captivated lovers

You have captivated my heart, my sister, my bride;

you have captivated my heart with one glance of your eyes,

with one jewel of your necklace.

Song of Solomon 4:9

There is a reason that human beings across all cultures sing love songs. We were made for love. We were created loved by God and to love Him. And the first marriage of Adam and Eve was a direct creative act of God meant to enshrine the holiness of human love and sexuality in the temple of marriage.

In this section of Solomon's Song, marriage is celebrated. The bride has dreamt of being united to her lover (Song of Solomon 3:1-5) and the royal groom has arrived to the wedding in all the pageantry of a king (Song of Solomon 3:6-11). Solomon then admires the beauty of his bride on their wedding day (all of chapter 4). And truly every married man know that his bride is absolutely beautiful, stunning him on their wedding day.

The emotional poetry gushes forth. His bride is captivating. She is amazing. His heart is led away by just one glance of her eyes behind her wedding veil. She is his great love, and he sings of her because his heart can only lift up in a song of love and grateful praise. And this is all good. God made us to be captivated lovers.

Every marriage thrives when by God's great mercies a man and a wife are lovers who are captive in one another's dedicated embrace. And they should fill their lives and loudly sing "silly love songs". "What's wrong with that? I'd like to know..."