Song of the Bride, Parts 1-34 - Feasting at the King's Table

mother’s sons were incensed against me; they made me keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have
I not kept."
This is not the sinner, but the Bride who has become aware of her self-life. The Baptism of the Spirit is given,
not simply for power to do miracles, but for power to bring the self-life to death. We are called to be witnesses
unto Him, and this word is from the word "martyr." That is exactly what the Spirit wants to do—bring us to a
place of dying to old ways, the old nature, to let the Lord arise and rule in us.
The beauty, which the bride thought, she had, withers up and drops off. She sees her own blackness and
unworthiness and she knows that those who behold her must see how unfit she is, as yet, to be His Bride. God
makes her to know that she must live and walk in the Spirit and all the unworthy motives, desires, words and
actions must be put away if she would be a living epistle read by all men.
Conscious of her own unworthiness, she declares that she is as black as the tents of Kedar. The dark skinned
Arabs of the desert covered their tents with black goatskins, a figure of the blackness of sin, an expression of
the feeling of unworthiness of every soul who is drawing nearer to God. These black tents are a striking
contrast to the princely white tent of Solomon the Bridegroom. God shows her that she will never be anything
but black in herself; He calls her to die daily that the life of Christ may be manifested in her mortal body.
She remembers that God sees her in His Son, and in Him she is white and in His worthiness she is worthy.
Then she exclaims, "I am comely as the curtains of Solomon." This refers to the curtains of the Tabernacle,
made of pure white linen, which speaks of Christ’s spotless humanity. Inwrought into the curtains were purple
(His royalty); blue (His heavenly character); scarlet (a symbol of His suffering); and gold (His divine nature).
These are emblems of Christ in His different aspects and attributes. Rev. 19:8 shows that this same spotless
raiment has been given to the wife of the Lamb. Rotherham: "And it hath been given unto her, that she should
be arrayed in fine linen, bright, pure, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints."
The literal meaning of "bright and pure" is "radiant and pure." "Bright" is from a word meaning "flaming torch."
The Bride’s wedding garment is not only pure and holy it is glorious, shining, and radiant. It is through faith in
His work on the cross that little by little she puts it on. Through being identified with Him she has power to put
off all that is not of Him. She must do this day by day. When she is clothed in Him she will appear in His
likeness!
The "daughters of Jerusalem" represent those who are not among the virgins, yet are not enemies; they may
be won for Solomon if they do not see our blackness too plainly. The bride entreats them not to look upon her
blackness, nor to see her apart from Solomon.
I would share a word of caution here. It only discourages us if we see our failures and do not behold the beauty
of Christ and know our sufficiency in Him. On the other hand, if we see only what we are in Him and do not
discern what must be put off, we may become self-satisfied and puffed up.
"The sun has scorched me." This is the darkness that remains from the effects of exposure to the sun. The
defects, (tan and wrinkles) which have been left upon our human nature through being controlled by sin and
through tending the vineyards of the world, do not disappear as soon as we become new creatures in Christ
Jesus. If this were so, we would be faultless at once and would have no need of going on unto perfection.
(That would be nice!) No, it is a process. Many today are denying that, and saying "It is all finished", but even
nature will show you that, after a seed germinates, it must receive water, sunshine, and be "dunged about." It
doesn’t automatically come to fullness until it goes through the process! Its growth is a picture of our spiritual
life.
‘My mother’s sons were incensed against me." The mother of the bride is Humanity, represented by Eve. It is
the mother’s sons, natural men, who have enticed, tempted and made her keeper of the vineyards of the world.
As she kept the vineyards of the world, the flesh, and the devil, the sun of the world and sin beat down upon
her. She forgot the vineyard of her own soul and beauty and it was neglected, and overgrown with thorns,
thistles and weeds. It remained rocky and unfertile. A believer can be so taken up with caring for her little part
SONG OF THE BRIDE, Parts 1–34 [Elaine Cook] ~ BIBLE STUDY 4