Monday, November 2, 2009

Rainbow Review of First Phase

SOS 1:1 Name and intro of song
SOS 1:2-3 Beloved praises the Lover
SOS 1:4a Beloved longs to join Lover in freedom
SOS 1:4b Choir joins in and amplifies praise.
SOS 1:5 Beloved recognizes her burnt state.
SOS 1:6 Her darkened complexion is a result of brothers' harsh treatment
SOS 1:7a She asks about affairs of the Lover
SOS 1:7b She asks why she must wander or remain veiled among Lover's companions.
SOS 1:8 Lover speaks for the first time. He tells her to seek for answers.
SOS 1:9 Lover compares Beloved to his mare.
SOS 1:10 He tells her she's beautiful with her jewelry
SOS 1:11 Choir joins in to amplify His giving and creative nature.
1:12 Beloved speaks again, this time about her perfume.
1:13 She compares lover to myrrh (healing) near her heart.
1:14 She compares Him to henna (beautifying)
1:15 Lover praises the Beloved's beauty, emphasising her eyes, (the window to her soul)
1:16a The Beloved calls him handsome.
1:16b She notes also that he is pleasant and the couch they recline on is luxuriant.
1:17 She further notes the strength and beauty of the ceiling over their heads.

In chapter one, the Beloved has 11 verses and the Lover has only 5, not even speaking until verse 8. Therefore most of the chapter is from the female point of view, not the male.

SOS 2:1 Beloved compares herself to a common and abundant flower.
SOS 2:2 Lover assures her that she is special to him.
SOS 2:3 & 4 Again the Beloved makes mention of being sheltered and fed by the Lover on no small scale.
SOS 2:4 The Beloved mentions that she is faint with love.
SOS 2:5 She desires an intimate embrace from the Lover.
SOS 2:6 The Lover asks that his beloved, or love, itself, not be awakened before it's time.

This is the end of phase one.
In phase one the Beloved has 16 verses. The Lover has only 7. Also note that after the intro the Beloved is the first to speak and her mouth is filled with praise. The Lover has the last word, but his greatest concern is for the pleasure of the Beloved. He is also concerned about pushing love too fast. He doesn't want to do that.
Also note the foundation that phase one has made for the rest of the book. There is only loving, caring, giving, and sheltering toward the Beloved from the Lover of her soul. A perfect set up for phase II.

5 comments:

Mara Reid said...

Sorry for the really bright colors.
I hope I didn't blind anyone. I just wanted to close Phase I out with a bang before moving on to Phase II.
I openly admit I may have overdone it a bit. But I liked playing with the colors and don't feel like going back to muting them.
I'm really excited about Phase II and the message in it for the healing soul.

JaneDoeThreads said...

Mara,

I like the rainbow! I won't be online much anymore...been going back and forth with this 'habit' of crying out [really to God for answers] but finding, that what I usually wind up with is just dealing with 'triggers',

it finally dawned on me [revealed and confirmed in three dreams] that my 'lens' is going to be a lot different from many women who are dealing with the male abuse, because I am dealing with 'two' types, well anyway, you know where Jesus says, if your hand offends thee, cut it off, etc., well, that was what the Holy Spirit has been trying to Get me to do, for some time now, but the 'isolation' is very hard at times, but its the isolation is when I hear from Him, you know,

ah, but anyway...why I'm posting today, was just wrapping up some things online and read here, and it dawned on me, I read it other day...and something jumped out, I prayed about it, no answer,

then today, got it. Some of it...will respond below, what I noticed about the first phase.

Jane

JaneDoeThreads said...

OK Mara,

what jumped out at me, was that line about the 'ceiling', that is key there, about something,

the burnt treatment, is the Law, the woman--Israel. [God called Israel His 'beloved' time and time again]

I believe the ceiling may be the overall 'mystery' of God's plan, but not sure yet...

the myrrh represents God's sacrifice for His bride [Jesus], and the 'awakened before her time', is about, the redemption of Israel [Romans, Revelations], Jerusalem.

God's real plan and love for His 'bride', His people, of whom He said, He is married too, numerous times in Old Testament. [We are grafted in]

well--anyway, that is how I see SOS when I read it, just because, well, when you read about King David before he passed, the Shunammite girl [that was given to him to keep him warm though they had no sexual relations--I Kings 1-2],

then, it goes on to discuss how Solomon wanted her, but there was another who wanted her too--to get the kingship, his name was Adonijah, he plotted to seize the throne [after David died], David had made an oath to Bathsheba. Anyway, 1 Kings is related, I believe, to the SOS. Look at I Kings 2:13-27,

if Adonijah would have been given marriage to the Shunammite girl [who was King David's] then Adonijah would have rights to kingship, at least that is how I read it, Adonijah was put to death.

Anyway, I will go back and read it, but there is something there, because I've seen a few references, also in Elijah, another Shunammite woman is spoken about,

its the 'symbolism', but anyway, I don't see SOS as this individual one on one like many see it,

but more about the relationship between the Lord God and Israel.

The more I read it, the more I see it, but its after reading a lot in Old Testament and the revealing in New...any thoughts?

Jane

Mara Reid said...

I see so much depth to SOS.

I see the level of God=Lover and Israel/Grafted in Church=Beloved.

I also see God's overflowing love toward women in general.

I also see God's overflowing love toward the individual believer.

To me, SOS is almost the heart of the Bible, pulling together so much on the love aspect of God. He is so gracious to those who love Him. He has so much outpouring and giving He wants to shower on us. The only reason He doesn't give us the full force, sometimes, is because we wouldn't be able to take it. We have to be trained in how to love Him back. Sometimes it's baby steps. Sometimes we can leap forward to larger portions of knowing Him.

And yeah, you are right about the OT. I also see it in the NT. It is almost as though a person can use SOS to adjust their point of view, to enlarge it, to see bigger portions of who God is. After all, He is love.

P.S. I'm glad you liked the colors and they didn't blind you. ;)

JaneDoeThreads said...

Hi Mara,

I have only read SOS twice, I tend to lean more towards Hosea, and parts of Isaiah where God's character of love is concerned, where I'm at right now. And I mention this, because it IS because of the 'abuse' of those types of scriptures, the damage it did to me, via the 'influence' on so many decisions that were 'part', emphasis on part, of the years of spiritual whoredom that I took part in.

That is the one side of patriarchy that is VERY dangerous, especially to young women, that emphasis on 'sex' and 'fertility', because it gets one's eyes on the 'flesh' rather than the Spirit, and leaves the door Wide open, for the enemy to come in, disguised as God, and wrecking havoc in lives,

and causing flat out spiritual adultery against Jesus. So while I can read SOS, at the time, I tend to look at it only in the relation between God and His People, rather than the individual. For now that is, until the Spirit leads me other wise,

which leads me to that 'ceiling' question again, and I saw part of the answer in Hosea last night...where it says, "I desire mercy and not sacrifice",
well, most leave it there,

but it goes on to say, And the 'knowledge of God' rather than burnt offerings.

That knowledge of God really stuck out at me yesterday, been meditating on that, before though, just to mention, God tells Hosea about the people forsaking God, like an adulterous, lying, stealing, oppressing the poor, etc.,

and you know, God talks about the 'lying' a lot, the 'deceptions', as well as the 'other gods', and something that Really got my attention, when He says the 'spirit of whoredom',

its a real spirit. And another part in Hosea, where God says, we lose the 'heart' in whoredom, idolatry, and something else, can't remember [Bible in other room], but,

we do lose the 'heart', the ability to be compassionate and love and yes, obey God.

The thing about God's love for us, is that, in this Individual culture, we too often focus on 'what God does for us or can do', yet, Love is energy,

if it just sits there, and is hoarded, it goes stagnate, we lose heart. Until LOVE is given away, we don't really KNOW the Love of God,

not really. [Faith without works is dead] The problem with so many today, is that they are dependent upon 'waiting' for the Lord's presence, on the 'feeling of climax' in God's love [I feel this to be the case more than God with holding],

and then it becomes 'flesh' and 'self-centered driven',

rather than, learning, that the 'key' to the Love--is in passing that cup of cold water to one who is in need and who most likely, is not acting very loving towards us, those who need it the most.

When we can 'deny self', and take up that cross and Follow Jesus [we forget that 'follow Him part'], and do as He does in us,

then, we find, God isn't withholding anything,

it was there all the time. We were the ones blocking it...its like a rose Mara, until she opens up to the sun, she remains a closed bud. Its only, when she opens up, to the sun, in giving of herself, that she gives off fragrance,

then the winds caress her and the bees love her.

When she gives off the fragrance--she is then, cherished, in the physical. By God, [not necessarily by man, or woman for that fact--usually they'll try to stomp her, cut her, destroy her] but God,

God, loves each and every one. He is, after all, the Perfect Gardener.

Ever count the times, in the Bible, Jesus went to the Garden? We can learn a lot, by doing the same...



Jane