Song of Solomon 3.

¹By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not. ²I will rise now, and go about the city in the streets, and in the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not. ³The watchmen that go about the city found me: to whom I said , Saw ye him whom my soul loveth? ⁴It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother' s house, and into the chamber of her that conceived me. ⁵I 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. ⁶Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all powders of the merchant? ⁷Behold his bed, which is Solomon’s; threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel. ⁸They all hold swords, being expert in war: every man hath his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night. ⁹King Solomon made himself a chariot of the wood of Lebanon. ¹⁰He made the pillars thereof of silver, the bottom thereof of gold, the covering of it of purple, the midst thereof being paved with love, for the daughters of Jerusalem. ¹¹Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold king Solomon with the crown wherewith his mother crowned him in the day of his espousals, and in the day of the gladness of his heart.

Commentary (3)

Adam Clarke

The bride mentions the absence of her spouse, her search after him, and her ultimate success, Sol 3:1-5. A description of the bridegroom, his bed, chariot, etc., Sol 3:6-11.

John Gill

INTRODUCTION TO SONG OF SOLOMON 3

In this chapter an account is given of an adventure of the church, in quest of her beloved; of the time when, and places where, and the persons of whom she sought him; and of her success upon the whole; with a charge she give to the daughters of Jerusalem, Sol 3:1; by whom she is commended, Sol 3:6; and then Christ, her beloved, is described by her; by his bed, and the guard about it, Sol 3:7; by the chariot he rode in, Sol 3:9; and by the crown he wore on his coronation day, Sol 3:11.

JFB

By night--literally, "By nights." Continuation of the longing for the dawn of the Messiah (Sol 2:17; Psa 130:6; Mal 4:2). The spiritual desertion here (Sol 2:17; Sol 3:5) is not due to indifference, as in Sol 5:2-8. "As nights and dews are better for flowers than a continual sun, so Christ's absence (at times) giveth sap to humility, and putteth an edge on hunger, and furnisheth a fair field to faith to put forth itself" [RUTHERFORD]. Contrast Sol 1:13; Psa 30:6-7.

on . . . bed--the secret of her failure (Isa 64:7; Jer 29:13; Amo 6:1, Amo 6:4; Hos 7:14).

loveth--no want of sincerity, but of diligence, which she now makes up for by leaving her bed to seek Him (Psa 22:2; Psa 63:8; Isa 26:9; Joh 20:17). Four times (Sol 3:1-4) she calls Jesus Christ, "Him whom my soul loveth," designating Him as absent; language of desire: "He loved me," would be language of present fruition (Rev 1:5). In questioning the watchmen (Sol 3:3), she does not even name Him, so full is her heart of Him. Having found Him at dawn (for throughout He is the morning), she charges the daughters not to abridge by intrusion the period of His stay. Compare as to the thoughtful seeking for Jesus Christ in the time of John the Baptist, in vain at first, but presently after successful (Luk 3:15-22; John 1:19-34).

found him not--Oh, for such honest dealings with ourselves (Pro 25:14; Jde 1:12)!

Cross-references (60)

Verse 1

Verse 2

Verse 3

Verse 4

Verse 5

Verse 6

Verse 7

Verse 8

Verse 9

Verse 10

Verse 11