Plants of the Bible
1. The Rose – Glory
“I am the rose of Sharon”
(Song of Solomon 2:1)
Image: © FreeFoto.com
In this series we look at some of the plants which are mentioned in the Bible. They can teach us valuable spiritual lessons. We find with the plants of the Bible that many of them are associated with Christ and in some way or other point us to him. It is as though they are saying with Paul, “Consider Christ Jesus” (Heb.3:1).
Our first plant is found in the Song of Solomon. This book is a love song in which a bridegroom and bride express their affection for each other. It has a deeper meaning though. Elsewhere in the Bible God’s people are told, “as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee” (Isa.62:5). Each one of us has sinned against God and we all deserve to be punished but in love God has chosen sinners and given them to his Son that he might save them. Jesus is the bridegroom from heaven and believers are his bride.
Here Christ is speaking to his church. His aim is to excite her admiration for him and draw out her love. To do this he describes himself in a way which will highly commend him to her. Christ identifies himself with a plant which is esteemed by men wherever it is found; he compares himself to a bloom which is given by men to the one they specially love: the rose.
The original rose is a flowering shrub, sometimes trailing and sometimes climbing over other plants. There are over one hundred species. The stems include small thorns and the leaves usually have a rough edge. The flowers generally have five petals which are white or pink and occasionally yellow or red. Thousands of varieties have been bred from wild roses to produce bigger blooms in a great range of colours.
People have wondered what sort of plant the rose of Sharon was. Sharon is a fertile plain lying between the mountains west of the River Jordan and the Mediterranean Sea. David’s herds were once fed there (1Chron.27:29). What we know as the rose is found growing wild in parts of the Middle East and doubtless it was growing in Palestine too. One character in the New Testament suggests this. Do you remember the name of the young girl who recognised Peter’s voice when he knocked at Mary’s door? It was Rhoda, a ‘rose’ (Acts 12:13). What do we learn from the rose?
The rose is excellent. It is the chief of flowers, valued for its elegant shape and pleasing to the eye in every way. So Jesus is truly wonderful to behold. He is excellent firstly in the sight of God. In eternity as the only begotten Son Jesus was “by him, as one brought up with him...daily his delight, rejoicing always before him” (Prov.8:30). When Jesus began his work on earth God said of him, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matt.3:17). Before he died Jesus spoke of the glory which his Father had given him (John 17:24).
Jesus is also excellent in the eyes of his believing people. To the unconverted he is “as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground” (Isa.53:2) but to those who are born again he is “a plant of renown” (Ezek.34:29). Christ’s fame and honour is so very great because uniquely among those who have walked this earth he is both free from all unrighteousness and full of grace and truth.
The rose is fragrant. Its flowers have a strong, sweet scent and the petals are used in perfume. Likewise the glorious grace which is in Christ Jesus attracts the sinner with the promise of forgiveness and peace with God. Praise God, Christ is not a rose shut up in a walled garden but a rose found out in the open field: all are invited to him to receive salvation from him! But are you one of those who sadly, when Jesus is offered to you in the gospel, still say, “there is no beauty that we should desire him” (Isa.53:2)?
The rose is abundant. In the flowering season it has a mass of blooms as its branches spread forth. So Jesus has many blessings to give to a needy world. Isaiah speaks of a day when “the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose.” He continues: “It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God” (Isa.35:1,2).
Since our precious Saviour appeared in this world his church has flourished and sinners from many nations have been brought into it. And yet what has been seen so far is just the budding of the rose. In the Bible we are told that one day through the preaching of the gospel of Christ “the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” (Hab.2:14).
With that promise to encourage us let us pray as David prayed for the blossoming of the rose of Sharon, for an outpouring of grace which will bringing blessing to ourselves, to our families and to all the world! “And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen” (Psa.72:19).
