refrain of 2:16 and 6:3. What truth about love and desire do you find here?
• How does sexual love within a marriage involve discoveries “both new and old” (v13) that a one-night stand does not? In what situations are you likely to be led astray by the media’s depictions of love?
• Married love is exclusive. Spouses belong to one another in a way they do not belong to any other person on earth. The exclusive fidelity of a marriage is a form of chastity, a sacred commitment. However, this exclusivity can sometimes be eroded as time passes and betrayed.
• Here is a suggestion: copy out your marriage vows or this verse v10 on an index card or piece of paper. Place it somewhere that you will see it often – in your Bible as a bookmark, in your wallet, on your smartphone, etc. Each time you see it, reflect on how well you are honoring your vows.

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Others

¹ Where has your beloved gone,
O most beautiful among women?
Where has your beloved turned,
that we may seek him with you?

Together in the Garden of Love

She

² My beloved has gone down to his garden
to the beds of spices,
to graze in the gardens
and to gather lilies.
³ I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine;
he grazes among the lilies.

Solomon and His Bride Delight in Each Other

He

⁴ You are beautiful as Tirzah, my love,
lovely as Jerusalem,
awesome as an army with banners.
⁵ Turn away your eyes from me,
for they overwhelm me—
Your hair is like a flock of goats
leaping down the slopes of Gilead.
⁶ Your teeth are like a flock of ewes
that have come up from the washing;
all of them bear twins;
not one among them has lost its young.
⁷ Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate
behind your veil.
⁸ There are sixty queens and eighty concubines,
and virgins without number.
⁹ My dove, my perfect one, is the only one,
the only one of her mother,
pure to her who bore her.
The young women saw her and called her blessed;
the queens and concubines also, and they praised her.

¹⁰ “Who is this who looks down like the dawn,
beautiful as the moon, bright as the sun,
awesome as an army with banners?”

She

¹¹ I went down to the nut orchard
to look at the blossoms of the valley,
to see whether the vines had budded,
whether the pomegranates were in bloom.
¹² Before I was aware, my desire set me
among the chariots of my kinsman, a prince.

Others

¹³  Return, return, O Shulammite,
return, return, that we may look upon you.

He

Why should you look upon the Shulammite,
as upon a dance before two armies?

Reflection

• In verse 3, the woman says, “I am my lover’s and my lover is mine,” while in 2:16 she says, “My lover is mine and I am his.” What does this statement and the variation in wording tell you about the relationship?
• Think of someone close to you, perhaps your spouse, a parent, a child, or a very close friend, that you need to affirm. How can you do this?
• Ask God to make you a channel of love and affirmation to those you meet.

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

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.^[a]
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,^[b]
bedecked with sapphires.^[c]
15 His legs are alabaster columns,
set on bases of gold.
His appearance is like Lebanon,
choice as the cedars.
¹⁶ His mouth^[d] is most sweet,
and he is altogether desirable.
This is my beloved and this is my friend,
O daughters of Jerusalem.

Reflection

• Sometime after the wedding, the woman failed to respond encouragingly to her lover’s demonstration of affection. This led him to withdraw from her. And she realized that a gap had opened up between them. They were no longer as intimate as they had been.
• Prompted by the friends in v 9, the beloved describes her lover in vv10-16. If he did hear her words, how would this have been meaningful to him? Why is it important to make praise specific and concrete as in 10-16?
• This is a picture of a couple who is actively adoring, courting and pursuing each other. What is the value of this in a marriage? What have you seen happen when this aspect of the relationship is neglected?
• What does this passage speak to you about your attitude toward those you love? How might you ask God’s help to change?

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Overview: Song of Solomon

This book, taken by some as an allegory of the believer’s relationship with God, is better understood in its plain sense as a collection of love poems that celebrate and caution concerning human love. The joyful and sometimes erotic portrayal of the relationship between a lover and his beloved reminds us that intimacy within marriage is a gift, given by the God who created human beings male and female.

However, when read in the context of the Scripture, the Song has a clear and obvious relevance to the divine-human relationship. Throughout the Bible, our relationship to God is likened to a marriage. Therefore, this book is a resource not only for our understanding of male-female relationships, but also for a more profound understanding of the intimacy and exclusivity of our relationship with God.

Song of Solomon 4

English Standard Version (ESV)

Solomon Admires His Bride’s Beauty

He

¹ Behold, you are beautiful, my love,
behold, you are beautiful!
Your eyes are doves
behind your veil.
Your hair is like a flock of goats
leaping down the slopes of Gilead.
² Your teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes
that have come up from the washing,
all of which bear twins,
and not one among them has lost its young.
³ Your lips are like a scarlet thread,
and your mouth is lovely.
Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate
behind your veil.
⁴ Your neck is like the tower of David,
built in rows of stone;
on it hang a thousand shields,
all of them shields of warriors.
⁵ Your two breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle,
that graze among the lilies.
⁶ Until the day breathes
and the shadows flee,
I will go away to the mountain of myrrh
and the hill of frankincense.
⁷ You are altogether beautiful, my love;
there is no flaw in you.
⁸ Come with me from Lebanon, my bride;
come with me from Lebanon.
Depart from the peak of Amana,
from the peak of Senir and Hermon,
from the dens of lions,
from the mountains of leopards.

⁹ You have captivated my heart, my sister, my bride;
you have captivated my heart with one glance of your eyes,
with one jewel of your necklace.
¹⁰ How beautiful is your love, my sister, my bride!
How much better is your love than wine,
and the fragrance of your oils than any spice!
¹¹ Your lips drip nectar, my bride;
honey and milk are under your tongue;
the fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.
¹² A garden locked is my sister, my bride,
a spring locked, a fountain sealed.
¹³ Your shoots are an orchard of pomegranates
with all choicest fruits,
henna with nard,
¹⁴ nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon,
with all trees of frankincense,
myrrh and aloes,
with all choice spices—
¹⁵ a garden fountain, a well of living water,
and flowing streams from Lebanon.

¹⁶ Awake, O north wind,
and come, O south wind!
Blow upon my garden,
let its spices flow.

Together in the Garden of Love

She

Let my beloved come to his garden,
and eat its choicest fruits.

Reflection

• What do the lover’s explicit words describing his beloved’s physical beauty (vv. 1-7) reveal about their relationship? What words and phrases help you understand how Solomon feels about his beloved (vv. 9-15)?
• How does the woman respond to the praise and adoration that is lavished upon her? What does their dialogue reveal about their attitude about themselves as sexual beings?
• If God’s view of sex in marriage is conveyed here, then why do so many couples experience nothing like it? What does it say to you in your relationship with your spouse?
• God pursues you like the lover pursues the beloved in this passage. Praise God and thank him for his love that never lets us go.

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Overview: Song of Solomon

This book, taken by some as an allegory of the believer’s relationship with God, is better understood in its plain sense as a collection of love poems that celebrate and caution concerning human love. The joyful and sometimes erotic portrayal of the relationship between a lover and his beloved reminds us that intimacy within marriage is a gift, given by the God who created human beings male and female.

However, when read in the context of the Scripture, the Song has a clear and obvious relevance to the divine-human relationship. Throughout the Bible, our relationship to God is likened to a marriage. Therefore, this book is a resource not only for our understanding of male-female relationships, but also for a more profound understanding of the intimacy and exclusivity of our relationship with God.

Song of Solomon 3

English Standard Version (ESV)

The Bride’s Dream

¹ On my bed by night
I sought him whom my soul loves;
I sought him, but found him not.
² I will rise now and go about the city,
in the streets and in the squares;
I will seek him whom my soul loves.
I sought him, but found him not.
³ The watchmen found me
as they went about in the city.
“Have you seen him whom my soul loves?”
⁴ Scarcely had I passed them
when I found him whom my soul loves.
I held him, and would not let him go
until I had brought him into my mother’s house,
and into the chamber of her who conceived me.
⁵ I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
by the gazelles or the does of the field,
that you not stir up or awaken love
until it pleases.

Solomon Arrives for the Wedding

⁶ What is that coming up from the wilderness
like columns of smoke,
perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,
with all the fragrant powders of a merchant?
⁷ Behold, it is the litter^[a] of Solomon!
Around it are sixty mighty men,
some of the mighty men of Israel,
⁸ all of them wearing swords
and expert in war,
each with his sword at his thigh,
against terror by night.
⁹ King Solomon made himself a carriage^[b]
from the wood of Lebanon.
¹⁰ He made its posts of silver,
its back of gold, its seat of purple;
its interior was inlaid with love
by the daughters of Jerusalem.
¹¹ Go out, O daughters of Zion,
and look upon King Solomon,
with the crown with which his mother crowned him
on the day of his wedding,
on the day of the gladness of his heart.

Reflection

• True love requires time—and hard work. It may even include times of searching and insecurity. Verses 1-3 describe some of the insecurities that love can bring. Why would love make us feel this way?
• Do not “stir up or awaken love until it pleases” (v5) is repeated from 2:7. What wisdom do you see in this saying? When are you likely to feel insecure about those you love?
• The wedding procession (6-11) in this passage is a time of publicly declaring love before others. What experience in your life confirmed the love someone (that is, the romantic love of a spouse or the love of a friend or family member) has for you? How should you better show your love to those you care about?
• What factors enter into an engaged couple’s decision about how BIG to make their wedding? What was (or would be) the determinative factor in your case?
• On your Big Day, what made your heart skip? Do you still feel that way? Why?

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Overview: Song of Solomon (or Song of Songs)

This book, taken by some as an allegory of the believer’s relationship with God, is better understood in its plain sense as a collection of love poems that celebrate and caution concerning human love. The joyful and sometimes erotic portrayal of the relationship between a lover and his beloved reminds us that intimacy within marriage is a gift, given by the God who created human beings male and female.

However, when read in the context of the Scripture, the Song has a clear and obvious relevance to the divine-human relationship. Throughout the Bible, our relationship to God is likened to a marriage. Therefore, this book is a resource not only for our understanding of male-female relationships, but also for a more profound understanding of the intimacy and exclusivity of our relationship with God.

Song of Solomon 2

English Standard Version (ESV)

¹ I am a roseof Sharon,
a lily of the valleys.

He

² As a lily among brambles,
so is my love among the young women.

She

³ As an apple tree among the trees of the forest,
so is my beloved among the young men.
With great delight I sat in his shadow,
and his fruit was sweet to my taste.
⁴ He brought me to the banqueting house,
and his banner over me was love.
⁵ Sustain me with raisins;
refresh me with apples,
for I am sick with love.
⁶ His left hand is under my head,
and his right hand embraces me!
⁷ I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
by the gazelles or the does of the field,
that you not stir up or awaken love
until it pleases.

The Bride Adores Her Beloved

⁸ The voice of my beloved!
Behold, he comes,
leaping over the mountains,
bounding over the hills.
⁹ My beloved is like a gazelle
or a young stag.
Behold, there he stands
behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
looking through the lattice.
¹⁰ My beloved speaks and says to me:
“Arise, my love, my beautiful one,
and come away,
¹¹ for behold, the winter is past;
the rain is over and gone.
¹² The flowers appear on the earth,
the time of singing has come,
and the voice of the turtledove
is heard in our land.
¹³ The fig tree ripens its figs,
and the vines are in blossom;
they give forth fragrance.
Arise, my love, my beautiful one,
and come away.
¹⁴ O my dove, in the clefts of the rock,
in the crannies of the cliff,
let me see your face,
let me hear your voice,
for your voice is sweet,
and your face is lovely.
¹⁵ Catch the foxes for us,
the little foxes
that spoil the vineyards,
for our vineyards are in blossom.”

¹⁶ My beloved is mine, and I am his;
he grazes among the lilies.
¹⁷ Until the day breathes
and the shadows flee,
turn, my beloved, be like a gazelle
or a young stag on cleft mountains.

Reflection

• “His left hand is under my head” (6). Throughout the Song, the woman does not hesitate to express her hope for physical intimacy with the man and vice versa. The whole book of Song of Solomon acknowledges human yearning for intimacy – in community with others. After all, God created Eve to dispel Adam’s loneliness. And this song illustrates this yearning at its deepest and most intimate level.
• Verses 10-13 talks about the coming of spring “the winter is past; the rain is over and gone”. Springtime is the time for love. It’s a time to be outdoors in a private garden. It is a time of new growth and fertility, as well as fragrant smells. Again, the desire to be with the beloved is expressed.
• How does knowing that the Song of Songs is included in Scripture affect your view of married relationships?
• If this lover’s song were an allegory, what image of God and Israel, or Christ and the church, do you see here? Are you camped under his banner of love (v4)?

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Overview: Song of Solomon (or Song of Songs)

This book, taken by some as an allegory of the believer’s relationship with God, is better understood in its plain sense as a collection of love poems that celebrate and caution concerning human love. The joyful and sometimes erotic portrayal of the relationship between a lover and his beloved reminds us that intimacy within marriage is a gift, given by the God who created human beings male and female.

However, when read in the context of the Scripture, the Song has a clear and obvious relevance to the divine-human relationship. Throughout the Bible, our relationship to God is likened to a marriage. Therefore, this book is a resource not only for our understanding of male-female relationships, but also for a more profound understanding of the intimacy and exclusivity of our relationship with God.

Outline

1. Falling in Love                     Song 1:1-2:7
2. Growing Desire                    Song 2:8-3:5
3. Wedding Song                     Song 3:6-5:1
4. Separation                            Song 5:2-8:4
5. United Again                        Song 8:5-14

Reading Song of Solomon during Passover

The Song of Solomon is associated in Jewish thought with spring because of chapter 2, verses 11 and 12:

“For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds has come, and the voice of the turtle dove is heard in our land.”

The rabbis interpreted this book of the Bible as an allegory of God’s love for His people, and saw the Passover redemption as the springtime of that love expressed in the words: “Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away” (2:13). Besides that, Passover is chronologically a spring holiday. Therefore, it is customary for the Jews to read the Song of Songs at Passover in the synagogue and sometimes in Jewish homes after the seder service.

(Passover 2014 begins in the evening of Apr 14 and ends in the evening of Apr 22.)

(Adapted from: http://www.jewsforjesus.org/judaica/resources/scripture-readings-associated-with-passover)

Song of Solomon 1

English Standard Version (ESV)

¹ The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.

The Bride Confesses Her Love

She

² Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!
For your love is better than wine;
³     your anointing oils are fragrant;
your name is oil poured out;
therefore virgins love you.
⁴ Draw me after you; let us run.
The king has brought me into his chambers.

Others

We will exult and rejoice in you;
we will extol your love more than wine;
rightly do they love you.

She

⁵ I am very dark, but lovely,
O daughters of Jerusalem,
like the tents of Kedar,
like the curtains of Solomon.
⁶ Do not gaze at me because I am dark,
because the sun has looked upon me.
My mother’s sons were angry with me;
they made me keeper of the vineyards,
but my own vineyard I have not kept!
⁷ Tell me, you whom my soul loves,
where you pasture your flock,
where you make it lie down at noon;
for why should I be like one who veils herself
beside the flocks of your companions?

Solomon and His Bride Delight in Each Other

He

⁸ If you do not know,
O most beautiful among women,
follow in the tracks of the flock,
and pasture your young goats
beside the shepherds’ tents.

⁹ I compare you, my love,
to a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots.
¹⁰ Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments,
your neck with strings of jewels.

Others

¹¹ We will make for you ornaments of gold,
studded with silver.

She

¹² While the king was on his couch,
my nard gave forth its fragrance.
¹³ My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh
that lies between my breasts.
¹⁴ My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
in the vineyards of Engedi.

He

¹⁵ Behold, you are beautiful, my love;
behold, you are beautiful;
your eyes are doves.

She

¹⁶ Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved, truly delightful.
Our couch is green;
¹⁷     the beams of our house are cedar;
our rafters are pine.

Reflection

• This chapter begins the love song between two lovers. What sense do you get from this passage about how the “Beloved” and the “Lover” regard one another? From the images they used to describe each other, what do they reveal about their relationship?
• What fears and insecurities does the Beloved feel (3-4, 5-7)? How does the Lover reassure her (9-11)?
• This demonstrates a wonderful way to celebrate God’s good gift of sexuality to us. The entire book of Song of Solomon is a beautiful description of young lovers taking great joy in each other. Take some time writing down or telling your spouse how you delight in and appreciate him or her.
• Reflect on your own sexuality and how you respond to this picture of passionate physical love. Talk to God about how you are feeling.

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Glory to our Lord Jesus Christ, because as we read in the scriptures at the Easter Sunday Service yesterday, death could not keep Jesus, and though he endured the crucifixion and descended into hell, he defeated death and resurrected on the third day.

And Jesus is so much more than just a God. Jesus longs for a personal relationship with us. He wants to be our best friend, he wants to hear how we feel, and he wants to be there for us when we’re down. As we see from the scripture today – on this morning after Jesus resurrected, he went back to the Sea of Galilee to find some of his disciples …

Scripture Reading: John 21:1-14

Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee.^[a] It happened this way: ² Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus^[b]), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. ³ “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

⁴ Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

⁵ He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”

“No,” they answered.

⁶ He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

⁷ Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. ⁸ The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards.^[c] 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

¹⁰ Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” ¹¹ So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. ¹² Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. ¹³ Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. ¹⁴ This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

Devotion Questions

• Jesus did not rise from the death and then left his disciples alone. Instead he went back to find them, to prepared breakfast for them and to care for them. That is how loving and caring our almighty Lord is. Is it not amazing? That the God who created heaven and earth would die on the cross for our sin? And not only that, he resurrected, and comes to seek us. He would be by our side, prepared breakfast for us. That is our dearest shepherd, our greatest teacher, our best friend – and our God, Jesus Christ the risen Lord!

• On the night Jesus was betrayed, Peter denied Jesus 3 times, and let Jesus down. Imagine how Peter felt when he saw Jesus not only came to seek him, but met him in the exact same way when Jesus first called Peter to follow him. Can you put yourself in Peter’s shoes and feel how he felt? Have you also felt you let Jesus down sometimes? Why do you think Peter jumped into the sea to run towards Jesus when the rest of the disciples only followed on the boat?

• Over the last 3 weeks, we have devoted on Jesus’s sacrifice for us. We have devoted on Jesus’s journey to the cross, from predicting to his disciples about his death to entering the ancient city of Jerusalem; from the Last supper to the Gethsemane prayer, from the trial to the cross, and from the cross to hell, but from hell to resurrection and the ultimate glory. Did you find out more about Jesus over these 3 weeks? Did you find out more about yourself, and what Jesus’s calling for you? Did you feel Jesus’s love for you? And did Jesus touch your heart? Meditate on this journey, and pray to Jesus our great shepherd!

Brothers and sisters, thanks for joining our devotion over these past 3 weeks! I hope you were inspired by the devotion, as much as we were when we prepared the materials. Let us all be ignited by Jesus’s love, faithfulness, obedience on His journey to the cross, so that we can all pick up our own cross and glorify our Lord! God bless!