SOS 1:5-6: The
Shulamite To The Daughters Of Jerusalem
I am dark, but lovely, O daughters of
Jerusalem, like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of
Solomon. Do not look upon me, because I am dark, because the sun
has tanned me. My mother's sons were angry with me; they made me
the keeper of the vineyards, but my own vineyard I have not
kept.
SOS 2:15: Her
Brothers To The Shulamite
Catch us the foxes, the little foxes
that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes.
SOS 8:8-9: Her
Brothers To Solomon
We have a little sister, and she has no
breasts. What shall we do for our sister in the day when she is
spoken for? If she is a wall, we will build upon her a
battlement of silver; and if she is a door, we will enclose her
with boards of cedar.
The elder brothers of the Shulamite were
the sons of her mother. Probably their father had passed away, and
their mother had remarried the Shulamite’s father. And by some
intrinsic reasoning, their stepfather had also passed away. My basic
reasons are three-fold:
- The Shulamite’s father was not once
mentioned in the Song of Solomon. She stated her home address as
the house of her mother (SOS 3:4, 8:2).
- He was not there to protect her from
being bullied by her stepbrothers.
- He was not present to grant the
bridegroom permission to marry the bride.
The Shulamite had her own vineyard. It was
probably an inheritance from her dad. But she was not given time to
look after it. Her brothers were exploiting and bullying her. They
had not been taking good care of their own vineyards. They were bad
gardeners or vinedressers.
Their vines were still tender. They were
not like those illustrated in Numbers 13:23 whereby a single cluster
of grapes was so large that it would take two strong men to carry it
on a pole between them! The walls of their vineyards were not built
with excellent materials and strong bricks to withstand the matured
foxes from tunneling through. These holes on the walls were also not
being patched up to prevent the little foxes from coming in to feast
on the tender grapes. As the years went by, these walls were broken
down as they aged through the wear and tear of the sun, wind, rain
and snow.
King Solomon must have seen the poor
conditions of these vineyards as he described them in
Proverbs 24:30-34:
I went by the field of the lazy man
(slothful), and by the vineyard of the man devoid of
understanding; and there it was, all overgrown with thorns; its
surface was covered with nettles; its stone wall was broken
down. When I saw it, I considered it well; I looked on it and
received instruction: A little sleep, a little slumber, a little
folding of the hands to rest; so shall your poverty come like a
prowler, and your need like an armed man.
These brothers had given up on their
vineyards. They were not true shepherds who really loved their sheep
and lambs. They were more like the hirelings in John 10:12-13. They
were paid to do the jobs. No pain and no strain. Whenever things
went wrong, they ran away. In the case of the Shulamite’s brothers,
they had abandoned their vineyards. They asked their little sister
to do the work for them while they lazed away.
Besides planting and pruning their vines,
the Shulamite woman was also given the worst fatiguing job. It was
to catch the little foxes. Have you tried catching a clever cat? A
cunning fox is about ten times faster and harder! No wonder her skin
was dark, totally tanned by over-exposure to the severe heat rays.
In Israel, the sun is blazing hot in the afternoons. They would be
angry with her if she was not able to catch all the foxes. And they
would be angrier still if their tender grapes were spoilt and
damaged by the foxes. They were selfish getters, not selfless
givers!
This poor girl had no choice but to do
whatever they told her to do. When her beloved came to rescue her,
they were not very pleased. They wanted to oppose their marriage
saying that she was too young; that she had no breasts; and that she
could not take care of herself as she was needy of others to take
care of her. A bunch of merciless liars!
These brothers need a great awakening! They
need to start rebuilding the walls of their ruined lives -
replacing, reshaping and restoring all the broken pieces! That's the
only way to keep the little foxes away! They need love and
encouragement! They need a helping hand, a word of comfort and a
word of exhortation! They need to turn away from being slothful to
being thoughtful! Thinking of others’ interests besides and above
their own.
I have tabulated
some causes and cures for these beloved brothers:
| Causes |
Cures |
Symptoms of Relapse
-
Slothful, inactive, sluggard, lazy, idle
|
Signs of Recovery
-
Diligent, active, enthusiastic, hardworking, prudent
|
Full of excuses
- A lion in the streets (Prov.
26:13)
- Will be slain in the streets
(Prov 22:13)
- Too cold or too hot out there
(Prov 20:4)
- Wise in their own conceit
(Prov 26:16)
| Full of enthusiasm
- Build their homes upon the
rocks (Prov 30:26)
- Advance by teamwork (Prov
30:27)
- Prepare food for winter (Prov
30:25)
- Seek the counsel of others
(Prov 15:22)
Slumbering
- Always sleepy (Prov 6:9-11,
19:15)
- Always on their beds (Prov
26:14)
| Ready
- Know the state of their flocks
and herds (Prov 27:23)
- Able to stand before kings
(Prov 22:29)
Wasteful
- Eat off the labour of others
(Prov 12:27)
- A great waster (Prov 18:9)
| Fruitful
- Always plentiful (Prov 21:5)
- Have plenty of bread (Prov
28:19)
Lazy
- Need others to feed them (Prov
19:24, 26:15)
- Refuse to work (Prov 21:25)
- Their fields overgrown with
thorns (Prov 24:30-31)
| Hardworking
- Feed others (Prov 31:20)
- Work willingly (Prov 31:13)
- A tree of life (Prov 11:30)
Burdensome
- Under bondage (Prov 12:24)
- Problematic and troubled (Prov
15:19)
| Delightful
- Generous and blessed (Prov
22:9)
- Excellent in well-doing (Prov
31:29)
Impoverished
- Always lacking and has nothing
(Prov 13:4, 20:4)
- Void of understanding (Prov
24:30)
- Robbed of blessings (Prov
24:34)
| Abundant
- No lack of food (Prov 31:11)
- Full of wisdom (Prov 31:26)
- Filled with blessings (Prov
31:28)
| | | | | |
In the Parable of the Sower (Mark 4:1-20),
Jesus shared about some seeds that fell among thorns. The thorns
grew up and choked them. They yielded no crops. He also explained to
His disciples that this group of people sown among thorns were those
who had heard the Word, but the cares of this world, the
deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things had
entered in to choke the Word. They therefore became unfruitful in
the kingdom of God.
In Hebrews 6:7-12, we have
this exhortation: