Come Down, Lord!

  The following is taken from the first in a series of sermons on the Song of Solomon.   -- “Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth.” I want to begin by clearing up a misunderstanding that has ruined the Song of Solomon for many—a misunderstanding that has done great disservice to the Church and proved profoundly dishonouring to the One who is so gloriously pictured in this book. The Scriptures teach us that there is a greater than Solomon (Matthew 12:42), and it is this greater Solomon, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is represented by the person of Solomon in this song. Please do not mistake this for a mere love song between King Solomon and one of his many lovers. I am with Robert Hawker when he says, “I venture to believe that there is not a line in it which hath the smallest reference to Solomon king of Israel…” The timing of the book makes it impossible that this should be about him and Pharaoh’s daughter, as some have supposed (1 Kings 3:1), but the text itself...

* The following is an edited excerpt from a sermon I preached several years ago. Like the older writers, I believe the Song of Solomon is allegorical. It is ultimately about the “ greater than Solomon,” who is Jesus. It gives us a picture of the relationship between the Groom -  our Saviour -  and the bride, which is His church.    What He - the beloved - says here to His bride He says to His people. One of my favourite sections is found in chapter two.  There the bride says,  “My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.   For lo the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth the time of the singing of the birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.” "Rise up and come away," He says.  Why?  Because the winter is past, the rain is over and gone, and now come the flowers and the singing of birds.  Everyone can relate to this. Some people despise the...