The Song of Songs
Manage episode 414407244 series 3437881
The Song of Songs, also known as the Song of Solomon, could be a collection of various songs, or it could mean that it is the best of the songs, like "King of kings, Lord of lords, Song of Songs." In Hebrew it could mean it is either "by," "for," or "about" Solomon, and there are few divisions, so it makes it hard to understand who is speaking. Most interpreters believe there are at least three characters, the bride-to-be, her maidens known as the "daughters of Jerusalem," and the groom-to-be. Some think 8:8-9 are a group of male friends who may be his groomsmen. There is debate on if the man is Solomon or a shepherd. I hold to the groom-to-be as a shepherd because of the references of Solomon in this song, they seem impersonal, they stress he is the king, and yet it seems the bride-to-be does know about how Solomon does things. We know from the text that the bride was a shepherdess and vine grower, and she is referenced as a Shulammite, but that is unclear if she is from Shunem from the tribe of Issachar in Northern Israel, or if it just means "Peaceable one," which is the feminine form of Solomon. Could it be that the bride was the kings daughter?
This love song starts with a yearning for each other, then starting in 3:1 it seems to cover the dreams of the shepherdess. It moves into more yearnings, and then they consummate their marriage and live happily ever after. There are two phrases that are repeated through this song, "Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you by the gazelles and by the does of the field; 'Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires," and then "I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine,"
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