Song of Solomon 4

The Explanation

Song of Solomon 4 is a love song. In this chapter a groom speaks to his bride. He tells her how beautiful she is, from her eyes to her hair to her voice. He compares her to things he thinks are wonderful: a flock of sheep coming down the hill, a tower, a garden full of good scents like myrrh and cinnamon.

To us, some of those comparisons sound strange. "Your hair is like a flock of goats." Really? But in that time, dark shiny hair moving in the wind really did look like a flock of goats coming down a mountainside. And a tower was strong and dignified. The groom is basically saying: everything about you is good, strong, beautiful, precious.

Then he calls her his bride, over and over. He says her love is better than wine. At the end of the chapter, he compares her to a locked garden and a sealed fountain. That means: she belongs to him alone, and he belongs to her alone. She is not shared with just anyone. Their love is safe, kept, promised. And she answers him: come into your garden.

The whole chapter is one long "I love you," said in beautiful poetry.

What Does This Mean?

The Bible has many kinds of books. There are history books, laws, prophecies, letters. And there is poetry, including love poetry. Song of Solomon is a love song between a husband and wife. That may surprise you: is this really in the Bible? Yes. God made love between a man and a woman, and He is not embarrassed about it. He put a whole book about it in Scripture.

The message of this chapter is that real love speaks. It does not stay silent. The groom names what he sees. He does not just think his bride is beautiful, he tells her. And their love has a fence around it, like a locked garden. It is not open to everyone. That fence is not to make love smaller, but to keep it safe.

The Common Thread

Here is where it gets deep. In the rest of the Bible, God often compares Himself to a groom, and His people to a bride. The prophets do this. Jesus does it too, when He calls Himself the Bridegroom. And in Revelation, the church is called the bride of the Lamb.

So when Christians read Song of Solomon, they hear two things at the same time. First, a real love song between a husband and wife, and that is beautiful on its own. Second, an echo of how God loves His people. Just as this groom sees only good in his bride, God looks at those who belong to Jesus and sees them as loved and beautiful, cleaned by Jesus. That is amazing, because we know we are not perfect. But through Jesus, God calls us His own.

I have to be honest with you: not everything in this chapter is easy to explain, and Christians have argued for centuries about how much is "just" a love song and how much points to Christ. I think it is both. That is part of the mystery.

For You

You are nine or ten. You are not getting married tomorrow. So what do you do with this?

First, know that love is a gift from God, not something dirty or awkward to giggle about. When you grow up, if you marry someday, it is meant to be like this chapter: honest, spoken out loud, protected, faithful to one person.

Second, learn to say good things to people you love now. Tell your mom she is kind. Tell your friend you are glad he is your friend. Words of love are not weak, they are strong. The groom in this chapter is not shy, and neither should we be.

Third, remember that God speaks like this about His people. If you belong to Jesus, God does not look at you with a frown. He looks at you the way this groom looks at his bride.

Talk About It

Why do you think God put a love song in the Bible? Does it surprise you?

What is one good thing you could say out loud this week to someone you love?

Praying Together

Lord God, thank You that love comes from You. Thank You that You speak beautiful words about Your people. Help me to believe that You love me, and help me to say kind, true words to the people around me. Amen.