ATs Song of Solomon 4

It's interwoven throughout the chapters of the song.

And if we miss the storyline, we miss the significance of the song of Solomon itself.

Now the first section goes into great detail of Solomon and the Shulamite.

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And within this section, we will be discussing in great detail this storyline.

that is in the song that has been missed throughout the ages of study on the Song of Solomon.

Now what I'd like for us to do at this point is to kind of discuss some of the more prominent views

of the Song of Solomon and really show why they do not hold up to the text of the song itself.

One of the most significant aspects is a third figure in the song.

characters of the song of solomon we said that there were two prominent ones and that was of course

solomon and the shulamite or the bride the daughters of jerusalem were another prominent figure but

not in the the actual workings of the song itself they were kind of a bystanding group ladies-in

-waiting so there are really two figures in the song solomon and the shulamite those who see other

things in the song of solomon find a third figure there

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They call him not only Solomon,

but a shepherd lover.

Solomon is the king, and there's a shepherd lover and the bride,

or the Shulamite.

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Now, most who follow this thinking call this the Ewald plot.

Ewald was the Bible commentator who first came up with this idea of a shepherd lover.

Psalm doesn't really talk about the shepherd lover. It's just that he seemed as though it made

sense to put him in there. So this is how Ewald's plot goes.

Allow me to note for you a quote from Clarence Mason's book.

Ewald's plot says that in the hill country of Lebanon, there was a family in charge of a vineyard

belonging to King Solomon.

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There was a young shepherdess. in the family whose heart had been won by

a stalwart shepherd, a plain man. They were betrothed and about to be married when one day King

Solomon saw her working a family vineyard as he rode by. He was struck by her unique beauty and

sent for her and had her brought to the palace to join his herald,

tearing her from her rightful lover. This rightful lover, however,

is only assumed.

At this point, a number of slightly different adaptations to Ewald's plot have occurred throughout

the course of study by different scholars. Some say that Solomon forced her to marry him

immediately and then sought unsuccessfully to win her affections.

Others say that he did not marry her right away, but sought to dazzle her with her...

attractive personality and all the things, luxurious life and gifts around her,

seeking somehow to seduce her to be his lover. Well,

all of these fall short in the Song of Solomon when we really understand what is there.

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Now, the main thrust of this particular plot, and by the way, this is perhaps the strongest view

held today, or at least an adaptation of this, which we'll get to in a few moments.

But this plot is perhaps one of the ones, at least, among fundamentalists,

that seems to be the most prominent. Now, the whole thrust of it is based on Song of Solomon 1:8

Song of Solomon 1:8 KJV

8 If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, Go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, And feed thy kids beside the shepherds’ tents.

And, of course,

this shepherd's tent, obviously Solomon being king, wasn't a shepherd and didn't have a tent that

he went out and kept the flock in. So Ewald conjectured that this shepherd's tent was the tent of

the shepherd lover. And the Shulamite, whenever she refers to her beloved, is actually thinking of

the shepherd lover instead of King Solomon. Solomon is the seducing lover and her heart is never

really given to him throughout the Song of Solomon.

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Now, there's a few thoughts with that that

create a little difficulty when you think of them and compare them to the text of the psalm. The

word there, shepherds, tent. You see that? The word shepherds is a very interesting word.

It's the Hebrew word R-A-A-H.

R-A-A-H. The word means a myriad of other words in translation.

It can mean break. It can mean companion. It can mean to keep company with. It can mean to devour.

It can mean to entreat evilly. It can mean to feed or to be as one's friend or to make friendship

with. It can be a keeper, such as a herdsman. It can be a pastor. It can be a shepherd.

It can mean to wander. And it can mean to waste. And it's very interesting because the word...

is used several times in the Psalm of Solomon. But the only time that it's translated shepherd is

here in verse 8 of chapter 1. If you'll notice there in verse 8, in chapter 1,

again, you find it says, the last phrase, and feed thy kids beside the shepherd's tent.

You see the word feed? It's the exact same word, R-A-A-H. as the word shepherd.

They're both the same Hebrew word. Feed and shepherd. You say, well then,

how do they know which way to translate it? Well, the basic idea of that, of course, is from the

context. Obviously, it's talking here about flocks of sheep. Obviously, it's talking about feeding

the young ones in the herd, or the flock here,

and thereby being beside the shepherd's tent. So it's not unfair to translate it this way.

However, within the Song of Solomon, let me give you the other places that this same Hebrew word is

translated another word. You can just write these down if you like. In the Song of Solomon,

chapter 1, verse 6, the word look is the same Hebrew word. The word in chapter 1,

verse 7, fetus, is also the same Hebrew word. We've already looked at it.

verse 8, chapter 2 and verse 12, the word appear is the same Hebrew word.

In chapter 2 and verse 14, the word see is the same Hebrew word.

Chapter 2 and verse 16, the word feedeth is the same Hebrew word.

Chapter 3 and verse 3, the word saw is the same Hebrew word.

Chapter 3, verse 11, the word behold is the same Hebrew word. And so on.

Chapter 4, verse 5, the word feed. Chapter 6, verse 2, the word feed. Chapter 6,

verse 3, the word feedeth. Chapter 6, verse 9, the word saw.

And chapter 7, verse 12, the word see. You say, well, sounds to me like they fall in a pattern.

Yes, they do. It either means the word feed or the word see or look in the Song of Solomon.

Only in verse 8 is it translated shepherd or shepherds. Now,

here's one that really gets to be exciting. Look in the Song of Solomon, chapter 5 and verse 16.

Chapter 5, verse 16. And let's take a moment and see why this particular view has some serious

problems within it.

Notice verse 16 of chapter 5. His mouth is most sweet,

yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, the young bride proclaims,

and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem. Notice that she is speaking,

and she's speaking of her beloved. And she says of her beloved that he is also her friend.

You see the word friend? It's the same Hebrew root as what we've been looking at.

R-A-A-H.

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This word friend, or the word here used for this, is also translated in chapter 1,

verse 9, verse 15. Chapter 2, verse 2. 10 and 13.

Chapter 4, verse 1 and verse 7. Chapter 5, 2 and 6, 4.

As my love. Now let's just look. Since we're here close to chapter 6,

verse 4. Notice it says, Thou art beautiful, O my love. The word love is this word.

And it's translated from the Hebrew word R-A-Y-A-H.

R-A-Y-A-H.

But its root is the same one that we've been looking at, the word translated shepherds earlier.

Now you say, well, where are you going with this? Well, let's look in chapter 6,

verse 1 a moment. Notice that this verse follows immediately after she says her beloved is her

friend. Whether is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women?

The daughters of Jerusalem now ask her, so where is your beloved? Notice her response.

Well they continue to say whether is thy beloved turned aside that we may seek him with thee.

Notice her response. Verse 3. I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine.

He feedeth among the lilies. But notice verse 2 that we stepped over.

My beloved is gone down into his garden to the beds of spices to feed in the gardens.

and to gather lilies. Now this is all happening as she comes out of a dream.

And we'll see that as we get into the text of the psalm. But for right now, understand that these

statements are made as she's coming out of a dream. Notice now what happens as Solomon,

not her shepherd lover, because the shepherd lover would have never been allowed in the palace at

this point, but notice what happens as we come down in the chapter and we find that Solomon steps

on the scene and declares in verse 9, My dove, my undefiled, is but one.

She is the only one of her mother. She is the choice one of her that bear her.

The daughters saw her and blessed her, yea, the queens and the concubines, and they praised her.

And then he says, I went down into the garden of nuts to see the fruits of the valley and to see

whether the vine flourished and the pomegranates budded. What did she say? Was the place that her

beloved went? He went to the garden. Notice there. He says, I just came back from the garden.

Might I note for you that her beloved is called her friend.

The word friend is the same word translated shepherd's tent in chapter 1.

It could have easily been translated the tent of my friend in chapter 1 verse 8.

Or my friend's tent. The idea is that this one that occupied all of her attention that was declared

to be and she declared it to be my beloved and I am his and he is mine is none other than Solomon

himself given here. There is no third mysterious shepherd lover involved in the song.

If you didn't catch all those references you can re-listen to the tape. And catch him at that

point.

Now as we think of this shepherd lover then. Obviously we do not accept it.

But rather reject the whole idea of this shepherd lover.

Now a take off on this plot.

Or as we would think of it. Ewald's plot here. Is one done by Harry Aaronside.

And Aaronside's plot goes a little differently. he also sees a dual role and understands that

there's a shepherd and a king represented in the Song of Solomon. And because of that,

he sees the two roles of the Lord himself, the Lord Jesus Christ,

as a shepherd of the sheep and as a coming king. So what he does is he applies the idea of this

shepherd lover and Solomon himself as a dual role here. both to the Lord Jesus Christ,

and shows him to be the shepherd lover and Solomon.

And so what Aronside does is he says that the person of Solomon was actually playing a dual role.

It wasn't a shepherd lover as such, but he made himself out to be a poor shepherd so that he could

court this young shepherdess without becoming overwhelming to her.

And showing him to be king. Well, that's all well and good. Except,

how did they travel every place they traveled? If

he was a poor shepherd, as he's supposed to be, he would have had to have spent his time,

what? Keeping sheep. Not traveling all over the countryside. Up Hermon. Up Carmel.

Up Gilead. I mean, we traveled all the way around. You see. The Holy Land.

So, no. I don't find Aaronside's thought any better. Now, the problem with Aaronside's thought is

it developed, the Hebrews took the idea of this dual role and called them two messiahs.

One was called Messiah ben Joseph, the suffering shepherd.

The other was called Messiah ben Judah, the glorious king.

Now just how far do we go and where do we stop drawing lines or where do we start drawing lines as

we begin to unfold these various plots? Well, you can be led to many different understandings if

you miss the storyline in the psalm. And so we want to make sure and be careful that we don't just

kind of walk anywhere we want to with this. But you say,

there's really no support for Solomon being a shepherd. There's no support to show that,

yes, David kept sheep, but Solomon never kept sheep. So how can they speak here of the shepherd's

tent and the various references here in the Song of Solomon to the shepherd when there's no real

reference to Solomon? ever personally keeping sheep.

Now granted, he had many flocks. We understand that from history. He sold his sheep and so on.

Well, I found a little study, a little verse in doing some study on this. Turn with me to Isaiah.

Isaiah chapter 44. And I found an interesting passage here in Isaiah 44 and

verse 28.

Speaking here of Cyrus the king.

And it says, That saith of Cyrus, he is my what?

Shepherd.

And shall perform all my pleasure, even saying to Jerusalem,

Thou shalt be built, and to the temple thy foundation shall be laid. The scripture here calls King

Cyrus my shepherd. The term shepherd used in the Song of Solomon may not have been so much,

The idea that he kept sheep, but the fact that he was the one that God had chosen to shepherd his

people, Israel, as the king. So we actually have here the fact that kings were called shepherds.

It was not an unfair term given here to a king. Now compare that to Zechariah.

Zechariah chapter 13.

Zechariah chapter 13 and verse number 7 where

it says, and this is really a prophecy concerning the Messiah,

Awake, O sword, against my shepherd and against the man that is my fellow,

saith the Lord of hosts. Smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered and I will turn my

hand upon the little ones. Again, a reference here to the king of kings being the shepherd.

And of course, Jesus made himself very clearly out to be what? The shepherd. As he said,

I am the door to the sheepfold. There in John 10. He said, I am the good shepherd.

I give my life for the sheep. He was the shepherd king.

So in one respect, Aaron's side was following along a proper direction when he stated that he saw

Christ in Solomon being the shepherd king. Christ and Solomon are beautiful types and antitypes of

each other. The Old Testament person of Solomon is often depicted as a type or a picture of Christ.

What better way to show that than for him to be known as the shepherd king of the Old Testament.

A point that I think perhaps we've just missed in seeing. and particularly when it comes to the

Song of Songs. We find it shown here that he was the shepherd king.

So I think we can explain these two thoughts of this mysterious shepherd lover away and reject the

idea that there was a third picture, a third personage in the picture here. The second section that

we'll be considering as we've divided the Song of Solomon up is the story within the psalm.

Now, this section will be devoted to the husband and wife relationship during the engagement and

courtship period. And it may well be that the course will be divided on these tapes into two

sections so that we won't get to the second, third, or fourth section until the second half of this

particular course. But in the second section, we will find the depiction of the husband and wife

relationship as it's given from God's perspective in the Song of Solomon.

And it involves a discussion, at least an understanding, of the numerous sensual and sexual

overtones that are given in the Song of Solomon. I mean, it starts out in the very opening chapter

there, in chapter 1, and it says in verse 2, Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth.

That seems to be rather... Loving, doesn't it?

Well, how do you deal with that? Many today in modern times have seen in the Song of Solomon some

rather sensual things. In a book written by David and Carol Hawking called Romantic Loves,

they see the Song of Solomon as a very sensual book. As a matter of fact,

they write, if you take the book literally, including its symbolic language and poetic

descriptions, it appears to be very erotic and sensual. This causes many Christians to avoid the

book. At various times in church history, openness about sex was simply prohibited.

Now in the midst of this kind of mentality, if you approach the Song of Solomon as being a sensual

book, it would be very difficult to put that into perspective with a holy God,

wouldn't it?

And yet, there's got to be a reason why the Psalm of Solomon has been included in the Holy

Scriptures. And I don't believe that it was to show romantic love.

As a matter of fact, I believe it was to show just the opposite, and we'll see that before we

finish with our study. Another quote from his book, here,

Romantic Lovers, he uses the... A quote from Gluckman.

And he's referencing the Song of Solomon during the Middle Ages. And the quote runs thus.

Over 500 commentaries on the Song of Solomon remain with us from the first 1700 years alone.

Yet after these 500, and perhaps more, the Westminster Assembly observed in 1657 that the

commentaries customarily increased the cloud of obscurity. they had hoped to remove.

Meaning simply, rather than shedding any real light on the Song of Solomon, they only helped to

overshadow its understanding even more. Our purpose in this course will be to remove some of that

cloudiness, to remove that dark shadow that seems to linger over a study of the Song of Solomon.

Carr, in his book, The Song of Solomon, makes this note concerning Thoreau and Castielo.

And it says, they questioned the canonicity of the song because they believed it spoke explicitly

of human sexual love and therefore had no place in Scripture.

Well, certainly, if you view it that way, it would be difficult.

to be able to rationalize and place it within the confines of the Holy Scriptures itself.

Others, in their search to make the Song of Solomon less sensual,

I suppose, view it as a funeral song. Figure that one out.

Pope, in his book, uses the idea, as Kramer suggests,

that the song was actually a funeral feast. And it was sung, and often shown to be an antiquity

that's familiar or similar to those kind of psalms. And basically he builds his whole case on the

Song of Solomon, chapter 8 and verse 6, which says, Set me as a seal upon thine heart,

as a seal upon thine arm, for love is strong as death, and jealousy is cruel as the grave.

Therefore it's suggested to him a funeral song. And again I submit to you, whenever...

You miss the storyline of the song. There is no limit, no end to the conjecture of what might be.

What interpretations you might give.

We will give ample discussion to this aspect of sensuality when we come to this story of the song.

We will actually walk each line of the Song of Solomon and show you how it has no reference.

to sensual or sexual activity at all. As a matter of fact, I would like to go so far as to say

there are no references except one, which we will explain when we get there,

in the Song of Solomon of the bride and Solomon actually ever touching.

We'll see that as we go through. You say, that's a pretty bold statement.

With all the things I've read about the Song of Solomon, it seems like a pretty sensual book. Well,

We're going to clear some of that up. I find actually the story within the psalm is a pure record

of two engaged people who maintain purity until marriage. And I think it's a shame,

especially in the culture we live in, that we miss this avenue of the psalm of Solomon.

Because if ever there was a time when we needed God's clear blueprint on how two people and human

sexuality should be done, We need it today in the world in which we live, where there's so much

promiscuity, where there's so many things going on, so many immoral things. We need God's

perspective. I trust and hope that we'll get there before we leave our study of the Song of

Solomon. I think the entire story of the song occurs before the consummation of the marriage,

which is given in the last chapter, chapter 8.

The entire discussion of the Song of Solomon, everything in it, is given before that consummation

in chapter 8. It's still viewed in chapter 8 as yet future. And we'll see that as we continue on.

The Shulamite, the bride, is still anticipating Solomon coming for her in chapter 8.

The third section of the psalm in our study together is the story behind the psalm.

This is devoted to the allegory of the Old Testament where the relationship of God and his people

Israel are seen as the wife of God.

Phillips, in his book,

has this to say

concerning this approach.

The shepherd is a picture of Christ, the great shepherd of the sheep. The Shulamite mirrors the

church or the individual believer devoted to him. Solomon represents... The prince of this world

armed with all worldly power and magnificence. And again, this is a thought of allegory.

That's one thought. He again notes the allegory of the Old Testament is seen. The book has been

thought to be an allegory of the history of the Jews from the time of Abraham to the advent of the

Messiah. Or an allegory of the anticipation of the Hebrew people from their slavery in Egypt.

to the emancipation of their life and wanderings in the wilderness and the eventual conquest of

Canaan. Some think it depicts the relationship between Jehovah and Israel. Others see it as the

love of Christ for the church or the love of a particular soul for Christ himself.

These are all various thoughts that have been put forth concerning the psalm.

idea of God in Israel. The overtones are very strong of the relation of God to His people,

the bride or the wife of God. Many Bible scholars have connected this together and seen the

consummation as yet future, as I've just noted, that this would put even this discussion of God in

Israel in a future sense for the consummation. For you see, the entire Old Testament then would be

the courtship period. And then the consummation would be seen when? During the millennial reign of

Jesus Christ. It is clear from Matthew chapter 1 and verses 18 and following that the Jewish

mindset was for the espoused couple to have already been considered husband and wife.

Notice please, we come to Matthew chapter 1 and the story of Mary and Joseph and it clearly states

that Joseph considered Mary to be his wife before they had actually come together.

Notice as I read in verse 18. Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise. When his mother,

Mary, was a spouse to Joseph, before they came together, she was found a child of the Holy Ghost,

and Joseph, her husband, notice, before they had come together, was already considered her husband,

being a just man and not willing to make... Her public example was minded to put her away privily

or privately. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord said unto him in

a dream, saying, Joseph, son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary, what? Thy wife.

Already considered that. For that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall

bring forth a son and shall call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins.

Verse 24, Then Joseph, being raised from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and

took unto him his wife, notice already his wife,

and it says he knew her not, and knew her not until she brought forth her firstborn son, and called

his name Jesus. So the Jewish mindset, it was proper to understand an engaged couple as husband and

wife already.

Therefore, it's not difficult at all to see. The picture in the Old Testament here of God and

Israel and that consummation of the relationship there between them being seen in the millennial

reign of Christ or the kingdom, the coming kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The fourth section then of this book, as we'll think of it, is the story beyond the psalm.

relationship again through allegory of Christ and the church as given in the New Testament as bride

and groom. Again, the casual reader of the song cannot miss this picture.

It's so striking and so prominent and probably because this is where the vast majority of

commentators have settled down.

When any kind of a storyline at all is rejected, one is left with pure allegory.

And since most are today writing concerning Christ and the church,

the allegory is seen in that relationship. Perhaps one of the best works that has ever been done on

the Christ and the church allegory can be seen in the book on the Psalm of Solomon by Bernard of

Clairvaux. Now he only wrote on the opening two chapters, as we've already mentioned,

but did a beautiful job of explaining Christ and the church.

And it states in his book, St. Bernard never lost grasp of the idea that the bridegroom in the

psalm is the Lord Jesus. And the bride, either the soul of the individual believer or the totality

of such souls, that is, the church. And so, Bernard of Clairvaux sees Christ and the church only in

the psalm.

Many scholars have seen it that way.

The prominent would be Charles Spurgeon. Spurgeon in his morning and evening has numerous

references to the Song of Solomon. Each time takes the soul of a Christian to the very throne room

of God in the Song of Solomon and does some beautiful things. If you want to really get a flavor

for that, look up Spurgeon's evening and morning and read through it.

It's a devotional guide and it will really change your life when you think.

of your relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Is allegory unfair? No. It's not unfair.

It's just that we need to be careful not to stretch allegory beyond the significance that's there.

And of course, when you miss the storyline of the song, again, allegory has no end.

Whether you're thinking of relating it to the Old Testament Jews and God or to the New Testament

church and Christ. You have no limit. And so there are no boundaries to place and every man's

imagination is as good as the next. when you miss the storyline of the song. So you really need to

pay careful attention to understanding the text of the song and the story that's there, else you

might find yourself straying in your interpretation and understanding of the song itself. We could

not miss all the numerous volumes that have been done, the great works that have been done on the

aspect of allegory, the, again, relationship of the Gospels themselves. the narratives of the

parables that the Lord gave, we cannot miss that there was sincerely a relationship that he had in

mind of the marriage feast, the bridegroom coming, the parable of the ten virgins waiting on the

bridegroom, and so on, the marriage supper, even the marriage supper of the Lamb that's taught

throughout the New Testament that he speaks of, and so on. We can't help but see the picture here

coming forth from the Song of Solomon. And so Jesus' own teachings illustrate the

interconnectedness or the interconnected relationship between Christ and the church.

When will the consummation be? It will again be in the millennial kingdom. Coming out of that

tribulation period, we will find the bride returning and immediately spending what we would think

of as their honeymoon in the heavens or coming in the heavens to the earth.

during that millennial kingdom of Christ. Now, the timelessness of the song is also evident.

I think we can't miss the fact that in order to write a book that relates to the story of Solomon

and the Shulamite, to the husband and wife relationship that spans the entire Old Testament,

showing the picture of God and Israel, and also reaching forth into the New Testament age for

millenniums, And showing the picture of Christ in the church could only be written by a timeless

God who could see both Old and New Testament, who wrote and developed all the guidelines and

precepts of the Old Testament, knew and also showed forth that relationship in creation as He gave

the sacred interpersonal relationships between not only He Himself and mankind,

but man with woman as well. So it took a God. a timeless God,

to develop the relationship here that we see in the Song of Solomon between Solomon and his bride,

God and Israel, the husband and wife, and Christ and the church. This concludes this lecture.

Please fast forward the tape and go to tape number five. Thank you.