Title: 13
Author: Joe G
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Company: GDC

Clanking Chains		06-05-25.CC02-610 /

The Shulammite’s Hills of Myrrh & Frankincense Vector Memories of the Shepherd; Illustrate Occupation with Christ, SOS 4:6; Intro: Courage & Confidence

SOS-4:6 -	[SW] “Until the cool of the day when the shadows flee away, I will go my way to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of frankincense.”
1.	The opening phrase is an indication of faith-rest.  The “cool of the day when the shadows flee away” speaks of her predicament with Solomon.  In other words, in the darkest hours of her testing she will not panic but concentrate on her Shepherd.
2.	This is brought out by the phrase, “I will go my way.”  She is in the chambers of the king’s palace.  She’s not going anywhere, at least not right now.  But she can “go her way” by means of her memories.
3.	She can recall from her memory center the wonderful experiences she has had with the Shepherd.  This is a doctrinal rationale based on fragrance of memories.  She is not with the Shepherd for he is in Sharon Plain.  But she can be with him by the use of recall.
4.	She has done this before.  In Act I, chapter 1, verse 13, she used this problem-solving device when she was brought before Solomon in his traveling tent:
SOS 1:13 -	[SW]  “My beloved is to me a pouch of myrrh which lies all night between my breasts.”
5.	Part of her nighttime preparations for bed was to wear a necklace from which was attached this pouch of perfume.  Its contents consisted of aromatic mixtures made from “sap, bark, flower, and root” and included myrrh.
6.	It was discovered that if women wore these sweet smelling preparations between their breasts it resulted in the entire body taking on their aroma the next day.
7.	This sweet smell was pleasant to the woman and to those with whom she associated.
8.	In her analogy, the Shulammite compares the sweet smell of her perfume pouch to the fragrance of memories she has of the Shepherd stored in the “memory pouch” of her soul.
9.	This sweet smell is also applicable to her inventory of doctrine which is also stored there.  It is her capacity to remember doctrine under pressure that enables her to move through trials and testings with poise and grace.
10.	Solomon in the process of admiring her breasts refers to them as “two fawns, twins of the gazelle.”  Her comment is designed to make clear to whom those fawns belong and refers to them as “hills.”  The Shulammite uses two synonymous words to describe her breasts.  Her phrase begins with, “I will go my way to the mountain of myrrh.”  The word “mountain” is the masculine singular of rh^ har which indicates a “hill” or “hill country.”  It can also refer to a mountain or a mountain range.  But in context, the Shulammite’s breasts would better be characterized as hills.
11.	Her next phrase is similar, “and the hills of frankincense.”  The word for “hills” on this occasion is the feminine singular of hu*b=G! giv‛ah and also refers to a “hill.”
12.	Giv‛ah often stands poetically in a parallel relationship with Hebrew har, mountain, and means the same thing.  In the poetry of Song of Solomon it takes on this translation in the form of “hill.”
13.	Solomon compares her breasts to fawns, she to hills.  She again concentrates upon the fragrance of memories that the spices in her pouch call to mind.  She remembers her Shepherd and again is comforted in this time of great pressure and danger.
14.	This is also a picture of occupation with Christ.  The Persian magi presented to the infant Jesus “gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:11).
15.	The gold speaks of His undiminished deity.  The myrrh reminds us of His sacrificial spiritual death for our sins and His physical death in preparation of the resurrection in:
John 19:38 -	Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate granted permission.  So he came and took away His body.
v. 39 -	Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight.
v. 40 -	So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews.
16.	Frankincense was part of the grain offering of the Levitical offerings as described in:
Leviticus 2:1 -	Now when the soul of a person motivates him to present a gift offering as an offering to the Lord, his offering shall be of fine wheat, and he shall pour oil on it and put frankincense on it.
17.	This offering is referred to in the major English translations as the “grain offering” but the word for “grain” is hj*n+m! minchah which means “gift.”  This is not a blood offering and as such represents aspects of His sacrifice that emphasize His person.
18.	The perfection of the gift means it takes a perfect gift to satisfy a perfect Giver and thus it speaks of the propitiation of God by the sacrifice of Messiah on the cross.
19.	The offering was voluntary and when burned is said to present a soothing aroma to the Father, that is, He is pleased with the sacrifice.
20.	Frankincense was one of the costliest perfumes of the ancient world and portrays God’s satisfaction with the perfect humanity of the Messiah.
21.	Thus the typology that comes from the Shulammite’s mention of the myrrh and frankincense contained in her pouch of perfumes relates to her concentration on her Shepherd in time of trouble.  It also speaks of her trust in the work of Messiah for her so great salvation which is deliverance from the slave market of sin into the realms of His matchless grace.
22.	All the Levitical sacrifices were designed to teach doctrines of hamartiology (i.e., sin and redemption), Christology (i.e., the Person and work of Christ or Messiah), and soteriology (i.e., salvation) to the Israelites.
23.	Salvation and eternal life was imputed to anyone who believed in the Person and work of Messiah as these things were revealed in the sacrifices.
24.	Salvation is always the same regardless of the dispensation.  A person is saved when three things occur: (1) he believes that Jesus Christ was a qualified substitute for his sins being perfect God and perfect man, (2) that his sins were judged in Christ on the cross, and (3) by believing these things he is confident his sins are forgiven, he has eternal life, and these things are true and irrevocable.
25.	The Shulammite’s concentration on her Shepherd indicated her faith in the ability of her right man to deliver her from Solomon’s harem while her occupation with Messiah indicated her faith in the power of her Savior to deliver her from the slave market of sin.
26.	She had confidence in the doctrine of eternal security and therefore had confidence in all else the Lord promised her in His perfect plan which included a life married to her Shepherd, not to King Solomon.
27.	The key to courage toward life is the ability to sustain it under pressure:
1)	Knowledge of God and His essence produces confidence toward God expressed by our love for God.  Knowledge of eternal security sustains confidence toward God.
2)	One of the major heresies that abounds today is taught in many of the mainline Protestant denominations.  It is not uncommon for evangelical seminaries and the pastors they produce to teach congregations that salvation and eternal life are contingent upon one’s ability to lead a moral life.
3)	Morality is a virtue that is required for people who are fallen to coexist with each other for the purpose of maintaining order.  However, that which is moral in one culture may be immoral in another.  All ideologies and isms formulate moral codes and therefore multiculturalism is an effort to find a happy medium so that all cultures can coexist.

© 2006 by Joe Griffin Media Ministries.  All rights reserved.	www.joegriffin.org