Christian Education Pre-K-12
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Pillars and Posts - part 3 of 3

Amplified

Song of Solomon 3:6-11

Twice within Song of Solomon the question is posed: Who is this coming out of the wilderness? First, “Who or what is this…that comes gliding out of the wilderness like stately pillars of smoke perfumed with myrrh, frankincense and all the fragrant powders of the merchant?” {3:6} and second, “Who is this who comes up from the wilderness leaning upon her beloved?” (8:4). The answer to the first is clearly stated, “Behold, it is the traveling litter—the bridal car—of Solomon” {7}. The answer to the second becomes apparent by interpreting Christ as the beloved upon whom the bride (the Church) is both joined and leaning. For out of the wilderness experience she emerges supported, comforted and strengthened.

While the world may note the other-worldly quality of the regal procession, the precious and private intimacy of the royal couple remains hidden under the canopy and within the veil of the palanquin. The question “Who or what is this?” combined with the description of “stately pillars of smoke” conveys a delicate, ethereal quality of ascension. Are we not as the bridal car unrecognizable even to those who knew us prior to the wilderness experience with our beloved? Are we not also perfumed pillars, made sweet savors both to the God of our worship and to those who seek Him? Paul writes in 2 Cor 2:14-16, “But thanks be to God, Who in Christ always leads us in triumph…and through us spreads and makes evident the fragrance of the knowledge of God everywhere, For we are the sweet fragrance of Christ [which exudes] unto God, [discernible alike] among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing: To the latter it is an aroma [wafted] from death to death – a fatal odor, the smell of doom; to the former it is an aroma from life to life – a vital fragrance, living and fresh. And who is qualified (fit and sufficient) for these things? [–Who is able for such a ministry? We?]

Like pillars of smoke do we not smell of frankincense and myrrh as we emerge from our wilderness testing? Like frankincense, have we not been pierced and distilled? For to obtain frankincense an incision is made into the bark and deep into the trunk that the substance may then be extracted and distilled. This process of separation and purification produces a product used for perfume, medicine and incense. While frankincense is sold in the shape of irregular lumps or teardrops, our worth in Christ is beyond measure. Though the wilderness is bitter, like myrrh, we come forth smelling of Christ’s sweetness.

Besides the covered chariot, sixty armed guards make up the royal procession. “Sixty mighty men are about it, of the mighty men of Israel. They all handle the sword and are expert in war. Every man has his sword upon his thigh, that fear be not excited in the night” {3:7b-8}. From all those who have been called, these sixty are the chosen to occupy strategic positions as moving pillars of defense for the royal couple. Trained, equipped, and ready, each moves instantly, obediently and purposefully to the demands of his assigned post. Essential for readiness, the sword upon the thigh represents the sovereignty of the God’s Word and Spirit over the fleshly nature. Though made up of sixty individuals, the defenders move as one. Having previously prevailed, they are deemed as expert in war, an overcoming remnant.

“King Solomon made himself a car or a palanquin of state of the cedar wood of Lebanon. He made its posts of silver, its back of gold, its seat of purple, the inside of it being lovingly and intricately wrought in needlework by the daughters of Jerusalem” {3:9-10}. Of King Solomon, it is written that his mother “called his name Solomon. And the Lord loved [the child]; He sent [a message] by the hand of Nathan the prophet; and {Nathan} called the boy’s [special] name Jedidiah [beloved of the Lord], because the Lord [loved the child]” {2 Sam 12:24-25}. In that the Father “hath made us accepted in the beloved” {Eph 1:6b}, we, like Solomon, are both sons of the King and inheritors of the Kingdom. Within the silver, gold, and purple we find symbolic references to redemption, divinity and royalty.

Echoing from the description of the chariot’s intricacy of needlework are the words of Solomon’s father as he reflects on the Lord’s formation of his own embryonic and fetal stages: “My frame was not hidden from You, when I was being formed in secret and intricately and curiously wrought (as if embroidered with various colors) in the depths of the earth [a region of darkness and mystery]. Your eyes saw my unformed, substance, and in Your book all the days of my life were written, before ever they took shape, when as yet there was not of them. How precious and weighty also Your thoughts to me, O God! How vast is the some of them!” {Ps 139:15-17}.

The apostle Paul also refers to this theme of God’s creative and purposeful intricacy: “For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship) recreated in Christ Jesus [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us, (taking paths which He prepared ahead of time) that we should walk in them – living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live” {Eph 2:10}. Jesus Christ, God’s Perfected Pillar and King, still bids us join his royal procession, for “In this [union and communion with Him] love is brought to completion and attains perfection…because as He is, so are we in this world” {I John 4:17}.

-Ruth French

June Newsletter 2003 | Pursue Your God In Holiness | Love: The Protection of God

Pastor's Journal June 2002 | The Lord Is Our Refuge | Present Day Fathers part 3 | Pillars and Posts part 3 of 3

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