Song
of Solomon 8 reminds me that many varieties of trees take years
before they are able to produce fruit. Like marriages, it can take
time to adjust, establish roots and stand against the winds and
weather. It seems that Solomon closes the book with a look at how to
tend to your orchard. As we mature, our marriages should also ripen.
Old hurts can mend, old scars can fade. Some wise soul once told me
“Never leave without kissing your wife”. As silly as that
sounds, it has great value. The chapter begins with a renewal. This
marriage has been transplanted and the conditions are now right for
new growth. She says, “If only
you were to me like a brother… I would kiss you, and no one would
despise me“. This is a
reference to the cultural bias against displays of public affection.
She is telling him she wants him. After some pruning and proper
spacing, they are green and growing again. And we are taken back to
the words from the beginning, “I
would lead you and bring you to my mother’s house…
I would give you spiced wine to
drink… His
left arm is under my head and his right arm embraces me“.
Now there is a new appreciation for the need to make intimacy a
priority. For the third time, she cautions “Daughters
of Jerusalem, I charge you: Do not arouse or awaken love until it so
desires“. Relationships are
stunted when there is no depth to the soil. Maybe it is time for
some old fashion courtship?
The
full blossom of their love is visible to all. “Who
is this coming up from the wilderness leaning on her beloved?”
This is not just an image; this is the outward expression of their
mutual devotion. These are new flowers. They continue to cultivate
and fertilize, “Under the apple
tree I roused you“. Healthy
trees resist infestation and cold snaps. She says, “Place
me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm“.
Nothing else can enter this place. When the heart is full, there is
no room for weeds to develop. Passion is ignited again, “It
burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame.
Many waters cannot quench love“.
If you place a seal over your heart, you might just find that your
spouse is much more than you know.
They
have become the example to follow. Friends now ask them for advice.
“We have a little sister…
What shall we do for our sister on the day she is spoken for?”
Note that older family members have a responsibility toward the
younger. They have prepared her and protected her, “we
will build towers of silver on her… we will enclose her with panels
of cedar“. This wife of
Solomon has committed to putting all of her resources into one field
to yield the greatest harvest. “I
am a wall, and my breasts are like towers…
I have become in his eyes like
one bringing contentment“.
See the result, “Solomon had a
vineyard… he
let out his vineyard to tenants… But my own vineyard is mine to
give“. He now tends to her
alone. Once again their mutual satisfaction is found in their
single-focused passion, “Come
away, my beloved… be like… a young stag on the spice-laden
mountains“. Perhaps this new
ground was broken by simply reaching out for her hand in public. Has
your orchard been neglected? Please listen to this. In Matthew
13:44, Jesus describes a field with a great treasure hidden in it.
He explains a man found the treasure, “then
in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field“.
The land was valuable because of the treasure hidden there. Friend,
you are that field.
Jesus paid for you with all that He had; now you are His prized
possession. You have great value in Christ. He is reaching out His
hand to you right now. Will you take it?