Song of Solomon

 Introduction

 Exposition

 Conclusion

The primary purpose of the book seems to be to present an example of the proper pre-marital, marital, and post-marital relationship of a man and a woman. This example includes illustrations of the solutions to common problems that couples face in these phases of their relationship.

The book reveals several facts about sex. Sex is a proper part of marital love, but we should reserve it for marriage (2:7; 3:5), and we should practice it only with our marriage partner (6:3; 7:10; 8:12; cf. Gen. 2:24).

In a day when the "sexual revolution"has led multitudes of people away from God's revelation concerning what is best in this area of our lives, we need to expound this book. It can be very helpful if we explain it tastefully in public and use it as a private guide for marriage preparation and enrichment.⁸⁸

"In a world awash with the debris of broken homes, crushed spirits, and fractured dreams, God's people need the message of the Song of Solomon as never before. The Song is a righteous antidote to a licentious society that has prostituted the sacred nature of human love. Hope exudes from its pages. If ever a book was written with a message more salient for a later generation, Solomon's ode is that book."⁸⁹

"In no other book of the Hebrew Bible does the imagery figure so prominently as it does in the Song of Songs."⁹⁰

Hebrew poetry generally contains many figures of speech, and the Song of Solomon in particular contains an unusually large number of them. It is therefore often difficult to know whether we should interpret a particular statement literally or whether it is a poetic description of something else. These judgments require skill in interpretation. As we continue to read the text and the comments of others who have studied it, we need to ask God to open our minds so that we will understand the Scriptures (Luke 24:45). Biblical interpretation is an art that any Christian can perfect, though it requires much practice as well as divine enablement.

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable