Thy Strong Word — Song of Solomon 7:1-13: "His Desire is For Me"

Solomon describes his bride, beginning at her feet and moving up. He describes her “belly like a heap of wheat encircled with lilies,” and her “neck like an ivory tower” and “nose like the tower of Lebanon.” The comparisons sound strange to us. In Solomon’s mouth, however, they are stately and reminiscent of a kingdom at peace. She answers him: “I am my beloved’s, and his desire is for me.” That word for desire appears twice more in Scripture, both times in Genesis, both a curse. Does this point us to the reversal of the curse of Eden through the Church’s marriage to Christ?

The Rev. James Peterson, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Curtis, NE, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study Song of Solomon 7:1-13.

To learn more about St. John Lutheran in Curtis, visit facebook.com/stjohncurtis.

The Song of Solomon is a book of love poetry, a bride and her bridegroom singing to each other across eight chapters. God’s people have sung it since Solomon’s day, and Jewish congregations still read it at Passover. The Church has heard in it the voice of Christ and His bride, and Luther quoted the Song in The Freedom of a Christian to describe what happens when Christ takes a sinner as His own. Paul was working the same ground in Ephesians five, where he set marriage beside Christ and the Church and called it a great mystery.

This series works through the whole book verse by verse, from the kiss in chapter one to the seal on the heart in chapter eight. We hear what it says about the body, about desire, and about the marriage God instituted in the garden. We also ask where Christ is in it, since the Church has long heard in these songs the voice of the Bridegroom who gave His life for His bride.

Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God’s Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations. Submit comments or questions to: thystrongword@kfuo.org.

Thy Strong Word is graciously underwritten by the Lutheran Heritage Foundation. Through the mission gifts of people like you, LHF translates, publishes, distributes and introduces books that are Bible-based, Christ-centered and Reformation-driven. Learn more at lhfmissions.org.

Song of Solomon 7:1-13

[1] How beautiful are your feet in sandals,

O noble daughter!

Your rounded thighs are like jewels,

the work of a master hand.

[2] Your navel is a rounded bowl

that never lacks mixed wine.

Your belly is a heap of wheat,

encircled with lilies.

[3] Your two breasts are like two fawns,

twins of a gazelle.

[4] Your neck is like an ivory tower.

Your eyes are pools in Heshbon,

by the gate of Bath-rabbim.

Your nose is like a tower of Lebanon,

which looks toward Damascus.

[5] Your head crowns you like Carmel,

and your flowing locks are like purple;

a king is held captive in the tresses.

[6] How beautiful and pleasant you are,

O loved one, with all your delights!

[7] Your stature is like a palm tree,

and your breasts are like its clusters.

[8] I say I will climb the palm tree

and lay hold of its fruit.

Oh may your breasts be like clusters of the vine,

and the scent of your breath like apples,

[9] and your mouth like the best wine.

She

It goes down smoothly for my beloved,

gliding over lips and teeth.

[10] I am my beloved’s,

and his desire is for me.

The Bride Gives Her Love

[11] Come, my beloved,

let us go out into the fields

and lodge in the villages;

[12] let us go out early to the vineyards

and see whether the vines have budded,

whether the grape blossoms have opened

and the pomegranates are in bloom.

There I will give you my love.

[13] The mandrakes give forth fragrance,

and beside our doors are all choice fruits,

new as well as old,

which I have laid up for you, O my beloved.

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Rev. Dr. Phil Booe

Native North Carolinian Rev. Dr. Phil Booe serves pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, and host of Thy Strong Word on KFUO Radio. His parishioners probably think he can’t teach Bible study without a mug of coffee in his hand, and he’ll always be happy to eat a plate of sushi. When he’s not shepherding his flock or teaching on the radio, you might find him watching bad movies from the 50s, 60s, and 70s, and especially binging RiffTrax and MST3K episodes. Some day he’d love to travel to the Lutheran homeland in Germany, but for now he spends time in Minnesota with his wife, son, daughter, and cat, and looks forward to Holy Week every year.