Song of the Bride

by Jeanne Guyon

The greatest love story ever written, the Song of Solomon describes the emotional, unfolding story of the Bridegroom and His bride. Jeanne Guyon shows how the song of a young maiden, fervently in love with her suitor, becomes a powerful allegory of every believer’s relationship with Christ depicted in the Song of Songs. Without any embarrassment for King Solomon’s intimate portrayal of the lovers, she Allow your heart to draw near to the heart of God on this journey to the Father’s love.

Genres: Nonfiction, Christianity, Christian

208 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Jeanne Marie Bouvières de la Mothe Guyon (commonly known as Madame Guyon) was the leader of the Quietist movement in France. The foundation of her Quietism was laid in her study of St. Francis de Sales, Madame de Chantal, and Thomas a Kempis. At age 16, she married Jacques Guyon, a wealthy man of weak health, 22 years her senior. Until his death in 1676, her life was an unhappy one, partly due to the difference in their ages, and partly due to a tyrannical mother-in-law. Her public career as an evangelist of Quietism began soon after her widowhood.

Her first labors were spent in the diocese of Geneva, at Anecy, Gex, and Thonon, and in Grenoble. In 1686 she went to Paris, where she was at first imprisoned for her opinions, in the Convent of St. Marie in the Faubourg St. Antoine; she was released after eight months at the insistence of Madame de Maintenon. She then rose to the zenith of her fame. Her life at all times greatly fascinated those around her; the court, Madame de Maintenon, and Madame de Maintenon’s College of Ladies at Cyr, came under the spell of her enthusiasm. But the affinity of her doctrines with those of Michael Molinos, who was condemned in 1685, soon worked against her.

Her opinions were condemned by a commission, of which Bossuet was president. She then incurred Bossuet’s displeasure by breaking the promises she had made to him to maintain a quiet attitude and not return to Paris. She was imprisoned at Vincennes in December 1695, and the next year moved to Vaugirard, under a promise to avoid all receptions and correspondence, except by special permission. In 1698, she was imprisoned in the Bastille for four years. She spent the remainder of her life in retirement with her daughter, the Marquise de Bois, at Blois. She had numerous visitors of all ranks, some from foreign countries, and had a considerable correspondence. Her works fill some 40 volumes. (less)

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Madame Guyon lived in France during the time of Louis iv.
She was a Christian Mystic who lived a difficult life and she was imprisoned for several years 1696-1703) after publishing a book which was interpreted as "Quietism" which was considered heretical by the Roman Catholic church. As far as I know she never advocated it. So much for Free Speech.
"Quietism is defined as a system of religious mysticism teaching that perfection and spiritual peace are attained by annihilation of the will and passive absorption in contemplation of God and divine things. b : a passive withdrawn attitude or policy toward the world or worldly affairs. (Merriam Webster)
I found this discussion and study of the allegorical aspect of "The Song of Solmon" to be a bit over my head.

[Tirzah L. O. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful devotional interpretation through Song of Solomon. I found Md. Guyon's concepts very uplifting through a time when I needed to read them most. She uses what research she had available to her to consider not only the book of Songs, but also the journey of the soul in romance with its creator and lover. I will definitely read it again. My mother had read it when she was in her early 20s and so it has passed hands. It you enjoyed Hinds' Feet, Song of the Bride is philosophy behind that allegorical narrative.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book many years ago and loved it. I felt such an overwhelming love flowing over me as I read that I would just weep. I loaned it to someone and thought I had lost it. I now have two slightly different copies and am revisiting it with the two side by side. Awesome book.

[Denise Reed · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt myself rush through the book, partially because it reminded me of a textbook. I was excited to read this book and even more amazed to find out she went to prison for writing it. The quotations from different authors were distracting. She's the female version of C.S Lewis to me, she's a brilliant writer but because of the time period differences some of the information went over my head but it was still good to keep my interest. It explains each verse in Song of Solomon as a conversation between bride and bridegroom. It discusses their passion for each other, bride is still beautiful despite her flaws because her beauty is found in Him. She's black because she received a sun tan from the Divine Sun with His overflowing love, blackness is a sign of progress. It begins with talking about a kiss, which is usually the last thing to make marriage finalized. Consummation involves the mixture of soul is mixed with God, she can no longer distinguish herself. Similar to when a drop of wine is placed in water. Throughout our intimacy with God we are called to draw people to Him, brides usually have children after marriage, we are called to have spiritual babies.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too heavy on the symbolism for my taste. But I would love to read more about Jeanne Guyon.

[Neil R. Coulter · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm both fascinated and puzzled by the mystics. I find the image-rich writing intriguing, and I'm drawn to the incredible closeness to God that they experience. But my enlightenment-educated (-imprisoned?) self can't quite find the door into mysticism. While I want to be open to that kind of experience of God, I feel myself kept at a distance. But I think it's important to challenge myself with pictures of other journeys in the Christian life, so I occasionally turn to the mystics to give me that richer perspective. Earlier this year, I enjoyed Frank Laubach's Letters by a Modern Mystic (reviewed here).

This week I've been reading Madame Guyon's Song of the Bride, a kind of commentary on the Song of Songs. I really like the Song of Songs, but the way I understand its imagery is almost totally different from Guyon's perspective. I see the book more literally, about human marriage and relationship. I find allegorical interpretations, in which the relationship is actually Christ and his church (whether individuals or the whole church) a bit strained. Sure, some details fit really nicely into such an interpretation, but others are quite awkward. Can I read lines like this with a straight face: "The navel represents the part of you which is made to grow and be filled up in God" (100)?

Even questionable image-interpretation aside, I found the book difficult to focus on. Perhaps this is the fault of the translation, or maybe I just wasn't in the proper frame of mind to follow Guyon on this journey.

I'm glad to have read something by Guyon, and I'm still interested in reading her Short and Easy Method of Prayer, but my fascination with mysticism remains at a distance. I would like to be more of a Lucy Pevensie, but I'm not there yet.