Have you ever heard the phrase, “My love boils for you?” This stirs imagery of a boiling pot, which is dynamic, to the point of being aboding. And yet, lovers use this terminology often. They know love is a powerful force, captivating, and intense.

.Two Hebrew words describe your spiritual romance in Song of Solomon to your Beloved Bridegroom, Jesus Christ. One of these words allegorically parallels the above imagery of lovers captivated by their love-relationship. Prepare to be blessed by what we’ll discover:

AHABAH

Ahabah comparable to a vehement flame, strong as death, jealous, cruel as the grave, and it cannot be quenched. We would think, with this intense of a description, this describes divine love but this just isn’t so. Ahabah references the natural love-force we can have with or without God’s influence. This word is defined as intense human love, including romantic love, but it is limited in scope. Only on rare occasions is this word used to describe divine love.

Let’s look at a passage where ahabah is used:

Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; for love (ahabah) is as strong as death. Jealousy as cruel as the grave: its flames thereof are flames of fire, a most vehement flame. Many waters cannot quench love (ahabah), nor can the floods drown it. If a man would give for love (ahabah) all the wealth of his house, it would be utterly despised.

~Song 8:6-7 NKJV

This intense love brings up imagery of a murder mystery program, where a man loses his mind for the sake of love, acting impulsively. This is the script of the television docudrama, which concludes with a man coming to his senses, but he is behind prison bars when he finally shakes off the love-force that drove him to act. Similarly, this intense love-force, ahabah, brings up imagery of a romance where lovers are so captivated by love, the world fades as they look into each other’s faces. We’ve all seen this. Natural love–ahabah–is this intense.

This passage in Song of Solomon, chapter eight, begs us to ask the question: If natural love, ahabah, is this intense, what does divine love resemble?

DOWD

Dowd is also used in Song of Solomon to describe your relationship with your Bridegroom Jesus Christ. This word references divine love. It is a love-force comparable in strength to a boiling pot. The root word that dowd comes from is defined as a boiling pot that effervesces without stopping.. This word is used many times throughout Song of Solomon. The very first verse of the vignette is where this word is first mentioned. In the opening scene, the second verse, you are speaking to your maidens about your Bridegroom and you say:

Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—for your love (dowd) is better than wine.

~Song 1:2 NKJV

You start speaking to your lady friends, “Let him kiss me,” but you are so captivated by the bridal experience that you finish your sentence by addressing only your Bridegroom, “for your love is better than wine.” Why? The peace you’ve experienced goes beyond ahabah. It is a love so intense that is indescribable by human language. Thus, you become tongue-tied and speak only to your Groom. Truly, your love boils for the Groom you adore. He has your focus, and you cannot not think about Him.

As Christians, we can easily see that the cup you mention in this verse represents the Communion cup. The wine of the cup references Christ’s shed blood. In biblical times, a groom would ask his perspective bride to agree to marriage by sipping from a cup. Thus, each time you partake from the Communion cup, you firstly are remembering Jesus Christ’s commitment to shed His blood on Calvary, but you are equally remembering that He has become your Bridegroom by this sacrificial act of love. Who but the most loving Groom would demonstrate His love by shedding His life’s blood? Jesus Christ would–that’s who–and He did just that.

Beloved Jesus Christ, in the vignette allegorically Beloved Solomon, loves you with a boiling love that surpasses natural love by miles! Dowd surpasses ahabah by infinity times infinity! This is the strength of divine love!

With the intensity of this divine love, we would think there would be a lead-in time before you mention it, but this is not the case. Remember, the first mention of dowd, divine love, is Song of Solomon 1:2, the second verse of the first scene of the play. Here, you are coming from the wedding chamber which represents the Holy of Holies, and you have become one with the Lord of glory. Having experienced the divine love of your heavenly Bridegroom, you are captivated, overjoyed, and taken into a realm of spiritual intimacy you can’t adequately describe. You are head-over-heels, silly-in-love with the One who has caught your gaze….You and Beloved are the lovers whose love boils for each other.

Just think of the magnitude of what is described here–Beloved’s divine boiling pot of love is effervescent, active, and dynamic, and YOU have experienced this realm of spiritual intimacy. This divine limitless love keeps boiling strong within your spirit. You are loved with the most intense love imaginable, and that by a holy Groom who is not afraid of the strength of His love. His love is more dynamic than an explosion!

This is an exclusive experience. Beloved Jesus Christ bids only His Bride to come behind the veil where divine dowd love resides.

How do we enter into this divine love-explosion? This realm is accessed only through prayer.

How long does this romance behind the veil last? A pot boils as long as heat is applied. Thus, as long as you remain behind the veil of the Holy of Holies, tucked away in the wedding chamber, your Groom’s love is available to you.

Friend, ponder the intensity of your Groom’s divine love which can be allegorized but never fully defined in frail human terms. Compare Song of Solomon 8:6-7 of human love (ahabah) with Song of Solomon 1:2, divine love (dowd). Both are very powerful forces, but nothing compares to the boiling pot of divine love Beloved offers. Human love, although intense, appears frail compared to divine love.

Bride of Christ, do you want Beloved to rock your world? Then say these words aloud: “My Bridegroom Jesus Christ, love me beyond the inextinguishable flame of human love. I accept Your invitation to come behind the veil of the Holy of Holies to experience the divine love that is found only in Your spiritual embrace. Kiss me with Your peace, and make me Yours. I want only You, and all of You. I come to You and I give You my entire self. Take me. Embrace me. I am Yours.”

No matter how frail our love is compared to Christ’s, within our Savior’s embrace, our love becomes like His and we become His. Although the human love we can offer to Beloved Jesus is less, when He brings us into the holy wedding chamber, and as we permit His boiling love-force to become ours in this place of refuge, He completes us with His kisses of divine peace.

Reflect on human and divine love. They are both intimate expressions. How is divine love superior?

My Beloved Jesus, thank You for loving me with a holy love that is boiling in its intensity. Every time I partake of Communion, I will remember Your sacrifice on Calvary as well as my position as the chosen Bride of Christ. Thank You, for completing me by Your kiss of peace.

Amen.

Genre: Non-fiction

Copyright 2021: The Boiling Pot: Diane Virginia: All Rights Reserved