“I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.” (Song of Solomon 5:1)

Here in Song of Solomon 5:1, the writer brings to light four past tense verbs of the actions of the Beloved (of Christ). In the previous devotion (last Friday), we looked at the first one, “I am come.” Today, we look at the next two:

I Have Gathered

The second past tense action is, “I have gathered my myrrh with my spice.” Here the Beloved begins to explain the consummation process. “I have gathered”; it is in the past tense. The first step in the process is the gathering “my myrrh with my spice.” Myrrh is described in Proverbs 7:17, “I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.” And Psalms 45:8 says, “All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia…” Therefore, myrrh was a perfume; and spice, added to myrrh perfume gave it a distinct fragrance, for myrrh was a chief spice itself (Song of Solomon 4:14c).

Here the Beloved is saying that he had taken notice of his Bride’s enticing fragrance. He was aware of her perfume and the reason of her perfume.

In a spiritual sense, Christ announced to His Bride, I have gathered (or I have taken notice of) the sweet fragrance of your fruit of your surrender to Me, your submission to Me, and your obedience of My Word. I see your prayers to Me; I see your confession of your sins; I see your desire to be holy and without blemish. I see your faithfulness, your stedfastness, your loyalty, and your single-eyed-ness. Yes, my love, I have taken in your works of faith; I have received them into My Spirit. This fragrance of faith living and abiding in you and causing you to bear the fruit of the Spirit is leading Me to you.

I Have Eaten

The third past tense action is, “I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey.” The Beloved speaks of the third step in the process of consummation, “I have eaten my honeycomb.” Not only have I come into my garden and gathered my myrrh, now I have eaten my honeycomb.

Now I have tasted, swallowed, and digested your love for me, your dedication to me, your passion for me. I have eaten your inner person, your spirit. The honeycomb is the storage place of the honey. Your spirit is the storage place of your love and passion and actions of love for me. Now I have eaten this place of storage, I have become one with you and your love for me.

In the spiritual sense, Christ is saying to His Bride, the Church, I have eaten, consumed, “my (or His; or literally, Himself) honeycomb”; meaning the new man, the new creation, even Himself, living within the believer. I am in full fellowship with the “Seed” that is within you; even the Spirit of God, Christ Himself. (See the Scripture references of Christ in us; Romans 8:11-16; Galatians 4:1-7; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19; Galatians 2:20.)

Until Christ comes to dwell in a person, there is no honeycomb with honey. Grace is the honey in the honeycomb (Christ). Love is the honey in the honeycomb. All that Christ is, all of His Attributes, are the honey in the honeycomb. The only thing Christ could fellowship with in us is Himself; for without Christ living in us, we are nothing but decay and death, rottenness, sin and depravity, wickedness and rebellion, etc.

Praise God for Christ living in us, the regenerated Children of God.