_ “As a lily among thorns, So is my love among the daughters.”_ He now tells her lovingly, that compared with all other women he has known, she is like a lily among thorns, a flowering beauty among the briars. That is how he sees her. She is ‘his pure, true love', in contrast with them. And in such... [ Continue Reading ]
_ “As the apple-tree among the trees of the wood, So is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, And his fruit was sweet to my taste. He brought me to the banqueting-place, And his banner over me was love. Sustain me with raisins, refresh me with apples, For I am ai... [ Continue Reading ]
_ “I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, By the roe-deer, or by the hinds of the field, That you stir not up, nor awaken love, Until he please.”_ So overwhelmed is the young maiden by her thoughts of love that she cries out to the young women of Jerusalem, the young women of the court who are enj... [ Continue Reading ]
SECTION 2. The Follow Up Visit By Her Beloved, And Her Subsequent Nightmare (Song of Solomon 2:8 to Song of Solomon 3:5). In this section we now have described in vivid terms a picture of how the young maiden's beloved seeks her out and calls her to come away with him into the countryside. The cour... [ Continue Reading ]
THE YOUNG MAIDEN speaks. _ ‘The voice of my beloved! Behold, he comes, Leaping on the mountains, Skipping on the hills. My beloved is like a roe-deer or a young hart, Behold, he stands behind our wall; He looks in at the windows, He glances through the lattice.'_ Here we have a beautiful picture o... [ Continue Reading ]
THE VOICE OF THE BELOVED. _ ‘My beloved spoke, and said to me, “Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. 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 is come, And the voice of the turtle-dove, Is heard in our land. Th... [ Continue Reading ]
When she does not respond THE VOICE OF THE BELOVED continues. _ “O my dove, who is in the clefts of the rock, In the covert of the steep place, Let me see your face, Let me hear your voice, For sweet is your voice, And your face is comely.”_ But he received no response and discovered that it was a... [ Continue Reading ]
THE YOUNG MAIDEN replies. _ “Take us the foxes, the little foxes, That spoil the vineyards, For our vineyards are in blossom. My beloved is mine, and I am his, He feeds his flock among the lilies. Until the day be cool, and the shadows flee away, Turn, my beloved, and be you like a roe-deer or a yo... [ Continue Reading ]