The King’s Opinion of a Restored Backslider (Song 6:4-13)

Prior to this address of the King, the woman had engaged in a search for him after losing contact with him because of lethargy. The process of re-finding him had involved personal calling, correction by the watchmen and the wise questions of the daughters of Jerusalem about what she thought of the King and where she thought he was. She and they had gone to his garden of rest to find him. It is not too difficult to find parallels in the way a lethargic believer recovers warmth in his relationship with Jesus. But what does Jesus think of the recovered disciple? We get an insight in the words of the king to his beloved in verses 1-9.

Here we can see an example of progress in assurance. The woman had been told she was the fairest among women by the daughters of Jerusalem. They had given this estimation because they observed her as she sought for the King. Similarly, other believers can give encouragement to a returning backslider by commenting on his or her graces. But the restored backslider will want more – he will want the opinion of Jesus. And the words of the King depict this extra strong form of assurance.

The Description

The address of the King highlights the features of strength, health and dignity as he describes her beauty. Strength is illustrated by the reference to walled cities of Tirzah and Jerusalem and to an army on the march (6:4).  We might imagine that it would be unusual to say that a restored believer has strength. Would it not be more appropriate to say that he should know his weakness? Yet in the Christian life, the ones who are strong are the ones who know they are weak. Moreover, we can also assume that a restored believer would know the necessity of wearing the spiritual armour that he should have worn before he had backslid. We only have to think of the examples of David and Peter to realise the truth of this outlook.

The health of the woman is seen in the King’s references to her eyes, hair, teeth and cheeks (6:5-6). He repeats some of the comments that he had made about her in 4:1-3, so here we have a reminder that she has still her health despite the difficult search she had made and the rough treatment she had received from the watchmen. We can observe that he makes special comments about her eyes, about the way that she is looking at him. We are familiar with the saying that the eyes are the mirror of the soul, and he would have seen in her eyes regret for her lethargy and joy that she was him again. Similarly, when a Christian is restored, they too have penitence and gladness together, and we can safely deduce that Jesus loves his people when they have penitent eyes.

The dignity of the woman in the estimation of the King is seen in the contrast he makes between her and the women of the royal court. We know that literally Solomon had many queens and other women around him. But there was something special about this woman, and the King mentions three details – her dove-likeness, the uniqueness of her birth and the commendation of others in the royal court. Is it too much to say that here we have the character of believers (like a dove in gentleness and peacefulness), the uniqueness of their status (they have a birth that brings them into a special family), and they are esteemed by the others who serve Jesus in his royal presence (angels).

The Question

In verse 10, the attendants ask who this amazing woman is? They see her beauty (what is more beautiful than the sunrise or a bright moon on a clear night?), her strength (army) and her dedication (on the banners would be written words that would indicate her devotion to the King). There is an obvious lesson here, which is that the angels see believers in ways that are surprising. Recall how an angel called Gideon a mighty man of valour as he was threshing his crop secretly out of fear of the enemies. Or when Gabriel addressed Daniel as the one who was greatly beloved? And when Mary was spoken to as one who was highly favoured because she alone would be the mother of the Messiah.

The Explanation (6:11-13)

These words are the answer of the King to the question of the attendants. It looks to me as if he is describing what he did when he left the woman’s house on the evening when she was too lethargic to let him in. He says that he went to his garden (the nut orchard) to see how his various plants and flowers were faring (v. 11). Is this not a picture of the places where other believers are enjoying the skills of the One who makes them beautiful to look at? This looks like saying that when one believer shows lethargy, Jesus still looks after the others under his care.

As he was in the garden, the King is overcome by a strong desire that would be fulfilled very quickly. The speed is illustrated by the reference to fast chariots. The desire is that the Shulammite (the woman) would return so that the King and his companions would see her. The intensity of his desire is seen in the way that he repeats the desire four times. In addition to the words indicating intensity of desire for her to return, we must also remember that his words are words of power. His desire is accompanied by his ability to bring about his desire. Here we have a picture of how Jesus ensures that the desire of his heart, which is the return of a backsliding believer, will happen. He was drawing her secretly to the place where they would meet again.

It is worth noting the name by which the King calls the woman. Shulammite is the feminine form of Solomon. In other words, the King has given his own name to the woman. He reminds her of the relationship she has with him. Her lethargy has not removed that privilege from her. There are several examples in the Bible of Jesus giving his name to his people. With regard to the status of justification, believers have the name ‘the Lord our righteousness’; they are said to be joint-heirs with Jesus; and in 1 Corinthians 12:12-13, Jesus and his people collectively are called Christ.

In referring to her by this particular name, the King is pointing to its meaning, which is peace. The woman was disturbed by her failure and she was seeking him in a sense because she was looking for peace. Yet although she had lost the enjoyment of peace from Solomon, she had not lost the state of peace with Solomon. And he reminds her of that changeless situation when he calls her by this name. In a far higher sense, believers when they backslide do not lose the standing of peace with God although they will at such a time lose the sense of the peace of God. In repentance, we are not being restored to the state of peace, but to the experience of peace.

Moreover, the King makes clear to the woman that he wants to look at her and he wants those with him to look at her. He does not want to do this because he wants to embarrass her about her failure, but because he wants to enjoy her beauty as a restored lover. And he wants those with him to see the beauty of her restoration as well. Obviously, this happens in the spiritual life as well. Jesus does not say to a penitent disciple that she should go and sit in a corner, out of sight of other believers who may not have done her particular sin. Instead, he wants her to be fully restored to his company and the company of his companions.

In verse 13, the King turns and addresses those with him and asks them why they should look at the woman when she returns. The answer to the question is that she will be dancing. I suspect the two armies are two groups that would meet, say at a wedding where there would be two families. In those times, they would watch the young women dancing in celebration. The woman that the King loves will be dancing when she is restored. In the next set of verses, the King describes her dance. Spiritual restoration is a time of joy, especially for the one who has been restored.

So we can see that the recovery process initiated by the King was very effective. Jesus in his grace also succeeds in his recovery plan for backsliders. Of course, we all are backsliders at some stage. The length of the period of backsliding will not always be the same, but the recovery should be an occasion of great happiness as Jesus welcomes us back into his embrace and watches us express our gladness.