The Song of Solomon 7:7, “This thy stature is like to a palm tree, and thy breasts to clusters of grapes.”
In chapter seven of this beautifully inspired Song, we are able to see the Shulamite quite differently than chapter four (The Song of Solomon 4:5, “Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins, which feedeth among the lilies”). If you recall, in 6:10, the women of Israel looked at her and began to view her in a different way than they had before. Now in chapter seven, she is all grown up. She is not the little girl that Solomon met in the vineyard, but she is a grown woman who is going to be the wife of the King of Israel.
The palm tree is often used in scripture as an emblem of strength and victory. Psalm 92:12, “The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.” Revelation 7:9 shows us the victorious multitude standing “before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands.” John 12:12-13, “On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.”
The “breasts” are used to teach about maturity and nourishment. Isaiah 60:16, “Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.” In condemning the people of Jerusalem in their neglect, Jeremiah writes in Lamentations 4:3, “Even the sea monsters draw out the breast, they give suck to their young ones:…” Isaiah 66:10-11, “Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her: That ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breast of her consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory.”
Combining the two gives us a picture of strength, victory, maturity and nourishment. And in so doing, we should look toward the Lord’s bride, the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, and see her. She rejoices in the victory He has won (John 19:30, “It is finished:…”). She stands in strength trusting in her King (Proverbs 3:5, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart;…”). She is a mature woman who is able to nourish the children of God with “knowledge and understanding” (Jeremiah 3:15). “How fair and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights!” She is beautiful and my heart is glad every time that I’m able to dwell with her. Sunday morning cannot come soon enough. Psalm 122:1, “I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD.”