Speaking to One Another (Song 1:15-17)

As we observed in a previous study, the setting for this poem is one of the royal estates in which there is house and a forest. We know from the Book of Ecclesiastes as well as from the historical books that Solomon engaged in building several such estates, so we should not be too surpr­­­­ised that he refers to them in his poem.

We can see from the poem, which begins in verses 9 and 10, that the king has already spoken to the woman directly. She has heard what he said, but when she responded she did not speak directly to him. Instead, in verses 13 and 14 she speaks about him, whether to her friends or to herself. Her words are words of love, but they are not spoken to him. So we can assume that the king is trying to get her to speak directly to him, and we can see from verses 16 and 17 that she does.

The king’s words of affections (v. 15)

It looks as if the king has sensed that the woman does not think she is beautiful enough for the king. He has already told her that she is in verses 9 and 10, but she needs to be convinced, so he graciously repeats his assessment and indeed stresses it by repetition. We know that often believers think that their sins affect their beauty in the estimation of Jesus and they need to be convinced that he thinks they are beautiful.

How does Jesus tell them that they are beautiful? He does so by assuring them through the doctrines and the promises of the Bible. For example, we should think of the doctrine of justification when we are concerned about our sins. Or we can think about the many promises found in the Bible as to how Jesus regards his people.

We have to do this because Jesus does not speak through any other means. Of course, he may use a variety of methods to convey those truths such as literature or Christians having fellowship together as well as church services, yet it is always the same truths of correct doctrine and biblical promises. This means that we should try and understand the doctrines of our faith more and more and also store up in our hearts the great and precious promises of the Bible.

In the poem, the specific way in which the king speaks about the woman is by referring to her eyes and observing that she has doves’ eyes. What does this reference point to? The answer to the question is obvious. We need to find out what details can be said about doves and their eyes. Here are some suggestions.

The dove is symbolic of peace. This has become a common symbol, but we should not forget that it is a biblical one. The disciples of Jesus are to be as harmless as doves. What is peace? It is not the mere absence of hostilities. Instead, it is something that replaces hostilities. We were at war with God, now we have been reconciled through Jesus, and the Spirit of rest and peace is in our souls. When such peace is there, Jesus thinks we are beautiful.

The dove is also symbolic of purity. Perhaps it became such a symbol because of its white colour. Purity of life comes from being pure in heart, and Jesus linked the purity and eyes when he said, ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.’ If we are not pure, we will not have peace. Purity describes our sanctification, which is the same as becoming more like Jesus, and when he sees that in his people he regards them as beautiful.

A third feature of doves is that they mourn, and again this feature of doves is used in the Bible to describe penitence. Although they are pure, they are not perfect, far from it. But their imperfections, and the imperfections of others, leads them to mourn in the presence of the King, and when he sees their watery eyes he regards them as beautiful.

A fourth feature of doves is mentioned in Song of Solomon 2:12 when the author says that they sing in the springtime after the cold and death of winter. We could say that believers in this life are living in the springtime waiting for the summer to come. The summer is heaven, and in the springtime they sing about their prospects. And when they sing about the world to come, Jesus thinks that they are beautiful.

A fifth feature of doves is that they are in constant need of protection from our birds and animals. And believers need spiritual protection as well and Jesus provides it from heaven. When they depend entirely on him, he thinks that they are beautiful.

Connected to all this is the fact that doves have good eyesight. Apparently, our eyes take up one percent of the size of our heads whereas the eyes of birds take up a lot more. You will see this is the case if you care to look. Apparently, this gives them good eyesight. Moreover, their eyes are fixed, unlike ours which can move up and down and right and left. Birds usually move their heads, not their eyes. I think there is a picture here of spiritual doves – they have big vision and they look straight at Jesus in the various means of grace, and when they do so he thinks that they are beautiful. 

The affection of the woman (vv. 16 and 17).

The lady responds to the king’s words of love and we can see that she follows the pattern of his words that he spoke to her. He had used ‘Behold,’ and she uses the same word; he had said she was beautiful, and she says that he is beautiful; he had called her ‘my love’, and she calls him ‘my beloved’. I suppose we can say that she is learning to have fellowship by imitating what he said to her, and that is how we learn to speak about him and to him.

We see that she adds a word of her own when she says that he is truly delightful. There is a difference between recognising that something is beautiful and saying that it is delightful. I could see a picture of a sunset and say that it is beautiful but I have to see the sunset before I delight in it. Perhaps there is a hint here as to why sometimes we lose our assurance. It is easy to say that Jesus is beautiful, but what we need to be able to say is that he is both beautiful and delightful. Being delighted points to the pleasure that the woman was having in the presence of the king. And we should be able to say the same about Jesus.

Another important word to observe here is the plural pronoun ‘our’ that she uses with regard to the king’s possessions. She realises that he is willing to share his assets with her. We can imagine her looking round the room, observing the couch they sit on, looking up to the roof, and saying to herself, ‘Because I am his, all this is mine.’

Here we have a picture of our spiritual riches. As Paul says, believers are joint-heirs with Jesus. They share the family inheritance. What ideas come to mind as we think about her description? Three, perhaps. One is satisfaction because of where she is and what she has been given. A second is security – in this house she is safe from her brothers if they tried to get her back (1:6). The third is superior materials used in securing the stability and the permanence of the house. She recognises that she will be able to explore this house for a long time. And is that not how the Christian life should be? Satisfied with Jesus, secure with Jesus, and possessing stability from Jesus that will be endless.