The King's Delight: A Geography of Grace Text: Song of Solomon 7:1-9
Introduction: The War on the Body
We live in an age that is profoundly confused about the human body. Our culture is simultaneously obsessed with the body and disgusted by it. On the one hand, we have the airbrushed idolatry of magazine covers and the cheap, industrial degradation of pornography. On the other hand, we have a new strain of Gnosticism that teaches that our bodies are prisons, that our given biological sex is an arbitrary assignment, and that true freedom is found by escaping the body through technology or ideology. Both the hedonist and the Gnostic, the pornographer and the transgender activist, are united in one thing: they hate the body as God made it.
Into this confusion, the Word of God speaks with breathtaking clarity and beauty. The Song of Solomon is not a book to be embarrassed about, to be spiritualized away into a bland allegory, or to be locked away from the children. It is a divine celebration of covenantal, marital, physical love. And it is this, precisely because marital love is designed by God to be a living, breathing icon of the love between Christ and His Church. To despise the one is to misunderstand the other.
This passage is a declaration of war against all who would cheapen or deny the goodness of the created body. It is a polemic against the prude who sees the body as dirty and the pervert who makes it so. The Bible presents a third way: the way of sanctified delight. Here, the King does not lust after his bride; he poetically adores her. He sees her not as an object for his use, but as a glorious work of art, a gift from God to be cherished and celebrated. This is not raw sensuality; it is covenantal aesthetics. And as we walk through this geography of grace, we must keep both realities in view: the passionate love of a husband for his wife, and the even more passionate love of King Jesus for His bride, the Church.
The Text
How beautiful are your feet in sandals, O noble’s daughter! The curves of your thighs are like ornaments, The work of the hands of an artist. Your navel is like a round basin Which never lacks mixed wine; Your belly is like a heap of wheat Encircled with lilies. Your two breasts are like two fawns, Twins of a gazelle. Your neck is like a tower of ivory, Your eyes like the pools in Heshbon By the gate of Bath-rabbim; Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon, Which faces toward Damascus. Your head crowns you like Carmel, And the flowing locks of your head are like purple threads; The king is captivated by your tresses. How beautiful and how pleasant you are, My love, with all your pleasures! Your stature is like a palm tree, And your breasts are like its clusters. I said, ‘I will climb the palm tree; I will seize its fruit stalks.’ Oh, may your breasts be like clusters of the vine, And the fragrance of your breath like apples, And your mouth like the best wine!” “It goes down smoothly for my beloved, Flowing gently through the lips of those who fall asleep.
(Song of Solomon 7:1-9 LSB)
The Foundation of Her Walk (v. 1)
The King begins his praise from the ground up, starting with her feet.
"How beautiful are your feet in sandals, O noble’s daughter! The curves of your thighs are like ornaments, The work of the hands of an artist." (Song of Solomon 7:1)
Her feet are not just beautiful in themselves; they are beautiful in their function, in their movement, shod in sandals. This is a woman who is going somewhere. For the Church, this is a direct echo of the prophet Isaiah: "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news" (Isaiah 52:7). The Church is beautiful to her King as she walks in obedience, carrying the gospel into the world.
He calls her "noble's daughter," or prince's daughter. She has a royal pedigree. She is not common; she has dignity and worth. In the same way, the Church is composed of the children of the King of Kings. We are a royal priesthood, a holy nation. Our identity is not in ourselves, but in our Father.
From her feet, he moves to the strength of her legs. "The curves of your thighs" are not described lustfully, but as masterful works of art. They are "ornaments," crafted by a master artist. This speaks of strength, stability, and the power to bring forth life. For the Church, this represents her foundational doctrines and the stability they provide. The Church is God's masterpiece, His poema (Ephesians 2:10), and her structure is not accidental but designed by the ultimate Artist for strength and beauty.
The Center of Her Fruitfulness (v. 2-3)
Next, the King praises the center of her body, the source of life and nourishment.
"Your navel is like a round basin Which never lacks mixed wine; Your belly is like a heap of wheat Encircled with lilies. Your two breasts are like two fawns, Twins of a gazelle." (Song of Solomon 7:2-3 LSB)
The navel, a basin of "mixed wine," speaks of intoxicating joy and fellowship. The belly, a "heap of wheat," is an undeniable symbol of fertility, abundance, and life. She is fruitful. The lilies encircling the wheat speak of the purity and beauty that surrounds this fruitfulness. In marriage, this is a direct and glorious celebration of her capacity for childbearing and the life-giving nature of their union.
For the Church, her center is the Lord's Table. Her navel is the communion cup, the round basin of mixed wine of the New Covenant that never runs dry. Her belly is her fruitfulness in the gospel. She is the place where the Bread of Life is found, a heap of wheat providing spiritual nourishment for a starving world. And this fruitfulness is to be encircled with the lilies of holiness and purity.
Her breasts, like twin fawns, are beautiful, symmetrical, and nurturing. For the Church, this is a beautiful picture of the Old and New Testaments. They are perfectly matched, twin sources of the pure spiritual milk by which believers grow into salvation (1 Peter 2:2). They are the means by which the Church nurtures her children in the faith.
Her Steadfast Perception (v. 4)
The King's gaze moves upward to her neck, eyes, and nose, praising her character and discernment.
"Your neck is like a tower of ivory, Your eyes like the pools in Heshbon By the gate of Bath-rabbim; Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon, Which faces toward Damascus." (Song of Solomon 7:4 LSB)
A "tower of ivory" speaks of something precious, strong, and unbending. The neck connects the head to the body. For the believer, the neck is faith, which connects us, the body, to Christ, the Head. It is to be strong and steadfast, not wavering. The Church's faith is a precious and strong defense.
Her eyes are like "pools in Heshbon," which were known for their clarity and stillness. She has clear, deep, tranquil vision. She is not flighty or easily distracted. The Church is to have this same spiritual perception, a deep and clear understanding of the truth, reflecting the heavens. Her nose is compared to a watchtower facing Damascus, a historic enemy of Israel. This is a picture of discernment. She can smell danger from a distance. The Church must have this same ability to discern between truth and error, to identify heresy from afar and guard the flock.
The Captivating Glory (v. 5-6)
Finally, he arrives at her head, and is utterly overcome.
"Your head crowns you like Carmel, And the flowing locks of your head are like purple threads; The king is captivated by your tresses. How beautiful and how pleasant you are, My love, with all your pleasures!" (Song of Solomon 7:5-6 LSB)
Her head, her entire bearing, is majestic like Mount Carmel, which was known for its lushness and beauty. Her hair is like "purple threads," the color of royalty. And the effect is overwhelming: "The king is captivated by your tresses." He is held captive, bound by her beauty. This is the language of complete adoration.
For the Church, her head is Christ, and all her glory is derived from Him. Yet that glory is real. Her "locks" are the multitude of individual believers, each one a royal thread, woven together into a glorious whole that captivates the heart of King Jesus. He is not a reluctant savior. He is not a stoic, distant deity. He is a King who is enthralled by the beauty of His redeemed people, a beauty that He Himself has given them. He looks at the Church, washed in His blood, and declares her beautiful and pleasant.
The Desired Union (v. 7-9)
His praise culminates in a declaration of his desire for union.
"Your stature is like a palm tree, And your breasts are like its clusters. I said, ‘I will climb the palm tree; I will seize its fruit stalks.’ Oh, may your breasts be like clusters of the vine, And the fragrance of your breath like apples, And your mouth like the best wine!” “It goes down smoothly for my beloved, Flowing gently through the lips of those who fall asleep." (Song of Solomon 7:7-9 LSB)
Her upright stature is like a palm tree, a symbol of righteousness and victory. He sees the fruit of her life and desires to partake. "I will climb the palm tree; I will seize its fruit stalks." This is not the language of assault; it is the language of eager, covenantal love. He desires the deepest possible intimacy. He blesses her, praying that her nourishment (breasts) would be abundant like grapes, her presence (breath) sweet like apples, and her words and kisses (mouth) intoxicating like the best wine.
And she responds, interrupting him to complete his thought. The wine of her love is not for just anyone. "It goes down smoothly for my beloved." Her entire being, her love, her words, are all directed to him and for him. It is a picture of total, joyful, mutual self-giving. This is the response of the Church to the love of Christ. All that we are, all that He has made us to be, is for Him. Our worship, our obedience, our very lives are to flow smoothly to our Beloved.
The Gospel Embodied
This is the kind of love that God ordained for marriage. It is descriptive, appreciative, passionate, and exclusive. It is a total adoration of the whole person. This is the standard, and we should not settle for the world's cheap imitations.
But more than that, this is a portrait of how King Jesus loves His Church. He does not see you, believer, in your sin and filth. He sees you as you are in Him: a noble's daughter, a work of art, fruitful, pure, steadfast, and glorious. He is not ashamed of you. He is captivated by you. He is the King who is held captive by the beauty He has bestowed upon His bride.
The world tells you to either worship your body or despise it. The gospel tells you to present your body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship (Romans 12:1). God made the body, Christ redeemed the body, and the Holy Spirit dwells in the body. One day, He will glorify the body. Therefore, whether in the joyful union of marriage or in chaste service as a single person, your body is for the Lord. And as you walk in faithfulness, your King looks upon you and says, "How beautiful you are, my love."