skin deep

Maidens

⁹What is your beloved more than another beloved,
O most beautiful among women?
What is your beloved more than another beloved,
that you thus adjure us?

She

¹⁰My beloved is radiant and ruddy,
    distinguished among ten thousand.
¹¹His head is the finest gold;
    his locks are wavy,
    black as a raven.
¹²His eyes are like doves
    beside streams of water,
bathed in milk,
    sitting beside a full pool.
¹³His cheeks are like beds of spices,
    mounds of sweet-smelling herbs.
His lips are lilies,
    dripping liquid myrrh.
¹⁴His arms are rods of gold,
    set with jewels.
His body is polished ivory,
    bedecked with sapphires.
¹⁵His legs are alabaster columns,
    set on bases of gold.
His appearance is like Lebanon,
    choice as the cedars.
¹⁶His mouth is most sweet,
    and he is altogether desirable.
This is my beloved and this is my friend,
    O daughters of Jerusalem. – Song of Solomon 5:9-16 ESV

Not to be outdone by her husband’s penchant for over-the-top rhetoric, the newly married and still love-struck bride attempts to one-up his earlier metaphor-laden description of her with an overly flattering and imagery-intense portrait of him. What follows is another exaggerated and somewhat exasperating display of blind love that makes for difficult reading. She appears to be answering a query from the same group of single women whom she asked for assistance locating her missing husband. They want to know why they should bother to help her when it looks like he has walked out on her.

“Why is your lover better than all others,
O woman of rare beauty?
What makes your lover so special
that we must promise this?” – Song of Solomon 5:9 NLT

It’s impossible to know whether this group of still-single maidens actually existed and bothered to ask these questions, but it provides the perfect excuse for the bride to wax eloquent about her husband’s superior physical attributes. Don’t overlook the fact that during her lengthy answer, she fails to say anything about his character; it’s all about his looks. He’s ruggedly handsome with a dark complexion and a full head of thick wavy black hair. His eyes are mesmerizing and appear like two shimmering jewels floating in a milky white background. His gaze is captivating and it seems that she believes he only has eyes for her.

It may be that Solomon had a full beard which he regularly perfumed with exotic spices.

His cheeks are like gardens of spices
giving off fragrance. – Song of Solomon 5:13 NLT

He looked and smelled great. Not only that, she found his lips to be enticing and his physique to be more than pleasing to her eyes. One gets the impression that she regularly lusted after her husband’s well-toned body. From his head to his toes, Solomon was a delight to her eyes and a source of passionate desire. She sums it all up by stating, “he is desirable in every way” (Song of Solomon 5:16 NLT). In other words, he was a keeper. Despite her recent dream and its unexpected depiction of his sudden disappearance, she was still greatly in love and desired to be with him.

But she caps off her description of Solomon with the following words, “This is my beloved and this is my friend…” (Song of Solomon 5:16 ESV). Yes, she was deeply in love with his body and infatuated with his physical appearance but, even more importantly, she viewed Solomon as her closest friend. And this admission of her friendship with Solomon speaks volumes about their relationship. She saw him as her dearest and most treasured companion; her partner who would accompany her through all the seasons of life. His physical appearance may change over the years. His hair could turn grey or simply turn loose. Over time, his well-toned body could grow flabby and frail. His eyes could grow dim with age and his strength could diminish with time. But their friendship would persist. Her infatuation would be buoyed by tender-hearted affection for her soulmate and friend.

While the following verse has been memorialized as a compliment of “The Proverbs 31 Woman,” it could just as easily be amended to speak on behalf of a wife in gratitude for her godly husband.

Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last;
but a [man] who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. – Proverbs 31:30 NLT

Solomon wouldn’t stay young forever. His body would not maintain its youthful vigor and energy. But despite the passing of time and the loss of his good looks, he could continue to be his wife’s best friend for a lifetime.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

She

¹²While the king was on his couch,
    my nard gave forth its fragrance.
¹³My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh
    that lies between my breasts.
¹⁴My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms
    in the vineyards of Engedi.

¹⁵Behold, you are beautiful, my love;
behold, you are beautiful;
your eyes are doves.

She

¹⁶Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved, truly delightful.
Our couch is green;
¹⁷ the beams of our house are cedar;
our rafters are pine. – Song of Solomon 1:12-17 ESV

There is much debate as to whether this poem is in chronological order or if it is a collection of smaller poems that fail to share a common time sequence. If they are meant to follow one another in sequential order, there appear to be some fairly large gaps in the narrative. The dialogue seems to take a fast leap forward between the first 11 verses of chapter one and the remaining six verses.

The relationship between the two lovers deepens in significance and their rhetoric intensifies, describing what seems to suggest is a much more physical and intimate aspect of their growing love for one another. The young Shulammite maiden describes seeing her lover reclining on his dining couch. As she gazes at him she can’t help but feel a deep attraction to him, comparing him to the fragrant blossoms of the henna plant found in the vineyards of Engeddi.

She reveals her hope that the attraction between them is mutual and that her perfume is having its desired effect. She has adorned herself with a necklace featuring a sachet of aromatic myrrh that hands strategically between her breasts. All of this language suggests that she was trying to seduce her lover. She has spared no expense, having anointed her body with costly nard, a fragrant oil that would have filled the room in which they sat. This is the same type of oil that was used to anoint the head of Jesus.

And while he [Jesus] was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. There were some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” – Mark 14:3-5 ESV

This young woman has gone to great expense to gain the attention of her beloved and her efforts produced the intended result. Despite the strategically placed necklace and the aromatic perfume, his gaze is drawn to her eyes.

“How beautiful you are, my darling,
how beautiful!
Your eyes are like doves.” – Song of Solomon 1:15 NLT

They say the eyes are the window to the soul. Looking into someone’s eyes can reveal a lot about their character and their intentions. Jesus described them as lamps that provide light for the body. In a sense, they are portals that control what enters into your heart and reveal its condition to all those around you.

“Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light. But when your eye is unhealthy, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is!” – Matthew 6:22-23 NLT

In praising the beauty of her eyes, Solomon is looking beneath the surface and complimenting her inner character; she is beautiful inside and out. She has adorned herself with jewelry and expensive perfume, but his gaze is attracted to that which lies within. It is not unlike the earlier compliment she gave to him.

“…your name is like the spreading fragrance of scented oils…” – Song of Solomon 1:3 NLT

His name, which is synonymous with his character, is like a well-pleasing aroma that follows him wherever he goes. In other words, his reputation precedes him, but in a good way. There is little doubt that this couple shares a mutual attraction to one another but it is more than skin deep. Their emphasis on one another’s inner character is refreshing and provides a wonderful glimpse into a missing ingredient in many relationships today. With our modern-day obsession with externals, it is so easy to overlook the condition of the heart. Social media allows us to create the perfect persona by providing a means of carefully curating only those images that reflect our preferred identity. Few people post unflattering images of themselves online. The increasing availability of software that can enhance or dramatically alter our visage makes it possible to portray ourselves in a way that is more wishful thinking than reality.

Yet, this couple was anything but lovestruck and blinded by passion. They appear to be fully aware of each other’s inner qualities and that knowledge only enhanced their love for one another.

But there is little doubt that this young woman was infatuated with her lover’s outer appearance. She makes that point embarrassingly clear when she states, “You are so handsome, my love, pleasing beyond words!” (Song of Solomon 1:16 NLT). He was good-looking as well as being of good character, and those two traits made him all the more appealing to her. The old adage, “Love is blind,” is meant to convey the idea that outer beauty is not the only factor considered when two people fall in love. There is far more to the equation than simply good looks, and yet, it never hurts to fall in love with someone who is easy on the eyes. That is clearly the case with her beloved.

Just being out in nature with her significant other brings her great joy and pleasure. She describes the great outdoors as if it is their private sanctuary.

“The soft grass is our bed;
fragrant cedar branches are the beams of our house,
and pleasant smelling firs are the rafters.” – Song of Solomon 1:17 NLT

This should not be taken as a description of sexual intercourse or an inference that this couple was involved in any kind of immorality. She simply describes a carefree afternoon with the love of her life as they share the beauty of God’s creation and one another’s company. Just being together brought her great joy. While they were not yet married and didn’t share a home together, they were able to turn every moment into an opportunity to live as if they were already one.

This relationship was being built on a foundation of mutual respect, shared admiration, unwavering love, and a commitment to the long haul. They were in this for the duration, and while their words reflect a somewhat innocent and inexperienced outlook on love, it is clear that there is more to this relationship than meets the eye.

Devotionary

The Bible Made Accessible and Applicable

Looks Can’t Last, But Friendship Lasts

More Than Skin Deep