In the middle of the Song of Solomon’s beautiful love poetry stands a stark warning against allowing little sins to ruin a relationship’s loveliness. “Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom.” (Song of Solomon 2:15). At first, the warning, directly after the narrator affirms his beloved’s goodness and their great relationship, feels out of place. However, it proves to be a vital point about how to keep blessed relationships flourishing.
To understand why this point is vital, we must consider what foxes and little vines the author meant and how the warning fits with the Bible’s other teachings about relationships.
What Does “Little Foxes Spoil the Vine” Mean?
Foxes were known for ravaging vineyard fruit. Pillaging grapes and gnawing at vine roots transformed something meant to give life and joy into bygone hopes, fruitless labors—loss and barrenness, a stark metaphor about damaged relationships or a damaged spiritual life. Foxes would devour vines at night when the vineyard owner’s slumber allowed them to eat freely.
In relational terms, little foxes refer to the “little sins” that threaten to plunder relationships of their potential bounty. In verse 13, Solomon declares that “the fig tree has ripened its figs, and the vines in blossom have given forth their fragrance. . .” Both images refer to a future joy that people anticipate—a joy that people feel assured will come given the current conditions. Before it brings forth its sweet summer fruit, a fig tree bears early spring figs that foretell the coming delight. The grapevine’s sweet-smelling flowers foretell the coming fruit. The lovers’ relationship is suited to produce beauty and life.
Still, the future hope is vulnerable to the little foxes’ damage. The sins we sleep on and do not deal with directly can chew away at the relationships’ foundations.
So, what might these sins be?
What Kind of Little Foxes Should We Watch Out For?
Have you ever seen a picture of a little fox? They are adorable. No one wants to kill a little fox—except maybe a wise person who knows the damage a rogue fox can cause.
The image shows the sins that we need to watch out for. The sins that seem like “no big deal.” The sins that we have grown acquainted with. The sins we have justified and glorified. The sins we have protected. We tend to leave numerous little sins feasting at our foundations because we do not perceive their threat properly.
One example is bitterness. Hebrews 12:15 warns that a “root of bitterness” will “spring up to cause trouble and defile many.” We tend to let bitterness fester because it distances us from people—we are prone to self-preservation in a world bound to hurt us. Pain that is allowed to fester and grow, the pain we do not bring to God—the only One who can bear it—will likely cause bitterness in wounded hearts. It will inevitably “spoil the vineyards.”
Bitterness often causes resentment, another little fox to watch out for. Since we do not see how much resentment rests in our hearts, only the small frustrations that pop up throughout our days, we do not recognize its power over us. We tend to give bitterness life instead of dealing with it ruthlessly. Not to mention that indulging resentment offers a false sense of satisfaction. But a budding resentment will grow. It will make us feel wronged at every corner. It will eat away at any hope of a loving relationship.
Lust also tends to go unconfronted and unconfessed. Our culture has accommodated lust in many ways, often idolizing it, so surrendering to lust almost feels unavoidable. Thus, big compromises about sexual temptation feel small, and little compromises feel like nothing. But any level of lust is adultery in one’s heart (Matthew 5:28). It is no harmless creature.
Other little foxes include a gossiping tongue, discontentment in one’s heart, unsurrendered anxiety, and covetous desires.
We don’t just have to consider how these foxes affect romance, either.
Does “Little Foxes Spoil the Vine” Only Refer to Marriage?
Any relationship can be spoiled by little sins that are allowed to thrive—even our relationship with God. Romans 8:38-39 says that “neither death, nor life, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” We cannot win God’s love by conforming to a set of laws, nor can we lose it by violating a law. But we can forgo the intimacy that He wants to have with us if we feed the little foxes in our lives. Jesus said that the pure in heart are blessed: they will truly see and know their Heavenly Father (Matthew 5:8).
What is true of our relationship with God is also true of our human relationships. As people made in the image of a triune God, destined to grow in sanctification through relationships, we are created to be bound to others in love. This includes marriages, friendships, acquaintanceships, parent/child relationships, and others. If tended and cared for, all these relationships are designed to bear fruit. If left vulnerable to the greedy little foxes, all of them are susceptible to spoil.
What Helps Us Watch Out for Little Foxes Spoiling the Vine?
The very relationships that are susceptible to spoiling are the ones that help us to watch out for the little foxes. In the Song of Solomon passage, the Shulemite’s lover tells her to be on guard, for he knows her best and loves her most.
We all have (or should have) people who know us so intimately that they seem to see our own sins and struggles better than we do ourselves. Those people are best equipped to help us stay alert. We also hear spiritual advice best from those people because we know they are concerned, not condemning.
Therefore, we must live in fellowship with other believers. Fellowship creates a space where we are fully known and fully loved. When Christ saves us, it is not salvation into isolation; we are saved into a family. His family.
Relationships aid our walk with Christ for many reasons, one of which is that they help us keep watch over our spiritual vineyards. Christian relationships help us see where the little foxes threaten our vineyard root systems. These relationships also strengthen us when we feel we cannot kill the cute little predators. We cannot do the work alone, but we don’t have to. We have a spiritual community that helps in our hour of need.
Spouses and friends provide much of the spiritual fellowship we need to spot the little foxes, but they are not the only people we can draw on. It also helps to have a designated accountability partner. The accountability partner should be someone who knows your history, thought patterns, and sin struggles. Someone you can trust will tell you the truth even if it is hard to hear. Someone will receive confession and repentance, and will pray for you always. James 5:16 says to “confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. A prayer of a righteous person, when it is brought about, can accomplish much.”
The act of repentance in a relationship brings to light the sins that Satan wants to keep hidden–that way, he can use the sins to increase his power over your life. What is brought to light is given to Christ to cleanse with His blood. Having someone you can trust as an accountability partner eases this process.
Along with intentional fellowship, reading God’s Word and praying daily are necessary safeguards against little foxes. “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). It should be a regular experience of every Christian to experience conviction when reading Scripture and praying to the Lord. To be sensitive to the convictions that lead to repentance, we must surrender to Christ and walk in obedience. God, our Heavenly Father, desires intimacy with all of His children. He wants our relationships with others to be fruitful and sweet, so He will readily—and more lovingly than any human ever could—reveal the little foxes in our lives that, by the power of Christ’s blood, we can catch them and get rid of them for good.
Photo Credit:©iStock/Getty Images Plus/AlenaPaulus
Meghan Trapp earned her Masters of Arts in Applied Theology from Heartland School in Ministry in Kansas City in 2021, and is now joyfully staying home to raise her daughter. When she is not reading children’s books or having tea parties, Meghan is volunteering with a local anti-trafficking organization, riding bikes with her family, writing or reading (most likely Amy Carmichael or C.S. Lewis). Her deepest passion is to share the heart of Christ with teenagers and young adults.
This article is part of our larger resource library of popular Bible verse phrases and quotes. We want to provide easy to read articles that answer your questions about the meaning, origin, and history of specific verses within Scripture's context. It is our hope that these will help you better understand the meaning and purpose of God's Word in relation to your life today.
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