Song of Solomon 8:11-12

The Young Wife Will Keep The Fruits Of Her Vineyard Wholly For Her Beloved.

The song of songs now approaches its close with a vivid illustration of the efforts that the young wife will now make to ensure that she is ‘perfect' for her beloved. In Song of Solomon 1:6 b she had failed to ‘keep' her personal vineyard and had allowed her complexion to be spoiled by the sun. Now she assures her beloved that she will make every effort to ensure that her beauty is fully maintained for his benefit.

Solomon's new WIFE speaks.

“Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon, He let out the vineyard to keepers, Every one for its fruit, Was to bring a thousand pieces of silver. My vineyard, which is mine, is before me, You, O Solomon, shall have the thousand, And those who keep its fruit two hundred.”

The young wife now tells us that Solomon let out his vineyard at Baal Hamon with the expectancy of receiving its benefits from the keepers. Each of them would bring a thousand pieces of silver for its fruit. Meanwhile she is keeping her own vineyard, which in terms of Song of Solomon 1:6 b is herself, and she assures her beloved that in her case she will preserve all its benefits for him alone, apart from what she has to pay to those who ‘keep its fruit' (her hairdressers, beauticians, perfumiers, and so on). She is doing all that she can to be pleasing to him.

In the same way was Israel to preserve herself for her God, but sadly she failed to do so, even when it was made clear to her how she could cleanse herself and make herself ready (Isaiah 1:15). Instead she went after false lovers (see Ezekiel 16).

And the same call now goes out to Christ's church from their Master, to maintain their vineyard. ‘Be holy, for I am holy' (1 Peter 1:16) ‘This is the will of God, even your sanctification' (1 Thessalonians 4:3). The question is therefore as to whether, because of our love for our Beloved, we too are prepared to ensure that we preserve our spiritual beauty so as to be pleasing to Him, by learning from ‘the keepers of the fruit' (godly teachers), by the study of His word, by close personal communion with Him, and by opening our live and hearts wide to Him so that He might live through us.