God Loves My Blackness

Song of Solomon 1:5–11 ““I am black but lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem, Like the tents of Kedar, Like the curtains of Solomon. “Do not stare at me because I am swarthy, For the sun has burned me. My mother’s sons were angry with me; They made me caretaker of the vineyards, But I have not taken care of my own vineyard. “Tell me, O you whom my soul loves, Where do you pasture your flock, Where do you make it lie down at noon? For why should I be like one who veils herself Beside the flocks of your companions?” “If you yourself do not know, Most beautiful among women, Go forth on the trail of the flock And pasture your young goats By the tents of the shepherds. “To me, my darling, you are like My mare among the chariots of Pharaoh. “Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments, Your neck with strings of beads.” “We will make for you ornaments of gold With beads of silver.””

This book is very much different than all other books in the sacred text. For one this book is the only book that does not mention God. It seems to show no interest in the law or convenant or any spiritual matters or wisdom like Proverbs or Ecclessiates. But it expresses sexual love where the bible speaks on brotherly love and agape love also known as Godly love. This book is bright spot for humanity. In a subject that is spoken about negativily throuh out the scriptures, because of mankind disobedience to gods way of doing things. Here we can see the beauty of how God set things up.

Its not surprising that the one who wrote on this subject was also the wise king solomon. I must share he is also the same one who failed in this subject. Solomon who was in a polygamous relationship. Bible says he had 700 wives and 300 girlfriends and yes they all knew about each other. I can here the brothers… WOW 700??? My plate is full with one. I can barely get things right with one. Hold on this was not gods way nor gods intention. Instead this is what God said would happen when Isreal asked for a King like other nations. These women came for all over with different backgrounds , different ethnic backgrounds. So should be no surprise that out of all the women there was at least one black one present. But the real shocker is that here in song of solomon a black women is a frequent speaker in the hebrew text. Song of solomon is also known as the best of songs.

This black woman who is be courted and being flirtatish with her lover shares some information with him. Why she is they way she is, and what to expect, before we get intiamate, before we take it to the next level of marraige. There are somethings about me you must know. Not just you but even to the ones who are staring at me.

I am unashamed of who i am, unashamed of who i have become, unashmed of the road i took to get her, unashamed of the battles i have to fight, utimiley I am unashemed of my blackness.

(timeout) you dont have to apologize to be and become who God has created you to be.

Dont apologize for wanting more for yourself

I won’t apologize for growing

For striving to be better than you were on yesterday

Don't apologize for being black. for your nose, hair, skin. God made you that way.

This sista is Unashamed. She is not upset with her apperance. She is Confident in the Contrast.

Confident in the Contrast -

I am black but im beautiful

To english teachers that would be a contridication. How is she confident by saying she is Black BUT beautiful.

I must say i struggle with this one because of me not listening in school, also i struggled because doing my study majority of the authors of commentaries and bible translators all said the same thing.

that she was embrassed and defensive about her appearance. She was defensive by saying im black but beautiful. Or black but at least im beautful. As if black means you are automatically ugly or less than or not up to standard.

But I came across other translators and other commentaries. The proper translation from the hebrew text is… Black AND Beautiful. You can be black but beautful not black and beautiful.

But is used to show a contridiction an exception or an objection.

(Some examples if they come to mind)

But she says AND.

Yes I am black AND beautiful. That and is used to join two or more words together, or phrases or related sentances together.

She said you cant say black without beautiful. You cant say dark without saying delightful.

She said while I was out working I was kissed by the sun. Thr brought along this beautiful caramel skin, this dark and lovely skin. Which suggest that my blackness isn't an act of man its an act of God. Your blackness was intentional, When God said let there be, and created heaven and earth, all of the beautiful things he made. When God made man he said and it was good. and part of man was black man and black woman his thoughts were the same. It is GOod.

The reason you can be confident in your contrast is because we serve a God who loves diviresty. (Stat the differencies in mankind) God didnt create man the same. But we are all created differently. Even twins born on the same day, same bday, say the samethings, finish each others sentance, are different. Embrace what make you different.

Romans 12:2 "And be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God"

All people must "Share our similarities, celebrate our differences".

You may not like my blackness, thats because you dont understand it. O daughters of Jerusalem i notice you are staring at me. Do not see me only as dark. Dont judge me by outter appearance. Dont judge me by my exterior because you might miss your blessing.

Combat Cultural Concerns

Light skin has always been in lol. The light skin in the text was staring at the dark skinned in the text. The light skin girls were the urban elite, the dimes , the pretty ones, who got all the movie roles, wasnt most talented but somehow sold the most records. yeah BC and AD times have some of the same issues.

That dark means dirty , filthy , ugly, bad, no morals, nothing good. But what webster said is far from the truth. There is something Good in blackness once you get past the surface.

"There is a beauty in difference that only understanding reveals"

If you only understood.

6 “Do not stare at me because I am swarthy, For the sun has burned me. My mother’s sons were angry with me; They made me caretaker of the vineyards, But I have not taken care of my own vineyard.

in verse 6

she tells the group of women called the “daughters of Jerusalem” not to stare at her because her skin is dark. She does not apologize for not having fair skin, she simply explains that she has worked hard in the vineyards and taking care of her skin has not been a priority. Despite being in the middle of Solomon and his women, she holds her head up with confidence, but not with arrogance. In Song of Solomon 2:1, she sees herself as being different from those around her, but she doesn’t feel badly about the difference. She describes herself as a flower, but a simple country flower – a rose or lily of the valley. She owns her own beauty without being puffed up about it.

V.6 She explains that while she was put out to work in their vineyards as an act of demotion or punishment for personal failure God kissed me. While you did it for my punishment God allowed it for my preparation. So I had to come back to the house black everyone thinking because of the cultural standard, that my black skin was proof that I am a prostitute.

Bible says she took a self- evaluation of herself and she asked herself why should I turn aside to the pastures of your companions it is a historical illusion that prostitutes would frequent the Border of men's pastures in an attempt to catch them out there tending to their sheep and to entice them into business.

She says why should I be demoted to live as though I'm a prostitute just because you want me to cover up my blackness that word turn aside in the Hebrew really means to Veil oneself so if she was regulated or demoted to a lower standard of social status and basically operate as a prostitute she would Veil herself y'all Miss what she's saying she's saying now that God has kissed me and you're struggling with my blackness why should I let you who can't handle what I am demote me to a place where I got to cover up. Where i have to have my blackness. To where I have to do strange things to change how I look.

Why should I cover up because you are struggling with what God created? Why do i have to accept your demoted view of me, when there is a promoted view from a higher power? Why do i have to accept your concerns about my color? You just want to keep my mistakes before me while God has shown mercy.

She says y'all I'm out here tending to The Vineyards cuz I couldn't keep my own Vineyard her second reference of the vineyard was not literal she is referring to herself as a

Vineyard and she says I couldn't keep myself as a Vineyard so they punish me by making me tend to their Vineyards cuz I opened up mine y'all missed all that I am the the portrit of sweet grapes and I allowed somebody to come into my Vineyard that was not supposed to be there so you figure since I violated myself the rest of my life ought to look like one mistake.

So why should I let you reduce me into a life that looks like my whole mistake. yes I made a mistake but I'm not going to let you live a life of punishment because of that mistake. Yes i failed, yes i miss the mark. Everybody got somebody in here that no matter what you have done, don't matter how many aa classes you went to, don't matter how you turned your life around, don't matter how to stayed cleaned all these years, they will always bring up that time. And they treat you not according to mercy but according to judgment. Never let you get past it, never let you out live. They always try to reel you back in by the mistakes you made. They miss the beauty by focusing on the blemish.

They can't see the beauty in your turnaround because of the blemish on your record. Companies have missed out on General managers, missed out on Coaches, missed out on COO of companies because they were focused on the blemish.. BLACKNESS.

If you don't like me too bad I like myself and because I like myself I am fearfully and wonderfully made I'm made in the image of God and I'm not letting you reduce me just because you know my mistakes. Even with my mistakes… Share with yourself.

I got God's mercy, I got God's grace, I got God's favor, I got God's blessings, I got God. If you can't get past my mistakes no worries God has. As a matter of fact He kissed me.

I still got a future and I still got God's grace cuz every time I look in the Bible every time somebody fall he picks him back up a just man falls seven times but God raises him back up.

Listen when I got to where God is taking me… Here it is… I'm still gone be black. This is for the folks who like to switch up after God raise them up. Get a name, get a little title then start acting like other people. Now Pand B sandwiches are beneath you. Now soul food is slave food. Don't switch up after you get up. Celestial Connection

she says to herself within the context I'm black watch this but I deserve to have an opportunity with the man just like everybody else and when she raises the question her lover responds in verses 8- 11 y'all got a Bible y'all think I'm making this up get your Bible listen to what he says listen to what he says he says hey lady in case you didn't know you're the fairest among women everybody has a problem with your ebony Hue and I'm telling you it's the prettiest among them all. You are most beautiul.

Lover says This is how I see you. You are the best out of all the horses. Giril you are a stallion. My gawd.

You got the beauty and the strength to do what the male horses are able to do. Thats that connection. That god will be dark and lovely people where others say they don't belong. Jackie breaking color lines. Rosa Parks starting a revolution, Mary Bethune, Eddie Bernice Johnson. God has a way of putting dark and lovely people in places where others say they don't belong.

He said something to her that wasn't revealed in the opening of the text, watch this she said the man that is now expressing interest in me told me that you don't have to walk along the borders of the pasture you can feed your goats by The Shepherd's tent.

she said if he let me by there he let me get close to the shepherd. cuz my lover is actually a shepherd.

and my shepherd wants me close to him cuz if I get close to him he'll let me lay down in Green Pastures he'll restore my soul and Lead Me in the paths of righteousness for his Nam sake and if I walk in the Valley of the shadow of death he is with me his rod and staff Will Comfort me and he'll pull me out the valley and set me at the table and let me eat in the Pres presence of my enemies my lover just ain't anybody he's the great Shepherd he's the Good Shepherd.

that lays down his life for his sheep and he's a Shepherd that knows what it's like for God to put you in places where folk don't want you when he first got here they didn't want him cuz Herod tried to kill him as a baby when he grew up and start walking in his ministry the Pharisees didn't want him cuz they didn't like his popularity when he got older and got crucified and got lynched his own people didn't want him but he's proof that when you do what God told you to do even when they put you out three days later he going to raise you back up.

God I serve got the power to sustain you in places where people don't want you.

Tell somebody I one of them. Im a dark and lovely. I black and beautiful. I not a lady of the streets that is to be shared with every man Im a queen. Im not a no good brother, born just to go to prison nah I'm a king.