DCLM Daily Manna 2025: DCLM Daily Manna 21 February 2025: Black But Comely
Text: Song Of Solomon 1:5-8 (KJV)
5 I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon.
6 Look not upon me, because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me: my mother’s children were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept.
7 Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions?
8 If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds’ tents.
KEY VERSE: Song of Solomon 1:5
“I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon.”
Today, some women lie in the sun for hours to get their white skin darker because it is a sign of greater activity and beauty. The Shulamite girl was a farmer. She worked out in the sun, a great contrast to the ladies of Solomon’s court, who were sheltered and lily-white.
The quest for true love drives the seeker to the object of love. The illustration drawn from our text shows that when the Holy Spirit sheds abroad God’s love in the heart of the seeking believer, the new creature becomes a new man from inside and this experience transforms the spiritual blackness into glorious comeliness.
The shepherdess has suffered under the excruciating heat of the sun because her mother’s children have made her keep the family vineyards to the neglect of herself. We often overlook the cultivation of our souls in a bid to shoulder the burdens and yokes of other family members. That is good, but we must not be too encumbered with many activities to neglect the “one thing that is needful.” Like Mary, Martha’s wise sister, we must endeavour to sit at the feet of Jesus and drink the living waters, the word of God, from the lips of the Lord.
Those who seek the path to the place of God’s green pastures will always receive guidance from the Lord. The seeking Shulamite desires to know where the shepherd feeds and offers rest for his flock. She receives immediate guidance. She is to grace the footsteps of the flock and will find pasture beside the shepherds’ tents. Christ is our Chief Shepherd. He does not only make us lie down in green pastures, He also leads us beside the living waters that offer rest and satisfaction. If you ask the Lord, He will guide you through the old path to the good old way of righteous and holy living. You will find rest for your soul only in Christ.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
He who heeds the Shepherd’s guidance will always find the pasture that satisfies the soul.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Luke 11-12
Daily Manna 21 February 2025
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