In the King James or Authorised Version the book is known as ‘The Song of Solomon’. However, in the Hebrew Bible, the Tanakh, the title is ‘Shir hash-Shirim’ or ‘The Song of Songs’, which is taken from the first four words of the opening verse. If we think of the Biblical phrases ‘King of kings’, ‘Holy of holies’ or ‘Lord of lords’, the sense of these phrases is, respectively, the most exalted of all kings, the most holy of all holy places and the loftiest of all lords, in other words they are superlative forms. This, then, is what we are being told about the Song of Songs, this is THE Song, not just one of many. In fact, this interpretation is also suggested in The Amplified Bible which has the opening verse as: “THE SONG of songs [the most excellent of them all]...” as well as in the New English Translation: “Solomon’s Most Excellent Love Song”.
The book itself is presented in the form of a dialogue, with only the opening verse not following this general style (in other words, the book is more than 99% dialogue). This style is likely chosen because it is both a personalising and engaging style (rather like an acted-out stage show)… so that we can effectively transport ourselves in to the scene… which is the Spirit’s absolute intention.
What is also interesting to note is that:
• approximately half of the dialogue is the Bride’s,
• around one third is the Bridegroom’s, and
• almost one sixth is the Virgins and other minor parts.
The book’s poetic form makes abundant use of refrains and a lyrical rhythm continues throughout the eight chapters. Additionally, the book draws upon rich descriptive language and is full of both symbol and imagery. We are constantly confronted with superlatives; the Bride is the “fairest” (Song of Solomon 1:8,Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 1:8 Song of Solomon 5:9,Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 5:9 Song of Solomon 6:1),Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 6:1 the Bridegroom is the “chiefest” (Song of Solomon 5:10)Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 5:10 and the garden is altogether resplendent.
Furthermore, throughout the book, we have profuse metaphors and similes, for example, the Bride is “a garden inclosed” (Song of Solomon 4:12)Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 4:12 and the Bridegroom is “like a roe or a young hart” (Song of Solomon 2:9).Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 2:9
We note that the next most dialogue-rich book in scripture is Job, which significantly pre-dates the Song of Songs (perhaps by 700-800 years). Taking these two books together we could say that they represent the two stages of the life of a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, suffering and then glory:
“The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ [through marriage, for 1 Peter 3:7Waiting for response for 1 Peter 3:7 describes the husband and wife as “heirs together of the grace of life”]; if so be that we suffer with him [akin to the dialogue of Job], that we may be also glorified together [as in the dialogue of the Song of Songs].” (Romans 8:16-17)Waiting for response for Romans 8:16-17
Linking with this poetic style, it is marvellous to witness the way in which all of the senses are successfully engaged by the book. We have the breath-taking views of mountains and valleys, the rich scent of spices and flowers, the sweet flavour of honey and the honeycomb, the melodious sound of bird song and the gentle touch of the hands. Song of Solomon 2:14,Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 2:14 Song of Solomon 1:12,Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 1:12 Song of Solomon 2:3,Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 2:3 Song of Solomon 2:6.Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 2:6
Commentators have been known to call the Song of Solomon, almost as a kind of sub-title, ‘The Book of Love’. Indeed, in Judaism this book is believed to depict the loving relationship between God and Israel, as a husband and wife. The following illustrative verses show the basis of this interpretation:
• “For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name...” (Isaiah 54:5)Waiting for response for Isaiah 54:5
• “...as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.” (Isaiah 62:5)Waiting for response for Isaiah 62:5
However, as we know, this pattern has been further expanded in the New Testament depiction of the loving relationship between Christ and the saints (or the ecclesia). Below is a small selection of verses that evidence this:
• “...I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 11:2)Waiting for response for 2 Corinthians 11:2
• “For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.” (Ephesians 5:31-32)Waiting for response for Ephesians 5:31-32
• “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.” (Revelation 19:7)Waiting for response for Revelation 19:7
• “And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” (Revelation 21:2)Waiting for response for Revelation 21:2
The depth of the relationship between the Bride and the Bridegroom in the book is further emphasised by using the title “spouse” (Revised Version: “bride”) alongside “sister”. On four occasions the terms appear together (“my sister, my spouse” in Song of Solomon 4:9,10,12Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 4:9,10,12 and Song of Solomon 5:1)Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 5:1 and on three occasions we have just one of the terms (“my spouse” in Song of Solomon 4:8,11Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 4:8,11 and “my sister” in Song of Solomon 5:2).Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 5:2
After all, not only is this a loving husband-wife bond, but the two are also family:
“For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother.” (Mark 3:35)Waiting for response for Mark 3:35
As an aside, this multifaceted relationship, which exists between Christ and the saints, was pre-figured by Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 12 & 20.
Also of note is that, according to Jewish custom, between the betrothal (a solemn and formal commitment) and the actual marriage (when the wife went to the house of the Bridegroom / his father), there could elapse anything from a handful of days up to a full year. During this delay the woman was virtually regarded as the wife of her husband and therefore unfaithfulness was punishable by death. The read across to our own present situation must be abundantly clear, as we strive to be loyal to our absent beloved.
And so, when we look at this book, we should be completely engrossed – for this should be a portrayal of us (God willing) with our beloved one, even Jesus Christ our Lord.
Bearing in mind the suggested sub-title, ‘The Book of Love’, it is informative to note some of the book’s word statistics. For example, the English word ‘love’ appears 26 times in the Song of Songs, which is more than any other Old Testament book. Indeed, the word ‘love’ only occurs 23 times in the book of Psalms, which is over 15 times the size.
A broader search for the word ‘love’ in all of its variant English forms uncovers a total of 67 appearances (visualised below), as follows: ‘beloved’ (31 times), ‘love’ (26 times), ‘loveth’ (5 times), ‘beloved’s’ (2 times), ‘loves’ (1 time), ‘lovely’ (1 time), ‘wellbeloved’ (1 time).
No other book in scripture has such an abundance of this high theme; although John’s First Epistle is perhaps closest, with its 51 combined appearances. Again, we could also compare the Song of Songs with scripture’s largest book, the Psalms, which has just 47 occurrences of love in all of its variant forms, across its 150 ‘chapters’.
Some commentators have suggested that this eight-chapter book contains as few as five songs and others have proposed as many as thirty. However, at the beginning of this chapter we suggested that twelve songs (or we might say sub-songs) make up the overall ‘Song of Songs’.
This is straightaway an appealing thought, for we might compare this to the twelve tribes of Israel, which nevertheless comprise one nation. However, there is much more substance to our suggestion than this, for we are led directly to the number twelve when we study the changes of voice in the dialogue (singular / plural; masculine / feminine) and also the repeated phrases / refrains (e.g. the same phrase forms the end of Songs 2, 4 and 10 in Song of Solomon 2:7;Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 2:7 Song of Solomon 3:5Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 3:5 and Song of Solomon 8:4).Waiting for response for Song of Solomon 8:4
The complete list of the twelve songs is marked out as follows:
1 - 1:1 to 1:8
2 - 1:9 to 2:7
3 - 2:8 to 2:17
4 - 3:1 to 3:5
5 - 3:6 to 4:7
6 - 4:8 to 5:1
7 - 5:2 to 6:10
8 - 6:11 to 6:13
9 - 7:1 to 7:9
10 - 7:10 to 8:4
11 - 8:5 to 8:7
12 - 8:8 to 8:14
In the first paragraph in this introduction we mentioned that amongst broader Christendom, the Song of Songs is a much misunderstood book. One on-line Encyclopaedia we looked at described it as having a ‘lack of explicitly religious content’. To the uninformed eye this may indeed appear to be the case. However, as we will appreciate, the eye of faith sees things very differently.
Far worse, however, are the slanderous accusations sometimes cast at the book, which employ such terms as: ‘erotic’, ‘misogynistic’ or even ‘obscene’. Now, not only do these words constitute a dreadful slur upon an inspired book which is altogether pure and lovely, but more than this they completely miss the point of the imagery contained in the various songs.
Let us reflect for a moment, by way of example, upon the imagery of breasts in the twelve songs as found in the following passages: 1:13; 4:5; 7:3, 7, 8; 8:1, 8, 10. These eight occurrences use the symbology of the breasts to gauge (or evidence) spiritual maturity. As such, the description of the breasts of the Bride is variously that they are: “like two young roes that are twins”, like “clusters of grapes” and “like towers”, reflecting her state of advancement in spiritual matters. This can be contrasted with the spiritually nascent “little sister” in chapter 8, who “hath no breasts”; a fitting symbol of immature natural Israel.
And so, with little real effort but great care, we can uncover the true meaning of those passages over which many, including so-called ‘Christian’ commentators, stumble.
The lesson for each of us could really be no simpler; we must look beyond the surface appearances in the book to gain deeper spiritual instruction for ourselves.
Ezekiel, in strong words of rebuke to the Babylonian captives, upbraided them for hearing but not truly heeding the Word of God. He said:
“thou art unto them as a very lovely song [Revised Version mg. “a love song”] of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear thy words, but they do them not” (Ezekiel 33:32).Waiting for response for Ezekiel 33:32
These are surely words of sober warning to us also. We must ask ourselves, how actively are we listening to the words of God? Also, how much do we see ourselves in the description of the virtuous Bride figure in the Song of Songs (perhaps the most detailed description of the present / future relationship between Christ and the saints in the whole of scripture)?
These are questions we plan to consider, all being well, in the remainder of this brief volume. However, before we do this, we will dwell a little longer so that we might first reflect on the Song of Songs as a dynamic script.
To understand the Song of Solomon, we have to constantly compare scripture with scripture (see 1 Corinthians 2:13)Waiting for response for 1 Corinthians 2:13 to uncover the meaning of passages and symbols; a very similar approach to an exposition of Revelation. In particular, we this method is used to decipher the intricate descriptions of the Bride and the Bridegroom, from which we can gain deep spiritual instruction.
The book in numbers:
• 8 chapters
• 117 verses
• 2,661 English words, which is about
as many as the book of Ruth. The
Song of Solomon is the 10th
smallest Old Testament book
• 12 songs, with the shortest songs
(songs 8 & 11) 3 verses and the
longest song (song 7) 25 verses
• The book refers to approximately 21
varieties of plants and 15 types of
animals and mentions around 15
different locations
• 67 occurrences of words containing
love (most to least frequent):
beloved, love, loveth, beloved’s,
loves, lovely, wellbeloved