The
Bride alone and in darkness: the Beloved sought for
In chapter 3 we have
another attitude, another state of heart. She is alone
and in darkness. She seeks her Beloved, but finds Him
not. There is affection, but no joy. She questions the
watchmen in Jerusalem who go about the city. As soon as
she passes from them, she finds Him. Again He will have
her rest in His love. But all this is only prophetically
and in testimony, for the comfort of those who have not
yet found Him, by shewing them what He is for them. The
Spirit of prophecy then exhibits the Bridegroom coming up
out of the wilderness with His bride, where (like Moses)
He had been with her in spirit. The chapter confirms the
application to Israel. In her solitary state she seeks
the Messiah, and, after inquiring of those who watched,
soon found Him her soul loved, and brought Him into the
place of Israel, for to Israel the Son was born, [1] though in a new relationship.
There He maintains her rest, and there, the other side of
the picture, the true Solomon comes up out of the
wilderness, crowned now in the day of His espousals, and
in the day of the gladness of His heart, by the Israel
that had rejected Him.
Song of Solomon 3 Bible Commentary
John Darby’s Synopsis
In chapter 3 we have another attitude, another state of heart. She is alone and in darkness. She seeks her Beloved, but finds Him not. There is affection, but no joy. She questions the watchmen in Jerusalem who go about the city. As soon as she passes from them, she finds Him. Again He will have her rest in His love. But all this is only prophetically and in testimony, for the comfort of those who have not yet found Him, by shewing them what He is for them. The Spirit of prophecy then exhibits the Bridegroom coming up out of the wilderness with His bride, where (like Moses) He had been with her in spirit. The chapter confirms the application to Israel. In her solitary state she seeks the Messiah, and, after inquiring of those who watched, soon found Him her soul loved, and brought Him into the place of Israel, for to Israel the Son was born, [1] though in a new relationship. There He maintains her rest, and there, the other side of the picture, the true Solomon comes up out of the wilderness, crowned now in the day of His espousals, and in the day of the gladness of His heart, by the Israel that had rejected Him.
[1] So Naomi, and Revelation 12.