Spurgeon Saturday

My Dissertation is Available

In this Spurgeon Saturday, I’m happy to share that my PhD dissertation on Spurgeon and the Song of Solomon is now available to download from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Full Title: The Treasury of Solomon: A Retrieval of Charles H. Spurgeon’s (1834–1892) Spirituality of the Song of Songs

A Favorite Quote from Spurgeon on the Song:

Spurgeon revealed his view of the Song of Songs as he commented on Song 1:7:

“This book of the Canticles is most precious to us, it is the inner court of the temple of truth. It seems to us to belong to the secret place of the tabernacle of the Most High. We see our Saviour’s face in almost every page of the Bible, but here we see his heart and feel his love to us.”

And therein lies why the Song was so precious to Spurgeon. He viewed the Song as the place where a believer can see Christ’s heart on display and feel Christ’s affection in full array.

I really believe the Song of Solomon was Spurgeon’s favorite book of the Bible. I have a whole section in my dissertation dedicated to exploring this idea. (I think I’m right!)

The Abstract/Summary:

In this dissertation, I argue that Charles H. Spurgeon, in light of his Christ-centered hermeneutical and homiletical convictions, practiced the spiritual, christological interpretation of the Song of Songs, and that his interpretive model of the Song is one to be retrieved. Chapter 1 examines the essential elements of the study, sets forth the thesis of this work, and establishes Spurgeon’s Christocentric view of the Song of Songs. Chapter 2 presents a biography of Spurgeon’s life with the Song of Songs in view and also establishes what influenced Spurgeon’s hermeneutic and homiletic to see communion with Christ as the central theme of the Song. Chapter 3 explores what Spurgeon termed as “spiritualizing,” seeing how this practice from Spurgeon is essential to understanding his spiritual interpretation of the Song. Chapter 4 analyzes and considers the variety of spiritual benefits and enjoyments Spurgeon discovered in the Song, with special attention on mutual affection and enjoyment with Christ, friendship with Christ, and the biblical spiritual disciplines. Chapter 5 narrows in focus by examining how Spurgeon preached one verse, Song of Songs 2:16, and the spiritual comfort he saw in the text, namely, the doctrine of assurance. Chapter 6 concludes the study with a summary of key findings and arguments, and it provides spiritual and practical reflections for recovering a Christoaromatic spirituality of the Song for today.

Download