March 7, 2022

Song of Solomon 5: 9 (NIV)

How is your beloved better than others?

When we love someone, we take the entire package.*

Ah! Young love! Who can explain it? What makes that particular person the object of your devotion? I tried to solve the mystery of love when one of my sons started dating the girl who eventually became his wife. I asked, “Why her? What made you decide she was so special?” His reply, “Because she thinks I’m the coolest.” I don’t know if that clears it up for the rest of you but it worked for them – they dated through his senior year in high school, through four years of college, and have been married for twelve years. They are still such a cute couple!

Falling in love and getting married has not always been the course of matrimony – and in some cultures it still is not the way things are done. Families arranged marriages for political, social, and financial reasons, and the happy couple had no say in the matter. And yet, written in a world that operated like that, the Bible still speaks of love between husbands and wives.

Perhaps there is some practical application of this verse for those of us living in enlightened times and a liberated society. Before you jump into marriage, ask yourself the question: How is my beloved better than others? Your answer should help you determine if you are making the right decision.

If your marriage is in trouble, try to remember how you would have answered the question when you first fell in love. Before you give up and abandon your marriage, try to recall what made your spouse special back then. What changed – you? Your spouse? Or are you just not willing to make the effort to deal with the inevitable changes that life brings? Is it easier just to blame your partner? If your spouse asked himself or herself the question about you – how are you better than others – how would you fare in the comparison?

No marriage can be dissolved without someone failing, either one party or both, to some degree.*