Song of Solomon 7&8: A Second Spring Invitation and Happily Ever After

Song of Solomon concludes with a spring rendezvous and the couple together once and for all. Now that the drama of the wedding has passed, the couple is free to enjoy each other's company and begin their life together.

Introduction

Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the field; let us lodge in the villages.Song of Songs 7:11 KJV

Just as Song of Solomon 2 shows the couple rejoice at spending time together in the Spring, the end of Song of Solomon 7 revisits that joy. While it doesn't specifically identify the season to be Spring, we do see talk of pomegranates budding and going out into the fields, both of which would occur during Spring.
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Fruit

Photocredit: FreeImages.com/Maja Petric

An obvious and accepted interpretation of this passage is that it pertains to the consummation of their marriage.^[2]

However, I think spiritually, it may reference the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). We cannot cultivate or produce these fruits until we have surrendered to Christ (and thus become His bride). Once we do so, the harvest begins and we are to produce as much of the fruits the Holy Spirit has given us as we can. These fruits are love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and self restraint.^[1]

Happily Ever After

The final chapter of Song of Solomon shows the two lovers together, living as man and wife. In this chapter, they are finally free to enjoy each other's company and lavish each other with compliments.

Repetition

Song of Solomon 8:4 is an echo of Song of Solomon 2:7 and Song of Solomon 3:5. Once again, the woman is asking the daughters of Jerusalem to be still and not wake the love until the time of his choice. The spiritual meaning of this is obvious: we can't rush God, nor should we run about making a ruckus trying to move Him. In a literal sense, there is a law in Deuteronomy 24:5 that men did not have to work for a year after marrying; that time was supposed to be spent making their wife happy. This may be building upon that principle, suggesting no one bother the groom until he deems it the time to be away from his wife.

Song of Solomon 8:5 echoes Song of Solomon 3:6 and is the response of the daughters of Jerusalem to the wife's instruction not to wake up the husband. It is no coincidence that they place the couple coming out of the wilderness. It is out of the wilderness God brought Israel in to the promised land, and it is out of the symbolic wilderness (of sin) that God will bring us to Heaven. Since men were to be the head of the household, the husband should be leading his wife out of the dangers of the wilderness, as well.

A Link to Prophecy

Set me as a seal upon thine heart,
as a seal upon thine arm:Song of Solomon 8:6

Another verse that stood out to me was that of Song of Solomon 8:6. End time prophecy talks about two seals, a seal of God (Revelation 7:2-3 and 9:4) and a the mark of the Beast (Revelation 13:17 and 16:2). Both marks are to be received in the head (i.e., the mind) or in the hand (i.e., actions). When interpreting this love song to be between the church and Christ, it is obvious that this is a plea to put God first. If He is a seal in our heart, our mind will follow. Similarly, if He is a seal on our arms, our actions will follow.

When we enter an earthly marriage, the same concept applies. We must commit to our spouse with both our mind (or heart) and our actions. If we allow our heart or actions to wander, we will likely be led astray and ultimately be unfaithful to our spouse.

Spiritual Interpretation

This is how life will be for God's people after judgment day. After the madness and mayhem of our earthly life, we will finally be able to relax in God's presence!

This also relates to our spiritual journey. Many times, we feel apprehensive about approaching God—the way the bride was earlier in Song of Solomon—becasue we feel we aren't worthy to have His favor. During this time, we struggle to connect with God, but as soon as we move pass that nervousness and allow ourselves to enter into God's presence, we can enjoy our spiritual walk with Him.

References

1. Matthew Henry. "Song of Solomon 7 Commentary". via Bible Study Tools; visited December 29, 2017
2. David Guzik. "Song of Solomon 7 Commentary". Enduring Word. 2013