HEBREW WORD STUDY – FIERY PASSION ‘ASHISHOT אשישות Aleph Shin Yod Shin Vav Taw
Song of Solomon 2:5 “Stay me with raisin cakes, comfort me with apples, for I am sick of love.”
“Love is never lost if not reciprocated, it will flow back and soften and purify the heart.”
Washington Irving
I am a little confused with the words that are used here in the Hebrew, “Stay me with raisin cakes?” The word stay is samak. This has the idea of building a firm foundation, being a refuge or shelter. She wants this shelter to be made of raisin cakes. Obviously, she is referring to the symbolic meaning of raisin cakes. Commentators will tell you that raisin cakes were once prized as an aphrodisiac. I find that a little strange. If she is sick with passion, how will increase that passion help? There is an alternative rendering for the word raisin cakes or ashishot in the Hebrew and that is multiple fires. Fire is a common symbol of passion in the Semitic culture.
In fact, Chasidic Jews will recite this verse at the end of the Shabbat as they light the Havdalah candles. They will render this word ‘ashishot as multiple fires in relation to the Havdalah candles. The word havdalah means to separate. The Havdalah candles are two candles braided together. That although they are separate candles they come together by one fire when the candles are lit. This is a symbol of joining together with fire the ancient symbol of passion. When the fire goes out they become individuated again. So the young woman is no one night stand kind of woman, she is seeking some firm foundation or shelter in the torment of this love relationship through the mutual fiery passion of her beloved. I’ve met many one night stand Christians. They have a fiery fling of love for God when they get saved and then six months later things are as they were before.
This young Shulamite woman has chosen to love a king rather than a shepherd lover. The shepherd lover could offer her the security of a relationship and companionship. She would have no competition for her shepherd lover’s affection. Life as a simple peasant girl could continue with little change, She would be surrounded by her family with a known and predictable environment. Life would become routine, but at least she would stay within her comfort zone. However, she has chosen to love a king, one who would take her away from her family, into a strange environment. She would go into a life with many unknowns and much competition for the affections of her lover.
In just a few short years this king had built a harem of 80 wives and numerous concubines. Unless this young woman was an utter fool, she would have had many moments of doubt and fear that this king, who may shower her with attention at the moment, would abandon her to his harem of numerous women who also seek her lover’s attention while he goes off after another woman that may capture his attention. She has fallen in love with this king and now the fears and doubts are arising. Is she just another conquest? Will she be just another woman in the harem living on a memory of her one night with the king? Love has now become a cholath, a sickness or affliction. She craves that comfort of an intimacy in either a kiss, a soft touch or joining together in a fiery passion or an ashishot. It is in those moments of oneness when all the fears and questions are gone and she is assured of the kings everlasting love.
She also craves the comfort of apples. The word in the Hebrew for apples nagach which could also mean pomegranates which is a traditional symbol of fertility. I like the alternative meaning better for nagach which is to gently blow. The young lover is asking her beloved to join her with a fiery passion and for him to gently blow or fan those flames and keep them alive. For she knows that once the flames do die she will be separated from Him.
When we chose to follow our passions for Jesus we enter a new world. We have chosen to leave our comfort zone and to enter an unknown. This step of faith can be frightening and many doubts arise to draw us back to our zone of comfort and that which we see, feel and know. When those doubts and fears arise, that is when we look to our King and we plead that He will comfort us with ashishot (raisin cakes?) or a joining with us in fiery passion where we feel that oneness with Him. In feeling that oneness with Him all our fears of the unknown and all our doubts fade. In that ‘ashishot – raisin cake, we know he will never leave us we will be in heaven after this life passes. But, soft, that is not enough, at least for this young, love sick Shulamite woman. She wants more she wants her king to fan those flames of passion so that that fiery love will last forever and not die.
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