What is a Shulamite Anyway?

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗦𝗵𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝘆𝘄𝗮𝘆?

Well, that’s a good question isn’t it!  Sometimes we throw about words with no frame of reference, without ever taking a deep look at what they mean.  Why would I want to be a Shulamite – sounds kind of sketchy or dangerous?

Just the very title of this book says it all – the Song of Songs.  Written by a King – King Solomon, a man who was wise, a man of great stature, wealthy, and loved by all Israel.  1 Kings 4:32 tells us that “𝑯𝒆 𝒔𝒑𝒐𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒃𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒏𝒖𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒂 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒊𝒗𝒆.”  But this, the Song of Songs, was the greatest of all those songs, the song above any other song, the greatest of all love stories.  A tale that sings of love, desire, adoration, and affection.  It’s a story of romance, brimming with intimacy – the kind of intimacy where trust and respect abound and expectation peeks around every corner!

Our beautiful young heroine, the Shulamite.  Young, expectant, forthright, and assertive, knowing what she wants and not afraid to grasp hold of love with both hands.  A woman deeply enamored and taken with her betrothed, whose only desire is to be with her bridegroom, wrapped in his embrace.  She longs for his touch, longs for her Beloved to whisper words of adoration in her ear, wants to be so close to him that they are touching all the time.  All she needs to do is reach out and he is there.  He is that close.

That’s what I want, I want to hear the whispers of my Savior, to feel Him cup my chin in His hand and lift my head. (Psalm 3:3) To get lost in His eyes, His gaze, His love.  To be able to close my eyes and reach out knowing that He is right there.  All the time.  I want to draw close to Him and be able to trust that He will draw even closer to me. (James 4:8) I want to sit on a bench in the park right next to my Jesus and for there to be no space at all between us!  Is that what you want too?