May 20
Reading: Song of Solomon 4
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.
Let my beloved come to his garden,
and eat its choicest fruits.
In chapter 4 the two lovers meet on their wedding day. Verses 1-14 are his words, filled with admiration for his beautiful bride. Verse 15 is her response, calling on the garden itself, where the wedding will take place, to welcome her groom.
Let us consider the words of the bridegroom about his new wife. Husbands, I have a recommendation for you. Read the Song of Solomon 4:1-15 to your wife. Do it in the bedroom. You might find it strange. But it will be a good time. Realize that Solomon lived in a shepherd’s world. His father grew up in the fields watching sheep and everyone in Israel was or knew a shepherd. Flocks were what they knew. So, these words are a shepherd’s love song, and a warrior’s.
Men, have you ever written a poem or sung a love song to your wife? Have you ever written her anything? God has called you to praise her! Who else will? Maybe your children, if they are wise. Maybe some friends, if they are kind. The truth is that our wives do not hear enough praises from the man who loves them. Just think of all the words that our Lord Jesus Christ has written for us!
And, if you don’t know what to say, just take a verse a day from this chapter and make it your theme for her for that day. You might need to rephrase it. Not every woman likes to hear that her hair is like a flock of goats, unless she is a shepherdess.
And wives, do not forget how important it is for you to look nice for your husband, in public and in private. Don’t get lazy in doing so. He loves you no matter what, but the presentation is still important.