Song of Songs 5:10-6:1 Extolling
The bride answers the others about why HER beloved is so much better. She is extolling his beauty so the others can understand and hopefully help seek him out with her.
I know, girls are beautiful and boys are handsome. Our bride doesn’t say “handsome” but her description pours it out. She uses the same words to describe his eyes as he used to describe hers. That must mean that they both convey depths of feeling with their eyes. She also describes his hair, cheeks and lips similar to how he did hers. But her description of her beloved goes far beyond that! She speaks of his features from head to toe and then ends with her favorite part of him. “His mouth is most sweet, and he is altogether desirable” (5:16).
From the description of the groom, I can see that he is strong and regal. Gold is mentioned three times in his description. The first one is concerning his head. Initially, I thought it meant that he had blonde hair but a couple verses later we learn that it is black. A very expected color for a man of Jewish descent. So, her use of the word “gold” would have a different meaning.
The bride’s description of her beloved likens him to things that are precious. Gold, ivory, jewels, and fragrant spices all speak of something precious and rare. He is “distinguished among then thousand” (5:10b). No other man can turn her heart away from him, for they don’t even come close in comparison.
One could argue that any woman in love would see her beloved through these eyes. “Love is blind” and “rose colored glasses” often have a great deal to do with how we see our future mates. That is, after all, how our ‘human nature’ works. We look for the things that please the eyes when selecting a mate. Fortunately, not all people find the same things pleasant, AND more people look at what is below the surface; inner beauty.
I wish our bride would have gone beyond the physical appearance. Her only comment on more than outward features was when she said his lips were sweet. That took personal ‘observation/experience’ to know this. I could read more into her description, but I have no way of knowing if that is truly what she was thinking.
Let me describe my Beloved to you instead. I can’t physically see Him but I know Him better than I ever thought possible. There is STILL a LOT MORE TO LEARN! The first thing I want to tell you about Him is that He is LOVE through and through. There is not a malicious bone in His body. ALL His thoughts about me are for my good. Even in the times when His face is hard like flint because of my disobedience, He is taking this position out of love. He wants the BEST for us at ALL times.
My Beloved is compassionate and caring. He understands my nature and knows my faults. He helps me to overcome them and doesn’t put me down in the process. He loves me even when I am disobedient.
He is forgiving! EVERY TIME I come to Him after failing, He welcomes me back into His arms. I don’t have to worry that He will turn me away some day. His arms are spread wide in welcome instead of crossed over His chest. He WANTS me to come to him in these moments.
He is patient. He will encourage me in our walk together but He will never push me beyond the places where I surrender to Him. He will encourage me to open up more and more to Him, but He won’t require it as a condition of His love.
He is my advocate. When I do mess up, He brings my case before His Father and pleads it for me. He has already taken ALL the punishment for my wrong doing/sin. I don’t need to fear punishment because of that.
And He is protective of me. He is preparing a place for me to be with Him forever. In the meantime, He watches over me. He doesn’t smooth out all the roads before me, for then I would never learn strength. Instead, He walks beside me at ALL times, helping me to manage the road before me. He LOVES to see me grow in Him. I am SAFE in His arms! EVEN when the storm is raging around me.
My beloved is big enough to share these same qualities with you, and as many others as will turn to Him. His arms can encircle the globe! He is calling out continually and ready at a moment’s notice to become your Beloved also. All He asks for is your heart. After that, He takes your life in His hands and turns it into something AMAZING; something more precious than you could ever imagine.
YES, there will be hard times and lessons to go through. He is NOT an ‘aspirin’ that masks pain. Nor is He a magician who makes everything bad disappear. He is a constant companion who will walk beside you ALL THE WAY home to His Father’s house.
Lord Jesus, YOU are my Beloved and I am Yours! I cannot imagine my life without You! I can guarantee that my life would be devoid of meaning without You. Hold me a little closer each day Jesus. And when my time is finished here on earth, bring me to Your garden where we can sit and share all the questions I have gathered along the way.
