Song Of Solomon 2 Explained and Commentary

1. v1-7: Under the Shadow of the Apple Tree
2. v8-13: The Call of Springtime
3. v14-15: The Secret Place and the Little Foxes
4. v16-17: Mutual Possession

song of solomon 2 explained

This commentary explores the mystical ascent of the soul and the structural symphony of divine desire. In Song of Solomon Chapter 2, we move from the shaded security of the King’s chambers into the expansive invitation of the spring wilderness. This is where the "Covenant of Sight" begins—where the Beloved is seen not just in the secret place, but leaping across the obstacles of history and geography to reclaim His own.

Song of Solomon 2 functions as a "Prophetic Epithalamion" (wedding song) that mirrors the Exodus, the Resurrection, and the final Call to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. It explores the delicate tension between the "Rose of Sharon" (lowly beauty) and the "King’s Shadow" (divine protection), culminating in the famous "Catching of the Foxes" which represents the removal of spiritual compromise. This chapter is the heartbeat of the Song, oscillating between the "Already" of his presence and the "Not Yet" of his full return.

Song of Solomon 2 Context

Historical/Geopolitical Context: Written during the zenith of the United Monarchy (c. 960 BC), this chapter utilizes the flora and fauna of the Levant (Sharon, Carmel, En-Gedi) to illustrate the King’s dominion. This is "Eden Restored" language. Covenantal Framework: It operates within the Davidic Covenant, specifically highlighting the King as the "Idealized Adam" who gardens the heart of his people. ANE Polemics: While neighboring cultures (Sumerian, Egyptian) had "Sacred Marriage" (Hieros Gamos) rituals involving ritual prostitution to ensure fertility, Song of Solomon 2 "trolls" these myths by placing intimacy in the context of monogamous covenantal faithfulness and the "Garden" as a place of mutual choice, not mechanical magic.

Song of Solomon 2 Summary

The chapter begins with the Shulammite's humble self-perception (the meadow flower) and the King's immediate elevation of her above all others. A scene of intense intimacy follows under the "Apple Tree" (a symbol of Christ's protection) and in the "Banqueting House." The narrative then shifts to an awakening; the King arrives like a gazelle, peering through the "lattice" of human limitations, and invites the Bride to leave the "winter" of her old life behind because the flowers of a new season are appearing. The chapter closes with a call to deal with the "foxes" (the subtle spoilers of intimacy) and a confession of mutual belonging.

Song of Solomon 2:1-2: The Anatomy of Beauty

"I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters."

The Language of Humble Identity

• The Identity of the "Rose" (Habatzeleth): The Hebrew Habatzeleth (Strong’s H2261) is likely not a modern rose, but a "meadow saffron" or "crocus" (Colchicum autumnale). This flower grows in the wild, unattended by human hands. By calling herself this, she is declaring she is a common, wild beauty, not a curated garden rose.
• The Plain of Sharon: Sharon was a maritime plain known for its fertility but also its "wildness." In the Sod (secret) meaning, she is saying "I am a product of grace, growing where I was planted by God, not by my own effort."
• The "Lily of the Valleys" (Shoshannat ha-amaqim): The Shoshannah is a bright red anemone or a white Madonna lily. "Valleys" (Amaqim) suggests low-lying, humble places.
• The King’s Pivot (v. 2): He takes her metaphor and heightens it. She calls herself a common lily; he says she is a lily among thorns. The "daughters" (humanity or other systems) are "thorns" (chachim) in comparison to her.
• Symmetry of Worth: In the Pshat (literal), the man is complementing her. In the Remez (hint), this is Christ declaring that His Church/Bride is the only thing of life and beauty in a world of prickly, lifeless religion and sin (thorns).

Spiritual & Natural Synthesis

• Topography: The Plain of Sharon was the "breadbasket" of the coast. For her to be there implies she is in the place of potential but vulnerable.
• The Thorns: Thorns are the post-Genesis 3 sign of the curse. The Lily (The Church/Messiah) thrives despite the curse, proving that grace is superior to the fallen ground.
• Cosmic/Sod: The lily has six petals. In Gematria and symbolism, six is the number of man. The Lily is man "blossoming" into the image of God.

Bible References

• Isa 35:1: "The desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose." (The transformation of the wilderness)
• Hosea 14:5: "I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily." (Divine sustenance as the source of growth)

Song of Solomon 2:3-6: The Shelter of the King

"As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love. Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love. His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me."

The Tree of Life and the Table of Grace

• The Apple Tree (Tapuach): Most scholars agree this is a Citron or Apricot tree, as common apples didn't thrive in ANE climates. The "trees of the wood" are wild, non-fruit-bearing trees. He is the only one who provides both "Shadow" (Protection) and "Fruit" (Provision).
• "Shadow" (Tsel): In Hebrew thought, the "shadow" of God (Ps 91:1) is the place of absolute safety. Sitting "under his shadow" represents the soul resting in the finished work of the King.
• The Banqueting House (Beyt HaYayin): Literally, "The House of Wine." Wine in Scripture symbolizes joy and the Holy Spirit (Eph 5:18). This isn't just a meal; it's a celebration of intoxication with Divine Presence.
• The Banner (Degel): A degal was a military standard. When an army conquered a territory, they raised their degal. He has "conquered" her with love, not force. His standard isn't judgment, but ahavah (unconditional love).
• Linguistic "Sick of Love": Cholat Ahavah means "faint" or "overwhelmed" by love. This is the "ecstasy" of the saints (St. Teresa of Avila, Bernard of Clairvaux).

Structure & Parallelism

• Verse 6: Represents a total "encompassing" (left hand/right hand). The "left hand" (Justice/History/Strength) is under the head, and the "right hand" (Mercy/Spirit/Future) embraces. It is the full integration of God's character.

Bible References

• Psalm 91:1: "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty."
• Psalm 23:5: "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies."

Song of Solomon 2:7: The Cosmic Warning

"I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please."

Divine Timing & the Sabbath of the Heart

• The Oath: She swears by "roes and hinds" (deer/gazelles). These are animals of the wilderness, beautiful but easily startled.
• The Meaning: Do not force spiritual intimacy. There is a "God-breathed" pace to revival and relationship. Forcing "love" (the Presence) before the appointed time results in the "startling" away of the Spirit.
• Polemics: This subverts the "magic" of pagan rituals that try to force the gods to act through incense or sex. Here, the King moves at the "good pleasure" of his own will.

Song of Solomon 2:8-9: The Inter-dimensional King

"The voice of my beloved! behold, he cometh leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills. My beloved is like a roe or a young hart: behold, he standeth behind our wall, he looketh forth at the windows, shewing himself through the lattice."

The Gazelle on the Mountains

• The Voice (Qol): She hears him before she sees him. "Faith comes by hearing." (Rom 10:17).
• Leaping on Mountains: The "mountains" and "hills" are the barriers of the world—difficulties, sin, distance. The King (Messiah) makes "minced meat" of these obstacles.
• The Lattice (Kharakkim): A unique word (Hapax Legomenon). It refers to the openings in a window.
• Cosmic/Sod Analysis: This depicts the Incarnation or Theophany. He is "behind the wall" of our humanity. He is looking in, but we only see him through a "lattice" (dimly, as in 1 Cor 13:12). He is near, yet there is still a thin veil.

Song of Solomon 2:10-13: The Resurrected Spring

"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 birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land; The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away."

The Call to Exodus and New Creation

• The Invitation (Rise up... Come away): Two commands. First, internal movement (Rise); second, external movement (Come). This is the Gospel invitation to leave the world behind.
• Winter (Setav): Representing the old age, the law, and the "winter" of the soul in sin.
• The Singing/Pruning: The Hebrew word Zamir can mean "singing" or "pruning." It’s the time of song because the dead things have been cut away.
• Voice of the Turtle (Dove): The turtle dove arrives in Israel in mid-April. Its voice signifies that the "Spring of the Kingdom" has officially arrived.
• Spiritual Fractal: This is the language of Resurrection morning. The winter of the grave is past.

Bible References

• Matthew 24:32: "When [the fig tree's] branch is yet tender... ye know that summer is nigh."
• Revelation 22:17: "The Spirit and the bride say, Come."

Song of Solomon 2:14: The Hidden Dove

"O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely."

The Secret Place of Protection

• The Clefts of the Rock: This refers to the rugged terrain of the Dead Sea or the Judean wilderness where doves hid in the limestone holes.
• Spiritual Sod: This is Moses in the cleft of the rock (Exodus 33). To be in the "cleft of the rock" is to be hidden "In Christ" (the Rock of Ages).
• Secret Places of the Stairs: Likely the narrow, hidden mountain passes.
• The King’s Request: He is not looking for her works, but her "face" and "voice" (Prayer and Fellowship).

Song of Solomon 2:15: Spiritual Security/Counter-Intelligence

"Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes."

The Strategy of Spiritual Maintenance

• The Foxes (Shualim): Specifically the "jackals" or small foxes that burrow under vineyard walls and eat the young shoots/buds.
• "Little" Foxes: It's rarely the big "lion" sins that destroy ministry or marriage; it's the "little" compromises—bitterness, apathy, "white" lies.
• Corporate Task: Note the plural—"Take us the foxes." Sanctification is a cooperative effort between the King and the Bride.
• The Tendering: When the grape is "tender" (Semadar), it is at its most vulnerable. New converts or new movements of the Spirit are the targets of these "foxes."

Song of Solomon 2:16-17: Mutual Possession

"My beloved is mine, and I am his: he feedeth among the lilies. Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of Bether."

The Great Exchange

• Mutual Inhabitation: This is the "Identity" verse of the entire Bible. I don't belong to myself.
• Feeding among the Lilies: The King finds his satisfaction where the Bride is (the lilies).
• Bether (Division): The "Mountains of Bether" mean "mountains of separation/cuttings."
• The Cry for Return: She asks him to "Turn"—be the Gazelle again—over the mountains of division (the gap between Heaven and Earth) until the "Day breaks" (the Second Coming/The Final Day).

Summary Table: Key Entities & Archetypes

Final In-Depth Chapter Synthesis

1. The Chiasm of Invitation

Chapter 2 is structurally designed to emphasize the "Awakening."

• (A) Identification with the Meadow/Sharon (v. 1-2)
  • (B) Sitting under the Tree/The Feast (v. 3-6)
    • (C) CORE: The Warning against waking love early (v. 7)
  • (B') Seeing the King Leap/The Window (v. 8-9)
• (A') The Call to Leave the Meadow/Enter the Spring (v. 10-15)

2. The Gematria of the Lily

In Hebrew, the word Shoshannah (Lily) has a numeric value associated with "The Sun" (Shemesh) in certain Jewish mystic circles. The 6-petaled lily is the flower that follows the light. In the "Titan-Silo" perspective, the Church is the Lily that only functions when looking toward the Son.

3. The Mountains of Bether: The Separation Principle

"Bether" is derived from Batar—to cut in pieces. This echoes the Covenant between the Pieces in Genesis 15 where Abraham cut the animals and the "smoking furnace" passed through. Song 2:17 is effectively a prayer: "O Lord, skip across the mountains of the broken covenant! Though we were divided, leaping over the sacrifice of Christ to return to me."

4. ANE Polemical Masterstroke

Most ANE "Gods" lived on mountaintops and stayed there. In Song 2, the King leaps off the mountains to come to the low valleys. This is a massive theological correction to the Babylonian and Canaanite ideas of an aloof deity. The God of Solomon is an "Active Seeker" who is "sick of love" (yearning) for His people just as much as they yearn for Him.

5. Practical Theology: Catching the Foxes

To apply this chapter, one must move past the "Banquet" phase into the "Gardening" phase. You cannot enjoy the wine (v. 4) while ignoring the foxes (v. 15). The "Tender grapes" represent the fruits of the Spirit that have just begun to manifest. A single "fox" of unconfessed resentment can sour the entire "vineyard" of a life’s work.

This chapter is the ultimate "Divine Invitation." It declares that winter—the season of barrenness, death, and silence—is over because the King has arrived at the window of the world. It calls the believer out of their "cleft of the rock" (comfort/fear) to join the King in the business of the Vineyard.

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