This Sunday, we begin a journey into one of the most neglected books of the Bible—the Song of Songs. For many, this book feels mysterious, even puzzling. It is full of rich and sensual imagery that can leave us wondering: Why is this in the Bible?
The answer is profoundly simple yet deeply significant: God created sex, gender, and marriage for the purpose of teaching us something about Himself.
Christ in All the Scriptures
After his resurrection, Jesus explained that the entire Old Testament points to him—his incarnation, his atonement, and his resurrection:
“This is what I told you while I was still with you: everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” (Luke 24:44)
The Law, Prophets, and Psalms are the major divisions that comprise the whole Old Testament. And so Jesus is making it clear that the Bible is about Him. That includes the Song of Songs. From Genesis to Revelation, the image of marriage is one of the Bible’s great metaphors for the relationship between God and his people ultimately culminating in Christ. In that sense, the Song is not an outlier. It completes the pattern of romance and marital imagery woven throughout God’s Word.
Why the “Song of Songs”?
The very title of the book is a clue to its meaning. It does not call itself the “Song of Solomon” but the “Song of Songs” (Song of Songs 1.1)—a Hebrew superlative meaning the greatest song of all. Think of “King of kings” or “Lord of lords.” For this song to claim such a title, it must be about far more than human love alone.
If it were only about romance and passion, it would place human intimacy above the worship of God himself—a form of idolatry. Instead, its title signals that this is the supreme song of love, ultimately pointing us to the greatest love of all: the covenant love of Christ for his people.
A Landscape of Love
The Song’s lyrical poetry locates us in a land of beauty and abundance—the Promised Land itself. Its imagery draws on vineyards, gardens, and towers, celebrating both the landscape and the love of a bride and groom. At times, the woman herself is described as a fruitful land, echoing God’s delight in his people:
“You will be called Hephzibah [‘my delight is in her’], and your land Beulah [‘married’]; for the Lord will take delight in you, and your land will be married.” (Isaiah 62:4)
This is not mere romance. It is theology in poetry, reminding us that God delights in his people and longs for a relationship of intimacy and covenant love.
Longing for Christ
At the human level, the Song of Songs affirms the goodness of intimacy within marriage—a relationship that is close, committed, joyful, exclusive, and yes, sexual. In a culture where marriage is constantly under attack from pornography to abuse, we want to be a church that gladly celebrates the good gift of marriage that God has given. Hebrews 13:4 commands us to “Let marriage be held in honor among all.” So whether married or single, God’s desire is for all of us to hold marriage in honor because marriage is not ultimately about what is happening between the husband and wife. It is pointing us to the great love of Christ that we were made to enjoy.
The Song of Songs is not just for married couples but is meant to awaken in all of us a longing for something more:
A love greater than what even the best human romance can offer.
A union deeper than any earthly marriage.
An intimacy that only Christ can satisfy.
The Song of Songs stirs our imaginations to see how Christ loves us, and to anticipate the eternal marriage supper of the Lamb.
Join Us
As we walk through this book together, we will explore how its passionate poetry shows us the beauty and depth of human love and points us to the greatest love of all- Christ Himself. Our prayer is that through this series, your heart will become even more captivated with Jesus as you learn how to experience deeper intimacy with Him.
Recommended Resources
- Song of Songs by Ian Duguid
- Lover of My Soul by Julian Handyman
- Sermons on the Song of Songs by Charles Spurgeon
- The Love of Christ by Richard Sibbes
Note to Parents
The Song of Songs is filled with sensual imagery. It is not crude or crass, but it is intimate. Our desire is to preach this carefully, tastefully, and faithfully. We live in a sexualized culture that is constantly trying to disciple your child with warped immorality. Some studies have shown that the average age of a child’s first exposure to pornography is 8. Many parents think “my child is innocent”, or “they aren’t ready yet”, and their delay in opening up a conversation about sex gives the opportunity for the world to be the first influence on your child’s life. Don’t let that happen. Initiate and engage your children about sex before they hear about it from someone else. Talking to your kids about sex is good, necessary, and healthy. Don’t have “the talk.” Have many talks where you explain God’s good plan for marriage and sex, and openly welcome whatever questions they might have. Encourage questions. You’d rather have them come to you with their curiosity than do an internet search. Now, the Song of Songs is not a sex “how-to ” manual, and we won’t be graphic. But there are definitely going to be opportunities for conversations, as there is no getting around the fact that this book is full of imagery that is sexual in nature.
This would be a great time to start reading the sermon passage before coming to the worship service. That’s a practice that we always should do as it prepares our heart for what God is going to speak. We send out the sermon text in the Sunday Preview for this purpose. If you don’t currently do this, though, this sermon series would be a great time to start. It would be good to know what is going to be read, what words your kids will read in their Bibles, and to have a conversation about it before coming. Let them get all their giggles out ahead of time about “kisses” and “breasts” and pray together as a family for God to use the sermon to speak to your hearts about the love of Christ.
Here are some great resources you can use to disciple your younger children in this area.
- God Made All of Me by Justin and Lindsey Holcomb
-
The Talk: 7 Lessons to Introduce Your Child to Biblical Sexuality
- A Child’s First Book about Marriage by Jani Ortlund
May the Lord bless you in your sacred task of discipling your children in the ways of the Lord.