Song of Solomon 3
1"On my bed night after night I sought him
Whom my soul loves;
I sought him but did not find him.
Every night when she lies in bed she longs for her beloved. Obviously, he is not there, for they are not married. But night after night she misses him, just as she does throughout the day. He is whom her soul loves. She is attached deeply to him in love.
2'I must arise now and go about the city;
In the streets and in the squares
I must seek him whom my soul loves.'
One night she actually gets up and tries to find him because she cannot take it any longer. Her love is this deep. She is so consumed with him that she loses all inhibition and reason, walking through the streets and square trying to find him in the middle of the night.
I sought him but did not find him.
3"The watchmen who make the rounds in the city found me,
And I said, 'Have you seen him whom my soul loves?'
She tried to find him, but she could not. The night watchmen found her, and she asked them where her beloved was. Likely being aware of who she was, they figured something was going on for her to be out and about at night, and so they helped her find him.
4"Scarcely had I left them
When I found him whom my soul loves;
I held on to him and would not let him go
Until I had brought him to my mother's house,
And into the room of her who conceived me."
Finally, she leaves the watchmen and finds her beloved. She grasps on to him and won’t let him go. He probably wonders what exactly is going on, but he wisely determines that she just is “drunk” with love. She brings him home to her mother’s house to meet her initial objective of having him with her. Intimacy is on her mind, and she is vulnerable to sin. It is the middle of the night, she is tired, her passions are running wild, and they are alone in a bedroom. Yet they do not compromise, Solomon refraining her inhibition at this moment. Yet he probably wisely ascertains that they need to get married quickly for her sake and his. This kind of passion and love cannot be contained much longer. Furthermore, such love language and romance would not be justified without a responsible commitment to marry, and the time is rapidly approaching for this to happen.
5"I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
By the gazelles or by the hinds of the field,
That you will not arouse or awaken my love
Until she pleases."
Again, the theme is to keep sex for marriage and to not even arouse or awaken the sexual desire and passion until after the marriage vow. To do so is destructive.
6"What is this coming up from the wilderness
Like columns of smoke,
Perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,
With all scented powders of the merchant?
7"Behold, it is the traveling couch of Solomon;
Sixty mighty men around it,
Of the mighty men of Israel.
8"All of them are wielders of the sword,
Expert in war;
Each man has his sword at his side,
Guarding against the terrors of the night.
Indeed, the next scene is the wedding. Solomon is in his traveling coach with sixty mighty men around him, experts at war and wielders of the sword. The time is yet night, so they are protecting him from danger. From the wilderness is coming a grand procession accompanied by wonderful scents and fragrances.
9"King Solomon has made for himself a sedan chair
From the timber of Lebanon.
10"He made its posts of silver,
Its back of gold
And its seat of purple fabric,
With its interior lovingly fitted out
By the daughters of Jerusalem.
Solomon’s chair is exquisitely decorated with silver, gold, purple fabric, and much other work done by the women of the land.
11"Go forth, O daughters of Zion,
And gaze on King Solomon with the crown
With which his mother has crowned him
On the day of his wedding,
And on the day of his gladness of heart."
All are called to come and gaze on King Solomon in his glory and splendor. His mother has placed a crown upon him on this, the day of his wedding, the day of his gladness of heart. The wedding day is a great joy because finally, what both parties have longed for is finally here. He is not doubting or questioning whether or not he should marry on this day, for it is a day of great joy as the woman of his delight finally will be joined to him for life. He has wanted this for a long time coming, and he couldn’t think of anything better than marrying the most beautiful of women and one whom he loved dearly.
The Good News