Living in a post-Sexual Revolution culture, it is not typical within this culture to have any kind of sexual ethic. Perhaps because of this, many conservative camps seem to have a lockdown on discussion of these things at all. Yet God, in his Providence, gives a series of poems that tend to make us uncomfortable in church.
These love poems tell us something about the nature of God that is important enough to be included in the canon. By its very inclusion in the Canon, it reminds us of a love that is purer than our own. It speaks of the potential purity of human love. There are four major, historical ways that this book has been interpreted. While each of these four methods may have several sub-methods, I will briefly discuss each method.
The first method of interpretation is Typological. Typology is a doctrine concerning the relationship of the Old Testament to the New Testament. Events, persons, or statements in the Old Testament are types pre-figuring or superseded by antitypes, events, or aspects of Christ or His revelation described in the New Testament. To me, the problem with interpreting it this way is that we don't seem to have a New Testament roadmap for this. Without a roadmap, I think this method of interpretation is missing a very important element.
The second method of interpretation is Allegorical. An allegory is a figure of speech in which abstract ideas and principles are described in terms of characters, figures, and events. It can be employed in prose and poetry to tell a story, with a purpose of teaching or explaining an idea or a principle. The objective of its use is to teach a moral lesson. I think this method works best when there are obvious allegorical interpretations, which I think are lacking in this case.
The third method of interpretation is Dramatic. This method suggests that this was intended to be performed (some views seem to think there are two major characters, while others have a third character). I find less fault with this, as I think it could be performed as a dramatic production. As Solomon had the best in so many categories, it is also quite possible that he would have the best dramas. Nevertheless, I don't believe this is essential to its interpretation. I just don't think this method of interpretation, if anything changes with it, is the way to go.
The final method of interpretation is Literal. This method says that these Human Love Poems are to be taken at face value. One of the basic principles of hermeneutics is that for any passage the plain, normal meaning should be chosen unless there is clear evidence to the contrary. This is the method to which I subscribe.
Could it be that God intend for us to experience expressions of romantic and sexual bliss in marriage unapologetically? Could it be that as we have been scared away from speaking with sexual bluntness, we are creating a sub-culture where we make it more taboo (and potentially more difficult to guiltlessly enjoy, even when approached properly)? Could it be that there should be, at least in some situations, a frankness of discussion, like Song of Solomon, on the subject of sexual love within our churches?
I'm not sure which came first and which is the over-reaction, but I think both the normative cultural position and the position to which I have mostly been exposed are both too extreme. At the same time, Song of Solomon seems to communicate a lesson on marital love that goes even deeper. Hence the Song of Solomon is instructive as well as literal poetry.
Marriage points to an intended greater love. Song of Solomon not only celebrates the dignity and purity of human love, pointing us to the greater love of Christ. This love comes amid a world of sin. In our culture, lust and passion are everywhere. We are inundated with media bombarding us with temptations. Many go astray by the fierce temptations that assail us, attempting to deter us from the God-given standard of marriage. This is certainly not limited to our day, as even Solomon himself was a product of such a fall. His greatest of all Songs reminds us, in particularly beautiful fashion, how pure and noble true love is.
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