With another infinitely practical piece of relationship advice, we now read of the value of really knowing our partners:
“Where has your beloved gone,
O most beautiful among women?
Where has your beloved turned?
Tell us, that we may seek him with you.
My beloved has gone down to his garden,
to the flowerbeds of balsam spices,
to graze in the gardens,
and to gather lilies.
I am my lover’s and my lover is mine;
he grazes among the lilies.”(The Song Of Solomon 6.1-3, NET)
Carrying on, it seems, the search for the beloved from the previous chapter, help is now offered (v.1b). Whether this is sarcastic or not (cf. 5.9) we don’t know for sure, but when the bride stops and thinks of her husband, when she pauses to ponder what she knows about him, the answer as to where he is and what he will be doing becomes clear:
“My beloved has gone down to his garden,
to the flowerbeds of balsam spices,
to graze in the gardens,
and to gather lilies.”
Speaking more literally of his garden here than in 4.16 and 5.1, we see that when the bride stops and thinks about her partner and her relationship her anxiety as to his whereabouts seem to disappear.
Relationships and marriages contain a great deal of feelings, for sure, but we should also really know our partners: who they are, what they are, how they act and react in given situations, where they are drawn to spending time…really knowing them.
Take a moment today to take onboard the Scriptural relationship advice we are getting from The Song Of Solomon and specifically here the call to really know our partners.
James Travis 