To the Lilies

You are the theme of His song!

Song of Solomon 2:1

 She

I am a rose of Sharon,

a lily of the valleys.

The first part of this verse, I am the Rose of Sharon, can also be translated, “I am the rose of His song!” alluding to the idea that the Lord sings over us. Which He does (see Zeph. 3:17). The Passion Translation (Brian Simmons, translator) renders this part of the verse in this way:

I truly am the rose of His heart,

The very theme of His song!

And what about the lily of the valleys?

Are you ready to scavenger hunt with me?

Some translators don’t know whether verse one should be attributed to the woman of the song, the Shulammite, or to the man. After years of study I’m convinced it’s the woman, and I travel to the Psalms for the reason.

There are a number of Psalms that have some interesting directional notes. Some say, “To the Director of Music.” Others say, “Do Not Destroy.” And then there are the Psalms that say, “To the Lilies.” You’ll find some translations add ‘To the tune of…” but that’s not in the original Hebrew. What if it’s a dedication? What if there are some Psalms that the ‘Lilies’ are supposed to pay attention to?

To unpack that question we must look first at what it means to be a lily. For that we go to the building of the temple. In 1 Kings 7:19, one of those lovely obscure verses, we find that the pillars in the temple had at the top the shape of a lily.

Why would this be significant?

Let’s look at Revelation 3:12,

“He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more.”

 The lilies, therefore, are those who are dedicated to loving and serving the Lord, and seek to be in close proximity to Him.

 The Lord has some special directives for the Lilies. The directives come from the Psalms. Check out these Psalms that are specifically written “To the Lilies.”

 Psalm 45

Psalm 69

Psalm 80

 Seriously, folks, you could spend years in this! Trust me, I have, and they’ve been some wonderful years of study. And I’m going to share with you some of what I’ve learned about being a lily.

 Psalm 80 is a cry to the Lord for restoration and salvation. The refrain throughout the Psalm is “Restore us, O God! Cause Your face to shine that we might be saved!”

 This is an echo of the priestly blessing from Numbers 6:29:

May the Lord bless you and keep you

May He cause His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you

May the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you His Peace.

And so, in response to our cry for God to restore us, He comes and does just that.

 Psalm 69 Shows us what Jesus endured on earth, especially on the Cross.

You know how I am scorned, disgraced and shamed;

all my enemies are before you.

Scorn has broken my heart

and has left me helpless;

I looked for sympathy, but there was none,

for comforters, but I found none.

They put gall in my food

and gave me vinegar for my thirst.

As lilies, we’re called to pick up our cross and follow Jesus. We’re called to be crucified with Christ so it’s no longer us who live but Christ living in us (see Gal 2:20). This Psalm shows us how we can identify with His sufferings.

 Psalm 45 is the great wedding song. The writer of Hebrews (in 1:8-9)  tells us that this is the Father singing over the Son. And if He’s singing this over the Son, He’s also singing it over the bride.

Listen, daughter, and pay careful attention:

Forget your people and your father’s house.

Let the king be enthralled by your beauty;

honor him, for he is your lord.

Here, at this part of the Song, we’re the lily of the valley. What’s meant by the valley?

Lilies

 

 It means we’re in the wild and not in a garden. But even in the wild we are beautiful to Him. When we begin to see ourselves the way God sees us it builds a confidence—such confidence that we no longer think of ourselves, but of others and of the Lord. And what a glorious day that is, when we become outward focused instead of inward focused.

 How has God shown His love to you this week?