Meditation - Learning to read the Book of Creation (Studies in the Song of Solomon #1)
by Isaac Overton
While one does not usually expect to find poetry in the creeds and confessions the church, there is an unexpectedly beautiful line in Article 2 of the Belgic Confession. The line portrays the universe as a kind of book, “a beautiful book in which all creatures, great and small, are as letters to make us ponder the invisible things of God.” It paints a lovely image, and one which is both delightful and insightful. Consider it for a moment, the universe is like a book, and like all good books, it is then meant to be read. The difference is that the letters of this book are not written in pen and ink, nor is it penned in any spoken tongue, although it could be said that it includes every language ever spoken. This book is rather one that is written in flesh and blood. The creatures themselves, the expanse, the oceans, the lands, and everything in them the confession says, are the letters in which the story of this book is written. The creatures, the creation, even you and I. The trees, the sun, the stones, this book of creation is a living testimony to the glory of God as it is written out in the very lives of all created things.
Now the reason I’m talking about this, is to make the particular observation that God, in His creation, has written things for us to see. Psalm 19 says that creation declares the glory of God, and that declaration is meant to be both comprehended and admired. In other words, what I’m saying here is that the creation itself is a testimony to God’s glory, a book, and it’s a book that he wants us to read, or at least to learn how to read. That word “learn” is very important. As we live in this world, as we consider the creation around us, we actually need to learn the language and read the glory. But how does one go about doing such a thing? How can one learn to read a language that transcends all known dialects?
Perhaps we can begin to answer this question by considering an example. Consider the Lord’s Supper, the communion table. In this sacrament Christ has given us bread and wine. Now in one sense, it’s just that: bread and wine. It’s not particularly different from any other bread or wine, and yet in another sense this is no mere bread and wine. When the Lord instituted the Lord’s Supper, he gave a divine layer of meaning to the bread and wine which no supermarket or liquor store can offer. In Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, the Lord has provided physical symbols to represent to us the salvation realities of his covenant of love with us.
I give these two examples to try and lay out a kind of principle, because in a sense the whole of creation works in a similar way. The physical world that God has made is laden with deeper spiritual meaning, intended to be read and understood by faith which is illuminated through His Word. The sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are unique in that they directly represent and symbolise the reality of our salvation, but in the rest of creation God has also laid out for us other pictures of his glory and work. Perhaps this is still not making a terrible lot of sense, so let me try and give you a few more examples.
Consider light. On day one of creation, God said: “Let there be light”. Quite apart from the fact that this was no terrestrial variety of light (that didn’t come until day four), scripture teaches us that God often uses light in the history of creation as a picture of his own presence and glory. For example, in 1 John 1:5 we read: “This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” The Apostle John uses the figure of light to convey something important about who God is. Study the use of light in other parts of scripture, the results I’m sure will be quite revealing. Let’s consider another example. On day two of creation, when God made the expanse of the heavens, he would later go to use the physical heavens – the sun, the air and the clouds – as a type or symbol of his heavenly dwelling place. God even uses at times the physical stuff of heaven to represent spiritual heavenly realities. In Exodus 40:34, for example, at the Tent of Meeting, where God would dwell with his people, the tent was covered in cloud as the presence of the Lord came down. God used physical clouds as a symbolic representation of his presence, which he also did on Mt Sinai.
The point I’m making here is that God uses physical things to symbolise and portray spiritual realities, and when these physical symbols are received in faith they are powerful helps for spiritual growth. Even the humble ant, when considered through the eyes of faith, can provide spiritual benefit as we see how industrious and hard working they are:
"Go to the ant, O sluggard;
consider her ways, and be wise.
Without having any chief,
officer, or ruler,
she prepares her bread in summer
and gathers her food in harvest.
How long will you lie there, O sluggard?
When will you arise from your sleep?
A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,
and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
and want like an armed man.”
- Proverbs 6:6-11
Now, let’s read those words again from our confession, because it is very clearly stated there: “the universe is before our eyes like a beautiful book in which all creatures, great and small, are as letters to make us ponder the invisible things of God”. As we begin our approach to the Song of Solomon, these thoughts will prove to be most helpful.
The Song of Solomon has been one of the most perplexing mysteries in the whole bible for many a preacher and Christian. On a surface level reading, what we find in this book is a specimen of ancient erotic love poetry. And many a Christian has probably read it and asked: What in the world is this doing in the Bible? Well, based on what we’ve said so far about how God uses physical things to point to spiritual realities, I hope that you’re beginning to see the answer. I think that one of the reasons that a book like the Song of Solomon is so mysterious and neglected to many Christians is because we don’t yet know how to read the book of creation.
God is not mentioned by name in the Song of Solomon, for all intents and purposes the book simply seems to be a love poem. It certainly is that, but it is not merely love poetry. There can be no doubt about it, this book is in the scriptures, it is a divinely inspired Book in the Bible and God has put it here for a reason. What is that reason? It’s to speak to us. God would speak to us through this book, using the images and language of eros, of sexual love, to reveal something of his heart to us.
Going back again to the terminology of the Belgic Confession, every line in the book of creation has something to say to us about God. We cannot exclude the sexual love from this picture, and that is something we will learn more and more as we immerse ourselves into the poetry of Solomon in this book. As we study this book, we will begin to see and understand on a deeper level why God made us male and female, what sexuality is all about, what it’s pointing to, what it signifies, and how it reveals the glory of God and may draw us deeper into the bliss and joy of knowing him. As far as application is concerned, why not read Song of Solomon a couple of times this week? Re-read the article, and re-read the book. Also - consider the ant! I’m hoping to say a bit more next week to build on this, so stay tuned!
SDG.