coming up from the wilderness
The "wilderness" (מִדְבָּר, midbar) often symbolizes a place of trial, testing, or preparation in the Bible. Historically, the wilderness was a place where the Israelites wandered and where prophets like Elijah and John the Baptist spent time in solitude with God. Emerging from the wilderness signifies overcoming trials and entering into a place of promise and fulfillment. Spiritually, it can represent the believer's journey through life's challenges, emerging stronger and more reliant on God.

leaning on her beloved
The image of "leaning" (רֹבֶצֶת, rovetzet) conveys dependence and trust. In a marital context, it reflects the deep intimacy and support found in a loving relationship. The "beloved" (דּוֹד, dod) is a central figure in the Song of Solomon, often interpreted as a representation of Christ. This phrase beautifully illustrates the believer's reliance on Christ, emphasizing a relationship built on trust and love.

Under the apple tree
The "apple tree" (תַּפּוּחַ, tappuach) is a symbol of love and desire in the Song of Solomon. In ancient Near Eastern culture, the apple tree was associated with fertility and romance. This setting evokes a sense of nostalgia and intimacy, a place where love was first kindled. It serves as a reminder of the origins of love and the nurturing environment where relationships grow.

I awakened you
The act of awakening (הֵעִירְתִּיךְ, he'irtikh) suggests a call to consciousness or awareness. In the context of love, it can imply the stirring of emotions or the beginning of a new phase in a relationship. Spiritually, it can symbolize the awakening of the soul to God's love and calling, a moment of spiritual enlightenment and renewal.

there your mother conceived you
This phrase highlights the continuity of life and the generational aspect of love. The mention of conception (חָבְלָה, chaval) and birth roots the narrative in the reality of human experience. It underscores the idea that love and life are intertwined, with each generation building upon the legacy of the previous one. In a spiritual sense, it can reflect the nurturing environment of the Church, where believers are "born" into faith.

there she travailed and brought you forth
The imagery of travail (חִיל, chil) and birth (יָלַד, yalad) speaks to the labor and effort involved in bringing forth new life. This can be seen as a metaphor for the struggles and sacrifices inherent in love and spiritual growth. It reminds believers of the cost of discipleship and the transformative power of God's love, which brings forth new life and new beginnings.

Leaning upon her beloved . . .--The LXX. add here shining white, and the Vulgate, flowing with delights.

I raised thee up.--Literally, aroused: i.e., I inspired thee with love. For this sense of exciting a passion, given to the Hebrew word, compare Proverbs 10:12; Zechariah 9:13. Delitzsch restores from the Syriac what must have been the original vowel-pointing, making the suffixes feminine instead of masculine.

There thy mother . . .--Not necessarily under the apple-tree, which is commemorated as the scene of the betrothal, but near it. The poet delights to recall these early associations, the feelings with which he had watched her home and waited her coming. The Vulg. has here ibi corrupta est mater tua, ibi violata est genetrix tua, which savours of allegory. So in later times the tree has been taken to stand for the Cross, the individual excited to love under it the Gentiles redeemed at the foot of the Cross, and the deflowered and corrupted mother the synagogue of the Jews (the mother of the Christian Church), which was corrupted by denying and crucifying the Saviour.

"Where is the blessedness I knew
When first I saw the Lord?
Where is the soul-refreshing view
Of Jesus and his Word?" It is a blessedness when we come up from the wilderness. It is a joy to ourselves and a matter of praise to our fellow believers when we are manifestly filled with a sense of the Saviour's presence and fellowship. The word midhbaur, translated "wilderness," does not, however, necessarily mean a desolate and barren desert, but rather the open country, as the Valley of Jezreel The LXX. had either a different reading in the Hebrew or has mistaken it. They have rendered the last clause "clothed in white," which perhaps Jerome has followed with his deliciis affluens. The word is, however, from the root rauvaq, which in the hiph. is "to support one's self." The meaning, therefore, is, "leaning for support." It might, however, be intended to represent the loving confidence of married life, and therefore would be equivalent in meaning to the Greek and Latin renderings, that is, "Who is this? Evidently a young newly married wife with her husband." Perhaps this is the best explanation of the words as preparing for what follows, as the bridegroom begins at once to speak of the first love. Some think that the road in which the loving pair are seen to be walking brings their footsteps near to the apple tree over against Shulamith's house where they had first met. But there is no necessity for that supposition. It is sufficient if we imagine the apple tree to be in sight. Verse 5b. - Under the apple tree I awakened thee; there thy mother was in travail with thee; there was she in travail that brought thee forth. I awakened thee; i.e. I stirred thee up to return the affection which I showed thee (cf. Song of Solomon 2:7). The Masoretic reading prints the verb עורַרתִּיך, as with the masculine suffix, but this renders the meaning exceedingly perplexed. The bride would not speak of awakening Solomon, but it was he who had awakened her. The change is very slight, the ך becoming ך, and is supported by the Old Syriac Version. It must be remembered that the bridegroom immediately addresses the bride, speaking of her mother. The apple tree would certainly be most naturally supposed to be situated somewhere near the house where the bride was bore perhaps overshadowing it or branching over the windows, or trained upon the trellis surrounding the house. The bridegroom points to it. "See, there it is, the familiar apple tree beside the house where thy dear self wast born. There, yonder, is where thy mother dwelt, and where thou heartiest my first words of affection as we sat side by side just outside the house under the shade of the apple tree." The language is exquisitely simple and chaste, and yet so full of the tender affection of the true lover. The spot where the first breathings of love came forth will ever be dear in the remembrance of those whose affection remains faithful and fond. The typical view certainly finds itself supported in these words. Nothing is more delightful and more helpful to the believer than to go over in thought, again and again, and especially when faith grows feeble, when the heart is cold and fickle under the influence of worldly temptations and difficulties of the Christian course, the history of the first beginning of the spiritual life. We recall how dear the Lord was to us then, how wonderful his love seemed to us, how condescending and how merciful. We reproach ourselves that we faint and fail; we cry out for the fulness of grace, and it is given us.

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