Transcript

Podcast Introduction

This is Poetry Thursday. We’ll Song of Solomon, chapters 3-4  I’m calling today’s episode “The Wedding.” 

Comments on Song of Solomon 3-4

Chapter 3 shows us snapshots of the wedding ceremony and chapter 4 the wedding night.

Much of the language of this book sounds strange to modern ears. We do not speak in metaphors such as “Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down Mount Gilead. 2Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep coming up from washing, each one having a twin, and not one missing.” 

My suggestion is that you find a good commentary to help you understand the imagery and the meaning of the Song of Solomon. As I don’t have any control of who will listen to the podcast, and because this book is for a mature audience, I do not feel comfortable discussing it in detail. Here is a good list of commentaries on Song of Solomon.

The important points to remember are these: Attraction, courtship, affection, marriage and physical intimacy were created by God, and they are intended to be shared…in that order…between a man and a woman who are husband and wife. That is God’s perfect plan.

In our current culture, it is increasingly rare for people to adhere to God’s plan. But does that mean that there are no consequences for violating that plan? If culture says it’s OK, does that mean that God’s plan is outdated, inconsequential or no longer valid? Of course not. God’s plan is always better.

So what do we do if we have violated His plan? We ask God to forgive us. When we confess our sins…any sins…to God, He is faithful and just to forgive them, if we are in Christ Jesus. And then He removes those sins as far as the east is from the west. He doesn’t hold them over our heads, and He doesn’t hold a grudge. They are gone. And then, as Jesus said to the woman caught in the act of adultery, “Go and sin no more.”

Today’s Bible Translation

Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 3 NLT; Ch. 4 HCSB

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Transcript

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STEVE WEBB – 0:00
So what do we do if we violated his plan?

INTRO S12E344 – 0:10
Coming to you from Riverside, California, this is the Lifespring family Audio Bible. And podcasting since 2004, I’m your OG Godcaster, Steve Webb. This is the daily show where we’re reading through the entire Bible in a year. And after today, there are twenty episodes left. This is Poetry Thursday, we’ll read the Song of Solomon, chapters 3 and 4. I’m calling today’s episode “The Wedding.” The show notes page for today’s episode is lifespringmedia.com/s12e344. And my email address is st***@*************ia.com. Let’s begin.

SONG OF SONGS 3 (NLT) – 0:45
Song of Songs, chapter 3.

The Young Woman
(1) One night as I lay in bed, I yearned for my lover.
I yearned for him, but he did not come.
(2) So I said to myself, “I will get up and roam the city,
searching in all its streets and squares.
I will search for the one I love.”
So I searched everywhere but did not find him.
(3) The watchmen stopped me as they made their rounds,
and I asked, “Have you seen the one I love?”
(4) Then scarcely had I left them
when I found my love!
I caught and held him tightly,
then I brought him to my mother’s house,
into my mother’s bed, where I had been conceived.
(5) Promise me, O women of Jerusalem,
by the gazelles and wild deer,
not to awaken love until the time is right.

The Young Women of Jerusalem
(6) Who is this sweeping in from the wilderness
like a cloud of smoke?
Who is it, fragrant with myrrh and frankincense
and every kind of spice?
(7) Look, it is Solomon’s carriage,
surrounded by sixty heroic men,
the best of Israel’s soldiers.
(8) They are all skilled swordsmen,
experienced warriors.
Each wears a sword on his thigh,
ready to defend the king against an attack in the night.
(9) King Solomon’s carriage is built
of wood imported from Lebanon.
(10) Its posts are silver,
its canopy gold;
its cushions are purple.
It was decorated with love
by the young women of Jerusalem.

The Young Woman
(11) Come out to see King Solomon,
young women of Jerusalem.
He wears the crown his mother gave him on his wedding day,
his most joyous day.

SONG OF SOLOMON 4 (HCSB) – 2:27
Song of Solomon, chapter 4.

(1) How beautiful you are, my darling.
How very beautiful!
Behind your veil,
your eyes are doves.
Your hair is like a flock of goats
streaming down Mount Gilead.
(2) Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep
coming up from washing,
each one having a twin,
and not one missing.
(3) Your lips are like a scarlet cord,
and your mouth is lovely.
Behind your veil,
your brow is like a slice of pomegranate.
(4) Your neck is like the tower of David,
constructed in layers.
A thousand bucklers are hung on it —
all of them shields of warriors.
(5) Your breasts are like two fawns,
twins of a gazelle, that feed among the lilies.
(6) Before the day breaks
and the shadows flee,
I will make my way to the mountain of myrrh
and the hill of frankincense.
(7) You are absolutely beautiful, my darling,
with no imperfection in you.
(8) Come with me from Lebanon, my bride —
with me from Lebanon!
Descend from the peak of Amana,
from the summit of Senir and Hermon,
from the dens of the lions,
from the mountains of the leopards.
(9) You have captured my heart, my sister, my bride.
You have captured my heart with one glance of your eyes,
with one jewel of your necklace.
(10) How delightful your love is, my sister, my bride.
Your love is much better than wine,
and the fragrance of your perfume than any balsam.
(11) Your lips drip sweetness like the honeycomb, my bride.
Honey and milk are under your tongue.
The fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.
(12) My sister, my bride, you are a locked garden —
a locked garden and a sealed spring.
(13) Your branches are a paradise of pomegranates
with choicest fruits,
henna with nard —
(14) nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon,
with all the trees of frankincense,
myrrh and aloes,
with all the best spices.
(15) You are a garden spring,
a well of flowing water
streaming from Lebanon.

(16) Awaken, north wind —
come, south wind.
Blow on my garden,
and spread the fragrance of its spices.
Let my love come to his garden
and eat its choicest fruits.

COMMENTS – 4:52
In chapter 3, we hear snapshots of the wedding ceremony and in chapter 4 snapshots of the wedding night.

Much of the language of this book sounds kind of strange to modern ears. We don’t speak in metaphors such as “Your hair is like a flock of goats streaming down Mount Gilead. Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep coming up from washing, each one having a twin, and not one missing.”

I mean, it sounds kind of funny, right? Well, my suggestion is that you find a good commentary to help you understand the imagery and the meaning of the Song of Solomon. Because I don’t have any control of who will listen to this podcast, and because this book is for a mature audience, I don’t really feel comfortable discussing it in detail here. I will have a link on the show notes page to a good list of commentaries, though. So if you’d like more insight into the Song of Solomon, those commentaries will help you.

But we can glean some very important points, though, without getting too graphic. Those points are attraction, courtship, affection, marriage, and physical intimacy, and they were all created by God. And they are intended to be shared in that order, between a man and a woman who then progress to marriage. That’s God’s perfect plan.

In our current culture, it’s increasingly rare for people to adhere to God’s plan, though, isn’t it? But does that mean that there are no consequences for violating that plan? If a culture says it’s okay, does that mean that God’s plan is outdated, inconsequential or no longer valid? No, of course not. God’s plan is always better.

So what do we do if we violated his plan? Well, we ask God to forgive us. And when we confess our sins – any sins – to God, he is faithful and just to forgive them if we are in Christ Jesus. And then he removes those sins as far as the east is from the west. He doesn’t hold them over our heads and he doesn’t hold a grudge. They’re gone. And then, as Jesus said to the woman caught in the act of adultery, “Go and sin no more.”

Do you have a comment? Let me know. The show notes page where you can put your comment is at lifespringmedia.com/s12e344. Tomorrow is Prophecy Friday, and our reading will be Revelation 7 through 11.

Boost!

SUPPORTER SHOUT-OUTS – 7:22
I only go to the mailbox once every few days. And it’s been several days since I went to the mailbox, and so I went to pick up the mail today and found a very nice handwritten card and a check for $50 from Susan Johnson in Hillsboro, Oregon.

She said, “In the morning, Steve.” Well, I wonder where she heard about this show? The No Agenda podcast! She said, “I have not missed a single day of this season’s Lifespring Family Audio Bible. I appreciate your time and effort spent on each episode. And then regarding The Next Steps, I found it very helpful and relevant every time you shared your own views and comments relating to Scripture, as it dealt with current social topics. I’d love more of that. God bless you, Susan.”

Well, Susan, thank you. God bless you. It’s so good to hear from you. I’m happy to know that you’ve been here since day one and have enjoyed the show. And thank you for your Next Step idea, too. I’m collecting these ideas that are being sent in and putting them on a spreadsheet so that when the season is over, I’ll really be able to prayerfully consider the direction that the Lord is leading me. So again, thank you, Susan.

And, Beloved, if you have not yet sent in your thoughts and ideas for what you’d like to see me do after the end of the season, please take the time to do that right now. As you already know, if you’ve been listening regularly, I’ve announced that when season 12 ends at the end of this month, the daily version of the Lifespring Family Audio Bible will come to an end. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that I’ll be through with podcasting. It’s just that I can’t do a daily show anymore. So I’m asking the Lifespring family to help me decide what to do by sending ideas and suggestions to st***@*************ia.com with the subject line, “THE NEXT STEP”. I’m seeking the Lord’s will on this and he sometimes speaks through the advice of godly people. So I’m asking you guys. So as Frasier Crane said, “I’m listening”. And I do want to hear from every Lifespring family member, even if you’ve never written to me before. If you’ve been listening by now you know me and I’ll bet you have some thoughts as to what you’d like to hear me do. So please send that email or a nice handwritten note, like Susan did. My mailing address is on the support page at Lifespring media.com/support. God bless you.

ON THIS DATE IN CHURCH HISTORY – 9:53
On this date in church history, August 11, 1740, Irish-born English minister Philip Embury arrived in New York, making him the first Methodist clergyman to come to America. And in 1768, he founded Wesley Chapel.

And August 11, 1933 is the birth date of Jerry Falwell, US Baptist clergymen and founding pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Virginia. In 1979, he founded the Moral Majority, a Christian political lobbying organization. I met Jerry Falwell, probably about 1984 or so. He was a big man. I’m not talking about girth. But he was he was tall. He was big. I shook his hand. And it was like grabbing on to a… he just had a big beefy hand. Very nice. I enjoyed my little conversation with him. He was one of the people I met at one of the Christian Booksellers Association conventions during my career in the Christian book selling industry.

PRAYER REQUESTS – 11:04
Prayer requests. Well, Steve O’Brien is still in the hospital and he has surgery is not yet scheduled. He’s developed a bit of a digestive problem, shall we say. And until they get that sorted out, they’re not going to schedule his surgery. So let’s pray that this gets resolved soon.

Right now Kathi is doing better, and then as Del said, then not so good. She’s having trouble off and on with equilibrium and nausea. She’s on so many drugs, he said. And she’s determined to do the stairs so that she can come home Friday. The daughter whose house she’s staying at is going to be hosting a party on Saturday for her mother-in-law. And Kathi doesn’t want to be there underfoot so to speak. So let’s pray that the equilibrium and the nausea problems go away and that she’ll be able to get up and down the stairs.

CLOSING PRAYER – 11:50
So let’s pray. Our heavenly Father, Lord, we love you so much. And we thank you for the many, many gifts you’ve given to us. We’re thankful to be yours. And we pray that you will give us opportunities to tell others about your love and the good news that you want to have a relationship with them.

I pray for Steve O’Brien, Lord. Whatever is causing his stomach problems, I pray that you’ll heal it and that his heart surgery would be soon. Be with Steve in his hospital room, Lord. Calm whatever anxiety he may be having. I know, Lord that he trusts in You. But I also know that it can be a bit nerve-wracking when surgery’s in the picture. You have Steve in your care. And we thank you for that promise.

I pray Lord, for Kathi that the equilibrium and nausea problems will go away and that she’ll be able to get up and down the stairs by Friday so that she can come home.

I pray, Lord, that you’d bless the Lifespring family. Draw us closer to you today than we were yesterday. And I pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

If you’ve got a prayer request or a praise, what do you do? Yeah, go to prayer.lifespringmedia.com.

OUTRO S12E344 – 12:59
Please remember to send me that NEXT STEP email. Okay, that’s all I’m gonna say. Comment on the show at lifespringmedia.com/s12e344. Except if you haven’t sent it yet, please do it, okay. Send me an email at st***@*************ia.com. “THE NEXT STEP” is the subject line. And thanks to the team: Kirsty, Sean of San Pedro and Denise. Thank you to the sat streamers. I see those sats coming in. I thank you so much for them. Thanks again, Susan for your gift. And thank you for sharing your time with me today. If you’ve been with the show all season long and you’re thankful for it, please consider sending a gift. Go to lifespringmedia.com/support.

Until tomorrow, may God bless you richly. My name is Steve Webb.

Bye.

Not sold in stores.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai
Corrected by Denise